Hanging With Like Minded Folks

I opened my Facebook page one morning to a beautiful picture of eagles with a great commentary to boot! ”Get in the habit of hanging with Eagles. There’s a time when you have to remove yourself from buzzards (gossipers), pigeons (those who are negative and try to delay your growth) and chickens (self explanatory). Develop an eagle mentality by surrounding yourself with successful people, people you admire, those with a good name who help others succeed. Change your life now!”

“We’re only given ONE life on this earth and we all know how short life can be. I REFUSE for my tombstone to read, “Here lies a Chicken/Pigeon/Buzzard, full of potential, but squandered her life away. Rise Up!! The time is NOW!!” ~Jennifer Spence~ Jennifer wrote a bi-weekly Single Parent blog for the Kitchen Table, until she entered Nursing School.

Jennifer’s commentary definitely made me stop and think about the life and relationships of the Believer. Eagles are the strongest bird around. Eagles live very purposeful lives. They don’t have time for the petty stuff only that which will help them fulfill their destiny and live life to its fullest. Wow! Yes! I want to hang and fly with eagles. Don’t you?

Sure, most of you are shouting out, “Yes I do!” But first we must make sure we are not a Buzzard? Are you a gossiper? Maybe you are ready to admit it, or maybe you need a little prompting (conviction) from the Holy Spirit? Either way, gossip is not a characteristic of God or one that is pleasing to Him. You can’t be an encourager or hang with an encourager if you are a gossip. The Book of Proverbs tells us the damage a gossip can do… A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid anyone who talks too much, a gossip separates close friends. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts [and this is not a good thing] my paraphrase. And best of all—without gossip a quarrel dies down. Do you love to carry tales and talk about people? If the answer is “Yes” you won’t be able to hang out with Eagles until you have a renewing of the mind! Sorry, but you have to say with the Buzzards. They are your like minded folks.

Coming from a city that is full of pigeons, truthfully I am not very fond of them. Why? Because I’ve been pooped on by them, way too many times! They love to sit on building ledges and working downtown for many years, I was prime picking. There is an old saying that if you don’t get upset when the poop hits you, it will bring good luck. Now does that make any kind of sense to you? Pleeeaaseee, I was always upset because it either messed up my top, hit my face (which really grossed me out) or went in my hair. And you think there would be something really good about that…how? So when Jennifer described pigeons as those who are negative and try to delay your growth, I could really relate to that!

Pigeons are not well liked birds in many places, but then again, neither are people who are always negative. I’m talking about the “Debbie Downers” of the world. She’s the one who never has an encouraging word for you and always seems to put you down when you are trying to rise up. If you fit the description of a Miss Pigeon, then until you see the error of your ways you won’t be able to hang with the Eagles either. You will just have to stay with your pigeon friends of a like mind.

The Body of Christ has a lot of Chickens roaming around. You know, people who are afraid or too scared to do much outside their comfort zone. Their fear won’t allow them to encourage others to step out on faith or dream big. As much as they might want to they can’t! It’s the same for a person who cannot read. If you can’t read, there is no way you can teach someone else to read. Chickens are often very comfortable where they are in life, even if they are functioning nowhere near their God given potential. It doesn’t matter how much they hear about the power the Blood of Jesus has give us the chicken hearted is too fearful to believe. Well, Miss Chicken—you can’t hang with the Eagles either as long as fear controls your life. You won’t be able to keep up. When the Eagles says, “Let’s fly high!” you will say, “I can’t I’m a flightless bird!”

It would be a sad state of affairs for a Believer to live her life in such a way people could say …“Here lies a Chicken/Pigeon/Buzzard, full of potential, but she squandered her life away because she was afraid to be a doer of the Word and not just a hearer. James 1:12a

Sisters it’s time to surround yourself with the Eagles of the Body. Successful people (successful by God’s standard), people you admire, those with a good name who are willing to help others succeed, and leave the Chickens/Pigeons/Buzzards behind! We need those in our lives who are going to help us walk the walk and be all that we can in Christ. Amen!

Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!

Love & Hugs
Ponnie

Some Water....Some Plant

I had a Holy Spirit “Aha” moment this past week, which if you are going to have—there is none greater!

Early May my oldest daughter purchased flowers for the front porch. The first batch of three were lovely, but the second batch didn’t look too hot. In fact they were trying to give them away…3 for $10! I was a little disappointed but gracefully accepted them because it was now the beginning of June and I didn’t have half as many flowers as I did this time last year

After a week or two, all the beautiful peach colored flowers fell off my favorite plant from the first batch and there wasn’t one bud to be found anywhere! I kept watering it and making sure it received good sunlight. But still no buds! Truthfully, I was upset because I didn’t have the funds to pick out the plants I wanted and started to feel sorry for myself. I know I was being ungrateful and leaning heavily on the stupid side, but let’s be honest; we can act very immature when we don’t get our way. Even at the golden age of 60!

Within a couple of weeks or so, two of the scrawny plants from the second batch began to perk up and instead of the flowers dying before they opened, they were now lush and beautiful. And just like last year my neighbors started complementing me on how pretty my flowers were. Truthfully I was surprised because I only have 6 pots and 1 hanging compared to last summer where I had 7 hanging and 10 pots! Yes, as you can see…I thought I had it going on! ~Smile~

Recently I repotted them, and not too soon I must add. They were all outgrowing their original plastic pots. But the greatest reward for me was my favorite was suddenly full of buds and new orange blossoms!!! (See picture at top left)

Was I excited? You bet!!! Why? Because, I watered and planted, and God was faithful to give the increase as promised. And what a beautiful job He did! I’m new at all this. Being a city girl, this is only my second summer trying to make the front porch homey and colorful with potted flowers. It was one of the things I really love about moving to the burbs.

Initially I was so impressed with the plant I call my “favorite” just the way we often are with people at first glance. Their appearance, the way they talk and smell can be very hypnotic and enticing. Exactly like the beautiful aromatic flowers on my “favorite”. But all that initial excitement can quickly fade away, (just like the blossoms on my plant) once we get to know the real them. And let’s not forget the two scrawny plants I felt weren’t going to make it. At first glance they just didn’t seem to have what it took and were not impressive at all.

When people don’t look or talk the way we think they should or are accustomed to, we are quick to reject them. The end result of this misjudgment is…we usually miss out on great opportunities and fellowship. In fact some of us have been on the end of the rejection. Maybe our skin is too dark, or our hair is different. Our clothes may not be up-to-date or the most fashionable. The car we drive (though running well) may look more like an ugly duckling than a swan. But I ask, “Who do you think God has more compassion for—the one being misjudged or the one judging?”

My family is blessed to reap the benefits of someone else’s planting and watering and we have beautiful perennials on the side of the house which last year bloomed in early June and lasted until late October. This year they bloomed on queue in June but because of so much rain, they are now all gone and it is only July. But I have high hopes they will return next year. That’s the way life is for us sometimes—seasons of rain, which can take a toll on us. That’s the bad news, but the good news is, with each changing season and God’s increase we come back beautiful, stronger and healthier than ever.

If I had been quick to give up on three of my plants, my porch would be bare right now. But the saddest part would be missing out on the sweet fragrance two of them give in the evenings. And the daily beauty they all bring—rain or shine.

It’s the same for us in our relationships. We should not want to miss out on the beauty that could emerge from one who at first glance didn’t seem to have much to offer. Or one we gave up on because it was taking too long for them to get it. Who knows, there may come a time when we would benefit from the sweet smell of their souls to be encouraged in our own walk, but we didn’t hang around long enough to partake of God’s increase.

My dear sisters, we can’t be too quick to give up on the work God is doing in others and even in ourselves. God’s timing is key, not ours. He gives the increase when He is ready, or better yet—when we are ready.

As Paul said in I Corinthians 3:6-8…. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. (NIV)

Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!

