Wake Us Up, Lord

Now that we are in the month of June (now September… sorry previous written), many have already planted or will be planting a garden soon so I felt like our first new and revised “Wake Us Up, Wake Us Up, Lord” should be focused on gardening. I love to get my hands dirty with the soil, but we’re going to be deep diving into more spiritually focused topics than just plain soil. We will be planting and harvesting a garden for God. What are some of the first steps that come to mind when planting a garden? Location? Will this garden get enough sunlight and shade for the plants to sustain and be able to grow? How about soil conditions? Is the soil filled with red clay or too rocky? During this series over the next several weeks, we will be deep digging into growing a garden for God. 

First thing we have to do when growing God’s garden is that we have to prepare the ground. We have to do some ground work before we even begin to start planting seeds. We have to make sure that our own gardens are healthy enough to be planting one for God. Are we in the right headspace to be planting seeds for Christ? Are we even ready to plant a garden? Are we ready for the scorching summer heat when the garden doesn’t rest in the shade? Are we ready for the cold season when there is still work to be done for Him? Before we go planting a garden for God, we have to be sure that our own character is ready to be tried and tested. The reason for preparing the ground is the way that we think that God’s garden should look like is going to be a lot different than what God actually knows what His garden needs to be like. A group of people can get together and start throwing ideas out there but if they don’t advise God first then the garden will not grow. So how do we prepare the ground? Unity.

I know that individuals will have different opinions and their characters will clash but if we come together as like-minded people then we will be able to grow a successful garden. In unity, we will grow a garden that will thrive for Christ– not for our own purposes but to lead others to Him. Our garden is not about us, it is to serve Christ and then to serve others. To grow a garden for Christ, we have to take what we have grown in our own gardens and use it for His garden. We cannot grow seeds of hate, lies, deception, abuse, etc and expect those seeds to be planted in God’s garden. In His garden, those seeds do not exist. If only we all grew seeds of love, grace, redemption, mercy, etc. then our gardens would be full of life and not weeds to be pulled out and discarded. These are good seeds to be planted not only in God’s garden but in our own gardens. 

In positively preparing the ground and doing the healing to be better gardens for God, we can come as a united healed people. We are finally ready to grow positive seeds in our community and in our church. As a whole, equally united. However we have one more step before we begin our planting: executing the preparation of the ground. Planning. What will we do with our seeds next? What will they grow into? Hopefully we will use our good seeds to bring people closer to Christ so that they will have a good relationship with Him just as we have. We should not try to scare them away without personal opinions on political topics, sexuality topics, or basic human rights. How would you like to walk into a church as visitor and the first thing you see are pamphlets on abortion or LGBQT+? How about we fill our foyer with love for all that may enter our doors no matter who they are?

Dear fellow readers and writers, 

When I first began to add quotes under the title “Wake Us Up, Wake Us Up, Lord” in our weekly bulletin at my church I had absolutely no idea where God would lead me. At first, I didn’t quite expect what I was going to do. I blindly started adding quotes without really having a real reason to put the things that I’ve written about or quoted from various sources. I mean never in my lifetime that the topic of spiritual abuse was ever discussed so openly. But we’ve all been there, whether we realized it or not; we’ve all been a victim of church hurt. However, it was never the church that has hurt me, it was the people in the church. The ones that were supposed to be influencers and not abusers. God has guided me to bring these toxic behaviors to light to hopefully heal us as we grow forward with Him as our Guide. 

One year later has past since starting the series “Wake Us Up, Wake Us Up, Lord” I have never felt as inspired as I do to release quotes or original writings that will hopefully arouse spiritual growth in our church. As a church body, we are failing God. We have been sleeping on Him. We come to church just to judge each other and to gossip. We put on a show that we call “church.” But in reality we are just playing church and not actually doing church or being a church. We’ve been going through the motions for quite some time now, like a hamster on a never ending wheel. Do you think that Jesus started His mission by thinking of the theatrics first? He profoundly thought of the people first, not as a group or religious sect but as individuals. He met them where they were at on their spiritual journeys. And this is where I’m at in mine. My hope is that this letter is received as kindly as possible. Instead of stirring up more division, I pray that it unites us as one in completing our mission. 

