Erin Healy's Blog: Why I Believe in the Supernatural #15

Erin Healy's Blog: Why I Believe in the Supernatural #15: "My Mom By Karen Lockinger Greenberg My belief in the spiritual world, and its power over those of us on Earth, was cemented during a..."

MONDAY MEDITATION: Following Where He Leads

MONDAY MEDITATION: Following Where He Leads

Posted by Cathy Bryant at 8/16/2010 06:00:00 AM

When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.

Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. The righteous things he did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin and he does not sin, he will surely live because he took warning, and you will have saved yourself. ~Ezekiel 3:18-21 (NIV)

Ever been ready to quit? To throw in the towel? To hand the ring over to someone else?

If not, please share your secret!

The prophet Ezekiel received a call from God on his life. And God told him upfront what it would be like. He was sending him, not to a people of a foreign tongue who would readily accept his message, but to a rebellious house, God's own people, the Israelites. In nearby verses, God also referred to them as briers, thorns, and scorpions.

Ezekiel's response? "The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me." (Ezekiel 3:14) The passage goes on to say that Ezekiel "sat among them seven days--overwhelmed." (3:15)

In other words, he started off kicking and screaming and then went into numb shock.

The Christian life is not for the faint of heart. God calls us to do what seems to be not only impossible, but unfair. And for scaredy-cats like me, the easy way out is to run the other direction, to clamp my lips so tight it would take the jaws of life to crack them open.

I'm sick at heart, brothers and sisters. I see so many weeds that have taken root in God's garden, the body of Christ. The easy thing to do would be to be bitter and angry, to hide in my hole and clamp my lips. To quit.

But I can't.

Why? Because I belong to God. Because His love compels me. Because I refuse to allow Satan anymore of my family than he's already taken.

Dear LORD,

There's nowhere we can go where You are not. Like Peter, we say, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." Give us the strength and courage to go where you send, to say what You say, to do what can only be done through Your presence in us.

In Jesus' Name,
Amen

barbjan10 said...

Cathy, How could you know? But God did. He knew I needed this word today...and everyday. I have become a preacher of these words of scripture you have quoted - but I don't know if anyone hears. My adult kids say, "Don't preach to me...I don't need it." So, have I done what God requires of me...have I given my warnings to the wicked and the righteous and just leave it at that? Of course I want to save myself, and I want my erring children to be saved for Jesus also. So what do I do...I pray...vehemently and desperately that the meaning of God's words will take root in their hearts instead of the weeds. But like you, I can't quit. I'm deep in the heat of this battle with satan, and particularly 2 of my daughters. Last night I saw just a little glance of a new flower taking root in their hearts....it's as though they've removed the soil/dirt from their ears and have heard. God is still doing his job.
I wish I could confide what these battles are at the present time, but I pray you have understood my meaning that we can't quit...we need to keep on...in any faithful way..through others...through prayer. I am in full agreement with your words and heartfelt thoughts. Thank you for blessing my day....again.

Sharing God's Love,
Barb Shelton

August 16, 2010 1:48 PM

Obstreperousness

Obstreperousness is a big word for a person who is harsh, critical, unappreciative, difficult to please, and never satisfied. The obstreperousness person is quick to find fault and quick to attribute blame and try to instill guilt. He is almost obsessed with proving the other person wrong and himself right. She is usually negative in her basic attitude toward life.

We all know people who are as long in criticism of others as long as this word is to describe them. It sounds like a disease, and the way I see it, it is a disease. A disease of the mind's eye, the tongue, and denial of positive thoughts about anything. This person always questions everything and voices his opinion of what's wrong with national decisions, international decisions and another's personal decision. In fact, at this very moment, while I'm typing my foggy thoughts, in the background is the man I've been married to for 35 years, droning on about several issues at once - all negative. I want to scream! I am not able to finish a complete thought of my own while I'm listening on the side to mumbling through the food being shoved in his mouth. It's lunch time for him.....it's time for me to shut up until I can carry on a complete thought without interruption. Another point of this disease.....they can't hear anything the other person says, because they talk right over them as though they don't hear....or just plain don't care.

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Finally Understand.....I Think!!

Blogging!! This has really been confusing to me for ages. Everyday I've asked myself....just how do I blog.....what about...and why? No answers come to me out of the thin air that surrounds me. I just sit there facing the pc screen and wonder, wonder, wonder!
So today I thought I'd talk about what I'm doing for interest and fun. I make comments on authors giveaways in hopes of winning the featured book. I've been pretty lucky in that I've won about 8 books so far. I love it!!!
I've had this yen to write for a long time. I'd like to write about the traumatic and dramatic circumstances I've lived through the past almost 72 years. Do I know how to write? I'm a great speller and understand vocabulary pretty well, but could I put words together to make enough sense and interest another person to read my writings? Guess I'll never know unless I give it a try!
This is actually my first blog. I'm wondering if it serves as a blog. Will anyone read it? Do I want anyone to read it? Hey!! You!!! You out there in the pc world......if anyone reads this, will you please let me know you have....please. I still don't know how to blog. Where do I find simple...I said "simple" instructions? I'm not a good reader of directions....I'm a hand's on try the experience person and then write it down in my own words so I will understand the directions. Is there a book out there written for Dummies? Blogging for Dummies! Good title.
Anybody there?