Lyli Dunbar's Blog, page 25
April 16, 2017
Wise Underdogs
In the late 1960’s, a popular cartoon portrayed a dog named Shoeshine Boy who would step into a phone booth and transform into a superhero named Underdog to fight crime. Like any underdog, however, his “powers” were at times inconsistent and problematic. While trying to save the world, the dog wearing a cape would cause collateral damage that sometimes complicated life.
I’ve often wished I had a super power. In my dreams, I picture myself marching confidently toward the enemy with a lasso in hand that helps restore peace and order and uphold the truth in our crazy world. But in real life, I am more underdog than Wonder Woman. In my own strength, I can’t save the world. I only create more chaos.
It comforts me to read the Gospels and realize that God often selects underdogs for His Kingdom purposes. The disciples were a motley crew of uneducated fishermen who seemed unlikely heroes. Yet, God used them to change the world.
God pours His strength into willing vessels. The Bible is full of stories where defeat seemed certain, but God stepped in to display His power through the weakness of an obedient follower. The boy David defeated Goliath with a single stone stone. Gideon and a small band of brothers defeated the foe carrying trumpets and clay pots, rather than swords.
When we surrender our all to God, He accepts our meager offering and multiplies our efforts to help minister to others. Remember five thousand people ate lunch because a young boy voluntarily shared his skimpy meal.
Our weakness does not hinder us from being effectively used for God’s glory. The only quality that hampers the work of God in our lives is pride. We must set aside our self-sufficiency.
Arrogant skeptics refuse to believe that a Jewish carpenter is actually the Savior of the world. They question the wisdom of God and fail to accept that He chooses to work His wonder through what the world views as weak.
Wise underdogs step forward in faith understanding God’s miraculous might is most evident through frailty.
Wise underdogs step forward in faith understanding God’s miraculous might is most evident through frailty.
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I am sharing “Wise Underdogs” and joining like-minded sisters at Faith-Filled Friday, Fresh Market Friday, Blessing Counters, Dance with Jesus, Heart Encouragement Thursday, Tune in Thursday, Chasing Community, Tell His Story, Coffee for Your Heart, Porch Stories, Purposeful Faith’s RaRaLinkup, Rich-Faith Rising, Testimony Tuesday, Tuesday Talk, and Dream Together, Moments of Hope.
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April 14, 2017
When Resurrection Rises Up in You
Some days I feel like I am standing in a turbulent sea of shattered dreams. I forget how to paddle and pray until I reach the safe shore, and I start drowning in doubt and disbelief.
Some days all I see is death. Defeat. Despair. The thick darkness swallows up my confidence and courage.
The enemy wants to wipe me out. But if I stop striving and surrender to my Savior, He reminds me of this truth: I am already a winner. I am a winner because Christ won me back from the wicked one.
I am a winner because Christ won me back from the wicked one.
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When resurrection rises up in you
“Has Beens and Never Weres” turn into trophies of God’s grace.
God’s wonder is at work in your wounded spaces. His glory will transform your brokenness into beauty.
Listen very carefully, I tell you a mystery–a secret truth decreed by God and previously hidden, but now revealed; we will not all sleep in death, but we will all be completely changed wondrously transformed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the sound of the last trumpet call. For a trumpet will sound, and the dead who believed in Christ will be raised imperishable, and we will be completely changed wondrously transformed. For this perishable part of us must put on the imperishable nature, and this mortal part of us that is capable of dying must put on immortality which is freedom from death. (I Cor. 15:51-53, AMP)
“Dead Ends” lead to Dances of Joy
Death is a vanquished foe. Your Defender breathes life into dead and dark corners. Your victory celebration is certain.
Then the saying will come true: Death swallowed by triumphant Life! Who got the last word, oh, Death? Oh, Death, who’s afraid of you now? (I Cor. 15:55, MSG)
“Washed Up” is re-purposed as Worthy
Our efforts to serve the Savior are never in vain. God rebuilds the wrecked and appoints the beautifully restored to a ministry of mercy.
With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort. (I Cor. 15:58)
When resurrection rises up in you, God will transform today’s troubles into tomorrow’s triumph.
When resurrection rises up in you, God will transform today’s troubles into tomorrow’s triumph.
