Hope Is Freedom

My nephew was in the hospital for 65 days. He’s been a quadriplegic for 40 years and up until this hospital stay he’s been able to manage life and live independently with the use of trained helpers.

For 65 days many people have been by his side. They have offered help, but more importantly, they have offered him Jesus in the way they act and conduct their lives. And my nephew has listened, requesting prayers before they left the room. My husband and I have watched expectantly knowing God was going to show up in a mighty way in His perfect timing.

But the looming problem: my nephew was losing hope. He had fought a good fight, but he wasn’t healing like he should. For 64 days the hospital staff changed his orders many times, and we watched as his condition changed from grave to poor, but never really getting any better. Then on day 65, the surgeon walked in and told him to go home and see if he could manage better with his helpers. He was released that day.

He still has a battle ahead of him, but being home has offered hope. Many issues have arisen, but he’s had a tremendous support group who has rushed in to help. His faith is growing. As faith grows, hope grows.

On Monday, we celebrate the 4th of July, Independence Day, when 13 colonies celebrated their freedom as a new nation with a new home – the United States of America.

Our forefathers had renewed hope when they were freed from British rule. They knew they would have issues ahead, but they were ready to move forward and succeed as a new nation.

“Hope is the thing that gets us up in the morning when we know that God cares but we haven’t seen any evidence of it in the last few days. Hope drives us onward when we stop and quit. Hope keeps our dreams alive while we are waiting.” (Dr. David Jeremiah)

How about you? Are you facing circumstances that are taxing your hope?

Attend a 4th of July celebration, remember and feel the power of hope that is still vital 240 years after our battle for freedom.

Take that hope home and pray for God’s intercession in your life, trials, struggles, and heartbreak. Ask God to help you revitalize your hope. Hope is the freedom to move forward and live life to its fullest.

Happy 4th of July! God bless you all,

A Spiritual Immune System

We all know what it’s like to have a strong immune system. You rarely get a cold or the flu. If you do, its life is cut short because your natural defense, the immune system, takes care of it. It’s the rapid responder for your body.

Most of our life, if we’re healthy, we really don’t think too much of the giant immune machine that keeps us healthy. From our skin to organs that produce enzymes and blood vessels, we are protected.

But when we do get sick from a virus or bacterial infection and our immune or defense system is weak, we know immediately that we need help. Most of the time we have to go to the doctor and then on to the pharmacy to get medication. If your immune system is very weak, your whole body comes under attack which weakens you even further in all areas of life – emotional, physical, and cognitive.

During the holy season of Lent, I try to do something to take my faith deeper. This year, I decided to evaluate and work on my spiritual immune system. I had been running in overtime for several months. Never getting ahead. Always staying behind. And two days into Lent a situation occurred that tried me further. I was caught in the middle of two groups that were at odds. As both groups hit me up with their complaint of the other one, I almost let my emotions get out of hand. The operative word is almost.

Before any damage could be done, I remembered my Lent promise to work on my spiritual immune system. I could tell my normal easy going nature had frayed. Now it was threatening to break. So before approaching either group with a solution or a termination, I went to the Lord in prayer. I truly felt God had me in this position for a purpose.

God brought me straight to Galations 6:9.

Let us not grow weary in doing good. Do not lose heart.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. I felt an immediate release- a type of peace solvent that spread throughout my body. I continued to meditate over this verse and truly felt it was telling me to approach the situation quietly, faithfully, and optimistically. I needed to listen to each complaint with love and not fall victim to the temptation to get frustrated and say something I might regret in the future.

Dr. David Jeremiah once said, “Nothing tests the integrity of our faith like our response to temptation.”

I regret that I was tempted to react in a less than fruitful way. Had my immune system been healthier, I hope I would have done the right thing immediately. But my immune system had been tortured for weeks. When that happened, I was also taxing my time with God. Communing with Him is what slows the heartbeat down and re-centers my life. At the point of a break, I realized I had not been putting on my armor daily and honing up on my defenses against temptation.

It’s amazing how God can allow you to turn back to your old ways just to show you there is no way without Him. My journey through Lent has proven invaluable. I have set new priorities to build up my body and spiritual immune system.

Those priorities have been to start each day with deliberate and determined time with God. To worship Him. To fellowship with Him. I’ve taken my ministries to God to see if this is where He needs me to be in this season of my life. I’ve walked outside daily, sometimes several times a day and listened to creation singing. I have captured words from scripture and feasted on them all day long. I have resisted stress. I’ve slept more. I’m taking vitamins rather than buying them to fill my cabinets. I’m drinking more water. I’m laughing more. I’m doing more of the things I should be doing and less of the things that I should not be doing.

God gave us a marvelous gift in our well designed body. To keep it in top running condition, we need to keep it fueled with food and healthy life choices. As followers of Christ, we’ve been gifted with a spiritual immune system. In order for us to keep it at peak performance, we often need to pull away from life’s stressors and re-center our lives in God’s teachings, His Word.

Has this season of your life been stressful? Have you turned to God to get help in reevaluating your priorities in life?

Trust me. It might be the most important thing you do for yourself.

Blessings,

Happy New Year: 2016!

As I close out 2015, I’d like to share Dr. David Jeremiah’s commentary on reflection and hope.

“As we stand on the cusp of a new year, we have the

opportunity to pause and reflect on the past year.

Although loved ones sometimes sugarcoat their

feedback, we can find clarity in seeking God’s

perspective. He measures the waters on the earth and

knows every crevice of your soul. He sees and speaks truth.

If we don’t take time to do this, our years blur together

and we miss the story God is weaving in our lives. As

we review our year, seeking His clarity, we find growth

to celebrate and missed opportunities to mourn.

Reflecting on the past can strengthen us for the future

as we seek God’s vision and direction for the upcoming

year. Allow Him to lovingly lead you forward.”

                                                                  (Turning Points, December 31, 2015)

“All day long have I toiled and striven; but now in the stillness of heart and in the clear light of Thine eternity, I would ponder the pattern my life has been weaving.” John Baillie

As we slip into 2016, reflect on 2015 and all its joys and disappointments. All were woven into your life – threads of growth and blessings.

Happy New Year! I’m going into it singing a new song. And as I close out 2015 in remembrance, I press onward in joy in 2016! I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me.

Blessings to you all!