Yes? No?

Do you ever get 'caught' in making or acting on the RIGHT decision? Or is it later, once you've acted that you wonder if you should have said 'no' rather than 'yes' (or vice versa)? Simple answer. At the time of decision... did you have a check in your spirit? If so, what was it saying? For me, I find that every time I'm not totally confident of what I do or am planning on doing and I sense a check but proceed anyway - maybe not the best choice or maybe not with the best of intentions (motivation). Does this resonate with you?

Our 'WHY' of doing what we do or don't do is critical. We need (all caps) to be honest with ourselves in why we are acting or speaking in the manner we are. Sometimes, admittedly, there truly are pros and cons to each of the options and we don't know which is the best choice. Or the times when we sense we should do one over the other but lack the confidence to follow through. Why the doubt? Is there really a strong reason to do or not do that you aren't seeing... merely sensing? HOW do you act?

I'm a great believer in 'checks' in my spirit. Experience has taught me that every time I've ignored those checks, I've come to rue it. Maybe not a catastrophe but not a huge success either. How you define checks and what you do with them is important. For me, a check is from the Holy Spirit warning me to be certain. Sometimes it's a 'wait' - I don't have all I need to proceed. Sometimes it's a 'not a good idea' check, causing me to rethink. Sometimes it's a 'you forgot (fill in the blank)' and proceeding precipitously is not the best approach. Actually, a check can mean a host of rethinkings. 

Scripture tells us that our 'yes' should be yes and our 'no' no. This provides a standard that I need to be certain that my words and behaviors follow this. But my inclusion is that our yes or no should be with confidence - which is an application of Matthew 5:37. We need to know our why of acting or responding. The Holy Spirit is here to guide us and I believe we need to be sensitive to what He is saying. 'Checks' can be one of His methods.  Actually it depends on if we listen.

Equivocate

Have you ever hedged the truth or not fully responding to avoid lying because you thought the other person would/might be offended by your expression? A lot? Could you be incorrect about the other person... just not willing to risk it? But, have you ever considered that your action(s) was a denial l of you? Dare I say - betrayal?!!! Yet isn't that precisely what you do when you engage in those behaviors?! Or how do you justify?

Equivocation may seem a good approach, but isn't it still a lie? Whether deliberate or 'accidental', what do you do when you catch yourself in a lie? How do you explain yourself when it's another person who catches you in a lie? How do you explain yourself... to you? Lies are insidious and, when exposed, threaten relationships because now trust is broken. I would argue that equivocation is lying. Half-truths? Not. They don't exist.

Perhaps you think my standard is a bit harsh. Perhaps. But to be honest, my reason is that I don't want to disappoint my Lord. I don't think He approves of lying... even in the guise of 'equivocation'. Do I never lie? I try not to but I still do at times. However, when I do, I try and immediately (when another person is involved) go to the other person and apologize for what I said and provide them with what 'truth' I do know.

Actually, when you look at it - what does equivocation provide for us? Only a temporary 'cover' because the truth will always emerge somehow, someway, at some time. And when it does and we are seen for what we did... we have accomplished nothing. If, at the beginning, we tell the truth as we see and understand it, then the other person can correct us if we're wrong. If the relationship is so fragile that it is broken when we speak what we know, then it will always fail anyway. We only postpone the inevitable. Is it worth carry around the feelings of equivocation? 

Bottom line - when you do, you will get burned. And this gets you...???

The Kingdom of God

Scripture tells us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness... and "all these things will be added". Ignoring for a moment 'all these things' - exactly what and where is the Kingdom and how do we seek it?  

This is far from an idle question. And in the searching I tend to think that we make more of the search than the answer. When you consider righteousness - there is none in us. But, Praise God, He has made a way. Looking at 2Corinthians 5:21 you see that HE has made us righteous. Knowing that of ourselves we wouldn't be able to do this or maintain it - He made a way. Confession (1John 1:9) gives us our method of restoration when we sin. Faith is the pathway. Relationship is the prize. 

