Joy Comes by Knowing The King

It seemed like the entire world watched when Prince William married Kate Middleton.  And, just a few years later, it seemed like the whole world held its breath, anticipating the birth of their first baby.  It was the same when Prince William's parents, Charles and Dianna, married and when he and Prince Harry were born.  And I'm sure it was the same when his grandparents, Elizabeth and Prince Phillip, married and when his father, Prince Charles, was born.   Some people are "royal watchers," and can tell you all there is to know about the royal family.   And if you want to know more about them, there is an official website of the British monarchy.  I'm sure with just a few clicks of the mouse you could find anything you want to know about the queen or the future king of England, including their genealogies.

 

No matter how much you know ABOUT the queen and her family, that doesn't mean you actually KNOW her.  And it certainly doesn't mean that she knows you!

 

But guess what!  There is a King who does know you.  He loves you and wants to call YOU His child!  He wants to adopt you into His family and make YOU His heir!  He is The King of Kings! 

 

And if you want to know more about this King, all you need to do is go to His Word, the Bible.  It will tell you all you want to know about him, even His genealogy which uniquely qualifies Him to reign as King.

 

Can you imagine how your life would change if you met Queen Elizabeth and she decided she wanted you to be her new BFF?  I'm sure she would give you luxurious gifts, invite you to the palace for a sleepover, let you eat some of the finest foods at her table, share her innermost secrets with you, and if you had a problem, she would do what any best friend would do.  She would do everything in her power to fix your problem for you. 

 

When you encounter King Jesus, how will your life change?  He wants to be your best friend forever.  Will you accept His friendship and all He has to offer you? 

• He wants to shower you with gifts like those mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 (New King James Version):  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." 
• He will give you an eternal home with Him, John 14:2 (Amplified Bible):  "In My Father’s house there are many dwelling places (homes). If it were not so, I would have told you; for I am going away to prepare a place for you." 
• He will sit you down at His table for a feast, John 6:35 (New King James Version):  "And Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.'" 
• He will give you wisdom, Proverbs 9:10 (King James Version):  "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding." 
• He wants us to bring all our problems to Him, John 15:7 (American Standard Version):  "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you."

 

The choice is yours.  The King is waiting for your answer.  One day, Jesus will come again, not as a baby in a manger, but as the Victorious King of all creation.  We are told in Romans 14:11 that in that day, every knee will bow to King Jesus and every tongue will make confession to Him:  "For it is written, 'As I live, saith the Lord, to me every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess to God.'" (American Standard Version)  That means that all the kings and queens, princes, dictators, presidents, and every person who ever lived will bow down to Him and will have to answer to Him for everything they ever did and every decision they ever made.  We will all have to answer for the choice we made when we encountered Him.  When Christ was born, the magi travelled a great distance to worship him.  Herod the Great felt threatened by Him and ordered all the boys, ages two and under, in and around the little town of Bethlehem be killed.  The priests and teachers in Jerusalem ignored and dismissed Him.  (See Matthew 2:1-18.)  I hope that you will be like the magi, the wise men who chose to worship Him.

 

I hope you will join with me in praying this prayer for yourself and for me this week, taken from James 4:8 (Easy-to-Read Version):  "(King Jesus, I want to) Come near to God and (I know that) You will come near to (me). (I am a) sinner, so clean sin out of (my) life. (I want to stop) trying to follow God and the world at the same time. Make (my) thinking pure."

I Choose Joy Over Junk

 

A sign in one of my favorite auction houses reads, "Junk is stuff we get rid of.  Stuff is junk we keep."  It's true that one man's trash is another man's treasure.  And for the last ten years or so, I've benefited from that philosophy because I have had a small antiques business in a local consignment mall.  One of the most fun things about that business has been shopping at auctions and estate sales, trying to find just the right junk that might turn out to be someone else's treasure.

