The book, Soul Detox: Clean Living in a Contaminated World by Craig Groeschel was very good! I read it over my Christmas and New Year holidays. It had some very inspiring and eye-opening quotes and I felt it deserved its very own blog entry/review.
My desire to even read this book came from the realization that cleaning yourself up from the outside in was not only backward but just not working, at least not long-term. To truly change it has to be from the inside out. How do we change what's inside? Well a good start is by what we are putting in us, through what we see, listen to, read, believe and immerse ourselves in. This book explains that we are surrounded by "toxins" that assault us daily and just as you do detox to remove toxins from our bodies we must do a soul detox to remove those toxins from our soul.
What was really neat is that many of the places I highlighted in this book were things God had just shown or told me. Being the extremely stubborn person I am, I guess He knew I need confirmation that yes, this is what He was telling me. Like the whole taking steps thing. As I posted on New Year's Day, I felt He was telling me to just take it one step at a time, one day at a time. And this was covered in the book as well.
My first marked place was on page 12, the author was talking about how back in the day people didn't realize the dangers of second hand smoke. So they smoked in the house and unintentionally subjected their children to the toxins of the smoke. He wrote, "I'm convinced that many of us are living in this same kind of dangerous trap with our spiritual health. We know something doesn't feel quite right, that we're not growing closer to God and following Christ the way we would like, but we can't put our finger on it. Even though we believe in God and want to please him, we find it hard to serve him passionately and consistently. We want to move forward spiritually but fee like we're running against the wind. We want more -- we know there's more -- but we just can't seem to find it." This immediately hit home with me and I was hooked.
Later in the same chapter he talks about the process of how if you drop a frog in boiling water it would jump out. But if you put the same frog in barely warm water and slowly increased the water you could eventually boil the frog and he would stay in it until he was dead. "In our culture, the water temperature increases daily. Without realizing it, we slowly become acclimated to a toxic environment full of poisonous influences. As the water temperature rises, we keep pretending we're soaking in a hot tub having the time of our lives, never dreaming that we're scalding our souls. As we become scarred and desensitized to what is right and wrong, good and evil, life-giving and live-draining, we lose sight of our first love. We move away from God one degree at a time." Oh, so easy to fall into this trap. My "fun" was slowly scalding my soul, searing my conscience.
The whole book spoke to me, but to avoid simply retyping the book out, I'll try to stick to just the parts that really jumped out at me. The next one was on page 40. "The root of most sins we commit outwardly is the false beliefs we embrace inwardly. In order to experience a life of purity with a clean heart, we must identify and reject the toxic thoughts that keep us from God's best. We don't need Dr. Phil to tell us what God revealed to us in his Word thousands of years ago: your thoughts determined who you become. Proverbs 23:7 says, 'For as a person thinks in his heart, so is he' (NKJV)."
"If you want to live a clean life in a polluted world, you must remove the seeds of poison from within. Practice taking every thought captive. Ask God to identify and help remove the life-draining ideas and images from your mind. Fill your thoughts with his truth and the beauty of his goodness. Renew your mind and watch your faith grow in ways that will astound you." To this end, during our church-wide 21-day corporate fast, I am choosing to not listen to secular music. I can't pick up the Christian station in my car but I can listen to Pandora in the car and on my work computer. (ps - if anyone wants to bless me with a year subscription to Pandora, that'd be cool...lol)
While encouraging us not only to listen and put in our minds what is good, he also encouraged us to speak life-giving words to ourselves, our circumstances and those around us. This tied in well to last week's sermon where Pastor Steve was basically saying the same thing about what we speak. From the book, "Your words, whether externally spoken or internally absorbed, shape your future."
He also talked about the things in our life and how we let them make us feel. He used the example of if you drove up to a friend's house in a rusty clunker or a new sports car. One you might hunker down and hide in, the other you'd be blaring your radio, honking your horn and feeling hot. "Unquestionably, in either car, you are the same person. But the way you feel about yourself likely would be worse in the clunker and better in the shiny sports car. Why? Because you've smoked the culture's cigarette and inhaled the lie." Referring to the lie that things are what define us....."Your things and your money don't make your significant, but you believe they do." Our significance should come from God. "Jesus said, 'Life does not consist in an abundance of possessions' (Luke 12:15). You are not what you have. You are not where you live. You are not what you wear. You are not what you drive. (For me right now I'm having to add, you are not your job position.) You are who God says you are. You are his child. You are a join heir with Christ."
