God Died Anyway

For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Someone told me yesterday that they were too far gone for God. Of course, I told him that wasn't true, but I've been thinking about it ever since. Isn't that how Satan works? He takes our faults and our negatives and our weakest points and tells us we're so bad that God doesn't love us. He'll tell us that we're too far gone - that there's no way to get past what we do or what we've done for God to love us. How could God love me? After all, look at me. I want to be honest and vulnerable about myself for a minute because I think there's a lot of people that feel this same way. You might not deal with the exact thing I'm going to talk about, but you deal with something that makes you not feel the way God intends for us to feel about ourselves. He intends for us to feel loved and adored and cherished and beautiful. He intends for us to feel worthy enough that He died for us. We don't though. But let me tell you, there's nothing we could ever do that would be worthy of Him dying for us. But He died anyway. For you. For me. And you know what? He already knew what our failures and our hardships and our weaknesses were going to be when He died. He died anyway. He knew the roads we would take, the life we would have, the mistakes we would make, the victories we would win. He died anyway. Because, the bottom line is, there was nothing we could do worthy of Heaven, but in His eyes we were, and still are, precious in His sight. And He died anyway.

Because my friend thinks he's too far gone, I got to thinking about myself. See, he deals with something in his life that makes him feel unworthy. He doesn't feel precious and kind and like a beautiful soul. But I will tell you that he is all of those things, even if he can't see it. I deal with something in my life that's different than him, but it still makes me feel, at times, that I'm not beautiful or precious or worthy. They may be different things, but the end result is the same. We both look at ourselves in the mirror that tells us that this part of our life is ugly. We hear the same enemy telling us all the same lies. The Bible says in John 10:10, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy." And that's what Satan does. He comes to steal our joy, kill our spirit and destroy our hope for a better tomorrow, or, better yet, to destroy our lives by telling us we're too far gone for Heaven. But do you know what the rest of that verse says? It says, "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." That's Jesus talking. HE came to give us life AND to give it to us abundantly.

The issue I deal with is my weight. I have struggled for so long. I used to think that I had struggled with it my whole life, but now I'm not so sure that's true. I look back over my life and realize that I didn't have a weight problem at times when I thought I did. But I've spent so much time worrying about this issue and judging myself so harshly, that it feels like I've had a lifetime of it. I let this issue so define me that it takes over how I live. I don't swim. I can swim and I love to swim, but I don't do it. I won't put on a bathing suit. I don't like having my picture made. I despise being weighed at the doctor's office. I think two or three or four times about what I wear. There are some places I don't even go. When I meet someone new I automatically think my weight is the first thing they're thinking about me. I had someone a while back try to guess what I ate and how much. But isn't that the stereotypical question that people have? They assume you're overweight because you eat the wrong things or too much of it. I have to remind myself that some people don't know where we've been, how far we've come, or what we've been through. Just like my friend I mentioned earlier - he's had a hard life. He's faced a lot of battles in his lifetime and he handles it the best way he can. I've been through seizures, cancer, three miscarriages, medicines that cause major changes in your body, and I, too, have dealt with it the best way I can. Sometimes people can't see deep enough into the heart of someone to understand them. But God can. And He does. He knows where we've been because He's been there with us. He knows how far we've come because He's walked beside us, maybe even carried us. He knows the battles we've fought and the heartaches we've had because He never leaves us. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is one I carried with me through cancer. It's Joshua 1:9 and it says, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." I love this verse. He commands us in this verse. He doesn't ask. He commands. But He says He's with us wherever we go, whether that's on a day when I feel good about what I eat or on a day when I totally go off track. Just like with my friend, God is with him when he's having a good, strong day, or a bad one. 

I've recently committed to God to help me lose five pounds a month until I reach my goal. My oldest son is getting married in 15 months. If I can do five pounds a month, I'll be down 75 pounds and very close to my goal. I think that's doable. I know four things. One, I cannot do this by myself. God will have to help me and I know He will. He just told me in His word that He will be with me wherever I go. Even in this. Most especially in this because He loves me. Two, this will happen in His time and in His way because I have surrendered it all to Him. Three, I will have days when I struggle and feel like I've failed. But God doesn't fail. He will be right there every single time. I just have to get back up and keep trying. Four, it is important to me, and this makes it important to Him. Why? Because He died anyway. 1 Samuel 16:7 says, "For the Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." And this - this is the most important thing. This is what I wish we all knew every minute of every hour of every day. God sees the heart. I know my heart, and my heart is overflowing with love for Jesus. I love Him more than I love my life. And my friend - God sees his heart, too. He sees the kindness, the strength, the beautiful love he has for others. And this, my friends, is the beauty of God. He sees us as no one else does. He sees our hopes and our dreams and our wishes and the ways we serve Him and worship Him and love Him. This is a beauty that will never be found in a number on the scale or a size in a pair of jeans. This is a beauty that will shine far more beautifully than our outward appearance. And that's what I see in my friend, because I see his heart. 

