My Story, My Why: Intervention no. 10

My Story of a Personal Intervention

Finding God in the Daily

The purpose of this intervention series is to wake us up to the problem of pain, distance, lifelessness, and separation in a Christian’s life.

No matter the person, they must realize there is a problem to solve before they can take action to resolve it. The next section of this series presents troubles on the home front. These problems are quite real. They should not to be ignored as just problems of willful rebellion, although for some this could be true. 

My hope is to create an awareness of the deeper need that has gone mainly unnoticed in the church. After identifying the need, comes a solution in answer to the lack. This series offers ways for finding God as the Helper and Healer, the remedy and solution, to pain, suffering, depletion, deadness, and disillusionment. 

Most of what I write comes by way of personal experiences borne out of my heart's longing for God. My instruction came after I asked God to heal and change me. He did both. Through the lessons learned over the course of my spiritual journey, I  wakened to the deeper understanding of what it is to sit at the table and learn of Him. I discovered God to be real and caring and as a close friend for all seasons. My story is not included but you may listen to my story of transformation on my nlbrumbaugh log here.

I start at the backend from the viewpoint of a believer who thinks they’re doing just fine, believes they’ve dealt with their issues, is obedient spiritually, and is more or less content with their life. This satisfied Christian believer is stuck. Stuck means inmoveable. In this case, their get-along needs to get going.  Spiritual depth won't drop in their lap willy-nilly. It doesn't work that way.

This writing’s argument first exposes a limited Christian belief. This view says all is good and you are right where you should be as an upstanding Christian. You do the Christian thing well. You are obedient, faithful, and forgive those who hurt you. You go also go to church, read a devotional, pray, and treat people right.

If this is you, read on.

Most likely you are living your Christian life with some self-enacted limitations. You have erected a shield to hide any hidden issues in the interior self that have caused some kind of dysfunction, pain, emotional damage, anger,  trauma, or conflict. You've covered up those things that keep you traumatized or in bondage. You try and try and try but you never seem to measure up.

This is no way to live. There is a better way.

More tomorrow.

Dear Father, We are so thankful that you care about us and want us to be well in our spirit. Amen

To God be the Glory 

A Message of Life

Inspiration 48  

† † †

Where to Start: Intervention no. 9

How to Become Healthy and Whole

Finding God in the Daily

 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.

Psalm 23:1-3  ESV

The only way a person can be authentic in their Christian walk is to be close to the Source of spiritual life. This is an on-going process that frees, heals, and rejuvenates the soul-side of living.

A HOLY SOUL-CHANGING INTERVENTION begins when we get alone with God, take spiritual inventory of everything in our past and present, and ask God what to do about it. Similar to a computer scan that  exposes viruses to get rid of them, the Holy Spirit reveals those areas that are damaging our inner selves that we might be free of their negative influences.

First, the mask must come off. People put their best foot forward. They strive to  project wholeness and capability. Christians may believe they have to act like they have it together spiritually. Troublesome areas may be hidden from view. Masks do well at masking the true nature of how it really is inside. This acts as a sort of charade or pretending that hides the true condition of their reality. Believers want to be accepted and respected so the pretense continues to play its empty tune.

When we fail to recognize the internal state of affairs, a falseness enters. There can be a lot of garbage that needs taking out. Uncovering secret sins, hurts, resentments, and then dealing with them in a spiritual manner, is a process that takes time, effort, and God's grace. But it is worth it in every way.

A pattern of healthy spiritual living is then established through spiritually motivated disciplines that take us further still and make us more like Christ.

God transforms as He renews the mind, reveals transgressions, and teaches us to yield to Him. This takes an honest look with no excuses, blame, or self-righteous attitudes. It is in the raw moment of truthfulness that the seed of a soul-changing intervention is sown that will unlock this inner cell where the real self is hidden. Thus begins a life of surrender to God and living life His way. God refreshes, heals, restores, as a transparent identity with God is established.

Whoever pursues a close relationship with God will seek change and change will come. God uses friends, family, and a host of circumstances to bring His children to a place of open talk with Him. This is always good. They, we, become Father with child and child with Father in a close, intimate, loving, connected relationship that brings much joy and inner peace.

Father God, How we need Thee. We need Thee every hour of every day. Amen

To God be the Glory

A Message of Life
Inspiration 47

When Christianity Leaves a Void -- Intervention no. 7

 Why the Religious Thing Unravels

Finding God in the Daily

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, 

so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, 

work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 

for it is God who works in you, 

both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 

Philippians 2:12,13  ESV

God is in the life-changing business. What He does when we let Him minister to us is absolutely wonderful.

