Where Is Our Rudder Heading Us?

A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds.  A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything...or destroy it!  It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire.  A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that.  By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell!   ~ James 3: 4-6 The Message

We spoke last week about the importance of knowing our story.  The stories of our life are nothing more than the merging of words: our word and the words we've heard.  But they are so much more than letters merged together, God created all things with them.  A year or so ago we broached this topic when speaking of Job's story:

Words. What do they really mean? God utilized them to create the world, then had them written so that we would know that. He also told us:  they are a double edge sword,  they have a great power and recompense, to etch them on our heart, to bind them about our waist, to wear them as a garland around our neck, to wrap them around wrist and to never let them leave our mouth. 

God also explained how to serve them:  to always speak them, sometimes to hold them, not to give them to fools, to realize they are pearls and not to feed the pearls to swine.  He asked us:  to speak them even when we know people will not listen, not to withhold them when they will teach, to speak them in love and kindness, advising us that, they can harm or heal and that they have action for good or evil. 

God's bottom line was this:  Ultimately they give life or cause death so we must understand our words because anything we propel out from us on some level we did in by faith. But sometimes our words expose the direction our rudder is heading us.....and it isn't where we've been telling everyone we were going.

There is no doubt, that the whole when to speak and when to "shut ye ole pie hole" can become a bit overwhelming……ESPECIALLY if we are leaning on our own thoughts with our eyes focused on our self.    Satan knows this!   But let's not focus on him, let's focus on what God says - and what He says is that  there is nothing new under the sun! This is great news, it means that evils bag of tricks is "predicable".  Let’s not be so naive (maybe that is a bit harsh) easily overtaken. Let's take the time to look at our history of words swarming about us all.  Let's not be one of those weak willed women (or men) ever learning but never knowing.  We can go through many days, but never learn one thing and we never mature enough to learn how to use our rudder to head us in God's desired direction.  Let's grow up a bit, we can do it!

If you want to read Job's story which I referred to above, click here. If you have ever felt like there is no where else earth for you to go because evil is attempting to force you off the last snippet of ground you are wobbling upon so you might as well just end all the terrible mess……..or better yet just beg God to curse the day you were born.  Then you know how Job felt when he basically said “Job OUT!” 


Today,  I cry out for those in riding the storm riddles sea of words.  I pray that our faith not fail so that God's name will not be put to shame.  He promised WE would never be put to shame when we ride the seas of His goodness.

That's all I need to have the wind of hope lift MY sails!
With the Love of our Christ
Kisses,
Candace

©Candace Huffmaster 2012, All Copyrights Reserved

Kaleidoscope Butterfly, Inc™

Omit, Admit, Submit

Hebrews 13:5-9, 17  Don’t love money.  Be happy with what you have because God has said, “I will never abandon you or leave you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper.  I will not be afraid. What can mortals do to me?”

Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you.  Think about how their lives turned out, and imitate their faith.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.  Don’t get carried away by all kinds of unfamiliar teachings.  Gaining inner strength from God’s kindness is good for us.  This strength doesn’t come from following rules about food, rules that don’t help those who follow them. 

Obey your leaders, and accept their authority.  They take care of you because they are responsible for you.  Obey them so that they may do this work joyfully and not complain about you.  (Causing them to complain would not be to your advantage)

I have not sent you all too much information this week because you have had a lot to think about from last week.  I know you all have started the work so we can discuss it, Right?

In thinking about storylines, here’s one for you:

What happens when you don’t have any words? You don’t have any desires. You feel that you don’t have anyone.  Do you remember that you have God?

Do you ever feel like your storyline just ends? Do you ever feel like there are no other words? Do you ever feel that all parts of your storyline have played out and the curtain just closed, with you having no other bit part to move onto and nowhere to go?

Do you simply stand there dumbfounded asking “What Now!?”  OR do you ask Christ, who is right there with you when you can’t see to show you the way out, “What do YOU want me to do now that I have come to the end of myself?”

Are you tired of being busy? Do you ever stop long enough for the truth to resonate that MAYBE you are running from God with all your “business”?  Maybe you are closing your ears by filling it with TV, RADIO and the idle voices of nonsense?

If people are supposed to be around us, and their support is crippled at best, how in the world are we supposed to be able to withstand the moments of our days without separating from them?

