Remember what we were discussing last week? If you weren't here last week take a peek at the stuff about rain and then come back.

This whole thing has raised a lot of questions in my mind that I've been asking God. Regarding the rain, I've asked Him if I am praying that the rain stop and the ground really hasn't had too much rain (for example, even though the ground may be saturated the underground wells may not be full) if He will still bring more rain until the wells were full and then stop it because of my prayers. I've asked Him if one person's prayers are enough or if it takes more than one. I've asked Him whether I am to ask Him to make it stop or if I am to speak to the clouds and demand them to stop. Then, if He told mankind to subdue the earth, and if we are to ask Him to do it, then do we also pray it in Jesus' name?

My questions went into more detail. I wanted to know if I should only be concentrating on praying for the local area. I was curious as to how far, geographically, my responsibility reached. Those are samples of some issues that were raised in my mind regarding subduing the weather.

(By the way, areas surrounding us were getting a great deal of rain. Some areas were having mudslides and flooding due to too much rain. We got a little more rain, but then it stopped. We had sunshine while other areas were still getting rain. The weather reports were for a huge storm to come in last night and to be here all day today. I see lots of blue sky and sunshine outside my windows.)

As I was asking God about what I was supposed to be doing and saying regarding the weather, some other thoughts began to dance around in my mind. They had to do with praying for healing for people and for many of the other things I've prayed for over the years.

I know that there are scriptures regarding healing, but there is also a scripture about God telling Paul that Paul wouldn't be healed of his infirmity. So, I began asking God A WHOLE BUNCH MORE QUESTIONS.

Should I find out if it is God's will to heal someone first before I pray for the healing? When I claim the scripture in 1Peter 2:24, "...by whose stripes ye were healed," am I misinterpreting the scripture? After all, healed could be healed from the effects of sin or could be specifically for something else and not a blanket coverage for all illness and infirmity. There were lots of questions, and questions within questions that I began asking.

I know that sometimes God says, "No." I want my prayers to be effective. I want to be able to go into my prayer closet and to pray with understanding. I want to know that I am praying in God's will. I want to know that I am praying for the things that God wants to come to pass.

So, where does that leave me? Am I confused? Yes and no. I am temporarily confused on some issues, but God is giving me answers so my confusion is only temporary.

I have been hanging on to my "knowledge" about God and the things of God. My knowledge was the understanding that I was given by the teachings of other people. Many of those teachings were a result of what those people had been taught by other people. If you take all the people who passed this information along and add all those people's life experiences and other learning which probably tainted the Word of God with opinions and traditions then you end up with something that may or may not be what God intended. Do you see where I am headed with this?

We have to allow God to touch the things that we grip so tightly and remove the things that are not from Him! We HAVE to have an open mind about the things of God. Take a look at all the different denominations. Why are there different denominations?? It is because people interpreted scriptures (and most, if not all, are very convincing interpretations!) in different ways and built a denomination around the differences they found as compared to what other people understood the scriptures to mean. Is that what God intended us to do? Of course not! He intended ALL of us to be one body... the Body of Christ with Christ as the Head!

Which denomination has the one, correct interpretation?? None of them, probably. God is the only one with the correct interpretation. Is He keeping that interpretation a secret? No.

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." Matthew 7:7-8

Am I crazy to be thinking all these things? Am I crazy to think that I can change the weather? No, not at all. If you are firmly convinced that God will not change the weather based on a person's prayers then you shouldn't pay any attention at all to what I believe. What you should do is find out where you got that opinion and whether your opinion is fact.

I'm afraid that all of us are going to be in for a big surprise (actually, lots of surprises) when we get to heaven. We are probably going to shake our heads in wonderment that we were so very blind!

I guess I am going to have to go back to my prayer page and rewrite part of it to leave it more open ended. I think the hardest part about learning more about what God wants me to be doing and saying is realizing that I probably don't know one tenth of what I thought I knew. Also, as an ex-control freak I find that I have to continually let God be God. I am continuously slapping my hand to make myself let go of things that are not mine to handle!

Always keep these scriptures in the back of your mind and apply them to EVERYTHING:

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." Proverbs 3:5

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9

Have a wonderful time getting closer to the God that loved you before you were even born!

Link to the 3/5/01 Bible study.

This morning the Lord impressed upon my heart to put the things we've been discussing the past two weeks into article form. I spent most of the day writing that article. It's called Let Go and Let God.

