Claire's Prayer

Who doesn’t love to travel, see new places, experience new things? For me try all the new cuisines! But to do that we need to have a passport, a document that tells authorities exactly who you are, you wouldn’t be able to travel without this very important identification.

Way back in Mark 10, we see just how important identification was. Imagine the scene, Blind Bartimaeus was sitting at the side of the road, begging, when Jesus passed by; “𝑯𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕, “𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔, 𝑺𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆!” 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒃𝒖𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒆𝒕, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆, “𝑺𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝑫𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒅, 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒆!” 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅, “𝑪𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒊𝒎. 𝑺𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒂𝒏, “𝑪𝒉𝒆𝒆𝒓 𝒖𝒑! 𝑶𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕! 𝑯𝒆’𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖.” 𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒌 𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒉𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔.” Throwing his cloak aside? Why did Mark even mention this cloak? Was it important? You see, the Roman government issued identification to the blind man, giving them the legal right to beg. A cloak was given, an identity allotted. Bartimaeus wore that cloak which announced to the world, I am blind, this is who I am.

When Bartimaeus heard Jesus coming, he threw aside that cloak, his old identity. 𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱, 𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲. He knew that today was the day that he would be changed forever, he would be able to see!

How like Bartimaeus we can be. Wearing the cloak that the world has given us, perhaps a cloak of shame, anxiety, doubt, fear, or failure. That cloak can become our identity. Bartimaeus knew that only Jesus could change his identity and he was ready! He was ready for a new identity, one that could see, one that knew Jesus could exchange failure, fear, and frailty for courage, love, and peace.

I often wonder what happened to Sharp Sighted Bartimaeus, one thing I know for sure is he never picked that cloak up again, Mark tells us, “𝒊𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅.” No time to turn back. I want to be like Bartimaeus, throw away my old identity, the one the world has placed on my shoulder and take on the identity of Christ. Healed. Loved. Forgiven. Child of God.

Sometimes it feels as though we do nothing but battle. We wrestle, we struggle, and we fight. Ephesians 6:12 tells us this exact thing; “𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒍 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒔.” Some translations use battle, fight, or wrestle.

Interestingly, this verse is not sounding an alarm; it’s not a clarion call announcing a call to arms, but a statement, a declaration that we are already in this battle. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗗’𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗺𝘆.

I had a picture of an intense battleground, bombs were exploding everywhere you looked, snipers were in the trees and there were ambushes hidden around the corner. And there, walking among the flowers, was a person who looked like they were on a Sunday stroll. Stopping to pick flowers, oblivious to that which was going on around. It made me want to shout, to shake the stroller and say, “𝘊𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦! 𝘉𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭!” All I could think was, “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘵!”

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲.

The surest way to lose a battle is to pretend it doesn’t exist. In 2 Corinthians 2:11, as Paul talks about forgiving one another, he says, “𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑺𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒏 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒘𝒊𝒕 𝒖𝒔. 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒔.” The devil schemes, he plots, and he plans and his conspiracies are not ones for your good, they are to kill you, like a lion to devour you. (1 Peter 5:8)

I feel we must put a BUT GOD moment in here! But God has equipped us, has given us armor, has advised us of the battle plan. We are fighting a battle that we will win! The Holy Spirit was sent to us to be our guide, He helps us in our weakness and leads us in all truth. God’s Word illuminates our path, equips us for battle. Our worship to the LORD conquers even the fiercest of enemies. And prayer, oh prayer, Karl Barth put it this way; “𝘛𝘰 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘱 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥.”

I’ve been reading the last 3 chapters of Judges and honestly there isn’t a whole lot to like in these stories! It is a tough couple of chapters full of what life looks like when man goes their own way and does “𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒕”, takes matters into their own hands, and there is very little of God in the story.

An interesting verse stood out to me, and I really wondered why it was even referenced, it’s Judges 20:16; “𝑨𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒑𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒇𝒕-𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒅, 𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒐𝒇 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒎 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔.” Left-handed men? Remarkable that there were so many left-handed men who were select troops. If you are left-handed, this is something to celebrate, as left-handed people have been given a bad rap for so many years. In many countries, well into the 21st century, children were forced to write with their right hand, sometimes having their left hands tied behind their backs!