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April 11, 2017
7 Ways the Cross Encourages the Weary
I spent my morning with Jesus. I welled up in tears as He carried an instrument of execution on His back until He could walk no more. I stifled a cry and flinched as the nails were pounded into His open, surrendered hands. I wretched at the scent of blood from His gaping wounds.
He drank the bitter cup of God’s wrath to purchase my redemption.
As I closed my Bible and started getting dressed after sunrise, I thanked Him for His sacrificial love. He hung naked on a cross of shame to clothe me in righteousness.
My tongue cannot adequately transcribe such sacrificial love. I owe Him everything.
Examining the work of Jesus on the cross is emotionally exhausting. My heart grieves as I rehearse the salvation story: He was bound and wounded beyond recognition to ensure I’d walk whole and free.
Crying my eyes out as I contemplate the cross is cathartic. I wipe away tears and walk forward with more resolve.
The writer of Hebrews encourages us to look to the cross for strength when we suffer:
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Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how He did it. Because He never lost sight of where He was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—He could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now He’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility He plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! (Hebrews 12:1-2, MSG)
The watching world thought Jesus was a failure and a fluke, but my Champion shook off the shackles of sin and rose up from the grave to defeat death.
The cross is proof that Christ is the comeback king.
The cross is proof that Christ is the comeback King.
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Maybe you are running ragged right now and could use a comeback of your own. I’d encourage you to sit at the feet of Jesus and apply His suffering as a salve to your soul.
7 Ways the Cross Encourages the Weary
Christ compassionately prays for sinners. His grace is greater than our ugliness.
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for His clothes by throwing dice. (Luke 23:34, NLT).
Christ offers hope to the seeking heart. Confessing faith in Christ always leads to cleansing and confidence.
We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with Me in paradise.” (Luke 23:41-43)
Christ empathizes with your grief and positions you for encouragement and support.
When Jesus saw His mother standing there beside the disciple He loved, He said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” And He said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” (John 19:26-27)
Christ absorbed rejection in order to secure your approval. God never abandons His children.
At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned Me?” (Matthew 27:46)
Christ identifies with your hardship and suffering.
Jesus knew that His mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture He said, “I am thirsty.” (John 19:28)
Christ always stands up for you and stays until the job is completed.
A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to His lips. When Jesus had tasted it, He said, “It is finished!” (John 19:28)
Christ teaches us to depend on God’s deliverance. Trust your Father is faithful and will work wonders.
Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust My spirit into Your hands!” And with those words He breathed His last.
Keep your eyes firmly focused on the cross, and God will fortify you for the fight.
Keep your eyes firmly focused on the cross, and God will fortify you for the fight.
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I am sharing “7 Ways the Cross Encourages the Weary” and joining like-minded sisters at Faith-Filled Friday, Fresh Market Friday, Blessing Counters, Dance with Jesus, Heart Encouragement Thursday, Tune in Thursday, Chasing Community, Tell His Story, Coffee for Your Heart, Porch Stories, Purposeful Faith’s RaRaLinkup, Rich-Faith Rising, Testimony Tuesday, Tuesday Talk, and Dream Together, Moments of Hope.
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The post 7 Ways the Cross Encourages the Weary appeared first on Lyli Dunbar.
April 6, 2017
A Safe Haven In This Noisy World
Nothing puts out the fire in my heart faster than negativity.
I will spend most of my day whistling a happy tune, and then suddenly a deluge of apathy and antagonism crashes like a tsunami right in front of me.
Sometimes, it’s an unexpected phone call from a Debbie Downer family member. Nothing prepares you for the onslaught.
Other times, however, I must confess that I open up the door of my heart and invite the roaring waves of doubt right inside. I might linger too long on an argumentative Facebook post, or I will mindlessly surf cable and land on a brackish broadcast that floods my soul with vitriol.
That’s why I insisted on going to the Night of Worship at church yesterday evening. I needed a safe place to hide away from the surging tide of unbelief.
Do you feel like you are drowning? Is there a whirlwind brewing in your heart?
You might want to slow down and find a safe haven.
4 Reasons Church is a Safe Haven in this Noisy World
God will give you wisdom for the way:
Our Father speaks tenderly to those who sit in the sanctuary with receptive hearts. He will clarify what is confusing and bring confidence in what is certain and true.
“Still, when I tried to figure it out, all I got was a splitting headache . . .Until I entered the sanctuary of God. Then I saw the whole picture…When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy, I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence. I’m still in Your presence, but you’ve taken my hand. You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then You bless me… I’m in the very presence of God—oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home” (Psalm 73:16-27, MSG).
