Nikol

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.” – Acts 16:25-26

Is there anything in your life that you feel is keeping you prisoner? Perhaps there is a sin that you feel powerless to overcome. It doesn’t have to be what we consider a “bad” sin. Maybe you overeat, or TV has become your idol. Maybe you spend more time at work than you do in the Word, or maybe you are struggling with simply being obedient to something God has called you to do (or not do).

As humans we have a tendency to make a hierarchy for sin. Murderers and child molesters at the top followed by people who rape and steal. Then maybe we’ll put in those who commit adultery next. You get my drift.

We want to believe that the sin in our lives isn’t as bad as the sin of others. It makes us feel better. But the harsh reality is…it’s all sin. As much as we hate to admit it, those little white lies we tell are the same in God’s eyes as someone who steals or kills. But praise God for His amazing grace!

I have this “little” sin that keeps popping up in my life. I found myself last night doing the very thing I prayed I wouldn’t do that morning. I’m completely in touch with Paul in Romans 7 when he says, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do” (v. 15). So. Very. Frustrating.

This morning, I bowed before the LORD ashamed that I had failed Him once again. That’s when God gave me an idea.

In Acts 16, Paul and Silas were imprisoned. There they sat shackled in the midst of robbers and murderers and child molesters. Did they complain? Oh, no. They prayed and sang praises to God.

I love what happens next. “Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose (Acts 16:26).”

Could it be that singing praises and praying are the keys to breaking the chains of sin in our lives? What would happen if, instead of visiting that website you shouldn’t be going to, you sang praises and prayed? What if the second you wanted something sweet to eat, you praised God and asked Him to send his sweet presence to you instead?

It’s just a theory. I don’t know if it will work, but I’m willing to give it a try. What about you?

As I write this, I’m sprawled out on the bed that belongs to my sixteen year old cousin, Lauren.

Looking around her room, I see photos of her and me in various stages of her life. There is one of us sticking our tongues out when she is around two years old. Another one at a wedding when she is about four or five.  There’s even a photo of her with my dad when she was a little bitty baby.  Mixed in with these photos are trinkets that I’ve given to her over the years – a hat, a scarf, and hand-painted ceramics.

These knick knacks and photographs not only bring back a rush of memories, but they bring with them a humbling reminder that she carries me in her heart even though we only get to see each other a few times a year.

It makes me wonder.  Does God have photos of us scattered around His Heavenly Home?   Is there a mantel in the New Jerusalem littered with moments in our life that He holds dear?   I wonder if He and Jesus take strolls down memory lane reflecting on where we’ve been and where we are going.

There’s a wedding snapshot in a silver frame.  Only this snapshot is not of your earthly wedding but is a photograph snapped at the very moment you kneeled before your Savior and became the bride of Christ.

There is another of your first baby steps of faith.  Can you see Him, the proud Father, smiling in the background?

There is another photograph in a shiny red frame.  It’s a snapshot of when you fell off your bicycle of belief.  That’s Jesus bending next to you with his nail-scarred hands firmly under your arms lifting you up and encouraging you to try again.

Photo after photo lines the mantel top documenting each struggle, victory and milestone.  In the center of all these precious moments, there is one bigger than the others.  One photo more prominently placed.

You barely recognize yourself standing on a cliff with one foot on solid ground and the other in mid-air.  Tears are streaming down your fright-filled face and briefly you remember the prayer of hope that was on your lips.  “I’m trusting you, Lord.  Don’t let me fall.”   This is the moment you stepped out in obedience to Him; the moment you took your first leap of faith.  And just like the others, Jesus is in the photo.  He’s standing right beside you.  You remember His reassuring words:  “Don’t worry, Child, I will catch you.”  Glancing into the lower right hand corner, you see a righteous right hand, strong and steady, waiting to catch you.

And don’t you know that when God glances at the photo, He smiles, nudges Jesus and says, “Remember that day?  I was so proud of her!”

I was so excited this past Sunday when our pastor, Calvin Kelley, did a sermon on our spiritual journey and how it’s critical that we devote time each day to reading God’s word. I was afraid if I screamed, “Amen!” my Southern-Baptist roots would start to show, so I fought the urge. Instead, I did the new-tradition of head bobbing with a “That’s right” whispered under my breath. But oh, how I wanted to shout, “Amen!”

Part of Calvin’s sermon focused on journaling and how it can enhance your walk with God. I couldn’t agree more.

I can sit down and read a passage of scripture, and technically, I’ve spent time in God’s presence, but until I actually put pen to paper and write out what I observe; until I take the time to reflect on what He’s trying to tell me, it’s doesn’t get past my head and into my heart.

This blog is somewhat of a journal, and I started it last year to share my spiritual journey with you: to share what God is doing in my life; to pass along the secrets He whispers to me; to paint a picture of the glimpses that I catch of Him; and to hopefully provide you with ideas and tools to help you on your spiritual journey. I want people to know that you don’t have to be a scholar or be super-spiritual to be changed by God. He can change anyone.

And He WILL change you…
piece by piece
verse by verse
moment by moment
He will change you, not into who you want to be, but into who He wants you to be. He will change you into the image of His son.

I saw a note the other day in one of my journals: “You have to submit in order to be rescued.” So…

Will you submit to Him?
Will you take time to be alone with Him and listen?
Will you let him get inside you? Not just below the surface, but deep down inside – where all those empty, dark and broken places are?
Will you let him heal you?
Will you let him change you?

He will. If you let Him.

Resolve.  It’s a seemingly insignificant word.  Not one frequently used (unless you have to clean your carpet a lot).  It’s just two syllables. A mere seven letters. But yet, it is a mighty word for in it determines the success or failure of an endeavor.

I learned about this “resolve” characteristic last year in a study of Daniel.  Daniel and his pals – now they had some resolve!

Did they defile their bodies with tasty food?  “Nope.  Pass the fruits and vegetables, please.” (Daniel 1:8)

Bow to a statue?  “Over our dead bodies!” (Daniel 3:17-18)

Resolve.

Resolve requires you to make a decision before a decision.  It requires planning, discipline – and truth be told – good old fashioned stubbornness.

Stubbornness kind of gets a bad rap.  It gets thrown into the “character flaw” category a bit too often.  You’re more likely to hear someone say, “Would you PLEASE quit being so stubborn?” than you are to hear, “I love your stubbornness.  I wish I could be like that.”

Some people like to use sissy-words like, “determined” or “persistent,” but in my opinion, those are all just poodle-like synonyms for the great dane that is stubbornness.

Yep. Stubbornness needs a new image.   Stubbornness needs to take perseverance by the horns and show it who’s boss!

So, how can we give stubbornness a face lift? We can use our powers for good and not evil. We can use it to complete those resolutions we’ve set for the new year.

So, what have I resolved to do this year? What’s my passion? Well, this year, with the help of my awesomely cool and fabulous accountability group, we are reading through the Bible chronologically.

So, are you game? Come on! You know you want to roll up those sleeves of stubbornness and do it. All it takes is a little resolve.