Moving on to the things we watch. He was talking about how this kid knew his mom didn't let him watch movies with questionable things. But he begged about this one movie, saying it only had a little bad spot, and all his friends were watching it. So the mom said fine. He was very excited over this. On top of saying he could go, she then proceeded to make her son his favorite batch of cookies, only she added a tiny bit of "extra" ingredient, dog poo. The son smelled the brownies and eagerly ran in the kitchen for some. She cut him a piece and just as he was about to eat she told him it had an "extra" ingredient. Dog poo, but she assured him it was only one tiny little bit in the otherwise very good brownies and she was sure that little bit wouldn't hurt him at all. At that point he realized he wouldn't be seeing that movie with his friends after all. "Ask yourself, is there a little bit of poop in the media you normally enjoy? Do your friends lead you into places or situations that stink? How about the television shows you watch regularly? Think back over what you've watched this past week." I loved all the examples he gave and his tongue in cheek responses to answers we often give.
On page 192, "If you don't think anything is wrong with all the cultural influences that invade your life daily, chances are that you're interpreting right and wrong through a distorted lens." Yikes.
He then changes gears to make sure that we aren't confusing what we do and don't do and rules and religion with our relationship with Christ. "In its purest sense, Christianity is not intended to be one of the world's major religions, but rather it is supposed to be a relationship with the one, true, living God through his Son, Jesus." He says, "some scholars even argue that the root of the word religion means 'return to bondage.'"
While wrapping up the book and tying it all together on how we can use this information to make a change in our own lives, he tells the story of Moses and God calling him for a purpose and Moses thinking he isn't qualified. "Moses immediately focused on his inabilities rather than God's unlimited abilities. He looked at his limited power rather than God's unlimited power. You might be temped to do the same thing. When God shows you something that he wants you to change, you might hesitate and think, 'I can't do that.' But God will do the same thing to you that he did to Moses - get right up in his business: 'The LORD said to him, Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the LORD?' (Exodus 4:11)." A few paragraphs later he continues, "When God shows you what he wants you to change, don't you think he's going to help you get it done? Don't you know that he put this book in your hands at this particular time in your life for a reason?....If you're reading this and you know what God wants you to do, then put this book down and go do it! Seriously. Someone said, 'Delayed obedience is disobedience.' Don't you dare delay! If God has shown you how he wants you to live differently, if he's revealed what you need to give up or what you need to embrace, then do not disobey him by procrastinating and waiting until 'the time is right.' The time is right, now. The time is right now!"
And in conclusion of his book, "Think about what could be different in your life and in the lives of those around you if you quit making excuses, if you lived with God intentions and let go of your own agenda. If you truly want to live a cleaner, purer life, a more Christ-centered, Spirit-filled life, then it's time to take the next steps that you know to take. Do what you can do and trust God to do what you can't. My prayer is that right now, God is speaking to your heart and making his message loud and clear. Can you hear him? Now, go - in his strength and by his power - just do it! Godspeed!"
I hope these excerpts from the book encourage you to read it for yourself, as I'm sure there are points in it that might speak to you differently than the ones that spoke to me. But if not, then hopefully take these highlights that spoke to me and let them speak to you as well.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Numbing the Pain or Fixing the Problem?
X-rays, broken bones, hours waiting to be seen, slings, splints, braces, co-pays, pharmacies....I can't think of anything on this list that sounds pleasant. But this week have been through all of the above. First my wrist was put in a sling and splint and told it was broken. It only took 24-hours in the sling to make me miserable. Any of you who end up in a sling or shoulder surgery or anything of that sort will get much more sympathy from me from now on!
Thankfully it was then determined to be a torn ligament and no longer needed the sling. On the flip side the healing process may be slower and more painful. So for pain I was given some pretty strong pain meds (Vicodin and another). Now don't get me wrong on this post, I'm immensely grateful for pain medication when I have been in the pain I have with this wrist. But going back to work this week I noticed an odd phenomenon, I would try to type (with both hands still instead of one handed) or driving or filing, or any of the many other things I do at work. And then it would start hurting to the point where I couldn't use it at all, so I'd take a pain pill. Hallelujah, within an hour the pain is pretty much gone! So what did I do? Start to use it again. It wasn't throbbing or shooting pains up my arm, so I would type, move a box, put pressure on it, try to twist it inside the brace (turning door knobs, etc) or attempt to work out at the gym (I think I messed it up a lot worse trying to do a yoga class and downward dog into plank position on Saturday). But then when the medication would wear off and by the time I get home at night I'm nauseous from the returning pain and spend half my evening with an ice pack on it and unable to do much of anything at all.