He has also suggested that I put another study I've done into article form. I collected all the New Testament scriptures that mention bind and loose. I figured it was important to know what to bind and what to loose as Jesus said in Matt 6:19, "Whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." You can find a link to it under the "Poems and Other Interesting Things" section below.

I've got an Internet friend that God brought to me a couple of years ago. She and I encourage each other and edify each other when necessary. We pray for each other. We both have the ICQ program and are able to connect every once in a while to chat. We have a three hour time difference so we end up missing each other more often than not. Sometimes we have glorious praise time together and then, other times, we get to joking around and end up laughing so hard our sides split. You know the term ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing)? That describes us. We have almost fallen out of our chairs a number of times.

Anyway, she has locked in on a term that describes how we have to remain if we are going to be able to accept the things that God wants to do through us. God wants to do things that fall outside of our understanding and of our knowledge. He wants to work miracles through us. However, we can hinder what He wants to do by our pre-formed opinions and beliefs. Well, my friend Pat is working on remaining a Mush Brain in order to keep herself from trying to convince herself that something that God wants to do through her is impossible. So, she and I are fellow Mush Brains. Want to join us??

God sure is Marvelous! The church He found us is outstanding! Last night we were all yelling at satan and demanding our rights as children of God. It was cool! Yesterday morning we were lost in praise. At one point I could see angels gathered around us and swaying to the music as we sang. Then, when we had a prayer time I could see them zip off to answer the prayers. Then they came back to enjoy the rest of our praise time. It was so very very COOL!

I sure am glad I let God find the church for us. We might be still without one if I had kept trying on my own.

Oh, we had a beautiful day today! The sun was shining most of the day and there was a gentle breeze. We've had many more cloudy days in the past month than we've had in many years. (I live in Southern California. It's not nice and green around here except in the spring, but we get a lot of sunshine. I'm one of those people that would have to sit under bright lights if I lived in a place that didn't have a lot of sun, so that is why I live here. I put up with the heat and the smog and the crowded roads in order to soak up the sun.)

Today was so very beautiful that I opened all our doors and windows and allowed the fresh air to infiltrate every corner of the house. It's starting to get cool outside, but the air smells so good that I don't want to close up yet. Tee hee! I'll probably let it get so cold in here that I'll have to build a fire to warm us up. Then the house will smell smoky!

Enough chit chat. . .off to the Bible study!

Link to the 3/12/01 Bible study.

GOD IS!!!! Isn't He? There are so many times I want to describe God's awesomeness and there just are no words, so I just tell Him, "You ARE!" He knows what I mean.

Unfortunately, we don't always keep God in the place of honor in our minds where He deserves to be. We have a tendency to relegate Him to a corner while we are busy about our daily business. We treat Him like a 24-hour convenience store. When we need something we know the store will always be open. Yet, we shop elsewhere when we aren't backed into a corner.

God deserves to have the prominent place in our minds and hearts. When we wake up in the morning we should acknowledge His presence. How would you feel if the first person you saw in the morning acted like you didn't exist?

He wants to be involved in every single piece of your life.
"Should I take the freeway or surface streets to work this morning?"
"Thank you, Lord, that was an excellent lunch!"
"Put words in my mouth."
"Give me wisdom."
"Thank you for the beautiful flowers."
"I praise You just because You are You."
"What should I fix for dinner tonight?"
"Watch over my children and spouse for me."
"Protect me and my vehicle as we drive home together, You and I."
Then sing praise songs to Him all the way home.

Every decision, every word, every thought should be made through Him, not without Him. Don't look for Him when you need something. Look THROUGH Him all day every day!

Well, I haven't heard from anyone wanting to join us Mush Brains. Mush Brains are people who keep their own wisdom and understanding pushed aside so that God can work through us. We have to remain in a state of Mush-Brainedness in order to not hinder the miraculous things He wants to do. If we allow our own brains to retain control then we will probably reject the things of God as "impossible" or "ridiculous."
MUSH BRAINS UNITE!
(Tee Hee! Should we design a flag?)

