Category: Book Reviews

These three driving passions (flesh-wanting our own way: eyes-wanting everything we see; pride of life-wanting to appear important) are attached to a world that is destined to crumble under the weight of eternity. Everything from social media to music, commercials, and entertainment tends to feed these desires. Never in history of humans have we had such intimate access to people with whom we have no relationship. When people have a hard time connecting with people they can see (their friends and families), it is not surprising that connecting with a God they cannot see would pose a challenge.

But whoever does the will of God abides forever. (I John 2:17)

To detach from this world, we lay down our will and embrace God’s. In Him we find the cure for these dangerous attachments.

You must love the Lord God with all your heart, all your passion, all your energy, and your every thought. And you must love your neighbor as well as you love yourself. (Luke 110:27 TPT)

When the love of God abounds in your life, this earth’s pull lessens. As I meditate on God and let him love me, I find that I am easier on myself. When I am easier on myself, I am more loving to others. When I am God focused and loving, Then I am much less likely to pursue empty things, because my relationships fill in the gap.

Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:4)

I sometimes wonder if we take this Scripture seriously or imagine that it no longer applies in our dispensation of grace. It is hard to imagine anyone ever knowingly choosing to set themselves in opposition to their Creator. Paul dealt with an adulterous people who wanted to live under both the law and grace, and James is addressing those who have an eternal covenant but who like Lot’s wife struggle with a worldly attachment.

Notice this drift begins with but a wish or desire to befriend the world. What exactly is James addressing here? Having friends in this world or even friends who are worldly is not the same thing as befriending the world. We are to be a friend to the world but not friends with the world. The first describes how we relate to the world’s inhabitants; the second is friendship with its system. You will never have authority over what you are under the sway of, or influence of!

We are indeed called to acts of compassion for our world rather than to sympathize with it. This means:

We clothe the naked in the world than get naked with the world.

We feed the hungry in the world rather than hunger for the world.

We are agents of healing who have been called to the bedside of a hurting world, not to be in bed with the world.

Even with individuals, we relate to them as ambassadors of another kingdom where our King’s commands are honored. This means the day will come when this relationship will be challenged.

BOTTOM LINE: To win this crown, we must abandon our rivalry with fear and embrace God’s call to love Him, others, and ourselves.

NEXT UP: And then there is the last crown… the Crown of Life. By all accounts, this could be called the martyr’s crown….

Pages 236-239 Without Rival: Embrace Your Identity and Purpose in an Age of Chaos, Confusion & Comparison. Lisa Bevere. Revell 2016

FYI: By the way, when speaking of earning jewels for your eternal crowns, many surveys taken over the years declare 98% of all Christians have never experienced the joy of leading a single person to Christ. Quoted from “crosswalk.com/church/pastors-or-leaders,” Christianity Q&A, Dr. Roger Barrier 9/24/19

I began the book by unpacking who you are and who God is and now seek to close it with what we’ve been given. In addition to the exceeding great and precious promises that position us to be partakers g God’s divine nature, there is the adornment of authority.

I like jewelry, but not just any jewelry. I love jewelry with a story. My wedding rings represent the story of our marriage. I have rings that were given to me at the birth of each son. I have pieces that are gifts from friends or that are tied to significant seasons or changes in my life. The meaning or timing behind the gift is how I determine if a piece of jewelry is an adornment or an accessory.

I love the story Hind’s Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. It came into my life during my mid-twenties and has stayed with me ever since. I read it to my children when they were young, and I read it to myself whenever the need arises. In this allegory, a young woman filled with fears travels from home to the high places where perfect love casts out fear. Along the way, there are many twists, turns, and trials. At each place, the heroine, Much-Afraid, builds an altar and picks up a stone of remembrance that she carries in a pouch. At one point, she is so discouraged and the promise seems so far off that she is tempted to toss aside these memorial rocks as worthless reminders of her disappointment. On second thought she keeps them, which is a good thing, because later each stone is transformed into a jewel in her crown.

Scholars believe there are five specific crowns mentioned in Scripture. There is the Crown of Righteousness, which we receive when we exchange our sin and shame for Christ’s righteousness and He crowns us with His salvation. There is the Crown of Rejoicing; this one is reserved for those who worship and praise God regardless of their circumstances. Next is the Crown of Glory for those who long for His glorious reappearing. On these last few pages, I want to highlight the remaining two.

Pages 233-234. Without Rival: Embrace Your Identity and Purpose in an Age of Chaos, Confusion & Comparison. Lisa Bevere. Revell 2016

NEXT UP: The Imperishable Crown. See I Cor 9: 24-27.

