3 Falls to Consider

In this Spiritual Life UPGRADE, Dawn Wilson suggests how considering three "falls" can help us grow in our relationship to the Lord.

We don't have to look far in our culture, and even in the church, to see the consequences of The Fall in the Garden of Eden; but there are two other "falls" that can have consequences—good ones—in our lives too.

1. The Fall of All Falls

Everything God made—man and woman, animals, plant life, the universe—was "very good," according to Genesis 1:31. Yet Adam and Eve doubted God's goodness and questioned His Word. They listened to the lie of the serpent. And it was a great fall (Genesis 3:1-24).

In "Lessons from the Fall," W. Phillips wrote, "... the serpent offered an alternative interpretation of God's motives" and called into question God's character and trustworthiness. The serpent "reduced God's Word to the level of a mere viewpoint," Phillips wrote, "while man became the measure of what is 'true for me'."

As a result, Eve deliberately decided to defy and disobey God's command (verse 6).

We see this same outworking of The Fall in mankind today.

Man questions God's Word and substitutes personal truth for God's Truth.

Because of The Fall, there are four truths still in effect today:

• What God says (God's Word) is still our measure for holiness. It's our standard for knowing and obeying the Lord and rightly relating to Him (1 Corinthians 15:45), not our viewpoints or some new standards we create.
• We still have a terrible sin problem. It's not what happened to us in our environment at any stage of life. (Even in a perfect environment, we still choose to sin.) Sin brings "death"—spiritual separation from God (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 5:12).
• Suffering is still an awful result of The Fall. Sin led to all the suffering in the past, and is at the root suffering we see today (Romans 8:20-22).
• Our only hope, our only solution, is still Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:22).
  

And that brings me to the second "fall."

2. Our Need to "Fall" before the Cross

When Adam and Eve sinned, God provided the means for rescue. Genesis 3:15—known as the "protoevangelium" (first gospel)—is God's promise of the time when Satan (the serpent, see Revelation 12:9) would be crushed by "the seed of the woman," a future savior. Many Bible teachers consider this a direct reference to Jesus.

Just as Adam represented all mankind, and sin brought death, in Christ—the believer's representative head—brings life (1 Corinthians 15:22). Galatians 2:20 says we were "crucified" with Christ ... and it's not our life we enjoy now, but His!

Life from death. Old Testament saints looked forward to that redemption; and believers today look back to the cross.

I say we must "fall" at the cross, because coming to Christ takes the true humility, the bowing of our hearts before Him. We acknowledge we have "gone astray," turning to our own way (Isaiah 53:6). We admit our understanding is "darkened" and our hearts are hard (Ephesians 4:18).

God calls us to fall before Him (in our heart, if not our body) in repentance and faith (Acts 11:18; 2 Peter 3:9; 2 Corinthians 7:10; John 3:16; Romans 10:9-13).

Falling at the cross means fully embracing God's amazing grace.

In the words of an old hymn:

Upon that cross of Jesus Mine eye at times can see
The very dying form of One, Who suffered there for me;
And from my smitten heart, with tears, Two wonders I confess,
The wonders of His glorious love, And my own worthlessness.

I remember well the night I more fully understood what Jesus had done for me. I fell to the floor and wept ... and arose from that solemn time smiling with new-found joy, so grateful for the grace of the Lord.

It's once-and-forever salvation. But that doesn't mean we're never broken over our sin again.

3. Fallings of Surrender.

There have been many "fallings" since that evening I fell "Beneath the Cross of Jesus." These are the fallings of surrender—of giving up, letting go.

It is the choice to die, like a seed falling to the ground and "dying" so God can bring forth a great harvest (John 12:24). It is the choice to yield my rights to my Lord.

Falling in surrender involves acknowledging weakness. It is dying to self-suffiiency too. It says, "In me dwells no good thing" apart from Christ (Romans 7:18), and without Him, I "can do nothing" (John 15:5). It's for broken people who know we can't handle everything, in spite of our silly attempts to prove we can.

Falling in surrender is radical self-denial—losing our life for Jesus' sake (Matthew 16:25).