God will re-energize your enthusiasm:
Church is like the huddle for your team. Before you can go out and tackle life, you must stand shoulder to shoulder with people who are running in the same direction as you. Their cheers will remind you why you picked up the ball in the first place. In that tight-knit circle, your Captain reveals the secret plays that lead to victory.
“So let’s do it—full of belief, confident that we’re presentable inside and out. Let’s keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps His word. Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:22-25, MSG).
God will shield you with His grace:
Are you feeling lost? It’s time to run home and sit at your Father’s feet. There before the hearth at God’s house, He will remind you how blessed you are to be a King’s kid. Run home, and He will fill your soul with sustenance.
“A single day in Your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked. For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right” (Psalm 84:10-11, NLT).
God will wake you up to the wonder of His glory:
Gather in close and let the God of Angel Armies remind you that He specializes in creating miracles out of messes. He will transform your worry into worship.
“I’m asking God for one thing, only one thing: To live with Him in his house my whole life long. I’ll contemplate His beauty; I’ll study at His feet. That’s the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world, The perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic. God holds me head and shoulders above all who try to pull me down. I’m headed for his place to offer anthems that will raise the roof! Already I’m singing God-songs; I’m making music to God” (Psalm 27:4-6, MSG). Let’s step away from the noisy world and nuzzle up to Jesus at His House.
Step away from the noisy world and nuzzle up to Jesus at His House. He’ll warm up your cold heart and help you heal.
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April 3, 2017
Walking in Stride
A few months after my parents got a new Pekingese puppy, my boyfriend and I volunteered to take Fifi out for a walk around the block. I immediately regretted the choice. The adorable canine loved to sit at one’s feet and play, but once you put a leash on her and asked her to stroll along at your side, she immediately lost all interest. We spent 20 minutes trying to drag the 4-footed rebel along the sidewalk. We called her name and jumped up and down attempting to gain her attention. In frustration, we ended up yanking the leash and dragging her along inch by inch at a snail’s pace. Fifi was more interested in sniffing around for treats than obediently following.
In his second epistle to the early church, the Apostle John explains that love is walking according to God’s commandments. Love is active obedience. As a Christ follower, my life should be guided by the unchanging and eternal Truth. Rather than being led by my erratic emotions, I must consistently choose to yield my will to Christ.
My feet must stay in step with my Master.
My feet must stay in step with my Master.
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Walking in stride with God will transform your passions and purpose. Before Christ, we ran our own way and pursued our own selfish interests. But as lovers of God, we live to serve others and place the needs of the body before our own personal gain and glory. Love makes obedience a delight, not a duty.
A loyal Christ follower pursues the truth, promptly obeys God’s directives, and moves toward others in love.
How’s your walk today? Are you sniffing around where you have no business? Have you wandered off the path and lost interest in the directives of your Master? Turn toward the Truth and step back in stride with God. No matter how far you’ve strayed, His voice is near and will gently lead you home.
SUBSCRIBE TO RECEIVE WEEKLY FAITH FUEL IN YOUR INBOX.
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I am sharing “Walking in Stride” and joining like-minded sisters at Faith-Filled Friday, Fresh Market Friday, Blessing Counters, Dance with Jesus, Heart Encouragement Thursday, Chasing Community, Tell His Story, Coffee for Your Heart, Three-Word Wednesday, Purposeful Faith’s RaRaLinkup, Rich-Faith Rising, Testimony Tuesday, and Moments of Hope.
“Walking in Stride” was originally published at Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale’s Daily Devo.
The post Walking in Stride appeared first on Lyli Dunbar.
March 30, 2017
When You Need a Rescue
On Tuesday night, I opened up an app on my phone and viewed the unthinkable. I released a blood curling scream that raised the hair on my back of my husband’s neck. He ran in my direction. I handed him the phone, and then we stood in the bathroom hugging and crying.
Once I caught my breath and stopped heaving, I leaned my head on my husband’s shoulder and prayed through the tears.
I don’t even remember what I said. I just cried out to Jesus.
I called out to the Healer of the brokenhearted. I asked the God who defeated death itself to breathe life into a soul with one foot in the grave.
Why does the enemy fight so hard for my loved ones? He’s such a stinker.
