WAR ROOM

Matthew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.  Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.  

Over a year ago I was handed a book that changed my life and especially changed my prayer life.   A friend of mine at church literally shoved a book in my hand and said, "You have to read this!"   She then proceeded to tell me she could not put the book down.  It took her only 2 days to read it.   It was a must for me and she knew it.   So I took the book and looked at the title...."War Room".  Now I had heard about the movie, I was looking forward to it, but I didn't know there was a book, so I read it.   She was right, I could not put it down.   This lady, Miss Clara, intrigued me.   Her witty talk and pricy comebacks made me stop and think about myself.   Could I ever be bold enough to talk with someone the way she did?   Could I dare ask the questions she asked Elizabeth?  I wondered.   To have that kind of faith and boldness was utterly amazing and inspiring.   The came the movie.

After reading the book I was so excited for this movie.   The weekend it opened I told my husband we had to see this movie.   I didn't ask him, I told him.  I had to see it.  I had to experience it.   I had to feel it.    Along with my mother in law, Jerry and I walked into a packed theater.  The atmosphere was different.   There was a sensing that this was gonna be a movie experience I had never been a part of before.   I grabbed my tissues and sat in anticipation waiting for it to begin.   Since I read the book, I sort of knew what was coming, or so I thought.    Let me just say this, reading it and watching it were two very different experiences.   I was moved to tears so many times during the movie that I think I used a whole pack of Kleenex.  

At the very end of the movie, when Miss Clara said that final prayer, I wanted to fall on my knees and pray like that.   Let me be honest here....I read the book 3 times and took notes.   I saw the movie in the theater 3 times.   I bought the movie from a Christian book store the day it came out.    I have watched that movie probably 13 times.    I bought Priscilla Shirer's book "Fervent" and took notes.   This movie inspired me in a way no other movie ever had.  I was so deeply touched and moved that I do my best to make sure everyone I talk to has seen it.   

I don't know about you but my prayer life for most of my life consisted of saying the Our Father and the Hail Mary.   I used to pray the rosary almost every night.  While the words of these prayers are touching and meaningful, the idea of simply repeating the same prayers over and over seemed pointless to me.   I admired my parents for being faithful and saying these prayers every night, but for me I always felt like there had to be more.   I always felt that repeating a prayer was way too easy and to me it seemed meaningless.   Like some rouge routine that had to be done.   It was like I thought God expected me to say these prayers every night whether I felt like it or not.  Growing up, I would stand in church saying the Our Father and I would become offended by the number of people who seemed to simply repeat this beautiful prayer like it was a memorized saying to simply repeat.  I would feel sick to my stomach, yes physically ill.   Didn't they realize what they were saying?  

I always had a desire to pray better.   Even though it was never really talked about much in my catholic schools, I always felt prayer should be some thing more than simply repeating words.   I felt inspired to pray differently but I didn't.  I wanted to "fit in".  The idea of praying in my own words and my own ideas seemed strange to me.  The idea was foreign to me but still I felt drawn into a unique prayer life, but always put it out of my mind.  I didn't think I could or should pray the way I felt driven to.  Still prayer fascinated me.  The idea of praying to God using my own words and scripture verses was intriguing no matter how I tried to bury it.   Then I stepped in Cedar Creek Church in Toledo and my prayers began to change.  

God kept bringing prayer into my thoughts, the books I read, and then last year "War Room " happened.    I found my calling, my gifting and my life line.    This movie still touches my heart and soul and spirit.   It has brought clarity to my prayer life, and yes I have a war room alone with all kinds of journals filled with my prayers.    I have lists of scriptures I include in my prayers and I have them taped on my walls.  By praying in my own unique way, I have finally my answer to my prayer life.   

I may never pray exactly like Miss Clara did, but I have grown my prayer life immensely because of this movie.   I thank God for this movie!   It not only changed my life, it has changed many people's lives all over the world.   I pray you allow this movie to challenge you and change your prayer life.   

FROM UNCLEAN TO HONOR

Isaiah 6:5 "Woe to me!"  I cried.  "I am ruined!  For I am a man of unclean lips among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty."

