Fresh Water

For as long as I can remember, I have had a cat. My parents tell me that I have always loved the furry felines, and that stray cats had a way of ending up on our front porch of every house we ever lived in. I actually can pick up a cat at a stranger's house when we are out on Visitation, and tha cat will like me. Two of our cats turned into 15 while my sister and I were away one year at Bible college. I am definitely a cat person.

While we are much smarter than cats, of course, they have a wonderful habit that more of us should copy. They love love love FRESH WATER. Americans will grab a bottle water more than ever now when they are thirsty. Fifty years ago, coke was the number one soda people gravitated to until it was determined that sodas don't quench thirst, water does. It was unheard of in the 80's to BUY water---only the movie stars did that! Now, almost everyone keeps their "bottle" near by. But cats will go to great lengths to get water. This intrigued me so much to watch my Smokey drink out of a bowl where some potatoes were being "babied" in several bowls. She drank their water. Why? It was available.

In college, I had an English teacher (who was also our Bus Ministry Leader for the girls) give an amazing illustration one day regarding our spiritual lives. She was encouraging us to be clean, prayed up individuals before we went to visit the bus kids. Our visits would be windows of opportunity to make a difference in some teenager's life, and we would not get those moments back---so why waste them? She told us that the only way we can share from God's Word is to have God's Word already put in us. We had to fill up our well so that we had water to give. It was an amazing illustration that I often use to this day, and I'm sure the other "grown up girls" do the same. The problem lies when we try to fill up from something other than God's fresh water for the day.

1. Cats love drinking from the toilet.
In my studying this, a lot of people have opinions on the why, but the scientific answer: it is colder. But water from a toilet? Yuck. That's trashy water to us. The Bible says in Acts 4 that Peter and John answered to the church priests when they were being questioned, "we can NOT help but to speak the things we have seen and heard."
Christian: be careful what you SEE. Be careful what you allow yourself to HEAR. Don't spend a lot of time around those people who contaminate your well---or worse, dry it up---with their negativity.
Proverbs 8:33, "Hear instruction, and be wise , and refuse it not."
Proverbs 2:11, "Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee."

2. Cats drink at 4 laps/second. Really, until high-powered photography, no one knew exactly because they drink at a pace too fast for our human eyes. They do this with their mouths open until that 4th lap, and then the jaw closes down allowing them to swallow. It is elegant and amazingly accurate.

When you are filling your spiritual well for the day, remember that you will be watched. Ask God for wisdom for the things you will face today. Even if you think that your life is so insignificant that no one will be paying attention to your actions, you're wrong. As Christians there is always someone watching our lives. They watch what we say; how we respond; where we go--it never ends. There is never a time to let up in your Christian example, so don't.

3. Cats will drink water from anywhere because they are naturally thirsty. There is a new trend of "cat fountains"--a way to get your kitty to drink more. There are new "cat toilets" that are very fun and cool, but they are gimmicks to get you to buy them. The fact is: a cat is an animal and he will go wherever he needs to go to get his water. He doesn't have to have the cool toilet to do his business--cat dirt is cat dirt.
When filling your spiritual well, don't get sidetracked with the newest evangelical trick that is out there. Don't get all caught up in some devotional that has great stories and let that take the place of God's Word. I love to read, and many of the books available are wonderful as a SIDE item to go along with God's Word. The Bible is the source. The Bible is the deepest of the cold water that won't run out no matter how many times you have to go back to it during the day to refill.

Proverbs 27:9 "Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel."

Everyone has burdens. Everyone looks for that ONE person he can trust when he needs to share those burdens. What if that person is you? Do you have something deeper than some experience of your own to share with him? That kind of help only goes so far. It is humanistic at best.

Proverbs 10:11 "The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked."

Stop right now. Fill your well. Put fresh new water in it because someone needs you today.

Death and Life are in the Power of the Tongue

Death and Life are in the Power of the Tongue

The chameleon is a reptile, a colorful, curly-tailed lizard mostly known for its ability to change colors to match its surroundings. Their large eyes can be quite comical to look at, but those eyes can see 360 degrees and aid them in their avid hunting. Not all of the chameleon species can change colors, but those that do can turn beautiful shades of reds, yellows, purples and blues! One source mentions that a chameleon's mood, temperature, and health can also determine its ability to camoflauge itself. I find this especially interesting.
However, an even more amazing feature of this lizard is its tongue. The chameleon's tongue is extremely long and covered with saliva that is sticky, making the surface abrasive. It can reach almost twice its length, and can reel in prey about 1/2 the size of its body. The end of the tongue is similar to a club with a little flap that wraps around the victim and rolls the "food" back to the chameleon's mouth. He is a chewer, so the prey is soon devoured. This tongue allows the chameleon to catch its food while remaining motionless. Basically, the victim is caught so quickly, it never has time to fight back. Death is inevitable.

The Bible has a lot to say about the tongue, and most of it isn't good.
Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Proverbs 18:21

Deliver me, O Lord from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man; Which imagine mischiefs in their hearts; continually are they gathered together for war. They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Psalm 140 1-3

How many times have we been hurt by the slicing of someone's words? How many times have we sliced someone with our own words? It doesn't take much, does it? It usually is joined with a haughty spirit too.
We think we know the right way without ever considering other options.
We so easily believe the first things we hear about someone or a situation because it is just way more interesting than to consider the information just might not be true.
We end up with regret after speaking out our feelings in the name of, "You just need to know how I really feel."
Since when do we feel it is necessary to speak our minds about everything as if our opinions are the only ones that matter?
We mistreat others because we feel we are on another level than they.
We unkindly cut down others in order to make ourselves look better.

