A Little Exercise in Creativity...

 posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

We are having once-a-month ladies' leadership meetings to prepare for the 2023 Women's conference; we are going through the book It's Not Supposed to Be This Way by Lysa Terkeurst, and in chapter 5, Lysa writes about her mother taking her to painting events to do some therapeutic painting on a canvas.

Lysa protests that she is not a painter, but no matter to her mom.  They took the painting classes.

So tonight in our meeting, canvases and paint were distributed and...we painted.

I will honestly say that my best artistic medium is not visual arts, lol.  And we only had about 40 minutes to paint, after the devo.

That ain't much time...specially if you want to layer paint.  Can't wait for it to completely dry between layers.

Most of the ladies painted flowers or trees or butterflies or sea/landscapes.

I am not most ladies, lol.

I can point out about 20 different things in that which could have been done better.  But I felt like I expressed the thought I had and that, my friends, is what it's about.  Not perfection. As a non-painter, I am kinda surprised it turned out at all.

Eight years ago I wrote a song taken from Ezekiel 37...which periodically gets stuck in my head.  It's kinda been there for a bit now.  Probably why that painting came to be.

Oh- Oh- Oh

Can these dry bones live? Can these dry bones live?

It's such a dismal sight; bones all bleached and white

But the question comes to light...can they live?

Lord you know, Lord you know, Lord you know....

We prophesy to the dry bones, we prophesy to the dry bones, 

We prophesy, we prophesy - 'Live!  In Jesus' Name!

Live! In Jesus' Name!  Live! In Jesus' Name!'

Oh - Oh- Oh

Can these dead dreams breathe?  Can these dead dreams breathe?

The spark has long gone cold, they're all stale and old

We have not been told - can they breathe?

Lord you know, Lord you know, Lord you know...

We prophesy to the dead dreams, We prophesy to the dead dreams, 

We prophesy, we prophesy - 'Breathe! In Jesus' Name!

Breathe!  In Jesus' Name!  Breathe! In Jesus' Name!"

Oh - Oh- Oh

Can this mute hope sing?  Can this mute hope sing?

Its voice has long been gone, shutters closed and drawn,

Forgotten every song -- can it sing?

Lord you know, Lord you know, Lord, you know....

We prophesy to the mute hope, We prophesy to the mute hope

We prophesy, We prophesy - 'Sing!  In Jesus' Name!

Sing! In Jesus' Name!  Sing! In Jesus' Name!

Oh- Oh- Oh

We will live, we will breathe, we will hope in you, 

With your life, your breath, your song!

We will live we will breathe we will hope in you, 

With your life,  your breath, your song!

Oh- Oh-Oh

 

Conference Approaches...Kingdom Sisterhood 2019

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

The first major women's conference our church held was in the fall of 2001. That also happened to be the final nudge that convinced My Sweet Babboo and me that this was to be our family's next place of service.We'd been in our previous church for 20 years; moving to a new congregation was...a process.

Our church has had a major women's conference every year since, with the exception of 2005, when we took all the funds designated to host the conference and put it towards hurricane relief to help those who had lost everything to Katrina.  In 2008 we had a shift in the women's ministry; the conference that year was called SHE Revolution (SHE = 'Seeking His Embrace')...which led to the women's ministry coming under a new vision and a new moniker...She Revolution.  Over the years, it's kind of morphed into 'She Women's ministries'.

A key piece to the puzzle was the 2013 (I think?) Color Sisterhood conference in Sydney, Australia.  Somewhere around 30 women from our church went...including a number of our lady pastors (pastoring is a couple's calling here; husbands and wives serve together.  Same for deacons and elders.  Not getting into the background of it, just explaining the culture so the terms make sense.).  That conference heavily influenced the direction our women's ministry took in the years following.

This year's conference, then, is probably a direct result of the seeds sown in 2013.  It's titled 'Kingdom Sisterhood' and at our first leadership prayer time leading up to the conference we were all given an assignment:  to read Bobbie Houston's book on sisterhood.

So I ordered it from Amazon and it arrived over the weekend.

I started reading immediately; there really isn't much time between now and the conference (Sept 6 - 7) so I thought I should get on it.

But I have a confession to make.

I can hardly say 'Kingdom Sisterhood' without getting a lump in my throat and a heavy sting in my eyelids.  See, I do not have a good history with this 'sisterhood' thing.  It grieves me that I am not good at it, but there it is.