When we no longer seek God for His blessings, we have time to seek God for Himself.  Oswald Chambers  The Moral Foundations of Life 728 L

There are times when I look out upon the landscape of Christian women today and I am utterly stunned by so many who are doing this dance of life and ministry so well. There are so many beautiful, brave, godly young women on the front lines right now that I find my heart so full of hope. I began to wonder if I can move into less of a climb and more of a slide position. Recently, while pondering I heard the Holy Spirt correct me. Their coming up does not mean you step back. You must continue to forge ahead. I never meant them to push you aside; let them push you up.

My trajectory of “up” may look different than it has, but I never hear God say look down, or drop your chin. He says lift it. When His daughters gather in unity, I see His glory.

So lovely one. I will share with you readers my passion. Simply you! I pray I will always labor that Christ the anointed One would be formed in you. I long to see you well equipped and positioned in Him to find what was originally entrusted to you. I long to help you on your dearest quest, to know Him. As I wrote this book, I realized I had tackled far too big of a subject, for we live in a day that is rife with rivals vying for our affection. The Apostle Paul lived in a different day, and yet the church he loved faced similar struggles.

“For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.” (II Cor. 11:2-4)

Or as the Message translates this passage:

“The thing that has me so upset is that I care about you so much – this is the passion of God burning inside me! I promised your hand in marriage to Christ, presented you as a pure virgin to her husband. And now I’m afraid that exactly as the Snake seduced Eve with his smooth patter, you are being lured away from the simple purity of your love for Christ. It seems that if someone shows up preaching quite another Jesus than we preached – different spirit, different message – you put up with quite nicely.”

Hear me as a mother – nay, a grandmother: you were not made for the compromise of comparison. The Creator wove His originality into your DNA. Only you can give the unique expression of his love and glory, and the fruits and rewards of how you do this will travel with you into eternity.

NEXT UP:

Eternal Crowns. Seriously now? Yes indeed! Scholars believe there are five specific crowns mentioned in scripture. Certainly a lost perspective for me! And, actually several of theses crowns begin while we’re servants in His Kingdom!!

Perhaps it’s because we’ve been culturally & spiritually raised up in a dysfunctional democracy that has stymied our understanding and appreciation for being servants, and the actual significance of the Cross & His Kingdom for us to live fulfilled, joyful, and productive lives as His Ambassadors…. I’m in need of a refresher course! It’ll take the week, but change your life! Your choice. Always is!

Civilization is based on principles which imply that the passing moment is permanent. The only permanent thing is God, and if I put anything else as permanent, I become aetheistic. I must build only on God (John 14:6) The Highest Good – Thy Great Redemption, 5651

We do have this point in time. None of us is promised tomorrow, but you know this moment is yours. And the power of your choices can redeem all your moments. You have been seeded and heeled with a stunning story of promise. The book of your life can remain closed, or you can continue to turn the pages. Listen to Paul’s message to the Galatians:

Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you’ve been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life. (Gal. 6:4-5 Message)

It’s so hard to know who you are if you are too busy looking at who you are not, or at who everyone else is. Therein lies the roots of hypocrisy. You must know who you are in this journey called life if you are to walk and not faint.

If you are not decisively intentional with your time, your days will float away from you as you are pushed and pulled by demands and distractions. When you lay aside this book, pick up pen and paper. Sort through what are wise and unwise uses of your time. You need to open up your days so you can dream again.

Carefully tie your goals to your dreams. So daughter (or son) without rival, what do you dream? You may counter your life is boring or mundane. I didn’t ask you for a status report. What is your passion? If you have lost it, get back into the presence of God until you find it again. Clear your head and your heart. Go for a walk, listen to worship music, and reconnect with the well of your soul.

You are never too old, never too poor, never too rich, never too educated, and never, never too uneducated to set goals or dream dreams. And for sure, you are never too young!

NEXT UP: Reflect First, To Gain Perspective For The Climb…

Always keep in contact with those books and those people that enlarge your spiritual horizons making it possible for you to first stretch, & then grow greater, in all of His DIMENSIONS! Oswald Chambers.

We live in a day and age when everything around us is tempest tossed. If you know who you are and whose you are . . . you will stand. We have chosen a life without rival . . . a life that can only be constructed by the Holy Spirit.

Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives. That means we will not compare ourselves with each other as if one of us were better and another worse. We have far more interesting things to do with our lives. Each of us is an original. (Gal. 5:25–26 Message)

And so, we end where we began.

