what to buy

we live in a nation obsessed with consumerism. its a place brimming with wealth and a people who think they've got it all figured out, and don't need a thing (especially) from God.

God talks about a people like this in the book of revelation. but they are not just a nation, they are people of the Church of Laodicea...

"I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You're not cold, you're not hot--far better to be either cold or hot! You're stale. You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit. You brag, 'I'm rich, I've got it made, I need nothing for anyone' oblivious that in fact you're a pitiful, blind beggar, threadbare and homeless." -Revelation 3:15-17

the word Laodicea is two words combined. the first meaning "people", the second meaning "opinions", "decisions", or "principal". in the era of the church of Laodicea, they trust in their ability to rule themselves, judging and deciding matters to the exclusion of Christ's rule within His Church.

i believe that Spiritually, this is right where the american church is. comfortable, complacent, apathetic, unexcited. and the ideas of a democratic republic government have invaded the way the church operates. not only that, but being so financially and materially prosperous seems to have quenched passion, dependence on, and desperation for the Lord. i pray that the american church would wake up and see things as they really are. though She thinks She is rich and needs nothing, She is spiritually wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked. God, let eyes be open and let revelation of the truth come.

thankfully, God is not willing that She remain this way. He gives Her the chance to change, and to see that She does need Him. He loves the Church so much, and He knows how to speak to Her in a way She can understand.

He knows that we are consumers, obsessed with buying, possessing, more. And given that, He speaks to us in our language - He tells us what we should buy.

"Here's what I want you to do: Buy your gold from me, gold that's been through the refiner's fire. Then you'll be rich. Buy your clothes from me, white clothes designed in Heaven. You've gone around half-naked long enough. And buy medicine for your eyes from me so you can see, really see." -Revelation 3:18

rather than focus on investing in merely financial & material wealth, God counsels us to buy from Him, things that will not perish. First, He says to buy gold, refined in fire. gold is refined and purified in a furnace. Here, gold represents a strong faith that has been tested by fiery trials and has been made pure through perseverance. with this faith, we are made rich!

in a culture of wealth & material possession, clothing is more than a covering for our bodies. for many, clothes are a defining symbol of our identity and self image. no matter the name brand, the expense, or what clothes represent on the outside, if the inside is corrupt the outer garments become tainted and stained. God says to buy from Him white clothes. In doing so, they will be like those worn in revelation by Jesus, the redeemer and overcomer. these white clothes represent clothing ourselves in His righteousness.

white clothes are also a representation of a Bride. we are to prepare ourselves for the wedding, of the Church and the Lover of our souls. the Bride ought to make herself ready. so we must always be clothed and ready for Jesus' return. why would we ever want to remove these garments of righteousness and purity? they are not clothes for just trying on - they are to be as a new skin, a new way of life, a new identity.

God also counsels us to buy salve for the eyes to see. in laodicea, eye salve was a medicine they were known for throughout the world. but ironically, God called them blind. we must not think that just because we have physical eyes, that we can see. our spiritual eyes must be opened, and we need God to cure this blindness. we must recognize the hour. we need to be able to see what the Father is doing, so that we know what we should do, just as Christ did only what He saw the Father doing. we need to have clear vision, free of specks and logs. we need to fix our gaze on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. to be focused on Him, above anything else. we need the eyes of a dove, totally devoted and without distraction, so in love with the Lord that nothing turns us from his direction.

"The people I love, I call to account--prod and correct and guide so that they'll live at their best. Up on your feet, then! About face! Run after God! Look at me, I stand at the door. I knock. If you hear me call and open the door, I'll come right in and sit down to supper with you. Conquerors will sit alongside me at the head table, just as I, having conquered, took the place of honor at the side of my Father. That's my gift to the conquerors! Are your ears awake? Listen. Listen to the Wind Words, the Spirit blowing through the churches." - Revelation 3:19-22

Saint Patrick's Prayer

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through the belief in the threeness,
Through the confession of the oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth with his baptism,
Through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial,
Through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension,
Through the strength of his descent for the Judgment Day.

I arise today
Through the strength of the love of Cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In prayers of patriarchs,
In predictions of prophets,
In preaching of apostles,
In faith of confessors,
In innocence of holy virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of sun,
Radiance of moon,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.

I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me:
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's host to save me
From snares of demons,
From temptations of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
Afar and anear,
Alone and in multitude.

I summon today all these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul.

Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me abundance of reward.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness,
Of the Creator of Creation.

a dream

I had an interesting dream the other night. Usually I don't remember my dreams. But this time, I have pieces left in my memory.

