Do the “...scars i have on my body show that I am the slave of Jesus....” (Galatians 6:17)?

Guest Post

This question is food for thought! Imagine you bought a passion fruit and from the outside it looked like one, inside you’d expect to see...numerous seeds maybe? A soft juicy interior? But if you cut it open to find that it has no seeds whatsoever but instead has a very hard centre, you’d question it?!

It holds parallel to our lives as Christians. From the outside we can be seen to possess certain characteristics especially in this day and age, with freedom of choice! Anyone can be a Christian regardless of nationality which is a beautiful thing!

Unlike other faiths we cannot be physically distinguished as easily when casually walking down the high street (well unless you are a nun or a member of the clergy). So it is through our words and deeds that the God we serve is reflected! I once heard someone say “if my character doesn’t speak for itself my words mean nothing”. Sad to say we have become one of the most liberal ‘religious groups’, and society cannot see a difference in us because we’ve blended in with the world that much!

Compromise is something which needs to be tackled head on! As a muslim wouldn’t compromise their belief in not eating pork we need to resist compromising our belief to please man and shift the focus back onto pleasing He who is worthy: God! A few months ago I faced what was then a dilemma of being invited to a club for the birthday of one of my cousins. As soon as I got the invite I knew that I shouldn’t go!? As a carrier of Christ I thought “does He want to be there?!” But I didn’t want to ‘let her down’ Hmmm, okay so who is my master in this situation? I want to please God but also please man!

I pondered long and hard and knew that she wouldn’t understand why I didn’t want to go and try and persuade me to come! Then I got thinking to myself: as much as Christ has delivered us from bondage and given us this free will, we shouldn’t shift the focus and move further away from Him! We now have Christians stating the Christian community are hypocrites, and it’s all because our lives do not match with that which God designed for us! To-be-set-apart! We are not meant to blend in with everyone!

Trust me your reward is coming!! Yes it’s hard, just as a chameleon we feel more comfortable blending in with our environment, we feel secure and safer that way. But this life is not permanent and the eternity you would live will be oh so rewarding! Trust! We do not want to go evangelising on the street anymore because we don’t want to lose our rep?! Our rep that only lasts till we slip up! Is it really worth it...

“Every athlete in training submits to strict discipline, in order to be crowned with a wreath that will not last; but we do it for one that will last forever” (1 Corinthians 10:25)

Christ died for you, He loves you, yes you, every part of you even the parts you don’t like and He’s never left your side! Sometimes we feel as though he’s far but in times like that guess who’s moved? All He’s asking is for us to be His representatives. He suffered majorly yet STILL worshipped His Father! How many of us would readily accept nails in our hands for your child casually lying to their teacher?!...
But Christ did and He sure didn’t deserve it but He still did! 

...”Make sure that Christ’s death on the cross is not robbed of its power”  (1 Corinthians 1:17)

Some of us live in parts of the world where our love for Christ cannot be declared freely, but individuals in such countries are doing more than we who live in a free society! Let’s do something about it family... 

“If you suffer because you are a Christian, don’t be ashamed of it, but thank God that you bear Christ’s name”  (1 Peter 4:16)

-x-

If memory serves

I remember being young and in Sunday school learning songs, and reciting bible verses! At first it seemed like a drag, excess work and I didn’t really understand why we were being made to learn them... Trust me I do now! 

There are certain scripture verses I remember only because of those songs! 

As I grew older, although I still read the bible, I stopped learning the verses. I could say the “common” scripture verses when required, and get all excited, but I wanted it to go deeper than “public displays”, I wanted a “secret reality”. 

The bible is full of so much sense and wisdom, words to encourage and bring hope in those desperate times. But we must realise that we won’t know what keys to life it contains if we don’t take the time to study AND memorise. And yes it is the same type of studying that we would do in order to pass a momentary exam?! Wouldn't you want to know what can be done in order to get through this test we call life? 

