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Christina Cook Lee

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OCTOBER 8

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Focus: Faithful love  

Ruth 1:16 (NKJV) Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.

In the Old Testament of the Bible, there is a sweet little story tucked between the pages of Judges and 1 Samuel, called the Book of Ruth. It’s only four chapters long and is really worth the short time it takes to read the whole thing.

The story is full of rich symbols and imagery, but we could all benefit by contemplating the kindness shown by a faithful daughter-in-law, to her mother-in-law.

Around a thousand years before the birth of Jesus, there was a famine in the country of Israel. A husband and wife named Elimelech and Naomi, left Bethlehem, Israel with their sons, Mahlon and Chilion, and emigrated to the country of Moab.

We aren’t told whether the famine had anything to do with it, but while they were in Moab, Elimelech died. Elimelech and Naomi’s two sons later married Moabite women. Mahlon married Ruth, and Chilion married Orpah. Before they were able to have any children, Mahon and Chilion both died, also. Leaving Naomi, Ruth, and Orpah alone. All of this happened in the first five verses of Chapter One.

Following the death of her husband and two sons, Naomi decided she should leave Moab and return to Bethlehem. Knowing she had no way to provide for her daughters-in-law, Naomi encouraged the two young women to go back to their own mothers and hope that God would give them another husband from their own people.

Orpha decided to follow Naomi’s advice, but Ruth just couldn’t. Ruth had a deep commitment to her mother-in-law. She knew it would be very difficult for Naomi to survive alone. Ruth told Naomi, ‘Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn from back from following you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me.”

After about a seven to ten day journey, Naomi and Ruth arrived in Bethlehem, at the beginning of barley harvest. The whole city was stirred up because of them, and the women said, ‘Is this Naomi?’ She said to them, ‘Don’t call me Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, but the Lord has brought me back empty…’

Naomi and Ruth had to have food, so Ruth went to the fields of a man named Boaz, who was a relative of Elimelech, and who was also a wealthy man with integrity. In those times, widows, strangers, and orphans were allowed to go into the fields for leftovers after the regular harvest crew had gathered the crop. The corners of the fields were purposely left unharvested and a portion of the crop in the middle of the field was also purposely left behind for those in need. It was a ‘welfare system’ that was set forth in the book of Leviticus as a way of sharing with those who were less fortunate.

Boaz had heard of Ruth’s loyalty to her mother-in-law and told Ruth to continue to come to his fields to find grain. He instructed his workers to leave extra grain behind for Ruth and to honor her.

At the end of the harvest season, Boaz performs all of the necessary duties according to their customs and commits to taking Ruth as his wife. By marrying Ruth, Boaz redeems both Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi.

Ruth and Boaz had a son who they named Obed, who by their laws was considered the same as a son to Naomi and legal heir to Elimelech’s property.

When Obed was older, he became the father of Jesse, who was the father of David.

The moral of this story is that genuine love and kindness will be rewarded by God.

Declaration: I will find new strength by studying the role models of the Bible and learning from their examples.

Facts from Wikipedia, The People’s Encyclopedia, and GotQuestions?.org

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k

OCTOBER 7

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Focus: Giving people the benefit of the doubt

Romans 2:1 (NKJV) You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

There are a lot of scriptures in the Bible about judging others…probably because it’s a major problem in the world. Romans 2:1 makes a very good point. So often, when people point the finger at someone else about a particular kind of weakness, the person making the judgment frequently ends up sooner or later, making the same kind of error. Remember the old quote, ‘When you point your finger at someone, three fingers are pointing back at you.’

I have a cute story about something that might help illustrate this point. Not having any children until I was 36, I had a long time to observe other people’s child rearing abilities and time enough to make some pretty strong decisions about how my child would behave—when I had one. For instance, I was sure my child would never be a picky eater, and I would never cater to her attitude if she didn’t want to eat something I had set before her. Well, that theory quickly failed, and I was probably worse than any mother ever, when it came to fussing over feeding my little darlilng  exactly what she liked and falling all over myself to try to provide it in creative ways that would impress her.

I was also determined my daughter would have excellent manners and always be polite. So, when we went to church, I always dressed her up and she sat like a little lady in ‘big people’s church’ instead of going to the nursery and possibly getting germs. When Stephanie was five, we had our second little angel and my time and attention were cut in half.

