Belief and Unbelief

Many people have the understanding that belief and unbelief are like oil and water; they just don't blend together very well.  Think about the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and how that black oil just sat on top of the Gulf waters.  In our faith walk individuals, especially newer believers, often feel as if there is something wrong with them if they experience unbelief.  The reality however is very different.  As believers - as human believers - we do experience unbelief and Jesus even addresses that for us in Mark 9:21-24  Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "From childhood," he answered. "It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." " 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief !" Not only did Jesus acknowledge the co-existence of the unbelief with belief but He moved into that situation with power, freeing the young boy from the demonic spirit.  He wants to do the same for us.

Instead of thinking of oil and water, I want you to think about flour and water.  If you have ever made gravy or a sauce (or watched someone make it) you most likely took a container, putting water in and then scooping flour on top.  Did you pour it immediately into the meat drippings for your gravy?  No.  You closed the container and shook it vigorously until the two ingredients were now blended and in this new state you added it to the pan and transformed the drippings into ...  tada!... gravy! Now convert this analogy into our spiritual life.

The water represents our human state, our unbelief, before we accepted Christ.  The flour represents our spirit that is a new creation through our acceptance of Jesus Christ's sacrifice for us.  Initially the flour is sitting there on top of the water, our belief is sitting on top of our unbelief, until we take action to begin walking out our new faith - that is the shaking action. The more intentional and consistently you "shake things up" the smoother this blend becomes.  But here is the powerful part - once blended you begin to add it to something (the drippings!) to transform that into something new.  As believers we become a catalyst for change and transformation in the matters of our lives, those of our families and friends, our workplaces, our social circles - anywhere God chooses to pour us out and we choose to obey Him.

The analogy continues.  Imagine that you confess believing but you continue to embrace old ways of thinking and living.  No shaking.  The flour is sitting on top of the water - the belief is sitting on top of the belief.  Now you decide to "pour out" into a situation.  Visualize pouring unmixed flour and water into those drippings.  Very lumpy gravy!  Eventually you may be able to get most of those flour lumps out, but it will take a great deal more work than it would have if you had first blended the flour and water.  So it is with our belief and unbelief.  Our power to transform is hindered by the co-existence of unbelief with our belief.  So what does that really look like?

We pray seeking God's intervention in the circumstances of our lives, but in the deep recesses of our souls (mind, will and emotions) we feel that He probably won't really move mountains for us.  In fact in the midst of our prayer we limit the outcomes of the prayer itself by speaking in very general terms.  After all if we aren't specific then we can't be disappointed when God doesn't manifest Himself.  Right?  This is where our unbelief has failed to blend with our belief to transform us into catalytic agents.  We are to be agents of change in this world - that is why we were given the power and authority of Holy Spirit. 

One more aspect I want you to consider.  When I am making gravy there are times that the consistency is not right yet.  So I have to add more of my "catalyst" - the thickening agent.  Throughout our lives, we will need to add "more" of this "belief substance" into situations.  This is where our humanity is ever present in our lives.  When we accepted Christ it was not a once and done event concerning our spiritual growth.  It is a continual process.  Our confession was only the first step which took us through the doorway.  We have to continue to blend our belief with our unbelief.  Different situations will arise that will challenge our belief and uncover a little unbelief.  Our  responsibility is to continually shake up these two so that they stay blended and will continue to have a transformational impact on those around us.

I challenge each of you to recognize those areas of your life in which unbelief may still linger and "vigorously shake"!  Embrace your walk in all of its aspects recognizing that we not only have a mandate to change, we have the privilege of ushering in change into the lives of those around us.  Go forth, my brothers and sisters, and make wonderful gravy!!!

