Monday Review !

Drum roll, please! Okay, if you're new to this blog you will more than likely be wondering why it is that a drum roll is required! Well, let me enlighten you. I told people that I want to be part of the "Do It" Church. Bottom line, I want to be a "Doer".

We discussed,in an earlier blog, the importance of taking note of and counting the places around you that have an exceptionally high amount of hurting people. It is described in the post entitled: "Count" and Then Prepare for "WAR" ( Walking, Asking and Responding).

A couple of weeks ago, I counted and wrote down all the places within a ten mile radius of my home that would fall into that category. I mean, I realize there are hurting people everywhere...but some places attract more hurting people than others.

Last week I told you I would tell you how I did in the "WALK" part of "WAR".

Well. I would have to give myself a "2" on the Richter scale. Am I being hard on myself? Nah.
It's just that I didn't exactly WALK anywhere. I just thought about it. Okay, and I prayed...a little.

Sounds like a potential prescription for getting nowhere fast. Alas, my name..."Shay"...is my nickname. Comes from my middle name, "Alacia"...pronounced "Alaysha". A roomate, a long time ago, asked me if she could call me "Shay" because she could never pronounce my real name and kept forgetting it.

What does that have to do with procrastination? All I was going to say is that one of my husbands favorite names for me was... "Procrastalaysha".

I wasn't thrilled with that name. Especially since it was a glaring verbal indictment on my character! Even worse...it was an accurate assessment!

There is good news, however! My husband hasn't called me "Procrastalaysha" for years now.
Granted, I still drag my feet more than I would like...but I have definitely improved.

So, what location did I think about going to? Well, it's a Crisis Pregnancy Center that is about one mile away from where I live.

My next step is to actually go there (as opposed to just thinking about it) and Ask them how I can help them.

I'll tell you what happens on the next...

Monday Review !

Walk Talk !

You know how there are people that talk the talk but don't walk the walk? We've all visited that place from time to time.

But doesn't it feel great when we put feet to our words?! I call it:

Walk Talk!

Okay, this is pretty exciting!

Remember a few posts ago, we talked about being a Do It Church?

Count...Then Prepare for WAR, is a post that might refresh your memory.

Count stands for ... Count. How's that for clever? WAR stands for Walk, Ask, Respond.

I told you I would give a little description or example, of each category.

"W" WALK. Actually walk to one of those places...one of the places that you prayed about. A location that resonates in your heart. Contact them. Go there. You can do it!

"A" ASK. Ask yourself, then ask them... "How can I help?" For example, if you used to frequent bars and people know you...assuming alcohol won't be a stumbling block for you...you can actually talk to the person in charge of the bar and ASK them if they would like to take your name and number as a person who would be willing to be a "designated driver" for someone who can't get home by themselves. How is that ministry? Let me tell you something. You never know how you are going to affect someone. You could have had a very positive influence on the bar tender. You just got to know a hurting person that needs your prayer. Don't worry about it. Just put yourself out there. Let God do the inner work.

"R" RESPOND. When you do respond...remember to respond in love. Also keep in mind that when you respond to someone, the Holy Spirit is the one who will actually work through you, and oftentimes it will be you who gets ministered to.

So what's my next step? Boy, I like you guys. You really help me. I have to be accountable when I tell you I'm going to do something. I've already shared with you the different places I counted. I will report to you Monday about the results of my next experience. The Big "W". Aarrgghh!!!

It's time to let my walking do the talking and initialize:

Walk Talk!

Love Switch...

I have something to say that is really, really difficult for me. I'm so afraid of people misunderstanding...so please hear me out. And please don't judge me. Some people may think I'm ridiculous for saying anything at all. But. Oh well.

I have a lot of love for people...but it isn't emotional. I want it to be...but I can't make myself feel the emotion of love. It's as if my "love switch" was broken a long time ago and never got repaired. For the life of me, I can't feel anything except sadness or pain of some kind.

I do experience times of happiness...just not the emotion of love that I have heard people say they feel deep in their hearts.

It's not all bad. I mean, if you were in a room with a gunman, you would eventually be glad I was with you because even though I can't feel the emotion of love...I would allow myself to take a bullet meant for you. So, I recognize that even though I can't feel anything - there is, nevertheless, a strong love that God put inside of me that I will, by faith, act on. But the emotion isn't there.

I feel very alone, but I suspect I'm not. If you feel like a part of you is "broken" please let me share with you two scriptures that continue to help me to this day.

Psa 34:18 says, The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those who are crushed in spirit.

Psa 147:3 says, He heals the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds.

God loves us. He loves you. If you are broken in any way, He will heal you. He's actually closer to you than you would have ever imagined. And He is working. He will bind up the broken part of you. He is the best physician any one could possibly hope for.

