Just on Friday we experienced Christmas. One of our children sinned in a "big" and "obvious" way--one of those doosiers that is such an obvious oppurtunity for God's grace and forgiveness. As we talked, confession and Godly sorrow quickly fell on this child. As I hugged this child and we prayed for forgiveness God prompted my heart to remind that forgiveness is like pressing "delete" on the computer. God wipes away our sin so completely away in the moment of our confession. This resonated really well with this repentant heart. Later in the day we realised just how much. A couple of us were sitting in the car waiting for a while to meet up with someone and we were looking through a newspaper from this week to fill up a little time. We had already exhaused the name game and "I Spy with my little eye"...you know...the things we moms do to keep the ball rolling...;) Flipping through the newspaper, we came to the sports section and of course Tiger Woods story was front and center. When I shared a boiled -down and generic version of the tale of the past weeks my repentant one from earlier in the day said with MUCH emphasis. "WELL! SOMEBODY should tell him!" Tell him WHAT, hon? "YOU KNOW! About the delete button! He has to know about God's forgiveness so He can be forgiven and have a fresh start." And then...this child...looks me straight in the eye and asks, "Mom, who's going to TELL him?" Uhhhh...I gave a rather weak answer--pretty lame actually about how Tiger Woods was pretty hard to access and some other stuff...this was not good enough for my one who had been forgiven much. "NO, Mom! SOMEBODY has to tell him or he's going to be stuck in sin!! Who's going to tell him?" If you know Tiger--we have someone here who needs to TELL him something. Until then we will most likely be figuring out how to get an email to him and most importantly praying for this child of God who can access God's love and delete button forgiveness like any other man on the Earth. "Peace on Earth...Good Will to you..For unto YOU a Savior has come", little child,Tiger Woods, Mommy, Daddy, Friend, any man, any woman...
Friend, for this Jesus came to Earth--Our forgiveness. He gave up so much. the Bible says he HUMBLED Himself to pour all His deity into the form of a little baby. Access to instant foregiveness--freedom to turn from our sin --and its power broken off of us--forever. Get back sin. ANY sin. In the name of Jesus. Go away shame. ANY shame. In the name of Jesus.
Oh, Blessed Christmas. He has come to bring peace to our hearts. To make us white as snow before a Holy God. Really. Even that sin that you keep hidden away from sight--oh, what if they knew about THAT one? Yes, that one as well--washed away with the blood of the baby from Bethlehem. The one who loved you so much that He could not stand to be separated from you. The one that suffered to live a perfect life for you to then die and was raised to life in your place--this is the miracle and the wonder of Christmas...
I speak of forgiveness for this is the gift that we each and ALL received at Christmas. No one of us has out-sinned another--we EACH need the gift of Christ's cleansing.
There is something that is pressing on my heart with greater and greater measure this Christmas season.
It is related to the part of the Christmas narrative where Herod kills all the little boy babies age 2 and under. This part of the Christmas story has always horrified my children--it is not even included in all Bible Story books--yet it should be for this is what our enemy
--the ancient enemy of human kind,
--is ever on the move to do
--to wipe out
--to destroy and kill the image of God.
And to do this perhaps at the hand of a parent --is even more powerful. Oh!! That's horrifying! Stop the Christmas story!!
--but wait
--in each generation,
there has been a Spirit of the Age that says 'sacrefice your children and you will be free'
--a lie straight from Hell
--that has risen in every generation.
Just flip the pages of every era of history and you will see Roman babies dying on rocks--left to die. Babies sacreficed in pagan fires. Babies killed at the hand of the sword of war...And today...Rwandan babies found in garbage bags--left struggling on the steps of orphanages, Chinese baby girls in danger, millions of children enslaved in human trafficing, pawns of the lusts of man...The horror.
And yet...looking off these shores...drawing our map closer in...zooming into our country, our city, our street, maybe our home...did you know...that in our country... In America today... That 4,000 babies will die...
Not of the swine flu--if this was the case it would be on CNN.
Not in car accidents--oh the outcry and the ammendments in traffic legislation if this was the case.
Not by accident in hospitals--the lawsuits and the outrage if even 4 or 40 babies would die this way --EVERY DAY.
NO.
Every Day
4,000 children will die in abortion clinics and hospitals.-- 4,000 will die today.
4,000 will die tomorrow and on Wednesday and on Thursday and 4,000 more on Friday.
4,000 you all.
Every day. Every day. Every day. Every day. Every day. Every day. Every day. of the week.
Let this sink in.
And find something to do about this--for LIFE is reflected/ given from the Christ child.
Life is required for our babies.
Ask God what your part is in this genocide.
Be blessed with a gentle glance into a miracle...
Perhaps abortion has touched your life in a very personal way. Perhaps there is a glory baby in heaven who has eyes like you and laughs like your husband. Remember the delete button. There is nothing that God cannot forgive you for. NOTHING. He forgave His beloved King David, the man after God's own heart who murdered one of his dearest officers. He is able to create in you a clean heart and to purify you from ALL unrighteousness. Sin confessed is sin forgiven and forgotten by God. If we confess our sin He forgives us our sin and cleanses us from ALL unrightesousness. And those who are forgiven MUCH have the precious oppurtunity of loving God MUCh--of really "getting" Him and how He loves us. It is an oppurtunity to let go of shame and reach out your clean hands toward the heart of God and what it beats for. One of His greatest attributes is that of the rescuer. He would allow and invite you to rescue other babies from our own Spirit of the Age that has deceived one in six women in our country at some point.
There are SO many wonderful ministries that are laboring to love and save the babies of our land. Here's a link to one I have recently heard of that's vision is to save one million babies and instead get them adopted into loving Christian families. It is called the Zoe Foundation. http://thezoefoundation.com/
Love and Life in the One who has Forgiven us and "Pressed the Delete Button!!"
Love,
Gillian
Spirit of the Age
by Michael Card
I thought that I heard crying coming through my door.
Was it Rachel weeping for her sons who were no more?
Could it have been the babies crying for themselves,
Never understanding why they died for someone else?
The voices head of weeping and of wailing,
History speaks of it on every page.
Of innocent and helpless little babies,
Offerings to the spirit of the age.
No way of understanding this sad and painful sign.
Whenever Satan rears his head there comes a tragic time.
If he could crush the cradle, then that would stop the cross.
He knew that once the Light was born his every hope was lost!
Now every age had heard it, the voice that speaks from hell.
"Sacrifice your children and for you it will be well."
The subtle serpent's lying, his dark and ruthless rage.
Behold it is revealed to be the spirit of the age!
Soon all the ones who seemed to die for nothing
Will stand beside the Ancient of Days,
With joy we'll see that Infant from a manger
Come and crush the spirit of the age
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