My praying friends rallied around us and reminded me that God is not finished yet. This is just one page in the story, but redemption is coming.
I must persist in praying and stand strong in the power of His might.
I must fight on my knees and never give up.
Even when I face overwhelming resistance, I can fly above the opposition because I have a Rescuer.
When I face overwhelming resistance, my Rescuer helps me fly above the opposition.
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Do you need a rescue?
Don’t let the enemy of your soul reach in and steal your joy. Your deliverance is coming.
4 Reasons Your Rescue is Sure
God is consistently perceptive and attentive to your cry for help.
“Is anyone crying for help? God is listening, ready to rescue you. If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there; if you’re kicked in the gut, he’ll help you catch your breath” (Psalm 34:17-18, MSG).
God is fully present and able when trouble pesters you.
“Disciples so often get into trouble; still, God is there every time” (Psalm 34:19).
God is forever protecting you and absorbing your pain.
“He’s your bodyguard, shielding every bone; not even a finger gets broken” (Psalm 34:20).
God has already purchased your freedom and answered every accusation against you.
“God pays for each slave’s freedom; no one who runs to him loses out” (Psalm 34:21).
The enemy of our soul is working overtime to make us feel defeated, but our Rescuer has already written victory in red across every page of our story.
My Rescuer has already written victory in red across every page of my story.
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March 28, 2017
4 Ways to Make Jesus Known on Instagram
My friend Michelle has the heart of a missionary. Sure, she’s been on short-term mission trips to Haiti, and she even used her nursing skills on the field by serving with Mercy Ships for a year overseas. But, Michelle also shares her redemption story everywhere she goes if someone will listen.
Recently, she broke her ankle and spent a few weeks unable to venture out much. If you know Michelle, you’d realize how hard that was for her. She doesn’t slow down, and on the weekends you will usually find her hiking a trail in her new home state of Arizona. Now that she lives half way across the country, we keep in touch via social media quite a bit.
During her down time, Michelle started chronicling her long-rehabilitation on Instagram. She posted pictures of each new cast, and once Instagram rolled out their new “Stories” video feature, she streamed video live from her doctor’s office. I started watching her every night as I’d eat a snack on my couch after work.
She is brave, I thought. I wonder how many people are actually watching this along with me? She is just being herself and taking us along for the ride.
A couple of days later, I pushed play on a video of Michelle and expected her to fill me in on her progress, but instead she wanted to share her story.
Michelle explained that a co-worker had asked her how following Jesus had changed her life, and so she testified how yielding her life to Christ had transformed her story from trauma to triumph. Asking God to forgive her sin and re-direct her life was the best decision she’d ever made. God had taken her shame and condemnation and replaced them with new-found peace and purpose.
Michelle’s bold choice to proclaim God’s redemption in her life on Instagram has challenged me. I mean, what am I so afraid of? Why do I fear sharing my story?
I’m sharing “4 Ways to Make Jesus Known on Instagram” at Missional Women.
To read the rest of this post, join me here.
The post 4 Ways to Make Jesus Known on Instagram appeared first on Lyli Dunbar.
March 23, 2017
Hands Extended and Hearts Full
My hands were empty, and my heart was broken.
I sat at home on the 3-day leave from work after my miscarriage and blindly stared at the blinking computer screen in front of me. I’d tried reading my Bible, but was unable to focus past a verse or two. I wanted to hear from God, but my pain wailed doubt and despair.
I never heard His voice audibly that day, but looking back now seven years later, I know how He spoke clearly. He used Kelli.
Kelli was a former student who knew I was hurting. She decided to be brave and share her story with me. She sent me a short e-mail where she confessed that she and her hubby had struggled with infertility for several years. She’d started a blog to chronicle her story in hopes of encouraging women who were on the same journey.
“I don’t share this with many people,” she confessed. But, she invited me into her pain so that I would know that I was not alone.
I spent the next day voraciously reading. I’d never visited a blog before. From Kelli’s blog, I found many other spaces on the internet where women were welcoming me into their lives and letting me know that God was still at work. God was present. God was transforming brokenness into beauty. His glorious light was spilling out of their lives all over the internet.
Months later, I decided to start a blog. Perhaps I could encourage one person with my story. I also accepted an invitation from a friend to join her in online Bible study. She said we’d just be looking at a few verses a day.
I can do a few verses a day, I thought. I grabbed a notebook, and I wrote four letters across the top of the page that changed my life forever…
I’m sharing “Hands Extended and Hearts Full” at Love God Greatly.
