Judges 19-21: Gang Rape & Civil War

Well I finished the book of Judges this week and I came upon the most disturbing of accounts EVER! In Judges 19-21 we have an account of basically gang rape, dismemberment, and a bloody civil war within the tribes of Israel. This all takes place during a time where there was no king and the people did what was right in their own eyes. This is definatley not a Bible story to tell your children until they are much older. Here is the account of Judges 19-21 with commentary from me and some mixed in from an article I found written by Pastor Nathan Shepherd.

There was a Levite who lived in the remote area of the Ephraimite hill country. He acquired a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.  Well this concubine became angry with the Levite so she got up and left and went to her home in Bethlehem. After four months, her husband set out after her to persuade her to come back, taking with him his servant and two donkeys. So, She took him inside her father's house, and the father welcomed him in, and insisted he stay with them. So he remained three days, and they ate, drank, and slept there. On the fourth day, they got up early and the Levite prepared to leave, but the father said, 'Have something to eat to strengthen you, and then you may go.' They sat down and ate and drank together, and the girl's father said to the man, 'Please spend the night here. Enjoy yourself. And when the man got up to leave, the girl's father insisted again, and so the man spent the night there. On the fifth day, the man got up early to depart, but the girl's father said to him, 'Have something to eat. So they ate a meal together. When the man got up to leave with his concubine and his servant, the girl's father said, 'Look, it is almost sunset. Stay here another night, enjoy yourself, and then get up early tomorrow to leave.' But refusing to stay the night, the man departed and went toward Jebus (that is, Jerusalem) with his two saddled donkeys and his concubine. Daylight was fading as they approached Jebus, and the servant said to his master, 'Come on, let's stop at this Jebusite city and spend the night.' But his master said, 'We should not stop in a city of foreigners with people who are not Israelites. We will go on to Gibeah.' So they traveled on to Gibeah in the land of Benjamin to spend the night. They sat down in the city square, but no one took them into his house for the night. But eventually an old man came by, returning from his work in the fields. He was also from the Ephraimite hills, though he was living in Gibeah. He said to them, 'I will take care of all your needs, just don't spend the night in the city square.' So he took them into his house and fed the donkeys. They washed their feet and ate and drank. They were enjoying themselves when some worthless men of the town surrounded the house and pounded on the door, saying, 'Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him!' The owner of the house went outside and said to them, 'No, my brothers, do not be so wicked! This man is my guest, so do not do such a shameful thing!' 'Here is my virgin daughter and his concubine. Abuse them and do to them whatever you wish, but do not do such a disgraceful thing to this man!' - WAIT! Now doesn't this sound exaclty like what happened to Lot? But what I don't understand is why did they compromise? They should have slammed the door in their faces and not allowed them anything (well IMO) The men would not listen to him, so the Levite took his concubine and sent her outside to them. So all night long this poor woman was ganged raped and abused! At dawn they let her go, and the girl went back to the house where her master was staying, and she fell down and lay there until morning. When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house, preparing to to start on his journey, there was his concubine laying on the doorstep with her hand on the threshhold. 'Get up. Let's go,' he said to her, but there was no response. Because she was dead! So what does he do? he puts her on a donkey and heads home. When he reached his house, he took a knife and carved up his concubine into twelve pieces. So let's get this straight...he carries her dead body on his donkey all the way home and when he gets there he carves her up into 12 pieces! It sounds like a Stephen King story. And then he mails the pieces to all of Israel. It doesn't say but I am guessing since their are 12 pieces that he mails one piece to each of the 12 tribes.
Disturbing yes? Well, it gets worse...

