Are You a But Nazi?

Their immediate response to any thing presented before them or anyone else within earshot is a "but". No matter what there is a perfection never achieved (in THEIR mind) of the given situation whether it involves them or not. And in fact, they seem incapable of not imparting their opinion in these instances. Its like they have diarrhea of the mouth. Yeah, that pun was intended :)

For some reason the But Nazi feels the need to point out what is lacking, what needs to be different, that if we think this is good they know how it could be better - the way it should be. They may think they can argue that hey, they're simply pointing out the 'reality' of the situation. Pointing out the 'facts'. They're 'just sayin'?'

Don't be fooled. If this is you, you are a But Nazi.

I can be honest with you here, right? Ok then. I really dislike dealing with the ongoing, ever present negativity of a persistent pessimist.
Because they can bring me down if I'm not careful.

We each have so much influence over one another. And the fact that someone wastes my time consistently pointing out whats not ideal about their situation or mine really burns my toast to be honest.
Don't get me wrong, we can share our concerns, our burdens if you will with one another. We should. We're here to hold one another up. But in holding one another up and sharing what we feel we are also to glorify the Father and what He is doing!
And when its constantly the opposite of that, when there is never a conversation that isn't perpetually peppered with them poo-pooing everything in some way, that is a person I really begin to dread seeing. I want to turn and head the other direction.
Yep, I just typed that. Because its true. You know what I'm talking about even if you are the But Nazi in question - because no matter how negative you may be you cant stand to hear someone else be that negative!

They say that misery loves company.

I totally understand the need to commiserate - heck, I need to as well from time to time. But Proverbs 27:17 says that "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend."

I get exhausted by anything else. By the "Buts", the "what ifs", the "if onlys". To be honest, the But Nazi is offering a disservice to drain their friends emotionally all the time with the need to look at the down side of everything.
And the But Nazi never sharpens anyone - they dull the blade, pour water on the fire of passion, and honestly they are admitting that they don't listen. That what wisdom or encouragement their friend tries to offer them doesn't matter. That what the But Nazi thinks is more important than what their friend thinks.

That kind of gives me an icky feeling in my stomach, you?

There is a verse in that same chapter of Proverbs that you don't hear commented on near as much... Proverbs 27:11 says "Be wise, my child, and make my heart glad. Then I will be able to answer my critics."

Fill those up around you with joy, with the silver linings, with the reminders of the good that is, the brighter side of life, with the blessings that are there each day in each thing. Because when the disasters come, when the tough things that really truly do matter in the grand scheme happen, when the critics are shouting - wouldn't it be much more glorifying to your Creator to have your words be the ones that ring true in the hearts and minds of others that point directly to a God who is sovereign and is truly "working all things together for the good of those that love the Lord'?
They simply don't ring true if in your daily life you don't walk out the fact that you believe that.
Before you get upset with me, I say this because I have had times in my life when I was the But Nazi. I never want to become that person again. I didn't like me then. And I know that I can tend to take on the temperament of those around me. I want to protect myself and others around me.

Let's choose to "Make their hearts glad each day". Let's be one that our friends will run to when times are hard, because they know after we listen with sympathy and understanding, that they can count on us to sharpen them and lift them up. Because they know we will point out what they have to live for, we will remind them that the unexpected rain of the day just helped cool things off, that God is using the trial to strengthen them, that the day may not have ended the way they thought it would but because it didn't they encountered someone God intended for them to. And they will believe it because we walk out what we talk.
Our motto?
"NO MORE BUT NAZIS"

Be Joyful on the Journey
Marisa

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

I keep hearing that line from the
David Bowie song in my head that says
"Turn and face the strain, ch-ch-changes...
Just gonna have to be a different man,
Time may change me, But I can't trace time"

They still use it in tons of tv commercials,
so even if you're a bit younger than me
you've probably heard a little of it.






In 15 days my son leaves for Marine Bootcamp, hopefully the $40,000 worth of damage repairs begin finally on our home that have created a bit of unbalance lately, one door I had been wondering about regarding my future has finally closed completely it seems, another door will either swing open or slam shut very shortly I feel, and a personal relationship will either become better than its been in years or deteriorate even more all within the span of one conversation to come soon.
And of course there in the unknown of what tomorrow in itself brings :)

But at the same time I feel the excitement in times like these.

In the pit of my stomach where my flesh battles with uneasiness, where I want to quiet the churning by reciting and singing the familiar songs whose words I know by heart, I also feel the huge wispy wings of the butterflies fluttering against one another that I get when I'm expecting something new, and good, and different, and a sudden peaked interest rises to learn songs with words I don't yet know.

Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you,
He is might to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.