You folks who have been reading the blog for a long time will know this; I talk about it from time to time....that self-protection wall I have that keeps relationships safe. And by safe...I mean, hopefully,  so that my bull-in-the-china-shop tendencies will not overstep those boundaries and I won't hurt someone's feelings without realizing I've done it.  I do not always succeed.  There have been conferences in which I have sat in the back, well away from others, and cried myself into a state of complete sinus shutdown. Because of this whole I'm-not-good-at-sisterhood thing.  Oh, there were specifics to each time that reflected current events but at the core of it...was that.  My ability to offend people without even trying, to so completely fail to explain something  that I left folks with the sure knowledge that I thought something/felt something/expected something that had nothing whatever to do with my actual thoughts, feelings or expectations.

My friends, this is ridiculous.  And it has to stop.  I have to get it.  This is the thing I wanted to leave in Israel...that social awkwardness that has plagued me since elementary school.  I didn't know it would rise up and slap me in the face quite so quickly or emotionally, but here I am.

So you know, this is sort of an accountability thing here.  I have GOT to get over this blocking hill.  I have to figure out how to deal with my inevitable faux pas in a healthier way.  I am surely not the only person who does this sort of thing...but pulling back and retreating and...sitting in the dark back seats alone...is not the way handle it.

Sort of like swimming...someone who knows how to swim won't be afraid of water.  Someone who knows how to deal with conflict and miscommunication won't be afraid of close relationships.

It's time to stomp that down...and let it stay stomped down.

And experience Kingdom Sisterhood.

A Pause in the Busy

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

When you work in a church office, the holidays have a different impact on your life than the average church goer.

Logistics.  Plans.  How can we best facilitate folks who make a decision for Christ receiving encouragement and discipleship in their new journey?  How can we keep straight the dozens and dozens of folks who chose to be baptized in the massive baptism service two weeks later?

Nobody really cares about the numbers - and that is the truth - but we can't do any kind of meaningful follow up without some kind of tracking process.

Enter the data base admin.

That would be me.

As the church has grown and changed locations, what we used to do won't work.  So we need to tweak and adjust to accommodate growth.  It's a good problem to have, but it does need consideration and work.

And it's really, really easy to get consumed by the logistics and processes that are meant to help people...and lose sight of why we're doing it at all.

So this week, I got a bit of a blessing.  My friend Suzanne, who was my teaching leader years ago when I was going through Bible Study Fellowship,  has started doing monthly Bible studies.  She limits the size to fifteen...the number of ladies who can squeeze around the very large table at the venue she has found...and it's first come, first served on the sign ups.  This month's study was on the 4 cups of Passover...specifically, the four cups of the final Passover meal Jesus ate with his disciples, and I happened to see the sign up link shortly after she posted it.  It was during lunch and I hesitated, but then I decided I could just take a bit of a long lunch (the benefits of being a part-timer; my hours are somewhat flexible) and go, and I signed up.

I did not know how badly I needed to break away and take some time to focus on the whole point of the season. It was a wonderful, refreshing reminder of that last night and how it all played out.  Suzanne brings all the tools she learned in the years of leading the BSF class to her presentation and it's deep, provoking, and satisfying.

I did learn some things.  For one thing, the history of the  afikomen (I have referenced that before) wasn't quite how I had learned .... it appears that it was a much later addition to the meal, commemorating the Passover Lamb after the ritual sacrifices were no longer able to be done due to the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.  But...Jesus did the same thing with his bread that now happens with the afikomen; he broke it and everyone had a bit, and it was likely at the same place in the ritual of the evening...after the completion of the meal.    'Remember me when you eat this bread,' he said....and it is now eaten to remember the Passover Lamb.

Also, I learned that the meal began with singing psalms...specifically, Psalms 113-118, collectively known as 'The Hallel'...as a preparation of mind and spirit for the night.

Suzanne challenged us to spend some time in those Psalms during Holy Week, and I thought that was a great idea.

I am even going to try to blog it as I go.  We'll see if I can keep the Busy at bay enough to do coherent posts.

Feeling a Little...Rusty

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi


So, about a year and a half ago, I stepped back into the teaching role...a kind of prototype class for folks who wanted to start at square one and learn some simple approaches to personal Bible study.