So all the Israelites assembled at Mizpah and said, 'Explain how this wicked crime was committed. The Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, said, 'The men of Gibeah surrounded the house where I was staying, intending to kill me. They raped my concubine to death. I cut her up and sent her throughout the land of Israel.' He forgets to tell them that he GAVE her to them. Then he says, 'Now, all of you Israelites, discuss this and decide what to do!' The people all spoke as one and said, 'This is what we will do to Gibeah: we will attack, punishing them for this disgraceful act committed in Israel.' The tribes of Israel sent men throughout the tribe of Benjamin, saying, 'Hand over the worthless men of Gibeah so we can put them to death and purge this evil from Israel.' But the Benjaminites would not listen to their Israelite brothers, and they mustered at Gibeah to fight the Israelites. There were 26,000 swordsmen. The Israelites, not including Benjamin, mustered 400,000 swordsmen. They went up to Bethel and asked God, 'Who should be the first to attack the Benjaminites?' And Yahweh said, 'Judah should go first.' The next morning the Israelites went out to fight the Benjaminites, but that day the Benjaminites killed 22,000 Israelites. The second day the Benjaminites killed another 18,000 Israelites. Then the Israelites went to Bethel and asked Yahweh, 'Should we attack our brothers the Benjaminites again, or should we stop?' Yahweh said, 'Attack! Tomorrow I will hand them over to you.' The next day the Israelites attacked the Benjaminites, and the Israelites killed 25,100 Benjaminite swordsmen, and the Benjaminites saw that they were defeated.
The LORD is about reconciliation and He will handle the vengeance. God could have rained hail down on the Benjaminites. He could have had the earth open up and swallow the bad guys who did the crime. You know, the last miracle the Jesus performed during His earthly ministry was to re-attach the ear of the servant of the Chief Priest. That would be the ear that Peter cut off when he took matters into his own hands. Hmmm.

“How many times do Christians today go off-road when they think they see something or someone who needs to be corrected? And, we strongly believe that we are the ones to do the correcting. Wow. Gang, we need to tune into the ultimate truth that God can take care of things Himself. There is always a self-aggrandizing element – remember Gideon, Abimelech, Samson, and those guys? – in our rising up and taking things into our own hands and not truly and deeply seeking God’s counsel on those matters. Hey, He can take care of it!
So this horrible civil war takes place and thousands die. In fact only 600 men from the Benjamin tribe survive and they run off into the desert an hide for four months. Meanwhile the Israelites kill all the women, children, and livestock from the Benjamin tribe and set all their towns on fire. But then in chapter 21 we find the Israelites mourning over the loss of the Benjamin tribe and they ask God why should they be missing one tribe from Israel?  Wait now. Are these nut jobs blaming God for this? Holy mackerel! Now we’re talking clueless. But look at how we blame God for bad things today. Hmmm. And watch it continue. They have a problem they are going to take to God. So they build an altar right there and offer burnt offerings and peace offerings. They do God things, but they never talk to the LORD. They have an agenda and they follow it. But in verses 7 and 8 they take matters into their own hands.
They started feeling bad for what happened and wanted to give the 600 men left from the Benjamin tribe wives so they could re-populate. But they had sworn an oath before God that they would not let any of their women be their wives. Then they asked, 'Of all the tribes of Israel, who did not assemble before Yahweh at Mizpah?' When the people were counted, they found that none of the people of Jabesh-Gilead were there. So what is their brillant idea??? They go and kill all the men, women, and children at Jabesh-Gilead but save 400 virgin women. Uh...can they count???? There are 600 men who need wives! When we walk away from God and try to accomplish things by our own wisdom and strength, we ALWAYS come up short!
So, they go to make a peace offering with the Benjamin tribe but realize they are 200 women short. But they say, what can we do? We swore an oath that none of our daughters would be given lest we be cursed. 'However,' they said, 'there is an annual festival to Yahweh in Shiloh, north of Bethel.'. So now we add kidnapping to the mix!! They tell the 200 men to hide in the bushes and grab one of the girls dancing. How messed up is this!!! “Did you catch the hitch? The men of Israel then would not be GIVING their daughters to the boys of Benji – which would violate their stupid oath – the men of Ben would be TAKING the daughters. Ahh, we come to another indicator of a nation that has turned its back on God: re-interpreting rules, laws, and contracts. How much of that do we see across the American church and the American government today? God doesn’t renegotiate the contract of scripture. Think about it.

