Reflections on A Skit...

Okay people, if you scroll down to my next blog entry you'll see something titled "must see video" or something like that. If you look at that, you will understand THIS entry. I would like to thank my brother Sean for sending me the link to this video, as it allowed God an entry way to my heart this morning. It was something that I can't wait to continue reflecting on, as this was not your every day "jovial" or "feel good" message...it was something to make you THINK. So I hope the video penetrates your heart like it penetrated mine. But for now, here are my reflections on what God showed me.

The beginning of the video is WONDERFUL...a reflection of the way things SHOULD BE...God teaching us EVERYTHING---and it's all GOOD and beneficial...and we are just there, fellowshipping with God. Everything is as it should be.

But then, sin enters our lives...ugly and dark---but very very tempting...sin shows us things we never knew before and we're curious and intrigued. The more we stay around sin, the harder it is to stay with God...which SUCKS...

And what ONCE seemed enticing and different and all these other stupid things that lied to us is NOW becoming a big hole in our lives...and we no longer are happy...and so we try all kinds of crap (no thanks to satan and his pesky demons)...and as seen in the video, happiness is sought out by drinking, cutting (PURELY DEMONIC!!!), and eating disorders...but the girl isn't happy...she's got a big hole in her life...longing to fill it...

Finally, she starts to run away from it all...and notice how the demons beat her up with it and refuse to let her go...but she's DESPERATE to go back to Jesus...notice what happens...JESUS steps in on her behalf---and as she reaches up toward Heaven and prays---those demons are inflicting all the pain/punishment onto JESUS...He took the pain and the crap for HER...

Then the coolest part of all...

JESUS CONQUERS death AND satan AND pain...they don't have a hold of this girl anymore...PRAISE GOD!!! And do you know what happens next...they FELLOWSHIP...and Jesus shows her new things...and all is well again, THE GIRL IS FREE!!!

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Okay, so there's my synopsis supposing you don't want to watch the video clip. I will WHOLEHEARTEDLY admit that as I was sitting there this morning, watching this clip that Sean wanted me to show my husband, I WAS IN TEARS...because for once, my shell was broken, and I saw the truth as related to ME...

Can I share my story with you this afternoon???

I was reading in a book "Bad Girls of the Bible" where the author talked about how in the Garden of Eden BEFORE THE FALL...they had NO KNOWLEDGE of evil...they were just completely oblivious to the fact that it even existed...can you even imagine???

Well anyway, that's where i picture myself in the beginning of the clip...I had no knowledge of evil---but, like all humans, I have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), and I was separated from God and drawn away into temptation by the devil...

My temptation led me into several of the things depicted in the video...I had an eating disorder, thoughts of suicide (in my younger years), and ALWAYS had thoughts of cutting...I was a mess. I knew no love, and when I got married it was just another way for me to TRY to belong...marriage brought a HUGE mess of DEBT and other battles...satan had me hung up in a very tangled web of deceit and lies and everything CONTRARY to the Word of God...and I was DESPERATE for a way out...

So desperate in fact that I had written 2 journal entries about how if the Word of God was TRUE, then why wasn't I like the early apostles?? Why wasn't GOD the biggest thing in my life?? And why didn't i CARE????

I've shared about how God brought me to PHCC where I currently attend church...and that was the BEGINNING of deliverance for me. I began to reach up toward Heaven, much like the girl did, and God began delivering me!!

I cried in this part of the video because Jesus had to stand in her place and take the beating for her...and I didn't want that to happen. I didn't want Jesus to get hurt because of my stupidity...Jesus never did anything wrong...NEVER...but there he was, and those stupid mean evil demons were hurting Him...for something I did...and just because I wanted OUT...He was going to save me...

It broke my heart...and I didn't want to watch it...because watching it HURTS...but you know what, I HAD to watch it...because it's the TRUTH. And the TRUTH wasn't pretty...

But here it is for EVERYTHING it is worth...and it is worth ETERNAL SALVATION...

Fact: satan comes to steal kill and destroy...(John 10:10)...we saw that as he tried to LITERALLY destroy the life of the girl in the video by trying to have her commit suicide. You saw him steal from her at the beginning..you saw him destroying her body with the cutting...steal, kill destroy...it's satan...and he's always going to have that purpose...

