I've got the POWER!

In my last post I promised a second post that would take a look at how we empower the enemy to wreck havoc in our lives. As with all my posts I take a look at the subject from my experience with it. This isn't a complete look at spiritual warfare, nor is it a complex one.

If you haven't read the previous post I recommend you start there, because I will refer to it.

In review: Adam and Eve relinquished authority when they chose to sin in the garden. Notice I said chose. Yes, they were given a choice, just like you and I are given choices everyday. Jesus came to fulfill the law, died and was resurrected which gave us back all authority.

Short and sweet, every victory we will ever need on this earth has been purchased by His death on the cross....EVERYTHING! If you deny this, you are denying the finished work of the cross!

If we have been given the power to defeat Satan and his minions why is it the body of Christ isn't walking in greater victory? There are many answers to this question and I'm only going to cover a couple of what I believe to be some valid answers.

First, I believe the body of Christ doesn't understand and fully take advantage of her identity in Christ. Instead of believing and acting upon the truth we are over comers in Christ, we walk around as if Satan is always nipping at our tails. Romans 8:37 tells us we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!

Matthew 28:18 Jesus tells us all authority in heaven and earth has been given to Him. Jesus gives us the kingdom His Father conferred on Him in Luke 22:29. He gave us the keys to the kingdom in Matthew 16:19. Our weapons of warfare in II Corinthians 10:4 have divine power to demolish strongholds. In Ephesians 6:10-18 we are instructed about the full armor of God. Bottom line, friends, we are powerful and we are protected in and by the name and blood of Jesus Christ!

Secondly, because we undermine our God given power and, inadvertently, deny our identity in Christ, we base our beliefs on what circumstances and situations look like in this fallen world. I call this eyes on the natural. When we do this we can't help but pick up some ungodly beliefs (aka, lies) along the way. Lies about our identity, lies about the work of the cross, lies about God, etc...It is here we get into what is referred to as "open sin doors."

An open sin door is referring to ways we open the door to the enemy to work in our life. Now, most of us don't purposefully open the door when we are choosing to live for Christ. When many think of open doors to the enemy they think of blatant rebellion towards God such as a lifestyle of drugs, sexual promiscuity, stealing, witchcraft, pornography, etc. Christians don't normally like to think of ways they commonly open the door to Satan through such sins as fear, worry, stress, anxiety (to name a few.)

For the sake of this post we will use fear as an example of an open sin door.

Let's use Job for our example. Most people refer to Job as a man of God, living a life of holiness, blessing and righteousness. What we miss is one little verse in Job 3:25. In all my years of "church" and hearing the story of Job it wasn't until a few years ago I caught this. Job 3:25, "What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me." If we read by it too quickly we miss the fact that Job opened the door to the enemy through his sin of fear. Yes, fear is sin. All throughout the Bible we are told to fear not...it is obviously important.

If you've been reading my blog for awhile you will know one of my favorite verses is I John 4:18. I don't pass up an opportunity to use it, so here goes: "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."

As Danny Silk says often in his "Loving Our Kids On Purpose" curriculum, "fear is the mortal enemy of love." Just as fear displaces love, love displaces fear. Fear is not from God! As His children we were not created to fear anything or anybody other than God!

I could probably write a book on ways many Christians (myself included) open the door to the enemy through fear, worry, stress and anxiety. I hope my point has been made clear in this brief example of using fear as the open door.

When we walk in fear we empower the enemy by believing lies such as: "I am not safe. God will not protect me. I am not worthy of protection. I deserve the bad in my life." Any time we place our circumstances above the truth of God's character we are opening ourselves up for trouble. God is either who He says He is or He isn't. What or who are you choosing to empower?

*You may be asking where do I start? You start with your thinking. A renewed mind (Romans 12:2) is key to your success in walking out your God given destiny. Ask Holy Spirit to reveal to you beliefs you have that do not line up with His truth. Break agreement with those lies and ask Him to tell you what His truth is, then declare that truth over yourself, write it down, journal it, study scripture that backs it up. Meditate on Truth, the promises of God and who God says you are until the truths He shows you are deeply rooted in your heart.

