Family Devotions

Kelly and I just spent a week with family at Black Butte Ranch in eastern Oregon. I’ve been going there for twenty-five years. This year we had four generations together and it was rich with blessings. We ride bikes, swim, play tennis, walk, hike around nearby Suttle Lake, play games, and watch movies. Last year we added golf, and this year our granddaughter Jolie went horseback riding. And did I mention how great the food was? I have to say, however, my favorite part of all is our family devotions.

 Everyone who is willing takes a turn. Each person brings something unique to the table. Since my dad and I are teacher types, we have fun preparing handouts and discussion questions. His lessons this year were on The Glory of the Lord and Standing in the Gap. Kelly threw out hard questions for us to discuss, which challenged us to dig in and find answers. Grae shared how God is challenging his trust in the middle of a job transition. Marlie-jo gave a lesson on Faith from the Bible Study she’s in and how God has stretched her understanding. Tara asked pertinent questions about submission in marriage and how it works in everyday life. Blessings, challenges, inspiration, and encouragement from three generations of God-followers.

 When I told a couple friends about this one, said, “I wish I could do that with my family!” So, just for fun, I’d like to invite you to grab your Bible and curl up on the couch. It’s time for family devotions. Today’s lesson is on Gideon, the reluctant warrior. I identify with his story so well.

Mighty Warrior! Who Me?

Read Judges 6:1-10:
Notice the Israelites didn’t cry out to God until they became impoverished by their enemies. Why did they wait so long? In what ways does sin impoverish us?

As soon as they asked for His help, God responded, after a reminder of how they ended up where they were - disobedience.

The ratio of oppression to deliverance was 7/10 - oppressed by their enemies for 7 years, but by God’s characteristic mercy, 40 years of peace under Gideon’s leadership.

Verses 11-12:

The angel of the LORD came to a man quaking with fear, hiding from the enemy, and  in a hurry to get a bite to eat, and calls him a mighty warrior. That is so God! He sees what we can be with His help, not what we are now.

Verse 13:

It’s funny that even though God just sent a prophet explain the situation, Gideon still asked: Why is this happening? Where has God been? Seems like the same things we ask, even when God’s already given the answer.

Verse 14:
But, like Jesus so often did, the angel didn’t answer his questions. Instead, he told him to go against the enemy with the strength that he had (which wasn’t much!).

Verse 15-16:
Gideon’s classic response: Who me? I’m unqualified! Do you ever feel inadequate for what God asks you to do? I know I do. That’s why I love Gideon’s story so much. God loves to use the puny to accomplish the impossible.

God’s answer to Gideon is the same one He gives us, “I will be with you.” When we fight against our spiritual enemies of doubt, fear, anger, impatience, unforgiveness, selfishness, lack of self-control and all the others, God’s Holy Spirit is with us in the fight.

Verses 17-24:

This is especially amazing. The angel of the LORD was willing to sit and wait while Gideon made an entire meal for Him. Then He revealed who He really was with a blaze of fire and smoke. Whoa!

Verses 25-26:

The first step to victory over the enemy was getting rid of his father’s idols and replacing them with God-worship. God will not coexist with any other god in our lives.

Verse 27:

Timid obedience – Gideon did what God asked, but he made 10 of his servants go with him, and they went at night. I love this. It was a beginning anyway.

Verse 28-32:

What prompted Gideon’s dad to stand up for him after he tore down his idols?

a.       He didn’t want his son to die

b.      A growing dissatisfaction with his gods

c.       He wanted to see the gods fight it out

d.      Something else

Verses 33-40:

In a spurt of confidence Gideon rallies an army, but is immediately filled with self-doubt. I’m glad God is so patient with us! God was willing to answer his specific requests.

Have you ever set out a fleece because you needed reassurance? What was the result?

What speaks to you most from this chapter?

a.       God’s patience

b.      Gideon’s insecurity

c.       That people would support such a timid leader

d.      God’s repeated encouragement and proofs

I’m glad you came for family devotions. I would love to hear your comments. And I hope you will carry on the tradition at your house.

Lies We Believe: Because We Want To

This is the last entry of this series – one I’ve been both excited about and dreading. Excitement, because it’s God’s message and the means to life, dread, because I know many won’t like what I have to say. So, I steel myself for the backlash, anger, and cold rejection, but I cannot leave it unsaid. Too much is at stake.

