KICK Temptation

My pastor spoke today on James 1:12-18. Here are my notes from it. My pastor, Alex Himaya is a very gifted speaker and makes the word come to life so effortlessly. I hope you like it, I did.

"12 God blesses those tho patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will recieve the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. 13 And remember, when you are being tempted do not say, 'God is tempting me.' God is never tempted to do wrong and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires (lusts) which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. 16 So don't be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights (source of life) in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. 18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession."

Do you see the progression from temptation to sinful actions to death? See the danger? There is a difference between testing and temptation. Testing is from God for our good, to learn and grow. Think of it like taking a test in school. Temptation is from Satan and is for our destruction, to take us out. Not good! Temptation is an opportunity to fulfill a God-given desire (that in itself is not bad) in our own selfish way, apart from God. The desire iself isn't sin. It is our reaction to it. It is the entertaining, holding onto it that is the sin and allows it to grow in our affections for it so that it holds us. We end up thinking about and caring more for the desire than for God and His timing and ways.

God gives us choices, free will to make decisions. It is a gift from God. We have freedom to follow God and seek him or to reject God and to sin. There are sins of comission (doing something wrong/that isn't God's will or timing) and sins of omission (not doing what we are called to do, the right thing at the time we are called to do it. Yes, delayed obedience isn't obedience!) But God promises that we won't be tempted beyond what we can bear (I. Corinthians 10:13) He will provide a way out of it so that you can stand up under it. So why do people sin? Because we play around with the idea of it and it grows in affection. Anything or anyone you spend time with grows in affection because you are investing yourself and time in it whether you realize it or not. Ouch! How many times do I allow myself to wallow in my anger or self pity? It is ok to be upset and hurt, but not to wallow in it. That is a luxury we can't afford because it costs us toooo much.

We need to look for the door. God always provides a door in temptations. It is a distraction of some sort that comes along to allow you to step away and flee. We must flee from temptations. Run the other direction. (James 4:7-8) "Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you." Another way to combat the enemy is to praise God. Satan and his demons can't stand to hear God and Jesus prasied and they will run from the burning coals poured on their heads from this. Besides it uplifts you and changes your perspective. Last and most importantly, we look to Jesus. How did Jesus resist temptation out in the desert? He used the word of God. We are called to do the same. Read the word daily, memorize it and meditate on it so that it permeates your being. This is the best gift God has given us to combat temptation and not be decieved.

Satan packs a 1-2 punch. He first hits us with TEMPTATION and seduces us. Then as soon as we fall for it and I do mean FALL, he follows up with GUILT. Don't be decieved. Guilt is from Satan, not from God. It is meant to keep us down and away from God further. It is meant to destroy us. God gives us the Holy Spirit to convict us. CONVICTION is from God for our own good to warn us and cut through to the truth so that we can be get back up and walk back towards God and into his arms for help and healing.

Pastor Alex told us that he has read research that shows that people with severe Alzheimers who forgot all else still remembered God's word. That shows how powerful it is in our lives. It reminds me of my grandmother who had alzheimers. She couldn't remember anyone, even who she was, to eat...but she always remembered that "God is good, sooo good to me." That is what she always said when she could still talk. She amazed doctors and caretakers because it was so rare for an alzheimers patient to not be anxious and difficult, aggravated due to fear of the unknown. When we are fearful the natural response is anger. So alzheimers patients are especially difficult to deal with and aggitated usually. Not so with my grandmother. She had the perfect peace that only comes from knowing she was in her Lords arms, dearly loved and cared for by Him. If she knew nothing else, it mattered not, because she knew the one thing she needed to know. Lord let me remeber that one thing above all else!!!

Anyway, Pastor Alex gave the word KICK Temptation. K=Knowing our weaknesses; I=Insulating ourselves from temptations--avoiding at all costs; C=Coming clean about our failures; K=Keeping God's word close. Hope this helps you to kick temptation so that you can live freely.

LOL

Ok, here are some fun and funny things I have run across lately. I love anything that makes me laugh and figure we all need a good laugh, so here goes. Hope you enjoy these too.

