The Kingdom Is Not for Losers--More on Suffering and God

Here are two common phrases regarding suffering among Christians that I've heard recently:

"God, I just wish I knew what You were trying to teach me!"

"I just wish Jesus would come and end all this pain!"

There's a proper Kingdom perspective about suffering that I've already started to unravel here, but I can't help but dig a little deeper, because I know so many Christians who don't understand it. 

And then there are the non-believers who, if deceived about it themselves by the Christians they know, are not likely to want to get to know Yahweh.

Ted Turner

Ted Turner is famous for being hostile to Christian beliefs and said that "Christianity is a religion for losers."  Perhaps it was comments like the ones above that caused him to draw that conclusion.  He could not be more wrong, but then again, neither could the believers who utter such statements.

We had the piano tuner here to, well, tune the piano, and he was hilarious.  His talking was a constant stream that went from one topic to the next to the next.  Levi was spellbound.  The guy finally stopped and laughed and said, "You have to just tell me to shut up. I have ADD, and I can go on forever."  Then he proceeded to go on forever.  It was obvious that he was disorganized and scatter-brained, but he was interesting and full of joy and life, and he was a BRILLIANT musician.  Brilliant.  He talked about how he couldn't make a living tuning pianos here in Vermont, because there just wasn't much demand.  He was therefore also working as a security guard for not much more than minimum wage.  He has a wife who's a nurse and four children.  He talked about how money was tight, then he said the two things I listed above.

You see, he is a passionate believer.  But he talked about his menial security guard position and shortage of money and said, "I'm just like, 'OK, God, I just wish I knew what you were trying to teach me.'  It's just so hard, and I look around and am like, 'Ah, Jesus, why can't you just come back and end it all?' but <nodding his head> I know, I know, we have so many souls to reach still."

I'm so unused to that kind of thinking these days that my skin crawled a little.  It rubbed me the wrong way, and I'll tell you why in a minute.  But I absolutely loved this guy, and I felt his pain.  My heart softened towards him, and I know that so many people with families are in a pinch, especially right now.  I cannot imagine the weight on that father's shoulders.  But his mentality was keeping the weight there, and it was a spirit opposed to the Father, Yahweh.  It was an enemy to that man, but he was convinced it was God.  And when I heard it speaking in my home, and lying to that sweet man, I wanted to throw daggers.  It is the antichrist spirit.  For we must also realize that the antichrist is not one big, scary bogeyman that will rise in the Middle East in the end times.  (Geez, we Christians have been prone to get all goose-bumpey about the Big Bad Guys out there (whose ruling spirits are paraded already as prisoners of war by Yahshua, right?) rather than focusing our attention on how our side is Bigger and "Badder," so to speak.)  I John 4:3 states accurately (of course) that the antichrist spirit is already among us.  I'll get into that another time.

So, as my apostle said just this last Sunday in church, "There is no shortage of pain in this world.  There is no shortage of suffering.  But don't you know that Yahweh wants to give you beauty for your ashes?"

Yahweh doesn't love our suffering; it isn't His desire to inflict it so that we remember who we are and come crawling back to Him to learn our lesson.  And although I think it's always the right thing to ask Yahweh what He's trying to teach you, it doesn't follow that the bad stuff came from Him.  It just means that whatever is happening in your life, bad or good, He will use it to teach you and to bring you glory if you'll walk it out with Him.  Yahweh didn't give that man the menial labor job to teach him a lesson.  We blame God for so much  that He didn't instigate (Actually, we give the devil credit for a lot he didn't do as well).  That man is having a hard time with jobs because in many ways he's still a little boy inside, and he is disorganized and scatter-brained.  The best thing for him would be to understand that Yahweh doesn't want him to be afflicted with such debilitations, and to receive Yahweh's direction for healing and focusing and building towards something that can provide for his family both provision and peace. 

To pin our troubles on God is to walk away from our own responsibilities in the matter, even if some of the issues were inherited and not chosen. 

