Excitedly Sharing Marji's Podcast: Breaking Free From Insecurity

 

“I [Jesus] am in them and you [Father] are in me. May they [us] experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.” - John 17:23 (NLT)

My friend Marjorie has a new podcast. Very exciting news. But even better, it’s GOOD podcast! Based on the truth of God’s Word, she’ll teach us how to ground and root our faith in God in ways that will free us and allow us to be secure in Christ and submit ourselves to whatever purposes He’s planned for us.

You can find her on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Be sure to take a few minutes to listen to what she has to say, because she’s VERY encouraging. Her topic? Breaking Free From Insecurity  

That’s the name of her podcast and a topic she’s an expert on! She’s an excellent teacher and mindset mentor, and she’s the first missionary I ever met. She has a bio included on her podcast page, be sure to read it and prepare to be impressed.

Here’s a link to her 3- minute trailer episode:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/break-free-from-insecurity-intrusive-thoughts-mindset/id1892876547

From there you should be able to find the other episodes. So far, she has the trailer plus three episodes available for us.

I was touched deeply by everything she has to say. When she brought up the fact that God the Father loves ME as much as He loves Jesus, it blew my mind. I’m sure I’ve read that verse many times, but it hit me like a colossal revelation as I let it sink into my soul.

“I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.” - John 17:23 (NLT)

As you read that one short verse, realize that Jesus is speaking to His Father in Heaven and He’s praying for US! In this prayer, He emphasizes how much His Father loves us. He loves us as much as He loves Jesus – His Son, Jesus! The Son He sacrificed for us. The Son Who loves us so much that He was willing to go to the Cross for us!

How much do you have to love someone to die for them?

I’ve shared the good news of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for us many times here in my blog posts. But this should shed new light on that sacrifice.

As you’re driving down the road, perhaps complaining to yourself about your day, know this – God the Father loves you as much as He loves Jesus!

When you lay your head on your pillow tonight, too tired to whisper a quick prayer, remember this – God the Father loves you as much as He loves His only begotten Son, Jesus!

When you wake up tomorrow morning, too tired to face another day, recall these words – God the Father loves you as much as He loves the Son that was separated from Him through death and raised from the dead – to pay for our sin.

When your children rebel, when your paycheck is too little, when the rain won’t stop falling, when your best friend slighted you, when your boss insulted you, when the weight scale isn’t being friendly, when you’re feeling like you’re carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders, when you can’t feel at all, know this, beyond anything else - God our heavenly Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus.

Selah. Ponder on that; let that sink deep down into your soul.

In His own words, “I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.” - John 17:23 (NLT)

 

Side-Tracked

 

The things that distract and sidetrack me…. I let them have too much power. Surprisingly, they can be petty, small things that prove to be amazingly strong.

Moments ago, I stopped on my way through the family room to stand in front of the patio door, indulging in the warmth of the sunshine. I even contemplated moving my desk to that spot because I loved it! I leaned my back onto the glass and melted. Maybe I should just put a sweater on, but it distracted me.

See there! Another distraction! The very sentence I typed out caused me to run upstairs to grab a sweater. But now I AM much warmer. While upstairs innocently grabbing that sweater, it crossed my mind that the dryer will stop any minute now. Will I submit to the buzzer when it calls me up there? Probably. I hate wrinkles in my clothes.

I can tie pretty much anything to some verse in the Bible and this topic is no exception. As I wrote in my journal this morning, I saw a piece to my puzzle emerge.

See there! Mother Nature called and I ran upstairs again. Well, that was a necessary distraction that I couldn’t ignore, but while I was up there I could totally have ignored the call of my Satin Hands in a pocket on the back of the bathroom door. Before I knew it I was exfoliating my hands. While yes – they’re incredibly soft now, it could have waited till after I’m finished writing. But by then, I’d have forgotten all about it and my hands would have been ignored. It’s a losing battle, I tell ya!

I recently joined a group on Facebook, hosted by a friend of mine [shout out to Debbie Mussack!] called Focanize Support Group. In this group we’ll hopefully unearth some solutions for those of us who are focus and organizationally challenged.

The puzzle piece that emerged while journaling this morning has an odd shape, one that might be hard to analyze, but compelling to look at.

Tying this puzzle piece into scripture is easy, introducing it to my life might be a little harder.