He began the healing process with me when I asked Him into my life. The wounds were deep and He understood them like nobody else could. He started out by loving me. Then He gave me an incredibly loving husband as well as loving kids...that aren't kids anymore! He knew that I needed to be loved in a demonstrative way, before my heart could feel love.

It's not really that unusual. What is the scripture? We love Him because He first loved us. 1Jo 4:19

Maybe it won't be long before He has completed the healing of my...

Love Switch...

Status or Purpose?

You know how when you read a book, it will sometimes have an asterik next to a word so that you will know to go to the bottom of the page and read an excerpt of sorts?

Well, I know that I said I would go into detail a bit RE: The "Do It" Church. And I will. But I wanted to share something with you first.

I heard somebody say something today that really stuck with me. He said:
"Some people are more concerned with changing their status than discovering their purpose."

That is so true. We are so self focussed. Everything is about us. Me, me, me. It is certainly understandable. I mean, we grew up with ourselves. The entire view of the world is seen through our eyes. Of course it is natural that we are self centered. Sounds awful though, doesn't it?

Fortunately, God already understands all that about us. He did, after all, create us. He gets it. But He doesn't want us to continue in that state. His desire for us, as His adopted children, is to become God-Centered. When we do that, we are taking the first step to a willingness to discover the purpose He has for us.

Problem. Did I say problem? No. More like problems...plural.

In my impatience to be significant and fulfilled in life, I preempt God's purpose for me with a status or station of my own making. Obviously, different things will be important to different people. For example, some peoples status are significantly strengthened in their estimation, by:

* Relationships
* Careers
* Titles
* Money
* Power
* And more...

God wants to do something in us, for us and for others by using us. The question is...will we let Him? What is more important? Our...

Status or Purpose?

Step Into Action...

Uh...if you think going into the community and reaching out to people in need, is easy for me...think again! If it is not difficult to you, I commend you. Alas, I do not fall into that category. Yes...I love people. But loving people and having the courage to turn your love into action can be two different things.

I'm really good at some things. I think I'm best at finding reasons why I can't do something. That's why I told you that I would reach out to people - so that I would have to. I mean, if I tell somebody that I'm going to do something...I will do it.

Here is a list of words that came to my mind - from the time I said I would go out into the community, until I did:

Gargantuan, Herculean, ambitious, arduous, burdensome (Hey, I work 40 hours a week), challenging, crucial, demanding, easier said than done, exacting, formidable, laborious, no picnic, not easy, problematic, emotionally strenuous, of titanic proportion, very trying. Oh, and did I mention how much I dreaded it?

But I did it! At least... I started the process, which is... a start! It wasn't too painful. Remember when I said the first thing to do was to count the places within about a 10 mile radius of where you live? I counted them and wrote them down. It was relatively painless since I used my computer! Good ole Google search engine. Figured I could start there and add more as I see them. So what did I find?

1) One Hospital
2) Three Convalescent Homes
3) Two Tutoring Centers
4) Six Bars
5) Three Elementary Schools
6) One High School
7) One Crisis Pregnancy Center
(No Abortion Clinics within ten miles...but check that out where you live).

Oh, BTW, if you do this...remember to write down the address and phone number. If you're doing it on the computer, just copy and paste...and save the information in a file.

But don't just "file it away". Remember the rest of the acronym?

WAR ... Walk, Ask, Respond.

Tomorrow I will throw some thoughts your way, Re: Walking, Asking and Responding.

But for right now...just count and take note of the addresses and phone numbers.

I would love it if you would join me on my journey by either praying for me - or starting your own journey and sharing it with me and others. I challenge you! Just start out by taking a ...

Step Into Action...

The Do Something Church !

We can all be a part of the "Do Something Church". But when we are in it "alone", it's much more difficult. What can we do about that?

The Do Something Church

Here I Go!

For anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about...just read the post entitled, Count...Then Prepare for War. War is simply an acronym. It helps me with my poor memory. The message behind it came from a message I heard from Miles McPherson at The Rock Church in San Diego.

We can talk about what we've learned. That's the easy part. But applying it is quite another story, right? Anyway, I've decided to apply this strategy in my life and give you my progress. I'll share with you my personal journey in this area.

If I do something stupid or embarrassing...I'll definitely make sure to include that! Hey, it's potential high entertainment for you! Frankly, I would love to share with you my journey and secretly hope you will be open to doing the same. Regardless, at least I can be accountable to you!

Every Monday I will post my "doings". Eventually, I would like to have a separate tag that you can click to follow me any day of the week. I admit, I haven't learned how to do that yet! I'm still a newbie at this, so bear with me...okay?

So, what am I going to do again?

First thing I'm going to do is count all the places within approximately a 10 mile radius of my home, that are locations where people are probably hurting.

I told you I'd explain things in more detail...and I will...but I have an itch to get started. So...

