Who's The Winner?

Is our sin less sinful than someone else's sin?

I think of this often.  Some times it is when examining my own actions, thoughts or words. (yes...our thoughts alone can be sinful) And some times it is when I see others in action.

It is a temptation of the flesh for sure to lambaste an "offender" with "truth" or our interpretation of the the truth.  It is a temptation of the flesh to run to the rescue and take sides, showing our allegiance to the victim.  It is our human nature to want to be right, to want to be on the winning side, to want to show support and show our disapproval of the offenders actions.  We want to make sure justice is served. (whatever that looks like in our own mind)

I have to say, this is a battle that most of us face.  The more people we know, the more opportunities we will have to battle this one out within ourselves.  As the pastor of our church recently said, "It's difficult for us to get 6 people to be in one accord at the dinner table." But do we want to be the one that continues to move forward with the strife and contention adding fuel to the fire or do we want to be the ones that show the Fruits of the Spirit;  love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.  (forbearance is a great one...take a look at what it actually means)

The written word of God says in Ephesians 6:12:  "we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."  

Unfortunately for us, we all allow ourselves to act in a fleshly way that demonstrates a sinful nature from time to time.  There is hope however!  I trust that the Lord is working in all of His children who seek Him and through that, we will be transformed into the image of Him.

I once heard someone say, "most battles are won in the prayer closet."  I like this.  This is what makes my heart jump.  Our chance to be a prayer warrior, a member of the special forces, some of the elite.  Some of the most powerful and effective warriors execute their missions behind the scenes while no one is looking.  They don't draw attention to their efforts and BAM!! The battle is won because they fought a battle with knowledge and wisdom. They don't need to be "known" as the winning team...they just know they are part of the winning team.

Our knowledge and wisdom comes from Him, His Word and the Holy Spirit.  My prayer is that we all desire to become part of the elite, special forces, that win battle through prayer and not our fleshly desire to prove that we are on the winning team.  If you have proclaimed Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior...you are already on the winning team!

Lord help us all to live in a way that glorifies Your Name.  You are our vindicator, our redeemer, the Savior of the world.  You have overcome not just for our sins, but the sins of all of Your children!

In Love-Staci

His Gift To Me

As I stood in the rain, in the early morning hours before anyone had risen, I was reminded that it was the day we celebrated His birth.

As I dropped to my knees on the muddy ground, in sincerest humility, with a broken and contrite spirit, I was reminded that He loves us in that moment.

As I cried out to Him,  deep guttural cries that were from the deepest parts of my soul. I was reminded of how He knows my heart.  He knows my true heart.

As I stood with my head buried in my husbands chest, the two of us spending a tender moment before the Lord, I was reminded of where my safety lies, with whom I should trust all my heart and with whom I should find need to please.

As I spent time with my family on Christmas day, I was reminded of how much I love them all.  Not just the good parts, but all of them.

His day, Christmas day, the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ was far from a normal Christmas.  It was far from the joyous day that I had in my mind that it should have been.  Parts were beautiful, parts where joyous, parts where loving.  But parts were spent examining a broken heart.  Parts were spent wondering why I had returned to a place  that I have been before.  Why am I here again Lord?  What have a missed? Why have a let the words of another, who doesn't know my heart, who doesn't know my motives, and who doesn't have any idea what the Lord has been doing in me lately have the power to injure my heart like this?

I suspect I am not the only one who has ever been here.  Maybe not on Christmas day.  But some other day...maybe more than once.

I am thankful that today has been a new day.  I am thankful that today He has given me answers to some of my questions.  He is still working in me and boy does He have His hands full.  But I trust that He won't give up. He has given me peace.

He has given me two words to meditate on; "for Him."  (I suspect they will help heal my heart in some way, because He is so good like that)

>When it lines up with His order, I must submit to others even if I believe with all my heart that they are wrong..."for Him."

>I must love others, not in a worldly way, but in a way that protects my heart and still loves them, all of them..."for Him."

