A Symbol

4/26/2021

Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who love, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

Greetings dear reader. I have taken a bit of a break from blogging, but God has drawn me back. I have missed my daily writing and how it always encouraged me to interact with God's word in a more profound way. I have been in my Bible and have kept up my devotional time with my husband, but this is where I come to process and share what I feel God is teaching me. Recently, I had someone I dearly love tell me that Blooms has helped her. I was deeply moved and blessed by those words. 

Several days ago, as I was getting ready for work, I had so many topics flood into my mind that I started furiously writing them down on little pieces of note paper. I was feeling inspired again. I think sometimes the stress and business of life, at least for me, chokes out the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Then, when I take the slightest time to be still, the floodgates open. I then remember the wise words of my pastor, "God does not call the equipped, He equips the called." I do not have to feel worthy or able, I just need to stay open to God's leading and surrender to Him. 

The other day, while I was sitting at my computer, I looked down and saw my stainless steel, sideways, cross bracelet shining in a sunbeam that was streaming through the window. My husband had given it to me for Valentine's Day nine years ago, and I have not taken it off since. It has become a part of me. As I was looking at it, it dawned on my that it has become sort of like a life alert bracelet. You know, the ones people wear to help them out during a medial emergency. People wear it all the time, just in case. Well, I got to thinking that my "life alert" bracelet is more about the spiritual than the physical. That it represents faith and eternal life, and that is exactly what I would want people to know about me in any emergency. I would want them to know that, no matter what the circumstances that may surround me, I am a broken, forgiven, and beloved child of the Most High. He alone has given me saved life.

A Subtle Attack

4/11/2021

Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

Every morning brings with it a promise for change, but often this needs to come from within. Struggling though a bad day (and we all have them) is tough. I know for me, the more frustrated I become about things going awry, the worse everything seems to get. If I am having a clumsy day, and I start letting that frustrate me, the drops, spills, breaks, and stumbles increase. I start feeling badly about myself, and it just keeps cycling around and around. Of course, this is the evil one's way of getting me down and trying to steal my joy. Does he ever succeed in this endeavor? Sometimes, I will admit, he does. Only when I am mindful of the attack and I say, "Not today Satan, today is not your day and you have no control over my life; for I am a beloved child of the Most High. In Jesus name flee from here!" do I overcome. 

Not everything that happens is an attack, but the evil one is always lurking in the shadows, waiting for me to let my guard down just enough that he can strike even in small and unassuming ways. 1 Peter 5:8 - "Be sober minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking to devour you." Not every battle begins as a frontal attack, sometimes it is a subtle sneak attack and one that we are not expecting. These kind are the most insidious. When the flaming arrows of the evil one are firing rapidly, I know what spiritual weapons I need, but when it comes on slowly I often try to fight alone. This is a BIG mistake! My spiritual armor should be firmly secure every minute of every day, so that no matter how the battle comes, I am ready. Ephesians 6:11 "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil."

Tucked Away

4/9/2021 

Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing , so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

There is a song by Casting Crowns called Does Anybody Hear Her? It was released in the early 2000's, so it is not played very often on the radio anymore. My husband said he had never actually heard it before today. It is a powerful song, like most of Casting Crowns are. The chorus lyrics are: 

Does anybody hear her?

Can anybody see?

Or does anybody even know she's going down today?

Under the shadow of our steeple

With all the lost and lonely people

Searching for the hope that's tucked away in you and me

Does anybody hear her?

Can anybody see?

In the video a young women is shown who is lost and hurting. She stands outside a church as people walk by her to enter not noticing her at all. The images are extremely powerful and heartbreaking. The lines, "Under the shadow of our steeple. With all the lost and lonely people. Searching for the hope that's tucked away in you and me." really hit me hard. It makes me think of how, when we find a treasure, we often do not want to share it trying to keep the entire value for ourselves. The thing is, the treasure we have found in Christ does not lose its value when we share it; on the contrary, instead it multiplies. Shouldn't we want to strive to help make the world rich in faith by finding Jesus' saving grace? 

Why do we so often keep the hope we have tucked away? It is time to be bold and share that hope with others. 

Frustration

 4/5/2021

John 16:33 "I have said these things to you, that in me you will have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."

Today was an extremely Monday kind of Monday. It started out rough and just continued to be. I woke up feeling off, and then received some concerning texts. Then someone I care about had a really difficult time with a long awaited project. I could not do anything to really change anyone's issues or situations. Even trying to be positive didn't help. Yup, it was one of those days. 

I have to say that frustration is not my go to reaction when things go awry. I do have someone close to me that does go straight to that specific reaction. Unfortunately, there was a lot of frustration in the air today. When that happens it can permeate everything. The more I allowed myself to give into the negative surrounding the day, the more small things started happening. For instance, during dinner I dropped, spilled, and splashed over and over again. The more I just shook my head the more it happened. Sigh. Yes, it was a very Monday kind of Monday.

I found myself also being distracted in my prayers as well. Usually, when things get rough, I can easily go straight into prayer. Today the evil one was really trying to undo me because I was very fuzzy every time I tried to do so. My armor had not just slipped, it was off and in another room. Ugh. Thankfully, God inspired me to pull away from all the issues and come to Him and lean in. I am so grateful, and although not everything from today is settled, my soul is calm and my prays are clear. To God be the glory. 

He Is Risen!

 4/4/2021

John 11:25 "Jesus said to her 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in, though he may die, yet shall he live.'"