I had a small handful of folks sign up, but the ones that managed to make it to most of the classes seemed to get something out of it.  In fact, there are a couple of them that have been asking me to teach it again.

So...now I'm geared up to teach a full semester (10 week session) class when we launch our next Life Group session.  We're going to do something akin to Sunday School...on Wednesday nights.  Our building is a repurposed High School, so we have an abundance of classrooms.  Last I heard, we'll offer 22 different classes for adults, in addition to our usual Wednesday night classes for kids and teens.

I'm looking at my syllabus, wondering if it really will pull its weight for the whole session.  Wondering if I can get back into the teaching groove again.

Trusting that if this is really what I'm supposed to be doing, it will work in spite of my wondering. And, if it's not what I'm supposed to be doing, I guess I'll find that out pretty quickly, lol.

The core of  one of the methods I'll be sharing...

Because I'm likely to have repeat attendees, I'm going to change it up just a wee bit.  We used the book of Ephesians for most of our practice studying last time; this time, I'm going to go with Galatians. 

We have some introductory stuff happening over the next 3 weeks, because this is a major paradigm shift for our Wednesday night meetings, but we'll be diving into the classwork Feb. 13th.

So I have a little more time to polish the syllabus. :-)

Step One...no commitments...yet...

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi.

If you're contemplating a once-in-a-lifetime adventure,  start with the simple steps.

Go to the post office and get your passport renewed.

It doesn't obligate you...yet...

And you know time's running out; you might not make the deadline once all the discussions are completed and the finances laid out and all lights turn green.

But you might.

So you do the simple step.

And then know you've got to commit within a week if you're going to do it.

Because you really, really want to do it.

But it scares you a little.

Ok, a lot.

It's just that there's all those stupid niggling health issues...what if one of them (or more) decides to blow up at the worst possible moment on the other side of the globe?

And you know you don't fly well.

But you also know if you don't at least try you'll be disappointed in yourself.

So find the just-expired passport. Fill out the paperwork. Get the photo.  Pay the fee.  Send it in.

And trust that if God means for you to do it, there will still be a space available once all agree on 'go'.  And He's got all that health stuff covered.  And if it's a bad idea...well, the deadline will pass and that will be that.

And...truth...that's better than my drivers' license photo...

Breaking Free

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Our annual Women's Conference starts next week and we have been having weekly prayer meetings leading up to it.

I missed the first few...transportation issues and then we were out of town...but I was able to go to last night's meeting and was sorry I'd missed the earlier ones.

The conference this year is titled 'She is Brave' and is really about identity.

One lady related a illustration she'd envisioned the week before...of women coming in and old, ragged, disguising clothing falling off into a pile around their feet.

I was reminded of another kind of transformation...the cicada coming out of its shell.


I journaled about it last year as it was the picture I had in my head of what I had to do. That there was another plane for me to move to, but I couldn't get there in the form I was in.. I felt I had to clamber out of the old shell and emerge as something different, something I couldn't even imagine.  It was a challenge I didn't know I could face.

And I'd kinda forgotten that, until last night.

And then I was just a little amazed, because My Sweet Baboo and I had come across a molting cicada on a walk just a few weeks ago.  I happened to have my camera with  me; I posted the photo on Facebook.

Molting takes a lot of energy.  And...here's the deal...those insects can't eat at all during the process.  I remember seeing a nature show dealing with spiders that discussed how much energy it took to molt.    They had a camera on a tarantula as she began the molting process but...she didn't have enough calories in her body and she literally starved to death before she completed it.  She died trapped in the husk of her own body.

It gave me the creeps all around...firstly, spiders just weird me out by themselves, and then the idea of being caught like that made me claustrophobic.

But...there comes a time when the constriction of self...what about me?  what will they think of me? what if they think I'm like THAT?  How do I keep their good opinion?...literally begins to choke, strangle and oppress.

When it's time to shed that skin, it is TIME.  It inhibits growth,  and it's gotta go.  There's no movin' on until it's left behind.

Sure, it's risky.  It's hard.  It takes all available focus and energy.  But if it's delayed too long, it's even harder and more draining.  

It's time to break free and be who God created us to be.

...where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.  And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another...  2 Cor. 3:17b - 18a, ESV

Change of Pace

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

So.  I'm going to a week long worship school in 4 weeks.

