He Understands

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Isaiah 61 (HCSB)

61 The Spirit of the Lord God is on Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn,
3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning,
and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord to glorify Him.

I love this scripture! To me, it is one of the most beautiful scriptures ever written! It captivates me like no other!  The prophet Isaiah wrote this most scholars believe approximately 700 years prior to the birth of Christ and yet it outlines who Christ was and what His work here on earth would look like.  It clearly describes One upon whom God’s presence or Spirit would rest and explains that Jesus was anointed for the work He was sent to do. It was common practice for kings and priests to be anointed for service and in at least one instance a prophet was anointed to service. Jesus serves in all three capacities. He came to proclaim, preach and teach all that the Father directed Him fulfilling prophet and priest roles.  In His obedience in life, His obedience in death and His resurrection from the dead, He brought the Kingdom of Heaven here and made it available to all who believe.  In this victory He became King of kings, fulfilling the role of king.

As if that were not enough, the following verses beautifully describe the life Jesus lived. These verses echo in the words of the Beatitudes and in the gospel also as Jesus lived out His life as He healed, delivered and set people free. The echo in His obedience to the Father to carry out God’s plan and in the days following His resurrection. What a picture this paints! When it says Jesus came to bring good news to the poor, it is not necessarily speaking of those suffering in  financial poverty;  the original word means afflicted, humble, weak, needy, oppressed.  Please do not get me wrong here, Jesus came for all people to restore right relationship between a Holy God and His creation but many times when things are going well in our individual worlds, we forget our need for this relationship. It is in the tough times, when wave after wave of troubles or turmoil enter our lives that we reach out in need and cry out. It is in those times that our wonderful  Saviour meets us right where we are. It is in the sorrow of our lives that learn how precious joy is, the joy of knowing He not only sees our pain but He has experienced it and understands if far better than we know. He knows the pain when we are broken-hearted, He has been mocked, hurt, betrayed, accused and punished for things He did not do! Jesus suffered wrongful charges and was held captive, so He understands our desire for freedom! Our Lord experienced mourning, when His cousin was beheaded, when His friend died and his family wanted to know where Jesus was and why He delayed coming to them and the greatest mourning when on the cross He felt the absence of His Father’s presence!  He knew unending demands for His time and folks who tried His patience. There is nothing we struggle with that did not cross His path first. There is nothing that is beyond the scope of His understanding and nothing that He cannot turn around and use for our good. God never wastes our hurts and our pain and when we intrust ourselves to His care in the midst of it, He can turn it into something more beautiful that we could ever ask or imagine!!

Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us— 21 to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

   Unforsaken

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Lately, I have been spending a lot of time reading in Deuteronomy in both our scripture reading plan and in another study I have been engaged in. It has been fascinating to dive in and study more deeply the roots of our faith. You can see a great deal about the Holy character of God and the depth of His love for His people when studying the words of the Old Testament. Moses was protected from a decree to kill all baby boys, he grew up with the wealth and education of a prince in his adopted family, he evaded punishment for taking up for the Hebrew people from which he was born fleeing to the desert because he took a life, he started his life over in the desert and had a family of his own. He was call by God at a burning bush at the age of eighty and began the part of his life he is most known for, and perhaps the hardest time in his life at a time when most are slowing down and enjoying the fruit of their labors, at least in our day. Moses was a man like any other. He had successes, failures, questions, concerns but he is most known for his faithfulness to God, his listening to God and in most cases his obedience to God. His is also known for his love great love for God’s people.

