Traits of a Godly Woman

I haven't posted in a while and for that, I don't apologize. Wow, harsh, Hope. Hehe! But God has been hard at work in my heart. He's breaking me down, again, and for that I am thankful. I know that when He is breaking me down, it's only temporary. He's molding me. He's changing me into a better woman. I don't put pen to paper until God is ready for that to take place. He leads everything I study and everything I write. Otherwise, my blog would be absolutely useless. I've been on a journey to become God's ideal daughter, and, goodness, how hard it has seemed. So, I've turned to His word in order to find out what God expects out of me as a Christian and as a woman.

This post is not just for girls. Let me just throw that out there. Men, boys, guys, gentlemen, you should be aware of these things, as well. Reading this may actually be more beneficial to you than to girls.

So, boys, I ask you: How do you pick out a Christian girl from the crowd? Girls, I ask you: How do you know that you are truly in the image that God has designed you to be in? What about our lives shouts God’s name without us even saying anything? Let’s take a moment to forget our opinions on what makes a girl beautiful, and simply ask God.

God, here I am. I seek you. Show me what a Godly woman looks like. You created everything. Who knows beauty better than the One who created it?

Again, let’s forget our opinions on what beauty is. Those don’t matter. The traits that I’ve compiled in this post aren’t based on my opinions in any way. I won’t post things to the best of my ability that aren’t based on Scripture and prayer.

The Bible tells us that true, Christian girls are hard to come by, but those girls who are Godly are more precious than riches. Don’t you think that God meant it when He said that?

"Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is worth more than precious rubies." – Proverbs 31:10 (NLT)

We even see the question posed here: Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? It must be hard to find one because we see that it goes on to say: She is worth more than precious rubies. Do you see that word virtuous? Virtuous is defined as: morally excellent, righteous, powerful, effective, fruitful, and potent. Whew. Those are serious. So, who can find a morally excellent, righteous, powerful, effective, fruitful, and potent wife? Who can be that wife?
 
We’ve all concocted these ideas in our heads of what makes someone beautiful or not. Men have preconceived opinions about what makes girls worthy to date or not, and I think that women have based their opinions around the thoughts of men. I think we need to stop here. We need to take a step back from our worldly views of women and learn to recognize the traits of a Godly girl that God has told us about.


 -- A Godly Woman Personally Knows God.


This may seem obvious, but there’s a difference between saying that you know God and actually knowing Him on a personal level. There’s a difference in knowing about God and knowing God. You can’t fool Him. He knows where your heart really stands. A woman, who knows Him personally, craves Him more and more every day. A woman, who knows Him, knows His Word. She strives to study Scripture day in and day out like the pages are disappearing. She’s, also, faithful in whole-hearted prayer because she runs to Him for everything.

"Your commandments give me understanding; no wonder I hate every false way of life. Your Word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path." – Psalm 119:104-105

-- A Godly Woman Knows and Fulfills Her Purpose on Earth.

It’s easy for Christians to grasp their purpose mentally, but they have a hard time actually fulfilling it. Let me assure you, your purpose is not simple. It’s not a purpose that anybody else can fill if you don’t come through. Jesus made it clear to us with what we are here to do. It was the last thing He told us before He ascended to the Father.

"Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you…" – Matthew 28:19-20 (NLT)

-- A Godly Woman is Bold about Jesus.

Some people confuse the word "bold" with being pushy, intimidating, mean, or tough. That’s not what bold is. Being bold means being fearless. A Godly woman is fearless about sharing Jesus. She knows that she may be the only Jesus that some people ever see. She knows that there are people all around that still remain in the dark about who Christ is and she’s going to do whatever it takes to make Him known. She, also, knows that talking about Jesus will bring hardships. She understands that when she stands up to be heard, Satan will do anything to knock her down. Anything. Satan doesn't want you to stand up. He'll use anything and anybody to make you want to sit down and shut up.

"Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid of them! The Lord your God will go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor forsake you." – Deuteronomy 31:6 (NLT)

 

 

-- A Godly Woman is Not Materialistic.

Yuck. That one’s a struggle for us, girls, but God meant it when He said it, girlfriend. We live in a world that is engulfed in having "better stuff". Don’t even get me started on this. Especially us, girls. Let’s take some ownership. We want the cutest clothes, the cutest stuff, the cutest hair, the cutest house, the cutest everything. You know why? We’re materialistic. I’m pleading, begging, prayerfully seeking that God will change this in my own heart. I’ve seen too much poverty in the world to continue to live so lavishly.

Guys, outward beauty is something that is deceiving. When her beauty fades with age, what will you have left? Look at her heart. Look at how she loves. Attraction is important, yes, but keep in mind that her smooth skin will one day wrinkle. Her colorful locks will one day turn into a crown of silver. And her young body will change with the years that pass by. Not to mention, you will change, too. Your hair will fall from your head to your back. Your wife's good cooking will cause a little "protrusion" from your gut. But if you've fallen in love the right way, God's way, none of that will matter. You'll love each other's spirits which is something that will last beyond the grave.

"Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty that depends on fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." – 1 Peter 3:3-4 (NLT)

 

-- A Godly Woman is Not Contentious.

That’s a new word to me. Someone who is contentious is someone who is likely to cause disagreements or arguments. Women of God don’t care about arguing with people. It’s a thing of the past. She displays love to all people. She’s kind, gentle, selfless, and relational. She understands that arguments are derived from anger and anger ruins a heart. She forgives. She knows that Jesus has forgiven her, and she can’t hold that back from anyone else. She is a beacon of the fruits of the Spirit.