Kingdom of God. What is this to you? Is the search so difficult that you give up? Have you define this 'place' for yourself so you will know it when you are there? When you read in Mark 1:15: "The kingdom of God is at hand..." how do you react? I like how Hayford's Bible Handbook states this (p. 668)

   "The dynamic of Christian life and ministry is found in understanding
    the kingdom of God, which is not in 'eating and drinking' (that is
    ritual performance), but in 'righteousness and peace and joy in the
    Holy Spirit." (Romans 14:17)

Righteousness, Peace, Joy IN THE HOLY SPIRIT! The Handbook continues to state, "(the Kingdom of God)...the essence of the church's message and life." (p.668) Now ask yourself - is this the message MY church provides? If not, what should I do so that the church is aligned with the core message?

Yes there is a great deal to study and learn, but it is also what we can practice while we learn. I've always loved the scripture that talks about 'iron sharpening iron' and as we bring our understandings when we meet, we grow in BEING. This is life-long. And this only barely scratches the surface of what's available to those who seek the Kingdom of God.

"Old"

I was sitting in the (eye) doctor's chair waiting for him to return for the end of the annual exam. Somehow my mind wandered to age and old... probably because my glasses were going to be changed. Are you old? You do realize, of course, that old is defined by the individual. I've met people who were old, very old but their chronological age was in their mid 20's. And I've met 'senior citizens' who were in their 70's and acted and spoke like mid 20 year olds - with an excitement. Point being - chronological age and mindset don't always coincide.

Personally, I'm in my mid 70's but have to remind myself often that though I may not be a 70 year old in my mind and heart, my body keeps reminding me that I am. Physical age really has only limiting affects unless we let it dominate our outlook. I really never want to be old. Old means not willing to 'ride the wind' - whatever or however that is defined for you. Bottom line - be logical about the physical constraints but never let your heart and mind be limited.

Why do we let ourselves be limited? Why is it that we would change our mindset of adventure, challenge, change, exploration? We who are 'of an age' can build on what we've learned and discovered but we should never stop learning. Every day is a new opportunity to learn, to do, to be. The marvelous understanding that this mindset is available to all... regardless of age. You can always start now - right where you are.

I was curious about the word, 'retirement' so I looked it up in Webster. It states that this word was first used in 1536. Hmmm - did that mean people didn't retire before that date? If not, did they just continue doing whatever they were doing? What is retirement? Mostly the word is defined by using the word - such as: "of, relating to, or designed for people who are retired..." Truly enlightening - not. 

In my world of definitions, 'old' is definitely a negative when it relates to who we are and who we can become. Why? Why would we ever stop living a full life? Each day you can... meet a new person, discover something interesting about yourself, walk, talk with someone, sit and read, create a new dish for dinner - the list is endless. It can cost money or it doesn't need to - finances should never be an inhibition to live fully. Never become... old.

Run to...

not from God. This is especially true if you have sinned and don't want God to know. Fairly silly. He was with you when you sinned, it's not a surprise. Run to Him and repent and rid yourself of the guilt. Your enemy will always try to convince you that the Lord really didn't forgive you or that you are so unworthy that you don't have the 'right' to turn to Him to seek forgiveness. Poppycock! Do you really think the Lord would do this?

Do you remember the scripture in Hebrews (4:15) that talks about our High Priest, Jesus:

   "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."

This understanding is not to make us feel guilty because He was without sin and we are... but to help us realize that Jesus, our High Priest, DOES KNOW. That's why provision was made to help us move beyond our sin. Remember... satan knows the scriptures too. He will do everything in his power to twist them or attempt to use them against us. Not. 

How do we become reinstated. Quite simply... 1John 1:9

   "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our
    sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Faithful and just! All unrighteousness! Don't listen to what the devil is telling you. It has absolutely nothing to do with your righteousness and everything to do with what the Lord does.