So that takes care of the "What're you trying to teach me" comment.  But what about the "Jesus, come back and save us!" comment?  First of all, isn't it weird to say that He's waiting for more souls to be won to Him?  Even when I bought that, I didn't understand it.   Because while we're "winning those souls," others are constantly being born.  If all we're trying to do is populate heaven, I don't think we'll ever catch up.  When will He decide, "OK now," when that thinking means there will be souls still lost?  Is He then waiting until the "still lost" batch are the particular batch that are not worth His while?  And that "saving lost souls for heaven" thinking only wants to get a person "saved" so they can "hold out" till glory in heaven one day. 

But what if we're supposed to be establishing His Kingdom here and now?  What if He really isn't coming back until His church is a glorious, powerful bride ready to receive Her King?  As that Kingdom slowly spreads, then we're making headway, not all twiddling our thumbs waiting for the hereafter.  Beyond that, as I already stated in my previous post on suffering, He already came to rescue us!  What do you think all that torture, death, burial, resurrection, and release of the Holy Spirit was all about?  He rescued us!!  Glory!  Halleluia!!  Now we're equipped to handle whatever comes our way in this fallen world, ready to overcome it. 

There will be a second coming, a reuniting of Yahshua, the head, to His church, the body.  But in a way, He already is "coming again" through those with His spirit who are walking according to His leading, who are being His body.  I know that weirds some people out.  Listen, it doesn't take anything away from His God-ness to acknowledge that we're also made awesome and significant because we're joined to the most Awesome and Significant One.  If receiving Him doesn't make us amazing, then what does that say about Him?

There is no shortage of those out there who truly love God and Jesus to the degree that they understand and know how.  And I hear so many recite these misconceptions that maybe God just wants them to be miserable so that He can show how great He is through their grace in suffering.  To the degree that we're walking in His grace to eradicate the suffering, fine.  I can see that.  But you already know where I'm headed: that glory is not in the constant suffering; it's in giving suffering the boot as you place one more of His enemies underneath His feet.  He does not want us to be miserable.  Right?  He does not want us to be miserable. 

He does not want us to be miserable.

The truth is, He has a purpose and a plan for all of our lives.  He wants us to walk as His sons in the earth, as kings in the earth.  He wants our words to carry authority because we draw from Him.  He wants us to put curses, poverty, sickness, heart-ache, addiction, all of it underneath His feet.  And since we are His body, that means they must go underneath our feet.  He will help us till the cows come home.  That's the point.  He will talk to us, He will direct us, He will make us do something that seems weird, and then when we see how miraculously it plays out and how we never could've orchestrated it on our own, we'll really know what it means to rejoice.

But we must understand His heart so that we know how to approach Him, and therefore our lives, as confident sons.  If we don't even understand how it all works, we're defeated.  Our enemies' hands are tied, and they have been paraded by Yahshua as prisoners of war.  Therefore, their only power over us is in the words they can whisper into our thinking.  They can talk.  Were I in that position, grappling to keep my position of authority in the earth as the enemy is, I'd start telling Christians lies about who they are.  As long as Christians are incompetent and confused, the enemy's position is secure. 

But what if we become Kingdom people? 

What happens when we all start to understand and believe who we really are?

Suffering? God's Already Sent the Rescuer, So What Now?

Let's get the big point out of the way, then build from there:

God is not the source of our suffering. 

John 3:16 might be the favorite verse of Christians:

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

In my Sunday School classes growing up, we always viewed "world" as having the connotation of "people."  He loved people so much that He did what He did.  And He does love people.  But did you know that the original language of "world" is actually more along the lines of "cosmos?"  He loved His creation, all of it, so much that He did what He did.

Might it be possible that Yahweh wants to redeem all His creation, that He loves His earth, that He wants His earth back?  After Adam's fateful decision, mankind and all creation went into the hands of our bitter enemy.