In Psalm 119:9&11 King David writes: “How can a young person stay pure? By living according to Your word. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (this purity extends further than just sex, its purity of mind & action)

The word of God is God himself. It's Christ! Which means it's the source of life itself. It gives us a reality check and it’s our battle weapon – sharper than any double-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12) – even the devil knows scripture, and he proved so when he tried to tempt Jesus! (Matthew 4) If Jesus never knew scripture, he wouldn't have been able to dash satan back in his place and that would've been it for us! Eeekkk!?

This topic is more to bring awareness about the importance of the knowledge of God's word. Let me leave you with these two scripture verses:

1. Colossians 3:16a – "Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives."

2. James 1:23-25 - “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 immediately forgets what they look 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.”

*sings* "read your bible, pray everyday, pray everyday, prayer everyday...!"

What did you say?

What we are putting in our bodies is important to our physical health and well  being. Conversely what we allow to come out of our mouths is AS, if not MORE, important! 

In the book of James chapter 3 we are told about the power that this small part of the body has in directing the course of our lives! Crazy right?! But what we say can create positive situations OR cause their destruction!! 

Words are the building blocks of life that can literally make or break an individual – if you think negative, you’ll most likely speak negative and ultimately act negatively – and the sad thing is many of us, including myself, don’t really realise that! 

The simplest of sayings such as forever talking down on yourself e.g. “I’ll never be as smart as them” or “I’m forever tired” (one of my personal favourite?!) or “what’s the point in trying, I’ll just fail anyway” *sigh* – well have we ever thought that we possibly fail, because we always say we’ll fail, so act like we’ve already failed – then fail? Just a thought! 

No-one likes to be around someone that wreaks negativity, they’re depressing (it’s worse than dealing with B.O)! It cannot emphasise enough that we were made with the ability to do sooo much, but we can’t just expect to get up one day and do it to a high standard without vigorously exercising the skill required. Exercise = Pain. The more you gym, the stronger and more fit you become for the task (regardless of the muscular pain along the way!). 

Remember what we say about ourselves, others, our situations and our future is VITAL to what it/they/we will be.

Psalm 19:14 “May the words of my mouth and the meditation (thoughts) of my heart be pleasing to you Lord” – Lets evaluate our oral dictionary and CHOOSE to speak life!

To gain the world (2)...

Sometimes in order to stand out we have to be willing to stand alone. 

Many of us including myself are afraid to live an “isolated life” if that’s what it will take in order to stand out. Psalm 24:1 tells us that we don’t belong to ourselves: “the Earth is the Lords and everything in it” So technically we should be willing to give back what is not ours.

The greatest story of sacrifice is that of Jesus laying down His life for us. A sacrifice usually costs something; there may be a price to pay. We stand out to be given out, we stand out to be given out. The keyword in the definition of this word sacrifice is the word “offering”, the offering of something (e.g. money, animals, yourself), usually to a greater cause or a “higher being”, in our case: to GOD.

Let’s look at the story if Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in Daniel 3:

The King wanted them to bow to the idol he had created. What in our lives can be, or are, idols? (E.g. Food, TV, internet, music, friends, even phones – how many of us can honestly survive without their phones for 3days?)

The devil has sly and cunning ways of creating “idols” in our lives that can distract us and cause us to lose that special touch on our relationship with Christ. This is similar to these three lads, I mean all they really had to do was bow right, why must they be the only ones to remain standing, when everyone else was bowing? Plus their lives were on the line, if they didn’t bow they would be killed.

Besides when they got back home or went back to church on the following Sunday they could have jumped back on the “hosanna train” and reasoned with God “ah God man, You understand right? We didn’t wanna be seen as the crazy Christian dudes that never get involved with anything”

They refused. They wouldn’t compromise. Part of standing out is the willingness not to compromise, because of the fear of what others will say, think or do. (This counts especially when you make a stand out against something that you’ve been so used to doing). 