This unique expression of you as an original will lead to a life in keeping with the Spirit. You were not created merely for comparisons, but you were created for God’s Son. Your heavenly Father wrote out the intimate details of your life in His book long before you drew your first breath. He wrote your life with living letters. No one else can live your story. It is time your pages came alive. Living the story lines written for others will leave what the Spirit has written of you unfulfilled. Each and every one of us has a specific course and destiny. The Holy Spirit’s direction is essential if you are going to live a life without rival. This Spirit-led life is not merely a concept or a romantic hope—it is an expression of spiritual discipline and a personal act of worship. A life of devotion, not distraction. With each act of obedience in both your intimate and your public life, God will detail his purpose for your life and his voice to you will grow in clarity.

BOTTOM LINE:

Your life and all of its potential is a God-given act of trust toward you. It would be a shame if all that is in you were like so much treasure and talents buried under the opinions and expectations of strangers. You are not here on earth as a spectator. You have far more important and interesting things to do with your life. It is time you knew this.

Your future is now.

Without Rival: Embrace your Identity and Purpose in an Age of Confusion and Comparison by Lisa Bevere Pg 230

NEXT UP: And We Do Possess This Moment!

It is impossible to read too much , but always keep before you why you read. Remember His 3-R’s, our “need to Receive, Recognize, and Rely on the Holy Spirit” COMES before all else. Taken My Utmost For His Highest Approved Unto God, 11 L 

What made this woman Thecla so powerful? She was naked and unashamed because at the revelation of Jesus she discovered herself. Even though she was a new convert, she made a compelling ambassador. As she raised her voice in prayer, she demonstrated courage in the face of death. A brave daughter who might be denied the right to preach fully clothed in many a pulpit won a multitude of converts naked and surrounded by beasts in a cruel coliseum. When I read stories like this, I like to think Eve smiles. (I am sure Sarah does too!) For the battle Eve lost in the intimate nurture and safety of a garden has been won many times over by reborn daughters in arenas of open hostility.

The crowd had gathered to see an execution, but instead they witnessed the reversal of the fall. May our lives continue this legacy. As we daily declare that our salvation and substance are found in Christ alone, we increase our capacity to be filled with him and hasten his return.

Today we know more about the Bible than at any other time in our human history. And yet where has this knowledge brought us? We have an abundance of information and a glaring lack of transformation. I fear in many ways and on many fronts intellect and talent have been substituted for God’s Word and the guidance of his Holy Spirit.

I want more. What I sense in my spirit is an outpouring and harvest without rival.

This broken world needs to see God’s power. Perhaps it is time we echo the prayers of the early church.

So now, Lord, listen to their threats to harm us and empower us, as your servants, to speak the word of God freely and courageously. Stretch out your hand of power through us to heal, and to move in signs and wonders by the name of your holy Son, Jesus! (Acts 4:29–30 TPT)

And what did these prayers set in motion?

At that moment the earth shook beneath them, causing the building they were in to tremble. Each one of them was filled with the Holy Spirit, and they proclaimed the word of God with unrestrained boldness. (Acts 4:31 TPT)

It is time for God’s Word to be proclaimed with unhindered brash boldness. In many ways, the challenges Thecla faced were not that different from our own. There was outrage when she decided to take a path that was unexpected and to live a life that was consecrated. Family members tried to hold her back, the government tried to legislate her faith, men tried to take her by force and suppress what they saw as rebellion. And yet all along she was the one who was truly free. Whether she lived or died had no bearing on who she knew she was . . . she was a handmaiden of the Most High God.

NEXT UP: Living A Life Without Rival

Without Rival: Embrace your Identity and Purpose in an Age of Confusion and Comparison by Lisa Bevere Ch. 10: A Life Unrivaled Pg 225-227

“You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream.” C. S. Lewis

I want to share yet another ancient story of courage and devotion with you. There once was a beautiful young virgin named Thecla. She chanced to overhear the gospel as Paul preached in a neighboring house. She sat perched by her window transfixed as she listened to Paul’s call to the young men and women to worship Christ in chastity and virtue. Thecla was betrothed, but when she heard Paul’s words, she decided to spurn the arranged marriage and live out the remainder of her days for the glory of God.

Paul was oblivious to his influence on Thecla, but her decision did not go over well with her mother and her fiancé, who used their influence to stir up an angry mob against Paul. The civil unrest landed Paul before one of the governors of Iconium, who had him immediately imprisoned.

Grief stricken, Thecla used pieces of jewelry to bribe her way into the prison to meet Paul and hear the gospel of Jesus directly. When her family discovered their missing daughter in Paul’s prison cell, they had both of them brought before the governor. Paul was scourged then cast outside the city. Thecla’s mother denounced her, and the young woman was condemned to death. She would be burnt at the stake to serve as an example to any other daughters who might consider such wanton rebellion.

