The Roller Coaster Ride

                

Job 11:18

Having hope will give you courage.  You will be protected and will rest in safety.

                I remember as a teen going with our youth group to an amusement park.  They had a new roller coaster that year and my niece and I were so excited to try it.  On this roller coaster, riders are pulled backwards and launched through an unyielding corkscrew and a big loop. The ride travels about 75km an hour through the station; it then goes into a cobra type roll which takes the riders directly into a climb up to a second hill. The train is then pulled backwards from the station and up a 121 foot tail lift before being released. The ride ends with the riders travelling backwards on the track before it ends.  I remember us standing in line for quite some time just to ride this roller coaster. The roller coaster pulled up and we got onto the ride.  The workers made sure that we were all secure and safe.

                Our adrenaline ran high as we were shot into the first loop. Then it happened, we felt our shoulder strap loosen and we did not feel secure anymore.  I remember holding on for dear life and thinking “oh no this is it I am going to fall out of this thing “.  My nails were dug in as far as I could get them.  I just wanted off this ride.  I was fearful of the outcome. 

How many times have you looked back at your life and felt like you where on a roller coaster.  I know that I have been on many in my life time.  Every roller coaster is designed with hills up & down, and it seems like the whole world is falling apart and crumbling before me.  Sometimes things seem stable, and upsetting, and disturbing, and sometimes we have no idea what to expect.  It is in these times that we feel that our security strap is loose and we will not be able to carry on. Much like I did on that roller coaster ride so many years ago.  The devil has a goal to drop us off of the biggest hill that we come to, and to make it so that we can only think of that bump.  He wants us to concentrate on nothing but that hill.  Sometimes we doubt that God has it all under control. Our faith is weary and we feel like we are losing control. We feel like we are about to fall, only to look back and see that our security strap had us the whole time. God was in control of the whole scenario.  All we have to do is have courage and faith and God has the rest under control.

 “Lord help us to trust in you and to know no matter that what roller coaster we are on. You have us securely strapped in and you have it all under control. In Jesus name Amen”.

The Ostrich Myth

              

  I am sure that you have all heard the myth of the ostrich.  When endangered what does the ostrich supposedly do?  He sticks his head in the sand.  Even though this is just a myth it is a great example of many people.  The moment they feel threatened or endangered, they run and hide from it. They bury their heads in the sand just like the ostrich.   

                When I was younger I had many issues in my life and because of this; I would build up walls around my heart. That way no one could get to me and hurt me.  The problem was that in time these walls made me bitter and angry.  I would always see that someone was out to get me.  In time I became easily offended.  When I was in conflict with other people, I always saw the fault in that person but never in myself.  I viewed personal correction as a personal attach. Everyone was out to get me.   I would sooner bury my head in the sand instead of dealing with the truth. 

                God wants us to open up to him.  We need to trust him and allow him to work in our lives.

Psalm 139: 23-24 says:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;

And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way of everlasting.”

When we allow him to show us what needs to be changed and give him authority to change us. He will do amazing things.   Instead of burring out head in the sand we need to bury our heads in the word.  God will speak to us through his word. It also makes it easier for us to battle these feelings.  When we have fight we will have the sword to fight the battles. Instead of accusing everyone else for our problems we will be able to look above and beyond the problem. We will be able to fight the battle that we face every day with our heads held high. 

Have you been caught in the Ostrich myth?  Maybe it is time to allow God to work in you. He will show you what is hurtful in your heart.  He will heal you and do a mighty work in your life.  I stand here today of an example of what God can do for you.  I am far from perfect and I still have a way to go but I know that as god directs me and shoos me things.  I no longer bury my head in the sand, I can now stand firm and burry my head in his word instead.   By doing this, I will be stronger and I will be able to fulfill what he has in store for me.

What is your secret??

My husband and I celebrate our 18^th wedding anniversary next week. I was working in the kitchen preparing dinner one evening. My youngest was helping me with dinner. She turned to me and said “Mom what is your secret? “ I thought for a moment not knowing what secret she was referring to. I asked what do you mean honey? You and Dad have been together for such a long time. How have you done it?  I turned to her and explained that the biggest strength in our relationship is God.

I remember making the invitations with my sister and I was thinking God, I want you there at my wedding. Not just on my wedding day, but in every day of our relationship. I want you to bless this marriage. I plan on growing old and grey with this man, but I can’t do it without you. So many times people get married and they forget that God wants to be a part of everything. Even the simple things.

Don’t get me wrong, we are far from the perfect couple. We both came to this relationship with excess baggage and hurts. Another thing is we are both pretty stubborn at times. I believe that the family who prays together stays together. 

We had so many people offer their opinions things like; never go to bed angry, Famous last words “Yes Dear”. Never hold a grudge, Say I love you at least once a day, never make decisions alone.

The best advice we had was from an elderly lady from our church. She said to always keep God first. Keep God in the marriage. She told me that Satan comes to ruin families. What better way to get to a family, then to split the marriage. Prayer is # 1 in your relationship.