We need HIM.  He alone makes us able.  He tells us not to let evil in through our windows and doors.  We are supposed to stand our ground and protect our space; keep our peace.  So we need to just DO IT!

God will always rightly divide when we leave the battle ground in His hands.  All he asks us to do is pray for people, show mercy and keep about our own business – AFTER we speak the truth in love.  These ARE good ways no matter how others perceive them.

We have been speaking about HARMONY.  We often question submitting to people and selflessness.  The truth is not all leaders are leading us into God’s will.  Will you be able to discern where they are imploring you to follow?  BE WISE, Don’t be DECEIVED! Sometimes people have to simply leave without you.  It’s okay ……

Think about this today – we will be speaking more on this next week. 

I can’t wait to hear your stories.

I pray for the peace, which comes through knowing Christ, by the Spirit indwelling and leading you, to keep you cuddled tenderly till we meet again.

With Love,

Candace

©Candace Huffmaster 2012, All Copyrights Reserved

Kaleidoscope Butterfly, Inc™

Job Description: Kill, Steal and Destroy

Today we are picking up in Job 1 by looking at what satan did to show God he was right about Job and the things he elaborately planned in order to provoke Job to curse God to His face.  First, I would like to start by framing our mind with some truths to enlighten our view points.  All the scriptures are from the NAS translation:
John 10:10-13

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have  it abundantly. 11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 "He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd,  who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 "He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep.

  Romans 8:20 and 21 where Paul states:

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.

Luke 11:21-23:

“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own mansion, his property is safe.  But a stronger man than he may attack him and defeat him.  Then the stronger man will take away all the weapons in which the strong man trusted and will divide the loot.

Genesis 2:15,16 and 3: 16, 19

Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to farm the land and to take care of it.  The Lord God commanded the man.  He said “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden.  But you must never eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil because when you eat from it you will certainly die.
……"I will greatly multiply Your pain in childbirth, In pain you will bring forth children……………
………For you are dust, And to dust you shall return."

                 ______________________________________________
With this frame of thought let’s read about the next few pieces of Job’s journey as satan goes about killing, stealing and destroying what God has created.  Job 1:13-22 (GWT):

One day when Job’s sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s home, a messenger came to Job.  He said “While the oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, men from Sheba attacked.  They took the livestock and massacred the servants.  I’m the only one who has escaped to tell you.”
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “A fire from God fell from heaven and completely burned your flocks and servants.  I’m the only one who has escaped to tell you.” 
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three companies and made a raid on the camels.  They took the camels and massacred the servants.  I’m the only one who has escaped to tell you.”
While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine at their oldest brother’s home when suddenly a great storm swept across the desert and struck the four corners of the house.  It fell on the young people, and they died.  I’m the only one who has escaped to tell you.”
Job stood up, tore his robe in grief and shaved his head.  Then he fell to the ground and worshiped.  He said, “Naked I came from my mother, and naked I will return.  The Lord has given, and the Lord has taken away! May the name of the Lord be praised.”
Through all this Job did not sin or blame God for doing anything wrong.

There are several things that we need to be aware of here.  First satan uses the people in our lives who are easily manipulated to carry out his plans.  This does not mean that the people are evil or possessed.  It simply means they do not guard against false imaginations by casting them down and filling that space with a truth of God.  Satan spared a mouth piece in each situation who believed exactly what he wanted them to believe and ran in fear to make the report he wanted made to Job.  God did not send the natural disaster, satan did.  Satan must have loved the fact that he was being called God Almighty, he must have felt so very powerful in those moments. 
Can you imagine how his ego shriveled up and he ran when his scheming didn’t overtake Job’s love and trust in the faithfulness of our Lord God Almighty.  Even though Job did not understand that it was not God that took anything away, He only gives blessing.  Job did not allow satan to be the strong man in his land.  Job was righteous as God had stated.  Satan was proven once again to be the deceiver and God was magnified even on the worse day Job had ever imagined possible. 
Satan left a loser but that is not the end of this journey.  Satan does not give up when he sees that we do not fully comprehend the truth.  When he sees a foot hold you can sit back and collect bets, cause he will return…..as soon as we have our house swept and put in order.
Today, just read through this and think about it.  Tomorrow I want you to read it again, and write about it.  I will come back and post notes from one of our groups meeting tomorrow morning to give you some feed back.
Today I give thanks for the things we already see, I give thanks for the hopes that we have in our heart and I ask for his sight to keep your eyes set on the horizon where they will appear before you.  I lift His name on High to receive all praise honor and glory for all eternity.
In Christ, with Love,
Candace

Free Will..Who Holds Who Accountable??? Who are You Holding?

