Hacked or Hoodwinked

A recent event has left me stirred, perplexed and extremely concerned, and so should we all be.

Many will be familiar with the social media post that went viral a few weeks ago that started with one person sending another a message that they had likely been hacked and that someone may have cloned their profile. The post offered instructions as to how to remedy the fact that their data and imagery may have been compromised, which included letting all your friends know.

Within hours, I received multiple dozen messages from friends instructing me to change my password, avoid accepting any new friend requests, beware, be alert, and pass it on. When I received the first one, I was standing next to a friend. I asked her to search my profile on social media. She did. There was only one me. I began deleting all of the warnings and alerts I had received and ignored the advice. Problem solved.

However, after seeing the viral response that occurred and how many people were anxious, concerned and panicked over a prank, I began to see a real and valid threat.

Matthew 24:4-14 TPT says,  Jesus answered, “At that time deception will run rampant. So beware that you are not fooled! For many will appear on the scene claiming my authority or saying about themselves, ‘I am God’s Anointed,’ and they will lead many astray. You will hear of wars nearby and revolutions on every side, with more rumors of wars to come. Don’t panic or give in to your fears, for the breaking apart of the world’s systems is destined to happen. But it won’t yet be the end; it will still be unfolding. Nations will go to war against each other and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be terrible earthquakes—seismic events of epic proportion, horrible epidemics and famines in place after place. This is how the first contractions and birth pains of the new age will begin! You can expect to be persecuted, even killed; for you will be hated by all the nations because of your love for me. Then many will stop following me and fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many lying prophets will arise, deceiving multitudes and leading them away from the path of truth. There will be such an increase of sin and lawlessness that those whose hearts once burned with passion for God and others will grow cold. But keep your hope to the end and you will experience life and deliverance. Yet through it all, this joyful assurance of the realm of heaven’s kingdom will be proclaimed all over the world, providing every nation with a demonstration of the reality of God. And after this the end of this age will arrive.”

As we look about, we can see that these words have life in them. There is a harsh reality  revealed here in something that was written many years ago. I see people feeding like piranhas on the words of others and passing those words along as quickly as they are read or heard. And I am bothered by it. Lies have a way of weaving a thread from person to person in no time at all, and the primary reason this is so easily done, is selfishness. People are so focused on their own needs, traumas, threats, struggles and trials that they have no buffer to keep them from instantly bowing to ‘panic and giving in to their fears”.

As my cousin, Lenn said, “Satan shows us the bait, but not the trap.” Profound!

John 8:32 says, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free,” and Acts 17:11 says, “This was evident in the great eagerness with which they accepted the word and examined the scriptures each day to see whether Paul’s teaching was true.” The best way to avoid deception is to know the truth. It is essential today that we verify anything taught or shared with us to discern or understand whether or not it is truth, because there are many deceivers. Do your research; communicate with those you trust to lead you to the truth; don’t take everything others share with you as sound, unless confirmed, and thereby live in joyful assurance. Peace be with you.

 

 

I Am Yours

So I call out Your name, from the rooftops I proclaim that I am Yours…

Selah – More of You

We have had enough of getting everything we want
We are weary of living this life just for us
Oh, forgive us all for seeking Your hand and not Your face
Come and empty us, Father, we are desperate in this place…..

Spreading Our Wings

As this year comes to its close and I reflect on everything that the Lord has done in our lives, I see clearly that it has been a year of transition. In birthing, transition is the shortest phase of labor, yet it is the most intense and the most uncomfortable part of the birthing process. The major emotional marker during this phase is the sense or perception of being out of control and feeling completely helpless. It is said that it is essential for one to be reminded during this phase that they are in transition, as it helps them to handle the increased intensity.

The Lord has led us through some major life changes in this season redefining our priorities, redirecting our path, and even making a career change. Through every step of this process, we have experienced pressure, emotional highs and lows, and feelings of loss and exhilaration all at the same time. We have experience intense levels of character development, faith building and trust. Yet through all of it God was there bringing words of encouragement, guidance and hope. It is through the grace of God alone that we were able to handle such a year of change.

The eagle is considered to be one of the strongest creatures in flight and can carry an object weighing as much as itself. It has the ability to soar to heights of more than 10,000 feet. Its nest is built in the highest part of a cliff and can weigh up to two tons, built strong enough to weather and endure the elements and the strong gusts of wind that come with high altitudes, because the nest is built inside the cleft of a rock. An eagle will fly in the midst of a storm, undaunted and seemingly unaffected by the elements, soaring even higher and appearing to challenge the ferocity of the storm with courage and tranquility, flying with grace into the wind and catching the updraft again and again.

