Some bracelets I made...enjoy!

Take Time for Self

Last week, I took a "social media fast." It was truly amazing. I realized today that it was 3 years since my scare with cancer. Since that time I have filled my life with things that make others happy. However, that is no longer the case. During my fast, I realize that I needed to reexamine my priorities. I can't say that it was easy, but I can tell you that it was an awesome time of getting closer to God. One thing that happened is the opening of my heart back to God and realizing that I need to follow my calling--I also put behind me some of the foolish ideas that I have to be something other than what I am.

Over this past week, I have been looking at those things that make me happiest. Over the past month, I decided I would purchase a $600 mountain bike; however, I have decided that I am now seeking something greater! So what can I do with an extra $600? Well there are two purchases that I really want to make...an Acoustic/Electric Bass guitar and a digital piano. Music is my life and I love it immensely! And I really want to learn to play Bass, and I love writing my own songs, so I wanted to start playing piano again.

This weekend, I am taking another media fast. I will probably take off Friday evening to early Sunday evening from social media to spend more time in prayer.

Treat others as God treats you

Several of my friends often tell me "Rai, we saw your former friend and I just glared at them! Shooting flaming darts at them! They won't even talk to me! I really show them!"  I usually shrug it off, because I was wrong, but this past week when someone said that to me, I looked at them and said, "Paul tells the Christian:  "7The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you are thoroughly defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? 8Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, even against your own brothers!"

My friend looked at me very strangely and I followed it up with "How do you think it looks that one who has no right to be angry with someone is angry with them?" This may sound a bit Yoda-ish, but I have found that often times Christians misplace their anger when it comes to their friend's heartbreak or hurt. 

For me, I believe I have every right to be angry at my former friend. But my friends only witnessed my hurt and my disappointment. They themselves were not hurt, were not involved directly in anything. 

Friends, Jesus tells us to not let the sun go down on our anger, but He also teaches that when people will not listen to you, the shake the dust from your own feet and move on. But no where does it teach that once you move on, those left behind are to continue in negative behaviors towards the person(s). 

What then are we to do? Perhaps, we are to look at them with our "Father's Eyes" and treat them as Christ treats us. Before our salvation, we were vile humans. God saw our potential, but He didn't force us to accept it. Instead, He came to us and knocked on the door of our hearts and waited until we were ready to accept His presence in our lives. Matter of fact, Paul also states "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." God provided the final offering of atonement for our sins while we were sinners. He treated us so GOOD; while we were largely ignoring Him. 

So I beg of people when people wrong you, see it as a small thing, and LOVE them as Christ loves us. 

God and a Personality Disorder

May is National Mental Illness Awareness Month; and my friends, I am going to tell you all that I have a mental illness. I have a personality disorder and because I have a personality disorder I am often told that I can't be a Christian; that I must be under some sort of demonic oppression. So my question tonight is, does God use mental illness to help others? 

According to a stranger tonight I was told "Rachel, you are demonically possessed if you have a mental illness or a personality disorder." Let me just tell you this, I have been a Christian since age 9, when I asked Jesus to come live in my heart and to change my life. I told them my testimony about how I believed in Jesus, all the wonderful things that have happened in my life since I accepted Him, and all they could focus on was "I must be in bondage because of a sin I committed and now because of that I am under a curse." 

John 9: 1-3 tells the beginning of a story where Jesus heals a blind man. 

As Jesus was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth. 2His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened that the works of God would be displayed in him. 

Guess what friends? Yes, Jesus is in the healing business, but that doesn't mean that God doesn't allow suffering! Ever think that maybe I am not healed because 1) my time hasn't come and 2) God is going to work out a TESTIMONY like no one has ever seen before? The "minister" that was with the person told me "Let me just lay hands on you and pray that demon leaves you! There is NO WAY that God will use you in this condition!" 

Seriously? How do you think that would make a person feel if they thought that God couldn't use them? I mean we are all flawed, we are all broken, but somehow God molds us exactly into the vessel He will use. My friends do not be discouraged when God allows suffering, do not let others discourage you! Do not allow people to treat you badly...God loves you more than you will ever know.

Proverbs 28:26 "He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe." I don't know about you all, but the truth is such...I'd rather trust in God for any healing I may get; but right now, I know that God is building my story up.

Luke 6:17-19 tells the story of how many people were receiving healing, whether from sickness or demonic spirit. Then in verse 19 it says "and the people ALL tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all." Some of these people didn't want a testimony, they wanted a quick fix; they wanted a healing so they could get back to work or so they could brag about their healing. It wasn't for the right reasons. This is why I wouldn't allow that "minister" to pray for me; I want my healing to be from God and for the right reasons, not because "man says I need to be healed." 