When faced with lies or negative thoughts cast them down (II Cor. 10:5) and go back and feed yourself on the Truth. Do you see the cycle? I can assure you after years of believing so many lies I continually have to go back and remind my heart of the truth, say the truth, sing the truth, pray the truth and declare the truth. To encourage you I must admit this has worked marvelously well, but it has been a lifestyle for me, not just something I do in times of crisis! You shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set you free (John 8:32.)

I saw a quote on Twitter recently that basically said, "as a believer you can know you are doing something good for God when you sense the enemy at your door." I disagree with this statement, emphatically! Yes, the enemy is looking for opportunity, but you first have to open the door to him.

One such way you could in the scenario of doing good work for the Lord is to allow yourself to become puffed up with pride. Proverbs 16:18, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." The open door here would be pride. Let's also not forget false humility/self abasement is also pride, because it is still focus on self. If I am doing something good for the Lord I don't want to be focused on Satan, but the glory of my awesome God! Satan isn't worthy of our time or attention!!!!!

If you sense the enemy, stop and ask the Lord to show you the open door, then close it and choose to keep it closed!!!! Sensing the enemy at work isn't something to fear either...the Lord will allow Satan to trigger issues and situations in your life He is wanting to address and HEAL! I think sometimes it is easier to wallow in the mire of "being attacked" then it is to take a hard look at issues and pain in your heart the Lord is wanting to talk about so He can bring healing. From experience I can tell you it is hard, but the other side of "doing kingdom business" with Jesus is beautiful and free!

As always, it is not my desire to change your thinking or to debate theology, but to give you something to think about and search out with the Lord on your own:)

Living a life with Satan under my feet and basking in a life filled with a glorious abundance of love, freedom and grace in my Abba Daddy truly makes My Soul Sing!

*If you are having trouble knowing how to begin this process and are near the Chattanooga, TN area, Growing in Grace Ministries can help you. GGM is where I minister in the area of inner healing. You can go here and check out our Sozo ministry. We can teach you how to hear the voice of God and live a life replacing lies with truth, walking in greater victory and deeper intimacy with the Father. Check us out!

God and the Boogie Man

Those of you with children raised during the Veggie Tale era will recall the song "God is bigger than the boogie man." This is a profoundly true statement! But, how many of us live like the opposite is true?

Okay, so maybe not the opposite...but how many of us, if we were really honest, have subconsciously lived like Satan is an equal opponent to God? Our head knowledge tells us otherwise, but the way we live sometimes tells another story.

It wasn't too long ago that I might have believed and/or said the following statements, "God is moving in a mighty way in my life and I can tell Satan doesn't like it" (then living anticipating an attack) or "Because I'm engaged in spiritual warfare I've opened myself up to an attack of the enemy" or chalking up everything going wrong in my life to spiritual warfare.

Now when I hear statements similar to these, I cringe. What I have come to realize is by believing these statements we are in essence making Satan an equally equipped opponent of God...he is NOT! Beliefs like this also bring attention to the enemy, in a way I feel like they glorify him. Instead of focusing on how big our God is we are looking for the devil behind every bush...expecting a move on his part.

I believe in living from heaven to earth. After all scriptures tells us we are seated in heavenly places with Christ (see Ephesians 2:6.) If we are heavenly minded, living from a renewed mind (Romans 12:2) we are less likely to empower Satan. Yes, you read that correctly...I believe we empower him.

Now, I've told you before I'm no theologian. I am no Bible scholar by any stretch of the imagination...but I have the Holy Spirit as my Teacher and this is where I have landed...

Adam and Eve lived with authority over every living thing, free from sin, in the garden before the fall. After the fall they lost their authority. The rest of the Old Testament tells of a forthcoming Savior and our need for a Redeemer. In the New Testament Jesus comes and fulfills the law . His death, burial and resurrection give us back all authority in His name (Matthew 28:18.)