Song writing is one of the main focuses of the week.

I've done a patch here and there...the only ones that have seen an audience to date have been parodies.

So I thought I should do a little prep work; can I get the creative juices going just a little before I jump into something that may well be over my head??

So I thought I'd do some reading in Psalms.

And I decided to shake up my usual by reading The Message.

Now, there are times when The Message hits a nerve; shows me something fresh in a new way. But I gotta be honest...most of the time it strikes me as being too trendy, too aware of itself, if that makes any sense.

Like it's trying too hard to be liked.  To be cool and hip.

But whatever.

Looking for a shock to my system, I thought, I'll pull out my copy and read through Psalms and see how Eugene renders those Hebrew hymns.  Maybe a fresh look at familiar texts in a contemporary setting will spark some creativity.

Ps. 1:1, in the Message, reads like this:

How well GOD must like you -- you don't hang out at Sin Saloon, you don't slink along Dead-End Road, you don't go to Smart-Mouth College.

Sigh.  Do you see what I mean?

Now, I really don't intend to critique the translation, it just strikes me a little off at times.    If I were a newcomer to the Scripture and read that, I would almost think the author was being sarcastic.

But I didn't stop because that first verse had me shaking my head, and  it is for sure giving me a fresh look at these old songs....

But you, GOD,  shield me on all sides;
You ground my feet, you lift my head high; 
With all my might I shout up to GOD,
His answers thunder from the holy mountain.  (3:3-4)

Look at this: look
Who got picked by God!
He listens the split second I call to Him. (4:3)

I LOVE this one:

Every morning 
I lay out the pieces of my life
on your altar
and watch for fire to descend. (5:3)

This one made me chuckle:

Please, GOD, no more yelling, 
no more trips to the woodshed.  
Treat me nice for a change;
I'm so starved for affection. (6:1-2)

I don't know how much this will break loose language in my spirit, but it's certainly going to be a bracing bit of reading...

Preparing for the Fast - 2013

Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

As sure as New Years Day follows Christmas, a fast follows the turning of the calendar.  For my liturgical friends, that will likely be Lent.  But for non-denominational us, the fast always begins in January.  This year, we begin our corporate church fast on Jan 13...Sunday.  There are no set requirements for the fast; although a dietary fast is strongly encouraged, folks are instructed to make sure they will have no particular health issues that will preclude such a fast.  Fasting something other than food certainly has the potential to free up time for prayer.   Generally, we are encouraged to be in prayer and be sensitive to the Spirit in order to see what we are prompted to fast.

Some years, I have a very definite picture of what my fast is to look like.  This year...as of this moment, anyway...I don't.  Or rather, what I'm hearing in my spirit is not anything like I've ever fasted before.

I found myself thinking about an old blog post in which I admitted longing for a little structure, and what I began to hear was that I needed to put some serious structure into my life.  How about fasting spontaneity?

To live 21 days with hyper-focused intention...strictly planned...perhaps even timed out.  Some folks live like that all the time; very defined schedules as a lifestyle. I can't imagine life like that.  For me, making a schedule is sort of like closing myself up in a box.  But an unscheduled life can be...well, let's be honest, right now it is...chaotic.

I spent a lot of time on last years' fast seeking changes that I need to make.  And there are a lot.  However, identifying the changes is only the first part; if they are not actually implemented then identifying them is just an exercise in personal guilt.

I need some personal discipline to see those changes happen.  Even if, just for the start, it is making a simple plan...which will include specified times of prayer... and sticking to it.

If I can do that for 21 days, I can make a daily plan a part of my life.  Not necessarily having every moment of every day planned out, but definitely part. 

I believe I will maintain the blog; certainly the 'step up the game' prompt I felt last fall indicates that the blog needs to be part of a plan.  I don't expect to have big revelations to share regarding the fast, though...it's just going to be about doing what I know I should be doing.  But I may have something to share from the prayer/study time that I will be focused on.  We'll see...

A few declarations...

We have finished the critical part of the porch rebuild.  All the windows and doors are up; it's closed back up and there's a floor of sorts now.

But we've got a ways to go before it's done, and we're going to have to stop here until we've got some more resources.