As I sit here today typing I must admit I am ruined by this verse.  I should be on my knees confessing all my sins, all my wrong thoughts, all my wrong words.  I should live in a state of constant despair and hopelessness.  I should be crying pools of tears for I am not worthy of standing in the presence of God, my Lord Almighty.    I am a wretched sinner who has talked for my entire life with unclean lips.  My thoughts are not what they should be.  My heart is quickly deceived and my soul is longing for something or someone to change me.  As I type this very blog, I could feel very overwhelmed by the sins of my past.  

I have lived with a deep regret of how I treated my parents, the people who raised me and sacrificed for me.  They worked tirelessly to be able to afford to pay for me and my sister and brother, to go to private school.  I saw them every night, on their knees, praying to God.  They took me to church every weekend and we always had food on the table and there was always a roof over my head.  When my dad's factory shut down, my mom decided to step out of her comfort zone and go to work.  Back in the 60's and early 70's this was not normal.  She sacrificed her comfort zone for our family.  When my dad went back to work, he supported her decision to keep working.  He actually started cooking and cleaning so she wouldn't have to.  

Parents are not perfect, they do the best they can and they screw up at times.  I always counted on them being there for me, but when they moved to Arizona, I was angry.  I was bitter.  I never visited them out there because I was mad.  Oh I still talked with them, I never shut them out of my life (would never even have thought about that) even though I was hurt.  When my dad died, I flew out to Arizona for the first time.  I was broken and ruined.   Filled with regrets and overwhelmed by grief I had missed out on seeing Arizona through my dad's eyes.  I never got the chance to enjoy his orange, lemon or grapefruit trees with him.  I never got the chance to walk through Sedona with him.  There is so much I missed and I will never get back because of my pride and my selfishness.  

You may be asking what my regrets have to do with this verse....Well let me explain in the best way I can.  I was ruined when my dad died.  The words I privately about how angry I was made my lips unclean.  I never spoke them to him or my mom, but I did to others.  I was so wrong!!!  I missed out on so much joy and happiness because all I could see was how their move affected me.  I didn't stop to realize that by moving, my dad's health was much better.  He was able to do so much more than he could have ever done here in Michigan.  I could sit here and compile a list of things they missed out on because of their choices, but to be honest, my list of what I missed out on is much longer.  

Deuteronomy 5:16 Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

If I would have ever really grasped this truth, I would not live with regrets today.  I was taught honor your father and mother as one of the commandments but never was taught the second part of this verse...so that you may live long and that it may go well with you.  I did not honor my mother and father for almost 25 years because I was living with unclean lips towards them.  People sympathized with me and commiserated with me.  Today this truth sickens me to know I was like this.  But I didn't understand, I didn't realize until it was too late.  When we live without fulfilling the ten commandments to the best of our human abilities, we are missing out on so many blessings God has for us.  

We need to admit to God our own failings and stop concentrating on our parents failings.  "I am ruined for I am a daughter with unclean lips, living in a world of people with unclean lips."  I had no right to judge my parents, the parents God hand selected for me.  They had the correct DNA to make me and God knew that.  He also knew they wouldn't be perfect.  Neither am I.  Listen I understand that some of you may have been abused by your parents, for that I am sorry.  But God's word does not say honor your mother and father if they treat you right or if they are always there for you or if they give you everything you need.    There is no "if" in any of the ten commandments. 

Jesus Christ has removed the regrets from my life now.  My unclean lips have been forgiven and redeemed.  For all of you out there struggling with parents or family or other relationships, be careful with your words.  Once said, they cannot be taken back.  Don't live with unclean lips, regrets and a cold heart.  Let the very presence of God heal you and fill you with His peace and love.  Forgive as we are forgiven.  Honor your parents no matter how imperfect they are and embrace the very presence of God within you.  

ARE YOU LISTENING WITHOUT REALLY HEARING?

James 1:22-25  Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it - not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it - they will be blessed in what they do.

Be still my beating heart.  You mean listening and hearing are 2 different things?  Oh yea!  Come on you know this!  How many times have you sat in a lecture and listened without really paying attention and hearing what's being said?  How many times has your wife or husband talked to you about something and you were engrossed in TV or your electronic device that you really didn't hear what they were saying?  How many times have you sat in church and listened to a sermon without really hearing what was being said?  I know I used to be guilty of this.  If something is not important to me why should I really try to hear what's being said?  