There is a story about an island of men who used sling shots, in the Balearic Islands, today Majorca and Menorca. You could hire these elite troops who would fight on the front lines shattering the shields and helmets of the enemy. When the boys were young their fathers would put their bread for the day on the top of a tree or stick and the little boy would have to sling stones at it if he wanted to eat that day! A sure-fire way of making a great shooter. These incredible select troops could shoot a 1-pound stone at 100 miles an hour!

Now the bible says that these left-handed men were so good at what they did that they could sling a stone at a hair and not miss! Incredible.

Interestingly the word for miss in the Hebrew is ‘chata’ meaning, to miss the way, to fail; to err, to swerve from truth, to go wrong, to sin. Miss is the common word for sin. When we miss the mark, don’t hit the standard that God has set for righteousness we sin. And God’s Word tells us in Romans 3; “𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒃𝒚 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒚 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑱𝒆𝒔𝒖𝒔.”

We all miss the mark, if we were young boys living on that island, none of us would eat! BUT, we are all justified and redeemed by His grace. Because of the blood of our precious Savior, we are all freely forgiven, raised up, and delivered. Today I am thankful that Jesus paid the price for my sin, for my terrible aim, for my inability to hit the mark, because of Jesus’ grace I am free, it is as though I have never sinned.

𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗜 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲, 𝗹𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗱𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗱!

Life often seems to be a series of waiting. Waiting for prayers to be answered. Waiting for a doctor’s report. Waiting for a loan, a problem to be solved, a reply, a resolution. Paul and Silas have been on my mind, the earthquake that flung all the doors open in spectacular fashion setting them free! “𝑨𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝑷𝒂𝒖𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒊𝒍𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒚𝒎𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑺𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒍𝒚, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒌𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. 𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒘 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇𝒇.” (Acts 16:26) What a victory! What a celebration! But the truth is Paul and Silas played that same waiting game.

Earlier in their story Paul and Silas were seized by the crowd, they were stripped and severely beaten. Surely, they cried out to God to save them, deliver them, spare them from this pain. But nothing happened, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁! Thrown into a dark, inner dungeon, their feet clamped in uncomfortable stocks, surely the pleading of their hearts was, ‘𝘋𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘦, 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋!’ But again – 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁. Then something remarkable happened, Paul and Silas began to sing! They began to praise!

And as they did, “𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴.” They were listening and watching Paul and Silas, and in the same way the world is watching you. They are listening to what you have to say, to how you handle this time of waiting. Will you grumble and complain like an Israelite in the desert or praise The Great I Am?

‘Around midnight’ – literally just before the clock struck twelve, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗡𝗼𝘄! Not only were Paul and Silas set free but all those within the sound of their voices. Does the LORD say, “Now!” right at the time of maximum impact? Does our Father, in all His wisdom, wait until those that are in chains are paying attention and listening, when the answer to those prayers will influence many and not just one?

And so, I find myself, with many of you, in that season of 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁, with an awakened desire to find joy in the in-between, to praise God in the waiting, to join hands with my Abba Father, praying that even in the 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁 my life would have maximum impact on those around me.

Praying you would find joy in the 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗬𝗲𝘁.

Sometimes I write fiction. Today I want to tell you a story!

𝗦𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗸. 𝗦𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸. Sitting on the floor I pulled my knees up to my chest and rocked back and forth. Tears wet my cheeks and it seemed as through deep darkness slid like a black cloak over me. My heart ached within me, anguish so deep I feared I would drown in a sea of murky, dark misery. The ‘what ifs’ and ‘should haves’ of my past clamored through my head, all shouting for attention and another thick sob rose within me. In the background I thought I could hear the snicker of the enemy planting malignant thoughts in my mind; “𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘎𝘰𝘥?! 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤. 𝘈 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘳. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘶𝘱!” The gloating of the enemy grew in intensity, drowning out any other sound.

I opened my swollen eyes and squinted in the blackness. There at the very edge of my vision was a tiny pin prick of light. 𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗲. 𝗔 𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘆 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲. As I looked it seemed to be growing brighter.

