My Fabulous House of Cards

We have been kicking around the pieces of our lives attempt to discovering the deep seated beliefs we have anchored in our soul. I do realize most of you were not aware of this fact.  Question; if by chance you had known would you have participated with such openness?

We all must make a decision that we are either going to believe God is fully, meaning all aspects, who He says He is or either He is not what He says He is at all;  these are our only two options.  The general problem we all have is this:  We do not really know who God says He is, not all aspects based on only who He says He is.  But God knew this would be our common problem due to “the knowledge of good and evil”. 

God’s solution was to give us mercy and grace through Christ Jesus.  Once we can accept this truth – just the one mind you, He’s got us covered throughout the journey of discovery. He also doesn’t want us to keep believing misconceptions, so He sticks right with us ready and willing to clarify all the ambiguity and what not.  But fear makes us close down and attempt to run away and hide just like Adam and Eve did. 

We discuss our pieces of understanding without guilt, shame, condemnation, pride or arrogance.  If we do not open up, speak and listen to others compassionately as we embarrassingly expose our fragments of doubts, fears, ambiguity, frustration and everything which seemingly opposes what we profess we believe, then fear trumps our faith every time!  May that never be!! 

For this reason we constantly bring up the Trip, Fall, Fly patterns within our sojourn.  Again, common stuff here – no big surprise at all.  Just as God powerfully relates to each of us to ground and anchor His body here on earth, we must stretch ourselves to allow His embrace to under gird and unite us – and thank God we are called to be one.  Think about these things and review the information from the past several weeks. 

Pick up just one dusty piece and be ready to polish it off…..just one.  You can do, I know you ….and I trust Him, honestly!

Don’t be embarrassed if you are afraid to pick up a piece, maybe you are hesitant to even look toward the pile of pieces.  If so, try not to quit; simply pause.  Now, take a deep breath for me and ask yourself, kindly mind you, “Has the vine of my emotions swung me out only to drop me center stage?” 

Usually, when we attempt to isolate something uncomfortable, we begin to feel separated from everyone else, as though no one else in the world has ever dealt with this hideous thing.   And worse yet, all those “other folks” we begin envisioning sitting below us in the audience starring at our bewildered state.  But we know how to handle that, we simply picture everyone of them in their underpants!  However, that vision keeps getting interrupted by everyone staring up at us, on stage, under the spot light in nothing but OUR underpants – and they are decked out in the attire which would make us feel like a million bucks.  OK, so I might have overshot the emotional swinging, but you will understand in a moment.

Let me tell you a little golden nugget about emotions:  They build a house of cards around the one real piece of the puzzle which they are concealing.  We build these false images layer upon layer to protect the vulnerable piece; as well as our stage presence.  Often, we really do not realize we do this.  We might catch a glimpse of it, but it passes so quickly we believe it is the masquerade.  Then every once in awhile, God will gently allow the winds of change to blow toward your magnificent construction and hit …just one card……and quickly they all collapse into a one dimensional array.

There you have it.  This is what you are really looking at, or avoiding looking at ;)  Remember, it’s okay; it was just a silly house of cards.  Somewhere in that pile, however, is one brilliant piece of truth……….Let’s find it, together, and let it shine!

Kisses,

Candace

p.s.  There are enough cross-links in this to keep your mind moving forward if I get behind due to research.  Each time I re-read information I dust off another piece.  Yes , even I find fabulous card houses all around me; but now I ask God to blow the winds of change toward them - as He sees "I'm fit to handle it".

©Candace Huffmaster 2012, All Copy Rights Reserved

Kaleidoscope Butterfly, Inc ®

 

Is That Your Final Answer?

All of the Deeply Series is discovering the deep seated beliefs we have anchored in our soul.  This is the reason that we preface the groups with this overview:

Deeply is all about the decisions that we have to make if we are going to believe that God is who He says He is.  If we do believe this we will create a healthy fear in the Lord.

This does not mean that we are against discussing doubts, fears, ambiguity, frustration and everything that might seem to oppose what we are working toward.  Remember we include Trip, Fall, Fly in all that we do.  We are not here to impose legalism, denomonationalism (is that even a word) or pluralism.  We are here to create relationships: give compassion, empathy, understanding, wisdom, discernment, silence with an embracing arm, listening ear and Christ centered efforts.

Our purpose is always to expose our false reality in a way to create a catalyst for honest righteous changes in our lives - starting with our thinking to work out in our relationships Ultimately to honor God through a life which is flourishing in the sight of everyone.

So what is stopping this from happening in YOUR life?  We each must answer this question?  Is it even something you desire is the first question?  If not, why?  What do you feel would be a negative toward you?  What ever it is stems from a fear.  Can you isolate the fear to take a look at it?

Since we are always in a process - and thus process oriented ( or should be, you know my pet peeve with goal orientation) lets look at the process finding some of the chairs we have given out allowing those poaching thoughts to stick around and become beliefs.

Understanding that what ever is sitting in that chair is a real object to us it will play the part of our subject.  The actions we take to keep it in that seat undisturbed is what we believe.  Are you still with me so far?

