SPIRITUAL MUSCLES

Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines faith as "akin to trust", "loyalty", or "belief in the traditional doctrines of religion".  But the Bible tells us that "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see".  (Hebrews 11:1)

2 Timothy 3 tells us that the Holy Scriptures make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.  And that all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching. 

You can't gain wisdom without studying.  You can't expect to automatically know Algebra or Latin if you don't spend ample time learning!  And, once we learn it, we must practice it to retain that knowledge.  I don't know about you, but there are many things that I learned in school that I have forgotten from non-use.  The knowledge is deep in there somewhere, but it is not at the ready.  I would need to refresh this knowledge to make it usable.  These same principles apply to faith!  If we don't study God's LIVING Word, we won't grow because "Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word."  (Romans 10:17)

Faith is like muscles.  The more you exercise it, the stronger it grows.  As most of you know, I injured my back over two years ago.  I have had two major back surgeries in the span of the past 15 months.  I learned a lot through this experience both physically and spiritually.  One thing I learned was that with this type of injury, your core muscles shut down and go into preservation mode.  When this happens, you have the potential to do even more damage to your spine because your core muscles are what hold your spine in place while you move.  If your muscles shut down, they aren't doing their job. 

Another thing I learned is that I now have a lot of scar tissue.  This tissue is living (this was news to me!) and definitely unwanted.  It serves no good purpose.  It does nothing but cause me pain and limited mobility.  But my physical therapist taught me that the more I work the muscles surrounding this tissue, the more the blood flows to that area.  And the more the blood flows to that area, the more it will diminish the scar tissue until it will eventually be gone.  Now, think about this in spiritual terms.  The unwanted things in our lives, or sins if you will, (admit it, we all have them) are like scar tissue.  They serve no good purpose and cause pain.  So, how do we get rid of it?  We work our "spiritual muscles" so that these unwanted things will be diminished to the point of non-existence!  

So, let's not take our faith for granted.  Let's spend quality time learning God's Word and gaining wisdom and strength.  Let us exercise our faith because it is a powerful thing.  Matthew 17:20 tells us that even faith as small as a mustard seed can move a mountain.  Nothing is impossible for us!  Then we must use that faith for God's glory because without faith, it is impossible to please God.  (Hebrews 11:6)

If you take anything at all away from this, I pray that it will be the following.  "To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith so precious as ours: Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.  His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.  Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.  For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 1:1-8

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Loveth Not? Knoweth Not!

He is the God of love and peace. (2 Corinthians 13:11)

The word tells us that if we do not love, we do not know God. (1 John 4:8)  This always reminds me of that old song that kids are taught in aid to learning memory verses.  "Beloved, let us love one another.  For love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God.  He who loveth not, knoweth not God for God is love.  Beloved, let us love one another. 1 John 4:7-8".  I find myself singing this quite often.  But, singing it and breaking it down into understanding are two separate things. 

I want to share with you a couple of aspects of the love of God.  There are too many to count and if I tried to encase all of them here, this would turn into an epic-sized novel.  But, in my personal experience, two areas of God's love that mean the world to me are "dependability" and "everlasting".

Psalm 59:10 tells us that his love is dependable.  I don't know about you, but being able to depend on God is HUGE for me.  I have not had many in my life that I could depend on in any capacity.  It has always been me, myself and I.  I learned at a very young age what dependability wasn't.  It took me years before I knew the love of God and realized the dependability I have in him.  And I have to say, it feels great.  I know that I will NEVER again have to go it alone.  God is my companion, my confidante, my guide, my shelter, my strong tower and my very present help in my time of need.  I can't imagine a life without him!

Another kind of love that I've never known until God is an "everlasting" love.  In my life, love had always meant someone who was in and out of my life most often faster than I could even learn their name.  I learned to live with this growing up.  I "took it in stride" thinking that all love was this way.  But that is not what true love is.  God is the perfect example of true love.  His love is immeasurable and everlasting.  He will not leave you.  I have learned this kind of love - this "perfect" love.  And it can only come from God.

So, if you don't know what God means to you, get a Bible.  Read the Word.  It is alive.  I have a close friend who says God's Word is "In Living Color" and I totally agree with her.  My prayer for you is Paul's prayer for all of us "...to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:18-19)

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Meandering Through Life

Do you ever feel like you are meandering through life with no direction or guidance?  Getting turned around with every twist and turn in the road? 

