Author: Ramona Levacy Billingslea

I am a 50-something Texan with a feisty cat and a supportive husband of 25+ years. With a Master's degree in English with an emphasis on creative writing, I have taught creative writing at Texas Tech, won awards for my writing and been blessed to be mentored by Horn Professor and poet Dr. Walt McDonald. I earn a living by helping my husband's family run a health food store, but my avocation is writing. I hope you enjoy reading about some of my triumphs and tragedies as I continue to work on figuring out what life is all about and on growing my ability to share my writing. May your own journey be a blessed one.
Posted in Christian Living, Christianity, Faith

Peace that surpasses cat naps

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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So, I’ve been working on emptying myself, paying attention to my thoughts, and realizing the difference between seeing people for what they need versus what they deserve.

These steps would be a hard struggle, even without a world of temptation around me. In fact, without the Spirit that dwells within me, I would find it impossible to see the narrow lane that is the way of God, much less stay anywhere near within its bounds.

Even though the love of Christ makes who I am more important than what I do, the process of being love and goodness is not without obstacles. The television beckons on a daily basis, slipping past me words and actions that would not have passed the censors when I was a child and yet are OK for even day-time airwaves. I still turn the television on. With the boon of electronic publishing, I have thousands of books at my fingertips. Do historical romances count as “clean” fiction? I doubt it. But, you’ll find quite a few of them on my Nook account.

“Do not be deceived,” Paul tells the Corinthians. “‘Bad company corrupts good morals'” (1 Cor 15:33).

The devil doesn’t show up looking like some horrible creature you want to shrink from, but as the appealing figure you only know as a deceiver if you really pay attention.

Which brings me back to the Spirit that dwells within us, the mechanism by which Christ makes “His burden light” (Matt. 11:30). Through the help of concentrating on the Spirit, we will find ourselves more sure-footed on the narrow path:

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
Galatians 5:16-18

The last part of Paul’s admonition to the Galatians may seem contradictory. What did he mean by not being under the Law? Remember, for one, that in the time that Jesus walked the earth, the Law had become a thing that lost sight of its main goal in overwhelming minutiae. Christ told the Pharisees it was not what was on the outside that made them unclean, but what was in their hearts, remember? In living by the Spirit, what Paul is saying is that we are no longer caught under the minutiae of the Law that gets us focused on the wrong things. Instead, with the Spirit, we are guided by the love and goodness that Christ exhibited while He was on this earth. And this kind of living, rather than losing sight of the Law, inevitably ups the ante.

This piece has turned into one of those “sinners in the hands of an angry God” kind of approaches, when it promised something very different, so let me deliver on the promise of the title. Spending time in the Spirit takes practice, just like any other skill. You build up to it. You have to commit to it. But, the more you do it, the more you realize that it is so much more rewarding than the entertainments or activities that you used to do to fill the voids in your life that simply don’t cut it any more. (And you do still seek television time and good books to read. You just find yourself liking a different variety of entertainment on television more than what once interested you.)

Whenever somebody goes through a great tragedy, we often wish them the “peace that surpasses all understanding,” the peace that comes from God alone because He alone knows the truth about what is (Philipians 4:7) . But I think we get flashes of understanding when we practice our Holy Spirit muscles.

For those of you that own a cat or dog, there is nothing more peaceful than one of these creatures curled up in perfect slumber. How many times during a week do I find myself scurrying around with chores and work, glancing up to see my cats in blissful slumber and envy them their perfect peace?

And yet, if I would just take a page out of their books, stop for a few minutes, or an hour, and go to my Father with a request for that same kind of peace, won’t He grant it? Didn’t Christ give us that very example throughout His time on earth? Look at all the examples of moments when He took Himself aside to be alone in prayer.

So, here’s to knowing the peace that surpasses my cats’ naps, to daily exercises in the Spirit, to a world of wonder when we see through the eyes of God’s love.

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Posted in Christian Fiction, Faith, Love

Thank GOD we don’t get what we deserve

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

Goodchristianfiction need versus deserve

Our Father’s mercy and generosity toward us has not been what we deserved, but what we desperately needed. Surely, then, those who have received such grace are called upon to deal with others, not on the basis of what they deserve, but what they need.
–Paul Earnhart, Invitation to a Spiritual Revolution, p. 136

If God gave you what you deserved, what would your judgment day look like? If you had to live every day of this life knowing you were going to get exactly what you deserve when you pass into the next life, how would your perspective on living change?

