This is Real – We Can’t Go Round Self - Denial

As I thought on my closing statement for my last blog, “Wrong decision making parameters can ruin a life so bad that even the devil will be grateful,” I realized that I often talk about wrong decision making parameters and my need to change some such wrong parameters so I can make the right decisions. The truth is, many bad decisions we make are not made accidentally; they are the product of faulty decision making parameters. One can tell one’s self over and over again that they make too many bad decisions and need to stop and have a strong desire to stop; yet still make all the bad decisions because the factors their decisions are based on remain unchanged. You can think through everything carefully and even accept to bear the burden or consequences that follow the decisions and yet make the same old wrong decisions. The only reason you don’t know that you have made the same decision is because the scenario and/or circumstances are different so one is not immediately able to identify the fact that it is the same decision presenting itself in a different circumstance. After giving long consideration to this reality, I decided that it may be foolish to assume that one has changed one’s decision making parameter just because they sincerely desire to and believe they have. The desire to change one’s decisions making parameters must be followed up with deliberate effort for the change to happen. For believers, we have to deliberately allow our minds to be impacted by the word of God so we can make God kind of decisions. It takes a “mind makeover” to genuinely make the change that is required to make appropriate or correct decisions. This makeover has to be based on the word of God. This doesn’t just happen; it takes some deliberateness for scripture to renew our minds.

 

Ephesians 4: 21 – 24 “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature created to be like God – truly righteous and holy.”

 

The mind of man is very actively involved in where one ends up. We can’t ignore our minds or just let it evolve or even assume that it is evolving correctly because one is praying, reading their bible as well as not neglecting the fellowship of believers. It takes a deliberateness which starts with exposing one’s mind to the word of God. I guess this must be one of the reasons God encourages us to study His word ourselves. All our thinking and decisions happen in our minds and whatever controls our thinking makes our decisions, notwithstanding how much we profess Christ. We can profess Christ all we like and even become ministers in church yet make decisions that even unbelievers will not make and that not because we did not desire to make the right ones but unfortunately, our minds are programmed such that we can’t make any other decisions but the wrong ones and we would not even see why or that it is wrong. So that though our desire is something else, we are headed in another direction. The truth is, man will always head in the direction of his mind so it is very important that our minds have the right information and consequently, right perspective; because our decisions are the blocks upon which our lives are built. I have seen people weep because they never intended the consequences that they are faced with and sincerely desire never to do the same thing again but they do, sometimes causing others pain without intending to, because their minds are programmed to think of themselves and what is best for them only so that though inflicting pain wasn’t their intention, it happens in the course of self-preservation. They meant it when they apologized with tears but it happened again, will happen and keep happening over and over again until they deliberately work on their minds which is the engine room of what the bible famously refers to as “flesh” which must be denied for our minds to be renewed. I believe renewing one’s mind is a part of “picking up the cross”. If we must function as believers then our minds have to be renewed. Picking up our cross daily is choosing to live for Christ daily, which is in truth tough and costly. This cross, though not physical, is just as heavy and tough to pick up. It is honestly still a “rugged cross.”

 

Luke 9: 23 “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me.”

 

Until we choose to do what should be done despite the way we feel we cannot please God. Jesus had to choose to go to the cross despite that He did not want. He hated is so much He cried out to God to make it pass but heaven did not; He was left with the choice and He chose right. To ignore the way one feels and do the will of God often seems foolish yet that is what God requires of us. One cannot be totally in touch with feelings, be controlled by them and yet do the will of God but that is what many of us aim to do. As believers “we feel it, then put it aside that His will may be accomplished.” Indeed when believers feel the need to “do or say it because that is how we feel” then chaos and evil works should be expected to manifest except and until someone chooses to do what ought to be done despite the way they feel and that is always a sacrifice. If we don’t start denying ourselves in the seemingly small things, we can’t be controlled enough to do so in bigger things. What is small or big would differ from person to person because the things that one person might give up easily may be the toughest thing for another to give up. No matter how tough or easy we may think it is to give up anything, it is impossible to do so if our minds have not been sufficiently impacted by the word of God that affects that area of life. Furthermore, to take in God’s word requires one to eject their own way and be open to the new way that the word teaches. We can’t improve on our thinking; we eject it and take on new thoughts.