This is the most dangerous category of lies, for they are the lies we tell ourselves on purpose. Deep down we know the truth, but choose to push it aside and believe lies instead. The longer we do this, the more we believe the lie, and even promote it to others as truth, taking them with us on the path to destruction.

Why would we believe lies in the first place? I think there are two basic reasons:

·         So we can keep doing what we want to do

·         So we can feel good about ourselves

During the years I struggled with food addiction I believed lies: I told myself I could control my bingeing; that eating relieved stress; that others were unaware of my secrecy and deceit; that I needed to binge to feel better; that I wasn’t hurting anyone else.

I wanted to believe these lies because I didn’t want to change. I wanted to continue my sinful behavior without experiencing the consequences. Guilt, however, made that impossible. I would beg God’s forgiveness, vow to stop, but then give in to temptation. I rejected His help to say ‘No,’ because I believed the lie that I needed food more than I needed God. I was miserable for years. It wasn’t until I got miserable enough to admit the lie wasn’t working that things changed. When I admitted only God could satisfy the hunger of my soul I was finally able to let go of the lie of addiction.

Another lie I chose to believe was that I have the power to rescue others. In recovery circles this is called Enabling or Codependency. If you asked me, I would have said only God can rescue someone from a sinful, destructive lifestyle. Yet I continued to turn my life inside out to “help” others who were not willing to work on their own recovery.

Why would I do this? It made me feel important, needed. I mistakenly thought this was Christlike love. However, love doesn’t make others comfortable in their sinful behavior. True love, God’s love, allows them to suffer painful consequences to move them toward healthier choices. Then they can reach out for God’s power to change from the inside out.

If we choose to believe our sins are not sin, we end up making a mess of our lives. Galatians 6:7-8 sums it up: “Don’t be misled (or deceived): No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he’ll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God’s Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life” (Message).

Satan wants us to believe lies because they keep us from experiencing God, both in this life and the one to come: “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved” (2 Thess. 2:10).

The second reason we choose to believe lies is because we want to feel good about ourselves, so we pretend that God has somehow changed His mind about what’s right and wrong. The pure stream of Christianity has been muddied by lies. This is a frightening indicator. Paul prophesied this would be a sign of the end: “For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4).

God speaks very plainly in His Word that witchcraft, hatred, substance abuse, sex outside of marriage, homosexual relationships, divorce, slander, greed, using God’s name in vain, and other things are sins. If we continue to practice these things and do not turn to God for forgiveness we will miss out on the relationship with Him we were created to enjoy.

And yet our movies, our music, our homes, and our churches flaunt these behaviors and we no longer call them sin.  We “not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them” (Rom. 1:32). We excuse our behavior with lies:

·         It’s okay, we’re in love; we’re going to get married

·         This is the way God made me

·         This is power for doing good

·         Everybody does it

·         I can’t help it

·         I just want to have fun

·         God wants me to be happy

We want to believe God is okay with sin; that His commands were just for the olden days, but now that we’re modern, we don’t need them anymore. And we don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings; we want everyone to feel good about himself. The same lies were going around in Jeremiah’s day and he desperately tried to get people’s attention before it was too late, but they wouldn’t listen. “From the least to the greatest…all practice deceit. They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace. Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush” (Jer. 6:13-15). They comforted each other with false peace, until everything fell apart. By that time it was too late. 

There’s another lie being circulated on Facebook, in emails, movies, and almost everywhere you look. I hear the lie spoken by kind, well meaning people. But it is a lie of false comfort. The lie is that everyone goes to heaven; “nice” people go to heaven. But the truth is those who live without Christ - rejecting His forgiveness, His love, His guidance, His people, and His purpose do not go to heaven to live with Him forever when they die.

It’s true that God is love and doesn’t want anyone to go to hell, but we have to choose heaven in order to go there. That means seeing ourselves as sinners in need for forgiveness. That means believing that Jesus, the Son of God, came to sacrifice himself for us. That means asking Him to forgive our sins. That means living the rest of our lives loving and trusting Him, and telling others about Him. If that hasn’t happened, heaven is not their destination. Even free gifts have to be opened to be used.

In Ezekiel’s day, a watchman stood guard on the city wall in case an enemy came to attack. When they did, he was supposed to sound the alarm. God told Ezekiel to do that for his people. “He sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning and the sword comes and takes their life, their blood will be on their own head. Since they heard the sound of the trumpet but did not heed the warning, their blood will be on their own head. If they had heeded the warning, they would have saved themselves. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes someone’s life, that person’s life will be taken because of their sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for their blood’” (Ezek. 33:3-6, emphasis mine).