Sometimes we have to get to a point of saying “I’m going to do/not going to do ‘xyz’” regardless of what “they” may think – who are “they” anyway - let me put it this way, if your friends cannot respect your decision for or against certain things you decide on, then they never really were your friend in the first place, and it’s probably best to let them go! Say “buh-bye”

Standing out for a greater cause doesn’t automatically mean that life will become smooth sailing, as these gentlemen soon found out. The king ordered that the fire in the furnace was heated 7times hotter than its normal temperature.

When the devil notices that you aren’t falling prey to his trap, or aren’t really intimidated by him; when he notices that you are still gonna stay on the Lord’s side regardless, then believe me he will turn up the heat in order to try and make you crack under pressure!

I’ll give a personal example, whenever my relationship with God seems to be going well, a situation tends to arise where I may have to make a decision about something – “do I not do it and please God, or do I do it and sort it out with God later” – say I decide not to do it on this occasion, and please God in this matter, it’s like at that precise moment the devil says “eeehhhh, okaaay, we shall see”, he plays with my emotions, my peace, my work – sometimes I find no motivation to work, or I really struggle with understanding something, then I become really down about it and isolate myself, or just wanna sleep 24/7 to forget about the fact that I have work I cannot handle, I get further behind and if I don’t manage to catch up I might stress at the last minute – but God always steps in just at the right time! And although there is a lot about God’s timing that I personally do not understand, what I do know is that it is always on-time (although it actually may not seem that way!)

So back to the story – the guys got thrown into the fire, expecting to die an instant death, but did not get hurt – God stepped in at just the right time, their willingness to sacrifice caused them to stand out, and in the end they won the respect of the king, plus got promoted! Those people that want to see you trip and fall will not see you go to ruin, they will respect you and promote you in Jesus name!

John 15 vs 18 & 19  “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.

It's time to say "haters move back, I'm on the Lord's side!"

To gain the world...

Let’s begin with a definition:

Com-pro-mise - “To reduce the quality, value or degree of something” OR “The terms of a settlement” OR “Something midway between 2 or more different things”

Hold unto that word, we’ll come back to it in a bit.

Everyone strives to be something, everyone strives to get somewhere. Everyone hopes for the best in life and at least at one point we are have been so determined we’ll get there regardless of the odds. We are so high in the clouds, and nothing can stop us. We are equipped with our hi-tech inspector “go-go” gadgets, ready to tackle any obstacle that dares get in our way. We’ll fight to the end! But sadly, more often than not a dream remains a dream. Why? Well I’m sure there are many feasible reasons, but there are also reasons that are more like excuses e.g. laziness, the “I’m bothered one day & I can’t be bothered the next day” attitude etc. So no brownie points for the one this blog will be focusing on?! ...You’ve got it: COMPROMISE

“A father and son were raking leaves when they noticed something darting in and out of the piles. After careful effort they uncovered a chameleon. It was difficult to see among the brown leaves. It had blended with them by turning brown, too. After catching the little creature, they put it in a jar of green grass, where it immediately turned green. When they added some red berries, the chameleon began to take on that colour. Some people are chameleons in character; wherever you put them, they turn that colour. Their thinking and their behaviour depend on their environment”¹

Compromise is something we deal with on a daily basis, and it is not always a bad thing! It can be used in sensible decision making for example agreeing on a place and time to meet up with a friend who has a really busy schedule. On the other hand sometimes compromise means that we let go of what we know is actually good for us to reach out and grab what we feel, at the time is the ‘best’ decision for us.

The bible asks this simple question: “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your soul?” (Mark 8:36). In other words it’s saying you can choose to compromise your soul (which is of eternal value) and chase after/dedicate all your time to what living a life outside of Christ has to offer (which is of temporary value), but what good will it be for you (who is an eternal and not temporary being)? What things do we compromise on and how can we live a life without negotiating when it comes to our faith?

There are a few factors that come into play when dealing with compromise:

1. We have to devalue the things we compromise.

In Philippians 3:8 Paul writes “...Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ”.  