Love & Hugs
Ponnie

Ambassadorship

Last week I was talking to a friend who was helping me and Tovah with her international travel in a couple of weeks. During our 3 hour phone conversation (smile) I brought up a situation I encountered when I opened my home to two young women from France as a host family for 3 weeks. Needless to say they left a very bad taste in my mouth as far as French people are concerned and I mentioned to her, “If and when I meet others from France I must make sure not to stereo type them based on these two young ladies.” And her response was very profound, “Yes, we do forget that when we travel to other countries, we are “Ambassadors” for our country!” Wow!! It smacked me right in the face as to how we as Believers are Ambassadors for our Lord and how we mess up just like the Frenchies (our nickname for them) did with me.

According to my very old and wonderful World Book Encyclopedia dictionary, an Ambassador is a representative sent by their government or highest ruler. Well, God (creator of everything) is the highest Ruler there is. He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and we as His Chosen are His Ambassadors [representatives]!

Until I met the young girls from France, I had never interacted with anyone from France before. So, my first impression of French people and their attitudes was not a good one thanks to them and the people that chaperoned them on their trip. Now thank God I am mature enough to work through that and hopefully not let it interfere with how I perceive someone I might meet one day from France. Because we all know there is good and bad in all nationalities of people, from every country and every walk of life, so we can’t allow it to tarnish us against any particular group. But often that is not the attitude of those who have had a bad experience in a church or with church folks. And why is that? I think because we have forgotten what it means to be an Ambassador for the Kingdom of God.

What does it entail being an Ambassador? Well, for starters we must remember our position at all times. To put it in a nutshell, “We are the visible representation for an invisible God!”

Years ago when I worked in a large teaching hospital in Philadelphia, there was a young man who told the world he was a Christian. But it wasn’t in a good way. Truth be told, if I had not been a Christian there is no way I would have wanted to hear anything he had to say. He came off as being superior and better than others, yet he was not the best worker around. In fact it seemed he spent too much time preaching to folks (that was not his job) then doing the work he was being paid to do. One day in a very crowed elevator a young woman got on from his department and he said loud enough for everyone to hear, “Oh look here comes the devil!” And she turned around and cussed him out in a way that when I was growing up was only reserved for sailors! The truth is…he asked for it. His pompous, puffed up, judgmental and holier than thou attitude alienated him from those who needed to hear the Good News. And he looked nothing like Christ which made him a poor excuse for an Ambassador. And that was a bad reflection on God’s Kingdom.

I recently had a situation where I have not been a good Ambassador myself. The house that is attached to ours is rented out to four guys who attend a local university. They are loud, drink all the time and started off their first week here by throwing wild parties a couple of times a week, making enemies of the neighbors and me. As I look back on how I have handled a couple of the incidents with them, I see where if it were to come up that I am a Christian; they might have doubts about that. I didn’t cuss them out or anything like that, but my attitude toward them has not been right to say the least.

Once when their plastic cups and trash from the latest party had blown over to our property instead of picking it up and putting it in the trash, I threw it back on their side. In fact I threw the same cup back on three different occasions in a 5 day period!! Am I proud of this? Nope! But I’m sharing to show how we can all get caught up in forgetting who we represent. None of us has arrived and it doesn’t matter how old you are or how long you have been walking with the Lord—it can happen!

I want to encourage us to look at what type of Representative or Ambassador we are? How do we look to others? Do we standout because we work in excellence or do we blend in with everyone else? Are we kind and patient while standing in line or grumble and complain like others? How do our neighbors perceive us? Do they think we are kind and hard workers, or do they see us as standoffish and puffed up? If one of your neighbors needed something would they feel comfortable in asking you for help even if they really don’t know you? Same goes for people in your church, how is God represented through you to them?

Being an Ambassador in the Kingdom of God is a 24/7 position. It entails how we act at all times…from pumping gas, to the way we drive, interactions with our coworkers, family, neighbors, bosses, spouses, children, friends, the cashier at the supermarket, the clerk in the department store, the babysitter, the waitress in the restaurant, even the people we pass on the street. Anyone we come in contact with during our day will be subject to the way we are representing our Father.

