The Word of God Magnified

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"I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name." ~Psalm 138:2

I have a high place for God's word because HE does. This, to me, is one of the most powerful verses in the Bible regarding the word of God. To fully understand the impact of David's claim in this Psalm, we have to see what the Bible says first about God's name: "...and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise." (Nehemiah 9:5) God's name is exalted above all blessing and praise! And yet the Psalmist proclaims that God himself has magnified his word above his name! There can be no mistaking the importance God has placed on his word.

I think Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers, put it well:

"For thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. The word of promise made to David was in his eyes more glorious than all else that he had seen of the Most High. Revelation excels creation in the clearness, definiteness, and fullness of its teaching. The name of the Lord in nature is not so easily read as in the Scriptures, which are a revelation in human language, specially adapted to the human mind, treating of human need, and of a Saviour who appeared in human nature to redeem humanity.

Heaven and earth shall pass away, but the divine word will not pass away, and in this respect especially it has a preeminence over every other form of manifestation. Moreover, the Lord lays all the rest of his name under tribute to his word: his wisdom, power, love, and all his other attributes combine to carry out his word. It is his word which creates, sustains, quickens, enlightens, and comforts. As a word of command it is supreme; and in the person of the incarnate Word it is set above all the works of God's hands. The sentence in the text is wonderfully full of meaning. We have collected a vast mass of literature upon it, but space will not allow us to put it all into our notes. Let us adore the Lord who has spoken to us by his word, and by his Son; and in the presence of unbelievers let us both praise his holy name and extol his holy word." 

(C. H. Spurgeon - Treasury of David commentary)

One who would accuse another of "bible idolatry" for daring to trust that the Bible is pure, inerrant, and the absolute authority for every Christian should take heed of David's words in the 138th Psalm, and the 119th as well. {Psalm 138; Psalm 119}

-Brandon

Source: AV1611.com

Children of Light

"Walk as children of light: proving what is acceptable unto the Lord." ~Ephesians 5:8, 10

What criteria do you use in order to decide for or against a particular action, ambition, or way of life? Do you weigh the financial benefit, the career advancement, or perhaps the physical pleasure that any given opportunity may afford?

Paul tells us, first, to walk as children of light. In other words, our lives ought to be radically, fundamentally, unmistakably different than those who do not claim Christ as their Lord and Savior. Light is glaringly different than darkness.

We should not be asking the same questions that anyone in the world would ask in our same situation. We should not be making decisions that reflect the priorities and self-seeking ways of sinful, unsaved individuals. We should not have the same goals as those who don't have an eternal perspective.

In short, Paul says, we should be testing everything to see, not whether it is pleasing to our palate or to the world, but what is acceptable to the Lord. Is this thing in agreement with His Word? Will this draw me closer to Christ? Does this further the cause of Christ in the world, through me?

Thankfully, God has not left us in the dark regarding how to walk as children of light. We do not have to guess about what is pleasing to Christ. He has given us all we need to know about his desires and pleasures by communicating them to us in his Word.

Therefore, take his Word, discover what is acceptable to the Lord, and walk in it as a child of light.

Source: Facebook 

What Justice Demands

People who do not understand the Bible think there are contradictions in God’s Word. This is a result of pride in the heart – the creation thinking itself better than the Creator. 

 

Here is an example of what some refer to as being a contradiction: 

 

God did say in the Old Testament, “An eye for an eye.” He said that because that is exactly what justice demands. If we cause a person to lose an eye in malice, we in turn should lose an eye. But Christ (God in the flesh) made what seems to be a contradictory statement in the New Testament. He said, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.” 

 

By making this statement Jesus was showing the difference between justice and mercy. We all have sinned against a holy and righteous God and if He gave us the justice we deserve we would all be put to death, but God sent His own Son to take that punishment for us. Sin demanded justice and Christ met that demand through His own death -- the perfect Lamb slain for an imperfect world.

 

Now, if the God of the heavens and earth showed us such great mercy, then those who have been saved by His mercy must do likewise. When the world slaps us on our cheek we must turn the other to them as well. This is proof to unbelievers that we now belong to this God of great mercy. In this one act we give more glory and honor to the One who loves us than any amount of money or time we may give to those who would do us no harm. 

 

~The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information 

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Feed on God's Word Each Day

Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. ~Jeremiah 15:16 (KJV)

A woman bought a parrot, took him home, and then returned him to the pet store the very next day.

  

“This bird doesn’t talk,” she said to the shop keeper. The shop keeper frowned as if mocking the woman. “Does this parrot not have a mirror?” he enquired. “Parrots love mirrors. They see themselves and start up a conversation.” 

