Your Excuse Has Just Become Your Bondage-A Soap Box Sermon

As one who must OFTEN ask people to volunteer I OFTEN get to hear their excuses when what they are really saying is...

I don't want to.

Every blue moon I get someone who has decided they don't care and are just flat out rebellious enough to tell the truth...

I don't want to.

But for the most part I must stand there with a smile and listen to excuses from those who prefer to have a form of godliness.

I actually understand excuses having had to repent of having a pocket book full of my own from time to time over the years.  I mean c'mon.  Who really wants to go out of their way to do anything when they are tired, overworked already, or have had no time to just sit and....

breathe.

So it's not like I don't understand human nature..

BUT there must come a time when we get past our excuses

lies

and become a people of sacrificial and obedient lives.  But that's for another blog.

What I'd like to jump on my soap box about is how Christians will use certain things in their lives to keep from having to serve God.

For example a wife who feels her husband is too controlling and never does a thing he tells her until she is asked to serve then suddenly she becomes this "submissive" wife who needs to ask her husband before she is able to commit.  Of course said husband always says "no" and the wife is sweetly able to save face as she lays all the blame on her overbearing spouse.

Then we have those who use their illness as their excuse.  They can do anything they want to do (fun) but ask them to serve in a area that is distasteful to them and suddenly they are all but but bedridden.  "Pray for me" is their common refrain.

Next we have those who are always broke.  They own the latest in dvd's, they regularly eat out, and hair and nails are faithfully done but ask them to serve and suddenly they lack gas money.

And finally there are the "I would do that but my kids..." folks.  My kids are sick. My kids have homework. My kids need to get to bed.  My kids have games.  My kids may get offended.  I know I'm an adult but really my kids are in charge and I just keep house for them, pay their bills, and buy whatever they tell me to buy for them.  They are so busy bowing down to their children that there is no room in their lives to worship God.  Oh and did I neglect to tell you that most of these parents complain continually that their children have behavioral issues?

Again I understand the temptation to use excuses but there are some who will continually tell you how much they need God to move in their lives but will actually use the very thing in which they are asking God to help to keep from serving HIM!

Do they actually believe God is blind and deaf to this fact?

God please heal me, deliver me, rescue me!  Oh wait don't deliver me right now I need to use my (fill in the blank) to get out of serving You!

They need God to move.  I say that as long as their need is their convenient excuse they will never see God move because they have made that thing their god that delivers them from the task master the rest of us know as God in Heaven.  God in fact might just turn them over to that god and allow them to remain in bondage to it.  He did it to Israel when they continually worshipped other gods.  He actually arranged it so they would be force marched to Babylon where they could be slaves to the
very gods they worshipped when they were free.

Let us no longer be a people of excuses.  Let us no longer love our bondage because it allows us to get out of serving.  But let us love God and show Him our fidelity through our grateful service to Him.

God will not be mocked.  We shall indeed reap as we have sown.

Another Christian Four Letter Word...OBEY

I am not sure why so many Christians think they can pick and choose what they will and will not do in their walk with God.

We come to church when we please.  We join and quit ministries depending on how we feel at the moment.  One day we are paying our tithes and giving offerings, then suddenly we just think we'll take a break from that and handle business.  

One of the new phrases I hear thrown around a lot is, "He or she is in their emotions."

That bugs me.

It's the new catch phrase for anyone who is acting inappropriately because they are upset for one reason or another.

In the flesh.

God expects us to obey Him no matter how we feel.  No matter the cost.  

Is it always easy?

NO!

Will we sometimes fail?  

YES!

But, the heart that wants to obey God pushes towards that obedience through prayer, repentance, and yes, fasting.

The disciple of Christ who wills to do the Father's will does not make excuses or just throw up their hands and say...

Well, when God chooses to deliver me from this I can obey Him.

No!  They are storming the heavens, asking, seeking, knocking, until they are walking in God's will.

Seeking to obey God is no light or passive thing it's a desperation knowing one day we will stand before Him and have to give an account.

Do you and I really want to stand before Him and say...

 well God I would have obeyed you but...

I think not.

