We all think we know

        I've been a Christian long enough to know that everyone thinks they know the right interpretation of scripture - with facts to back them up. Everyone else is either deceived or out right evil. But I've had a relationship with God long enough to know that everyone has a little truth and a little deception and God surprises us all. None of us have God figured out.
           It's arrogant to think we know scripture perfectly. And to boldly say someone is "not of God" or "evil" is self-righteous, as if we know all, with no room for error.  I've heard self-assured leaders speak against this person or that book over and over just to change their opinions years later. What happens to the trail of division they've left behind?

         Recently I've been hearing preachers come out against the "Heaven is for real" book and movie. I don't know if the book is a true account or false. But I do know it's not causing harm to the Church. It's actually encouraged many weary people, got people to start reading their bible, lit a fire in some and brought countless unsaved to the Lord. So why are we wasting time arguing over it? We should stick to things that are hurting the church like, Fifty Shades of Gray. 

         I find it annoying when leaders want to argue about everything. I've heard many views from educated people and they all have degrees to back up their  different interpretations, and yet God keeps surprising us all. It seems some want to discredit anything supernatural and rob people of faith. I refuse to live that way. God has supernaturally intervened in my and my family's lives countless times. I can't put Him in a box designed by a group of overly educated people. Some people get so deep they drown and bring confusion.

          Maybe the whole "Heaven is for real" story is made up, maybe it's not. Whether good or bad, God is using it for good. The people that argue of such things argue over everything. They are so "by the book" they miss the entire point of The Book. Everything does not need to be dissected and labeled, "true or false", especially if it's leading people to the Lord. I'd be ringing a different bell if the book was causing people to fall away, turn to other gods, sin against one another and such, but this is not the case.

        I will say I have not read the book or watched the movie. I've been in a season of detoxing from all outside voices but my Bible. It's a refreshing season tuning everything else out. But I do catch a few articles here and there from Facebook, that's how I saw a video of a pastor telling people how non Biblical all heaven encounter books are. It's so ridiculous. We should focus on speaking against things that actually hurt the body of Christ. I've never heard a Heaven testimony that didn't beckon people closer to God. As for those that may be lying for money, they will have to answer to God one day.

Hands of the healer

House Hunting Testimony

           My hubby and I have many testimonies that I want to slowly start sharing to edify and encourage whoever may read.  I know that during my seasons of brokenness I clung to such testimonies. A testimony says, "If God can do it for me, He can do it for you" because He is not a respecter of persons - He doesn't play favorites. I will start with the testimony I shared this weekend with the young couple visiting us (as mentioned in the post before). 

          After my hubby and I had been married a year our apartment rent went up. Fear and anxiety filled my heart as I read the slip of paper listing our options for renewal. What were we going to do? None of the options listed were going to work for us. My husband and I began searching for another apartment, but nothing - every door kept closing. We knew God could speak to us and continued to pray and started planning a time to fast. Fasting as always been a powerful spiritual weapon for us.

        When my hubby first moved out of his family home he faced the same situation and called out to the Lord, who spoke to him in a dream, speaking the name of the apartment three times. Being a dreamer my hubby knew to obey and went to the apartment offices. They were having a special. It was perfect. He happily lived there for several years. God led him to the right place at the right time! So, we knew He could do it again. 

         I forget how the idea of looking for a house came to play but we began talking about it. We called several lenders but the phone would get disconnected or they wouldn't answer until finally the third one we called picked up right away. With all we've been through we know not to question God, we figured we weren't meant to talk to the other lenders. Our lender ended up crediting us a couple thousand for closing costs. Yay! But I'm getting ahead of myself.

        We got pre-approved by our lender and got a realtor. I was so stressed out a patch of my hair started falling out. I have pictures if you want to see the bald patch that was hiding under my long hair. We continued to pray. We had to find a house before our lease was up. 