 

So buying this advice the woman purchases a mirror for her parrot. 

 

Next day the woman returns. She is a little confused as even after buying a mirror the parrot still refuses to talk. 

 

“How about a ladder?” the shop keeper says. “Parrots love walking up and down a ladder. A ladder will make him happy and a happy parrot is a talkative one.” 

 

The woman buys this sound advice again. So she quickly buys a ladder and trots back home to the parrot with excited anticipation. 

 

Sure enough the woman returns to the pet store again and complains after buying a mirror and a ladder the parrot still refused to speak. The shop keeper smiles. This was his last chance and advice he could give. “Does your parrot have a swing?” he asks. “If not then that is the obvious problem. He will relax on the swing and then talk up a storm.”  

  

With much reluctance the woman buys a swing for her pet parrot and returns home. 

 

When she walked into the store the next day her countenance had changed. “The parrot died,” she said. The pet store owner was shocked. 

 

“I’m so sorry,” he said. “Tell me, did the parrot ever say a word after all my advice?” 

 

The woman nods. “Yes, right before he died,” the woman replied. “He said, don’t they sell any food in that pet store?” 

 

~Author Unknown

 

The moral of the story is this:

You can spend your life in the mirror, focusing on appearances and how good you look; on ladders, focusing on career success and relationships; on swings, focusing on entertainment for life’s highs and lows –

Yet starve to death spiritually because you forgot to feed yourself!

Mother Teresa said the most difficult cases she dealt with in Calcutta were those who had lost their appetite completely, or were so sickly they couldn’t feed themselves or digest food.

So don’t forget this advice:

“You’ll die spiritually is you don’t feed yourself on God’s Word each day!” Jeremiah said, “Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart…”

Sound advice for us all in today’s self-conscious and self-absorbed world. 

 

May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

For His Glory, 

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Put on the Parachute!

This post came about as a response to someone who, previously, was dedicated to going to church, but something happened, and now they have been out of church for about a year. They were requesting me to pray that they would be lead to find the church that God wants them to be in and to basically get past things that happened to them, I'm assuming, at the church they attended. This person feels a great responsibility for the spiritual well being of the children in the home and an unsaved spouse. Below is my response: 

Whether I know someone personally or not, I start off this way. Make sure that "you" have a real and true relationship with the Lord. What I mean is; are you truly saved? Many people claim to know Christ as their Lord and Savior, but there seems to be no evidence of it. I have a blog and recently posted one called "Proofs of Genuine Salvation". It can be found at: Proofs of Genuine Salvation. It was written by an evangelist. I ask that you please take a look at it as there is some good information on the subject.

I just looked at that post again and would like to add some more "proofs" that a person has truly accepted Christ and add them as a new post. Just think, God has used you to prompt me to add these. Who knows how many other people this may help.  =)

I know this may turn out to be long, but if you truly want to know what God wants me to say to you, you will hang with me. I hope you do! No, I pray you do! Here are the other "proofs":

1)     Salvation brings repentance. When we first met Christ we were walking in one direction…away from God. We sinned and had no problem sinning, we loved the things of this world, and we loved darkness. But, when we met the Savior, believed everything the Bible says about Him, and then accepted His great gift of payment for our sins, we immediately turned in the opposite direction…now walking WITH Him. That is repentance. The Bible says unless you repent you will perish (Luke 13:3). This is not to be confused with confessing your sins. We are told to confess our sins and salvation will prompt a person to do this, but God then requires that we repent (turn away from those sins) to be saved. Many confess, but not all turn.

2)    We became a new creature. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” ~2 Corinthians 5:17

And a new creature means “a new creature”. Everything about us changed. Our attitude. Our desires. Our walk. Our talk. Our friends. Everything! Old things…gone! No one, except the Holy Spirit, helped us change. We did it with His help. No one had to keep us accountable. Not our pastor. Not our Sunday school teacher. Not our friends. Not our church. After this change we are no longer recognizable as the person we were because the God of this universe now lives in us. We are COMPLETELY new!

3)     The Bible also calls it born again or a new birth. We had one birth into this world – it was into an earthly family. We cannot go back into our mother’s womb. When we accept Christ we are born again, but now, into the family of God. We do NOT have to get born again and again. It is a onetime birth – just like our earthly birth. So, now that we are a member of His family we start acting like His family, especially His Son, Jesus. (We use Jesus as our example to imitate because not everyone who calls themselves Christian is a Christian.)