The mark of being Christlike is obedience.

The mark of being carnal and not Christs' is lawlessness or disobedience.

You choose.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  Phil 2:8

On This Martin Luther King's Birthday...I Am A SLAVE

Good Morning Family.

On this day, Martin Luther King's birthday, I am at a bit of a loss in what to say so I will just write from my heart.

I am a Christian.  My skin is dark.  My gender is woman.  I am a wife, a mother, a daughter.

I am a SLAVE.

I am not a slave in the sense that we would consider slavery.  Due to the providence of God, through mighty men and women, my generation in America was spared that atrocity.

I am a SLAVE to Jesus Christ.

A willing SLAVE.

Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. 1 Cor 9:19
From Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God.  Rom 1:1


There was a time when I was a slave to sins and bondages of all kinds...fornication, adultery, drugs, alcohol, depression, suicidal thoughts, selfish desires, stubbornness, people pleasing, the ways and "wisdom" of the world...

I was a SLAVE to the devil.

Do you not know that if you present yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or obedience resulting in righteousness? Rom 6:16

I remember a day when I was living in my father's home.  I was a single mom and while my daughter was in school I was folding socks.  Then in the midst of folding the thought suddenly came upon me...

I am going to HELL and there is nothing I can do about it.

I was frozen like a deer in headlights.

I wanted to run for my life but there was nowhere to turn.  One day I would die and have to go before God and because of my sin I was destined for hell.

I can't tell you how long I stood there petrified but eventually the thought dissipated and I went on with my day.  But it was only a few months later when salvation was explained to me and I gave my life to Jesus.  Yes, I was a sinner, but no amount of going to confession, lighting candles, praying to "saints", taking communion, or being a "nice" person would save me.  I needed to renounce and turn from my sin once and for all, ask Jesus to come into my life, and be born again.  Only JESUS could set me free from my sin nature.

It was years later that I realized I exchanged one master for THE MASTER.

The master I had served before had come to steal, kill, and destroy.  Jesus gave me abundant life, love, and provision.

The devil hated me with a rage that will only be swallowed up in the lake of fire.  Jesus called me His beloved and He wanted only to protect, heal, deliver, and then empower me through His Spirit to build His kingdom that He wants to give to ME!

As a black woman I do not deny my heritage nor the injustice committed in the earth against people of color.  But as an ambassador of Jesus Christ my concern is not JUST for the injustice committed against people who share my skin color.  Looking through the eyes of Jesus I see with sorrow injustice rampant against everyone made in the image of God.

I see those who claim to be Christians bickering over who is more oppressed.  I hear those who before, seemed so God fearing revealing the prejudice in their hearts.

I see racism in the church.

May I say this...there is no room in heaven for those who will not do all they can to make peace, to rid their hearts of hatred, bitterness, unforgiveness.  To bring Christ and His word into every situation.

The Ferguson case, and others like it, are true revealers of the hearts.  I pray Christians everywhere are shocked about their response to this case and are repenting and praying the mind that is in Christ will be in them.

Am I suggesting that we all deny what is happening in this country?  Not at all.  I am exhorting us all to return to the commandments of God and trust in Him.  Every injustice, if we are His, ought to drive us to our knees in prayer.  And If we are to act, to act in such a way that points others to Jesus.

May I say this?  Most people who made comments or commentaries, on Face Book, twitter, through emails, or on You Tube did NOT make time to pray and dig in the Word of God for wisdom or comfort.

And they surely did not FAST.

They spoke out of their own insecurity, hurt, and anger...out of their own resources instead of going to Jesus.

One last thing.  As a Christian I do not vote based on a man's skin color, I do not overlook crimes of famous people who share my skin color, and I do not give favoritism because someone is a "Sista".

Because I am a Christian my sister, my brother, my people are those who are believers in Jesus Christ.

For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. (Jesus) Mk 3:35

I am a SLAVE to my Lord.  If that offends you then you either need to mature in your walk or you need to, as I did, exchange your master for THE MASTER.

