Category: Lifecoach

God Does Not Work on the Law of Averages

7/27/2020

None of us is perfect. Not one.

Many people believe that if they are "mostly good", or "have a good heart" that will be enough for God to look the other way for the things they have done wrong. This is a false belief. The Bible tells us that "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." As my pastor indicates, All means... All. There is no fancy Biblical meaning for that word. It means exactly what it says. We are all imperfect.

The argument of "I am a good person who does good things for everyone" doesn't fly if you go home and are mean to your own family. If you do 1,000 good deeds, and commit 1 sin, then you are still a sinful person in the eyes of God. But you are not alone. All of humanity is with you.

Wrong is wrong. There are not degrees of sin. To say, yes, I am a sinner, but your sin is worse than mine, is also a flawed statement. Imperfect is imperfect no matter how you measure it. We cannot say, I am imperfect, but I am closer to perfect than you are. We are not in competition with each other. That's where this thinking originates from. God will judge each of us on our own. We will not stand next to someone who is "worse" than we are, so we get in and they don't. That's not how the judgement will be. Each of us will be called to give an account of our lives. There is no comparison to other people.

But if we confess our sins, no matter how numerous, or few they may be, God will forgive our sins and wipe them from His memory. He says that they are as far away from Him as the east is from the west, and He will remember them no more. That doesn't mean that there won't be consequences for those sins. If we kill someone, we still must go to jail. If we hurt a loved one, we must still make amends for that hurt. But God will no longer hold them against us. So on judgement day I can stand and say, yes I was wrong. I am imperfect, but I love and trust you God. You are my Lord and Savior. I put my life into Your hands.

Who do you trust with your life - your eternal life? Are you in competition with others, and yourself to be perfect? You don't have to be. Yes, we have all sinned, and we will probably do it again. But take heart. Jesus came to conquer the world, sin, and death. Just confess to Him how sorry you are, and try to not do it again. It's amazing how free you will feel after that. Give it a try.

Until Next time,

~Lori
#BibleComesAlive
#FaithAndFantasy

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Christmas, Chaos, and Chemo...

12/23/2019

2 Corinthians 12:9 English Standard Version (ESV)
But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

We are full swing into that time of year. The time when shopping becomes the forefront, food is our focus, and our lives are frenzied. Welcome Christmas 2019.

This year will be a little different for us. Cancer has struck my household.

I have lost friends to it before, but no one too close. I lost a favorite aunt a few years ago, but we had been so busy with work and family that we were not as close as we once were. I have close friends who have lost children and parents, but it has never been personal before, until now. And it was all due to shoulder pain, and a French fry.

A close member if my immediate family was diagnosed with lung cancer. My first reaction was shock. Then came fear. After all, for those of us who have been around for more than a couple of decades, cancer means certain death. Even though medicine has come a very long way in recent years, it is still hard to get that out of my head. But the good news is it was caught early. On accident really. You see, she was going in for a CT scan of her shoulder to discover what was causing her pain, and the scan happened to catch the upper right corner lobe of her lung. And right there it was. The big C. From that, she was urgently transferred to oncology and surgery. The doctors believe they caught it so early that it had not yet had the chance to spread. So, in a way, the shoulder pain was a blessing in disguise. From that, she was allowed to find the treatment that would give her a new chance at life.

Remember Paul, from the Bible? He had something that pained him. Perhaps it was physical, perhaps emotional. We don’t know. But we do know that He begged God to remove it, but God said no. “My grace is sufficient for you.” It was God’s grace that got my family member through the trials of her cancer. And it is God’s grace that will continue to carry her through life’s remaining trials.

Then there was the French fry. Did you know that Chihuahuas cannot have anything high in fat or it will cause pancreatitis? When we got our first rescue Chihuahua, my daughter, a registered veterinary technician told me that, but somehow I forgot. I fed our little guy, Porkchop some French fries one day, and within a day he started vomiting blood and having bloody diarrhea. They began treatment for pancreatitis, which was not going away. Further testing revealed the big C had hit again. Porkchop has GI lymphoma. Cancer. Here we go again. This is the second time in three months. The little guy only weighs 8 pounds. I buy chickens his size. How can this happen?

