Tag: Forgiveness

pressing in for mercy

Karla Lees

This morning I responded snappily to an ongoing stressful situation.  I didn’t pay attention the reminder which flashed into my mind to just listen, but instead instantly reacted.

Again.

As someone who believes how we use our words can bring life, I am likely harder on myself all the more because I know better & know He desires for me to live His Words.

But You delight in showing mercy,
and mercy triumphs over judgment.

When I get overwhelmed at times, I forget to:
stop.
pause.
breathe.
pray.
listen.
wait.
then speak.

When I fail & speak sarcastically, with hurtful words, I become undone once i take a second to process what i have just done, knowing I may have wounded someone I care for.

But You delight in showing mercy,
and mercy triumphs over judgment.

You whisper loving words to invite me back to Your embrace, into Your Stronghold of safety where I can come & be washed clean of the stain of my sinful words.

My past embraced
My sin forgiven
I’m blameless in Your sight
My history rewritten

When I bring all of me before You, You are quite well aware of each of the wrong doings, flaws & gaps existing within me, alongside the gifts You are awakening.

You embrace me anyways.

There will never be a day
You’re uncertain
of the ones You choose

You know me & chose me long before I even came to be.

There is no surprise to You of what I am like, for Your Holy Spirit indwelling me means You are constantly aware of what is going on within me.

You are personally invested in me. Your Beloved.

And once You clean me up & lift me back up again, all i desire to do is spend my life celebrating You. You love me so You even took the judgment upon Yourself so I would no longer carry it.

So I will awake
and spend my days
Loving the One who has raised me up
From death to life
From wrong to right
You’re making all things beautiful

Even me.

Mercy found me but didn’t leave me there.

He helps me move beyond what I believe is possible into the expanse of His possibilities…all things are possible for the endless God who sticks with me through all my days.

You delight in showing mercy
and Mercy triumphs over judgment.

PS. The quoted text today are the lyrics from the one song that whammied over the head & grabbed my heart’s attention Monday night.  The song is Mercy, by Amanda Cook, of Bethel Music, on her yet to be released CD BraveNewWorld. A definite must hear for those of you, who like me, struggle to receive the costly but precious gift of mercy God offers us all.

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God is…unconditional

Karla Lees

God so loved the WORLD (and each one living on it) that He gave up His only Son, Jesus, to die for ALL their wrongs & mistakes and make them whole again. Anyone who believes in Jesus & accepts this love giving gift will become His Beloved, forever.

John 3:16 (paraphrase mine)

Your name’s  included.

The truth we try to talk ourselves out of when we think what we did was so terrible, God must have made an exception and excluded us.

Not so, Beloved.

Each person ever’s name is on His love list.

His love is unconditionally offered.

No strings attached.

It just needs to be received.

What good is an engagement ring left in its box in your dresser drawer, never opened.

It would hard to know your fiance loves you if he left your ring to be randomly discovered whenever.

God isn’t like that at all.

His love unconditionally pursues each and every one of us, all of our days.

Always.

He takes in the tax collectors, fishermen, rabbi rejects, accountants with hidden agendas, murderers, stutterers, foreigners, prostitutes…those who all have brokenness & great need of Him.

He accepts what they have to bring.

Unconditionally.

When Mary sister of Martha came & broke the expensive jar of exquisite perfume and anointed Jesus’ feet with it, mixed with her tears? She offered her best to honor the One who not only saved her brother from the grave, but was headed to the cross to take all our sin upon Himself, without condition. 

She understood what all those who sat at that same table missed…

Unconditional love deserves unswerving love, offering & devotion in return.

Today, soak in the knowledge that you are included in His plans for this world. Your name is written in His hands, upon His heart and unconditional love glows in His eyes as He looks at you. May you never lose sight of this truth the rest of your days.

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wading through persuasion

Karla Lees

So many times, on our hesitation to act, we can allow ourselves to become persuaded.

If the counsel is prudent, we may avoid trouble ahead. If the counsel is not, we might be acquiring more than we bargained for.

In the novel Persuasion, Anne Elliot has a whirlwind romance at the age of 19 with a naval officer, Frederick Wentworth, yet to begin his adventures at sea.

When he proposes so soon after meeting, Anne is unsure what to do. I believe the fact her level headed mother had found herself quickly married to a handsome baronet (who only thought of his own vanity & societal positioning), she may have been raised being warned of a quick match. Her father immediately rejected his suit due to Frederick’s lack of social standing & wealth.