Surrender is not an option for true disciples. But, and it's not surprising, this is the "fall" many reject. Our entire culture promotes self-effort and self-sufficiency. We recoil from showing weakness and admitting needs.

Surrender is often equated with failure, because our definition of success is skewed.

Yet Jesus still invites us to fall in surrender, because He knows that's where the miracles of life happen. That's where we yield to His control, where He moves in, and where He begins to use and bless us.

We want abundant life. It all begins with our recognition of sin, our receiving of the Savior, and our relinquishment of our weakness to His great strength.

In Christ, we're given life and then continuing abundance as we fall before Him in sweet surrender—resting in His grace.

When you consider the three falls, what does the Spirit of God speak to your soul?

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is a speaker and author, and the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God (with Pam Farrel), andUpgrade with Dawn. She is contracted researcher for Revive Our Hearts. She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

The Nightmare of Lost Agendas

Cynthia Ruchti's prose is heart-healing, filled with hope. In this Biblical Thinking UPGRADE, she encourages us to place our hope in God in one of the most practical areas of our lives—our schedules.

"I glared at my computer screen as if it had betrayed me," Cynthia said. "My calendar—ergo, my life—was gone!"

I (Dawn) shudder to think what that might feel like. I live by the calendar! Thankfully, there's some good advice here for people like me. And you?

Cynthia continues . . .

The calendar template showed when I clicked on the icon that nightmarish day. But all the spaces were blank.

I had no record of upcoming doctor and dentist appointments, no notations to remind me to send in a blog post before its due date, no scheduled radio interviews or contact information, no schedule of speaking events two years into the future, no record of events from the past, and NO HOPE of retrieving the information.

I checked the iPhone version and the iPad version, grasping at electronic straws.

     Nothing.

Panic remained off-stage for a while. There’s always a way to retrieve lost information, isn’t there? I’d invested in a hefty backup system.

Looked there.

     Nothing.

I contacted the company that sponsors the calendar.

     “Can’t help you, ma’am.”

I searched my files and piles of paper, thinking I might have printed off the next three months’ worth of calendar pages, at least.

     Nope.

That task—printing off the calendars—was on the To-do list on the now blank calendar.

All my agendas, lost. All opportunities, gone.

With a distressing number of phone calls and apologies to doctors’ offices and event planners, I could piece together bits of the missing information. But I couldn’t retrieve what I couldn’t remember was gone. It was on the calendar so I didn’t have to trust my brain and its sketchy recall abilities.

Days passed with no solution. I had no idea what I might have missed during those disturbingly empty days.

But I began to see what I could gain—a new perspective.

1. “My times are in His Hands” (Psalm 31:15 NIV).

They’re not the indentured servants of an online calendar.

 2. “You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail” (Proverbs 19:21 NLT).

I’d planned and planned and planned, wedging responsibilities between other responsibilities when I saw the slimmest opening. In a moment, my carefully constructed plans were gone. But God’s plans for me hadn’t and wouldn’t change.

3. “People plan their path, but the LORD secures their steps” (Proverbs 16:9 CEB).

I’d considered my calendar written in indelible ink. Instead, it was disappearing ink.

The only plans worthy of permanent ink status are God’s instructions to love, give, serve, and live according to His Spirit.

By a miracle of grace that I still can’t explain, the calendar notations reappeared days later. But not until I’d caught the significance of what it meant to lose my agendas in favor of the ones that mattered most. His.

The lesson was driven deeper when editing a book I’d written about a woman whose plans were upended by job loss and her voice silenced—blanked—by a collection of traumas. She was forced to face many of the same issues I stared at during the nightmare of my lost agendas.

That book—Song of Silence—just released.  

God misses no details.

Take a look at your calendar. Color-coded? Crammed with activity and responsibility?

• What if all you’ve included were erased and all that remained were God’s directions for your days?
• What would it look like then?
• And what can you do to intentionally erase a few unnecessaries before He has to hit DELETE?

