Category Archives: SPIRITUAL INTEREST

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God As a Safe Place

God is my Safe Place

Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague. He will cover you with His feathers; under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day.

Psalm 91:3-5

I don’t know exactly when I realized that God is my safe place. He is my safe place wherever I am. I go to God with my troubles. I cling to Him when I am afraid. I trust God to keep me safe. God is my Rock. He is my fortress. God is my ever present help in times of trouble. Every day is a good day because God is in it.

God covers me with His feathers.

I love the imagery of God covering me with His feathers. This is a protective stance of a mother bird with her baby birds under her wings. It is also a loving stance as we see a mother’s care for her youngsters. Just like a fledgling knows his mother will protect him, I know my Father in Heaven will protect me in the storms of life. I can rest in this knowledge of my heavenly father.

This does not mean there won’t be any storms in my life. It does mean that God is with me through the storm. God does not abandon His children. He is like a mighty fortress in which I find safety and help, in which I find my courage and strength to face whatever befalls me.

God is faithful

God never waivers nor capitulates. He remains strong, valiant, courageous. We see this in Christ, in His confrontations, trial, beating, and death on the cross. We see a measure of this same strength in Christ’s devoted followers–His disciples, the Apostle Paul, and Christian martyrs. They were pillars of faith; resolute, unyielding, firm in their faith. We may be called to stand alone for our faith. Should that happen, God will give us the courage and strength at the time when we need it. One person can make a difference.

There is a story of a monk in Roman days who had gone to the Colosseum to watch a gladiator match. As he watched the gladiators fight to the death he was appalled by the evil for what it was. He was so impacted by what he saw that he ran down the steps to intervene, yelling, ” Stop! This isn’t right. Stop!” He ran down to the ring where the gladiators were fighting. According to one account, they ran him through. According to legend, the emperor was so impressed by the monk’s bravery, and the crowd so affected by his actions that this became the last gladiatorial match in the Colosseum. You can read about it here.

We can rest in Him

Psalm 78:35 says, “They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.” Many are the hymns which we sing that express this truth about God, that Jesus is the Rock upon which we stand.

  • “On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.”
  • “O, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land–a Shelter in a time of storm.”
  • “The wise man built his house upon a Rock.”

Trust in God is a mighty assurance to us in our faith. Our trust has the ability to grow. I trust God more today that I did 10 years, 5 years, and one year ago. My trust grows exponentially. I am learning to trust God with more of my stuff as I have learned He is gracious, willing, and able to bear it. We can be hesitant to trust Him with our complicated issues, but He gets us, and He wants us to trust Him with it. He is a trustworthy God, and He never fails us. The challenge for me is to trust God with my burdens and leave them with Him. I want to worry, when He says, “Trust Me.” Then it becomes an exercise in re-giving my burdens back to Him.

I’m so glad that God is our Divine Protector, that He covers us with His feathers. He has our best interest at heart. We can trust Him with every burden. And best of all, we need not fear Him, for He is a kind, loving, gracious Father.

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.” -Psalm 91:1-2

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I wish you well on your spiritual journey.

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Obedience, a Measure of Spirituality

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” (1 John 4:16). “This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5:2-5).

When you start getting serious about your spirituality, you will soon confront whether or not you will be obedient. When you know what you should do, but you do not do it, and choose not to do it, and you plan never to do it, now, if that is the case, then you are in error. In a sense, your faith has been tested and you have been found wanting (Ouch!).

Sin

Known areas of disobedience vary and excuses are many. You know when this is you by the persistent nudge of the Holy Spirit, and by the consistent confirmation in God’s Word. Some things we know are wrong. We know when we choose to do them, anyhow, then we are sinning against God.

Gray Areas

Other behaviors are in those gray areas. Those activities that are not spelled out. I suggest that if it feels wrong, you are better off to not do it. Your conscience is speaking to you. Some things I can’t do that other believers do. That doesn’t mean I’m better than they are, only that I am more sensitive in that area. For example, I don’t watch violent movies or movies with sex scenes. I just can’t. For me, being “pure in heart” is something to strive for.

Ignoring the Issue

Other areas in life cause our hearts to become hardened by ignoring the whispers of the Holy Spirit. When you repeatedly turn from doing the right thing, from obeying the Spirit of God, then you are choosing a wrong thing. Other areas of sin, such as hidden sins, we might need to ask God to reveal to us. We can’t see these on our own. Our vision is dulled.

Maybe this post has hit a nerve, then listen to that still small voice and choose to deal with it. Believe it or not, this is freeing.

Childhood Effects

Some areas require God’s help. You can’t overcome them in your own strength. They are too hard or have their hooks in you. Maybe they are learned behaviors that stem from childhood. They can even be patterns in the mind caused by word curses that enrage and mess with you. You try to be obedient but you fall and you fail. You hate your anger but seemingly haven’t been able to curb it. That’s a place to start looking into your why: Why you do what you do. This is constructive and instructive. It serves us better than looking at other people and proceeding to judge why they do what they do.

My friend’s mother was an angry Christian, and she had reason. She had been told by her mother that she was ugly from an early age, on up. She grew up believing she was ugly. She acted angry, arrogant, and distant, giving little love and affirmation to others or to her children. She recently passed on, never having realized her worth and value. What a shame. Her daughter is still unpacking the rejection she felt from her mother. Yet, my friend is a warm, loving person. Thankfully, she’s broken the curse that entrapped her mother.

What If?

What if her mother had confronted the lie that she had believed as a young child.? What if she had trained her mind to think on what is lovely, pure, honorable, and of a good report? What if she had sought her own spiritual healing? Might her life have been happier, free-er, better? I think so. Maybe, this is you. It seems so unfair. What’s happened to you is not your fault. You have damaged emotions caused by others mistreatment of you.

You can embrace your healing. You can strive for spiritual cleansing. You can reach out to God, and He won’t turn you away. Spiritual obedience frees our soul from sins of self-will, rebellion, lust, deceit, revenge, laziness, gluttony, wrong thoughts, wrong-minded choices, and an unforgiving heart. It also confronts the graver sins like cheating, stealing, adultery, fornication, abuse, and the mistreatment of others–anything that does not please God.

Obedience is for Our Own Good

C. S. Lewis writes, “The Christian, in relation to heaven, . . . have not yet attained everlasting life in the vision of God doubtless know very well that it is no mere bribe, but the very consummation of their earthly discipleship: but we who have not yet attained it cannot know this in the same way, and cannot even begin to know it at all except by continuing to obey and finding the first reward of our obedience in our increasing power to desire the ultimate reward (heaven) (The Weight of Glory, p. 28).

As God purifies our life, and as we let Him, we are being transformed. Then, as we obey His commands in the right spirit, they go from seeming onerous to becoming a route to peace that’s for our own good. God’s commands are for our own good, and produce in us that which is good. They are a gift to us. When He commands us to love one another, it is a righteous command that gets at the heart of true spirituality. God is making us whole and complete. One of the tools He uses is our sensitivity to Him and His word.

Peace

If you want to draw closer to God, you must make a clean sweep of whatever blocks your relationship with God. When we deal with these areas, instead of ignoring them, then communication freely flows between you and God. Nothing hinders your relationship. The barriers have come down. When you obey God, you are doing the right thing in the right spirit which produces a right relationship with God.

God loves us. He desires to complete his work in us. He keeps showing us the next thing, so we can get it behind us and keep moving forward. We must look at ourselves with fresh eyes every so often. It’s like taking inventory. Then we can spot where we’re being stubborn, where we are tenaciously holding on to our pride, our view points, and where we fall short.

You will discover it is a delight to love, trust, and obey. That you are happiest when you allow God full access in your life. To follow God with a purity of heart becomes a great blessing. It refreshes and rejuvenates your spirit. Somewhat like when you walk into a clean house after it’s had a spring cleaning. It does something for you. You’re happier. Your spirit is revitalized. Embrace it. Living in love and obedience is the best way.

I wish you well on your spiritual journey.