Long Ago...Part 3: The Transformation

 ...That was the beginning of the end of life as the man knew it. 

And a new beginning for the man.

He stopped crushing the rebellion, and joined the very 'cult' he had sworn to eradicate.

The leaders thought he had gone insane. He told people of his experience with the Good Man. No one believed him at first. Not even the members of his new 'family'. They thought it was a trick, a clever ruse to maneuver himself into their inner circles to discover their secrets and get his hands on their leaders.
But that didn't stop him. He persevered until one man believed him. This man took him to the venerable leaders of the group-men who had walked by the Good Man's side while he was on earth- and convinced them that what he had seen, and the choices he had made, were real. The leaders accepted him with great rejoicing, knowing that a time of great suffering for their people at his hands had ended.

But word leaked out...and those he once served didn't hold the same views.

The very ones who had sent him off to murder and ravage with the calm assurance that it was the One True God's will, now sought him out like a rabid dog upon discovering he had accepted the Gospel of Peace.

For years now, he had been on the run, abandoning his house, possessions, prestige, power, authority, position in the religious circles- everything a man holds dear in this world. He sacrificed them all for a life of danger, abject suffering, brutal betrayal, bone numbing weariness, and perhaps one day an agonizing, painful death at the hands of his so called 'friends' from the past. Never secure, never safe, he constantly wondered when he woke up to a new dawn, if this was the last day he would live on the planet.

Why would he trade such a good life for misery? 
Many had called him a fool.

The man blinked and glanced around the room, moving from the guttering oil lamp, faint outlines of the moldy room fixtures, and the single sheet of parchment on the roughly hewn low table. In the eyes of the world he had nothing. But was this new life worth it?

A smile cracked his face “Completely,” he said aloud into the dark air. For all his life, it had been all or nothing. After his encounter with the Good Man, he had even changed his name, to reflect the new nature the Good Man had bestowed upon him.

Back in the room, he had weighed the cost. Every sacrifice was worth the price he would pay to be near the Good Man. And if that was all he ever received from the relationship... it would be enough.

 And now the Good Man had given him a new purpose. To build instead of tear down. To heal instead of attack. How strange, he thought- that I would bring life, where I once brought death. 
 This was why he sat in the dim room, writing so furiously. Those who worshipped the One True God and His Son must know the worth of the Good Man's sacrifice for them. And they must in turn tell others...others like he had once been. They must all know.

Left to himself and the One True God's presence, that is just what he was attempting now.

He picked up the quill again, and continued writing. He had just reached the last bit of empty space at the corner of the parchment, when the fading lamplight sputtered and the wick sizzled into charred embers.  
But it was alright. 
He had finished. 

 

 

To Be Continued...

Long Ago...Part 2: The Man

...In the darkness of the room, it was strange to see the sparks that flew from his eyes, and the smile grow on his face.

The One True God had never given up on him. Even in the very throes of his one-man war against what he termed 'evil', he was ripped from his course and thrown into another path. On that day, he came in contact with the One True God's Son... the Good Man.

Or rather... the Good Man decided to come in contact with him.

The man put his head into his folded arms and laughed quietly.

In a rather violent and startling confrontation he had gone from a confident, hatred filled zealot, to a man who cowered in fear on the ground. His massive religious knowledge was like a straw wall against the tsunami of the Good Man's righteous wrath, and the man became keenly aware that the being whose existence he had adamantly denied, was very real...frighteningly so.
With fear he had never felt before, or since, he was told to follow a different path, and he did.

 This was when he began to realize that the Good Man's ways were nothing like his own. The Good Man sent him to a secluded area of the very city in which he had planned his next attack. Then, in a bizarre twist, the Good Man had sent an enemy, an esteemed member of the so-called cult to visit him. He learned later that this member had not wanted to come, knowing he had power to put him in prison, or even to death. But he had been so compelled (of all the preposterous things) by his LOVE for the Good Man, that he had overcome his fears of meeting the bloodthirsty avenger, and spoke something into the murder's life that he had given up long ago...

Hope.

All of his life he had tried to be the ultimate 'good' man- the one who kept all of the laws dictated by the One True God, and also the ordinances and traditions passed down by his Holy order. 
But as he sat in his bare room, alone with his thoughts, he realized with growing clarity (and a sense of dread) that he was guilty by every point of his law, and so doomed. But then, another realization came, and it was earth shattering: That the One he thought would destroy everything, was the fundamental element he had secretly been searching for his entire life. He was guilty, yes, but this Good Man, or Jesus (as He was called) was the new path(the only path, he heard later), the truth that led to a life of Forgiveness, and Redemption, the only avenue to fulfill the law, the only way to purpose, and life.

In that room, he made his choice. A choice that would rock countless ages to come, and turn the cities of the world on their heads, though no one knew it.

"I will follow the Good Man," the man whispered to himself.

To be continued...

5 Ways to Make Jesus Smile

In Love He predestinated us  for adoption through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure  and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Ephesians 1:5-6)

While reading this chapter in Ephesians, I was captivated by how important it is that we recognize the great love which He has loved us with  and in turn praise His name.