Every person who calls himself a Christian is a watchman. Our enemy is infiltrating our land not with a bold attack, but with lies. If I, as a watchman see them coming and say nothing I will be held accountable for their demise. And if I believe the lies I will go down as well. The only way we can be delivered from lies is by replacing them with God’s truth. The only place to find the truth is in the Bible. “Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free’” (John 8:31-32, emphasis mine).

Lies We Believe: Because We Trust the Messenger

I hope you like my photos of our local marshmallow fields. I never knew they grew here until my husband pointed it out. The conversation went something like this.

Kelly: “Oh, look, they’ve just harvested the marshmallows.

Me: “Hmm, aren’t marshmallows much smaller than that? And wasn’t that field green? Marshmallows aren’t green.”

“They cut them into smaller pieces at the factory. And, marshmallows are green when they’re growing, but they turn white in the sun. They have to dry out a while before they take them to the factory.”

“And I suppose they remove the seeds there too so we don’t get them in our teeth?”

“No, actually, this is a special seedless variety.”

And on it went. The first of many conversations we’ve had about the “marshmallow fields” by our home. We make it up as we go.

But what if I’d believed him? He’s lived here for years; surely he would know what they grow. What if, instead of a twinkle in his eye, he insisted it was true and got angry if I challenged his story? What if I didn’t have access to the dictionary which says marshmallows are, “a soft spongy candy made from sugar syrup, egg whites, and flavoring” - not an agricultural product. Would I believe the lie because I trust the messenger?

It happens all the time. Our parents, teachers, and pastors are authority figures and we want to believe what they tell us. The husband/wife relationship is built on trust and we want to believe our spouse. And when our sports hero or favorite movie star tells us how wonderful a special diet or product is we want to believe it’s true.

Admittedly, I could spend my lifetime believing marshmallows grow in the fields by our house and it wouldn’t affect my eternal destiny. But I would get laughed at. I could waste a lot of money buying worthless products advertised by stars, bankrupt our budget and anger my husband, but it still wouldn’t affect my eternal destiny. However, there are lies that can bankrupt our souls.

Three questions we do need the absolute correct answer to are:

·         Who is Jesus Christ?

·         How do I get to heaven?

·         What am I supposed to do until I get there?

Jesus asked His disciples the first question and Peter got an A for his answer, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:13). About himself Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

We don’t get to heaven by following rules, but when you “declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9).

And once we’ve said He’s Lord, we spend the rest of our lives living as if it’s true, making “disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19) and keeping His commands (John 14:15).

Any answers other than that are an automatic out.

As for other teachings, it takes discernment. Sometimes even those with the best intentions get it wrong. John, the beloved disciple gave a big clue when he said, “Whoever says, ‘I know him,’ (Jesus Christ) but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person” (1 John 2:4).

Even worse, some people lie on purpose. Look at what happened in the Middle Ages. The average person couldn’t know what the truth was from scripture because it was written in Latin, which they couldn’t read. And even if they could have, Bibles were chained to church pulpits to prevent any stealthy studying.

Then John Huss, William Tyndale, and Martin Luther got the bright idea to translate the Bible into the language of the people. Church leaders didn’t agree. Andy Stanley says in his book Deep and Wide, ‘This shift led to an era of church history that can only be described as horrific. The atrocities carried out in the name of the church would be considered terrorism by modern standards. Cruelty wore a cross around its neck. Hypocrisy draped itself in priestly robes…Why were they so vehemently opposed to people having their own copies of the Scriptures? In a word, control.”

That’s when it gets scary; when people don’t want you to know the truth so they can control what you think and do. They do this because they’re power hungry, sexually depraved, or greedy (Acts 20:29-31 and 2 Peter 2:1-3).

So what do we do? Look carefully at both the message and the messenger. How does his message line up with what the Bible says? How does his life line up with what the Bible says? If you trust a liar, you will someday find that what you believed were fluffy, sweet marshmallows were actually bales of fermenting animal fodder. Or worse.

Lies We Believe: Answers to the Bible Quiz

or is it false?

I hope you had fun with this and maybe even did a little digging of your own to find the answers. If you didn’t, I have given the references after each answer. I hope you won’t just take my word for it, but read to discover the truth for yourself.

1.      False. We don’t know how many wise men showed up, but traditionally it has been assumed there were three because they brought three gifts. Matthew 2:1-12 tells us they visited the house in Bethlehem where Mary and Joseph were living.

