Fillyloo Follies -- Quiet with Christ (Issue #3 04/28/2020)

FAITH: Quiet with Christ

I have been told many times since I surrendered my life to Christ how important it is to sit quietly with Him and learn to hear His voice. Unfortunately, that encouragement very rarely included any advice or direction on exactly HOW to go about hearing Him. I do know this — He does speak. I also know there is not a “one size fits all” set of directions for hearing what He has to say. God wants a personal and unique relationship with each of us, but this doesn’t mean we can’t learn from each other’s experiences. What I have learned so far has been inspired by two scriptures — Phillippians 4:8 and Romans 8:26. These scriptures are as follows:

Philippians 4:8 (KJV) Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Romans 8:26 (NIV) In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

Now, before we get into the “how” I learned to get quiet with Christ, we need to lay a little bit of groundwork. There is a quote from Wayne Dyer I really love. He said, “You can either be a host to God or a hostage to your ego.”

We often like to think of ourselves as human beings who are having a spiritual experience with God. This is incorrect. We are spiritual beings having a human experience here on Earth. There are three parts to our humanity:

Our Spirit – there from birth and awakens, when we come to know Christ. This is our true self...who God created us to be. This the part of us who will live on, when our earthly body dies.
Our Body – this is our physical self....basically our earthly Tupperware container.
Our Soul/Ego – this is our mind, will, and emotions...satan LOVES to mess with all three of these

Let's talk about our Spirit. It all begins at the beginning — in Genesis.

Genesis 1:27 (NIV) So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

Take a look at that. FIRST, he created them in His own image. THEN, male and female he created them. God is a spiritual being FIRST. Since we are created in His image, we too are spiritual beings FIRST before the outward flesh. Think about it! Jesus is GOD MADE FLESH. Jesus didn't start as flesh. He BECAME flesh.

So now we have to ask ourselves some questions.

1st question: What is the one and the only thing God can not do? He can not lie. It is not in His nature. He ALWAYS keeps his word – maybe not the way WE want it kept, but HE always keeps it. [Isaiah 55:11 (NLT) It is the same with My word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.]

2nd question: Who is God? God is love. It is His core value and is seen throughout scripture – Old and New Testament. Check out the following examples in scripture:

Daniel 9:4 I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,”

Deuteronomy 7:9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments. (Remember what I mentioned earlier about God keeping his word? Here ya go again!)

Mark 12:30-31 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no greater commandment greater than these.

Note the “As yourself” part of Mark 12:30-31. These two little words really made me think. Can we really love our neighbor, if we do not truly love ourselves? When I say “love ourselves”, I am not talking about the selfish, narcissistic love. I am talking about genuine love and gratitude for who our Maker created each of us to be. Each of us is unique with a path and a purpose no one else can fulfill.

3rd question: What is God's name? The Old Testament is the only place in ANY recorded spiritual text where God tells you his name. Exodus 3:14 (NIV) God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.”

Note: God SAID who He is. In Genesis God SPOKE the world into existence. Jesus is the living WORD of God. Get the idea? Words matter to HIM.

Think about who God says HE is – I AM. Does that phrase sound like one we all use daily?

Now think about 1 Corinthians 3:16 (ESV) Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

Take a look at Joel 3:10 (NIV) Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weakling say, “I am strong!”

Once we accept Christ, we are born again. Our spirit awakens and the Holy Spirit lives within us. Since God lives WITHIN US, anytime we speak I AM ________. We are not only referring to ourselves, but to the Holy Spirit within us because we are one with Spirit. Also, I AM is God's name per God, so when you speak negatively about yourself or your situation, you are also speaking those words about Him.

Now stop right there with your feelings of guilt and shame. I see those wheels turning. That is the enemy whispering because if he can make you feel guilt and shame at this moment, then you will ignore the “a-ha” you just had and completely ignore the power God has gifted to you.

Write these words down:

I forgive myself for entertaining these feelings of fear, guilt, and shame, because You, Lord, have already forgiven me. These feelings no longer serve me, so I surrender them to You. I choose love instead.