I think I'm gonna choose to let Him teach me the lyrics of those new songs He wrote for me before the beginning of time, and that He's singing over me at this very moment. In fact I wanna learn them so I can sing them with Him - at the top of my lungs!


Joyful on the Journey
Marisa

Am I a "Christian"?

We throw the word around pretty freely. As a noun, an adjective, a way of life. But what I continually see is "Christian" and "Christianity" both ridiculed, misused, laughed at, wielded, toted, put on a pedestal, and also become weapons.

My pastor is working his way through the letters to the 7 churches in Revelation as he prepares to lead us into the book of Acts.
I am more than a bit anxious.



See I know we are currently not the church of Christ we are called to be. Because I am not the daughter of God I a called to be.
I soooo get that I am a work in progress, I get that more than you know.
What makes me anxious is the willingness I have or wont have when really put to the test in life - of truly saying I am willing to give myself completely over to the Spirit. Do I truly want to see what He may or may not call me to do, and who He may be asking me to be?
I know that this time will be a huge catalyst for some challenging things to consider as a body of believers and as individuals.
I hope we "Christians" are ready. Ready to see how much we have to change. Ready to experience either so much more of the Holy Spirit we will feel overcome by the weight of it, or ready to see it move on because we aren't willing to see our failure at being the bride we are.
Acts 20:30-31
Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!

I love my church and God's hand is on it without a doubt. But as my pastor has said many times, God can remove His hand of blessing too. And He will if we aren't willing to ditch the American label we have created of "Christianity" and become the church of Acts we are called to be - living and loving completely by and in the direction of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:44-47 All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
What if it was our unity in love and life as believers of Christ that set us apart and not a label we have created?

What if we were so in tune to His Spirit, and loved and served one another so well that we needed no label of "Christianity"?
What if people weren't drawn to a "Christian" and our version of the drop in and drop out mission trip, our old school VBS mode of operation, our recipe for conversion that rarely includes the follow up of then actually doing life together, by our "Christian lingo", or the recited evangelism scriptures we have rehearsed time and time again that come with no previous real conversations, by the track handed out as we canvas neighborhoods only to retreat to our own where we never talk to our neighbors on either side - but they were drawn to being welcomed onto our front porches for friendship, that they were shown compassion through us just being real about our own lives, our own struggles, our own experience of being loved well by God because we decided that there was something to the freedom of living with and for a God willing to go to such lengths for us, by our true concern for human life around us, by our lack of judgement of them, by the fact we actually find reasons to respect them and their differences from us instead of "pitying" them - what if they were drawn to God by being loved by us because we honestly decide we are gonna love and see as He loves and sees?
What would happen if we approached a relationship without even using the word Christian, Christianity, redemption, repentance, judgement, or eternity - and instead we earned the right to eventually go there by loving them so well that they couldn't help but ask us out of an overwhelming curiosity to tell them what makes us different?
What if they didn't call us "Christians"?
What if they just called us "friends"?

Make War!

"Then Esther sent this message to Mordecai: 'Go and gather together all the Jews of Shushan and fast for me; do not eat or drink for three days, night or day; and I and my maids will do the same; and then, though it is strictly forbidden, I will go in to see the king; and if I perish, I perish.'"
Esther 4:15-16 (TLB)

Maybe it sounds cliche, but its never been truer "Love and Life IS a Battlefield"... and today the spiritual warfare that surrounds us has never been more powerful.
In the face of fear, a possible or a looming and certain battle, one that could even mean our own life, how will we react? Do we become paralyzed by panic? Or do we meet it head on with confidence?
What if it requires more than anything before ever has? Do we truly understand who not only has our back, but goes before us and covers us on all sides?

The Esther Experience Oct 7th - 9th is a weekend designed by God to get us battle ready, to meet every obstacle understanding who we are as women, and what unique things our Creator has given us to fight with honor and power over what seeks to destroy us and those we love... Engage, and wage war each and every day under the banner of Jehovah Nissi!

Space is very limited - get registered today at http://www.livingvessels.org

Courageous the Movie - coming this September

I Want Whats Mine

As I drove home from Paducah KY I was contemplating some of the changes in my life recently. I was pondering on the things that at one point brought me feelings of anxiousness, concern, even panic at moments - and to be totally honest still sometimes try to grab at my heart for a few split seconds sometimes when I awake at 2am in the dark of night.
But what I am learning over and over in such grand and small ways is that if those changes had not come to my life, then the new things I am experiencing now would never have touched my life either.
For instance I would not have been able to take time away to join my husband for the last few days on his work related jaunt. A couple of what on the surface could be seen as regular old weekdays by many standards, but that upon closer examination are shown to reveal so much more.

