Walking in the Word with Breast Cancer

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 Sin is deceitful - it is what keeps us out of God's rest. And when you get down to the core of it, sin is the result of a lack of trust in God's promises. Sin whispers our only hope for a bright future is if we cheat, lie, steal.  Sin tells us God won't come through in this situation, so we need to take control, say those things, leave the relationship.  Sin tells us we we will lose this relationship if we don't compromise our sexual standards. It says we won't have job security if we speak up at work about a dishonest practice. It says this man will never change, and my life will be wasted if I don't get a divorce. It says I deserve more, I deserve better. Sin says it's okay to gossip because I need allies, I need support, I need p...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 When you read the verses that come before this verse, you see that the author is instructing the readers not to fall into the same disobedience that the Israelites did - hearing the word of God and not acting on it. Verse 11 mentions entering God's rest - Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. - Hebrews 4:11. The rest they are referring to is God's Word. In essence, they are saying be diligent to hear the Word of God and take rest in it - to trust it and be satisfied in it, so that you don't start murmuring and complaining and want to forsake God like the Israelites did.  That's the thought that connects to our verse - why should we stay true to God's Word?  Because it is living...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 There are times when we can feel ourselves pierced by reading or hearing the Word of God - we hear the truth and it cuts us to the core. Sometimes that piercing can cause us to deny what is revealed, or be defensive of our actions, but if we’re tender-hearted, the piercing should open our eyes to discern our thoughts and intentions. The problem is getting our hearts to the place where they are soft and receptive to the truth.  The heart is so deceitful, it can hide true intentions even from our own minds.  That heart of ours is so creative, it can even confuse intentions. We can have selfish desires mixed in with good desires so that we don’t even see the selfish ones.  For example, my deepest desire and most frequent prayer request for years...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 Sharper than a two edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit. The author here draws an analogy of a sword sharp enough to cut through bones and joints to the marrow. The bones are the hard outer part that a duller knife struggles to cut through, the marrow is the soft inner part.  A double edged sword, sharp on both sides, is sharp enough to cut through our hard outer shell of existence, and reveal to us our inner spirit. Our soul is that invisible part of our being that we are by nature, the Spirit is that which we are by God. So the Word of God cuts through our self and our spirit, revealing to us our true heart.  Are our thoughts and intentions spiritual thoughts or are they natural thoughts?  The word of God can reveal to us wh...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 The word of God in the New Testament generally refers to the spoken word of God through man. For example, in Hebrews 13:7 it says, Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. So, in this verse, it is most likely referring to the truth of God revealed in Scripture that we speak to each other with reliance on God's help to understand it and apply it.   That was an interesting discovery for me because it changed the meaning of this verse slightly for me - I've always thought this verse referred only to the written Word of God. When His Word is spoken, it is living and active, and it has power. His Spirit is present when you call upon the Word of God in conversation with...

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12 I’ve been meditating on the power of His Word lately. There are so many who struggle with anxious or depressive thoughts this time of year, and my heart aches for the pain they walk through. At a time when we should be celebrating the birth of our King - our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, and our Prince of Peace, far too many are trapped in a pit by their thoughts. It doesn’t have to be this way - there is freedom from the chains that hold you in that pit. As a counselor, I have a front row seat to the pain that exists in this world, and it is heartbreaking. So many people I know who struggle in life, especially this time of year, miss this one simple discipline to protect their hearts and their minds from the enemy’s attacks - gettin...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 Prince of Peace. Our Savior came down to this earth to bring us Peace.  The bible is full of brokenness ~ examples of fallen people living in a fallen world, and Jesus doesn't come to say it will be any easier. He doesn't paint us a rosy picture ~ in fact, He tells us it will be just the opposite. The bible confronts us with the reality of the world we live in, it doesn't pretend that everything is going to be easy once we accept Christ. We will have trials - big ones and small ones, short ones and long ones - and it will be hard.  But the Bible also tells us of a real peace that we can grab hold of ~ not the kind of peace we find when things are going our way, but a true peace in the face of adversity. It is found in knowing that Our Father is not afrai...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 Everlasting Father. A father is someone who cares deeply for his children, always putting their needs above his own. A father fiercely  protects their child from harm, swooping in to fight their battles for them. At the same time, a father will allow their child to experience pain as discipline to teach and grow them. A father always seeks the good of his children even when the children don’t understand. A father is loyal and faithful, always showing up when their children need them. A father is forgiving, never recalling an offense or holding it against their child. A father is attentive, always offering an ear to listen, always in tune to their children’s needs. A father is an encourager, through spoken and unspoken word, children always know their father has their...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 He is our powerful and Mighty God. We look at a desperate situation as hopeless, but God says nothing is impossible. All things are possible with our Mighty God.  Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26 NIV) I am living proof that Our God is Mighty. My life is one God at work story after another, beginning with my salvation story ~ He grabbed my heart when there was no one in my life preaching the gospel to me, in fact there was no evidence of Him at all in my life. I was in a Godless marriage, living a Godless life. But God.  Our Mighty God got a hold of me despite my circumstances and prompted me to surrender my life when everything in my life countered that decision. From an ou...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 Mighty God. That babe in the manger is our Mighty God. He is at the center of the universe, He is the creator of all things, He is the only one worthy of worship. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. - Colossians 1:16-17 Our God rules over heaven and earth, He defines love and wisdom, mercy and grace, He controls the forces of nature and authority, he reigns sovereign over every aspect of our lives, He sees everything, knows everything, and is everywhere. He is our Mighty God, and He is worthy of our complete submission and worship. He can right...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 A counselor by definition is someone who gives advice. Jesus has the title of Wonderful Counselor. He is our advisor, He is who we should be turning to in times of trouble or when faced with a difficult decisions.  I remember being confused about how He can be my Counselor when I can’t even talk to Him. I wanted to live my life to honor Him, but when the trials came, I would still turn to myself or others to try and solve my problems. I ended up frustrated, and my heart would fill with anxiety. I knew in my head that I shouldn’t be feeling those strong emotions, so I would set about trying to stop them in my own power. I would try to will them out of my mind because I knew they shouldn’t be there, only to find I would eventually slip and fall into the pit again. ...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  - Isaiah 9:6 Wonderful Counselor.  Life is challenging. It’s full of struggles and unexpected twists, and it can be incredibly difficult to keep pressing on when everything inside of you wants to quit. Daily pressures and decisions can cause us to want to crawl back right under the covers and ignore it all. Painful wounds can cause us to pull away from relationships. Loss and grief can cause us to feel like we’re drowning. Watching the news and considering the desperate state of this world can leave us just wanting to give up. Living in this broken world can not only steal our joy, but it can cause us to feel as if we’re very alone, trapped at the bottom of a pit.  We need guidance to manage all of life’s questions and struggles so we turn to others for support. We n...