Cynthia Ruchti tells stories hemmed in hope, drawing from more than three decades writing and producing a 15-minute daily radio broadcast. She’s the award-winning author of 18 books and a frequent speaker for women’s ministry events. To purchase Cynthia's newest book, Song of Silence, visit here, or to read about it: here. Check out Cynthia's website for information about her speaking ministry.

Graphic: "Computer Monitor," image courtesy of Teerapun at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Embrace Your Royalty

Doreen Hanna calls herself the "Queen of the Princesses" because she leads events to teach young Christian girls they are God's princesses. I could think of no one better to share this Relationship with God UPGRADE.

"Do you know you possess a royal status?" Doreen said.

Royalty. I (Dawn) enjoy watching kings and queens, princes and princesses on television. But I too often forget I am "royalty" too!

Doreen continues . . .

When Jesus dwells within your heart you are a Daughter of the King. Maybe you’ve never known this. If not, I am excited to be the one to tell you today.

I wish I was with you right now to place a crown on your head, proclaim your royal status, and impart a rich bless over you. 

Or, could it be that you have been a Christian for quite some time and you’ve lost sight of the riches that you possess as a Daughter of the King?  

Maybe you feel like your crown is slipping.

This is my day to help you reset your crown and have you take account of the wealth you have in Him.

I’d like to share with you one of my first discoveries of recognizing my own royal status.

At the time, my girls were six months and two-and-half years of age. I stood peering out the peek hole of my front door—praying—because I saw the water meter man getting ready to turn off the water to our home. We couldn’t pay the bill. 

Suddenly, he stopped and walked up to the door. I opened it and he said to me, “I came to turn the water off. But, I need to ask—Do you have any children under the age of two?"

I replied, “Yes, she is six months old.” 

He then stated, “Well then, we are not allowed to turn the water off! Have a good day.”

That afternoon, I laid down the girls for a nap and took a few minutes to read my Bible. The reading for that day was Psalm 66. The last two verses read,

“But God has indeed heard me; he has listened to my prayer. I praise God, because he did not reject my prayer or hold back his constant love from me” (GNT).

I was in awe.

The King of Kings—my Heavenly Father—had shown His attentive ear to my prayer.

He answered me. And in such a tangible way showed His loving care for me.

I felt like a little princess that day, picturing myself while in prayer, running into my daddy’s throne room, jumping up on his lap and thanking Him for giving me the desire of my heart.

And, that day was just the beginning of what has now been a life-time journey, continually discovering and embracing the royalty I possess as a Daughter of the King. I'm seeing my Daddy demonstrate His power, impart His wisdom and even, at times, give me a desire of my heart.  

I could go on and on about the riches that you and I possess in Him. But I’d like to ask:

Have you embraced the royalty you possess?

I encourage you today to start or re-start an exciting journey by:

• Reading God's Word.
• Being willing to pray and aks God to speak to you personally and answer your prayers.
• Being open to how He might speak to you in other ways--like through a song, through a friend, or even a billboard!

Keep your eyes, ears and heart open!

Doreen Hanna is the Founder & President of Modern Day Princess Headquarters. She is the co-author of Raising a Modern Day Princess and soon-to-be-released Raising a Young Modern Day Princess. Her passion is to Empower Women to Equip Our Girls today! Discover more about Doreen and her ministry.

Graphic adapted, Image, "Golden Crown," courtesy of digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Still a Daddy's Girl

In this Relationship with God UPGRADE, Dawn reminds us how much the Father loves us!

I like to think I was my dad's favorite. Sorry, Pam, you may be my sister, but Daddy loved me best. (And in saying that, I recall the humor of the Smother's Brothers: "Mom always liked you best.")

Of course, that's not true. Dad didn't love me more than my sister. It just felt like Daddy loved me to the max. (I'm sure you feel the same way, sis.)

I was a "Daddy's Girl" growing up. Not that I didn't love Mom, but there was a special link to my dad.