Anne sought counsel from her mother’s best friend, Last Russell, as to whether she should follow her heart or not. Anne accepted Lady Russell’s wisdom in saying no, in her being too young, and the suitor had not yet made his way on the world, and so broke the engagement.

Instead of praying about it, she sought earthly clarifaction for in fact the major decision any young woman at the time could make. She didn’t have enough faith to pursue what He might have to say in this most important decision.

Frederick was understandably persuaded she did not return his affection, which was untrue.

8 years pass, and they have both harbored resentment alongside their broken hearts when they chance to meet again.

Anne is not the same timid young woman she was at 19.
Now Captain Wentworth, Frederick has made his fortune on the seas, and now commandeers respect for his choice of career.

In the small circle of acquaintances & family they find themselves traveling with, they soon come to learn over a six month period how they Ned to forgive, and are persuaded by their own thoughts & circumstances to give love another chance.

I an happy to say, Anne refuses to listen as people attempt to persuade her not to accept the Captain.

How does this relate to us, today, in the real world?

We too are distracted and regularly persuaded in our society & culture.

The media not so subtly persuades us to believe everything at first glance without in-depth study or knowledge.

Unsure as to who we really are, we tend to seek counsel in our peers or those we admire in an attempt to persuade ourselves what to do, or not to do, in a situation or choice.

The enemy is also on the prowl, on the look out for how he can persuade us to step off the path of safety. He longs for nothing more than to make us stumble, or be caught unawares by the consequences of what he is persuading us to give in to.

We tend to rattle things through our minds,  emotions and by those around us instead of seeking the One who knows us best, and has only the best plans for us.

Do you again need to be persuaded of His absolute passion for you?

His ardor never failing, His grip never slipping, His intentions only for your/my good.

His love for us displayed on the cross was the absolute display meant to persuade us all of just how much He loves us.

He needs not do anymore to persuade us.

He spent from the Garden of Eden to the Garden of Golgotha persuading His people of His love, until He took the most radical step to finally persuade us, once and for all.

I believe God knows we are like sheep, and have a tendency to only look around us, instead of at the Shepherd taking care of us.

Its time to be persuaded to seek Him first.

It is hard to be in love with someone who doesn’t spend time with you, who takes off at the first sign of trouble, and is easily persuaded through false sources that you don’t love them.

One would think God to be tired of persuading us.

However, His Spirit is constantly at work doing just that.

Reminding us how much He loves us.

As if each of us was His only love.

Persuading us to come, spend time with Him, and believe Him.

Allowing ourselves to be persuaded to follow where He leads.

Our Groom awaits His Bride, longing for her to become secure in His devotion.

Will you allow yourself to be persuaded by the One who is worthy to do so?

I-Have-Loved-None-But-You-persuasion-5170909-1024-768

 

 

lining up where I shouldn’t

Karla Lees

Don’t compare yourself to others. Compare yourself only to the person you were yesterday. @toddclark

The comparison trap will cause me to believe what I see, and forget what I know. Beth Kinder  www.strongholdthebook.com

I have a problem with my mirror. Maybe you can relate.

My mirror doesn’t show just my reflection, but lines me up beside others I compare myself to, every time i approach it.

In fact, I can’t remember a time besides my wedding day, that i looked in the mirror and just saw me.

Until yesterday.

I decided after having some fun with matching my red undertones for an all over foxy red these past eight months to head back to my roots.  Which are a dirty blonde with i suspect a few streaks of grey.  I am trying to simplify my life, and fussing with hair dye every time my roots show is too high maintenance for me (but that is me, if you can do it, bless you!)

After my daughter helped get all the dye on, i realized that as I was looking in the mirror, I was wondering what people would think if the grey starts coming in as I let my hair go natural.

Then i thought of a few women i know who always have perfect coiffed hair, as my nana would say.  Without a hair out of place.

And as my mind began to wander down that path, this time i caught myself, as i reminded myself of a quote that came to mind:

Not my circus, not my monkeys.

I don’t need to worry or compare myself to others, because let’s face it, everybody is struggling with something.  Just because it can’t be seen on the outside, doesn’t mean it isn’t there on the inside.

I am tired of judging myself by people’s standards, and lining their opinions up beside me in the mirror.

I choose His standard for me, which is Jesus.

I choose His design for me, which is unique.

