Tag: Power

Saturday Song – Changed

Posted on by Dorci

“So I’m telling you this, and I insist on it in the Lord: you shouldn’t live your life like the Gentiles anymore. They base their lives on pointless thinking, and they are in the dark in their reasoning. They are disconnected from God’s life because of their ignorance and their closed hearts. They are people who lack all sense of right and wrong, and who have turned themselves over to doing whatever feels good and to practicing every sort of corruption along with greed.

– But –

you didn’t learn that sort of thing from Christ. Since you really listened to him and you were taught how the truth is in Jesus, change the former way of life that was part of the person you once were, corrupted by deceitful desires. Instead, renew the thinking in your mind by the Spirit and clothe yourself with the new person created according to God’s image in justice and true holiness.”  Ephesians 4:17-24 CEB

 

Are We Really Living a Christian Life?

Posted on by Dorci

I am so blessed to be able to sit in church on Sunday and worship the Lord with some beautifully composed music and be fed by pastors who love the Lord greatly and study hard to bring us Bible-based sound teaching. During the week there’s a Bible study and home groups. My social media page is full of pastors and messages that remind me about God’s truths. I have at least 15 Bibles in several translations, and more faith-based books than I will probably ever be able to finish.  On the internet I have access to teachings from some of the most gifted pastors and teachers from all over the world, countless commentaries, uplifting Christian music…

And I wonder how many other people are doing the very same thing Sunday after Sunday, week after week.

We are deluged with messages from and for believers of every type, for every situation, every level of faith, and every age.

So why does the church, at least here in America, seem more anemic and ineffective than ever?

Why do we live our lives largely indistinguishable from the world?

Why do we get up in the morning and still feel like we’re being sucked under the trials of life, wondering where the joy is we’re supposed to be experiencing? Why we’re not feeling like an overcomer? Why we aren’t living that life Jesus talked about when He said:

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.
I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly”
(John 10:10)

That question has a lot of answers, but I want to tackle just one right now.  Could it be the thief is still working hard to steal, kill, and destroy as much of that abundant life as he can, and maybe he’s using busyness, even “Christian” busyness, to do it?

Could it be that we have so much all around us that we are kidding ourselves into thinking we’re living a Christian life that would lead to abundance without really living it?

Maybe all the doing – sitting in a seat on Sundays, singing along, having a Bible (and maybe even opening up from time to time), maybe listening to a Christian song every now and then or even reading a faith-based book, is causing us to think we’re accomplishing something.

But maybe all it’s become, if done in the flesh, in our own strength, is nothing more than a rote religion, or just another sort of self-help.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”
(Galatians 5:22)

Jesus came to give us life, and when He went back to the Father He gave us His Holy Spirit to bring about the abundant life we desire and Christ died to give us.

All those things – the teachings, the worship (the music is not a warm-up concert for the pastor!), the studies, the reading, are all meant to draw us closer to Jesus as we walk through them with the Holy Spirit. He is the power in our lives. He will bring about the abundant life we all so desperately want.

We’re on a journey with Him to know God and love Him more, to grow in faith, not to just put in our time on Sunday morning. Walking with Him is not just part of our life, it IS our life.

God desires to do so much in our hearts, our minds, and in and through our lives, and He wants us to partner with Him – to seek Him, to know Him, to love Him – as we do those things.

Do we pray before going to church, asking and fully expecting to hear from God, to receive from Him what He wants to say to us? Do we use the time we sing together to truly worship the Lord, to enter into the throne room of God and praise and exalt Him and let Him prepare our hearts for His message? Do we pray for our pastors during the week, that He will speak to them as they prepare the teaching, and that He will speak through them on Sunday morning? Do we pray before reading God’s Word or other books, or before listening to teachings online?

Do we pray without ceasing, inviting the Holy Spirit to speak to us and change us through those things?

Are we, the branches, clinging to the Vine, allowing Him to use all those things as nourishment for our souls, bringing its fruit in His time?