 

"It is better to live alone in the corner of an attic than with a contentious wife in a lovely home." – Proverbs 21:9 (NLT)

"But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT)

 

 

-- A Godly Woman Shows Faith through Actions, But Does Not Brag.

She knows that her faith is useless without actions. She knows that good works are a result of faith, but the key to a truly wise and Godly woman is this: you’ll never catch her bragging on anything she’s done. She knows that bragging is a result of selfishness, but a woman who does good works because she is called by her faith is a Godly girl. The second that someone boasts about their "good deeds", it completely counteracts what they’ve done. They’ve turned it into a "Hey, look at me. Look at what I did!" instead of saying, "Wow, God. You always provide. You get all the credit." It’s become love of self, not love of God. A Godly woman makes good deeds a result of loving God and taking absolutely no credit for it.

"And if you don’t brag about the good you do, then you will truly be wise!" – James 3:13b (NLT)

 

-- A Godly Woman is Modest.

Oh, let’s don’t go here… Modest? I’m not about to dress like someone from the 1800s. Forget this one, God. Modesty is a thing of the past. Girls, God meant it when He said it. Being modest doesn’t mean you have to look homely. God demands modesty because, listen here: it helps you. Imagine that, God did something to help you. It keeps things to the imagination. Keep this in mind when you get ready in the morning: If you put on an article of clothing and think to yourself, "THIS will get his attention," maybe you should rethink your motives for picking out that outfit. Be classy. Be timeless.

"And I want women to be modest in their appearance…" – 1 Timothy 2:9 (NLT)

 

"She is clothed with strength and dignity…" – Proverbs 31:25 (NLT)

 

-- A Godly Woman is a Face of the 31st Chapter of Proverbs.


If you have a chance to stop and read Proverbs 31:10-31, do so now. What a powerful vision of a woman. At the end of the chapter, it tells us that when this woman is found, her husband will say, "There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!" (Proverbs 31:29)

Let me leave you with the very last two verses of Proverbs 31.

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise." – Proverbs 31:30-31 (NLT)

How beautiful are those ancient words? And, sister, don’t you know that God meant them when He said them. Rather than looking at this list as a measuring stick to criticize ourselves, view this list as a tool that God is using to mold us into His ideal daughters. It’s not unattainable, and it’s a beautiful journey. Dive into His word and let Him work on you.

I hope that we can go through this spiritual journey together as sisters-in-Christ, hand-in-hand, one task at a time like one big line of head-strong, God-fearing, beautiful women who are plowing over Satan's hopes and dreams. Isn't that a powerful vision? Girlfriend, I don't want it to just be a vision anymore. We, as Christian girls and women, need to rethink this world around us. We need to rethink how we portray ourselves, how we speak, how we treat men, how we allow men to treat us, how we live. Let's get to that place where we are set-apart. I'm tired of being a "worldly" girl. Aren't you?

I want us to really dig deep into our hearts and allow change only from God. I want us to place a mirror in front of our hearts, in front our souls, and scrape the layers of stinky, worldly gunk off of them. At times, it will hurt... a lot. I hope and pray that God will renew our purity and innocence, but let's do it together. Let's hold hands as we scrape the junk away from our lives. I pray for you every day. I know this life as a Christian woman is not easy by any means, but my goodness, it is worth every second. If you bear with me, and allow God to make changes in you, you will never be the same again. You will never want your old life back. Join me on this journey.

Forgetting About Hell

You're about to witness a blog post that has made its writer tremble. My hands are shaking. My eyes are soaked. I've been studying a topic that makes me want to spread the Gospel faster, more efficiently, and to more people than ever before. The Holy Spirit has reminded me of something that I push to the back of my head all the time: hell. He's reminded me of how insanely real it is. He's reminded me that Satan is real and is the receiver of many souls.

I truly believe that one of the biggest problems in our culture is that people have done exactly what I've done; they've forgotten about hell. Some people have yet to grasp the reality that hell is an option for them. Some of us, church goers especially, have completely erased hell from our thoughts. Listen to me here: hell is not something that we necessarily love to talk about, but it is extremely vital for you to understand it. Exploring the possibility that you and I could spend eternity being tormented in hell is not exactly comfortable or easy to think about, but it is absolutely necessary for a number of reasons that we will get to throughout this post.

Sometimes when the Holy Spirit tells me to write about something, I freeze up. When He brought me to scripture in the Bible about hell, I would skip over it. It made me uneasy. It was a topic that I would just rather ignore instead of facing. He kept bringing me back to it, urging me to read it. You can't take things away from My message; study every word. But, really, who wants to spend their quiet time studying eternal torment? Hope, when you try to ignore hell as an option for souls, you ignore part of the reason that Christ died for you. God was breaking down the barrier of fear for me. He didn't want me to lead my own Bible studies, He wanted me to be led.

After I had spent time studying it, I knew He was going to coax me into writing about it, but I knew I just couldn't. I can't tell people about this place. Hell will scare them off. I realized that I had crossed a line. Refusing to teach a passage of scripture is just as wrong as abusing it. It's time that we stop trying to sugar-coat things. We need to stop apologizing for God and start apologizing to Him for being embarrassed by the ways He has chosen to reveal Himself. Hell shouldn't scare anybody away from God. That's kind of like running to hell. Learning about Hell should make everyone run to God.

As I had spent a few weeks studying about hell, I knew He had brought me to this topic for a reason. It changed my faith. My faith was no longer self-reliant. My faith started to burn like ashes on my tongue. I gained an urgency in my soul to spread the Gospel in any way that was possible. People needed to know. Every person I saw looked clueless about this place. Christians don't speak about it; it makes people uneasy. My job here is not to make things easy for you. My job is to speak of the Gospel exactly as it has been given to me.

