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Category Archives: Lessons from Cats


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Abiding in God’s Love

Abiding in God’s Love

The other morning during my quiet time as my sweet Sophie laid next to me, God gave me an experience of tasting the depth of His love. Words fail to express what I felt and learned on a deeper level, but still I speak because the awareness of abiding in God’s vast, pure, and perfect love is what He desires for all His children.

With a quiet purr, Sophie rested totally relaxed by my side. As I rubbed her ears, her eyes and body revealed a state of complete bliss. It was like I the center of her world. There was no other place she would rather be at that moment. She was at total peace. With no fears or concerns, she was fully in the present moment taking in every moment. She wasn’t concerned about her next meal, where it would come from or if it would be there. She wasn’t worried about any predators. She was in the heart of protection, provision, care and above all love. She dwells under the care of a tremendous love and I think she knows it.

As I looked at her with my love gushing over her, God spoke to me . . .

The way you look at Sophie is a taste of how I look at you. My love abounds toward you. You are special beyond your understanding. Be with me as she is with you. Abide in complete trust, delight, and comfort. As you do, you honor and glorify Me and you are in the rest and life I desire for you.

As you desire the best for Sophie, how much more I desire the best for you. Trust in my love for you. It’s always present, abounding, and unending. Our relationship isn’t about judgment or condemnation – all this was taken care of in Christ. It’s about love. It’s leading and guiding you to live as I created you, to abide in a loving relationship with Me and letting that love overflow to the lives of others.

Be aware of all the provision around you; be thankful and excited about it. Don’t worry about tomorrow. Don’t live by the past or the future so that you miss out on all the blessings that surround you. Trust and be at complete rest abiding in my care and love for you.

Always make Me your first Love, the center you blossom from, the Rock you stand upon. As she gets excited to be with you, delight in being in my presence. Be with Me in all purity and holiness. Be there just to enjoy. This is my heart’s desire. Follow me. Long to be with Me. This connection is why I made you. To delight in you and you in Me and to be one in unity of heart. John 17:21-23 Take time each day just to be with me and enjoy Me and our relationship as she does you.

Abide in the comfort my presence brings. I’m always with you. I’m your shepherd, protector, provider, healer, and deliverer. As you are her peace, I’m your peace. Trust in the shadow of my wings always. I will care for all your needs. I perfect all that concerns you. Psalm 138:8

Abide in my love. Let others abide in my love that’s in you. Let it pour out from you in sincerity and truth. Be free in giving your love. It’s a never ending stream – let it flow abundantly.

Share these thoughts with others, for I desire to be this way with all my children. Each one is unique to Me and I long for each one. Deuteronomy 30:6, 20

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The Path To Our Desires

The Path To Our Desires

Sophie

Poor little thing . . . when Sophie got spayed, she wore a plastic collar for several weeks. Unlike her brother, Malcolm, who was back to normal the next day, she carried the burden of this plastic garb. Though uncomfortable and hindering to her activities, it was necessary for her to properly heal. Without it, she would yank out her stitches, reopen the incision, cause an infection, and delay the healing for weeks – making the situation much worse.

When we first brought her home, the collar was so big she could hardly lift her little head, use the litter box (as it got stuck in the sand), eat and drink. She walked pushing it along the floor. Our hearts broke. We tried a bandage; it didn’t last two seconds. Why the vet put that huge collar on her I don’t know. We cut it to fit her, yet left it big enough so she couldn’t access her stitches. Though smaller, her sleeping, eating, and playing were much more uncomfortable.

Sophie

During the first week, the most critical because she could do the most damage, my eyes hardly left her little frame. If she or Malcolm removed the collar and she tore out the stitches, she would be in a mess. After several days, she stopped trying to remove it; she finally surrendered.

We both wanted her stitches out, Sophie and us. She wanted them out now, but that would have led to more pain and a longer healing process. We wanted them out AND wanted her healed in the best possible way; therefore she had to endure the collar.