From this time forward, until the day we die, God will continue to conform us to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). He not only wants us to be His sons and daughters, He wants us to look and act like His Only Begotten Son. “Begotten Son” means that Jesus is the only child God has that is His natural born child. God used the seed of a woman. The Holy Spirit breathed onto the seed of Mary to place Jesus in her womb to become a man -- a God/man -- fully God, yet fully man.  

A baby in a mother’s womb get’s nutrients and oxygen from the mother, but not one drop of blood passes from mother to child. If it did, Jesus would have corrupted, sinful blood, but He does NOT -- He has pure, undefiled, sinless blood from His Father.

The rest of us are adopted children and God wants His adopted ones to look like the natural One because the natural One is without sin. Each day we strive to be more like Jesus. God knows that while we are on this earth we will never be able to live a sinless life. That’s why He sent Jesus – to pay the high price God demanded as payment for sin – which was eternal death. Because of our sins we were sentenced to death, but Christ died in our place. Jesus paid the price that God demanded. We accepted His sacrifice. Now, when God looks at us He no longer sees us He sees the sacrifice – He sees His Son’s blood – He sees, Jesus. When we are unsaved (haven't accepted) He sees us still in the earthly flesh passed on by our parents – sinful, lost, and dying flesh -- and not as a son or daughter, but as a child of the prince of this world (satan). We cannot serve two masters, either we serve God, or we serve satan. Only those who have been born again serve God. Many can do service, but not all do it for His glory. They do it for their own glory or to earn their way to God. This service will be rejected. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. ~Matthew 7:22-23

One of the best parts about being an adopted child of God is that we now have full rights to everything the Son has, including His peace, His humility, His strength, His compassion for others, and on and on. And we now own everything He owns. The Bible says we are “joint heirs” with the Son (Romans 8:17) just like you are joint heirs with any brothers or sisters you may have here on earth of what your parents own and will inherit after they pass on. Of course, in that case it may depend on the parent’s will. They can disown a natural child, but cannot disown an adopted child. God will not disown His adopted children. We are His forever. When we are His, we will NEVER perish and no one can pluck His child out of His hand (John 10:28-29).

4)    Because we are His child we will pursue holiness to be like God’s Son and shun sinfulness in our lives. A Christian will not live in constant, habitual sin. He will not love sinning. Since a child of God is still living on this earth and still subject to their own flesh there will be times that we will still sin, but a Christian will not look for sin or find pleasure in sin. A Christian may fall into sin, but they will be miserable while they are in it. They will find no peace or rest because they are no longer of this world and the Holy Spirit in them will make them miserable. In due time, their misery will cause them to run back to fellowship with God because, ultimately, fellowship with God is more important to them than anything else.

5)     A true Christian will continue with God. Even if we have fallen into sin and are miserable we still believe. Even when the worst possible thing happens to us, we may get angry with God, but we will still believe, and we will never turn completely away from Him and we will not stay away from Him.

6)     After we are saved we will have a love for God’s Word. Why? The Holy Spirit within us will give us a hunger and a thirst to know God completely. We will have a desire to know what pleases God so we can live our life accordingly. We will have a desire to learn what to say to others, either to lead them to Christ or help them in their times of trouble. We will want to know how to get victory over things in our own lives. We will not just want to know the basics to help us get by; we will want to also learn the deep things of God.

7)   When we are a child of God there will be a burning desire to tell others about Christ because it is His will that no one should perish. Because of the Holy Spirit living in us we are given this new desire to obey the will of God in this matter. God uses His children to tell others about His Son and His saving grace. He uses us to plant the seed of the gospel in another person’s heart and maybe even water a seed that someone else has planted. Then it is God who will give us a crop from that seed – known as “He will give us souls for our labor” – and in other words “more brothers and sisters” – more family members for His kingdom.

When we tell others about Christ we can go no further; other than to pray that they will be convicted and accept Him and we must continue to pray as long as it takes. We can’t make anyone accept our Savior. It’s a decision they must make on their own. The Holy Spirit takes over in drawing that person to Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit works to prod a person to open their eyes and see the Truth – that Jesus is the ONLY access to God. To see God’s Son for whom He is, what He is, and what He has done and help them to believe. If they refuse, they remain in darkness. Their eyes and ears stay closed to the Truth. They remain in their lost state.