The Bible makes us very aware of the existence of hell. Let's open the one book that will give us all the answers and look up some verses:

Revelation 20:14-15 - "And death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death--the lake of fire. And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown in the lake of fire."

Matthew 7:22-23 - "On judgement day many will tell me, 'Lord, Lord, we prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.' But I will reply, 'I never knew you. Go away; the things you did were unauthorized.'"

2 Thessalonians 1:7-9 - "...God will come with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgement on those who don't know Him and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power..."

For those who follow Jesus, there is eternal life in Glory in the presence of God, but for those who don't follow Him, there will be punishment. And as we have seen in those verses, the Bible doesn't hold out hope for a second chance. How terrifying this is for those souls who will be tossed out, wanting to come in to the gates of Heaven, banging and begging, wishing they had made different choices when they had the chance. Doesn't it send chills up your spine to know that you could one day be one of those souls that will be crying out desperately to get into those pearly gates?

God is real. Jesus is real. The Bible is real. Heaven is real. Hell is real. I'll sit here and tell you with every bone in my body, without a single doubt in my mind that God is as real as real gets. If you believe in the Bible, if you believe in God, then you have to believe in hell.

There is no passage in the Bible that says there will be a second chance to fix things after we die. You won't be able to talk yourself out of anything. You won't be able to go back and fix the things that you did on earth. You won't be able to suddenly decide to turn to Jesus because Scripture tells us what He will say, "I never knew you. Go away." Just typing those words is making me sick.

Some of us have developed our own views of hell. You've probably heard someone say something like, "I don't care. I know I'm going to hell anyways," or "Well, if I go to hell, at least all my friends will be there with me." Let me say this again: there are no second chances. Hell will be worse than the worst massacre ever recorded. You won't be surrounded by friends (even if they are there, too). You'll never see them. You'll be on fire constantly and the pain will never go away or get any easier. Just burning myself on the stove hurts; I can't imagine being constantly engulfed in a lake of fire. You'll be surrounded by the constant screams of terror by the millions of strangers around you. The Bible tells us that the lake of fire is the second death. It means that you will constantly face death, but you will never end up anywhere else except hell.

Hell will bring physical pain way beyond what you can imagine, but it will also bring spiritual pain. This brings me back to Luke, chapter 16. When Lazarus died, he arrived in Heaven, and when the rich man died (who denied any help to Lazarus when he was a beggar), he was sent to hell. The rich man cried out for help daily because He could see Lazarus on the other side. He wanted help to be extinguished from those flames, and Father Abraham denied him any help because of what he had done in his life. The rich man cried out, "Please, Father Abraham, send him to my father's home. For I have five brothers and I want him to warn them about this place of torment so they won't have to come here when they die."

The Bible shows us in this chapter that hell is eternal separation from God. It shows us that people who are in hell still have the ability to see the people that are in Heaven. Imagine the mental torture that would be. You would cry out everyday for Jesus to save you, but you have eternally separated yourself from Him. This is what Satan does for us. He provides physical, mental, and spiritual warfare that will last forever.

Hell will never get easier. Hell will never stop being hell. If you are sent to hell after your life is over, you will be there for all of eternity. Do you know how long eternity is? Eternity never ends. Never. You won't burn for a few hundred years. You won't burn for a few million years. You will be in hell forever. You will spend forever in torture, but you will still be able to watch all the glory of Heaven, but never cross over (Luke 16:26). Imagine the mental, physical, and spiritual pain that will take place every second for all of eternity.

Let me just throw this in here: I can try to describe hell to you all day long, but my words will never begin to describe how absolutely mortifying it really is. I, along with you, have a human brain. My human brain doesn't have the ability to conjure up any visions or illustrations of a place that only souls and demons exist. The only thing that I can say is that the Bible tells us in James 1:17, "Every good and perfect thing is a gift from above..." and since hell is the complete absence of The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit, hell is undeniably the complete opposite of anything even slightly good.

Now, I ask you: Is there anything on this earth that is worth sacrificing Heaven for?

There is good news in all of this, though. About 2,000 years ago, God sent his very own Son down to this earth to die for us in order to cover our sins, so that we may have a chance to obtain Heaven instead of what we actually deserve. Let me tell you a little secret: Hell has an escape button. But it can only be used while you're still on earth. God has given you this escape button as a gift out of immense love. Each person has one. We can find our button if we open up our bibles to Acts 4:12, "There is salvation in no one else! There is no other name in all of heaven for people to call on to save them." Jesus is your ticket to Heaven. Believing in Him, loving Him, serving Him, knowing Him, that's your escape button. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will get you into Heaven except having a personal and intimate relationship with Jesus. You can't earn your way there. You could go on 1,000,000 mission trips and save millions of starving orphans, but that won't get you there. We don't have the ability to earn our ways into Heaven. Christ is the only way to Heaven.

Now, look around. Look at your family, friends, co-workers, and even complete strangers; don't you want to see them in Glory with you one day? There is no human who is exempt from hell. I look around at all the people I love, and it brings me to tears that some of them are living like I was: erasing hell. And living as if hell is never going to be an option for them. We're talking about people's destinies here. The thought that someone around me may end up in hell after they die is... well... terrifying.