And then there's this:

"...the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God." - Romans 8:19-21

(By the way, never read Romans 7 about Paul feeling all yucky about sin without immediately reading his ultimate conclusion in Romans 8 about how it no longer has any power over him!  Just a freebie.)

Creation is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God.  Why?  Because it, too, is to be redeemed, but somehow that happens through true sons (daughters, too) revealed in their perfected state of power and authority through the Holy Spirit, in the very image of God in which they were created.  In which we were created.  And when I say "perfected state," please don't mistake me.  I don't mean one day in heaven.  When we choose to trust Yahweh and walk out our salvation relationship, we are then perfected.  He does that for us.  We are not perfect; we are perfected through Yahshua, and therefore our perfected state is current.  Either we're clothed in His righteousness, or we're not.  He says we are, so I'm going with that.

Yahweh is very eager to redeem His creation back to His original purpose and plan, and His glory and desire is to do it through sons.  He sent the One Son to bring many sons to glory (Heb. 2:10), "for both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren" (Heb. 2:11).  I think a lot of Christians know this in their heads but don't know how to believe it as revelation applied in how they view their lives.  That's going to change, though.

So we inherited an imperfect world, but it will not stay that way.  Yahshua must reign "till He has put all enemies under His feet (I Corinthians 15:25)," until "the kingdoms of this world have become the Kingdom of our God and of His Christ (Rev. 11:15).  So the kingdoms of this world do not become obliterated except to the degree that they change, that they are redeemed.  We'll get into the "kingdoms of this world" another time, but think this way: everything is either of Yahweh-the Kingdom, or not of Yahweh-Babylon.

And here we find the source of our sufferings and trials.  There is a war at hand to put every enemy under our King's feet.  Yahweh is interested in doing it through the many sons He's bringing to glory through the One Son.  So we all have work to do in this earth.  How do we do it?  The same way Yahshua did: by doing what the Father does as discovered through oneness communion with Him in the present, and by hearing His voice.  To simplify: hear and obey.

"Jesus (Yahshua) answered and said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever he does, the Son also does in like manner'" (John 5:19).  Now again, change your mind if you need to about how this was just for Jesus.  Yahweh sent the One Son to regain His original intent: many sons in the earth.  That's us.  Or if it's not you, it certainly can be, and it's absolutely worth your while.

Now that we have a right perspective about our lives in this earth and His heart for it, we can see that those enemies that cause suffering are not Yahweh's will, His heart, or His desire for us (James 1:13). 

However, we encounter them because we inherited an imperfect world. 

And Yahweh is faithful still, in the midst of it all, to "work all things together for good to those who love Him" (Romans 8:28).  And He is actively working through His sons to redeem it all.  That's a great honor and responsibility, and it flies in the face of everyone just begging for Him to end the suffering, end it all, and rescue us out of here. 

He already rescued us, now it's time for us to enter the joy of getting some work done with our Dad.

He allows suffering, because Adam made the choice of disobedience and opened the door for suffering to enter the earth.  As of yet, the earth is full of curses.  The only way for Yahweh to eradicate suffering would have been, and would currently be, for Him to remove man's will, which He won't do.  And since suffering has gained some legal right in the earth through man's disobedience, Yahweh will also use it to teach us and bring us to greater glory.  He will use anything to help us: the good, the bad, the ugly.  He'll even make a donkey talk! (Numbers 22:28)

My son Levi looked like he was starving to death.  And despite all that he ate and drank, he was.  At four, he was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.  Never once have I gotten angry at God and asked Him why He did this to us.  Because I know that He didn't do it to us.  In fact, He's more angry about it than we are.  I also know that any disease is as much His enemy as it is mine and that He hates it, He loves Levi, and He wants to see us beat this thing as much as we do.  He's talking us through it, and He's rooting for us.  And make no mistake, whether it's in my lifetime or not, whether it's in Levi's lifetime or not, diabetes will be defeated. 

