Merely Human Rules

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." Matthew 15:8, NIV

"The Lord says: 'These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught.'" Isaiah 29:13, NIV

What sobering scriptures.

1.  THE PROBLEM WITH LIP-SERVICE:  

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me"

These verses remind us that just because we SAY we love, praise, honor, revere Him doesn't mean that we actually do.  Just SAYING it or singing it or proclaiming it does not mean that our hearts are "right" with God--or that He receives or accepts our worship.  What a disturbing thought!  Because how many of the people this passage is directed to think it is enough to just SAY it?  How many of the people think they are in right standing when, in fact, they are not?  What a dangerous place to be, spiritually!

I think of people who say they will be there for you, that they've "got your back," and when it comes down to it, they aren't there when you need them.  I think of times when people said one thing and did another, proclaimed one thing and proved to be something else.  This is what Jesus is discussing here.  How frustrating it is to discover the person you thought was a friend was actually just pretending to be! And how said to "pretend" to be a friend of God when, in fact, you are not.  God knows our hearts.  

"Their hearts are far from me."  Not nearby.  Far from Him.  Distant.  Not even close.  How frightening that you could frequent the house of God, sing and speak about being connected--but not be.

Introspection:  Where is my heart this evening?  Right now--as opposed to yesterday or yesteryear?  Have I withdrawn myself from His presence in some way?  God forbid.  Do I rely on rituals in my faith, instead of a daily relationship?  Do I follow the crowd instead of seek His face, personally?

2.  CULTURE and MAN-MADE WORSHIP:

"Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught."

Worship is about Him, not us.  I hope we never forget that!  Else, we may be guilty of what the prophet records:  our dependance on a worthless, powerless cultural/man-made worship that we have been taught.  Do we KNOW why we do the things we do?  Believe the things we believe?  Do we mindlessly copy what is being said and done around us?  Or do we have a PERSONAL relationship and revelation that steers what we do and say?  Is my worship cultural?  Taught and copied, generation after generation?  Or is it real, heartfelt?  Is it received by the Creator?

I think of how dangerous it is just to teach people "rules" or "legalism" and not explain the WHY's of it, according to the Word of God (as opposed to the word of men).  I think of people who are discipled to MIMIC others instead of Follow Christ.  I think of how important it is not to ONLY teach recitation, but the meaning behind it, and the need to persistently fight "rote" recitation and keep the recitation "fresh" and pure.

Introspection:  Am I engaging in cultural or man-made worship?  If so, Lord, please reveal it to me.  Is there worship I'm engaging in that pleases ME (or us) more than GOD ALMIGHTY?  Is my focus on Him and Him alone--as it should be?  Do I know why I do/say/believe the things I do/say/believe?  I want my worship of my Heavenly Father to be genuine and real.  

Prayer:  Help me, Lord, to please Your heart.  Help me to stay in your Presence.  Help me not to rely on recitation, the words of others, the patterns of others, but help me to be REAL, in every way that matters to You and Your Kingdom.  Thank You for challenging me tonight, Lord.  I am humbled at this reminder.  Help me to be found pleasing in Your sight, always and forever.  xoxo

More Than Tears: Dedicated to Two Little Girls

Last night, I saw two little girls

Cling to one another as their

So-called "caretaker" loomed over them.

A loathsome patriarch of some sort,

This man exuded every despicable

Characteristic conceivable in humanity.

The girls cringed when he spoke,

And I saw the older cling to the younger,

Holding on to one another as he derided them.

I wanted to help you, sweet girls,

Your faces worn--not warm--

Your bodies frail under layers of clothing.

My heart bleeds for you, darling girls;

The world would write you off--you,

Statistically, have barely a chance without...

A miracle.  That's what I pray for you,

Both of you.  Nothing short of a miracle,

I pray you are spared from this fate worse than death.

Worse than death:  Your small bodies,

Invaded by adult force--now empty shells of you.  

Your precious minds seared by hell's flames.

Worse than death:  Your deflated spirits--

Before anyone should ever have lost hope;

You are children shipwrecked by a dim reality.

I heard you say that you were twelve,

Your sister, cowering with a speech impediment,

Couldn't have been past six, could she?