       After talking with our realtor, she lined up some houses for us to see. As hubby and I walked to our car to meet our realtor to look at houses for the first time, I receive a call from an unknown number. While pulling out I play the voice mail and it's a man. The man tells us he's a prophet and for us not to worry because God is going to provide for us. OMGOSH! Are you kidding me? We are in the car about to go see houses for the first time and we get this call?!?! Through the stress and fear we had a super natural peace. God is with us! We are heading in the right direction! Thank you Daddy for looking after us. 

           Shortly after we started house hunting we found one that seemed to fit our needs, but I was not thrilled about it. Hubby was insistent so I agreed and went with it and we put an offer. We prayed and asked God to open or close doors according to His will. I didn't want the house but knew we needed it. I asked God to give us clarity. I told God my emotions are to rapped up in the situation and I couldn't trust myself to hear Him. Hubby agreed and we prayed that God would reveal the truth to someone who was out of the loop. Someone who had no idea what was going on with us. He did.             

       While waiting to see if our offer was accepted hubby gets a phone call from a friend who didn't know what we were up too. His friend said he had a dream and I didn't like the house we were dealing with. I see hubby's face get sad as he's on the phone listening to the dream and my heart sinks when I hear. I know it's true. I tried to deny my negative feelings about the house because we were in desperate need of a house. We agree to let it go in our hearts since our prayers were answered. Our friend found it fascinating because he never dreams. God used someone who least expected it. A few minutes later we get a call from our realtor and our offer wasn't accepted. Turns out the lady doesn't even want to sell her house anymore.  We continue to pray and encourage one another with the divine phone call we received when we first started the house hunting journey. 

         Shortly after we find another house we want to put an offer on, but first we wait it out and pray it out for another day. My dad calls us the next morning and says he was tossing and turning all night. He couldn't sleep because he was conflicted and didn't have peace about this decision we were about to make. God has spoken to my Dad in dreams before so we respected what he said and heeded the warning. Especially since we were passionately praying for God's direction. Come to find out the house had major foundation issues. Again, God was leading us when our emotions hindered us from hearing.

          The searching continued and the end of our lease continued to get closer. To add to the stress, the apartment sent us a letter saying they were painting our stair railing the day we were moving out from the third floor. Can you imagine trying to move furniture down with wet paint? I was freaking out, BUT God - they changed the date!

       There was one house we looked at early on that hubby said he couldn't get out of his mind, but because of the natural wood floors and other things we passed it up. We decided to look at it again with fresh eyes and a fresh heart. Hubby said that was the house, something in him just knew, but we move forward slowly. We even decided to walk away from it. Hubby said he felt a ripping in his spirit when we walked away and was  grieved all night and prayed continuously. When he finally fell asleep he had a dream. In the dream he walks into an office and sees balloons and party decor with a huge banner that says "Case Closed". When he woke up we knew the house was ours. It was a done deal. 

          The sellers ended up calling us and giving us what we wanted. Come to find out the house was on sale for 20k more the year before and someone was interested but it fell through on the buyers end. The seller wanted to hurry and sell and dropped the price, making it within our budget. As we finished up the deal our lender credited us to help with closing. 

       As for the natural untouched wood floors, hubby's coworker volunteered to refinish them for us as a gift. We ended up getting the keys to our house the day we were to be out of the apartment. We had the uhaul packed and ready. And the new season began. 

James 3:17-18 AMP

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure (undefiled); then it is peace-loving, courteous (considerate, gentle). [It is willing to] yield to reason, full of compassion and good fruits; it is wholehearted and straightforward, impartial and unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity). And the harvest of righteousness (of conformity to God’s will in thought and deed) is [the fruit of the seed] sown in peace by those who work for and make peace [in themselves and in others, that peace which means concord, agreement, and harmony between individuals, with undisturbedness, in a peaceful mind free from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts].

Opening Up

      I'm somewhat a closed book. It takes me a long time to open up and share what's in my heart. I didn't realize how closed off I come across until recently. In order to open up, like most people, I have to feel safe - that my stories, experiences and perspective wont be judged, condemned or laughed at. Sadly, it's been really hard for me to find that safe place - a sense of community.