Sophie’s situation reminded me of our journey with God. As God’s child, we desire to be who He created us to be, and do the good works He has planned for us. Ephesians 2:10 He places desires in us to motivate and direct us toward these goals. The desires are planted in our hearts, but it’s God who directs our steps to manifesting them. Proverbs 16:9 Often, His path is different from our own and often longer. Like Sophie, the desire was the same, but the paths to getting there were different. She needed the collar to get to where she wanted to be, though she didn’t realize it.

God renews, heals and shapes us to move us into becoming new creations in Him and into the works He has planned for us. Sometimes, the best path has difficulties, like wearing that collar. It’s through difficulties that we are broken, refined, and rebuilt. It can be uncomfortable and seem unnecessary as we don’t always understand why we need the trial. We can feel hindered in doing what we should be doing like Sophie. Yet, with God all is purposeful and for a reason. He won’t give us more than we can handle. Our burdens are the perfect fit to accomplish what is necessary. They provide the best possible journey to prepare us for the life God desires for us, which is ultimately our desire.

Malcolm & Sophie

Further, we can’t compare our path to another’s. What is best for us may not be best for someone else. Therefore, comparing our journey to another’s doesn’t make sense. Unlike Sophie, Malcolm didn’t need a collar. Didn’t seem fair, but they received exactly what they needed to get them to their desired state. We need to trust our caretaker, God, who especially during trying times has a watchful eye upon us, is allowing in our lives what needs to occur so that we end up where we need to be.

When Sophie, stopped fighting the collar and surrendered to it, her life got easier and less stressed. In a similar way, when we are obedient to what God tells us to do, we move forward more easily. Disobedience is a hindrance. Because of God’s grace, we sometimes take advantage and are disobedient to what He tells us to do, but it’s we who suffer for it. It delays our progress to where we want to be. We have to trust His path and trust eases the stress. Though the path is difficult, it’s THE path by which we will experience deep healing, growth and freedom. God doesn’t only care about the works He has planned for us, but the state of our soul. HIS path prepares us for what He has in store.

Our love for Sophie is tremendous, yet how much more is the love of God for us? Our hearts broke for her to wear the collar, but it was for her good. It may be difficult for God to see us in our hardships, but He knows it’s the best. His love is perfect.

Our path to our desires can be difficult and a process. We are battling against the flesh (our self-will wanting to do it our way) and having to let go of being in control and instead trust God in all His ways. We want instant, but instant is a rarity with God. Deep transformation is a journey. And it’s through the journey we build a deep intimacy with Him. God is a trustworthy and faithful Shepherd watching us every step. Psalm 32:8 We have nothing to fear. He wants us to be in an abundant life more than we do. Our part is to trust and obey what He calls us to do today and trust Him with the outcome (our desires).

Sophie was much happier in the end for having worn that collar. Had we done it her way, she would have been much worse. We too are better for the trials God takes us through because we end up in a better place in our soul. As God’s child, if we are abiding in His Truth and seeking His will, we can trust the path we are on is where we need to be, and He is leading us to where we want to be, His way.

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The Power of Prayer

The Power of Prayer

Sophie: During the Sneezing Days

The event I describe below occurred at the beginning of last year. This experience radically altered my perspective of my prayer life. Since then, my belief continues to increase in the power of prayer. Prayer is indeed one of the most powerful things we can do.

Malcolm and Sophie are two of my cherished treasures. God uses these Ragdoll felines to teach me many lessons, but . . . I have to seek those lessons. About a month and a half after they moved in, Sophie started sneezing. When it continued to progress to mucus flying out her nose, I took her to the vet and discovered it was an upper respiratory infection. On antibiotics, she immediately started getting better. After being off them for a couple of days, it came back and continued to get worse. We went through another around of antibiotics. Again, she got better, but after a couple of days it returned. Poor thing! I hated putting all these antibiotics in her because I was sure it would have long term affects on her little immune system. Once more, back to the vet. He took some cultures so in a couple of days we would know exactly what bacteria was the culprit. The next day she was sneezing up a storm, which was common because getting the cultures irritated her little nose. But at that point I had enough! I’d been praying for God to heal her, but it dawned on me I hadn’t sought for the lesson in all this. God, what are you trying to teach me? Obviously it wasn’t a lesson for Sophie, it must be for me.

