When It's Okay To Go Hulk

"Now Adoni-Zedek king of Jeruselem heard that Joshua had taken Ai and totally destroyed it..." (Joshua 10:1)

I was beginning on one of the most famous stories in the bible. The one where the sun stood still. I'd never read it in my own personal study and I had prayed that the Lord would use it to speak personally in my life.

I didn't even get through verse 1.

That word "destroy" means the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them. It's to consecrate. To devote.

When Joshua had everyone in Ai killed I was frustrated because to me, it seems so wrong. So why did they do it?

Because it is what God required.

We must completely give to God- completely devote to Him- the desires of our hearts. Because it is what He requires.

Yes, it hurts. It's a daily struggle, but He is faithful that when we are tempted, He will give us an out. He continues to remind me the value of my waiting. That it is not in vain.

The truth is, there is something standing in the way of God's promises for our lives. That is what needs to be destroyed.

In Joshua's case, it was the men of Ai, and God required them to be destroyed.

For you it could be your love of money. A desire for a relationship before God's timing. A friendship that is leading you away from Jesus Christ. Whatever it is that is holding you back or standing in the way of God's promises for your life, that is what must be destroyed. We need to go Hulk on that obstruction.

Maybe we will destroy it, and that will be the end of it all together because God has something better for you. Or maybe you'll have an Abraham and Isaac moment when Abraham was about to sacrifice his only son, until God stepped in and stopped him, allowing him to continue to have his great blessing.

What is most important is that he was willing to offer his son to God if that is what He required him to do.

And that is the point, isn't it? It's our willingness to allow God to do what He knows is best. Even if it makes no sense. Even if it hurts like no pain you've felt before. It's our offering to God.

And what will He do with the ashes?

Only time will tell.

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.
(Psalm 51:17)

Who Trusts In Him

Believe.

The dictionary would say that it means:
To accept as true; to be confident about something.

And that's great. Sounds pretty good. But reading through Mark and other passages throughout the bible, I am convinced that there is something so much more to it than that.

Take my name for instance. When I tell you my name is Bailey, you believe me. Do you not? Why? Probably because you have no reason to think that I would lie to you about it and you decide to accept it as true.

But imagine if you were standing on a table playing the trust fall game with someone standing squarely behind you. It isn't the same as believing that my name is Bailey. In this situation you would need to, not only believe, but believe in the individual who claims he'll catch you. This kind of trust would take past experiences that prove that this person is trustworthy.

During the three years of Jesus' active ministry, He did many miracles. Reading through the book of Mark something began to catch my attention. Jesus often talks about the people and their faith.

When Jesus was on His way to heal a young sick girl, a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, heard that Jesus was there. She came up behind Him and touched His cloak "because she thought, 'if I just touch his clothes, I will be healed'" (Mark 5:28).

And you know what happened? She was healed. When Jesus realized she touched His clothes He turned and said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be free from your suffering" (Mark 5:34). (Emphasis is mine).

Later in the same chapter, there came word that the sick young girl had died. Their hope was gone, but Jesus says to them, "Don't be afraid; just believe" (Mark 5:36).

In chapter seven a woman comes to Him asking Him to drive the demon out of her daughter. What she says to Him shows how great her faith was in Him. He goes on to say, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter," (Mark 7:29).

But when Jesus goes to His hometown the people question Him and take great offense of Him.

"He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. He was amazed at their lack of faith," (Mark 6:5-6).

Their lack of faith does not make him incapable of doing miracles- it says he healed a few sick people, and Jesus constantly proved the disciples wrong when they didn't believe- but when people really believe in Him, there is something so powerful that takes place.

The bible says that all who believe in Him will be saved.

There's a common saying in our culture today: Have Faith. But there is something more to it than just believing. It's in whom you believe.

To trust in Jesus or God as able to aid either in obtaining or doing something. This is saving faith.

I know this is a lot to put in one post. But do you believe that Jesus Christ is God? That He died and raised three days later in order save us from our sin?

I can't imagine how it took me so long to notice how prevalent belief was in the bible. If  I don't understand anything else, I do know that it is a powerfully important message.

"See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame," (1 Peter 2:6).

Close Enough to Whisper

Oh, I know I haven't blogged in a long time. I'm not going to make excuses (mostly because I can't think of any). I'm just going to move forward and begin by telling you something the Lord has recently taught me.

I was asked to do a devotional for the worship team during one of our bible studies. I looked at a particular passage for a long time. I begged God to show me what he was trying to say in this particular verse, but He didn't show me till the end of the message, when I was finally able to show everyone my crazy revelation.

"Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper," (1 Kings 19: 11b-12).

Now, this wasn't the only thing I was talking on. I was talking about all of 1 Kings 19: 9b-18, but this verse was really stumbling me. I didn't even want to attempt at teaching on it, because whatever I would have said, would never have glorified God in the way that He intended it to.