But here is the blessing again. The French fry caused the illness, and without the treatment for the pancreatitis, we would never have caught the cancer. The sickness caused them to look farther and see something that was hidden deeper. And because they caught his cancer so early, they are hopefully optimistic that they can get him into remission. As I went to pay for his first chemo treatment, my eyes landed on the words adorning my checkbook.

Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord will fulfill His promises to her.

This year I am asking both God and Santa for my loved ones, with two legs and four, to be healed from this disease. Bring on the aches and pains, the vomiting and sicknesses that reveal the deeper issues. With the true source of the pain revealed, we dan deal with the healing. I am so blessed to have a Heavenly Father who hears my every word, and showers me with His love and blessings. I don’t get everything that I ask for, but I do get what He wants me to have. And, His grace is sufficient for me. No matter what the future holds, I have faith in a Father who will never let me go.

So, as we enter the chaos that accompanies Christmas, with the shoulder pain and the French fries, be thankful for the little aches and pains in your life. They could end up saving your life. Literally, Heavenly, and eternally.

Until Next time,

~Lori
#BibleComesAlive
#FaithAndFantasy

Do You Feel Worthless? Useless? Unloved?

11/8/2019

Some of the most together people I know have a deeply buried secret. They are successful, talented, and loved by lots of people... at least on the outside. On the inside they are a blithering mess of emotions that they cannot control. Oh, they try. Most often what I see is people trying to control their fears and insecurities by controlling their surroundings.

If I can control my job, then I can be successful.

If I can control my parents, then they will love me more.

If I can get married and have a baby, then I will be happy.

If I can control my friends then I can prove to them that I can be as good as they are.

If I can just control...

Control, control, control.

Control is the symptom. The problem is fear. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of not having enough. Not being pretty enough, successful enough, loved enough...

The list can go on and on... and believe me it does. This kind of life-altering, crippling insecurity runs in my family. I see it first hand every day. I feel the effects of it, and see the damage it spews on lives. Because the person with the insecurity has to take all of that control out on somebody, and it's usually the ones right around them.

You always hurt the ones you love. Not sure who said that, but no truer words were ever spoken. So what do we do? We have those that are hurting, and those having that hurt being taken out on them. What is the answer?

Just the thought that you are not good enough, rich enough, pretty enough... is an insult and slap in the face to God. He created you just as you are. You are uniquely you, and you are here for a purpose. He didn't make a broken down piece of junk. That's the world's view being imposed on you. It is a false vision of who you are. It is a distortion from what the truth is.

In fact, you were so uniquely designed, that Jesus gave His life for you to have the chance to live out your God-given purpose in this life. Ask yourself this? Would a man, who is not only the Son of God, but also part of God Himself, go through all of the horrific torture and death for a broken and useless reason? Jesus didn't die for nothing. He didn't willingly go to the cross for junk. Think for one minute about His reasons for going to the cross. He went for you, just as you are. And by doing so, He came to meet you where you are. He allowed Himself, as God, to become the broken person that you believe you are, so that He could lift you up out of this well of despair and walk with you back to a life living for Him. He is our reason for loving ourselves and loving life.

Maybe you haven't found your purpose in life yet. That is very different not having one. And this is a good place to start. What are you passionate about? What wrongs in this world can you fix. Let's all start in our own homes. Stop trying to replace God's purpose for your life with what you want. They are often two different things. We must learn to be happy being who and what we are, both on the inside and the outside. Begin this day, and every day by saying:

I am no accident
I am not broken junk
I was created for a purpose
I will not let the world's vision of me affect my life any longer
I will do what God wants me to do

If we can control our own fears by embracing the truth, then the opportunities of this world await at your doorstep.

This is your first step. Surround yourself with friends and family that will support you in this. If you don't have any that come to mind, go to your local Bible-based church.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Image by John Hain from Pixabay

You Are No Accident! You Were Planned for a Purpose.