Thankfully, God quickly replied. It had to do with the power of prayer for others. Here’s what I learned. I love Sophie more than you would think a human could love a cat. God loves me and all that concerns me is His concern. He cares for Sophie but also because of my love for her. When we care deeply about someone, God not only desires to help that person for her sake but also because of His care for us. His concern is heightened because of our concern – that is the nature of love. Heart-felt prayer spoken in faith shows we believe in God’s love for us. It’s critical that we believe God loves us because it affects our prayers. This is another reason we need to understand our value, last week’s blog. We need to have a sense of value of ourselves to be able to accept and believe God’s love for us so we can pray with the conviction that our prayers matter.

God needed me to understand this truth so I would pray for those He laid on my heart with the confidence that my prayers made an impact. I needed to believe that my prayers influenced Him because of His love for me, which then could affect the lives of others. Otherwise, my lack of belief drained the power of my prayers. See, my belief in the power of prayer had started to wane. I had started to think my prayers didn’t have THAT much impact. This mindset crept in as I was seeking to understand His sovereignty. He is in control and His will prevails so how much impact do my prayers really have? Not much was my thought until this situation. I didn’t realize how strongly I was holding this false belief until this lesson. I knew prayer was important, but I didn’t understand how much of an impact it had, especially mine. Now I know that my concern and love enhances His concern because that is love. This is the power of prayer of God’s children in numbers. If you had one child concerned about a pet – how much that would affect your heart. What if you had five children concerned – how much more would that affect your heart?

But it isn’t just about numbers, but about the state of the heart. There is power manifested when we intercede for another out of love. This is why our love needs to be with sincerity. Love is an extremely powerful force in our lives. It changes others. It moves the heart of God. This is why it is important to seek the love of God to replace our corrupted version of it so that we can truly love others because if affects our prayers for them. If we are just saying the words and our hearts are distant, then the power of prayer is sapped. That’s why vain repetitions are a waste of time. Matthew 6:7 But if we pray with conviction because we truly care it has a considerable impact. This is why sometimes God “lays” someone on our heart. We have a strong pull to pray for them, because the heart matters.

When I realized this insight about the power of prayer wrapped in love and sincerity, Sophie stopped sneezing that night. The cultures came back revealing a certain bacterium, but she was better. Isn’t God good? Glad I asked. She was going through what she did to teach me. I never would have stopped and sought if she wasn’t sick. And my seeking brought me to a very important lesson about the significance of heart-felt prayer.

God loves His children beyond what we can imagine. His heart for us is mighty and what concerns us concerns Him. Prayer is to teach us many things and one is how much He loves us. Even if He doesn’t seem to be healing a child or delivering them from an unhealthy lifestyle or friendship – know that He cares more so for that child because He cares for their life and that is amplified because of your care for them and His care for you. We can’t see the big picture. We don’t know what they may need to go through to learn what they need to learn. But God is listening if you are rightly related to Him through Christ. Proverbs 15:29 We have certain expectations about how things should play out, but God holds everything in His hands. If I hadn’t gone through the tough times I did as a kid, ones I’m sure my mom wished I avoided, then perhaps I wouldn’t have drawn near to God like I have. From those experiences, I learned my need for Him and the extent of His love for me. In the end, her prayers were answered, but it wasn’t a path she expected, but that path I needed to travel. We need to be careful of our expectations and make sure they are in God. If we are God’s and praying with the right heart and motive about a matter, we need to trust that God is working things out as they should be. We have expectations about what the best path or answer to that prayer would be, but we haven’t a clue. We need to trust in His divine wisdom to work it out to everyone’s best.