When I first read this verse, it looked like a message that God mostly speaks to us in a still small voice, and not in the crazy big things. It looked like a message that we need to listen for his quiet voice instead of only searching for it in the big things.

But that didn't seem right, and I knew that that was not what He was trying to say.

If the Lord wasn't in the great, powerful wind that tore up the mountains and shattered rocks, then where was He? If He wasn't in the earthquake or the fire, then where could He have been? In heaven?

I rejoice now, because I know this was not the case. We serve a personal God. One who longs to be close to us and comfort us the way Elijah needed comfort in this passage.

When someone whispers, can you hear it from across the room? No, you can't. When someone whispers they have to be close, and it's for your ears only that they intend those words.

For this reason, I am convinced that when God sent the wind, the earthquake and the fire, He wasn't in heaven or some far off place.

He was standing right beside Elijah the entire time.

And while Elijah questioned God and feared for his life because Jezebel swore to take it, God didn't rebuke him for his lack of faith. He didn't yell at him or become angry for his doubt. He stood beside him and reminded him of all He could do.

Look at that, did you see that? All that I can do? I know that you're scared and that you've become discouraged. But I am still God and I still have a plan. Are you still in?

We serve a personal God. He's not far away yelling at us and telling us to have more faith. He's not only with those who are righteous and holy. He doesn't look at us every morning and decide if we're worth His time today.

No, our God is close enough to whisper.

Jesus Feeds The Five Thousand

"When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus  landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

"As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, 'this is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.'

"Jesus replied, 'They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.'

"'We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,' they answered.

"'Bring them here to me,' he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children."

(Matthew 14:13-21).We've all heard the story. Plenty of times, most likely. But something stood out to me about the story, last time I heard it used in a message, like it never has before.

I always looked at the this passage as just on of the many miracles Jesus did, but there was something, one little phrase that completely changed how I looked at it, as well as my heart.

Have you ever been told that Jesus wants all of you? Because it's true. He wants everything. If you're like me and the disciples you might have thought you don't have much to offer to the table. Maybe you've thought:

I've sinned too many times, I can't sing, I don't have money, I don't have passion, everything I've felt I loved has been stripped away, I'm broken, I'm dirty, or I have too much baggage, why would Jesus want this mess?

But Jesus isn't asking for some kind of extravagant banquet. He is looking into your questioning eyes saying,

"Just give me what you do have."

We do that and there's no telling how much he can do. He says, "give me what you do have and I will do something great." He takes our messed up little hearts and doesn't see the distortion from the world. He sees potential. He sees the value of it, as it is, and how much greater it can become.

He sees you and that's all he ever wanted.

He can make beautiful things out of the dust, turn water into wine, and take five loaves of bread and two fish and feed over five thousand people and still have some left over. This guy is God and if he can do all that, and so much more, I trust that when you and I give him all that we have, He will do something great with it.

When We Don't Know Where To Go

I was thinking about my last post, about going when the Lord tells us to. But I realize that sometimes we don't know what He wants us to do. Even when we pray for Him to show us what it is - even when we are willing- sometimes he doesn't reveal it to us.

That's when we need to trust Him. To just serve Him.

I mean, I'm not saying to go flirt with the boy because you think that's who God wants you to marry. I'm talking about serving the Lord here.

If you're having trouble figuring out if the Lord will have you leading worship or serving in the children's ministry, then do something. I believe that He will let us know if it's not what he wants us doing. I think that if He doesn't want you serving in the children's ministry, then you wouldn't be serving in the children's ministry.

I know that the Lord wants me leading worship. Why?

Because I'm leading worship.

I know that the Lord wants me interning for the Becoming Girls Conference. Why?

Because I'm interning for the Becoming Girls Conference.

It's as simple as that. Go when He tells you to go. And if He doesn't say anything, go anyway. He'll let you know if it's not what He wants.

No one ever became employed by being a couch potato.

When The Lord Says Go, Go

    KJ Photograghy

"And the lord said, 'Now get up and cross the Zered Valley.' So we crossed the valley." (Deuteronomy 2:13).

There's something so simple about this verse that it hit me in such a complex way.

I don't need to write a ten paragraph post on this verse, but the simplicity of these words did wonders for me.

God told them to cross the Zered Valley, so they crossed the valley.

And that's that. No questions asked and no answers given. They went simply because of faith. They could have stopped and looked at all the negativity, but they chose to remember the times The Lord was faithful.

In Psalm, David also chose to remember God's faithfulness.

"Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?"

Then I thought, "To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.

I will remember the deeds of the lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago," (Psalm 77:9-11).

May we choose to walk even when there is uncertainty in the air. Just remember that The Lord is leading us.