WHOLENESS

We live in a world where wholeness can be said to be impossible to achieve. When we look around us, what do we see? Lives appear to be falling apart. Marriages are broken. Health is broken. Hearts are broken. Dreams are shattered. Personal relationships are broken. Our children are hurting. Even as Christians, sometimes parts of our lives remain broken. Hidden hurts. Secret wounds. Personal behavioral problems… it is an endless litany of woes.

But God promises us WHOLENESS.

The Bible often speaks of being healed in terms of being made whole. That is a good way of looking at it. To be a whole person is to be able to live life fully and happily and productively like a person should be able to live. That is really what we want for ourselves and our loved ones The Bible also talks about wholeness as something that has a correlation with our faith (faith is a recent topic on this blog). I felt the Lord drop the word in my spirit this afternoon as a promise, WHOLENESS...

• in my health
• in my home,
• in the life of my husband,
• in the lives of my children,
• in my career,
• in my ministry.

WHOLENESS!! That is God’s promise to me and I believe it is God’s desire for everyone woman. In searching out the meaning of the word WHOLENESS, the dictionary [American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition Copyright © 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Electronic version licensed from Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products N.V.] offered 5 definitions that I found interesting and could relate with (I have included my comments in green).
1. Containing all components; complete: Therefore, wholeness in my life – means all parts of my life shall be complete and come together to function well. Likewise, wholeness in marriage – all elements of the marriage (sex, communication, finances, children, in-laws, etc) will come together to function well.
2. Not divided or disjoined; in one unit: Wholeness means no disjointed element, no brokenness in any form, be it character flaw, be it doubt, be sickness or diseases …Do you desire to be delivered from something that you are struggling with? God promises WHOLENESS!
3. Constituting the full amount, extent, or duration. This implies completion of all things, fulfillment of dreams and aspirations, no ‘abortion’. That which the Lord has started in our lives shall be completed. Our dreams and aspirations shall complete the tenure of gestation. Mal 3:11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
4. Not wounded, injured, or impaired; sound or unhurt: Jesus is able to heal every hurt and make all things become new. Mt 9:21- 22 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.
5. Having been restored; healed: a whole person again. The Lord is the master of restoration. Joel 2:25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm. Jer 30:16-22 describes an amazing degree of restoration in the lives of the Isrealites. This can apply to us today as well.

How big is your God?

You can tell the size of your God by looking at the size of your worry list.

The longer your list, the smaller your God. ~Author Unknown

Diamonds in the Desert

I once read a book, which I recommend to everyone, titled “The Dream Giver” The book assures us that the desert experience is real, but that it almost always accomplishes great things in our lives. The book provides insights and practical solutions for getting past the desert experience. The authors give examples of people in the Bible who have spent years in the desert or wasteland, where God sharpened the skills they needed for the attainment of their Dreams. Moses was one, Joshua was one, King David was another one, and Joseph yet another. Joseph learned to manage Potiphar's household, and then the jail he was thrown into, before he was ready to manage the land of Egypt, and these are examples to remember when we feel defeated by the dryness of our circumstances, should we be wandering in that desert, and most of us have spent time there. In the desert, there is training for reigning and there are a few things that can help when we face the desert and it feels endless…

1. "count it all joy," press your way through trusting through, remember where your at now, isolate yourself in the main areas where your trust in the Lord needs to grow. Ask yourself a question. What in your Dream do you doubt the Lord about right now?
2. Install a few safety nets beneath you to encourage and protect you when you feel like giving up on the call the Dream Giver in your life. Be around friends that help you through the desert experiences.
3. Increase the amount of time you spend with the Dream Giver Devote more time than usual reading and studying the Bible. Focus on Exodus, Joshua and Psalms. You'll be amazed how often times you will find your answer you are looking for.
4. Ask the Lord for wisdom that he promised to give to all who ask in Faith. Pray about what troubles you most. And keep a spiritual journal during desert seasons. Work through your questions, emotions, and insights on paper with the Dream Giver.
5. Install the commitment deep in your heart that you won't turn back, no matter how long or hard or painful the path through the wilderness may be. Hold on to this key truth: "Now the just shall live by faith; but if any man draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him."

Each of us will definitely have a desert or waste land experience where our leadership skills can be put to the test and we can break through into our great dreams. Find your diamonds in your desert, for they are there…!!!

Safety in the Desert

Irrespective of what you may have heard or believe, there are so many gems all over the Bible. Yes! in each and every book, even in Revelation. I know some Christians that avoid reading that book like a plague...it is part of the Bible and we need to dig into to it to find the gems to discover and partake of  the blessings therein.

