2015: Year of Prayer, Week 24-25

For it is God's will and intention that by doing right (your good and honest lives) should silence (muzzle, gag) the ignorant charges and ill-informed criticisms of foolish persons. (1 Peter 2:15, AMP)

This morning, I started on Psalm 34:8  (Taste and see the Lord is good!)  But in weeks like the last couple, it gets real easy - too easy - to move from a position of grace to a position of anger (righteous, justified or otherwise).  I ended up in 1 Peter 2 because the Apostle references Psalm 34:8, as he is instructing Christian believers (I tend to think they were probably Messianic Jews; his words apply to us Gentiles too.)  He is helping them understand how to act in a time when their faith was a liability in the eyes of the world.

These last 10 days make me think our faith looks like a liability to some now too.

Between the shooting at Emanuel AME church in Charleston 10 days ago, or the ruling by the Supreme Court on Friday morning making same-sex marriage legal nationwide, it seems more than ever as Christians, we need to not only KNOW the right way to act to please God and draw others to Him......but do it. 

(Of course that means we will apply that to life differently, so grace and love must be the rule in every situation...especially in the family of faith.) 

One of my very good friends got a word from the Lord about 2015: RAPID.  Now is the time, there is probably not many more moments to waste if you are on the fence about making Jesus front and center in your life.  I'm not a harbinger of doom, but based on some of the commentary I've seen on social media....in the United States being a Christian may start doing us more harm than good.

But there is lies the challenge and what Peter was saying.  Jesus is either a stumbling block or a stepping stone (1 Peter 2:8).  He is either going to trip you up or raise you up.  He will either cause you to fall on your face or He will turn His face upon you (Num 6:24). 

In the case of Dylann Roof killing 9 brothers and sisters in Christ during a prayer meeting on 6/17/15, Christ was obviously a stumbling block.  But for those believers left behind, He was a stepping stone to lift them up to show what is possible with Christ.  Last Sunday, our pastor preached the quintessential message on this and in it, showed the video where Roof was confronted by several of the victim's family members...and they forgave him.  The clincher was the last lady to speak.  She was actually there, a witness to his crime....and she only spoke forgiveness.  Here is that video:

What is impossible with man is possible with God.  Forgiving the man who you watched murder 9 of your church family members less than 48 hours afterwards is impossible, short of the indwelling and overflowing of the Holy Spirit.

To the other major event this week, I'm not going to say much about same-sex marriage, other than I don't agree with it.  I have prayed and sought the mind of the Lord repeatedly on this issue and my heart is never changed.  However, I don't have to agree with a lifestyle to love someone.  In that same vein, as children of God, we don't have to be on the same side politically to worship Christ together.  The Lordship of Jesus Christ in our lives trumps every human institution and affiliation.

Our cultural system accepting and even promoting the LGBT way doesn't shake me.  What causes me concern is when it starts to affect our ability to freely live our faith.  That's where this is going, in case you didn't realize it.  Christians who support gay marriage will eventually feel the squeeze on their faith, just as those of us who don't agree with the ruling. 

My prayers (and the prayers of others) for the last 2 weeks (even longer really) have been for the Body of Christ.  We have got to put aside our doctrinal, denominational, political and self-serving issues and come together.  Revival is here and if anything gets in the way of you loving a brother or sister in Christ, it is time to sweep that leaven out of the house.  

Peter's words in his nearly-2000 year old letter are so critical to us now.  We must conduct ourselves properly, not according to our own understanding.  We must lean even more heavily into who the Lord has revealed Himself to be.  We must love the brotherhood - the Christian family - taking pains to make sure we don't give unbelievers any more ammunition not to come to Christ.  We have tasted and seen the Lord is good.  We KNOW HE IS.  It is time to demonstrate that to the world so they, too, will see He is good.