“When they had ‘solved’ the Benjamin crisis, the people of Israel smugly went back home and, in the words of verse 25, ‘In those days there was no king in Israel America; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.’
The lesson for us in Judges 20 is to always seek the LORD in all things. As a country, America must turn back to our Father and seek his guidance, power, purpose, perseverance, and peace. Until we make that leap, we are a country where everybody is doing what is right in their own eyes. And history tells us that is not an advantageous place to be.”

Are You Ready?

The word God birthed in my heart yesterday in prayer was SHAKEN. And all today that word shaken, a shakening kept coming up over and over again. Then I found this article by David Wilkerson. It's eye opening!

Are You Ready for the Coming Storm?
by David Wilkerson

Isaiah prophesies that God will one day rise up and shake the whole earth. The prophet writes: "Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty... and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof... all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.... When thus it shall be in the midst of the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree..." (Isaiah 24:1, 11, 13). God is going to shake the earth as if it were an olive tree - till every bit of fruit falls!

"...for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake... the earth is moved exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro...and shall be removed like a cottage..." (verses 18-20). The entire earth shall appear to be a mere cottage when God begins His shaking!

Other prophets concur with Isaiah's word:

* Ezekiel says that when God's fury arises, He will shake terribly all that can be shaken: "...all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground....and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord" (Ezekiel 38:20-23).

* Joel says: "The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of (His) children..." (Joel 3:16).

* Haggai writes: "For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations..." (Haggai 2:6-7).

* The writer of Hebrews says: "...Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven... that [only] those things which cannot be shaken may remain" (Hebrews 12:26-27).

God is going to shake everything in sight - so that He alone is revealed as the only unshakeable power!
We Have Seen the Beginnings of God's Shaking in the Past Few Years!

The Lord literally began to shake the earth with earthquakes in the late 1980s. A quake in Armenia wiped out almost that whole province. A quake in Japan measuring 6.9 nearly destroyed an entire city. Then came the horrible quake in San Francisco - and others followed almost daily in that area. Quakes hit the west coast constantly, from northern California to San Diego and down into Mexico. At one point, a New York newspaper headline asked, "Is God Trying to Quake Us Up?"
Let me ask you something: What does a loving parent do when a child is sleeping but must wake up? That parent takes his child gently by the shoulders and shakes him. If the child doesn't wake up immediately, the shaking then becomes a bit more firm and serious - because the parent knows the child will suffer if he doesn't wake up.
That's just what God is doing right now - both to America and to the world! At first, He shook us very tenderly. But now His shaking has become violent - because He has still not succeeded in waking us up!
The prophets I mentioned weren't just speaking into the wind. When the Lord says, "I'm going to shake the earth one more time," He means it! He will literally shake our economy, our education system, our government - everything we put our trust and confidence in, everything that seems safe and secure.
Could you ever have imagined the greatest nation on earth closed down because of bipartisan politics flirting with national bankruptcy, threatening payments of our international debts?
I have had a very vivid, recurring dream about the President of the United States - which President, I don't know. In the dream he is looking out the window of the Oval Office, shaking his head in disbelief and saying, "How did it happen? What went wrong?" None of his solemn Cabinet members or aides could explain America's collapse to him.
And that's just the way it will be when God does His shaking: No one will be able to explain it! I think of the stock market crash eight years ago. Overnight it went down 500 points - and there was no reason for it. Indeed, things will be going along nicely when suddenly a quake will hit - not a physical quake, but an unexpected economic quake. God will shake our very foundations!
The Bible also warns us that, simultaneous to God's shaking, a great demonic flood is descending upon humankind. The devil is about to bring a fierce downpour of filth, wickedness and testings beyond anything our minds can conjure. He knows his time is short - and he is preparing to unleash overwhelming winds and waves of evil!
For example: Many people now own a computer. What better way could Satan invade people's homes than with a demonic flood through the information superhighway? This superhighway could become a direct line to hell. It's already a purveyor of pornography. I realize this great information development can be used to produce many wonderful services. But it has the potential to become a powerful tool of Satan!
In fact, it may be the very tool the Antichrist uses to usher in his kingdom and power. For example, it might become the source of a cashless society. Already, Chase Manhattan Bank has instituted computer banking in New York, with no paperwork involved at all - only numbers.
I believe the flood of evil is now reaching critical mass, where everything has begun to spin out of control. And, tragically, we don't know it - because we have become inured to it! Things that once bothered us now have become commonplace. We've seen and heard so much evil that nothing moves us anymore.
I wonder: When the storm comes - when everything begins to spin out of control - how many Christians will be able to stand? How many will have the foundation of faith necessary to endure that time?
I believe that is the Lord's great concern for His people at this moment. And it is my great concern as a shepherd: "Lord, how many of Your people will fall when the storm strikes with full fury? How many will stand unmoveable? And how can I prepare them for the great shaking?"

