Loving Yourself

Have you ever thought about what it means to love yourself? 

. . .‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ . . . 

Mark 12:30

It seems like this verse would be good justification for a shopping spree, or a day at the spa, or just some serious "me" time . . . but is that what it is saying??


Is it possible to love yourself and deny yourself? (Luke 9:23)


My Dad recently came up with a good definition for what it means to love yourself. Since "love" is defined as "finding your joy in someone or something", then "loving yourself" can be defined as "finding joy in God's design of who I am". How many people do you know that aren't happy with the way God made them? It always makes me sad to hear kids and teens complain about the color of their hair or eyes, etc.


So as you can see, with that definition of loving yourself, you can definitely deny yourself. I would go so far as to say that you will have a very hard time denying yourself if you don't love yourself! And the same is true for loving our neighbor . . . loving yourself is so important!


Here's another "trick" question for you . . .


Can you not love yourself and yet be a lover of your own self, as it talks about in 2 Timothy 3:2? . . . .  :0)

Why Pray?

I was able to get a copy of this book last year, shortly after it came out . . . and I LOVED it! It had a huge impact on my life and I longed for someone to share it with. So needless to say, when I found someone who had read some of Eric and Leslie's other books, I eagerly offered to let them borrow this one. It wasn't long before I wished I hadn't lent the book out - I had questions and felt like I needed to read it again.


Oddly enough, it seemed that the closer I drew to the Lord, the bigger my questions about prayer became! Do I trust the Lord that what He says will happen, or do I beg Him for it until it happens?? It seemed like prayer showed that I didn't really believe what He said!


I finally asked my brother if I could borrow his copy of the book which he was given for Christmas. As I read I was very much encouraged and inspired. But then an illustration was used for faith that made my "question" even bigger! Leslie said that if Eric told Hudson that he will take him to the zoo in the morning, he doesn't doubt and wonder if it will really happen. He goes to bed excited, trusting that in the morning Daddy will take him to the zoo. Hudson believes and therefore he doesn't ask - he trusts. So it should stand to reason that if God has given me a promise, then I don't need to beg (pray) for Him to do it. I should "go to bed excited, trusting that" it will happen. This seems logical, reasonable . . . but I had a feeling that this was just the problem - heavenly wisdom is NOT logical. :0)


Then I came across this line - "God's people are commissioned to ask, to seek, to knock, and to plead that the realities of heaven be made reality down here on earth." Hmmmm, kinda sounds like "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." The problem is that we often don't know what the "realities of heaven" are. God opened my eyes to see that the promises He has given me are "realities of heaven", and that through prayer I need to "pull them down to earth". (Hence the picture on the cover of the book.) This is why prayer is compared to giving birth. The baby already exists, he or she just hasn't come forth yet . . . and the process involves a lot of work and pain (so I've heard ;0). In the same way, the promises God has given us, whether by Christ's victory on the cross, or by His whisper to our heart, already exist. But we need to pray and travail until they are seen on earth.

True prayer demands more of our life 

than most are willing to give. 

And therefore, few are those who ever

taste of it's power and delights.

Prayer is the operative tool--

it's the rope tied to all of God's promises 

yanking this astounding reality to Earth.

So, shall we pray?? :0)

Backwards Is Frontwards

This morning I was studying Ephesians 2:8 - a verse that is very common to many of us . . . maybe too common??

"For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:"

One cool thing that I saw is that the word for "are" (or rather "you are") is a present tense, active, statement of fact. It's not just something that happened one day in the past. It can be happening right now . . . if . . .

The other cool thing I saw is that the word for "of", in "not of yourselves", means "out of". This has to do with the source, or the origin. You and I can't be the source of anything in our lives - it has to be "out of" God that we live, and move, and have our being. This is how we are continually saved . . . saved by His life. :0)

So as I was thinking about this, this morning, my eyes were drawn to some notes I had written down from one of Stephen Manley's sermons. It was from podcast number 74. I don't usually take notes when I'm listening to sermons, but once in a while I hear something that I just have to write down. :0) In this sermon he was talking about dying to ourselves and the things of the Kingdom of God that seem backwards to us . . . but only because we've been living in a backwards world. Backwards is really frontwards. :0)

Towards the end of the sermon Stephen says . . .

"What are you doing living for yourself?? Who would take their career . . . who would take their energies . . . who would take their securities . . . who would take their dreams, their plans . . . who would take their retirement . . . who would take their possessions . . . who would take their entire life and lay it at His feet, and take their hands off and say, "I abandon it all. I no longer dictate. Do anything You want to with me."?  . . . Who would do that?? I have no idea who would do that. I only know what you call them when they do it. They're called Christians! Wouldn't you like to be one?" . . .

"We . are . not . our . own! We've been bought and paid for with a great price. And You died, that they . who . live . should . no . longer . live . for . themselves. Save us, oh God, from ourselves, please!"

Sooo . . . are we ready to go frontwards? :0)

Take Diligent Heed . . .

I've been thinking about this post I did on my other blog last October, and thought I'd share it on here too . . .

