God sees you!

Another horrific incident. This week a white supremacist heartlessly shot down 50 people while they were praying, and our hearts are broken.  They were praying.

How could someone do that?  How could someone, so full of racial hatred, methodically plan to kill people, while they were praying? Praying?

Unfortunately, it happens far too often.  And how does it happen? It happens by the dehumanization and demonization of various people groups.  Frankly it doesn’t matter what colour you are, what language you speak, or where you were born, if a hateful person does not see you as human.  It is frightening.

But have courage, have faith, because God sees you. 

In a world that can be scary and violent, we can feel vulnerable, afraid and confused. Often people will jump to the conclusion that God had abandoned them when things go woefully wrong, but God is always with us.  And, GOD sees you.

May these scriptures remind you that you are seen by your Heavenly Father.

Genesis 28:15 - "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Psalm 32:8 - I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

Proverbs 15:3 - The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.

Deuteronomy 32:10 - In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye.

Deuteronomy 11:12 - It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.

Matthew 6:4 - So that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Psalm 121:8 - The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

++++++++++++

No Shame

“She made me do it, that’s why….”, “Ya, but he made me do it first, it’s not my fault.” Sound familiar?  Take a moment and read:  Genesis 2:25 - Genesis 3:13.

In case you’re wondering, shame and blame didn’t start on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook! When you read the words of Genesis it is clear that the shame and blame game goes as far back as the Garden of Eden! 

That being said, I think Genesis 2:25 is a very important verse.  It reads, “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame”. 

In this last verse in the Bible, before we step over into the fall of humanity, we learn that God’s intention was that we were never to feel the burden of shame.  We, created in the image of God, were never to know the feeling of shame.

God did not create us to hide from who we are. 

God did not create us to feel wrong about sharing our true self – or becoming vulnerable (naked) – in front of one another. 
It was never God’s intention that we would have to hide our real self from anyone, especially God. 

This lie of shame was introduced by the evil one himself. In Genesis 3, Satan (dressed in snakes’ clothing) strategically plants the seed of doubt in Eve’s mind by asking,  “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” .

Right from the start, he comes at us with seeds of doubt and a twisting of the truth.  As soon as Eve was deceived by the lie of this crafty serpent and took a bite of that forbidden fruit, shame fell on her.

Genesis 3:7 states that after choosing to disobey God, Adam and Eve immediately had their eyes opened and saw their nakedness. The result of realizing their vulnerability was an immediate desire to cover themselves up and hide from God. 

This is shame.

Shame tells us that God couldn’t or wouldn’t love us the same if we make a mistake or fall short of His glory. 

Shame convinces us that there are just certain things you can’t share with others. 

Shame tells us that we have to keep those dark thoughts secret, withhold telling the whole truth about our sin, or hold close the pain of that abuse within the spaces of our heart. Shame keeps us isolated.  Shame says that we will never really be free. 

But what’s so important to remember is that SHAME IS A LIE OF THE ENEMY. 

There is nothing true about shame. There is nothing of God in the secrecy that shame wants us to keep hidden. There is nothing good in shame or in anything that comes from it. 

It is time to lay shame down. 

I love what Psalm 34:5 says, “Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered in shame.”  NEVER. 

You are the son or you the my daughter of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords!

• you are called! 

• you are chosen! 

• you are redeemed! 

• you are loved! 

• you are a child of God created in His image! 

• you can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens you! 

The greatest thing you will ever truly know, on this side of eternity, is who you are in God and in that there is NO shame.

Receive it. 

Believe it.

See you Sunday!

The journey to Easter, but first...pancakes!

Did you know that Lent began this week on Ash Wednesday? Lent begins 46 days before Easter (40 days not counting Sundays).

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent directly following Shrove Tuesday or better know to some as Pancake Tuesday. And given the Facebook posts, this is a tradition many of you take part in!  I particularly loved your whip cream options ;) But do you know why pancakes?

Lent is a time of fasting, moderation, and giving things up traditionally observed by Catholics and some Protestant denominations. So Shrove Tuesday is the last chance to “indulge” and to use up the foods that aren't typically allowed in Lent. Pancakes are eaten on this day because they contain fat, butter and eggs which were forbidden during Lent.

But there is a bigger picture of Lent that has nothing to do with pancakes. 

Scripture tells us that after being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus fasted for 40 days and nights in the Judaean Desert.  Let me tell you that after witnessing the starkness and desolate nature of this dry desert with my own eyes, 40 days and 40 nights would have been no small feat.

Why did Jesus go into the desert?

Was it because of the quiet? Was it so that hear could hear God more clearly?

Luke chapter 4 tells us that during this time, Satan appeared to Jesus and tried to tempt him. Jesus having refused each temptation, Satan then departed and Jesus returned to Galilee to begin his ministry.

So by observing the 40 days of Lent, Christians replicate Jesus’ sacrifice and withdrawal into the desert for 40 days.  No pancakes  ;)

During this season of Lent you may decide to fast, eat sparingly or give up a particular food or habit. It’s not uncommon for people to give up smoking during Lent, or to swear off watching television or Facebook or eating candy or telling lies. It’s six weeks of self-discipline. How about this?  Sure give up something but how about giving something in return? Six weeks of generosity?  

Whatever you decide to do, if anything, I hope that you will take time as we move into the Easter season to spend some time to wonder, to talk with God, to listen and to make choices that will bring you closer to the One who gave it all for you.