More of his article can be found at this link

http://www.worldchallenge.org/en/node/2511

Be Ye Separate

What do you think of when you here the word "holy"? When I was growing up that word meant some sort of perfect person with a halo over their head followed by angels singing. Funny enough I think a lot of people still think that way. But really the word holy means to be separate. We are set apart. Separate and set apart from the world. Many people view holiness as only an outward condition. For example; Some people may think it's not holy to play drums in church or if a woman was to wear makeup, she was not holy. I like the way John Bevere puts it in his book, "Heart Ablaze". He wrote, "A woman can have a dress down to her ankles, her hair in a bun, with no makeup or jewelry on, and still have a seducing spirit up to her eyeballs! A man can boast about how he never commited adultery or divorces his wife, but he may still lust after every woman who walks by him. That is not holiness. That extreme focused exclusively on the flesh, and holiness is not a work of the flesh. This notion led many people in the church into legalism."

When I looked up the word legalism in the Webster dictionary it said this:
Legalism, in Christian theology, is a sometimes-pejorative (pejorative means belittling) term referring to an over-emphasis on discipline of conduct, or legal ideas, usually implying an allegation of misguided rigour, pride, superficiality, the neglect of mercy, and ignorance of the grace of God or emphasizing the letter of the law over the spirit. Legalism is alleged against any view that obedience to law, not faith in God's grace is the pre-eminent principle of redemption.

Paul reminds us that we are now in Christ, we are adopted into the family of God and now everything is different!  Legalistic rules in the modern Church can have the effect of separating us from that new life by creating a list of things by which we can say we are “righteous.”  (We dress right, listen to the right music, etc.) It is not by works of righteousness that we are saved! For if it were then Jesus wouldn't have had to die on the cross. Our salvation has nothing to do with good works. Isaiah said all our works are like filthy rags!
I was dwelling on that thought the other day and I had a revelation and such a breakthrough! Almost all of my Christian walk (the past 16 years) I have been trapped in a lie. When the enemy would make me dwell on my past mistakes I would mourn and cry. I kept thinking "if only.." If only I had done that, said that, not done that, not said that - does that list sound familiar? I would constantly put myself down and feel horrible. But yesterday the Lord said to me, "okay...what if you had done everything perfectly? Would you still be without sin and not need a Savior?" This halted my thought immediately. I thought, okay..even if I had prayed more, read the Word more, did more in ministry, did more good deeds, always told the truth - IT WOULD STILL BE FILTHY RAGS!!! Wow did that ever wake me up! When you realize this truth it completely sets you free from the performance trap. You can't earn it, work for it, be good enough for your salvation. It's all about God's grace and His love. Holiness is not about how many good deeds you do for God.

But there is one thing we do have to do. And it's not what you may think. It's not just about believing in God for the Bible says even the demons believe and tremble. And it's not about works or how much money you give or how big your ministry is. Think about Judas. He left his job and followed Jesus. He performed miracles, healed the sick, cast out demons. But Judas went to hell.