As Thecla went to her death, Paul gathered with other Christians outside the city in the catacombs and prayed earnestly. Thecla was bound to the stake, but when the flame was lit, she didn’t catch on fire. Then a storm of unusual violence arose, the downpour put out the flames at her feet, and Thecla was delivered from death. Afraid that it was a sign from the Greek gods, the authorities released her and put her out of the city. Disowned, Thecla met up with the other banished Christians who had decided to travel in the company of Paul to Antioch.

No sooner had they entered the city when a man of great influence and power named Alexander was drawn to Thecla’s beauty and tried to purchase her from Paul. When Paul refused, he tried to take her by force. Thecla fought back violently and in the process, removed Alexander’s crown of laurel leaves and spurned him publicly, as she commanded him not to touch a handmaiden of God.

Outraged, Alexander dragged her before the governor of Antioch. In the dispute, Thecla admitted tearing Alexander’s clothes as she tried to escape. Again, she was condemned to die. Her execution was set for the following day, and this time she was to be torn and eaten by wild beasts.

The women of Antioch were outraged. They felt the judgment against Thecla was unjust. A Roman woman of noble birth stepped forward and requested that Thecla be allowed to stay in her home rather than in the prison to protect her virginity. Over the course of the evening the older and younger women became close friends.

The next morning the noblewoman wept bitterly as Thecla was chained behind a fierce lioness and led off to an arena. The crowd roared as Thecla was stripped and forced into a stadium filled with lions and bears. The first creature to reach her was the lioness. It came running up to her, but rather than attack, the lioness turned and adopted a posture of protection at Thecla’s feet.

A bear charged, but before it could reach Thecla, the lioness killed it. Next, a male lion attacked, but again the lioness fought to protect Thecla. The struggle ended with the death of both lions, their bodies locked in combat at her feet. The masters of the game whipped and goaded the remaining animals toward their prey. But beast after fierce beast cowered and refused to attack. The crowd fell silent, as the fear of the Lord hushed the noisy arena. Thecla lifted her voice and prayed boldly.

The governor stood to his feet and stopped the games. He demanded to know who this woman was and what was the source of this power she possessed. She answered, “I am the handmaid of the living God . . . I have believed on that Son in whom God is well pleased. For He alone is the way of salvation and the substance of life immortal . . . whosoever believeth not on him, shall not live . . .”

The governor commanded clothes to be brought to her and ordered her release. Hundreds if not thousands were converted to Christ that day, and the early church annals reported that the women of Antioch praised God with one voice until the city shook with the sound. Thecla went on to live a long, full life and preached the gospel until she died in her nineties.

NEXT UP:   Living with A Brash Boldness During Times of Chaos, Confusion, & Comparisons! Summarized Pages 224-244

This unfinished document from 2018 unexpectedly surfaced today. The following random statements I judged worthy of you, were taken from Matthew Kelley’s book, “A Call to Joy: Living In The Presence of God,” Chapter One.

Sometimes you just know things. You do not know how you have come to know them, but deep within you there is an urge to listen to yourself, to trust yourself.

Only two things exist in eternity: joy and misery. We have long labeled them Heaven and hell. When you are with God you dance for joy. This we know as Heaven. When you are separated from God, you are paralyzed by misery. This we know as hell.

When you give to another, you fill yourself, and when you take selfishly, you empty yourself. Taking is not the same as receiving. When you graciously receive, you also fill yourself. Give and receive, but do not take.

Holiness is about grasping the moments of each day and using them to grow and become a better person and about assisting others in achieving the same. It is this that gives glory to God.

Smile, say less & listen more, pray & trust

A smile is an invitation to someone else to dance for joy.

One day a priest found himself walking through the Bowery in New York City, a place for many homeless people can be found. The priest was with three friends, were all on their way to take a ferry ride. As they walked along, they came a man dressed in rags and sitting on the pavement. He was very dirty and looking depressed. When he met the priest’s eyes, he beckoned him to come over. Touched, the priest moved toward him. But his friends quickly spoke up: “Come on, you don’t want to go near that bum.”

The priest ignored their warning and move still closer while his friends watched in amazement. The priest said a few words to the man. Then he smiled and moved on to catch the ferry.
As they were waiting to board, the same man came running up to the priest, sobbing like a child; he pulled out a gun and said, “Father, just before you walked along this morning, I was about to go down an alley and blow my brains out. When you came along, I waved to you and you responded to my call, my cry, my plea. Then you spoke to me as you would speak to someone you love, but it wasn’t any of this that that would stop me from doing what I had planned. As you started to leave, you looked deep into my eyes and smiled. It was a first sign of human affection that I’ve been shown in seven years And I just wanted you to know that today your smile has given me life.“

The two spoke for a while, and the priest discovered that this man had once been a doctor practicing at John Hopkins Hospital. Then the priest gave him his blessing and went on his way.