Here I Go!

Count First...Then Prepare for War!

Say what?! Am I suggesting you prepare for... violence?

No, of course not.

As Christians, most of us have learned all about spiritual warfare. That is, we are familiar with that phrase. But how well do we grasp the continual reality of the spiritual battles that are all around us?

Most Christians - myself included - don't mean to, but there is a tendency in all of us to simply live life and forget about what is going on around us...unless it affects us, that is.

So what can we do about that?

This has actually been gnawing on my subconscious mind for a while now. I say subconscious because in my conscious mind I try my best to avoid anything that might be unpleasant or difficult for me.

Don't worry. I won't throw out the "get out of your comfort zone" card. You, like me, have probably heard that one too many times. Oh. And I won't tell you to take your head out of the sand or anything. Besides...I like ostriches. They have those awesome eyes!

But I will share with you something that I learned! Count First...then Prepare for War!

What do I mean by that? Simple. The first thing you do is... count. Count the places within a 10 mile radius of you that have hurting people in them.

Walk to those places!

Ask them how you can help them.

Respond to them in love.

In my next post, I will tell you what I counted in my area and I will go into more detail. In the meantime...

Start Counting !

Spiritual Contractions!

Believe it or not, there is a point to this post. Hang with me.

A while ago, I was with someone who was going to give birth to a baby. As her labor progressed she was eventually dilated at a nine. Things were looking good for our heroine, but then both the intensity as well as the frequency of the contractions continued to lessen until eventually everything stopped.

But what happened? Why did the contractions stop? Is this unusual?

Well, if you are a doctor or nurse you may very well tell me that that is not uncommon.

Great. Now what? Well, in this instance, another woman who was accustomed to "taking the bull by the horn" began to coach the pregnant woman and told her to "push" at regular intervals...until the contractions returned. And they did return.

A healthy baby boy was born and two beaming parents happily welcomed a new life into this world.

Why did I tell you this story? Because it relates to us. You see, when we became Christians, many of us were sharing Christ right and left. We shared our faith at increasingly regular intervals as we allowed the Holy Spirit to work freely. Witnessing to others was a labor of love that could be likened to contractions that result in a new life being born into this world.

But then...when a bit of time goes by - perhaps when we are at a nine - something happens and we just...stop. Perhaps we begin by slowing down...but eventually we came to a standstill.

Does this sound familiar?

Tomorrow I will share with you:

Four things that can give us a jump start.
Four things that are actually "do-able".
Four things that can reactivate our...

Spiritual Contractions!

You Know Who You Are!

Whether you came to know Christ when you were younger or older, you have undoubtedly been challenged to share your faith with others. But, for many of us, that challenge takes the form of words that go through one ear and out the other! Or, like me, you might have shared on occasion, but you are embarrassed to admit that it most certainly hasn't resulted in a lifestyle change that takes advantage of countless situations where you neglected to even mention Jesus's name! But, if you...

1) Have invested the time to tell others about Christ
2) Have chosen to share your Christian faith with whoever reads your blogs
3) Or, you want to...

Then this message is one I hope you'll respond to!

Most of you have found a good church home, others are still looking...but I'm guessing that all of us are in agreement that the church today, in general, tends to focus on making us feel good or "feeding us." There is nothing wrong with that, unless that is all it does! Don't get me wrong, I've been walking with the Lord for 34 years and am a very strong supporter of the importance of gathering together. Hebrews 10:25 reminds us to refrain from "forsaking the assembling of ourselves together..."

But what was once a movement of God...has become a mere location, to many people. I am assuming that most of you understand that, because His Spirit lives in you, His Church is wherever you are. People that don't know Christ are generally the ones who assume the church is simply a location.

The problem, as I see it, is that we unwittingly take on the worlds view of the church, in the sense that we tend to compartmentalize it. I know I do. I don't mean to and I don't want to...but, it happens. "Gotta go to church, this Sunday", "Wasn't church awesome today?" or "I hope nobody caught me falling asleep in church today" are some examples of things we here or say to ourselves quite frequently. Sound familiar?

It's time to break free from that thinking. Time to be a church that is a verb instead of a noun! I'm calling on you right now, to share with other people both in person and via your blogs, what I have been hearing a handful of Christian pastors talking about.

Click on the link, below, to hear a message that is gripping and inspirational. I will spend the next few posts, "re-capping" for anyone that didn't get a chance to listen.

The Do Something Church

You want to be who God wants you to be, but you just don't think about it...or you let the thought "I'm no Billy Graham!" prevent you from doing what, in your heart of hearts, you have been told you should do...but it just doesn't come natural to you. Believe me, there are a lot of us that fall into that category! Keep following this blog. Go ahead and listen to the message in the link above. I challenge you!

You Know Who You Are!