2.      False. God compares himself to an eagle in Ex. 19:4; Deut. 32:11, and a mother hen in Matt. 23:37; Luke 13:34, but man is compared to the ant in Prov. 6:6 and 30:25. Wings are also mentioned in Ruth 2:12; Psa. 17:8, 36:7, 57:1, 61:4, 63: 7, 91:4, but not what kind of bird.

3.      True. Read the story in Acts 20:7-12.

4.      False. Gen. 3:6 says, “She took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.”

5.      False. Only there were only two – Enoch in Gen. 5:24 and Elijah in 2 Ki. 2:11.

6.      D. Apparently this was something He did often, since they recognized the sound. When Adam and Eve didn’t come to join Him as usual, He asked what was up, Gen. 3.

7.      We don’t know what kind of work he did. All we know about Methuselah is that he had kids and lived 969 years, Gen. 5:21-27.

8.      C. Acts 7:23-34. Moses was 40 when he left Egypt and 80 when he returned.

9.      False. They were kicked out because Satan (Lucifer) wanted to be worshiped instead of God, Ezek. 28:12-17; Isa. 14:12-15. They not only believe; they know Jesus is the Son of God! Mark 5:7; Luke 8:28; James 2:18-19.

10.  False. Their names are Michael (Dan. 10:10-21, 12:1-4; Jude 1:9; Rev. 12:7-9) and Gabriel (Dan. 8:15-19, 9:20-23; Luke 1:11-19, 1:26-38).

11.  False. Personal peace with God, yes, but world peace is not possible until sin is vanquished. The references for this are too numerous to list, but here are a few: Isa. 48:18; Jer. 6:13-15; Ezek. 13:10; Matt. 10:16-39; Luke 2:8-14; John 14:27, 16:33.

12.  False. Jesus and the Holy Spirit intercede for us; we are not to pray to people, living or dead: Rom. 8:26-27, 34; Heb. 7:24-26.

13.  False. This is strictly forbidden. Deut. 18:9-13; 1 Chron. 10:13-14; Isa. 8:19.

14.  False. All of Cain’s descendants were killed in the flood so that makes every one of us descendants of Noah and we don’t know what color he was.

15.  False. Paul reminded the early believers how important this is, Heb. 10:24-25. Jesus himself prayed for a oneness among believers as a testimony to the world, John 17:20-26. We cannot be one, or serve each other, or learn how to get along, or any of the other teachings of the New Testament unless we spend time together.

16.  False. God created all vegetation on the third day and the sun on the fourth, Gen. 1:9-19. If there had been a thousand years in between all the plants would have died.

17.  True. Solomon knew love for her child would reveal the real mother’s identity, 1 Ki. 3:16-28.

18.  False. There are three kinds – archangels, 1 Thess. 4:16; cherubim, Gen. 3:24; 2 Ki. 19:15; Psa. 99:1; Ezek. 10; and seraphim, Isa. 6:2, 6. None of these, by the way, are chubby babies with wings!

19.  False. The donkey symbolized that He came not as a conquering king, but in peace, and a fulfillment of prophecy, Zech 9:9-10; Matt. 21:4-5.

20.  False. If God never gave us anything we couldn’t handle, why would we need Him? This false statement seems to be a blend of two verses, 1 Cor. 10:13, “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear…” and Phil. 4:13, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” What God actually says is, “…My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness…” (2 Cor. 12:8-10).

21.  False. I wish this was true, but Proverbs are not promises, but sayings of wisdom that when we do A, B is usually the result, whether good or bad. This quote from Proverbs 22:6, NKJV is not a guarantee, but a reassurance for parents. Usually, if we teach our children what is right, even if they stray from it for a time, they will know how to get back to God.

22.  False. Although love is extremely important for us both, what husbands need most from their wives is respect, and what wives needs most is love, Eph. 5:25-33. That is the way we’re built.

23.  False. As long as they are willing to stay together, the believer is not to seek divorce. There’s a chance that they might be won over to Christ. 1 Cor. 7:10-16 and 1 Pet. 3:1-4.

24.  B. Pilate knew Jesus hadn’t done anything wrong, and his wife’s dream unsettled him even further, but he still didn’t want to risk a riot so he gave in to what they wanted, Matt. 27:11-26.

25.  D. Strange as this may sound what she did was highly symbolic and Boaz immediately recognized it as a request to be provided for in marriage. Ruth 3:1-18.