Sheep roam in the fields or on mountains looking for the next green patch of grass or the next crystal clear stream.  They are by nature meanderers.  So, it is not shocking when one sheep gets separated from the flock.  Thus the need for shepherds.

Many places in the Bible we are referred to as "little sheep" or "lambs".  And it also tells us that we are not to be as sheep that have no shepherd (Numbers 27:17).  Without a shepherd, we are afraid, terrified and we go missing (Jeremiah 23:4)  And when we are lost, we are like sheep roaming on the tops of mountains (Jeremiah 50:6). 

But God has given us provision for the lost.  "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."  Luke 19:10.  How amazing is that?  A true shepherd will leave the ninety-nine to find the one lost sheep.  And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and carries it home.  And then once he's home, he calls his friends and neighbors and rejoices that he found his one lost sheep.  And there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.  (Luke 15:1-7)

We need the guidance of not just any shepherd....THE GOOD SHEPHERD who knows his sheep (John 10:14) and gives his life for them (John 10:11).

So, what do we do when we find ourselves meandering in circles like a sheep with no shepherd?  We cry out to him and he will show us the path of life (Psalm 16:11).  And we stay in his Word for it is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path (Psalm 119:105).

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Stone Mason of the Heart

The Bible tells us that the hidden person of the heart is where the Lord's eyes are fixed (1 Peter 3:4). 

What are the motives of your heart?  Solomon tells us that "People eventually reveal by their actions if their motives are on the up and up" (Prov. 20:11 MSG).  According to Proverbs 27:19, the heart reflects the man.  We should have our hearts close to God not just give him "lip service"  ***  (Matthew 15:8).

And know that eventually, what is hidden in our hearts will come out of our mouths (Matthew 15:18).  What we store up is what comes out (Matthew 12:35). 

The sermon on the mount shows us what a "right" relationship with God really looks like.  That is where the beatitudes were given.  And Matthew 5:8 says "Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God".  I don't know about you, but my goal is to see God!

When we surrender wholly to him, he starts to change us from the inside out.  We know when this has happens.  We can tell by the way a life is lived; it is shown by the fruits of one's labor (1 Cor. 3:8).  And we can tell by the words that are spoken because out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34).

There are many reasons that someone can have a heart that's not focused solely on the things of the Lord.  Sometimes we just want to be the center of attention.  Sometimes we were not raised to know any better.  And sometimes, the things that were done to us have caused us to harden our hearts in self-preservation.  The list just goes on and on.  But God can change us and heal us from ANYTHING!

I am very passionate about this because I have lived it.  I had terrible things happen as a child.  I had hardened my heart so much that one more squeeze would cause it to shatter into a million pieces.  I harbored anger, resentment, rage, hatred and many more emotions.  I held them inside for so many years that it eventually caused ME harm.  I acted and reacted in accordance with my stone-hard heart.  Even after I had forgiven those that hurt me, my heart remained hard because I was trying to protect it. This caused a space between me and my husband (I love you Reece because you stuck with me even though you didn't fully understand at the time).  But most importantly, it caused a space between me and Abba Father.  So, I began praying for God to soften my heart.  I prayed every day for this.  I didn't see results right away.  But some time later I looked back and realized that my walls were down.  I was allowing people in again.  And my relationship with my Heavenly Father was so much closer.  And most importantly, the things of God began to flow from my heart!

So, know that whatever the circumstances, you can pray to God for a new heart; one that is clean and pure and softened to his voice.  And guess what....just as a stone mason chisels away the ugly, rough edges of a stone to make a beautiful masterpiece; so does God chip away at the unwanted things of our hearts making us HIS masterpiece. 

"I'll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you.  I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's God-willed, not self-willed." Ezekiel 36:26 MSG.

*** (Quotations here being my own slang and not a direct quote from the Bible.) 

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

The Raising of the Harvest

Are we being rebellious in Spirit?  Are we trying to be stubborn and not do what the Lord is leading us to do?  Are we being contrary to our convictions?  Rebelling against our Heavenly Father the way teenagers often do with their earthly ones?  What does the Word say about a person with a rebellious heart?

We are storing up wrath for the day of God's wrath when his righteous judgment will be revealed (Romans 2:5).   Proverbs 19:3 tells us he ruins his life as his heart rages against the Lord.  Proverbs 12:8 says they are despised.  Proverbs 11:20 even goes so far as to say the Lord despises those who hold perversity (being marked by a disposition to oppose or contradict) in their hearts. 