I’ve been silently struggling with even releasing these words but until I heard a sermon recently I finally feel like this is the right time to do it. The sermon I heard was about “keep shining your light no matter where you are.” I’ve been struggling with this and sometimes coming to church dims my light. I see all the gossip and hear all the empty words of disruption to God’s House being stirred up. I know this is the devil’s work but I get so discouraged by it. On a positive note, I have chosen to keep shining my light. I will keep going on this mission that God is leading me on. No matter what is happening in our own little church, I will keep showing up and being a light. A light that will outshine the devil’s darkness. I pray these words will inspire each of you that chooses to read them to do so also. No matter the potential consequences of this letter, I hope that we will choose to be more than pew warmers and more soldiers of action for Christ. No matter what the circumstances that come my way, I will keep pressing towards the goal of shining my light for Christ. If it is not well received here then I know that this is not where I am supposed to be in this season and God will move me to a different place where I will be more well received or needed. In conclusion, my prayer is that you will be encouraged to keep reading my “Wake Us Up, Wake Us Up, Lord” releases. Please stay tuned for future writings!

Signed with love and light

The boat begins to move faster and faster down the river that you’re traveling. The water starts to seize the boat. Faster and faster. You start to panic. You see a light in the distance. As the boat is rocked and swayed by the rushing waters, you pray to God for His protection and mercy. You plead with Him. “God! Help me!” You cry out in anger as the boat is moving faster and faster. The water is rushing around you, your nerves are on high level. You’re loosing control of the boat. The boat starts to leak. You look up to the Heavens to try and find peace. You stand to jump out of the boat because there’s no other way to survive this mess. Suddenly the light catches your eyes. And that’s where you find your peace you’ve been searching for. You sit down in the boat, sweat pouring off your brow. Once again, you lift your eyes to the Heavens, but this time you don’t scream out in anger. Instead, you gently raise your hands to the sky. “God, lead me to still waters,” you whisper amongst the surging river and your leaking boat. There was a gentle breeze that whipped through your hair. “I have promised to lead you to still waters in My Word (Psalm 23:2). I have also said that there will be hard times and days of trials, but don’t worry for I am with you always(John 16:33),” a voice whispered. Just then, you feel a gentle hand on your shoulder. You feel calm and collected as the light from a lighthouse shines on a surging waterfall. You start to panic again. “Be still and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10),” you hear whispered through the breeze. Once more you calm down as the boat surfs gently down the waterfall. You hang on tight to the boat as the cool mist gently sprinkles your face. As the boat moves out of the misty area, you notice how still the waters are. The rough waters were worth getting to the smooth waters. You see a sturdy harbor, where you securely tie up the boat. As you travel up a smooth path, you see a warm fire and a small cabin. You go inside the cabin to find a bed and a table with a lamp on it. There was a ruffled piece of paper on the table. You picked it up and read, “In the trial, you have surrendered your life to Me. In the trial, you have clung tightly to My Everlasting arms (Isaiah 46:4). In the trial, you have learned to trust Me through the obstacles that have crossed your path. In the trial, I have lead you to still waters. And at the end of your trial, you have been rewarded. I cannot promise a smooth journey from here, however don’t let that discourage you, but let My Presence encourage you (Isaiah 41:10). I promise to always be there with you to guide you. I am your Friend. I will never fail you (Deuteronomy 31:8). Stay the path that I have paved for you and I will be with you. No matter how far you may wonder, I’ll always leave a light on for you to come home to (Hebrews 13:5). Signed with everlasting joy, blessings, and love, Your Heavenly Father.” 

I have cancer. I have a cancer inside of me. It starts in the pit of my stomach. It moves into my back. It reaches my arms and legs. It’s in my lungs now and my heart too. I have cancer. And it finishes by moving into my brain. It stays there for months. Months turn into years. I have cancer. I carry it around like old baggage. It follows me wherever I go. Whenever I start to think about it, my stomach tosses and turns. Just as I do at night when I’m thinking about the cancer inside of my head. I’ve tried the drugs to get rid of it. They almost got rid of me entirely. It was the drugs or the cancer that would kill me. I have cancer. I searched for a cure through my own merits. How else could I solve this mass that just kept growing inside me? I took the matter into my own hands but got nowhere. I was a weak human being that looked so strong on the outside but I was dying on the inside. Just when my body started to decay, I found my cure. It wasn’t some miraculous sign performed. It came and settled like a thief in the night. But this Thief didn’t come to steal. He came to give. And He gave me new life and a new body to be used for His own glorification. God is the cure for all of our cancers in our lives. We all have cancer that we can’t deny. We all have that mass in our lives that weighs us down & keeps us up at night. Don’t let it get the best of you. Turn to God for He is the cure that you’ve been seeking.