1. This last week I picked Sam up at aftercare and when he said goodbye to his friend Christian I thought, "Ooooh, how sweet," as they hugged each other like they would never see each other again. But then, oh then it all went downhill. I should have known. The second part of their new goodbye ritual or secret handshake sort of thing is that they bump pelivises. Yes, not bumping thier chests, but to be extra funny, since funny is what is cool to them, they bump pelvises (or should I just say penises?). Ugh. Boys. What do you do? Is it always about their privates? It is in my boy household.

2. If you haven't seen it yet, you need to google "damnyouautocorrect" and read some hilarious examples of peoples' auto correct trials on their texting phones. If you text at all you have encountered this and know what I'm talking about. Good stuff for a good laugh.

3. I have come up with a new song I have been singing to my boys whenever, which is always, they pick their noses and eat the boogers. It is to the tune of the song "He's a heart breaker, dream maker, love taker don't you mess around with him". Anyway, here it goes, the kids like it. "He's a nose picker, finger licker, nasty boy, yes he eats his boogers...No no no." Thought I'd share in case you need to sing it to your little booger boys too.

Hope you have enjoyed my recent laughs. I know I did. LOL.

I got so carried away with my last blog I forgot to say that here are two things you most see/read. I am loving the book "The Hunger Games". I think the best movie of the year will be "True Grit". The girl in it is fantastic!

God is Good

Well, well, well, the new year has started out with quite a push. I'm not sure if its in the right direction, but at least its going. Better than the alternative I guess. Yes, Sam left school yesterday sick again---the 6th time since Thanksgiving. I thought we were through and healthy for the new year. Last Friday late afternoon, Jason noticed some problems with our sewer line. It just finally got fixed last night at 5:30 pm. Just in time for the sleet and snow we have had since 10:00 last night. Thank you God! We had to replace the entire line which was another $5,000 out of our savings. Whew. And I thought spending $700 over Christmas break was bad for another plumbing problem and work on the van. There goes the savings. But I won't complain. God is good. We have water!!! (Thank you Mimi and Papa for taking us in and taking such good care of us as always.)

I have actually had a peace and not been stressed out as I normally would about the situation. Two years ago we didn't have the savings to pay for all of this. God has provided. Two years ago if I had, had the money in savings, I would be frustrated that I scrimped so hard to get some savings and as soon as I do it's gone again. Heck, two months ago I felt that way. But I don't feel that way right now. I am at peace. Two years makes a big difference and I am grateful. This is a blessing to see God's work in my life and the changes he brings to my spirit. Keep on working Lord! I still need more work. I cling to the verse Phillipians 1:6 "For he who began a good work in will you carry it out to completion until the day of Christ Jesus".

I think of all the many people in the world who don't even have running water, who don't have enough food to eat, kids who don't have any parents alive to care for them. I am truly blessed and pampered by God. I don't have a perspective at all, even when I try. If I did, my complaining spirit wouldn't ever return. But alas, it does. I just hope the good days of clarity become more frequent and last longer. It is in our/especially "my" sinful, selfish nature to forget so easily how good God is. And His goodness doesn't depend on circumstances. His nature can't be changed. ("Hebrews 13:8) "He is the same yesterday, today and forever", thank goodness (God-ness). It's scary to think if he wasn't. What would the world be like if God had bad days? Whether "think" we understand His ways (we can't because his ways are above ours) or not, it doesn't change the truth that He is good. He is God. Thank you God. Thank you Jesus. Ok does it sound like I'm ranting and waving my hands in the air? Oops, my charismatic side is turning on. I just get so grateful for the truth.

Anyway, this year has started out with a bang, but God is using it for good and not evil (e.g Genesis 50:20 what Satan means for harm, God means for good in order to bring about his present purpose). His plans are to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). Sorry to be a little preachy and praising, but I can't help it today. I want to keep this moment of right attitude towards God, His vision and perspective. Sooo, I hope all is well with your spirits today and you are greatly blessed with an ever greater measure of His presence today!

My Utmost for His Highest

I have been sensing strongly that this next year, starting right now, I have a critical decision to make. Whether to follow God and Jesus whole heartedly or whether to be lukewarm, safe, comfortable and follow my own interests. Whew. It is a hard decision, yet there is only one answer. I want to follow Him and seek Him only to all other exlusions. But can I do it? I am scared of my own failings and weak, fearful, sinful nature. I certainly can't do it without God's help. But then I do have that.

