Sacrificed to Idols

Romans 14:14

As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean.

1 Corinthians 8:8

But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do.

Good morning Zebras,

This is another z-mail that I hesitate to write because I think the subject matter that I will be dealing with is a volatile one for women. So please pray before you read this that God allows you to see clearly what I am trying to say.

Food has always been my best friend and my worst enemy. I have had a battle with it my whole life. It was my greatest comfort through the most difficult times of my life and the weight I would gain would be both an insulation from the world and my greatest source of shame.

I would resolve to get it under control, and I would, but there was never the easy relationship with it that I desired. I knew I was one Oreo away from "the fall."

Something that God had made for me to enjoy had become a snare and an idol.

This week especially as I was preparing for the retreat I knew I could have nothing in my life that would keep me from hearing God, no unconfessed sins, no disagreements with others and certainly no idols, so I adopted the "Daniel diet." because hearing God speak was way more important then what I ate.

And because of that God gave me insight into my problem.

Those foods that were idols for me are not ones that I can eat. Even though I believe in my heart that no food is "bad" they are for me. They are too associated with the sins of unbelief and fear. They are triggers that set me off and need to be avoided.

The same is true of dieting.

I was put on my first diet by my mother when I was nine. My weight as a child was a source of family conflict. When I lost weight in High School my dad's comment was "You finally look like a girl." In my mind thinness and love are linked and that is wrong and untrue. God loves me because He loves me and He will love me fat and He will love me thin because His love is not dependent upon me it is dependent upon Him.

And the same is true of you.

Love,
Jill

Serenity Prayer

God, grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.

Good morning Zebras,

Today's verse is not a verse at all but a prayer written as part of a sermon in 1934 by Reinhold Niebuhr.

Until this morning I didn't know that. All I knew was that it was a nice prayer that had hung on the wall of our kitchen when I was a child which is often referred to as the "Serenity Prayer."

Lately I have been thinking a lot about that prayer so I was pleased to find out it was Biblical in origin. I thought it must be because what it is praying for are things that agree with Biblical principles.

God promises us wisdom in James 1:5, reassures us that He gives us peace in John 14:1, and He challenges us to have courage as we meditate on His word in Joshua 1:6-9.

The key of course is knowing God and meditating on and applying His Word.

Which would explain why, even though the prayer was on the wall, I grew up in a home where there was no peace, no courage and no wisdom. Because there was no God.

God's Word without an understanding of God can quickly turn into cute little sayings on dish towels along with "God helps those who help themselves." and Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime," neither of which are from the Bible.

There are a lot of things in life I would like to change. Most of them are outside of my reach. In fact everything is out of my reach except for me.
A truly wise person realizes the only thing that they can change is themselves, and then only with the Holy Spirit's power, and confidently leaves everything else in the capable hands of God.

Love,
Jill

Little Differences

Matthew 28:20b

I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Good morning Zebras,

Yesterday I was praying for my son Nick who was on the way home from his mission trip. I was praying because he was riding home in a van with nine other people from Arizona and I knew they were all tired and the ride could easily become unpleasant so I prayed "Dear Lord, please be with them on their ride home."

Immediately God corrected me.

"Jill," He said, "I am ALWAYS with Nick, that's not the correct prayer. The correct prayer would be: Dear Lord, Please let Nick and the others on the mission trip be aware of Your presence and draw upon Your strength to be kind and loving with one another even though they are tired."

Now I know God knew what I was asking and I don't think He corrected me because I was "wrong" I think He corrected me because I have been praying to see Him more clearly and to know and understand Him more. To see Him for who He truly is.

People always pray for God to be with them, but it's unnecessary. God is omnipresent, He is everywhere all the time. The last thing Jesus said to His disciples after He gave them The Great Commission, to go and make disciples of all men, was the reassurance that He would be with them always.

Isn't that comforting? It is to me.

Dear Lord,

Thank you that You are with me as I write this and also with my Zebra sisters when they read it.

