Complain and Remain, Praise and Be Raised

So I was reading through my daily devotional on YouVersion, a great bible app I use daily, and the message today was head on. The phrase: Complain and Remain, Praise and Be Raised is going to be my new saying!

It said that words are containers of power. When we grumble and complain, the words we are using are carrying destructive power. They affect no only you but those you are speaking with, polluting the mind. When we complain about our current situation we remain in it, when we praise God in the midst of it, He raises us out of it.

This is powerful to me because in my situation over here in Romania, I find myself complaining and venting with teammates. Although it helps me feel better and releases some anger, by finding community in this, I remain in the painful or destructive situation. Constantly complaining and thinking about "how bad things are" or "how frustrating things are." But you will never be able to move on and get past if if you are constantly complaining about it.

I need to Praise the Lord in my struggle. Like 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 says "my strength is made perfect in weakness...for when I am weak I am strong." After giving praise to the Lord, He will lift me up, and beyond the situation, and I can refocus on the next thing. Instead of staying in the never ending cyclone or distress and complaining about what happened. I need to let go of my frustrations and move on. 'Nail it to the cross and press on.'

Also something I try to avoid is complain to others or gossiping about the situation. Not only does the bible say we shouldn't gossip, Proverbs 26:20-22, but it does the same thing. Keeps you wrapped up in the past, what has happened. When I continue to complain or talk about what's frustrating me, I tend to get even more angry or frustrated. So confiding in someone about the situation to get it off your chest is one thing, but like Einstein said, "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result." By continuing to complain, nothing is going to change. So I need to surrender it to the Lord and move on. 

Just a realization I had this morning and thought I'd share it, maybe it will help someone dealing with the same thing. I just love when the Lord reveals things to me and love growing in my faith.

The Merciful Life

So like I've blogged about before, I am working through and learning how to be forgiving and merciful to those who strongly wrong me. It's difficult, isn't it? Someone who has done something tremendously wrong to you, how are you to forgive them and show them mercy? It's only with the Holy Spirit that we can over come our human nature of revenge to forgive and show these people who have wronged us mercy.

Watching a podcast from my church in Los Angeles, I was encouraged. Pastor Tim helped me realize what mercy does and does not mean (not being a doormat as I thought). Pastor Tim explained that those who take on another's needs are truly the ones that are blessed and show mercy. Usually those who need mercy most are people in need and in the wrong.

The Merciful Life. If you aren't convinced yet, take a look at what you would look like if you don't chose to be merciful. Here are the other options to being merciful. How are you approaching life?

Alternatives to Merciful Life: other ways to live life instead of living the merciful life

1. Life of Malevolence of Another: Wishing evil on another person...day dreaming of destruction upon another person. Driven by bitterness and consumed by what the other person can get (revenge). Maximize the faults of others...they aren't the only ones that are sinful, you too sin and deserve mercy. 
2. Indifference. Don't have and try for destruction but just don't care. Majority of people take this position (it's their life, not your problem.) A true living faith produces and acts with people (not indifferent and not help). To look at people the way God looks at people. 
3. Avoidance: Deliberately avoid for particular reasons. Jesus names this again and again. For religious people, righteousness is dependent on all externals (exclusion of internals). Have to be seen and serve in the "right" way.  These people can be very moral however, they do not have mercy. Jesus points out that morality without idolatry. This is because they live by their own believed truths (what they think is right). Example of these avoider: Pharisees 

When it comes to mercy we tend to be very selective. Are they worthy of my mercy?
We tend to be occasional with mercy; our circle of kindness tends to only to be used towards those in our circle. Christians, friends and family, the group you belong to, etc... It's easier to show mercy to those we like or see ourselves in, rather than someone me may not understand, who is completely opposite of us.
Those who many not believe in God, they decide when, where, and how they show mercy. Relative to how they currently think (morals of right and wrong). In the end, the relative and religious persons both pick and chose when to show mercy. They are the same.


REFLECTION: Which one of these are you? Or are you living the Merciful Life? 

Evidences of a Merciful Life: let them off easy and pretend it doesn't happen? NO.