What I remember is that I was standing on a large stage, like an old theater. And I was in some sort of theatrical production. My role was small, but I felt a lot of pressure to get it right. In fact, the American Idol judges were somewhere in the audience. So I knew that my performance was being critiqued.

I was dressed in a butler's outfit. So, I guess my role was a servant to a wealthy master. There were many of us. I just stood perfectly still, waiting to be called upon. As I stood on the stage, I felt the heat of the lights and the thick costume I was wearing became cumbersome. As I was trying to breathe, I realized that I was also wearing a mask. The hot breath was making it humid in my mask, and I was starting to really feel uncomfortable. I knew I had to get this mask off so that I could truly breathe. I found a way to get off stage and immediately tore the mask off and took deep cool breaths.

Off stage, I realized that I was in a mansion. There were people in the mansion, hanging out, doing things, but I wasn't really sure who they were or what they were about. All I know is that they suddenly became concerned about some other people coming there to get them. And this sounded like a bad thing. People were preparing for the worst.

Then He was there. My Boss, my Master. And He was there for me! To protect me. He didn't even care that I was just a servant. In fact, He didn't treat me that way at all. It was more like we were good friends. He took my hand and began to lead me upstairs to the 3rd floor of the mansion. There were still people there concerned about the approaching danger. So, they didn't even notice us there with them.

Then my Master, now my Friend, walked through the wall into another room. He just disappeared right into the wall. I didn't want to be without Him, so I decided if He could do it, then I could too. So, I sort of held my breath and jumped forward through the wall. As I floated through it, I saw in slow motion the insides of the wall. I couldn't believe what was happening. As I landed, unharmed in the next room, my Friend smiled at me.

Then He instructed me to go upstairs to the attic. Once there, He told me to walk through the wall and I would find myself in a secret room within the mansion. There were no doors or windows there. So, only the two of us could get to it. He would follow later. First I had to get ready. I was still in my servants clothes. He would leave me a beautiful gown to change in to. And once I was ready, He would join me there, and would take me into His hidden chamber, within the heart of the mansion, so we could be together forever.

Before any of that could happen, I woke up.

inspired reading

Over the past year, I have probably read more than the last several years of my life combined. And I'm starting to see a pattern in the things that I've been reading. Each book has brought me deeper in love with Jesus.

It all started when I finally got my hands on Captivating. It took me almost 6 months to read the whole thing, but when I finally did, the Lord really started moving in my life through the revelations from it. In a nutshell, what I learned from reading and studying Captivating is that God made me the way I am for a reason. As a woman, my heart longs to play an essential role in an exciting adventure, longs to be romanced, and longs to be found beautiful and captivating. And that I am. In order to really believe these things about my heart, I had to see what held me back from believing them. I had to come face to face with my "demons", so to speak. With my past. With the lies in my head and my heart that would try to tell me otherwise. It wasn't pretty. But I began to get some real breakthrough in my life, and for the first time, see things as they really were.

Then I read a book called Thy Hidden Ones. This book helped unravel the mystery of the book of the Bible: Song of Solomon. Not only that, but it helped me see that Jesus is not just my Lord and Savior, but the Lover of my soul! Reading this book really helped me ignite a love for Jesus in my heart, like never before. No more could I see Him as only a master or a friend. He is the Bridegroom and I am His Bride.

After that, I read a book called The Sacred Romance. This book painted a picture of the world in a way I had never thought to look at it. As a romance. I fell more in love with the Lord with almost every chapter. And now I can see that a romance is all He ever wanted.

Ironically, after that, I read The Twilight Saga. I never thought I would be one to read these books. But after having so many friends read them and talk about them all the time, I have to admit, I got a little jealous. I wanted to be a part of the club. So, when Jeremy left for a month in Mexico, I decided it was as good a time as any to start. At first I was skeptical, thinking because I wasn't reading a "Christian" book that I might be doing something wrong. Ha. But as I got further into it, I realized that truth is truth, no matter where you find it. The principles of eternal love, self-control, loyalty, sacrifice, and so much more were throughout the pages. And I could see, ever so slightly, the picture of a Lover, longing for His bride. Ya, its not a perfect analogy here, but its neat how God will use things to teach us about His character.

Now, I'm starting to read a book called The Secret of the Stairs. This is another book about the Song of Solomon, this time taking the reader through the journey of developing and maintaining an intimate relationship with the Lord. I'm only in the first chapter, and I can already tell its going to be life changing.

I'm so grateful for these books that God has used to help me understand His love for me more. The book that best describes that is, of course, the Bible. And I'm so thankful for the revelation of it! I hope to one day write a book of my own, on whatever God tells me to. But until then, I'll just keep reading.