“𝘐𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦!” I thought and rubbed my smarting eyes hard.

“𝘕𝘰!” yelled the enemy, “𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦.”

“𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴!” I replied.

As I made that declaration of faith, smaller even than a mustard seed, hope flooded in like a freight train. Light illuminated every crack, every hole, and every crevice of the room, soaking through my skin and trickling into my heart. Warmth. Thawing out the ice that had frozen like crystals in my soul.

New tears began to rush down my cheeks. Good tears. Tears of rejoicing. Tears of relief. The knowledge that my day of restoration was upon me. I felt the Spirit of the LORD filling the space all about me, the thickness of His weighty presence upon me.

Then I heard His voice. I heard His voice! “𝑰 𝒂𝒎 𝒂 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑰 𝒂𝒎 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒓𝒐𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒓, 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒆. 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒐 𝑴𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒂𝒍𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒖𝒈𝒆. 𝑴𝒚 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒑 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒕, 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒖𝒑 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌 𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒚. 𝑰 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒖𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒘 𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒓, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆. 𝑵𝒐𝒘 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒖𝒑 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒏 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒆, 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒉, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑰 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖! 𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒕 𝒖𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒈𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖. 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒇𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒋𝒐𝒚. 𝑹𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒖𝒑, 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔. 𝑻𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑫𝑶 𝑰𝑻!”

My eyes snapped open and with new resolve I began to lift my head. It was easy, the power of the living God was shooting through my veins, running through my spirit! I stood to my feet and threw my arms wide open taking in deep gulping breaths of sparkling light. I felt giddy, lightheaded even and began in spin in a circle like a child. Laughter rose up within me, joy began to flow, and delight tickled me from my head to my toes. With an exuberant shout I yelled; “𝑫𝑶 𝑵𝑶𝑻 𝒈𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒕 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒎𝒚, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍, 𝑰 𝑺𝑯𝑨𝑳𝑳 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑳𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆!” (Micah 7:8 emphasis mine)

Scriptures used – Psalm 91:5-7, Psalm 18:2-3, Psalm 91:15, Psalm 119:105, Psalm 27:6, Isaiah 60:19, Isaiah 60:1-5.

There is an ancient plant called The Darnel that is over 5,000 years old. Discovered growing in Egypt among the wheat it was a plant that Jesus would have been very familiar with. This dangerous weed is also known as ‘Delirium Grass’ and ‘Wheat’s Evil Twin!’ When young this prolific plant looked exactly like a blade of wheat and it was only when its ears developed that you could tell the difference between that which was used to make bread and give life and that which caused headaches, vomiting and respiratory paralysis!

At the beginning of the parable about the weeds Jesus told his disciples; “𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒍𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚.” (Matthew 13:24-25) Jesus is the farmer, and we are the good seeds that He sowed. All those weeds are the evil people sown by the enemy. Here we are, living in His kingdom, and living side by side with weeds!

A strange subject for a parable for sure! One thing, like the disciples, we must understand is that we are citizens of His Kingdom. When you were born, you were born into America, perhaps Canada, Nigeria, Mexico, maybe even Zimbabwe or South Africa. You inherited the rights of that country; you can proudly stand up and say – “𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯!” By the same token, when you are born again you are born into God’s Kingdom, you are now a citizen and can proudly say – “𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯!” Wow, that certainly is something to be proud of!

We live in God’s Kingdom alongside the weeds, together with those that are evil, those that carry out the enemy’s malicious plan. Sometimes those weeds can grow quickly, crowding us out, and it can be hard to see the sun. It is easy when we see so much pain and suffering to say, “𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘓𝘖𝘙𝘋, 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳? 𝘗𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴!” The servants in the parable thought the same thing, “𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒖𝒑?” “’𝑵𝒐,’ 𝑯𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅, ‘𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒖𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎.” (vs28-29)

The Son of God is so concerned about you and I and those that journey in His Kingdom, ‘𝗡𝗼,’ 𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗱, ‘𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗲. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘂𝘀.’ (my paraphrase) And so, we grow alongside Wheat’s Evil Twin, in God’s Kingdom, knowing that His care for us is so great. Knowing that He does not want to risk losing even one of us. God’s Kingdom may not be perfect yet, but when it is time for that harvest, all the weeds will be pulled out and “𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓.” (vs 43)🌾🦋❤

It’s all very well to accept that invitation to the table but what happens after Jesus draws back your seat and tenderly places a napkin in your lap? Are you a little like me with thoughts that spin in your head at an alarming rate, distractions that seem like a thousand ping-pong balls dropped from the ceiling?