What I found today as I came to the close of Moses life was the beauty in God’s love and care for His servant. Moses, because of disobedience to God had been told he would not be allowed to enter the promised land with the people and now as Deuteronomy comes to an end Moses is approaching the time that he will say goodbye to his people and they will begin their journey into the land of promise. Moses is now 120 years old in perfect health and perfect eye sight. In Chapter 31 God tells Moses that he is about to rest with his fathers, He tells Moses the people will one day turn from God. He then calls Joshua forth to be commissioned and anointed the new leader of Israel. Moses speaks warnings and blessings over the people. Despite knowing his fate, he shows his love and concern for the people he has led by speaking warnings and blessings over them.  The very day that Moses spoke over the people of Israel, God spoke to Moses saying,  “49 “Go up Mount Nebo in the Abarim range in the land of Moab, across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan I am giving the Israelites as a possession.50 Then you will die on the mountain that you go up, and you will be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people.”   That is a lot of background summary to get to the heart of what has touched my heart so profoundly.  Moses in his last earthly act of obedience did just as the Lord said and went to Mount Nebo ascending to the top of Pisgah where the Lord spoke to him and  he was able to see at a distance the Promised land.  And having done as the Lord had instructed Moses.   34:5 So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, as the Lord had said. 6 He buried him in the valley in the land of Moab facing Beth-peor, and no one to this day knows where his grave is. 7 Moses was 120 years old when he died; his eyes were not weak, and his vitality had not left him. 8 The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab 30 days. Then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses came to an end.”

Did you catch that, the Lord, his God buried him! God, Himself buried Moses!!  What a tender picture. God never left Moses! He took Moses from the mountain where he breathed his last breath and buried him in the valley in the land of Moab. God was with him in all aspects of his life, even in his disobedience that cost Moses the promised land. He was with him every step of the way! He was watching over him in the basket on the Nile, throughout his childhood, his time in the desert, his time of leadership over God’s people and even in his final hours! Moses died at the fullness of time as told in Genesis 6:3, “3 And the Lord said, “My Spirit will not  remain with mankind forever, because they are corrupt. Their days will be 120 years.”

We as believers also have great promises! Jesus also promised that He never leaves us or forsakes us. Deuteronomy 33:26-28 speaks of God coming down from over Moses, His everlasting arms beneath Moses, moving out the enemy from before him and in Isaiah 58:8 that He is our rear guard. We can count on these same promises in Christ, for we are grafted into the vine and are the seed of Abraham, we are joint heirs and heirs of the promise through Jesus Christ our Savior. We are truly blessed, Lord grant us the grace to walk in it!

Perfect Peace

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Since I was a small girl, I have had a love for the land of Israel, for its people and a great desire to travel there. It has not been until the last  ten years that I began to have some understanding of that longing.  I became a follower or believer as Jesus Christ at a very young age, not because my family was regular church attenders and I was indoctrinated from birth but because  I had heard some Bible Stories and one day when a scary and traumatic event occurred in my pre-school life and I was filled with fear facing danger, I cried out to Jesus for help. He met me there and turned that terrifying situation around. He did this in answer to prayer many times during my childhood years and during my years as an adult. In Him, I found Jehovah (YHWH) Shalom long before I would ever understand the true meaning of the Lord is Peace.

So just what does this name for God mean?  Jehovah is the word used for the Hebrew word YHWH or Yahweh. It’s accepted meaning is Self-Existent One or Lord and comes from the root to be or to exist, one who reveals Himself unceasingly. 1  Shalom is often defined as peace but in Hebrew has a much deeper meaning.  Let’s explore.  According to Strong’s, Shalom holds with the meaning the concept of  to be or make peace, to make amends, to restore, to make good,  peace, prosperity and wellness. A friend of ours who speaks Hebrew has described it as being nothing broken, nothing missing, wholeness, complete.  How rich is the meaning of this name for God. He is the Self-Existent Lord, Who reveals Himself unceasingly, bringing or making possible  peace, restoration, prosperity and wellness, nothing missing  and nothing  broken.

One example of  shalom in scripture is:

When Gideon realized that He was the Angel of the Lord, he said, “Oh no, Lord God! I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face!” But the Lord said to him, “Peace to you. Don’t be afraid, for you will not die.”  So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it Yahweh Shalom. It is in Ophrah of the Abiezrites until today. (Judges 6:22-24 HCSB)

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May those who love you prosper; may there be peace within your walls, prosperity within your fortresses.”Because of my brothers and friends, I will say, “Peace be with you.” Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your good. (Psalm 122:6-9 HCSB)  It also reads:  Sha’alu shalom Yerushalayim (pray for the peace of Jerusalem); they shall prosper that love thee. Shalom be within thy wall, and security within thy citadels. (Tehillim 122:6, 7 OJB) as found in the Jewish orthodox Bible.