The thought of hell shouldn't send us running for destruction, but it should impact our souls. It should call us to action, knowing that there will be so many people who will never use their escape button. I hope when I enter the gates of Heaven, I don't look back and see anyone I know begging to get in. I have an extreme urgency in me to spread the Gospel. I know Jesus and I know if I fall out this very second, the first face I see will be Jesus', but I cannot sit back and play little church games when there are people dying everyday and going to hell. When it comes to hell, we can't afford to forget.

What exactly is a Christian?

I think that the term "Christian" is one of those easily-handed-out words in our world. Kind of like the words "Love" and "You're welcome" which have the strongest of meanings but have lost their luster over time. So what makes you a "Christian"? What makes anyone a Christian? Our minds naturally label the people that we come in contact with everyday. Our minds label "Christians" as: people who go to church, people who don't cuss, people who have fish stickers on their cars, people who post bible verses on Facebook, people who do good deeds, people who try not to do wrong, people who "believe there is a God". Now, let's hear this from the Holy Spirit in all clarity: even if all of those qualities describe us, that doesn't mean that we are Christians. That was shocking to me, too, when He first told me. It made me want to scream, "THEN WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME? HOW CAN I MAKE YOU HAPPY?!"

He then gently reminded me that I didn't understand Him enough if I thought that way. God doesn't need anything from you or me. God just simply wants us. He doesn't need me yet He wants me? Doesn't that just make your heart jump for joy. God, the creator of all things, wants me. Wow. I don't think that we can fully wrap our minds around a love like that. We can't. Love like that only exists in Him.

So, what makes us "Christians" or not? Because have we ever realized that it is possible for us to not be Christians even if we say we are and hope we are? God tells us several times in the Bible what being a Christian is, but get this: He says the same thing every time.

"You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment."

-Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27,

Deuteronomy 6:5 (NLT)

 

 Most of us reading that verse, say in our heads, "OK. Whew. I love God. That ground is covered for me." But let me ask you again, do we truly love Him? Remember, our brains have learned to overuse and dull the word "love". Do we truly love God more than anything or anybody? Think about the first time that you fell in love with somebody. Do you remember those butterflies in your stomach? Do you remember that burning need to see them smile? Do you remember telling yourself that you would do anything to make them happy? Let me tell you a little story. Stay with me here.

When I was younger, my parents would sometimes leave a list of chore type tasks for me to do when my brothers and I arrived home from school. I would groan and complain like any child does. Now that I'm older, my parents don't leave lists like that for me to do anymore. For one, they've raised me to clean up after myself. But for two, I still clean the house for my mom without her even asking. Why do I do that? I do it simply because I love my mama. I don't do things for her because I feel like I have to; I do them because I love her.

This is how our love for Christ should be. Those "Christian" qualities that I listed in the beginning of this post are certainly great qualities in a person, but those things should come only as a result of loving Christ, not because we want to keep our titles of being Christians.

We need to take back our faith and fall in love with Christ. A lot of us love Christ because of what He can give us. We love Him because we want to get to Heaven one day. We love Him because, ultimately, we don't want to end up in hell. I was asked this question while reading a book by the great preacher, Francis Chan, and I want to pose you the same question, so really pay attention here:

"Imagine that when you die, you will go to a place far beyond your imagination. Everything you've ever loved will be there. Every person you've ever loved, every beautiful view you've ever seen, every delicious food you've ever eaten, every leisure activity you've ever enjoyed will all be there plus way more, and all of this along with no sadness, no sickness, no hatred, no jealousy, and no death. If you knew that Heaven could offer you all of this when you die, but Jesus wasn't there, would you still want to go?"

 Do you desire Jesus or do you desire what Jesus can give you? Do you love Jesus or do you love what He does for you? Remember our verse? Did you catch it when He said that loving Him with all you have is the first and greatest commandment? We can't trick God. We can't trick Him into thinking we love Him. He knows what our hearts really feel. So let's take a minute to examine our souls. Let's all be honest with ourselves here; no one will know but you. Do you love God more than absolutely anyone or anything? Do you desire to see the Kingdom of God come to this earth more than you desire security? Do you love God or have you just been trying to get to Heaven? Keep in mind that Heaven has been prepared for us only as a reward for our love of Christ. Heaven is not the ultimate prize - Jesus is.

Think about the story I told you about my love for my mom. This is how our lives should look for Christ. We should serve Him because we love Him, not because we feel like we need to look like Christians. Going to church, doing good deeds, etc. should be effects of your love for Christ. Church shouldn't be a place you go to get a dose of Jesus during the week; you should crave and search for Him everyday. Church isn't a place that we should go to in order to worship; church is a place that we should bring our worship to.

When you truly fall in love with Christ, you'll see your life change drastically. You'll crave Him. You'll do whatever it takes to make Him known. Whatever it takes. All of the areas in your life that disgust God will begin to disgust you. People will look at you and see Him.

Love is a word that will cost you everything: laying down your life, passion and compassion, giving without expecting, feeling His very heartbeat and surrendering to His rhythm, and following the Lamb wherever He goes. Loving God, darlin', is what makes someone a Christian. Because when you love God and know who He truly is, your life will emanate with love.

Let me leave you with this last verse:

"...It was there at Antioch that the believers were first called Christians."

-Acts 11:26 (NLT)

You might be thinking, "What is so significant about that verse?" But this is probably one verse in the Bible that stands out to me the most. Do you see that word: called? I find it interesting that these believers weren't going around calling themselves Christians. They were called Christians by the people who were watching their lives. There's a lot of Gospel in that one little verse. Wow. I hope that if someone was to watch my life and they didn't even know what a Christian was, they would still know that I'm different. I hope they would still see God in me without a single doubt in their mind. I don't care if anyone knows my name, as long as they've heard of God through me, I'm content.