Jesus gave us back what Adam and Eve lost. This is the simplified version...and I certainly do like simple:)

After coming to this simple truth I realized I had not lived from this perspective and therefore I had forfeited the resurrection power of Jesus Christ and the indwelling presence Holy Spirit give me. I had not been living in my inheritance as a disciple called to do greater works (John 14:12.)

Bill Johnson puts into words best what this post is trying to convey:

"Don't live in reaction to darkness, instead live in response to Truth."

"If we live in reaction to the devil, he sets our agenda. He is not worthy. We are to live in response to God."

So what has this looked like when practically applied to my life? I live with my eyes focused upward. I feed my mind on Truth. I cast down any negative thoughts (II Corinthians 10:5.) When discouragement comes I purpose to look to the Father and ask Him how He sees the situation. Though I am aware of the enemy, I do not look for him or expect him to automatically try to thwart the plans God has for my life. If you are looking for the enemy chances are you aren't looking toward God.

We've only just scratched the surface on this topic. You may be thinking I am an ostrich with my head in the sand. Trust me, I know ignoring the enemy won't make him go away and I am fully aware of that. My next post will talk about how we give the enemy authority in our lives by opening the door to sin in our lives. Revelation of this has impacted my life in ways I can't even describe, but I will attempt to in my next post!

In the mean time I encourage you to spend less time looking for or out for Satan and more time renewing your mind with the Sword of Truth! The battle is fought and won in your mind...so by all means, RENEW IT daily!

Living from heaven to earth, renewing my mind and focusing on Jesus has empowered me to walk victoriously and this makes my soul not only sing, but shout, "Thank you, Jesus!"

Mediocre to Magnificent Part Two

I'm back! I know you are all dying to read part two:) Don't you just hate it when you read a good fiction book that is part of a series and you have to wait until the next one to find out the end of the story...Karen Kingsbury series come to mind. I read one in less than 24 hours and can hardly wait for the next one to be published. Well, that was back in the day when I read for entertainment, who has time for that anymore?

Gasp, did I just compare my little blog series with a Kingsbury novel? Pretty bold and assuming of me, eh?

Now, where were we...oh yes, marriage, my marriage to be exact.

In the last post I talked about how I realized in order to bring life to my marriage I had to do something with myself. I not so sheepishly told all you readers you are only responsible for you. Really, I can't stressed that enough.

Many times in talking with women who are struggling in their marriages their focus is on their husband. If only he would..., if only he would say..., if only he would do..., if only he wouldn't do... You can fill in the blanks. Ladies, you can not change your husband. No amount of nagging, begging, pleading or change him prayers will work. God gave us each free will, any change made is our choice.

Russell and I attended a marriage seminar this past weekend. It was phenomenal! If you ever have a chance to attend a
"Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage" by Mark Gungor do it!

Mark talks about how to relate to your spouse, not turn them into another version of yourself. I wholeheartedly agree! In essence we are asking the question, "why can't you be more like me?" Making our spouse into another us is not the way to a better marriage.

After several years of walking through inner healing and aligning my thoughts to God's truth, I actually like me. Russell no longer has to tip toe through my emotional minefield on a daily basis which has changed the atmosphere in our home. A happy and fulfilled wife makes for a happy home...at least most of the time:)

So, how did we get here? Let's talk about some of the principles in play in my marriage that may spark some revelation in yours.

* First and foremost, find your fulfillment and identity in Jesus Christ alone. No man can ever fulfill your heart...to expect one to do so is setting yourself and the relationship up for failure. It is humanly impossible for any person to meet all our expectations. Releasing others from your expectations not only sets you free, it sets them free.

* Take your hurts to Jesus. Your husband can not fix you. Sure he can bring you comfort and support, but ultimately Jesus is the only one who can heal your pain.