Oh, how I longed to speak to you--

But you didn't need to hear from me:

You needed someone to redeem you.

There I stood with my two girls,

Very blessed girls, very lovely girls,

And I wept for you, silently, wept.

I declare now, to you, to the heavens,

That I want to do more than just shed tears--

I am begging God to show me how to help you.

And how many more of you are there?

Two little girls have changed my world--

And how many more of you are there?

Those Moments When You KNOW

Breathe in, breathe out,

I feel my heart beat accelerate,

My body knows what my Spirit does:

There is CHANGE a'coming.

Blink my eyes, close them now,

Rest in the Knowledge that

Whatever Call He is making

Is coming soon now.

With each morning sunrise,

My breath is heavier, notably,

I feel the promise of each inhalation,

The power of each exhalation.

There is SOMETHING coming,

And He is sending it with His Spirit.

It's coming on The Wind to be delivered

At the Appointed Time.

I welcome, You, Lord; 

I welcome Your Spirit.

I welcome the Promise 

You are sending, even now.

Let it be, dear Jesus.

It's Time

It's time for renewed vision,

It's time to Hear a Word from God.

It's time to Step out in Faith

Knowing It Is Time.

I feel the oncoming Something,

Beckoning my Spirit to Action,

I feel my tingling legs, 

Ready to spring into Movement.

Yes, It Is Time.

I feel the Waves and Sense

The Tide coming In.

The moon has shifted,

The sky heralds CHANGE.

It's time for Reawakening,

It's time to Move with God.

It's time to Walk in Destiny--

I know It Is Time.

Yes, It Is Time.

A Spoken Word and Prayer

A friend of mine stayed after church tonight to talk to me for a few moments about what God is doing in her life.  While we were talking, we noticed two of our friends praying in the corner of the church, and it was powerful.  So, as the fervor grew, and they would talk some and pray some, we didn't want our conversation to become a distraction--though it, too, was declaring the Praises of Almighty God--and we started praying for them.

In moments, the Holy Spirit broke free in both of our prayers and He started speaking to me directly through my friend.  I knew it was the Holy Spirit.  Knew it.  

Although it has now been over an hour and a half ago, I am going to do my best to record what was spoken over me in hopes that I never forget what God has spoken to me tonight.

One thing my friend said was that the waters are stirring.  (I could feel the stirring around me, almost a cushion of wind surrounding me, and it felt like it was moving.)

Another:  That I had stepped from shallow waters into a deeper depth.

(In between each of these statements, she would praise Him in her prayer language, and then speak again.)

Another:  You have an increase of anointing.  It is upon you, but not only upon you.  It is upon your whole family.

Another:  Your stage is getting bigger, taller.  (She motioned with her hand making reference to the height of the stage.) For the Glory of Almighty God.  

(Before I go on, I need to add that while this woman is a dear friend of mine, we have not had the closest relationship lately and she has no idea what I'm going through, struggling with, etc.  This is important because what she said next was Divinely Given knowledge.

She said:  You have been struggling against Negativity (she brushed my back, as if wiping something off of it), It is gone.  (She later said that there had been "dark waters" but they were there no more).

She said:  You have said things at home, in Anger (she brushed my back, again, in the same manner); No more.

She said: You have doubted God about your calling (again, she brushed my back, in the same manner); It is gone.  No more fear.  No more doubt.

She said:  You are humble. (Something about how I am a servant-minded person, though that is not how she said it).  That is why God is going to lift you up.

By the time my friend had stopped talking, I had fallen into a prayer position at the pew and was crying before The Lord.  She had no idea how The Lord had used her, but He had.  There was no doubt in my mind, and I knew that I had heard from Him this night.

I felt compelled to record this here.

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As I sit in bed, typing this, I wanted to be certain that I mention what happened yesterday. I went to church to drop off the electric bills and I ended up talking to my pastor about an incredible revival he and his son had gone to.  At this place, his son had received a Word from The Lord from a total stranger. I was tempted to go to the revival the next night (he had mentioned they were going), but I needed to order Psalm's cakes and I knew the rest of the family was tired and we didn't really have the time, energy, or gas money to go.