Lord, help us to fall in uncontrollable, whole-hearted, whole-soul, whole-mind love with you. I want to desire you more than anything. I get a glimpse of you and I constantly crave the next time I'll get another glimpse. Help us to realize that playing with our destination after death isn't a joke. We never know when our last breath will be given to us.

Friend, you don't know how often I pray for you. I may never know you or see you in person, but you are my friend anyway. I send you so many hugs through my computer to your screen. Let's fall in love... with God. I want us to love Him soul deep because only then will our lives change. We will see Christian actions take place that aren't routine, that aren't rituals, and that come as a result of loving God. I pray that we not only fall in love, but that love will grow deeper everyday.

Does God Really Have a "Plan" for Your Life?

I can think of so many things that I would love to do with my life. Money, education, a good lookin’ husband, beautiful kids, an awesome career, the cutest house on the block, travelling the world… Yes, all of those would be on my list. Yours probably isn’t too far from it. So, If God really does have a plan for my life, is His plan really any better than the plans I can make for myself?

God created everything that you see and don’t see. He created the world. He created everything that we know. He knows what you want; He created you. He knows the desires of your heart; He created your heart. He created technology before we even knew what it was. He has created things that we don’t even know exist yet.

Think about this, let’s pretend that you are sitting down with a ball of fresh clay in front of you. You’re feeling creative. You pick it up and start squishing it around in your hands. You begin to form it into a sculpture.  You are spending a lot of time on this. You have made very intricate details. You’ve formed very complex designs that no one could ever, ever replicate. Let’s imagine, by a stretch of our imagination, that your sculpture has come to life. Bear with me here. Don’t get lost. Really, imagine that you have breathed life into your project, and it has a life of its own now. Except, your sculpture doesn’t understand a lot about itself. It overlooks how intricately designed it is. It doesn’t understand itself like you understand it. You know every single nook and cranny that it has. You formed it. You know how special it is. This, darlin’, is a glimpse into how God looks at you. We think we know ourselves the best. We think we know the best plans for our lives, but let me tell you something shocking: you, my dear, are a masterpiece. You were created in the hands of God. He formed you. He knows things about you that you are completely clueless of, but He wants to reveal these things to you. He wants you to know how insanely elaborate you are.

Unlike a ball of clay that was transformed into a sculpture, you were a thought that was created into a human with an eternal soul. You weren’t created just to sit somewhere. You were created with a very, very, very vital purpose. You’re not an inanimate sculpture; you’re a being that has complex emotions, a complex design, a complex heart, a complex soul. Your life was not an accident. Your creation was not just a bunch of molecules and protons and neutrons and atoms that “accidentally” formed into you.

“O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.” – Psalm 139:1 (NLT)

You see that it doesn’t say that He knows a lot about you. It doesn’t say that He knows more than most people do about you. It says that He knows everything about you. With that thought, let’s pause here and together, if you can, and read the 139^th chapter of the book of Psalm. David provides us with such an awesome explanation of how well God knows us.

So, why do we think that our plans for our lives are better than the plans that God has created for us? He has things that He is just waiting to show you about yourself. You have talents that you probably don’t even know about yet. Friend, you are intricate. Your creator knows you, knows this world, and knows this life better than you do.

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)

The scary part of all of this is: It is absolutely and easily possible to miss out on God’s plan for your life. That, I am sure of. If I had to guess, based only on my own opinions, I would say that 90% of Christians are missing out on God’s desires for their lives. It’s easy to miss out on His plans because most of us are comfortable with where we are right now. We have just as much Jesus as we want at this time. We’re content with our lives. Some of us are just waiting on God to shine a beaming ray of light out of Heaven to show us what He wants us to do with our lives. We assume that God wants us to do exactly what we’re doing right now because, listen: it is extremely easy and extremely common to confuse God’s voice with our own wants for our lives.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” – Romans 12:2 (ESV)

See, that’s how easy it is to miss out on God’s will for our lives. The Devil doesn’t necessarily have to persuade you to do “bad things”. All he has to do is get you not to do what Christ wants you to do. Does that make sense to anybody other than me? The devil isn’t always a big, ugly, scary guy. He can be your best friend if that’s what it takes to get you out of God’s will. He can be fun, pretty, smart, and good looking. The devil isn’t necessarily spending his entire day trying to make you do his will, he’s just spending it making sure that you don’t do God’s will. He just has to get you to do what you want to do. How easy is that for him? If you’re not in God’s will, you’re in Satan’s. Can we wrap our minds around that? That terrifies me.

When I got saved, the first thing that God revealed to me was how spiritually dead I was, and how spiritually dead the world around me was/is. After I found out who Jesus really is, after I witnessed who He is today, I was so confused about a lot of things. I was confused about people, about church-goers, about everyone I saw. Why weren’t people praising Him more? How could you sit back and not sing out in praise to Him? Why weren’t people giving their lives to Him? How could people not be completely passionate about who He is? Why were people not spending every breath talking about Jesus? How can they hold all of this back? I’m about to burst at the seams with being so full of Him! Then, God stopped me in the middle of all of my questions and said one thing: “Hope, my children are going through the motions of things that they think gets them into Heaven. They don’t truly know who I am, today, or they would be radically passionate about Me, My Son, and My Spirit. They wouldn’t dare keep quiet if they knew Us.”

Wake up. Your creator knows you better than you know yourself. His plans for your life are far better than anything that your human mind can come up with. I know this to be so true. God has bigger-than-life plans for you. Plans that will still matter when our flesh has turned back into earth. It is impossible to do anything better than what God has planned for you.