* Work on you. Allow Jesus to mold you and shape you into His image. Hope you're not counting how many times I've said this:) It really is a key ingredient.

* Respect your husband. Never cut him with your words. If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. This doesn't mean you can't express how you feel. You can and you should. But never put him down in order to make your point or in an effort to get revenge. Never intentionally accuse him or berate him. VERY IMPORTANT!!!!

* Encourage him.

* Appreciate him and tell him often how much. Determine his best qualities and praise him in those areas.

* Sex...you knew it would come up eventually. Ladies, men NEED it!!!! Never withhold sex as a means of revenge or payback...it's just plain selfish to do so. Believe me, there was a time I was highly selfish in this area.

* Never berate your husband to your children. They need the security of knowing you love their father. Also remember you are modeling to your daughters what a wife should look like. If you nag your husband, they will learn this behavior and most likely will someday nag theirs. Husbands (if there are any out there that have read this far) remember you are modeling to your sons what a Godly husband looks like. Dads to girls you are modeling what a husband looks like to your daughters...treat them like royalty and they won't settle for second best, selling themselves short. Behavior is learned, not taught...what are your actions teaching?

* Never go to bed angry. Seek reconciliation first. Even if you are right (or think you are right:) in an argument or disagreement be the first to bridge the gap. It's just not worth it to let anger fester into bitterness.

* Don't be afraid to say you are wrong when you are wrong. Pride does nothing but build a wall between you and the one you love.

* Put your marriage before your children. Time with your spouse is priority. It is challenging when the children are young, but it will pay in dividends in the long haul. Make it happen!

* Forgive quickly, don't harbor unforgiveness in your heart for lengthy periods of time.


Lengthy list, I am sure you can add to it and make it your own. Since I'm a wife I am primarily talking to wives, but husbands can glean from these principles as well!

It might be a good time to add I am not perfect, my husband is not perfect and our marriage is not perfect. However, we are honestly more in love and more connected now then in all our 18 years of marriage. I give God all the glory, but I also want to brag on my man a bit.

Russell Dover has a servant's heart the size of Texas. He serves naturally, it is second nature to him. He sees dishes in the sink, he washes them. Load of laundry in the basket, he folds it. When our girls were babies he changed many dirty diapers. I could write an entire post on how he serves me and the girls, but I want you to still like me and that might provoke a good dose of envy:)

He has always believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself. When I have a dream, he does everything in his ability to see it come to life. Making me happy, makes him happy. As I grow and mature in my love for Jesus, and my husband, I live to return this happiness to him. He can accomplish whatever he sets his mind to accomplish and I have a part in that by encouraging him and believing in him.

In the seminar Mark made a statement that most affairs don't begin for sexual reasons, they begin for emotional ones. As wives if we aren't believing in our husbands, being their number one cheerleader, someone else might come in and fill that role. So, get out your pom-poms and 2-4-6-8 who do you appreciate? Your hubby!

Russell makes me feel safe. Ultimately I know my defender and protector is God, but it sure is nice having a husband who models God to me here on earth. When my world seems to be in chaos, Russell helps me put situations into perspective...he keeps me balanced. We are a team.

If you have read this and thought to yourself, well that's just peachy for her, but I don't have this kind of marriage...I want to encourage you that you can. Where to start? Start at the beginning, work on you. While you are working on you love, love, love your man. Die to self and do for him sacrificially. If you wait on him to start the process you might be waiting a very long time.

I Peter 3:1 talks about how wives are to win over their husbands. The context is winning over an unbelieving husband, but the same principle applies to winning over husbands in general. When I started making changes I didn't announce to Russell, "today, you have a new wife. I've decided to turn from being negative and critical to loving and encouraging." No, he would have to see it to believe, so I started walking it out in front of him, winning him over without words. Ladies, I have to tell you, it didn't take long for him to notice or respond.

I don't share our marriage with you to discourage you or make you envious. I share our story to impart hope. Nothing is impossible for God. No marriage is too far gone He can't restore it and redeem it. Perhaps your marriage is good, but you desire it to be magnificent...what are you waiting for? The God of all creation can take you from mediocre to magnificent, ask Him to show you the way!

