Resuscitation or Resurrection

Someone shared these words with me yesterday and I’ve been thinking about them in my own life. There are places in my life where I have continued to resuscitate things -- unhealthy relationships and eating patterns, fears, poor survival dance tactics………………… I could go on but that’s not where I want to focus today.

What does resurrection of new look like? Jesus wasn’t resuscitated in the tomb. He was resurrected. Jesus and His message offered hope prior to the cross. He did good things, healing, casting out demons, caring well for multitudes and loved ones and teaching truth. These were good! After Jesus resurrected from his death, His good became Glorious, Grandiose, and Grace.

What does resurrection look like for me? It is an honoring of what has died or needs to die, and it’s a focus on keeping what’s good and bringing it to a greater life, a new life, new beginnings. Not dressing up the old, but embracing the new, offering God’s intended beauty with it.

Tomorrow I embark on "The Journey". It’s our new title for what has been called S.A.L.T.S. in the past. You can check out SALTS at our web site www.ohmin.org.

There will be need to honor what has caused emotional harm and death, and not resuscitate it, but move toward resurrection of new. New truths to replace old lies, also new ways of living and coping to replace unhealthy patterns of hiding shame and controlling life.

As I ponder those places in my life, my heart is tender to those God will place under my care next week. There will be moments to grieve with them and moments to rejoice the victories of hard fought battles to bring to new life to what was lost in the past.

Wish you were coming along – it’s going to be quite a week of Resurrection! You can journey with us by praying over me and the team. I’d love that! There have been many changes in the recent months at Open Hearts Ministry and we are embarking on lots of “new”. Evil has noticed. Would you join "The Journey" with your prayers for us, both the team and the participants coming to experience the “new” God has for all of us?

Precarious

The recent weeks have been precarious for me. Webster defines precarious as “dependent upon the will or favor of another person”. Another description is “dependent upon circumstances; uncertain, insecure”.

Some of the words don’t resonate well with me – some because they aren’t true for me and some because they are.

I have caught myself being dependent upon the will or favor of another to the point of performing in ways I hope will make others find good favor in me, to treat me with kindness, and to desire to be in community with me. This performance mode allows little space for the real me to emerge. When I am not treated with kindness and I continue to allow it, I’m exposing at a deep level what I believe my value is – not much if I allow my value to continually be challenged by the harshness of others.

Dependent upon circumstances; uncertain and insecure? As long as I’m manipulating life to have the outcome I want, I’m not exercising much trust in God to show up and write the story as He knows best.

Today is a rememberance of the death of Christ on the cross. He went there so I could live with impact and with authenticity. He took my sins with Him. But I’ve held on to some in selfishness and fear.

The person I am desiring to be dependent upon is God. I know I have His favor, even when I screw up. I don’t have to perform to receive His acceptance. He longs to be in community with me.

The circumstances swirling around me are at times uncertain and certainly insecure. What I’ve done to hide and cover that pain is a sin I need to take to the cross and leave there. My security is not found here in people or circumstances. And the hope of my future is secure. I may not yet see the title of the coming chapters of my life, but I can stop trying to flip to the last pages of the book to read the ending. I can stop dressing up my reality or manipulating circumstances to change the way the outcome appears.

I can instead live in trust that the ending will be glorious because that’s what God says I am – GLORIOUS!

As I ponder Christ’s sacrifice for me on the Cross today – my way of honoring that sacrifice is to purpose to live today and the days coming with faith and trust. God is my author and finisher and in Him I place my trust. Precarious yes, uncertain, yes, insecure – NOPE!