You will guard him  and  keep him in  perfect  and  constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You,  and  hopes confidently in You. (Isaiah 26:3 AMP)                                                                                                                                                   Thou wilt keep him in shalom shalom, whose yetzer (mind-set) is stayed on Thee; because he trusteth in Thee. (Yeshayah 26:3 OJB)

May Yahweh bless you and protect you; may Yahweh make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; may Yahweh look with favor on you and give you peace. (Numbers 6:24-26 HCSB)

Shalom!

1 from blue bible.org/names of God

     Beauty for Ashes

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I am very blessed to be a part of a wonderful, life-giving church fellowship. Tonight was an unexpected reminder of so many blessings and of God”s great faithfulness. Today began with standing beside some very dear people in our life who were being challenged with a  difficult circumstance. It was what my husband would call a hard day, not necessarily a bad day, just a hard day for our friends. It was a day of struggles and victories, questions of which some went unanswered. At least for now, they are unanswered. We parted company for a short time and came together again to worship, pray and hear God”s Word.

It was during worship, I began to prayerfully go back over the day and consider the ways we had seen God’s fingerprints on this day. As I continued to reflect, a still small voice (not audible, no I’m not hearing voices) began to remind me of many instances of God’s faithfulness in our life over the past months. In just under 3 weeks, it will be the anniversary of our son- in- love’s accident which followed right on the edge of two of our grandchildren having a battle with ear infections for many months and culminating with each one having surgery for tubes. Both suffered some complications from long-term antibiotic use before surgery.

To fully understand what happened next would take much time to explain. Our daughter’s husband had an accident at work, falling 30 feet in a lift when the whole lift fell.  He suffered many broken ribs, a broken arm, sternum, pelvis, a back injury just to name part of the injuries. This required surgeries, a long hospital stay, in-patient and out-patient therapies both physical and occupational, frequent visits with a host of doctors and ministering to 3 children who missed their dad terribly. Did I mention our daughter was expecting their 4th child? You can imagine the worries and fears. Meanwhile, other immediate family member were struggling with health issues and dealing with an emergency surgery and a planned one.  I share all of this, not for sympathy or empathy but as I worshipped tonight, memories of these events and others flooded into my mind and I was overwhelmed with the goodness of God and how faithful He has been to our family!! It wasn’t easy, just like it was not easy for my friends today. But as I look back, I can see God’s hand all over these eighteen months. Could we have become overwhelmed, angry, given into the fears, been overtaken by what seemed for  to be insurmountable fears and worries? Oh, yes that would have been easy. Were we tempted? Honestly, yes at times. Did we? No. Just when one of us began down that road, the rest would come along and remind them of God’s love, mercy and grace.  We would recall past times of  His faithfulness and lift those struggling in prayer.

Deuteronomy 30: 14-16 says, ‘ But the message is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may follow it. See, today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and adversity. For I am commanding you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, statutes, and ordinances, so that you may live and multiply, and the Lord your God may bless you in the land you are entering to possess.”

I have watched this year as many of our family and spiritual family have struggled with great adversity. We have cried together, laughed together, struggled together and rejoiced together. The greatest blessing has been watching people choose life, choose faith, choose to believe the best and rally around each other. It has been watching them overcome fear and doubt and walking in faith, grace, determination, strength that they never imagined they had. It has been such a blessing to watch as both our children’s families and a number of great friends have overcome huge hurdles and have walked away more than conquers because they trusted in a merciful, loving God who has been so faithful.  How appropriate to end the time of worship with the beautiful chorus, “There is none like you. No one else can touch my heart like you do. I could search for all eternity long and find there is none like You!” There is still healing to be had and things left as yet unsettled,questions to be answered, but this I know: He who has proved Himself faithful time after time will once again “make all things work together for our good.” All things are not good, but God is able to do exceeding, abundantly above and beyond anything we can think or imagine, and in the process grow us in strength, character, faith and love! The choice is ours, Choose Life!

Isaiah 61:1-3 The Spirit of the Lord  is on Me( speaking prophetically of Jesus), because the Lord has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair.  And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord to glorify Him.