10/20/2019

The world loves a victim. What is more sympathy garnering than someone who is has something truly unjust happen to them? We've all encountered it. Being blamed for something that was not your fault; people who are victims of violent crime; losing a job or a house; domestic violence; rape; divorce; or even the circumstances of your birth.... the list goes on. Sometimes these things are the direct result of our own actions, and sometimes they are not. But what we need to understand is that these things do not define us. They are things that happened to us, but they do not have to become who we are.

Our identity is found in Jesus. We are not here by accident. Our very existence was planned long before the world was created.

Psalm 139:13 says

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Does that sound like an accident to you. Knitting takes planning. First you have to decide what you're going to make. Then you have to get the tools - two knitting needles... that would be both of your parents. Then the creation process begins. Carefully, intentionally, one stitch at a time until your project is complete. We begin as two cells. Those cells multiply one by one, growing together - knitting into the creation that is uniquely you. There has never been another you, and there never will be.

This does not sound like an accident to me. This is creation. You are a creation, make after God's own image. You are a precious and intentional being, put here for a purpose that ONLY you can fulfill. Do you know what your purpose is? Give it a little thought. Or better yet, ask God what that purpose is.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Image by Sophie Janotta from Pixabay

Why is Good Friday so Good?

4/19/2019

Dear Jesus,

I woke up this morning, and it began immediately. Anxiety, dread, depression, and overwhelming sorrow. Today would not be a good day. I looked at the clock and realized that the torture had already begun some 2000+ years ago. Your trial was likely starting. Things went downhill from there.

I got ready for work, and wondered if the beatings had begun yet. How long did your mock trial last? Minutes? An hour? I imagine not much longer. Then you were led away and into the hands of the waiting soldiers. They stripped you. Mocked you. Beat and flogged you, all the while making fun of your pain. But you remained silent. You endured this undeserved torture so that we could all live free. You endured it with the silence and dignity that only a true King could. You never complained or cried out.The flogging ripped the skin and muscle from your back down to the bone. They gave you a fake robe and a crown of thorns, and for no good reason. You had done nothing wrong. Nothing.

At lunchtime I was sure you had already made the painstaking trip to Golgotha--the place of the Skull--the hill on which you would die. You had already been nailed to the cross, and raised to hang until your death. Still they mocked you, daring you to come down and save yourself. If you are a king, where are your followers? They even cast lots for your clothing, to take after you were dead. They had no idea they were fulfilling a prophecy from hundreds of years earlier

And now I look at the clock, 2:51. It is almost time for you to die. I do not know when you granted grace to the thief next to you, bit I imagine that it was close to the end. He was likely ready to give up, having born more pain than a person ever should. But even though he deserved his punishment, you gave him peace. You did for him what no other person could. Because you were--and still are-- more than a person. You are God.

In the third hour, You will bow your head and give up your spirit. The skies will go dark, and thunder will tear across the skies. I have always felt this was God, our father screaming at His loss as well as ours. But You chose this. I can never comprehend this. The loss was so great. The curtain in the temple would rip in half. But this was no ordinary curtain. It was several inches thick and woven from horse hair. No human could have torn it. This was also our Father's anger and torment at watching his only Son die -- for nothing.

Then you descended into Hell. We can't possibly know what this was like. I had always imagined you entering the gates of Hell as a conquering hero, but another viewpoint was presented by my pastor recently. We can live because you took our punishment for us. We know God's wrath will be poured out on those who have rejected Him. Did you have God's wrath poured out on you while there? Is that why you sweat blood in the Garden of Gethsemane? It wasn't the physical pain and torture that you feared, or even death, but being cast out of Heaven and separated from God our Father? You suffered the separation from God that I fear, so that I would not have to.

But then you rose. You survived. This is the one thing that we can never do on our own. You defeated death and Hell, by going there, suffering what we should have, and overcoming it.

You have granted us your grace, just like the thief on the cross. We don't deserve it either. "This day, you will be with me in Paradise," you said to the thief--and you say it to me as well. For You are My God, and I am Your child. Nothing can hurt me, including death.

It truly is a very Good Friday.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Fight the Good Fight...

3/2/2019

That was my Grandfather's favorite verse in the entire Bible. He would say it every time I ever saw him.