One Sunday, we were visiting the church of some friends, when the pastor called all of the youngsters up to the front of the sanctuary for the children’s sermon. We were sitting in one of the back rows, just in case our little one made any noise. I couldn’t stand it when other people allowed their babies to wail during a service and would certainly never allow my child to do something like that.

So, when the pastor called the children up to the front, Stephanie anxiously looked up at me. She wanted to go with the rest of the children. I glanced up to the pulpit area and saw quite a few children gathering. As my attention was focused in that direction, I saw a young boy—probably eight or nine years old—catapult over the kneeling rail. The eyeballs in my mind automatically rolled to the back of my head and I thought, ‘How rude! Who would ever let their child do such a thing. It’s easy to see he’s never had any proper training about how to behave in church.’

When I looked back at Stephanie, who was still looking up at me with a pleading expression in her eyes, I sighed and whispered, ‘Okay, you can go.’ No sooner had I given her my permission, than she ran down the aisle to the front of the church and, you guessed it—tried to catapult over the kneeling rail…except she was younger and shorter than the boy who had hopped over the rail with ease. She got stuck halfway over the rail, and the pastor had to help her get off.

I was properly put in my place by the Lord that day, as several people cleared their throats and wondered whose child that was and why she didn’t know how to behave in church. ‘Visitors…hmph!’

You probably have some stories of your own about times when you had to be humbled over something, too. Human nature is so quick to judge. Most people have to learn temperance the hard way—through personal experience.

These days, I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. When someone does something I don’t agree with, I try not to make a big deal about it. I’m not perfect by any stretch of the imagination—and neither is anyone else. We all have our flaws and most of us don’t intentionally set out to do something stupid.

Temperance isn’t something that is only mastered by people who are ‘older’. There are plenty of older people who don’t have an ounce of it—and there are some little children who have an amazing amount of consideration for others.

The old saying, ‘Never say ‘never’, is so true. The temptation you think you’d never fall for—that you can’t imagine how anyone could ever give in to, might be just the thing that catches you off guard someday. So, beware. Be careful what you think about other people and their habits. Don’t set yourself up for a test you might not want to have to take.

Two pastors who were judgmental toward me at one time, because I was divorced—later ended up having to go through divorces of their own. I didn’t put some kind of a curse on them because of their attitudes—but God allowed them to be tested in the same area where they were critical.

Declaration: I will find new strength by being careful not to criticize others—so I hopefully won’t have to be tested in the same way.

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k

OCTOBER 6

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Focus: The blessing of having the Lord in your life

Romans 5:8-9 (NKJV) But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.

If you know the Lord and you think you have it bad…try to imagine what your life would be like right now…without Him. Often we don’t fully appreciate His power in trying circumstances until much later, when we look back and realize how He truly carried us through a time that otherwise would have been unbearable.

I remember when our country went to war with Iraq in 1990. During operation ‘Desert Storm’ in 1991, there was a huge response of patriotism and prayer by the American people. Everywhere you turned you’d see signs that said, ‘Pray For Our Troops”. Even newscasters would encourage viewers to pray for the safety of those in active duty.

When the World Trade Center was attacked in 2001, there were many appeals to pray for those who were missing and for the families of those who had lost loved ones. Many members of the clergy rushed to the scene to aid those who were involved in disaster relief. Prayer was highly desirable and openly requested.

When an earthquake strikes, or a devastating hurricane—many people turn to God.

It’s sad how it takes times of intense conflict for people to fall on their knees—but another thing to think about is the people who don’t believe in God, Jesus, or prayer. How do they make it through devastating times of crisis? What would your life be like right now without your faith?

Faith in God gives us a reason to believe in a better future—but faith also gives us the courage we need to face discomfort, financial stress, loss of a loved one, health problems, devastation, rejection, loneliness, and times when we may be struggling to understand the meaning of life.

When you know the Lord, there is never a moment when you can’t just tell Him how you feel. He is always there for you. He loves you with an everlasting love that is deeper than the love of any human being. He designed you with a need for Him, that only He can fill.