         One area I've been learning to open up with is hubby's and my supernatural experiences. Again, I didn't realize how close off I was with sharing. I guess I learned it's safer to stay quiet. One of the reasons  is the drastic differences in opinions within the church. Another reasons, when you've been around church people long enough you realize it's not safe to be who God created you to be. There is so much push and fight for power and position that if you share true testimonies of God moving in your life the jealous ones will cut you off, sabotage you, and make sure you are isolated. It's sad, but trust me. They look at your like "God did that for you? Who are you? It should be me!" You learn it's best to keep your head low, especially if you don't want attention, like ME. I admit I've had seasons where I cared to much about the opinions of others, but I'm leaving that behind me as I enter my 30s.

        Well last night a younger couple in their early 20s came over to visit with my husband and I. They mentioned how they'd want to get married after college, get a job, buy a house and this or that, but had no idea how it would happen, which led to my hubby and I sharing our testimony about God moving in our behalf. We've been in that place.

          America's glorification of independence rubs off of church people to a fault, but God does not want us independent. He wants people dependent on Him. The challenges in my hubby's life have made him dependent on God and me suffering with an anxiety disorder and hormone issues most of my life have left me dependent on God. Things that seem easy for others are not easy for me, BUT God. Maybe it's this sincere dependance that opens us up for supernatural intervention? The Bible tells us that if we acknowledged God in all our ways that He will direct our steps. When we are dependent on God, we acknowledge Him in all our ways, and He responds by directing our steps. He wants control. It's in our best interest to give it to Him. He only wants good for us. :-)

          As we began sharing with the young couple their faces lit up and mouths drop in shock. The young man said in amazement that he didn't know we were "prophetic" type of Christians. Which in return shocked me a little, because dreams and supernatural experiences is what drew my hubby and I together, we had this unspeakable bond. I didn't realize how private I made this part of my life, and how many people perceive us differently. I guess I'm not intimate (into-me-see) with many people. It's something I really want to work on - being intimate with more people, but only if I find safe places.

         For many years I believed the lie that sharing our testimonies was frowned upon because people think you are showing off,  or whatever it may be. When you start sharing about God's power and His ability to interrupt our reality the demons start throwing mean and hateful words your way. But after seeing how encouraged this young couple was I wanted to try and start sharing more since this is normal life for us.  I can't let a few spiritual bullies stop us from sharing what God does for us. Our (you and me) testimonies encourage the ones with hearts after God. Evil people in the church hate the testimonies of the saints, but the true church, the children of God, rejoice over them.

He knows my name

Dreaming Rose Creations

 Besides writing books, I've picked up candle making. I've actually been at it for over a year and find it very therapeutic. I love the creative process. I even opened an online shop, though most of my sales are in person. Who knew I'd sell out so fast! New scents coming out mid May!!

Feel free to check out my shop: Dreaming Rose Creations 

 

 

God is always your friend

 God is always your friend.

 People are finicky - for you one day, against you the next,

 BUT GOD is always your friend - no matter what! 

He meets you where you are every time you call. 

He's never far away
 He never makes you pay for your mistakes.

 Even if bad decisions lead you down a rough road,
He faithfully walks with you. 

God is always your friend. 

He will never abandon you, even if you think you deserve it. 

Nothing can separate you from His love.

God is ALWAYS your friend.

Discernment

          Many of us take pride in our ability to discern truth from deception, but if we examine ourselves a little closer, we'll see,  most of us are only discerning our own skepticism of a person or situation -it has little to do with actual truth. We shouldn't trust  judgments that come  quickly without overview or doubts. Most likely those judgments are based on our opinion and carry little spiritual backing. 

