The War for our Kids Hearts

After I dropped off the kids at school I was listening to Family Life on the radio, they were talking with two moms who both had sons who got into drugs.  They both talked about the environment their sons grew up in, the changes in their sons outward appearance and their friends before they started using, when they became enslaved to drugs, and finally the rode out.  I was struck when one mom didn't know what to say to help other parents from having their son or daughter go down this rode, because they thought they had done everything right.  What struck me is the mindset that I heard which now became evident as I put it against the backdrop of Psalm 127 (especially verses 4 & 5) and the revelations shared by Ed Silvoso many years back.  Through these verses Ed Silvoso painted a very different picture than what most Christian parents attempt to do.  Ed was on the front lines of ministry in South America where demonic manifestations were common and there was all kinds of evil but he was really concerned with his kids being led astray by the world while they were raised in Los Angeles.  The revelation the Lord gave to Ed was that his children were like arrows in the hands of the warrior but he had never fired them in battle but instead was protecting them from worldly influences.  Rather than his children being part of the Lord's plan to overthrow the works of the Enemy (vs. 5), so he took his kids with him to minister in these dark place in South America and saw their faith grow.  I believe that while we want to protect our kids, there is also a subtle temptation to begin to build on fear and thus not move in faith.  Let's face it all of us know that faith grows in the midst of adversity, difficulty, challenge, and impossibilities.  I heard one pastor say you know where you are in the war based on what you talk about and what you complain about, those who are not in the battle complain about not having enough popcorn or the move is not what they want.  If you are on the front lines you are in a place of constant dependence on the Lord for resources and empowerment.  As I listened to these very dear mothers who struggling so profoundly with these boys, I realized they we as believers don't expect to have victory over drugs we just hope our kids are not involved.  How sad that our vision has become hoping to make it out of the this world, rather than overcome the world through the manifestation of God's Kingdom.  The thought hit me that if when my kids are older I am afraid they may be into drugs, that it would be powerful to somehow have them be a part of helping others get free of bondage to drugs.  In this way they would see the ruined lives, the bondage, the loss, and the battle to be free up close.  I believe there are way too many kids that are not protected by their parents, yet when this protection becomes dependent on ourselves and not God I believe it becomes destructive.  Jeremiah 17:5 tells us that there is a curse when we trust in man or ourselves, we need to begin to see how truly dangerous it is to rely on ourselves rather than trust God.  Instead we often build fortress of protection around our kids believing we are trusting God only to have terrible consequences.  It is a hard truth that Grace does not take away our free will or the consequences of sowing to the flesh.  I can see why Jesus rebuked the church at Laodecia for having lukewarm beliefs, because I believe all out passion for Jesus and His Kingdom is the best protection from the evils of this world.  I realize there are no guarantees in this world but I do believe the only guarantees are Heavenly, we can realize these through the promises of God for us on the earth.  God is absolutely faithful to do what He says He will do.

Warrior in Christ,
Bret

Children a blessing: Abba's Redemption

My wife asked me if I would help my son, Joshua 7 years old, with his "Simple Machines" assignment.  I was familiar with the assignment when my daughter was in 2nd grade but honestly in a fleshly way I just wanted to relax on a Sunday afternoon.  After looking at his assignment we decided to go to the garage to make a couple of things out of wood.  Now I am not exactly a Master craftsmen, when I fix something around the house we all celebrate in amazement.  Not having an earthly father who taught me these things I have learned by trial and error (mostly error).  We decided to make a doorstop, I fired up my Skill saw to cut the shape and the workbench to hold it in place.  Joshua was very interested but also a little apprehensive because dad and tools are not the most common picture.  After marking out the shape and then cutting the wood, we had a rough piece of wood.  My Skill saw has a dull blade not because of my work but because my brother-in-law (who really uses tools) passed it down to me with I think this same blade.  So then it was time to pull out the finishing sander (a fairly benign power tool that could only sand some skin off), I decided this was a good time to introduce my son to the world of wood working power tools.  As I showed Joshua the ins and outs of the sander I decided it was his turn, so I had him put his hands on the sander and I put my hands over his.  Joshua was a little apprehensive but started to gain confidence as I put confidence in his growing new skill.  It was not until later that it struck me that this is how our Abba is with us.   When I was hit with this small revelation, it brought up both joy and grief.  There were so many days I had wished my dad would do what I was doing with Joshua, yet through this very time with my son there was part of my heart that was getting healed.  I couldn't change that my dad hadn't been there for me but I could be the manifestation of God's love to my son and somehow the blessing I was giving was coming back to me.  I was amazed as my son got more confident, how he would inspect the piece of wood and see places that needed to be sanded.  God is not a distant father but a father like I was in that moment leaning over my son with my hands over his on the sander.  It was as if my confidence, knowledge, and understanding (what I have) was passing from me into my son and becoming his.  I often have had the frustration of just expecting myself to be able to do something but hiding in shame because I didn't know how, but the truth is I often had not learned.  Most good fathers that I know don't expect their kids to know something without being taught and mentored, yet we live in a culture that celebrates the end results but often does not show the process or work behind it.  In Psalm 127 it says that children are gift from the Lord and a blessing, I am now beginning to glimpse even more how children can be a blessing.  Yet often as parents we get pull toward managing our children, carting them to endless events, correcting them, or just getting frustrated by their misbehavior.  As a western culture we do not place a high value on our children:  dads often refer to babysitting their own children, we have endless things to entertain them, or they often get plopped in front of the TV.  On the contrary these verses in Psalm 127 and the encounter with Jesus and the children in Matthew 18 paint a very different picture in the Kingdom of God.  Jesus elevates children before the disciples when they try to stop them from coming to Jesus (the Rabbi), yet he says you must become like a child to enter the Kingdom of God.  Becoming like a child means entering into a place of humility, trust, openness, honesty, and simple faith.  I believe children are part of Abba's redemptive plan because when we see our sin and bad patterns in our children, it is a way that the Lord seeks to have us humble ourselves and receive His grace so the cycle will be broken.  It is often painful to see your child act out your anger, frustration, impatience, or critical tongue on someone else because we know that we have passed that sin to them.  But we as parents can also be can be an instrument of God's grace if we will humble ourselves, own our sin, and ask them to forgive us.