Next post: Lies We Believe Because We Trust the Messenger…

Lies We Believe Series: Can You Spot the Lies in this Bible Quiz?

Just for fun, see how you score on the following quiz. Can you separate the truth from fiction? Answers will be in the next post.

1.      Three wise men visited Jesus in the stable the night He was born.

2.      God compares himself to an eagle, a chicken, and an ant in scripture.

3.      Paul prayed for a man to be raised from the dead because he went to sleep during his preaching and fell to his death.

4.      Adam was not with Eve when the serpent convinced her to eat the forbidden fruit.

5.      Three people in the Bible never died; God took them before they had to experience death.

6.      God came to walk in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day because:

a.       He didn’t know where Adam and Eve were

b.      He wanted a break from creating

c.       He was hot

d.      It was a regular habit

7.      Methuselah, the oldest man who ever lived, was the first one to herd sheep.

8.      When God called Moses to rescue the Israelites from Egypt he was:

a.       80 years old

b.      23 years old

c.       44 years old

d.      90 years old

9.      Satan and the demons were kicked out of heaven because they don’t believe Jesus is the Son of God.

10.  Only two angels are named in the Bible – Gabriel and Ezekiel.

11.  What God wants for us most in this life is world peace.

12.  In heaven, Jesus, Moses, and Mary pray for us constantly.

13.  We can talk to people who have died and receive wisdom about the future.

14.  The mark God put on Cain after he killed his brother Abel was to make him black and all black people are his descendants.

15.  Church isn’t for everybody; some people do best worshiping God on their own.

16.  The six days of creation could have actually been 1,000 years each, allowing for evolution to be true, because it says in 2 Peter 3:8 that a day is like a thousand years to God and a thousand years is like a day.

17.  King Solomon was considered wise when he offered to cut a baby in half because two women were fighting over who he belonged to.

18.  There are four kinds of angels mentioned in the Bible.

19.  Jesus rode a donkey into town on Palm Sunday because He was tired after walking so many miles to Jerusalem.

20.  Paul encourages believers to hang on with this assurance, “God won’t give you anything you can’t handle.”

21.  God’s promise from Proverbs says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it."

22.  The Bible tells husbands and wives to love each other because that is what each needs the most for a successful marriage.

23.  If a person becomes a Christian and their husband or wife is not, they should get divorced so they’re not distracted from their faith.

24.  Pilate washed his hands before sentencing Jesus to death because:

a.       They were dirty

b.      He knew Jesus didn’t deserve to die

c.       It was part of the ceremony

d.      Jesus asked him to

25.  Ruth got Boaz to marry her when:

a.       She told him she was pregnant

b.       She danced better than any of the other girls

c.       An angel told him she was the one God had chosen

d.      She snuck in where he was sleeping and curled up at his feet

Lies We Believe: Because We Don’t Know Better

When my now grown niece was about three years old, my sister told her a lie. Amy was watching her mom make her favorite muffins. She was interested in every detail, peppering her mom with questions. Just as Kathy measured out the poppy seeds, Amy asked, “What are those, Mom?”

My sister told me later with a laugh, “I don’t know what came over me, but before I even thought about what I was saying, I told Amy they were frog freckles.”

“Frog freckles? How do they get them off the frogs, Mom?” Being a tender, compassionate child, Amy was immediately concerned for their welfare. “They don’t kill them do they?”

“Oh no, “Kathy answered breezily, thinking on her feet. “They just round them up once a week and flick the off the freckles like this,” she said, flicking her thumb and middle finger. Then they release the frogs so they can grow new ones.” At that she spooned the mixture into muffin cups and popped them in the oven.

“Oh,” Amy answered, deep in thought. As Kathy rinsed the dishes and wiped the counters, they discussed how the factory workers swept the freckles into vats of water to wash them thoroughly before packaging them in bottles. “And then,” Kathy picked up the bottle of poppy seeds with a flourish, “we buy them at the store so I can make yummy muffins for our family.”

I’m not sure how long it was before Amy found out her mom was just pulling her leg, but for a while she believed that her favorite treat was Frog Freckle Muffins. It’s one of our favorite family stories. She believed the lie because she didn’t know any better.