Spending a lifetime with my terrific hubby, growing in love and grace together surely does make My Soul Sing!

Summer Time Schedule

Hi Friends in Blogland! Just stopping by to say hello. I have not disappeared, nor have I forgotten you or my 2nd post in the marriage series. This summer has proven to one of the busiest yet. I am my 14 year old's official taxi cab driver!

My hubby and I are attending a marriage seminar this weekend called, "Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage" by Mark Gungor. I am looking forward to it! Marriage maintenance is never a bad thing:) It's like an oil change for your car, your car runs better with regular preventive care:)

I have many topics swirling around in my head and my heart to blog about, so I hope to get back here soon. Until then, I invite you to catch up on my older posts. Enjoy your summer!

Much love!

Amy

Mediocre to Magnificent Part One

If you haven’t read the previous post, take a minute and do so...it will make this one more meaningful.

I can not tell you the day, not even the month or year I realized our marriage had changed. I don’t even remember the circumstances that brought it to my attention. One day I was simply watching my husband and thought to myself, “dang, he’s mine and he’s awesome. I can’t imagine being married to anyone else.”

Shortly after this revelation I was spending some time talking with Jesus when I heard Him speak to my heart, “Amy, I have taken your marriage from mediocre to magnificent.” I couldn’t have put it any other way!

Before we go any further let’s take a trip down Amy and Russell’s memory lane. We don’t have to go all the way to the beginning. Our early years were good, self-centered, but no major roadblocks. We were young and blissfully unaware of life’s trials. It wouldn’t be until shortly after the birth of our second daughter that are marriage vows would be put to the test, in the area of “in sickness and in health.”

Statistically speaking the odds are in our favor. Both sets of parents are still married. Divorce is never something we have ever even flippantly discussed. We both came from the mentality we would be married for life...now, that’s not to say we were going down a road to a life of bliss. In hindsight I can see now it was quite the opposite. We were headed in the direction of co-existing.

I can remember sitting outside at a friend’s house, crying and pouring out my heart to her about our marriage. I didn’t feel we communicated, much less connected on an intimate level. My words to her basically summed up our relationship as roommates, occupying the same space, but not walking in the fullness of covenant God designed marriage to be.

If we had stayed on this path we would be the couple sitting across the dinner table from each other after the girls are grown and gone with absolutely nothing to say. Have you heard of empty nesters who realized a little too late they invested so much time and focus in their children’s lives and not enough in their marriage that when the kids were gone they no longer knew their mate, much less shared any dreams with them? I knew I didn’t want to be that kind of couple, so I set out to do something about it. This is when I realized I had to work on me.

Eventually I decided I wanted more in my relationship with God. I realized I didn’t know God as a loving Father, whom I could intimately know. Somewhere in this timeline God became my number one priority. Although I accepted Christ as my Savior at age six, I really didn’t begin a life changing walk with Him until I was about 31.

Looking back now, this is where my journey began, which brings me to the previous blog post and revelation I am only responsible for me. Let me repeat that, I AM ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR ME. This is a foundational truth and it applies to you too. You are only responsible for YOU! Get this and you will be on your way to immeasurable freedom. By walking in this truth you will also remove yourself from being an obstacle in the way of God moving in the lives of those you love. He will allow you to play Holy Spirit in the lives of others as long as you choose to do so, but He is waiting for the day you give the job back to Him:)

God started addressing my “junk in the trunk” (and I don’t mean my back side, although there is certainly some junk there too:), no this junk was from the past and it was standing in the way of me fully realizing who I was in Christ. I knew my name, but I didn’t know who I was. As He began to reveal to me my identity I couldn’t get enough of Him. I searched, I prayed, I surrendered and beautiful things started taking place in my heart...and then one day I noticed they were also taking place in my hubby’s heart as well...and I had NOTHING to do with it, other than the fact I had let go of him and placed him in God’s capable keeping!