Jesus said "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
- Matthew 7:20-23

So then what is it truly that makes us holy, seperate unto God? What is it we are suppose to do?
The answer is SURRENDER
We make a choice. We choose to serve the Lord. We choose to not just follow Jesus but to obey Him. We must leave the old behind and embrace the new. The world behind me - the cross before me. No turning back! No turning back!
Remember what happened to Lot's wife when she turned back? Her heart was still in Sodom and Gomorrah. She longed to be there. I was thinking about this a lot lately. I've been working on surrendering my free time to the Lord. And I have had a LOT of free time lately. But what made me sad was that I knew even if I had the will power to turn off the TV or get off the computer my heart would still long to be there. I realized it's the same thing! My heart should be passionate about the Lord, spending time with HIM! I realized I had a heart problem.
Holiness is not outward it's inward. God looks at the heart!
The more I read God's Word the more I realize how serious He is about us separating from the world. When the Israelites left Egypt God told them, I have delivered you from Egypt but now you must get Egypt out of you. How many times did they long to return to Egypt? Even after seeing God do amazing miracles? They saw the Red Sea part, saw God wipe out the Egyptian armies, saw God produce water from a rock, saw bread fall from the sky! Yet their hearts longed for Egypt and to return even though there they were slaves and in bondage.
We are slaves and in bondage to the world. God frees us from the world through Jesus Christ and then says now get the world out of you!

It's a lot to take in I realize. If someone ever told you all you have to do is say a prayer and you are saved then you were not told the whole truth. It's a surrendered heart. It's waking up each morning and saying Lord, I choose You! It's taking the time to read His Word and listen to His voice. It's about a relationship. It's about obeying Him and doing what He tells you even when it hurts. God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Did he obey? Yes, the next morning he got up and set out but I am sure that it hurt!!! Abraham didn't know God was going to spare Isaac. We know how the story ends but I am sure during those days and hours they walked to that mountain Abraham's heart was breaking in a million pieces. His flesh, his dreams, his visions, his wants all had to die.

Jesus said we can not have both. We either choose Him or choose the things of the world. What Isaac are you holding on to?

As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy."
 - 1 Peter: 1:14-16

In other words, be separate.

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. - Matthew 7:13-14

Overcoming Condemnation

LUKE 22: 31-34
At the passover supper we find Jesus speaking to Peter
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me

Here we see that Jesus already knew that Peter would fail and he would deny Jesus. Yet, I love how Jesus says to Peter that He had prayed for him and when he turns back to strengthen his brothers. Even though Jesus knew Peter would fail, He also knew that there would be restoration and that God would use Peter for great things.

Down in verse 60-62, we find sure enough that Peter fails the test. And he denys Jesus three times.

Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

Peter had a lot of pride and had believed he would never fail Jesus. In this moment of fear or anxiety we find Peter did indeed deny Jesus even though he boasted he would die for Him. I am sure the look Jesus gave Peter was a look not of condemnation or even dissapointment but a look of compassion and hope. Jesus wouldn't have been dissapointed because He already knew Peter would fail. I am sure in that moment when Peter realized what he had done his heart broke because he thought he had blown it. How quickly the enemy must have come in and told Peter that Jesus would never love him or trust him again. But I love this chapter because we realize that God already knows our failures and our shortcomings yet through Jesus He sees great potential in us.

Then my favorite part!!! Jesus brings restoration to Peter

In John 21 we have an account of Jesus speaking to Peter. This is after Jesus has risen from the dead.


When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?  He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”  Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

Here Jesus pours the healing oil over Peter. For every denial He asks Peter if He loves Him. Three times Peter denied Christ and three times he tells Jesus he loves Him. Then Jesus gives Peter hope that now he will be able to pass the test and one day die for Christ as he once had boasted. Then He gives him the command to follow.
This time Peter would. It didn't mean he would never fail again or make mistakes mind you but Peter had been restored by the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ.

