Does our sin separate us from God?

30 August, 2011 by 1 Comment


Two years ago, I attended a “Women of Faith” conference, and was very intrigued by one of the speakers. Her name is Ashley Smith. A few years ago in Atlanta, she was instantly place in the spotlight as she was abducted and held hostage by Brian Nichols, a convicted killer. Her book, “Unlikely Angel: The Untold Story of the Atlanta Hostage Hero,” was an amazing account of every thought and action that took place during the seven hours she was held hostage.

I listened to her speak, and while she was very humble, her “miracle” was very fresh, and I wondered whether or not she could maintain a drug free life and uphold the promises she made to God that night.

In her book, she reveals she had tried and tried to become free of drugs, and she was reading and studying “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren. While she had told God time and time again that she was done with drugs and ready to straighten her life out, she always kept a little stash “just in case.”


I think when we are in sin and are telling ourselves that we won’t do “whatever” again, and we still have that something on the back burner available if we need it, we are separating ourselves from God. I think of it as an invisible shield between God and me. In our head, we think we are doing the right thing. We talk ourselves into it…we justify. But at the same time, we know in our heart and in the back of our mind that we are keeping that sin on standby. 

Other than our prescription verse above, scripture also tells us when we justify our sin, we don’t have truth, which is the light in Jesus Christ. 

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8 ESV

Ok, back to Ashley Smith. I picked up her book to read (after having it for two years) and after finishing it, decided to Google her to see how she’s doing now. I was so happy to see that she is doing great. I’ve included a video here (part 1 and 2) of a show she was interviewed on not too long ago. I hope you will enjoy it.


For me, my sin was addiction. Yes, I had an issue with Lortab, and that was awful, but that is not the big picture. As the title of my story reflects, I was addicted to the chase…the chase to cure my migraine headaches; the chase to cure my seizures; the chase to be happy; the chase to grab my mask so no one would know how miserable I was; the chase to constantly isolate myself from family and friends because I felt such guilt when I was around them. Instead of focusing on God and what he could do, I focused on myself. On my misery; my search for a cure; my guilt. During that time, I missed an opportunity to let Christ minister to me. Thank goodness he rescued me from myself!

When I finished reading “Unlikely Angel,” and I thought about how I’d held on to my sin, I realized something important. When you make a promise to God that you will no longer give a home to your sin, and you truly have made the decision to put it behind you, the best way to stay on course is to use your experience to help others. I know blogging and writing is not the right avenue for everyone, but when we begin to help other people in similar situations, God gives us strength. When we can share with another person the covenant we’ve made with God, we will hold ourselves more accountable to it. When we can really be transparent, and realize that we are not perfect and neither is anyone else, we will find great freedom. It’s amazing to find out how common your struggle is…whatever it is. 

If you have read my story and my blogs, you know how truly happy I am. I’ve always had a heart for people, but for the seven years of my illness and “chase,” I lost my focus. I couldn’t see others very well, only myself. Now that my vision has been corrected, there is nothing more rewarding that sharing the amazing love that God has for us…and actually feeling it first hand. 

From my heart, 
Celeste

Filed Under: Living in Faith, Living with Purpose, Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What is the purpose of life?

29 August, 2011 by 5 Comments

I received the following email today from my stepdad containing the answer to universal question we all ask: “What is our purpose?” On August 10th, I posted “In Sickness and in Health” with this same prescription, and this interview with Rick Warren is right along those same lines. Enjoy!
You will enjoy the new insights that Rick Warren has, with his wife now having cancer and him having ‘wealth’ from the book sales.
This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren, author of “The Purpose Driven Life” and pastor of Saddleback Church in California.
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
“People ask me, ‘What is the purpose of life?’
And I respond: In a nutshell, life is a preparation for eternity. We were not made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him and in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body—but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act—the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.
We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn’t going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one, or you’re getting ready to go into another one.
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.
We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that’s not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys—you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don’t believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it’s kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.
No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems:
If you focus on your problems, you’re going into self-centeredness, which is ‘my problem, my issues, my pain.’ But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.  
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her—It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don’t think God give you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72.
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God’s purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, “God, if I don’t get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better.”
God didn’t put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He’s more interested in what I am than what I do.
That’s why we’re called human beings, not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
Quite moments, WORSHIP GOD.
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.
Every moment, THANK GOD.”
Enough said.

From my heart,

Celeste
Filed Under: Living with Purpose Tagged With: , ,

So where is Jesus?