As we have studied God does not have a problem with accountability, forgiveness, change or charity.  He tells us we are accountable for so many things - awareness, trying to the best of our understanding, seeking more understanding in all things toward Him, others and our own inner and outer workings.  When we do this we will be changed by the renewing of our minds moment by enlightened moment.  This enlightened transformation leads to true giving without a thought of our self. 

This is our highest calling and the cause for all things that happen toward us, into us, through us and pouring out of us.  This is what He chooses to be united with and the reason we must be separated to move into his presence in harmony.  So.....knowing that you are an instrument in His harmony, what is your tune?  Have you looked at the piece of music He is orchestrating today.  Watch the conductors hand and follow. 

Write about it this weekend.  I will post some things to spur creative thinking.

My love to each of you - I posted Os Hillmans devotion today for us to think on.

See you soon,
Candace

The Value of Words

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman

"And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." - Matthew 5:36-37

Imagine for a moment that you are living in Jesus' time. It is before Jesus has begun His public ministry. He is a carpenter in your local town of Nazareth. You have asked Jesus to make a table for you. You're on a deadline and you must have it in a week. You agree on the price of $100 for the table and the date of one week for completion. A week later you arrive to pick up the table. You lay your money down on the table and Jesus says, "Mr. Johnson, I am sorry but the table is not ready. I ran into complications. Also, I can no longer honor the price I gave you. It is now $150 instead of $100."

Two years later you hear about this same Jesus who is preaching to the local townspeople. How are you going to view this Jesus? You probably won't give much credence to His message because of your personal experience. Our lives have an ability to reinforce the message we stand for, or they can violate it and make it totally ineffective. This literally happens all over the world in different settings with Christian workplace believers. Our message becomes ineffective because we have not done what we said.

I know people who, when they tell me they plan to do something, I can expect them to follow through about 50 percent of the time. I am sure you have had the same experience. Words and commitments are made with little meaning behind those words. However, I know others who will follow through almost every time. The only time they don't is when something falls outside their control. I quickly learn whose words have substance behind them.
There are times when we are unable to perform or deliver what we promised due to outside influences. The key to turning these potentially negative circumstances into a witness for Christ is communication. If we are unable to pay a bill on time, we must communicate with those we owe and make a good faith effort to resolve it within our means. In these cases, God's purposes are being performed as well if we seek to do the right thing.

Do your words mean anything to those who hear them? Do you make commitments and fail to follow through on them? What would others say about how you follow through? Ask the Lord today to show you how you are doing in this area. You might even want to ask three people who are the closest to you how you fare in this area.

God Is Always Holy, Lovey and Pure.....But What Are We?

Genesis 3:1 (GWT) The snake was more clever than all the wild animals the LORD God had made. He asked the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must never eat the fruit of any tree in the garden'?"

We discussed how Adam was told to protect the garden and creatures from things.  We discussed him having a reason other than himself in order to correctly protect it.  And her right out of the shoot Adam was with Eve and when this "most clever" snake started speaking to Eve he did nothing.....NOTHING.  Why did he not stand before Eve and say "snake leave me alone - she is bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh you can't distort what God said like that."  "She had not been created when God told me that we could eat from any tree in the garden except from the tree in the middle of the garden or we shall surely die"  "So GO and be silent - you are a creature and I Am man, created in God's image!" "I subdue things around here not you!".

That is my fairytale version which would go on to say .....and they lived happily ever after.  But....the facts are different, aren't they.  Knowing the words we are going to be going over I think some proverbs from the wisdom of Solomon are the perfect reflecting point today. 