I matter to Him, because of His timely & costly investment in me.

I don’t have to compare myself to anyone, but rather I choose listen to His heart for me, which is to live free & close to Him.  I choose to change the things He is most concerned about uprooting from me, and embrace the newness He has waiting for me.

Quite frankly, my hair color, or my extra weight, or my freckles, or my naked nails are between God & me.

Stop allowing the enemy to invite other people into the conversation God wants to have with you alone.

It was quite a jolt to my mind to realize where my thoughts naturally start to wander.

And they wandered back to a particularly hurtful grade 7 classmate, who embarrassed me in front of the whole class through her writing about me. Which I believed has been fully dealt with, not!

God reminded me today that the reason there was still an entry point for the enemy was due to my harboring unforgiveness, and shared with me that the person wasn’t trying to be deliberately cruel as it came across, but was very insecure & jealous and was trying to knock me out of competition for our mutual friend’s affection.

By my not forgiving her as a person, but just the action, I allowed a piece of the root to remain, and the enemy has been nurturing it to grow down deep over the years.

I am so done with that!

So i pray,

“God, I fully and completely forgive S___________. I believe Your blood is more than enough to forgive all my sins, and I extend the same mercy to her that You extended to me. Full & utter forgiveness in Jesus’ mighty name.  Wherever she is, I ask You to release Your Spirit to whisper the truths You long for her to hear into her mind, heart & spirit.  I ask You to restore to me the joy I had in being myself, in embracing who You designed & called me to be.  Uproot the enemy plant You have just destroyed, and release a fresh sense of Your wholeness and peace where it used to live.  May I ever delight in hearing Your words spoken over me. May I ever trust in You as the Lover of my Soul.  May i never lose the wonder of knowing how much YOU delight in ME. May I continually bring the things which are breaking me down & place them into Your hands for You to build me up. Where the enemy played for harm, restore Your goodness & purpose in my life.  Blessed be the Lord!  I pray this as one of Your beloved, Abba.  In Jesus’ name, and Holy Spirit power. Amen.”

Instead of letting ourselves see just our outer beauty, let’s join God in seeing His hand & move in our lives.  As children of the King, as the beloved bride of God, let’s allow the Lion of Judah to arise within, and move forward in the confidence of who we really are.

self-improvement

No matter what we look like its who we are inside that truly counts.

His handiwork.

His child.

His delight,

His beloved.

His!

snapshots along the way: broken to Passover

Karla Lees

1 Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe.3 They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. 4 Pilate went out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” 5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” 6 When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.” 7 The Jews[a] answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” 8 When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid.9 He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

12 From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” 13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic[b] Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour.[c] He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified.  John 19:1-16 (ESV)

While the preparations were under way for Passover, Jesus was preparing to sit at a different table.

Pilate might have thought he was the ultimate judge on the judgment seat at Gabbatha, but the real Judge would be raised up at Golgatha.

He knew there was no other way for us to pay the price for our costly sin.

Don’t you realize that He tried every other way

Throughout the Scriptures, God continued to try and save as many of His people as He could.

Through deliverance, answered prayer, prophets, the Kings – God never stopped rescuing His people from themselves.

He  knew it would take an ultimate act only by His hand to release the freedom only He could command.

He could not pass-over the sins of the world any longer.

The Passover blood, previously seen as a symbol of death passing over became the full blown expression of His heart accepting the sacrifice of His own Son’s live giving blood for us to be restored.

As His life flowed out, our life, our real life, could begin.

The Lamb went willingly to the cross, enduring the betrayals, strikes, blows, beating, humiliation & mocking which we should have received.

For even on the cross, in dreadful pain, He could not help trying to save those he came to set free.

The thieves, His best friend, His mother…. and all of us yet to be.

The cost?  One sacrifice paid the debt humanity had built up against the very one who set the plan in motion from the beginning of time.

He was broken, to death to appease the Law.

And for a split second after He breathed His last labored breath, and gave Himself up to His plan, the enemy thought he had won.

50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, & the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city & appeared to many. 54 When the centurion and those who were with him,keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake & what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” Matthew 27:50-54

And with His death, there was immediate victory released, although the best was yet to come.   The soldiers stationed at the cross believed.

Can you imagine? You were one of the soldiers who mocked Him, flogged Him, stabbed His with your spear or forced Him to carry the cross…and after you did your job, your eyes were opened to the truth of who it was you helped to kill?