This whole account flooded my mind this morning. How easily we agree with the enemy and dwell in our own condemnation. If we fail the test God has set before us we go off and weep bitterly. But God knows we will fail. He knows we are made of dust. He knows! When Peter failed it was because he was looking at his own ability, and his own strength. But when he looked to the Lord for strength he was able to endure.
God looks at our heart. He doesn't look at our size, our strength, our own wisdom or education. This is clearly taught all through scripture as we see God choose David to be king. David, the smallest of all his brothers! Just a young lad. Or Samuel, whom God raised to be a prophet when he was just a servant boy to the high priest. Or Gideon, a man to afriad to offer his sacrifice to God in the daylight for fear of what would happen to him. But yet God used him to lead a mighty army. God KNOWS our weaknesses. Will you fail? Yes...there will be times that you fail. But it's your heart that God looks at. If you are truly in love with Him and serving Him with all your mind, all your might, all your soul that is what counts. Do we condem our children for making mistakes? NO! We bring correction but we do not hold it against them when they fail. Well, how much more does God love us then we love our children? TONS!!!

So if you are caught in condemnation, beating yourself up over past mistakes or even the past in general. STOP! The truth is if we are doing that we are just being prideful. Why? Because we believe we should have been better then that. Sorry but we are not. We are sinners saved by grace! Yea...ouch! But it's true. Instead look to the Lord and He will lift you up! It's only through the Lord's strength, wisdom, power, grace, mercy, & love that we can overcome.


Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you[a] free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. - Romans 8: 1-4

Serve in Humility, Tears, & Trials

In Acts 20 we find Paul addressing the Ephesian Elders. He speaks to them and tells them from the first day that he came to Asia, he served the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials.

This really grabbed a hold of me when I read it. How are we to serve? The explanation is clearly stated. We are to serve with humility, tears, and to endure trials. There is a trap we fall into so easily when serving in ministry. It is so easy to let pride come in and focus on getting attention for ourselves. To expect something in return. If you encourage someone you want encouragement back, if you provide for someone's need you want a return for that, if you speak or share a talent you want applause, etc. To truly serve is to give and not expect anything in return. Not even to expect a thank you. You are serving! How many times has Jesus given us something and we didn't even say thanks..
We serve in humility, we exteem others higher then ourselves. We give all credit and praise to the Lord. True service is giving of your time, your talents, and your finances and being happy to do it all without any gain for yourself. To serve in tears, to have so much compassion for others that you mourn and grieve over their pain. Your heart breaks for them. To care about your neighbor's problems more then your own. That is the heart of a true servant. And trials...to endure. To not give up on anyone just because it causes you discomfort or pain. To truly see their need above your own.

• HUMILITY: Be utterly yielded to the Lord. Be submissive to his absolute rights to control your life. Be willing clay in the Potter's hands. And be a debtor to all people. Don't dwell on what people owe you. Think about how the grace of God makes you a debtor to all.
• TEARS: If you are shedding them, be comforted. You are in good company with Paul. And if you are not, perhaps you should look for someone who needs you. Or perhaps pray that God would help you see what is at stake in the battle for faith and hope and holiness.
• TRIALS: If you are being tried, then hear the word of James: "Count it all joy, brothers, when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."

Make me a servant. Humble and meek

Lord let me lift up those that are weak

And may the prayer of my heart always be

Make me a servant, make me a servant, make me a servant today

Let us remember the one we serve. We serve Almighty God who created the heavens and the eath. The Alpha & Omega! God..who thought it nothing to give us His very best. His Son! We serve, Jesus! Who lowered Himself to leave His throne and become a baby born in a manger, and grew up in the poorest of places. Jesus, who humbled Himself to wash the disciples feet (a job not even done by the servants but the lowest of the low!) and Jesus, who put us first by taking our sin, shame, guilt, and penalty upon Himself. God in human flesh who was rejected, beaten, spit on, mocked, died a horrific death and did it all in our place.

He exteemed us better then Himself. He served us in humility. He served us in tears as He wept over us, and He served us in trials.