I used to gripe at my husband for hoarding junk like old parts, wire, scrap
lumber, etc.  He would always tell me that he might need that someday.  As a part of my little antiques business, I've sold some things on e-bay.  So I must admit that, in the process, I've become a hoarder of "good" cardboard boxes, bubble wrap, peanuts, and tissue paper, using the excuse, "I might need that to mail something someday!"  I now have a large closet that is dedicated to boxes and bubble wrap.  (The photo to the right is one corner of my office. Honesty is sometimes painful.)   So I can't gripe at my husband about hoarding junk anymore.

The problem with junk is that it takes up space that could be used for something much better, much prettier, or more valuable.  Sometimes the junk takes over to the point that you can't see anything but the junk.  The first picture above came to me in an e-mail, challenging me to find the black and white cat in the photo.  I never did find it! 

Does junk clutter your life?  I'm not talking about old parts, wire, or bubble wrap.  I'm talking about junk like bitterness, jealously, envy, or any other negative influence that you allow to crowd out your joy.  Sometimes it's junk that other people bring into your life like gossip, drama, verbal or even physical abuse. 

If you have allowed the junk pile in your life to grow, perhaps as a result of an old hurt, injustice, fear, frustration or disappointment, then you need to clean house.  Let go of that junk, forgive the person who hurt you or let you down.  You are not hurting that person by holding onto your anger and bitterness, you are only hurting yourself.  You are allowing that person or situation to continue to have control over you, perhaps even years and years later.  In stead, turn that old situation over to God.  Allow Him to deal with it, and allow him to sweep out every remnant of junk from your life.  Allow Him to breathe new life into you, encouraging you to go in a new direction, away from the hurt, and toward your Comforter who wants to give you peace, hope, and complete joy.  Consider the following verses from God's holy word:

• "Never take vengeance into your own hands, my dear friends: stand back and let God punish if He will. For it is written: ‘Vengeance is mine. I will repay’." Romans 12:19 (J.B.Phillips New Testament)
• "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop." Mark 11:25 (Amplified Bible)
• "Here is a last piece of advice. If you believe in goodness and if you value the approval of God, fix your minds on the things which are holy and right and pure and beautiful and good. Model your conduct on what you have learned from me, on what I have told you and shown you, and you will find the God of peace will be with you."  Phillipians 4:8-9 (J.B.Phillips New Testament)

If you are continuing to allow another person to contribute to the junk pile in your life, put a stop to it right now.  Recognize that this person is a negative influence on you and that you are being harmed by him or her.  Decide now to place a wall of protection around yourself and your family -- yes, the junk you allow to be piled into your life affects the people around you, especially those closest to you.  Setting a boundary might mean something as simple as declining social invitations, or finding a new circle of friends.  But it might mean something as drastic as changing the locks on your doors.  If that person continues to try to be a part of your life, you may need to let him or her know, in as loving a way as possible, what it is they are doing that is harmful to you, and what needs to happen before you will remove the boundary you are setting.  In the case of physical abuse, leave now.  If you do not have family or friends who can help you, there are shelters available to you.  Your abuser may have tried to belittle you, but please know that your life is precious and full of potential.  God did not create you to be someone's junk pile.  Read what God has to say:

• "Any who love knowledge want to be told when they are wrong. It is stupid to hate being corrected."  Proverbs 12:1 (Good News Translation)
• "He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed."  Proverbs 13:20 (New King James Version)
• "Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour." 1 Peter 5:8 (New Revised Standard Version)
• "For the Spirit that God has given you does not make you slaves and cause you to be afraid; instead, the Spirit makes you God's children, and by the Spirit's power we cry out to God, 'Father! my Father!'"  Romans 8:15 (Good News Translation)
• "For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline."  2 Timothy 1:7 (American Standard Version)

Remember, we are instructed to forgive.  So if your friend or family member genuinely changes his or her behavior and is truly showing a willingness to quit unloading junk into your life, let the boundary down and give your relationship another chance.  That might mean a time of professional counseling and a gradual loosening of the boundaries.  I have personally witnessed seemingly impossibly broken relationships healed and restored, families saved and made even stronger as a result of firm boundaries being erected and loving forgiveness being extended and accepted. 