However, one of the things we wanted to do from the time we bought the house was put a sliding door between the family room and the sunroom and take out the goofy windows that are there now.  So, despite the fact that we weren't really in a position to do that just yet, since everything is dismantled, now is the time to do it.

That's the next step.

So, I did a little look through the NIV concordance and put some verses up on the part of the wall that needs to turn into a door... declarations such as:

A new and living way opened for us - Heb. 10:20

One who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate and go out.  Their king will pass through before them, the LORD at their head -- Mic. 2:13

See, I am doing a new thing! ...I am making a way. Is. 43:19

I pray that now at last the way be opened - Rom. 1:10

Pass through, pass through the gates!  Prepare the way for the people  - Is. 62:10

Knock and the door will be opened - Matt. 7:7

To him who knocks, the door will be opened - Matt 7:8

A great door for effective work has opened - 1 Cor 16:9

The Lord had opened a door for me - 2 Cor 2:12

See, I have placed before you an open door that no man can shut - Rev. 3:8

I don't know how long those verses will stay up, but they will...eventually...give way to the door.

She Rev: I am Hope

This has almost snuck up on me this year; it's a different conference with a different emphasis and for some unknown reason I didn't make my 'preparatory transition'...just suddenly, boom, it's September and time for the women's conference...



But, you know, maybe that's ok. God may be preparing me in ways I wouldn't have pursued if I was setting about it myself.

Case in point:

I was out at lunchtime today; I had a chiropractor appointment that ran late, so instead of making a sandwich I stopped at the local burrito eatery and got a to-go grande burrito w/sour cream (naughty, but since supper will be light tonight I splurged!), then hopped in the car and headed home.

As I was easing my way through the parking lot towards the exit, I noticed a white-haired gentleman pulling a wheelchair out of the trunk of a car. In just about the same glance, I took in the open passenger door, and an elderly lady sitting hunched over in the front seat.

In the time it took to register that, I was past them and trying to pull out onto South Parkway. Suddenly, my heart broke for the little hunched over lady. All through my five minute drive to the house, I just felt overwhelmed with the feeling that I'd missed something...wishing things had been timed just a little differently. I don't know what I could've done, other than asked if I could pray for her (there is a doctor's office in the same complex as the burrito place, but I don't know if that's where they were headed). But maybe she needed someone to just say, 'God pointed you out to me and I just want to pray for you.' Oh, I still prayed for the little lady, but she doesn't know it.

Then I felt the Holy Spirit say, 'When you feel My compassion moving, that's the time to pray.'

So Saturday, when we head out into the streets with our Hope Totes, you can bet I'll remember this lesson.

The 'Giftedness Assessment'

We're revamping our assimilation process at church a bit. When we joined, the membership class was a 12 week overview of the church's basic beliefs and structure; now, it's been broken into smaller pieces and expanded. We now have an intro class, the membership class (which is a 2-session class), and a discipleship seminar that basically replaced the old 12-week series, as well as a seminar on finding your ministry and another on personal evangelism. Everyone who went through the old class is listed as being the equivalent of a graduate of the discipleship seminar.

The 'ministry' class was offered for the first time last week; those of us in lay leadership positions were strongly encouraged to take the class. Not so much to find our ministry niche per se, but to set an example. My Sweet Baboo was still out of town (driving back, actually) so I took it by myself.

It was actually kind of fun. Our assimilation pastor led the seminar, and he did a really good job of explaining the introspection necessary to articulate one's giftings and interests. We also completed a 140-question personal analysis to help with the process. Yeesh, those things are challenging! I'm never comfortable answering things in the extreme...yes, that's absolutely true about me; no, that's not true about me at all. Most everything landed in the middle, so I'm probably not as ruthlessly honest with myself as would be best.

And, as such, two of my top three 'talents' don't quite match up with my gut feeling about myself; I think those answers were more a function of the way the questions were worded than what I am truly gifted at. But I think the questionnaire was intended more of a help than an absolute definitive process.

Anyway, we left the seminar with homework...to complete a short profile listing our gifts, passions, abilities, personality, experiences and education; sort of a ministry resume, so that we can ultimately be matched with ministries in the church.

I've got mine about half finished. There is not nearly enough room on these pages; I'm a sanguine and a writer and if you ask me the questions I *will* give you my life story.

So now I need to sit down and make myself finish the homework; write about my Christian experience, when I have felt close to God, when I have struggled...what have I learned? And where do I believe I fit best in ministry?