2. We have to have the willingness to let go.

Its one thing to know that what we compromise on is of no value, but it’s another thing to apply this in our lives and let go!! Pray and ask God for a change of heart towards those things, for the strength to loosen your grip on what is valued above Him.

3. Stability &Integrity

A sure mind is a stable mind. Knowing something beyond doubt implies faith. Trust that God, who holds us, will give us the confidence to be constant in our decisions to uniquely stand out from our common world for Him. Alongside this is the need to remain integral (i.e. being who you say you are no matter who, or who is not, watching and no matter the situation faced). They are hard standards to achieve and it doesn’t take one day to develop such character, but stick at it, they are useful traits that can carry us through the many phases of life.  

Final words: Please realise salvation is no joke. We get saved from the dangers of this world that appear so beautifully scented we can't even tell we're roaming in the gutter! We get saved: our eyes see and our lips taste the TRUTH, yet we walk back to the same old scene - "homesick" because we never really took time to settle in and enjoy the wonders of our new life - we indulge in the sugar-coated poisons, backward walking - never progressing! *GodGiveUsGrace* We have got to let our minds, hearts and lives be a TRUE reflection of Christ - Servanthood, Submission & Sacrifice #NoMoreCompromise

References

1. Sermoncentral.com

Against the current

Yesterday morning was very windy in my part of the globe. I mean, I’m aware that wind has the power to uproot trees and houses in extreme storms and tornados; however it never occurred to me how difficult it is to breathe and keep moving forward against such current, until I was caught in it!

From the comfort of my room, which happens to overlook the garden, I could hear and see that it was a windy day. It wasn’t until I left the house that I appreciated the intensity of the wind. Now at this moment in time you’re probably thinking “has this girl never experienced a windy day?” and don’t get me wrong, I have MANY times (I live in Great Britain, so believe me when I say I have). However this time was very different. Why? Because it almost took me out – I nearly got swept off my feet (and not the Walt-Disney’s-handsome-knight-in-shining-armour picture!). I’ve never had to work so hard to put one foot in front of the other, whilst maintaining balance and accelerating; a movement I believe we earthlings term as: walking. I simply struggled to do this!

I’m quite a transparent individual, so I’ll be honest and tell you that my experience with the wind yesterday is a true reflection of my life at this moment in time. I feel like I’m living life against the current- decisions, bills, deadlines, pressures - and I’m sure there are many others going through similar situations.

This blog will not tell you how to win the ‘battle against the winds’, because to be quite frank with you only God can help us to overcome them (Romans 8:37). What I will do is tell you these 3 things:

1. The sun still shines. Remember that the sun rises daily. The wind can blow and the rain can choose to join in, but there is always a ray of hope. We can almost guarantee that the sun will soon rise over the horizon of our situations. Reminding ourselves of our blessings (i.e. the things we find ourselves being favoured with) can shift our perspective. Last year I made a poster of all the things (I could think of at the time) that I am blessed with and stuck it on my wall. Over the summer I moved house and haven’t put it back up - perhaps it’s time to display it once again!

2. The plants can grow. In GCSE biology (that’s approximately 10/11^th grade for all those outside of GB) we were taught about “wind pollination”. I’ll recap (in VERY basic terms) for those of us who slept in that class! *Pay attention class* Wind pollination is the process where pollen from the male plant is transferred by the wind to fertilise the female plant, so she can produce offspring. *Class dismissed lol*

The well known method of pollen transfer is through the busy bees that spot a scented flower, nose around inside, and jump to the next flower consequently taking some pollen along with it. However there are some plants that do not produce smells, therefore do not attract busy bees. In this case the wind is so vital in making sure that that species of plant lives on! Pollen is small and often hidden by the flower’s petals; in our own lives we have many ‘pollen grains’ of greatness. These include our (discrete and overt) characteristics, skills and talents. Many of them remain hidden because we perceive them as being ‘small’, many of them remain hidden because we are unaware we even contain such amazing potential. The wind of opposition often helps us to draw out & release the things we have within. Who knows if we would have ever discovered or developed a part of ourselves without the wind? (James 1:2-4)