The phrase “fullness of time” popped into my head concerning whatever I was writing about, and it bounced around until it landed in this topic of being unorganized and my lack of focus and discipline.

In the Bible we read it in places that say things like, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” – Galatians 4:4-5 KJV Meaning, when the time was right.

Intrigue swirled in my brain asking, “Hmmm. Is there a fulness of time when I will successfully address all my shortcomings and whatever is behind them will be resolved?” And THAT’S when it dawned on me in a realistic way that there are ISSUES behind my shortcomings! (Duh!)

Well, that bit of the puzzle piece fit into place nicely, but now it’s time to explore what those issues might be and deal with them. Yikes! This will be the challenging part. Is the time right? Is it now?

What tares need to be pulled up without disturbing the wheat? (Another biblical reference, see Matthew 13:24-30.)

What things in my mind need to be addressed without breaking my heart?

What are the procrastination traps that keep showing up in my path? What are the roots of the focus / organizational challenges in my life?

As I explore this with God holding my hand AND my heart, I’ll write updated blog posts to share my discoveries with you.

How do YOU handle the little dysfunctions in your life?

How do YOU get and stay organized? How do you get and stay disciplined and focused?

“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heavens…” – Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV

 

What a Powerful Weapon

 

(picture from tinybuddha .com)

One of my most powerful weapons is evident in God’s Word. We find it tucked into the book of Philippians, among other places. These are some of my very favorite verses in the Word because of the dark place they lifted me from. I consider them key to opening every treasure in God’s Word. As a matter of fact, I use them as my signature sometimes. They’re even on my address labels.

Philippians 4:4-8.

Rejoicing, no matter our circumstances can change everything about the way we view our lives. I consider this the bazooka in my arsenal. Satan can’t stand against it. There’s nothing he can do about it at all. When he throws his worst at us and sees us rejoicing anyway, he has to know he's a defeated foe. By the way, joy and happiness are not the same thing. Though joy will bring happiness…

It may seem harsh to expect people to rejoice even in their darkest hour, but it’s one thing that allows God’s outreached hand to clasp ours and pull us out. My friend’s daughter was murdered a few weeks ago, and I know the thing that will most effectively help her move forward with God is to rejoice and give Him glory for her life. Of course, I don’t mean to tell anyone they should rejoice BECAUSE OF something that’s happened (or didn’t happen). Or that they should rejoice and be thankful because something or someone was taken from them. But in the midst of those circumstances, we can rejoice in the One Who saw it all from the beginning and knows what to do in the moment and in the next moment. And the next.

picture from wallpaper cave)

I realize you know this. I’m just writing to remind you. No matter how dark a storm gets, Jesus is the brilliant dawn that will arise and take us through tomorrow.

When rejoicing is the last thing we feel like expressing, it’s the best thing to do. It reveals to us (and shows our all-knowing God) that we trust Him, and that we truly do believe He’s good, no matter what’s going on around us. Sometimes in the midst of that rejoicing is where we figure out that we really DO trust Him and that He really DOES love us.

When we’re rejoicing in Christ, I don’t know if it’s even possible for us to worry. For me, once I let the joy bubble up within me, it chases whatever has been trying to rob me of my peace. I think the enemy wants to steal our joy as much as he wants to take our faith from us.

When I read that we’re to let our gentleness be evident to all, I see our gentleness as the opposite of us being defensive; we’re allowing God to defend us, so we can afford to be gentle. Gentle doesn’t mean passive or looking the other way, but actively rejoicing (perhaps quietly, maybe boldly and loud) while we’re trusting that in God, even when our world is falling apart around us. He doesn’t want us to be anxious about anything, but to allow our trust in Him to accompany that joy as it flows out of us to everyone around us. Gentleness includes actively praying and making our needs known to God and doing so with thanksgiving.

(picture from goodnet)

That’s when God’s peace can take us over. By worrying and allowing ourselves to become stressed out and fearful in a situation, we’re actively rejecting and blocking His peace out of our circumstances, leaving our hearts vulnerable for attack from the enemy. God’s peace is above everything and beyond our human explanations. God’s peace actually guards our hearts AND our minds. Those are the very areas the enemy is trying to attack and cause disarray and discouragement and anger and impulsiveness. We need His guard to prevail and overcome.