1. Truthful Discernment: Mercy is NOT pretending it never happen or matter.  
•  **The bible never asks you to pretend that those horrible things that happen to you never happened. Mercy means taking needs and wrongs very seriously. Holding onto the truth helps us realize what we really need (a lot of what we want is not what we need).**  
• If God is not a God of Justice, then He's not worth worshiping. Holding to the truth we show God to be a God of Justice. 
• Showing Mercy doesn't mean you are a doormat. It will involve setting up boundaries and speaking hard truths in other's lives. This may be difficult, but it will be speaking the truth. Mercy isn't on our or their terms but GODS terms. It's not loving to make it easy for other's to sin against you, so it may involve hard truths and boundaries. 
2. Inward Compassion: those in sin, the wrong, distress (especially those who are extremely different from you). I get them, I understand I have pity for you so I'll show you mercy. Those who you don't understand or get it's harder to show them mercy. But that contradicts the whole point of mercy (choosing who to show mercy to). 
• A merciful life is deep inward compassion, that your heart breaks for people in need, those you can relate to or not. Identify with those people, as we are all sinners and have all wrong someone at sometime. Put yourself in their shoes. If you have never seen yourself as desperate and in need, you can not identify yourself with others. The mercy Jesus talks of grows up from the heart. 
3. Shown Outward Compassion: through help, aid, and forgiveness
• For most of us, mercy remains just a thought, But it needs to go somewhere. Mercy without deeds is not mercy. Mercy would include the most practical to most profound. Aid for those in need. We should be looking for ways to come and stand under them, help those in need. 
• But also Mercy means to forgive. Reconciliation. Mercy is about necessary forgiveness for reconciliation. We not only need to care and show mercy to the oppressed but also the oppressors. To pray for them, to help change what is going on. Paul says "put on mercy" Colossians 3:12. Think about it, when you put on clothing people see it. So put on mercy and those around you will see mercy (demonstrated in the community).
4. Impulses for a Merciful Life: First impulse of a merciful life we think of is God is Merciful
• God gives mercy to those who show mercy. Matthew 5:7  Does that verse totally depend on if you are merciful?? If God's mercy to us, depended on us and our perfect track record...then none of us would receive mercy or be saved. We are given the promise of mercy by the Lord. 
• Mercy is not earned! Some people have a hard time receiving mercy because they are think they have to earn it. It's all about debt and owing it. Mercy is 100% unearned. 
• How can you receive mercy when you wont show mercy to anyone else? We forgive because we have been forgiven. *past tense! 
• **Biggest proof that you can show mercy to others is the fact that you have received the mercy God has given to you** Matthew 18:21-35 is the perfect example of Mercy. The master truly gives mercy, knowing that all the debt the servant owes, he will take on himself. However the servant doesn't accept the mercy because he tries to get all the money back-earning the mercy. 

In conclusion, I learned:

1. Being merciful doens't mean I am a doormat and letting people walk all over me
2. Usually the ones who act out and are focused on hurting you need mercy the most
3. Before you can show mercy to others, you need to fully accept the mercy the Lord gives freely to us.
4. Mercy means compassion, forgiveness, and reconciliation

Do We Really LOVE God?

I just wanted to share this. I was going through a devotional the other day and I found this very inspirational and humbling. Hope it touches your heart like it has mine.

Our love to God arises out of our emptiness; God's love to us out of our fullness. Our impoverishment draws us to that power which can relieve and to that goodness which can bless us. His overflowing love delights to make us partakers of the bounties He graciously imparts. We can only be said to love God when we endeavor to glorify Him, when we desire a participation of His nature, when we study to imitate His perfections. We are sometimes inclined to suspect the love of God to us, while we too little suspect our own lack of love to Him...When the heart is devoted to God, we do not need to be perpetually reminded of our obligations to obey Him. They present themselves spontaneously and we fulfill them readily. We think not so much of the service as of the One served. [The motivation which suggests the work inspires the pleasure.] The performance is the gratification, and the omission is both a pain to the conscience and wound to the affections...Though we cannot be always thinking of God, we may be always employed in His service. There must be intervals of our communion with Him, but there must be not intermission of our attachment to Him. 

Poison of Bitterness

Anger. Frustration. Jealousy. Righteousness. Envy. Hatred. Rage. Bitterness.

I have felt every one of these words sometime in the past few months. It bothers me that I am feeling these things and have been wrestling with how to stop feeling these ways. They come and go, but when I am feeling them it's like a cyclone where I can't get away from feeling that way. 

I have been trying to watch a podcast or two a day to help keep my mind and heart on Jesus and to avoid any of these negative feelings as it is a constant struggle living in a foreign country like Romania. It has become my new ritual, so to speak, to watch these podcasts. It's been great for me. I feel like the Lord is revealing a lot to me through the scriptures, teachings, and additional time I spend with the Lord. So today, I was watching a podcast on The Poison of Bitterness. And was it GOOD! 

My first reaction was, okay yeah people become bitter. I didn't think much of it. But to my surprise I realized bitterness has been at the root of all these feelings I have been experiencing while over here in Romania. Bitterness isn't something that is discussed much and so it was great to watch a sermon on it. It is because bitterness is hidden within you-below the surface. It isn't something that is easily seen until it's too late and you explode from all the build up. Anyhow, I would recommend you to take some time to watch the podcast as it was a great teaching. Please check it out here.