God wasn’t surprised.

It is only when we become aware of just how broken we are, and how dirty our hands are that we can acknowledge Jesus as our desperately needed Savior.

His broken body, His precious blood.

Given up for you and I.

The first Communion lived out only hours after He revealed it was to come to His disciples.

Broken so God can now Passover our sins, because the full price was paid in Jesus.

loveranred

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bind us together

Karla Lees

Like the anticipation of the arrival of spring, the Word has moving, stirring and growing deeper within me in a few areas as of late, but especially His desire for unity.

How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! Psalm 133:1

God is blessed when we live in community. Even that very word includes both the requirements for healthy community: “come” into “unity.” When we unite, God releases a blessing upon us as we come together to seek Him in community, for He draws near.

Community isn’t always pretty, but it is His design for us. I have learned the hard way that sometimes we wound one another, hold back forgiveness or gossip…because we take our eyes off of the One who binds us together, and forget to love another as He has loved us. No holds barred, with no grievances between us:

Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.  Colossians 3:13-14

When we show love to one another as Jesus did for us, while we listen for His leading, we find the differences between us start to mellow into the background, to fade behind His love as the melody uniting us together:

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as family, be compassionate and humble. 1 Peter 3:8

Living in harmony doesn’t mean we always agree, because we are all uniquely wired and gifted, but it means family is more importance than our differences.  We work it out with his help, because He desires it:

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Ephesians 4:3

As a community, we honor God when we pull together as one. For the One who died for us all is our unifying factor, the commonality which is the basis for our community as a body of believers. When we all use our gifts for His glory, not our own, our unity becomes apparent to those around us. The community at large takes notice when His people live and work together in unity.  When peace abounds instead of division and turmoil. Where we willingly submit to one another out of love, placing the needs of the body above our own. When we confess to one another our offences and flaws, and find forgiveness, true rest for our souls.

This world is screaming out self-satisfaction, for life to be all about ‘me.’ When we gather in unity to worship God, following His way and not our own, His peace can be sensed in our communities. Not only in each of us as individuals, but in our collective focus on Him. As our prayers arise to Him, asking for Him to make us one, He releases a fresh wind of His presence, and community.

May God continue to bind us together, into the One heart at the core of the body, His.

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only part of the story

Karla Lees

Oh as you run,
what hindered love
will only
become part of the story.

–Steffany Gretzinger, Come out of Hiding

A few weeks ago, I took part in a night of prophetic teaching, and one of the words spoken was the lyrics to this song.

It snuck past my defences, and opened my heart to receive the words God wanted me to hear. My tears, oh how they flowed!

I have lived my life with too much fear & regret, feeling like there are too many chapters I wish I could rip out of my story.

But looking at my life from my perspective is not what I am meant to do.

I am meant to lean into God, and press in for the promises and purpose He has for me.

Not to take a long look back at what was, but to keep my eyes fixed on Him & what He has ahead for me.  I am not a waste, or the sum of my mistakes.

Part of sharing my story is how God is shattering my vision, removing my faulty lie lined glasses, and let me see His vision instead.

God doesn’t use an eraser, or liquid paper, or start our story over.

He takes away the hurt, the pain, and restored the broken places of the past chapters, and helps us write each day moving forward with his help & strength.

He doesn’t remember the past.

At all.

Its a new day, every day with Him.

And because of that amazing mind-blowing aspect of His character…..

My story isn’t finished yet, and neither is yours!

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We can have hope, because what the enemy intended to use against us becomes only part of our story in God’s hands & plans.

With His grace, we can live our story unhindered!

Its time to step into the light of His grace,

gaze on His face,

and move into the place

He has waiting for us!

#pressingin

#thestorycontinues

#comeoutofhiding

#hopeinHisPresence

clenching too tight?

Karla Lees

Today was one of those days where everything seemed to be a major effort, all day long.

It started up an hour earlier than I ended up needing to be up.

At work, one long awaited tech glitch fixed caused another even more frustrating one, eventually freezing three computers and one program, making for very frustrated staff and clients for a brief period.

Every time the phone rang, someone live was at reception needing to be served, or all three phone lines rang at the same time.
And over and over, as many people don’t like to leave voice mails, so they keep calling until you answer.

Not to mention the action emails, a sick staff, laundry or other daily jobs that pile up in a bustling business.

A kid sent home sick, the other studying for the first of four exams, three of which are math.