And while we tell others about Christ, God gives us a compassion for the lost we are trying to reach. We know and remember what we were when we first met Jesus and we realize that apart from Him we ourselves would still be lost and on our way to a devil’s hell. We are not boastful in anything about ourselves because until we go to be with Him, we are not yet completely like Him. We are still subject to sin, but saved through faith and by His grace (His unmerited favor). We are people, whose sins are covered by the blood of His precious Son. So we witness, through tears and with love, knowing the fate of the lost and knowing that was our fate as well...until we met and accepted the Savior.

From reading God’s Word and having the Holy Spirit living in us we know and feel the urgency to tell others about Him – NOW. We truly believe that if His Word tells us He is coming back then we take Him at His Word. We know that it can be at any moment. We are not so engrossed in this world that we have lost our desire for the next. We know that this is not our home and we long for our real home with God. So, we do what we can, while we can, to get the word out that, “JESUS SAVES! and JESUS IS COMING!”

Now, none of this has come from a high level of education. I just barely have a high school diploma, a few computer courses and secretarial courses from long ago. Before I was saved as a child I lived in a godless (alcohol and abuse), uneducated (both parents made it to the 6^th grade) family. There was absolutely no Christian background. This was written without consulting any other document other than my remembrance of what I have read in God’s Word or have gleaned over the years from older, godly writers, or sermons I have heard. All I did was look up a couple of references from scriptures (that God brought to my mind) to make sure I was quoting them correctly. I sat here and just wrote as God led by His Spirit, as the Spirit pulled out of me what I have previously studied, learned, and listened to. I have no special ability in myself other than what God has given. I don’t know why God wanted me to say that part, but I obeyed.

Many churches, since the turn of the last century, have preached that if you just believe and say a prayer you’ll be saved, but even the devil believes (James 2:19). There are so many today that have been lulled into this false teaching. That is why we see so many come down to the altar, say a prayer, confess all kinds of sin, and may even try to live right for a while, but then fall away and go right back to the life they had before and are sometimes even worse than they were at the first and the sad part is that because of this teaching they actually think they will still go to heaven even though they live in sin. We call these people backsliders, when most likely they never slid forward in the first place (were never saved at all). But, not all leave the church. Some try to surround themselves with others who are like them. While they try to imitate the real children of God, they still fall short. These usually turn out to be judgmental, gossipers, obsessive, troublemakers, divisive, clique groups, the power hungry, drama kings, and drama queens who thrive on others misery. They think that if they can make you look bad it will make them look better and soothe their guilty consciences. They are what God refers to as tares (weeds that look like wheat) or He calls them goats. Real Christians are wheat or sheep. Wheat will be used to feed the multitudes and sheep hear the Shepherd’s voice and go and do as He commands. You will also know them by the fruit they produce (their deeds and attitudes of the heart).  

By now, you may be saying, “it must be hard to be saved then”. No, it is still simple. God made it so simple that even a child can understand. I was saved at the age of 7. Yes, to be saved you must believe, but it is how you believe that matters. Many people claim to believe in Jesus Christ. They believe that He is real. But, there is something missing, it is how they believe. Let me explain by using this story….

You are in an airplane and you are told that when the plane reaches 30,000 feet you will have to jump and there is no way out of it. You are going to have to jump. Then someone comes to you and says, “Let me tell you about this parachute. If you put it on it will save your life when you jump. It will save you from destruction. And it is the ONLY thing that can.” So, you ponder this for a moment.

Maybe this is the first time you have ever heard about this parachute so you are a little unsure that it will actually save you or maybe you have heard of this parachute before. You haven’t actually seen one up close, but you have seen what it did for others. You then have some choices to make. Here we find the possible responses:

• Even though you may have seen evidence that there is a parachute, you decide that there is no such thing. So, you put on your earphones and go back to sleep because you have also decided that you will not have to jump either, after all, this flight (your life) has been going along just fine so far so you think it will continue right on. 
• OR you believe there is a parachute, but you don’t want to be bothered with it. It just seems like too much work to put it on. It may even offend you because of its great claims to save, so you will just take your chances without it.
• OR you may think to yourself, “There has to be a better way.” So, off you go looking high and low for another way to save your life because you do believe you’re gonna have to jump, but that parachute just doesn’t sound too appealing or it just seems too simple.
• OR you lay the parachute aside for right now because you don’t want to be weighed down with it and it would probably be uncomfortable, but you want it close by in case you do have to jump. Hopefully, you’ll have time to put it on!
• OR you can pretend to put it on by not really fastening it to yourself because you really don’t want it to be on you too tight so you can slide it on or off at your leisure.
• OR you believe there is a Parachute and you even believe that the Manufacturer took great care in making this parachute available to you. You also believe it will save you from the destruction that will come about because of the fall when you have to jump. So, you grab it, put it on, buckle it completely, and cling to it with all your might knowing without a doubt it will save you from the jump that WILL come. Oh, how you love that precious Parachute! It will be with you and on you at ALL times.