I believe that marriage involves 2 people.  I do not see myself more important than my spouse. Marriage is a relationship between 2 people not one. I see so many times where it is all about the wife or it is all about the husband. I believe that putting each other first is very important.   I believe that your spouse needs to see love and respect for them daily.  I am not afraid to show affection. I am not afraid to show him I love him and would be nothing without him. Funny how some people look at that as sucking up. I don’t see it that way. God has built us to want love and affection.  I pray that my daughters learn from our example. I pray that when they are ready and they meet their partners that they know what a healthy relationship is.

When I got married it was not the thoughts of well if this marriage does not work out…

It was this is the man I will live the rest of my life with. This is the man I will grow old with. This is the man I will raise my children with. The man who one day, I will hold my grandchildren with. The man I will die with. For Better or For Worse.

I planned on going through the storms of life together hand in hand. No regrets and no looking back.

So when you ask what is our secret? Our secret is putting God first then, our spouse then ourselves.

All things work out for good when you put God first. 

All Things Beautiful

I remember as a little girl giving my mom little things that I had made. I never understood the pride she had. That was until she passed away and we had to clean out her house. She had an old vase that I had made and given to her. I remember how proud I was. Looking at it, I was thinking. "I am not sure what it is." I think it is a vase. Maybe it is a candy dish. I don't know, but  it is sure is ugly, but she treasured that gift so much, because it was from me. I had taken the time to make it for her. It meant a lot to me and obviously it meant a lot to her also. I remember sitting and holding it after she passed away and crying to think that she loved me so much she had kept this gift. It was slanted and it was all banged up and it just was not very nice in any way. You could not really put flowers in it because it was very shallow. However, my mom saw it as the most beautiful treasure ever. She saw the beauty in it. I had done my very best to make it for her. When no one else could see the beauty she saw it was from the heart and she treasured that forever.

In many ways that is like God with us. He sees us as his children. We are trying to please him in many ways. Sometimes we make a mess of it. But he knows our hearts he knows we have done our best. That is all he asks of us. That we do our best. We may look back and think, man I really messed that one up. And God is sitting up in heaven, saying well done they good and faithful servant. Sometimes we may not do anything in fear because we are afraid to mess it up. But God only asks for our best. And when we put our faith and trust in him. It will be our very best. Without him we are nothing. Without him we would surely fail. God only asked for their very best. That is all God is asking of us. He wants our very best.

Lord, help up to offer you our very best. And help up to trust in you and to remember when no one sees the beauty in things. You do because we are your children and you love us.

THE CROSS

With the Easter season upon us I was thinking about what the cross means to me. For some people it is a crucifix. The cross is a reminder that Jesus died on the cross for us. For others it is a symbol that reminds them that Jesus rose again and is no longer there. When I think of the cross it makes me think of Jesus’ strength and power to overcome anything. The bible tells us to take up our cross and follow after him.

The cross is where we lay our sins and sorrows. It is where we lay our burdens and problems. When we lay these things at the cross, we can receive God’s healing power and perfect peace. The joy of the Lord will be our strength. When we do this we can truly know Jesus’ power and strength.

Matthew 11:28

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

  

I remember going to a camp retreat when I was a young adult. A huge wood cross stood at the front of the auditorium. The speaker had placed it there before the service. The message was on the power of the cross and what it means. I remember at the beginning of the service we were given a piece of paper and pencil. We were told to hold on to it we would need it at the end of the service. The end of the service came and the speaker encouraged us to write down anything that may be holding us back on that paper. One thing that was holding me was the past hurts and pains. There were things in my life that I did not feel I could let go of. My family was a mess at that time and it was holding me back. I had to learn to let my family go. I may not understand why or what was going on. I may never understand some things, but I needed to give it to God. I loved my family so much that it was hindering me from the joy I could have. The fighting and issues were destroying me. My past was another thing that was destroying me. People had abused me and hurt me in many ways. I was holding on to all these things and it was hindering me. I had been hurt by family, friends and church members.

The speaker then placed a hammer and some nails in front of the cross. He told us that God died on the cross so that we did not have to deal with this stuff. It was nailed to the cross when Jesus himself was nailed to the cross. He then called upon anyone who wanted to place their burdens and sins on the cross to come forward, and to nail them to the cross. I remember going up to that cross and nailing that paper to the cross. I also remember hearing the sound of that hammer as tears rolled down my face. I did not have to deal with that pain no more.

The end came and the speaker told us that it is easy to put those things on the cross. The bigger step was to leave them there. Too many times we hand things over to God only to walk away and drag them behind us. I made up my mind that day. I would not let those things hold me down anymore. I walked away, and I am so thankful that I was able to leave them there. That heavy weight on my shoulders I did not have to carry anymore. Jesus had taken all the bitterness and anger and replaced it for joy and love. I did not have to live as a victim anymore. I was a survivor and was going to live like one.

There is an old hymn that says "At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away. It was there by faith I received my sight and now I am happy all the day."

This old hymn describes exactly what I felt that day. My burdens were rolled away and replaced with happiness and joy. I know that I could have never done this without the power of Jesus. He died on the cross many years ago so, I would never have to carry that pain and sorrow around with me again.