It's a hard thing to adapt to in today's world. With all the world's standards of what's pretty and what's not, what's skinny and what's not, what makes a person beautiful and what doesn't, it's no wonder we get lost in the lies the enemy throws at us. It's in our face all day every day. But I've chosen to work on looking at myself differently, and I pray my friend does, too. I'm choosing to hear God when He says in Solomon 4:7, "You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you." God doesn't see what I see, and I am so thankful. Because God thinks I'm beautiful, even when I don't. He knew I would face this in my life and have to come to terms with how He created me. He knew I would struggle. He knew some days I would listen to the voice of the enemy tell me lies and believe every single lie he spews at me. He knew I would try and fail, and try and fail, and try and fail. But he died anyway. For me and for you. He also knew that I would never truly fail as long as I didn't quit trying, as long as I kept striving to be more like Him. And I so want to be more like Him, with every part of my being. Pray for me as I walk this journey, and I'll pray for you. And I'll take this one day at a time, and I'll walk this road with Him by my side. And I'll try to be a little kinder to myself when I look in the mirror. I'll try to see what He sees. And my friend, well, this one is for you, too, because I see a little bit of what God sees in you, and it is altogether beautiful, my love. Believe it for yourself. Even in the midst of the struggles and the ups and downs, believe it for yourself. After all, God died anyway. 

I love you all,

Kacey

Dry Bones

 The Spirit of God has made me, 
And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
Job 33:4

Every breath we take is a gift. Each inhale. Each exhale. It's easy sometimes to take those breaths for granted. I think that's because they come without us even thinking about them. They are automatic. We need each breath that we breathe to have life on this earth. But what about a different kind of breath? The kind that gets our hearts pumping and puts excitement in our bones. The kind that makes us want to shout about the glory of God and dance in the streets like David. The kind that makes us want to be different from the world - to be set apart because we have something that people see but can't quite put their finger on. That kind of breath can only be given by the power of the Holy Spirit. It can only be breathed into us by the breath of the Almighty. It's glorious. It's exciting. It brings us joy even when we feel sadness. It brings comfort even when we feel scared. If you're a believer in Christ, the very breath of God is in you.

Several weeks ago in Sunday School, we were studying the book of Ezekiel. I've read about this before, but this lesson took me deeper into God's word and it had a profound effect on me. You see, Ezekiel was a prophet and God's hand was upon him. God gave Ezekiel a vision. The Bible tells us in Ezekiel 37:1-2, "The hand of the Lord was on me, and He brought me out by His Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them. There were a great many of them on the surface of the valley and they were very dry." God led Ezekiel through this valley. He gave him a tour so he could see all of these bones. When the scripture says "they were very dry", I learned that this signified the utter hopelessness of life coming back into these bones. No sign of life existed. 

Through my cancer journey, I learned a lot about being in a valley. It's usually your lowest point. Many times you find yourself alone in the valley. But I also learned that in the valley, God is always with us. I also learned that there is such beauty in these valleys we walk through. It may not seem like it at the time, but there is much to see and learn, and it's almost always a magnificent sight. So you may be wondering how there could be beauty in this valley that Ezekiel has been put in. Just wait. You'll see. 

God spoke to Ezekiel and told him to speak to the dry bones. Ezekiel 37:5-6 says, "This is what the Lord GOD says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live. I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know I am the Lord." I don't know about Ezekiel, but if I'm standing there in the middle of a valley of dry bones and the Lord God tells me He's about to put tendons and flesh on them and give them life, I'm gonna be a little scared. But that's exactly what God did. All of the bones that were scattered across that valley were put together as skeletons. God put the tendons on, joined the muscles, and put the skin over the bones - all while Ezekiel watched it. Wow! What a sight that must have been. The Bible tells us that the rattling sound of these bones coming together shook the earth so hard it was as if there were an earthquake! However, even though God put these bodies back together, they still had no life - they had no breath in them. 

God then commanded Ezekiel to prophesy to the breath, and that the Lord God says breathe into these slain so that they may live! Verse 10 of Ezekiel 37 says, "So I prophesied as He commanded me; the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a vast army." Let's just imagine for a moment all that Ezekiel has witnessed. He went from being in a quiet valley full of dry bones, to being in a valley full of people standing before him. Only God could do this. 

