"'Ye' and Church Fans!"

Kanye...

I'm hearing so much and reading so much about him lately. Some is good, some questionable, some suspicious or just bad.  The most that I knew about him prior to his conversion and new music, was negative press about music awards drama, and his deep hurt when his mother passed. I have heard that he is a musical genius, and that is cool, but I am still not a follower or really not a fan, mainly because I have differing taste in music. Truthfully I personally can't name one of his songs or hits,  but just as I do for other artists and celebrities, I do pray for him.  So all this talk has been interesting to me, here is why...

REAL OR STUNT?

The biggest concern I have heard so far is whether Kanye's conversion is a stunt or is it real. That is so funny to me that we would ask that question, especially since most if not all of us have issues in our own lives that look fake to someone.  It is funny because we don't ask that question of the ex con that comes to our church, or the prostitute that shows up at the altar.  It seems that somehow because he is a celebrity- God needs us to 'vet' him.  God doesn't really need us to know if his intentions are good or bad, it is not for us to decide.  I recall a time in the bible where they had a similar dilemma, and scripture said in Acts 5:38-39: 

"So I advise you to stay away from these men. Leave them alone. If what they are planning is something of their own doing, it will fail.  But if God is behind it, you cannot stop it anyway, unless you want to find yourself fighting against God Himself. The council members agreed with what he said." 

So, in the same spirit, instead of getting in the way of what God controls, how about we focus on just doing our part.  Some of us have a problem of overreacting or under-reacting when a celebrity turns to Christ.

CHURCH FANS

I remember there  was a young man who was a well-known celebrity that announced that he had given his life to Christ.  The church was excited, but excited for all the wrong reasons .  It seemed like we were happy someone from the "other side" was on "our side" now.  So without much thought, because they knew him and his music, churches began to invite him to sing and minister at their church. This was not a problem the celebrity brought about, it came from the church. We don't typically open our pulpits to new converts, but if we do, that is our doing.  Well the artist was good and happy to be welcomed into churches and soon was booked to play at many churches as the body of Christ 'embraced' him.  But then the problems surfaced.

I remember reading later that the young man who left the secular world in a broken state, and became a celebrity Christian, committed suicide.  This new babe in Christ who was running from empty feelings of loss in the world- found the same in the church.  The demand for his gift without a concern for his well being, and a church that was weak and more interested in what HE had to offer them, than they were in what THEY had to offer him in Christ.  In short, we responded as fans.... not  as the church. 

THE PROBLEM

This young man as a celebrity, was skilled in his gift.  He knew how to work a crowd, schedule gigs and how to basically do what he was paid to do.  What he didn't know was the word of God, the plans of God,  how to pray, how to walk in humility, how to be filled with the power of God, how to forgive.  He didn't know what God required for a believer to live this life, or how to study and grow strong in the things of God. He didn't know the promises of God to help him when he was hurting. In short, he had not been discipled. 

It is not our job to judge whether a new believer is serious or not, our job is to welcome them in, and to help them to grow and walk in the purpose God has for them.  So even if the new covert is a celebrity, we can't afford to forget that they are all new babes in Christ and they need discipleship, they need the word of God and they need to be covered in prayer... the same thing that we would offer to those who come off of our streets who get saved at our church altar.  Instead of being so concerned whether or not their intentions are right, we need to be sure ours are.

CONCLUSION:

My encouragement to all of us would be to be thankful and pray for anyone who says they have received Christ.  A new tree does not produce fruit as soon as it is planted, so we can't judge their intentions or their sincerity.  Being able to write or tell their testimony in song or in speech is what any new babe in Christ can do.  But what they can't do is feed themselves, cover themselves, or learn to walk alone. That is the job of the church.

So if you are a believer in his circle, the responsibility falls on you to help him- disciple and walk along side of him, pointing him to the Word and grace of God.  

If you are a fan, you will be there no matter what...

If you are the CHURCH then pray he gets to know God, that he grows in wisdom and knowledge of God and walks in the purpose that God assigned him before the foundation of the earth. Pray that God will receive the glory from his life and that like all of us, that people will be drawn because of his life, and let God handle the rest.  

In a nutshell, don't just be a FAN, be the CHURCH.

"Praise Deception"

I was riding in my car early one morning and had this moment with God.  In that moment a song was playing and my mind flooded with total recall of God’s goodness.   I was in my ‘Happy Place”.  See God is good and at any moment we can be reminded of His goodness.  It can be triggered by a song, a thought in church, in your car even in your shower.  We can remember how gracious He is and we are caught up in a genuine moment of praise.  When that happens, our problems dissipate and the things that are troubling us feel distant.  FOR THE MOMENT.  When we come down from that moment of praise, reality kicks in.  Those bills are still there, the loss is there, the relationship drama has not moved, and the financial woes are still looming.  In a moment it seems that our praise was deceptive.

 DECEPTION 

Could it be that God has fooled us, and lulled us into a place of complacency and peace that is not at all real?  If we are not careful, we can begin to ridicule our own praise because we still have the same issues in front of us. Our praise may seem to fool us into thinking that somehow something got better.    

But the deception is not in your praise, it’s your circumstances.  