2 Timothy 4:7
Fight the Good fight,
Finish the Race
Keep the Faith

These were some of the last words of the apostle Timothy. While it is a short verse, it contains some valuable life lessons.

Fight the good fight: I take this to mean do not cheat. No low blows. Fight fair. Stick to the actual subject. Do not drag in unresolved issued from decades earlier. Do not enlist others to do your fighting for you. Stand for what you think is right, and defend it with honor. Have honorable morals and live by them. Don't be a hypocrite. Don't expect others to do, or not do, what you are not willing to do. Act with honor, as though you are representing God Himself... because you are.

Finish the Race: Don't be a quitter. When you start something, be prepared to go the distance. Pace yourself. Don't run out of control and burn out halfway through the race. Train, learn, and run with dignity. Do not cut others off from their goals. Do not injure them in their journey. Recognize that all of us are in a race of our own, with our own goals and destinations. We all have our own talents and limitations. Do not compare yourself to others, or insult and demean them because their journey is different than yours. Run your own race and encourage others as much as you can.

Keep the Faith: Above all, faith is the single most important thing you can hang on to in life. Without faith we have no future after this life. Human life here on earth is short term, but Heaven is forever. Eternity is a long time to live without God. We as humans can be very egocentric, believing that we are the top of the food chain, and that we are the best that there is. The thought of a God-like creator makes no sense to many. But it doesn't have to make sense.

Faith is the belief (not proof) of things unseen. If we can prove that God exists, then where is the faith element? God doesn't want robots. He doesn't want people who are forced to believe in Him because they have been shown absolute proof and have no choice but to believe. He wants people to believe through faith and trust; feeling in their hearts and should that God is real.

So what will you choose? Faith and eternal life? or a life without God forever? You have been given the free will to choose.

Don't blow it.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Conflict or Chaos?

2/17/2019

Conflict in life is inevitable. We are not robots. God did that on purpose. He did not want to create people pre-preprogrammed to follow Him. What would be the point? He gave us all free-will to decide whether or not to follow hIm. And with that free will, comes conflict.

Jesus said, "in this life you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world. (John 16:32-33)

We have to recognize that we are all made differently. Each of us is wired for a specific purpose in life. We have different callings, different likes and dislikes, and different taste levels and talents. Respect for each other can go a long way to establish a mutual working or living relationship. Our spiritual gifting is for a specific purpose. No two people's calling in life is the same. Since each person's gifting is different and unique, to insult, demean, put down, or otherwise create conflict for each other is wrong.

That being said, conflict does not have to be chaos. There are people in this world that thrive on chaos. By throwing any given situation into utter and complete turmoil, they can effectively take the focus off the real problem and/or themselves, and twist everything around to make it something it is not. Someone in my life does this with practiced expertise. I have said for many years, (this person) can stir up a complete poop storm for everyone around them, and then walk away smelling like a rose. We all know someone like that. Their purpose is not to help or encourage. It is to knock you off your track so they can feel better. In many cases it all boils down to insecurity.

Conflict in life is going to happen. But good, strong, solid boundaries can keep the situation from deteriorating into a mess. We are all created in the image of God. We are created for a purpose, and allowing someone else to hijack that purpose by swirling chaos around you to make you lose your focus.

My grandfather's favorite words from the Bible are very applicable in this case.

"Fight the good fight. Finish the race. Keep the faith." (2 Timothy 4:7)

Fight the good fight. That means playing fair, and keeping the other person's feelings in mind when the conflict is in process. Establish rules of consideration and fairness--and stick to them. Insist that the other people stick to them too.

Conflict is inevitable. Chaos is optional.

Thanks Grandpa. I'll see you in Heaven.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Why Does a Good God Allow Hurt in the World?

12/31/2018

So, why does a good God allow bad things to happen?

That's a really good question. And I'm sure there are a lot of good answers.

So you can then help someone else going through the same thing.

To bring you closer to God.

To remove the bad influences that we do not see from our lives.

Because God gave us the gift of free will. And just like we have free will to choose good, so do we all have the same free will to choose bad. And unfortunately that bad often impacts others.