A few weeks ago I was remembering how many people talk about how we can delight ourselves in the Lord. I asked myself "What makes God delight in us?" I decided I would get to the bottom of this. I found MANY Bible verses which talk about what delight the Lord (just makes Him smile). I just want to mention five:

Five Ways To Make Jesus Smile:

"He delighteth not in the strength of a horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his unfailing love." (Psalm 146:10-11)

1. Fear Him
Honor Him even in the "small things" such as attitudes and thoughts.

2. Hope in Him
Interestingly, it's easy for us to hope and believe in the things God can do, but more importantly hope in HIM. In WHO He is.


"For you do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; you do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart..." (Psalm 51:16-17)

3. Be Humble and Repentant
Recognize your wrongs and mistakes and be sure to have a sincere desire to change and turn from those wrong ways.


"Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are his delight." (Proverbs 12: 22)

4. Always be Truthful

Be willing to always speak the truth and not just think it! Sometimes it's easy to not speak up because you don't want to upset the apple cart, but in the end it's always better to speak truthfully in the right timing.

"But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those Who diligently seek him." (Hebrews 11:6)

5. Have Faith

Oswald Chambers once said, "It is not what a man achieves, but what he believes and strives for that makes him noble and great."

This is just a glimpse of the incredible treasure of verse which show us yet another aspect of God's character. I hope this has been a little reminder of the incredibly GREAT God we serve.

 ~NATALIA

Long ago...

"Sometimes all it takes is a little perspective." 

~Andy Andrews, the Noticer

 Prologue... 

It was hard to see in the dark room. The man squinted, and brought his oil lamp closer to the parchment. Taking up his quill once more, he continued to write where he had left off.

At the opposite end of the room, a heavy door turned upon it's hinges, and a young man stuck his head inside. “my preparations for departure are almost complete, sir.”

“But a few moments, and I will be finished.”  replied the man at the desk, glancing over his shoulder and giving a quick smile.

With a returning nod and a 'as you wish sir', the  youth retreated, and the door closed once more.

The man smiled oddly. “Sir? A title I have not heard in years.”

He laid down his quill, and rubbed his aching neck... and then paused. Even now, he was still startled when  his ink-stained fingers touched the deep scars that ran down his spine into the rough cloth of his garment.

So long ago, but still he remembered vividly every whip lash on his bloody back, every raucous jeer as the spectators roared mockery at his pain, every evil leer as the guard pulled back his arm and delivered another taste of his religious order's 'justice'.

Starting out of his daydream and glancing down, the man noticed that the parchments yellowed surface was  spattered with ink.

He had been a rebel, going against the established order of religion in his country. In the minds of the religious leaders, he knew they felt they were just executing righteous judgment against an insurrectionist.

He understood.

He had also felt that way once.

Not so long ago, he had been fighting for the cause on their side.

Hatred towards those who rebelled against worshiping the One True God flowed through his hot veins. Such an blatant defiance was an act of sacrilege. At one time he had even approached the leaders of his sect, requesting permission to strike out against these rebels...especially a new cult that had just recently surfaced. Though it preached peace and actually claimed to worship the One True God, they introduced the heretical teaching that He had a Son...the man was convinced it would undermine the very foundation of thousands of years of established religious tradition... and perhaps the very basis of his faith.

His leaders were impressed with his passion, and drew up the necessary documents to allow him every liberty. Once he had power the man went on a rampage of ruthless purging, breaking into homes and ordering his appointed guards to drag the members of this cult away for questioning.

At that time, he had ignored the screams from the children and the wives of many men... but later they had echoed down the halls of his mind with haunting clarity.

Once, he had even given his consent for open murder. 

The man bowed his head, silently mourning the path of darkness he had chosen... How could anyone hope to atone for the crimes he had committed?

But then his head rose, and a gleam of hope flashed into his eyes...


To be continued...

Make Your Mark

You don't need to strive to make your mark on the world; to try and leave footsteps on the sands of time for others to follow. Live your life after God and you'll make your mark. You never know how much of an effect you can have on other people with a kind word or even if they just see the way you live. Sometimes people are so impressed with your life, that it impacts them, even inspires them to do great things. So, you never know. Just live your life after God.

~ CARMEN

Switchboard: A New Perspective on Life

I'm wanting to say and think something deep, but  every time I get going, someone calls and it ruins my  train of thought. It seems like switchboard is like life in that it's super distracting from something you're trying to achieve...I guess it's bad for focus.

In life, you're just sitting around and doing your own thing, but somehow almost constantly waiting expectantly for something. In switchboard, you're expectantly waiting for someone to call and in between calls you're trying to fill in  the time by thinking, or writing...
But this sense of expectancy is so distracting to any amount of productivity.

It seems like it's the very same way in life. Sometimes, we're trying to to accomplish something, but it's an upward climb because of this sense of "on edge-ness" that bothers us and makes us lose our focus. So, basically, if you want to move past all of this, take things as they come, one call at a time. Go with God's flow. Don't worry about the things that are sure to come. Go to God and get His direction for each day. You will be ready for what happens, when it happens. So, not to worry! It will happen when, and only when, you're ready and not a moment sooner.

~Carmen

What's the Deal?