This made me stop and think and realize that the pain medication isn't "fixing" my wrist, it's simply numbing the pain, or the symptom of damaged ligaments. And it can actually hinder healing, because the less it hurts, the more I use it and the less time I spend letting it rest in the brace and heal. But how often do we do this with other things? How often do we numb our pain with chemicals, food, addictions, people, fantasies instead of taking the time to stop, evaluate the true source of the hurt and get the support and or help we need to heal the problem? In the end we don't truly solve anything by numbing it, and it can actually make the problem way worse and take much, much longer to heal.
I think about my brother in prison, which is a result of drug addiction. Numbing the issues may have worked for a while, but eventually the true problems must be dealt with. A trip to rehab may take time out of your life, but a few months there would infinitely be better than several years in prison. Of course my wrist is on a much smaller scale, but the same principle applies. I need to listen to the pain as it alerts me to stop and let my wrist heal instead of numbing it and carrying on, possibly causing a much longer recovery or more long-term problems.
Here's to fixing the problem, not just simply numbing the pain.....and to my wrist healing quickly!!
Thankfully it was then determined to be a torn ligament and no longer needed the sling. On the flip side the healing process may be slower and more painful. So for pain I was given some pretty strong pain meds (Vicodin and another). Now don't get me wrong on this post, I'm immensely grateful for pain medication when I have been in the pain I have with this wrist. But going back to work this week I noticed an odd phenomenon, I would try to type (with both hands still instead of one handed) or driving or filing, or any of the many other things I do at work. And then it would start hurting to the point where I couldn't use it at all, so I'd take a pain pill. Hallelujah, within an hour the pain is pretty much gone! So what did I do? Start to use it again. It wasn't throbbing or shooting pains up my arm, so I would type, move a box, put pressure on it, try to twist it inside the brace (turning door knobs, etc) or attempt to work out at the gym (I think I messed it up a lot worse trying to do a yoga class and downward dog into plank position on Saturday). But then when the medication would wear off and by the time I get home at night I'm nauseous from the returning pain and spend half my evening with an ice pack on it and unable to do much of anything at all.
This made me stop and think and realize that the pain medication isn't "fixing" my wrist, it's simply numbing the pain, or the symptom of damaged ligaments. And it can actually hinder healing, because the less it hurts, the more I use it and the less time I spend letting it rest in the brace and heal. But how often do we do this with other things? How often do we numb our pain with chemicals, food, addictions, people, fantasies instead of taking the time to stop, evaluate the true source of the hurt and get the support and or help we need to heal the problem? In the end we don't truly solve anything by numbing it, and it can actually make the problem way worse and take much, much longer to heal.
I think about my brother in prison, which is a result of drug addiction. Numbing the issues may have worked for a while, but eventually the true problems must be dealt with. A trip to rehab may take time out of your life, but a few months there would infinitely be better than several years in prison. Of course my wrist is on a much smaller scale, but the same principle applies. I need to listen to the pain as it alerts me to stop and let my wrist heal instead of numbing it and carrying on, possibly causing a much longer recovery or more long-term problems.
Here's to fixing the problem, not just simply numbing the pain.....and to my wrist healing quickly!!
Burning Coals
Saw the following story on facebook and it really made sense to me. It's so very true plus THIS
is how I learn. I'm a visual learner so I have to either see it or you
tell me in such a way that I can visualize in some way what you are
trying to tell me.
"A member of the church, who previously had been attending services regularly, stopped going. After a few weeks, the pastor decided to visit him.
It was a chilly evening. The pastor found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his pastor's visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited.
The pastor made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the pastor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone then he sat back in his chair, still silent.
The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead.
Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting.The pastor glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it.
As the pastor reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I will be back in church next Sunday.'
We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken."
The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead.
Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting.The pastor glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it.
As the pastor reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I will be back in church next Sunday.'
We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken."
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Step by Step
The last five months or so, while a lot of fun in many ways, has also felt like a spiritual downward spiral. It seemed the more I tried to mold my outward actions to be what I thought a "Christian" life should look like, the more I seemed to fail. To the point where I was ready to throw my hands up and just give up. And I did in many ways, including my church involvement dropping to barely existent. My Bible actually had to be dusted off, you could've written "read me" in the dust on it.
As I participated in more activities, that at one point would have bothered me, I realized I didn't feel entirely guilty or too bad about it. It became easier and easier to excuse behaviors. Just look around, compared to a lot of people I'm a pretty good person, I like to help people, am very loving and a dedicated, driven employee. My family - kids and husband, and even dog, are very important to me.