The things we are going through are deceiving us into thinking that our praise is not powerful, that our praise is not a weapon, that our God is not good, and He is not faithful.  But the truth of the matter is that OUR PRAISE is a reminder to us that we have not given up.  We are still expecting better in our life.  We trust God and know that things can turn around at any moment.   Praise does still the enemy, but it also strengthens us for the fight.  Praise is a precursor for victory. When done in advance, it confuses the enemy to the point that he fights against himself.  If we stay in there, do the things God has told us to do and allow God to do what He said He would do in our lives, our praise will escalate to another level.   There is FAITH in PRAISE!   Genuine Praise says I see better, believe better and expect better! 

PRAISE BREAK! 

So be encouraged, take advantage of those days that praise hits you, when you enjoy the presence of God and feel the joy and peace that comes with it.  That kind of praise is not emotional, though it touches your emotions.... it is a reminder of the plan and the promise that God has over your life.  And praise reminds you that you BELIEVE IT!  
Your next level of praise will be filled with testimonies of the things that God has done in your life.  So take time to enjoy the praise intermissions even in the midst of what does not seem praise worthy, because your God is always worthy!   

REMEMBER:   Your PRAISE is not DECEPTIVE, your PROBLEMS are.

"The Other Side of Pride!"

I was talking to a friend the other day and was sharing something God gave me to give them.   Before talking to them, I thought hard about what I was about to tell them.  See I believe anything God gives you to give someone else, should go through you first!  If it is a biblical truth, it affects all of us, just in different ways.  So, I was trying to understand how what I was about to share also fit me.  

What I told them was that there was an area in their life, that until surrendered to God, it would be difficult to progress in some things they have been asking God to manifest.  I also told them what area that was.  But when thinking about myself, I couldn’t figure out what my area was that needed to be yielded more.   I knew that if I was going to discover what it was, I would need someone else to tell me because I was too close to me.   So, after talking to my friend, I asked them about my area and if they could shed any light on it… they quickly obliged.  As they spoke they said one thing stood out.  “You don’t allow people to help you.  You are always trying to give people something to bless them, you always make sure you pay people quickly, and all of that is good, but you do it without receiving help when others offer it.”  Before they could finish, I simply said “PRIDE.”   

THE OTHER SIDE OF PRIDE

We often think that pride is thinking we are better than others.  We assume the only side of pride is taking praise for things we have done, thinking too highly of ourselves, or the great pleasure we receive when we think we have attained something on our own, but that is just one side of it. 

Recently my financial adviser told me not to give away another book!  When he said it I kind of smiled, knowing that I probably would because I enjoyed blessing people who had a need, especially when it was my grief book.  Many of those people ask to BUY one, they can afford it and are more than willing to, but I would override them and just give them a book.  That can turn into the other side of pride- Not allowing God to use someone else to bless you when you are blessing them.  

I was told once that I don't like being wrong.  When I heard that, I didn't understand it at first.  I knew that I didn't always think I was RIGHT, so I was baffled.  At that time my then husband helped me to understand it better.  He said it is true, I don’t like to be WRONG, but it is not that I think I am RIGHT.  I just try too hard to do right by people and that in itself can turn to wrong.  In a weird kind of way, over the years in my attempt to avoid being prideful, I had  inadvertently began to take pride in not being prideful! 

A FALSE BALANCE

I searched for a scripture to help me to understand my newfound issue better so I could overcome in that area, and most scriptures about pride were helpful, but they dealt mostly with my previous definition of pride.  Then I found Proverbs 11:1-2 and I felt it come full circle.

“A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight. When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.”

This scripture helped me understand that God is not one sided, not in business, not in blessings.  Sometimes we're so excited about being used by God and we want so bad to be a blessing that we don't do the things that are normal when it comes to the balance of giving and receiving.  I have had experiences where people charge exorbitant amounts to speak or sing at an event, and that looks off balance, and we might call that pride.  But that is just one side of it, if we are not charging much at all for things, that is still a false balance and it can be motivated by the other pride. Many Christian business owners don’t charge people enough for it to be a mutual blessing- (others charge too much just because they don't want to be taken advantage of). When we don't charge enough, our balance is off and the business owner struggles to be blessed- because they were so busy trying to be a blessing.  Their testimony is not balanced, and it does not glorify God when their business closes. Don’t get me wrong…  Scriptures tell us it is “More blessed to GIVE than to RECEIVE”.  We will teach, preach and proclaim that every day, but only being found GIVING is a false balance because God still expects us to receive. 

EXAMPLE:  God GAVE His best to us, if the principal of giving was the only thing that was counted as a blessing, then He received that blessing.  But God gave with expectation that we would RECEIVE that gift.  Is receiving it viewed as wrong or not a blessing?  NO, the gift was given with the intent to  be received as well, and it so blessed us that we are now a part of that BLESSING.   

Avoid falling into the subtle trap of the enemy.  Pride will have you off balance and that pride can lead to disgrace.  Humility can be seen in allowing God to bless you through a just balance.   There must be a balance in our Giving and Receiving.  Strive to be a blessing to people but be willing also to receive a blessing from the people you bless! 

