We all have buttons we’d like to destroy because people keep pushing them. And the results are chaos and turmoil.
This happened to me recently and I recognized that I reacted the same way every time with one particular person. The simple solution of walking away from her was not going to happen because I love her. She is family. And I want to understand what is between us.
So, I asked Jesus how to deal with this because I was beginning to fear her. I’ll call her Lisa. Lisa has a strong personality. But Jesus told me not to go to her in this instance because the problem was not hers but mine. The pain I felt was a button of guilt I had hidden deep inside myself years ago. I hadn’t handled life perfectly and therefore I’d caused pain to others, including Lisa. Continue reading DESTROYING BUTTONS→
When Father was teaching me to Rest, He actually told me to sit still for long periods and do nothing. It was hard. I felt condemnation. Lazy was a word that kept popping into my head. It was even somewhat frightening. Which is weird. Silence is frightening. It’s hard to face it alone. And the drive to do something all the time is insistent. I’m responsible for stuff and people. I can’t leave them unattended.
Apparently, I was taught thoroughly that “idle hands are the devil’s workshop”. And it was so ingrained that I didn’t know how to stop doing it easily. Quickly I saw how my enemy was keeping me from being much of a threat simply by keeping me busy. And Father wanted to make Rest a foundation in my life. Breaking off that busy constancy required sitting, staring it down, without a book in my hand, without a hobby before me, without the computer, and without a companion. Continue reading TEACHING ME TO REST→
Years ago, I got a new job that required I walk through a scary building twice a day. It was a security check. And it was part of my job.
Light bulbs had burned out in most of the building, so it was pitch black in the hallways. I submitted an order for them to be changed but that took a few days. In the meantime, I had to go through the building.
Friends said I should skip it until the lights were fixed. But I was compelled to do my job correctly. I didn’t want fear to victimize me. So, I searched for comfort and protection through memorizing scripture.
How can we be Christian and see only death, despair and destruction all around us? How can we?
Christ is Life, He is rebirth, and He is redemption. Have we forgotten? Do we look at a cocoon and not see the butterfly emerging? Do we panic and say “what horrible end is coming – the cocoon is dying?” Do we stare in disbelief and pray and plead with God to save the cocoon? Continue reading Butterfly→
