The Living Christ

"He is risen!"

"He is risen, indeed!"

Why, you might ask, is this very Easter-ish dialogue being posted in July? I will tell you why.

Because Jesus is still alive.

"Christ Jesus, who died -- more than that, who was raised to life -- is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." ~Romans 8:34

He's not only alive, He's alive with a job: To intercede for us. To stand in the gap between us and the Father. To be able to do that, He has to know what's going on in our lives. He has to know the thoughts we think and the prayers we pray. He's alive, and is not distant, He is here.

Too often, I think we believe in the God who rose from the dead -- not the God who has risen. We believe Christ conquered death and can save us from hell, but do we believe any more than that? Do we believe that He is right here in this room, waiting to speak to us? Do we believe that He can still heal the sick and raise the dead? Or does our faith cease at salvation and fail to believe Him for the full power of God in shaping and living the Christ-life? He is capable of so much more, and how He longs for us to open up our hearts and our minds so that He can show us!

How many of us go through life never experiencing the full power of the risen Christ? Sometimes I think we are so focused on worshiping the Jesus who died for us that we forget the Jesus who lives for us. His death, while so powerful, so important, so poignant, was only made victorious through His resurrection.

And not only did He return to life -- He remains in life. We do not serve a dead God! We serve a God whose power keeps the earth in motion. We serve a God who is present in our everyday lives -- and is literally right beside us at every moment. His heart beats, His eyes see, His smile lights up the faces of His children. He is alive.

Oh Lord, may we come to live in the light of that glorious reality.

You're Beautiful

I sat down to write about how beautiful my God is. But my heart is too full for words. All I want to do is worship this amazing God. All I want to do is give Him every part of me. I can't even begin to describe all He's done for me. He quite literally turned my life around and took it in a direction I never would've imagined for myself. He's been so much more than enough. And even though I've just succeeded in writing a paragraph about how amazing He is, my words right now don't seem nearly enough for how much He's done for me.

So, I kinda want to know: What are some of your amazing God stories from the past year? How has He changed you? How has He saved you? What has He done for you, and what has He led you to do for Him? At this time of year, when we tend to take for granted that He came as a baby to live a perfect life and die for us, what is it that brings you to your knees in amazement?

And yeah, I really truly want to know. So leave a comment on this post, or on the Facebook link, or send me a message, because I want to be astounded by how He's working in your life. So then we can worship Him together.

I love each and every one of you, and I pray that you are learning to discover the glorious riches of the love of Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas.

Ordained Praise

Satan loves pity parties. You may think you're the guest of honor, but it's really him. He thinks they're the greatest things ever. Pity parties are the perfect time to sneak up behind you and whisper in your ear every single little insecurity you've ever had. They're the perfect time to distract you from everything you know is true. And what he really loves about them is that they make you feel helpless against it. You don't see a way out of this self-pity and all the hurtful thoughts it brings; so he convinces you that it's not even worth trying. Or if it is worth trying, he warps what you believe about how to fight against it. Pretty soon, we have eating disorders; cutting; depression; suicide. Most commonly, we hate ourselves for feeling this way -- and thus begins the vicious cycle of self-pity.

And oh, Satan just gives a gurgling giggle of glee. The absolute best lies come out during these times. One of the main ones: This isn't a pity party. I'm hurting, and I want to mope about it, okay?? Yes. We hurt. And Satan loves to convince us that it's absolutely okay to dwell on that pain. And that even if it's not okay, there's really nothing we can do about it. After all, if we're not thinking about it, how are we ever going to get better?

LIES, I tell you, lies! Absolutely, we should not deny that we're hurting. (That's another one of the things he likes to convince us to do... Golly, I don't like him.) But do you know what we are supposed to do with all that pain? With all those broken pieces?

"Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you." ~1 Peter 5:7
"Arise, cry out in the watches of the night, as the watches of the night begin; pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord." ~Lamentations 2:19
"From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger." ~Psalm 8:2

The first two state exactly what we should do when confronted with pain: Dump it. Not on your friends, although of course you can ask for prayer. But they cannot heal you. So please don't expect them to. No, cast everything on God. For He cares for you. He knows everything that's going on already, but there's something crucial about you actually coming to Him and talking about it.

