Safe In His Arms

     A young boy was out walking with his father.  He and his father were having a really good time laughing and talking.  Every now and then the young boy would get about 20 or 30 yards ahead then slow down so that his father could catch up.  During one of these moments when he would get ahead of his father, a dog came from behind one of the houses in the neighborhood.  The young boy became frozen with fear.   He didn’t run. In fact, he was so afraid that he couldn’t move, couldn’t yell or cry out for help.  The dog barked frantically, but didn’t attack.  When the father had gotten close enough, the young boy leaped into his arms and buried his face in the father’s chest.  It was as if you could feel the fear dissipate.  In no time at all the fear had been replaced with a certain sense of security that comes in knowing that you are safe.  The boy lifted his head and looked at the dog with a “haha, you can’t get me” kind of look, then buried his face back into the father’s chest.  Although the dog was still there, barking, just being in his father’s arms made all the difference in the world to the young boy.  He was safe.  As long as he was in his father’s arms nothing could harm him.  “But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me:  for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 19:14.   And he said:  “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3.   There is so much to be learned by just watching children.

"Come Unto Me All Ye That Are Heavy Laden"

     My heart is heavy.  I am seeing so many people that I care about going through difficult times whether it is physical or emotional.  To some degree I feel helpless, wanting to reach out and take away all those things that cause pain.  All I have to give is a word.  Hopefully, no, prayerfully, it will bring some measure of comfort.  Some measure of hope.  Matthew 11:28-30 says, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart:  and ye shall find rest unto your soul.”  We have all heard that scripture over and over again.  We tend to place much of our focus on the promises that come with that particular verse.  The most important yet probably most overlook part of that verse is “learn of me”.  Jesus wants very much to pour Himself into you.  We all want healing.  We all want deliverance.  We all want the peace that can only come from God.  Know this, you cannot have the promises of God without the Son of God.  I implore everyone, from this moment forward, to set your focus on knowing Christ.  I urge you to find that place where you can be alone and spend time with Jesus, not looking for a blessing, but looking for a relationship.  Jesus loves you more than you can ever imagine.  I can assure you of this, the bigger Jesus becomes in your life, the smaller your issues become.  Learn of Him.  Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:  if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.  To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. There is no better place to be than in the presence of the one who gave His life that you may have life.  For the moment, forget about your hurts.  Forget about your sufferings.  Open the door to your heart and let Him in.  You will find out for yourself that His yoke is truly easy and His burden is light.

The Woman With the Issue of Blood

And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, came behind Him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched.  And Jesus said, Who touched me?  When all denied, Peter and they that were with Him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?   And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.  And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before Him, she declared unto Him before all the people for what cause she had touched Him, and how she was healed immediately.  And He said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace. (Luke 8:43-48)

     For 12 years this nameless woman suffered from a hemorrhage.   In that day, a woman on her cycle was, according to the Law of Moses, ceremonially unclean.  Everything that she touched had to be cleaned.  Anyone that she touched became unclean.  She had to be set apart from the rest of society.  She could not go to church to worship God.  For 12 years, she had seen doctor after doctor, spending all that she had in an effort to find healing.  Since the Bible says in Leviticus that “the life of the flesh is in the blood”, then not only did she have 12 years of blood loss, she had 12 years of life lost.  The issue of blood had become her life.  I guess you could say the “woman with the issue of blood” had become her name.  For 12 years she had to endure ridicule, isolation, and loneliness.  I cannot imagine the physical and emotional trauma she must have suffered.  I’m sure she had to have been called any number of names, told she was unwanted, unloved, and unworthy.  Imagine being told that you are so unworthy that God doesn’t want to be near you.   Being  “set apart” from the others had to be difficult. 

      Despite all that she had been through, “the woman with the issue of blood” was determined.  Many would have given up long ago.  After all, what was the point of trying?  Doctors couldn’t heal her.  She would never be a part of society.  No one wanted to be near her, let alone touch her.  She was unfit to be a part of normal society.  Yet, she fought on, determined to be healed.  Somehow she had heard about Jesus.  She had heard about how He healed the sick, even raised the dead.  She believed that all she had to do was touch Him and she would be healed.  Scripture says that “Abraham believed and it was accounted unto him as righteousness.”  She believed. And when she had heard Jesus was near she knew her healing was near.