Those are tough questions to answer in one's personal journal; it's really tough to be accountable to someone else for those answers.

But one question stood out to me: 'If I knew I couldn't fail, this is what I would attempt for God with my life:'

I was surprised that an answer popped right up in my spirit: I would start a Christian theatrical group to do excellent, non-cheesy Christian drama to both entertain and challenge people to commit to a deeper relationship with Christ.

We really haven't done any major drama ministry at church for quite a while now; I miss it. Easter is one time in which we've done major productions in the past, so I suppose I am especially aware of that with the holiday approaching without being involved in any preparation for the services. I know these things come in seasons, and, right now, anyway, we are not in a season of large dramatic presentations. I'm sure it'll come back around in time.

So, what does one do with a passion for theater and no theater ministry available at the moment?

Write, dream, learn.

Not too long ago, I re-read an old journal entry that I posted about here, that reminded me that preparation when it looks like nothing is happening is key.

So, the challenge is to learn all I can from my volunteer work with the high school theater department, write and polish the odd scripts I've had working in the back of my head, just as if I knew those things would be needed some day...even if there's no plan anywhere in sight to produce anything.

And answer the homework questions honestly...and briefly. ;)

Change of Plan: An Unscheduled Break

We have some events coming up at church in the near future that have the potential to impact many lives; for that reason, our Pastor has called the church to a seven-day fast for alignment and focusing ourselves on hearing God in preparation for these.
This will be a Fast of Submission, and, as part of my fasting, I will be doing another internet break.

If you're curious about fasting, our Pastor has posted some simple fasting guidelines

Guess that will give me a good chance to sharpen the sword, eh?

I'll be back next Sunday! ;)

Prep Work 2: Sharpen the Sword

Tuesday night there was a prayer meeting called for the deaconesses in the church to come together and pray for the women's conference. We were exhorted to go aside from our routine and let God deal with us as individuals...so that we would be ready to minister to the women who are coming.

The specific word was, 'Sharpen your sword'.

So I'm going to look at a couple of verses today, just because they were the first ones that popped into my spirit when I heard 'Sharpen your sword'.

(NOTE: what follows is exactly what I learned, written as I found it. Sorry it's so long...it's a paradigm shift and I haven't completely processed it yet. But it's very interesting!)

Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. - Eph. 6:17

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart - Heb. 4:12

Whoa. Brain freeze.

See, I have been mulling this over for the last couple of days as I went about the necessary business of life, thinking about what it means and how I need to apply it to sharpen my sword. Thinking it is about digging into my Bible and refreshing myself on the truths contained there-in.

But, as I just typed those words out, reading them for the umpety-ump-umpth time, I suddenly realized something.

When Paul and the author of Hebrews wrote those words, there was no Bible. All they had was the Law and the Prophets....and the common folk did not have access to copies of those. It certainly wasn't available to the Gentiles living in Ephesus. They probably weren't even terribly familiar with the Hebrew scriptures.

But, according to my dispensational upbringing, 'the word of the Lord' always means the written word...the Bible. So I pulled out the Zodhiates and looked it up.

The Greek word used in Heb. 4:12 is, indeed, logos (Strongs # 3056). Okay, I thought, that actually is the written word. But, when I looked it up in the Word Study Dictionary, I found this (I have omitted the rather lengthy descriptions of the secondary meanings):

-[taken from the noun lego - 'to speak intelligently.']Intelligence, word as the expression of that intelligence, discourse, saying, thing.
I - Word, both the act of speaking and the thing spoken.
A) Word, as uttered by the living voice.
B) An emphatic word, meaning a saying, declaration, sentiment uttered.
C) Word or words, meaning talk, discourse, speech, the act of holding forth
D) Word, meaning talk, rumor, report.

II. - Reason, the reasoning Faculty as that power of the soul which is the basis of speech, rationality.
A) A reason, ground, cause
B) Reason as demanded or assigned, meaning reckoning, account

III - The word Logos in [John's writings] stands for the preincarnate Christ, the spiritual, divine nature spoken of in the Jewish writings before and about the time of Christ, under various names, e.g. Son of man

Wow. The Greek word that I had always thought specified the written word doesn't imply anything about writing...it has to do w/speech.