Before I moved to Florida in 2002, I taught for ten years at City Baptist School with one of the greatest Christians on earth. Miss Hibbard loved teenagers with all of her heart. She was one of the kindest, most compassionate teachers I have ever met, and it was a privilege to work under her. I allowed her to be a mentor in my life, and asked her to kindly correct me if she ever felt I needed it. THAT turned out to be about every week because I was a young teacher who made all the typical mistakes! Anyone who knows Miss Pam will tell you that she can correct you, slice and dice you, hug you when she's finished, and you never even knew what happened. I've seen Chicago teenagers challenge her in a word war and just flat out lose. She has this kind way of winning the battle without ever losing her cool. Of course it is because she is a spirit-filled teacher, but I like to think of her as this amazing, sword-waving ninja in disguise.
What made the difference is her ability to close her mouth and not give her opinion even when she knew she was right.

Many times I watched her in action, but once in particular I have never forgotten. One night before a Pastors' School conference we had an issue with a freezer for one of the ice cream restaurants we were creating. For some insane reason she agreed to do three restaurants that year, and we were unbelievably tired. We had already stayed up for 3 days and nights straight trying to prepare for it, and exhausted and aggravated, we still had to teach our classes and then get back down to the church for the opening night. Well, there is always going to be someone who is jealous or mean when you are doing something good, and she ran into one of these people. They laid into her with mean words over something so petty and details that I knew just were NOT true. I was ready to punch them in the face and defend her like Peter defended Jesus with the sword, but she held my arm and glared at me with that "Miss Pam LOOK" that said, "Say one word and I'll kill you." When they left, I looked at her and said, "Miss Pam! Why don't you tell them they are wrong? How can you let someone talk to you so rudely when you are right?" She smiled that tight little smile of hers and said, "Stephanie, let them think that they are right. There is so much more to be concerned about right now." At 28, I didn't understand that, trust me. A punch in the face or an eye-glaring stare with a Satan hiss seemed to be the answer to me, but, oh, how wise she was to hold back. I was so lucky to learn from her that day.
If only we would learn to think before we speak.

He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding. Proverbs 17:27-28

Don't lie in wait to hurt someone with your tongue. Don't react to a situation and slice someone with words that are out there forever. The chameleon's tongue seizes and quickly rolls the prey right in--and you may take the words back into your own mouth-- but the damage has been done. It just isn't worth it.
Be a sword-waving ninja with a closed mouth.

Delays and the Portia Spider (part 4)

Delays, detours, and distractions. The devil will use anything to discourage us or get us "off track" as a Christian.
I have a 4th detour/delay to share with you--this time it is a delay that WE can cause in our lives, so we have to look out for the danger signs.

Recently I saw a commercial where a teenage girl is driving safely. Her phone is in a cellphone holder, she has her seatbelt on, and she is obviously driving at a safe speed. Then her cell phone beeps, alerting her of a text. She picks up the phone, smiles at the text, and crashes. The commercial states that the average text takes 5 seconds to read and begin a reply. Everything was going fine. She started her journey prepared. But she was distracted for a short time, and it killed her.

The PORTIA SPIDER is a devious little furry arachnid found in parts of ASIA, AFRICA, and AUSTRALIA. My students and I have discovered this year that it seems the most dangerous things of the world always find their way to Australia! The Portia Spider looks like every other "international spider"--typical scary-looking eyes, eight furry legs in shades of brown and black, and an evil mouth ready to devour something. However, its deadly feature doesn't lie in its looks--it lies in his deception. This spider mimics a wounded, trapped insect on his web, and distracts his victim. He is all about deceit and trickery. He imitates vibrations of other insects and sneaks up on his chosen prey. In other words, this spider is a CREEPER!

Remember that we have established there will be DELAYS in our lives. Sometimes we are going about life happily--and BAM! We hit that pot hole and it throws us off the road of life for a while; but sometimes we get distracted with minor things that cost us majorly.

Ephesians 6:11 says, "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."

In college I learned that sometimes we just give the devil too much credit. We blame him for everything. HE is out there, of course, ordering his own demons to harass Christians to get them off the path of serving God. But maybe we need to just stop giving him so much homage by IGNORING his distractions along the way. God gives us signals, warnings. He put them in His Word. If we "armor up" with His way from HIS Word, we won't get so easily distracted. We'll be ready.
The cell phone commercial reminded me of a couple of things.

1. Don't text and drive.
Christian, don't do other things when it is time to "armour up." Cindy Schaap use to say it to us in college: "Choose your Bible time, and don't let anything get in the way." How can we help people spiritually if we don't have anything new and fresh to give them?

2. The teenager looked down.
We can't look down. Ever. Keep your eyes on your goal. Distractions make us look anywhere and everywhere except at the issue at hand. Recognize it as a distraction. No Christian is exempt from this.

3. The girl picked up the beeping phone.
Just because you looked down for a moment doesn't mean you have to act on it. Once you pick up the distraction, now you have to make another decision: to answer or not. Don't put yourself in that position. Whatever it is, it will beep and probably loudly.

4. She STAYED distracted.
Miss Hibbard used to drill it into the girls in Hammond, and I hope I say it in my world of teenagers enough for them to believe it. "There is always a way out." If you find yourself off on a goose chase right now in your life, recognize it and get back to the path. There is always a way out for us---God's forgiveness. When we stay too long in the sin, it WILL kill us.

Help someone with this today!
Oh, one last thing. There IS ONE spider that always catches the PORTIA in his act and defeats him. It is the EURYATTUS spider. He has fantastic vision and spots the Portia before it can "woo" him into the web, and then he charges the Portia himself! "There is always a way out."
Have a great day!