     She came through the multitude.  It wasn’t just the multitude of people that she had to fight through.  She had to fight through the multitude of doctors that told her she could not be healed.  The multitude of insults she faced from people who thought she was unfit.  The multitude of threats from people who didn’t want to be touched by her.  She fought through the weakness suffered from 12 years of blood loss.  She fought through the feelings of inadequacy.  She fought through the feelings of being unworthy.  In other words, she fought through a multitude of reasons that would keep most people from coming to Jesus. Her desire to be healed along with her faith in His power to heal would not let her give up. She came up from behind Him because maybe she thought that if He saw her coming He too would reject her. 

     She touched Him.  Immediately the issue of blood went away. Died.  Since the issue of blood had become her life, when that died, her old life died with it.  No longer was she “the woman with the issue of blood”.   In Luke Chapter 6 there was a multitude seeking to touch Jesus and they were all healed.  There was a reason in this story that she was the only one healed.  Jesus had already known who had touched Him, yet he asked, Who touched me?  The disciples pointed out that there was a multitude touching Him.   Jesus was saying, not just anybody touched me, but Somebody touched me.  He was telling the multitude of people who had seen this woman as unfit and unworthy that no longer was she “the woman with the issue of blood”.  Now she is Somebody.  Jesus could have very well stopped there.  The woman came with the notion of being healed.   But Jesus is “able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think”.   Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2Corinthians 5:17.  This verse signifies a process of transformation.  The “woman with the issue of blood” was going through a process of transformation in the midst of the very people who had considered her unfit.  Jesus said He felt virtue come out of Him.  Now the “woman with the issue of blood”, becomes more than just somebody.  She is now the “Virtuous Woman”.   In the same way we are declared righteous because of His righteousness, she is virtuous because His virtue came out of Him and is now in her.  When she touched Him He took on all of her “uncleanliness” and replaced it with virtue.  The thief came to steal her money, kill her spirit, and destroy her life.  Jesus said, “ I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.”   Before he could give her abundance, He had to give her life.  When that old life died, He gave her new life in Him.

     The transformation was not finished.  She turned to see that she was not hidden in the crowd.  Again, she was “set apart”.  Once again isolated.   Afraid, she fell to Jesus’ feet and told Him everything.  She had to relive the last 12 years of emotional torment, one memory after another.   The crowd of people who had once tormented her now had to hear the sufferings they had put her through for 12 years.  They had to hear all of the physical suffering she endured day by day for 12 years.  But something else was happening.  Although the “woman with the issue of blood” no longer existed, the memories remained.  As long as she was haunted by the memories from that old life, she could never enjoy the fullness of the new life she now has in Christ.  She could not receive the abundance of life that Christ wants to give her.  Reliving all of those memories had to produce a great many tears.  Jesus was cleansing her with the very tears she shed.  For every tear shed, another memory washed away.  But even more was happening.  She was establishing a relationship with Christ.  She was allowing Christ to know her intimately.  Jesus says, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”   Now she could rest.  Rest from her sickness.  Rest from being weak because of her sickness.  Rest from all the torment and mental anguish.  Rest from being isolated and “set apart” by the Law of Moses.  Now she could rest in knowing that she had been set apart by Christ.  After she had told Christ everything, the first thing He does is call her Daughter.  Another transformation.  What He was saying to the multitude, was this virtuous woman, whom you used to call “the woman with the issue of blood” is now a child of God. 

     Jesus could have very well healed her without even touching as he did with the child of the centurion.  He wanted to do more than just heal her.  Healing was just the method by which He used to bring her to Him.  He saw her suffering.  He saw her faith.  He wanted to give her life, and life more abundantly.  After He called her Daughter, He said, “thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.  He was letting her know that because of her faith, she was no longer broken or fragmented, that she was whole in Christ.  And as if He hadn’t done enough, He gave her peace.  Jesus said in John 14:27, “my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you”.  The “woman with the issue of blood” came to Jesus with empty pockets and a handful of faith.  For 12 years she had been held captive by her illness.  For 12 years, because of her illness, she had been held captive by the Law of Moses.  In a few short moments, she was made free by Christ.  “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”  “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”

     Since you are reading this, Christ has led you here.  He wants to give you an abundance of life.  He cannot if you are holding on to that old life.  Holding on to memories of a past that keep you from enjoying the fullness of life.  No longer are you a victim of abuse.  No longer are you a survivor of some illness.  No longer are you a prisoner of your past.  The woman with the issue of blood was transformed from nobody, to somebody, to virtuous, to a child of God.  Her faith led her to Christ, which then led her to a relationship with Christ.  Christ’s love for her made her whole, freed her from her past, and gave her life more abundantly.   He wants to say to you, “Daughter, your faith has made you whole.  Go in peace”.

What Shall I Give Thee???