How can we do any less?

A Garden of Variety

A story is told of a king who went to his garden one morning, only to find everything withered and dying. He asked the oak tree that stood near the gate what the trouble was. The oak said it was tired of life and determined to die because it was not tall and beautiful like the pine tree. The pine was troubled because it could not bear grapes like the grapevine. The grapevine was determined to throw his life away because it could not stand erect and produce fruit as large as peaches. The geranium was fretting because it was not tall and fragrant like the lilac.
And so it went throughout the garden. Yet coming to a violet, the king found it's face as bright and happy as ever and said, "Well, violet, I'm glad to find one brave little flower in the midst of this discouragement. You don't seem to be the least disheartened." The violet responded, "No, I'm not. I know I'm small, yet I thought if you wanted an oak or a pine tree or a peach tree or even a lilac; you would have planted one. Since I knew you wanted a vilolet, I am determined to be the best little violet I can be." - L.B. Cowman

This little story really blew me away! For someone who has spent most of her life in the trap of comparison it brought much healing and blew the doors off all the lies! I read this little devotional back in January and ever since then it's been on my heart to share it. Now, everyday I wake up and say, "Lord, I am determined to be the best Charity I can be." For if God wanted me to be like anyone else He would have created me that way!

Hollywood and the world is constantly shoving down our throats what our "image" should be. Basically they are trying to make everyone think they all need to be a rose when we were all created different. We were not all created to be tall, thin, and tan. Some of us are short, some tall, some lanky, some stout. Some of us have red hair, some blonde, some brown. God created each one of us with a unique look. AND, He created each one of us with a unique combination of talents and gifts. While some of us may have similiar gifts not one of us has the same combination. He created us with different temperments, personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. He created a garden of variety!

Have you ever received a present beautifully decorated? While the wrapping may be beautiful to look at it's really what is inside the package that counts. Say you receive a present wrapped in brown paper. Not so pretty to look at. But inside is a laptop!! You receive another present beautifully wrapped, wonderful colors, pretty bows but inside is a pair of socks. (Not that I don't like a good pair of socks..hehe...but you get the idea)
THE VALUE LIES WITHIN!!!!

So, let us all just focus on who we were created to be and stop trying to be someone or something else. Let us be the best garden our king could ask for ☺

We are all special, unique, and beautiful!

Be a Reflection of Christ

 One day the bathroom mirror went to vist the shrink. "Come relax in this recliner," the phychiatrist said to the mirror, "Now tell me what seems to be the problem?" "I feel so yucky about myself," the bathroom mirror moaned.
"Oh really? Now why would you feel like that?" "Well, nobody appreciates me for who I am," the mirror began. "Everybody just uses me. When they come into the bathroom, people don't even notice me. All they do is gape at themselves. And when they run the shower I get all steamed up. Then their hair sticks to me. They get their grubby fingerprints on me. And when they brush their teeth it spatters all over me." "I think I see your problem," the phychiatrist interrupted. "Your problem is, you have a poor self-image."
Stop. I'm interrupting this illustration. Would you agree that this is a ludicrous illustration? It's obvious why. It's because a mirror wasn't made to have a self-image. A mirror was made to reflect the image of another.
from "In His Face" by Bob Sorge

This was a very powerful illustration to me. We as believers are not to get wrapped up in self-image. We are to be a reflection of Christ. We need to stop focusing on who we are in Christ and instead focus on who Christ is in us!
It's so easy to fall into the trap of thinking we deserve to be treated better, or thinking I should be appreciated or validated. The truth is we don't deserve anything! Only by God's grace and mercy are we saved. We didn't do anything to earn it nor could we even try.
To be a reflection of Christ we must give up or self-image for Christ's image. I love this illustration of the mirror because I see the example of Jesus. He wasn't appreciated, people were not noticing Him for who He was. They were only looking at themselves and their needs. I would say Jesus could have felt used. Then the soldiers put their grubby hands all over him, he was spit on, beaten, and then crucified. The difference is - Jesus never complained. He was simply a reflection of the Father's love. Jesus didn't have a self-image problem because He wasn't focused on himself or his needs. He was focused on the Father. He was focused on us! His compassion for us!
Truthfully, there have been many times I myself have fallen into this trap of complaining, feeling unappreciated, unnoticed, and used. This can be a great trap the enemy uses to make us feel defeated. But we must  remember that we are not to focus on ourself but to instead be a mirror. We are the reflection of Christ. And in Christ we can do all things! We are to reflect His love, His joy, His peace, His patience, His kindness, His goodness, His meekness, His gentleness, His self control, and yes...his long suffering! We are to reflect His glory!