27 August, 2011 by 1 Comment


We battle bullying as kids and teens, but as adults, I hope that we are past that stage, but how often do we judge someone without really knowing them, or avoid talking to them because of the way they look? 

Jesus says, whatever you do for the least of these, you do also to me. Yes, we need to have compassion for the poor, feed the hungry, help in times of crisis, etc., but I don’t think that’s all Jesus meant when he said that. Look again at the part, “you have also done unto me.” How often could we actually be encountering Jesus in “the least of these”?

How would you react in the following situations?

Your assigned seat on your flight is next to a mentally retarded man. You know he will talk to you the whole time if you sit beside him, and you really wanted to relax and read your book.

You are rushing through the grocery store to get home, an see a woman on your isle leaning in really close to the spice jars struggling to find what she needs because she has very limited vision, obviously from a terrible accident.

The mom of a girl in class with your daughter always tries to duck away unnoticed because she is scarred from a burn on one whole side of her face, and you know she really wants to be involved with class activities.

You are sitting in your doctors office waiting for them to call you back and a hearing impaired man, who speaks very loudly, strikes up a conversation with you.

What if one of the people you want to avoid could be Jesus Christ himself? Should we assume that it’s not because he doesn’t look like the Jesus we know? Or because Jesus ascended back into Heaven after being risen from the dead so we won’t see him again til we get there? 

I went to a financial seminar yesterday and met a sweet new friend. The really weird part…well, let me tell you the story. 

I have to start with the fact that I have vitiligo. It’s an autoimmune disease that destroys the cells in your skin that hold pigment. You might recognize it better as the “Michael Jackson disease.” There’s not too much research on it because it’s a cosmetic problem more than anything else, and the other autoimmune diseases like lupus & rheumatoid arthritis are much more important. I developed it during my second pregnancy, and it gets a little worse each year, but because I have fair skin anyway, it’s not that noticeable. 

Last year, David and I ate with some friends at a downtown steakhouse, and I noticed a black waitress with vitiligo on her face, and it was very noticeable. I had the thoughts, “I hope mine is never that bad.” and “I’m glad I have fair skin and am not dark skinned.” And that was the extent of my thoughts. This was not a situation where I avoided her, I just noticed her.

At the seminar yesterday, I saw a black woman with pretty bad vitiligo. Only this time, I found myself wanting to talk to her. I am trying a new herbal treatment for my vitiligo, and if it works, I wanted to be able to tell her about it. But I wondered, “ Is she going to think I’m rude for bringing it up? Will she tell me to mind my own business? Will I just make her more self-conscious?” Nevertheless, I felt a gentle nudging to talk to her. And wouldn’t you know she had the sweetest, most endearing personality? And when we talked, she revealed to me that she saw someone years ago with vitiligo all around their eyes, and she hoped she’d never have it that bad, but now she does. That’s when I told her about the waitress I saw at the restaurant.

“That’s where I work!” she exclaimed.

She was the waitress that I’d seen that day! 

I was so glad that I was not to “whatever” to talk to her. Afraid? Intimidated? Uncomfortable? I gave her my contact info, and I hope to talk to her more. God has people cross our path for a reason. You never know who that person could be, or why they cross your path, but when you feel that little “nudge,” there’s a reason. I have no idea where this contact will go, but I knew God was nudging me to make it. And I’m so glad that I did!

So next time you decide to avoid that person who might make you uncomfortable, think about who it might be, or who you could be to them.  

Do you wonder where Jesus is?

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Filed Under: Real Relationships, Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , ,

Pray the Promises

18 August, 2011 by 1 Comment


Hey guys! If you read my last post, you know I’m out of town and I didn’t think I’d have time to post, but I failed to take into the account the twelve hour drive…yes TWELVE HOUR DRIVE…to New Jersey. So I’ve had time to do a little thinking! Not to mention that we are in the car with a reformed presbyterian…the debates are getting heated! 