As for me and my house...we will serve the Lord!
With Love Candace

1 A gentle answer turns away rage, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongues of wise people give good expression to knowledge,but the mouths of fools pour out a flood of stupidity.
3 The eyes of the LORD are everywhere.They watch evil people and good people.
4 A soothing tongue is a tree of life,but a deceitful tongue breaks the spirit.
5 A stubborn fool despises his father’s discipline,but whoever appreciates a warning shows good sense.
6 Great treasure is in the house of a righteous person, but trouble comes along with the income of a wicked person.
7 The lips of wise people spread knowledge,but a foolish attitude does not.
8 A sacrifice brought by wicked people is disgusting to the LORD,but the prayers of decent people please him.
9 The way of wicked people is disgusting to the LORD,but he loves those who pursue righteousness.
10 Discipline is a terrible {burden} to anyone who leaves the {right} path.Anyone who hates a warning will die.
11 If Sheol and Abaddon lie open in front of the LORD how much more the human heart!
12 A mocker does not appreciate a warning. He will not go to wise people.
13 A joyful heart makes a cheerful face, but with a heartache comes depression.
14 The mind of a person who has understanding searches for knowledge, but the mouths of fools feed on stupidity.
15 Every day is a terrible day for a miserable person, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.
16 Better to have a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and turmoil.
17 Better to have a dish of vegetables where there is love than juicy steaks where there is hate.
18 A hothead stirs up a fight, but one who holds his temper calms disputes.
19 The path of lazy people is like a thorny hedge, but the road of decent people is an {open} highway.
20 A wise son makes his father happy, but a foolish child despises its mother.
21 Stupidity is fun to the one without much sense, but a person who has understanding forges straight ahead.
22 Without advice plans go wrong,but with many advisers they succeed.
23 A person is delighted to hear an answer from his own mouth, and a timely word—oh, how good!
24 The path of life for a wise person leads upward in order to turn him away from hell below.
25 The LORD tears down the house of an arrogant person, but he protects the property of widows.
26 The thoughts of evil people are disgusting to the LORD,but pleasant words are pure to him.
27 Whoever is greedy for unjust gain brings trouble to his family,but whoever hates bribes will live.
28 The heart of a righteous person carefully considers how to answer,but the mouths of wicked people pour out a flood of evil things.
29 The LORD is far from wicked people,but he hears the prayers of righteous people.
30 A twinkle in the eye delights the heart.Good news refreshes the body.
31 The ear that listens to a life-giving warningwill be at home among wise people.
32 Whoever ignores discipline despises himself,but the person who listens to warning gains understanding.
33 The fear of the LORD is discipline {leading to} wisdom,and humility comes before honor.

What For? Why?

I like the New American Standards translation of Genesis 2:24:

For “this reason” a man shall leave his father and mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

God had taken out Adams rib; he made Eve the support now for that weakened place. (If you missed yesterday or the discussion last week on what “rib” means look back in the archives). We brought up that God had created Eve from something within Adam that he already possessed. However, God make it spectacular and presented it to him in a complete and perfect form to help him. Now we should completely understand why they had to become one body again. It is only in this form that Adam will not have vulnerability – Can you imagine if someone tore your rib out and handed it to you? You would only be healed when the rib was put back in its place of support.

The word reason is an action word it propels motion, it gives a battle cause that demands effect. A mother or father come together to create a joined life. Separate from ALL other lives “above all else”. They are to prefer each other, refer to each other, show favor to each other. Not in neglect to the parents that brought them in to the world, but a parent cannot make us complete. They are only a vehicle to produce, sustain and hopefully nourish your life. Christ ultimately completes us – we know this, but there is a reason for a man to protect a woman, to call her into her destiny.

Look at Genesis 2:19 …….whatever the man called each creature became its name.

Man was given authority and power to call things what they were to be, to oversee “for God”, not for self. Adam started out calling Eve woman – “bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh” and it was good.

Husbands, boyfriends what are you calling your gift from God? Remember a curse does not come without a cause. Think about it, talk to God about it. Pray for your rib, ask to be healed and united. Speak good things upon and into your helper that God placed in your hands to prosper, protect, desire with all the capacity that He has planted within you.
With the love of Christ I request favor for all women in your site, mercy to cover our mistakes and the grace to get up and try again. I request that each man have ears that hear, eyes that see and a mind that is transformed into the image of Christ…..for your name sake Lord God Almighty. Selah

Amen, Shalom,
Kissses,
Candace