  
A SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIP that is health-giving and health-receiving provides the impetus to live a genuine Christian life that has victory and power in its inner workings, its out workings, and in a satisfying, refreshing, and real way. However, this is not the case for many in the church.

The reasons for this phenomenon has to do with their spiritual life itself. If it isn't changing the person and isn't ministering to them in a life-giving way, then it is self-limiting and spiritual-limiting. This has consequences. Dullness, despair, and areas of unmet needs and unresolved issues begin to bog down weary Christians.

Those who do not function well within the church’s parameters may eventually abandon their faith or head in another direction. The church fails at times to address those troublesome gray areas. In particular, sometimes it fails to help those wounded by life or struggling with areas of bondage. They need something more than the church is offering. But sadly, the church is not equipped to help them. 

This is one of the flaws that trips up many a person and keeps them from returning to the "fold." The unfortunate side to this is when hurting people are convinced they may never measure up or be good enough to enter fully in the Christian community unless they attempt to pretend the part.

The equation of "being spiritual" with a list of specific spiritual behaviors is an end in itself--a performance-based Christian lifestyle. This can fall flat. As I have mentioned before, Christianity is not limited to salvation, obedience, service, prayer, bible reading and bible study, though, they are important spiritual disciplines and a Christian needs them and won't grow without them.

But there's more, and this is where all these other things sweeten the deal into a beautiful work of God. The Christian who desires to be alive and tender to the things of God seeks to grow and develop their relationship with Christ. This is where it's at and where the healing and promise of inner freeing begins.

This makes all the difference in
    how they live it,
           how they manage it, and
                how they are empowered to heal, grow, and thrive in it.

God is in the life changing business. He takes us, problems and all, and ministers to us. He holds up a mirror, with His illumination, He lets us see into our soul. We see the big picture--our scars, self-centeredness, lacks, strengths, and talents--and He helps us deal with them. God asks us to seek Him. When we do, it opens wide out. We begin to get real with God. We stop hiding and pretending. We take our salvation and spiritual life to a new level. It is wonderful! So very wonderful. I can't state how wonderful it becomes when our life with God becomes a warm and loving experience full of trust and joy.

Dear Father God, I want this sort of relationship for all my readers. May they know You, trust You, and abide in You. They will be blessed and enriched by Your loving Presence. Amen

To God be the Glory

A Message of Life.

Inspiration 45

Christ in You - Intervention, no. 5

 As It Were

 Finding God in the Daily

To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles 

are the riches of the glory of this mystery, 

which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 

Colossians 1:27

Spiritual approaches are not all alike, not even close. The motivators differ.

LIKE MANY RAISED in the faith community, my childhood was happy. I had loving parents who lived the walk, were faithful, true and consistent. It was a good home.

I was a devoted Christian and consistent churchgoer and was an active participant in the on-going liveliness found in the faith-based community.  My religious background sheltered me and my family life protected me. It was a good life and a conservative life.

Because of my background and my own desire to live a holy life, a blind-spot arose regarding an area of human struggle within this same spiritual community. Much of my religious instruction was shaped around two fundamental beliefs that provided the framework for our Christian lives. 

First, we learned that we needed to be saved. This was taught and preached faithfully and frequently. The church community shared with its people what scripture teaches, that salvation of a soul comes through saving faith in Jesus Christ.

Second, Christians were to live a moral, separate from the world, holy life. We lived in obedience to God as set forth in the Holy Word. Close adherence to certain standards of action and behavior were expected. This structure didn’t have much bend or wiggle room, but I accepted it and did my best to abide by its teachings. It bothered me that some in the church struggled to abide by its teachings

Much later, I began to understand why they struggled. The church’s beliefs were not where it fell short, even though it had a legalistic bent. I now believe its motivation was off. People were working hard for God, but they could never do enough. In this case, the focus was on Christian work and obedience, not on the God of the work and relationship with Him. There is a distinction between the two approaches.

Life in the spirit is its own motivator. When the Spirit leads, it is then the base for action and behavior set in God. Christians are best served when their actions stem from their relationship with God rather than trying hard to live the best they can in every way they can. They will either fail and feel miserable or they will look good and become prideful or somewhere in the middle.

Christ first. Christ always. Christ in you.

Dear Gracious Father, Help us to get this right. We want to be salt and light in the world, the best we can be. But without you we are unable, and we can't hope to get it right. Be our motivation. Amen

To God be he Glory

A Message of Life
Inspiration 44

From Here to There: Intervention, no. 3 -- Inspiration 42

From Here to There: Spiritual Transformation

Finding God in the Daily

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. 