A Needed Time Out

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    Today, I gave myself a time out, so to speak.  Just felt the need to relax and reflect.  As I did, I took a stroll down memory lane to a much simpler time. I thought about the days as a small girl when we would go to my Nannie Kitchens home. All her work was done by the noon meal and time stood still as we enjoyed a leisure lunch and lingered around the table for a while. The adults would be chatting and kids playing quietly and taking in the conversations.  Then we’d move out to the porch or under a shade tree and bask in the company of our loved ones, adults talking, children running and playing.  It was a leisurely pace and a huge part of childhood for me. Most weekends included a day like this and fairly often a day or two spent camping with my parents and either friends or relatives. It was a way of life back in those days!
    Now, there are so many things vying for our time and attention that we seldom slow down.When we do, we often find ourselves running, errands, completing chores that have been neglected because of our busy schedules until we are exhausted. When we sit down to relax at home we have the Internet, hundreds of tv channels, music channels, unread magazines, books, and so much more calling our names. Many times we have looked at one another as asked what weekend? where did it go? We are learning more and more the importance of slowing down, finding time as a couple and as a family or extended family to enjoy time with: No work, no tv, no music, no errands! Instead, we say yes to the things we forget to embrace:  peace and quiet, leisure conversation, rest and just enjoying one another’s company. It is a complete change of pace and something that requires us to be intentional but it is refreshing to our mind, body and spirit. It is like a mini vacation for me!
     One of the places I enjoy when I sense the need to get away from the hustle and bustle of life is about a forty minute drive and reminds me a lot of those camping trips to north Georgia without the two-hour drive. I find an hour or two sitting on a swing or walking along the river bank brings a peace and solitude that refreshes me, clears my mind and helps me hear from God in those times when all the noise and distractions of life drown out His voice.
     Life is getting more and more demanding each day and we will drive ourselves to total exhaustion if we do not choose to be intentional about setting aside time for that which really matters and finding satisfaction in the simpler things.  Our world tells us we can have it all but it may be in our best interest to realize we can not have it all at once and in the end maybe we just do not need it all.

    Counting My Blessings

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Today, I am reflecting on how thankful I am for all the blessings the Lord has allowed in my life over the last eighteen months.  Those who know our family know that there has been many challenges during that time. Illnesses, surgeries, a serious accident, tests, more surgeries, sickness, and did I mention surgeries?   It would have been so easy to get discouraged, to become resentful and blame others for the events that lead to the accident, to rale against the illnesses that required surgeries and even to get angry at the repeated attacks that seem to go on endlessly against our close family. Some would even go so far as to blame God for all the mess and mishaps.

I have a very different take on what our family has experienced during this time. I won’t down play the difficulties and the pain and exhaustion of the experience for it is very real.  However, the benefits such as the love and faithfulness of God, the wonderful people who He graciously surrounded us with, seeing Him work in seemingly impossible situations and seeing His glory in our lives have made it not only bearable but a blessing.  We have been learning recently the importance of the blessing. We have joined some new friends along with our regular Bible study to do some Torah Studies in advance of a trip to Israel.  Our latest study was on the blessing. In Hebraic tradition the blessing is an important part of life. In our daily lives we may occasionally hear someone say God Bless You when someone sneezes but it isn’t really common for us to “Bless” one another.

This week we found that the Blessing was intentional and was a wonderful gift that we can give one another. The blessing was said whenever a loved one was going beyond sight. It’s purpose was to bring assurance, affirmations, protection, honor, and success. The Hebrew word barukh   (bless) means to be endowed by God with power for success, prosperity, long life and fruits that remain. The context of our lesson was the blessing that was spoken over the Israelites by Aaron:

22 The Lord said to Moses, 23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

24 “‘“The Lord bless you  and keep you;

25 the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’

In a day like ours when words are tossed about carelessly and without forethought, what would happen if we set out to be intentional with our words? What if we chose our words carefully and did not miss the opportunity to bless our children, parents, spouses, friends? What effect would it have on them, and on our world if every time they were going beyond our sight, we spoke a blessing over them. The truth of the matter is we are not promised our next breath, how wonderful it would be to know you sent your loved one off to work, school, or into the world with an encouraging word, a blessing to keep in their heart until you are once again in each others company!

Psalm 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to You, Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.

