2 Cor 5:17
17 What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!
NLT
This scripture tells me that I am a new person, not the same anymore, for my old life (old feelings, thoughts, & identity) is gone. I have a new life and identity!
Wouldn’t it be great if I could freely accept my new life & identity and have the old just disappear? Often times, though, there is action required on my part to lay behind the old and receive the new.
I’ve been in a season where God has allowed me to come face-to-face with some old feelings and thoughts about myself. I’ve also seen how much of my identity has been based on these old feelings and thoughts. Of course, this old identity doesn’t match up with what God’s Word says about who I am in Christ.
A couple years ago I taught women’s Sunday school class based on Neil Anderson’s book titled “Victory Over Darkness.” Chapter 4, “Something Old, Something New” describes that I need to believe that my new identity is in the life of Christ and commit myself to grow accordingly. I need to believe this regardless of how I feel or think about myself.
In preparing to teach Chapter 4, God gave me a ceremony to have the ladies perform in class. The ceremony, which I called “Discarding the Old & Putting on the New Celebration”, involved ladies writing on 3x5 index cards old man feelings, thoughts, or other old man stuff that they wanted to get rid of. The ladies were then invited to come forward, rip the cards up, and throw them in a box, which became known as the old man coffin box. The ladies had the option of sharing with the class what they were tossing away, or privately sharing with me, or not sharing at all. After they ripped and tossed the cards away, they received a love shawl and were prayed for.
About a month ago, I felt the Lord calling me to go through the Discarding the Old & Putting on the New Celebration since I have never done this. I invited four of my closest friends to my house last week to be a part of the celebration. I asked one of them to make me a love shawl and another one to lead the celebration.
As I prepared for the celebration, God revealed specific old man feelings and thoughts that I was to share and toss away. These were things in my life that remained in the dark until God shined His light on them, exposed them, and now it was time for me to lay them down.
My friends all arrived and it was time to begin the celebration. Pound! Pound! My heart began racing as I began to open my mouth and share. I shared the most difficult thing first, ripped up the paper, and tossed it into the old man coffin box. I began to move onto the next, when the prayer leader asked if we could stop and have them all pray for me. I said “yes”. They all came over to me, laid hands on me, and prayed for me. Tears came pouring out as they prayed. Half a box of tissues later we moved onto the next thing. I felt a sense of liberation with each thing that I shared, ripped up, and tossed. There were no more index cards in my hands. Everything that the Lord led me to share I had shared.
My friend who made me the love shawl came over and wrapped me in it. They all laid hands on me again and prayed a blessing over me. After prayer, one of my other friends indicated that she had something for me. She went and got another love shawl that she had made. She explained that she was led by the Lord to make me one too. She said that this love shawl symbolizes that I’m washed white as snow by the blood of the Lamb and that I’m God’s girl.
The last thing we did as part of the celebration was to place everything that I ripped up in a paper bag and burnt it. As I watched the torn pieces of my old life burning in front of me, I felt a sense of liberation and that it was time to accept and walk in my new life in Christ. After all the pieces were burnt, I stomped on the ashes and said to myself “it is finished, time to walk in the new!”
It has been a little over a week since I went through the Discarding the Old & Putting on the New Celebration. I can honestly say that I feel like a new creation in Christ, I’ve come to know deep in my heart that God truly loves me unconditionally and that He will never leave nor forsake me, and that I’m always God’s girl. I comfortable with being me now and I don’t have to hide behind a mask and pretend to be someone else. I am truly walking in my new life!
To my four friends that participated in the celebration, thank you for being there for me, loving me, and listening to me. I truly love you all and may we continue to grow together in Christ.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Friday, September 29, 2006
Sunday, September 17, 2006
A Yielded Heart
God has me in a season where I'm truly learning what it means to have a yielded a heart. Here are some of the things that I've learned.
A yielded heart:- is soft and supple;
- can be shaped and molded into God's perfect will for my life;
- surrenders to the Lord and is obedient no matter how I feel;
- goes through trials & tribulations with God to come out victorious on the other side;
- leads to more freedom in Christ;
- receives and accepts God's forgiveness and unconditional love; and
- pleases God.
I desire to always yield my heart to the Lord since it is a wonderful place to be; a place where I sit at the feet of Jesus yielding to His perfect will for my life.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Trash Tidbits
The articles below appeared in my recent WasteAge magazine. I thought that you all would find them interesting.
Drinking on the Job
Aug 1, 2006 12:00 PMBy Jennifer Grzeskowiak
If you've ever been to a fraternity party, you know people will drink some pretty unusual substances on a dare. In a more serious context, a landfill manager in Southwold Township, Ontario, recently gulped down a glass of treated leachate to prove that the Green Lane landfill isn't harmful to the environment.