#foreverchanged

"But God!" A Poem for Today!

It seemed even if people tried to care for me,

No one could help or set me free.

Encouragement was offered for problems each day,

People tried to uplift me when sickness came my way.

Nobody could, But God.

No one could redeem me from the slavery of sin,

No one could renew the right spirit within.

No one could heal my body or ease all my fears,

No one, But God.

I thank God for the day that He made me whole,

He has cleansed me and redeemed my soul.

Even when doctors had given up on me,

He took all my sickness, and now I am free.

No one else cared enough to do this for me,

No one But God.

If you are in sin and you feel you don’t have a prayer,

Just know where you are lacking: God is there.  

If you are sick in your body and don’t know what to do,

If you feel all the world has given up on you.

Everyone But God.

Just turn to Jesus, He’ll show you what to do,

Because greater is He that lives inside of you.

If God said it, that is just what He will do,

He’s more than the whole world against you.

Stay in His word and He’ll lead you each day,

Then with power and boldness you can stand and say.

Now I live my life to please no one, But God!

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. 

Ephesians 2:4-6

Excerpt: "Goudeau Gumbo For The Soul"

"SubMission in Marriage" The 'S' Word...

For years, we have heard about submission.  Everyone has their own thoughts about what it looks like and why God decided it should be so.  The problem with submission is that it is a biblical principle that only works if you are biblical person.  Expecting every married couple to practice or commit to a biblical principal is useless- it's hard enough getting the church to do it! For many of us in church, submission has been the bad word that the church was used whenever someone wanted their point heard.  Because it was used to control conversations or people, we never thought much more about what God intended when He told us to do it. 

PUSH BACKS TO SUBMISSION

One thing we always understood as women, was that our men were not necessarily smarter or better leaders than we were, and it seemed difficult to submit to them.  We had jobs that respected our knowledge and insight and it just seemed wrong that we should lay aside all of that when we got home.  Another push-back is the mindset it left some men and women in.  Teaching about SUBMISSION gave the impression to women that they had to submit to MEN.  That is not what scripture said- it said WIVES submit to you OWN HUSBANDS, which made this word applicable only at home and in the covenant of marriage.  For men, it gave many the idea that they were the rulers and ultimate decision makers, and their women had to follow them without any question.  It also made mild mannered 'Clark Kent' men feel they had to have a Superman alter ego in order to manage their homes. All of these were wrong. 

BIBLE WOMEN

If we really want to see how God views women, we can look in our bibles.  Deborah was a warrior who the king would not go to war without her and Jesus had a group of professional and forgiven women who supported his ministry.  Abigail was a strong woman who had influence and wisdom, that stopped the soon to be King -David from killing her husband- who was conveniently named "Fool".   After God killed Nabal, David waited for her mourning time to be completed, then  he made her his wife.  So the strength of women is obvious, but so are the weaknesses... as seen in Eve, Bathsheba, Jezebel and Delilah.  So being as there are obvious strengths and weaknesses- just like there are strengths and weaknesses in the men, what did God want us to submit to?

THE ORIGINAL MISSION

When we taught submission to married couples, we basically broke the word up to make it more understandable.  Sub and Mission, which basically means to 'put your self under the mission'.  We would ask them to seek God about what the 'mission' was and then as women who were called to submit, we would fall in line with the mission of our households.  The area we miss it in our relationships is not knowing what our mission is.   Most times when we marry, we think the mission to be happy, have 3.5 kids, get a house, be financially stable, and to enjoy life.  That is OUR mission, not God's.  In the Garden of Eden, the original mission for man was to 'Be fruitful and multiply, replenish the earth and have dominion over it." according to Gen 1:28 we don't really think about that much when we marry.  We don't even really know what it is supposed to look like to be fruitful or have dominion even if we feel we are replenishing the earth with children.  The original mission was in the garden, the current mission is the world.  Mark 16:15 tells us to 'Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every person'.  We know not everyone is a preacher, but our lives are living epistles, our life should speak of God's grace and His goodness.  When we talk to people, it should be as the oracles of God, not griping about what they do or don't do. Our main mission is to lead others to Christ- even through our marriages . 

 A DO OVER!

Since a man and woman did not heed the original mission, we are basically getting a do over. When God spoke to man, woman did not heed the directives, but man also didn't enforce it.  This time we both get a chance to not just hear what God has said, but to obey it.  The enemy fights our men so women will not heed their voice, so they tend to be more passive in spiritual things or overly aggressive, but if we want to see God's hand in our lives, we will have to learn how to SUBMIT to the MISSION.   God has given our men back their original place of authority.  If we genuinely want to see a difference in our homes and this world,  as women we will need to submit to that role while also understanding that we too hear from God, and both of us must be about THE MISSION.  

What will look different in how we handle life if we really understand that we should seek God's mission first, and then all these things will be added.  Knowing we need to be about the same mission, will first change who we marry, then it will change how we submit to each other  to see it come to pass.  So submission is NOT a bad word, it is a word that empowers  our women, and challenges our men.  Let's seek to put our selves, under God's mission and watch Him work!

"Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God."  Ephesians 5:21