Did You Even Consider The Cost?

Today, I want to take a break from the discussion of the trees which I believe wise persons understood and enjoyed, to discuss cost counting. I made this decision because we seem to be a generation that gets bored easily and thinks it is cool; for children to get bored easily is understandable but as we come to maturity, we must learn to endure even when we are bored. When we become adults, it is no longer okay to just “stand up and leave” because one is bored. We have to learn to sit through it and only people that know to sit through it, have the opportunity to count he cost. The world does all it can to encourage us to “just act” without counting the cost. Spontaneity is heavily encouraged as being cool. They say you need to be spontaneous to be fun loving persons; they argue that people who think things through are often boring. No one wants to be boring so spontaneity is becoming “the thing”.  Counting the cost for anything takes “thinking time” when one has to be still even when you prefer to be on the go. Whilst it is true that we can sometimes “overly think on things’” the word of God does encourage us to think on the cost of our decisions which also includes the consequences, before we make them and that notwithstanding that one heard from God and/or that the decision made is a commitment to God. Hearing from God is not an excuse for not counting the cost. God wants us to know that every decision comes with its responsibilities which we must be ready to own if we make the decision. Obviously, God wants us to come to maturity which requires us to think through our decisions carefully.

 

Proverb 20: 25 “Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God and only later counting the cost.”

 

Our commitment to God is not without its cost. Clearly discipleship cost something which requires one to deny self. There is a cross to pick up which can only be picked after one has denied self. God does not deceive nor is He cunning so He has put out the cost of being His disciple and desires that we consider it before we make the decision to follow Him. Onus is therefore, upon persons leading people to Christ to let them know there is a cost instead of making them feel that all it takes is for one to “get out of the pew and walk to the altar” which is in truth, meant to be an outward expression of an inward decision. The problem with believers today is that many of us walked to the altar without making the decision that precedes the act. Interestingly, you don’t have to be able to pay the required price; all you need to do is make the decision to pay and heaven joins with you to facilitate and/or enable that. One of the challenges of our faith today is that there are a lot of believers who refuse to accept that there is a cost. They came to Christ believing that they do nothing in return for the love that God has shown in allowing His son die or Christ showed in offering Himself. The truth about love is that it ought to be returned.

 

2 Samuel 24: 24 “But the King replied to Araunah, ‘no, I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing,”

 

Luke 14: 27 – 28 “And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you count the cost.”

 

We seem to have a big problem; we have made ourselves a generation of believers that hate to think things through and think on cost. Not only are we not willing to pay the price for anything, we refuse to accept that “there is a cost” to bear with our decisions. We insist that such responsibilities must not be made ours. We prefer to think it is someone else’s job or even God’s which makes it even easier so that we can blame God if something goes wrong. We lie so convincingly to ourselves that we convince ourselves that God spoke to us when He didn’t; It’s just that we won’t ‘own’ the cost. The truth is, if it isn’t God, the fact that we lie convincingly to our self will not change that fact neither will it make everything okay without you paying that price. God makes “thinking it through our job so it is not His. Indeed He expects that people should think things through otherwise He wouldn’t make the comment in the scripture below. There are consequences, it is not an excuse that you didn’t consider them. Even when we have to make decisions in the moment, we must think fast. It always helps if one is in communion with God so that the Holy Spirit helps such persons and it is just makes decision making easier when one is able to lean on Him.

 

Luke 14: 28b “For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it.”

 

The bible says we must not be unaware of the devices of the devil. Satan has all sorts of crafty ways with which he lures the saints to that place where he attempts to ruin us so we must sensitive to that reality. Wrong decision making parameters can ruin a life so bad that even the devil will be grateful.

From An Older Tree To A Younger Tree Pt 2 – Joy Cometh!

