Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

Jesus walked on water. It really happened.  He is Lord over all science, "logic," nature, the whole kit and kaboodle.  He can do anything because He is God. Peter walked on water, too.   Now here's where it gets interesting!  Peter was a human being, just like you and me.  Peter was not God.  We are not God. Yet there he was!  Walking on the water toward Jesus!  How did he do it?  And the bigger question is, how do we do it?  Because if Peter was human and walked on water, and we are human - then we, too, can walk on water, right?   Was it a matter of faith?  Was it a matter of Jesus' calling on his life?   Peter was impulsive.  He seemed to act before he thought.  In this case, it served him well!  He wasn't thinking about anything other than running toward Jesus and that is how he walked on water!!! Where he goofed up is when he took his eyes off of Jesus, lost focus, and looked at the waves instead.   Now the waves were every bit as real as Jesus.  The waves ha

Bloom where you're planted, so the saying goes.   Where are you planted?  Do you like the "pot?"  Or does your soil smell like manure? When you belong to Christ, HE decides what soil is best for your growth.  It may not look, feel, or smell like the kind of soil you want.  That is of no import. What matters is that we trust Him  to choose the best soil for us. Throughout Scripture, we see less than desirable "soil" that God's chosen were planted in.  They were too busy obeying and trusting God to worry or care about the pain or sacrifice.  They knew, as we should, that following God will always cost us something, but that He is more than worth it. It's not easy to give up control for some people.  So much so that they never fully surrender to God.  Big mistake. It's a matter of pride when you get to the root of it.  "I know better," is what you're really saying, though not out loud.  Really? You know better than the Omniscient God who m

God in person.  That is who Jesus is. God, ergo Jesus, is Omnipotent.  He has absolute authority. When Jesus walked this earth - whoa.  Let's pause here and just take that in.  God Almighty lowering Himself to become one of us.  This is the singular action that sets Him apart from all other "gods." As I was saying...when Jesus walked this earth, He had many critics, many doubters, many naysayers, many outright haters who opposed Him.  We could get into all the reasons why this happened, but I want to dwell on the fact that Jesus never once defended Himself against all of these losers. I suppose when you know you are God, there is not an ounce of insecurity as to who you are.  Ergo, no need to defend yourself to those whom Jesus knew would never convert anyway. Point being...He, above all, had every right  to defend Himself, yet He did not. We are a society who loves our rights.  But right to do what?  Sin in new and "better" ways?! Yes, some rights must be fough

So I was talking with another Christian one day about the importance of hearing from God.  He was taught that he could not hear directly from God, that the only way we "hear" Him is through His Word. Yes.  Reading, knowing, and studying His Word is vital.   But why, then, did Jesus Himself tell us that His sheep know His voice ? People, including some Christians, get nervous when we say that we can hear from God.  It sounds a bit cray cray. I'm not talking about "voices" in your head, or your imagination. I am referring to the still, small voice which is not audible in the way that we hear people talking, but it is like a knowing .  It comes from His Spirit who lives inside of us.  It's not even like a whisper.  It's really hard to describe it unless you've experienced it. It's just there.  Like words in the background but very distinct and clear. God's voice is calming.  It is usually few words, not many.  And it is always filled with love,

Don't cast your pearls before pigs.   Yes, Lord.  Lord, where do I find those who are not pigs?   Still waiting an answer to that one.  I believe He will give me discernment as I go. What does all this mean?  It means that when we give our best that God has given us - His wisdom through us, His anointing on us, the talents and gifts He put in us - and it is met with indifference, animosity, jealousy, or hatred, that those receiving/listening are as pigs who don't know any better.   If we were to cast literal pearls - priceless and invaluable - into a pigsty, the pigs would trample on them because they are ignorant.  They're pigs.  They don't know any better.  They're accustomed to slop and mud only.  Where does that leave humans?  When humans, who should  know better, trample on the gifts we give through Christ, then they are either prideful, stubborn, ignorant, jealous, insolent, or of their father the devil. "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in she

The slow healing from God.  Sigh. Sometimes, God seems to take an inordinately long amount of time to heal someone.  Why, I don't know. It can either be a faith crusher or a faith builder, depending on how we respond to the seeming lack of interest from God. But God cares about the minutest details of our lives.   "Indeed the very hairs of your head are all numbered." Luke 12:7 "How precious to me are your thoughts, God!  How vast is the sum of them!  Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand..." Psalm 139:17-18a Remember when Lazarus died and the first words out of Martha's lips when Jesus finally showed up?  “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." (John 11:21) In other words, Martha said, "Jesus, You're late." How could Jesus let her beloved brother die?  Why didn't Jesus come right away?  Didn't he care?  Didn't He love Lazarus?  Martha? Ever been there?  Maybe no one died, but your

In what area or areas do you need a breakthrough?  Where have you been hurting or struggling lately?  Or even for a while? You've prayed. You've waited on the Lord. You are trusting Him as best you can. But you've been through the wringer and it has taken its toll. You are in a vulnerable position, but it's not over! Did you know that God can give you a breakthrough right here and now while you are still in your dificult season?  He doesn't always change our circumstances (though He easily could) in order to bless us with breakthrough. I have found that He comes to me, heals my heart, reveals a needed Scripture to me, right here and now - in the midst of my struggle, pain, and heartache.  What a God! Then I thought of the riches we are privy to through the trials and sufferings of others in the words they left behind.  One thing is for sure, the following people had no idea while they were going through their trial  that God would use them in huge ways much later .