James 4:3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.

1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But the prayer of the upright is His delight.

Needless to say, my prayer life totally changed. Our faith is everything. Our belief affects the power our prayer holds. John 14:12-13 I needed and am thankful for this lesson to increase my faith in the power of prayer. And I’m very glad Sophie is no longer sneezing!!

Sophie: Today

Other blog on Prayer Mountain Moving Prayer

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Lesson in Love from My Cats

Lesson in Love from My Cats

Malcolm & Sophie

The other day during my quiet time – I gained yet another insight from my cats, a lesson in love.

For over 13 years, it was me and my husband – no children, no pets. Then last October we got Malcolm and Sophie. Their addition has brought so much to our home – much more than I ever imagined. I’m surprised at the amount of love and care I feel for them. It was unexpected. I mean they are just cats.

As I was sitting there doing my quiet time with one lying on one side on my notebook and the other on the side next to my Bible, a certain characteristic of love came to mind that I hadn’t really considered before. With that insight, the Spirit took me into a deeper understanding of our purpose and why we were created.

When Malcolm and Sophie came into our home my love expanded. This is what I learned. Our love is like a land mass and as others come into our lives, and as we grow to love them the territory expands. In addition, the love dynamic between me and someone else is unique to us because we are unique. So with each new addition, our love grows in a unique way, just like no plot of land is exactly like another. It’s an incredible phenomenon that I’m finding my words don’t justify in sharing.

This expansion idea of love as well as the uniqueness of love between individuals taught me the deeper truth of our purpose. I’ve believed for several years now that we were created with the purpose to abide with God in love. It is our purpose now and for eternity. 1 Corin 13:8, 1 Corin 13:13 But what I realized is God made us to expand His expression of love. Love is only love when there are different parties involved – ones to give love and ones to receive the love. The more giving and receiving, the more love abounds. So He created us; souls with the ability to embrace His love and love Him in return that the territory of love might be vast and rich with each unique dynamic of love. And not only is the love expressed between Him and us, but us and others. Eternity will be incredible. Consider the most powerful experience of love you have had – then multiply that a hundred fold – that’s eternity with God. Why would you ever want to miss out on it?

Because each one of us has a unique love dynamic with God because we are each unique, we are infinitely valuable and one can’t replace the other. Sophie could never replace Malcolm and vice versa. This distinctive value puts a tremendous value on each one of us not only to each other, but to our Heavenly Father. This individual value is why there is so much rejoicing in heaven over one soul who enters the kingdom of God. Luke 15:3-10 We are irreplaceable. We can’t compare ourselves to others; we are all unique as our creator made us to be. Now if that doesn’t do anything for your self-esteem – nothing will.

Some believe that God created us to worship Him. Worship is a state of the heart. It is the natural response when we are rightly related to Him, including abiding in His love. Therefore it gladdens God’s heart, because it’s the fruit that we know Him and He is first in our lives. But that is only a reflection of our purpose which is to abide with Him in love. Because, I believe we were created for this purpose, it’s our part to foster a relationship of love with Him – love which consists of intimacy, knowing, trusting – for that’s why we are here. If we neglect that engagement we neglect our purpose and His will for us. John 17:23-26

Mark 12:30-31 “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. 31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

One more point about all this. There is a HUGE difference between loving others and God with our corrupted version of love and the pure love of God. Though our love won’t be as pure as God’s because of the influence of the world’s perverse idea of love, as new creations in Christ we grow more and more in the love of God. One of the many gifts of being His child is that you receive His love to know and to give. As I seek for His love to consume my life, I am finding it’s incredibly more pure and perfect than any rendition of love I previously had or gave. It often amazes me what I feel for others and how deeply I feel it – things I never had before. They aren’t fleeting emotions, but substantive land masses because they are fruit of a new heart created in His likeness.