So, winter comes and the young tree begins to lament. It is so sad; feels really bare and alone. No one admires it anymore and the voice of children running around playing under it is gone. Nobody needed it for shade anymore because it had none to provide; it could barely even reach sunlight and all it could see was whiteness, quiet and felt nothing but aloneness. It wondered if it was the only one who felt that way and soon enough it says to the old tree, ‘how long is this going to last for and the old tree replies “it’s only for as long as it needs to.” The young tree was puzzled. It couldn’t understand why the old tree was then so calm when it knew nothing itself. So all it knew was that it is only for a season? Why then was it so calm? The young tree thought on that answer for a while and spoke again ‘don’t you care how long it last? How do you even know that there is an end to this? The old tree replies – “I have seen many seasons like this and lived long enough to know that it ends.” The young tree then ask, ‘is that your only assurance?’ and the old tree nods acknowledging that he had no stronger word of comfort but the young tree would just have to wait and see that it passes. He bowed his head sorrowfully for a while and wondered why it is so hard to just believe yet God ask that of us even when everything is contrary.

Psalm 30: 5b “weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.”

So the young tree spoke again; it needed to know if it would be this boring through it all or if there was some activity one could engage in especially since no one could tell the length of the season. It didn’t want to look dumb and silly through this time. Yet the old tree counselled that it is best to be as quiet as you could possibly be at times like this. The older tree understood the pain of the younger tree as it spoke, it knew the things the younger tree thought but was ashamed to say. It knew the pain of people who sought them for shade going past like they didn’t exist anymore, just rushing past them. They heard conversations of these people who once sat under them for shelter as they told one another how bare and ugly the trees looked in winter. It knew the pain of hearing them talk like as if one’s days of glory are over but the old tree also knew better. It knew that this is the circle of life with God. It wished it could tell the younger tree that there is nothing to prove at this point because the maker already made you bare albeit for a purpose. There is nothing to hide anymore and also that there would always be those wise people who still had respect for the trees and admired the trees covered in white or even bare. They saw the beauty of being naked and unashamed. Those are the very few that care to admire the trees so much they stop to take pictures but they are few. It then said to the younger tree – you need all your energy to stand in these times as God is working to establish you and make your roots grow much deeper. They grow deeper to get water and other nutrients to survive but then you get stronger and survive easily in summer because your roots are really deep. There are always good sides to every pain, he told him, it all depends on what you would rather be focused.

Isaiah 37: 31 “And the remnant that has survived of the house of Judah shall again take root downward and bear fruit upward.”

The old tree understood what the young tree must be going through. It remembered its’ first winter and how it almost gave up. It remembered how frustrated it was itself as a much younger tree, when no one could tell her how long the winter would last. It never understood the reason for this very ugly and seemingly unnecessary season. It remembered feeling sad when the older trees told her that not all trees were going through the same thing because in some parts of the world, it was summer. It felt so betrayed by the maker of trees and controller of the weather. It took a lot for them to finally get her to that place where he understood that everyone had their season and the fact that you were not always in bloom kind of meant that one is somewhat special. They told the tree then that The Father has different trees and each one goes through what is required for it to be effective in its own location. They explained to it that those other trees also go through “their thing” and also that the more precious you are, the more you may have to be taken apart from time to time to be strengthened so that you could bloom beautifully for the next season. They reminded it that the Apostles had to wait for the Holy Spirit. There is a huge possibility that people laughed at them hurdled up in one room and they seemed like cowards who had lost their leader. Yet Jesus said to wait until they receive the Holy Spirit and did not tell them when the Holy Ghost would come. The older trees then made it realize that some trees who didn’t have winter wished they could because they needed that rest in “air conditioner like weather;” they taught it to be content with what it had. It was a hard truth to chew but as life unfolded, it realized they were right. They also explained that there are benefits to winter; it is that time when one builds stability because the roots of trees get deeper. A tree needs deep roots because if it grows really tall without depth, it would break anyway as it bows to the wind. We need help that we may carry success successfully.