But still, there would be those days I would wake up and look at myself in the mirror and know that I wasn't living the full life that is available. Oh, it looked full, tons of activities, making friends in the area, gaining state licensing in my field of work, weekends laying out and drinking at the pool or beach, cruising around in the convertible I bought in April, kayaking and biking...yes, full as in busy, but something still felt empty, fleeting.
The last week or so has brought many inward changes. I don't know the exact catalyst, but part of it was reading the book Captivating. It made me realize that many things I was craving, being pursued and romanced as well as the desire for adventure is a God-given drive and desire. But we women have that drive in order to turn to the One who is the ultimate one who wants to captivate our adoration and fulfill that craving. From the book, "God has written the Romance not only on our hearts but all over the world around us. What we need is for him to open our eyes, to open our ears that we might recognize his voice calling to us, see his hand wooing us int he beauty that quickens our hearts." Living here at the beach, there is no doubt that I am surrounded by beauty, God painting incredible sunrises and sunsets, emerald waves and white sands. Hard to explain what it was about this book, other then the realization that God doesn't just want me "saved" and going to heaven one day, but He wants to romance me and to become the center of my life. He is calling out to me.
Gradually it dawned on me that I'm going about it all the wrong way. I'm trying, and failing, to "clean" up my act. But God doesn't want my works, He wants my heart. I told Him that I can't handle trying to see the big picture and what I "think" He wants my life to look like, but I want Him to fulfill the longings that nothing else seems to fill. I want to please Him. But in my prayer I asked that He just show me one step at a time, just as they say in the AA slogan, "one day at a time." The first thing that He brought to my attention was my recent consumption of romance books, and we aren't talking lovey-dovey romance, I believe Amazon had them classified as "erotic reading." These books were not only distorting my view of romance and true love, but desensitizing my conscience. The hard part was that I had just bought a couple of new books with my Christmas gift card and was right in the middle of reading them. Maybe I would finish it, then click delete. But no, He didn't say finish them then delete. Just simply DELETE. So I did. Being an avid reader I knew that I would need some new reading material. I downloaded one book titled Soul Detox (that book deserves its very own blog entry, which I hope to do over the weekend) but then for New Year's Beth Moore made an announcement that she was GIVING away some of her books on Kindle. So God, in His love, through her offer, gave me books to replace those which I had deleted.
I also am very independent. You know how people say, "beware of what you pray for?" They are right! In this process of growth and being wooed by God I prayed that He would teach me to rely more on Him and not have this constant attitude of "I got this" that is a persistent attitude with me. You KNOW how God can answer those kind of prayers! Within two days I had my hand X-rayed, told my wrist was broken and my wrist and arm put in a splint and sling. Umm, that is NOT what I meant when I prayed that. But it definitely made me realize I am not entirely self-reliant. Thankfully, on Monday I went to the orthopedic specialist and was told it is a torn ligament, not broken bone. So while it will take a while to heal, I don't have it immobilized in a sling!
The other struggle I've had is with making new friendships. I need people in my life, I crave relationships with people. I'm a very, very people person. A year later I'm still missing my friends from Georgia and most of the friends I've made here are coworkers, which are not conducive to deep relationships, or just not overall healthy friendships. While I know that no person can be all that I need and part of that desire for a deep relationship is a desire God created so that I turn to him for those deep needs, I still prayed for friends to come alongside me, to pray with me and to encourage me. And just as He gave me some new books to substitute those I had deleted, He brought along two situations this past week where I was able to sit down, face to face, with someone and just be encouraged. Isn't God so good? Always providing what we need, when we need it and when we are ready and open for it. Sometimes I wonder why it takes so long for something to come around, but timing is everything. Had some of what was discussed in these two conversations come up just a couple of months ago, my responses would have likely been totally different. I'm sure I would have been much more cocky for one thing. But God softened my heart this past week and I was open and willing to hear what He had to say through these two women.
My prayer for this new year is that my focus switches from cleaning up the outside to cleaning up my inside. And again, it isn't just willpower or what changes I think need to be made. I'm asking God to show me, one step at a time, the changes He wants me to make, step by step, drawing closer to Him. I hope to use this blog through out this year to share with you the steps that He shows me as I travel this journey of life.