We settle far too easily for corrupted, perverted, and destructive emotions that we call love. God is offering us a true, deep and real love that is of Him so why settle? We all want love. We all want His love whether we realize it or not. It’s a driving force in our lives. But until we seek and know the love of God as our own, we will experience a great lack in this area. God is offering us the love we deeply desire because He put that desire in us to draw us to Him and to be filled by Him. And only by being deeply connected to Him do we truly know this love to experience and to give others and are able to truly expand our territory of love including to our cats.

“I love my God, but with no love of mine for I have none to give;
I love Thee, Lord, but all that love is Thine, for by Thy life I live.
I am as nothing, and rejoice to be
emptied and lost and swallowed up in Thee” (Madame Guyon).

1 Thessalonians 3:12 “And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you,”

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A Reminder from my Cats – Sacrifice of Love

A Reminder from my Cats

Sacrifice of Love

 

During my quiet time this past weekend, I was reading through Leviticus and the animal sacrifices that were required of the Israelites. Until that morning, I always read through these chapters with the understanding that the animal sacrifices pointed to Christ’s eternal sacrifice for us. But, I never really thought much about the innocent little animals that had to give up their lives. But that morning the Spirit gave me a powerful impression that will forever change how I read those chapters.

My cats, Malcolm and Sophie, often sit with me during my quiet time. As I read those chapters I looked over to them and reflected upon their innocence and how much they trust me to care for them. The thought that an animal, an animal like my Malcolm or Sophie, would have to die for me hit me in a powerful way. To think that they would have to give their precious innocent life for my wretched sin cut me to the core – how horrible that they would have to die for me. It’s their innocence that makes that thought so horrific.

But now take that same thought to Jesus. Now I am not putting our pets and Jesus in the same category, which would be ridiculous, but sometimes those physical examples around us remind us and prompt us to reflect. Jesus was perfect in innocence and His love for us. The value and preciousness of His life is beyond our ability to grasp and yet His life was given for us. Sometimes we hear so much about His sacrifice that we lose the potency of it. This reflection reminded me of the purity, innocence, and value of His life that was given for my sinfulness. How much God must love me, to give His perfect son to die for me so that I am live in His presence. How wretched my sin must be to need such a valuable sacrifice.

Imagine someone giving you their precious pet or even a child to be sacrificed for your sinfulness – now that is an awesome, amazing love. If someone did that for you, what would your response be? What is your response to God and what He has done for you? He gave His Son so that you could be reconciled back to Him and be united to Him in love – how do you foster that unity with God?

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Reframing Our Situations

Reframing Our Situations

 

We look at situations from a certain point of view and we think that is real along with the emotions that follow. But often we are off and need to reframe our perspective.

This past week was the first time for me to leave my kitties at home alone overnight. And not just one night but four! As I was packing up that morning, I picked up Malcolm and tears started to flow. How lonely they would be. They might think we are never coming back. They might think we abandoned them. At that moment, I knew this wouldn’t work. One, I would be a complete crying mess and two, I might not get on that plane. Then I realized how silly my thinking was. Sure they may feel a bit lonely because animals do – but all that other stuff – I don’t think so. I was projecting human thoughts onto them. So I stopped and the spirit of truth reframed. They are going to have a great time, jumping on counters, scratching our dinning room chairs – all those things they aren’t suppose to do. And the loneliness they feel will be minor. At that point the tears stopped and I made it out the door without another drop – barely. Our perspective is powerful in what it creates.

God has been teaching me a lot about reframing. There have been several situations lately (some mentioned below) that when I stopped and sought His input of truth I discovered my initial view point was off and I needed realignment. God is adamant about us seeking truth because the consequences of living in lies are extensive. The wrong outlook can destroy relationships, our purpose, and ourselves. It can destroy our body, mind, soul and spirit. Once you live in the truth, how living a lie affected your life becomes clear. I’ve been amazed at what the lies created in my life – and it was nothing good.

I am finding that this simple act makes a huge impact in our work, response to problems, relationships, ourselves, you name it. And when you reframe your point of view your emotions change and your emotions aren’t erratic or damaging but appropriate and helpful.