So I realized the Poison of Bitterness lays at the root of our inability to forgive and press on. Side note: Press on is part of an expression I heard once. Someone said "nail it to the cross and press on." This was referring to Jesus being nailed to the cross (our sins) so we could press on (accept His grace and move forward). 

Our anger or frustrations are the beginning, then when we can't forgive it hides inside us festering, never forgetting. This is when seeds are planted and take root in bitterness and wont let go. They root in you, unable to let it go. This bitterness you hold can affect your whole life and the lives of others. You project your feelings on others, you replay the events over and over again becoming obsessed with what happened, and you become suspicious of everyone-waiting for them to hurt you or do the same. 

When you become bitter, you leave no room for God to do work in your life because you have built walls to protect yourself from being hurt again. You can not be up rooted and change the way the Lord has planned for you. You are stuck in an eddy unable to move. 

How do we get out of these Eddies? 

"See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many" ~Hebrews 12:15

We are to strive for unity and peace rom the fruits of the spirit. These fruits of the spirit are: "love, joy, holiness, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control, peacefulness" (Galatians 5:22-26). We can fight our fleshly desires with the fruits of the spirit. Practice these fruits to combat the works of our flesh. It is with the Holy Spirit working in our hearts that we are able to change our hearts and reap the benefits of the fruits. 

"Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind towards one another.Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion." ~Romans 12:14-16

We need to love our enemies. It's easy to love those like us and those we really love, but how do we love our enemies and those who continuously hurt us? It's hard, and I by no means have figured out the key because I am constantly hurt by others and have to accept God's grace to forgive the people who hurt me. I struggle and it takes time but I find freedom once I have truly forgiven them and can move on. Win them back with kindness, forgiveness, and holiness. 

We are not to avenge for ourselves or take matters into our own hands to find justice. For it is written in Romans 12:17-21 that it is the Lord's job to judge and avenge. So I need to let go of that need for control and power, and surrender it to the Lord. Let Him take care of it.   

How do we Kill Bitterness? 

Once we realize that it only matters how Jesus sees us, we can accept the grace that has been given to us. In bitterness we are appealing to our own righteousness and justifying ourselves. By doing so, we are turing our backs on God. Jesus made us His treasure. He is always there searching for a door to come in and take us away to protect us. We just have to recognize when He is knocking and let Him in.  When it seems hard, look at the cross he died upon. He did that for us! So that we could "nail our bitterness to the cross, and press on." So we could put the bitterness behind us and move to better emotions such as those fruits of the Spirit. 

I know it sounds easy, but it's not. As I write this I am thinking. Okay great I just need to forgive and accept the Lord's forgiveness. You can say it, but until you really believe it and accept it in your heart, it isn't true. So I am in the process of letting go and trying to press on. I hope you can too, it's a process but we are all in it together! So ask for help and search out friends or community to help you get through it. Encouragement and support makes a huge difference to truly forgiving and accepting the Lord's Grace. 

Lists.

So this afternoon I watched this podcast from my church back in Los Angeles on Matthew 1:1-17 which when I first looked at the scripture thought "Yuck this will be boring. Just a bunch of names listed off." But after watching the podcast I was humbled and amazed at how important reading and reflecting on the list really is.

We spend so much time trying to get on the "right" list and be perceived in the right or perfect way. We are a society of lists. After 30 minutes into the podcast I realized the importance of this list in Matthew. It's not about "hiding" or leaving names off a list, like someone people do today in society, but sharing the truth. Not everyone is perfect and some of the people in the list did some sinful things and where sinned against. But that's why Jesus came. He came for people like this. The sinners and outcasts. Those who had nowhere to go or where left out. What a blessing!

These types of people are included in this list in order to show God's Faithfulness and Intervention. He saved us with the birth of Jesus and intervened when all hope was(is) lost.

This humbled me because too many times I am thinking of what others think of me, or how they see me. Am I a jock? Am I quiet? Am I a pushover? How do you see me? Is that a good thing or bad thing? Then how do I change? But Jesus came to save us and it is HIS list that only matters. How he sees me--Perfect. His grace is a blessing and hard to accept sometimes but it's the truth and best gift one can give me.

Then at the end of the podcast Pastor Tim explained that so many older Christians are afraid of what others think of them. That their life should be perfect and they are right. While young Christians are blatantly blunt. That while the older Christian may judge or look down upon their cursing during a prayer, for example, it should be their job to help them. The older Christians should open up and share their short comings to help the younger Christians, while rejoice that the younger Christians are so open and confessing theirs.

Grace isn't a one time thing. Life is a struggle, we are constantly sinning and in need of grace. So we should help and reach out to others. Show them the grace of God. We are all brothers and sisters of God. So share your short comings without trying to cover them up (doctoring our 'lists') and ask for help to accept the grace and forgiveness given by our Lord.

Stop trying to legitimize yourselves but accept the Forgiveness and Grace given by our Almighty Lord!