And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more. -
2 Cor. 3:18

Barnabas the Encourager

 One of the best examples of an encourager is found in the book of Acts.
Barnabas' given name was Joses, or Joseph, but the apostles gave him the name Barnabas, which means "Son of Encouragement" or "Son of Exhortation" (Acts 4:36).

Barnabas was on of those people who was always looking to lift others up, to bless them, look out for their needs. It was Barnabas who stood up for Saul (Acts 9:26-30)

 Many in Jerusalem were afraid to see Paul, remembering hoe he had been the one behind many Christians who had been murdered. The death of Stephen and James may have been especially on their minds. Many may have faced his wrath or had family and friends who had suffered from his prior actions, but Barnabas spoke to the apostles and verified Paul's story of his conversion.
Barnabas also supported Paul by explaining how strongly he had preached in Damascus. Eventually, Paul was accepted within the Church. But would he have been accepted in Antioch and Jerusalem had he not been "vouched for" by someone with such a solid reputation as Barnabas?
By the time of Acts 11:22-24 we find Barnabas still active in the Jerusalem congregation and trusted by the leadership to go to Antioch to begin working with (giving encouragement and direction to) people who were responding to God's Word.
Here again, we see Barnabas living up to his name of Encourager. He understood what God was doing in bringing gentiles (non-Israelites) into the Church and probably spent the rest of his life serving God to this end.

Barnabas mentored Paul as he began working alongside the other teachers in Antioch. Barnabas took Paul and a young disciple, John Mark (Mark who later became author of the Gospel bearing his name), on a trip through Asia Minor. By this time Barnabas and Paul are both referred to as apostles (Acts 14:14).
After some time had passed, Paul proposed that he and Barnabas retrace the steps of their original journey and strengthen the churches that had been established (Acts 15:36).
Sadly, a serious disagreement came between Barnabas and Paul over whether young John Mark would accompany them on this trip. Paul was so upset with John Mark returning home in the middle of their first journey that he didn't want him to come on this trip. Barnabas insisted that they should take Mark. With this matter standing between them, they went separate ways (Acts 15:39-41).
This disagreement was not permanent, however, as Paul and Barnabas later worked together in serving the church in Corinth (see 1 Corinthians 9:6). We have no record of Barnabas being angry with Paul, and he continued to encourage (teach) young John Mark in his ministry. And later we see, Paul acknowledged that Barnabas had been right not to give up on John Mark because he had become a good minister—he was "useful" to Paul for ministry (2 Timothy 4:11).
God used Barnabas in a very influential way in the development of the early New Testament Church. His nickname of Encourager flowed from living God's way of life. How many people came to the knowledge of God's way of life, not only through Barnabas' preaching, but also (and maybe even more importantly) through his example and encouragement?

How amazing! When no one wanted anything to do with the former murderer, Saul, we see Barnabas stood by him. And when Saul then known as Paul gave up on John Mark it was Barnabas again who believed in him.

Let us live by this beautiful example set by Barnabas. Let us always see the best in our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. For ALL of us fall short of the glory of God and it's only by His mercy & grace that we are saved. Let us not judge but instead always seek out the potential in others. It's amazing what people can do and accomplish when they recieve a little encouragement and someone to believe in them.

Let us all be a Barnabas to someone today. ☺