And finally, my personal favorite response when Satan's lies start to creep in: Worship. Praise. This should not be that kind of worship like, "Oh my gosh, God, life is really horrible. Please make it better." That's supplication. That's the kind of intercession that your friends can be doing for you. That's also included in the "casting your cares" part. But once those cares are cast, leave them, and just start worshiping. Praise Him for who He is. Praise Him for His promises. Completely disregard your circumstances, and just worship! He is worthy, and whatever is going on in your life does not change that fact. Satan cannot stand it when you worship God -- especially in the face of pain.

These are a few "worship methods" that my mom and I have come up with and shared over the years. Of course, they're not original, but they are effective, and we go back to them over and over again.

• Journal. Satan cannot hear your thoughts; and if you try to pray in your head, you're much more likely to get distracted by those lies still being shouted at you from that despicable, mean, horrid...you know.
• Pray out loud. Same dealio as the journaling. And specifically, pray that God would banish the Evil One!
  
• Read scripture out loud. Particularly Psalms. Psalms of thanksgiving are the absolute best.
• Sing! This is my favorite (for those of you who know me, that's not a surprise...) I sit at the piano or pull out the guitar and just repeat the same worship songs over and over. OR I pull out my iPod (or open YouTube) and sing along. These songs usually have nothing to do with the precise lies I'm hearing at the moment. They're just songs telling God how absolutely great He is. And Satan really doesn't like being reminded of that...

Both leaving the already-cast cares behind and worshiping take willpower. Even though it's counter-intuitive, we sometimes want (subconsciously) to stay wrapped up in our self-pity and our pain. We want to feel it as much as possible. We want to use it as a cry to be noticed. We want a problem that's too big for God to fix.

Well -- there isn't one. So no matter how much you don't want to, get with your King and praise Him. Even if it doesn't feel real, even if it doesn't feel true, He'll help you. As you pour out your worship before Him, He will fill you up with Him. And Satan will run away as fast as possible from the powerful presence of God.

It's sometimes not easy -- but it's simple. So worship, my friend. Be astounded by the beauty of your God. And forget all of that pain you hold inside; for as you praise Him, He heals you. And when He heals you, you won't be able to keep from praising Him.

Battle Cry

I really love spiritual warfare.

Now, that comment can easily be misunderstood. I do not sit around dwelling on this topic. I do not love the fact that Satan has power on the earth. I do not sit around calling up demons so that I can fight them.

I love fighting. With every word I say and everything I do, I fight for the Kingdom of God. Not by dwelling on the reality of Satan or his minions; but by dwelling on the beauty and power of Christ. That, in and of itself, is spiritual warfare. Every time I open my mouth to praise Him, every time you open your mouth to praise Him, Satan is silenced. Psalm 8:2 says, "From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger." Because I want to live my life to be a worshiper, my entire life is a battle cry.

So what exactly does a battle-cry-life look like? The first part is what I mentioned above: A life of worship is the life of a warrior. Spiritual warfare does not cease when we step outside our church doors. We cannot leave our heart of worship in the sanctuary. We are told to live as though working for God, not for man. Doing everything with a heart unto the Lord, keeping our eyes and mind focused on Him, is one of the best ways that we can combat our enemy.

The second part of living this life is recognizing Satan's lies in your life (putting on the belt of truth). In Hosea, God proclaimed, "My people perish from lack of knowledge." The lies that are breathed into our lives must constantly be replaced by God's truth. This requires being continually in the Word of God, understanding who He is and what He says -- and then believing that He is who He says He is, and will do what He says He will do (shield of faith).

We are also told not to give the devil a foothold by embracing things such as anger, bitterness, revenge, etc (putting on the breastplate of righteousness). A heart fully surrendered to Christ and striving to be more like His will, of course, be under more attack, because it is more of a threat -- but it will be helped.

We are also commanded to have our feet fitted with the gospel of peace, and to take up the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. One of the most effective ways to combat Satan's army is to spread the Word of God. To be His missionaries, both in our hometown and around the world. Revelation 12:11 says, "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony." Our testimony, and our identity in Christ, are a battle cry and a weapon all in one. Use them.

Finally, Ephesians 6 tells us to "pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." Satan cannot stand a vibrant prayer life. Don't just pray in your head -- remember, Satan can't hear your thoughts! I write my prayers. You can speak them out loud. Pray scripture. Whatever you do, just pray.

And always remember that "you, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world" (1 John4:4). Our victory is already secured. Do not dwell on these things, but also do not be afraid of them. Proclaim the word of God boldly. Live a life of worship. Recall that you are a citizen of heaven, sealed in Christ. And fight.

"Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short." ~Revelation 12:12