Seven Sacrifices to Joy

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Happy Day to you! It’s a great time to meet for coffee and wrap up this sacrifice of righteousness by looking at the cost as we make our way to Destination? Joyful! ™ via the HIGHway! Grab your coffee and come on in.
So I left off with a question of being able to agree to disagree for the greater good. I wish I could say it was easy for me; in fact, sometimes it feels so foreign, but I am learning that the better thing to do, for so many reasons and on so many levels, is to resist evil by walking away after being emotionally/verbally slapped. See, when we agree to disagree, in love, this leaves less clean-up that God has to do! After all, those that we disagree with are His workmanship, not ours! Remember what Romans 12:18 says: If it is possible, as much as is possible with you live peaceably with others.
So let’s put our name in there wherever applicable and the name of someone unlovable in your life. If it is possible, ______, as much as is possible with you, ________, live peaceably with ________! Wow, talk about a splash of perspective and the awesome thing is we don’t have to do it alone! His Spirit will equip and enjoin in our efforts!
But, oh, the cost … so simple and complicated at the same time: Our pride!
Pride is rooted in a feeling that you are more important or better than other people!
Yikes, I don’t know about you, but when I read that part of the definition, I want to run so far and fast from pride that I never run into it again. Unfortunately, because it is a part of my flesh, I know this cost will be an ongoing sacrifice!
See, doing right is more complicated than just behaving ourselves: it is going out of our way to do the right thing, in other words, taking a detour from our own flesh! The reward of joy makes the cost all the more worth it!
But how do we do that? I mean, when you look at the word P R I D E, what’s smack in the middle? I, I, I, I, I!
How hard is it to push pride aside and let peace reside? It’s a matter of focus! Where is your focus? If our focus remains on what was done to us by whom it was done, pride can’t get pushed to the side. But if our focus turns even just a little bit towards the One who died for our pride, pride begins to loosen its grip upon our hearts. Ask yourself this question: Is what I’m hanging on to of any eternal value? If it’s something that won’t be condoned in heaven, then leave it in the world! He tells us in 1^st John 2:15 that if we hang on to anything in this world, we become like the world and the more like the world we become, the less room there is to love our Heavenly Father.
Anytime I think of offering up a sacrifice of righteousness, someone else is always involved! In other words, any of our relationships will require us, and often daily, to offer up a Sacrifice of Righteousness and the price tag is our pride.
Another cost in offering up a Sacrifice of Righteousness is time! How many of us are so busy doing we don’t know how to be? Ouch, I just poked at my own heart! :) Let me get right to a conviction I struggle with: The Sabbath. How many of us make the time to take the time to celebrate – yes, I said celebrate – the Sabbath?  Mark 2:27 tells us that the Sabbath was made for us, not us for the Sabbath. I don’t know about you, but I can become so busy in what I’m doing, and focused, that I don’t take time to rest, or to celebrate life. That’s what the Sabbath is all about, a day of celebrating all He has given to us and done for us through the act of worship! He wants us to take this time to refresh and renew and rejuvenate before it is too late! Burnout is so incredibly common, especially in church leadership. Is it any wonder that a Sacrifice of Righteousness has the price tag of our time? The crazy thing is it’s for our good! He honors our well-spent time. If time were in a bank account, what would the deposits look like and what would the withdrawals look like? Offering up a Sacrifice of Righteousness almost always costs some time. The more time you spend with Him, the more time you’ll have to give!
I’m sure there are other smaller price tags in offering up a Sacrifice of Righteousness, but these are the two that will never go on sale, never change and will always be required.
Oh, Abba, I pray that I would turn to you, and from my flesh, in order to offer a sacrifice of righteousness; that I would stop in the midst of my doing throughout the day and just be with You; that my light, you in me, would so shine before men and women, especially in the midst of their words of fire, that they would recognize something different from my sacrifice of righteousness, your love in me that splashes like water on their words of fire.
Loving my search for joy,

Evinda

Seven Sacrifices to Joy

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Happy Hump Day … middle of the week. I love Wednesdays! Grab your coffee and your Red Strand of Faith and let’s go rewind to remind us of the sacrifices we’ve learned about so far before we wrap up the Sacrifice of Righteousness.
There are seven sacrifices required of us in the course of our faith walk! The first one we uncovered was the Sacrifice of Praise. To praise Him in the storm is considered a sacrifice. We don’t necessarily have to praise Him for the storm but we are asked to praise Him in the storm. Do you see the difference? Just like it’s easy to love those we know love us, it’s also easy to praise Him and be thankful when things are going well. But our faith is put to the test when stormy circumstances crash into our lives and beckon our praise and we lift it up above the crashing waves.
The second sacrifice to joy is the Sacrifice of Righteousness, and we have covered a lot of ground on this subject by giving a few examples of what is considered a Sacrifice of Righteousness, including the ground of forgiveness!
Remember, righteousness translates to doing what is right in the sight of God, even when you feel wronged! Since righteousness constitutes a spiritual sacrifice, it stands to reason that it will cost us something. Doing what is right many times carries a genuine price tag.