Like an unexpected sweet time of silly road talk, lots of laughter, precious romantic moments with the man I love, finding a beautiful new vacation spot we would love to return to soon because we took a spontaneous side trip along the way, getting to meet singer Jeff Jenkins from The Voice in the middle of the Pancake Pantry in Nashville on the way, seeing a wall of creative artwork along the river in Paducah that uniquely paints the history of a town I mistakenly saw as unassuming before, and seeing many beautiful examples of God's creation all along the way.
Oh, if we could just forget what we think we need or want, and let Him give us what He wants us to have, there is nothing in our wildest dreams that could match the ongoing blessings of receiving what is good and perfectly designed by God for us each... "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”
1 Corinthians 2:9

I want what is mine - from Him - in all its perfection :)

Joyful on the Journey
Marisa

The Start of a Great Week!

Make it a week of purpose... Psalm 37:3-4 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Decide that whatever comes you will give it to Him immediately, look for the divine appointments that have been set in motion, live in each moment and dont worry bout the next - He is Faithful, seek Him with intensity and ask Him to place in your heart a burning passion for what is His best for you!

Marisa

A Refinement by Any Other Name

In the refining we are cleansed, we are polished, and we are changed...
Zechariah 13:9 I will refine them like silver and purify them like gold. They will call on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘These are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’




I am always so thankful and encouraged by how in every season God has placed a few people in my life that are consistantly on a parallel path with me. Yesterday I was chatting with one of them, catching up on life, ministry, a lot of things. And we ended up talking about some similar refinement going on right now and about why we so often only think of a 'refining' as a time of suffering, of pain, a trial, of great change that we in the flesh will see as a dark time. Those are things God does use to grow us and stretch us for sure and how we relate to His suffering.
James1:2-4 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

But I know that my own refinement also comes from seeking with purpose to fully experience God's Holy Spirit. I DON'T want to wait on the trials or valleys to bring me closer to Him. I know those are a part of what will come when its the perfect time for deep profound life altering truth and change. But I want to run after Him before those come and offer more up of me for DAILY refinement, all the while looking for the lead of love His Holy Spirit offers to draw me closer to who He is and what He wants to do. There is soooo much to be said for the sweeping romance of Him speaking through every relationship, every twist and turn my feet and car take me along, at every store I frequent, every conversation I have, and in every moment He has created :)



I loved the fact that recently my pastor posed the following question when he did: He said "I have asked the question 'How can I get more of the Holy Spirit?' I now believe that the real question should be 'How much of me does the Holy Spirit have?' "
What I sense from God in my life right now is that I MUST seek to give more of myself over in every way DAILY because He has something special in store for me DAILY and I need to be able to see, hear, feel, sense Him at every turn to receive it!

Psalm 32:8 "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.."
Fearless living - that is abundance!

But the biggest thing I am understanding about this? Is that the refining that leads to that life of abundance, the guidance, the wisdom, the right choices, and the change in me He desires, truly does hinge on how in tune I am to His Holy Spirit so I can receive what HE DEEMS as the abundance uniquely planned for me inside of each day.

I'm Out of Control!

As I settled onto the Little Pigeon River with 22 other ladies recently I quickly learned that I had never been as aware of how short my arms and legs are and how completely and utterly out of control I was in a lime green tube much too small for my big behind. I was not in control of my surroundings.

You know, There are times in my life where I immediately understand and hear what God is saying, and times where lessons build on top of one another until He is ready to show me something and my memory is pricked as if by a small electrical shock. Its then He chooses to remind me suddenly of all the seemingly random conversations that have taken place and are tied together, the items I have taken time to read that are now revealed to hold a common theme I didnt recognize before, and the circumstances that have happened that are finally set before me in a timeline that uncovers the lesson like a sweet piece of chocolate I have craved.

As we began our tubing journey on this Saturday morning and I watched the faces of my friends old and new go from fear and excitement to uncertainty and back to immediate fear for some, I realized that I was witnessing another perfect picture and analogy of our journey with Him and with one another in this life. We were quickly coming to understand we could not control this adventure.

Oh what a lesson this day revealed!

When I have realized I am out of control I have reacted in many different ways.
Sometimes I've raced backwards over a sharp drop in the current, backwards even with no sense of what was ahead, and I have panicked at first. I remember what it felt like as I was I was losing my Dad to Alzheimers, as I was losing my job, as I have faced losing relationships that required me to choose to not enable their bad decisions and what that could mean, the way my heart lurched the first time my son told me he was praying about enlisting in the marines a few months back, and the night the recent April storms hit and water began pouriong in every room as the hail rained down and I heard the wind pulling at my home. I felt swept away as I did at times in the river the other day. I flailed about trying to simulate control and trying to determine on my own what to do first instead of listening intently and purposefully for Him. But I had to trust, and when I finally chose to let go and let Him be God He fulfilled a promise given
Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21 NIV