He is risen, He is risen indeed. 

It is Resurrection Sunday, and I am feeling the power of the Holy Spirit so strongly in everything. I have received many Easter blessing wishes and I've shared and seen many posts about Jesus' love and saving grace. For some people it is a day about bunnies, candy, egg hunts, spring flowers, and family gatherings. For me, even though some of those things are part of this day, my focus is on my risen Savior Jesus. I am filled with gratitude every day for Jesus' love, mercy, and saving grace. It is a gift that brings with it eternal life.

This is a gift that is for everyone. All that needs to be done is to repent and accept the gift by asking Christ to be Lord of your life. 

Influencer

4/3/2021

Galatians 5:7-10 "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That persuasion does not come from the one who called you. A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough. I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty."

In today's culture, there is a new term for a person with social medial power. They are called "influencers". Most of the time, these people are quiet young, and they become infulencers after gaining a large amount of followers across many platforms. Tik-Tok is the newest video-based platform being used. All you need is a cellphone, a voice, and some very basic tech skills, and you too can say and do pretty much anything you want to. YouTube is still an important place to create content as well. Millions of people interact with this kind of social media every day, often spending hours doing so. I have fallen into the pattern of watching a YouTube video, and having that one lead to another until I have wasted too much of my precious time. Thankfully, this has not turned into a habit for me, unlike many other people. When I worked in a K-8 school a few years ago, the junior high students would often share with me that they would be up until the wee hours of the morning watching random videos. I am sure their parents thought they were sound asleep. These same students have now graduated, and are adults with the same habit firmly ingrained in them. 

This, to me, is very disconcerting. Not only are people making A LOT of money when they achieve a certain number of followers, but they begin to speak with authority. Unfortunately, much of what is being said is divisive, and furthers the issues we have as a society. We were slowly becoming a youth culture, but now the pendulum has swung to that side completely and it is dangerous. Now I am a person who believes that all people should be loved and respected, but I also believe that maturity brings wisdom. Oh, it is true there are some "old souls" out there who are wiser than their years, but most of the time wisdom comes with experience. I know that was true in my own life. 

What truly concerns me is that our youth are listening to hours and hours of unchecked opinion from people that they do not even know, and much of the communication, no matter how vile, can be done anonymously. Before we were all consumed by the world wide web, young people used to open books for knowledge, listen to teachers, parents, or pastors, and go to people they trusted for advice. Sometimes those people were peers, sure, but at least you knew that, even if they were as clueless as you were, they at least cared about you enough to try and do their best. Now we can all be subtly or overtly drawn into thought processes and ideologies by people we have absolutely no connection to, and who do not care at all about the impact they are having. Fame, and with it a platform, is something anyone can have now, and it is frightening to me.

What really concerns me is that we are no longer, as a nation anyway, being led or influenced by the single most important piece of media that has ever been produced, nor are we following its Author. All wisdom on every subject you could ever need an answer for is in this amazing tome. Of course, I am referring to the Bible, the inspired Word of God. For thousands of years, people have searched it for purpose, meaning, and truth. All you have to do is read the book of Proverbs to experience the timelessness of the the words within.

Sadly, we have been slowly pulling away from the Bible and our Creator. The other day I actually read a headline for an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times that went something like, "our current godlessness is actually good for the nation". Now to be fair, I could not open the article and read it fully, but the headline was enough for me to be shaken. Yes, it is clear that people are turning away from God, and that some of the people who are most vocal about following Him are off the mark. Believers, especially evangelicals (of which I am one), are often thought of as being synonymous with the far political right. They, as far as I can see, are just as judgmental as the far political left. There was a time in this country when both Democrats and Republicans were people of deep faith. Now religion has become a flash-point. 

I know that I want my only influence to be Jesus. If something being said - by anyone, actually - does not line up with God's Word, I will not heed it. The more I delve into the Bible, the more inconsistency I see in the movements of the world around me. We have, as a world and a nation, lost our center and our focus. Our country was founded on Biblical principles, which is why we had been the greatest nation in modern history. Clearly those days are behind us, unless we can turn back to God and live the way His Words tells us to live, with love, mercy, and grace for all people.  

Who, I wonder, is your biggest influence?

The Price

4/2/2021

Philippians 2:6-8 "Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equity with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross,"

Today is Good Friday. It is a day that the world remembers Jesus' crucifixion. It is a day that some people watch The Passion of the Christ. It is a day that there are usually many somber church services, although this year that is probably not the case. Some people attend live stations of the cross. I did this one year with a dear friend of mine. We walked, with a small group of other believers, through the downtown of a small New England city as we took turns carrying a large wooden cross. My friend and I carried the cross together, her at the front and me at the rear as we wept. It is still the most powerful memory I have of this day, and it will stay with me forever. 

This is a day set aside to remember Jesus' sacrifice for my sin, but that is something that I remember and am grateful for every day. The magnitude of such a profoundly loving and selfless act is never far from me, ever. Every time I speak in judgement of someone else, every time I am envious, every time I am selfish, every time I do not honor God with my words actions, I know that He will still show me mercy. Do I deserve that grace? No, nothing I will ever do could earn such forgiveness. My Savior, however, gives it to me as a gift, but it is a gift bought with the highest price that there could ever be. 

This is why I think of His grace, love, and mercy every day, because He is always there to give it to me with open arms. To God be the glory forever and ever.