These are the questions that popped into my mind as I read Earnhart’s section on the Golden Rule in his book about the Sermon on the Mount. I also realized that, too many days, I subconsciously work off a different definition of deserve, the one in which I see the world through the rose-colored glasses where my sin does not keep me from thinking I deserve better things: more free time, the latest technological toy, a new purse.

Thankfully, God, in His omnipotence, knows the real difference between what we need and what we deserve. He loves us enough to give us what we need when we ask for it in faith, including our own salvation, and not to condemn us to what we deserve.

When was the last time you asked yourself if you really needed something, or just thought you “deserved” it? How much more often do you tend to think of others in terms of what they deserve instead of what they might need?

I think this distinction between deserve and need is partly what made Christ accepted even among the “lowest denominations” of His society. When Christ told the truth to prostitutes and tax collectors, He did it in such a way as to speak to the sinner’s needs, not to make the person feel small because they had sinned.

If we could master this love of others in such a way as to see them only in light of their needs, not what we think they need but what we would need if we were in their shoes, certainly we would be as close to following the Golden Rule as we are going to get.

In the way of wondrous things, my Bible reading this week also helped me out with the deserve versus need dilemma. In 2 Corinthians, Paul writes:

. . . we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (10:5b). . . . But he who boasts is to boast in the LORD. For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the LORD commends (10: 17-18).

If we see ourselves rightly through eyes that are obedient to Christ, knowing that any good thing we do is through the grace of God and not by anything remarkable of our own accord, then we will do away with the thoughts that make us contemplate what we “deserve” and blind us to what we and others really need.

I have to admit to some bad days this week, but I am happy to report that pulling out my copy of Psalm 143 and reading through it helped me pass through the valley and back up to the mountain. In this Psalm, David is running from very real enemies (his own king wants to kill him). For me, the enemies mentioned in the Psalm are not people, but the anxieties, fears, and “deserving” temptations that plague me on bad days. David begins the Psalm by praising God’s goodness. Then, he cries out his pain to God, followed by remembering all the good works God has done. In studying the Psalm, it strikes me that David’s equation for deliverance runs something like this:

my servitude + His majesty = my deliverance from my enemies!

So, what I need is to love God with my whole heart, first and foremost. I may deserve the anxiety and emotions that are a combined result of my sin and genetics, but what God gives me instead is what I need, His love, as long as I have the faith to open my arms wide and lean.

Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;
For I trust in You;
Teach me the way in which I should walk;
For to You I lift up my soul.
Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;
I take refuge in You.
Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
Psalm 143: 8-10

Posted in Christian Living, Faith

Family Blog Award–Spreading the WordPress Love

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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Thanks to one of my biggest encouragers in the WordPress community, Cathy, I am honored to be nominated for the Family Blog Award, which emphasizes the concept of community that proves blogging is more than just a passing fad.

Longer ago than I care to remember, I studied anthropology as well as English at the university.  For one graduate class, I was able to combine the two disciplines in a paper that used the theories on how cultures change espoused by anthropologist Frank Turner to analyze the poetry of my writing mentor, a great poet named Walt McDonald.

One of Turner’s main principles about social change is that it begins on the outskirts of society, in what he calls the realm of anti-structure.  In this environment of anti-structure, the outcasts exist on equal footing, actually finding more successful “solutions” to the “problems” in the conventional way of doing things.  The bad news?  Eventually, the anti-structure itself becomes structured, and the process begins again.

We can apply this principle to the way Christ exacted change during His time on earth.  He and the disciples definitely worked outside of the structured rules of the Pharisees.  When Christ rose again, the early church continued this tradition.  Remember the early monasteries, where the brothers shared all things equally?  Eventually, though, these brotherhoods became institutions.  Martin Luther, working on the outside of church thinking, sowed the seeds of the Reformation.  The cycle began again.

Now, I’m not saying that blogging on Christian faith will lead to a revolution in church thinking or doctrine, but I do look upon my blogging as a way to spread the word of what I pray the Holy Spirit has given me the skill and the insight to say.   Reading the blogs of other writers on the subject of Christianity, I feel that I have found a community of believers out there who feel the same way.  Some of you may be very active extroverts in your churches or communities.  Many of you, like me, may be more introverted, tending to view the world from the edges, but still having so much to say that the outlet of blogging has been a real blessing.

The rules of this award including nominating fellow bloggers whom you feel have helped you in your WordPress journey.  I believe you are supposed to shoot for ten other people.  Being a strong believer in anti-structure, I will likely fail to get ten listed :), but here are some bloggers who have helped me feel a part of a growing community of believers who are speaking so that the rocks have no need to cry out:

Does Jesus Have a Facebook Page?

