Monday’s Mantra

God is not a cosmic vending machine!

Welcome to Coffee Hour at Chicklit Power and Megan’s Monday Mantra with Trench Classes United.

The following is my friend Mike’s response to my last week’s blog; God is not a cosmic vending machine. Mike is the one who quoted those life changing words to me.

His response, in my opinion, masterfully illustrates the heart, of each and every one of us, as we wrestle to define God in our own lives as well as how to bring Him into the lives of others. Even though this is a tale of two friends, each one of us will find a piece of ourselves in this story.

Mike writes…

“Wow, Megan, this is one of the best of all your blogs, yet. It resonated with me when you described our conversation that ended with my famous quote about the vending machine. I did listen that day; and I did feel your frustration. I felt your defeat. I knew there was a big disconnect between you and God, because my Bible says, “He loved us even while we’re yet sinners” – failures. I wanted to communicate that divine love to you, but I didn’t even know where to start. Your arguments were very logical, and I kept thinking you needed something logical and profound in return. My answer sounded too simple (“Jesus loves me; this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”)

“All the while you were pouring out your heart to me about your perceived insignificance to God, I prayed that He would give me an answer just for you. I had been looking for opportunities to tell you about the love of Jesus, but each time one came, it would be at a bad time. Many times your questions could not be answered with one or two words; they required a foundation and some background – and you would hit me with them at the most inopportune times. I felt totally inadequate, myself, for not being able to help. Maybe, as He often does, the Lord was dealing with me at the time, too, in situations where my strengths were irrelevant and my weaknesses were glaringly evident, to quote Sarah Young. But, I was convinced that I had completely failed you and Him.

“I’m reminded of another strange quote I read years ago by Donald Grey Barnhouse, “God doesn’t handle all His affairs in October.” Now, I’m privileged to watch you grow spiritually through our many conversations and through your blog, in which He teaches me as well. You have no idea what a thrill it is to see someone you care about come to Jesus, knowing you had a part in it – but you will someday.

“Blessings in Abundance,

Mike”

Thank you Mike for your heartfelt honesty. Your response means more to me than I can find words for. Thank you for allowing me to share this with our readers.

Lovingly in Christ,

Megan

Faith Filled Fridays

Beloved, grab a warm cup of coffee and sit with me. I want to share with you a struggle I’ve been faced with this week, so thank you in advance for joining me for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Faith Filled Friday with Trench Classes United.

Okay. So there is something coming up that has been making me antsy, uncomfortable, and, to be honest, quiet cranky.

All the things that have been plaguing my mind and causing me so much discord are All Complete Lies from the enemy. Funny thing, I didn’t even recognize that all of this chaos that has been plaguing my mind is the schemes of the enemy.

John 10:10 says: “The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

As I sat this morning with the Lord, I found myself complaining, pleading, begging, and flat-out telling him: “Jesus, I don’t want to!”

Honestly, this complaint went on for a few minutes, I believe the Lord was letting me get it out. I was telling him all the lies that had been fed to me and He listened. He is so gracious to us.

Psalm 116:2: “Because He bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath.”

Don’t you love that picture, Him bending down listening while we complain…or pray?

What’s so beautiful is that He didn’t address one single lie I complained to Him about. No, He didn’t address them because they were lies. You know what He did? He reminded me of what I am called to do. I am called to Love! Not by my strength, my might, or my courage. No, that I would seek His strength, might, courage, and His magnificent Love as He reminds us in Leviticus 19:18: "Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.”

Am I excited for this upcoming event? Honestly, no. But, I will lean deeply into the Father and seek His love for He calls us to the unknown to share His perfect love. We may not understand His ways, but I know he sees and knows far greater than I do, so I will trust and know that I am not alone.

Again, there’s scripture to back this truth up!  Joshua1:9: “This is my command--be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

I am learning to check my emotions and thoughts and line them up with truth. The enemy seeks to steal, kill, and destroy and he will use anyone or any event to cause you to get caught up in the lies he’s feeding your vulnerable heart. I encourage you to gird your heart and mind with word of God and let His truth seep in and remove all the lies.

