Life's Simple Pleasures

Many people question my sanity. I am weird by their way of thinking. I have two pair of shoes - one for home and one for dress. I buy all my clothes at the thrift store or clearance racks. I make my own jewelry, unless it is a gift. I clean my own home and cook most of our meals myself from scratch.

My husband has this same mindset. We have basic cable; we live in a trailer without a mortgage, instead of an expensive house; and we do not pay exorbitant amounts of money for entertainment. He even makes his own Folgers coffee at home.

We have no expensive "toys", but spend our free time walking in nature and rocking on the front porch. We have one car and paid no interest on it. We also take staycations instead of lavish trips - of course, it helps that we already live in Florida.

We live below our means, tithe even on financial gifts and bonuses, and share our savings with missionaries and the needy in our community and around the world. Why do we do this? Do we have a spirit of poverty or a martyr complex?

We simply came to the realization that we are not of this world (1 John 2:15-17; Romans 12:2; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23). We find joy in life's simple pleasures and would prefer to spend time with people than things. We have no desire to partake in the allurement of this world; it does not interest us at all.

We find more joy in listening to worship music, writing our devotional blogs, discussing God's Word, ministering in our local church and being involved in our community, so that God can open doors for us for His divine appointments.

We are Saints, not because of our habits, attitude and focus, but due to what Christ did for us on Calvary's cross. Our chosen lifestyle is a result of His character and nature within us. He gave us the mind of Christ, and we love what He loves and are not interested in the excesses of this life.

Prayer: Father God, whatever we do, it is for Your glory, even something as mundane as eating and drinking (1 Corinthians 10:31). You do care about what we eat and drink, because You want us to care for our body, which is Your temple (1 Corinthians 6:19). You bring health to our bones (Proverbs 3:8).

In the beginning, we loved You because You first loved us (1 John 4:19). Then, we gradually grew deeper in love with You until we can honestly say, "Though You slay me; yet, I will serve You" (Job 13:15). This is when we knew that we are living in union with You alone (1 Corinthians 10:31). We enjoy serving You, our Savior, who are also our help and deliverer.

Thought for the Day:

The good things in life often become the enemy of the best things; let those who love God's salvation magnify Him with our body, spirit and soul - thoughts, choices and emotions - so that we do not partake in the excesses of this world. 

- Psalm 70

Rejected, but Never Alone

 

Jesus knows how it feels to face rejection from those to whom He poured out His life. He identifies with us when we dedicate our entire life to our family, church family and friends; yet, they walk away from us.

These people do not always respond positively to our presence in their life. Even our closest family members may attempt to wound us with their words and actions to cause us to reject them.

That way they can perceive themselves as the martyr in the relationship.  If, however, we do not reject them, they eventually reject us and accuse us of abusing them.

They want a reason to reject us, so they claim that we are toxic in their life. They discard us and walk away from us. They may think of us from time to time. These memories may even be positive and draw their hearts toward us; but they resist the urge to mend broken fences.

Showering them with God's unconditional Agape love at each door that God opens for us will ensure that they know deep down inside that we are always here for them, regardless of how they treat us.

We may move on with our life and walk through other doors that God provides for us, but we are always sensitive to their needs and respond in love rather than rejection when they happen to reach out to us.

This may restore our relationship with them and increase our ability to live Christ's life in their presence, giving them yet further opportunities to surrender their life to our Savior and King.

However, they may never approach us again - viewing us as dead to them or estranged. During their life, they cut us out of the momentous times in which we could share.

They want nothing to do with us and our special moments. We are rejected, but God never leaves us alone (Hebrews 13:5). He provides His Saints as our family and focus; and His presence in us sustains us throughout our lifetime.

Prayer:

Father God, our relationship with You is our focus in this life and for all eternity. People, places and times here on earth are a vapor on a cold day. Here for a moment and then vanished. Even a mate, parent or child may reject us; but You never leave us alone (Hebrews 13:5). You are the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:7).

Christ is our very life (Colossians 3:4). We need no one and nothing apart from You. You give us all things to enjoy in Your timing and way. If we do not have it, we do not need it, or You would supply it for us. We trust in Your wisdom and goodness.

Thought for the Day:

God holds the key to our relationships, and He decides whom to allow into our life for His reasons and purpose; we can know for certain that He does everything for our ultimate good. - Romans 8:28

Healing from Abusive Behavior - Part 2

Victims of abuse may turn into abusers in order to erase the shame, fears and insecurities, which plague them. They neglect those whom they should cherish, and they allow negative emotions to control our life and theirs.

We may use anger as a means to protect our self from further abuse, but this sends mixed messages. People never know when we will patiently suffer as a martyr or blow up like a volcano at the least provocation.

We may not be able to trust people, but we can trust God. Rather than acting with bombastic and combative behavior, we find our strength and confidence in Christ's quiet resolve within us.

Then we set boundaries, and firmly but quietly caution people not to cross the line (Isaiah 30:15). They may test our boundaries; but if we consistently remind them, they will soon learn to respect us.

The older we get, the more we tell our self that the abuse happened a long time ago and we should get over it. Yet the shameful effects of the violation and the loss of our innocence and sense of trust can last a lifetime.

We may even find our self questioning if the abuse actually happened. We live in denial and convince our self that our abuser is a revered person who could never do anything that horrific.

When a trigger reminds us of the situation, it is because our soul is crying out for validation and comfort. Our true inner self is desperately attempting to gain our attention and to make us take the abuse seriously enough to stop it or to simply acknowledge it.

Snippets of words, body language, the shape of certain plants, an over-reaction that we cannot explain, bizarre behavior that has no basis in reality are all ways that our soul uses to force us to face and validate the incident(s).

Journaling will enable us to get in touch with the episode(s) and tell our story of abuse without having to make it public knowledge. Journaling validates our feelings, nurtures our wounded soul and is extremely healing.

Prayer:

Father God, You collect all of our tears in Your bottle and avenge every one of them (Psalm 56:8). Even if we feel that we somehow caused or deserved the abuse, You wash away our shame and replace it with the righteousness of Christ (Isaiah 61:7).

Remind us that forgiving our perpetrator actually helps us to heal by taking them off our "hook" and placing them firmly on Your hook. You are much better at rendering vengeance than we are (Romans 12:19; Deuteronomy 32:35). Thank You for healing us from our past and giving us a bright future full of Your love and acceptance (Jeremiah 29:11).

Thought for the Day:

Loss of innocence means that a person who was supposed to protect, nurture and cherish us actually abused us and stole from us what rightfully belongs to us alone.

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