The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

John 6:63

Pain, disappointments, and wounds get buried. To allow them in the conversation might seem at odds with spiritual belief. The truth is, coverups don't work in spiritual life. Issues need to be addressed with God to live freely in the spirit. 

Active engagement with God affects spiritual perceptions. Reorganization in the interior self initiates an altering of viewpoint. Impact in the hidden place, which long functioned as a repository for hurts, wounds, and struggle, is inevitable. Hiding the wounded self is natural in believing Christians for many reasons. This is problematic. Hiding behind belief creates a false front. Internalized pain erects a barrier that disrupts the flow between experience and belief.

For spiritual life to thrive, the barriers need to come down. After the shake-up happens, when the spiritual awakens and enlivens the soul, those formerly empty clichés no longer ring a false note. Experience and belief blend into one solid, health-building unit. Gone are pretense and disillusionment. The means to get there takes a process and some doing.

Once the deeper understanding is apprehended and becomes part of daily experience, spiritual life is anchored in such a way that the person becomes secure, content, confident and able to function well while in the best and worst of times. Because spiritual life is centered and secure, the personal flows hand-in-hand with the spiritual. No longer does a breach separate belief from experience. The two operate on the same page and act in tandem with each other.

The effects of this are wonderful. Newness in outlook and refreshment in the spirit have internal liveliness and quiet authority. Others can't help but notice the change. What is this? they ponder. A thing of beauty, transformational and real, is happening right before their eyes. From the inside to out, the Christ-life is transformational, and it shows. This amazes onlookers.

In the context of a soul-changing intervention, what transpires throughout the process is utterly life-changing and is evident once the intervention has culminated. It is like how you know you are free once you experience freedom. God heals, engages the heart, mind, and soul, sets free, and opens a new path.

A soul-changing intervention enacts several steps that enable a living relationship with God. God, plus the individual, are in this for the long haul. They cannot act independent of each other for this is a joint venture. To be frank, a soul-changing intervention is an active time of serious soul searching combined with intentional seeking of God for answers and truth.

Dear Father, Thank you. You meet us where we're at and it doesn't phase You. Amen

To God be the Glory

 

 *More in my next post.

The Stuff of Real Life: Intervention, no. 1 -- Inspiration 40

  Interventions are the Stuff of Real Life

Finding God in the Daily

Commit your way to the Lord; 
trust in him, and he will act.
Psalm 37:5

  
Who needs a spiritual intervention? Most of us do. You may immerse yourself in your own personally motivated intervention. It may well be the best thing you ever do to get on the bright side of spirituality.

INTERVENTIONS have a purpose. In essence, they put their loved one on notice, to face it, change it, and improve it. Basically, a group stages an intervention to confront the issue and create awareness that something needs to change. Drug addictions and alcoholism are common causes for interventions. Interventions acknowledge the person’s struggle and demonstrate how it affects them and others.

An intervention is an effective 'Come to Jesus' moment with a come-along-side you-need-to-do-this approach.

A soul-changing intervention is for spiritual growth and any area that inhibits healthy spirituality. It provides a process to get to the heart of harmful issues and unhealthy bonds. Christians can be blind to their own stuff and unaware of areas that keep them in bondage. Friends, relatives, or God, may help them face their deal. God is good at this. He awakens people from their slumber.

God may initiate the intervention to address a problem and to show the hiding is over. As the result of a spiritual intervention, the individual takes steps to overcome it, take ownership of it, and institute a plan that aims to alter harmful behavior. The goal is to live free of its control and to become healthy and whole.

An intervention involves a plan of action and loving support. Those who intervene risk discomfort when they participate in an intervention to help their loved one. Their concern supersedes their own personal comfort. Participants encourage necessary changes and offer moral support. 

God is the same way with us.

God initiates an intervention by showing us where we are stuck. He works toward the goal and offers a path to freedom. By the way, this is quite doable. I've experienced it. God showed me what needed to change. Next I went about the business of changing it -- all the time asking Him to guide and help me.

To do this, you see the situation for what it is, and then become an active participant in your own transforming. Healing is accessed by a spiritual transforming in your interior life. This facilitates the ability to live life with spiritual acuity. A side benefit is you grow closer to God.

Dear Father, Help us. We need You to show us our lacks and our abilities. Give us courage to carry on and strength to meet our needs. Amen

To God be the Glory