To read the rest of this story, join me here.
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March 22, 2017
Hearts Ablaze
Nothing. I had nothing.
The days on the calendar were all crossed off, and I still didn’t know which way to go.
On December 31, 2016, I sat in the back-left corner of the church sanctuary next to my husband wondering what the year ahead might bring. I’d tried to keep my ears perked up for a word from the Lord.
God had spoken so clearly every year before.
To start 2012, He told me to stand tall and proclaim, “Ain’t nobody gonna steal my joy.” (Little did I know that I’d spend most of that summer in the fetal position fighting for my life in the shadows.)
The following year, God gave me a one-word theme: Fruitilicious. I longed to live a vibrant life–one that produced bright, tasty, juicy morsels to share and help sustain life in others.
My husband prophetically predicted that stormy seas were sure to follow in 2014 when the Lord anchored me with the phrase: Hold Fast.
I was scrolling on Instagram in 2015 when I saw a potato sack pillow sitting on a friend’s couch. The phrase imprinted across the front in black letters jumped off the page and into my heart. I vowed to Pray Big with expectation until God moved my mountains.
Last year, God invited me to Choose Rest, rather than feel frazzled and fatigued.
Each year, the Lord had impressed upon me a theme to shape my thinking, but as 2016 faded into black, I lacked direction.
As I sat quietly waiting for the New Year’s Eve concert to start, I looked up to heaven and said a simple prayer:
Speak to me, Lord.
I spent the night worshiping with hands and heart uplifted as Phil Wickham sang like an angel on the stage. And as the clock turned to 12:15 AM, he closed the concert with a song titled “Wide Awake.”
Through the veil, we have come.
You’ve paid the price, a sacrifice, of flesh and blood.
Hearts ablaze, drawing close,
The holy place now invades the human soul.
Wide awake, unashamed, in Your light
By Your grace, boldly running to Your side,
Captivated, oh I am taken by everything You are.
I want to be closer and closer and closer to Your heart.
Hearts Ablaze
I spent January 1st looking up verses on “fire” in my concordance.
“I say, ‘I will not mention Him, or speak any more in His name,’ there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in,and I cannot” (Jeremiah 20:9).
“Is not My word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rocks in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29)
“…He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Luke 3:16)
“I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled!” (Luke 12:49)
“And divided tongues of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them…” (Acts 2:3)
“Never let the fire go out in your heart…” (Romans 12:11)
“He makes His messengers winds, his ministers a flaming fire.” (Hebrews 1:7)
“…let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe for our God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:29)
I scrawled a few words on a slip of paper: fuel, ignite, kindle, spark.
Then, I tried to talk myself out of it. How am I supposed to write about living with a fiery heart when I struggle to stay awake every morning with my Bible in my lap?
But, God has a way of repeating Himself once He starts speaking, and this January He turned the volume button up to high. It started in my kitchen the very next evening. As Phil Wickham’s voice still echoed in my head, I opened up to the last 3 entries of Ann Voskamp’s Advent devotional for children. We’d unwrapped the greatest gift a little too slowly in December, so we were still reading in January.
And when people see that it’s all about Jesus, this is what they whisper: ‘Wasn’t it like our hearts were on fire right inside of us?’ (Luke 24:32). Can you see it? This day, this night, Light comes! Can you feel it? Your heart kindling, burning with a love for Jesus that’s like a warming fire… When you’re just one of the raggedy manger stragglers who comes with nothing but your raggedy heart to Jesus, when you lean close over Jesus in that manger and you see His blazing glory, when you come close to His white-hot love for you–how can you not scramble right out of the manger and right into the world with a heart glowing like hot embers of love for Jesus, telling everyone about the love of Jesus? A heart that really loves Jesus could catch the world on fire with love and more love and more love.”
Yep, God wanted to set my heart on fire. Except I was too scared to step close to the flame.
Sure, I confessed to a few friends that my word for the year was “Ablaze,” and I even made a fiery graphic for it. But, my fingers grew ice cold whenever I thought about writing about it.
Rather than fueling my faith, I spent weeks fighting fear.
I can’t write about that. It’s trite and will come across like a 4th grader’s homework assignment.
I don’t want people to think I’m a crazy fanatic or a narcissist or a pyromaniac.