There are any number of good answers to this question. And it was one that I had not completely pondered, until, it happened to me.

I am a very contented person. I am happy in my own skin and have been since I became a Christian. I live modestly and am happy in my job. There isn't much that I really stress over on a regular basis. Don't get me wrong. Life has not been perfect by any means. There have been money issues, job layoffs, and an unexpected divorce. But through it all God has been my rock. I am happy being His child, and trying to find my purpose in this life. That is until that day.

It was a betrayal of both mind and body. Someone who was very close to me did the unthinkable. Someone who should have never hurt me, did. Someone who was supposed to love me more than anyone else, hurt me more than I ever thought possible. They deceived not only me, but all of those closest to me as well. Why? I still don't know. But it threw me. It threw me so badly that two years later I am still wrestling with the feelings of utter betrayal, hurt, deceit, and the lies that this person spun.

For most of these two years I have struggled with 'Why'? Why me? What have I ever done to deserve this?

The fact is that many times we do not deserve the bad things that happen. They just do. People like to quote the verse "All things work together for God's Good." And while that may be so, sometimes it is hard to hear when you are hurting deeply. You don't really care what the reasons are, you just want the hurt to stop.

But I also know that in order to lead people to God, you have to go and meet them where they are. And if that is a place of hurt and pain, then you must go down into the depths of pain to meet them and lead them out. Okay, but if you are someone like me who has been pretty happy my whole life, and content with everything that has been thrown at me, how do I do that? I had to learn what that hurt and pain felt like. I had to feel the stabbing in my heart that I had to relive day after day. I had to deal with the humiliation of the lies that were spun, so that I could address it with someone else. I had to go down into the dank darkness of the pit if despair so that I would know how to get back out. I had to find God again in the bleak areas of life, so that I could show others how to do it. I had to learn how to grow in Christ no matter what. I had to be broken. And I was.

I tried to envision what our Lord went through when he was betrayed and crucified. How did He get past the hurt and be able to forgive what they had done to Him. How could He look at Judas with love and compassion knowing what he would do? He didn't deserve what happened to Him, but it still did. And that is what saved us all.

So now I can add to my list of accolades that I have been absolutely and utterly broken. I have been betrayed and deserted. I have been left for the wolves to devour, but they didn't. They didn't because God was there the whole time watching over me. He showed me how to forgive and have compassion on those that have hurt me. He led me back out of the pit so now I know my way. I am uniquely prepared to lead others out from this same pit. And I am no longer afraid of the blackness-for it is in this absolute darkness that the light of Jesus will shine the brightest.

Don't despair the hurt. Greater things lay behind it.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Free Bible Resources (not just free Bibles)

11/25/2018

I have never been convinced that giving away free Bibles is the complete way to get someone into the word. The truth is that most of these books go home and sit on the bookshelf, unopened. Why? I don't think it is from a lack of desire to learn, or a lack of understanding. I think it is from lack of a good plan. a good teaching plan. Jesus had a plan for His mission, and so should we.

I suggest that we give out Bible resources instead. Along with a Bible, we should give the people a good introductory Bible Study book as well. Let's face it, the Bible is a daunting book, to say the least. We tell people that this is the way to eternal salvation, then hand them an enormous book with no instructions. And, it is not laid out in a user friendly way. The plan of salvation is not in the beginning, it's right in the middle. The beginning is history and back-story - Important to be sure, but confusing to a new believer.

To start with, when selecting a Bible to give to someone, get a modern day language Bible. Get something easy to read for them, and easy to understand. Once they become more fluent in the nuances of the writing, then they can shift to a book with more information as far as translations from the original Hebrew and Greek.

A good Bible study for new believers could be any of these:

The Daily Walk Bible; 31 days with Jesus

All About Jesus (The Single Story of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John)

Also, with live in a digital age. It is easier and more convenient than ever to access Bible information at our fingertips any time of the day and night.

Just go to Amazon.com and search for FREE BIBLES

The Good News Bible, or
The Message Bible

are good places to start.

Also, for your phone or tablet device, there is an App called the YouVersion Bible App. This is the one we use at church. It has many different translations in there to choose from. It also has built in devotionals and Bible study programs for all levels of users. It is an amazing resource.