But if the other person refuses to make any changes, it might mean that you have to let go of the relationship permanently.  That does not mean you are relieved of the obligation to forgive.  Forgiveness may have no effect on the other person, but it will help you to move on to joy, avoiding the junk pile of anger and bitterness.
    

Just like it is probably time for me to clean out the junk from my closet and the corners of my office, now is the time for us to clean the junk from our lives.  I hope you will join me this week in this prayer, adapted from 2 Corinthians 7:1 (Complete Jewish Bible):  "Therefore, (Dear God), since we have these promises (from you), (help) us purify ourselves from everything that can defile either body or spirit, and (help us) to be completely holy, out of reverence for (You)." 



I Choose Joy Over Impatience

When I wrote my very first blog post on July 19 I said, "Along the way, I hope to share some of the challenges I have faced or am facing now and how I am doing at following my own advice to choose joy."  So, in the spirit of honesty and transperancy, I must admit that I am struggling with impatience. 

Hardly a week passes without someone asking me, "When will your book be available?"  I wish I knew the answer to that question.  Last April, when I first found out that it was going to be published, I asked, "How long will it take?"  I was told that it usually takes six to nine months.  (It's been almost five months, so obviously, it will take more than the optimistic six months.)  In June, the publisher contacted me, saying I had two weeks to supply my photo for the back cover.  I was all excited because it felt like it was becoming real.  Then, later that month, I was told that my book would go to editing in August.  As exciting as that news was, it was also a little deflating -- SO WHAT WILL BE HAPPENING OVER THE NEXT SIX WEEKS?  Let's get this thing moving!!!  So, August 1 I was expecting a phone call or an e-mail or SOMETHING telling me about the editing process, and surely by August 15 I was expecting to receive a marked up manuscript full of typos and re-writes.  NOT!  By the end of August, feelings of frustration, disappointment and, yes, impatience were beginning to set in.  On August 23 I received a letter of introduction from my Project Manager.  You might think that was progress, and I suppose it was, but the letter was a form letter and was not specific to my book at all.  It still didn't give me any hint about when to expect the finished project.  Then on September 3 I received an e-mail from my Project Manager, asking me to write a "Promotional Copy" and a bio for the back cover.  Great!  This meant we were making some progress, and it gave me something to do, something to make me feel productive.  I submitted the requested copy right away, not wanting to be the cause of any delays.  Finally, last Wednesday, September 11 I was able to speak to my project manager for the first time.  It was a quick phone call, mostly me answering questions about my book, since my project manager has not read it (sigh!).  I was able to ask about the editing process and how long to expect it to take.  I was assured that the general time frame of two to three months is fairly accurate (sigh, again!) but that we might trim a week or two off if I am quick with my corrections and re-writes (big sigh!).

 

So, I updated my calendar (see the tabs at the top of this page) to reflect the delays, keeping the expected release date marked with question marks.  I also updated the name of this week's blog.  Keeping with my alphabetical format, my "I" blog was going to be about choosing joy intentionally, since sometimes we need to consciously choose to be joyful.  Now I have to admit, that definitely applies to me this week.  I am having to make an effort to choose joy over impatience.

 

I'm so glad that God understands my impatience.  He did not leave us without instructions about how important it is to be patient.  Read the following verses with me.  I hope they encourage you as much as they have me today: 

• Romans 8:24b - 25:  "If we already have something, we don’t need to wait for it.  But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently."  (New Living Translation) 
• I Timothy 6:11, 12a:  "But thou, O man of God,... follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.  Fight the good fight of faith..." (King James Version)
• Hebrews 10:35-36:  "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." (New International Version)
• Hebrews 12:1b-3:  "And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.  We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.  Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.  Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up." (New Living Translation)
• James 1:2 - 4:  "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.  But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing."

