The Story of Dorian Gray

Remember the story of Dorian Gray? 

I remember reading this in school and feeling sorry for Dorian when the portrait was found and the magic reversed.  What a horrible thing to have happen!  But, now being older, I feel that that was the only just thing that could have happened.

Fast forward to my becoming reborn in Him, and learning the true meaning of sin; Sin is not just bad acts or thoughts, it is evil and ugly!  And so, now, put yourself in the place of Dorian in that story.  We want to stay “beautiful” and not bear the ugliness and horror of sin, but on our own, we cannot do that. 

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV

Ginny Owens Call Me Beautiful Lyrics

I've been waiting
For a hero who's brave and strong-
Someone to love me,
Someone to tell me I belong,
So I pretend I'm satisfied,
And I stand watching on the sidelines,
Till You pull me into the light
And say, "It's Your turn now,
Welcome to your life!"

(Chorus)
And You call me beautiful,
And say You've loved me all along,
And You've always held the keys to unlock my soul
Oh You call me beautiful

Wow!  Remember being a kid and being told to “wipe that [fill in the blank] off your face?”  Well, He wipes that ugly right out of our lives.  That is the only way that we can be in His presence, without the ugly of sin.  That is why God had to turn his face away from Christ on the cross, He couldn’t bear the ugly in His presence.

Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
   you cannot tolerate wrongdoing.
Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?
   Why are you silent while the wicked
   swallow up those more righteous than themselves? Habakkuk 1:13 NIV

Chris Tomlin – Jesus Messiah  

He became sin
Who knew no sin
That we might become His Righteousness
He humbled himself and carried the cross

Amazing!  As Chris sings it – “Love so amazing!”  We live our lives and make the sin happen, sometimes inadvertently, sometimes deliberately, but someone else has paid the price for it.  We have done nothing to deserve it, can do nothing to earn it, but we can ask for it.

Casting Crowns - Jesus, friend of sinners

Jesus Friend of sinners we have strayed so far away
We cut down people in your name but the sword was never ours to swing
Jesus friend of sinners the truth's become so hard to see
The world is on their way to You but they're tripping over me
Always looking around but never looking up I'm so double minded
A plank eyed saint with dirty hands and a heart divided

Third Day - Call My Name 

When you feel like you're alone in your sadness
It seems like no one else in this whole world cares
And you want to get away from the madness
You just call My name and I'll be there
You just call My name and I'll be there

Jesus said, “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, poured into your lap. For the measure you use, it will be measured to you,” (Luke 6:38).

Third Day - What Have You Got To Lose?

Sin and shame
Guilt and pain
Pride and your conceit
Here and now
Lay them down
At the Savior's feet

Jesus was given to be the pure lamb, the lamb with no blemish, to cover all sins for those who only will believe and follow Him.  That’s it! 

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:17 NIV

So, all Dorian had to do was to realize that outward beauty means nothing, as it is the inward beauty that will shine forth and show what kind of a person you really are!

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”[a] made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6

I may not always like looking in the mirror, those pesky extra pounds may weigh me down (literally and figuratively), but I can always shine forth true beauty.  And like I stated in my last post, this true beauty can also be a mirror that can help wash away the lies that others are seeing themselves through and let Him shine forth in all of us.

Third Day - I'll Be Your Miracle

I'll be the one that's standing next to you
I'll be the one that's gonna help you make it through
When everybody else has gone
I'll be the one that's holding you

When you're down and you're falling fast
And you feel like your hope won't last
You know that I'll be your miracle

Thank you, Father, for the lamb that in no way deserved to pay for my ugliness, my sins, my taint.  Thank you for standing in my place at that cross, for taking on the punishment of the crimes, as related to Dorian Gray, the ugliness of the painting of my life, and washing it clean.

The word is mightier than you might think, forget the sword!

I read something on Facebook this morning that resonated with me:

“Our words become the mirrors in which other people see themselves.”  The Power of a Woman’s Words by Sharon Jaynes

Imagine that – what we say can directly affect how someone actually views themselves.  So, that tongue is a sword and you want to make sure it is sheathed!  Then, as I was contemplating those words, those powerful, powerful words, I heard this song:

Rascal Flatts

These words:

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
And while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but ya never forget,
All the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
And you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
And you always give more than you take.

