My Misspelled Birth Certificate

By Peter Lundell –

The nurse who recorded my birth couldn’t spell. So am I who I think I am?

There on my life-long-till-the-day-I-die-permanent birth certificate, my middle name is misspelled. And crossed out, with the right spelling squeezed above. What if no one caught that? I’d have gone around all my life with the wrong middle name—or endured a tedious court process to change it.

This person also misspelled my dad’s occupation as “Reverand.” It’s Reverend. And it isn’t even an occupation, it’s a title. My dad was a missionary. Humph.

More dangerous than clueless people who mistake identities are those who damage others and destroy their identities. And sometimes we ourselves might damage others without intending or realizing it.

Kids get hurt. And sometimes they get hurt by adults who act like monsters. The child’s identity gets scarred, or twisted, or crushed. And from the damage often grows a scarred, twisted, or crushed adult. Too often these people live dysfunctional lives and may in turn hurt others. I see these things all the time.

It’s as if someone messed up the person’s birth certificate. God’s intended identity for that person got replaced by a false, destructive one. The false, warped image needs to be changed. That’s what happens in inner healing—and in salvation, spiritual growth, freedom from bondage, and growing into the image of Christ.

To treat the life of faith as boring or legalistic is completely against who Jesus is and what he came for. He came to set us free from the consequences of sin—both our own and others’—and he frees us to become the person God originally intended.

How has God freed you to become a new person?

Or how do you still need to be set free?

“Lord, You are the healer of my body and my heart. I lay aside my fear and pride, open my heart, and say do what only You can do in me. Clean me and restore me into the image you intended….”

“The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18 NIV).

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3 NIV).

Not 89

By Peter Lundell –

“THIS IS NOT 89” read the sign. Huh? What kind of sign is that?

I was driving with my wife on Route 89, a backcountry highway in Utah. In a hick town called Panguitch, Route 89 turns east. Going straight, it becomes Route 143. We wanted to take 143, so we were fine. A mile out of town we came to this sign: “THIS IS NOT 89.” It’s the first highway sign I’ve ever seen that told me where I was not. I had to take a picture.

I could imagine some drivers blithely driving for miles through the wilderness before they realized they were on the wrong road—no doubt why the odd sign was put there in the first place.

It struck me that many people live their lives that way. Including me.

We go along in life, at school or work, professional or home life, and we don’t realize that the road curved. We don’t grasp that the world changed or we changed or that God has something new for us.

We can find ourselves lost in discouragement when we don’t pay attention to where our path has been taking us. Or maybe we just need to get off what we’re doing and change.

“This is not 89” signs are good for us. They may come as the slap of a sudden realization. They may be a gradual waking up to a new reality. They may hit as a major problem or loss.

They usually come because we were going the wrong way in the first place. Or maybe it’s just time to grow. So be thankful. They’re usually what it takes to motivate us enough to change.

Have you had—or do you have—“This is not 89” signs in your life?

“Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell” (Psalm 43:3 NIV).

“Lord, send me the signs I need to walk the road You are leading me on. Whatever those signs may be, I choose to welcome them. And to follow. . . .”

Something Miraculous Happened

By Gillis Killam –

When I came to Christ as a young person at age 12, I was unaware of all that actually happened to me spiritually; but I knew that things were different. My fear of going to hell when I died was gone and I had peace that I was right with God. I had lived in fear, knowing that the Bible said that one day Jesus was coming back to earth; and I was not ready to meet Him.

Prior to my conversion I had a dream in which I was standing at the screen door at the back of our house. Looking up over the trees I saw a vision of Christ with all his angels surrounding the throne. I was afraid, knowing I was not ready to meet Him. I knew little of the Bible except that my parents “made me” go to church and Sunday school. I woke from my sleep terrified that I was too late. I wondered if my parents were still there. They were!

Shortly after this I was in a meeting where our pastor was having special evangelistic services and found myself under conviction for my sin. When the altar call was given I went forward and knelt at the altar and gave my life completely to Christ. The peace of God filled my heart and I went home knowing that my account was settled with God. A whole new world of spiritual awareness came to me and I had a strong desire for the Word of God and to know the will of God for my life.

What happened there was that the Spirit of God came into my spirit which had been dead to God; (Ephesians 2:1-3) and my spirit was quickened and made alive to God! I was born again! (John 3:3). Something so unexplainable happened; and as A.W. Tozer put it, “For that which must happen in the new birth can never be explained by psychology or psychiatry.”(Renewed Day by Day – Feb. 21) The Bible came alive to me and the love for God filled my heart. We describe it as a NEW Heart.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV).

Prayer: “Thank you Lord!

Uncertain Future

By Gillis Killam –

A friend of mine worked for a number of years in a corporation and felt that his job was secure; until one day he was informed that he, along with around two hundred others, was being laid off. Being educated in his field, and having previous experience living and working in a number of other countries, he and his family had moved to Canada where he obtained employment and was able to buy a house.

He was devastated by this turn of events but managed to keep his spirits up. I encouraged him to seek God’s will and trust Him. Although he obtained another job it was at a reduced salary. I asked him about his future and he indicated that it was uncertain. This produced pressure on him and his wife, as well as his children.

In these uncertain times there are more people who face even worse circumstances, but there is comfort to be found in God’s will, and in knowing the Lord. No matter what happens we are in His care. Furthermore, it is in times like these that God is working out His plan for his children and will use the uncertain times to cause us to grow in grace and the knowledge of Him. We need to learn to trust and listen to what God is saying to us. We should not rely on our own abilities and influence but seek Him first (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Jesus talked about this in Matthew when he used a section of the Sermon on the Mount to deal with such anxious times; “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life…but seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:25-34 NIV).

We can rely on our Lord because He knows the future. He cares too much for us to let us get lost.
“A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9 HCSB).

Rained Out

By Michelle Lim –

This baseball season the weather turbulence has rained and snowed out many of the games. Every day there’s a ball game my two boys look out the window wishing away the clouds.

As much as I love watching my sons’ baseball games, one day last week my emotions were a bit more ambiguous. We had already cheered through three games and attended three practices. Just this once I looked out the window wishing for rain.

My elation as the first plump droplets slapped against my window faded in the disappointment on my son’s faces. I managed to feel a dash of remorse, momentarily.
Just as soon as the remorse passed, all thirty seconds of it, my mind filled with all of the things I could do with the new time.

When I stood at the window wishing for rain, I had to hear the first rain drops before I knew that we’d be rained out. My faith in rain wasn’t that great even though we’d had many of rained out games during the season.

This reminded me of another man’s faith in rain. In 1 Kings 18, God told Elijah to go
present himself to Ahab and God would send rain on the famine ravaged Samaria.

Elijah didn’t look out the window. He just obeyed, knowing that God would do as he
promised. He believed so earnestly that he sent the servant seven times to look for rain
clouds.

When a cloud the size of a man’s fist was all that could be seen he warned everyone to
hurry down from the mountain before the rain stopped them.

What incredible faith that all Elijah had to see was a cloud the size of a man’s fist for him
to know that God had answered.

Oh to have the faith of Elijah in everyday life, believing that God can do anything with the mere suggestion of its possibility. Now, every time I look out the window I remember Elijah and his amazing faith. I look for a fist sized cloud and smile because I know that God can do anything with even such a small hint of His Presence.

Bible Verse: “So Elijah said, ‘Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you” 1 Kings 18:44b.

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