However, ignorance of spiritual truths is dangerous, especially when we’ve been Christians long enough to know better. Amy discovered the truth about poppy seeds because she was hungry for knowledge, constantly asking questions about everything, and daily growing in maturity. That is what we should be doing in our spiritual lives as well. Yet, too often, people get comfortable as baby Christians and stop yearning to know more about God. They leave Bible knowledge to pastors and theologians and are content to get a few drops of milk in their bottle or sippy cup when they go to church.

The unidentified author of Hebrews blasts believers in his letter for this same thing: “Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil” (Heb. 5:12-14, emphasis added).

How can we know if someone’s telling us a lie unless we’re reading the Bible for ourselves and maturing in our knowledge and faith? Doctor Luke praised the Jews in Berea for educating themselves before gulping down every new thing they heard about God: “The Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men” (Acts 17:11-12). They did believe that what Paul was preaching was true, but not before checking their facts.

How about you? If you’ve been a believer for more than a year, are you making good headway through the book of truth you claim you base your life on? Or are you relying on sermons, devotionals, or TV preachers to tell you what it says? Perhaps you believe the Bible on your coffee or bedside table is fueling your mind by osmosis. However, if that’s not happening, how will you know what to believe? You can be sure the enemy is making his lies readily available without any effort on your part.

They say the best way to recognize counterfeit money is not by studying it, but by handling the real thing so often that the feel, smell, and look of it becomes second nature. (That’s a theory I’d like to test.) So rather than focusing on the lies foisted on us, we must zero in on a daily diet of God’s Word.

I hope that if you’ve been lax in this spiritual discipline that you don’t give up. Today is the day to start. Don’t worry about gulping down huge passages each day just to check it off your list. It’s better to read a little, stopping occasionally to digest, meditate, ask for understanding or forgiveness, or simply to revel in God’s love. He wrote this amazing book for you! And if you find it difficult to understand, ask Him for help. What author wouldn’t be thrilled to discuss His work with a reader? Especially when the reader’s life and well-being depend on knowing the truth it contains.

Lies We Believe Series

We live in a world full of lies. There are bold-faced lies, lies of omission and exaggeration, half-truths, white lies, information out of context, twisting the truth, and many more versions of the same perversion. So many of these lies sound so reasonable too! How can we know what to believe and not believe? How can we keep from becoming another victim of the enemy?

“Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free’” (John 8:31-32). That sounds easy enough, until we remember we have an enemy whose main objective is to deceive us and pull us away from our relationship with God and living victoriously in Him.  And he’s very good at it, because he’s been at it since the beginning of time. Lies are his native tongue. Just check out the partial truths and seeds of doubt he planted in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1-5).

I really want to know and seek the truth; I hope you do too. To do that, we need to recognize false information when it comes our way, and ask God to weed out any lies that have already taken root in our hearts. In order to do those things, it helps to know why we believe lies in the first place. The Bible tells us three reasons why we do:

·         because we don’t know any better

·         because we believe the messenger, and

·         because we want to

Over the next few posts I want to expose some of these lies and encourage you to watch out for the dangers lurking behind them. Otherwise they can destroy our view of God and who we are in Him, our relationships, our finances, our health, and most importantly, our eternal destiny.  I hope you will join me.

The Spiritual Battle With Depression

It’s time for the last installment of this series and I’m excited to share how we can battle against depression in our heart. Our heart is the third part of our being, the spiritual center that relates to God. Not all depression has spiritual roots, but it’s an option we dare not leave out. God examines our heart through His Word, Bible, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul (our mind, will, and emotions) and spirit (the heart), joints and marrow (the body); it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart (the spirit)” (Heb. 4:12, parentheses added).

Depression can attack our heart from within or without. If you believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God who gave His life for the sins of the world; if you have asked God to forgive you of your sins; and if you have invited Jesus to reign in your heart as Lord, you are a Christian. Satan cannot dwell in (or possess) the same place where Jesus is Master, but he can oppress us from the outside with a constant barrage of attacks in order to crack our defenses. If we give him access, Satan can divide our heart and prevent us from enjoying the full benefits God desires for all believers.

Depression can be a symptom of a divided heart – one committed to God, yet holding back one or more areas for self. Beth Moore says this in Breaking Free, “Only the places we allow the love of God to fully penetrate will be satisfied and, therefore, liberated.” I encourage you to get alone with God and ask Him to show you if there is a heart issue contributing to your depression.

This means being naked and vulnerable before the Lord. Robb Thompson shares some interesting facts about eagles in this regard: “When these majestic birds molt, they shed all of their feathers, causing them to become extremely vulnerable. Without feathers, they are unable to fly away from danger. To protect themselves, they soar to the highest rock they can find before their feathers fall out. All by themselves, huddled on the towering rock, they lie in the sun and wait…eagles fly to a safe place…trust[ing] they will fly again.” God is our safe place; He is our Rock.