I love George McDonald’s prayer of contentment. It says, “I would rather be what God chose to make me than the most glorious creature that I could think of; for to have been thought about, born in God’s thought, and then made by God, is the dearest, grandest, and most precious thing in all thinking.”

From a girl who was destined to be another face in the “American Dream”, I am now seeking God… desperately. He is showing me that He has plans for my life that my human mind couldn’t begin to comprehend. And, they are already WAY better than where I used to be before I knew Him. I can’t imagine what He has in store for my future. Literally.

“Anyone who isn’t helping me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.” – Matthew 12:30 (NLT)

I’m not saying that God doesn’t want you to succeed in life. In fact, that’s His desire for you. But, we better be sure that what we’re doing with our lives is worth Christ dying on the cross for. We need to be certain that we are listening to the call of Christ. We should not fear failure; we should fear of succeeding at things in life that won’t matter in the end.

So from this girl to you, I challenge you to pray and study Scripture. Sometimes He’s not just going to slap you in the face with a paper that says “God’s Plan for Your Life: Follow These Instructions” because in a sense, He’s already done that. He’s provided you with an instruction manual. He’s told you about your purpose for being here. He’s given you some insight about what your life should look like. Don’t be the soul who overlooks all of that. Don’t ask God to guide your footsteps if you’re not willing to move your feet.

I, also, want you to know, friend, how much I’ve prayed for you. I love you and your precious life so, so much and send you so many hugs through my computer. I hope that we can all strive to seek out God’s true will for our lives, not our own. Let us focus on the planner, not the plan.

What good is Jesus anyway?

The Reality of the Cost of Your Salvation:

The Anatomical and Physiological Details of Death by Crucifixion

 

I’ve spent the past few weeks studying the actualities of Christ’s death. If you can make it through this post with me, you will fall deeper in love with Christ than you ever thought you could… It will definitely be worth your time. This is one of the most heart-changing studies I’ve ever conducted. I didn’t do as much “writing”, but the Holy Spirit has something He wants to make known.

Crucifixion was invented by the Persians in 300 BC, and was perfected by the Romans in 100 BC. It has been scientifically and mathematically perfected to be the most painful torture ever invented. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ wasn’t just an event that was “thrown together”. It was an event that had hundreds of years of perfecting. Every nail that was placed, the precise angles that his legs were bent, everything was down to a science to make sure that it was as painful as possible.

I’ve realized that I have taken the crucifixion more or less for granted – that I’ve grown callous to its horror by a familiarity with the details. The gospel writers weren’t exactly descriptive on the actual immediate cause of Christ’s death. Since crucifixion and scourging were so well-known in their lifetimes, they undoubtedly considered a detailed description to be unnecessary. Today, even the most detailed movies about the crucifixion don’t tell the true horror of what happened to my Jesus.

Here are a few medical facts that I’ve listed that actually take place when someone is crucified. Some are very disturbing, but we need to pay attention to each one in order to fully appreciate what took place for us over 2,000 years ago. 

1.       It is the most painful death ever invented by man and is where we get our term “excruciating.”

2.       It was reserved primarily for the most vicious of male criminals.

3.       Jesus refused the anesthetic wine which was offered to Him by the Roman soldiers because of His promise in Matthew 26:29, “I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom.” (NIV)

4.       Jesus was stripped naked and His clothing was divided by the Roman guards. This was in fulfillment of Psalm 22:18, “They divide My garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.” (NIV)

5.       The Crucifixion of Jesus guaranteed a horrific, slow, painful death. Appreciate those adjectives.

Having been nailed to the Cross, Jesus now had an impossible anatomical position to maintain.

6.       Jesus’ knees were flexed at about a 45 degree angle. He was forced to bear His weight with the muscles of His thighs which is an anatomical position that is impossible to maintain for more than a few minutes without severe cramp in the muscles of the thigh and calf.

7.       Jesus’ weight was held up by His feet, with nails driven through them. 

As the strength of the muscles of Jesus’ lower limbs drained, the weight of His body had to be transferred to His wrists, arms, and shoulders.

8.       Within a few minutes of being placed on the Cross, Jesus’ shoulders were dislocated. Minutes later Jesus’ elbows and wrists became dislocated.

9.       The result of these upper limb dislocations is that His arms were 9 inches longer than normal.

10.   In addition, prophecy was fulfilled in Psalm 22:14, “I am poured out like water and all My bones are out of joint.” (NIV)

11.   After Jesus’ wrists, elbows, and shoulders were dislocated, the weight of His body on his upper limbs caused traction forces on the Pectoralis Major muscles of His chest wall.

12.   The pectoral muscles, the large muscles of the chest, were paralyzed and the intercostal muscles, the small muscles between the ribs, were unable to act. Air was constantly being drawn into the lungs, but could not be exhaled.

13.   These traction forces caused His rib cage to be pulled upwards and outwards, in a most unnatural state. In order to exhale, Jesus was physiologically required to force His body.

14.   In order to breathe out, Jesus had to push down on the nails in His feet to raise His body, and allow His rib cage to move downwards and inwards to exhale air from His lungs.

 

 

Crucifixion is a medical catastrophe.

15.   The problem was that Jesus could not easily push down on the nails in His feet because the muscles of His legs, bent at 45 degrees, were extremely fatigued, in severe cramp, and in an anatomically compromised position.

16.   Unlike all Hollywood movies about the Crucifixion, the victim was extremely active. The crucified victim was physiologically forced to move up and down the cross, a distance of about 12 inches, in order to breathe.