     Take a minute to stop and think. If God were to ask you at this very moment, "What shall I give thee?", how would you respond?  Would you ask for health?  Would you ask for prosperity, or that new home or car that you've been wanting for so long?  Would you ask for long life?   STOP.  It is very important that you be completely honest with yourself and think about how you would answer that question.
     God came to Solomon in a dream and said, "Ask!  What shall I give you?"  Solomon replied, "But I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.  And your servant is in the midst of your people, too numerous to be numbered or counted.  Therefore give to your servant an understanding heart to judge your people that I may discern between good and evil.  For who is able to judge this great people of yours?"  God was pleased.  Because he did not ask anything for himself, God granted him wisdom beyond that which any man had ever seen, neither before nor after Solomon.  God then granted him wealth beyond that which any man had ever seen. Remember, God will not give you anything before you are ready to receive it. God first granted Solomon wisdom. He needed wisdom, not just to judge God's people, but also, to be able to handle the blessing of wealth.  He was still a "little child".  Had God blessed him with wealth first who knows what direction that may have led him in.  But God is too wise to make a mistake.  There was a purpose to Solomon's wealth.
     Solomon used his wealth to redistribute wealth to God's people. Solomon had established the world's first organized economy. His wealth was used to put people to work.   He empowered God's people.   He was able to do what no other king was able to do;  keep peace between the 12 tribes. It was under his leadership that all of Israel prospered. After the death of Solomon, Israel regressed.  The people went back to their tribal ways.  Without the wisdom of Solomon, Israel's organized economy collapsed.
     Solomon's desire was to be blessed so that he could in turn be a blessing.  God blessed him with everything he would need to carry out God's purpose.  Do you want to be blessed or do you want to be a blessing?  Right now, God is asking, "What shall I give thee?"

Take Off The Fig Leaf

     GOD WILL NEVER GIVE YOU ANYTHING BEFORE YOU ARE READY TO RECEIVE IT!!!
GOD WILL NEVER GIVE YOU ANYTHING BEFORE YOU ARE READY TO RECEIVE IT!!
I am not just talking about physical things, but spiritual blessings as well.  He continues to amaze me with the things that He gives me when I listen to Him, not just with my ears but with my heart also.  You cannot truly know the things in your head until you know them in your heart.  God has opened my heart to some things about myself today that still have me in awe.
     We have all been hurt many times in our lives.  If we would allow God to open our eyes to all the things that hurt us, but we tried to shrug off, we would be amazed. Much of who we are, much of how we interact with the people in our lives, unfortunately, has been dictated, unknowingly, by our past hurts.  The people closest to us have the ability to hurt us most.  Subconsciously, we keep them the furthest away from who we really are. They can probably tell what your favorite color is, or your favorite food is.  They may be able to tell how you may react in various situations.  What they don't know, is why.  We live in a society that stresses survival of the fittest. You cannot divulge what makes you weak, what makes you vulnerable. It's easy to allow people who are not close to us to have glimpses of who we are.  They are not close enough to us to hurt us.  The people closest to us?  That's another story.  We do not sit down with a plan of how to hide things from them.  It comes naturally. Self preservation.  In hiding our hurts, the driving force behind much of our behavior, we deprive the people closest to us the opportunity to know us deeply.  They only get to know what we allow them to know and we leave them to piece together the rest based on their own perceptions.
  In the Garden of Eden, when Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the first thing they did was realize they were bare. The closest person to Adam was Eve.  The closest person to Eve was Adam. In effect, when they put on the fig leaf, they were hiding parts of themselves from each other.  The parts they felt were most vulnerable. Sound familiar? Then they even tried hiding from God.  They tried to hide their mistakes, their weaknesses, their vulnerabilities.  But God said come out from behind the fig leaves.  He made coverings for them.  In essence, He was saying to them; Confess your wrongs, confess your hurts, your weakness, your vulnerabilities.  Be transparent to Me.  Take off the fig leaf.  Let Me cover you with My righteousness.
     On the cross, Jesus was laid bare. There was nothing to hide his nakedness.  He was naked for all to see.  He took on all of our nakedness, all of our sins, all of those things hiding behind the fig leaf.  In return, He covers us with His blood of righteousness. We no longer have to hide.  No longer do we have to wear fig leaves.  He wants us to see that it is okay to be naked.  It is okay to be transparent. Allow the people closest to you to see the person behind the fig leaf. Allow God to see the person behind the fig leaf. It is only then, the He can truly cover you with His righteousness.