 

Reflections of Gratitude

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    Sometimes sleep is elusive for me, tonight seems to be one of those times. As I began to pray before trying to sleep tonight, my mind was flooded with thoughts of gratitude for having been blessed through the years, reminders that there has also been many hard times and the gratitude that I have for a loving and sustaining heavenly Father who has always been by my side, who has held me together when times seemed beyond bearable. Why, I asked myself am I thinking such serious thoughts? One possible answer is that I have been thinking about my Mom, who would have been 75 years old today, well by now, yesterday. She graduated to heaven in 1996 and was followed seven years and twenty-three days later by my Dad.  As side note, their kitty survived them for an additional seven years and we had the pleasure of caring for her until she was over twenty-one years old.

   I have said that I believe I attended more funerals of relatives before I turned twenty than most people do in a lifetime and there have been many more in the years since. Being morbid is far from where these thoughts are going; my focus is on how blessed I am that so many of my extended family has touched my life. Those lives are responsible in many ways for my faith developing as a very young child and for my character (at least the good traits). I remember very clearly when I was about 5 going late at night to the hospital when my granddaddy passed away and sitting at my grandmother’s home as people came and went paying their last respects. I have fond memories of sitting on his lap and him giving me silver dollars from time to time. I also remember the strength and faith of my grandmother when within a year she also buried her mother, my great grandmother and even more in my older years when two of her three children preceded her in death. My dad’s mom had two older sisters and three half-brothers and a half-sister and all their children who were older than me but I still remember the times we spent together. On mom’s side I had a great aunt, and an aunt and uncle and lots of cousins.  So for an only child of an only child, I had lots of extended family and we saw each other at a minimum several times a year, others we visited with almost monthly and each one has touched my life in a special way.

     God has continued to bless me with two wonderful children who are all grown up and five beautiful and talented grandbabies! I so love watching them grow, seeing their unique personalities develop, listening to their sweet voices, and watching their parents as they guide them and love on them.

    We are so affected and blessed by the people God has allowed into our lives either by birth, by marriage, by careers, neighbors or by our places of worship.  It is so easy to get busy and lose touch in the fast paced world in which we live. May we never forget or take for granted the connections in our lives but celebrate and treasure them for they are a part of what makes us who we are and may we spend more time counting our blessings than we spend rehearsing our troubles!

Safe Places

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Proverbs 18:10 – The name of Yahweh is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are protected. 

You just never know what the people who surround you every day are going through! The fact is that people all around us are in struggles and battles. Many never feel free to share their struggles with us and don’t feel there is a safe place for them to turn to.  As I read this verse this morning, I thought of the many people that are in situations like this and feel that they must carry the burden with them because there just isn’t a safe place in their life to share in carrying the load. In our pursuit to find relief from our burdens and struggles we often go from person to person, or perhaps place to place, or thing to thing seeking affirmation, answers, solace, peace or rest from our struggles

This verse in Proverbs tells us that Yahweh is a strong tower. Strong Tower is defined as a fortress for purposes of defense. It is usually high up so it can be used as a look out. It is a safe place.  Next, let’s look at the word Yahweh. Yahweh is a Hebrew word that is used to speak of God. It is a reverential name often defined as the Ineffable Name or the Unutterable Name of God. It is used over 6,800 times in the Tanakh (known as the Old Testament to most of us)  According to Hebrew 4 Christians, Yahweh describes our God as being “beyond all predictions or attributes of language: He is the Source and Foundation of all possibility of all utterance and thus is beyond all definite descriptions.” Traditionally it is a name describing His mercy and compassion.

   God is the ultimate in safe places.  We as His people should also be safe places for the people within our sphere of influence. We are not to be god in their lives but to support them, pray with them and for them when they do not have the words or strength to pray, and to show God’s love, compassion and mercy to them in their time of trial and trouble, and to speak the truth in love to them without judgment or condemnation. One thing is sure; we all need a safe place, a strong tower that we can to run to in times of need and friends and love ones who will guide us to the ultimate Strong Tower.

Dare to Detox

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The power of our words is greater than we ever can imagine or grasp. Proverbs 18: 21 states:  Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.  I also read the above verse in the Amplified Bible. It adds [for life or death] at the end indicating that when we speak life and love it we will eat the fruit of life and if we speak death and love it we will eat the fruit of death. Toxic words will always produce toxic fruit and life-giving words bring forth  life and good fruit.