I hope you can see in this story all the different types of people and how they believe or don’t believe in the Parachute (the parachute being Jesus Christ). We all must make a decision to either accept Christ or reject Him. Out of all the decisions above only one was correct and that was the last one. If a person chooses any of the other scenarios or makes no decision at all they have still made a choice. The wrong choice. It’s all of Him or none of Him.

Now, if you made it through all this and you can say without a shadow of a doubt that you are saved we can go on from here and talk about the rest of your response and prayer request. If you cannot, then there is no help I can offer you that will have a great, life-changing impact on your situation other than me leading you to Christ.

Let me know and I can guide you from there. Remember, there are no coincidences with God. You responded to my post for a reason. God is in control and working out everything for our good.  

Now, I want to thank you so much for the encouragement about my posts on Facebook. Sometimes it does get weary when posting things about the Lord or Christianity and not many respond, but sadly, it is a sign of the times.

Hope to hear from you soon!

Love in Christ,

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

Rejoice in the Lord Always and Again I Say, Rejoice

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:  

~Habakkuk 3:17

In verse 17 things seem to be rather bleak. The prophet's subject is famine -- referring to a widespread scarcity of food. After reading that verse I thought about another famine -- a famine of the worst kind. Listen to this verse found in Amos 8:11-12: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.” Doesn’t this, in some ways, seem to apply to the world today?

While trying to get the Word of the Lord out through this blog and Facebook it seems a famine of "true" Christianity plagues our land. People would much rather see a joke or funny video than hear and read God’s Word. They may see a verse that makes them feel good and pass it on while not even realizing the true power in it, causing its impact on their life to be short-lived. Even people who call themselves “Christian” or religious would rather talk about ballgames, shopping, and what award their child received this week than getting the Word of Life out to a lost and dying world. People are searching and seeking for significance and meaning to this life, but are looking in the wrong places, to the wrong things, and the wrong people. It is up to us – to those who love God -- to show them the way.

It gets discouraging when there seems to be a lack of love for the One who died for us even among those who are supposed to be our brothers and sisters in Christ. And as I try to minister to others it seems that satan will give me no rest in his whispers of, “Why don’t you give up? No one cares about what you are doing.” BUT, what satan hates is just after he has enticed me to look at bleak circumstances and get discouraged then my Deliverer comes along beside me and shouts, “Don’t give up! I am with you and I care!” Just when I’m about to give up God shows me what to do to overcome the enemy.  And this is what He showed me: 

Verse 18 of the same chapter reveals what the prophet Habakkuk did during this time of famine. He found joy!

3:18  Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.  

Though satan seems to be getting the upper hand, everything seems to be gone, and there is a famine in our realm of existence, we CAN rejoice in God. Though circumstances reach their lowest point, and things seem to be so out of kilter to the way we think they should go, we can have joy because He has promised to deliver His children—and HE WILL. He has assured us many times, "Child just endure this period of trial. Trust in Me. I love you and I am with you. I am working all for your good. Joy WILL come in the morning!" 

When Habakkuk rejoiced in God, even in this difficult time, something happened – he found strength.

3:19  The LORD God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds' feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places.

And when he found strength in the Lord he was given the ability to overcome his circumstance. The last part of verse 19 gives us an imagery of the herald, the runner (an official messenger and representative of a king in former times) running to get the word out to whomever the king demanded -- and of the deer -- a deer is known for its fleetness of foot and its ability to bound over any obstacle in its way. For us, while running the race set before us, God is our strength. (Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. ~Hebrews 12:1)

He enables us to overcome. He helps us to climb the high hills, an image of our reward in the Kingdom of God. He is the One that will bring us our reward. He is the One who enables us to run and to leap over our obstacles. God is our strength! Hallelujah! What a Savior! 

And in that...