Luke 24” 49 “But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you power from heaven.”

From An Older Tree To Younger Trees – Joy Cometh!

The other day I thought about trees in winter and wondered about their lives in winter; that season when the weather is so cold yet all their leaves fall of and they are so bare, fully stripped and exposed without any kind of adorning. I wonder what they would be telling us about winter if they could talk and I imagined that must be the season they hate the most but if there was no winter in their lives, there probably would be no summer and vice versa. Every season of life is of the greatest importance to every tree. Life really does change for every living being and as God says there will always be that season when one can plant and that season when one can harvest; for it was all ordained by God so that it is forever. Just like with the trees, every season of life is great and ties in with the next; greatly impacting on it so that it is best to let every season play out and naturally filter into the next. I must admit that several times in life I have tried in my strength to change the seasons I did not like and/or struggle to hold on to a season that I enjoyed very much but it ultimately becomes something I regret doing because such actions never facilitate our going forward but I thank God for His great love that makes Him constrain us to go through those seasons because there are benefits from doing that. Each season has its own experiences and we have to respond to each experience appropriately tough as that may be sometimes. One thing I know though, is that there is always sufficient grace to come through successfully. Joseph did it and he was man like us.

Genesis 8: 22 “As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.”

Ecclesiastes 3: 1 “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under the heaven.”

The world over experiences weather changes though different parts of the world experience different extremes and in some places different seasons last a little longer than others but there is summer, spring, fall and there is winter though they may be called different names. In the part of the world where I live, it is either hot, rainy or harmattan but at one point or the other, trees shed leaves in preparation for the next circle of fresh life. Despite that the leaves are a nuisance to the environment, they add to make the soil even more nutritious. There are seasons in our lives when God prepares us for a higher level of life’s circle though in those seasons of preparation we go through things that make us forget that the experiences are facilitating our going forward and the establishment of the will of God and God is also working in us to prepare us to properly carry ourselves in the greater season which is ahead. Indeed like the leaves there may be a huge amount of shedding but some shedding add to improve the quality of our lives just like the dead leaves improve the earth. More than we know, we often carry a lot of baggage that we can’t take into the next level. Trees are laid bare at times like that but that is how our lives must be made bare in some seasons so we can properly judge ourselves as we prepare of the next season. God removes anything and/or persons that need to be removed because we need to come to terms with some truth about us. A tree laid bare has nothing to hide anymore and can hide nothing even if it wanted to because all its' covering has been taken off but all for a good cause. At times like that the tree is most vulnerable but God needed that vulnerability to perfect His work. The tree, at such times, is also unable to provide all the benefit it used to provide so that everyone that benefited from it may think it is no longer useful but God allows it to give the tree room to “recalibrate” but it must keep reminding itself that there is spring and then another summer coming otherwise it may “faint”. Unfortunately, some people who benefitted from it, would cut it down at such times because they don’t see that there is summer coming.

Proverbs 4: 18 “The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.”

Micah 7: 8 “Do not gloat over me, my enemies! For though I fall, I will rise again. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.”

Interestingly, I can imagine what the trees are thinking in summer. If we could be a part of their conversation we would probably hear the older trees reminding the younger trees that fall and then winter are round the corner. Whilst those who use the trees whether for good or bad are having the best time with the trees because they are at their height and so are profitable again to many, the trees must remind themselves that the winter comes - that weather one goes through alone and a wise tree is afraid to be proud in the summer because of what it knows. Jesus went through it and alone too. I guess the first time a tree experiences winter after a great summer, it is very tough and no matter how much other trees would have tried to prepare the young tree for winter, he probably would not understand because “life just seems too “wonderful” and one can’t imagine it ever getting bad especially when they started talking about the difficult times even before summer, how can you ever imagine how bad winter could be. When in fall, they tell the young tree that it would get worse, reality then begins to hit hard but the older trees are prepared. The one word of comfort from the older trees would always be after one complete circle, you come up higher. Every level brings a better life and that is my word to every one going through difficulty and this is notwithstanding government policies.