Whether we’re singing or humming; dancing or laying still under our covers, whether we’re dancing around the room or driving our car – God recognizes our joy. He sees our joy and His peace is ushered into us. Finding ourselves overcome with His peace may even surprise us!  He is always as close as we need Him to be. He never wanders away. He never takes His eyes off of us. He’s never too busy to meet our needs. He never makes us wait for His peace. If we’re not experiencing His peace, we’re the ones denying ourselves that peace by worrying and not trusting Him. He’s right there patiently waiting for our change of attitude. He’s not angry with us because we faltered and doubted. He’s not shaking His head because we’re still trying to do things on our own. His peace is just as patient as His love for us.

(picture from rgb stock)

When rejoicing isn’t spontaneous, we have to ask ourselves what we’re thinking about. What are we dwelling on and mulling over in our minds? Are we thinking on the good things in Life? The good that God is to us? The good gifts He’s given us? His saving grace and immeasurable mercy? Are we thinking about all the provision He’s already lavished on us? Or are we thinking on what’s gone wrong in our circumstances – or what COULD go wrong? Are we mulling over how things could have gone differently, or how we wish we could fix our situation ourselves? Are we imagining the different choices that could have or should have been made? Do we think we’re mentally punishing someone else for something they’ve done? We’re not. If we’re not rejoicing, we’re punishing and hurting ourselves and perhaps making the people who love us feel sad or upset or frustrated with us. This is the ever so powerful verse eight: think on the good things. Simple – but oh so powerful! God’s ways are so much higher than our ways. How can such a simple tool be such a strong tool? It’s so easy to think on good things, unless our heart is intent on thinking on the wrong things. Journal a list of good things to keep on hand to think on when the enemy tries to insist you think on how you’ve been hurt or betrayed. The list will grow longer with time. Thinking on good things and rejoicing go hand in hand; they feed each other.

To me, rejoicing is like the underwear we wear under the full armor of God. Who goes out with their underwear? Who wants armor rubbing on their bare skin? The more outrageous our joy, the thicker the undercovering beneath the armor – making it easier to put the armor on and wear it all day long.

Okay, you already know I’m not a pithy woman. But, I’ll wrap things up.

Joy is contagious. Once we’re rejoicing, even if it’s not blatantly obvious to those around me, they’ll start feeling it, too. They get to choose whether to take it up or run from it, but they’ll know it’s there for the taking. Spread it around liberally. Especially around children. They love it!

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Philippians 4:4-8 (NKJV)

 

Solid As A Rock

 

To me, forty-eight years of marriage to the same man is worth celebrating. So is the man himself! We celebrated our first wedding anniversary at a laundromat in Jacksonville, North Carolina somewhere near Camp Geiger. Humble beginnings and happy hearts can take you a long way, but God has promised to take us all the way. (It’s easier when you’re cooperating with Him.)

Other anniversaries have been more costly, but love can’t be measured by the price tag on the celebration. We were just as happy at that laundromat as we were in the Caribbean.

There have been plenty of bumpy spots along the way, most of them were me tripping uphill. But we’ve come through the thick and the thin, his long military career, his almost as long police career, many moves and ups and downs with children and grandchildren, all glory to God and the patience He’s continuously pouring into my husband, Dave.

There are small things and great things to celebrate about my man. The main things are that he loves Jesus  first and he loves me second. His selfless acts of kindness and thoughtfulness should win him the husband of the year award every single year. Above is a picture of two stones that mean nothing to anyone else, but I’ll cherish them. This is the type of thing that makes my heart giggle, it feels like Dave is tickling my heart from the inside out when he does things like this. And he does them all the time!

While driving this past summer on journeys far and wide, Dave is the main driver; I’m the navigator. He’s always my dependable driver. With GPS on my phone, it’s pretty easy to be the navigator now. Back in the day, when paper maps were all the rage and impossible to refold, I got us lost plenty of times. We’re not fast while walking, hiking or driving, but we get there. We call ourselves the Ground Coverings, because – well, we’re covering ground.

Cruising down the road, I admire most everything along the way. Oooo – look at that tree! Oh, look at those flowers! And plenty of questions that neither Dave nor I know the answers to. Fortunately, our phones are smarter than we are, so we direct our questions to some magical voice in our phones that seems to know most everything.

While driving somewhere between northeast Tennessee and northeast Ohio, I was admiring the cliffs towering to either side of us, rising up into the brilliant sunshine. In my ramblings, I mentioned that it would be cool to feel the rock they’re made of (I’m a tactile kinda gal) and within seconds, Dave slowed down and pulled over – just so I could jump out of the car and feel the cliffside. That’s where I snatched up these stones. These are what those cliffs are made of. I imagine it’s some type of slate. But they sit here on my desk to remind me that on occasion, Dave may get on my nerves (as all spouses do), but he loves me like no one else can. Yep – God put that love for me in his heart. I have no doubt that we’ll be together till death do us part. 

(The flowering tree pods came from an impromptu roadside stop, as well.)

Happy Anniversary, Babe! I love you forever and always.

Who Hears Your Stories?

(emmanuelmti .com)

Who hears your stories?

While reading the other day, this phrase caught my attention:

“And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him. Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.” – Mark 5:18-20 KJV

Here, Jesus had just delivered a man from a legion of demons that had tormented him for years; he’d been chained up outside his city repeatedly, only to tear through the chains, terrorizing many. The townspeople were amazed to see him sitting, clothed and in his right mind in front of Jesus, the man Who had just set him free.

Just as there are things about this story that I don’t understand completely, there were many things that confused the townspeople, but their misunderstanding caused them great fear. They wanted Jesus to leave their territory, where as I want only to grow closer to Him.

(pinterest)

But back to this newly set free man, who’s name we don’t even know – he’s forever been referred to as “the demoniac”, sits there in awe of what Jesus has done for him, falling in love with Him.

When Jesus was begged to leave town, this newly freed man wanted desperately to go with Him. God has so impacted MY life, that I always want to be with Him.

But Jesus instructed this man to go home to his friends and tell them how much God loves him and about the great things He has done for him.

The man obeyed and went back to his friends and family a new man. He told them about God’s great love and power toward him – to let them know it was available to them, too. And they marveled. (Who all was in that crowd?)

This is all that Jesus requires of us, as well – that we go to our friends and family and anyone who will listen and tell them about His great love and compassion for us and about all the wonderful things He’s done in our lives. Therein we will fulfill the great commission; we’ll be sharing with them what God has given to us.

With some, we’ll get to share more. Others will merely hear parts of our story.

God wants us to know His love, to share His love and to share the reality that He will meet our needs, delivering us from the corruption of this world and bringing us into His abundant life, here on earth and in the next life.

How hard is it to share? Our parents have been trying to teach us this concept since we were introduced to other children.

Share.

Share what God has freely given you. Teach what He has taught you. Love like He has loved you.

You don’t even realize the impact you’ll have.

Who will hear your stories?

Responsibilities

 

Here’s a controversial topic: personal responsibility.

This is a subject that divides a lot of conversations, from politics to religion to household chores and beyond.

Of course, I’m going to veer into the spiritual side of things, hopefully it’s what you’ve come to expect from me.

Where does my responsibility to God begin and end versus where God’s begin and end? (Hint: His load is greater.)

 

I used to think it was my responsibility to work my way into Heaven; to earn my place there – to be good enough to “get in”. But after reading that my own personal righteousness (and yours) is as filthy rags to God (and let me emphasis that by filthy rags, I mean used menstrual cloths. There’s a phrase I didn’t imagine using in a blog post).

If all I could do to earn entry to the heavenly realm was as impressive as that kind of filthy rag, I knew I needed to find another way, if one could be found. Otherwise, that meant that Heaven was out of reach for all of us.

(from reddit)

There are plenty of verses in the Old Testament that point to our Salvation, but He hadn’t shown up on the scene in the flesh, just yet. The need for a redeemer – a Messiah, was explicitly shown to the people of the Old Testament and there are plenty of prophecies regarding the coming Christ.

The New Testament tells the story of that coming Savior and spells out the details of what was necessary from this Man, the Son of God Himself and His needed sacrifice to redeem us from sin and reunite us to Him – and His Father. These scriptures also reveal that salvation is not an end to the story of our need, but the beginning. Once we begin to live in the reality of the Cross, God fills us with His own Spirit. We become one with Him! The rest of the story is joyful adventures, even in the worst of situations. He is always with us, promising to never leave us alone.

(from choosethisday .com)

Jesus’s responsibility was to provide the way for us to become one with Him and He CHOSE to do that. He created us, knowing well the responsibility He endowed us with when He gave us the right to choose our own destiny. He trusted us to choose wisely, knowing we would fail. He CHOSE to take on the responsibility of making right our wrongs.

He’s completed His part of the arrangement, having done all that was required of Him. The punishment for our sin was death (separation from His Father). He took that upon Himself so we wouldn’t have to suffer it. He, Himself paid our penalty. In His last breath on the Cross, He stated that, “It is finished.” The work on the Cross to redeem us had been completed. We cannot add to it.

(from etsy)

Now, it is simply our responsibility to believe.

I say “simply” - because He even made that possible by planting within us the faith it will take to believe in Him. To us is given the measure of faith as a gift. We are allowed to CHOOSE what we’ll do with that deposit of faith.

When we accept His sacrifice for our sin and ask Him to forgive us, we become one with Him. We’re guaranteed Heaven, but we also get to live life in this world filled with His Spirit and with complete joy (which is our strength).

 

Our next responsibility is to share the love and freedom we’ve found, to rescue the lost, not condemn them.

It’s been said that the sin of the desert is to know where the water is and tell no one.

Once we acknowledge our need for a Savior, and allow God to forgive us, He can begin the wonderful work of healing us and delivering us from everything that’s held us captive, empowering us to live for Him, sharing His love with everyone around us. Once we allow Him to love us the way He wants to, we’ll want everyone to experience the freedom and grace and mercy we have.

(from instagram)

“God in Heaven, I recognize my need for a savior. I choose You, Jesus. The world has only trapped me more each day. I turn away from sin and into You. Forgive me and accept me as I am and wash me clean, like Your Word promises You’ll do. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and with Your power so that I can edify Your body here on earth and lead others out of captivity. Instruct me by Your Word and lead me by Your Spirit, in Jesus’s Name. Amen.”

If you’d like scripture references for anything I say, just ask!

The Change

(it.wikipedia .org)

The Change – that took place that day.

Over the Easter holiday season, we watched a few movies about the resurrection of Christ. Fortunately, movies of this nature are improving greatly in quality. In one depiction of the days leading up to the crucifixion of our Lord, we saw people buying lambs to sacrifice at the Passover Feast the Jews celebrated at that time every year. The dots that history connects to bring us the story of our redemption are profound.

When the people purchased their “spotless lambs” for sacrifice, the prices were apparently hiked up, just as we would expect to pay more for food or extras at any festival. While we can eat or spend our money before or after attending festivals, they were commanded by Old Testament law to bring a spotless lamb to sacrifice. Rather than bringing a lamb with them over however many miles they had to travel to get to the Feast festival, it was more convenient for many to purchase one there. Those selling the lambs knew that the needs of the people would yield them a hefty profit. They could demand pretty much any price they chose.

Sometimes I “put myself in their shoes” and imagine what it might be like to walk a mile in those Jewish sandals.

I’d want to speak up and complain about the high prices being charged. But to be a Jewish woman then meant what I had to say carried little meaning. My husband would just pay the price being asked. Suffice it to say that I would have a hard time hiding my anger and frustration at being ripped off for what was a religious obligation.

(fity .club)

While singing during praise and worship a few weeks ago, this scene came to mind, where in the movie the Jews were paying for their commanded sacrifices. Almost as if I was really watching the people in front of me purchasing their lambs, someone in the distance caught my attention. A friendly looking young man waved in my direction. What could he want? Was he looking at me or someone else nearby? My face conveyed my question, and the man waved all the more ferociously. He was definitely wanting my attention. I smiled back at him and he motioned for me to come to him. Well, that’s silly – I’d lose my place in line. He shouted something I couldn’t make out and kept motioning for me to head his way. He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled louder. Curious and amused, yet happy that we would be next to buy our lamb, I stood still. He began to jump up and down. I focused on him intently and I could hear him screaming with joy, “Helen, I paid for your lamb! I bought your sacrifice for you. Come get it!”

Back in 2025 I gasped and began to cry happy tears, shockingly wet, thankful tears.

Yes, that’s just what He did! As Jesus called out to me, I realized in a whole new way, He paid the price for me; that profoundly high price that was demanded for my atonement – my peace with God. Jesus paid it for me. My sacrifice was paid for! Jesus IS my sacrificial Lamb! The mighty change that took place that day, He took my place. He died for me so that I can live with Him.

Selah.

(worshiphousemedia .com)

“The next day John (the Baptist) saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29 NKJV