Abba's child,
Bret

Freedom from Fear of Death

It seems in our society today that fear is a normal part of everyday life and it is just expected that because of the condition of the world we should be in fear about something.  Our Abba says something very different in His Word, 1 John 4:18 tell us "Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear...."  For us to not be in fear we must believe at the deepest parts of our being that our core needs will be taken care of, thus no matter what comes we can rest in knowing that any season of lack will end.  This does not mean that every whim, desire, want, or craving will be fulfilled.  One of the main difficulties in this is that we often confuse wanting an item or possession as meeting our need, rather than allowing God to meet the need underneath it.  Every human being since Adam and Eve carries a fear of death to some extent, we may bury it, ignore it, or pretend we have overcome it but when someone close to us dies then we face our own mortality.  Yet the fear of the death does not have to do with just the end of our mortal lives, which by the way 1 out of 1 die, but the fear of the death is all around us.  We often live with an underlying fear that we could lose our job in a poor economy and our family will go without.  We may live with a secret fear that I will be abandoned, thus I hold onto a loved one too tightly to give me the security that I will never be left.  The fear of death according to Hebrews 2:14-15 has held us all in slavery.  "Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives." (Hebrews 2:14-15)  Either the Word of God has missed it or we are all very good at hiding this lurking fear that drives much of what we do in life.  Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden before the Fall had no fear of death because there was absolutely no lack and no thought that there would ever be lack.  Yet Satan's suggestion of current lack led Adam and Eve to agree with Satan's view on God and the world, thus they chose the very death due to the seeds of fear Satan sowed.  Satan says, "...Indeed, has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?..." (Genesis 3:1)  This powerful question that sowed seeds of doubt about the very character and nature of God but also was questioned the provision God had made for them.  The Lord recently brought exposure in my heart of the fear of death but in the form of rejection.  As I felt filled with fear one night and sought the Lord to reveal the source, He showed me this old fear of rejection that I had give a lot of mental real estate.  I began to see how this avoidance of any perceived rejection had put in a place to miss many opportunities and even led me to hide truth from people around me.  It was not rejection that had cost me so dearly over the years, I have had a fair amount of rejection, but it was the avoidance of this painful event.  The Holy Spirit began to expose the truth that it was time for me to face this fear through His power and presence, because this fear was interfering with the destiny "in Christ" that He has for me.  Those who yield to the discipline of the Father through the Holy Spirit will mature in intimacy and trust with God, those who ignore it will continue to be trapped in many bondages.  The decision to walk through this fear of death (rejection) did not immediately take it away but brought more peace as I saw the revealed will of God and His path.  Death for believers is not the end but can often be the ultimate deliverance from a bondage, since we have died with Christ I no longer need to be influenced by the fear of pleasing man.  The new Bret that was resurrected with Christ does not have any fear of man because this new man is created to please and worship God first.  The Word of God does talk about us growing in favor before God and man, yet I believe when these are out of order we will not be able to walk freely in our destiny.  You do not see anywhere in the life of Jesus (who is our model) take any public opinion polls before performing a miracle or doing a healing, His vital connection with the Father guided His steps.  I believe the fear of man (rejection) will keep us from walking in boldness in the Holy Spirit.  This form of boldness does not mean being loud, obnoxious, or abrasive but I do believe it means standing on the authority of the Word and the Holy Spirit's direction.  When we get the revelation that we are righteous "in Christ" it means we are acceptable to God but also acceptable as a person because of what God did through Christ.

In His Freedom,
Bret