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. ~Philippians 4:4

These scriptures and this word from the Lord sure blessed me. I truly hope they will do the same for you and be a help to you in your daily walk with the Lord.  May He bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

With Much Love, 

The Princess Warrior

P.S. This was written on a Sunday morning the day it was posted while going through a bought of food poisoning. The Lord is with us always...even with our head hung over a toilet...again I say, Rejoice!  =)

Copyright Information

Copyright © 2009 The Princess Warrior Ministries. All articles are copyrighted on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Permission granted for not-for-sale reproduction in exact form including copyright and web address. Other uses require written permission. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

The Makings of a Princess Warrior

The Makings of a Princess Warrior 

You know, I've discovered what people who know me best already know -- I'm as stubborn as a mule. Lol! And God has had to show me this (and so much more) before I could move on to the next step of His plan. All along it was in my hands and that makes me want to bang my head against the wall and say, "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Why was I so blind all this time? Well, for one, I'm human...and I am mentally challenged with OCD and possibly a little ADD mixed in. Lucky me! =) But also, who wants to look so deeply inside that they see the ugliness that is there. I thought I was okay and justified in my reasoning. Little did I know -- my thought processes were like cancer eating away at the very fiber of my soul.

I started off this year wanting to do something for God, but He had other plans...He wanted to do something for me. There were a lot of things going on in my heart that needed to be mended or removed and because of my pig-headedness (as we say in the south for stubbornness) it has taken almost the whole year. But, God was patient and loving with His strong-willed child. He never wavered. He never gave in. But, most of all, He never gave up on me. And Lord, I want to pause right here and say, "Thank you for that! You are such a good Father."

Now, don't get me wrong, there is nothing sinful about being strong-willed as long as it is focused in the right direction. As long as it is a tool in the Lord's hands and not satan's (sorry, I don't capitalize His name lest I give him honor in any way). We need strong-willed Christians today -- People who will stand on God's Word and not compromise. People who are so strong in what they believe that when the winds of unsound doctrine blow by they will not be carried away with it. (By the way, the cure for that is to KNOW what God's Word actually says about a subject and get that good and settled in your heart. But, most importantly, you must have the Holy Spirit to help you rightly divide the truth. Without Him you WILL be swept away.) 

When I started this blog it was with the best intentions. I am disabled and housebound a lot. The opportunities I once had to be a witness for God dropped, considerably. Back in the day I was a decent writer and was so much better at expressing my thoughts in writing so blogging seemed like a good idea. I had all the right tools in place and a plan, BUT it was my plan, not God's, or should I say, not the order of His plan. He knew I wasn't ready. He knew that deep down in my soul a hideous cancer lurked and it was destroying me from the inside out.

After starting this blog, I fell under a satanic attack like I've never experienced before and I will be honest, it took me under. It was only by God's grace and mercy that I did not drown. He held tight while satan clawed at me trying to pull me down into the murky, dark depths of the sea of self-destruction. God is not slack in His promises though. In Psalm 37:24, His Word says, "Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with His hand." Through this trial, I have lived out this verse and can stand and say, "It is true!" What Father would not cling desperately to his child and shield it while it is being mauled by a vicious attacker?

Though the enemy is strong, he was no match for my Father. My Father used the evil for my good. Through this soul-bearing trial, God got victory. His child made it through, battered and bruised, yet still alive and with a "healthier" appreciation for the One who would not let her go.

I use the word "healthier" because through this God healed me of a disease I knew I had, but really hadn't done anything about. It was the disease of self-loathing. I was carrying a weight of guilt that was so heavy that I used every ounce of energy every single day to carry it and I had none left for anything or anyone else. Now, you may be thinking if I knew I had it why didn't I do something about it? The sad part is I didn't want it to go away. My guilt was so overwhelming that I wanted to carry this monstrosity of a weight as self-punishment. I thought it was what I deserved for all the wrong decisions I had made in my past that not only hurt me, but hurt the ones I loved. In my mind, I deserved to die a little each day. I deserved all the unhappiness and heartache that this weight of guilt brought on a daily basis.

You know, when a person has a certain disease, like cancer, it can start in one place and then spread to others. Well, I came to realize that my self-loathing was not even the starting point of my spiritual disease it was a symptom of a much larger sickness. This particular "sin sickness" was at the very heart of ALL my problems. This is the one I DID NOT know was there and this one was the most dangerous. You are going to be shocked and so was I. I don't even like saying it, but I will for your benefit and mine. So here goes. On a subconscious level, I did NOT think of God as a loving Father. I even shuddered when I wrote that, but it's true. I know the scriptures that speak of His love -- I've taught them to others, but deep down in my heart I didn't feel loved...I felt condemned.

Why on earth would I feel condemned? Apparently, a tiny, single cell of this sin sickness attached itself to the healthy tissue of a young child's heart. I still remember life before the attachment. I was innocent (as innocent as sinners can be) and carefree. I was not burdened down -- I was happy and had that child-like trust. But, then the storms came -- the first of many. I think the first storm was when my brother (whom I idolized) left for Vietnam and never came back. Why did he have to leave me? Why did he have to die? If he had only stayed. The cell was planted. Satan smiled.