From biblical-based advice on living a more God-centered life to honest reflections on the challenges of daily living (including the ever-dreaded visit to Wal-Mart!), this blogger means what she says and says what she means–and she takes the time to give others encouragement with personal comments, too!

A Devoted Life

This blogger’s daily devotionals are deep, insightful and end with a great prayer to get you started on a God-filled day.  I appreciate getting to read such good writing that is also obviously prayerfully considered.

Along the Way

This young blogger has been given a real talent by God that she is openly struggling to find the best use for.  Honestly, I see a lot of my own struggles in her posts.  Some, I have overcome.  Some, I still struggle with.  But, it always helps to know that we are not alone in our feelings.  I appreciate her honesty and openness.

 

Encouragement in this writing life can come from many places.  It might be awards like this one, where you get to take a moment and reflect on the fellow writers who have helped you grow your own skill.  Or, it may come from stranger places.  Flipping through radio channels this week in my car, I happened on a Glenn Beck interview.  I don’t really know that much about Beck.  I don’t keep up with politics.  But in this interview, he was discussing a book he’s written.  What struck me was that he spoke about the Holy Spirit as a kind of muscle that we need to exercise if we expect to be able to use it with any effectiveness.  We can’t just let it lie dormant in us once we have accepted Christ and then expect it to work wonders when we’ve been walking around as if it weren’t even there.

For a person who has been trying to grow her faith and lessen her fear, what a wonderful analogy to hear!  God is so powerful.  It was nice to be reminded (as I was heading to yoga to do some exercise for my body) that I need to keep up the work I have started of exercising my Spirit muscle as well.  Blogging is one way I exercise that Spirit.

What have you done for your Holy Spirit muscle lately?

Thanks to all of you bloggers for the words that fill spaces you don’t even know exist each week in people’s lives.  Let’s keep encouraging each other and strengthen our walk by faith.

 

Posted in Christianity, Faith

To Begin Again

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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Nothing can hinder The Lord from saving, whether by many or by few. 1 Samuel 14:6b

When it comes to facing my many real and mostly imagined challenges, how often do I forget that I am not facing anything alone! The moment I accepted Christ as my Savior, I was “sealed in that Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph. 1:13-14), given the armor of God with which to face the world.

If you read much of my writing, you know that in facing the world, I mostly struggle with facing myself, with all the expectations and worries and thoughts swirling in my brain like so many images flitting across a television screen. With my brain so full of shoulds and didn’ts, is it any wonder that I fail to hear the Spirit within me more often than not?

You have probably already guessed that my goal of listening more carefully to my thoughts this past week was an epic fail! That’s OK. Preparing to write today, I looked back at my post from last week. I was supposed to be chanting, “I will not be anxious. I will grow my faith!,” whenever the blues or fear started to get me down.

That lasted about a day. Then, like the seed thrown in the shallow ground, I got distracted by the stresses of work and household upkeep, and taking cats to the vet.

But, thankfully, God is patient. He also isn’t going anywhere. So, I can pick up the pieces of my tattered resolve and begin again this week. If God can work with a mustard seed, He can work with me!

One good thing I did this week was take Joyce Meyer’s advice and really look at Psalm 143. If you are a person who struggles with sadness or anxiety, I suggest you read this Psalm as well. You will find in it some practical strategies for dealing with unhappy days and even great despair. Perhaps, I will write more on this comforting Psalm next week.

What struggles have you faced this week? Did you face them in full knowledge of what God can do? If so, good for you! If not, do like me and remind yourself that nothing can keep us from God–except our own lack of faith (and we can even pray for more of that!).

Posted in Christian Living, Faith

Faith-Challenged

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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Last week, I talked about starting the journey of emptying myself to make room for God in my thoughts, choices, and way of life. I also noted that this is a process of growing that I will have to begin again each day. So, what practical steps can I take to make my mission a reality?

My first step has to be paying more attention to my thoughts. Do you ever really listen to yourself? My brain is going all the time, and most of that time does not involve thoughts one would call “God-worthy.” In fact, many times, my thoughts are busy being critical of myself and others. If I can do a better job of listening to my inner dialogue, I will immediately improve what my tongue actually says as well.

One of my current reads is the book on the Sermon on the Mount, Invitation to a Spiritual Revolution, by Paul Earnhart. This morning, I read his thoughts about Christ’s teachings on faith. Like the emptying of the self, faith is also a daily practice. Earnhart defines faith as “an active, practical force which affects the whole of life,” and little faith as that “which has not been carefully thought out and applied.”