Remember — Feelings can lie. God does not. And FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real. AKA one of the enemy's favorite tricks.

4th Question: What is God's primary action? Forgiveness. Once you accept Christ and ask for forgiveness, it is done. Past, present, AND future. Time to forgive yourself and stop hanging on to the stuff Jesus already paid for.

Hebrews 10:14-18 (NIV) For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:

“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”

Then He adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

Don't you think it is time to STOP sacrificing the GOOD things God has planned for you, because you are holding on to unforgiveness for yourself and others?

5th Question: What is our purpose? Why did God create us? That is easy. LOVE.

John 3:16 (KJV) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

What world do you think God is talking about? It isn't the grass and the trees. It is YOU! Remember what Jesus said?

God wants to LOVE us and be loved in return. He wants a RELATIONSHIP with us. What is a relationship? It is a CONNECTION! We were created to love and be loved. That is why relationship to God and to others is so important. When you are walking in love, doors open for you. Vision opens for you. Calling opens for you. Provision opens for you. Healing opens for you. But it all starts IN you. God wants family not slaves, so He waits patiently for you to trust Him and let go. However, make no mistake — He is pursuing you. He leaves the 99 to go after the 1. He will face plant you on hot asphalt in August, if that is what it takes to save you. You can run all you want, but there is no place He won't go to reach you.

Ephesians 3:20 (NIV) Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us

God's power is in us. He has already provided us with everything we need. Remember, God likes to do a lot with a little. Think about it – a little water = lots of wine....a couple of fish and a piece of bread = feed the many. Think for yourself....what are the little things about each of us we think are of no consequence? Guess what? God wants to use that.

Remember how God uses words? He SPEAKS then it BECOMES.

Romans 4:17 (MSG) We call Abraham “father” not because he got God’s attention by living like a saint, but because God made something out of Abraham when he was a nobody. Isn’t that what we’ve always read in Scripture, God saying to Abraham, “I set you up as father of many peoples”? Abraham was first named “father” and then became a father because he dared to trust God to do what only God could do: raise the dead to life, with a word make something out of nothing. When everything was hopeless, Abraham believed anyway, deciding to live not on the basis of what he saw he couldn’t do but on what God said he would do. And so he was made father of a multitude of peoples. God himself said to him, “You’re going to have a big family, Abraham!”

So how do we connect with God and His power? 3 ways.

1. Prayer – conversation with God. We speak. He listens.

2. Meditate – thinking about the Word of God. Renewing our mind and thoughts. A good place to start is Psalms or Proverbs.

3. Stillness – this is LISTENING. Sometimes God does call us to physically be still. Sometimes He calls us to wait (ie waiter). That is different. That is guidance in action though service. This listening type of stillness involves opening our spiritual ears. As a teaching by Wayne Dyer reminded me, “There are no obstacles for the mind of God.” However, we have an earthly mind, and we have to learn to shut it up.

As you begin the practice of getting quiet with Christ there are four things you need to know:

1. Meltdowns are part of the miracle. Meltdowns reveal an area God wants you to surrender to Him and allow Him to heal.

2. Gabby Bernstein often says, “Those who are certain of the outcome can afford to wait and wait without anxiety.” Philippians 4:6 (NIV) Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

3. It is okay to express guilt, shame, anger, fear, and frustration in the midst of gratitude. Tell God HOW YOU FEEL! Get bold and real with Him. Then THANK HIM for those feelings. Those are areas he wants to heal and teach you something, so surrender them to Him and choose love instead.

4. Learn to laugh at your soul/ego. This part of our selves LOVES to try to manipulate and plan. And when does that ever go well? NEVER. It just stresses us out and takes all of the joy, fun, and love out of things. Heads up. God's the one with the plan. Let yours go. Catch yourself envisioning the perfect vacation, wedding, job, party, etc? Cool. Envision it. Then LET IT GO! Give it to God. Rather than the details....focus on how you want to feel in the moment...share that with God and let HIM do what HE does best! My favorite thing to say, “Thank you, Lord, for Your plan. Show me what You got. I can't wait to go on this adventure with You.”