This is not a complete list, but here are a few ways Satan can divide our heart:

·         Anger

·         Unforgiveness/ Bitterness

·         Doubt

·         Pride/Insecurity (believe it or not insecurity is a form of pride, believing our inadequacies are too big for God to handle!)

·         Addictions

·         Failure to bow to God’s supreme authority

·         Legalism

·         Seeking satisfaction from anything/anyone other than God

Over the past several months, God has done an incredible work in my heart, revealing areas where I had allowed Satan’s lies to creep in – mostly in the arena of self-esteem and control. My physical and emotional difficulties added fuel to these “heart problems” and God took me to a safe place for a complete makeover. And what a blessing it has been! Dark – yes; embarrassing – yes, convenient – no, but life-changing.

Once I resolved to “stay in camp” until I was healed, God was able to speak to me in ways I hadn’t heard when I was busily seeking perfection in my own power (not very successfully may I add). The more I searched through scripture and let it search me, the more I was able to release my grip on the things that troubled me. Each time, His Spirit flooded those hungry places of my heart, filling me with a new sense of satisfaction and joy.

Kay Warren’s definition of JOY is: “The settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life; the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright; and the determined choice to praise God in all things.” This takes knowing God, trusting Him, and choosing to praise Him even when I don’t get what He’s up to at the moment.

This process to wholeness is a lifelong deal. God saves us in a moment, but continually fills and refills us with His Holy Spirit throughout our lives as we walk with Him. If you are battling depression, be kind to yourself and let God do the work to heal you body, soul, and spirit. At the same time, relentlessly pursue God and let Him fill the gnawing hunger you feel.

I pray for you, my fellow traveler, that you will trust God to care for your every need along the way. He is good and His will for us is good. May He bring you back into the sunshine once again.

Books That Have Been Helpful to Me:

As I’ve sought God’s healing in these dark months, the Bible has been my main textbook. He has also used others who’ve been this way before to help me in the journey. I recommend the following books:

 

Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn’t Enough, Kay Warren

So Long Insecurity: You’ve Been a Bad Friend to Us, Beth Moore

Get Out of That Pit: Straight Talk about God’s Deliverance, Beth Moore

Praying for Your Prodigal Daughter, Janet Thompson

Rooms, James L. Rubart (a powerful fictional account of our heart - Christ’s home)

Child of Divorce; Child of God: A Journey of Hope and Healing, Kristine Steakley

Breaking Free: Making Liberty in Christ a Reality in Life (Bible study workbook), Beth Moore

Solitary Refinement: The Hidden Power of Being Alone, Robb Thompson

Bonus Info on St. John’s Wort and Depression

I talked for almost an hour the other day with the Naturopath I’ve been seeing for about ten years. She is a born again believer. She combines her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ with her training in Naturopathic medicine to help people learn how to live healthier lives. A very rare combination! The information she shared with me was so helpful, I wanted to pass it on.

I expressed my concerns to her about how tired I’m feeling since I started taking St. John’s Wort. The depression has lifted, but I feel sluggish and sleepy; I’m not used to having to rest all the time. I’m used to being on the move.

Karen explained, “St. John’s Wort isn’t what’s making you tired, Beth. It’s actually an amazing supplement that has many uses. It is working to build up your depleted system.” I had already found out from my research that it can be helpful for depression, for fighting viral and bacterial infections, in the treatment of PMS and fibromyalgia, for chronic pain, and sometimes weight loss.

Karen continued, “One of the best things it does is feed overworked nerves. If you’ve been under prolonged stress from grief, pain, anxiety, or whatever, your nerves eventually get to the point where they can’t let down. You’re feeling tired because you are tired. The St. John’s Wort is helping your body let down so you can rest and heal.”

Hmm, so the answer was not to take less so I can do more, but to rest when I feel tired and let God do His healing work. An amazing concept.

I’m not out to sell St. John’s Wort or any other product, but if you’re seeking a natural solution for depression and thought you might try it, this is information that could be very helpful. Make sure you do not take St. John’s Wort if you’re already taking another antidepressant.

In our western culture, we’re used to taking medicine so we can feel better, in order to keep right on doing what we want to do. But I’m learning that sometimes it’s better to feel worse for a while in order to treat the source of the problem and not just the symptoms. I hope this is helpful information.