If you are letting impatience rob you of joy, I hope this week you will pray with me, just as King David did in Psalm 25:5 -- "Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day." (New King James Version)

 

 

 

I Choose Joy in Heat and Humidity

A few weeks ago my pastor told us about a cedar chest that he inherited from his mother, who inherited it from her mother.  It was not the beautiful cedar chest he remembered when he was growing up.  That one was shiny, highly polished, and very protected by his mother.  She kept a lace doily on it to protect it from scratches from the picture frames and other nick-nacks that lived on top of it.  However, my pastor and his family lived near the coast, first in Lake Charles, Louisiana, then in Galveston, Texas, and finally in Houston, Texas.  Their home had only one window unit air conditioner, which was not capable of cooling the entire house.  The beautiful cedar chest eventually began to pay the price for its life in the heat and humidity of the Gulf Coast.  You see, the beauty of that cedar chest was in its veneer.  Its beauty was only skin deep, and as a result of prolonged exposure to the harsh elements, its veneer began to crack and pop away from the underlying structure of the cedar chest.  All the efforts to repair the veneer were in vain.  Eventually, that cedar chest was worthless and was thrown out.

But unlike the beautiful cedar chest, the chest my pastor inherited was solid wood.  It was made with craftsmanship and was able to withstand the very same elements the fancier chest had succumbed to.  This one was, in the end, much more beautiful and more useful than the other one. 

Which cedar chest describes the joy in your heart?  Is your joy only a veneer, vulnerable to your circumstances?  Or is your joy deeper, built on something solid, able to withstand the situations life throws at you day after day?

God's word, The Bible, tells us that "The joy of the Lord is our strength."  (Nehemiah 8:10).  That kind of joy will give you strength in any circumstance.  I know.  I've been there.  I've experienced the pain of losing my son when he was only 21 years old, while never losing the joy that knowing God brings.  Because I know Him, and because I have chosen to live for Him, I know that He will give me strength in my darkest hours, in the heat and humidity of life.  My life may not be the most beautiful, but it is sturdy, strong, and able to withstand anything the world may throw at it.  Not because of MY strength, but ONLY because of the strength and joy that God gives.

If you want to know that kind of joy and that kind of strength, it's available to you:

1. Admit your need.  Confess to God in prayer that you have sinned (failed to live a perfect life).  "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God."  (Romans 3:23, emphasis added)
2. Acknowledge that you deserve to be punished for your sins.  "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord."  (Romans 6:23)
3. Understand the sacrifice that Jesus made on your behalf. "Even when we were in our sin, Christ Jesus came to die for us."  (Romans 5:8)  And "He who knew no sin became sin for us, that we may be made the righteousness of God through Him."  (2 Corinthians 5:21)
4. Receive God's free gift of love by placing your faith in Him.  "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."  (Romans 10:9-10)

Will you take these four steps to receive Jesus Christ as your personal Savior?  If you are ready to live a new life with Him as your Lord, repeat the following prayer to God:

"Dear God, I confess that I am a sinner, and I am sorry. I need a Savior. I know I cannot save myself. I believe by faith that Jesus, your Son, died on the cross to be my Savior. I believe He arose from the grave to live as my Lord. I turn from my sin. I ask You, Lord Jesus, to forgive my sin and come into my heart. I trust you as my Savior and receive you as my Lord. Thank you, Jesus, for saving me." *

If you prayed this prayer today, welcome to the family of God.  Why not make a note of your decision, perhaps in a journal or in your Bible.  When you have doubts, you can look back at your note for the reassurance that you have been saved by Jesus Christ.  He promised us that we would always belong to Him, and that we cannot lose the gift of salvation that He has given us.  "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)  Also, Jesus assures us, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."  (John 10:27-30, emphasis added)

Now that you are a child of God, learn more about Him.  Read your Bible, join a church that believes that the Bible is the Word of God and teaches directly from it, and talk with God every day, just as you would your best friend.  The more you learn about Him, the deeper your joy will be. 