I know I would listen to a message in church and think of all the people who needed to hear this and apply it to their lives.  I would listen to a message that spoke such truth, yet the minute I walked out the door, it was gone.  Way too many of us have fallen into the trap of "In one ear and out the other" that we think it's okay.  "If it was important enough than I would remember."  We make excuses and we play the blame game; "You never told me that."   The sad truth is that we all have a great talent of listening, but so very often we don't hear what is being said.  We're busy, we've got more important things to listen to.  How sad.

We all want to be heard.  We want someone to really listen and hear our hearts cry, but so often what we said, what we really were trying to say, falls on deaf ears.  God gave 2 ears and only one mouth so that we would listen twice as much as we talk.  Yet so many of us run our mouths without giving anyone else the chance to speak.  So many of us don't want to hear what is being said because if we hear what is truly being said then that may mean we did something to hurt someone or it may mean we need to change.  We don't want to hear we were wrong.  We don't want to know we hurt someone.  We don't want to hear the truth because the truth can be scary.

Can you imagine looking into the mirror at yourself and turning away to forget what you look like?  Of course not yet, many of us look in the mirror daily and refuse to see the reality of who we are and who we have become.  We refuse to hear the reality of what we need to change about ourselves,we would rather blame someone else or just refuse to listen.  

Many years ago as I was reading my Bible I came across these verses of scripture and allowed it to change me.  I took a good look in the mirror and allowed myself to see the reality of me.  It was painful, still is at times, but in that process I got real with God.  I surrendered totally to Him.  Because I did that, I began to really hear what God was saying to me through messages at church, through family and friends, and through His word.  Change is not easy, growth can be painful, dealing with the reality of who we are can be downright exhausting, but once we do, we grow in ways we never imagined.  

Because I chose to hear God, instead of just listening, I began to change.  My image in the mirror began to change.  I was blessed with a peace so profound that I couldn't understand it.  The thing is I didn't just hear God, I put God's word into action in my life.  I let Him get really honest with me and I had to get really honest with myself.  It was painful, it was sad, it was hard, but it was so worth it.  I continue to look in the mirror daily at myself and I hear the truth from God. You can too.  

DO YOU FEEL BLESSED?

Ephesians 1:3  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Okay believers I have a question for you...do you believe the Bible?  Think about it, do you really believe the Bible is 100% accurate?  Now do not be quick to answer because God stumped me with this same question not too long ago.  I was just starting to read Ephesians when He stopped me at verse 2 and asked me that same question.  Of course my answer was yes.  But then I heard a whisper..."Read the next verse and stop and think about your answer again."  At first I didn't get it.  I had read this verse numerous times but then I had an Oprah ah-ha moment.  In other words God grabbed my attention immediately and has not let me forget what this verse really says.

It says that we are blessed with every spiritual blessing right?  Am I reading that correctly?  Okay so it says "WE ARE BLESSED".  Not we will be blessed, not we were blessed, not we can be blessed....it says "we are blessed".  That means right this very moment, wherever you are, whatever you are doing, you are blessed.  God has already blessed you.  It doesn't matter where we came from or where we're going.  As a believer in Jesus Christ, we are blessed.  You know I could stop right there and that would be enough to excite you, or at least it should.  But let me continue.....

"WITH EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING"  Do you get that?  Do you understand that?  We have EVERY spiritual blessing.  Not one or two, not three or four, no we have EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING.  To me (and I my be wrong, if I am let me know) that means we have been chosen, adopted, accepted, redeemed and forgiven.  We have been given wisdom, insight, and all the spiritual fruits.   We have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of our living Lord.  We have an inheritance waiting for us that we cannot even begin to imagine.

1 Corinthians 2:9 "But as it is written, eye has not seen, nor ear has heard and no human mind can conceive what God has waiting for those who love Him."

People we have no idea what God has waiting for us in heaven. His presence alone will be mind blowing.  But until then here on earth, we are blessed with every spiritual blessing.  To me that means we have the same power that raised Jesus from the dead living inside of us now.   We have so many blessings at our fingertips but we are so darn distracted, frustrated and overwhelmed that we often miss these blessings.  

I hear some of you now with your list of things that is wrong in your life.  In fact you probably have a list or I can find all your list on Facebook.   Listen I know life is hard.  It isn't the rose garden we were hoping for.  All your dreams and desires have crashed and burned.  But let me ask you a few questions.... Did the sun rise today?  Are you breathing?  Are you able to drink clean water?  Are you able to walk and talk?  