The part of this that isn’t simple is seeing the truth. From our birth we are inundated with lies. We develop concepts about us, others and the world that simply aren’t true. Only by abiding in God’s pure truth as the Spirit as our teacher do we start to learn the truth, start to see clearly. And it isn’t instant. Developing an intimacy with God that leads to His truth invading every recess of our lives is a journey. Intimacy requires trust and trusting God is a process. We have to know Him to trust Him and knowing Him as He is and not our images of Him takes time. Our lies about Him are some of the first ones His expels.

Abiding in His Word is the key. When we dive into God’s Word and abide with Him as a bride, in time He reframes our perspectives on Him us, others and this world. As a result, we are more aligned with what is true and real. Because of our limited physical capabilities we can only know in part, but that part is much more accurate, and it is a view that brings life, abundant life.

I have a friend who I only see a couple times a year. I had certain expectations about how I wanted that time to be spent – engaged with one another, one-on-one time talking, catching up, and diving into intimate conversations. I told her that was my desire. But that isn’t where she is at – she is a busybody running to and fro. When plans didn’t go my way, I started to get frustrated and hurt that she didn’t have the same expectations. But when those emotions started to set in and my actions were becoming jaded, I stopped and the Spirit reframed. I accepted that we were at different places, decided to enjoy what we have for what it is, and not try to conform her to what I want in a friend. The hurt and frustration dissipated and I ended up having a good time. My previous emotions would have wrecked havoc on the friendship. The latter ones allowed me to enjoy what have whatever level it is on.

One more example . . . my older brother and I aren’t very close. When I visit my parents, he stops by and we have a thin and brief conversation. I thought we just didn’t connect and he wasn’t interested in a relationship, and left it at that. But this past week was different. I put those thoughts aside and engaged him in a deeper conversation. It was wonderful. We discovered we shared many things in common. We had a stimulating long talk that neither wanted interrupted. God altering my perspective of how I viewed our relationship caused me to respond differently to him and as a result him to me.

Review your relationships and situations that are bothersome to you. Seek God’s wisdom and counsel. Perhaps it is a reframing issue.


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Connecting to Others’ Souls

Pets seem to be very in tune with us – more than most people.

It fascinates me how my two cats respond to my real thoughts or emotions. Despite my outward persona, it is my inner rhythm that they are connected to. What I truly think and feel impacts their actions. It is incredible.

Malcolm, my male Ragdoll kitten, was keeping his distance from me, and I thought that he just didn’t want my affection like his sister, Sophie. No big deal, they are just different. However, after a conversation with my brother, an animal lover, I realized that thought was causing him to keep his distance. At that moment I changed. Instead I thought – he wants my affection just as much as Sophie. Almost immediately he acted differently; hanging around me, wanting to be picked up, and cuddling with me. Since then our relationship has been totally different – and needless to say much more satisfying for both of us. And all I did was change my thinking.

Our thinking affects our attitude, emotions, temperament, and actions. It is the sum of these that others pick up on. In speaking to others, 70% of our communication is non-verbal, so most of what we say is what we don’t. Others obviously don’t know what we think, but what we think affects what they receive from us. Our thoughts are very important. If we change them then it affects everything else. I think this is why Paul told us to meditate on things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy. Philippians 4:8, 1 Timothy 4:15

Our thinking impacts how people respond to us because it is the source to what we put out. To connect with others on a deeper level we need to be aware of our thoughts toward them and if they are hindering or helping, and second we need to be willing to look past their exterior to what is really going on.

The other day I was feeling a bit down. Malcolm tuned into how I was feeling and followed me around and sat down with me on the sofa. His affection was a bit different than normal – he knew I was upset even if it was subtle. Pets are amazing animals. For those who have a good relationship with them you know what a comfort they can be. Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but when I talk to other pet owners they experience similar interactions. They seem to pick up what’s beneath the exterior.