 I see many people from similar life styles that are still caring that baggage with them. I often say a silent prayer for them. I also thank God for healing me and for allowing me to leave that pain where it belonged on the cross. I had found victory.

 Through the cross he saves us and through the cross he will heal us. Victory only comes, when we stop trying to gain strength on our own. It comes when we lay our heavy baggage at the foot of the Cross. When we turn our lives over to God and are willing to let him take the reins. Only then can God take full control of our lives. He will then transform us into what he wants us to be.

God's Love

 It always amazes me on how so many religions and so many places have their own set rules, and if you do not follow them then you are not in. I am very glad that I belong to a group that the one in charge does not boot you for not following the rules. God has no stipulations. He has a wonderful book of rules. ( the bible) But he would  never kick us out for not following them. He forgives us when we fall. He loves us, and he accepts us regardless of our faults and our short comings. He just simply points the wrongs out so we can work on them to become a better person.

    I have a few friends and they are living a life completely unacceptable to God's word. At one point the one friend turned to me and said I don't understand, Is your church not against this way of life. We have met many Christians but none like you.  The churches we have gone to of many religion. They put us out of the church and turn us away. They will shut the doors on us, but you still love us. You never turn us away.  I turned to her and I said Yes my church is against this. I also do not agree with this life style. My bible states that what you are doing is wrong in God's eyes. However it is not my job to judge you. It is my job to show you God's love and for God to convict you, and to use me in anyway he can to show you why it is wrong. It is not my job to kick you out of the loop. It is not my job to condemn you.  In the end we both will stand before the King. In the end I will be judged the same as you. I will stand with the murders I will stand with all sinners. All sins great and small.

Romans 14:10 

" But why do you judge your brother?  Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgement seat of Christ. 

    What are we showing unbelievers by turning them away? When Jesus was here on earth he hung out with the prostitutes the tax collectors. He hung out with the diseased  and the unloving. So why is it that we can't see people for who they are. They are lost and they need to be shown the love of God. The one that has no stipulations, the one that loves us unconditionally. 

Mathew 7:1

“Do not judge or you will be judged.” 

    We all have struggles, we all have crosses to bare. I remember a few years ago. I was really struggling. I was sitting on the fence. So much had happened in my life. I was so mad at God and at everyone around me. I had been hurt by the church people. I had been hurt by family and everyone around me. I had just lost my Dad to cancer, and a lot of other things had come against me in life. I was just bitter. I had been talking to my one friend. And I had stated that I did not know where to turn. I was not sure what side of the fence I wanted to be on. If these were truly God's people I did not want no part of it. If God loved me why would he allow this all to happen. He turned to me and said Rose, I love you. I am here no matter what. I know that you will deal with this and that you will be ok. I do not judge you in anyway with your lifestyle. God loves you and he is the one that will judge you and not me. I got out of his car went into my house. And all night his words kept coming back to me. I love you and I do not judge you. I don't even know if he knows today how much of an impact those words would be to me today. Many others pointed fingers and their idol chitter chatter behind my back. But not this true friend who showed me the love of God. The love that says what you are doing is wrong but I still love you. Without that love at that time, I am sure I would have thrown in the towel and walked away. This is the love I am talking about. The true love of God.

    I think the greatest gift that God ever gave me was my kids. Until I became a parent myself. I never really understood the love of God. God's love for us is a lot like the love of a parent. Sometimes his love is even greater then a parent. He loves us unconditionally. My kids can do something and it upsets me but I will always love them regardless. They are my kids. And we too are God's kids and he will always love us unconditionally. In closing I just want to say, the next time you come across someone that you know is not living right or is just so unloving. Remember the love of Jesus. I am not saying agree with the sin but love the unloving. You may be the only bible that person may read today.

Daddy Catch

When my daughter was younger she use to stand on the top step and say “Daddy catch me”. She would leap into the air for my husband to catch her. She had the faith that Daddy would catch her. She had the faith that her father would not allow her to get hurt and that he would be there no matter what. Children have that wonderful faith. A faith that simple, direct and honest. This same faith is praised by God. He tells us that childlike faith will help us to find the kingdom of heaven.

Mathew 16:3

“Verly I say unto you. Except you be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”

There are many different meanings of faith in the dictionary. One is to have confidence or trust in a person. Faith in another's ability. Another is belief that is not based on proof. When we put our faith in God, It is not scientific proof. It is not a random thing. It is an actual hope and belief that God's promises to us are true.

Hebrews 11:1

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

When I think of faith I remember a little song as a child that I use to sing.. It simply said walking by faith, and not by sight. I won't allow this circumstance to turn me left or right, trusting in his promises. I know that I am right I am gonna walk by faith and not by sight.

That is the type of faith we should have. No matter what storms come our way. We still trust God and his word to get us through it.

  

Mathew 17:20 says that faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains.

So no matter what things come our way with the faith we can move those mountains out of our lives. We just have to have faith and ask.

That is the faith God wants us to have. He wants us to have that childlike faith, to be able to stand on the biggest problem and say Daddy catch. Just like my daughter did when she was little. I can see me standing on the top stair and saying Daddy catch. And God standing at the bottom saying: I will catch you.