Transformed lives, transformed thinking and a transformed marriage...in part two of “Mediocre to Magnificent” I will share with you the relationship I now have with my sweet Russell. I don’t share it to brag or boast, but to impart hope to those reading our story...and maybe give you the courage to let go and let God and watch Him bring renewal, restoration and (faithful readers, you probably can guess what comes next) REDEMPTION!

Marriage can be and should be a reflection of how Christ loves the body, His bride...it can be magnificent and this is why my soul sings!

First, a little background

As I was taking a shower this morning I received divine inspiration for a blog post. Yes, in the shower, He actually talks to me quite a bit during showers or baths...maybe it's because I am a captive audience, not much multi-tasking can be done while bathing:) I also like to think it's symbolic of Him raining down on me, perhaps washing over me and cleansing me of my thoughts and replacing them with His...call it whatever you wish, I love these moments where it's just Him and me!

Before I write the new posts He gave me, I think it's appropriate to share the article below I wrote a couple of years ago. He reminded me in our "shower time" it all began when I realized the role of Holy Spirit was filled, and in this particular case, in my husband's life:)

The article you are about to read was first posted to www.iggm.org, it can be found under articles of interest. I have revised it somewhat to fit the blog, however, the content has remained the same...which I find ironic, because usually when I look back on something I wrote I see how I've grown and after more revelation I would write something differently...but, nope, not in this one!

I pray this post speaks to you.

Oh, and just to spark your interest in the upcoming posts, the title will be "Mediocre to Magnificent." It will most likely be a two part series and the subject is marriage...although it will not exclude those who are single, as these principles can be applied to other relationships!


Without further rambling, the article which chronicles where it all began for me...



Ungodly Belief: I am responsible for my husband’s spiritual growth.

What did I just say? Did I really just write that statement for all creation to read?

Let me clarify one thing right here at the beginning. If two years ago you had asked me if the above statement was true I would have looked at you like you were one noodle short of a full bowl of spaghetti! But, (isn’t there always a “but?”) I sure was acting like his spiritual maturity was my responsibility.

How? Surely none of you God fearing, Proverbs 31 women out there can relate! Oh please!

Have you ever questioned your husband’s prayer life or lack thereof? Have you ever tried to hook him up with an older, wiser, more spiritually mature man as an “accountability” partner? Have you ever tried to get him to worship the way you think he should worship? After you have encountered or experienced God in a new way do you expect him to jump on board with you as if he had the same experience (even though he did not?)

Was there ever a season of your life where you have been the spiritual head of the house and you have subtly hinted, begged or groveled for him to take up that yoke? Then maybe the time came, Praise God, where he took his proper role as spiritual head and then you questioned how he went about things? Perhaps, you gave him an outline of what you expected of him in that role?

Okay, before you start sending my husband condolences in the mail, please know I have not done all of the above...only a few of them! After all, the outline was in my head, I never actually typed it out and printed it! (Insert evil laugh here)

Have you ever prayed a prayer something like this? “Dear Heavenly Father, I bring before you today my husband, bless his wretched soul, forgive his sins and wash him clean. Please mold him into a better husband, a more dedicated father, make him see he needs to be the spiritual head of our house. Convict him Lord! Convict him of neglecting me and the children. Convict him of his lack of prayer and study of your Word. Convict him to get into a small group of men who will disciple him and hold him accountable. Send men into his life to be an example of what a Godly man looks like.” I think you get the idea...

While not all of this prayer is wrong, it isn’t exactly what the Lord has in mind. Yes, it’s probably exaggerated slightly, or is it? I’ve prayed similar “I want” prayers in regard to my husband. Basically, change him prayers. What about change me prayers? Ouch! There it is, another confession of mine. Yes, I was praying for the Lord to do all the things I thought He needed to do in my husband in order to be on track to a more spiritual family.

