Monday, February 15, 2016

Praying: Standing Strong In Adversity

This morning began like any other morning. I stumbled out of bed and headed for the coffee pot. And as I do every morning, I picked up my cellphone to send a love message to the grandchildren before they headed off to school. Before I could finish my task, a drop down menu on my phone caught my eye, “Pinterest comment to your post.” I finished my last little text and went over to email. I opened it and saw this note:

“Ever noticed how praying does absolutely nothing”

Chills went up and down my arms. I felt, a presence of loss, a loss of hope. My next response was to wonder what pin I had posted that would illicit such a response. Here’s the pin.




What if we all prayed for America? Why would this incite someone to post that kind of comment? What did they hope to gain from it?

After checking out the pin, I realized it had been posted several months ago on my board “Pray for America.” A cold chill ran up my back. It was happening again. Those same feelings I had that pushed me to write my last book, Cries of Innocence. That was more about the presence of evil. This one felt more like a loss of hope. But I couldn’t keep my chest from aching.

I regret that I went back to the comment post and tapped on the name of the sender which opened up their Pinterest account. As soon as it opened up, I understood why I had been troubled. The page was filled with horrible apocalyptic pictures, depicting evil warriors in the middle of mass destruction and total annihilation. Evil . . . where there is no hope.

I immediately shut down the page.

“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers…” Psalm 1:1

I went around for hours praying over the person. I could have sent back an innocuous line like, “Prayer is my lifeline.” But you know what, I think, after looking at the horror on their Pinterest page that anything I could have said would have only provoked retaliation.

I must recognize that Satan is on the prowl. He is the master at creating havoc, instilling fear in the weak, especially God’s people. A lot of older women, like myself, would have seen the evil on that person’s Pinterest page and run for the hills in fear. Not me.

Mark 9:29  And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

That’s what spiritual warfare is. God’s Word says we are more than overcomers through Christ that lives within us.

Prayer honors God. And in turn, God honors His children. Even when we give up on God, God never gives up on us; not even the person who sent the comment and was driven to post horrific pins on their Pinterest sight.

Prayer is a shield to the soul, a sacrifice to God,
 and a scourge for Satan. ~ John Bunyan

Prayer – secret, fervent, believing prayer –
lies at the root of all personal godliness.  ~ Williams Carey

Prayer is the key to Heaven,
But faith unlocks the door. ~Anonymous

I am praying for this person. I know the power of prayer, speaking God’s Word over this individual. I’ve been the recipient of prayer many times. I know there is evil in this world; I am not naïve. As a spiritual warrior, I know how to battle this kind of foe.



“Stand firm! Put on the belt of truth and buckle it around your waist to counter a culture of lies.

Attach the breastplate of righteousness in place,

and with your feet fitted with readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

Then pick up your shield of faith to extinguish the flaming arrows the evil one will hurl at you.

Don’t forget your helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Mighty Word of God.” (paraphrased from Ephesians 6)

And pray fervently, storm Heaven with requests, and wrestle to bring forth prayers from the Throne Room.

If we are quiet in how we feel about Jesus, our faith, and our country, we are handing it all over to the enemy on a silver platter.


Power up with prayer! God be with you,

Friday, February 5, 2016

Conviction of Faith


I’ve been praying over this passage for two weeks. Every word hammered me, testing every facet of who I am. I’m questioning. I’m playing rhetorical-scenario-mind-games with myself.

What does it mean to truly believe in anything?
What does conviction truly mean?
What does it mean to “truly believe” in Jesus?
What is conviction of faith?

Conviction is a firm belief. Belief is a conviction in the truth. Truth is a verifiable indisputable fact. Faith is the belief and loyalty in God. Do you see how conviction, belief, truth, and faith are intertwined?

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

I don’t see any loopholes here. The I AM said, “I AM the truth.”

But our society has made it easy and accommodating to vacillate between truth, half-truth, and no-truth to the point that I wonder if anyone truly knows the truth. The world sells sweet tonic-talk with false messages and promises. The culture pushes hard against believers, mixing faith based words of love to sugarcoat a multitude of offenses. There seems to be no moral truths. This dilemma has caused a rift within us. Truth is the force that stabilizes and centers us. It keeps us focused.

When we begin to doubt, we sway, not knowing right from wrong or east from west. And it affects everything about us. Our emotions. Our physical health. Our mental wholeness. Our self-worth. It feels as if we are a yoyo, going up and down in our convictions with no time to process their implications.

Do you remember the movie, A Few Good Men, and the scene where Colonel Jessep (Jack Nicholson) shouted:


That’s what mainstream culture wants us to think. You can’t handle the truth; so, how about I tell you what it is. The problem is their truth is coming at us from all directions and changing as quickly as it’s delivered. Without a strong conviction of the truth, these words uproot us, begging us to wonder if we can handle the truth.

What Jessep handed the young lawyer was the truth to many-“I don’t want  to handle the truth”. Being duped seems to be the new norm. It’s easier to let others think for you and decide what truth and conviction and faith and belief actually are. Maybe it’s easier to live in a preconceived world-bubble in order to keep life neat and orderly because the truth, the real truth, might be more than they can handle.

There’s a little tucked away verse that is appropriate here.

                        “Later, a great many people from the Gerasene countryside got together
                        and asked Jesus to leave – too much change, too fast, and they were
                        scared.” Luke 8:37 (MSG)

Scared? Some translations use the word “fear” Is it fear that draws us away from the truth? Fear of reprisal, maybe persecution. Because that’s what the Bible says, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12)

Truth is the core of who we are. We yearn for it. Truth is the anchor and stabilizing force in our life.

I finally stopped assaulting myself over these questions.. I am a student of the Bible. Getting to know God is my passion. Maybe my question is not if I can handle the truth, but do I know the Truth. That’s the only way I am going to be able to discern the real thing from a falsehood. If I don’t know God’s Word, then those half-truths circulating will begin to etch away at my conviction of belief. My faith.

It takes courage to stand firm on who God is and who God says we are. And to stand firm is what conviction means. If your conviction is not solid, you will be like chaff that blows away in the wind. You will be vulnerable to the distortion of the truth and Satanic attacks. My husband always says, “You’d better stand firm on your beliefs or you’ll fall for anything!” He’s got that right!

There are so many great men in the Bible who resolved not to defile themselves, like Daniel, who stood firm in his conviction to live his faith out by following God and biblical principles. These principles are found in scripture. The more you read the Bible, the more you will see God delivering blessings upon blessings upon His faithful followers.

Think about your conviction of faith.

            Do you believe God is who He says He is?
            Do you believe God will do what He says He will do?
            Do you believe you are who God says you are?

What does the Bible say about these things? Take these treasures to heart. Stand firm. We are in a spiritual battle. Be ready and be prepared. Stand tall in the face of temptation and compromise. Keep God’s Word at the forefront of your being.




To God be all glory!