>I must continue using the gifts He has given me even when the flesh disagrees..."for Him."

The sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ was and is the best gift that I will ever receive.  It was the ultimate sacrifice.  He died so that I may live.

He is showing me, that my sacrifice comes in the form of living "for Him." It is a sacrifice, because the flesh, our human nature, so desperately wants live for us.  But when we sacrifice our entire person "for Him", He is pleased.

I pray that as I live each day, moving forward in what He asks of me, that I will do it "for Him", that He will continue working in me and that some day I will hear Him call me His good and faithful servant.  I know one thing for sure...He will heal my heart because His sacrifice was for me, all of me.

-In Love, Staci

"You've got the wrong girl!"

Have you ever been there?  Have you ever been in a situation where you thought surely there was mistaken identity? Have you ever been in a place where the Lord has asked you to do something and you were pretty sure He must be mistaken? Because how could you possibly do what He is asking of you? 

This has been my life lately.  God has asked some pretty outrageous things of me. The first He asked, I simply said, "yes Father" and did what He said. (I got rid of most of my clothes, see my previous bloghttp://wallingfordfamilyfarm.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-day-he-emptied-my-heart-and-i.html )

Secondly,  He revealed to me in scripture something that I had read multiple times before and never "read" what He was actually saying.  I had previously read and accepted only what I wanted the words to say.  When He gave me revelation into 1 Corinthians 11 and then continued bombarding me with His truth through other scripture, through the Holy Spirit and through other sisters in Christ, I knew what I must do.  I began covering my head over a month ago.  It is only through His request and His strength that I have been able to do what He has asked of me.

I knew He wasn't done with me.  I know He is still not done with me.  But now...what I believe He is asking is more intense (for me).  He is asking me to give up something even more worldly than my beloved blue jeans.  He is asking me to give up something that has been a part of my daily life since I was at least 14 years old.  (for those of you keeping track; that is for the last 34 years of my life!)  I know what His word says on painting of the eyes.  It is in His written word many, many times.  (Jeremiah 4:30, Ezekiel 23:40, 2 Kings 9:30 to name a few) I have read these words many a time and I have seen what I wanted to see.  He is now showing me what "He" wants me to see.  He is reminding me that I have been created in His image. (Genesis 1:27)  He is reminding me that to question the way He created me and to "make it better" with make-up is, well...just not how it should be. (Romans 9:21,  Isaiah 45:9 and Isaiah 64:8)  He is being relentless in His courtship for me to return to the way He created me to be.

I must confess.  This Is Hard!  I know that there are millions of woman and girls out there who have never worn make-up a day in their life.  I look at them and see how beautiful they are.  I admire them. One of my most precious sisters in Christ does not wear make-up to honor her husbands request and she indeed is beautiful.  I see this, I know this, I get this.  But God..."You've got the wrong girl!"

I started thinking about Moses.  (not that I am comparing myself to Moses, just what was going through Moses head when the Lord in the burning bush asked him to do something above and beyond his fleshly capabilities)  I started thinking..."I know how Moses felt!"  Why does this have to be me?  Why do you need me to make a stand in this way?  Who am I going to effect?  It's just me God, just me."

I share this with all of you to show you where my heart is and to show you the amazing Father we have in heaven.

As I continue to struggle with this sacrifice of fleshly desire that He is asking me to give up, I have been asking Him for "signs".  You know...to make sure that I really am hearing from Him and that I have just not all of a sudden decided to give up a major part of my life because I need a change. (note the sarcasm) For days I have asked Him for a sign, for signs, for words, for confirmation.  And yesterday, what I received was a very loving message from a sister in Christ who said, "It is better to believe and trust the voice of the Lord, then to ask for a sign of confirmation. The confirmation is in His word and the confirmation is in the conviction of the Holy Spirit. The need of a sign to confirm what He is saying is just our fleshly reservation to move forward with what we know is Truth. And in the end...that is rebellion." Ouch!!  