A post that garbled another post’s link and ended up on the wrong site.

And all day long, God reminded me to let it go. Don’t try to control everything but go along with His flow, and keep letting it go.

With two exceptions of incidents that tried to cross my boundaries, I tried very hard to flow along and not let things stress me out, which for me usually ends up with me taking them personally.

I even had a few cool observations from my quiet times (coz I didn’t have enough time to finish it all at once) which I wouldn’t have seen had I not been depending on Him so much.

I will admit, I was pretty ticked at the scenarios that popped up, and was hoping for a good wallow and stew session. Then God reminded me each time to let it go.

I don’t need to accept another person’s attempt to control me, nor their bad mood.

I had to unclench my fist and let it fall open by praying forgiveness.

Let go of the offense and forgive, instead of going on the defense.

Lift my hands in praise instead of clenching tight to anger.

Today, I found it hard.

But I obeyed, the second time quicker than the first.

And as i did, God revealed something profound in my listening and obedience.

A negative spirit (control, anger, insecurity) will back off if you won’t partner with it. Why? It can’t play out the drama it desires when we refuse to plug in with the part it is trying to assign us. Essentially we steal its thunder as we refuse to let it plunder us.

We need to be diligent to ask God what is really going on, and listen for Holy Spirit’s whisper: what to do, how to do it, what to say and/or what to pray.

By speaking forgiveness out loud, I declare my intention to let God be in control of the situation, not me nor the other party involved.

Every time God reminds me to use my shield, it had been to stand on who He is, and who He has made me…His Chosen Beloved, home of Holy Spirit. Child of the King, given His authority.

By letting go, I let God move into the offensive on my behalf.

I don’t need to take offense, God is keeping track of wrong doings as the Judge.

My part? Focus on sticking close to Him, even closer on the days like today where it felt like everything was rising up against me.

God moves mightily to resolve things when i let them go.

Its by clutching His hands that I am going to make it through any situation that comes my way, not by the works of my hands, nor anything else i may be holding onto.

Its time to open our hands, let go of what we were never meant to hold, and allow God to tightly grip us with His loving embrace and immeasurable grace.

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forgive me note

Karla Lees

Today, its time to write something fairly raw and honest.

I had to write a note and forgive someone today.

That person was me.

I still struggle with being too hard on myself. I have grace for everyone else, but me.

As I did this exercise tonight with my small group, i had a break through.

Forgiving myself is God’s plan for me, once I have sought His forgiveness. I have been blocking my own freedom by raging at myself for what God has already forgiven me for, and forgotten!

So here is my note, and the pic of what I chose to surrender to God tonight…

Dear ME,

God has given me grace, and is not holding my mistakes and wrongs against me.

So I choose to forgive me too.

If the one who has the right to judge me pardons me instead, I need to pardon myself too…
or else I don’t show Him the respect He deserves as my Saviour, or myself as His creation, the one He loves.

So, self?

Tomorrow is a new day,
just waiting for me to arise,
greet my God
and begin with a fresh start of grace.

You are forgiven, self, in Jesus’ name.

Love,
Me

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PS. You may need to forgive yourself or someone else too. I would suggest trying to write it out, draw it out or pull out the play dough and craft it out.  However you need to process it, make the time to listen for His prompting on who or what you need to forgive, and do it.

Stewing in unforgiveness doesn’t look good on us, and only hurts us by holding it in.  Shame tells us the game is over, God reminds us our life continues on & His Grace is enough.

~Mike Foster

Freedom awaits on the other side of guilt & shame.

Love breaks our call,
Grace carries us home.

~Bob Goff

time after time

Karla Lees

Today, I am both humbled and grateful to have been invited to guest blog for Remade Ministries. Beth Kinder and I met on Twitter this fall,  both passionate about God & seeing women be set free into the fullness He has for them.

Guest blogging for the first time was a wee bit nerve wracking, but a great experience for me to press in to God for the message He wanted me to share.

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As a result, please click the link below to visit the lovely Remade Ministries website to read today’s blog post about mistakes, and His grace:

Time After Time- Guest Blog

I hope to have Beth guest blog here one day soon, for I am sure you will love her as I do!  You can start to follow her on Twitter at:
@remademnistries and/or sign up on her website for encouraging emails, bible study and to follow her blog.

It never ceases to amaze me how God can take what we have to offer, and do so much more with it when we follow His prompting!