You may be familiar with the story of the Prodigal Son in Scripture.  The rebellious son leaves the comfort and provision of his father to sow some wild oats.  But soon afterwards, he finds himself in a literal pigsty, miserable, lonely, and wondering why he left his dad in the first place. Been there?  What "pigsty" have you found yourself in while searching for greener pastures?  And is what you were hoping to find by running away from God really that good?  Are you in denial of where you are?  Maybe you've decorated your pigsty so beautifully that you can almost believe that you're not really wallowing in slop and mud, but that everything is "alright." But there is no real "alright" apart from God.  We're just not built to make that happen. So here's a to-do list from the Lord to get out of the pit with the pigs and instead come back to a place of belonging at the Father's table. 1.  Sup with Me.  Spend quality time with Me. 2.  Trus

  My Christmas song about the Magi finding Jesus.  Like the Wise Men, when we finally find what we have searched for, been looking for perhaps all our lives, we know it.  When we find Jesus, our hearts are content.  We are filled with worship and awe, and we want to bring our finest gifts to Him. Won't you worship Him this Season as He so deserves?  After all, He is what the Holiday is all about. Christ is born!  Alleluia!

Suffering. That is the number one thing that makes me feel closest to Christ. Surprised?   We feel close to someone when we feel we can relate to him or her.  We understand someone better when we have experienced even a little of what he or she is going through.  We empathize with them. Jesus was a man of sorrows.  He was despised and rejected.  He came as the Savior to His chosen people, the Jews, but they rejected Him.  That hurts.  Deeply.  He was a threat to the political "powers" of His day.  He was wrongly accused of evil doing by the Pharisees and eventually was crucified because the people could not bear His goodness, power, and truth.  They preferred darkness over light. So when I have received but a taste of that same sort of rejection, I get a feel for what Jesus must have felt.  It's certainly no fun.  But it is precisely during those times that I feel a kinship with Him.  It is during those moments when His love, life, and light have more fullness in me.   He

This phrase came to me while chewing on my turkey sandwich the other day.   How on earth do we, or would we even want to, exercise demons?!  This means we give them strength.  How exactly do we do that? First off, a gentle reminder that when we are in Christ, the devil cannot touch us. He will tempt and taunt us for sure, the filthy rat!  But he cannot touch us, bless the Lord. (See I John 5:18) So how do we exercise the demons that taunt and tempt us? Let me count the ways! 1. Not forgiving others quickly and readily 2. Valuing pride, or being right, over humbly looking to Christ for validity 3. Rebelling against God willfully, thinking we know best or by not being willing to pay the cost of following Him wherever He leads, wholeheartedly 4. Ignoring God altogether 5. Staying angry because someone intentionally hurt you 6. Not being grateful  7. Complaining 8. Envying, comparing, and gossiping I'm sure there are countless other ways, but these will do for now! So you can see how w

Jesus is not Santa Claus.  This may seem an obvious statement.  Yet how often do we request things of God and expect Him to deliver what we want, when we want, in the same way that a child expects of Santa Claus? Is your faith more grown up than that?  Are you sure? What happens when we pray to the Lord asking Him to provide a healing, or deliverance, or provision but our answer does not arrive by "December 25th?" Or we think because we've been "nice" girls and boys that God owes us.  C'mon.  You know you've done this.  We place deadlines on God! We could have all the faith in the world, but when God does not  provide when and how we want, our faith is deflated.   Now don't get me wrong.  Jesus loves when we come to Him with our requests - it shows our faith and childlike trust in Him.  But when we choose date markers of our own, well that is not what faith is about. Why would a loving Father have us wait?  And wait and wait to give us what we think

Where is my focus?  If it is on anyoe or anything else other than Jesus, I will get tripped up, distracted, even deceived.   So how do we keep our focus on Christ?  Mostly through prayer.  Talk to HIm and with Him throughout the day.  Trust Him to lead and guide us.  our work, and be sure to obey Him. He will perform His miracles, healings, and casting out of demons through us as we stay focused on Him, stay connected to Him.   As we give up control and allow  Him to take over our heart - mind, will, and emotions - He lives His life through us.  This is to be our core and how God does His work in this world - through our yielded selves! When we focus on the work, or on goals, instead, they can take over our hearts in place of Christ as gods to us. This always leads to stress and turmoil within because nothing else is meant to usurp Christ on the throne of our hearts. This takes surrender and trust.  We won't surrender to anyone or anything that we don't trust or believe in. Whe