After this spirit led message. I accepted what I must do.  I didn't commit to when I was actually going to stop wearing make-up, but in my heart, I have accepted that I know it is coming.

Sometimes...I believe...that all our Father in Heaven wants to see is a change in heart.  He knows where we will go from there.  A change of heart is acceptance for Him. He showed me this today on my way to work.  (Keep in mind all of this Moses talk in my head was yesterday.)

Today on my way to work, there was a comedian on my favorite Christian radio station Positivefm. Do you know what his little skit was on?  MOSES!!!  Yes!  Moses and the burning bush! Moses and his thoughts of "why me Lord!"  As I listened, hot tears ran down my face.  As I listened, I heard more than this little skit.  What I heard was, "Because I love you so much, I want you to know that you really are hearing from Me and I want you to know that I love the fact that you are willing to completely change back from who you have become to who I created you to be.  Just to please Me!"

I share this because I want to encourage any of you.  If our Father in Heaven has been beckoning to you, courting you, wooing you to turn back from the worldly things and turn back to who He created you to be; you can do it.  It is going to be hard, but you can do it.  He is right there waiting and wanting, loving on you every moment.

Please feel free to share in the comments if you have made it through this.  If you are in the middle of this journey right now or if He is beckoning you as we speak.  I would love to hear where you are at.

In love- Staci

Window Shopping, On-Line Shopping or Just a Plain Ol' Shopping Frenzy!

With the birth of our Lord and Savior being celebrated in just a few weeks, the retail stores are swamped, many wallets are empty and many heads hurt with the thought of "I hope I can find that one special gift."

I wanted to give some tips, some advice, some wisdom on shopping.  Whether it is this time of year or any other time.  

1.  Don't go window shopping until you actually are prepared to purchase.  It is a waste of time.  What you are seeing in the window will change by the time you are ready to make the commitment. Your taste may change, how much you are willing to spend may change, and in reality.  If you aren't ready to buy, there are better things you could be doing with your time.  

2.  On-line Shopping:  it's  a trap!  That's right.  It looks innocent, it looks like fun.  What harm is there  in "just looking?" Everyone has their own online store, selling their own goods at super cheap prices.  You can shop in the privacy (secrecy) of your own home and no one will know. Except!   The Internet is full of scams, people ready to take advantage   of you and there really is No Secrecy with the Internet.  Once you have checked out  what's being sold or you have tried to sell something, anyone can see it.

3.  Plain Ol' Shopping Frenzy.  Yes, this is common, but don't fall into the temptation.  You can't have it all.  You can't afford it all.  You don't need it all and you really are not             equipped enough to handle the responsibility of what it all can bring.  Make a list.  Pray over your list.  Wait until you are positive that you are ready to purchase and then keep your eyes open for "just that one special gift."  It will be worth the wait!

Ok.  Some of you may have guessed that I might not exactly be talking about Christmas shopping.  I might actually be talking to the single people out there.  Most specifically the young ladies who so desperately seek a boyfriend and all of the perceived love, comfort and attention that will come from a boyfriend.  I know it's hard not to "shop".  But I can assure you this.  If you have trusted the Lord with your life.  Then also trust in Him to bring you the spouse He has for you when the time comes.  If you are not planning on getting married in the near future, why even be on the look out. 

My husband once told me that a young man that we knew had told him, "I'm not even interested in dating until I am interested in being married."  My goodness!!!  What wisdom in that statement.  

So to all of you who are so desperately shopping.  Take some time to think about what is most important this season, who should be at the center of this season, Christ Jesus.  Give Him a list of what you desire to find.  (He already knows actually) (And He already knows what you "need.") Stop stressing, stop checking out all of the sales and most importantly don't put yourself out there for sale.  

You are worth that one special gift that He has for you.  Trust in Him.  He has given you the best gift already.  Be patient and know that your order has already been placed and the special gift is being created and on it's way to you! 

 Romans 6: 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-In Love, Staci