Thank you that You are everywhere all the time. Because of that we know there is nothing that happens to us that You do not know about or allow.

Dear Lord, please help us to be as aware of You as You are of us, to be constantly strengthened by Your presence as You walk with us through every second of the day.

Love,
Jill

God's Lap

1 John 1:5-7

This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin.

Good morning Zebras,

For the past few days I have been taking care of someone as they recover from knee surgery. To do this I had to relocate to their house because they cannot be alone.

The other day Gary, my husband, came over to relieve me and let me go home to take a shower and see my "moodles." Of course the shower was the second priority in my mind, I couldn't wait to see Joshua and Abigail.

When I got home they greeted me with wiggly bodies, wagging stumps and happy squeaks.

Since I had a little extra time, I grabbed a book, hopped up in a chair and invited them to join me. They settled down on my lap and we were having a wonderful time until Joshua decided to sniff a part of Abigail that she didn't want sniffed and a fight ensued.

I was so disappointed, their "sin" was ruining our time together. Just like our sin ruins our time with God.

God is Holy and He cannot fellowship with sin. That's why at the Fall He had to throw Adam out of the garden. And us with Him.

But the completed work of Jesus Christ gave us a way back in.

1John 1: 8-9 If we claim to be without sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Do you ever feel like God has tossed you out of His lap? Check to see if there is any unconfessed sins in your life, repent and jump back in. It's a great place to be.

Love,
Jill

Redeemed

1 Corinthians 6:19-2

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

Good morning Zebras,

A few months ago my daughter Katherine got a traffic ticket. She was going a little too fast on her way to church with her brother in the car. Since she is driving on a provisional license the officer cited her for both speeding and having a passenger in the car.

She knew she was speeding, but she had thought that she could drive her brother since she had a note from me giving her permission to do so. But the officer informed her that she is only allowed to drive a sibling to and from school, to and from work, and in case of an emergency. Driving him to church did not qualify. According to the law she was guilty.

On Wednesday she had to go to court.

When I picked her up I noticed she looked particularly nice. She was wearing her favorite dress. When I commented on how nice she looked she told me that she was wearing the same dress that she had got the ticket in. Basically she was trying to redeem it.

Lately God has been showing me that I don't spend enough time thinking about the cross. I think of the gospel message as something "the lost" need. But in reality it is what we all need everyday.

We all need to know and really understand that God knew every sinful thing we have ever done or will ever do, those we did on accident and those we did on purpose, and He loved us still. He loved us so much that He wanted to redeem us from what we deserved. And to do that He had to sacrifice His Son.

We need to understand that apart from the cross we couldn't even talk to God. We need to understand who God is and who we are. We need to understand God did everything and we did nothing. And because of that we owe Him our life.

God is not lucky to have us on His team, we are lucky that He allows us to play.

Love,
Jill

Maligning Abigail

Romans 14:4

Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Good morning Zebras,

Katherine, my daughter, has never liked the way I have portrayed her dog Abigail. In all my "moodle" stories Abigail is always the less godly dog. In fact I call them my "Mary and Martha dogs" with Joshua being Mary.

I started calling them that when I noticed that Abigail always had to stop to get a toy before greeting me at the door. Unlike Joshua who runs full tilt to see me, she has to "do her work" and grab a toy first. To me it seemed like the perfect picture of the two famous sisters, one who only wanted to sit at the feet of Jesus, the other who missed the blessing because she was too busy working.

But this week Katherine finally convinced me I have been wrong.

Abigail is not Martha, she is also Mary, just from a different story.

Mary, who is famous for sitting at the feet of Jesus, is the same woman who anointed Jesus with perfume....a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served...then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume, poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And although the disciples complained about the "waste" of the perfume Jesus was pleased with her actions and said: "I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."

Just like me, the disciples misunderstood her actions. Abigail is not bringing me her toy to earn my love, she is bringing me the only thing she has of value to show her love. BIG difference.

It is not our job to judge the motives and actions of another person, that is God's job. Our job is to make sure our walk is blameless before the Lord. Because Jeremiah 17:10 says:"I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve."

Love,
Jill

Taking a Break

Luke 9:23

And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.

Good morning Zebras,

I really hesitate to write today's z-mail because weight is such an issue for women. So let me just say that this z-mail has nothing to do with weight gain or physical exercise. If after reading this you think, "I need to go to the gym." I will have failed to convey what I am trying to say.

While we were on vacation we had to put the moodles into "puppy prison" otherwise known as the kennel. When I went to pick them up I was surprised to see that they had changed. Ten days in a three foot by six foot cage with no exercise caused them to gain a little weight.

The weight gain was most noticeable on Joshua because he is the most active. While Abigail will position herself on a pillow and wait for my return, Joshua will jump down and accompany me to the laundry room.

Often times in the summer Christians will "take a break" from God. Many ministries close down for the summer and the weekends are busy with fun activities. Church and God get put on the back burner until fall.

But that isn't Biblical, that's American and it's foolish.

Muscular atrophy occurs from a lack of physical exercise. Astronauts, who are away from the Earth's gravity and bed ridden patients develop decreased muscle tone after just a few days.

Spiritual atrophy is no different. Just a few days without Jesus and our spiritual muscles get weak. And although it seems like the stronger we are in our faith the longer we should be able to go "without God". I have found the opposite to be true. Like Joshua, those of us who want to run after God, are most effected by a break.

If you see God as something you need to take a break from, you have the wrong opinion of God.

Love,
Jill

Wishin' and Hopin'

Romans 7:19 (NIV)

For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.

Good morning Zebras,

Yesterday I shared that God told me my life was marked by the lack of self-control.

Since that isn't how I want to live, I resolved to start exhibiting self-control in ALL areas of my life. As you can imagine I had failed spectacularly by bedtime. That was Saturday.

On Sunday I dragged myself to the table to do my quiet time, telling God the whole way that self-control was an impossible task. I can't do it. I want to do good, but instead I do evil. And He reminded me of a little section in scripture where Paul said the same thing.

So I looked up Romans 7 and read it. But because I have started using my NASB Study Bible it wasn't the translation I was used to. Instead it read: For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish.

Something about the word "wish" hit home.

When I was little and I would wish for something my dad would say, "Wish in one hand, spit in the other and see which one fills up first." From that I gathered that wishing was useless.

If you continue reading in Romans you will see that Paul comes to the same conclusion stating that it is only through the power of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that we can do good.

But how do I do that?

Then God brought to mind an old Dusty Springfield song. Some of you might remember it. It starts out like this:

Wishin' and hopin' and thinkin' and prayin'
Plannin' and dreaming each night of his charms
That won't get you into his arms
So if you're lookin' to find love you can share
All you gotta do is Hold him and kiss him and love him
And show him that you care
Show him that you care just for him
And do the things he likes to do

If you want to grow in your relationship with God you have to work on it. You have to do the things that He likes to do and let Him know how much you care. You have to spend time studying your Bible and listening to Him. You have to make Him a priority.

Because as Dusty says: after you do, you will be His.

Love,
Jill

Self-Control

1Peter 5:8

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Good morning Zebras,

Two years ago when God gave me the idea for Zebras it was this verse that came to mind. At that time I understood we needed to hang together and encourage each other so we would not get eaten.

And it has been wonderful.

Over the last two years, because of Zebras, I have definitely grown in my faith, but I am still not where I want to be. I am still too often eaten by the lion and ensnared in sin.

Last week God showed me why.

I live a life marked by the lack of self-control.

I used to think I just lacked self-control in the area of eating, so controlling my food intake would become my focus. But God showed me the problem is much larger than that because Biblical self-control is not limited to one area of life.

I should have self-control not only in what I eat and drink but also in how I spend my time and money and even how I speak and think.

Self-control means saying "no" to myself when I should say "no" and using moderation in all legitimate desires and activities. Self-control means not letting my emotions rule my life. Self-control means consistently conducting myself in a way that is pleasing to God.