Gripped in His Marvelous Grace,

Ashley

Thursday’s Trench Truth

Whew, it’s that time of the year where we’re checking our list, checking it twice, trying to determine who is naughty; who’s nice and while we’re at it, cooking, cleaning, planning, preparing, shopping…and anything else you can think of to add to the list…but why?

Thanks for joining me today for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Thursday’s Trench Truth.

Why do we do what we do around the holidays? Nowhere in scripture does it say we are to make ourselves crazy and imbalanced with a to-do list that wraps around our house and down our driveways. But what He does say is to “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain…” (1st Corinthians15:58)

I made a decision several years ago that if I wasn’t able to see the Lord in the things I was doing as a way to prepare for the holidays in the name of celebrating HIM, then I wasn’t about to do them. He doesn’t want us pushing ourselves to a level of teetering on the ledge of craziness, and tottering on the verge of a financial crisis…all in the name of celebrating His birth!

The only way we can abound in the work of the Lord is to stay plugged in to the Lord; it is then we will be able to determine why we do what we do…especially around this time of the year.

Truthfully,

Evinda 

Wednesday’s Word

Bath time was such a fun time when we were parenting our little Bryden…a time when we played, splashed, giggled and in between all of that we snuck in some rub-a-dub scrubbing in the tub time!

Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Wednesday’s Word with Trench Classes United.

“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

It had only been a week since their last bath, but they were beginning to stink and every time I pet them, I could feel the dirt on their fur. So in the midst of my already planned-out day, I determined to wash both Sparky and Alvin. I always begin by taking off their collar so I started with Sparky. By the time I picked him up he was shaking pathetically but still very compliant.

I began to rinse him with the spray nozzle and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. The water was literally brown, like solid brown! I shook my head in disbelief, and a little disgust when I realized I had let him sleep on my bed last night! Ugh, now I need to change my sheets. This cleaning was revealing the need for more cleaning.

As I lathered him up, and the soap turned a light brown, it struck me that bitterness and un-forgiveness is much like this: it’s hard to see at first but the more settled it gets and the more is seeps into our heart, soul and mind, the less we notice it…until one day it just begins to stink and the dirt oozes out and into a lot of our relationships.

We’ve got to get to that point of desiring to let it go and let Him wash us white as snow. Oh, what a feeling when we do let it go. There is a sense of freedom, an ability to move about our world so much easier, just like my little Sparky after a bath who dances around and truly smiles from the feeling of being cleansed.

And the beautiful thing about the One who cleanses us…He’ll do it over and over and over again!
Love,

Evinda

P.S. Join me today at 6:00 PST for our F.B. Live to talk about the reasons we have a hard time connecting with family over the holidays because of disconnection.

Tuesday’s Trench Truth

I was in the gym the other day and couldn’t help but hear a conversation two guys were having…about their wives! And I thought we as women were the only ones who vented!

Thanks for joining me for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and a moment of truth with Trench Classes United.

The first thing I heard one of them say is: “My wife is so f-ing selfish, man!”

I think I must have looked like a deer caught in a pair of glaring headlights, because as soon as he said it, he caught my expression and immediately bent down to avoid my staring. I didn’t mean to look so dumbfounded. It just kind of caught me off guard.  For the rest of my workout, I tried desperately to not listen to their conversation as they both began to “vent” about their wives.

This was a double-edged sword for me, because I’ve been known to “vent” about many things, including my husband, but seeing this with my own eyes, hearing these things with my own ears, well, it was like putting the shoe on the other foot, knowing this could easily be my husband saying this. I mean my husband most certainly could call me selfish.

The truth is everyone needs someone to vent to, but there’s a difference between venting and vomiting!

If we can’t say what we’re venting to the one we’re venting about, perhaps we shouldn’t say it.

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Truthfully,

Evinda

P.S. Join me this Wednesday at 6:00 PST for our F.B. Live to discover a taste of what you’re missing in the trenches.