When people go through life refusing to acknowledge the position the Lord should have in their heart—they are never fully satisfied. They go from one relationship to another, thinking they must be missing something they have yet to find in a person.

Many married people grow to resent their mate because their needs aren’t being met—when truly, no person will ever meet all of another person’s needs. Thinking that your spouse is going to completely be the answer to all the cries of your heart, is putting way too much pressure on them. No wonder so many marriages end in divorce today.

When two people are firmly grounded in their relationship with the Lord—apart from each other—their relationship is much more stable. They aren’t expecting unrealistic things from their mate. Their fulfillment is in the Lord. They are completely satisfied in Him—so why would their relationship with each other ever be in crisis?

A person who is alone and not happy about it should seek the Lord all the more for a closer relationship with Him. It’s not reasonable to think that once you find a person who makes you happy, that your relationship with the Lord will suddenly bloom. Matthew 6:33 says to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then your other needs will be met.

So many people only turn to the Lord for their needs. When they are in trouble of some kind—they are praying night and day—but then when things start to straighten out a little bit, they forget about God until the next time they have a problem. What a loss.

I’ve never known a time when my Jesus ever failed me—or a moment when I needed Him and He just wasn’t there. I’ve never had a heartache and had to bear it all alone because my Jesus didn’t understand despair. Never in my time of sorrow, have I had to face tomorrow, knowing no one who could comfort me or care. No, I’ve never suffered trials by myself because my Savior wouldn’t share. I am so thankful that through the good and the bad of my life—He is with me.

Declaration: I will find new strength by cultivating quality time with the Lord. Everything in my life will improve when I give Him His proper place of priority and concentrate on the blessing and privilege it is to know Him and have Him in my life.

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k

OCTOBER 5

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Focus: Believing God

Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

If you’ve had a history of failures, you might be fearful when you face something that calls for courage. Even if it looks like an opportunity from God, you still could be prone to wonder if taking this step of faith will lead you to victory—or another defeat.

You’ve certainly been through enough to know that not every opportunity that comes to you is from God. If there was no chance of failure, you wouldn’t have fallen in the past. God allows failures to teach us not to jump at everything that looks like a sure thing.

Sometimes you just won’t be able to get a clear word as to whether something is right or wrong and you might have to step out in faith to find out. It never hurts to ask God for a sign…and if you’re still not sure, ask Him for another one!

God wants you to seek Him for wisdom, knowledge, and understanding in all things. He will sometimes have you ‘test out’ an idea to see if He will bless it. When He has confirmed to you that the way He is leading you is right and good, you should move forward with courage. There will always be the naysayers…those who would like to snuff out your vision before it ever has the possibility of succeeding.

In the Book of Numbers, in the Old Testament of the Bible, the children of Israel were on their journey to the Promised Land. As they approached it, the Lord instructed Moses to send men to spy out the land of  Canaan, which He was giving to the children of Israel. One spy from each of the twelve tribes were to be sent to go see what the land was like—whether the people who lived there were strong or weak—few or many—and whether the cities they lived in were like camps or strongholds—whether the land was rich or poor—and whether there were forests there, or not. Moses told them to ‘Be of good courage’, and to bring back some of the fruit of their land. It happened that the season when they would be going was the season of the first ripe grapes.

So, the spies went and spied out the land, from the wilderness—to the city gates. When they came to the Valley of Eshcol, they cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes. It was so large, that it had to be carried on a pole between two men. They also collected some pomegranates and figs and then returned to Moses and their people, after forty days of spying out the land.

When the got back to the camp of the children of Israel, Moses and all the congregation was there to meet them. They were eager to find out what the spies had learned about the promised land. When the twelve men stood before the congregation, they told them that they had gone into the land they had been sent to search out. They reported that it truly flowed with milk and honey and they showed everyone the fruit they had brought back. They went on to say that the people who lived in the land were strong and their cities were fortified and very large. They gave an overview of the various types and nationalities of people who lived in the land from the mountains, to the seaside and along the banks of the Jordan River.

There must have been a considerable amount of talk going on among the congregation, because Caleb, one of the spies, quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let’s go up immediately and take possession, because we are well able to overcome it.