A great way to walk towards a Sacrifice of Righteousness is by taking a step back. This allows Him to move forward. I was reminded of this after a heated telephone conversation just the other day. Oh, how I love this truth: His word gently but lovingly teaches me while chastising me at the same time! Romans 12:18: “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men (others).”

Do you see the beginning part, if it is possible? Those words do not denote a permission slip to retaliate; rather, they relieve me of the burden of trying to get the other person to see things my way, or for the other person to be nice! Only what is possible with me! It is not reasonable to expect healthy words and/or actions from unhealthy hurting people! As I write this particular blog, our God is doing all He will to teach me a balance of friendship vs. ministry, and let me tell you, it’s a tough line to figure out. Sometimes, I find myself so passionately involved that it becomes contradictory to ministry and ministering. Did you know you can actually do ministry without God?

Coffee Hour Friend, I so understand how hard it is to just first step back, and not move forward until you can let go and let God! We must become determined to learn this lesson of offering up a sacrifice of righteousness, a lesson that is so multi-faceted; each facet shining through the different form of righteousness and adding depth and solidarity to my joy.

So when we began this particular sacrifice, I had an opportunity to offer Him up a sacrifice of righteousness by being silent after feeling attacked and ridiculed by someone I love in front of someone I love. I failed in that test and the very thing I was teaching someone not to do, I DID!
But God’s not done!
It seems lately that every opportunity to offer up a sacrifice of righteousness involves the same principle but with a bit more depth, and while I’m usually taken off guard when the circumstance happens, I am now more prepared to step back before moving forward in deed and in words.
I’m so thankful that God loves us enough to grant us do-overs, to give us as many second chances as we need to learn how and when to offer up a sacrifice of righteousness.  Trust me when I say He loves us too much to not grant us opportunity after opportunity to offer up a sacrifice of righteousness. In fact, I can almost bet you will have at least one to three opportunities to do just that. And when you get stopped in your tracks by someone else’s meanness, sarcasm, or any kind of act that is intended to hurt you or maybe not intended to but it does, think on the ultimate example of Christ as He hung on a cross so that we could become righteous: “Forgive them Father for they know not what they do?”
Yes, each do-over is a form of refining and God’s refining fire is so painfully brilliant at times it throws me to my face in humility and causes me to beg for the water of His Word. Yes, humility is a necessary pool to bathe in, especially as I prepare to go into the trenches with others who are struggling with wounds, weaknesses, and worries. I must not forget where I came from and how I came to Who I came!
There are so many mini downloads, as I call them, for the recent lessons He has been faithful to teach me about offering up a Sacrifice of Righteousness, but the loudest one echoing in the nooks of my heart and gushing out into my whole being is found in 1^st Peter 5:6: “Humble yourself before the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you in due time”: in other words, when I feel others have wronged me, I don’t need to be the teacher of the lesson I think they need to learn. The cost is too great! Think about it like this: When a fire starts, do I add a match, or walk away and thus let it go out?
I love what He promises in 1^st Peter 5:7 when we do just that: “casting all your cares on Him for He cares for you.” After all, if I am a Christian who does not love the unlovable, then I am without the greatest gift, love which grows joy!
Oh, friends, He is so good to hold us accountable and I am not quite giggling as I realize He’s done just that: held me accountable to the very thing I share with others on so many occasions in ministry: Just because someone verbally slaps us with their perceptions, doesn’t give us permission to slap them back with ours. There is no unity in that. In fact, love is the framework for unity and truly listening adds shades of beauty to beautiful to describe but seldom seen. If all I am able to do is concentrate on defending what’s being said, then I am not focused with a heavenly perspective of unity. Rather, I have missed what’s not being said and forgotten about the One who will defend me when it’s all said and done.
Having a heavenly perspective in an earthly battle will keep us from stepping out of the bigger picture, which is unity in and for the Bride of Christ, the ultimate Kingdom of which we are headed. Oh, to be a kingdom builder and not a building destroyer.
Ask yourself: Can I agree to disagree, in love, for the greater good of Him?
Whew, I better let you go and tomorrow we’ll wrap up this sacrifice … for sure, and move on to the third of seven!
Love,