Jesus tells me in Luke to 22Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. 23For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. 24Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap; they have no storehouse or barn, yet God feeds them. How much more valuable are you than the birds! 25Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his lifespan?b 26So if you cannot do such a small thing, why do you worry about the rest?

I can't fix my life, and I can't fix my personality disorder. I can, however, encourage people to seek God. And that my friends is what I shall do!

Verses from NIV Bible Translation

Kregel Publications: The Spirituality of Paul by Leslie Hardin

Every Sunday it is easy to be a Christian. We arrive at a building and we join with other Christians and we worship God. However, Leslie Hardin reminds us that our faith isn’t just a Sunday experience. In his book, The Spirituality of Paul, Hardin is showing us that we not only partner with the Holy Spirit on Sunday, but rather we must as effective Christians not only to minister to others, but even to ourselves, we must partner with God daily.

Hardin takes you through the practices of Paul and they include: Imitation of Jesus, being devoted to Scripture, prayer, discipleship, Proclamation of the Gospel, corporate worship, being holy, using our spiritual gifts, building each other up, and the fact that all Christians do suffer.

My favorite chapter was devotion to scripture. I find a lot of people who preach the other topics; but rarely do I hear ministers speak on being devoted to scripture. However, equally, the other chapters are very enlightening.

Finally Hardin wraps the entire book up with a chapter called The Shape of Pauline Spirituality. Today much of what Paul wrote has become the cornerstone of Christianity—and we often forget that Paul was merely a human.

"Paul had a reputation in the first century as someone who had a weighty and forceful media persona, but who was soft and unimpressive in reality…. Yet here was a man who, when he patterned his life after that of Christ Jesus, with the help of the Holy Spirit, turned the world on it head for the glory of Jesus. This gives hope to us who read him, who take him seriously, and who want to be spiritual like Paul was."

I received this book free from the publisher to review. It did not have to be a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255.

YOU ARE...what you think you are!

Yesterday I got a text from a former student who I have been trying to help get a career started. The job is to join the team at Lowe's and to have some money for college and also eventually move out of her parent's home. 
The text read..."Ms. Rachel, you said the job is mostly computers, well I am not good at technology." Okay, so how do you expect to get a job? 99.9% of jobs today require a level of computer technology; and even if the "Machine does the work for you..." you still have to know how to run the computers that run the machine. 
This morning, I explained to the student..."The Buddha teaches "The mind is everything...what you think about yourself you are!" This teaching is also taught to us by King Solomon in the Proverbs of the Bible Proverbs 23:7a "For as he thinketh in his soul, so is he." Every culture around the world has had this teaching...so let me encourage you! You are more than what you think you are. You are a child of the Living God, who loves you more than you will ever know. You are not stupid, you are not a loser, you are not a mistake...you are greater than you think about yourself, you don't know your own potential, you are God's creation, you are perfect the way He made you! 

KREGEL BOOK REVIEW: INTERPRETING APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE

With Apocalyptic Literature of the Bible being fulfilled daily in front of us; it is no surprise that prophecy has moved from the back of the Bible and Biblical Teaching to the forefront of our churches and research. Richard A. Taylor’s book “Interpreting Apocalyptic Literature” is a great jumping off point for both trained ministers and lay speakers alike. As a theologian, I have spent many hours poring over the prophets of the Old Testament as well as Daniel. When I was offered the chance to review this book, I knew I had to do so!

There are several pros to this book; I will review them here:
1) Ease of reading: While this is a text book, it is an easy read. One that both undergraduate and graduate students can easily use in their classes. It is also user friendly, maybe you didn’t go to Bible college, that doesn’t matter, this book is not so over the top that the lay speaker whose primary interest is Biblical Prophecy can’t read or understand it.

2) Worldview: The book contains a Biblical World view. While it covers extra biblical texts (which I think is needed for full Biblical study of the Apocalyptic Scriptures) it maintains a balanced Christian world view into prophecy.

3) It covers major apocalyptic themes. This is not just the themes of the book of Revelation. Rather it is all themes of apocalyptic theology.

4) Hebrew and Lexicon Resources. Want to know what various words mean? Look no further than the text in the book, Taylor gives you information that you can use.

Finally what I love about this book is that it helps bridge modern interpretation to ancient texts.

I don’t have a list of cons to this book, maybe because I did enjoy it a lot as I was using this book also during a study I was doing on apocalyptic scripture; but I certainly do recommend this book to both seasoned ministers, and lay speakers.

**The book was provided by the publisher for an unbiased review. The reviewer received no monetary compensation from the publisher for this review.**