It is okay to plan and have a schedule but wear it loosely. Know God could decide to take you in a different direction because He wants to teach you something....He wants to bless you in some way....or He wants to use you to bless someone else. Focus on what you have to do today...what is right in front of you. That is what God wants you to do. If He wanted you to focus on tomorrow, you would already be there.

5. Let go of the form. When it comes to prayer, your best prayer may be prayed in the shower or on the morning commute. When it comes to meditating on His Word, your best meditating may come from writing a single line of scripture in a notebook to take with you, so you can read it and think on it during your bathroom breaks or as you stand in the checkout at the grocery store. God and I have had some of our most real and raw conversations in the car. God is not worried about the where. Will you just talk to Him?! Don't be a surly teen all over again. Talk to God with no filter. He wants you to get real with Him, so He will be real TO you.

Now let's get into the meat and potatoes. How do you start your day? How do you end your day? Where do the 1st and last 5 minutes go? Are you scrolling through Facebook? Texting someone? Playing on Pinterest? Watching TV?

What if you actively chose to give God the 1st and last 5 minutes of your day? What if, you chose that time to just be still with Him? Think about it. God wants relationship. We all do. Aren't some of our most treasured moments the quiet ones? The 5 minutes your child, or dog, or cat, or spouse is cuddled up beside you and you are just being quiet together. Or maybe that time on the beach with your best friend where you are just sitting together staring at the waves. God wants those same kinds of moments with us. These quiet moments are also where we learn to actually FEEL the presence of God and HEAR His voice. This also helps to renew our minds...enrich our prayers....and helps us meditate and absorb His Word.

Job 33:15-16 In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on people as they slumber in their beds, he may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings

What were our two opening scriptures? Let’s take another look at them.

Romans 8:26 (NIV) In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

Sometimes we don't know what to pray. Sometimes our mind does not want to shut up. Sometimes we are so desperate for a word from God or a solution, we forget to pause our prayer to actually get a response. Listening is part of praying without ceasing. It is part of the conversation. I have been told many times...”Oh you just need to get quiet with the Lord. He will speak to you.” Fantastic advice, but no one gave me a starting place for that – God did. It has been an answer to my prayer that has transformed my days.

God has only called Himself by one name “I AM”. However, He is given many names – all of which are positive in power. We are going to reference 7 of them today. If you want to dig deeper into the names of God, there is a book by Ken Hemphill called THE NAMES OF GOD. It is a great resource.

The names we will focus on are...

1. Jehovah-Jireh – The Lord will Provide (Genesis 22:14)

2. Jehovah-Rapha – The Lord Who Heals (Exodus 15:26)

3. Jehovah-Nissi – The Lord our Banner/Banner of Victory (Exodus 17)

4. Jehovah-Shalom – The Lord our Peace (Judges 6:24)

5. El Roi – God of Seeing/God sees me (Genesis 16:1-14)

6. Rofeh Cholim – Healer of the Sick (John 4:46-54)

7. Zokef Kefufim – Straightener of the Bent (Isaiah 45:2)

Anyone ever have a mother, grandmother, or aunt receive a phone call asking for prayer about a situation and see them pace through the house as they cleaned or cooked just repeating “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” over and over again because they didn't know what to pray, but He does? The Holy Spirit intercedes for us with wordless groans. That is where we are going with this. Using the name of God, when we do not know what to pray or when we need to get quiet, but our mind keeps wandering. His name gives us a light to focus on, so He can do the rest. It calms us down, so we can hear him. Eventually, you will be able to sit and just be quiet, but I have found saying one of God's names just 3 or 4 times in my quiet time really helps remind me of Who I am spending time with.

Now, think about that situation or dream you have been praying over, and you just do not know what to pray anymore. Choose one of the names above for your situation.

Genesis 2:7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Breath is very important. Think about it. When someone is really angry or upset and crying what do we usually say? Take a deep breath. Why? It calms and quiets us! This is not a coincidence. God is in us. He is the breath of life. When we need to get quiet and get calm, we gotta breathe.