When I allow myself to get worried about anything, I am practicing little faith, or actually no faith at all. But, as Earnhart points out, I am not alone. He uses the example of the episode when the disciples were in the boat with Jesus in the storm and got so nervous. They had seen Jesus perform so many miracles, but they still didn’t fully understand the truth of Christ. If you understood and had faith that the One who had created all things was in the rocking boat with you, would you have any reason to worry about the storm swirling around you?

Like the man who came to Jesus for healing for his son, but at the same time plead with Jesus to “help me with my unbelief,” I spend my days tottering between facing the world with open, peaceful arms and worrying over the smallest of issues. But, what Earnhart had to say this morning was worth applying to my life:

It will help us if we realize that the freedom from fear to which Jesus calls us is a lesson we master over time, by long practice–by reminding ourselves again and again of what the cross says about the unchanging faithfulness of our Father’s love and by prayerfully taking our burdened thoughts to Him (Phil 4.6).

By watching my inner thoughts, I now have an ever better saying than just “Stop!” to turn my negative thoughts toward the positive thoughts that bring us closer to God:

I will not be anxious!
I will have faith that grows!

When my mind is empty of the critical thoughts and anxiety, then I can hear God. I can fill my head with the Bible verses I am working to memorize. I can fill my head with images of the wonders of nature that are often as close to God as we can get. I can go from faith-challenged to faith-warrior.

Posted in Christian Living, Faith, Self-Help

In Search of Yoda

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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Sometimes, when coincidences happen, you start to think maybe God is telling you something He wants you to listen to. I had just such a set of coincidences this week.

It began when I decided to grab my copy of the Oswald Chambers classic, My Utmost for His Highest, during my morning Bible reading and turned at random to the January 5 entry. Chambers has chosen for his text the episode in John’s account of the gospels where Jesus predicts Peter’s denial of Him (chapter 13). Christ tells Peter that the loyal disciple cannot follow Him at that moment. Skip ahead to the risen Christ, who reinstates Peter, ordering the “fallen” disciple in John 21 to “Follow me!”

Chambers concludes:

Between these times, Peter had denied Jesus with oaths and curses, he had come to the end of himself and all his self-sufficiency, there was not one strand of himself he would ever rely upon again, and in his destitution he was in a fit condition to receive an impartation from the risen Lord.

In other words, Peter was finally empty and ready to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Once he was filled with the Spirit, Peter went on to be the foundation of Christ’s church, just as the Lord had said he would be.

When I finished reading Chambers, it struck me that to know true peace and purpose in Christ, this emptying is something that we have to do over and over again. How else do we keep from being diverted by the distractions of this world–the entertainment media, our jobs, our family obligations? Some of these are things we cannot put aside, but all of them are things that should come after our commitment to the One and Only.

I think we all want to acquire the kind of calm that being rooted in the Spirit of God has to offer. With that kind of peace, no force can move us. Traffic can be bad, the weather can be horrible, the job can present one challenge too many. But for those who have emptied themselves to be filled by the Holy Ghost, there is a sense of peace, faith and hope that does not leave us.

I picture Yoda, so in tune with the Force, that even Luke’s whining does not divert him from raising the spaceship out of the water. Not even Darth Vader can divert Yoda from his centered being.

But I began by discussing coincidences. Later in the week, I happened to watch a 1962 movie, The Spiral Road. In this story about doctors in the jungles of 1936 Indonesia, a young Rock Hudson begins by denying the very existence of God. He is an ambitious doctor who is convinced that he is strong enough in himself to defeat all the challenges that trying to offer medical treatment in the middle of a jungle among people from a different culture present.

In the movie’s climax, Hudson takes on a task two other doctors before him have failed to complete, despite their faith–overcoming the tricks and resistance of a local witch doctor in an isolated camp near a village where people need medical attention. Because Hudson has no faith, he is convinced he will defeat the witch doctor through his superior mind and logic.

In the end, Hudson’s mind fails him. He becomes as empty as the two doctors who have failed before him. And in that moment of emptiness, Hudson cries out to the very God he said did not exist!

So, I think it is high time I pay more attention to the concept of my own emptying and the subsequent filling by the Holy Ghost. After all, when I have a difficult time clearing my mind from all its random thoughts in order to meditate for five minutes in yoga class, how am I making room for the Almighty to come in? No wonder I experience anxiety instead of peace!