I physically experienced the effects of a toxin in June because of an allergic reaction to a medication which led to the need for another medication to counter act the first. This in turn led to a case of sun poisoning due to the second medication creating hypersensitivity to the sun and hives that continued for three weeks. Shortly after recovering from the physical object lesson, I encountered another one, this time in the realm of the mind and emotions. In the matter of minutes, a discussion escalated quickly and toxic words were hurled my direction because I expressed the Constitutional right of disagreeing parties to speak their opinion freely. Unfounded and unconfirmed assumptions were made that I sided with a specific side and now I was the enemy. It was a great object lesson on the power of words for me. Even when we do our best to be life-giving and affirming in our words, they can be misjudged and used against us. It is then we find ourselves at a crossroad, we can choose to continue to speak life, walk away, or we can choose to become toxic. It is our choice to make and we need to make that choice based not on what the other person is doing to us but on the type of person we want to be.

It is so easy to meet criticism with criticism; anger with anger; and all those other negative emotions with venom. The truth is we are called to a much higher standard as believers. I love the quote,’ God never said it would be easy, He said it would be worth it.” It is worth every ounce of strength and determination it takes to give a gentle answer when one is attacked. It may not seem so at the time but the long term benefit and the fruit outweigh the momentary satisfaction of self-defense. We might be wise to consider the validity despite the toxic delivery, pray for wisdom where it is concerned and  also it is important for us to remember that the person who insults, slanders, or harms us is not just hurting us. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we are God’s kids! If they are messing with us they are messing with God! When the children of Israel were in the Wilderness, God made it clear to Moses that they were not really grumbling against Moses but were grumbling against God, Himself. Only God knows the motives of our hearts or the heart of others. He is the only judge.  Keeping this in mind is one way to guard our heart, avoid offense and keep our words filled with life.

Cry of a Recovering People Pleaser

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As a former and recovering people pleaser, I have spent many years walking on egg shells and being very careful when sharing my thoughts or opinions with others often out of fear of offending or being met with anger. My Dad always would tell me in my growing up years, “you can’t please everyone, and there are those who can’t be pleased.”   Dad, I am still not there but I am learning. He also would say that you could please some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time and that if I did not stand up for myself no one else would. Dad, I am learning. Some lessons are just learned by time and by experience and some take a life time to iron themselves out it seems.

My most recent encounter with the power of words is that no matter what words you use, how gentle or loving you attempt to use them, there is always the chance that someone will take offense or that they will be used against you. My most recent encounter was a stance for free speech, but because it was on such a hot topic, it came back to burn me deeply. My full intent was to stand up for Chick-fil-a’s right under our Constitution to express their belief both under freedom of religion and freedom of speech. The moment we take those rights away from any group, we are all subject to loosing those rights. No matter what group we are affiliated with, there will be others that don’t like our stance and want to take freedoms away from us. There are many that would like to discredit and shut down the voices of their opponents in this world despite the laws in our land. What I found was when someone doesn’t like what you have to say or doesn’t agree, even when you have gone to great lengths to be understood and are not trying to change their mind but just expressing your thoughts, sometimes it just isn’t enough. Sometimes people read between the lines and see things in your words that you did not say or imply and that have nothing to do with where your heart really is. This can happen for many reasons. Sometimes it is hard to have the right words to express our true hearts, other times feelings on the topic just run very deeply and our words cannot be heard or received the way they are intended no matter how well intended or loving they are meant to be. There are even rare times when you will just not be accepted for the basic fact that your beliefs are different from another’s.

The basic fact in all of this is we live in a diverse world full of individuals with different ideals, different beliefs, different agendas, and different personalities.  America is founded upon freedom and we should celebrate the right of others to think differently than ourselves without trying to shut them up or force them to change. Having said that, when we share our opinions we are due the same courtesy in return and that is to be heard and accepted for what we say without any reading between the lines, or attacks on our character. Sadly, civil discourse often gets lost in controversial conversations and it degrades to insults and attacks.

Where have manners, civility, respect and tact gone in our world? Every human being should be respected on the most basic level because they are a creation of God. Respect is something we give, trust is something we earn and if we disagree we can disagree agreeably or in a way that is respectful rather than tearing down those who think differently.  Life and death are in the power of the tongue.