It is easy for us to applaud this behavior calling it independence or idealism when it is really rebellion and pride.  (OUCH!!)  But it is a heart thing.  What is in our hearts?  Faith or rebellion?

Jesus forgave the sins of the paralyzed man when he saw the faith in the hearts of those who carried him (Matthew 9:2).  He healed the sick woman of her disease because of the faith in her heart (Matthew 9:22). 

So what does this mean? 

We should be willing to die for our faith like Esther (Esther 4:16).  As Americans we don't typically face religious persecution unto death.  But if we were faced with it, would we die to protect and uphold our religious beliefs?  We should submit more to our Heavenly Father (the father of our spirits) so that we may live (Hebrews 12:9).  We should pray for a teachable heart and submit to God (James 4:7).

And finally, we should be peacemakers.  "Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness." James 3:18  What kind of harvest are we raising?

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

How Many Cookie Jars Do Your Hands Fit In?

Sometimes we just feel scattered. We have too many commitments; have our hands in too many cookie jars.

What does this do to us? We start to feel scattered emotionally. We give everything we do just a half-hearted effort instead of focusing on just one or two things and giving in to them fully. Is this what we are doing in our walk with God? Are we truly giving Him the time and attention that He deserves?

Job felt like this. He said his insides were churning and suffering confronted him (Job 30:27). David felt like this and cried out to God in Psalm 102:1. When this happens, we should pray for a steadfast heart (Psalm 57:7) and we should stand firm in God because without Him, our strength and hearts may fail (Psalm 73:26).

Let nothing move us. Always give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord because our labor in the Lord is not vain! (1 Corinthians 15:58) And finally, hold firmly to our confidence in his word until the end! (Hebrews 3:14)

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Dry Patches of Life

Are you going through a dry patch? Feeling spiritually stranded? Well, David felt that way too (Psalm 6:6) so know that you are NOT alone! We all go through dry patches in our walk with the Lord.

There is a very simple solution to this. God promises to refresh us and refill us. (Isaiah 44:3; Jeremiah 31:25) Jesus tells us to "come all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest" (Mat...thew 11:28-29). Jesus says many times in the New Testament to "come". He tells the little children to "come" for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them (Matthew 19:14). He told Zaccheus to "come" down out of a tree so he could go to his house when all Zaccheus wanted to do was get a quick look at Jesus (Luke 19:5). Jesus said whoever "comes" to him he will never drive away (John 6:37). Jesus even raised Lazarus from the dead by saying "come out" (John 11:43) And Jesus said if anyone is thirsty, let him "come" and he would give them a drink and streams of living water will flow from within him(John 7:37-38).

 So, the next time you are feeling dry, "come" to Jesus and he will refresh and refill you!

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Will Jesus Be At Your Backyard Barbecue?

As the weather starts to cool a bit (FINALLY!!), we start looking to doing more outside again.  During the blistering heat of the summer, we tend to go out of doors only to do what is absolutely necessary and even then procrastinating until those things just can't be put off any longer.  One of these activities is the infamous backyard barbecue.  We spend hours, sometimes even days preparing our back yards to receive our friends and family.  We labor over our lists, our shopping and the preparing of the food.  We even painstakingly go over and over our list of guests.  We have to make sure that one friend isn't mortal enemies with another....that you don't have the mean in-laws at the same time as the nice ones (I'm not saying anything at all about mine, mind you!).  But, will Jesus be an invitee on your guest list?

Let me explain what I mean.  We live our lives, day to day, doing the normal things that we do.  We clean, cook, do laundry, some of us go to a job in the workforce outside of our homes...you know the drill.  These activities can get hum drum and even tedious at times, but, it's what we do during these actions that really matters. 
 
Now, I'm not saying that these daily tasks aren't to be done.  I'd sure hate to come to your barbecue if you don't ever clean your house!  But what I am saying is, put God as the center of each and every thing that you do!  God created us for his glory and he takes glory in EVERYTHING that we do.  Whether it's bringing someone to Christ or washing our dishes.  (I use my dish-washing time to pray and I always have praise music on in the background.  Sometimes I crank up the music to almost ear-splitting volumes (just ask my husband), and just worship him as I'm dusting or scrubbing toilets...don't say ewwww you do it too!)

The Bible is very clear on how we should be living our Christ-centered lives.  Jesus is not just a "concept" but should be a huge reality in our daily routines.   This is not a life that we choose just to participate in on Sundays.  Accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior is a life-changing experience. 