            In my first book, Notes For The Goats, I write about Prejudices vs Discernment. Very little of the church walks in true discernment. Discernment is humble. Our opinions and prejudices carry a self-assurance and are quickly stated and lifted high. When we walk in true discernment we are looking for the best in people, and even if God reveals a red flag we keep praying and hoping that maybe we heard Him wrong. Discernment brings brokenness. Our opinions and prejudices bring pride, arrogance, self-righteousness filled with boastful talk. 
         When true discernment is exercised in the church it has the ability to change the spiritual atmosphere, not fuel gossip circles. True discernment is a spiritual gift that helps protect the church, the weak, the leaders, and any plans God has set in motion that the enemy may try to derail. It's a a wonderful gift given to us. But we must learn the difference between our own inner voice and the true authentic leading of the Holy Spirit. 
            One of the easiest ways to tune your spiritual ears into God's divine voice, is to admit when you've missed it. There have been countless times when I've missed it. My own ideas and opinions trumped His still small voice. I was self-assured.  But my sincere desire to hear God left my heart open to hear His correction when He proved me wrong. In that moment, you repent, and ask God to help you hear Him better. Unfortunately, many continually justify what they hear and end up training their spiritual ears to hear themselves.

Dying to Live

      Life's challenges have a way of breaking us down, especially if they last. It's easy to feel discouraged, even broken. I've learned if we embrace the process of dying, that those things will arise in new life. God promises us that, "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11 NIV  But we have to be willing to leave our plans behind. Many of us don't know what we pray when we pray "Lord have your way in me.", "Lead me Lord" etc. We are asking to die. The pain we feel is all part of the process of dying, so we may live the life He's chosen. Our flesh does not lay down easily. It's painful. 
          Next time you are in a season of pain, ask yourself, "Am I dying?" you may be having to lay a part of yourself down. Knowing the source of the pain always gives us a little more endurance on the journey. Brokenness is the key to do great things in God. 
       Of course being prideful and self-assured can get you places in this life, but that's not what you prayed. You prayed, "Lord have your way", "You lead me, Father", "I'm following you" and Jesus leads us to the cross daily. In death, we live. Don't look around and compare your life with those who are not dying, even Christians, not all Christians go through the spiritual journey of death. That's why all Christians don't raise the dead, heal the sick, cast out demons etc. There is a process of dying to live in the spirit. It's not a process we have control over. It's a process we surrender to. A process prepared for us before we took our first breathe. A process that requires us to trust our friend and King, Jesus.

Life choices

           I've experienced quiet a few things in my journey with Jesus. One thing I've learned is never to make a choice based on what someone else says. Often, even Christians, speak from their own head. They think they are hearing God but they aren't. If you make a huge life decision based on someone else you may end up regretting it. Even if the person has a lofty title, and is considered a leader in your circle, don't simply follow. Trust me, I've learned this the hard way. It's not rebellion to check in with God first. Man is not God and man misses God all the time. I've had my heart broken by this. 

         People may hate someone one minute and taint your view of them, then years later they worship the same person they've discredited and want to be like them. People's opinions are always changing. Not all "leaders" are worthy of your blind obedience, only Jesus  Much of what gets promoted in churches and Christian circles is based on personality, not heart or character. If you jump overboard because of someone's egotistical opinion you may end up regretting it. You have to seek God about your life. Obey Him above all. If a leader bullies you or calls you rebellious because you have to seek God above their finicky words then it's not a leader you need to follow.

         I've been the person open to hear everyone out. The one trying to hear God's wisdom through others and I trusted them to the point their words tainted my view of others. I've even uprooted myself from where God placed me based on someone else's fiery conviction, only to see years later the same person come around and love the very person they pushed me away from. I'm speaking from experience.
        Only God knows what He wills for your life. You always need to double check with Him and stand firm, no matter what titled person speaks the opposite. There is so much talk of honor and respect and not being rebellious in the church that people's lives get off track and turned around in a bad way because those speaking into their lives are not worthy of the position. I know that sounds harsh but I'm passionate about this. Don't lose your ability to hear from God because some loud mouthed person is a pro at selling their junk.
        You can't make life choices based on other people's current opinions masked as "prophetic words" because you will be the one left to face the consequences, not them.

Mount Zion