Anyway, I came across an old devotional, one of my favorites I have read many times and am starting to re-read it now. I got it when I was in college and it was my first devotional to do. It is, "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers and it is awesome. The first day, Jan. 1sts reading summed up my hope for this next years resolution/goal. It is really a lifelong goal, but I want to focus more intensely on it. Anway, here is the entry to read on day one of this book. I hope you like it.

"My eager desire and hope being that I may never feel ashamed, but that now as ever I may do honour to Christ in my own person by fearless courage." Phil. 1:20 My utomost for his highest. My eager desire and hope being that I may never feel ashamed. We shall all feel very much ashamed if we do not yield to Jesus on the point He has asked us to yield to him. Paul says---My determination is to be my utmost for His Highest. To get there is a question of will, not of debate or reasoning, but a surrender of will, an absolute and irrevocable surrender on that point. An overweening consideration for ourselves is the thing that keeps us from that decision, though we put it that we are considering others. When we consider what it will cost others if we obey the call of Jesus, we tell God He does not know what our obedience will mean. Keep to the point; He Does Know! Shut out every other consideration and keep yourself before God for this one thing only...My Utmost for His Highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and for Him alone. My undeterredness for His holiness. Whether that means life or death, no matter! (Verse 21). Paul is determined that nothing shall deter him from doing exactly what God wants. God's order has to work up to a crisis in our lives because we will not heed to a gentler way. He brings us to the place where He asks us to be our utmost for Him and we begin to debate; then he produces a providential crisis where we have to decide---for or against, and from that point the "Great Divide" begins. If the crisis has come to you on any line, surrender your will to Him absolutely and irrevocably.

I want to ask every morning in my quiet time, before I start the day, "What do you want me to do today Lord?" I want His voice, His whisper to be stronger than my busy agenda so that I don't miss the opportunity to join in His work, His plan. I need to work daily on trusting God enough to "Go forth/ a going out of my comfort zone to follow Him. God doesn't always reveal what He is going to do, (but He does reveal Himself!) so it requires faith to wait or follow in blind trust. But who better to trust. I need to let my attitude be a continual going out in dependence upon God until there is nothing between me and Him.

Happy New Year!!! Last time I blogged, the boys were going over to Mimi's house to spend the night since the last 2 times we tried they had been sick. Well, Jason felt better and had passed his kidney stone that day at work so we went out to dinner and walked around Utica Park Mall that night for a little date night...very nice and long needed. Yay. However, the next morning Mimi called and asked if I had gotten some good sleep and felt rested up. I said yes. Then she said she was glad because she had some bad news. Sam had gotten sick at 4:30 the day before at her house and threw up and had a fever. He had been sick and hadn't kept liquids or ice chips down all night. Max had thrown up 1x in his sleeping bag (which she so sweetly had all freshly washed for me when she brought them home...what an angel!) but had not any other times and didn't have a fever.

Mimi said she could keep them longer if I had errands to run, but if I wanted to get them into the doctor she would drive them back then. I couldn't believe she hadn't called me as soon as they had gotten sick the day before! I don't want anyone else to be exposed and get sick, let alone the work of being up all night with them. Sweet Mimi, always worried about giving others a rest.

Anyway I said I would run over and pick them up, but she said she would drive them over. Sam didn't have a fever anymore and the doctor felt he was on the tail end of another bug. His fourth for the month (He was sick just before Thanksgiving also...Ugh. Really, I do clean and sanitize frequently! I am getting paranoid.) Probably the one Jason had along with his kidney stone. Sam had a fever again the next day and didn't eat or drink hardly anything, but that's typical for him. He didn't throw up at all since back from Mimi's. Now he is better. Whew! The poor sleep over at Mimi's was sooo jinxed and she worked so hard to make it fun.

Oh well. We have been home bodies lately since on break from school. A new game we are playing, besides go fish, I spy card game, Hedbandz, Sorry and War and hide and seek, is Rubikube. It is soooo fun. Max is great at it. We are trying to talk Sam into trying it and will help him if he does. We have done puzzles and are going to do some sand art as a project also. The crystals we grew turned out cool. We have more growing still. Yay! Hope your new year is happy and fun tooo.