I'd like to think satan took it hard when this tragedy turned into triumph. Through the death of my brother and the questions it brought I came to know Christ as my Savior, however, satan knew that seed was still there and even if he couldn't have my soul he would still have a way to destroy me…from within. So, he waited.

Then, the second storm came. It was the day I realized that my daddy was not the perfect father my child-like trust had molded him into. Daddy had his own issues. He too had OCD and possibly bi-polar disorder and was burdened down with his past. One sad day, when he was a little boy, his mother dropped him and his 4 siblings off at the local orphanage and never looked back. He talked very little about the abuse he suffered there and the despair he felt as each brother or sister went in a different direction...some of them never to be heard from again. Even after my father was adopted by a good Christian family he just could not get over his past. It haunted him. It changed him and not for the better. He was so consumed with anger that he could not enjoy the good fortune of the family he was placed in and he squandered it all away. Then when he married, the ghosts of the past would allow him no rest so he took out his inner anger on his family, but mostly on mama. No, it wasn't in the form of physical abuse. His dissatisfaction with the hand life had dealt him caused him to rail out verbally. He tried the physical part once and mama broke his ribs. From sun-up to sundown he quarreled, fussed, and complained. He lived for the weekends to go out drinking with his buddies -- always leaving my mama at home. Our finances were in shambles. He was always "robbing Peter to pay Paul" as the old saying goes while we went without. The one person who is supposed to be the preeminent role model for a little girl is her father, but he was no father at all. Satan was ecstatic! 

Other storms would blow through my life. Each one shaking the foundation God had planted beneath me. With each circumstance--one after another--from molestation by a non-family member to rape at age nineteen to a spouse who spewed verbal abuse for years and the marriage that ended in divorce due to my spouse's infidelity. My parents dying 3 weeks apart. My daughter leaving at age 14 and communication cut off for years. Loss of health. Loss of job. Loss of credit. Some losses not mentioned, but just as devastating. Year by year my thought processes became skewed. Somewhere along the way, deep in my heart, the seed satan had planted so many years ago grew undetected. His smile...more evil than the Grinch who stole Christmas.

Now, here in 2011, it all came to a head. All of these circumstances had helped me to believe some of satan’s lies and because of those lies I made some very bad decisions along the way. Eventually, my guilt over them incapacitated me. I had been carrying this burden for a long time, but finally my knees buckled under the load causing me to fall before the Lord and cry out to Him to remove it. 

You know what…God removed that burden of guilt immediately. I’m still in awe that it is gone. Something else happened when God peeled that layer off though -- I realized that I, subconsciously, thought God wanted me to carry that burden. I felt that He wanted me punished – that He was okay with me feeling condemned. I did not even realize that was in my heart. How could I think that of God? He’s done so much for me. 

When it comes down to it, I had placed God in the same category as all the other people who had stolen a piece of me because He had allowed these circumstances. When I came to this final realization it broke me and I sobbed before the Lord for hours.

I could have asked for God’s help to rid me of my guilt at any time, but the thing is, I had to be ready to give it up. I had to be ready to forgive myself and move on. God had already forgiven me the instant I asked for forgiveness. As far as God was concerned it was under His Son’s blood and remembered no more. I cannot go back and undo anything. It’s not possible. God’s intent for me is to move forward for His glory and His purpose. 

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:62) I have worked for the Lord, but not to my full potential. I could not be all that God had intended me to be by looking back. God lives with us in our present and future because the past He has chosen to forget.

To some extent we all have past sins we wish we had not committed, past decisions we wish we could change, things we should have done, and things we shouldn’t have, BUT God does not want us to dwell on them. They have no part in His plans for us other than teaching us that we are human and will make mistakes and He is there directing and guiding to make even the bad work out for our good and His glory.

Even when we are walking with the Lord…we still are not perfect. "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." (Lamentations 3:22-23) What I thought was my righteous acts yesterday was the equivalent of filthy rags to God, but by His mercy He did not destroy me...instead giving me a clean slate and His unmerited favor today!

The last part of that verse says, “Great is thy faithfulness.” Dear one, ask God to remove everything that hinders you from being the best you can be for Him. He is worthy to have every part of us and He is “faithful” to give us what we need to be fit for His kingdom. Why? Because He loves us –He longs to be close to us – He is full of forgiveness, grace, and mercy. He loves me and you even more than I love my own children and that is hard for me to even imagine until I look into His love letter (the Bible) and then I see -- He is the example I never had. He IS a loving Father for He IS LOVE. 