3. Seasons change. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)This year summer was an average of 2weeks?! However prior to the effects of global warming we experienced an even amount of the 4 seasons: autumn, winter, spring & summer. We may not enjoy all seasons, but each season has its significance and each is as important as the other. The wind of my situation won’t blow forever, and neither will yours. Keep pushing against the current; it’s quite a good workout! Use it as an opportunity to develop your spiritual biceps and quads, because once the wind has settled you will have the strength to tackle what you once thought you were too weak too.      

Final words: It is important to stay protected; even cars have windscreens. Whether it’s raining or 30°C, if you NEED to go somewhere you’ll go – you’ll either take an umbrella or slap on some sun-screen. In the same way life MUST keep progressing so we need to let the Holy Spirit be the source of our protection in every season. Surround yourself with friends, form a support network, get a mentor, keep accountable to someone you deem as trustworthy! “Read your bible, pray everyday...” *Sings* This Sunday school classic has a more than valid point. God’s word is the light source of our journey (Psalm 119:105) and there is power in prayer!

Because our God is more than able, as His children we inherit His “able” gene (Genesis 1:27). We are able to move forward against the current.

Bring It Back!

Isaiah 29:13 NLT
"And so the Lord says:
'These people say they are mine.
They honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
And their worship of me
is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote'"

Was talkin with wise ladies last night over some really nice chicken (thank you Lord 4 Nandos!) and at some point in the convo the scripture above came out. It was playing on my mind this mornin so I gave it more thought and reread it.

When I gave thought to the seriousness in this verse, I could only wonder how much it grieves Gods heart 4us 2give him empty worship, one without substance, one that implies "there u go God, that's me done 4 2day" 

It's like tryna spend time with ur guy and they are more interested in playing FIFA, or tryna talk 2ur sister but she's more interested in watching eastenders. They may still b communicating with u, but not wholeheartedly, thier passion lies with whatever they are focusing on at that time. 

I thought about the way our minds, my mind wonders during worship (esp in song). We will fully be singing every word kno every adlib but it goes something like this instead:
"I love You Lord"
(why does she always sing this song?!)
"and I lift my voice"
(I wonder if he's coming 2day?)
"To worship You oh my soul rejoice"
(I shoulda worn the grey skirt 2day instead)
"take joy my King"
(hmmm I'm thinkin my next weave shud b Brazilian, but braids would suit me 2tho)
"in what u hear"
(I best past by barber's shop 2moro, I need a shape up, man needs 2b lukin fresh still)
"may it be a sweet, sweet sound"
(Yaaay he's here now! K gotta use the mirror after 2brush up)
"in Your ear"
(mums makin jollof 2day *azontos-in-his-mind*)

Now of course that was an extreme example, to illustrate a point, but there are many elements of truth within it and I pray God helps us 2give Him worship with substance. With a pure heart and a clear mind, minimal (preferably no) distractioins! Psalm 24:3-6 NLT says: "Who may climb the mountain of the LORD?
Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure,
who do not worship idols
and never tell lies. They will receive the LORD’s blessing
and have a right relationship with God their savior. Such people may seek you
and worship in your presence, O God of Jacob"

We can only aim 2meet such criteria, but in my opinion its better 2try, fail and try again than not 2try at all. The only thing that will enable us 2keep striving 2this standard of pure worship is God's GRACE.

In the same way I prepare ingredients 2cook a meal, I wanna prepare my mind, heart, soul, spirit and body before I worship our Holy God! How? Personally 4me its my wondering mind so this scripture will become its anchor: Philippians 4:8 NLT "And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise."

Hope that encouraged someborry! Comments, additions (subtractions evn) gladly h'accepted!

Have a bombuloblastic day (thats actually gna be my new phrase - yes I'm FULLY gassed!) 
xXx