I know this doesn't sound much like a record of my prayer journey but it is.  This is a post for me.  This is me pouring out my heart to God.  This is me going vertical.  This is what is on my mind.  I am not perfect, nor will I ever be on this Earth (praise God, I will be in heaven!).  It is convicting to look back on my day yesterday and see how many times I failed to reflect His heart especially when emotions and hot-bed issues are involved.

So, I repent.  I ask for forgiveness.  I ask the Lord to create a right spirit in me, not one of my own making, but right in His eyes.  I don't want to be known for anything other than my faith.  It speaks the loudest, through the actions of my life and my character. 

It is a challenging business being a Christian.  I pray for me.  I pray for you.  I pray for all of us.  We are heading into perilous waters.  But I know the One who walked on the waves.  And so did Peter, which is why he could tell us how to live, even as he was walking it out too (pun intended). 

Let my heart reflect Yours, Oh, Lord.  Help me.  Help us, Your People. Help our nation and our world.  Let us become more aware of Your Presence.  Let us experience....let us taste and see and live for...the glory of Your Goodness.

More than a Case Number

I read a post by a friend of mine today.  We are not "best" friends, but her circumstances have drawn me to her.  I pray daily, sometimes hourly, for her and often text her to see how things are going.  I know she has lots of people praying and interceding, but the Lord has given me this assignment, to pray for her life.

I'm not just talking about healing, but full restoration; of her mind, body, soul and spirit.  There are so many indignities to the process of fighting cancer, so many ways you can be broken and it is easier to just give up and become the statistic everyone says you are.

For awhile now, I've been praying for a way to ease the burden of a cancer patient's journey.  I try to speak life and bring comfort, as well as support organizations that do that on a much larger scale.

But lately, my prayers have changed.  I want to be in the fight.  I want to DO something more.  I am healthy and I have knowledge and I've been asking the Lord to use that for His kingdom.

Maybe this is a first step.  I've written and posted an open letter to the oncology community.  The link to it (as a Google doc) is at the end of the post. 

Why the medical community?  Because beyond a patient's family and friends, the people they interact with where they are being treated are just about everyone they see.  Those interactions are CRITICAL to a person's health, just as a blood transfusion is when platelets are low.

Human life can be devalued when you constantly see it in a state of suffering.  It's desensitizing.  It is easy to turn emotions off and just stop caring.  For some, I understand, it is a coping mechanism.  But for the patient, this is their life.  Or it is the life of someone they love.

When that is treated insensitively, whether on purpose or accident, it's emotionally debilitating.

And y'all, if you know me, you know that I can not stand for that.

It takes awhile to wake up and realize it is happening.  It took me 4 months.  We were sincerely blessed with our oncologist.  She is GIFTED and WONDERFUL - the perfect combination.  Many of the physicians on her level are just like her.  I believe she has a vested interest in seeing Sophia grow up and she has always been extremely careful to choose her words and to help us understand.
Sophia was never a case number to her. 

But the sad fact is, Sophia was a case number to others.

So, I gotta say something.  I felt this way back then, in treatment, and I feel it just as strongly now. 

Use your position of influence wisely.  Choose your words carefully.  Think of the repercussions of your words and actions BEFORE you say them.  It doesn't matter if you are at Texas Children's, MD Anderson, St. Jude's or any other.  Help your team to remember you are treating the person, not the cancer.

And people, suffering people, should always be handled with care.

We have a Good and Merciful Judge who seeks to find the best solution - the life-giving solution - for every one.  I know He has a few more resources at His beck and call then we mere mortals do, (and we should access His power any time we need it!)  But we can at least try to remember these are people, not just numbers.

Not everyone is made up of steel and leather.  Some of us are soft and squishy on the inside and when things are said to us that may be routine to you, remember they are not to us.  And when you leave, we will cry our eyes out.
Then we will get mad.

Then, when it is all over, we will post things like this on our blogs: a call for change in the way cancer treatment is handled.  We want to find light where it is dark and we want you, medical community, help us be that light. 

An Open Letter to the Oncology Medical Community: A Call To Mercy