• I was the apple of His eye, and he loved me even when I messed up ... a lot!
• I trusted Daddy completely and he was my protector.
• Dad was more action than talk, but when he did share in quiet moments, he gave me wisdom for life; he prepared me to face many difficulties.
• We thought alike and had similar goals; he gave me a sense of purpose.
• And Daddy corrected me in love.
• As a result, I always wanted to please Him.

In later years, after I moved to the opposite coast, distance kept us apart, but Daddy was always in my heart. Even after my dad passed away to be with the Lord, I find I am still connected to him through memories and love.

When I celebrated what would have been Daddy's birthday recently, I took time to contemplate something else: I'm also a spiritual daughter. God is my Heavenly Father.

"... I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6:18).

God's spirit wooed me to His love and when I trusted in Jesus to redeem me from my sin and give me new life, I became part of His heavenly family (John 1:12; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 1:5).

"The Spirit himself testified with our spirit that we are God's children" (Romans 8:16).

Maybe you don't have a good example of fatherhood in your history (see note*). I understand that. Some dads, especially those who don't know the Lord, can be hurtful and ungodly; and I grieve whenever I see an unworthy example of fatherhood in the church.

My earthly daddy was a failing sinner who made some bad choices. He was as dependent on God's grace as I am.

Yet in many ways, my earthly daddy did remind me of my "Abba" (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6)—my Heavenly Father. Sometimes my dad intended to give me this model; other times I simply learned about God by watching Daddy's life.

Daddy gave me a sometimes dim, sometimes clear picture of my Father God.

In time, I came to understand at least six things about my Heavenly Father:

1. God LOVED me even when I was unloveable—long before I ever loved Him. "We love Him because He first loved us." (John 3:16; 1 John 4:10, 19) God chose me to be holy and blameless before Him in love (Ephesians 1:4).

He continues to love me today with contant, unfailing love; and someday, out of His love, He will make me like His Son (1 John 3:1-2). His unfailing love is priceless to me (Psalm 36:7a)

2. Father God is my Savior and PROTECTOR, much as He protected His chosen people, Israel. He is a refuge for His people (Psalm 17:7-9a; 91:1, 4).

I can trust Him, for He is a faithful refuge (Psalm 46:1).

3. My Father TEACHES me wisdom for life (Proverbs 7:2; Psalm 25:4-5)

He helps me think His thoughts and see from His perspective as I stay teachable and connected to Him through scripture and prayer.

4. God helps me understand and desire His PURPOSES (Psalm 33:11; 135:6; Isaiah 25:1; 55:11; Ephesians 1:9; Romans 12:1-2).

5. He DISCIPLINES me to change my character (Proverbs 3:12; Hebrews 12:6).

6. I want to PLEASE my good, wise and loving Father, following the example of Christ (John 4:34; 8:29; Romans 8:8; Psalm 147:11; Hebrews 11:6; Luke 6:46).

So as far as I can tell, I will always be a "Daddy's Girl."

By the way, don't let "distance" keep you apart from the Father. He is always present, but you may feel a tug in your heart that says something is wrong—that sin, apathy, idols, busyness, pride or something else is keeping you apart.

If you are a Prodigal child (Luke 15:11-32), come back to the Father.

He's waiting for you.

Are you part of God's heavenly family? Do you understand what that means? (If not, please read here.)

* A note to those who did (or do) not have a positive model of fatherhood in this world.

If you are wise, you will not allow this to fester in your heart with bitterness. Instead, you will carefully and prayerfully look to other strong and godly men in the Body of Christ for a worthy example of fatherhood. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide and guard your heart as you seek out worthy examples to observe and learn from. If he's still alive, pray and consider how to show love to your dad in ways that will draw him into a relationship (or closer walk) with the Lord.

And, remember: in the Bible, you can always study the character of the greatest Father in all creation, the Creator Himself!

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is the creator of three blogs:Heart ChoicesToday, LOL with God (with Pam Farrel), and Upgrade with Dawn. She is on the board of NEWIM, the Network of Evangelical Women in Ministry and is a contracted researcher for Revive Our Hearts. She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Ways to Remember God's Goodness

In this Spiritual Life UPGRADE, Janet Thompson says our forgetfulness of God needs to stop with this generation!