My prayer this week, for you and for myself is this (our names inserted -- you might want to insert your own name here to make it more personal to you):

"Now to Him who is able to keep (me and my readers) from stumbling, and to present (us) faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever, Amen."  (Jude 1:24-25)

* Thank you to http://theromanroad.org/

 

I Choose Joy in the Midst of Grief

 

As I write this, I am joining a family friend as he grieves over the death of his 7-year-old son, Trey, from leukemia.  Trey fought hard against his illness for almost a year, and his family fought right alongside him.  Many, many friends joined the family in prayer for Trey, boldly asking God to heal him this side of heaven.  But, in God's unfathomable wisdom, He took Trey to be with Him forever in heaven yesterday.  Trey is now resting in the arms of Jesus, never to be sick again.
I won't pretend to know what these parents are feeling right now.  And I won't try to be a counselor -- I am not one.  But I do know, from my own experiences after the death of my son, and from the experiences of many others, that this family will have a long grief process that they MUST go through.  Psychologists tell us that if we try to avoid the grief process, it will hurt us more in the long run, leading to even more bad consequences, making it even harder to cope with life.     

I also KNOW, for a fact, that God is aware of our grief, and that He wants to be there with us, through our grief. He sent us The Comforter, The Holy Spirit, for such a time as this.  Psychologists generally recognize seven stages of grief that we all will go through.  We don't all go through each stage in the same time frame or in the same way.  Some people can experience some stages together, at the same time.  Others may experience these stages in a different order, or even repeat one or more of the stages.  Everyone is different, so these stages should be taken loosely.  But, the good news is, for each of these seven stages of grief, God has given us promises:

1.  Shock and Denial

• Psalm 23:4 -- Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
• Isaiah 41:10 -- Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.
• Isaiah 43:2 -- When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.
• I Peter 5:7 -- Cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

2.  Pain and Guilt

• II Corinthians 1:3, 4 -- Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
• Revelation 21:4 --  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.

3.  Anger and Bargaining

• Hebrews 4:15, 16 -- For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

4.  Depression, Reflection, and Loneliness

• Isaiah 49:13b -- For the Lord has comforted His people and will have mercy on His afflicted.
• Nehemiah 8:10 -- The joy of the Lord is our strength.

5.  An Upward Turn

• Matthew 5:4 -- Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

6.  Reconstruction

• II Corinthians 5:8 -- We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

7.  Acceptance and Hope

• Isaiah 51:11 -- So the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads.  They shall obtain joy and gladness; Sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
• Isaiah 61:1-3 -- The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.
• I Thessalonians 4:13, 14 -- But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

I pray that you have never felt the grief of losing a child like I have, and like my friend now has. But you may be grieving the loss of something else -- a marriage, a job, a reputation, a relationship. The same grief process applies to your loss, too.  And God's promises apply to you, too.  Accept those promises.  Make them yours.  Trust God to fulfill those promises in your life. 

If you have a friend who is grieving, please be patient with him or her.  As I said above, they may not follow the "typical" grieving pattern, and they may take longer in one stage or another than other people have that you have known.  They may shut you out, emotionally.  Don't take that personally.  Continue to pray for your friend.  Allow them to talk about their loss in their own time and in their own way.  The best thing you can do for your friend is to pray for him or her and to be available.  You will be blessed if you allow God to use you to comfort your friend, even if it is just by being there and giving your friend a shoulder to cry on.

The rest of the good news is that, when you trust in God's promises, he will bring you joy.  You must understand that joy and happiness are quite different.  Happiness is dependent upon our circumstances.  No one is happy in the middle of grief.  But joy is much deeper than happiness.  It is not dependent upon circumstances, but is a result of trusting in God who loves us, who cares for us, who sustains us, and who grieves with us. 

This week, my prayer for you will be from II Thessalonians 2:16, 17 --  Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work.