So, in lay-mans terms, this means that we should be representing Jesus in everything that we do.  It is our responsibility to be witnessing to people in our lives, whether it be friends or people in the grocery store that strike up a conversation in the looooong lines at that mega store (yeah, you know the one of which I'm speaking). 

Romans 8:10-11 in the NIV says "But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.  And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."  Now if that's not enough to make you shout for joy and request the presence of Jesus, not only at our backyard barbecues, but in our daily routines, I don't know what is!

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Are you a Trumpet? Trombone? Maybe a Flute?

God has given us each our own giftings and talents; our instruments.  Mine are different than those belonging to my husband.  Sorry folks, community property does not apply. 

God gives us these gifts to be used as instruments in His kingdom, to be played simultaneously with the sheet music that He gives, complimenting each other to make a beautiful sound unto the Lord.  If we are sitting idly by watching week by week pass without using them for His intended purposes, then we are not only doing God a disservice, but ourselves as well.  We must keep our instruments tuned and practice, practice, practice.

Our responsibility as members of the "orchestra of God" is to BAND together and allow each of us not only to grow, but to flourish. 

How does this apply to our daily lives?  We must commit (and condition) ourselves to the practices of our walk with God.  We must spend our time in true worship.  We must read our Word daily.  And we must gather together in corporate CELEBRATION of our daily walk with Him.  This is how deep roots develop within us that will not be ripped up by the slightest storm (or an F5 tornado).  If you've ever lived through a storm (real or figurative) you know how damaging they can be without a firm foundation.
We all know what it sounds like if you pick up an instrument you've not played in a while and attempt to amaze all with a solo....it is not a pretty sound.  We must keep our instruments in tune and stay practiced daily. 

Just like a finely tuned orchestra, when we all operate in the gifts that he's given us, the music of the kingdom makes a song that is far greater than anything that we can think or imagine.  It just takes the dedication and the daily practice of each and every instrument. 

So, come on and join me in the daily practice of living life for God and using our God-given instruments for His purpose! I'm sure the music that we make will be ever-pleasing to our Father!

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler

Coffee With Friends

Good morning to all of my friends.  On this, my first "official" blog, I thank you for reading.  I haven't started blogging prior to this as I'm convinced (and rightly so) that I do not have the "gifting" of an eloquent writer.  That would be my husband (go check out his blog....www.reecekepler.com) and even some of my God-given friends.  Now, don't get me wrong, I have my own giftings and I am proud to have them and operate in them whenever God allows.  It's just that eloquence is not one of them.  To all of you who know me at all, this comes as no shock to you, haha.  I am a very "to the point" kind of speaker and I write just as I speak.  So, please forgive me and I pray that this offends no one. 

As I was sitting out in my porch swing this morning having coffee with my husband, I began watching the sky go through the dark blue, purple and pink hues of a beautiful sunrise.  This is unusual because my eyes are normally glued to the binoculars watching the birds.  But this morning, my family of birds didn't come eat their breakfast at the normal time (6:45ish just in case you were wondering).  Instead, flocks of birds were flying across the sky.  My first thought was that they must be starting to fly South for the winter.  I know it's still August but if you've kept up with our current temps in Oklahoma for the past 6 weeks or so, you would agree that this cool (low 90's) weather feels almost like winter around here as the temps have dropped about 25 degrees in the past week. But then I noticed the birds were flying North not South.  However, the change in the birds' habits this morning is what brought my eyes up and into the sky to see God's creation in a "different than normal" way.  I began thanking God for just how beautiful his creation is, and at some point found myself pondering just what the Lord had for me to say.  See, he's burned some things in me that I just NEED to get out there.  This in itself is amazing as I'm usually not that "profound" of a person. 

I was reminded of a conversation I had just the other day as I was having coffee with a friend.  (Can you tell yet that I happen to like coffee?)  We began talking about "form and substance".  You see, I've been under the impression that to have a blog, you need the proper "form" of writing.  Well, that's not me and this morning, God reminded me that some have "form"; some have "form and substance" but some just have "substance".  This is what God has given me...."substance".  

So, if you're willing to hang in there with me while I stumble through this new venture in my life, I'd love to have you along for the ride.  I'm sure there will be some bumps and turns along the way.  But, if we just keep moving forward, (and keep gas in the vehicle which comes solely from God), we will eventually reach some beautiful destinations together.

I look forward to this journey with you all!

God bless you!
Stephie

©   2011 Stephanie Kepler