Before we offer this object a chair we go through a process of gathering proof to prove to our self that our final answer is "yes, this subject will be given a chair.  It is now in the deep seat section orchestrating our thoughts. 

There is a parallel lane on this highway of proof to proven that we travel.  This lane is grief to grieving.  Avoidance keeps us on this road way.  What are we avoiding? Discomfort!  We all know that growth requires stretching ourselves.  We watch this day in and day out with children as their bodies stretch high and fill out.  We know all about growth pains, but they're not that big of a deal, right?  So why do we avoid it in maturing, increasing intellectually, relationally?  Why do we perceive obstacles as negative?  Remember the wall in "The Last Lecture"  it is only there to see how determined you are.  That is a great thing!

Here are a couple of interesting tid-bits:

When looking up some etymology of English words decide came from the formation of words meaning to decide and the ion added forming our word decision means suspicion, suspend, conversion, convert, compulsion, compel.

We are the object in another arena - we are the object in a battle taking place between truth and deception.  There is a seat with your name and it is just for you in each orchestra pit.  Will you suspend your decision long enough to gather all the facts?

What if we believe in God's promises long enough to see that He will prove the theories are incomplete?  What if we simply get more afraid of the illusion of the oncoming pain, discomfort, grief and abandon His faithfulness right when we would have had the proof we needed?  Remember He promised to never leave us nor to forsake us. 

Aren't we even the least bit fearful of calling God a liar by the seat we take -the seat we give to belief through the actions we believe and call truth? 

Think about it.
Write about it.
Share it with me / us here or in group Friday.

My prayer is that we will make the decision to decide that we believe in what is holy, lovely and pure then to be truth, be light and BE truly beautiful in all we say do and walk out.

(By the way - that is what one of our t-shirts are having printed on them - Be truth , Be light, believe - and the other is Be True Beauty ~ be beauty in chaos)  Let you all know when they are finished!

Kisses in Christ,
Candace

This is a Romans 8 Kind of Week ..and it isn't only Wednesday!

It is weeks like this when I see God's sense of humor and hear him encouraging me to take a deep breath, and remember...He knows what is going on in / around us.

So at this moment when my computer "seems" to be crashing, relationships "appear" to be disconnected, and my flesh "feels" like it is flailing - I pull close to God and curl up with Romans 8 and take a REALLY deep breath.  I will not grab the carrots that my mind is enticing me with.  I will believe God and persevere.

In line with what God has told us in the beginning of His Story to us, I ask you to meditate on the scriptures below today.   I thank God that all is well.  I thank him with a humble heart for the mercy and grace to get to the other side of Today with wholeness, peace ...and yes, even joy!

My prayers are with you all,
In love,
Candace

Romans 8:20- (NAS)
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.

"Good Grief"

Who of us is not trying to start off this year on the best foot possible.  We all do!  A new year is new hope, just as our hope should be new each and every day.  God is so gracious, he give us new mercies and grace each and every day.  How do we forget that?  But we all know there are days when even that we can find a way to whine about.

It is my prayer that we mature to the point we will go to God before we act on our own thoughts. Please pray that with me today for us all.
We were saved so that He abides within us, He does go everywhere with us. We must silence his voice in order to not hear it. Think about the scripture that implores us to "not grieve the Holy Spirit". We say we are trapped in a life we do not desire at times, think about how the Holy Spirit must feel trying to train us up. Yet we look around us all day long thinking how much others still need to grow - even there, we are grieving the Holy Spirit....we have so much to learn; let's try to lift each other up so it is not so difficult each day.

On a scale of 1-10 let's strive to make 2010 all 10"s.....moment by moment, day by day!

My love and prayers over each of you.

Candace

The Life of Power to Follow

Jesus answered him, ’Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward’ —John 13:36

"And when He had spoken this, He said to him, ’Follow Me’ " (John 21:19). Three years earlier Jesus had said, "Follow Me" (Matthew 4:19), and Peter followed with no hesitation. The irresistible attraction of Jesus was upon him and he did not need the Holy Spirit to help him do it. Later he came to the place where he denied Jesus, and his heart broke. Then he received the Holy Spirit and Jesus said again, "Follow Me" (John 21:19). Now no one is in front of Peter except the Lord Jesus Christ. The first "Follow Me" was nothing mysterious; it was an external following. Jesus is now asking for an internal sacrifice and yielding (see John 21:18 ).
Between these two times Peter denied Jesus with oaths and curses (see Matthew 26:69-75). But then he came completely to the end of himself and all of his self-sufficiency. There was no part of himself he would ever rely on again. In his state of destitution, he was finally ready to receive all that the risen Lord had for him. ". . . He breathed on them, and said to them, ’Receive the Holy Spirit’ " (John 20:22 ). No matter what changes God has performed in you, never rely on them. Build only on a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and on the Spirit He gives.

All our promises and resolutions end in denial because we have no power to accomplish them. When we come to the end of ourselves, not just mentally but completely, we are able to "receive the Holy Spirit." "Receive the Holy Spirit "— the idea is that of invasion. There is now only One who directs the course of your life, the Lord Jesus Christ. By Oswald Chambers