The Bibles says: A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.

Think about that and ask God if you leave yourself open to attack due to your lack of self-control.

I know I do.

Love,
Jill

Seeking God

Proverbs 8:17

I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me.

Good morning Zebras,

I haven’t written for the last few days because our family is on vacation but I have thought of you every day.

Every year for the last seven years we have gone to the Oregon coast to celebrate the Fourth of July and it has become our family’s favorite vacation. Everyone likes the relaxed pace and I like having so much time to listen to God.

This year I came wondering if God would speak. I’ve had a year off work and my main focus has been to listen to God, so I was afraid He didn’t have anything left to say to me, obviously I was wrong.

Oregon is having a heat wave so the coastal area has a lot of fog. Even though we are right on the beach the fog is so thick sometimes I cannot see the ocean.

This morning was one of those times. I could hear the ocean and I knew it was there but I couldn’t see it. That is how I have been feeling about God. I can hear Him, and I know He is there but I cannot see Him at least not as clearly as I would like.

So this morning I prayed God would allow me to see Him.

And a funny thing happened. The fog cleared and God spoke.

Last year God told me that I look at myself through the values of the world, and two years ago He told me to start Zebras.

This year when I asked to see the Father, He brought this passage to mind.

John 14:6-7

Jesus answered: “Don’t you know Me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in Me?”

Sometimes I look so hard to see the Father I forget to look at the Son.

Love,
Jill

Celebrate Freedom

Romans 6:6-7

knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.

Good morning Zebras,

Americans love their freedom and this weekend we will celebrate it.

July fourth is celebrated because it is the day in 1776 when the Declaration of Independence was signed. It does not really mark the beginning of the Revolutionary War because the start of the War and the "shot heard round the world" occurred over a year earlier on April 19, 1775 at Lexington. And it does not really mark the end of the struggle for freedom from England because it took six years of war to win England's surrender on October 19, 1781 in Yorktown.

Then why is this the day we celebrate?

It is because on this day America said they weren't going to take it anymore. Up to that point they had been trying to resolve their differences with England. After all it was the home country of many colonists and they didn't really want to have to go to war. But England's behavior left them no choice. They were tired of being pushed around.

Are you tired of being pushed around? Has sin got you on the run? Make this weekend your own personal declaration of freedom.

Jesus came to earth to redeem us not only from the penalty of sin, but also the power of sin. But too many of us are like Lt. Hiroo Onoda who was sent in 1944 by the Japanese army to the remote Philippine island of Lubang. He was never officially told the war had ended so for 29 years Onoda continued to live as if he was at war.

We are not at war, the battle has been won. Live like a winner.

Love,
Jill

Prayer Cover

Nehemiah 4:16

From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows and the breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.

Good morning Zebras,

I have one of those days ahead of me that I am sure you can relate to. Nick, my son, is ill plus he has an orthodontist appointment, Katherine, my daughter, needs her shots for her mission's trip, the car has to go into be serviced, the laundry has turned into an avalanche and the pain that I have been dealing with for the last two months is particularly bad.

It is one of those days where I really need God's strength to get through.

Gary, my husband, knows that, so as he was walking out the door to work he said that he would pray without ceasing that I would get everything done. Now I know that situation he is going into so I told him to not to forget to pray for himself.

And that is the picture of the Christian life.

At camp I taught the story of Nehemiah rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem.

God gave Nehemiah with the task of rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem so that the Jewish people, who were returning from captivity, would have a safe place to live. Obviously their enemies were not too thrilled with this plan. Nehemiah organized work parties and the rebuilding began. But their enemies started bothering them. First it was just ridicule and threats but when it became serious Nehemiah changed the work party.

He pulled half the workers off the wall and assigned them the duty of guarding those who were building. Each man still wore their own sword, but protecting the workers was the full time job of half the people.

What a beautiful picture of how the church should work.

Love,
Jill