February 24, 2012

Mind full...

This morning I woke up to a mind that was full of way to much stuff. It was bogged down by things of the passed, things of no value, and things that I'm trying to make sense of but can't. As I'm writing this I've came down to one truth and one thought....

I Cor 14:33
For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

No matter what I must remember this truth of the Word of God. No thought in my head should ever be that of confusion. It must be that of a sound mind. When I get to the place where I find myself confused or full of thoughts I must... pray and clear my thoughts.

Our minds are such a powerful tool that can truly become the playground of the enemy. If I'm not careful with the thoughts that I allow to swarm in my head I will become a puppet to the emotional roller coaster that the enemy wants me to be in.

So what am I saying? I'm saying don't allow your mind to be full of confusion and idle to the thoughts that are NOT true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of a good report. (Phil 4:8) When we can get our minds off the things that are of importance we can be taken away from a sound mind.

Today I challenge you to think of the things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of a good report. Focus on the things that are of value and you will find the peace that God desires for us to live in.

I guess this is just my thought for the day. Hope it blesses you and reminds you to keep your thoughts of things that will keep your day filled with smiles.

February 20, 2012

The role of the family...

This weekend I was able to be with the Central Canadian District for their 2012 Youth Convention. Which doesn't say much being that I'm a part of the district, but my ability to go was a blessing. This year I was able to take my Pastor's son and daughter to their very first district event without their parents. To me that is an honor as most parents, I know, don't let their children just go with anyone.

With that said I was reminded three times this weekend on the importance of the parents role in a child's life. I say parents, plural, because God designed the family to be balanced and that is to have a father and a mother.

This weekend God showed me a beautiful picture of the role of the family and of the church and its role as the mother towards the Father. The best way for me to describe this is by explaining my role as a child to my parents.

Most people don't know that when growing up my mom was a stay at home mom. She did this until I was old enough to go to preschool and then at that point she went back to school to become a teacher.

I learned at a young age to respect my mother's authority in my life. She was the one who was with me for most of the day so for me to ever mature and grow I needed to have a constant teacher, ironic enough that was my mother and her later occupation in life. Now that authority didn't make her like my father or the head of the house, she was and always will be still my mother. When she told me not to do things I knew that I should respect her because she had my best interests at heart. Don't get me wrong I'm sure I was mad at her when it hurt my feelings but I still knew that I was to obey my parents and those who they had put to watch over me.

I was raised that you respected your father AND your mother (Exodus 20:12) as well as all that have the rule over you (Hebrews 13:17). That included my teachers, adults, parents of friends who I played with, police officers, and anyone who was given the "responsibility" of my safety or watching over me. I knew better than to be disrespectful or to ever play the "you are not the boss of me" card or my favorite "you're not my mother".

Everyone who my parents gave permission to watch me as a child was given the authority to "boss" me. I was to listen to those people and if I didn't well I can't remember a lot of those times so I must have learned fast.

Now God reminded me of this as the role of the church. The Word calls us the bride which any bride that has children becomes a mother. The church is the mother of the saints but that does not displace the role of the Father in our lives. Even though my mom was the one who had to discipline us the most didn't displace the importance of my dad or make me think that I could play my parents. I always knew that TOGETHER they were a force that was teaching me to become a child that the family could be proud of. Not just my mom be proud of me but my dad as well.

Why did my mom have to discipline us? Because the whole.... "you wait until your father gets home" isn't good for the relationship with a child and their father. If the only thing my dad ever did was discipline me I would have really not liked having my dad around nor would I have respected my mom or wanted her to be around. So instead my mom handled the issues when they happened and that taught us two things. 1) You are to respect whoever is watching you and listen to them and 2) my parents were not there in my life to make life miserable or to be dictators. They were there to teach me and to help me not make mistakes that could cause harm to my future. They together helped me become a child to be proud of. Which I must add is still a working progress... I still need to respect my parents and respect them as they don't lose the role as parents in my life.

So what am I saying here. I'm saying... the role of a father and a mother are important to work together, as one flesh (Gen 2:24). Not to take away or to add to either side or confuse the headship in anyway. They are to work together to build and mold godly children of God who understand and know who it is that they are serving/pleasing.

Mary gave birth to Jesus, she was his mother, but He was first and for most to please HIS Father. That didn't take away from the role of Mary in His life and didn't make her less of an authority in His upbringing but working together they built up who He was as a man. With the spirit of God our parents help us become who God truly desires for us to be. Just like the church with the spirit helps us become the child of Christ that we are called to be.
I am expected to obey the authority that God places in my life. The mother, which is the church.... that includes my pastor and my brothers and sisters in the Lord who give me godly counsel (Psalms 1:1). If I am to ever grow into the child of God that I am called to be I must obey those who have been given the authority over me. Who are watching over my soul and responsible for leading me. I must learn to listen to godly counsel and take it even if it is to discipline me.

WHY? Because I will never understand or fear my Father, Jesus Christ, the right way without obeying my mother, the church, in my life. How can you know what the Father wants but through the one who is training you up WITH the Father? That one to be spoken of is the mother, the church.

For example if a mother does not have the respect or authority over her children, in a healthy way, then she will bring all discipline to the father and make him the bad guy all the time. Which in the long run will cause dis function in the relationship with the child and their father. If we as the church do not teach our children in the church, the saints of God, about what pleases the Father we will cause an unhealthy relationship with the Father when correction or judgement come from Him OR we will become their savior/ Father and confuse the roles. This will cause the body, family, to be divided and not of one accord or as one flesh (Phil 2:2). The church will be then battling with the Father, Jesus Christ and we will never be fulfilling the will of God.

Another thing that God revealed to me this weekend was the role the mother has in teaching her children what is pleasing to the father. As a young girl I knew that if I was to ever get pregnant that it would break my dad's heart. I knew that if I stayed away from premarital sex that I would be pleasing both my earthly father, who didn't want me to have a child out of wedlock and the responsibility of that, as well as my heavenly father, who didn't want me to have to pay the consequence to sin either. With that said you can imagine that my dad didn't have the sex talk with me but through my mother I knew what my dad expected of me. Of course there were things he told me that he didn't want me to do but not everything was so clear or spoken. In stead learned that if I desired to please my father and be the daughter that I knew he had raised me to be I needed to search him out and watched how he talked with people. I listened to my mom and the things she would say that my dad didn't like as well as in conversation hear him say to others things he believed in or didn't. I didn't do this because I wanted to be someone I wasn't I did this because I wanted to PLEASE my dad. I wanted him to be proud of me and to be the daughter that I knew he deserved.
This concept applies with our Heavenly Father. God doesn't have to speak to me everything He doesn't want me to do. I, as His child, need to listen to what He speaks to others, which can either be by my brothers and sisters in the church (mother), or even by what He spoke through His Word. Why do I do this... I do it so that I can PLEASE my Heavenly Father.

I'm so grateful for this revelation this weekend and so thankful to understand the role that I play in my own walk as well as others. My responsibility as a brother or a sister to those who are in the body of God is just as important as those that are in my home church. The picture is so much bigger and no matter if I'm at a Youth Convention or a Sunday night service I must make sure that what I'm teaching to others is the truth.
It's time to be the mother and to realize that we are hear to teach the children of God our brothers and sister to PLEASE the Father. To work WITH the Father through the Holy Spirit to help every soul become one with the body and one with their love.




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