I LOVE to study the Bible!! It's like going on a treasure hunt . . . except that it's not over when you find the treasure. :0) There are thousands upon thousands of more treasures waiting to be found! And so, I'd like to share with you the "treasure" I found this morning. :0)

In Joshua 22, the Israelites had just conquered the promise land and "taken" all that God "had given" to them. The men of the tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh are ready to cross back over the Jordan River and join their wives and children. Joshua calls them all together and gives them some instruction, of which verse 5 is a part:

But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law

which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you,

to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all His ways,

and to keep His commandments, and to cleave unto Him,

and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Wow! There's a lot in that verse! To "heed" is a command, and the phrase "take diligent heed" could have been translated to "exceedingly be on one's guard". For what?? To do the commandment and law of the LORD. I really like the picture there . . . . I am to be on "extreme alert" against anything that would keep me from doing the command and law of the LORD.

The rest of the verse tells us what the command and law is that we are to do . . . .

• to love the LORD your God
• to walk in all His ways
• to keep His commandments
• to cleave unto Him
• to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul

Much could be said about each of those points, but I'll refrain. ;0) Each of those points indicate something that I am to actively be doing. My favorite word in the list is "cleave". What does it mean to cleave unto the Lord? The word "cleave" means "to cling to, join with, or stay with" . . . . but my favorite part about this word is the picture we get in Job 41:15-17. There it tells us about the scales of leviathan. They are so close to each other that no air can come between them, and they are joined (that's the word for cleave) one to another, stuck together such that they cannot be separated. WOW!!! Oh may that be my Lord and I!

If you were to really study each of the five points listed, I think you would find that in truly keeping just one of them, you would be keeping all of them. For example, what does it mean to serve the Lord with ALL your heart and ALL your soul? . . . . Zodhiates says that the word "serve" does not have connotations of toilsome labor, but instead, of a joyful experience of liberation. Oh how true it is that when our heart and soul belong completely to the Lord (our focus is completely and always on Him), it is then that we find real liberty and freedom. :0)

Victory In Jesus

Easter was pretty amazing this year! :0) We attended the community sunrise service for our third year - it just keeps getting better every year! The subject for the sermon was kind of similar to my last blog . . . about the resurrection life that is available to us. Then we had our own church service, which was beautiful. It was the first Sunday for our interim Pastor. Every year we all bring flowers and make this beautiful cross. :0)

But at some point during the day my eyes were taken off of my beautiful Lord and the life that is available to us in Him, and focused on the many ways that I fall so incredibly short of what God wants me to be. It was rather discouraging. You know when there is only one area of your life that needs to change, it is easy (in our flesh) to think that with God's help, it can happen. Well, haha, there is much more than one area, so I was feeling quite overwhelmed and helpless to do anything. Then as I was reading from the book "They Found The Secret", I decided to skip ahead and read the authors testimony. It was just wanted I needed to hear!

Raymond Edman was at a very low point in his life and one day as he was outlining 2 Corinthians, he came across 2:14 ~ Now thanks be unto God which always leadeth us in triumph in Christ. 

"The words staggered me: always leadeth us in triumph in Christ. I read them over several times, slowly, thoughtfully, a word at a time. Then I turned to another translation. It read: "Wherever I go, thank God, he makes my life a constant pageant of triumph in Christ . . ." The contrast between this verse and my life was complete . . ."

I understood how he felt, but then I realized that this was a promise from God - VICTORY!! This is what I needed!! So I started praying, asking God to give me this victory . . . . . until He whispered to my heart that this victory was already mine - IN Christ! I realized that I couldn't have my focus on the areas that I fall short . . . I need to always have my eyes on Him. To be EN Him, resting in Him, in the shadow of the Almighty. What an amazing place to be! :0)

Before I went to bed I decided to take a closer look at this verse, and you know what I found? It pretty much means exactly what it says! ;0) I thought it was interesting that the word translated "thanks" is the word most often translated "grace". But "always" means "always, at all times", and "in Christ" means to be resting in Him. He literally causes us to triumph when we are resting in Him! Needless to say, my Easter ended on a very triumphant note. :0) All praise be to God!! He is SO good!!

Victory in Jesus, my Saviour for ever . . .

Pleasures Forevermore

In continuing my study of Ephesians I finally reached verse 6 of chapter 2 yesterday . . . but I let me start with verse 4 . . .

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

Back in chapter one we learn that Christ was seated at the right hand of God, and that everything and everyone is in subjection to Him,  that all is under His feet.

For years I've heard how I need to "reckon" myself dead to sin - that I was with Christ, in Christ, when He died on the cross. As I read verse 6 it suddenly hit me that I was in Christ, too, when He was raised back to life! So what would it mean for me to "reckon" myself raised to life, together with Christ and seated in Him, at the right hand of God?

Wow! What an amazing thought! The first thing that comes to mind is victory - a triumphant, victorious life. Not bothered by anyone or anything, not harrassed by the enemy, full of His love, joy, and peace . . . always. :0) If I am "en" Christ, then I have everything that He is . . . IN Christ I have everything I need for life and godliness. :0)

As I was thinking about all this yesterday, at one point, I was staring at my computer while my brother was working on it. Suddenly the verse on my background caught my eye . . .

You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

At His right hand?? Christ is at His right hand! And in Christ, I am at His right hand too!! No wonder there is fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore! :0)

So as you celebrate the greatest demonstration of love this world has ever seen, and the most amazing act of victory over sin and death and satan, may you remember that you too, were raised to life together with Him and seated in the heavenlies. Hallelujah!! :0)