I also know that the Bible says "the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23)" And you know what...the second I started to sin and go MY way instead of God's way which we're all guilty of, I sentenced myself to DEATH...and as Sean once said so beautifully...there is a paycheck which said "pay to the order of Kristi in the amount of death" it's what my wages are...BUT...

BUT

Oh I'm so happy there is a BUT in this story!!!

look at the rest of the verse...For the wages of sin is death, BUT the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord...

ETERNAL LIFE...a GIFT from God...

Let's live here for a moment if you would.

The girl in the clip, or even me...or you...DROWNING in sin...DYING inside (possibly outside, i don't' know)...I only know that we're either FOR GOD or against God, there is no grey area...and when you're living in sin, you're AGAINST God...and you're DYING!!!

I wanted a way out...God provided that way...

God provided His very own SON...His ONLY begotten son, JESUS, who had NEVER EVER EVER sinned...perfect and blameless in EVERY way to pay the price for us...

He took our sin to the cross---all of it that would ever be committed...all the cutting, all the murders, all the pain, all the crap...ANYTHING and EVERYTHING satan could EVER dream of...JESUS TOOK IT TO THE CROSS...and because He had NEVER known sin, He was able to pay the price for all of us...

That was the deal---Jesus agreed to go to the cross for our sin, God offered us eternal life if we believed that He raised Jesus from the dead...

I was BOUGHT WITH A PRICE!!!

I was talking about how it broke my heart to watch the video---how I didn't want to see Jesus suffer for something He didn't do...but the truth of the matter is...HE DID. Jesus took MY price---my DEATH...and He took it on Himself...

He died---and it was because i was a jerk and had to listen to the deceitful lies of satan...

BUT there was HOPE...because on the THIRD DAY...God raised Jesus from the dead, and Jesus opened a gateway for us to take back all the territory satan had stolen from us...PRAISE GOD!!!

Jesus paid the price for me...HE took a MIGHTY beating...He suffered humiliation, and He endured the pain of all my sin and all your sin...but He didn't stay DEAD...HE CONQUERED DEATH!!!

Did you notice what was happening at the end of the video?? Was this girl bound with chains??? Was she separated from her Father anymore??? NO!!! The cross bridged the gap between us and God...and we NOW have open communication.

The video is good to watch because you really see the innocent blood of Jesus shed so that we can LIVE...it was a PRECIOUS cost...but God saw US as important enough to pay the price...

John 3:16

For God so loved the WORLD that He GAVE His ONLY BEGOTTEN SON that whosoever (that includes EVERYONE!) believes in HIM should NOT perish BUT have everlasting life...

Now, you may be reading this and wondering what you can do to be saved. It's really easy.

Romans 10:9-10 gives us the answer.

That if you confess with your MOUTH the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you WILL BE SAVED. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

It's truly that simple. You confess with your mouth that you are making Jesus LORD of your life...and you believe in your HEART that God raised Him from the dead.

The price has been paid, and if you accept this, you CAN BE FREE...free from debt, free from pain, free from any other torment you could ever imagine or dream of...Jesus paid the price for all of that with HIS LIFE...and He did it so that we could be FREE.

If you have any questions about salvation or what God did by sending His son to die for us, please let me know.

I pray this video and this message touched your heart like it did mine...

I CAN STAND ON THIS WORD: I AM FREE! Christ paid the price for my life, and I AM FREE to LIVE for HIM...

Oh yeah, that's the other thing...I mentioned earlier that satan came to steal, kill and destroy? Well do you know what Christ came to do??

Look at the other half of John 10:10: BUT I (Jesus) have come that they may have LIFE, and that they may have it more ABUNDANTLY.

LIFE :) A good life full of wonderful things (James 1:17---Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is NO variation or shadow of turning). PRAISE GOD!

We have the opportunity for LIFE because CHRIST stepped in on our behalf and was WILLING to pay the price for us to escape death!!! It is because of HIM that we are able to truly LIVE!!!

I hope this blessed you.