But this is a journey that is just beginning, again. I have decided to share it as I go. I want to concentrate on practical steps I should be taking to grow closer to God. In the words of Yoda, “Do or do not. There is no try.” I want to do every day, in the peace of God.

So, I start with the promise of what we have because of our faith. In his letter to the Philipians, Paul explains it this way:

I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. (4:11-13)

A mind that has learned to be content no matter what is a mind that understands how to empty itself and accept the peace of the Holy Spirit. I appreciate in advance any and all thoughts on how you manage this process in your own walk with God, the One with Whom there is no coincidence.

Posted in Poetry

Shooting Stars, a poem

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

Fireworks

Shooting Stars

 

Light spirals in a black sky,
the signatures we write,
holding our breaths as the tubes
of sparkling white fade
into the dark, all there is of us.

Nights from now, when we
must look past the mirror’s wrinkles,
to deep inside the cone-shaped fibers
that window what is left
of bottle rockets whizzing and ice cream
dribbling, unbidden, down
sticky, happy chins,

what once spun in bursts of fire
so far above us, will thrum again
in the saucered orbs of our children,

those who know the joy
of standing at the precipice edge,
arms flung wide, the belief in loving hands
outstretched to catch them,
all they need to fall.

 

Ramona Levacy
June 1, 2013

Posted in Living, Poetry

The Extraordinary Gentlemen

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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As I prepared to write this post, the Memorial Day holiday uppermost on my mind, my husband flipped on the television to the movie, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. It seemed appropriate, this far-fetched tale about a group of men (and a woman!) who band together to use their unique talents to save the world.

On Memorial Day, we take time to remember our own loved ones who have passed, but also pay much-deserved respect to those who died in defense of our country. The British poet A.E. Housman has a short poem about the sacrifice of our soldiers that goes like this:

Here dead lie we because we did not choose
To live and shame the land from which we sprung.
Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose;
but young men think it is, and we were young.

Patriotism doesn’t mean you have to blindly believe everything your government tells you or wholly support your government’s actions. The great thing about America is that we have the right to make known our disagreements with those in power, both through our free speech and at the ballot box.

There is a difference, however, between disagreeing with a government policy, or even war, and denigrating those who have chosen to defend our right to freedom with their very lives if necessary. When soldiers of the last Great War returned home, they did so to parades, confetti reigning down on them amidst the grateful cries of an entire nation. The soldiers who returned from Korea were quickly forgotten. Those who managed to come home from Vietnam outside of a body bag were scorned.

So, every Memorial Day, I feel a great swelling of pride for our soldiers past and present, along with sorrow for the times when those soldiers have been made to feel less than heroes by the very people they have sworn to protect.

There are ways to express disagreement with government policy or even war. Write letters to Congress. March on Washington. But honor always those in uniform who did not choose to shame us by defending our right to be free. They are the ones who are truly extraordinary.

Posted in Christian Living, Living

My Five-Step Program to a Better Me

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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I love lists, and I love projects. Maybe that is partly why I work on writing and crafts and extensive reading and getting three stars on all my Angry Birds levels, as well as doing my full-time job and the other tasks that go with day-to-day living.

Based on some of my most recent reading and life experiences, I have come up with five steps I am trying to make daily habits to help me improve my general mind set and my ability to meet the most important goal of all–living a life that reflects the love of Christ.

So, for better or worse, here’s the latest project I have, my daily checklist.

BETTER LIFE PRINCIPLES:

1. Think on the Word– What you think about is where your mind goes. If you are thinking about a person who is making you mad or about what you should be wearing, then your mind is not taking you to a good place. Being a person with high anxiety, I am in the very bad habit of letting my mind dwell on worries like getting bills paid or deadlines met for work or even things I can’t control like bad weather. If, instead, I put in my mind verses from the Bible that remind me about God’s love for me, about His desire for me to know peace, about His example of caring for others to show our love for Him, then where in my mind will there be room for worry?

To this end, I have begun trying to learn more Bible verses than my standard Lord’s prayer and Psalms 23. I found a great APP, called BibleMinded, that lets me choose verses I want to memorize, and even has a study and test mode to help me with the process.

2. Re-visualize my point system life– I am a perfectionist, which really is just a nicer way to say I am overly judgmental. I tend to want a 10, will settle for an 8 when time demands it, and reflect that I actually accomplished a 6 in hindsight. Recently, it dawned on me that most of the world tends to happily operate at an 8 on most days. It also dawned on me that most people don’t waste time putting a point value on their days. They spend their time more productively just living them.