From there I would also recommend two websites

BibleGateway.com

andBlueLetterBible.org

These are searchable websites with additional resources. If a new believer has a question, they can likely find out the answer at one of these two locations.

Also I would recommend giving them your phone number, or a way to contact another believer that is close to them.

One easy way to be prepared is to make little cards (perhaps a business card) that you keep with you all the time. Have these links and resources printed on there for their convenience. That way no one is struggling with finding pen and paper at this most crucial moment. Help them find a Bible-based, Christ-centered church in their area Follow up and keep in touch. Literally, their eternal life could count on it.

If you have someone who is still seeking to know the truth, I would recommend

The Case For Christ, by Lee Strobel (not free, but good for those tough nuts in our lives)

By his own admission, he was a staunch atheist who set out to prove that Christ never existed and put to rest all of the missionaries and people who tried to convert him. He did exactly the opposite.

Perhaps these simple steps for us could pave the way for more believers to come into Heaven. If only one is saved, then it is all worthwhile.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
#jclc #Sinclair
#JesusChristLifeCoach
#JesusIsMyLifeCoach

Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

Jesus is my Life Coach!

Mementos of Murder

11/6/2018

One thing that most rapists and serial killers have in common is collecting mementos. From each crime scene and victim the criminal will take a personal item from the scene. It is a trophy; something to remind he or she vividly of the activity that transpired. It is not about the piece of jewelry or the article of clothing. It is about the crime. Many police report that they will take only part of something. One piece of a clothing set, one earring, one cufflink. Their purpose is not just to take one item, but to ruin the piece that is left. In a way they are reminding you that you are ruined too. That item will never be the same again, and neither will you. It is a way to relive the power and control of the situation time and time again, long after the crime has been committed. It is a means of controlling the high that person felt while they were in complete power.

Extreme controllers will do that too. They will take something they don't necessarily want or need. They want it for no other reason than someone else wants it. Their purpose isn't in having the item, it is in the taking of it. The pride isn't in owning it, but the knowledge of who they took it away from. It is a memento of murder. The relationship that was murdered in the taking of that memento.

As Christians we need to remember several things. First, these items are only things. Yes, it may be a reminder of a departed loved one, but that's all it is. Just a reminder. What was taken from you was not the person, just the reminder.

Second, it is only stuff. An old pastor that I had used to say, "I've never seen a hearse with a U-Haul (TM)." Down here we need to love people, not stuff. We can enjoy stuff. We can use the stuff that makes our lives easier. There is no doubt that we will accumulate stuff, but at the end of the day it is just stuff. After you are gone someone will come through your house and throw out most of your stuff, taking only the mementos they want to keep.

Third, pray for these people. Pray hard and pray often. Their priorities are screwed up. They place a higher value in things than in people. Hurting another person is just no big deal to them. They live in an isolated and lonely world with their trophies of murdered relationships. This isolation and loneliness leads them to further control, and more damaged relationships.

Lastly, we need to keep in mind that these people who are wielding control and power like a weapon, are deeply hurting and flawed individuals. Hurt people hurt other people. I wonder if they even realize the damage they are doing when they do it. I flip back and forth on that one. One side of me thinks they thrive on the power and control of taking and hurting someone else, while the other side of me thinks they are so wrapped up in their own pain they are incapable of seeing anyone or anything else but their own pain. I suppose that could go either way.

We should be collectors too. Collectors of souls for God. When we run across people like this, it is our Christian duty to use every tool in our arsenal to show this person God's love and forgiveness. Yes, they hurt you. Sometimes deeply. Sometimes irreparably, at least by human standards. But God is not human. God specializes in the impossible. He craves you coming to Him and asking (begging) for help.

The most powerful tools we have are love and prayer. Let's wield them without mercy in our efforts to lead these deeply hurting people to Christ.

Until next time:
Peace to you and yours,

Tweet me @LorettaLea
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Re-Inventing the Impossible
~Lori
Loretta Sinclair
Sinclair Publishing
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com
http://www.SinclairInkSpot.com/Jesus-is-my-life-coach

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