The three or four people who currently read my blog won’t care if stay away from this topic entirely.
Maybe God just wants me to pray about this, but not actually cut open my vein and bleed words all over the internet.
But, God was gentle with me. He continued to whisper quietly. I look back now and read my own words here on February 8th where I encouraged you to give God due diligence:
Fuel your faith with ARDOR and zeal: Fan the flames of your faith daily and continue growing in your reverence for God. Stamp out any flickers of doubt and apathy.
I really need to listen to my own advice. But I am slow to learn. I hate change. So I quenched the Spirit and showered unbelief all over the altar of my heart.
On February 20th, I opened up my Bible to Chapter 9 of the book of Leviticus and read:
Then fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the portions of fat on the altar; and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.
I realized that morning that I can either present a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord, or I can make excuses and grow cold.
I can either present a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord, or I can make excuses and grow cold.
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I want to keep His holy fire burning brightly in my heart.
I’m excited (and a little terrified) today to introduce you to my beautiful new writing home where I hope to provide you Fuel for a Wildfire Faith.
My original plan for this blog re-design was completely different, but then I revisited Romans 12 and sparks flew off the page:
My prayer is for the stories I share in this space to encourage you with #FaithFuel to
LOVE DEEP: Fervently extend God’s kindness and grace to pesky people.
PRAY BIG: Go down fighting on our knees together with fire in our bones.
HOPE FULL: Stay tethered to a confident expectation in heaven that keeps us moving forward.
STAND STRONG: Rest confidently on God’s promises to empower us to overcome every obstacle.
On Fridays, we’ll share how God is igniting a burning passion in our hearts at our new community link-up for bloggers #FaithonFire.
Please join me in thanking Traci Michelle and Mandy Roberson who helped create this inviting space for us to meet.
Are you ready to fire up your faith?
Subscribe so that you don’t miss a thing, and you’ll receive “4 Surefire Ways to Ignite Your Faith” for free.
Have you written something challenging, encouraging, or inspiring lately? Link it up here! For best results, write the title of your post in the name box.
March 15, 2017
The No Nitpicking Zone
Let’s face it. The world would be a much better place if everyone just agreed with me. Right?
Sadly, that is not the case. Put three Christians in the same room, and you are bound to have three distinctly different opinions on pretty much any subject. Should we stick to somber hymns with accompanying organ or clap to contemporary guitar tunes? Do we slightly sprinkle the baby at the altar or fully immerse grown-ups? Is Jesus coming back for the church before the tribulation, or should I run for the hills and hide now?
Since the early church age, contention over preferences and positions has plagued the body of Christ. This is why the Apostle Paul challenges the believers in Rome to persist in working toward peace. We are called to mutually contend for the faith, rather than demand our way and fragment the fellowship.
The enemy of our souls loves to plant seeds of discord, and we must be alert to his schemes and uproot the weeds of pride and selfishness that seek to stunt our growth. Rather than criticize and condemn, we are called to strengthen and solidify as we yield to the Holy Spirit.
On the inside cover of my Bible I’ve written a maxim that’s been called “the watchword of Christian peacemakers” to remind me to choose wisely: “In Essentials Unity. In Non-Essentials Liberty. In All Things Charity.” Christ followers must work toward humbly establishing right relationships, rather than demanding our rights.
The context of Romans 14 outlines exactly how peace is cultivated. Verse 1 (MSG) encourages us to “welcome with open arms believers who don’t see things the way you do.” Following our convictions should never mean belittling our brother who may be weaker in the faith. We should selflessly surrender our rights if our choices are provoking one another to stumble. Rather than bicker over what is inconsequential in light of eternity, we should strive to build each other up in the faith.
Let’s purpose to promote peace and make the church a no nitpicking zone.
Let’s promote peace and make the church a no nitpicking zone.
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Something to think about…
Friends, in case you hadn’t heard:
A fresh look is coming. You don’t need to do a thing. I’ve invited Traci and Mandy to help dress up things a bit, and although my new home will be LyliDunbar.com, you will still receive encouragement in your inbox if you are subscribed.
My blogging friends should know that the link-up is going to move to Fridays soon under a new name. I will e-mail you all the details once we are ready to roll out the revamped blog.
I’m sharing “The No Nitpicking Zone” with like-minded friends at Faith-Filled Friday.
“The No Nitpicking Zone” was originally published at Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale’s Daily Devo.
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