Later, the priest went to the hospital to find out what he could about this man. He mentioned the man’s name to various doctors and nurses and was told that he had in fact been a doctor there earlier, but he was having some troubles, so he left. No one knew where the priest could find him now.

Three years later the phone rang and the priest was greeted by a well spoken voice saying, “Hello, I’m Dr. Lawson. Remember me from the Bowery? I’m back at the hospital now. I just wanted you to know a smile can make a difference – sometimes all the difference.

Say less and listen more. (SLALM)These five words have improved my relationships with people more than any other. Everyone has a story. Your story is the thread of your life. It is when we lose or forget our story that our lives begin to fall apart.

The voice of God never ceases in our lives; He just uses different channels.

We are always wanting to know more, yet we are often not “prepared” to listen. We want to know more, but we do not live what we already know.

Our big struggle takes place between the false self and the true self. The more we abandon the false self and surrender to the true self, the more we grow in perfection. This battle takes place primarily in our hearts. It is a battle between power and love, between the love of power and the power to love. As we discover and nurture our true selves through prayer and reflection, the power to love grows in our hearts overwhelming and defeating it’s enemy, our inherent love and insatiable thirst for more power.

You will never be in control until you resolve not to be, for it is in the surrendering that we find our freedom. The key to surrendering to the Divine plan is trust.

Whereas, suffering puts us in touch with what is really important, sacrifice spells out our commitment and confirms our love.

Nothing, absolutely nothing, in this life is a coincidence. There are no accidents, just providence. Providence, providence, all is providence. Our happiness comes from seeking, finding, and struggling to live in harmony with this plan. The plan is truth, but it will never be imposed upon us.

To breathe is not a right; it is a gift. One of the first steps toward being able to recognize and be in touch with the divine plan for you is discovering the difference between a right and a gift. In the modern Western world we have an interesting combination of an overdeveloped sense of rights and an overdeveloped ego. When the two are mixed together, they form an extremely harmful formula known as U4; Unfulfilled, Unhappy, Unsatisfied, & Unbearable.

At times, I don’t understand while I’m alive, or why I wake up each day, how I breathe, and many other taken for granted intricacies, but I do know that one day I will not wake up. Death, however it is, is not a mystery. Life is the mystery. Life is sacred. Life is to be reverenced in all it’s forms.

Not everyone with his eyes closed is asleep, and not everyone with her eyes open can see. If you do not listen, you will never hear.

The clouds do not need to open and have lightening strike for God to speak. We need to develop the extra sense that allows us to hear God’s voice in the gentle whispers of the afternoon breeze.

To hear His voice you must be willing to change and obey His words. To achieve the necessary frame of mind and heart, we must recognize that God is good and that He calls us to do what is best. His challenge to change is much more than just that. His challenge to change is really a call to growth and to fulfillment. Fulfillment for a person is not merely a place or a destination; it is a path. You Journeying while on the path is fulfilling, whereas standing still on the path is devastatingly depressing!

When you stand still, you reject “the struggle” and you refuse to change and grow. Simultaneously you reject fulfillment, happiness, the dance for joy, and everything else, that is eternally for your good, and for His glory.

“The flower within you that wants to bloom is your soul. The Divine Gardener wishes to work the ground. The Divine Gardener wishes to water the ground. He wishes to pull out the weeds and place the flower where it can get just the right amount of sunlight.

Listen to the voice of the Divine Gardener. Remember, when He points out your faults and failings, He is hoeing the earth of your soul and pulling out the weeds. Some parts of the gardening process are painful, but the pain gives birth to new life. Allow Him to direct you, to call you forth, to move you, remembering that He wants to place you where you will get just the right amount of sunlight. Listen. Listen. Listen.”

God is your father. He is a loving father with wonderful plans for his children. Regardless of the greatest plan you can put together for yourself with the greatest power of your imagination, His plan is better, greater, more exciting, and by far, the most rewarding. Believe in His plan. Ask him to reveal His plan to you.

Sometime soon, when the Spirit calls you to listen to His Word, you practical seekers of His Plan, open and read Galations Chapters 5 & 6 from the KJV or NKJV. Then lastly, read and study from the paraphrased Message Version, sitting back with pencil and paper, and prayerfully listen.

Blessings.

UP NEXT: No idea. Honestly.