I...Am...A...Christian.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.  Martin Luther King

I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant. Martin Luther King

Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a descending spiral, ultimately ending in destruction for all and everybody. Somebody must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate and the chain of evil in the universe. And you do that by love.  Marin Luther King

The reason I can't follow the old eye-for-an-eye philosophy is that it ends up leaving everyone blind.  Martin Luther King

Love in our Lord,
Lauren

A Precious Mess

I honestly believe most people think that when they begin the pursuit of God that it's one simple decision and then they land in the holiest of holies and like Moses will descend from the mount needing face covered lest the glory of God overwhelm the people.

Perhaps this happens to a few amazing people who actually do make a quick transition from decision to a life poured out

BUT

for most of us it is a process.

It's a process because we don't even know ourselves.

As we begin the slow and painful journey to dwelling in the presence of God (Notice I did not say destiny, ministry, or our dreams.)  things come up along the way.

Offenses, character issues, faults, bad habits, mind sets, fear, and yes,  sin.

Many of these issues we may or may not be fully aware we possess but, as we draw near to God, He chooses to put them on

BLAST.

Not fair we may say?

Here we are praying, fasting, reading, meditating and then something occurs and we respond in a way that cause others to question our salvation.  Heck, we question our own salvation.  (Did I hear someone say amen?)

Family, as we draw near to God we are approaching the Consuming Fire.  We are entering into Holy Ground and anything that is unholy within us shall be revealed.

THIS    IS   A   GOOD   THING

Unfortunately many give up when they behold God and like a mirror He reveals the ugliness
inside.

I say

DON'T  QUIT.

Let's allow ourselves be humbled in His mighty presence and rejoice that with each spot, blemish and wrinkle revealed He still loves us and beckons us to come closer.

Be the precious mess you are wrapped in the arms of your Heavenly Father.

This is the only place where we can be made like Him.

Embracing Your Inner Stupid

As a child I was a horrible student.

From being painfully slow to learn my ABC's, to falling behind in grade school, to almost flunking my sophomore year of high school I felt that I indeed was hopeless.

Growing up I was always painfully aware that I lacked what so many others seemed to have.  I made dumb decisions, I said dumb things, and often lost sleep regretting my actions of the day.

As an adult I was determined to be different.  To be a woman who others respected.  Really I just became hard hearted.

I remember in my 20's I was proud to say people could call me any word in the book and it would not faze me.

Any word but

STUPID.

In the military I got in a couple of drunken fights over that word.

As a single mother in college I studied late into the nights to earn grades that would wash the pain of that word out of my mind.

But once saved in 1995, cleansed by the blood of Jesus, I found that being teased or even rudely told I wasn't that bright still hurt.

Once again I found myself tossing and turning in regret over something I said or did. I would painfully go over every detail and word wishing I could just take it all back...be different somehow...

CHANGE.

That is until one day in

PRAYER

I had the most awesome revelation!

I       AM      STUPID!!!!

Without the leading of the Holy Spirit and knowledge of the Word of God I say stupid things, I do stupid things, I am a stupid woman.

Can you say

FREEDOM?!!!

In my heart I was rejoicing over the very thing that had caused me much pain, tears, and rage since a little child.

Without Him I am a stupid woman.

My only job in life is to get as close to the Holy Spirit as I can, listen to His voice, and obey.

He will tell me what to do, where to go, what to say, how to think.

It is His absolute joy to lead and teach me how to

BE.

And if I really desire to hear His voice I will hear it in my children, my spouse, my leaders, a sinner, or even nature.

I will desire the pain of every rebuke because I know it's making me like Jesus and I will receive his every encouragement and press on.

I will hear it if it's said sweetly or rude.  I will hear it if it's loud as thunder or a faint whisper.

And here is the kicker folks.  (I'm smiling ear to ear even as I write this.)  YOU ARE STUPID TOO!!!

I don't care what your title is, how long you have been saved, what degrees you hold, or how much knowledge you have.

If you and I insist on doing things our own way instead of intently, DESPERATELY, listening for the voice of the Spirit ALL DAY LONG and, obeying what He tells us to do, we are 

STUPID.

So don't be mad.  Embrace your INNER STUPID (OK now I'm laughing.)  Let the knowledge that you NEED Him drive you into deeper prayer and a quietness of the soul that will enable you to hear Him.