When the Holy Spirit revealed this to me I had to change my thinking and come into alignment with the Father’s will. You see I had been praying from my flesh. Praying from the flesh, or old nature as we often refer to it, is a topic all to itself. In short, praying from our flesh is useless. When we pray it should come from a direct download from Father God. Praying the Father’s will is the only effective way to pray. (And, I will add here, our spiritual growth is always in the Father's will.)

The Lord asked me, “who are you responsible for?” I knew the answer was me. It was then I started asking the Lord to reveal to me what needed changing in my heart. The prayer went something like this: “Dear Papa, Thank you for loving me so much that you can’t leave me the way I am. I want to share your heartbeat. Dig up and get out the dirt, sin and shame in my heart. Reveal to me your perfect plan for me. Bust open the lies I have believed and replace them with Your truth. Mold me into the wife, mother and daughter you designed me to be. Let Your light shine through me so words won’t be necessary. I want to hear Your voice more clearly. I want to fall in love with Your Word. Place an unquenchable desire in my heart for more of You and less of me. In the precious name of Jesus, Amen.”

My daily prayer for my husband simply is this, “Bless him Lord and show him Your favor.” I do pray other ways for my husband, but no longer do I pray “change him” prayers, where I give the Lord a list of my wants. Because really the truth is this, the Lord loves my husband more than I can possibly imagine. He has plans to prosper him and give him hope for his future (Jer. 29:11). The reality is this, if your husband is a believer the role of Holy Spirit is filled (well, it's filled even if he is an unbeliever too.) There are no vacancies in that department...so GET OUT OF THE WAY!

Since I stopped praying change him prayers and I relinquished the role of Holy Spirit (I was failing miserably anyway) I have seen a dramatic change in my husband. He is in an accountability group. One he sought out, not one I picked for him. They meet once a week for Bible study, prayer and encouragement. He has taken on the role of spiritual head. I am expectantly waiting for more and I know my Papa is not going to disappoint me.

I have talked with ladies whose husbands have taken up the spiritual headship and they are left resentful. They wanted it to happen, but when it finally did, they didn’t know how to respond. They were so accustomed to the role and they felt stripped of something. If that is you, I would urge you to seek Godly counsel. These feelings are rooted in something deeper. Maybe you found your identity in filling this role God created your husband to fill. It’s time to replace that false identity with truth. God has a very special role for you to fill as a women and a wife. I encourage you to discover it and reach fulfillment like you never thought possible!

Original article ends here...

Check back soon and see how God can redeem your marriage and take it from mediocre to magnificent! Warning: IT WILL TAKE EFFORT ON YOUR PART AND DYING TO SELF...if you are looking for a quick fix, this is NOT it!

God is always GOOD!

Psalm 63:4, "I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands."

I hope I never tire of proclaiming the goodness of God! As I sit here at the computer to write this post I realize this is a subject I write about often. Focus, priorities, God's goodness, His redemption, His love, living with Him in the abiding place...no matter how you slice or dice it, this is the theme of My Soul Sings.

As I sat down at the computer to type this post I asked God a question. "Why is it You always seem to have me write about Your goodness, focusing on Your redemptive nature?" His reply to me went something like this, "because the world needs to know. They need to know about My goodness. They need to know I am utterly redemptive. They need to know how much I love them. They need to be constantly reminded to keep their eyes on me. Amy, dear, you need to know too."

Don't you just love it when He is right? And, by the way, He is always right!

In a world full of crisis, chaos and sin we need to be reminded, as believers, this should not be our focus. Remember we are in the world, not of it. It should not consume us. Christ left us with the gift of the Holy Spirit and His resurrection power flows through our veins. As believers we hold the solutions to many of the world's problems...but, we can't effectively impact the world if our eyes aren't on Him. If we continue to focus on the negative we will empower it all the more.

Father God isn't sitting high above worried about the state of the world. Quite the contrary, He is waiting for His body to come to Him and ask Him what His solutions are. He isn't wringing His hands hoping His children make the right choices and then writhing in despair when they don't.