If we do these two things, attend to our thoughts and look beyond the exterior, a more meaningful connection can be established with others.

However, there are things that can interfere with looking beyond the exterior.

Often we have so much of our own stuff in the way preventing us from truly focusing on someone else. Fear, self-focus, pride, unforgiveness, living in the past, and worried about the future all affect our ability to be fully engaged in the moment and love others in such a compassionate and real way. And often when we do pick up on what is going on underneath we don’t respond to it for various reasons – at least I don’t.

Imagine if we were in tune and responsive to one another like our pets. . . how different our relationships would be? We wouldn’t respond to each others masks or defense mechanisms; we would look into the soul and respond accordingly. Several years ago, Larry Crabb wrote a book, Soul Talk. It was about connecting and talking to others at this deeper level. It is a great concept, but I have found it is easier said than done. Focusing on my self, how I am perceived, trying to please others, fear of rejection, reacting to the surface level of defense mechanisms that anger and hurt me, and pride all get in the way. But interestingly, as I abide in God’s truth and He frees me from my own issues and fills me with His love, I am finding that looking past the exterior is coming naturally.

We are here to love God and love others Luke 10:27 – if we aren’t clued into each other’s deeper needs then we can’t love and have compassion like we could otherwise.

Malcolm & Sophie

Malcolm & Sophie


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The Power of Illusionary Fear

The Power of Illusionary Fear

 

Friday morning during my quite time, the slight hum of a lawnmower drifted into my window followed by the smell of fresh cut grass riding the Santa Ana breeze. As the sounds and smell resurrected memories that took me back to my childhood, my flight came to a screeching alt. The sound of scurrying little feet stumbling over toys whipped my head around only to see Sophie’s tail disappearing behind the corner. The unidentified sounds enhanced by a gardener passing by the window carrying a huge garbage can were a little too much.

Sophie

Sophie

Her response reminded me of us. Fear consumes us and we run and hide when in reality we are in our Father’s presence safe and protected. Though it is irrational, it feels very real and propels us into a reactive flight or fight mode. Here was Sophie in this well built solid house with me protecting and watching over her and she acted like she had no protection at all. She had absolutely nothing to fear, but that wasn’t her view of the situation.

Often fear grips us when in reality we have nothing to fear because God is by our side as our shield, protector, and defense. Most of the time our fear is just as irrational as Sophie’s. We are in our Father’s presence. One who is powerful and mighty and for whom nothing is impossible and we are acting like He isn’t there at all or He has no power (at least in our lives).

We respond according to our beliefs. Sophie believed she was in danger so she ran, hid, and cowered. But her belief was wrong. Often when we experience fear it is because lies are taking over. We believe God can’t or won’t provide, protect, deliver, protect, or redeem. But, the truth is we have God and all He is by our side every moment of every day. And if you have God Almighty by your side what could you possibly fear?

Those of the world are at the whim of the world and their fear is more justified. Walking without God, they lack the safety we have. But we are no longer mere men but God’s children, and now most of our fears are unrealistic. We are under the shield of Almighty God. So why are we cowering? Running? Hiding? Do we believe God is who He says? Do we believe He truly cares for us? If we give that fear creditability then like Sophie that is what we will experience and not His peace, comfort, mercy, and love that is there for us.

‘Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

It is true the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. And we should fear it because the unnecessary havoc and anxiety it creates in our lives. Fear leads us further away from where we want to be. It is debilitating. It leads us to the wrong actions, it shuts down opportunities we would have had, and it puts unnecessary angst on us and others. It is a powerful emotion in our lives and when it is misplaced it takes us exactly where we don’t want to go. Our beliefs and thoughts are very powerful. God created them that way so that our beliefs in Him would be powerful. This is why God so adamantly tells us to trust and believe His truth and not someone else’s. His brings life and all others bring death.