There are so many more questions I could ask but I hope you get my drift.  We waste way too much time seeing what's wrong in our lives.  We waste so much time on stupid distractions that take time away from our loved ones.  We waste so much time listening to the news broadcasts about how our world is falling apart.  Instead let's try to remove the distraction, put down our I Pads, turn off the TV, throw away that list of wrongs and embrace a sunset or sunrise together.  Blow the dust off that Bible and actually read it for ourselves.  Let's embrace the blessed life we have been given and count every spiritual blessing God has given us.  Be thankful for what you have been given, even if it seems like little to you.    

IT'S A BRAND NEW DAY

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here.

It's a new day, a new beginning, a fresh start.  Don't you just love the fact the fact that every day is a fresh start, or I should say it can be a fresh start.  Depending on your mood, your attitude and your thought life, everyday can start off in a great direction or a bitter direction.  Depending on if you dwell on all the past hurts and hangups, depending on if you choose to dwell on all the ways other people have hurt you, depending on whether or not you to forgive or not, depending on your chosen beliefs; all these things and so much more can determine whether you choose to embrace a new day with excitement or with dread.  I can honestly say I have always been a morning person.  I don't have to have a cup of coffee in order to wake up with a smile on my face.  Even when I was in high school I loved jumping out of bed to get ready for the day ahead.  I know I'm weird.  

I don't understand why I am the way I am but I look forward to every day.  It gives me a chance to see another sunrise, it gives me a chance to wipe the slate clean and start all over leaving the regrets of yesterday behind me.  I've learned to embrace my yesterdays and learn from them. Every night I ask God to forgive me for all my yesterdays that I cannot change.  I ask Him to teach me what I need to learn in order to move on.  I've learned the hard way that living with regrets, dwelling in the past and keeping a list of wrongs and hurts is exhausting and (to be very honest) dumb.

Why do you dwell in the past?  What good does it do to relive those moments that hurt you?  Why do you let the past define you?  Why are you allowing the past to wreck your future?  Listen I know people who have been raped, abused, beaten and molested.  I know people who have lost loved ones to suicide.  I know people who lost their parents at a young age.  I know people who have lost their homes, their jobs and so much more.  A majority of these people you wouldn't even know they were struggling with any of these things in their past because they have a new day and a new beginning.  They have come to realize that they can't change the past.  They've dealt with their past and mourned the past, but they've started a new day and a new beginning.

On the other side of the coin I know people who have gone through these things and they live their.  They keep a list in their mind of every wrong someone did to them.  Their hearts are filled with regrets and anger.  Their words spew out of their mouth like venom and their anger is obvious.  I know people who have embraced the past because it gives them a right to live a bitter and sad life.  Oh on the outside they may appear happy and plaster a fake smile on their face but inside their heart is hard.  I also know people who love to dwell in the past because it gives them an excuse to throw pity parties. (Trust me I was one of them.)  They have an excuse and a reason for everything.  Do you people like that?  Are you one of those people?  Listen I had to admit it and so do you. 

I remember long ago a family member was losing their home to foreclosure, the people who worked with him had no idea he was struggling.  Why?  How could they have not known what was going on?  He walked into work every day with a smile on his face.  He went around asking how everyone was doing and he went around doing the work he needed to do.  He didn't whine or complain, he didn't moan or groan, he didn't sulk and he never got angry.  People at work were stunned.  They had no idea what he was going through.  How could he appear so happy and normal with all that going on?  Jesus!

He trusted in his belief that God would work it all out for his good.  He looked at the loss of his home as a fresh start, a new beginning, a new day.  The old was gone and he realized he couldn't change it.  He learned a valuable lesson and he trusted in the One who created him.  The difference was obvious.  It was a choice that changed the course of his life forever and because he trusted in God, because he never complained, because he did not keep a list of wrongs done to him, because he admitted his mistakes...God blessed him with a new day and a fresh start. 

You see when you choose to believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you receive a fresh start, you have a new beginning and a new day is dawning in your life.  Jesus gets rid of the old you, He forgives all your wrongs and wipes the slate clean.  You are new, born again, saved by grace and forgiven by His blood He shed on a cross in Calvary.  There is no hidden list of wrongs in a file cabinet up in heaven.  Jesus erased your files and deleted your past.  

It's a new day.  Forgive those who hurt you.  Let go of the past.  Let's start over fresh and new.