Be liberated in your loud and fervent declaration that apart from HIM you can do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

We cannot go wrong following Him.

He will lead us directly to Himself.

Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoever finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the Lord.  Proverbs 8:34-35

 I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. Psalm 119:99

 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Gal 5:16

Guard Your testimony...At ALL Times

Anyone who loves Jesus works hard to guard their testimony.

At work, school, the market, or any other public place we are constantly on guard.

We talk right, act right, walk right. The fruit of the Spirit appears to be abundant and ripe for the picking in our lives.

Whether they love us or hate us the unbeliever can clearly see we are Christ's.

At least on the outside.

But what about at home?

When the door is closed to the outside world what do your kids see?  Your spouse?

But you don't understand!  All this being good all day makes me tired.  When I get home I just want to let my hair down.  Be MYSElF!

Our families do not need us to be ourselves (shuddder).  They need to see Jesus in us just as much as this unbelieving world.  Maybe more.   When our families are walking in doubt or going through trials they need to see that there is indeed someone near to them that is strong and doesn't waver in the face of hardship. They also need to see the mercy and compassion of Christ when they are acting like the devil.

What about at church?

Hold on now sister.  At church I am the epitome of a Christian.

Really?  Hmmmm....

Try asking your Pastor, your closest friend, those who work under you in the church, or the new comer who smells funny, if you're as Christlike as you could be.

Are you easily corrected or do you kick against the pricks? Do you give instruction or direction clearly and patiently or are you one to bark out orders?  Are you sarcastic, mean, guarded or suspicious or are you friendly, open, and cheerful?  Are you touchy and easily offended or are you quick to forgive or even overlook a slight?

Do you greet those who are new and treat them as if they are important or do you stick to your circle of friends?  Do you make it a point to make everyone feel welcome even if they are dirt poor and smell like urine?  Or do you only give honor to those who are just like you?

Can you love those of a different color?

The people at church need to see to see Jesus in you too.

Yes, I understand we must all work out our own salvation and, yes, we are each responsible for our own walk with God.  But, we must understand that our insensitivity and lack of compassion could be the straw that breaks the camel's back in the life of a brother or sister that is weak in their faith.

Whether at home, in public or at church Jesus should always shine through you...through me.

Let's tighten up ship and guard our testimonies, wherever we are,  and to God be the Glory!

Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to himthrough whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones.  Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Luke 17:1-4

From Detox To Detox...

It used to be that the word detox was only used by the health nuts.  Now as more and more people gain understanding of the poison that is in fast or prepackaged food, meat, and dairy and how it can literally destroy your health, that word is fast gaining popularity.

Basically a detox diet is when you stop eating all the junk and choose living healthy food. Thereby gently  purging your body of all manner of poison.

The problem is people think they can detox for a season and then go back to the same old junk food.

Not so.

It does no one any good to cleanse their bodies for a season and then turn around and put the same poison back in.

Can you say heart attack, stroke, cancer, diabetes, and an odd assortment of diseases their is no cure for except to stop taking in the toxins.

Well it's the same in our Christian walk.

Take a typical fast for instance.

We commit a certain amount of time to reject the world and focus on God.  We stop eating, stop watching television or movies, we turn off our phones and social media, we dive into the Word and spend more time in prayer and meditation.  

In other words we stop taking in the toxins of this world and we feed on Jesus.

So why is it once the fast is over we run back to the world as fast as we can.

As it is in the natural so it is in the spirit.

We think we are so righteous having fasted for this or that many days but...

....does it really do anyone any good to cleanse their spirits for a season and then turn around and put the same poison back in.

 Can you say luke warm, disconnected, unfruitful, uninspired, bitter, struggling with all manner of sins, blind, deaf, and utterly without a vision to do the work of the Lord?

A well versed nutritionist would say stop feeding on death and choose life if you would be well.

And if we want a healthy spirit?

Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! Deut 30:19

Yes, Lot was a righteous man who was tormented in his soul by the wickedness he saw and heard day after day. 2nd Peter 2:8 NLT