 Evinda

Seven Sacrifices to Joy

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Welcome to our Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power. Today we are going to return to the series I started a while back, The Seven Sacrifices to Joy. Grab your coffee and your Red Strand of Faith and let’s go tie some knots as we learn more about the sacrifices of righteousness, one of the seven which ultimately leads to joy.
Oh, speaking of joy, I had an experience that was all about this one tiny but gigantic word so let me share that with you.
I was sitting in class listening to the professor talk about the spiritual discipline of silence! Immediately the ears of my heart pricked into high gear and he began to talk about the power of prayer, only not the way we think of prayer where we talk to God, maybe give Him a list of things to do, wait to hear His voice and when we don’t we get up and give up. Have you ever experienced such moments? I know I’ve been truly convicted lately about spending more time in contemplative prayer, especially since my honey’s home and often up shortly after I get up, which leaves me little time, or so I’ve bought into that lie for a while. Oops, let’s return to the classroom.
Anyway, he gave us an assignment right then and there: Think of one word to focus on and sit with Jesus. The professor even went as far as to say, “Sit in His lap,” or “Imagine Him sitting next to you.” Focus on this one word and sit in silence for five minutes.
Sounds simple, huh? IT’S NOT! Especially if your mind has been running ahead of your body all day, every day for too many days! But as the seconds turned into the first minute, I began to relax and the word I heard was joy! I began to just say with my heart, “Father, be my joy, stir up my joy, grant me joy. You are the source of my joy.” The first minute turned into the next and then the next and as I sat there silently – and no, I didn’t sit in His lap :) – my mind emptied and I began to experience His presence … it was then that I heard: “You are a joy to me.”
The tears began to slowly trickle down my face. I was flabbergasted! How could that be? Lately I had been feeling like a whiny baby who was constantly saying “Father, Father, Fatherrrrrrrr, are you sure? Father, do I have to? Father, can I quit?”
That simple sacrifice to be still for five minutes was one that I know I need to slow down enough to practice not just daily, but at least twice a day! Oh, the joy of being still and knowing that He is God! (Psalm 46:10)
What about you; can you slow down enough to practice this spiritual discipline of sitting still and hanging out with Jesus for just five minutes? I believe that you can; the better question is will you? And if not, why not? This can also be accounted as a sacrifice of righteousness. How can we get fueled up and filled up if the engine is always running?
Oh, Coffee Hour friend, take time to make time to be still with Him. Join me tomorrow for a quick recap of the sacrifices thus far and the conclusion to the sacrifice of righteousness.
Love,

 Evinda

Seven Sacrifices to Joy

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Thanks for joining me today for our Coffee Hour and more of the Seven Sacrifices to Joy. I hope you brought your red Strand of Faith so we can tie some knots in it together! Let’s get back to a Sacrifice of Righteousness because there are so many things that count!
We left off with a thought-provoking teaching by Jesus Himself in Matthew 5:39 wherein He teaches us to resist evil. Oh, how freeing that can be. Often when we think of evil, or an evil doer, don’t we think of a non-believer? For me, one of the most disillusioning lessons in my earlier calling to ministry was dealing with those in the church who hurt others. I believe that He knew that the greatest wounds would come from within the church and this one verse is the greatest prescription for such a sick thing. I now know, through life’s experiences, that when Jesus was speaking to us about resisting evil, He was not and is not confining it to a person who is not a follower of Christ. The church is not a place for perfect people, or I surely wouldn’t be able to attend any church! Oh, that each church would recognize that they are to be like a hospital which doesn’t turn away sick and wounded patients, but takes them in and begins the symptom assessment through a history and physical and then begins treatment!
It is in the church that we are treated for and taught how to not act out of our flesh! How do we resist evil? By not reacting to it! The reason that’s difficult for us is because too many of us put unreasonable expectations upon others, especially those within the church, placing unrealistic hope in people instead of the Author of Hope. Psalm 146:3 tells us “Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is not help.”
I don’t want to belabor this sacrifice, but I feel in my bones that since we deal with people, and God uses relationships to heal us, we need to sit in this for just a bit more. Not that I have perfected this requirement, to resist evil, but now that I understand it I have begun to practice it and each time it gets easier. Now, prior to my truly listening in that example I shared last week, there have been many occasions that I did not turn the other cheek to receive any more words of wrath! In fact, I have been known to spit out a mouthful of nails! You may be saying, “Well, why would you? That’s not what Jesus is saying in that verse.”
I agree; we are not to be doormats; however there is a fine line between turning the other cheek and hurling nails out of our mouth to pierce the heart of the one who hurt us! Have you ever felt like that; like all you wanted to do was strike back and hurt the one who just hurt you? The fine line that must be looked at is the line of pride!
We cannot offer up a sacrifice of righteousness when pride is by our side!
Returning to the incident I shared with you last week, I remember praying before getting out of the car to meet with this person in an effort to resolve conflict, to help me leave my pride in the car. If pride were a child, the conversation would go something like this: I’ll be right back; you stay in the car, I won’t be far. I promise I’ll come back for you! Pride, you stay inside while I go outside!
When we push our pride to the side, we are better equipped to turn the other cheek emotionally from the evil acts of those who hurt us, and face them in love, without retaliating. Could this be a sacrifice of righteousness?
Oh, but I can see now how different it could have turned out; I could have been so ripped off of the spiritual and emotional victory I felt when leaving that meeting.
When dealing with conflict and wanting to offer up a Sacrifice of Righteousness, perhaps if we remember that no matter how right we feel about something and how wrong we feel about someone, in the long run, when we are face to face with Him, He’s not going to ask us about their side; we are going to only talk about our actions and our failure … or success to offer a sacrifice of righteousness! Which shall you choose?
Oh, Abba, I fall short, miss the mark every day, and some days are worse than others. I thank you for your mercies that are new every morning, for your Word that works as a double-edged sword, piercing my heart and trimming away what needs to go. Help me offer up a sacrifice of righteousness, even when I don’t feel like it! When it all comes down to it, Father, what matters is my relationship with you and my relationship with others affects my relationship with you. Help me to be Christ-like to those who slap me in the face with their evil acts.
Seeking to offer a sacrifice of righteousness