I remember thinking how much I wished I could receive a Word from The Lord like that, in such a way that you KNOW that you KNOW that The Lord Himself has spoken because nobody knows what's going on inside of you.  Except for God.  

And I must give Him praise right now, for hearing my heart's cry and answering my prayers.

Prayer of Praise:

Thank you, Lord, for answering my heart's need and cry for a Word from You.  "Like the deer panteth for the water, so my soul pants for you."  I needed you so badly, Lord.  Thank you for meeting me in my need, in my place. Thank you for delivering me from evil.  Thank you for caring enough to send my friend by with a Word from You.  I cannot EXPRESS how much I love you for EVERY LITTLE THING, EVERY LITTLE DETAIL that You attend to.  "Who is God that He is mindful of me?"  Thank you so much, Creator of the Universe.  I love you with ALL of my heart!  Amen.

Facebook Post This Morning

People often share their hearts with the world on Facebook. I am one of those people who believe that, all too often, people share more than they need to. But then there are times when you read something that breaks your heart, for whatever reason.

The following Facebook post--copied and posted here with zero editing or corrections--caught my attention this morning. It disturbed me enough to respond and then chronicle it all here, on my blog. The woman who posted this is, if I remember correctly, somewhere around ten years older than I (and I turn 43 in a couple of months).

Her Post:

"you know it is really sad when you go into a eating establishment and people make fun of you. well it happened to me today I went to see my son at work and a man made fun of me for the way I looked and told me I was contagious and that really hurt my feelings. let me just say im not contagious imjust getting older so if you don't like the way I look turn your head. my husband and both of my kids don't care how I look on the outside what matters in on the inside. some people are hateful. just had to get this off of my chest . . . "

My Response:

"That is just BIZARRE. But, in my short time on this planet, I have determined that those who do and say things like this are among the most miserable of God's creatures. For whatever reason, they have not found peace with God and/or with themselves, and they project their own self-loathing upon others. As a Child of God, it hurts when ppl treat us this way, but deeeeeeep down, we feel Him speaking to us: We are Children of the Most High God; we are LOVED, ACCEPTED, EMPOWERED, and we are BEAUTIFUL in His sight and in our own right! You ARE beautiful, sister. Keep your chin up and KEEP ROCKIN' IT!!!"

Ephesians 3:20: The Promise of 2014

"With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine." --Ephesians 3:20, NCV

Last November, the Lord impressed upon my spirit that this verse, found in Ephesians 3:20, would be MY verse for the coming year, which is this year, 2014.

I really must say first that I am not one of those people who finds the BEST verse in the Bible, complete with blessings galore, to declare that "God Said" over my life. But I really felt Him speaking to me, that THIS would be my Ephesians 3:20 year.

Sidenote: I DO declare His promises and blessings over my life, those that are in the Word, but I don't add other statements (like, "God said THIS will be my year of blessing!") if I didn't get a direct word from Him.

We are midway through this year, and I can honestly tell you that I have seen Ephesians 3:20 in my life. And I want to record it here, so I won't forget what He has said and what He has done.

As I type this right now, I am sitting at the kitchen table of our new house--emphasis on OUR. For the first time in my life, I "own" my own home, as opposed to "renting." Though I do not declare negative statements over my life, I can honestly say that my sitting here, in this phenomenal home on this phenomenal property, is nothing short of a miracle.

I know what God has done.

When we sat there, signing the final "closing" documents, I noted the company: my husband, Psalm, the lady from the mortgage company, our lady realtor, and the lady from the abstract office. And, as I was signing page after page, I listened to them discussing their various churches. And I thought, "Thank you, God. You've placed me in the company of your kids."

Everything went smoothly--from the first initial bidding for the house to the moment they gave us the keys to now, as I write this.

I am utterly blown away by God.



Prayer of Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for loving me. For loving all of your children and taking care of us. Thank you for speaking to us, walking with us, through all of life's struggles and victories. Thank you for being true to your Word and your Promises. Thank you, most, for your presence. And for patience and forgiveness when we just fail to "get it." We praise you for Who You Are. Because You are worthy of praise. My heart sings for You. My feet dance for You. My arms wave for You. My spirit rejoices in You. Always and forever, may the Lord God Almighty be praised.

Amen.