When we do realize that the devil is telling you lies about you, about what you do, about the Lord... then you can walk away confidently and:

   "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we can 
    obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)

We can become emboldened by the Lord's mercy and grace to become the best we can be - to His honor.

Friday... the 13th!!!

So? Today happens to be the 13th on a Friday. Does this make it any different than if it were... the 10th or the 22nd? Of course not. How did we ever get the 13th on a Friday as a big problem? Do You have 'bad luck' on this day... ever? Then again... does 'luck' even exist?

Luck. One definition is that it is, "...a force that brings good fortune or adversity..." Another definition is, "...to prosper or succeed especially through chance or good fortune..." Does this then mean that everything is related to 'luck'? That when we have bad luck the force didn't bring good fortune or we didn't prosper or succeed because of 'luck'? How often do you wish another person, 'good luck' - which can be stated in a number of ways, not the least of which is - not gonna happen.

Is luck willy nilly? Or dependent upon the person 'some people have all the luck' or 'he never catches a break, he always seems to attract bad luck'. To me this sounds like a form of excuse - it isn't my fault that (fill in the blank). Is life really so casual, so unpredictable, so ... And do we have absolutely no control over what happens? 

Personally, I don't believe in 'luck' - good or bad. It simply doesn't exist. Our lives are that - OURS. We do control our own destinies by our decisions. Our. We aren't at the mercy of some unnamed, unknown 'force' that directs everything around us to create the 'good' and the 'bad'. Yes, circumstances/events do happen that we didn't expect or plan on but is this the result of some force? If you are a Christian then how can 'luck' and all that scripture teaches us coexist? How can your own experiences with the Lord be only 'luck'? 

The 13th, Friday or otherwise, is just that. It is a number preceded by 12 and followed by 14. And regardless of the day of the week it falls on... it is only that.

Personalize

There are many ideas, concepts, discoveries that are external to ourselves. There are many that we try to keep external. And then there are those that never can be external - they are part of us ... period. Examples of the last group are understandings, mind-sets, standards, etc. 

To me, the key to understanding and/or change always comes with personalizing the learning. Learning has to be 'operational' in order to have any application and value. I realize that sounds obvious but too often this is the missing step in our application of learning. Without personalizing it, how can it possibly be of use to us?

How do you define personalize? Webster's, in my humble opinion, is woefully inadequate. It states: "to mark (something) in a way that shows it belongs to a particular person". And yet, when we do personalize it does mark us. Personalize, in my world of definitions, is the intentional inclusion into my concepts, mind-sets, etc. in such a way that it is seen in my choice of words and actions. Is this any better? Personalizing is deliberate and by choice and it is a behavior.

Why be mindful of personalizing? Because I don't believe that a willy nilly approach to the important issues and decisions of life should be our MO. We need to know why we do and are as we are, what influences us, how we portray what it is that we are and do. I don't believe that we were created to be mindless which requires an intentionality. We must know our own who, what, expression, and why. We really can't be external to who we are.

On the back burner...

Do you put 'things' on the back burner - to be dealt with later? Does later ever come? Somehow, these 'things' tend to reappear later at an most inconvenient time - they rarely just go away. Part of the reason they don't just disappear is that they really are important - concepts, ideas, thoughts that you truly do need to know what and why you believe and act as you do. 

The 'harder' aspects of who you are really can't be on the back burner because there is a great tendency to get burned when you do or blindsided - which is just as bad. The harder aspects really are those foundational concepts, ideas that define who you are and how you go about being and doing you. When you don't address the foundation to the foundation, you really are like the scripture that talks about shifting sand (Matthew 7:24-27). The foundation to your 'house' (the who, what, why of you) can cause you to fall when it is on shifting sand. Never assume the stability of your foundation when you don't continue to grow.

