Today’s a new day! I really wish those Christian’s who are spending so much time posting conspiracy theories and lies on social media and elsewhere, would spend that much time feeding the homeless, visiting the sick and taking care of the less fortunate. What a real difference that would make. ~OC
Political Differences
Today’s a new day! I have shared on numerous occasions, I am mostly an issues over candidate voter. Which means I have voted for Republicans, Democrats and Independents. In the past when I would mention that to others it really was not a big deal with most people. Some might agree while others would not. But usually it was never a huge issue. Over the last few years that has changed. Drastically. Let me explain.
When I talk with my Democrat friends and mention that I voted for a Republican candidate, we discuss why I made that decision. They may disagree with me, but there has never been any judgment. Just an agree to disagree respectful discussion.
Sadly, that has not been my experience with some of my Republican friends when I have mentioned I voted for a Democrat. Well, let me be more specific. When I mention that I do not support and have never supported former President Trump, here are the following statements I have heard from a good number of my Trump supporting friends:
*You must not love America.
*You must be a snowflake.
*You must have been brainwashed.
*You must be listening to fake news.
*Maybe that’s why you’re sick.
*Maybe that’s why you lost your miracle.
*You might not be a Christian.
*I cannot be your friend.
I would love to tell you that I was joking and making all of this up, but sadly I have experienced all of the above comments on numerous occasions. I am not mad at those people (obviously they’re not real friends), that have made those comments. Unfortunately, they have made the choice to put their political beliefs over friendship. I will not question their faith because that’s not my job.
Even with all the negativity I have faced with being out spoken about my political views, it will not stop me from continuing to speak out and share my opinions. Did you catch that? My own personal opinions and beliefs. Which we all should be able to freely express.
Let me finish this by saying, I am thankful for those real friends on both sides of the political aisle that have been respectful in discussing our political differences. ~OC
Speaking in Tongues
Today’s a new day! This past weekend, I was watching a prayer gathering online, where I saw someone praying over a woman with cancer. The lady praying asked the woman dealing with cancer if she had the gift of speaking in tongues. The cancer warrior stated she did not. The woman praying then made the comment that maybe that’s the reason this lady fighting cancer had not experienced a healing. My heart broke. This is false teaching! You will not find this teaching anywhere in the Bible.
Sadly, I have been at gatherings like the one above and have seen many Christians manipulate people into speaking in tongues. They have people basically parrot what they’re hearing. This is wrong and definitely not from Jesus. He never did that. No where in scripture, do you ever read where Jesus told anyone to be healed as long as they spoke in tongues. I have been in numerous religious settings where everyone is speaking in tongues and there is no interpreter. That is not Biblical.
I have also been to religious meetings where it taught that speaking in tongues is evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Once again, the Bible does not support this. We do see in the Bible that sometimes when people received the Holy Spirit that they spoke in tongues (another language). All believers have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and are baptized with the Holy Spirit. All, however, do not speak in tongues.
A point I want to make here is, I believe people have the gift of speaking in tongues. Just like some people have the gift of Serving, Healing, Teaching, Leadership, Evangelism, etc. But not everyone has all the gifts. And that’s okay.
Just like with speaking in tongues, we cannot coach or manipulate someone into having any of spiritual gifts unless the Holy Spirit gives them a particular gift. Some people have been blessed with multiple gifts. And that’s awesome!
Not all Christians need to speak in tongues and not all Christians will. Once again, that’s okay.
My heart is broken, when I see people who are hurting walk away from a religious gathering feeling like they did not measure up or they did not receive a healing because they did not speak in tongues. I believe God will deal with people who preach this false gospel in His own way.
I encourage every Christian to seek a personal and intimate relationship with God. Pursue your dreams and live your life to the fullest. Acknowledge God in whatever you do and he will show you the way you should go.
You do not need to speak in tongues to experience a more effective prayer life. The Bible says that if we pray according to God’s will, then he hears us and will meet our needs. Jesus can heal that person with cancer or some other health issue who does not speak in tongues, just as easily as He can decide to bring that person with cancer who does speak in tongues home to Heaven. There is never a requirement to speak in tongues to get your prayers answered or to experience salvation in Jesus.
So today, walk in the freedom of Jesus and watch Him move in your life. ~OC
Romans 8:1
Today’s a new day! I am currently studying Romans and here are some thoughts from Romans 8:1:
In Romans 8:1, we read “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
The power of Paul’s words are very strong. There is absolutely no possibility of condemnation coming from God towards believers. Once you are in Christ you are uncondemnable by God.
But what is condemnation? It is an unfavorable or adverse judgment made about us. God makes no unfavorable or adverse judgment about his children.
Now, we might condemn ourselves. We might not yet feel and experience the grace of God upon our lives. We might roll around in our feelings of guilt and shame for past mistakes but this is not from God. There is no condemnation from him.
We might feel condemnation from the world. Others might point and criticize and judge. Being a disciple of God’s will raise the bar of expectation. Condemnation might flow from others, but this is not from God. There is no condemnation from him.
And condemnation might come from the enemy of our souls. A shadowy feeling of failure is a great weapon of the enemy. The enemy loves to convince us of God’s dissatisfaction in our lives, but this also is not from God. There is no condemnation from him. ~OC
True Identity
Today’s a new day! What are you attaching to your life? As I talk with people or scroll through their social media pages, I see so many people associating negative thoughts to their story. Too many people allowing negative thoughts to run through their head, telling them they’re not good enough or they do not measure up. After a while people begin to internalize these negative thoughts and allow them to become their identity.
My hope and prayer is that instead of believing the lies of not being good enough or measuring up, people would be reminded how amazing, unique and loved by God they are. That they are a masterpiece in His eyes. That’s your true identity. ~OC
Stop Gossiping
Have you ever been outside watering your lawn and a neighbor comes rushing a across the street to share the latest neighborhood gossip? Or worse, you are in church and a group of folks call you over to share the latest church gossip. We have all been there. How do you react when someone wants to share the latest 411 on somebody. Here are some tips I hope help in the fight against gossip.
* Confront the person sharing the gossip. This can be difficult, but is necessary to stop hurtful gossip.
*Shut it down. Do not even let the person get the words out of their mouth. Once again, not easy but necessary.
*Totally surprise the gossiper and say something positive about the person they are sharing dirt on. You may have to pick them off the floor.
*Remind them that somebody is probably gossiping about them. Check out the look on their face with that one.
*Share true facts about the situation if you have been given permission to do so. Sadly, a gossiper really doesn’t want to hear the truth. Where’s the fun in that? I am kidding of course.
*Turn gossip into a time of prayer. Instead of getting caught up in the gossip, take time to pray for the person or situation.
This is just a small list. Take a moment and come up with additional ways to shut down gossip. ~OC
God Don’t Make Junk
I apologize to all the English teachers out there. I just have to be real with this message. God Don’t Make Junk!
As we travel this crazy beautiful journey, sometimes we look at our current circumstances and think God cannot use our mess. Our junk. How can He use a man with a broken down body? How can God use the addict? How can He use the divorced person? How can God use the person that just keeps screwing up? Have you ever felt like junk? I know I have.
During those moments of brokenness, we need to seek after God. Because the world will tell us we’re worthless. That we are broken. That we are junk. Please do not believe the lies. God made each of us for a wonderful purpose in life. Our mistakes and brokenness make us stronger. Our past failures help us find our true purpose in life.
As you walk this crazy beautiful journey, I pray you will remember God don’t make junk- so we need to be living like our lives are masterpieces. There are storms we will face along the journey, but there are also many blessings. Keep striving to be the masterpiece God has created. ~OC
The Blessed Overcomer 