Next time, I will address some of the spiritual causes for depression and how we can allow God to heal us in this area.

The Soul’s Battle With Depression

Did you wonder if I had dropped off the face of the earth? Well, kind of. It is definitely an odd season of life; one which I am not comfortable with. For those of you who have expressed concern for me, let me reassure you that even though depression is not fun, God is oh so close. It is dark and sometimes seems endless, but He is holding my hand and giving me an impossible sense of peace. Daily He speaks messages of love and assurance, and I cling to the knowledge that He is in control. So, let’s get to it and I will share some nuggets of truth God is teaching me about the battle with depression.

Our soul is made up of three parts: our mind, our will, and our emotions. This is the part of our being that relates to other people – our horizontal nature. I want to talk about each one separately, because although they are intricately intertwined, each one builds on the one before.

The Battle of the Mind

Everything begins in our head. What we think about feeds our desires and plays out in our actions. Our mind can work for or against us, depending on what we feed it. Of course, reading and meditating on God’s Word is essential. This word meditate literally means to ruminate - like a cow chews, swallows, digests its food for a while, then brings it up for another round, before sending it to the second stomach, and so forth.

Listening to God-music is another way to influence our minds. Ephesians 5:19-20 and Colossians 3:16 are great reminders of this. I have actually started waking up with songs already playing in my head. I know this is His special answer to my prayers for renewed hope.

Bible reading and music can have little effect on our mind, however, if we do not squelch the competing voice of the enemy. Second Corinthians 10:5 tells us to, “demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” This especially includes lies concerning our personal value. Satan wants us to constantly replay hurtful scenes from our past to beat us down. God wants us to frisk every thought for contraband and anything destructive to the truth of who we are in Christ.

My friend Gwen uses the “It is written” method that Jesus used against Satan (Matt. 4). She fights back by speaking scriptural truths out loud. We agreed that if it was good enough for Jesus, it’s good enough for us!

The Battle of the Will

The second area of the soul is our will. This is where we decide whether we will do our own thing or submit to God’s leadership. Isaiah 30:15-16 in the Message paints a descriptive picture: “God, the Master, The Holy of Israel, has this solemn counsel: ‘Your salvation requires you to turn back to me and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves. Your strength will come from settling down in complete dependence on me—The very thing you’ve been unwilling to do. You’ve said, ‘Nothing doing!’” And Psalm 81:10-12 also, “Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. ‘But my people would not listen to me…would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices” (NIV).

God recently gave me a strong message from Joshua 5:7-8. It says: “They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way…after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed.” Circumcision is an operation to cut away the foreskin of a man’s most private part. God instructed the Israelites to do this as a sign of their covenant (promised) relationship with Him and purity. You’re probably wondering how that applies here, aren’t you?

He said, “You have not allowed me to cut away the things that are dragging you down, Beth. I want to help you. Will you, in obedience to me, stay in camp until you are healed?” My first thought was, “But I want to do battle against the enemy, Lord! And we’re this close to the Promised Land. Can’t you just heal me quickly?

He said no.

He pointed out that trusting Him is essential. That to go into battle right now would endanger me as well as others. That His timing is perfect. So I am slowing down, being still, hanging back from the things I’m normally involved in, and resting. God has made it easier for me to obey by allowing me to experience fatigue like never before. I’m so tired, I can’t do much else!

I still have the choice to obey Him or to fight His healing work. Time after time, I bow my will in submission to His loving care, even though it is very difficult to be still.

The Battle of the Emotions

The third part of our soul is fed by our mind and will - how we feel about our self, our life, and our relationship with God. I keep going back to a phrase coined by Pastor Rob Baker of Oasis Fellowship, “How do you deal with what you feel? You’ve got to go with what you know.” In other words, emotions are real and powerful, but they can’t be trusted. We must learn to influence our feelings by choosing to first submit our minds and wills to Christ.

In order to combat these overwhelming feelings, I have become like a terrier in my morning devotions. For the first time in my life, I usually have the freedom to spend as long as I want in the Word. So I am taking advantage of it. Like Jacob, who wrestled with the man from God and told him, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (Gen. 32:26), I too am wrestling until the blessing comes. And it is good.

If you are currently struggling with depression, I hope my journey is helpful and encouraging. Be assured, God is with you; you are never alone. Reach out for His hand in the darkness and let Him comfort you. He is there. He will hold you.