Monday’s Mantra

I was so frustrated! I was doing everything I was supposed to be doing, but no matter how hard I tried, I always fell short. “Why doesn’t God ever let me win?” I whined to my friend Mike, who composedly observed my outburst. “Megan, God is not a cosmic vending machine,” Mike stringently responded.

Welcome to Coffee Hour at Chicklit Power and Megan’s Monday Mantra with Trench Classes United.

God is not a cosmic vending machine … at the time those words pierced my heart.  It took me many years and many encounters, in the trenches with the Lord, to fully grasp the significance of Mike’s response.

As new Christians, we are filled with enthusiasm until reality sets in and we realize life is hard. It is at this point new Christians become vulnerable and turn away from God due to unrealistic expectations. This is why it is imperative, when one accepts Christ as their savior, to accept Christ as defined by the Bible and not by a personal definition of who one thinks He is.

In Jesus Calling, Sarah Young writes, “I have taken you along a path that has highlighted your need for Me: placing you in situations where your strengths are irrelevant and your weaknesses are glaringly evident…you have realized that needing Me is the key to knowing Me intimately, which is the gift above all gifts.”

Everything does not have to perfect for us to find God in it. We can find God’s goodness in the broken as well as in the pristine. Brokenness brings increased fruitfulness, for God uses those who are broken.

For a brief moment I am going to pretend God is a cosmic vending machine, and with a prayer on my heart for us all, I’m going to push buttons H1 for …

Happy Endings!

Lovingly in Christ,

Megan

P.S. Join us this Wednesday at 6:00 pm PST for our F.B. Live with Evinda to talk about how to connect…despite disconnection at family get-togethers for the holidays!

Faith Filled Friday

Good Morning my Coffee Hour Friends. Pull up a seat and grab up a cup of coffee or tea.  Let’s talk about the pressings of life and how it affects you and me. 

Have you ever felt pressed beyond your means?  A pressing you feel is about to tear the seams of your very soul.

 I've felt that pressing: when finances were dwindling and there were bills still needing to be paid, or when my loving and devoted husband who was facing a pressure of working until he felt he could work no more. 

Let’s take a look at Jesus as he was pressed in the Garden of Getestemane. 

Matthew 26:36-38: Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, "Sit here while I go over there to pray." He took Peter and Zebedee's two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, "My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me."

Jesus' soul crushed to death to the point of grief.

Has your soul ever been crushed to death to the point of grief?

I know mine has. 

Walk with me through a bit of what the Lord gave me on pressing. 

The Garden of Gestemene is a place of agony, a place of pressing. Lord, as you wept and pleaded to have the cup taken from thee, yet you cried "Abba, Your will, not mine."

Jesus as you press us and we cry out for you to lighten the load, may we cry out as you did, Abba, Your will not mine, though the pressing, discouragement, worry, anxiousness, fear, and doubt all creep in and our sight grows dims. 
“Our sight grows dim”...we can't manage this load on our own and we don't have to. When grief gets us down, we forget where our hope comes from. Our grief consumes us and we forget we simply need to pray. Let's take a look at this verse which addresses this very principle: Jesus, being consumed with grief, went to pray. He knew he needed help for He couldn't face this pressing on his own. 

Matthew26:38: “Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and He said, ‘Sit here while I go over there to pray.’”

Jesus went through the pressing and to the cross for you and me. Say these words with me:

May we seek your face, Jesus, and may our eyes be opened to see the will of the cross emerge. Jesus, we lay our life down and present our sins to you. Revive our souls, that as we rise we'd be cleansed and refreshed, made whole and anew. As our sight is restored and our feet are set upon the Rock, Lord may we always remember where our help comes from.  We will stand refined and new singing praises to our All Mighty God for you carried us through. 

If today you are being pressed, meet Jesus at the foot of the cross and lay it all down at His feet. Let it all out. Let your heart and soul cry out all of the grief that is gripping you. Oh, that you would know that He bends down and listens and when He needs to, He carries you through, for He loves each one of us with an Everlasting Love.

Ashley