The Ultimate Purpose

     As a young child, the one thing I feared most was making my father angry.  My father was a stern disciplinarian.  He had no problem " taking his belt off".  I remember times when he would call me to come in the house.  He would never call you unless you were in trouble.  He would stand in the doorway.  He wouldn't block the entrance, but he would just kinda get in the way. I would walk past him.  Just when I would think that everything was okay, he would pluck me on the back of my head.  For whatever reason, that seem worse  than getting beat with the belt, which would eventually happen after the pluck on the head.
   As I grew older, my father no longer seemed like such a big man.  I was an athlete, not very big, but strong for my size. I no longer feared my father. After all, what could this little man do to me?  I got too big for my britches, as my mother used to say.  I stood up to him from time to time.  I became rebellious, free from the fear that used to keep me in check.  I realize now that I did not have a great deal of respect for my father, at least not during that period of my life.
   When I got older, when I really started to come into manhood, my attitude towards my father changed.  Circumstances and situations in my life caused me to see life from a man's perspective.  Before that, I saw life through the eyes of a child. There was nothing that I wouldn't do for my father because I had learned to love him.  I had grown to the point that I wanted my father to ask me to do things for him.  It took some time for me to get past the guilt I felt for all the disrespect I had shown him. He understood.  He may not have liked the way I acted, but he understood.  He never held it against me.  He forgave me before I knew that I needed forgiveness.
     Funny how my relationship with my earthly father parallels my relationship with my heavenly father.  For all of my life, I have heard preachers talk of being obedient, "living right", paying tithes, and everything else that comes with living a "saved life".  I had to learn for myself  that what Jesus wants most from me is to love Him.  Without love for Him, everything that I do is corrupt. I realize to some that may seem a bit extreme. But I had to ask myself why?  If not for love, what are the reasons that I do anything in the name of Christ?  Fear of consequences?  Because He told me to?  Because I expect something in return?  Any reason other than "because I love Christ" is impure. God knows my motives better than I do.  Doing the right thing for the wrong reason is still wrong.
     In some of my past blogs I wrote about not being focused. So I tried to focus on being obedient, on "living right".  What I didn't see was Jesus, standing on the sideline saying, "What about me?".  I needed to be reminded that this walk isn't about me, or this blog, or anything else that I may have thought.  This walk is about Him. It is about getting to know Him, getting to know what it really means to love.  The only way to know what that means is to know the source.  The source of love is Jesus.  Proverbs 4:23 says "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.  Psalm 119:11 says, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart that I may not sin against thee." John 1:1 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  So if the issues of life come from the heart, and I hide the Word  in my heart, and the Word is Jesus,  then I become filled with Jesus.  I become filled with the love of Jesus.
This is my purpose.  I had spent so much time looking for my purpose, that I lost sight of Jesus.  God's ultimate purpose for us is to be conformed to image of His son, Jesus Christ.  In order to be conformed to His image I have to know that image. I have to know Jesus. I have to focus on getting to know the person of Jesus, the love of Jesus, and the God of Jesus. The more I get to know Him, the more of Himself He deposits in me.  The more I am like Him, the less I am like me. The more I get to know Him,  the more I love and trust him, the more I submit to Him to the point that I no longer have a will of my own.  My will becomes His will.  I have come to realize that my purpose in life is to become a vessel to carry out the will of Christ.

A Touch of God

Let me begin by saying I serve a mighty God.  I find myself asking how can God be so mighty, and yet so gentle at the same time?  So many times I stray, or fall short of what He wants me to be.  So many times I find myself caught up in what I want, while losing sight of what He wants. He has a way of breaking my will without breaking my spirit. He stands beside me when I need a friend. He lifts me up when I've fallen. He gives me that gentle push when I'm afraid to move forward, reassuring me  that He is always with me.  When I am lost, He calls for me and lights a path that will lead me back to Him.   Surely His goodness and His mercy follows me.

     During His ministry, Jesus performed many miracles.  He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, made the lame walk, raised the dead.  More than that, He touched lives. The woman with the issue of blood was healed immediately after touching His garment.  She was terrified when He sought the one who touched Him.  The Bible said she stood trembling. When she unwillingly came forth, the first thing He did was call her daughter. Aside from her husband, there is no relationship more important to a woman than the relationship she has with her father.  Just calling her daughter had to wipe out any fear she may have had.  More importantly, He established a personal relationship with her.  He didn't just heal her physically.  He healed her spirit.  He touched her life.  In every instance, when Jesus would heal someone, he would also touch them spiritually.  He touched lives. When you have been touched by Him your life is never the same.

     We are created in His likeness. We have some of the attributes of God.  We may not be able to heal.  But we do have the ability to touch lives. Some times all it takes is a kind word or gesture. Allow the love of God which is in Christ Jesus to flow through you and touch the lives of all those you come in contact with.