When you consider it seriously... what is it you are putting on the back burner? Do you hope it will just disappear? Or perhaps you think it will be resolved in time - is this your 'why' of waiting? Another question is do you ever return to those things that are on the back burner? Or do you consider them insignificant so you can always put them off? And there can be a host of other reasons, questions as to the why of this kind of behavior. But I have sadly discovered that pebbles can grow into boulders.

This behavior is probably very familiar to most of us since most of us tend to do those things that are demanding (at least our perception of demanding) our immediate attention and justify this as to why we do what we do. Sometimes this is true... but sometimes it isn't. The point in all this is not to delay returning to those back burner issues. If they are emerging then there is a reason and this is where we need to start - what is causing these 'things' to emerge now. It can be a warning which we need to heed. Perhaps not always this dramatic but back burner-ing should be a temporary approach... not a permanent solution.

Do you want to be....

(fill in the blank: healthy, happy, famous, wealthy, etc. - and... are any of the wants in competition with other wants? and/or if you could have just one want - do you have one that is the most important?). Why the apparent restriction? Because being any (improvement) takes your concentrated involvement. Example: it's the same process when you say you're sorry... if you have no intention of changing, why bother saying anything!? If you won't make the effort to - change your attitude, make the necessary adjustments, leave your unresolved emotion, etc. - why do you mouth the words?

Actually, in my world of definitions, repentance is an action related to the main object, focus. It is never only just words. If you aren't willing to change, improve then saying you're sorry or repenting of what happened is merely empty words. Simply... not enough. So... what do you want? How do you want to be viewed - by others, yes, but mostly by yourself?

Returning to the original question - what are you seeking? What do you want for you? What are you willing to pay or what cost are you willing to bear to attain (fill in the blank)? Is it an immediate or long-term want? These represent only a few of the issues you need to consider in order to reach your goal(s). Bottom line... just how important is you to you? Because however you choose for you, this is how you are defining you.

Do you want to be... happy? Healthy? Financially strong? Fulfilled? Whatever it is that you want, can it be attained... at least at some level that you will be satisfied with? If so, then what are you willing to do to attain it? Dreams are wonderful, but those that come true typically happen when we do what WE can to attain them. My father always told me to dream big and then do what I could to make certain I had done everything I could to reach them. But along the way to attainment... look to the next dream.

Paradigm shift?

Our lives go through paradigm shifts often... sometimes so subtly that we don't seem to realize. It is only when we look back from the vantage point of passing time we currently occupy that we do see. Some of the shifts are defining moments in our lives, some are due to events that have preempted the shift, and some seem to be due to our own changes in thoughts, attitudes, and behavior. I could provide specific examples, but I believe you understand the point. Life is never static.

Many people truly HATE change. They don't want it. They may not be comfortable in their now, but change is in the same category as confrontation. Avoidance is the mode of handling change and confrontation. It is undeniable that change always, always causes us to confront who we are, where we are, and how we go about living in our now. Same is another word for understanding and coping with any challenge. But life rarely stands still or allows us this approach.

Face it! Life is messy. It has never been 'easy' (even for those that seem to never have issues - you aren't them you know) because we threw that away in the fall (and never think you are superior to the temptations Adam and Eve fell for). There Will be a time when we will be in that place where there is no illness, no death, no stress - but until then... why should you ever assume that life is meant to be simple? We are in training mode until we do change our living condition.

What is always helpful is to realize that a paradigm shift is a good thing. It's meant to help us to grow, to develop, to become all we can in this life. This is the paradigm shift we should live in. Enjoy! Live life to the fullest you know how to! Be all that the Lord has for you! When the hard times come - use them to continue your journey in this life. Hard times aren't always a negative, they may be difficult at the time, but you + the Lord can conquer anything. The 'anything' may be your attitude, your thinking. Paradigm shifts cause the 'new'. Not that the old was bad... unless we refuse to let yesterday be yesterday and not move into today.