We need to be diligent in making God and His Kingdom look good to others. It is more likely people (who do not know the Lord) will read us long before they read the Bible. So, ask yourself, “What are they seeing?” Are they intrigued because they see that something is different about you? Do they wonder how it is you are always so joyful and pleasant all the time? Or do they want to run and hide when they see you coming? These are questions we really do need to ask ourselves and if the answers are not the right ones, then it’s time to change things around.

As for my situation I’ve asked God to forgive me for not being as kind as I could have been and to help me remember who I represent in any future dealings I might have with them.

I hope I have encouraged you my dear sisters to take a moment to see if there is any area in your life you are falling short, in how you represent God. People in this world need the Lord, and they should be able to see the Love of Christ through all whose names are in the book of life. Amen!

Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!

Love & Hugs
Ponnie

Are You Teachable?

I want to start off by asking you to ask yourself, “Do I have a teachable spirit?” Most of us are going to immediately say, “Yes!” But the truth is, in many cases the answer is, “No, not really!” And because it is hard for the human side of us to own up to the fact we can be stiffed necked and unteachable, I find to be one of the main reasons there are so many problems in the sisterhood of Christ.

It seems to me that you can’t have a teachable spirit without humility and wisdom. And I say that because the book of Proverbs, speaks so much about wisdom and how it is a wise man (or woman) who keeps their mouth shut and listens and learns. Also depending on what translation you are reading it talks about a having a “teachable spirit” and the great benefits that come from that.

Over the years I have come to know quite a few people in the Body of Christ who have all types of degrees. I even know a man who many say is genius—but his people skills are horrible, so I really don’t see how his great “genius” benefits the Body that much? I deal with people who think their degree from seminary is the be-all and end-all. Truth is…it’s not! Why do I take this stance? Because we cannot be anything apart from the Messiah, we cannot have anything apart from the Messiah, accomplish anything apart from the Messiah and we cannot do anything apart from the Messiah...this is what the New Testament says, so therefore, those who put stock in their degree has forgotten how they got it and who made it possible.

I know a man who is a minister but also has a very prestigious title and position at a world renowned University. And too boot he has a PhD. But he is the most humble and kind person you ever want to meet. His love for God, his family and others is very obvious to all who meet him. And having a conversation with him is always a pleasure because not only does he have a lot to offer, but he also listens. Sadly though, not all who have worked to get a PhD feel the same way. They feel they have “arrived”. But no one in the Kingdom has made it! We all have a long way to go as long as we are alive on this earth.

Just last week I had a wonderful phone conversation with a friend whom I met many years ago when we were telephone operators for Bell Telephone back in the 70’s. We were hellions to say the least. We loved to party, we smoked, drank, cussed and she reminded me not too long ago—wore hot pants. LOL!!! We lost touch over the years and went our separate ways, and about 2 years ago she found me on Facebook. And guess what? She is minister for the Lord!!! She had retired from Bell and was a full time college student in seminary at the time. She has finished and gotten her Masters in Divinity. And what I love about her is that she is still an everyday person. She is not puffed up about her degree or her title and position in her church. And her degree and hard work did not give a false sense of “She has now made it!” She remains humble knowing that she still has much to learn about God and people. But I can’t say that about everyone I know who has as Bachelors or Masters. In fact some of them are such big No-it-All’s and you can’t tell them anything. But there is one thing I’ve noticed they all have in common—they are all unhappy and or unsatisfied people. Why is that? Because it’s lonely being at the top—especially when you have invented the position for yourself.