So sit up straight. Feet on the floor. Hands relaxed in your lap. Practice breathing in through your nose 1,2,3,4....out through your mouth 1,2,3,4. Do this 3 or 4 times.

Matthew 6:6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

I actually have a prayer closet but don't complicate this. The bathroom can be your inner room and the potty your chair.

(Side note: Some of the best advice I was ever given — when something is bothering you, go in the bathroom and tell God about it. Write it on a piece of toilet paper. Gel pens work best for this. Then tell God you are surrendering the situation to him and flush it down the toilet. You may have to surrender a dozen times a day, but it does help.)

Now, when you get started, you may need to have your distraction device (aka cell phone) play some rain noises or ocean waves. Set a timer for two minutes. Start your noises. Put your phone face down. Sit up straight...feet on floor...hands relaxed in your lap. You will silently say the name of God as you inhale and exhale. Inhale Jehovah....Exhale Nissi....inhale Jehovah....Exahle Nissi....continue until your timer goes off.

This will help teach your brain to shut up, so you can have that quiet time with God. I like to think of this as my morning hug and goodnight kiss with Jesus. God is our Father and we are His children. Love and affection are part of the deal.

Give this a try for 7 days in a row. Each day, write down how you feel or what you experience. I think you will be pleasantly surprised by what God has to say!

FOLLY: Peel and Stick Wallpaper

I THOUGHT peel and stick wallpaper was the greatest idea ever. I have used vinyl wrap on everything from cars to knickknacks. A giant vinyl sticker for a wall? Why not?! But this was folly, dear friends. Why? Because I failed to consider one thing. The wall in the photo above is an exterior sun facing wall with brick veneer on the outside. Above that is the venting for my attic. AND this particular room has a pretty high vaulted ceiling. Guess what that means? That wall fights heat all day long. This means the peel and stick adhesive never really had a chance to stay stuck. I now have to pull down my lovely wallpaper and replace it with the traditional stuff.

This got me to thinking. In life, we all love “easy”. It often is packaged the prettiest and has oodles of appeal. However, easy rarely works out the way we think it will. We try to take a shortcut, which ends up costing us more in the end. Sometimes, the cost is time and money. Other times is it peace, joy, love, or connection. What do you think, sweet friend? Do you have a “peel and stick wallpaper” situation in your life?

FILLYLOO: Wild and Free

Have you ever wanted to do something a little bit crazy but harmless? I can hear your thoughts right now. You are thinking, “Is there such a thing as crazy and harmless?” Yep. There is. When I was in high school, fun colored hair was all the rage. I wanted to dye my hair a fun color so badly, but, of course, I was not allowed. I had long, golden blonde hair down to my waist. I can’t tell you how often it was referred to as my “crowning glory”. It was “so pretty”. I was allowed to have it trimmed, but forbidden from cutting it. I HATED my hair. No. More than that. I despised and resented it. I was forced to keep it long, because OTHER PEOPLE thought it was so beautiful. My thoughts and feelings on the matter were completely ignored. So here we are now. Adulthood. And GUESS WHAT?! My hair is now blue. Soon, it will be pink. Blonde will probably return after that, but it is too soon to be sure about that. My hair color does not define who I am by any means, but having FUN with it brings me joy! What is your “fun hair color” moment? Is it black nail polish? Red lipstick? Fake eyelashes? Sexy panties? Glitter lotion? Eating cake with your fingers instead of a fork? Do you long for that neon blue bra with stars on it, but don’t buy it because it isn’t practical? Sister, get the bra. Wear it proudly while you dance like a maniac around your house. Sure, we need to have practical things in our lives. However, without some fun tossed in the practical can feel like a jail sentence. If you decide to take the plunge into fun, I would love to see and celebrate with you! Tag me on Instagram @shannonbowerssmith or use #bluehairbrigade in your social media post! Hugs and love to you all!

Shannon Bowers-SmithApril 28, 2020