You may be wondering where I'm headed with this, but I had to give you the visual of what happened. It was so significant to me. This vision God gave Ezekiel shows us that we are dead if we don't have Jesus as our Savior. It shows us the power of the Holy Spirit. Oh, we're human and we're walking around, living our lives from day to day, but we are not experiencing the richness of all God has to offer. The Holy Spirit brings new life to us when we accept God's salvation. The Holy Spirit is the joy in our sadness, the comfort in our fear, the truth to our doubts. The Holy Spirit is the dance in our step and the music to our songs. We live here on earth because God gave us life. But we live in abundance here on earth and then for eternity if we accept Jesus as our Lord. He gives us life and His Spirit enables us to breathe and be alive in a way we could never imagine. God gave Ezekiel this vision to show us that the gospel is about making dead people alive. We are dead in Christ until we accept Him. Then we are given this beautiful gift of the Holy Spirit. This Spirit is what moves us. It's what makes our hearts overflow at the sight of a sunset, or the vastness of the ocean, or simply the fullness of being in His presence. The Spirit is a light that shines in us that makes us look different. He didn't have to give us this gift of His Spirit. He could have given us only the gift of His salvation. And that would have been enough. But He went further and gave us this mighty, powerful gift of His Spirit. He woke us up and gave us a gift worth shouting about. He died on the cross to save our souls from Hell. But then He breathed into us His Spirit to live this life here, right now, in a way that glorifies Him - in a way where we can be so filled with His Spirit that we are overflowing. What a gift!

If you don't know the Lord as your Savior, please consider Him. He's waiting for you. He's waiting to breathe life into you like you've never known. Don't live this one life you have here on earth as dry bones. Let God breathe into you His Spirit so you can experience life abundantly here and then forevermore in Heaven. I'm so thankful to God for His Holy Spirit, for breathing life into these dry bones of mine, for raising me up to live in a way that is not possible without Him. I'm thankful that the very breath of the Almighty gives me life.

I love you all,

Kacey

There's Just Something About That Name

 ".....and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, 

Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace". 

Isaiah 9:6

I'd love to tell you about my Jesus. Just a glimpse of His power and His love. How He showed up for me the other day in such a simple, powerful way.

The other morning in the shower, I found myself humming. It's not unusual that I hum or sing in the shower. There are many times that I have full out worship with the Lord in the shower. It's a place where I'm alone, no one can hear me except for Him, and I have had some really great conversations with Him there. This particular morning, though, I wasn't paying much attention, just trying to get done and get my day started. So I was just absently humming along when I realized that I was humming the chorus "There's Just Something About that Name", (written by Gloria Gaither). Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, there's just something about that name. That's how it starts. It made me smile. Just saying His name made me smile. I was completely filled with the Holy Spirit. I felt His presence. To sing that first line, I felt so humbled because I felt as if I was welcoming Him into my day. This particular morning I was so keenly aware of His name and all that it meant. He died for me even though I didn't deserve it. He loves me unconditionally even though I fail every single day. I just sang that first line over and over and over and as the warm water rushed over me, so did His presence. I lost all awareness of anything else. I often times pray in the shower for the same reasons I sing - I'm alone, and no one else can hear me. And I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel like my prayers are repetitive. But on this day, it was just me and Jesus. All I did was sing this song. I felt close to Him, surrounded by Him, truly in the presence of Him, all by simply calling on His name.

Master, Savior, Jesus, like the fragrance after the rain is the next line. I thought about that, about how that fragrance after a rain is so different and distinct. It's fresh and it makes us want to breathe it in. That's what Jesus does - He makes all things fresh and new. The Bible says in Lamentations 3:22-23, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." I thank Jesus that He finds a way to give mercy and grace. I know His heart breaks when I make the same mistakes or disappoint Him, yet He never seems to tire of giving new mercy each and every morning. Just as He makes the sun rise every morning, His mercy is new.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, let all Heaven and earth proclaim, Kings and Kingdoms will all pass away, but there's just something about that name is the last part of this chorus. This is so powerful to me. It says in 1 Chronicles 29:11, "Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and You are exalted as head above all." Everything is the Lord's. I think that's what humbled me so much was the thought that everything I have is the Lord's. It's all His, but He gave these things, these blessings, this life to me. Even in hard times and trying times and times of uncertainty, He's there giving grace and mercy and blessings. Even when we lose our way or stumble and fall, He's there to pick us up. Sometimes He has to carry us, but He's there. We must proclaim it. He's given us a voice to tell others about Him, to share what He does for us, to share His goodness and most importantly His salvation. Kings and kingdoms will all pass away, but Jesus lives forever! Hallelujah! Philippians 2:10-11 says, "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in Heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." So at the end of this life, everything passes away and is gone, but those of us that know Jesus as our personal Savior, it's just the beginning! I don't think we can truly fathom eternity, that there's no end, ever. That we will be surrounded with the love of Jesus in a place so beautiful we can't imagine, full of light and love and praise and happiness with never an end is hard to grasp. But oh how wonderful it will be. 

There's power in the name of Jesus. There's hope and love and protection and freedom and so many other things in the name of Jesus. All we have to do is whisper His name. That's what I did on this morning in the shower. I was humming His name and He met me where I was. I worshiped Him just by singing His name and my day started off with a smile. Nothing else mattered. He was by my side in an instant. I hope you know Him as your Savior. If you don't, reach out. I'll help you find Him. He's not far away and He's waiting. 

Thank you for letting me tell you a little bit about my Jesus. Without Him I would be lost, but with Him I am free and I am blessed and I am grateful. There's just something about Him. There's just something about His name.

I love you all, 

Kacey