“If we don’t remember what God has already done, we won’t believe what he is capable of doing in the future.” Janet says. “Memory builds faith.”

I (Dawn) am excited with Janet’s new book on this topic—Forsaken God?—not only because I shared a story in the book*, but also because each story encourages us to remember our good and faithful Father God.  

Janet continues . . .  

Today’s culture is quickly forgetting the goodness and power of our Great God.

The Bible describes the potential destruction through all generations to people who forget God. The dangers are paramount. We read the Old Testament and lament at how forgetful the Israelites were of God’s goodness.

Every time He did something good for them, they started grumbling that they needed something else. They repeatedly rejected God, even though He:

• freed them from bondage and slavery by miraculously parting the Red Sea for them to pass through on dry ground,
• provided manna from heaven,
• guided them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night,
• never let their shoes wear out even after walking for 40 years,
• and he offered them a land flowing with milk and honey.

God was only as good as the next miracle or provision. A forsaken God.

“But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren” (Deuteronomy 4:9 NLT).

We wonder at how the Israelites could be so blind and ungrateful. Why couldn’t they trust that a God who provided and protected them in the past, would do the same in the present and future?

But their memories were short. As often as Moses and God tried to help them remember, still they forgot. And at great sacrifice. The original generation freed from Egypt never got to see the Promised Land because they doubted God’s goodness. Even Moses wasn’t able to enjoy its beauty because at a crucial moment, he took matters into his own hands and forgot that God was in control.

We shake our heads at how dense and blind they were. But wait . . . can’t we be guilty of the same forgetfulness?

God has done amazing things in our lives too, but when the next crisis arises, we panic that He might not show up for us this time. Or when prayers are answered, we take credit ourselves or offer praise to someone else instead of giving God the glory and recognition He deserves.

But forgetfulness needs to stop with our generation. We live in a world that is quickly trying to eliminate God from the public square and even in the private domain.

Christians need to help a lost world remember God, and that starts with remembering Him ourselves.

In Forsaken God?: Remembering the Goodness of God Our Culture Has Forgotten, there are suggestions for ways to remember all that God has done in your life and then experience the power of sharing those memories in your sphere of influence and with the next generation.

One effective way is to share our testimony. As a Christian speaker, I give parts of my testimony every time I speak. “Feed my sheep” is my testimony of God clearly speaking those words to me. When I said an obedient “OK,” he revealed the "sheep" were women and "feeding" was mentoring.

That was 20 years ago, and today God has taken Woman to Woman Mentoring around the world as women enjoy the blessings of being in Titus 2 mentoring relationships. I still stand in awe as I write that story and every time I tell it from the stage. I will never forget how God used me to start a worldwide ministry and I give him the glory for the blessing it has been to so many.

But you don’t have to be a speaker to share your story.

Someone today needs to hear how Jesus changed your life. Our hurting world needs to hear from the Christian world the source of our joy and peace. Mentoring is a great way to share our testimony to encourage other women to know the Jesus of the Bible that we know.

In Forsaken God? there are over 50 ways to help us remember God.

Here are just a few:

• Taking pictures
• Journaling
• Reading our Bibles
• Receiving Communion
• Making a thankful list
• Joining a small group

What are some ways that help you remember God’s goodness?

Note: This article includes excerpts of Forsaken God: Remembering the Goodness of God Our Culture Has Forgotten, shared with permission. Dawn’s story appears on pages 121-122.

Janet Thompson is an international speaker, freelance editor, and an award-winning author of 18 books including Dear God, They Say It’s Cancer and Praying for Your Prodigal Daughter. She is also the founder of Woman to Woman Mentoring and About His Work Ministries. Each chapter in her new book, Forsaken God?: Remembering the Goodness of God Our Culture Has Forgotten, includes questions and conversation starters for discussion in small groups, Bible study groups, book clubs, mentors and mentees or with family and friends. It is available at Christian bookstores, Amazon, Christianbook.com, and signed at author’s website.

Graphic adapted, courtesy of pixabay.com.