God is truly AWESOME! He is continuously giving me feedback on the things He is teaching me to reinforce the things I'm learning! Last week I told you about seeing angels during the praise service at church. During the week I received a prophetic word from one of the lists to which I subscribe and it spoke about angels being sent here. It was confirmation that I wasn't imagining things. I didn't believe I had imagined them, but when I shared my experience with some people they looked at me like I had lost my mind. Now they see I'm not the only crazy one around!! ;-)

In that same email it spoke of time being stopped in the Old Testament by prayer and that it can and will happen again. That was confirmation to the article I wrote called Let Go and Let God. AWESOME!

Looks like our rainstorms are gone, at least for now. Yesterday it got up over 80 degrees in the shade! It seems to go from one extreme to another. Sometimes we get a 40 to 50 degree difference from early morning to afternoon! Good thing we aren't rocks! We'd crack!

Do you have God in a box? Do you know exactly what He will and won't do? Are you comfortable knowing you have been taught the best interpretation of the scriptures? Are you comfortable knowing God won't mess with certain things, like the weather, freeway traffic, and where birds fly?

I'm trying to think of a way to break this to you gently. Open one spiritual eye and take a peek around you. Now open your other spiritual eye. What do you see? You certainly don't see a box with God in it. What you see is the inside walls of the box. You have placed yourself in the box.

God will never fit in anyone's box. Just because you don't see Him doing what seem like miraculous things doesn't mean He isn't. It just means your unbelief, opinions, and worldly wisdom are hindering your eyesight. You are virtually spiritually blind. I hope that wasn't too harsh. If you are confused or upset then don't take it up with me. Take it up with God. Ask Him about it. Oh, one more thing, listen for the answers!

Link to the 3/19/01 Bible study.

Praise God! Praise God! Praise God!

I had been sharing with you how the Lord has led me to withdraw from the football booster club and how other parents weren't coming forward to help. Well, at the meeting Wednesday night we got a full board of directors and enough people signing up for each of the fund raisers that there will be plenty of help! God even brought back one of the old presidents so I won't be the only one at the meetings that knows anything about the different activities!

God had led me to withdraw and I knew that, if the booster club was to continue, then God would have to bring people to take over. I was praying that He would since my son will be a senior next fall and it wouldn't be fair if he didn't get the benefits of the things the booster club does for the team. The booster club provides around 85% of the money necessary to run the football program. Glory! God is GOOOOOOOD!

Today my "baby" turns 17. Sigh. Where has the time gone?

Our church service was glorious yesterday! It is absolutely amazing what happens when the leadership of a church allows the Holy Spirit to guide and direct all aspects of the service! Nobody has to leave wondering if the right songs were sung, the right message was preached, or if anyone was touched that needed to be touched! God is the absolute best choreographer that ever was!

Does your church have a bulletin with the order of the service pre-printed on it? Is that order usually always followed every week? Perhaps it is time to question the leadership and find out who designed that order of service. Then ask if they prayed about it every week before the bulletin was printed.

During the praise and worship are people getting intimately in touch with God? You can tell if they are. Actually, it is easier to tell if they are not. If they are not singing, if their eyes are open and looking around, if their face looks bored, and if their hands never raise and tears never flow, then they are not getting in touch with God. If they are not getting intimately in touch with God then it is not praise and worship. It is just something that someone feels is the right thing to do at that particular point in the church service.

Do you walk out with a nagging feeling of, "Is that all there is?" Do you leave with no closer of a relationship with God than when you walked in? It's probably time to find a new church. Ideally, it would be time to give a wake up call to the leadership, but that probably will only result in hurt feelings and resentment. They probably feel they are doing things the right way and won't listen to someone who is a "rebel."

Church service is a time to join your heart and mind with other believers and minister to God. It is time to give Him our corporate praise and worship. In turn, He will bless us.

I have to tell you, I'm pretty darn excited about the things of God! It's amazing how different things look when you look at them through Him! My mom is needing hip replacement surgery. I know that God created her original hip and can turn the old worn-out hip into a new one in a blink of an eye. The one He can give her is much much better than the new, deluxe titanium man-made hip!!! I am placing my faith in the Creator of the universe and looking forward to my mom's phone call telling me that the x-rays show no surgery is necessary!!!

I know I would be surprised, but I wouldn't be shocked if I looked out my window and saw a hill had been moved, or a full-grown tree appeared in a new place, or if the picket fence I want my husband to build in our back yard just appeared one day. I have an open mind to the things of God. He can do ANYTHING! I'm not going to limit the things He wants to do by my unbelief. I've let go and I'm letting God!

Link to the 3/26/01 Bible study.