I recently read a book called, “My Time in Heaven” by Richard Sigmund, in which he stated, “Praying releases God to go into our tomorrows, lay a trap for the devil, and bring our blessings right on time.”
I dug a little deeper.
In doing some research, I read a book by Jan Coleman, “After the Locusts” (which, by the way, is a great book for anyone woman who’s found herself divorced and sitting in a pile of shattered dreams). At the end of her book, after talking to many broken women, she says this about prayer, “Pray the promises, not the problems.”
So now I have been told to pray to release God’s blessings into the future, and to pray God’s promises.
As I thought about my prayers, I realized that I prayed very differently during the seven years of seizures and depression than I did before them.
As I made my way through teen and young adult years, I expected the best. I had my dreams in order, and as I worked to make them come true, I prayed the same. I expected and prayed to graduate from pharmacy school, get a job, get married, and have healthy children. And that is exactly what happened. Until…
A seizure snowball began an avalanche of migraines, seizures and depression, and I began to pray for God to take them away. By doing so, I allowed the devil to get into my brain. By praying for my earthly problems instead of God’s heavenly promises, my focus was constantly on my problems. Without realizing it, it also made me become very selfish and obsessed with me…with fixing me.
The only one of God’s promises that I prayed for during my depression was the rapture! I’m quite sure my reasons there were selfish as well.
God’s promises are all throughout the Bible, some specific to certain people, others to all of his children. In Genesis 15, God promised Abram to make his offspring as many as the stars in the sky. In Genesis 11, he promises never to destroy the earth by flood again.
For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. (Deuteronomy 29:11)
For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. (Psalm 84:11)
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
(John 10:10)
By which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
(2 Peter 1:4)
And my favorite…
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)
In “After the Locusts,” Jan teaches us to claim the promise God made in the story of Joel. He promises, I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten. (Joel 2:25)
Those are just the tip of the iceberg! Focusing on God’s promises and praying them will inevitably draw us closer to him. When our focus shifts from the worldly tribulation we are experiencing to the heavenly blessings God has for us, we break down the wall separating us from God, and begin building the wall separating us from the devil. God and Satan cannot exist in the same heart together.
Don’t put limits on what God can do by negative thoughts. Pray God’s promises to us and expect the best!
So no matter your struggle, God promises that he will triumph over all, and not only will he triumph, he will restore all that you lost, in abundance!
Dig in to your bible, read the blessings and promises God has for you, and start claiming them!
From my heart,
Celeste
Filed Under: Living in Faith, The Power of Prayer Tagged With:

In Sickness and In Health

11 August, 2011 by 4 Comments


Now I have read this verse before I’m sure, but never has it jumped out at me as it did today when I was reading. Not only is God telling us that his word is all we need for our soul and spirit, but our joints? marrow? thoughts? heart? I looked up a commentary on this verse, and basically it’s pointing out that if we know the word of God, we have no excuses. God is able to search out all of us…right down to the differences between what we believe in our heart vs. our mind. I couldn’t help but see it even more literally. God’s word is alive and well, and can pierce into every system in our body. So shouldn’t all christians then experience perfect health if they claim the word of God? NO. This brings me to a quote from Max Lucado…”

“If God’s aim is to grant perfect health to all his children, he has
failed, because no one enjoys perfect health, and everyone dies.
But if God’s aim is to expand the boundaries of his kingdom, then
he has succeeded. For every time he heals, a thousand sermons are
preached.”

In sickness, in health, in happy times, in depression, in faith, in anger, in life, in death…God  is using us. God loves us. God is preparing us for our next purpose. God has eternity waiting for us. 


When struggling with a health issue, it is so easy in our nation to get on the computer, try to diagnose ourselves, and then put our diagnosis together with a drug we saw advertised on television, and the chase begins: the chase to find the right physician to listen to you, the chase to try and try again to find the right drug to fix you. We want to be fixed. Now. We don’t want to dig into God’s word and see what he might be trying to teach us, or even someone close to us.  


If you are battling any type of health problem, here’s the thing: you may be healed, or you may not. You may have a life long struggle ahead of you. BUT…if you continue to pursue God and seek out what his purpose is for your life, you can find happiness and peace in him. I firmly believe that if your desire to have a close, intimate relationship with God is greater than your desire to have perfect health, you will find peace. Seek your answer in God’s words to you, his child, in the most complete instruction manual ever written, the Bible. God’s answer for you may not be to grant you perfect health, but if you allow his words to penetrate your heart and soul, and let him to use you in whatever condition you’re in, you will begin to see things from more of an “eternal” perspective. My daddy used to love to tell me to “plan like you will die tomorrow, but live like you will live forever.” I thought he was talking about money, but now I see he had a deeper, more eternal, perspective. 


I have a friend whose husband recently died after a battle with cancer. He had so many people praying for him during his battle…praying for a miracle. At his funeral, I will never forget what my friend said as she hugged me standing beside his casket. 


“We got our miracle.”  


What a testament! Even in her fresh state of grief, she knew through his illness, family members came to Christ who might not have otherwise, and that her husband is now in Heaven with Jesus…completely and eternally healed. 


If you know my story, you know that God completely healed me and my purpose on earth is not yet finished. Through my healing, I pray that “a thousand sermons will be preached” (or written), but for others, it’s through sickness and death that healing takes place, and a thousand sermons are still preached. 