But the men who had gone up with Caleb said, “We can’t go up against these people—they are stronger than we are.” And they proceeded to give the children of Israel a bad report of the land they had spied out, by saying, ”The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw were like giants. We were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and that’s how they saw us, too.”

The congregation was scared to death. They cried like babies all night long. The next day, they complained to Moses and Aaron and said, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in the wilderness! Why has the Lord brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” And they proceeded to make plans to select a new leader and turn back.

Because of their unbelief, none of them were allowed to enter the promised land. Caleb and Joshua believed God would give them the victory and they were allowed to enter Caanan—forty years later. The rest of their people died in the wilderness.

Declaration: I will find new strength by putting all of my trust in God and believing that He will give me victory.

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k

OCTOBER 4

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Focus: The Source of joy

Hebrews 10:16-18 (NKJV) “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,” then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” Now where there is remission of these there is no longer an offering for sin.

God gave Moses the ten commandments. He also gave Moses directions for worshipping Him and plans for a special type of tent that would be created as a tabernacle where God would be worshipped. All of the plans God gave Moses were carried out in the exact way they had been given. There was a large outer tent that contained a lamp stand, a table, and bread that showed the presence of God. Just beyond these items, a curtain stretched across the tent to separate the outer area from another smaller tent that was called ‘the Holy of Holies.’ Inside the smaller tent were placed the gold incense altar and the gold-covered ark of the covenant which contained the gold urn of manna that was saved from the wilderness, Aaron’s rod that had budded to reveal the priesthood of the tribe of the Levites, the ten commandments on stone tablets, and the mercy seat made of pure gold which was over shadowed by two winged cherubims of glory that were also made of gold.

After all of these things were prepared, the priests carried out their duties and service to God in the large outer tent, but only the high priest was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, and that was only once a year, when he offered a blood sacrifice for his own sins and for all of the sins the people had committed. This whole plan was the Holy Spirit’s way of showing us that the way into the inner tent, the Holy of Holies, was at that time, ‘hidden’ and not accessible to all people—and not as perfect and complete as it would be later. Even the tent itself, was a symbol of something temporary.

But when Jesus Christ, the Messiah came to earth, He became the high priest of good things to come, through a greater and more perfect tabernacle, far superior to a tent made with human hands. He also didn’t come bringing the blood of goats and calves, but He brought His own blood and entered into the most Holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. Just think, in those times, if sprinkling the unclean with the blood of goats and bulls and ashes of an heifer were able to sanctify and purify them, how much more would the blood of Christ, Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without any imperfection to God, be able to purge our conscience from our insufficient, dead works—to serve the living God? And because of this, He is the mediator of the new testament, which signifies that by means of death, for the redemption of the sins that were under the law, people who are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

In the same way that a ‘will’ is only effective after the person who it belongs to dies, and is of no effect as long as they are alive—the first testament was dedicated without blood. Because when Moses had told all of the law to God’s chosen people, he then took the blood of goats and calves, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both of them on the book that contained the law and also on the people, saying, “This is the blood of the testament which God has enjoined unto you.” In addition, he sprinkled blood on the tabernacle and on all of the things made for the tabernacle and ministry. Just like a person’s will takes effect when they die, a new covenant was put into effect when Jesus died. At His death, the transition from the old plan to the new one took place. It cancelled the old obligations and sins, and summoned the heirs of salvation to receive the eternal inheritance that had been promised to them. The death of Jesus made it possible for a new and better relationship between God and His people.

Before Christ, practically all acts of disobedience had to be purged by blood, and without the shedding of blood, there was no possibility of cleansing and forgiveness. Because of these things, the pattern was being revealed of the necessity for a way that would be much more perfect than they way things had been before.  In the new covenant,  animal sacrifices would no longer be necessary, even though they had served their purpose.

When Christ came, He didn’t enter the Holy places that were made with human hands, which were patterns or a foretelling of the true way—but He entered heaven itself, and is now in the presence of God for us. There is no need for Him to offer Himself again and again, like the high priests who had to enter the Holy of Holies once a year with sacrificial blood that didn’t belong to them. If that had been required, He would have had to sacrifice Himself over and over throughout history, since the initial sin of mankind. But because Christ was perfect, He came once and gave all of His blood through the sacrificial offering of Himself. Just like it is appointed unto us to die only one time, and then face judgment, Christ died only once to pay for the sins of the world forever. So it is, that when He appears the next time, He will be coming for those who are looking for Him. Their outcome will be salvation, and eternity with Christ. (Hebrews chapter 9, paraphrased) What could be more joyful?

