God: Your Flexible Band of support, protection and defense!

Good morning to all, SINCERELY!!!!!!! I have been ill for the past week. Last week Monday and Tuesday I was unable to get out of bed with fever, body aches, and generalized weakness. I thought I had the flu but as it turns out had a fairly serious illness. Thanks to the care of a loving husband, the prayers of many, and a physician son who reminded me that "if a physician treats themselves they have a patient for a fool" I am back to 100%. I have never been ill in my life and it has given me a healthy appreciation for the sick who awaken everyday and are not able to eat, or break a fever, or unable to rid themselves of pain. I couldn't even read because the ability to comprehend was clearly an issue. The past week is really a blur! But I am a testament that calling out to God works! There were a couple of times that I couldn't punch past the moment and told God I needed Him to move my mountain for me immediately. He reminded me that I need only ask. When Christians experience adversity, they do only need to ask and I am learning on my journey just how to ask.

I am continuing my journey in Jeremiah 13 verses 1-11 "This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” So I bought a belt, as the LORD directed, and put it around my waist. Then the word of the LORD came to me a second time: Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Perath and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks. So I went and hid it at Perath, as the LORD told me. Many days later the LORD said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there. So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless. Then the Word of the LORD came to me: “This is what the LORD says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. These wicked people, who refuse to listen to My words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them, will be like this belt—completely useless! For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to Me,’ declares the LORD, ‘to be My people for my renown and praise and honor. But they have not listened." Amen and may the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.

I looked up the definition of the word "belt" and found this wonderful iteration of this familiar word - "A Flexible Band of support, protection and defense". Isn't that a wonderful way of thinking about our Lord? Hallelujah! God is truly flexible--He was trying every which way to save the Israelites from themselves but to no avail. Likewise He deals with us with a maximum amount of flexibility to get us off the "dime" so to speak in our personal lives. All of us have the ability and tendency to put gods on the throne of our lives when we know God should be there 100% of the time--whether its anger, envy, unforgiveness, deceit or other such gods, we displace the true God from the throne in our life. But unlike the people of the Old Testament, we have the Blood of Jesus that covers this transgression. That still doesn't make it right nor does it absolve our need to be more mature in our Christian walk.

I watched the HBO special this weekend on the ex-Beatle George Harrison "Living in a Material World". This man had a life long quest to enhance the spirituality of his life and increasingly turned to the religions of the East, the religions of Hare Krishna and Buddha, to find this fulfillment. In his song, My Sweet Lord, you can hear his longing to find spiritual balance and fulfillment. He was raised in the Catholic Church put did not turn to Christianity for this fulfillment. I also got my fill of the weekend press concerning the Southern Baptist pastor of Rick Perry calling Mormonism a cult and then have been bombarded with commercials concerning the diversification of the Mormon followers. I could certainly see the Fruits of the Spirit in those that were shown to worship Lord Krishna; I heard the testimonies of fulfillment of the people who were professing Mormonism. The angry white man who is Rick Perry's Pastor had neither!  Folks, Christians are the reason why so many people run away from Christ. They don't see the Love of God in us. Don't experience that we, as Christians, view God as our Flexible Band of support, protection and defense. They just see the strife and run in the other direction. Shame on us! We will have to answer for these transgressions. The Love of God and the knowledge that He is our belt should make us humble and introspective enough that His true love and identity shine through. Oh My Sweet Lord, that I could really come to know you and be your messenger!

Now may the LORD bless you and keep you; may  the LORD make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace.

Stephanie