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  —Isaiah 9:6 God’s humility became evident in history when the child was born and His Son was given. Like all babies, Jesus was vulnerable, helpless, and completely dependent—all descriptive words that don’t fit God. That is, unless He chose to humble Himself infinitely, as He did when He came as a baby born of the Virgin Mary.   God didn't have to be humble. In fact, given our insignificance as creatures and the magnitude of our sin problem, the last thing we would expect from a holy God is humility. No, we should expect Him to respond with righteous judgment and wipe us out for the way we have destroyed all that He created for good. On our own we have no right to stand before Him or ask Him to do anything to help us. And yet, even though we were a lost cause, God became th...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 As a biblical counselor, I’ve been asked two questions about this verse often. Are all unbelievers wicked? And if we are not to walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand with sinners, what do we do as believers who are married to unbelievers? Whenever we have difficult questions like this, we need to go to scripture to find our answers. We know God fives wisdom generously to all who seek it, and we know His wisdom is always found in His Word. For the first question, we know from multiple places that belief in Jesus is the only way, the only truth, and the only life. There is only one way to salvation, and that is through Jesus Christ. We are all wicked, but those of us who confess belief in Jesus have our wickedness covered by t...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 Here’s the truth we need to understand, my friends ~ when we choose to meditate on His Word, we will be blessed. And since we learned earlier this week that blessed means happy, we can rephrase: when we choose to meditate on His Word, we will be happy. It’s really that simple. What do you choose to meditate on?  What consumes your thoughts night and day? Are you struggling to find happiness? We spend so much of our energy trying to create happiness for ourselves and the ones we love. So much of that energy we spend is for naught. You want to be happy? Get into His Word and meditate on it day and night.  God loves us so much that He wants us to be happy, so He wrote a book telling us how to do just that. The problem is t...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 If we are to meditate on His Word day and night, we need to be storing it in our heart. I remember when I didn't take this command as seriously as I should have - I didn't work on memorizing scripture on a regular basis. I rationalized that I knew scripture well. There were so many verses in songs that I knew, I was familiar enough with scripture that I knew all the stories and lessons, and I knew many of the big verses (John 3:16, etc), but intentionally memorizing scripture wasn't part of my regular routine with God. I actually thought I didn't really need to do it. I thought it was for other people. I rationalized I was getting into His Word every day, and I already knew some verses by heart, I thought I was good. Oh, how arrog...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 In our day to day struggles, and in our deepest tragedies, we are told in this verse that we can find peace in the chaos when we meditate on His Word.  We all meditate all day long on something...the question is, what do you choose to meditate on?  Your fears, your trials, difficult people in your life, your financial struggles, your lost children...they all consume so much of our thinking. God tells us here how to over come out anxieties and despair - we are to meditate on Him.  We choose what we think about, and if we want to be happy, we have to capture our negative self-talk, and choose to replace it with His Word....and we can only do that if we have His Word stored in our hearts.  Through my deepest,...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 It took a long time for me to understand what delighting in the Lord looked like. First, I had to get into His Word consistently, so I committed to spending some quiet time with Him every single morning, without exception. Initially, it was only 10-15 minutes, but it was consistent. The delighting definitely didn't start then, but I did have a greater sense of peace and purpose about me when I consistently met with Him, so I continued.  In those early days of consistently spending time in His Word, I was not really doing it out of delight, I was doing it more because I knew if I wanted peace and wise direction in my life, then I needed to meet with Him every day.  But over time, the amount of time I met with Him each day in...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 If we are to be happy, we have to be conscious about what we are doing. God laid out the plan so clearly in scripture for how we are to be happy - yet, so many people are still walking around struggling with despairing or anxious thoughts. God speaks to us so often about how to be happy in scripture, but we ignored it or fail to apply it.  Blessed means happy. Understanding that truth and knowing how many times God speaks about being blessed in His Word has really changed my perspective on God’s plan for our life. He wants us to be happy - He wants us to experience joy in this life, and He clearly tells us how to be happy in this life.  When I think about my children, I spend so much energy trying to help them make deci...

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;  2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.  - Psalm 1:1-2 This psalm begins with essentially the same message repeated three times - don't walk with unbelievers. It's repeated 3 times because it's important - and because God knows our hearts. He knows how we like to bend the rules or find loopholes, so He is crystal clear in this passage. Don't walk with unbelievers.  He's not saying we can't be in relationship with unbelievers - we live in this world and we work in this world. We have to be in relationship with unbelievers. God does want us in relation with unbelievers because that is how so many of us were brought to a saving relationship with Jesus. What He is repeating here is that our relationship with unbelievers should not be our deepest relationships - they should...