I Am Gideon!

Judges 6, 7:1- 21 “Gideon”

I am Gideon!  His clan was least in Manasah. and he was least in his family.  My family was among the least in our town and I was least in my family.

And just as God revealed himself to Gideon, so he has revealed himself to me.  And just as he spoke to him, he speaks to me. I am a mighty warrior in God’s kingdom!

I am a clay pot.  It’s only when I allow myself to be broken that God’s glory can be seen.  God’s fire rests within me.  He enables me to overcome every foe!  But it’s not by my strength but by God’s power that I overcome!  

WOW!

Nigeria Journal; 2013

Me in Oweri

This is the beginning of a new line of posts that I'm starting.  I went to Nigeria in 2013, on a mission trip that included helping to set up a 12 step program and going on a prayer journey.  Each week I'll be posting a portion of my journal.

I hope you find it interesting.  It was my first ever trip outside of North America and I was so incredibly blessed to be able to go and to be able to be a blessing to so many people.  But before I begin in earnest I want to give a little background info.

Pastor Ignatius Ummuna

Pastor Lozie Ummuna

Pastor Ignatius Ummuna and his beautiful wife Lozie are the pastors of Rescue Mission Church in Lagos, Nigeria.  They have been friends of Shore Vineyard Church, where I attend.  Actually, my pastor, Brett Conover and his father Rod, met Ignatius in Cote d'ivoire, (Ivory Coast) which is located just north of Nigeria.  He was running away from God, much like Jonah had tried to do.  He had heard the Lord calling him to ministry and decided that trying to get to America was a safer bet.  Oh well!

Pastor Brett Conover

Pastor Rod Conover

After much prayer and conversation Ignatius returned to his home where he began his studies for ministry.

He has since been to visit us at Shore Vineyard on several occasions and we love him and his wonderful wife, Lozie, dearly.  When they asked us to come to help set up a 12 step program based on the program we use at SV, we said yes.

There were 9 people that went; 4 especially to do workshops at the Rescue Mission Church and 5 us that helped but were primarily there to go on a Prayer Journey to the city of Lokoja.

Three weeks before we were set to go, Penny and I went to the Nigeria consulate to obtain our visas.

Penny

Unfortunately for us, we did not know that a bribe would be required and only brought enough money to pay for the visas themselves.  Penny, who had lived in Nigeria for a time 20 years ago, tried to convince the head of the consulate, Mr. Iggy, that we needed the visas right away, rather than taking the 6 weeks minimum he was telling us it would take.  He told her that all of the nine visas would have to mailed to Abuja, the capitol of Nigeria, to be approved and them mailed back to us, which we understood to be ridiculous.  So we left NYC without our visas.

My journal proper begins on October 29, 2013... which will begin next week.

In An Intimate and Personal Way

Hebrews 4:9-11a

There remains then, a Sabbath rest the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his.  Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest…

Romans 8:1-4

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.  For what the law was powerless to do in that is was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.  And so he condemned sin in sinful man in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

In Faith, The Link With God’s Power, Bonnke writes, “Each man and each woman has a special relationship with Christ that no one else can enter into.”  He also writes, “I was made by and for him, not in some wide general sense, but in an intimate, personal way.”

No one else will ever enter into the exact same relationship I have with Jesus.  Our connectedness is unique, just as I am unique in all the world.  In the past I didn’t understand that.  I would hear other people talk about who he is to them and think two things; “I could never be like them.”  and “I want to be like them.”

But now I understand.  I was never meant to be like them; to have their unique relationship with Christ, because the relationship he wanted with me was specifically designed by him for us!

And the special work that he’s picked out for me to do can’t be done by anyone else in so succinct a way.

That’s not to say that if I fail then everything goes wrong; but if I do it right I help move his Kingdom forward.

And, if I fail, I don’t fail him, but I fail myself; and he picks me up and cradles me close and reminds me that in his eyes I’m perfect.  So, encouraged, I put my feet back on the path and continue to follow him.

Overwhelmed by his glory!

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Tuesday Word Bytes; Mmm, Mmmm, Mmmm!!

I LOVE words!  I think language is the best part of being a human.  There's nothing as good as taking a new word and rolling it around the inside of my mouth and feeling how it tastes.

Today's word is:
Finifugal (fin-e-few-gul)
Latin; fini (end) + fug-a (flight)

Not wanting some happening to end.

Whether it's a good book,

a terrific vacation,

a perfect day,

a piece of music,

a perfect meal,

a perfect night's sleep

or a perfect relationship

To not want it to end is finifugal.


What's your favorite word this week?

(all images courtesy of Google Image)

Be Brave, Be You!

Micah 6:8

What does the Lord your God require of you, but to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God?

Be bold for Christ!

Step away from the crowd.  Be willing to take the risk to be separate, distinctive, set apart.  Be willing to be brave in the face of what others may say about you, right or wrong.  Stand taller than your reputation.  Grab the truth of your specialness to God, your creator, who made you for a very specific purpose.

We are all, each of us, warriors in God’s army.  We are equipped and made ready for battle.

Boot camp?  Studying the Word God, Being alone in his presence so that you can hear him speak to you, fellowshipping with other warriors who can build you up and stand with you in the battle.

Our weapons?  The Word God, our testimony, the power of the Holy Spirit, prayer, faith, love, love, love!