God is in control of it all. God knows our hearts. Embrace him in sickness and in health, and whatever purpose God has for your life will be fulfilled. 


From my heart, 
Celeste




Filed Under: Beating Depression, Chronic Illness, Fighting Your Fears, Have an Eternal Perspective Tagged With: , ,

How is Your Heart Condition?

7 August, 2011 by Leave a Comment

What if everyone could read your mind?

Your boss is giving you specific instructions on how to handle a delicate matter at work, and all you can think about is that piece of spinach caught in his teeth.
Your friend is pouring out her heart to you…again…and all you can think about is “what stupid mess has she gotten herself into this time?”

It would be quite difficult to keep a job or maintain a friendship, wouldn’t it?

We’ve all seen some television show or movie that added this twist to make things interesting. God, in his infinite wisdom, created us in such a way that we can’t read minds, but as a relationship develops, we can begin to understand certain things about the people we know well. No one, however, can know exactly what we are thinking all the time except God. He has a closed circuit television hooked up to each and every one of us. He always knows our thoughts, and always knows the condition of our hearts.When God looks into your heart, what does he see? I’m sure glad that when he sent his son to die on the cross for our sins, because when we are forgiven of our sins, we are also forgiven for the condition of our heart. But when I stand before God someday, despite all my imperfections, I want to know that I did my best to improve my heart condition.A few days ago, I blogged about Sunday’s sermon, “Following Jesus a Day at a Time,” and the ongoing questions concerning the baptist belief of “once saved, always saved.” So let’s take it one step further. We realize that salvation is a gift that we cannot work for and do not deserve, but can only accept. Once we accept Christ as our savior, we must then pursue him…always.

I know you’ve all heard “what goes in, must come out.” What we put into our minds…and our hearts…is what comes out. We want to protect ourselves from bad television, movies, music, etc…and not put ourselves in tempting situations, but no matter how hard we try, we cannot protect ourselves completely, because we live in a fallen world. What we CAN do is fill our minds with the good stuff…the God stuff. Uplifting music, good friends, worshipping with fellow believers, sharing Christ, reading the Bible, praying and listening…all of these empower us and give us the defenses we need against the bad stuff.

Let me give you a challenge that I gave myself…when you make your “to do” list for each day, write over to the side just three things you will do to improve your heart condition. Whether it’s music, bible study, specific prayer for someone…whatever…commit to yourself and God that you will do those few things on your list each day. Continue this for one month, and see where you are. If you can give God these little invitations into your heart, he will begin to work there, and I promise with a genuine effort, you can’t help but be changed. In one month from today, you may have greatly improved your heart condition!


From my heart, 
Celeste

Filed Under: Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , , ,

Do you get it?

6 August, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Have I told you lately how incredible it is to be made brand new in Christ? Well, until September 25th, 2010, I really had no idea. I was saved when I was seven years old, and I did all the things that a good lil’ southern baptist girl should do (or shouldn’t do), but I just didn’t get it. The weird thing is, though, that because I didn’t get it, I didn’t know I didn’t get it. Get it?

I went to church. I prayed every day. I read my bible. I went to bible studies. I would see people like Beth Moore or Joyce Meyer speak, and I would always be amazed at the passion they had for Christ. I truly just thought my personality was different and I didn’t express myself they way they do. What it boiled down to is I didn’t truly down deep, to the core, feel like I needed Christ. My brain knew I did, because I’d been taught all my life that Jesus is the only way. My heart, on the other hand, could not simply “learn,” it had to “feel.”

I don’t know whether it’s because I’m stubborn, my sinful human nature was too strong, or it was simply God’s plan, but I had to endure some pretty tough stuff to realize how much I needed God and how much he wants me. I believe wholeheartedly that accepting Christ as your personal savior will get you a ticket into heaven, but to have a full life on earth, you must not only accept him, but pursue him…constantly.

When I was seven, God wrote my name down in the lamb’s book of life, and secured my reservation in heaven. But on September 25th of last year, he made me brand spanking new! Now I know some of you who are reading this are thinking…”here’s another one…thinking God is the answer for everything.” I promise you I had those thoughts about people all my life…until now. I’m not saying God is the only answer for everything, but I promise you that if you invite him into every situation in your life, he will meet you there. Good or bad, happy or sad, you will never be alone. I just want to share a few areas in my life that have changed since I let God be God, and welcomed him into every part of it.

My depression is gone…completely and totally gone.
My migraine headaches are minimal, and when I do still have one, I can handle it.
My seizures are completely gone.
I am free from the prisons I kept myself in…fear, dependence, worry, guilt, failure…and the list goes on.
I have a much more eternal perspective…a new “destination” in life that I actually think, read, and wonder about.
The act of forgiveness is no longer such a struggle. There is such a freedom in letting go of a grudge and letting God handle it. (I hesitated to list this one…God may test me on it!)

Now those are some pretty big areas right there…but what I did not expect were the changes in the seemingly insignificant areas in my life.

Meal planning and cooking are easy. No longer the daunting tasks they were.
The heat of the summer has not bothered me at all compared to summers past.
The housework gets done when it gets done. Not a single soul that walks into this house cares if I have a sink full of dishes or a basket of clothes to fold.
Exercising and losing weight is not the overwhelming goal it used to be (although definitely a long term goal).
If something on my “to do” list doesn’t get done, it’s okay. I just move it to tomorrow’s list!

Do you see where this is going? EVERYTHING in my life is easier. Now I see why Beth Moore teaches with such passion. When you can finally “get it,” you will know it, and you will be compelled to share your joy with anyone and everyone who will listen.

From my heart, 
Celeste

Filed Under: Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Sunday Summary…Following Jesus One Day at a Time

1 August, 2011 by 1 Comment
Hmmm. What does it take to truly feel clean…to be clean?
I’m so glad God made a way to cleanse us from our sins so we don’t have to go through this! If he hadn’t, and wickedness was in the form of hair chemicals, it might look something like this video:
                                                             I’M CLEAN, I’M CLEAN!
This morning at Brookwood, Fenton Moorhead preached a sermon he entitled, “Following Jesus a Day at a Time.” I went into it thinking I would hear a sermon beginning with “Begin every day with Jesus…” but to my surprise, I saw Jesus in a new light. No matter how old the Bible is, there is always more to be learned. Even when I have read a verse a hundred times, God can still teach me something new.
When saved, we often pray a sinner’s prayer repenting of our sins, asking Jesus to forgive our sins, and to come into our hearts as our savior. Our sins are as far away as the east is from the west. Gone. Forgiven. But what happens the next time we sin? Even though we are saved, we still possess a sinful nature. We are led by the Holy Spirit, but we’re in a battle of good and evil. No matter how “good” we try to be, we still sin. Daily.
I remember a conversation between my Church of God raised husband and his grandfather…
“Grandpa, if the Church of God believes you must ask forgiveness of every sin, will you go to hell if you die before you get a chance to ask?”
“Yep.”
“So if we were riding in this car, and you saw a woman and lusted after her, and then we crashed and died, you’d go to hell?”
“Yep.”
Now, being raised a good ‘lil Southern Baptist girl (sinless as long as I didn’t cuss, drink, or dance, lol), this is not what I was taught. Thank goodness for the “once saved, always saved” southern baptist theology, right?
Well, after today’s sermon, one of those little lightbulbs came on…I don’t think it’s about being “once saved, always saved,” or damned to hell for any sin we forget to ask forgiveness for. It’s about knowing what salvation really means…For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9) NLT
When we can realize and admit that salvation is not something we can work for, buy, or even deserve, but only accept…a gift from God that we must only accept. We must be honest in admitting that without the grace of God we would be nothing. But by his grace and our faithin him, we accept the gift he gave us when he sent his only son to die an excruciating death as the penalty for our sins…all of them.But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. (1 John 1:7-8) NLT

So…God knows our heart. We cannot hide anything from him. As long as we remain honest to ourselves, remembering that we are sinners, and at the same time we are living in the light of Jesus Christ, he will constantly and consistently cleanse and make us new, and we can continue following Jesus a day at a time.
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Filed Under: Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , , ,

Freedom

26 July, 2011 by Leave a Comment


What does the word “freedom” mean to you? 

     You’ve just been released from prison? 
     You are finally out of that abusive relationship you’d been in? 
     You are free from the bonds of an addiction? 
     You’ve finally paid off those student loans from school? 
     You finally got out of your three year old daughter’s room that she locked you in with the
      lock you put  on the door to lock her in? (yes, that really happened…but thank
      goodness not to me!)

One of the worse traps people put themselves in from childhood to the grave, is worrying about what other people think. Someone once gave me some very good advice, and at the time I never realized how much I would cherish it. “What other people think of you is their problem, not yours.” 

There are hundreds of ways we feel trapped, and I want to share with you the way to freedom from everything. Now just 11 months ago, I was trapped. Once God freed me from a seven year struggle with my health, he has shown me how to have freedom in everything. Now stick with me here, I’m not saying it is EASY, but once you get a taste of how sweet freedom in Christ is, you’ll never want to turn back. 
    
Freedom in forgiveness–In Matthew 18:21-22, God tells us to forgive those who have wronged us. How many times? Seventy times seven. When you can let go of a grudge…truly forgive the person who has wronged you and let God be their judge, you would be amazed at the weight lifted from your shoulders.
Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.”
He also tells us in Mark 11:25, in order for God to forgive us or our sins, we must forgive those who have sinned against us. Now if that isn’t enough reason to forgive, I don’t know what is! 

And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. 

Freedom from worry–God tells us not to worry. By worrying about something does it do you any good? Does the situation change by worrying about it? No. Action may change it, but worry does not. 


Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin… (Matthew 6:25-34) ESV


Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made know to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7) ESV


Freedom from fear–Everyone is afraid of something. But just like worry, does fear really do us any good? An action that helps us with that fear is good, but the fear itself is in vain. In a previous blog (Life is good, Eternity is better) I shared a story about Jeff Strueker faced with a life and death situation during the gulf war. He could fear death, but instead he chose to look at it like this: If he died in battle, he would get to receive his award in heaven and begin his eternity with Jesus. If he survived, he would gain his reward here, go back home to his wife and continue God’s work. Win-win.  
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. (2 Timothy 1:7) ESV

So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 10:26-33) ESV

Fear of the Lord himself is the only fear that should drive our actions. He is our creator, our judge, and our savior, and is the only one who decides our eternity. 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7)ESV

In the prescribed verse of the day, God tells us that we will have troubles in this world. We know that. The part we need to remember so well is “I have overcome the world.” We get so easily caught up in our troubles of this world. And while we must deal with them accordingly,  if we can remember that someday this world will be no more and look at the bigger picture, maybe our grudges, worries, and fears will be a little easier to let go. Freedom in Christ is an amazing way to live.

I recently bought a little leather bracelet that helps me remember not to let my thoughts  imprison me. Embossed in the leather are the simple words, “Change your thoughts and you will change your world.” Freedom. 

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Small Beginnings & New Habits

23 July, 2011 by 4 Comments

In this small, obscure book tucked neatly at the end of the Old Testament, the prophet Zechariah has been sent an angel from God to help him understand the visions he’s been having. Zerubbabel is the governor of Judah and in charge of the daunting task of rebuilding the temple. The vision given to Zechariah was a message to Zerubbabel to encourage him. Through Zechariah’s vision, God is telling Zerubbabel the task will seem huge, and he may think the task is too big for him, but not to doubt. Even though the beginning is small, God rejoices in his effort to begin this good work, and wants him to keep his vision on the grandeur of the end result.


We live in a society of immediate gratification. We want it and we want it now.

We exercise and diet for a week and wonder why we still can’t fit into that cute bathing suit we
bought as a motivation to lose weight.

We want to build our dream house and don’t know why we have to actually have the money first.

We have started a business and don’t know why we haven’t made our first million in the first year.

We start writing a book and don’t know why publishers aren’t knocking down our doors to publish it.

Anything worth accomplishing requires a little due diligence. We must begin creating new habits. Boy have I had to realize that one lately! During the seven years I was dealing with depression, seizures, and too many medications, my body and my brain were on lock down. I did not have the desire to do anything that required energy, whether it was physical or mental exercise. I was “mush” for 7 years.

Once God healed me (physically and mentally) and I was free of all medication, I expected to just jump back into life full force. Joy was once again my friend and I was ready to enjoy all pre-seizure and pre-depression activities.

God was not finished with his lessons yet!

I began writing (which was a new hobby for me), photography, exercising, driving the kids all over the place, cooking, cleaning, etc…and I would get so frustrated because I couldn’t keep up with it all. When I was trying to lose weight after pregnancies, my husband would always tell me it took 9 months to gain it, give myself at least that long to lose it. So now I have been “mush” for seven years. Does that mean it will take seven years to get back up to speed? Not if I can help it! But I do need to work diligently to accomplish my goals.

When I decided to write a book, I called an old friend who was now a writer to ask her advice. She immediately got me plugged in to a local christian writer’s group. I went in to the first meeting all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, only to walk away with the old deer-in-the-headlights look. I was overwhelmed. They were using terms like pitch, one sheet, tag lines, deep POV, query letter, blogging…I had no earthly idea what they were talking about!

My instinct was to forget the writing group and just go home and write, write, write. If God was calling me to do this, then he would make it successful, right? Well, obviously he can perform miracles, he’d already shown me that. But thankfully, my reclaimed friend and now mentor, Vonda, gave me some very good advice. She gave me a few writing blogs to follow, and she told me to just attend the first few meetings as an observer (not bringing anything in to be critiqued just yet).

Fighting my know-it-all instinct, I followed her advice. After a few meetings and some reading at home, I began to understand this foreign language I’d been hearing. I became even more inspired to write, and to give God glory by learning to do write effectively so I can do the best job possible to further his kingdom.

I still have much to learn, and this will be an education to last a lifetime. But when I went to a writer’s conference in May, I received confirmation over and over again that I was doing exactly what I needed to be doing. Two publishers took my work with them, and two agents requested book proposals.

As a pharmacist, writing is a whole new world for me, and is not one I would ever have considered on my own. God definitely led me there. I am sure Zerubbabel was intimidated by the task of building the temple, just as I am intimidated by the task of writing a book. But because I am being obedient to God in this task, I know that he is rejoicing and blessing my writing every small step of the way. I’m incorporating new habits  am looking forward to the grandeur of the end result, whatever and whenever that may be.

 

From my heart,
Celeste

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One God, One Hope, One Choice…It’s that simple.

22 July, 2011 by 2 Comments
One God, One Hope, One Choice…It’s that simple.

Now when you read this statement, you might think, “what does she mean it is that simple?” Believe me, when I was in my state of depression, I would not have thought so either. When I felt like I would rather chop my head off that have my migraine continue, nothing was simple. My well-meaning, glass-always-overflowing teenager would say, “think about it this way, it’s better than if you were in a wheelchair or lost your arm or something.”

As frustrating as it was, she (or any of the rest of my family) could not understand my pain because they had never experienced depression, and I pray they never do!

The word “choice” is a key word here. I am not speaking of the “choice” to be happy and not depressed, or the “choice” to be cancer free, or the “choice” to be financially successful. There are, of course, steps you can take to help yourself in any of these situations, but there are some conditions beyond our immediate control, not situations we got ourselves into by “choice”.

The choice I am referring to here is Christ. He is my choice. Choosing Christ over everything else is really the only choice that matters.

Think about the choices you make in any given day:
“What do I wear today?”
“What do I want to eat for breakfast?”
“Should I start housework first or get my errands done first?”
“What should I cook for supper tonight?”
“How should I spend my time today?”
“Should I go the back way to avoid traffic or stay on the highway?”
“Should I buy this dress or is it too expensive?”

The list is truly endless. Everyone’s choices are different from everyone else’s, and they are different from day to day. When we were building our house, someone told me that throughout that process, you will make 360,000 decisions. My guess is that it was even more than that!

Make a list of choices you made this week. Looking back over these choices, how many of them were choices that will still be important tomorrow? What about next week? Next month? Ten years from now?

There is only ONE choice that you will make that will be important forever. FOREVER!!!
That is the choice to accept Christ as your savior and let Him have control of all of your life. Doesn’t that make all of the other choices seem silly?

There is a forever out there for each and every one of us. The choice you make today, right now, may be the choice that determines your forever.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.”

What else is there?

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Filed Under: Making Changes, Your Relationship with God Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Life is Good, Eternity is Better

21 July, 2011 by 1 Comment
 Life is Good
Eternity is Better

This passage in John 14 is a favorite of many. I consider it the comfort chapter in the Bible. Jesus knew that  his time on earth was coming to and end, and he wanted to reassure his disciples everything would be okay and he had it under control. Oh how I have clung to these verses for the last seven years. I claimed this verse over and over in my head, but I could not really feel it in my heart. 

While I worked so hard to find some cure for my seizures and depression, my focus remained on what I could do. How could I use my knowledge about science, pharmacy, and medicine to make me better? Me, me, me, I, I, I…God couldn’t get a word in edgewise! It wasn’t until I was completely and totally exhausted that I gave God a chance to say, “Hey, look what I can do for you!” Once I let go of control and let God be God, he began to show me amazing things. The many times I read these verses, I thought I “got it.” Heaven is out there somewhere for us to live an eternal life and we will be happy. 
Somewhere, someday…but not now. 

It is so easy to get wrapped up in the problems of this world…we certainly have plenty of them! But when we begin to compare our life here with the life Jesus has prepared for us in Heaven, do some of those problems seem trivial? We all must deal with problems on a daily basis, because we must live in this world for now. But in John 16:33, God tells us that yes, we will have trouble in this world, but he has overcome the world!
I recently heard Jeff Strueker speak at a writer’s conference. A former army ranger and subject of the national best-seller, “Black Hawk Down,” he challenged me to think about life and death, from a Christian, eternal perspective. He was faced with the harsh reality that he was walking into his death during a mission in Somalia, and had to put his “bullet-proof faith” into action. When he was commanded to walk into the most dangerous situation in his life, he realized that no matter what, he could not lose. If he survived the mission, he would get to return home to live happily with his new wife. If he did not survive, he would get to enter his eternal home, Heaven, and live forever in the presence of our living God! 

If we could begin to approach our struggles and fears in life with an eternal perspective such as this, how much better would we be able to handle our day to day problems? How much better would we be able to handle life and death situations? Jesus has our eternal home ready. He has taken special care to prepare a specific place for each and every one of his children. 


Life can be good and life can be bad. But if you know Jesus as your savior, eternity will be AWESOME.

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Distractions

18 July, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Housework. Laundry. Dishes. “UUUGGGGHHHH” (as Charlie Brown would say). I go from one task to the next, room to room to room, putting up, washing, repairing, scrubbing, etc. When I have all of these tasks on my mind that I need to accomplish, I think by brain goes into “shutdown” mode. I will be in the kitchen doing dishes, when I suddenly remember my favorite jeans need to be washed for tomorrow. I go to my closet to get my jeans, but instead I remember that I need to take clothes to the consignment shop on Friday. So I begin to gather those items, but I have nothing to put them in. So I go to the laundry room to get a bag, and I see the empty cat food bag on the counter and must make a note to pick it up when I go to the store. When I go to get a piece of paper to write it on, I see the stack of bills that must be paid today or they will be late…I think you get the picture! I run around like a mouse in a maze, and never get anywhere! Distractions are one of the devil’s greatest tools.

I have always said that I wish I could write messages to myself on the back of my eyelids so I get a reminder every time I blink! Maybe I could stay focused. Maybe? 

How often do we say that we are going to spend more time praying? We have the best intentions, but as soon as we let our mind go elsewhere, Satan is armed and ready with distractions to keep our mind so busy we forget to pray.  I need to write “God” on the back of my eyelids. Our busy lives take away our time and attention from God, who deserves and desires it most of all. Since the beginning of this year, I have made a special effort to remind myself constantly that God deserves my attention. God loves my attention. God demands my attention. We should not be in the habit of only talking to Him before each meal and at bedtime. How would you feel in this were the only times you spoke to your children every day? Do you think that you would be very close to them? Would they know the unconditional love that you have for them? Probably not.

Well, I have worked long and hard to find a solution to this problem. Now I am quite sure I should patent this idea, but I suppose I could go ahead and share it…

Neon colored post it notes. 

I really wanted to be able to stay in an attitude of prayer throughout the day, so I simply wrote “God” on a bunch of hot pink post it notes, and scattered them throughout the house where I will see them on a regular basis. 

On my alarm clock.
Above my kitchen sink.
On my washer and dryer.
On the dashboard of my car.
On the bathroom mirror. 

It worked! Every time I saw my hot pink reminder, I prayed. Before long, I didn’t need the notes anymore. When my alarm clock goes off, I pray (although it may be after the first couple of times I hit the snooze button). I pray when I get in my car. I pray when I am getting dressed in the mornings. You get the picture. These daily tasks are “linked” in my mind to those post it notes, and therefore to my prayer time. Habits are formed after repeating them for around 2 weeks, so before long, my direct line to my heavenly father was connected all the time.

What do I pray for? Sometimes I have a specific need or praise, but I often just talk to him about whatever I am thinking. I will tell him all of the tasks I am trying to get accomplished. I ask him to help me remember all the tasks that must be done! Your brain is never still, it’s always running. No matter what is going on in there, God wants to hear it. When you don’t know what to say, just listen. He has plenty to tell to a willing ear.

Your prescription for today says, “You must love him with all your heart, soul, and might. And you must think constantly about these commandments I am giving you today. You must teach them to your children and talk about them when you are at home or out for a walk; at bedtime and first thing in the morning. Tie them on your finger, wear them on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house!”

I knew that God wants us to always be in an attitude of prayer, but I didn’t know the post-it notes and eye-lid writing were biblical! God does not want us to be “lukewarm”. God does not want our leftovers. He wants ALL of us!

I challenge you to try the same thing. Begin to make God a priority in your life, bringing him into your every day tasks. I promise he will reveal himself to you more and more, and your relationship with him will grow. So go ahead, go get those post-its!
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