When I was in fulltime missions I went with a group of women to hear a speaker who had just written about women in the Presbyterian denomination and their position in the Church. The group consisted of wives of Elders and a few other women. The speaker talked about her life and struggles in her church and her home life and support of her husband and so on. And when the Q & E was over, I noticed that one of the young women with us was sitting in her seat crying. When asked what was wrong, she did share, and I shared a scripture with her to comfort her and she bit my head off in front of everyone saying, “You are quoting that scripture wrong and you better be careful of that! It says, “So and so, and I know what I’m talking about because I went to seminary and have my degree!” Well! I backed off and I’m grateful that I was at a point in my walk with the Lord that I could do that, because there was a time when I would not have backed down. I would have opened my Bible in front of everyone to show her where she was wrong and then commentated on how little her degree meant if she didn’t know that. But again, Praise God, I didn’t. But later on I did show the scripture to one of the women with us, only because she was new in the Lord, and I wanted her to see that what I had spoken was truth and how this was a great example of why we as individuals must read the Bible for ourselves, and not depend on what others tell us. And that having a degree from a Seminary really wasn’t a big deal to God, because He says to study the Bible and show ourselves approved unto Him. But this situation did give me insight as to why the young woman who had blasted me was such an unhappy person. She really didn’t know God or His Word. She had been taught in Seminary, but not to think, question and understand.

Being 60 years of age is great, and walking with the Lord over the years has given me a great testimony. And yes, I can tell you some things about Him that might blow your mind—but I still struggle at times to swallow my pride and back down. Humility is something we must all work at on a daily bases. God uses whom He uses for whatever His plan and purpose and therefore we cannot allow ourselves to be duped (by pride) to think we have arrived. Because we haven’t! For as much as I can tell you about God, it is nothing compared to what I don’t know about Him. As Paul said, “The more I know, the more I realize I don’t know.” [My paraphrase] But it is so true.

Again I ask, “Do you have a teachable spirit?” If not then ask yourself why? For a lot of us, we don’t spend the time reading our Bibles as we should. Going to a Bible study (especially one for women) or attending Sunday school will help us to stay in the Word. And having people in your life who love to talk about God’s Kingdom and all it has to offer is of a great benefit too. Just attending church on Sunday alone is not enough if you really want to grow in the Lord. And in order to grow (not get degrees) we must have a teachable spirit. That means you have to be able to learn from others, be corrected in love if necessary, and most of all be taught by the Holy Spirit of God. Because when we think we know it all with people we have the same attitude with the Holy Spirit.

Sisters, I hope I have provoked you to think about if you are teachable or not. And if you find you are one who falls in the category of “I got this or been there done that” then maybe it’s time to deal with the pride that grips you and holds you back. If you are one who has fallen into the trap of the world about how valuable your degree is and it causes you to be puffed up, then it is time to step back and see yourself as God does.

Everyone struggles with pride in their life, but there are some of us who are consumed by it and don’t even know it. And that is not a good place to be in the Kingdom of God because “Pride” is something He hates and talks about a lot. So, if you find you’re not as teachable as you may have thought, then take the necessary steps to move forward in changing that flawed characteristic that does not reflect the Christ in us!

Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!

Love & Hugs
Ponnie

God is Faithful

I love that I Corinthians 1:9 starts off…"God is faithful"…because that is something we really need to know.

There is a popular Facebook status, “Name one word about God you love” or “Name one great attribute about God” that I love! Whenever I see this I always post the word, “Faithful!” Of course God is many things and it would be impossible to sum Him up in one word, but I think the premise behind the Facebook request, is to use one word that really describes God to you or how He most works in your life. For me—it is His faithfulness.

This is not my first time writing about God and how faithful He is, but it seems to be a subject that needs to be talked about on a continual bases. And I don’t see anything wrong with that, especially since our life experiences in the Kingdom go from small faith to bigger faith. Which, to me means we can never outgrow God’s faithfulness to us? Whatever He did for me 23 years ago still means as much as whatever He does for me today. Because, now I have a history of God’s faithfulness to help me carry on when discouragement or unbelief try to tell me that He is not going to come through. I have tasted God and found He is faithful no matter what!