And those words really made me think and show that first statement.  I want to be that mirror and show that wish to someone!

Sidewalk Prophets - Live Like That

Was I love
When no one else would show up
Was I Jesus to the least of those
Was my worship more than just a song

Am I proof
That You are who you say You are
That grace can really change a heart
Do I live like Your love is true

People pass
And even if they don't know my name
Is there evidence that I've been changed
When they see me, do they see You

I want to live like that
And give it all I have
So that everything I say and do
Points to You

So, my challenge for you today – go out and be a mirror and a light.  Show someone, not how they see themselves, but how God sees them.  Be His mirror!

What if you believed?

I went to a funeral the other day – volunteers were requested to line the path from the funeral home to the cemetery with flags to show gratitude and recognition of the sacrifice this young soldier made to our freedom.  So I went, and I stood, and I cried – and I saw.

The windows in the family car behind the hearse are always tinted dark so that you cannot see in to their grief.  But I was so close, I saw.  I saw the stunned wonder, amazement, profound grief, and gratitude to those standing for their lost one, for the recognition given of their sacrifice.

There is a song that I have heard, that for the family of a fallen veteran, will bring you to your knees:   James Wesley - Real

We acknowledge fallen soldiers with processions and flags and tears.  We say goodbye and share their grief.  But, that got me to thinking – how do we do this for the One that sacrificed all for us?  Which made me think of another song:   Jeremy Camp - Would you take the place

Would we?  Could we?  I try very hard to be honest with myself and would like to say I would try, but I know the answer to the second question would be no.  If I have trouble dealing with my own issues and struggles, how on Earth would I take on everyone’s struggles and pain for all of time, past, present and future?  There just is no way.

So, how do we acknowledge what was been given to us so freely?  First off, just by saying, I am a sinner and you died for me and my sins and I thank you, Father, for this wonderful and so undeserved gift.  After that, it really is up to each person to decide how to show our recognition and gratitude for this gift and sacrifice.  Some take up foreign ministries, while others do the same at home.  Some quietly give without wanting personal recognition, while still others seek out ways to give in which they are seen but turn all recognition of their actions to the One who saved them.

How do you show your gratitude and recognition of His gift?   Third Day: Take My Life

Father, I believe!  Joe Nichols - If nobody believed in you

I am so a Gomer, how about you?!?

Gomer in the Bible: Hosea 1:3
Gomer was the wife of Hosea, one of the prophets of the Old Testament. Hosea married the adulterous Gomer because God told him to. Their marriage and children provided a ready example to the Israelite people of their relationship to God.

Hosea 1:1-3 (New International Version)

The word of the LORD that came to Hosea son of Beeri during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and during the reign of Jeroboam son of Jehoash king of Israel:

When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the LORD.”  So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim,

Hosea 3:1-3 (New International Version)

Hosea’s Reconciliation With His Wife

 The LORD said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”

 So I bought her for fifteen shekels^[a] of silver and about a homer and a lethek^[b] of barley.  Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”

A wonderful friend bought me the book “Redeeming Love” by Francine Rivers and I couldn’t put it down!  It was fantastic, such a wonderful love story, and then the hammer hit – this was exactly what God’s love for us is, has been described in the verses above, but it took a whole book, fiction at that, to get it thru my thick head.   It is so hard to imagine that Angel, or Gomer, would have gone back to that life, right?  We wouldn’t, would we?  Or would we?

• Drug addictions
• Abusive spouses
• Gambling
• Approval addict (hand raised high here!)
• Sexual addictions
• Theft
• Comparing yourself to others and left feeling inadequate (again, hand raised high!)
• Listening to the wrong “little” voice
• Living beyond our means

Need I go on?  But why, why keep going back?