That’s not me. I don’t think I can break a lifetime worth of analyzing my life both consciously and subconsciously this way. I can, however, re-think my point system. Basically, I think my judgmental 6 is probably the rest of the world’s 8. When I start to really beat myself up, I now ask myself, am I at least at a 6? If I am, I count it a good day, and move on.

3. Look for what is RIGHT instead of what is wrong– Along the same vein on being judgmental, I am working to see the good in things instead of the bad. Think about it. If I am always seeing what is wrong in the situations around me, including my own performance, then what chance do I have to foster a positive attitude? If I look for the good in people and situations, won’t it be easier to love them unconditionally?

Looking for what is right doesn’t mean ignoring what is wrong. You don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. But, how many “wrong” things we think about each day really have anything to do with sinful behavior? Also, by looking for what is right, I am beating myself up much less than I normally do.

4. “It’s not your business”– I am a problem solver. It gives me a deep satisfaction to come up with the solution to a difficult situation, so much so that I will often go looking for problems to find solutions to. But this habit can lead me to stick my nose into places it does not belong. By reminding myself what is and what is not my business, I keep myself from getting frustrated with myself and others. After all, when you try to make your business something that is not, why are you then surprised or angry when the other party doesn’t do what you think they should or seem interested in what you have to offer?

5. Get to vs. Have to– I’ve written about this important change of phrase that can lead to a whole change in attitude before. But, as with so many of life’s truths, it seems I have to keep reminding myself of the change in mindset I need to affect a more peaceful life. When you think about a task as something you get to do instead of thinking of it as something you have to do, do you realize how drastic a change that one word can make? Getting to do something is exciting, important, fun.

So, now I get to move forward in this life by fulfilling the promise in my Five-Step Program. For those of you who don’t like lists and projects, maybe your current program is a goal like starting to attend a new class at your church or knocking on your neighbor’s door to invite them to attend church with you next Sunday. Maybe you are determined to spend fifteen more minutes a day in your Bible study or in prayer.

Whatever you do, know that every day God gives us is one more day we can love more, learn more, and lean wholly on the One whose own life was a shining example of how to live our faith.

Posted in Christian Living, Love

A Mother’s Day In Christ

Posted on by Ramona Levacy Billingslea

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The true message of Christ, the power of love, has perhaps its closest parallel in the perfect picture of a mother’s love for her child, the kind of love we honor on Mother’s Day. Like every mother who has stayed up nights by sick beds, given up her own freedom for the sake of the ultimate good of her children (taking away the car keys means mom has to drive, after all), or spent countless hours on her knees praying for the safety and happiness of her family, Christ did not merely state His message of love. He lived it. He continues to live it, especially through those who choose not to see the baptism by water into Christianity as an ending but a beginning.

Living a Christ-like life means always striving to be more, but not more in the sense of this world. In this world, filled with television, movie, and internet messages, more means better cars, faster electronics, fancy clothes, bigger houses, high-paying careers. In Christ’s world, more means better sharing, increased love of others, joy in what one has, faith that one is where he/she is meant to be and the discipline to walk in the narrow path of God’s truth.

When you have to spend so much time in the world, it is all too easy to fall into the trap of being of this world, all too easy to grab the more expensive brand of something because the commercials have convinced us it’s better instead of saving those extra nickels and dimes to share with those who have even less than we do. When you are of this world and not just in it, it’s too simple to fall into the wide and easy ways of this world. When we choose based on what everybody else is doing instead of what Christ would do, we make our lives simpler in that moment, but we also buy into the devil’s marketing plan, as it were, and his way leads only unto death.

We’ve all fallen victim to it, especially often during the holiday times, when so many ads want to convince us that what they are selling will make us better, happier, more peaceful. But, think about the times you have fallen victim to this marketing. Do you really feel happier? Maybe for a moment, but what then? When you rely on the devil’s marketing plan, don’t you always have to go searching for peace and happy again?

Christ’s marketing plan was simple: love. If we follow this plan, we don’t take actions that will hurt others. We strive to perfect ourselves in aspects of life that really count, like helping others, doing good, being kind, taking joy in nature and each other, including our differences. How different would the world be if these were the messages that flashed across our televisions and movie theatres and computer screens?

We can’t change the whole world, but we can change our own actions and the ways that we interact with those with whom we come into contact. What steps are you taking to grow in your walk with Christ? I will be working this week to set up my goals to mature in Christ. I believe I will start in Galations with the list of the fruit of the Spirit. What about you?