I’ve realized that as we have walked through this period of growth and maturing in our spiritual and natural lives, the Lord has surrounded us with an amazing family and awesome friends to lend encouragement and support, and to help us face the wind with courage and an eagerness to see new horizons. He’s given us His word and the Holy Spirit to be our guide and our comfort, and brought new heights to our relationship with Him in the process. And He has lit up our world with His glory and grace to remind us of His unchanging and unending love.

We are thankful for each of you that we call friend and family. Our prayer for you in the coming year is His prayer for us as He prepared to fulfill His destiny, “Now Father, I’m saying these things in the world’s hearing So My people can experience My joy completed in them. I gave them Your word; Make them holy—consecrated with the truth; Your word is consecrating truth. In the same way that You gave Me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world. I’m consecrating Myself for their sake so they’ll be truth-consecrated in their mission. I’m praying not only for them but also for those who will believe in Me because of them and their witness about Me. The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind — just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, so they might be one heart and mind with us. Then the world might believe that You, in fact, sent Me. The same glory you gave Me, I gave them, so they’ll be as unified and together as we are — I in them and You in Me. Then they’ll be mature in this oneness, and give the godless world evidence that You’ve sent Me and loved them in the same way You’ve loved Me.” John 17:13-23 MSG

Gifts

A word of wisdom from my dear cousin!

Gloryteller

At Christmastime, when I was a boy, my dad understood the relative poverty of his children, so he would give us each a small amount of money to be spent on gifts for the other family members.  What was a small amount to him was a small fortune to us, so we each happily shopped with Mom and picked out trinkets and treasures for our siblings and parents.  Wrapping the gifts was fun, but the best part was the excited anticipation we had for Christmas morning when the family would partake in what we children had built in our minds to be the Olympics of giving and receiving.  It was as good as it gets, and after all the unwrapping, and showing, and laughing, and modelling, and cheering, and thanking, we all felt richer and more blessed than we were before.  But it was Dad and Mom, I think, who…

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A Love Story

She heard that day that he was in town, and she thought, “I’ve just got to see him! I feel like I know so much about him from what everyone has told me, and he sounds like all that I’ve dreamed of!” The only thing holding her back was that she knew when she got there that no one was going to want her around. She was looked down upon by so many, despised by others, and actually hated by even more. They would not be happy to see her. So what should she do? This, she knew, was her one chance to find out if he was THE ONE, that special man, who was just for her. Yet, she knew that he was famous, always surrounded by such a crowd of people, there was nowhere he went that his presence didn’t cause a stir. People thronged him, everyone wanting to be close, to get his attention. Getting anywhere near him would be a hard thing to do, like riding on a sea of bodies, all determined to be first in line, and aggressive in their persistence. What if she got there and couldn’t get close enough to see him? What if she did get close enough, and he totally ignored her? What if her presence there even went so far as to make him angry, or make the others angry enough to call her out? But she had to find out, she just had this feeling that this was the day, this was her time. It would be all right. It just had to be, she was desperate. She felt drawn to him and she knew that she needed him like she had never needed before, and at the same time she wondered how it was that she knew that if she’d never even met him, they’d never been introduced or even been in the same group of people before. What was she thinking? Even while this war was going on in her mind, her feet carried her to the place where he was. She was right, there were a lot of people there. She began to make her way through the crowd, taking each opportunity of a person shifting on their feet to gain ground, moving a little further ahead, weaving her way through like a thread on fabric, I’ve just got to get from beginning to end. As she got closer, all movement stopped. The people were packed so tight together, she could go no further. But wait, think! There has to be a way. Tuck in a little, stoop down, she kept striving, little by little, inching closer to him. And again, a sudden stop, no more ground to gain. But she was so close this time, she could see him, hear him, and literally FEEL him that close to her. She couldn’t let him get away without finding out. She could hardly breathe, the crowd was so closely bound together. One more try, she pressed in, stretched and worked and reached out her arm, working her way to the ground, and suddenly……SHE WAS HEALED! Luke 8:40-48

Insight from 1965

Very sobering. How little did he know how his words would ring true.

Paul Harvey 1965

CARRY ME

He’s always there for you…

I BELIEVE

There’s so much to be said about the power of reaching out to someone and sharing your story. Do you remember who it was that told you theirs? I miss porch swings and people sitting out in their yards on a summer evening watching their children at play. Sometimes I wonder if anyone sits still long enough today to even figure out what they believe. This song speaks of the words written in red – the red printed text in the Bible – the words of Jesus given to bring us life.

NOT EVEN ONCE

Sharing some thoughts from a fellow blogger:

Not even once