17.   The process of respiration caused excruciating pain, mixed with the absolute terror of asphyxiation (Choking, suffocation, complete lack of oxygen).

18.   As the six hours of the Crucifixion wore on, Jesus was less and less able to bear His weight on His legs, as His thigh and calf muscles became completely exhausted.

19.   There was increasing dislocation of His wrists, elbows and shoulders, and further elevation of His chest wall, making His breathing more and more difficult. Within minutes of the Crucifixion, Jesus became severely dyspnoeic (severe shortness of breath).

20.   His movements up and down the Cross to breathe caused excruciating pain in His wrists, His feet, and His dislocated elbows and shoulders.

21.   The movements became less frequent as Jesus became increasingly exhausted, but the terror of imminent death by asphyxiation forced Him to continue in His efforts to breathe.

22.   Jesus’ lower limb muscles developed excruciating cramps from pushing down on His legs, to raise His body, so that He could breathe out, in the anatomically compromised position.

23.   The pain from His two shattered median nerves in His wrists exploded with every movement.

24.   Jesus was covered in blood, sweat, spit, snot, and any other bodily excretions that happened during those long hours.

25.   The majority of the blood was a result of the Scourging that nearly killed Him, and the sweat as a result of His violent, involuntary attempts to try to exhale air from His lungs.

Throughout all this He was completely naked, and the leaders of the Jews, the crowds, and the thief next to Him were mocking, swearing, and laughing at Him.

In addition, Jesus’ own mother was watching.

26.   Physiologically, Jesus’ body was undergoing a series of catastrophic and terminal events.

27.   Because Jesus could not maintain adequate ventilation of His lungs, He was now in a state of hypoventilation (lack of oxygen).

28.   His blood oxygen level began to fall, and He developed Hypoxia (low blood oxygen). Some of his limbs probably turned blue.

29.   Because of His restricted respiratory movements, His blood carbon dioxide (CO2) level began to raise, a condition known as Hypercapnia.

30.   This rising CO2 level stimulated His heart to beat faster in order to increase the delivery of oxygen, and the removal of CO2.

31.   The Respiratory Center in Jesus’ brain sent urgent messages to his lungs to breathe faster, and Jesus began to pant, violently.

32.   Jesus’ physiological reflexes demanded that He took deeper breaths, and He involuntarily moved up and down the Cross much faster, despite the excruciating pain. The agonizing movements spontaneously started several times a minute, which was a show for the delight of the crowd who taunted Him.

33.   However, due to the nailing of Jesus to the Cross and His increasing exhaustion, He was unable to provide enough oxygen to His oxygen starved body.

34.   The twin forces of Hypoxia (too little oxygen) and Hypercapnia (too much CO2) caused His heart to beat faster and faster, and Jesus developed Tachycardia.

35.   Jesus’ heart had to beat faster and faster, and His heart rate was probably about 220 beats per minute, the maximum normal sustainable heart rate. Normal resting heart rates are anywhere between 60-100 beats per minute.

36.   Jesus had drunk nothing for 15 hours, since 6:00 p.m. the previous evening.

Jesus had endured a scourging which nearly killed Him prior to being crucified.

37.   He was bleeding all over His body following the Scourging, the crown of thorns, the nails in His wrists and feet, and the lacerations following His beatings and falls.

38.   Jesus was already very dehydrated, and His blood pressure fell alarmingly.

39.   His blood pressure was probably about 80/50.

40.   He was in First Degree Shock, with Hypovolemia (low blood volume), Tachycardia (excessively fast Heart Rate), Tachypnea (excessively rapid breathing), and Hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating).

41.   By about noon, Jesus’ heart probably began to fail.

42.   Jesus’ lungs developed Pulmonary Edema (fluid accumulation in the air spaces of the lungs).

43.   This only served to worsen His breathing which was already severely compromised.

44.   At this point, Jesus was in Heart Failure and Respiratory Failure.

45.   Jesus said, “I thirst” (John 19:28) because His body was crying out for fluids.

46.   Jesus was in desperate need of an intravenous infusion of blood and plasma to save His life.

47.   Jesus could not breathe properly and was slowly suffocating to death.

48.   At this stage Jesus probably developed Hemopericardium (Plasma and blood gather in the space around the heart).

49.   This fluid around His heart caused Cardiac Tamponade (Pressure around the heart which prevents the heart from beating properly).

50.   Because of the increasing physiological demands on Jesus’ heart, and the advanced state of Hemopericardium, Jesus probably eventually sustained Cardiac Rupture. His heart literally burst. This was probably the cause of His death.

51.   To slow the process of death, the soldiers added a small wooden seat on the Cross after hours of struggle, which would allow Jesus the “privilege” of bearing His weight on his sacrum.

52.   The effect of this was that it could take up to nine days to die on a Cross.

53.   When the Romans wanted to accelerate death, they would simply break the legs of the victim, causing the victim to suffocate in a matter of minutes. This was called crurifracture.

54.   At three o’clock in the afternoon Jesus said, “Tetelastai,” meaning, “It is finished.”

At that moment, He gave up His Spirit, and He died.

55.   When the soldiers came to Jesus to break His legs, He was already dead. Not a bone in His body was broken in fulfillment of prophecy.