There's a great assurance in knowing that you're on the winning team.  And if we can get outside our little bubble and think generationally, beyond our physical lives, it really starts to get fun.  We can really go to work on stuff and not get overwhelmed, because we are faithfully building toward something greater than ourselves.  We're eradicating enemies and building the Kingdom.

(Mother Teresa)
Don't get mad at God; get to work.
He's mad about it, too.

So if you are facing trials and tough times, don't allow the enemy to drive a wedge between you and your Father. 

Any thought that would try to make you feel wounded by God is a liar and belongs in hell. 

Take that thought captive and say, "That is not what I think!  God is for me!" (Romans 8:31)

Then stir up His Spirit abiding in you (There is no other way), hear His voice, get His will, and act according to that plan.  His overriding desire is to take that thing down with you, through you. 

So, rise up in His strength, sons and daughters of God, and take that thing down. 

I Enter with Joy, Because I Can!

Yahshua paid a mighty price for my life.  I want to understand the fullness of what He did and what it was intended to do for the sons of Yahweh.  I don't want to miss one ounce of it.  I cannot go halfway in this reality.  I cannot give half.  I cannot pay it lip service on certain occasions only to forget it as I go about my daily life. 

The Kingdom of Yahweh is!  And He does not want my sacrifices!  He wants my passionate all, my praise, my heart, me.  My will. 

It is no sacrifice to know You, to love You, Yahweh.

He does not label us as sinners if we've been made new in Him.  So if you are a believer who still identifies yourself as a sinner, stop!  And come into agreement with His identity concerning you.  You are His, created in His image, to look in the mirror and see the visage of Christ, clothed in His righteousness!

He purchased my freedom and with that, I boldly enter the throne room of my God.  I take my seat at the feast He has laid out before me.  I own the identity of a son:  the robe, the crown, the scepter that He's given me.

This is not rhetoric, theology, philosophy, or a Bible class.  This is what happens when we immerse ourselves in Him, and everything else, including our beliefs, must bow before Him!

Holy Spirit, I make no apologies for being completely yielded to you.  Holy Spirit, flow in my life, in my children's lives!  I receive from You change, maturity, understanding, discernment, life, love, Truth beyond all measure. 

You are worthy of my praise, Yahweh, and to You I give it unabashedly!  I am no longer identified as a sinner who needs a Savior.  Oh, that so many in Your church would gain this understanding.  Today I am a daughter joined to my King.  And the King has work for us to do in His Kingdom.  Today.  Here.  Now.  We must put our authority into action.

I enter His presence and purpose with joy, because I can.  Because He made a way.  And to do anything less would be such a waste!

Bless Your church, Father, to know Your heart and Your plan in this earth.

Bless You, Yahweh, with all that I am, and may Your name be great in Your earth.

You Just Think You Like Angry Birds

A delightful evidence of spring in Vermont is the first sighting of the lovely Redwing Blackbird.  Isn't it beautiful?

Well, don't be fooled.  These horrible birds are angry.  And territorial.  And domineering.  And, well, here's a little story about why they scare the living daylights outta me.

A few months after I had Levi, the weather warmed and I finally got back into running.  I hit the country trail that paralleled the two-lane highway and slowly increased my pace, starting to work up a sweat.  The weather was perfection in the upper 70s, and the landscape had really greened up.  I was enjoying the solitude and the beauty and the time alone with Yahweh who, for His own amusement I am certain, did NOT warn me of what was about to happen.


A sudden swoosh blew forcefully just at the back of my head like a swift gust of air.  I turned around to see nothing.  Facing forward again to continue my run, though, I figured it out.  Up ahead of me, dive-bombing like an arrow directly for my face, with the resolve of a Kamikaze pilot and no indication of letting up, was a Redwing Blackbird.  I darted to the side and held my hands up over my ducked head.  He swooshed just above my head, zoomed back up for some altitude, turned back towards me, and started his angry attack again.  