Dixie Chicks "Am I the Only One"

Psalm 50:15 (New International Version)

and call on me in the day of trouble;
   I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

Casting Crowns “Blessed Redeemer”

Rich Mullins “Hold me, Jesus”

I am also reading Max Lucado’s, “It’s not about me,” and on page 122 he writes:

Your pain has a purpose.  Your problems, struggles, heartaches, and hassles cooperate toward one end – the glory of God.  

In a way, we are all Gomer.  We keep going back to what hurts us.  And Hosea?  He kept forgiving Gomer, kept going and getting her back and restoring her as his wife.  Kind of like Hosanna – our Father.

Matthew West “Strong Enough”

Both "hosanna" and the biblical name "Hosea" come from the same root word, which is the Hebrew "hosia," meaning "to save" or "to deliver." Hosanna is an appeal for salvation, and actually means "deliver us." (http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/2200121)

Third Day fans are called “Gomers” and I loved it!  We DON’T deserve the mercy or grace, but “Redeeming Love” made me see it even more.  And the best part of having read it – the book was a gift from a friend who wanted to share the beauty of His grace.

Kutless “Redeemer”

My Time as Job

Life has really been hard lately, been hammering hard at me, and someone told me that I am having a Job experience.  Know that experience?  Murphy’s law – if it can go wrong, it will?  And this feeling:

I don’t even want to breathe right now –or- I don’t even want to be right now.

Steven Curtis Chapman – I will Trust You

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsVYeUTVMQs)

I was driving home from work one day, just broken, and heard this on the radio:

There will be a day with no more tears
No more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place
Will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face
But until that day, we'll hold on to you always

Jeremy Camp – There Will Be a Day

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8gkDiTvloc)

Ok, here come the tears, and have to pull over.  You know, maybe this person was right.  I am in my Job moment.  Queue the stamping of feet!  I don’t want this!  I don’t want to have people keep asking me for money, time, work, etc.  I wanted to have an Elijah moment, go out in a blaze of glory, not get hammered into the ground.  I realized that I am under spiritual attack.  And, I am tired of it.  So –

When you feel like you're alone in your sadness
It seems like no one else in this whole world cares
And you want to get away from the madness
You just call My name and I'll be there
You just call My name and I'll be there

Third Day – Call My Name

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp5PZuuB3Pg)

And –

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He'll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

Third Day – Cry Out to Jesus

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmVxRl5bc4Y)

So, I started pleading, but realize that I might need to go thru this, it may be part of the plan, so –

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

Laura Story – Blessings

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGniRk_GcLs)

What if?  It could be.

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

Chorus:
And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

Casting Crowns – Praise you in this storm

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHdcyue0bSw)

So, I cry out, I call His name:

Well, sometimes my life
Just don't make sense at all
When the mountains look so big
And my faith just seems so small

CHORUS:
So hold me Jesus, 'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King of my glory
Won't You be my Prince of Peace
Rich Mullins – Hold me Jesus

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O9v3ba1qzY)

So, I will stand as strong as I can, or only go down as far as my knees, the strongest the position for a Christian.  And I will sing along with one of my favorite guys, and if he can live thru what he did, then I can to.

Out of these ashes beauty will rise
We will dance among the ruins
We will see it with our own eyes
Out of these ashes beauty will rise
For we know joy is coming in the morning
In the morning beauty will rise
Steven Curtis Chapman – Beauty Will Rise

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=el-UboNj_nQ)

I can’t just “snap out of it!”

Psalm 69:1

Save me, O God,

for the waters have come up to my neck.

Ever feel this way?  I know that I have.  I also have emails from inspirational writers and speakers that talk about their times in “the pit.”  I have friends right now that are sliding into this pit, or just slowly working their way out, and it takes time.

From Girlfriends in God,  January 21, 2009, this was written:

“In the pit, it is so dark that we cannot see.  All we can do is wait, trust and rest.  In the midst of my depression, I began to discover that darkness is a great place of solitude.  Distractions are few.  when the Light comes, it is easier to see and the silence makes His voice clear and strong.”  (this was part 1 of a 3 part series, and absolutely healing.  I kept it and made it part of my depression journal, to help me work my way out of the pit.)

I so understood this!  That pit is dark, the sides so slippery to try and climb out of ourselves.  And life keeps driving us even when we are sliding down into the pit and can’t get out.