If we are going through something in our lives it is important for us to take time to determine if we are experiencing a trial, test or the makings of our own doing? Why? Because it will help how we deal with things in the end. Take Job—what happened to him was the testing of God’s will in his life. The Bible doesn’t tell us that he did something wrong, in fact he was minding his own business, and living life when satan was given permission by God to check out what Job was made of. But in King David’s case, he sinned against God with Bathsheba and murdered an innocent man (her husband Uriah). So, a lot of problems he had thereafter were of his own making. His sons rising up against him and each other all had to do with the curse he brought from God for his sins. And yet the Lord did not deal with him as harshly as David told the prophet Nathan the person who did this evil act should be. Nope He spared his life and allowed him to still be king. Through it all David still loved God, and God still loved him. In fact God has made the statement that King David was a man after God’s own heart. I don’t think it can get much better than that.

Are you suffering now because of sin in your life or poor life decisions? Did you have an affair with a married man or even a single man before you were married? Was there a child from this union? Are you having custody problems? Or is this child at a point in life they are making you miserable? Did you marry a man that under God’s commands you should have never been with? And now there are many problems in paradise? Have you spent your money anyway you wanted without regard to saving or paying tithes? And now you are broke after years of mismanagement and waste? Did you sign on the dotted line every time a salesperson told you how much you would save on today’s purchase if you opened up a credit card, and now the bill collectors won’t stop calling because you can’t make the payments? Did you do something wrong or illegal concerning your job and now find yourself jobless without a good reference? There are so many different scenarios I could come up with, but by now I’m sure you can judge if your problems are of your own doing or not.

The bad news is…”Whatsoever a man sows that will he reap!” But the good news is—God is faithful in His love and mercy for us!

When God told David that the son Bathsheba gave birth to would not live, David put on sackcloth, fasted and prayed prostrate hoping to change God’s mind. It didn’t. The child died as God said he would, and at that point David realized it was done. He got up, washed and ate. In other words he accepted his fate and began to move on with his life. And he could do that because he still had God’s love and support. And it didn’t stop there; many more things came into his life because of what he did. He had a son plotting to kill him, a son who raped his half sister Tamar. Tamar’s brother revenged her rape by killing his half brother, David didn’t get to build the Temple and the list goes on and on. But through it all King David never doubted God’s love for him. In fact the longer he lived the more He grew to know just how deep God’s love and faithfulness was.

Job on the other hand was patient. He suffered quite a bit, but he refused to listen to his distraught and angry wife and curse God and die. He refused to agree with his friends who doubted God. I think we all have them. You know the ones who shout at the top of their lungs in church, “Hallelujah— God is great and worthy to be praised!” And somewhere in their hearts they half believe that God can, but really doubt that He will—we all know that type, because at times that is us. ~Smile~

If we determine we are experiencing hard times because of God’s testing of our faith then we must surround ourselves with people who have big faith in God! Stay in the Word, be patient, ride things out, leaning on the knowledge God is faithful to sustain us. And if our problems are due to sin in our lives, we must be like King David, and put on your big girl panties and suck it up. That’s right, stop whining and whimpering over things that are your own fault? Accept responsibility, ask God’s forgiveness, forgive yourself and begin to live life.

God is faithful, no matter what! His Agape (unconditional) love is so vast we really can’t comprehend it. The shed Blood of Jesus covers the craziest things that any of us could do or imagine. Yes, we do have to endure the consequences of our actions (sin) but it does not stop us from living life. Even if you are someone who is in jail right now because of something you did or did not do—God will meet you right there, right now, and He will be faithful in His love and care for you. Do not let a guilty conscience or the voices of the past rob you of today and your future.

Sisters, I pray I have encouraged you to be of a good cheer because of God’s faithfulness to us. Don’t allow your past mistakes to steal everything from you today. I John I:19 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” And He does one better than that….He put them in the sea of forgetfulness. Amen!

God is FAITHFUL sisters! If you don’t believe that, then start working on it today! It will change your life forever.

Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!

Love & Hugs
Ponnie