Of all things, nature is something I appreciate and respect greatly, and here was this bird that I was happy to bless and appreciate and leave alone coming after me like a shark after blood.  As a new mom myself, I just knew there must be a nest of babies close by and that I had spooked the mother.  So what did I do?  I began sprinting, top-speed away from the angry bird, shouting, yes SHOUTING, that I was not interested in her babies and that I was a safe place. 

"I'M A SAFE PLACE!" Feet pounding the gravel.  "I LOVE YOU, MOMMY BIRD!"  Pound, pound, gasp, gasp.  "I WISH YOU NO HARM AND BLESS YOUR BABIES ALL TO LIVE LONG, SUCCESSFUL LIVES!"

Angry dive-bomb for my head.

The bird took a few more shots then went back to the top of a tree back where the assault had started behind me.  I was glad she understood English and trusted me, then I slowed down my pace and just laughed. 



Watch your back, dude! 
I'm not the only victim:
http://faceintheblue.wordpress.com/
2009/11/27/redwing/


That's when I heard her from behind me:  "ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!"

"Whatever, crazy bird!  I get it, OK?"  I thought.

Then I heard from a tree ahead of me an eerily similar echo:  "ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!" just before another Redwing Blackbird from the tree ahead of me sling-shot himself straight from his branch and straight for my head.  These birds were organized!  I was half a mile from my car out in the middle of nowhere and under attack.  I found a stick on the ground and waved it up in the air, sprinting, flailing, shouting.  After I passed that bird's tree, and he felt he'd done enough intimidating with swoop after swoop after swoop, me gyrating and dodging and tripping over myself, he went back to his perch that was now behind me. 

"You've got to be joking," I thought, heart racing, white knuckles still clutched around the stick, eyes darting around in paranoia.  I stopped to catch my breath when I heard it again.

Angry Bird Number Two behind me began to release the staccato "ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!" 

I looked back unable to comprehend why my sunny day run was turning into an Alfred Hitchcock film then warily looked ahead to the next cluster of trees.  My worst fears were realized.

A third Redwing Blackbird (I cannot make this stuff up) from the trees ahead of me replied:  "ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!  ACK!" just before engaging in the bullet flight right for me.   

I was being targeted, and I knew not why, but I'd never been a personal witness to nature acting up in this way.  He swooped down, then back up, then circled just above me, clacking, "ACK!  ACK!  ACK!"  Angry Bird Number Three was in it for the kill, I could tell.  I didn't know if I should run forward...but no, I was going to have to go back to my car at some point.  So I made a decision.

I turned around to face these demonic birds like a real woman.  I found two small branches about 18 inches long and an inch and a half thick.  I took one in each fist.  Then I took off running at top speed, waving the sticks overhead as crazily as I could to fend off the attacks.  The birds descended and swooped and "ACKed" at me, each taking their turn as I entered their zone.  I sprinted and spluttered and gasped for air and waved the sticks in the air as though my life depended on it.  I believe to this day that it did.  They would have pecked me to death.

I finally reached what I considered to be the outer boundary of Angry Bird Number One's territory, and lo, he took one last swoop then landed on a telephone wire just behind me and "ACKed" me into a world of shame.  He was laughing.  He was mocking.  When I knew they'd won and were now content to have humiliated and defeated me and continue on with their day, I stopped to reacquaint myself with oxygen.  Numerous vehicles had gone by during the whole charade, and it must've been a jolly good laugh for all those clever drivers who were safe in their cars and didn't stop to offer assistance. 

But clearly I was some crazy woman on the loose from their vantage point, so why would they? 

I never ran on that trail again.  To my everlasting shame.  But I did learn a valuable lesson.   All those Disney movies in which the characters are animals with complex lives that get interrupted by human activity are not fiction. 

On that day, I traveled to a place where birds ruled and humans were not welcome, and I can say from actual experience that this Angry Bird business is no game.  Except to them.  To them, it's The Hunger Games.  If you ever find yourself entering their arena, all I can say to help you is, "May the odds be ever in your favor."  And run for your life.