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. (italics mine) Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." Romans 12:1,2 The Message
As I participated in more activities, that at one point would have bothered me, I realized I didn't feel entirely guilty or too bad about it. It became easier and easier to excuse behaviors. Just look around, compared to a lot of people I'm a pretty good person, I like to help people, am very loving and a dedicated, driven employee. My family - kids and husband, and even dog, are very important to me.
But still, there would be those days I would wake up and look at myself in the mirror and know that I wasn't living the full life that is available. Oh, it looked full, tons of activities, making friends in the area, gaining state licensing in my field of work, weekends laying out and drinking at the pool or beach, cruising around in the convertible I bought in April, kayaking and biking...yes, full as in busy, but something still felt empty, fleeting.
The last week or so has brought many inward changes. I don't know the exact catalyst, but part of it was reading the book Captivating. It made me realize that many things I was craving, being pursued and romanced as well as the desire for adventure is a God-given drive and desire. But we women have that drive in order to turn to the One who is the ultimate one who wants to captivate our adoration and fulfill that craving. From the book, "God has written the Romance not only on our hearts but all over the world around us. What we need is for him to open our eyes, to open our ears that we might recognize his voice calling to us, see his hand wooing us int he beauty that quickens our hearts." Living here at the beach, there is no doubt that I am surrounded by beauty, God painting incredible sunrises and sunsets, emerald waves and white sands. Hard to explain what it was about this book, other then the realization that God doesn't just want me "saved" and going to heaven one day, but He wants to romance me and to become the center of my life. He is calling out to me.
Gradually it dawned on me that I'm going about it all the wrong way. I'm trying, and failing, to "clean" up my act. But God doesn't want my works, He wants my heart. I told Him that I can't handle trying to see the big picture and what I "think" He wants my life to look like, but I want Him to fulfill the longings that nothing else seems to fill. I want to please Him. But in my prayer I asked that He just show me one step at a time, just as they say in the AA slogan, "one day at a time." The first thing that He brought to my attention was my recent consumption of romance books, and we aren't talking lovey-dovey romance, I believe Amazon had them classified as "erotic reading." These books were not only distorting my view of romance and true love, but desensitizing my conscience. The hard part was that I had just bought a couple of new books with my Christmas gift card and was right in the middle of reading them. Maybe I would finish it, then click delete. But no, He didn't say finish them then delete. Just simply DELETE. So I did. Being an avid reader I knew that I would need some new reading material. I downloaded one book titled Soul Detox (that book deserves its very own blog entry, which I hope to do over the weekend) but then for New Year's Beth Moore made an announcement that she was GIVING away some of her books on Kindle. So God, in His love, through her offer, gave me books to replace those which I had deleted.
I also am very independent. You know how people say, "beware of what you pray for?" They are right! In this process of growth and being wooed by God I prayed that He would teach me to rely more on Him and not have this constant attitude of "I got this" that is a persistent attitude with me. You KNOW how God can answer those kind of prayers! Within two days I had my hand X-rayed, told my wrist was broken and my wrist and arm put in a splint and sling. Umm, that is NOT what I meant when I prayed that. But it definitely made me realize I am not entirely self-reliant. Thankfully, on Monday I went to the orthopedic specialist and was told it is a torn ligament, not broken bone. So while it will take a while to heal, I don't have it immobilized in a sling!
The other struggle I've had is with making new friendships. I need people in my life, I crave relationships with people. I'm a very, very people person. A year later I'm still missing my friends from Georgia and most of the friends I've made here are coworkers, which are not conducive to deep relationships, or just not overall healthy friendships. While I know that no person can be all that I need and part of that desire for a deep relationship is a desire God created so that I turn to him for those deep needs, I still prayed for friends to come alongside me, to pray with me and to encourage me. And just as He gave me some new books to substitute those I had deleted, He brought along two situations this past week where I was able to sit down, face to face, with someone and just be encouraged. Isn't God so good? Always providing what we need, when we need it and when we are ready and open for it. Sometimes I wonder why it takes so long for something to come around, but timing is everything. Had some of what was discussed in these two conversations come up just a couple of months ago, my responses would have likely been totally different. I'm sure I would have been much more cocky for one thing. But God softened my heart this past week and I was open and willing to hear what He had to say through these two women.
My prayer for this new year is that my focus switches from cleaning up the outside to cleaning up my inside. And again, it isn't just willpower or what changes I think need to be made. I'm asking God to show me, one step at a time, the changes He wants me to make, step by step, drawing closer to Him. I hope to use this blog through out this year to share with you the steps that He shows me as I travel this journey of life.
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. (italics mine) Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you." Romans 12:1,2 The Message
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