Declaration: I will rejoice in the sacrificial blood of Jesus Christ that was sufficient for the sins of the world.

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k

SEPTEMBER 26

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Focus: Mountain moving faith

Matthew 17:20b (NKJV) …For assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.’

The twelve disciples were so human. They were just like you and me. Their faith represented your faith and mine in the stories told throughout the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The questions they asked and the things they thought were important and valid in their days—and in ours.

The disciples had a desire to follow Jesus and do what He did…just like little children who try to walk in the shoes of their parents. Sometimes they are clumsy and they fall, but they keep getting back up and trying again. They wanted Jesus to be proud of them and to notice their good accomplishments. They didn’t like looking like failures and neither do we.

In Matthew 17, Jesus was approached by a man whose son was suffering from terrible seizures. These episodes caused the child to repeatedly throw himself into fire and water. The boy must have been covered with sores and scars as a result.

The father of this poor soul comes to Jesus asking Him to have mercy on his son. The man tells Jesus that he took his child to the disciples and asked them to heal him. We aren’t told what method the disciples used, or any of the details. All we know is that they failed, because the boy still wasn’t cured.

Most of the time Jesus shows patience and understanding for the human weaknesses in His disciples, but this time, He seems to be tired of the fact that people—and His disciples—are not capable of doing things which He considers ‘elementary’, relating to faith issues. In this passage, Jesus seems irritated at their lack of faith and inability to grasp how faith works. When He hears that the disciples couldn’t heal the man’s child, He says, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.”

Jesus proceeds to rebuke the demon who had taken up residence in the boy. The Bible says, ‘it came out of the child immediately, and the boy was healed from that very hour.’

Of course the disciples felt like fools as they took Jesus aside and asked Him privately, “Why couldn’t we cast it out?”

Jesus didn’t sugar coat the truth. He told the disciples, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here—to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. However, this kind (of demon) does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

Jesus spent a lot of time praying and fasting, but obviously His disciples weren’t following His lead. They liked the ‘show’, but they must not have been doing their part by staying in a proper place of preparation for ministry. So, when the opportunity came for them to exercise the great faith they should have had by now—they fell flat.

That’s all there is to the story—just a few short paragraphs telling us a humble little message we can relate to and learn from. We might think the disciples weren’t very bright, but this story wasn’t told to bring shame on them—it was told to bring new strength and stronger faith to all of us, because we are just like the twelve—in so many ways. The areas they failed in—we fail in, too.

At this moment, you might be facing a ‘big thing’ that is taking almost all of your attention. It may not be made of stone, but it is none-the-less, a mountain in your mind. As impossible as it seems right now, your faith has the power to make it move, according to the Word of God.

Maybe at this point, Jesus is saying a few things you should ponder. When the disciples asked Jesus why they hadn’t been able to heal the man’s son, the first reason Jesus gave the disciples, was ‘because of their unbelief.’ He quickly adds that their faith should have motivated them to ‘speak to the problem and tell it to go.’ He also mentioned that prayer and fasting would have boosted their faith in the situation where they failed.

So, faith performs when we ‘believe,’ ‘speak,’ ‘fast,’ and ‘pray.’ Have you done all of those things concerning your mountain? If you haven’t, then you should. If you have, then ‘stand’ (Ephesians 6:13).

Declaration: I will take more responsibility and approach my problems with faith. I will see miracles and find new strength as I ‘believe,’ ‘speak,’ ‘fast,’ ‘pray,’ and ‘stand.’

All NEW STRENGTH posts are Copyright by Christina Cook Lee as of the date they were written and posted. Please request permission to re-post or re-blog. This material will be published as a book at the end of 2012, by the grace of God.To subscribe to New Strength, select ‘follow’ in the upper left corner of this page.

For music selections that will help bring hope and encouragement during your recovery from depression and addiction, browse:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW5unzXXC0k