The statement I'm about to make is a topic many would like to debate. I am not here to debate it, nor defend it...I merely want to share it with you. I believe the wrath of God was fully poured out onto Christ on the cross. Like the song lyric says, "the wrath of God was satisfied." We won't see the wrath of God again until He pours it out as described in Revelation 6:16.

Amy, are you saying the natural disasters, torment and destruction we are seeing in the world today isn't the wrath of God punishing us for our sinful living? YES, that is exactly what I am saying. Do I believe God could stop them? Yes, I do...but just because He doesn't stop them, doesn't mean they are sent by His hand. Our charge as believers is to humble ourselves and pray as outlined for us in II Chronicles 7:14.

I don't want to camp on this subject, I think to do so would get us into a theological debate in which I am not educated enough to enter. Also, it would be a major bunny trail from the truth I wish to impart through this post. I will say I think believers get stuck on defending their theology to the point it can take our focus off the main thing...sharing the love of Christ with others and empowering people to walk in victory and relationship with the Creator.

I want to shift gears a little at this point. A friend of mine just this week got partial victory over a major storm in her life. All of us have storms, but this was of tsunami proportions. Many people are saying her life will never be the same. I agree with that statement.

Some even go on to say she will never get the pieces of her life back together again...implying her life is partially destroyed because of the devastation done from the "storm." I emphatically DISAGREE with this statement!

During the process I actually found myself believing her life was destroyed, no matter the outcome, that there were no winners. God gently showed me this belief was wrong and was not at all how I should be thinking as a believer in Christ. To believe her life is beyond the restoration and redemption of Christ is like saying there are some issues beyond His power! Remember Satan is not the equal opposite of God. God is absolute! By believing this statement in essence it's like saying this scheme of the enemy is bigger than God...and that, my friends, is absolutely preposterous!

Now...I'm not saying she doesn't have a battle ahead of her. She will be constantly faced with choices. I hope and pray she keeps her eyes on Christ. He has promised to work things together for our good, but our responsibility in this is to look to Him and follow His ways. We must trust Him and surrender to Him.

Let me try to wrap this up and bring it together for application for you and me in our every day lives:)

As believers we have storms. We have problems. We have trials. But, we also have choices. We are given the free will to run to Jesus or run from Him. We have the choice to keep our eyes on Him, or take them off and try to do things our way. We can out rationalize our faith and end up looking at situations with natural eyes as the world does...I've tried this, have you? It leads to discouragement, despair and ultimately, a victim mentality.

Without going into my friend's storm I just want to say I am encouraged by it. Watching it all play out in front of me and the hearing the testimony on this end is amazing. It has definitely increased my faith.

God is true to His promises! I invite you to search your heart and ask yourself what area do you need Him to fulfill His promises to you? Have you taken your eyes off Him? Have you empowered a lie in your situation? Do you believe the wrath of God is being poured out on you...if so, you may want to re-evaluate your thinking and ask Him for an encounter with His love.

I promise you He is not out to "punish" you. Jesus fulfilled the need for punishment. He said on the cross, "it is finished" that was for you and for me...our sins are covered by the blood of Jesus...we don't have to make atonement for them! This, my friends, is the gospel of Christ!

Father God, I pray for each person reading this post. I ask You to encounter them each individually and personally. Wrap them in Your perfect peace, grace, love and mercy. May they know you not only in head knowledge, but in the heart. I thank You Papa for sending us Jesus. I thank You we don't have to make atonement for our sin. I thank You for desiring a relationship with us free from striving. I thank You that You are always good and loving toward all You have made. I repent Lord for areas in which I have made you smaller than my problems, than the world's problems. Show me Lord Your solutions so I may be a problem solver, not a problem maker or problem enabler. I praise You Lord for all You have done and all You are doing in my life. I will sing of Your love forever as long as I have breath! I love You, my Daddy! I thank you for making my soul sing! AMEN!