Memories, Forgiveness and Healing

I mentioned in my last blog (yes, I realize that it was a few weeks ago, but I am really trying to embrace this new lifestyle of not being driven every minute of every day) that I have been reading some fiction books this summer.  I am learning how to take each day as a unique opportunity to live fully yet in a relaxed manner.  Being still and quiet really does enable one to hear more clearly.  It is amazing how much noise life makes.  In the process of reading books by a variety of authors, I have discovered a recurring theme.  As the title of today's blog indicates, a weaving of these three strands runs through most of our lives.  It certainly has in the characters about whom I have been reading for the past couple of months.

All of us have memories and for many of us, those memories are tinted by the color of hurt - either hurt we have experienced or hurt we have caused.  When hurt has occurred, offense will often result.  Offense will give root to bitterness and thus we have a damaged heart (i.e. soul) that is in need of healing.  Sometimes we are so wrapped up in our personal hurt that we fail to see the ramifications on those around us.  We believe that we live in a silo in which everything goes vertically within us and never travels horizontally to impact others.  But it does, whether we want it to or not.

Last night during our Ladies' Bible Study we had occasion to discuss this and talked about the difference between God's memory of our sin and our own.  Hebrews 8:12 "And I will forgive their wrongdoings, and I will never again remember their sins."  Many of us have a vivid recollection of our wrongdoings and they often haunt us.  Think about a white board - the kind that you use special markers with which to write on it.  If you only erase it with the felt eraser, there are shadows left on the board of the image you had placed there.  When you use the spray cleaner however and wipe it clean, the board looks as good as new.  That is us.  If we just try to erase the wrongdoing without going to God in repentance, then the shadows will remain,  but if the blood of Jesus is sprayed on the wrongdoing, it is a new thing.  2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

 

For many of us, we have gone to the Lord with a repentant spirit, yet the memories still linger.  Sometimes, we have more work to do then simply spraying the blood of Jesus over that past.  Sometimes we have forgiveness and healing that needs to be applied to this area of our lives.  I know for myself that this is indeed the process through which I must travel in order to render powerless those memories.  Memories are often etched into our brain cells - literally.  God can miraculously erase memories from our brains and He has done that multiple times for individuals who experienced trauma.  For most of us though, the memories hang around.  Our focus need not be trying to erase them completely from our brain, but rather rendering them powerless in reactivating the pain originally caused.  We need to walk through the forgiveness and healing process in order to no longer react  and allow those reactions to drive decisions. 

When I discuss forgiveness with someone I describe it as a 2 way highway.  Forgiveness must both go out to others but also must flow back to oneself.  Sometimes it is easier to forgive someone who has hurt you than to forgive yourself for causing a painful situation.  I personally get this one knowing how long it took me to forgive myself for an abortion that God forgave 30 years earlier.   My lack of self-forgiveness created a power source for that memory to still drive me in many areas of my life.  I continued to "power up" that energy source instead of shutting it down and rendering it ineffective.  Please do not misunderstand - there is a difference between allowing memories and their pain to drive you and using memories and past experiences to enhance your calling from God on your life.

I firmly believe Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.  I know without a shadow of doubt that God will use EVERYTHING in my life to move me forward into my calling.  But if I don't surrender those memories to Him for Him to use according to His purposes, then I chance allowing the power of those memories to take me off course, like a car that hits a patch of ice and suddenly is propelled in its own power without direction.  By surrendering myself to Him through repentance and forgiveness, then I can move into the healing that will "power down" that energy source and use it as generic fuel for God's fire.

Take a little time to explore your own memory bank and ask Holy Spirit to reveal to you which memories may still be running under their own power; which memories still cause a reaction either internally or externally.  When you over-react to something ask Holy Spirit to show you why.  Where is the root that caused the response from you?  Once revealed, then ask Holy Spirit to show you if there is forgiveness and healing needed.  He is faithful to walk you through this process.  His desire which is in fact the desire of the complete Trinity is to see you walking in freedom and operating under the power of the life-giving Spirit.  Romans 8:1-2 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.  For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death.  Choose forgiveness, choose healing, choose freedom!