 Evinda

Seven Sacrifices to Joy

Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power...

Happy day, Coffee Hour Friend! Thanks for joining me today for more of Seven Sacrifices to Joy! Grab your coffee and your Red Strand of Faith and let’s go back about 2000 years to Jesus and His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5, and then we’ll do a fast-forward to apply His words to our lives.
Matthew 5:39 He says: “But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.”
Now let me share another life-lived experience that brought this scripture dancing to life within me!
As I got out of my car, armed with prayer for this conflict resolution meeting, I was confident that He was with me and would speak through me, after I kept my mouth shut and listened. Yes, that was the plan; to sit and listen as He had been teaching me to do so I could teach others, but I had never engaged in such a listening exercise; only read and taught about it. I greeted her with a hug, as if there were no problems to resolve, and I remember genuinely feeling the love which I offered. We got our drinks and went outside and sat down. I began the conversation by asking her permission to take notes, confessing this would help me to keep my mouth shut and truly listen to her. And then I shared that I wanted to show her more respect.
If eyeballs could pop out, hers would have and here’s why I say that: everything leading up to this conversation was problematic, putting it mildly, and I just don’t think she was prepared for me to show her kindness and respect. Trust me; it was Him in me, every bit of it, for when I am a vessel full of myself, nothing good happens, but when I got out of my car that day, I left pride in the passenger’s seat, assuring it I’d be back for it afterwards!
I don’t need to glorify the enemy and I won’t by repeating our conversation. However, and this is a big however, because I kept my mouth shut and my ears opened as she spewed out her hurtful comments and opinions, I was able to detect that much of her present was mixed with painful moments in her past of which she wasn’t even aware! She was/is so focused on others’ behavior that she was totally unaware of her own, and I don’t say that to be demeaning. Quite the contrary because it shed light and gave me compassion. It was as though there was this invisible connect-the-dots picture and each comment laced with hurt and anger equipped me to visibly connect the dots internally. It was this incredibly out-of-body experience where He equipped me to listen, and because I really listened, I was able to validate all of her misperceptions! It was the most freeing hour of my life!
Now let’s return to the words spoken by Jesus Himself in Matthew 5. I wouldn’t call this person who had been keeping this silent scorecard of wrongs evil, although her words and opinions felt evil. But maybe, just maybe there’s something to this verse that applies to these types of in-the-heat-of-the-moment situations. At least this verse is speaking to me ever so loudly in a soft kind of way. See, as I sat there and truly listened to this person spewing all of her misperceptions about situations we had been involved in, I listened, one insult after another … turning one cheek, then the other, and then turning back and repeating the cycle. This went on for over an hour and I have to tell you, because I chose to turn the other cheek, in other words, keep my mouth shut and truly listen, I was able to pick up some very enlightening information and understand why/how she had connected the dots the way she did.
Guess what? Her venom and bitterness really had nothing to do with me – she thinks it did and that’s okay -- but had I not turned the cheek … over and over again, I wouldn’t have recognized that powerful truth and my anger would have erupted and spoiled the victory!
Could it be that actively listening was accounted as an act of righteousness for me that day? Oh, please know that I take no credit for anything but showing up and shutting up … Oh, to continue seeking to offer a sacrifice of righteousness!
Please join us tomorrow for our Faith Filled Fridays with Debbie Croley!

Love,

Evinda