Apparently, it wasn't the first time he had drank the concoction, which he described as slightly sweet and not completely unpleasant. This time, however, the manager imbibed after the government approved a 10-million-ton landfill expansion, creating concern that Toronto might begin hauling its waste to the site. And you thought chugging a gallon of milk in an hour was weird.
Source: London (Ontario) Free Press
Davy Jones' Garbage Truck
Aug 1, 2006 12:00 PMBy Jennifer Grzeskowiak
As the old saying goes, “Women need men like fish need bicycles.” Apparently, however, fish do have a use for old garbage trucks. In June, Thailand submerged the bodies and chassis of 189 trucks off of the southern coast to create artificial reefs and attract more fish. In their former life, the trucks, which were cleaned and disinfected, were used to pick up waste in Bangkok.
As part of the queen's project to help marine life and fishermen, the government previously has dumped trains and drainage pipes. Bicycles-built-for-two have yet to make the list of items.
Source: The Bangkok Post
Drinking on the Job
Aug 1, 2006 12:00 PMBy Jennifer Grzeskowiak
If you've ever been to a fraternity party, you know people will drink some pretty unusual substances on a dare. In a more serious context, a landfill manager in Southwold Township, Ontario, recently gulped down a glass of treated leachate to prove that the Green Lane landfill isn't harmful to the environment.
Apparently, it wasn't the first time he had drank the concoction, which he described as slightly sweet and not completely unpleasant. This time, however, the manager imbibed after the government approved a 10-million-ton landfill expansion, creating concern that Toronto might begin hauling its waste to the site. And you thought chugging a gallon of milk in an hour was weird.
Source: London (Ontario) Free Press
Davy Jones' Garbage Truck
Aug 1, 2006 12:00 PMBy Jennifer Grzeskowiak
As the old saying goes, “Women need men like fish need bicycles.” Apparently, however, fish do have a use for old garbage trucks. In June, Thailand submerged the bodies and chassis of 189 trucks off of the southern coast to create artificial reefs and attract more fish. In their former life, the trucks, which were cleaned and disinfected, were used to pick up waste in Bangkok.
As part of the queen's project to help marine life and fishermen, the government previously has dumped trains and drainage pipes. Bicycles-built-for-two have yet to make the list of items.
Source: The Bangkok Post
Monday, September 04, 2006
Fishing Report
I picked up my fishing buddy, Michael, bright and early on Thursday morning. Our destination was Clayton, NY to spend the day fishing with my dad.
Our first stop was at the Sunoco gas station in Potsdam; I needed my cup of Gulliver's hazelnut coffee and Michael needed a bottle of water. Next stop was Dunkin Donuts. It is a tradition that I bring donuts for the trip when I go fishing with dad. We got 6 donuts. I let Michael pick out three of them and said that he could have some, but that he would have to wait until we got on the boat.
On the way to Clayton, Michael and I had a conversation about castles. I shared with him the story about Boldt Castle. I knew that we would arrive a few minutes late, but I thought it would be neat for Michael to actually see the castle. There is a spot in Alexandria Bay, which is on the way to Clayton, that you can see Boldt Castle. We made the side trip and Michael with impressed with it. I also shared with Michael that the Thousand Island Bridge Authority owns Boldt Castle and that I used to paint the bridge during the summers when I college student. On rainy days, we would go to Boldt Castle and paint the steel rafters in the attic. Another interesting point: one of the muskies that was caught on my father's boat is displayed in the billards room at the castle.
We arrived at the marina and my dad greeted us. After quick trips to the bathroom, we all jumped in the boat and my dad skillfully maneuvered the boat out of the boat slip. I'm truly amazed how my dad maneuvers the boat in & out of his slip since it located in the corner the building and there are always boats behind him that he has to avoid hitting.
"Time to open the donut box", I said to Michael. We opened the box and to our amazement one donut was missing. I asked Michael if he had already had one and he said no. Strange I thought since I know we got six donuts and the white frosting to the one missing was on the box. Michael grabbed a donut while my dad and I passed on having any. My dad did have two later in the day and the missing donut remained a mystery.
We got to our first fishing spot, baited our hooks, and dropped our lines in the water. My dad provided Michael with instructions of how to drop his line down and Michael caught on quickly. We were there for about 15 minutes and didn't get any bites. "Time to move, why stay in a spot where there is no action," said dad.
We were on the move to waters located in Canada when dad decided to try one more spot on the US side of the St. Lawrence River. We had our lines down for about 5 minutes when Michael informed me that he thought he had bottom. I grabbed his pole and brought the line tight. The jerking of the line revealed to me that Michael had a fish. I gave him the pole back and told him to begin reeling. He was reeling and all of a sudden the pole bent over and the line went out to deeper waters. My dad and I looked at each other and said "he either has a northern pike or muskie." After a few minutes of reeling, the fish was netted and in the boat. The fish was a northern pike measuring about 28 inches. Nice fish, Michael!! After a picture, we threw the pike back into the water. I encouraged dad to give Michael the traditional fisherman handshake: shake hands before washing the fish slime off. Dad originally hestitated, but then decided to do it. Michael didn't seem to mind. This is a sign that Michael is an experienced fisherman now - he has had the traditional fisherman handshake.