What all those things are meant to do, what they should do, is draw us closer to Jesus, reminding us of His love and grace and mercy so that we will continue reaching out to Him, reading and studying His Word and praying, inviting Him into every aspect of our lives. Inviting Him to leave no sin-stone unturned in the sanctifying of our souls. Inviting Him into every bit of suffering, every attitude, every decision, every joy.

Oh Church, we must leave the dead religion behind and get back to a living, breathing relationship with the One who died to bring us abundant life – to mold us into His image, to bring about the godly treasures we could never find in the world if we looked forever, and to be a light to the world.

Can you imagine if we invited the power of God into our lives every single day? If we let the Holy Spirit continually have His way in and through us?

If He changed the world with 12 men, what could He do with a nation full of Spirit-filled, God-fearing, mercy-loving believers?

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
(Ephesians 3:20-21)

.

Heavenly Father, thank you for not only giving us your Holy Spirit to be with us, but to indwell us.  He is an amazing gift and we are so grateful. Help us to always walk in the Spirit, to breathe and live and grow and speak in the Spirit. Help us to cling to you through Him so that He might produce the fruit and gifts in our hearts and lives that you desire so that we, as your church, your kingdom, can be effective witnesses and bright lights to the world around us that’s so dark and seems to get darker every day. Help us to have wisdom and discernment to know how to live in this world, but not to be of it.  Help us to glorify and magnify the name of Jesus.  It’s in His precious name we pray, amen. 

How to Forgive the Unforgivable

Posted on by Dorci

So, what do we do until then?  What do we do until the day we see our Lord face to face and He makes all things right like I talked about last time?  Life is unfair and full of injustices.  Small ones, big ones, some as big as tidal waves.  And they can hurt and wound and leave us bleeding.  They can scar our hearts into a hardened mass that can’t (or won’t) feel anything.

Just like God’s given our bodies the ability to heal, He’s also provided a way to heal our hearts – forgiveness.

Now, you might be sitting there thinking, “Right, she doesn’t know what that person did to me.  There is no way I can forgive that.”  And you’re right, I don’t know the particular ways you’ve been hurt, and you’re also right on count #2, you can’t forgive them. Not completely. At least not on your own you can’t.

But I do know a little bit about forgiveness, and I’m going to tell you my story and how I was able to forgive the unforgivable.

I came to know Christ as my Savior when I was 26 years old. And yes, that was longer ago than I’d like to think about. I was radically saved, filled to the brim and overflowing with the Holy Spirit and joy and excitement and desire to do God’s will.

I sat in my spot in church two times a week (three during women’s bible study season), and soaked up every teaching.  After a while I began to notice one particular theme that stuck my heart every time, and that was of forgiveness, and that it was a choice.

I knew there was something from my past that had wounded me deeply and the Holy Spirit began to speak to my heart telling me that I needed to forgive this person or the pain of it would severely affect my heart, my family, and my life.

Several years before, I had been raped.  Grabbed off the street by someone I didn’t know.  The nightmares and heightened awareness and fear of my surroundings haunted me. Classic PTSD. How could I forgive that?

Of course, in my flesh, I didn’t want to. I couldn’t. But I was determined to do God’s will. And if He was convicting me to do it then He must know I can.

 

“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Mark 11:25

 

If I had truly been forgiven, saved, and filled with the Holy Spirit, then the power to forgive lives in me through the Holy Spirit and He would give me the ability to do it.  

So I began to sit on my bed, time after time, and pray.  I prayed out of sheer obedience to my Lord. “Lord, I choose to forgive that man. Please help me forgive Him.”  The words came out of my mouth, prayer after prayer, as if by rote.

And about the third or fourth time I prayed that prayer, I suddenly heard myself saying “I don’t know what I’m doing by not forgiving Him.” 

That, my friends, was the Lord.  It was His Spirit, His power, His ability to forgive, answering my prayers, honoring my willingness, and forgiving him through me.

And suddenly, I felt it.  I felt like I had forgiven him.  God had moved from my head into my heart the realization that any unforgiveness I chose to hold over him was only hurting myself, my family, and my life.  It was done.

The nightmares began to subside, and so did the involuntary jerking of my head to the left whenever I saw something move in my peripheral vision. The PTSD has lessened, but I can’t say it’s completely gone.

There are just some things that make a mark on our souls that won’t be completely healed until God rids us of our mortals bodies, along with their wounds, and clothes us with the immortal.

I’ve had lots of other opportunities to forgive since then. Praise God nothing along those same lines. But here’s the thing: whenever I hear another teaching about forgiveness, or I’m praying to forgive wounds, thinking about all the hurts that still need to be forgiven, that particular wound never comes to my mind.  Ever. It’s done.

It’s so done that I’ve been able to pray for that man’s salvation, knowing that he is created and loved by God just like I am.

Forgiveness is the balm that heals the scars of our hearts.

Yes, it was wholly unfair.  But what the enemy meant for evil, God has used for good.  He’s used it to teach me about forgiveness; He’s used it to give me more compassion for people who are hurting, and I pray He’s using it now as I write this and then as you read it.

I pray it gives you courage, through the power of Christ, to forgive the unforgivable. No, healing may not come quickly. Forgiveness is often a process. But keep praying, in faith, so that you can exchange pain for His glory, and grief for His joy. If you need prayer, I would be more than honored to pray for you.  

I pray that what the enemy meant for evil in your life, you will, by choice, through obedience, let Him use it for good.  And in doing so, we share in the sufferings of Christ, becoming even more bonded to Him, knowing just a little bit about what He did to forgive us.

Grace and Peace,

The Story of Christmas, and All God’s Blessings, Don’t Come with Pride, They Come with This

Posted on by Dorci

A million thoughts could have gone through young Mary’s mind as she was suddenly and astonishingly visited by an angel and told that she would be overcome by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Son of the Most High.  She wasn’t yet married (though pledged to be), and she was a virgin, yet was asked to believe this miraculous conception would take place inside her own body. 

What would Joseph think? Would he leave her?  What would her family think?  Would they disown her? What would society think? Would they cast her out, or worse, stone her to death? But she put aside her fears, humbled herself to God’s will, and immediately answered “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.”  Because she did, she gave birth to the Savior of the World.

When Joseph discovered she was pregnant, his mind was rattled, and he planned to divorce her.  (In those days, being pledged to be married was as serious a commitment as marriage.)  Could he trust that the angel that came to him was telling him the truth, that Mary had not been unfaithful, but had amazingly become pregnant through the Holy Spirit? But he put aside his fears, humbled himself to God’s will, and married her, and watched the Son of God brought into this world.

The shepherds, living out in the field with their sheep, were visited by a host of angels and were told that an almost unbelievable thing had happened – the Savior of the world had been born, and was lying in a manger of all things. Leaving their sheep and their fears aside, they humbled themselves to God’s will, and not only went to see this newborn King, but spread the amazing news that the Messiah was in their midst.

The Magi left their home, followed a star, and humbled themselves to worship the King of the Jews.

And Jesus, though being God, the very one by and through whom all things were made, humbled Himself to His Father’s will, left His Heavenly throne, His identity as God, the worship of angels, and was born a helpless, vulnerable baby.  

Even the Father revealed His character of humility by sending His own Son to be born, to suffer, and die for a sinful people.

The power of the Christmas story lies in putting aside fears, rights, and pride, and putting on humility.  It is a picture of the beauty of fully trusting God and His will, no matter what, and submitting to it.

God’s character is one of humility, and that’s why it’s so powerful.  We see that in the person of Jesus through His birth, His life, His death, and His resurrection to life again.

We don’t see a lot of humility in our world.  Instead, it’s about pride, and rights, and self.  And in living in the flesh, it lives outside God’s character, and loses the very power and blessing it’s striving for.

“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.
Submit yourselves then to God.
Humble yourselves before the Lord,
and He will lift you up.”
James 4:6b, 7, 10

We see that play out in Luke 1:30 when the angel appeared to Mary and said,

“Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.”

And further in the story told by Luke, when Mary visited her relative, Elizabeth (who was also miraculously carrying a child in her old age), and worshipped God:

“My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for He has been mindful
of the humble state of His servant.”

It’s not easy to humble ourselves to God’s will, especially when a million scenarios can run through our minds and fears stand ready to act as a wall, threatening to stand between us and God along with His favor, His will, and His blessings.

But the more time we spend with our Savior, the one who knows what it’s like to humble Himself and face those scenarios, coming out the other side victorious, the more we will love Him and be filled with His character of humility, ready to trust and obey Him in a moment’s notice, and stand with Him in victory on the other side. 

This Christmas, in more ways than one, my Heavenly Father is reminding me of the beauty and power of humility, that good things come with it, and though I don’t understand the hows or whys of any given circumstance, if I will, in the strength and courage of the Holy Spirit, put aside my fears, then God’s goodness and untold blessings will fill my life.

 

May you find favor with God, and may you have a very blessed Christmas,

September 11 Spurs Us On

Posted on by Dorci

As we reflect on this day 17 years ago, we are reminded that in an instant everything can change.

Whether the change involves an entire country, or our own personal sphere, we never know what a day can bring.  Life is short.

All around us there are lonely people to love, hurting people to comfort, hungry people to feed, thirsty people to give something to drink, impoverished people to clothe, imprisoned people to visit, and lost people to tell the good news that a Savior has come.

May the remembrance of this day, the soberness of the hour of our lives, and our love for Jesus be the catalysts that seek the power of the Holy Spirit, minute by minute, to “lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Let us look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and your hearts give up.”  Hebrews 12:1-3 MEV

Though we will have trouble in this world, let us rejoice and have peace – Jesus Christ has overcome the world.

Don’t Give Up

Posted on by Dorci

Don’t give up.

Those are my words to you today. Well, those are God’s words to me, and I’m sharing them with you. Don’t give up.

That health issue you’ve been dealing with for so long? Don’t give up.

That relationship you’ve been trying to heal for so long? Don’t give up.

That person you’ve been praying about for so long? Don’t give up.

That ministry you’re in, that job you’ve worked hard at, that goal you keep trying and maybe failing… Insert your own seemingly impossible situation. 

Don’t. Give. Up.

What if Moses had given up during his 40 years before God called him, or the 40 years he wandered in the desert after He called him? What if Jeremiah had given up prophesying to God’s people because they refused to listen to him? What if Abraham and Sarah had given up on having the promised child? What if Nehemiah had given up when the walls of Jerusalem had been destroyed? What if Job had given up when his wife told him to?

What if Ruth had given up when her husband died? What if Joseph had given up while he languished in prison? What if Gideon had given up and let fear take over while hiding in the winepress? What if David had given up when he sinned so colossally? What if Peter had given up and never come back to Jesus after His resurrection? What if John had given up on the island of Patmos?

God’s Word is not a cleaned up, whitewashed story showing only the good side of mankind.  God intentionally lets us see the worst of it – the sin, the shame, the end of the road, the hopelessness that exists in all our lives at one time or another.

And then we see God. Time and time again we see a loving, gracious Heavenly Father who loves to change the story.  He loves a surprise ending. And a surprise beginning and middle.  He loves to show the greatness of His mercy at a time when no one would have expected it.

God’s Word, which continues in all His believers, is a story of a God who makes the impossible possible. He makes the wretched sinner new and free. He makes the dead alive again. He gives hope to the hopeless. He is the miracle-maker, the faith-giver, the blessed redeemer. He is the power and the glory. He is the overcomer.

Call on Him now in the confidence of who He is and confess the sin, present the problem, and then wait with great expectation.

 

“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.”  Psalm 42:5

 

If you have never put your faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, let me say this – God loves you. He loves you so much that He sent His only Son to die in your place. Yes, you. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, it doesn’t matter how you’ve failed, it doesn’t matter where you are, who you are, how old or young you are.  (Believe me, no one was as lost as I was.) God is able to save you right here, right now. 

Simply acknowledge that you have sinned –  in other words, confess you’re not perfect. None of us is. We have all sinned and fallen short of the perfection of God. Then tell God that you receive Jesus Christ’s payment on the cross for your sin, and ask Jesus to come into your life, into your heart, to make you a new person, and to fill you with the Holy Spirit. 

If you want to read more, you can click up at the top on How You Can Know God, and you can read a little snippet of my story of redemption at My Testimony. If you prayed this prayer, or if you have any questions, or would like prayer for any reason, click on A Place For Prayer Requests or you can email me by clicking on that swanky envelope to the right. May the Lord bless you and fill you anew with His hope and peace.

Sunday Praise – Be Exalted!

Posted on by Dorci

 

 

Heavenly Father, help us this week to walk with you so that our hearts and minds are changed and everything we do is in your name and your power.  May you be exalted in the mighty works you do in and through us.  In the name of Yeshua Hamashiach – Jesus the Messiah, amen.

The Road to the Power of God

Posted on by Dorci

Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2 Corinthians 12:7b-10) ~Paul the apostle  

There are days, weeks, lifetimes that I feel overwhelmed by my weaknesses. My sins. Regrets.

And I think how in the world could I ever expect God to use someone like me?  

I have nothing. I am wholly inadequate. I live with daily constraints of fatigue and pain. I am constantly thinking and saying and doing things I don’t want to. Things that are contrary to the nature of a loving and forgiving and gracious God.  I look at who I am and I’m disappointed.  How could God not be?

If I were Him I’d run in the other direction in search of someone better.

But here’s the thing: I’m not God – praise the Lord.

And here’s the other thing – I may be inadequate, I may be sinful, but I love my Jesus.

It’s those very weaknesses that had me running to Him in the first place, and keep me running back because I know how much I need Him.

Spending time with my gracious Lord brings into focus even more how great He is and it is humbling. I compare myself to Him and I see how short I come up in the godliness department. My weaknesses and sins are more evident when I’m in His presence.

And I see again just how very much I need my Father.

When I need Him I call on Him to do in and through me what I never could. I leave room for Him to do the miraculous, because I need a miracle, every single day.  

There are those who would have Christians believe God doesn’t want any of His children to be sick. I would refer them to Paul. And there are those who believe their sickness must mean they are being punished by God. I would again refer them to Paul, and Job, and the many others who found themselves weak in some way, yet we clearly see God’s hand was on them.

Yes, God heals. Yes, God still does miracles. When it suits His purposes.  

But don’t limit God.  God uses all kinds of people in all kinds of circumstances for all kinds of things.

Our weaknesses, whatever they may be, don’t disqualify us from being used by God. In fact they can be the road leading right to it. 

We are all weak in some way, most of us in many ways. 

The world tells us Be strong!  Be powerful.  In doing that we refuse the power of God in our lives, and we remain in our weakness.

But acknowledging our weaknesses, taking them to the throne room of God and putting our life in His hands out of sheer desperation, knowing we have nothing good in and of ourselves, is the very thing that will make us useful.  He’s then able to fill us with His strength and do great things through us, not because of who we are, but in spite of it.

And all the glory is His.

The prayers prayed out of desperation tend to be stripped of all pretense.  The mask comes off, the formality is laid aside, and we get real with God. That kind of realness leads to an authentic, personal relationship with our Heavenly Father.  Our Abba.  And that unleashes His power in us.  

It’s not the strength of our bodies, or the intelligence of our minds, or the skill of our hands.  

It’s the willingness of our hearts. 

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him. 2 Chronicles 16:9

Sunday Praise – Psalm 21:13

Posted on by Dorci

 

Be exalted in your strength, Lord;
we will sing and praise your might.

Psalm 21:13

Father, may we take with us into the week a remembrance of your great power, a power that moves mountains and overcomes obstacles, that breathes life where there was none, that makes a way where there was no way, that destroys strongholds, and sets us on a firm foundation of truth and love and joy.  We praise you, LORD, for your great and mighty strength, and we ask that all we do would be done in your power by your Spirit. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.