This time, God smiled! He knew I would come to this conclusion all along.

I want to leave you with this -- a dear sister-in-Christ and Facebook friend, Missionary Marti Roberts, shared this and I got permission to share it on my blog. I hope it blesses you as much as it did me! =) 

Today I was watching some fish in an aquarium. The smallest one had a problem. It seems as if one of the bigger ones had taken a bite out of his tail fin. He was struggling so hard to swim to the top of the water where the food was waiting. But the more he struggled the more he stayed stuck in the middle of the aquarium. It wasn't long before he was too tired to try. Once he stopped struggling, a current from the filter raised him up to the food that had been his goal. I began thinking about this and realized that I am just like that little fish sometimes. I have a problem that needs an answer, or a goal I want to attain, and I struggle to handle it myself. I work and worry and things never seem to work out, but once I stop struggling and let the Lord take over, things fall into place. Hopefully the next time I start trying to work things out myself, I will remember that poor struggling little fish and let the Lord handle things from the beginning. ~Missionary Marti Roberts

May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive!

Much Love, 

The Princess Warrior

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All blog entries are copyright by Wanda Williamson on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.

It is better to Trust in the LORD than to Put Confidence in Man

FACEBOOK QUESTION CONCERNING AYN RAND:

  

Facebook Friend: Just making a general statement--if you want to comment feel free to do so. I read Ayn Rand years ago and then again a couple years ago. I remarked to another Christian that I thought she was right in many of her theories--as you may or may not know Rand was an atheist-------the other person said "How could you agree with an atheist?" My response was " whether Ayn Rand knew it or not, her intelligence came from God"--(Paul said, those that don't work, don't eat)--(this is not the exact quote)

The Princess Warrior: God is not the only source of knowledge; although He is the ultimate source of ALL knowledge…there is also Satan. He is in this world and was once with God. He is more intelligent than any human being that has ever walked the face of this earth. No human being can argue with him or trip him up and according to God’s Word he has the ability to plant thoughts into the human mind. It’s scary, but not all thoughts are our own.

BUT, God inspired holy men to pen His Words so we could have instruction while we live in this present world. The scriptures give us all we need. We can go to the Bible and find out everything we need to know about God. We can learn about His character. We can learn how He feels about things. We can read that He is holy and righteous.

Scripture gives us the ability to discern whether our thoughts are from God or Satan. It gives us the wisdom to handle any circumstance that life may throw at us. It teaches us what ‘not’ to do to save us a lot of heartache and trouble. It gives us the history of the earth so we would know our origin. But, most importantly, it shows us that this is not all there is…that there is a God who loves us, wants to be with us, and has made a way for that to happen. Not only that, He gives us the choice to both accept and love Him and to come under the umbrella of His protection or to do our own thing and make our own way while we’re here.

In regards to Ayn Rand, yes, I agree, her intelligence comes from God. I don’t have any knowledge of her beliefs, but I do know that many philosophers have been influenced, intellectually, by the writings of philosophers that came before them. Some are also influenced by parts of the Bible, but mostly in the sense that they think it a great literary work of art and not to be taken as an actual living letter from the God of this universe.

You know, I do like reading what other people think about things. It can sometimes give me a new insight into a particular subject, but people are not infallible. Only God is incapable of making a mistake. Even science changes and evolves. What was thought to be true 50 years ago may have changed several times as new discoveries came along. Only God has ALL knowledge and therefore changes not (I am the LORD, I change not. ~Malachi 3:6). Neither does His Word change (The Lord Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my Words shall not pass away. ~Matthew 24:35).

Even though I sometimes enjoy others writings, if it doesn’t line up with the Word of God I discard it as human error. I choose to put my trust solely in God’s infallible Word. It has stood the test of time. It has never, legitimately, been found to be wrong or in error. Its ideas do not need to change as new information comes to light because it’s wisdom's are superior. No philosopher catches God by surprise. Thousands of prophecies have been fulfilled (actually the only book with fulfilled prophecies) and many scientific facts were stated in the Bible before ‘man’ even had the knowledge to understand them.

So, I must end with this verse -- It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. ~Psalm 118:8

Thanks friend…I like answering questions that make me think. =)

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May God bless you today over and above what you are able to receive! 

With Much Love,

The Princess Warrior

Copyright Information 

All blog entries are copyright by The Princess Warrior Ministries on the date they are posted, unless otherwise indicated. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture references are taken from the King James Bible.