When I have drifted off path and found myself becoming entangled in shallow water and rocks in my way, He has shown me He knows when I need a quick rescue in my tender state. It's then He sends someone by in their own lime green tube to grab my hand and puls me along back to His current. Like when a friend has gently showed me I am being selfish, or lovingly brought to my attention that I need to turn back before stumbling over something I was placing before God in my life.
Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD. Jeremiah 1:8 NIV

Then there are times He required I step off the ledge in faith and depend on Him to provide and do as He asked. To get up out of the swirling eddy I was caught up in - a strong, but wrong current for me - and literally walk out of it in His strength and to meet head on what He had already equipped me for. I have met impactful people I wouldn't have otherwise, been placed in ministry I never dreamd possible, and experienced Him like I never had before all beause I said Yes and let go of my fear!
The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11 NIV

Sometimes I have find myself having to be patient in a calm pool of almost no obvious current at all - waiting on Him to move me and coax me when its His perfect timing, even as I watch others joy riding past me with their arms in the air - thats their journey at that given moment and at some point they will watch me fly by in abandonment! As I wait on my next path, career, ministry today I am reminded that...
In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps. Proverbs 16:9 NIV

I understood as I watched us all bob and race along on this day that we are all on the same jouney, just at different places, and we switch roles and our paths intermingle in many different ways and at many different points.
I have never been in control. Hard to swallow sometimes. When I try to do anything in myself I find eventually a treacherous place of panic. If I let Him do what He is trying to do and just hang on to the big green tube in trust, then the peril turns into a thrill ride that we're on together that He manuvers me through safely in His hand
This is what the LORD says — your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go" Isaiah 48:17

If I trust Him for my salvation and eternity, then can't I can surely trust Him in my every day?

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5 NIV

What blessed me so much that day on the river as as we exited for the day was the faces now reflected excitement, release, and even an afinity for the war wounds some endured along the way as they learned to relax and let go :)

I was utterly and totally out of control and I loved it - the true freedom of a real adventure!

Joyful on the Journey,
Marisa

My Rewards Card

I had a sweet surprise yesterday. I had lunch scheduled with a new friend at Panera and as I was getting ready I remembered I had a "My Panera" rewards card I had gotten some time back and never registered. I had a few extra minutes before I left home so I pulled out the old laptop and went to their web site and quickly did so.

On my last few previous visits to Panera the nice person ringing my order up would ask me for the card but I would have to tell them each time "I haven't registered it yet". They would proceed to tell me "that's your card, go online, claim it and you can get the great random surprise rewards that come with it".

So what I noticed was when I was online registering the card was that the information told me that I would want to check back from time to time to keep up with what surprises might randomly be loaded onto my card at any time. Well to my delight, by the time I left home and got to Panera I already had one on there! When I placed my order, the nice person ringing me up asked me as usual for my 'My Panera' card. I presented it, he swiped it, and said "You have a reward to claim Mrs Lykins - you can have a free pastry or cookie of your choice".

Wow!!! Something I didn't do anything for it really, no grand task on my behalf, no specific dollar amount tied to it. No great effort of my part. I just acknowledge I wanted the card and BAM - I got a surprise, a reward, a gift.

It's sort of like Jesus. I just acknowledge Him and my need for Him and BAM - I receive the instant gift of Salvation. No task to perform, no works, no money, no real effort on my part aside from acceptance, saying I wanted it. Its like I have a "My Jesus" card. When I feel weak, afraid, lonely, worried, consumed with anything I am trying to do or get through in my own strength I can go to Him, pray (swipe the "My Jesus" card so to speak), and just allow Him to reload that card with His strength, wisdom, love, and courage.

But then I also thought about those around us, walking beside us in church, at work, in school, in the local grocery store, some complete strangers... they have a card too. They need it reloaded. And Jesus can use me to help do that. He can use them to help refill mine. A kind word, spontaneous service, a hug, an anonymous surprise gift.

What if the older gentlemen in the aisle next to me who looks a little lost is discovering what it feels like to shop for the first time since losing the love of his life? He could probably really use a sweet word from a stranger - a surprise loaded on his card that leaves him feeling less alone as he makes his way home.
Maybe at church that young woman walks in that I see every week, but this time there's a different look on her face. A look of strain, stress, maybe desperation. What if I take just a moment and reload her card with a hug and a whispered prayer? Now she can enter in more open to finding the peace and rest waiting on her.

John 14:12 "I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father."

Proverbs 16:24 "Kind words are like honey--sweet to the soul and healthy for the body."

Look for a way to reload someones card every day. Give that random sweet surprise, that reward, just because... because they are each one whom God loves.

Marisa