As I sat with the LORD trying to still my mind I heard him say the word “𝔽𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤 – 𝕚𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕗𝕠𝕔𝕦𝕤. 𝕀𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕤𝕡𝕚𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕞𝕪 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕖𝕟𝕔𝕖. 𝕋𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪, ‘Be still and know that I Am God.” (Ps 46:10)

Hebrews 3:1 says this – “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest.” That ‘heavenly calling’ in the Greek indicates an invitation to a feast. The table He has prepared for you! ‘ Fix your thoughts on Jesus!’ Focus on the Saviour! Don’t let your eye be distracted by the battle going on before you, no matter the intensity or ferocity, the enemy is just trying to divert your attention.

Focus on His Words, His smile, His love, kindness, and faithfulness. Stay present in the moment. Allow Holy Spirit to wash over you and settle your mind. Be still. Consider Jesus.

ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀʟᴘʜᴀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴍᴇɢᴀ, ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇɢɪɴɴɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ᴇɴᴅ, ᴏᴜʀ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴏʀ, ᴏᴜʀ ʀᴇᴅᴇᴇᴍᴇʀ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴏɴᴇ ᴡʜᴏ ᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴇᴀʀᴛʜ ꜱᴏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜɪᴍ ꜰᴏʀ ᴇᴛᴇʀɴɪᴛʏ. ꜱᴏ ʙʀɪɢʜᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴏ ʜᴏʟʏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴ ʜᴀꜱ ɴᴏ ɴᴇᴇᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ꜱᴜɴ. ʜɪꜱ ʙʀᴇᴀᴛʜ ʙʀɪɴɢꜱ ʟɪꜰᴇ, ʜɪꜱ ᴡᴏʀᴅꜱ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴇ ꜱᴛᴀʀꜱ, ᴄʀᴀꜱʜɪɴɢ ᴡᴀᴠᴇꜱ, ꜱᴘᴀʀᴋʟɪɴɢ ꜱɴᴏᴡ, ʜɪꜱ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ ᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴜɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴇʟᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴡᴀx. ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴏᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ɪɴᴠɪᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ꜱɪᴛ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀʙʟᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ! ꜰɪx ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴇʏᴇꜱ ᴏɴ ʜɪᴍ, ʜᴇ ɪꜱ ᴏʜ, ꜱᴏ ᴡᴏʀᴛʜ ɪᴛ!

As I sat and pondered this scripture I realized that there is so much truth to it. Social media tells us that all our ‘friends’ live wonderful lives, but is that who they are in their hearts. What we see on the outside is not the same as that on the inside. What you think deeply inside your heart about yourself is who you are!

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕚𝕥 𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕖, 𝕚𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕓𝕖.

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕔𝕒𝕟’𝕥, 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕨𝕠𝕟’𝕥.

𝕀𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕪𝕠𝕦’𝕣𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕟, 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕒𝕣𝕖.

Recently I’ve had some problems with the food I eat, I can’t eat this or can’t drink that. As I was listening to a podcast I heard the quote, “Don’t focus on what you can’t have but on what you can. Don’t focus on what you don’t have but on what you have.”

𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕨𝕖 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕚𝕤 𝕡𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣, 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕒 𝕤𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕕!

Today I pray that you will remember that you CAN, and not you can’t. I pray that you will know that everything is possible BECAUSE you have a life with Jesus Christ. Because He has given you that power. He is the key between the possible and the impossible. Between the can and can’t. He is your strength when you are weak, your shelter when the storms blow the hardest.

Remember, the present is always subject to change, base your thoughts, your decisions, your beliefs on something solid and permanent – The Word of God. 𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳!