Valley of Vision

Life is filled with unknowns.  It has times when things are crystal clear, and the path the Lord has for us seems to be lit up as bright as a neon sign.  Yet more than not, our faith's journey is filled with trials, distresses, hardships, sleeplessness, and many other things we may not understand (2 Cor. 6).  Actually, I believe this is how the Lord Jesus intended faith to be.  If all of our relationships were perfectly unified how would His proven character ever be worked out in us? (Rom 5:4) If we saw everyone as "easy to love"  how would we be set apart from the love of this world? (Matt 5:46) If we prayed and got everything we asked for regardless of our heart motive, how would we ever know or be in the will of our Father? (Mark 11:22-26)

The Lord has been working many things out in me, the past two months since we have last met on this blog.  Which can be quite simply stated this way...I am not here for my dreams to be fulfilled, my desires to be met, to be loved by all,  or to have all my prayers answered exactly how I wanted.  I am here for His PURPOSE, I am here to BEAR FRUIT for His glory, I am here to ABIDE and have relationship with Him, I am here to LOVE others not how they want to be loved but how He called me to love, and I am here to ENDURE till the end...when He shall choose to return or call me home.  I don't always fancy the way He wants to use me, the people He wants me to love, the rejection He wants me to embrace and yet I have confidence of this...IF I allow Him full access to my life...He will finish the work He has started. (Phil 1:6)

Don't lose heart when times of weariness come...press on...it's in the Valley of Vision that we discover Jesus the Lover of our soul!  In conclusion, please read these powerful words of two men who were inspired by the Lord to encourage their fellow saints.  Oswald Chambers and Dr. Charles Solomon (my Dad's spiritual father).

OSWALD CHAMBERS ("Utmost for His Highest"-July 6)
 
We always have visions, before a thing is made real. When we realize that although the vision is real, it is not real in us, then is the time that Satan comes in with his temptations, and we are apt to say it is no use to go on. Instead of the vision becoming real, there has come the valley of humiliation.

"Life is not as idle ore,
But iron dug from central gloom,
And batter'd by the shocks of doom
To shape and use." God gives us the vision, then He takes us down to the valley to batter us into the shape of the vision, and it is in the valley that so many of us faint and give way. Every vision will be made real if we will have patience. Think of the enormous leisure of God! He is never in a hurry. We are always in such a frantic hurry. In the light of the glory of the vision we go forth to do things, but the vision is not real in us yet; and God has to take us into the valley, and put us through fires and floods to batter us into shape, until we get to the place where He can trust us with the veritable reality. Ever since we had the vision God has been at work, getting us into the shape of the ideal, and over and over again we escape from His hand and try to batter ourselves into our own shape.
The vision is not a castle in the air, but a vision of what God wants you to be. Let Him put you on His wheel and whirl you as He likes, and as sure as God is God and you are you, you will turn out exactly in accordance with the vision. Don't lose heart in the process. If you have ever had the vision of God, you may try as you like to be satisfied on a lower level, but God will never let you.

THE VISION LIVES by Dr. Charles Solomon
(The Valley of Decision)

The vision of the mountain top
From realms where angels sing,
Is filled with grandeur so inspiring
‘Twould make the heavens ring.
Though the pinnacle makes for vision,
It provides no dwelling place;
But its memory drives us onward
When the clouds obscure His face.

We all enjoy the mountain tops
And the blessings that they bring--
The thrill of new experiences
As we His glad praises sing.
These are times of preparation
For the valley will surely come;
The valleys, too, are needful
As we wend our journey home.

‘Tis in the valley of decision
Where visions live or die;
What we are is what we do
When faced with the impossible, “Why?”
The enemy’s taunts and temptings
Would separate friend from friend,
And seek to blur the vision
If not bring an untimely end.

Visions which are born of God
Are backed by His promise true;
Come cloud, come rain, come certain pain,
”What I started, that will I do”. (Philippians 1:6)
‘Tis such a comfort that sustains
When the flesh would thwart His plan--
To know that all things work together
For good, when God is shaping a man. (Romans 8:28)

For men God calls, and men God uses
To reach out to those in need--
To take the message of redemption
And do it with all due speed.
“Multitudes, multitudes in the valley” (Joel 3:14)
Where they seek the Savior’s touch;
Will their valley of decision
Affect us little or stir us much?

Yet, Jesus is Lord of the valley,
And through the valley we must go;
He brings victory out of the valley;
Of a certainty, this we know!
One of David’s was his baby
For whom he mourned and wept; (2 Samuel 12:16,17)
But when the baby had departed, (2 Samuel 12:20-23)
He no longer his vigil kept.

Out of the valley and to the heights
We are summoned by our Lord;
No longer to be looking back,
But to move ahead at His Word.
The valley has served its purpose
To unite our hearts as one--
The vision’s not dead; it liveth!
Come, come, let us go on!

Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision:

for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.(Joel 3:14)

You OVERCAME

You overcame by the power of the cross that rest on Calvary

You overcame my chains that once bound me to things I held near

Your overcame my darkest night with just a ray of Your light

You overcame the lust of my flesh that led me back to more of the same

You overcame my despair where I once believed I had no hope or destiny

You overcame the lies in the night that left me empty and full of dread

You overcame the unbelief that kept my feet from walking by faith

You overcame the doubt that said I had nothing good left to believe in

You overcame the worry that held me for far too long, keeping me from living my today’s

You overcame my shame said that I would “never be wanted”

You overcame the fear that ate my soul with nothing left to give

You overcame the demons of darkness that serve the father of the spiritually dead

You overcame the devil himself with one act of Your Love

To the God who was, and is, and is to come…

You reign victorious!

John 16:33- "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have OVERCOME the world."

Romans 12:21-"Do not be OVERCOME by evil, but OVERCOME evil with good."

1 John 2:14- "I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning.  I have written to you, young men, because you are strong and the word of God abides in you, and you have OVERCOME the evil one."

Revelation 21:6-7- "And He said to me, 'It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.  I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.  He who OVERCOMES shall inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My Son.'"

1 John 4:4- "You are from God, little children, and have OVERCOME them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world."

1 John 5:4-"For whatever is born of God OVERCOMES the world; and this is the victory that has OVERCOME the world---our faith."

(Emphasis all mine)

The book of the Bible that holds the most references (from my research) to the word overcame, overcome, or overcometh (in KJV) is Revelations with 13 references within its 22 chapters.  However the piece about this that I found so interesting (and it highly likely this lesson was just for me, but just in case...I thought I would share!) is that of those 13 references, 7 of them come in the portions of scripture dealing with the 7 churches.  The reason I find this so intriguing, is in the importance this shows us that as true believers (being defined as the one who loves, abides, bears fruit, and endures till the end.  See John 13:35, John 15:7, John 15:8-10, and Matthew 10:22) we MUST endure in our faith in Jesus Christ, until the end.

This is how we overcome our flesh, the world, and Satan.  This is Satan's counterfeit product of the Trinity-our flesh, the world in which we live, and placing himself as the father. (James 3:15)  However, the Word clearly states the only thing he is a father of...is lies! (John 8:44)  Within Revelation, God is once again reminding us of how important it is to walk through the trials, distresses, and persecution that may come in order that we might OVERCOME and receive the inheritance He has for us in the New Jerusalem (see Rev. 21:6-7 above)

That is why it's not okay for people to believe that prayer, in and of itself, is what saves them; it is praying by faith and through the a power that is not our own, living it day by day by faith.  For further study to see just how passionate the LORD is on the subject take a look at the words He spoke to the 7 churches.  For a start, take the word overcame and see the ways in which He applies it.  I don't know about you, but it has brought new meaning to me as His child being able to overcome, because Jesus Christ already has for me!  As you study His word sweet sister, may you have eyes to see and ears  to hear. (Matthew 13:6) I love you my sister of the faith, never stop pursuing the purity of His Word.

• Revelation 2:7-Ephesus
• Revelation 2:11-Smyrna
• Revelation 2:17-Pergamum
• Revelation 2:26-Thyatira
• Revelation 3:5-Sardis
• Revelation 3:12-Philadelphia
• Revelation 3:21-Laodicea

Listen to Jeremy Camp's "Overcome"

The Shepherd's Love



"The Lamb" by Stephen S. Sawyer



My heart is beaten, bruised, and broken

Bleeding within me from the past and present

I cry out in my distress to My God

Knowing only He can save

I plead for mercy and compassion for my heart can bear no more

Yet trials came and still all the more causing my heart to feel cheated

Of blessing above

Satan’s lies prowled about me, surrounding me in confusion and frustration

Overwhelmed with choices I reached for the nearest thing

Satan’s lies were what I came to believe

Twisted and turned I couldn’t tell up from down or left from right

I cried to Jesus beseeching Him to save me from despair

Yet I heard nothing

I felt Him, I saw the affects of His Love

Everywhere but in my own hurting heart

I was lost and had gone astray

All I could see was the 99 sheep with the Shepherd…yet could not reach home

My Shepherds face looked pained and I saw His eyes rest on me

He steadily walked towards me reaching His staff out to me

Yet I was fearful and angry

Why had He not come for me sooner? Why had he left me for so long?

Then the Shepherd was before me looking into my face

As if he was reading and searching my innermost being

Seeing every thought and emotion

He knelt before me and held open His arms

A smile breaking across His magnificent face

I hesitated, not understanding all I had gone through

Not understanding why I had wandered away from my Shepherd

Gently He spoke, in a soft and soothing tone

“Return to me beloved, for it is the only way your heart can be healed.

I love you and desire you for you are my bride.”

“But Shepherd,” I cried, “I have turned to man to fulfill me and taken hold of Satan’s lies…they bind me!”

The Shepherd replied, “My little, lost lamb, I will break the cords of strongholds.

I will lead you with cords of Love. Nothing can overcome My Love!”

“Oh, Shepherd”, I said, “Will you heal my bleeding heart?

Will you take away the wrong choices I have made?”

“Lamb, healing comes in My time, but you must first enter once again into My Love.

As for your wrong choices they must stay as reminders to you and others

The path you must each take.

I will still use those choices to glorify my Name.”

“My head understands My Lord, but my heart is still searching!”

“And it shall find Me my lamb. DO NOT take those burdens upon you!

Can you command a heart to obey?

No child, I draw the heart in My perfect timing for My perfect plan.

Will you come my lamb? Will you return to your Lord who has never forsaken you?”

Slowly I crawled to Him, humbled by His grace

I nestled against the chest of the one who knew no sin and yet took my place

Restoration and deliverance was in His hand!

I wrote this poem back in 2002, after a painful and spiritually eye opening year.  Since I was a child the picture of Jesus as the Shepherd, carrying a lamb in His arms had always been my favorite.  It was a picture I saw in my head during my intense times of fear. That He would not leave me or forsake me.  However, it was with a new revelation that I saw that picture in a fresh way.  I was a lost lamb, and my Savior left the 99 to come and get me (Matthew 18:12-14),  and bring me back into the fold. Our "lost" souls come in various ways-walking away completely from who God says we are, believing the lies the Enemy is feeding us, partial disobedience or obedience (which is STILL disobedience), or falling into a pit of darkness and broken in a place of despair. 

No matter the context, The Shepherd can lift us up from the darkness with His strong hand.  It's just a matter of us embracing our weakness, and that we cannot save ourselves-not with intelligence, biblical knowledge, or common sense.  Without Him we are NOTHING...nothing.  Do we believe it?  He is the one who redeems, restores, replenishes our souls to want to live again...for Him. 

If you are in a place of being lost, reach your weak hand to Him, and let His strong hand bring you up again. (Psalm 40:1-5)  If He has brought you out of that place (maybe more than once), than be faithful to speak of His testimony to others of  His great work in you. (Psalm 119:14) Be of great courage sister, be weak with the One that is strong, and He will impart all the strength you need. You belong...to Him and with Him.  I love you.


*Reccomended Fiction Reading:  "The Shepherd's Voice" by Robin Lee Hatcher

Celebrating Peripety (Reversal of Destiny)

Lord Jesus,

No words can ever express the praise, worship, thanks, awe, adoration, gratitude, and overwhelming love I have for You my King in reversing my destiny!  You took me from a path that was not of You, and reverse it all back to You.  Only You Jesus, my King, only You!

If you can turn curses into blessings (Deut. 23:5), You can turn   my poor choices into Your thoughts and ways replacing my own   (Is. 55:8-9) .  That is what You began in me 5 years ago-  embracing Your best plan for my life over my hearts desire for a “good plan”.  But is anything truly good without You in the midst of it? (Luke 18:19b) I have come to see in very REAL, BIG, LIFE CHANGING ways that I produce nothing good without You.

I don’t have to be intentionally disobeying to not follow after Your best plan.  All too often I try to be the one to discern Your will, and even though You desire me to seek You, (Ps. 119:10) You also desire me to do that with a heart that will wait upon You (Ps. 62:5, 147:11) ; and trust in Your ability to speak into my heart (John. 10:4) through the revelation of the Holy Spirit                         (John 13:7, 16:13-15) .

You have taken me from a place of former darkness, where I was blind to Your Truth and introduced me to Your astounding marvelous Light. (1 Peter 2:9)  Once You have opened my eyes to these Truths, how can I then go and embrace the sin and willfully sin against You? (Ps. 19:13)  Oh Lord, keep me from walking back into the pit (Ps. 40:2), but let me walk through the power of the Holy Spirit as a child of the Light. (Eph. 5:8) Grant me the strength through the fiery trials (2 Peter 4:12-13) to embrace the purity of the Word, the whole megillah-beginning to end, and not be ashamed of the Gospel (Ps. 119:6) .

Thank you LORD Jesus, that while my ordinary days are making me wonder where You are or how You are working, Your Providence is at its best...displayed in the unseen and ready to come into my everyday with a burst of radiant color that reveals Your glory!  You never forget my calling and that You are at work within me. (Phil. 2:13)  Despite my “stab in the dark” attempts in life, Your wise ways can have there way with me!  You are the one who uses the weak to shame the strong, to teach us as Your children to boast in nothing but You, our God. (1 Cor. 1:25-27,29)

Thank you for not viewing me with my sin, but You see my sin/flesh crucified with Your Son, my Groom, Jesus Christ. (Gal. 2:20, Rom. 6:6)  As a result, You see me clothed in a robe of righteousness (Is. 61:10) calling me BLESSED, CHOSEN, ADOPTED, ACCEPTED, HOLY, BLAMELESS, REDEEMED, FORGIVEN, AND LOVED through the power of the cross, putting my sin to death by my Redeemer, Christ the Lord (Eph. 1:3-13).

To all of this I must say, because of You I know what true forgiveness and healing is.  My heart applauds You, my King of Kings, that you have turned what was “suppose to be” into what You intended me to be!  I lift my hands in praise for You, my Jesus, who is better than life. (Ps. 63:4) You make it all worth living for, because my God is for me, what come against me? (Ps. 56:4)  Nothing and no one, is bigger than the shadow of the Almighty where I dwell (Ps. 91:1) , and that is simply worth singing about! (Ps. 147:1)

I love You Lord Jesus, I love you so.  Keep me from getting lost in anything but You, and “Open my eyes to behold wonderful things from Thy Law”-Psalm 119:18.

Thy Will and Thy Way I Pray,

 Amen and Amen!

Legacy Before Us (Part Two)



Me with Grandpa and Grandma Ver Steeg 1990



I do not take for granted the relationship that I had with 3 out of my 4 grandparents. I treasure each and every one of them for the lessons they left me as their grandchild, and how their legacy continues on in my parents, my sisters and me, and now even in my sister’s children, and Lord willing-those yet to be born.

      I value that when I was a little girl, scared of the dark with 9 stuffed animals piled on me, my Grandma Ver Steeg would tuck me in (when she was visiting from Iowa), and recite the twenty-third Psalm over me.  I can still remember the smell of her glycerin and rose water lotion on her hands and the way her chin quivered whenever she prayed or spoke that scripture over me.  She would encourage me to say it whenever I was afraid.  Because of her, I knew the Lord was my Shepherd. It isn’t surprising that the binding in my kid’s Bible broke in two sections: Psalm 23 and Isaiah 40 (which was the first passage of scripture I put to memory with my Mom). 

·     I value that my Grandpa Ver Steeg’s lap was always open for me to crawl into and how he would sweep me up in his arms when I ran down the hall.  I used to love that when he kissed me I could smell his morning coffee on his breath. J  I can still picture him reading a book in our recliner when they came to visit, and how as I got older he would let me read to him and Grandma. His favorite Psalm was Psalm 15, and reading that chapter recently, I was struck by the fact he lived what it said. Because of him, I learned what integrity was.

•  

  

  Me with My Lovely Grandma 2007

  
  I value that I could always pick up the phone and call my Grandma Phinney and she would be a listening ear, but she would also pray with me.  I remember, especially in my early 20’s that I would call and she would tell me she had just asked the Lord to have someone call, and there I was.  Or how she had just finished praying for someone in my family.  Even in her last year, when she was at her worst physically, she would tell me she would be praying for my Dad’s heart and his ministry 3 times a day.  I can still hear her sweet voice saying “oh yes Lord” whenever I would pray over her or our requests. She was ever grateful that I would pray that all her children would one day walk in Truth and her children would be reconciled to God and one another.  Almost every time our phone calls would end she would say, “thank you Angel, you made my day.” Because of her, I know the power of prayer and intercession.
• Yes, I even value what my Grandpa Phinney taught me.  Despite the fact that we barely shared a relationship, from his life I learned the importance of following God’s call.  At the age of 19, my Grandpa said he knew that God wanted him to go into ministry, but instead, he denied God access to his life and walked away from His Truth.  A life of much pain, sin, and family destruction came from his life instead.  I learned from him, that God will not force my calling upon me…I have a choice.  God’s sovereign plan will always play out, but my choosing to embrace His plan for my life is a choice.  Without it is certain death (spiritually and sometimes even physically) to my life, and to those around me.  Those closest to me will suffer unjustly when I say “No” to the Lord.  In his later years, my Grandpa appeared to have a turn around back to the Lord, but honestly, I knew so little about him only the Lord knows if his repentance was sincere.  In those years, I can still remember the first time he said he loved me, the time he shared his jelly beans with me, and the one time he took me to the grocery store and bragged to the clerk about his granddaughters. Even with very few memories with this man, I can still say he taught me something beyond value…to follow the voice of the Lord,  and that disobedience has dire consequences.   

I realize many people do not have the opportunity because of varying circumstances, to have a relationship with their grandparents.  But, I must say I know more of us who are unwilling to even attempt having a relationship with them.  Our culture has infiltrated our mindset with the lie that elderly people live in a different world than we do. Somehow they didn’t struggle with the same things that we do, therefore, they have nothing to offer us.  Elderly are so foreign to most these days, your average youth doesn’t even know how to speak or interact with someone outside their peer circle. What’s happened that we no longer see wisdom in gray hair?   As the Bible says, this is a man’s honor (see Prov. 20:29).

 I know, right about now, I have about half of you saying things like:

• “You have no idea what my parents are like!”
•  “I didn’t know my grandparents at all.  “
•  “I don’t have a good family lineage, it’s full of godlessness.”
• “Excuse me?!  Have you met my crazy family?”
• “I am willing, but I don’t think my parents or grandparents care.”
• “I am the only believer and follower of Jesus Christ in my family.” 

However, God’s Word even addresses this many times with scriptures like Psalm 78:4-8, one of my favored passages to pray over future generations.  Let’s specifically look at verses 7 and 8, pertaining to the context of our tough questions.  

"That they should put their confidence in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments, and not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God.”

 It’s true.  We didn’t all grow up in a great family environment. Many of us didn’t even grow up in a home centered on Christ.  Even if you did, a Christ-centered home does not = a perfect home.  I realize a little more each day the gift I was given, and I don’t take my upbringing for granted.  We still had our family pain and dysfunctions, but I know first hand how much I should cherish my home life and the love of my parents.  My Dad is a living, walking testimony of how a surrendered heart can change the tide from a family bound by hellish sins, to walking as a child of the Light (see Eph. 5:8).  Statistics probably wouldn’t have been in my favor had they seen my father’s childhood. Yet, because of the grace of a loving God, and some serious life changing choices my Dad made, I grew up in a Christ-centered home.  Just because YOU didn’t have it, doesn’t mean your children can’t OR your grandchildren won’t!  As long as you have breath you can make a difference in the life of the next generation.  What will you choose?

My challenge to you is this: 1) Research the scriptures, both the Old and New Testaments, and see the importance the Lord puts on generations, descendants, and genealogies.  Maybe you will discover that the family you were born into wasn’t chance or a mistake, but it was planned and with a purpose…heartaches and all.   Maybe you will understand He is not just good when generations are perfect, but that His Presence is most needed when they are full of imperfections.  2) DO SOMETHING!  If your parents and/or grandparents are alive, invest in their lives.  I don’t care how crazy they are, believers or unbelievers, they have something to teach you and your life should be used to bless them.  God honors those who honor authority. If they are not alive- never, ever, forget the next generation, even those yet to be born (Psalm 78).  The Lord wants to use you to declare His faithfulness and proclaim His life.  So, will you join me?  Let’s redeem our past, treasure our present, and pray for our future through the strength of a loving Lord and King.  It’s never too late with a God who heals.

Legacy Before Us

Mr. & Mrs. Charles Phinney

By Jess Phinney

History. Generations. Past. Future.  What do those words invoke in you?  YOU, the one living in the present, having a past and what you do with it, affect’s the future.  Quite frankly, even by choosing to do nothing, you have already chosen something.  What will you choose to do? 

   Let me share a little background on why I have been meditating on this and felt compelled to share with you.  This month holds the anniversary of nearly all 4 of my grandparents deaths.  I said goodbye to 3 of them in a 5 year time period.  Carl Ver Steeg- April 1, 1995, Druscilla Ver Steeg-March 23, 1998, Charles Phinney-March 3, 2000, and in 2010 I said goodbye to my surviving grandparent, Lelah Phinney on-March 26.  With each death I grieved the other grandparent all over again and a hole was left in my heart that will never be filled.  Honestly, I don’t want to ever not feel the ache of their absence in my life. 

Mr. & Mrs. Carl Ver Steeg

   They left me a variety of legacies, one of faithfulness, prayer, dedication to the Lord, and a love for their family that left you thankful someone taught you how to love outside of yourself.  A love that came from a relationship with Jesus Christ.  However, they also left a legacy of things that most families would be tempted to forget.  For instance, I barely had relationship with my Grandpa Phinney and when he died, I grieved not the love we shared, but the love we didn’t share…and how little I really knew the man I called Grandpa.  Most of the stories I had heard about him were not filled with good memories. For most of his life his actions went directly against how he was raised, and against the Word of God.  Then I got to thinking he still left me something, whether I want it or not!  The question really is: What will I choose to do with what they left me?

   I have already seen the manifestation of their life choices affecting my own.  I am very grateful that my parents (raised in two separate worlds), have such a passion for Truth and a belief that leaving a legacy matters.  They have spent their lives investing in their children because they knew it wasn’t just all about them.  They taught us the value of our heritage, even how our roots were tied to coffee! J.  They understood their choices would affect ours and so forth and so on.  Now DON’T get me wrong I’m not telling you to blame your mistakes on your family tree!  Each person is responsible to the Lord for their words and deeds.  However, I don’t believe we think enough about the fact that our choices are always affecting someone….ALWAYS.  From the simple things like how we greet the day and the clothes we wear, to the more “complex” choices of how we live our faith as we walk this earth.  We tend to make things more difficult than we ought to.  God’s Word was designed to set us FREE, not have us walking around like someone with a noose tied around our neck and the attitude that it’s something “we must bear”.  In what way are we living our faith in Jesus Christ?  Is it law or life more abundantly?

   Let’s take a look at a few passages that suggest just a hint that generations and legacies are important to God. 

Genesis 9:12 (NASB) “God said, ‘This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations;’”

Genesis 17:7,9 (NASB) "I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you… 9God said further to Abraham, "Now as for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.”

Psalm 71:18 (NASB) “And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me,

         Until I declare Your strength to this generation,

         Your power to all who are to come.” (emphasis all mine)

   I could continue! Countless times, God uses the word generation and descendants.  Ever notice how many chapters of the Bible are just chalked full of genealogies? Instead of just sighing and flipping for something more interesting to read (I too have been guilty), take a minute and look around at the surrounding context. What was happening and what is the LORD trying to communicate by placing it there?  He has purpose in our family lineage.  Yes, that includes YOURS! 

Are You Ruled by Fear (Part 2)

By Jess Phinney

Here we sit slightly confused that the very person who reacted in fear, is the very person that God uses as our example to not be frightened by sudden fear.  What is that all about?  Isn’t that exactly how our LORD functions with His children-through redemption?  That in our greatest weakness, actually lies our greatest strength- through the power of the Holy Spirit that lives within us (Gal 2:16)!  We see this with Sarah not only in 1 Peter 3:6, but also in Hebrews 11:11 where the absence of Sarah’s fear became her greatest asset, belief and faith in the One who had promised.  Not only is she the mother to “as many descendants AS THE STARS OF HEAVEN IN NUMBER, AND INNUMBERABLE AS SAND WHICH IS BY THE SEASHORE” (Heb 11:12), but she was a wonderful example of a woman who understood she was created to be Abraham’s helpmeet.  She didn’t have a separate vision or focus that made her feel “fulfilled”, rather she embraced Abraham’s calling as the head of their home (Eph. 5:23) and followed God’s leading through male leadership (Gen 11:31, 12:5, 12:11-20, 13:1, 13:12).  She obviously was a courageous women picking up her home time after time not knowing where she was going, or what foreign land her husband (through the instruction of the Lord) was leading her to next (Heb 11:8-9).  There is no record of her showing fear in these instances, and I for one, find that amazing!  If we go to the beginning of verse 6 we find not only was Sarah not frightened by fear, but she is commended for her respectful behavior, “thus Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord…”  This portion of the verse is the one that probably rubs our flesh just a touch, and yet it is used as an example as how we should be!  No matter what you think about the term “lord” now, it was in fact, a title used with a person who had “general authority over someone” through the ages.  Sarah used it out of obedience to the head of her home, who indeed had biblical, God-given authority over her. She was chaste and respectful in her submission. 

  As women we all know how difficult it is to have a heart that is truly chaste and respectful in our behavior, but I do believe the Lord intended this for a purpose.  He knew that we wouldn’t be able to submit with the right motive, without the power of the Holy Spirit doing it through us.  This is something that we can’t achieve in our own strength, and if you have it is as filthy rags to the Lord and is sadly just a replica of the real thing.  Every aspect of our flesh is nasty. However, I think this is the area Satan will target most in our lives, because he knows the power it has to destroy men, homes, and ultimately the design of God which attacks the purity of the gospel.  Mission accomplished: distorted truth.  Just enough to make us feel successful, accepted by the world, and like we still are fulfilling some biblical mandates.  Do we realize this is the deadliest place to be? Combining our worldly influences (culture) with God’s Word, it’s like a slow poison.  We don’t realize its affects until it is has run its course.  That is only if we haven’t become so desensitized to its affects, that it kills our spiritual effectiveness, leaving us as pawns for the enemy to continue to destroy the generations.   Is this what we want-as wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and above all as the Bride of Christ?  I would much rather God glory over me with words such as, “You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.  It will no longer be said to you, ‘Forsaken’, Nor to your land will it any longer be, ‘Desolate ‘, but you will  be called, ‘My delight is in her,’ And your land, ‘Married;’ For the LORD delights in you, and to Him your land will be married.” ~Isaiah 62:3-4.  Does this sound like a daughter ruled by fear?  I think not!

   It is time to bend the knee in repentance for the way we have let culture mold and shape us into the women we have become, rather than letting God’s Word be our standard.  This choice will not be well embraced by the majority, not even in your Christian sphere.  But are you willing to kneel with a humble heart (Is. 66:2), so that you can stand as a living testimony of biblical womanhood?  The only way to get there is to let our Maker give our hearts a makeover replacing fear with faith, insecurity with Christ’s confidence living through us, and our “be all I can be” attitude with ”I will be what You designed me to be” heart.  He can heal us.  I don’t think you heard me.  Beloved sister, HE CAN HEAL YOU!  Let’s start right now.  Here is an amazing prayer that touched my heart while reading “So Long Insecurity”, by Beth Moore.  Take the time to go away to your prayer closet, prepare your heart, and ask the Lord to deal with your fear so we can truly become a daughter of Sarah.  It won’t just change your life, but you can change the course of a generation, from your surrender and obedience.  It won’t be an easy path beloved, but you don’t have to fulfill it…Christ can and will if you let Him (Heb 2:14-15). Day by day we make the choice, we pray like we have never prayed before, and we recognize we need Him for EVERYTHING.  We are nothing without Him but disrespectful, insecure, fear driven women. Let’s trade our lives of fear for the freedom our hearts long for, it may be a lifetime process, but He is worth it.  Beloved, remember I am walking this journey with you, fighting the same battles, and that I too long to be “what He designed me to be.”  I love you.

My Father in Heaven,

I thank You for the breath this day to give You praise.

I thank You for a life where nothing is wasted,

a life where pain turns into purpose and Your providence

assigns a personal destiny.

You will never allow anything in my path

that cannot bring You or me and those around me good.

No matter what this day holds,

I am clothed with strength and dignity.

I have divine strength to overcome every obstacle

and all oppression

because I belong to Jesus Christ, and His Spirit lives within me.

You, Lord, are my security.

No one and nothing can take You from me.

You will keep my foot from being caught in a trap.

I choose to turn my back on fear because You are right here

with me.

I can smile over the days to come because Your plan for me

is good and right.

My heart is steadfast, trusting in You, Lord.

In the end, I will look in triumph on my foes.

Because of You,

I, ____________________, am secure.

In Jesus’ triumphant name,

Amen.

Psalm 112:7-8 (Place your name in verse)

“_______will not fear evil tidings; _______ heart is steadfast trusting in the LORD

_______ heart is upheld, _______ will not fear, until _______looks with satisfaction on _______ adversaries.”

ARE YOU RULED BY FEAR (Part 1)

It is my heart’s desire to share that same passion to be a biblical woman with my fellow sisters in Christ.  There is one verse in 1 Peter 3 that is particularly dear to my heart, verse 6: “Thus Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.”  Wow, what a power packed verse this is, especially for the so called “modern woman” (and how we can just see all our female flesh reacting now!).   It is chalked full of conviction for me in the specific phrase “without being frightened by any fear.”  Of course, as many of us have experienced, our spiritual lessons are often like a scarlet thread; Weaving through different sets of circumstances, people, and seasons of life until finally we have a “revelation moment” with the Lord.   This is exactly what happened to me as my journey with Jesus has hit the hard realities of submission, insecurity and fear…and the dawning realization that for me (and something tells me I am not the only one) they are intricately tied together in my quest for biblical womanhood.

I believe there was a specific reason the Lord through the apostle Peter addressed fear in 1 Peter 3; because He knows that as women we are extremely susceptible to let our fears be the driving force of our control over the “head of our home” (husband, father, or male authority figure).   Rather than be inspiring, encouraging, respecting, and honoring we let fear run our lives and relationships.  Now, in case you are in the category of being unmarried (whether by being a “lady in waiting”, chosen by God to remain celibate, widowed, or an undesired divorce) we do not get excluded from this “portion” of biblical womanhood.   I for one, have yet to meet a woman who didn’t try, at one time or another, try to control a man in her time on earth.  Do not get me wrong, I am not placing all the blame at the feet of the woman for all of our “dysfunctions”.  We know our gender wasn’t the only one cursed in the garden that day (Gen. 3), nor is any one person’s flesh better or worse.  However, being a woman, I am speaking boldly to you-my beloved sister, that we need to wake up to the spiritual decay in our families, churches, and world and do our part…as biblical women. 

Let’s go ahead and take a look at Sarah.  Why would the Bible tell us to be her daughters?  If you think like me, when you think of Sarah the first thing that comes to mind is that she laughed when God appeared to Abraham (Gen 18:1) and said she would still conceive a child.  Not only is she past childbearing years, but this is nearly 15 years LATER from when God promised Abraham a child (Gen 15:4-6). In Sarah’s defense, I may have chuckled too! After all, we read in chapter 17 that even Abraham laughed when God once again reaffirmed His promise (vs. 17-20).  I don’t think the Lord saw this as a lack of faith, or He wouldn’t have instructed them to name their son Isaac, which means “he laughs”.   Her move that wasn’t so bright, was trying to lie about it to a messenger of the Lord (Gen 18:15).  If we haven’t learned this lesson already daughters, there is no sense in not being honest with the Lord about our emotions, fear, doubts, or insecurities.  You may be able to fool others that “you have it all together”, but the Lover of your soul is not going to buy the act!

Secondly, we see the way the Sarah herself was frightened by fear.  One that not only changed the course of her own life, but changed the course of history!  Now, God is still working out His sovereign plan, and is bigger than our failures and shortcomings. However, we see HUGE generational consequences from Sarah’s fear.   She gives her maid to her husband so that she can obtain children through Hagar (Gen 16:2), which of course results in Ishmael whose descendants are haters of God’s people to this day.  Rushing ahead of God’s spoken word only results not only in heartache for us, but for others as well. Sometimes, our poor choices even last generations.

You might be interested in a quick and simple 5-Day Bible Study my dad did on the topic - consider downloading it: