Drill Sergeant Mama

I love my children. All of them, equally. Josh is nine. He's become very good at being nine. Suddenly, I know nothing. He's nine and I'm an idiot. Apparently he has received some high powered download of intelligence, and simultaneously it has sucked all the brains out of my head. (Shoot, just figured out where all his sarcasm comes from...darn it!) Anyway, lately our form of punishment seems to have very little effect on him. So, I have borrowed some tactics of our men and women in uniform. When he is disrespectful, rude, and/or argumentative, he now has to drop and give me 10 push ups. I have warned him that this could take place anywhere...home, baseball practice, church, the grocery store. So if you're walking down the cereal aisle in Bi-Lo and you see a kid on the floor, don't worry, it's just Josh. He has already done 60 push-ups today. (It's been a rough day.) I told him either he'll learn respect really quick, or he'll have the biggest muscles in school before long.

Pass It On

Judges 2:8-13
Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of a hundred and ten. And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD and served the Baals. They forsook the LORD, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They aroused the Lord's anger.

~

When I am tired. When I feel like I am making no progress. When I see no positive results. When I am tempted to give up.  Lord, help me to remember this passage of scripture. Help me to never forget that no matter how many miracles, acts of mercy, demonstrations of grace you have done in the past for your people, that I must be diligent to pass You on to the next generation, to my descendants, to my sweet angels with all their wide-eyed wonder. Help me to stay the course. Help me to never give up. Help me to press on. Help me to keep teaching them of Your goodness. Give me strength to continue to instruct them in Your promises. Because if I don't, then who will?

Playing hookey

Friday AND no school...what a great combination! We took advantage of a simply perfect sunny day in the Upstate, and made the most of it! Lily even learned how to say "BUBBLES"!

Yea, we know who's in charge in this group!

Sugar and Spice

With the birth of each child, our family has become new. Each has brought a special flavor to the Parra mix. Lily is definitely sugar...with a touch of spice. She has a sweetness about her. At any given moment, she will make her rounds, giving hugs and kisses, just because. We played hide and seek in the yard yesterday, and Lily chased the boys with arms wide open, squeezing her captives tight with lots of love. She has a smile that melts you and a giggle that is contagious. If I have music on or she is watching Miss Patty Cake on TV, you will almost always find her dancing and twirling to the tunes. But along with all that sweetness, there's a bit of spice mixed in. She can go from sweet to sour in 0.5 seconds flat. I'd like to think she gets her sweetness from me, and her spice from Dad...haha...but the truth is that even my sweet Lily has an old nature, one we are all born with, one that we must allow the Lord to break in us. I am thankful for both the sugar and the spice, because it reminds me that the joy of the Lord is our strength, and also that His strength is made perfect in our weakness.

On the Offense

Day 3 since I have completely lost my senses...haha. Still can't smell or taste a thing.  Yesterday, out of habit, I put ketchup on my eggs, and french vanilla in my coffee. Why? Last night, while I dipped my flavorless fish sticks in tasteless ketchup, I had an epiphany. What a waste to eat something that has no flavor. Today, I drank my coffee black, and the only reason I had coffee was so the warmth might break up my sinuses and soothe my sore throat. I could have easily drank hot water, and it would have tasted exactly the same. This morning, I examined my foolish, flavorless food consumption and thought, How many times do we do things out of habit, and get no satisfaction from it? How many times have we just put up with the same old stuff because it's what we know, what we are comfortable with, what we have done all our lives? What a waste of effort, time, and, in this case, calories! So, after looking at my situation with different eyes, I decided it's a perfect time to stick it to the devil and have a day of prayer and fasting. I am praying for healing of my family and extended family, that He orders our every step, and for new senses, both physical and spiritual. Matthew 5:13 says, "We are the salt of the earth." How awful it is when something that is meant to have salt, doesn't. I ate a bag of chips yesterday in hopes that maybe the extreme saltiness would come through, even a small bit, but it didn't. I craved flavor, and tasted nothing. We were created to crave the things of God. In fact, everyone has felt the pangs of hunger inside of them and many don't realize what they are truly yearning for is God. The devil, who was once an angel in the presence of the Lord, has felt this hunger, for all of creation experiences it. Our deep desire is to be satisfied in a real way. The enemy of our soul has placed things in the world to attempt to satisfy that craving with everything else but God. Many are full, yet, few are satisfied.


We, as Christians, are called to bring out the flavor of God in all that we do, and we should make others thirsty for Him. We should be able to be used by God to melt an ice cold heart, and heal the wounds of the afflicted. Salt by itself, is undesirable, at best. Salt that has lost it's saltiness is worthless. Salt is meant to be added to something to change and transform that thing which it touches. Knowing what salt does, has no value, unless you actually put it to use. So, the devil can have my bland breakfast, lifeless lunch and drab dinner...I am feasting on the Word so I can become a little more salty...and in the meantime, drinking of the Living Water, and eating the Bread of Life which never disappoints and always satisfies!

Hubs-by Steven Furtick

This was so good, I decided to share it here on my blog. It really spoke to me and all the hubs I have been to in my life. Nothing is ever wasted, God always has a plan.
"The steps of a righteous man are odered by God." Psalm 37:23

Hubs

Thursday March 17th, 2011 – Permalink
Spiritual Growth

When you’re flying through airports, you often have to fly through one city to get to another city. They’re called hubs. Transfer points to get passengers to their intended destination.

So if you want to get to Philly, sometimes you have to go to Atlanta. Even if Atlanta is in the exact opposite direction from Philly and it makes no sense to go there first. It sounds weird and counterintuitive, but it’s just the way it works.

The same is true with God’s will.

I think most people assume that when God reveals to you what He wants you to do with your life, like a genie He quickly and immediately transports you to it. Yet that’s rarely the case. There are very few non-stop flights to God’s will.

I was 16 when I received a vision from God to one day pastor a church. It wasn’t until ten years later that we planted Elevation. In-between those two points were multiple hubs, most of which I would never have scripted out as transfer points to my intended destination. But each was absolutely essential.

For example, I never thought I’d come to plant Elevation by going to Shelby, NC. Don’t feel bad, most people have never heard of it either. But if I hadn’t gone to Shelby, I wouldn’t have met many of the key leaders that got Elevation off the ground and have been so instrumental to its success.

Or even before that, I never thought I’d come to Elevation by going to Tigerville, SC for college. But if I hadn’t gone to Tigerville, I never would have met Holly. And without her, Elevation wouldn’t exist.

I’ve concluded that you can’t script out what God wants to do through your life. You just have to follow it step by step. Everybody wants the ten-year plan. Everybody wants to know the full alphabet of God’s plan for them.

But we don’t like living in each letter.

We love A and B. And we love Y and Z.

But we hate L, M, N, O, P.

We hate the hubs that get us from the place where we first get a hint at God’s will for our lives to the place where it actually comes to fruition. Yet those are some of the most important places we’ll ever go. It’s there that God is preparing us for what He has for us.

God knows how to get you to where He wants you. Even if it doesn’t seem like the most direct route that you’d prefer. And He’s not just wasting your time or playing games with you. There’s a purpose to every hub He takes you to. To the hub you may be in right now.

That includes the school you can’t wait to graduate from.
The relationship you thought would lead to marriage, but then didn’t.
The city you’re living in that you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy.
The job you know you don’t want to be at forever, but where you feel stuck at for now.

Don’t be afraid to go to Atlanta to go to Philly.
God’s going to get you to Philly. And He’s got something for you in Atlanta in the meantime.

Down for the Count

I don't remember the last time I ever had a cold like this one. Our whole family has been really sick. Everyone is taking some form of antibiotic. Jonathan is on his second round, as the first one didn't clear up his ear infection. Luis and I, since we don't have any prescription coverage, opted to buy antibiotics from the Mexican store in Anderson. A little risky, but the way I figure, if I had to put up with this sinus infection for another day, my head was probably going to explode anyhow. I feel like I dove into a pool and got water up my nose. Maybe a better analogy would be if someone stuck two water hoses up my nose and turned the spigot on full blast. Yea, that's sounds more like it. I have lost all sense of smell. so food has absolutely zero taste. (What a waste of calories-maybe it's time to start that diet I've been talking about for the last 10 years.) On a bright note, Lily's diapers are odorless...well, for me anyway. Unfortunately that means I don't know when Lily has a dirty diaper, until she does that "bottom scratching" dance on the carpet. Don't pretend you don't know what I am talking about-your kids have done it too. Yesterday, I got home from an afternoon at the doctor with all three children still alive, a feat in and of itself. I filled Jonathan's new prescription on the way to Josh's baseball practice, which, although he has a cough like a barking dog, I allowed him to attend in a moment of deliriousness on my part, and crocodile tears on his. I am very easily manipulated when I am incoherent. Remind me not to answer the door or the telephone for the next 24-48 hours. I got home from Josh's practice to find Lily waddling in the garage while she straddled her bulgy, soaked diaper, Luis sitting at his workbench trying to fix an engine under the influence of contraband antibiotics and large doses of pain killers, and Jonathan crying on the couch with green slime in his eyes. Instead of putting Luis to death on the spot with my evil laser eyes (which is what I wanted to do), I decided to extend the mercy rule, since he has been just about as sick as I have ever seen him, yet has not missed a day of work. I'm sure he appreciated that I spared his life. I told Jonathan to follow me to the kitchen, and I pulled out the new medicine. His crying went from a few boo-hoos to full blown wails at the sight of some other pink liquid he was going to have to ingest. I know the economy is tight right now, but you think they would always put a little extra medicine in children's prescriptions for those special times when the first dose shoots out of the child's mouth and lands on your shoe. Just a thought. We then went to the bathroom to wipe the radioactive goop from his eyes, and I sent them all to bed without brushing their teeth or taking their showers. Safe to say I am not winning any Stay-at-Home-Mom Emmy this week.


Today, I am beginning to see some light at the end of the tunnel. Jonathan has his appetite back, Lily's nose is running clear, and Luis is finally able to swallow his own spit. If that's not progress, I don't know what is! Jonathan is back to asking me how to spell every word in the universe, and Lily has resumed climbing on everything that is able to be climbed upon. As much as I have needed a little down time lately, this is not the way I wanted it. I'll be glad when my family is up and running at 150% as usual!

Piggy Back Rides

I used to love a piggy back ride when I was a kid, and my kids do too. It's a hug and a free lift, all in one. But, you have to admit it is the ultimate in laziness, and a bit risky as well, because if the one you're riding on falls, you're going down with them.


I've lingered in the book of John for the last week. I love how the Bible comes to life, and brings new meaning, even after reading the same passages time and time again. I read John 7 and John 8 (you can click on it to read it in it's entirety). Just to sum it up, it was the time of the Feast of Tabernacles. One of the most important of the Jewish festivals. Everyone went up to Jerusalem to celebrate. (Makes me think of Christmas and Easter...when people, who all year long have had nothing to do with God, show up at a building, and pay honor to the God of their ancestors out of some sort of obligation.) According to the Jewish tradition, it is a seven day festival that celebrates the bountiful harvest, and ends in the day of the "Great Hosanna", a time when they pray for the Messiah to come. Jesus went up secretly, but it's impossible to hide the Light in darkness. Soon, he was teaching in the temple, and the whole crowd was there. The Chief Priests and the Pharisees were listening, and becoming more angry with each word Jesus spoke. After all, they were the only ones who were only supposed to teach the Book of the law (the part of the Bible that had been written and the religious laws that accompanied it up to that point in history).

How fitting it was that Jesus chose this last day of the festival to go to Jerusalem. He was an answer to their many devout prayers that day, for the Messiah to come, yet they didn't even recognize Him. How many times have we prayed and prayed, and the answer came right away, and we didn't even see it, because it wasn't the answer we expected or wanted. Thousands, I am sure. But that's not what jumped out at me. What leapt off the page was how the people spoke to Jesus, and the way He responded to them. The Priests and the Pharisees (the most religious people of all at that time) spoke to the Son of God as if he was a lunatic. Can you imagine being face to face with the incarnate God, and having the audacity to insult Him, mock Him, and disregard Him? They were the elite of the Jewish religion. They were the "mature" of the faith. They had the Mosaic law written on their foreheads. Yet, in all their piety, with all their head knowledge of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, they had no revelation of their own, and were completely ignorant as to whom was standing before them. They had a "piggy-back" religious experience. Abraham knew God. Isaac and Jacob were intimately acquainted with the Lord. The Jewish people of Jesus’ time studied their forefathers religiously, yet did not really know God. The faith of their fathers was such a powerful faith, that they could feel it, and were caught up in it. Unfortunately, when those descendents died, all that remained was the past encounters with God, and the laws they were forced to follow. These testimonies were powerful, but were never meant to replace the daily revelation that God wants all his people to experience. The freshness of the presence of God was replaced by the staleness of tradition, religion and law. It is a religious spirit that is sent to distract us from knowing God. To give us a false sense of security that we are just fine, because we are doing what we were taught. How crafty of Satan to use yesterday's faith to trick us into thinking we know God. Even though I grew up in a Bible believing, Pentecostal church and home, I had a "piggy-back" faith when I was little. My parents had experienced God in miraculous ways, and I remember my Mom daily in her Bible, getting fresh "manna" from heaven. She was a prayer warrior. She knew God. I only knew the God of my Mother. For many children, this is the case. It is our job as parents to teach our faith, and live our faith in front of our children. Then when they grow up, that relationship that they have watched for years should launch them into having their own, personal relationship with God. I never made that transition, and when I became an adult, and was faced with serious sin and problems, and I had no real power for myself. Having faith in someone else's faith doesn't work. I had to come to a place in my life where I desired to know God for myself. I finally did, when I was 22 years old, and what a difference it has made in my life!

In many churches today, that same spirit of religion is alive. It is no respecter of denomination. Catholic and Protestant, Baptist and Pentecostal alike. If the people are following the faith of someone else, and have no personal encounter with God for themselves, they are left to lean on tradition and rules. After all, the "church" is not a building or a denomination, but rather a group of people who know God. The buildings that we go to on Sunday are just a place for the Church to gather together. Lately, I have encountered many well intentioned people, who are filled with this religious spirit. I, at times, have to struggle to keep my walk with the Lord fresh, and battle to stay in His presence daily. When I feed my spirit with God's word and His presence, I know God more and more. I call myself a Christian, which means that I am striving to be Christ-like. How can I be like Christ, if I don't really know him? My deepest desire is to know Him.

Stirring it up

Here was my reading this morning from John 5:1-6

Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie-the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?".

So, I got this picture in my mind of all these people lying around this pool of water. Probably some were crying out in anguish. Maybe some were downcast, and depressed. Inevitably, some were likely to be there purely out of curiosity, to see if what they had heard about the "healing pool" was true. I imagine that there were family members of the afflicted as well. If you read a little further, we see that when the waters were stirred, people could enter and receive their healing. Can you imagine the excitement of these people? They were probably shouting, and leaping for joy. So, when Jesus spoke to this man, and said "Do you want to get well?", it seemed like an odd question. The man was obviously lame. According to the scripture,he had this condition for 38 years. He was there at the pool. Of course he wanted to get well, I thought. So why, then, did Jesus ask this question? I have learned that when Jesus asks a question, it is worth reading a few times. Jesus doesn't ask questions so He can learn something new about us. He is God, and He is all-knowing. Jesus asks questions to allow us to see what the condition of our heart is. When we have to formulate our answer, it requires us to do some soul searching.

Sometimes we don't really know what is in our heart, until we come face to face with a direct question. Everywhere Jesus went, He "stirred the waters". He loves for us to see what our true feelings and motives are. For only then, can we see our need for adjustment. The other day, Luis made a pot of coffee, and on my way out the door, I quickly poured myself a cup. I added my cream and milk, and it looked delicious-I mean I could taste it, even before I tasted it...I love my coffee! But when I took a spoon and started to stir it, I realized that there were coffee grounds in the bottom of the cup. blah! What seemed delectable, became detestable after I stirred it up.


"Do you want to be well"? It takes more than just showing up. That man at Bethesda showed up every day. But that specific day, Jesus gave that man a clear set of instructions: "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk". If that man had chosen to stay on the ground, he probably would have been there until he died. God wants to give us a clear set of instructions for our life as well. He wants to give us direct revelation for our lives. He does not want us to rely on communicated information from some other source. He wants us to hear it straight from Him. Showing up is vital, but it is just the first step. We need to be alert. We need to have an attentive ear. We need to be willing to act. We need to be obedient to God and His word. We need to be willing to let go of what is comfortable, what is familiar, what is culturally accepted. We need to decide once and for all that the culture of heaven is more important than our western counterpart. The culture of today doesn't allow for this. The world screams, "Be tolerant!", while God says, "Be holy.". This generation is very different from the generations of the past. There is little regard for authority. The concept of right and wrong has been severely skewed. God has become an afterthought, if He is even a thought at all. We have become a "me" culture. In general we are takers rather than givers with servants hearts. I heard a Pastor say recently that "this generation is the most reckless generation yet. The music is dark. Everything about the culture of today is hopeless. There is no vision for tomorrow." The previous generation, dropped the ball, and decided not to pass the values instilled to them by the generation before. Consequently, the generation of today is left to find their own way, with no moral guide. A path that is dimly lit, at best. So we, as followers of Christ are also called to stir the waters. Not in a hostile way, but humbly. We should live different, sound different, act different, react different than the culture around us. We should stick out like a sore thumb, but the church today, in general, has developed a highly effective camouflage, to the point where they are nearly invisible. God desires us to "want to be well". He wants us to be effective. He wants us to used by Him. He wants to lead us and guide us by His Spirit. He has not turned His back on this generation, we have turned our back on Him. He is stirring the waters again. I want in!

Hosanna

I see the king of glory
Coming on the clouds with fire
The whole earth shakes
The whole earth shakes

I see his love and mercy
Washing over all our sin
The people sing
The people sing

Hosanna
Hosanna
Hosanna in the highest

I see a generation
Rising up to take their place
With selfless faith
With selfless faith

I see a near revival
Stirring as we pray and seek
We're on our knees
We're on our knees

Heal my heart and make it clean
Open up my eyes to the things unseen
Show me how to love like you have loved me

Break my heart from what breaks yours
Everything I am for your kingdoms cause
As I go from nothing to
Eternity

(Hosanna-Hillsong United, Austrailia)

Who I Am

God spoke something to me when I was driving today. He said,

"Until you begin to fully see yourself the way I see you, you will never be as effective as I want you to be. When your perception of yourself is less than My perception of you, you will not be free to completely flow in my Spirit. You will still flow, but with apprehension and with insecurity. When you embrace yourself the way I see you, only then can I flow through you unhindered."

So, when I got home, I began to say, OK Lord, how do you see me? A flood of scriptures entered my head, starting with

I am the head and not the tail, the top and not the bottom. (Deuteronomy 28:13)
I am fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14).
I am a new creature. (2 Cor 5:17)
I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might. (Micah 3:8)
I am strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. (Ephesians 6:10)
I am the apple of His eye. (Zechariah 2:8)
I am the child of the Most High. (Luke 6:35)
I am loved by God and nothing can separate me from His love. (Romans 8:35)
I am chosen by God. (Ephesians 1:4)
I am forgiven and my sin-debt is paid. (Colossians 2:13-14)
I am strengthened for all tasks to which God calls me. (Philippians 4:13)
I am never alone --- God will not leave me. (Hebrews 13:5)

I could go on and on, but what a great start!

The world is so busy telling us what we are NOT, convincing us if we just did this or that, or bought this or that, THEN we would be fulfilled. If we only looked a little thinner, darker, blonder, sexier, then we would truly be content. We are constantly trying to measure up to the latest supermodel, top notch job, flashy car, thinking that is what is going to bring us contentment. In the church, the religious spirit rises up today, just as it did in Jesus' time. Remember what the word says, "There is nothing new under the sun". (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The minute you stand up, and declare who you are in Christ (according to what God has spoken in His word), all the hairs stand straight up on the backs of the deeply religious, and a, "Who do you think you are" attitude rears it's ugly head. Satan does not want us to understand and become who we are in God's eyes. Because when we do, we will walk in a holy boldness, powerful and mighty in the strength of the Lord, and we will be used by God to destroy the chains and shackles that have bound ourselves, our loved ones, and all those around us. We will take back ground that he has stolen. We will boldly speak the word of God, bringing thousands into forgiveness and right relationship with their Lord. 

I have been asleep too long. It's time to be who I was created to be. It's time for you to be who God has created you to be.

Be the real you.