This is something I wrote out last month. It's a little late, but it's what was going on none-the-less. :)

With Easter going on, there were a lot of thoughts going through my mind.  Especially because we had a Girls Journey in and I was really praying that they would have an Easter that they'd never forget.

As thoughts were crashing and swirling through my mind I hit on one and stopped, saddened and grieved. It was the thought of all the Easters past that had meant almost nothing to me. Easters where I just sat and listened to the recounting of a story that I'd known forever.  It's funny, it was on an Easter Sunday that I gave myself to Jesus, but so often after that when His sacrifice came up in song or sermon, it was just a sad thing that had happened a long time ago but hearing it and thinking about it  didn't stir my heart at all. The people around me who were freaking out about it all were just really strange.  

But as the years have passed, something has radically changed. That thing is my faith in the love of my God and my Saviour.

Before, the Easter story was that of a distant God who could do anything, and because He was really judgmental, He had to do something to make us tolerable enough to be around, so He sent His Son, who was perfect and could handle it, to die for us; and as a result we can go to heaven. But, we'd still better do everything right or we are in big trouble.

Those beliefs didn't make for a very full or joyful Christian walk.  But as God has taken the time to break down my wall of doubt and unbelief in His unconditional love, the cross has become one of the most heartrending and beautiful things in my life.

What I was thinking about this past Easter, was what the cross of my Lord has actually given me.  

For so long I lived, saved, but totally defeated by sin and discouragement. I knew I wouldn't have to go to hell, I knew that I would go to heaven, but life here was a joke!

But there has been a crazy revelation that God has been showing me little by little in the past few years, and this Easter I was really pretty much freaking out about it.

So, when I had the chance to spend some time with the girls who were going on the Journey, there was one thing I wanted them to see; the deal God made when He let Christ die!

He totally outwitted the devil, He CRUSHED him with Christ's victory over death!!!  Being such a victor, God had won the right to choose the terms of surrender.  

So what are they?  Well, according to how most of us Christians live they must have been along these lines:  "Satan, I have conquered and vanquished you, and I have overcome your only weapon which is death! My power is undeniable, my victory is complete and unquestionable! So, here are the terms of surrender that I demand!  You will not have anyone who accepts what My Son has done! They will be mine for eternity! Forever and ever, and EVER they will dwell with me and you will NOT be able to TOUCH them! 

But............you may still keep them bound here on earth.  They may still remain under your whip and continue to be a slave to sin and discouragement. They may live in fear, and doubt, uncertain of my love, and unsure of my will.  You may torment them with lies, and lead them into misery, guilt and condemnation, they may still live in sin, and they can strive to do everything right without the strength to actually accomplish it, and you may use that to make them despair. BUT... I get them in the end! "

Sigh.... I lived that way for SO long.  But the thought, that God would win such a victory, at SUCH a cost, and then settle with those kind of terms, it's awful, it's horrible, and it doesn't make any sense!

God did not settle with Satan on those terms!!! NOT EVEN CLOSE!!!!!!  So for the girls I was talking with, I challenged them to find out what we got when Jesus died. Not what we got later after we die, but what we can have RIGHT NOW!!!!!
I had them read chapters like I John 4 and 5, Ephesians 1, 2, and 3, Romans 8, and John 14 and 15.

And here are just a few of the things they found. Things that God says we get NOW because Jesus was willing to die.

• Christ becomes our Brother.

• We are completely sanctified.

• There is no more Condemnation

• The power of God that took Jesus from the very grasp of death is the power God will use to change us within if we let it.

• As we learn to know the love of Jesus we are filled with all and everything that God has and is! "Filled with all the Fullness of God"

• We are given a Comforter!  The Holy Spirit to teach us what we need to do.
• We have victory over the world and it's temptations.

These things seem like old news, but guess what?  Even though we've all heard them, most of us have NO IDEA what it looks, means, or feels like to live these out in their reality. We try and try and try and try and fail just as many times, because we don't know what it means to let GOD complete the work that He has started in our lives!  I think that's the main difference between all those "Amazing Spiritual Giants" and us.  They believed that all the things in God's word were true, and they let Him do it in their lives. We think we believe it, but we really don't, and we leave the miraculous power of God behind as we try to gain the abundant Christian life on our own.

But if we can start stepping out in faith, and just getting to know Jesus, the abundant life He talked about will become more and more of a reality. 

That is why He died, and it's the deal that He made when He gave up His life!  He gave up everything so He could give us everything.

On Good Friday this year, we heard a song that's been running through my mind ever since, and it's really simple, but it's just a reminder of my Saviour's total victory, and His love for me. 

Here's the Chorus:

"This is how Love wins, every single time,

Climbing high upon a tree where someone else should die.

This is how Love heals, the deepest part of you,

Letting Himself bleed into the middle of your wounds,

And this is what Love says standing at the door,

You don't have to be who you've been before,

Silenced by His voice, death can't speak again,

This is how love wins.

What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood, nothing but the blood,

What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood, nothing but the blood,

Cause' this is what love says, standing at the door, you don't have to be who you've been before!

Silenced by His voice, death can't speak again!

This is how Love wins!"