File that and go on to the next one...because the word used in Ephesians, the one specifically referring to the weapon we are to wield, is rhema. That, I've always been told, is the 'proceeding word'...a word spoken from God to one's spirit.
Here's what the Word Study Dictionary has to say about rhema (Strong's # 4487):

-[taken from the noun rheo, 'to speak'] That which is spoken, a statement, a word.

I. Particularly a word as uttered by a living voice.

II. Collectively, word, pl. words, meaning saying, speech, discourse.

III. In the New Testament usage, often it has a particular meaning depending on the adjuncts or context:
A. Charge, accusation
B. Prediction, prophecy, equivalent to rhemata proeiremena, sayings foretold. Rhemata tou Theou, sayings of God.
C. Promise from God
D. Command
E. Spoken of a teacher, word teaching, precept, doctrine...
F. A pronouncement from God.

IV. Metonymically* for things spoken of, a matter, affair.

Syn logos, the expression of thought, while rhema stands for the subject spoken about...

(*I had to look up 'metonymy' in the American Heritage Dictionary...it is defined as 'a figure of speech in which an idea is evoked or named by means of a term designating some associated notion.')

So...I don't really think I can so easily say now that logos is the written word and rhema is the revelatory word anymore. They both have the connotation of being spoken by a living voice. Actually, buried in the descriptive terms of application III - E of rhema is 'word of God...of the Lord, meaning the doctrines and promises of God revealed and taught in the Bible.'

Definitely a paradigm shift.

Obviously, the written word does fit aspects of both terms; but it appears that the word God speaks to us as individuals is the sword that pierces us and the weapon in our hand. It includes the written word and will never contradict it, but...if I'm going to sharpen my sword, what I really need to do is clean out my ears and shake off any sluggishness (throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles...Heb. 12:1) so that I can respond to the Word that He quickens in my spirit instantly.

Lord I want to hear Your voice more clearly; I want to obey more immediately; bring your Holy Whetstone that the Sword will be swift and sure in my life....

Prep Work - 1: The Comfortable Trap

I can't really call these lessons...more like reflections.

SHE Revolution Women's conference is a mere three weeks off.

I am extremely aware that I am not ready for it. The fallow ground needs to be broken; the callouses (which re-form with amazing speed!) softened. I'm comfortable within the bounds of normal, and that makes me frustrated with myself.

Because the more time I spend in this Christian thing, the more I realize that 'comfortable' is not a good place.

Anyway, our Staff Prayer speaker this week was one of our youth pastors. She spoke about the verse that says 'For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God' (Romans 3:23). Speaking to pastors and church staff, she pointed out that most of us have dealt with the sin issue: we know what we ought and ought not to do. But, she said, we still fall short of the glory that God has for us.

That was a new application of that verse to me and it really started me thinking. Walking in the glory of God is exciting, exhilarating, amazing and often terrifying. It is also extremely uncomfortable.

But our human nature wants to be secure and comfortable. I was reminded of Numbers chapter 32, in which the Reubenites, Gadites and the half tribe of Manasseh elected to stay on the east side of the Jordan...where they were comfortable...rather than taking everything across the Jordan and settling in the land of God's promise. They'd been moving and wandering for 40 years...and now, with the promise just across the river, they decided to quit.

How often do I look at some area of my life, and, even subconsciously think, 'This is ok here,' rather than pulling up stakes and moving yet again, perhaps even for the final time, into the promise. And I stop short of the glory.

Food for thought.

The Next Study?

Our annual women's conference at church is fast approaching...we're 4 weeks away. Already (the date is Sept. 11 & 12).

The topic this year is spiritual warfare; specifically, I think, warfare that women must wage. The name of the conference is 'SHE Revolution -- The Battleground'.

I'm really excited because the speakers are all returning favorites -- Teri Gladstone-Furr, Dawn Sweigert, and Susan Dyer; Rita Springer will be leading worship. It is going to be awesome.

So, how do I prepare my heart for this? Because I know I'll be involved in assisting in some fashion and I will not be in all sessions just as a recipient/participant, I need to do some ground-breaking in my own heart before the event begins.

So, over the next two or three weeks, I'll be doing that...and just seeing what I have to do in my heart. It may take the shape of a small, short look at Spiritual Warfare, or it may not. I don't even know yet.

But I'll find out. ;)