Our women’s ministry held it’s annual retreat in Ocean Grove, NJ this past weekend.  There were over 100 women there, including my 26 year old daughter and myself.

  

The theme of the weekend was

Be Brave, Be You

Micah 6:8 was broken up into segments and three of the speakers concentrated their presentations on it

It takes a strong woman to stand up in the face of injustice.  But it also takes a strong woman to be willing to assure that she walks justly in her everyday life.

What does it mean to “love mercy?”  Do you understand what it means to show mercy?  Can you put your personal agenda aside and show mercy to one who seemingly singles you out for trouble?

Is one sin worse than another?  is it harder for you to show mercy to that person who just continually rubs you the wrong way than it was for Jesus to show you mercy?  But mercy isn’t allowing someone to walk over you.  It’s seeking understanding and forgiving, just as you have been forgiven.

Do you walk humbly?  Do you stand in humility, giving all the honor to God, thanking him for the amazing gifts he’s given you?  

Or are you arrogant, setting yourself as better than someone else, even unknowingly, making them small with your talk about them?  Do you, actually, turn the other cheek?  Again, it’s not a matter of letting anyone walk over you, but rather, recognizing in yourself when you are being petty, complaining, trying to make yourself feel better by putting someone else down, beneath you.  Humility means starting from a place below, underneath the feelings of “Can you believe she just said that?” or “Did you see what she did?” And rising through them, understanding that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God

Understanding these points; justice, mercy and humility, teach us what it means to be brave in the sight of God and in the site of a world that looks at us, expecting us to fail.

But how you fail when you know that battle has already been won?  How can you feel defeated when you know you are filled with the very presence of the Living God, who never leaves you, even for a second and never will?

You are a hand picked warrior!  You have very specific assignments.  You cannot fail!

Be Brave!  Be You!

Part of the “swag” that each participant in the retreat received was a drawstring tote with 2 arrows in it.  They represented our dedication to being brave warriors in God’s army.  There was also a T shirt with arrows decorating it, as well as a charm necklace and a bracelet with a bow and arrow on it.

All these were great gifts, but what so interested me was how the majority of the women carried those totes with them wherever they went all weekend long!  Whether it was walking back and forth between the tabernacle (where we held our sessions) and the B&B, along the boardwalk, on the beach or in the town (window shopping and participating in our annual treasure hunt), we all carried those totes with the fletched ends of our arrows sticking out, behind our heads.  Several people asked me why and I got to tell them, “because we are warriors and we are brave!”  The women felt powerful, knowing that God recognizes them as warriors. 

Ria Mignano
credit, Linda Williams Kramer

My Hannah

 Kathy Haines Cirz
credit, Natalie Timmerman

Recia Foti and Dottie Scalzo
credit, Natalie Timmerman

 It was great!

Tuesday Word Bytes; Mmmm, Mmmm, Mmmm!

I LOVE words!  I think language is the best part of being a human.  There's nothing as good as taking a new word and rolling it around the inside of my mouth and feeling how it tastes.


Todays word;
Fatidical (Fa-tid-i-kul)
Origin, Latin, fatum (fate) + dicere (say)

The ability to foretell the future either by supernatural, or seemingly supernatural means.

A seer, a soothsayer, an oracle, a medium, a fortune teller, a psychic, 

an oracle

a fortune teller

Beware the Ides of March

How do you know you can trust them?  Because you give them money?  Because they say you can?  Because they were right before?

 a prophet.

Ezekiel saw the wheel in the sky

Elisha gave a mother back her son

Daniel told the King the writing on the wall.

Did you know that if a prophet proved to be false his sentence was death?  Or course there were, and are, plenty of false prophets who tickle the ears of influential people.

Want to know if a person is a real prophet?  Look at their life.  See if they glorify God, adhere to the Word of God, hold themselves accountable, live a humble life, seek only the

 Kingdom of God.

What's your favorite word this week?

Significance

Hebrews 6:19 (Hebrews 6:13, 16-20)

When God made His promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for Him to swear by, He swore by Himself.

Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.  Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath.  God did this so that by two unchangeable  things, in which it is impossible for God lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us might be greatly encouraged.  We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.  It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us has entered on our behalf.  He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek. 

God promised Abraham he would be the father of many nations.  How many is many?  Israel, Edom, the nations of the Ishmaelites?  How about Germany, Russia, Turkey, Italy, England, the USA?  Every country that at one time adopted Christianity became the children of Abraham.  Nations come and go; Yugoslavia, Moravia, Bohemia, and on and on, but God’s promise continues.

What does that mean to me?  The Father’s promises out last everything!

We “flee” to take hold of the promise.  What do we flee?  Destruction, chaos, the evil that is this world.

Where do we flee to?  The inner sanctuary, where, because Jesus entered first as our great high priest in the order of Melchizedek, we may now freely enter.

And here’s the twist... the inner sanctuary was the one place that assured us of our destruction.  But because of Jesus it’s the only place that assures us of eternal life!

The curtain is the door to the throne room of the Father.  Jesus, because He is the great high priest, is the only one who can hold that curtain back so that we may enter.

Abraham, who didn’t even have the Mosaic Law, died in peace because he saw the beginning of the fulfillment of the promise.  He knew Messiah would come even before there was a Moses.  But only in his dreams could he have envisioned what that promise would mean for the entire world, the entire planet and to me...little insignificant me!

Because Abraham listened and trusted God, I am significant.

I can’t wait to meet him!