Fear counters trusting God. You can’t trust God and be consume with fear. When I tried to pick up Sophie and assure her all was safe she leaped out of my arms. When we fear we jump out of our Father’s embrace. Though He is still there and wants to comfort and assure us, we are too consumed with fear to experience His comfort. We mistakenly think He doesn’t care or isn’t there. He is always there for His children; but we aren’t trusting in what He is giving us – Him.

I have wasted huge chucks of my life on unnecessary fears. And though irrational fear still grips me in moments of doubt, I am finding it is happening less and less as I draw near to God. Drawing near and knowing Him leads to trust and trust dispels fear.

What fear has you in a death grip? Consider God’s promises and mediate on His Word, is it rational in light of His truth or are you acting like Sophie?


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The “Energy” We Project

The “Energy” We Project

Sofi & Malcom

Sophie & Malcolm

This past week we got two Ragdolls kittens . . . adorable does not suffice to describe them and any picture doesn’t do them justice.

Now that we are pet owners we have been taping episodes of Dog Whisper. I know they are cats, but Cesar Millian, the Dog whisper, has fantastic insights into animals in general. The other day he delivered another one – animals respond to our energy, period.

Every living thing responds to our energy – plants, animals, and people. The energy we put off is the key to healthy plants, sweet loving pets, and good relationships.

The Bible teaches us this same truth but it instead of energy it describes this soulful projective power as heart. If our heart is hateful, negative, critical, judgmental, resentful, fearful, or anxious that is what people will feel and respond to regardless of what we say or do. If it is full of truth, love, understanding, forgiveness, mercy, peace, and calm that is what others will feel and respond to. People react to what we project from our heart, not so much our words or actions. Therefore, our heart or energy affects the outcome of our interactions.

Consider for a moment the ripple effect of this underlining constant dynamic in our families, our marriages, at work, and with our children. Often the problem in our relationships is what we are communicating when we are just standing there without saying a word.

For example, how many times has someone said or did the right thing but you knew he or she felt negatively about you? People can’t hide their true colors. We may not know exactly what they think but we can sense the hypocrisy of their words and actions. We can’t stand when others do this to us, but yet we do it all the time.

Because the state of our heart affects us and everything around us, it is what matters above all to God. Remember the sum of all commandments? Love God then others. Love comes from the heart. If we are bound by rules and force goodness then we are a negative testimony to the love of God. We actually do more harm than good. We are to love from the heart not wear valentine masks painted in red and pink. And God is the only one to make our love toward others increase and abound. Unfortunately many think it is in their power and duty to manifest love.

1 Thessalonians 3:12 And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you

Christianity is all about love and love flows from the heart. That is why He gives us a new heart. He doesn’t repair the old, but replaces it for one that is a part of Him and capable of giving His pure love grounded in truth. However this heart starts small and needs nourishment in His Word to grow. When it does and we begin to live from the heart of the spirit and not the flesh then that pure love manifests relationships as they were intended to be whether with Him or others.

Our important role is to seek God’s love by abiding in His Word and wait for His work in us. If we don’t seek and ask we don’t receive. If we force it or try to fake it we end up being the worse hypocrites of all – professing God’s love and giving a warped decrepit version of our own.

If we seek God’s love then in time little by little it will consume our lives. It is a process that takes time and there is nothing instant about it from my experience. It takes time to know God and to cultivate a relationship of trust so we can truly surrender our lives. Then we can yield to Him, be filled with Him, and let down our walls to let His love flow through us and out to others.

It is better to admit we are a work in progress than be a counterfeit. Because people feel our hearts, if we try to pretend and neglect to wait on His true love our testimony of who God is destroyed. We end up pushing people away from God instead of toward Him.

Abide in Him and wait for God to truly transform you so that your words and actions come from a place of love. If you want love then spend time with the One who is the source of true love. We need a new thriving heart of Him to experience any true change otherwise we are putting perfume on a stinking corpse. Waiting is hard, but when you begin to see a real difference in your soul your praise will be true and glorifying to God. Then when people experience your love there will be no doubt your love is of God and not you. His love is the most important and best energy we can project.