I am still reading “Joy in Jesus”, spending time reading this, portioning it out to get the most out of it and this was the chapter and verse this time, clinical depression, and how it is viewed in the world.  David Marshall opened the chapter with what one poor woman had been asked when she went in for help:  “Have you confessed your sin of depression yet?”  Like she had done something wrong and was being punished in this manner!?!  And this was from someone in authority in a church.

There are many advertisements on television now that speak to depression, maybe you have seen and heard this one:

• Where does depression hurt?  Everywhere
• Who does depression hurt?  Everyone

David states and quotes:  Recent studies of more than 11,000 cases have verified that depression is more physically and socially disabling than arthritis, diabetes, lung disease, chronic back problems, hypertension and gastrointestinal illness.” (This is from a JAMA article on depression)

It can be such a chore to eat, to get out of bed, and getting dressed?  You have got to be kidding.  There were many days that I would make it into work, and then sit here with tears running down my face, and if anyone had asked me why (and no one did!), I couldn’t have told you why.  It just was.

David then asked another question in this section called “Low Tide and Darkness”:  If instead f clinical depression I had said bowel cancer or brain tumour, [she] would have had your instant empathy.  But how do you feel about clinical depression?”

Where is it written that just because you believe, that you are a “happy camper”, that all is right with the world if only you believe?!?  It isn’t.  And in this kind of situation, choosing joy really isn’t an option.  Most days, you get up and can tell yourself that you are going to have a good day, and you will.  But in the pit, there is no saying today will be good.  It is just a day, yet another day.

He tells us of some of the greatest minds in history that have suffered from depression:  Martin luther, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, J. B. Phillips, Paul, Elijah, and Jesus. 

Yes, JESUS.  At Calvary, when he cried out:  My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?  This cry by Jesus is teaching us what we need to do in this – cry out!  Third Day sang about it:

To everyone who's lost someone they love

Long before it was their time

You feel like the days you had were not enough

when you said goodbye

And to all of the people with burdens and pains

Keeping you back from your life

You believe that there's nothing and there is no one

Who can make it right

Chorus

There is hope for the helpless

Rest for the weary

Love for the broken heart

There is grace and forgiveness

Mercy and healing

He'll meet you wherever you are

Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

For the marriage that's struggling just to hang on

They lost all of their faith and love

They've done all they can to make it right again

Still it's not enough

For the ones who can't break the addictions and chains

You try to give up but you come back again

Just remember that you're not alone in your shame

And your suffering

Chorus

When your lonely (when you're lonely)

And it feels like the whole world is falling on you

You just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus

Cry to Jesus

To the widow who suffers from being alone

Wiping the tears from her eyes

For the children around the world without a home

Say a prayer tonight

Chorus

There is nothing wrong with any one of us that has been in that pit, and because we have spent time there, we can offer helping hands to those that are there, but we must remember to tell them, they can’t get out on their own, they will need help, and the best help is to Cry out to HIM!

2012 - is it the end?

Per Nostradamus, the world should have already ended.  Per the Mayan calendar, the world will end next year.  Should we look for the end, wait for it, look for those portents and signs?  Someone recently asked me what I thought of all the prophecies about the end of the world, was I trying to figure out when the world would end?

In a simple response - No.

Why?

From "The Dance" by Garth Brooks:
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes, my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance

You must endure many hardships in order to enter the Kingdom of God
Acts 14:22

So, with my head held high, whether in pain or joy, I won't be looking for the end and missing life.  For while I could do without the pain and the trials, I would miss out on what went with it.

"This" by Darius Rucker
Maybe it didn't turn out like I planned
Maybe that's why I'm such, such a lucky man
(Chorus)
For every stoplight I didn't make
Every chance I did or I didn't take
All the nights I went too far
All the girls that broke my heart
All the doors that I had to close
All the things I knew but I didn't know
Thank God for all I missed
Cause it led me here to
This

This testing of your faith develops perseverance and perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature, complete, not lacking anything. James 1

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  James 1:1-2 (NIV)