“He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.” - Psalms 34:20 (NIV)

56.   Jesus died after six hours of the most excruciating and petrifying torture ever invented.

57.   Jesus died so that ordinary people like you and me could go to Heaven. 

We’ve dug a little deeper into the physical pain that Jesus endured, but we can’t forget that this wasn’t the worst part for Him. Picture Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, and as He kneels before His Father, drops of sweat and blood fall together from His head. Why is He in such agony and pain? The answer is not because He was afraid of the crucifixion. He was not trembling because of what the Roman soldiers were about to do to Him. No, He was in fear because all of God’s holy wrath and hatred toward sin and sinners, stored up since the beginning of the world, was about to be poured out on Him, and He was sweating blood at the thought of it. He was shaking because He knew that God was going to thrust wrath due to my sin and your sin upon his soul. God did that to his own son. This, my friends, this is the Gospel. We can’t overlook the fact that Jesus was dead for three days. Where do you think He went for those three days? Think about it. God put himself in human form, came down to our world, sacrificed himself for people who hate Him, and went to hell in our place.

Jesus did this not for man as a whole, but for each man himself. If you were the only person here that needed saving, He would’ve done no less. God is love. He’s done more than we deserve, and I think we are afraid that if we stop and really look at God in His word, we might discover that He requests greater awe and demands deeper worship than we are ready to give Him.

 

 

Medical Studies made with the help of:

Dr. C. Truman Davis

From New Wine Magazine, April 1982.

March 1965, Arizona Medical Association.

Is The Bible Old-Fashioned?

That's a legitimate question, right?

We live in a culture today where the bible is thought of as a little old-fashioned. We won't openly admit it, but I just don't see people taking The Word of God seriously anymore. People just use it to pick out a cool phrase for a tattoo or to post on their Facebook status. We like to pick and choose certain verses out of the bible to "live by" and overlook the rest. We like to pick out certain verses that make us "feel good" and get us through our day. Don't misunderstand me here, there is nothing wrong with doing that, but I think we have the bible all kinds of wrong. The Bible was given to us. The whole thing, from Genesis to Revelation, all 66 books. You can't add to it nor can you take away from it. It doesn't need your help. The bible doesn't need your opinion. It is finished. It was given to us as a complete book; therefore, we have to read it as a complete book.

The bible isn't meant for us to pluck our “favorite” verses out of their original text and "live by" those. We need to dive into The Word like a sea of living, breathing, hand-written goodness that causes our very souls to awaken and cause an unshakable change in these human hearts of ours.

"...Give them my entire message; include every word."

Jeremiah 26:2 (NLT)

We should engage in full contextual study of our precious Bibles before we start plucking out verses and applying them to our lives. So let's do just that right now. Look up these verses in your bible with me and let's see what The Bible says about itself:

 

Deuteronomy 17:19 - "He must always keep this copy of the law with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to fear the Lord his God by obeying all the terms of this law." (NLT)

Psalm 119:98-100 - "Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for your commands are my constant guide. Yes, I have more insight than my teachers, for I am always thinking of your decrees. I am even wiser than my elders, for I have kept your commandments." (NLT) 

Revelation 22:7, 18-19 - "Look! I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the prophecy written in this scroll... And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the prophetic words of this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book. And if anyone removes any of the words of this prophetic book, God will remove that person's share in the tree of life and in the Holy City that are described in this book." (NLT)

Do those verses shake your soul like they do mine? If not, read them again.

We have to realize that one of our first steps toward a real, intimate, passionate relationship with our Christ Jesus is plunging our hearts into the vivid, living, up-to-date Word of God. It’s not only up-to-date, it’s way ahead of its time. The Bible is where our Faith comes from. It's the Truth about our Lord. I think of my Bible as a love letter that Jesus himself passed down to me across a 2,000 year bridge. That’s what our bible is: a love letter to us. It’s not a book full of rules to keep you from having fun. Not in the least bit. It’s not a book of ancient stories that have no relevance to your life. The Bible was written for your own good. So pay attention when I say this, circle this, highlight this, take heart: You cannot be a follower of Christ without reading the Message that God has given to you. Point, blank, period.

Maybe you're like I was a few months ago... I owned a Bible. I knew where to find it if I needed it, but that is exactly where it stayed: tucked away until I needed it. I took it to church and looked up the verses that were being discussed in church, but when I was at home, it never opened.

 

How dead my life was. Do you see what I said? Read it again: Oh, how dead my life was!  

 

I've been in church for 20 years. I used to think that I knew everything The Bible had to say. I'd read every page. What more could there be to it? Boy was that ignorant. You could sit on your rear and read scripture for the next 100 years and you would still learn something new every day, Lord willing.Sometimes when I'm reading my bible, I'll be reading over a verse that I've read over 500 times, but all of sudden, that verse has a completely different meaning to me. All thanks to The Holy Spirit who helps us understand what we're reading. Some people can read scripture and get absolutely nothing from it. Pray over your Bible. Pray that God will allow His Holy Spirit to reveal what He really wants you to know from His Word.

"But we know these things because God has revealed them to us by His Spirit and His Spirit searches out everything and shows us even God's deep secrets."

1 Corinthians 2:10 (NLT)

Darlin', a bible that is falling apart usually belongs to someone who isn't. Our Bible is bread for daily use, not cake for special occasions. We need to treat it similar to how we treat God. Some of us only call on God to get us out of trouble. We only call on Him when we want something from Him. You won't get anywhere with a relationship like that. He wants your constant love. He wants your constant praise--when you're broken and when you're not. The same goes for Scripture. You need it every single day, not just when you're feeling a little down.

I hope you're a little bit inspired to study your Bible. We, as Christians, should know the whole book better than we know the back of our hands. If we want to start scraping off the nasty, worldly layers that lie on top of our hearts, this is a start. Picking up our bible is just the beginning: it's picking up your knife, preparing ourselves for the layers to come off.