Let's look at one example in Revelation 12:6

"The woman ran into the desert to a place that God had prepared for her." (CEV)

Imagine God preparing a place of safety in the desert? Like many other Christians, I've always seen the "desert" as a time of suffering and loneliness - where one feels almost deserted by God. When the Lord opened my eyes to this verse (that I have read several times before), I was encouraged and led to encourage others.

While we do not look forward to desert (or wilderness) experiences, we must realize and accept that sometimes, God has prepared a place of safety for us in the desert. If, I mean when, you find yourself in a desert, rest in the fact that you are not alone...God is there with (and for) you - "In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye" (Deut 32:10 -NIV).

God bless.

Still on faith…

I felt encouraged by Sapphire’s posting on counting chickens and thought to post a few (…ok, maybe not so few) quotes on FAITH. I have added a few comments in green. Please let me know which quote(s) you like best and why!!!

1. Faith is kept alive in us, and gathers strength, more from practice than from speculations. –Addison [faith must be practiced constantly and consistently for it to get stronger]


2. Without faith, we are as stained glass windows in the dark. –Anonymous [how will people know how great our God is and what wonderful and beautiful works He can do in our lives if we do not have faith to produce an evidence? Remember… Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance {or, ground, or confidence} of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.


3. There are no miracles to men who do not believe in them. -Anonymous


4. It is not faith and works; it is not faith or works; it is faith that works. -Anonymous


5. For what is faith unless it is to believe what you do not see? -St. Augustine


6. On the whole, more people are cheated by believing nothing than by believing too much. – Barnum [so we are actually short-changing ourselves when we fail to act in faith]


7. If the way be rough with thorns and stones, may faith provide a balm to soothe your weary, bleeding feet and fill your soul with calm. -Carruth


8. All the strength and force of man comes from his faith in things unseen. He who believes is strong; he who doubts is weak. Strong convictions precede great actions. –Clarke [A woman who desires to walk on water, must show herself strong in faith]


9. Faith is the daring of the soul to go farther than it can see. -Clarke


10. To me, faith means not worrying. -Dewey


11. All that I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all that I have not seen. -Emerson


12. Faith is not a sense, nor sight, nor reason, but taking God at his word. -Evans


13. Unless there is within us that which is above us, we shall soon yield to that which is about us. -Forsyth


14. It is cynicism and fear that freeze life; it is faith that thaws it out, releases it, sets it free. - Fosdick [not counting chickens before the eggs hatch is a sure sign of a frozen life]


15. Faith is an act of rational choice which determines us to act as if certain things were true and in the confident expectation that they will prove to be true. -Inge [FAITH is a choice... your choice.... and mine]


16. There is no great future for any people whose faith has burned out. -Jones [every woman needs to act in faith today to assure the future]


17. Dark as my path may seem to others, I carry a magic light in my heart. Faith, the spiritual strong searchlight illumines the way, and although sinister doubts lurk in the shadow, I walk unafraid toward the Enchanted Wood where the foliage is always green, where joy abides, where nightingales nest and sing, and where life and death are one in the presence of the Lord. -Keller


18. Browning speaks of "grasping the skirts of God," but no man ever grasped the skirts of God by knowledge alone. Knowledge may have raised his arm, but faith moved his fingers and closed them in deathless grip. -Lawton


19. The truly religious man does everything as if everything depended upon himself, and then leaves everything as if everything depended on God. -Parker


20. The faith that saves is the total response of the whole self to the will of God. It is the response of the mind in belief, the heart in trust, the will in conduct. It is to accept the fact that God goes all out for us, and then to be willing to go all out for God. -Redhead


21. Faith can place a candle in the darkest night. -Sangster


22. Faith is like love; it cannot be forced. -Schopenhauer [and like love, it can be built up and it has greater benefits that itself]


23. Faith, mighty faith the promise sees and rests on that alone; Laughs at impossibilities, And says it shall be done -Wesley

Count your chicks...

...before they hatch. I know we all have heard the age-old adage: "Do not count your chickens before they are hatched." Do you know the story behind it? This is a great opportunity for me to gladly share it with you...

it may be the first time some of us hear this story 

and a refresher for others...

Grow & glow

I received this topic last year but was lacking in content...until now...when I found this quote:

Three things to fear...

I saw a rather interesting sign on the wall of the tunnel into the Charing Cross Station (from Cockspur near Trafalgar Square), it got me thinking...and now writing.

Thanks to my friend GE - I was able to get a picture of it... so I could share it with you - see what I mean?

It said many things and then ended with this short and sharp statement:

"Fear God, Fear sin, Fear nothing."

Be and remain current

When last did you read a newspaper? Ok, we're busy I understand - let's try another one: when last did you listen to the news?

Are you aware of what's happening around you and in the world or do you hear things long after the fact such that you cannot use the information? Let me share a personal experience:

Several years ago, I read about Nissan buying Bluebird over and wondered to myself: "Wow! What a business transaction!" I went on to share my "newly found" information with someone else. You cannot imagine how stunned I was when the person told me that that was stale news. Stale news? How come? How can something I just read be stale already?

Considering the Subject of Silence

I remember an old saying that “silence is the best answer for a fool”. It is an amusing concept
It means that sometimes, silence can be an insult….
It could also mean that silence is a better response than bandying words with a fool… lest you also look like a fool yourself. The bible has these to say about silence…
Pr 26:4 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.
Ec 3:7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak

I found these quotes interesting
“It is a great misfortune neither to have enough wit to talk well nor enough judgment to be silent”. -Bruyere
“Keep quiet and people will think you a philosopher”. -Latin Proverb
“Blessed are they who have nothing to say, and who cannot be persuaded to say it”. -Lowell
“Be silent and safe - silence never betrays you”. -O'Reilly
“I regret often that I have spoken, never that I have been silent”. –Syrus
“Blessed is the man who having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact”. –Eliot

Silence is a discipline that we can all cultivate. It has its rewards!!!

The 23rd Psalm

I was inspired by the short story below, I hope you would be too...

A Sunday school teacher asked her class if anyone could quote the entire 23rd Psalm.

A golden-haired, four-and-a-half-year-old girl was among those who raised their hands.

A bit skeptical, the teacher asked if she could really quote the entire psalm.

The little girl came to the front of the room, faced the class, made a perky little bow, and said,

"The Lord is my shepherd, that's all I want."

She bowed again and went and sat down.

That may well be the greatest interpretation of the 23rd Psalm ever heard.

--author unknown

Culled from Allworship.com

Happy Weeding Anniversary

Last year I was typing a text to wish someone a "Happy Wedding Anniversary". For those who are familiar with the T9 (prediction text) function on mobile phones, when keying in the word "wedding" the first option that came up was "weed" then when I added the "ing" it changed to "wedding. I found that very insightful and it gave me something to think about - and now something to share.

From time to time, and especially at our wedding anniversary, my husband and I take some time to assess our marriage. We ask ourselves how we are doing and if we are progressing as individuals, a couple, a family and especially as Christians. We do our best to be "naked and not ashamed" in our assessment...I mean what would we gain by lying to each other? Most likely unfulfilled dreams and God-given purposes - God forbid!

When the T9 incident happened - it struck me that we should make it a habit to identify and uproot weeds from our hearts, lives and marriages. Remember the piece on beautiful weeds*?

Put differently, one thing we must all avoid in our marriages is "sweeping things under the carpet". It is dangerous because someday, one or both of you will trip over the bulge - with unpleasant results. You don't need to wait for your wedding anniversary to uproot weeds...

you can start today.

Allow me to wish you a successful and Happy "Weeding" - whenever you decide to start...

*http://sapphire-and-beryl.blogspot.com/2010/11/beautiful-weeds.html

Nutrients needed for nuture

We talked about "teachable moments" some months ago...actually last year*. Indeed it's not one of the easiest skills to acquire. Put another way: "You cannot give what you don't have..."

From personal experience & other people's expression, I've come to the conclusion that:

"Your nature determines what nutrients you'll have (or even attract) for nuturing yourself and others." 

The point is your nature is progressive - you're not the same type of person you were a few years ago - and that's the product of the nutrients and nuturing you have recieved.

Sounds philosophical and you may or may not agree with me...but before you decide one way or the other, let's break the key words down first:

Prospecting?

Tagging on to the "Still or Stale" question, too many people dwell (& even die) in their current success and forget to look out for future prospects. Success is a good and desirable thing...unfortunately, like Cindy Adams said, "Success has made failures of many men."

Winston Churchill went a step further in saying: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” So true...so why do we stop after a success or failure?

Let's learn from an Octogenarian...

Still or Stale?

I was talking to a family friend recently and was encouraged when she said she was going back to school to upgrade her education. Now that is such a bold step and not one that enough women take...and there is no reason not to.

Too many people, especially women, feel that they are fine as they are. I'm sure you may have heard...

Moving on...

We spent last month talking about "Matters of the Heart" - I can only imagine how much of a lifestyle change (or even overhaul) some of us will require...including me.

In focussing on how best to start my journey into this "new lifestyle," God sent an American preacher to me (via TV) to put it in perspective. He said:

"Change ain't change until you change."

So wishing, dreaming, hoping, planning and even praying about how to change and live more healthy lives will do us no good until we actually implement the changes we need to. I realize that we are all at different stages in this "HealthWatch" walk but we need to keep walking and progress from whichever stage we're at now.

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning,

but anyone can start today and make a new ending.” ~ Maria Robinson

God bless.