Our first stop was at the Sunoco gas station in Potsdam; I needed my cup of Gulliver's hazelnut coffee and Michael needed a bottle of water. Next stop was Dunkin Donuts. It is a tradition that I bring donuts for the trip when I go fishing with dad. We got 6 donuts. I let Michael pick out three of them and said that he could have some, but that he would have to wait until we got on the boat.
On the way to Clayton, Michael and I had a conversation about castles. I shared with him the story about Boldt Castle. I knew that we would arrive a few minutes late, but I thought it would be neat for Michael to actually see the castle. There is a spot in Alexandria Bay, which is on the way to Clayton, that you can see Boldt Castle. We made the side trip and Michael with impressed with it. I also shared with Michael that the Thousand Island Bridge Authority owns Boldt Castle and that I used to paint the bridge during the summers when I college student. On rainy days, we would go to Boldt Castle and paint the steel rafters in the attic. Another interesting point: one of the muskies that was caught on my father's boat is displayed in the billards room at the castle.
We arrived at the marina and my dad greeted us. After quick trips to the bathroom, we all jumped in the boat and my dad skillfully maneuvered the boat out of the boat slip. I'm truly amazed how my dad maneuvers the boat in & out of his slip since it located in the corner the building and there are always boats behind him that he has to avoid hitting.
"Time to open the donut box", I said to Michael. We opened the box and to our amazement one donut was missing. I asked Michael if he had already had one and he said no. Strange I thought since I know we got six donuts and the white frosting to the one missing was on the box. Michael grabbed a donut while my dad and I passed on having any. My dad did have two later in the day and the missing donut remained a mystery.
We got to our first fishing spot, baited our hooks, and dropped our lines in the water. My dad provided Michael with instructions of how to drop his line down and Michael caught on quickly. We were there for about 15 minutes and didn't get any bites. "Time to move, why stay in a spot where there is no action," said dad.
We were on the move to waters located in Canada when dad decided to try one more spot on the US side of the St. Lawrence River. We had our lines down for about 5 minutes when Michael informed me that he thought he had bottom. I grabbed his pole and brought the line tight. The jerking of the line revealed to me that Michael had a fish. I gave him the pole back and told him to begin reeling. He was reeling and all of a sudden the pole bent over and the line went out to deeper waters. My dad and I looked at each other and said "he either has a northern pike or muskie." After a few minutes of reeling, the fish was netted and in the boat. The fish was a northern pike measuring about 28 inches. Nice fish, Michael!! After a picture, we threw the pike back into the water. I encouraged dad to give Michael the traditional fisherman handshake: shake hands before washing the fish slime off. Dad originally hestitated, but then decided to do it. Michael didn't seem to mind. This is a sign that Michael is an experienced fisherman now - he has had the traditional fisherman handshake.
Michael ended up catching a few perch at this same spot. By the time that we were on our way to Canadian waters again, Michael had out fished me in quantity and size. Not bad for his first time out.
On the ride to Canada, Michael asked a lot of questions about the tackle and instrumentation on the boat. He was able to see the us cross the border line on dad's GPS unit. It was pretty interesting. Michael also got to see how my dad finds fish with his depth & fish finder.
My dad and I shared how fishing was a lot different then when I learned how to fish. We didn't have all the fancy instrumentation. We used to go to a spot, put our lines in, and wait for the fish to bite. Now if my dad doesn't mark any fish in an area, he doesn't stop to fish there.
We were at our next stop and Michael caught his first small mouth bass.
We ended up keeping the bass. After dad placed it into the fish well, Michael walked over to him to initiate the tradtional fisherman handshake. My dad looked at him, laughed, and shook Michael's hand.
We caught a total of 6 small mouth bass, two perch, and Michael's one pike. All in all it was a good day of fishing.
Michael learned a lot about fishing. He eventually was able to bait his own hook and take bait off from his hook when it was dead. He also got a lesson in cleaning the fish, but I don't think he enjoyed this part as much as fishing. He also got to eat some of what we caught on Saturday night since we had a fish dinner at his house with the rest of his family.
Thanks for letting my dad and I share our fishing knowledge with you Michael. It was great to spend the day with you and teach you all that we know about fishing. You've graduated from fishing 101 to fishing 102 now and remember what your mom said about the bait that we use in fishing 102.
Michael and I had a conversation about the mystery of the missing donut on the way home. We concluded that my dad must have given one to the marina owner since he was standing next to the boat when we boarded the boat.
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