Have you ever been around people who had a very distinct walk? Maybe it was a strut of some sort. Maybe it was a stroll; a classy walk; a sleazy walk...you get the picture. We've seen them and they come in all different styles. But when they walk past, I've heard people say "own it! strut that stuff!" and the like. Reality is, we do own our own walks....our own walks with God.

Ezekiel 18 is a chapter well worth reading. Here it is from the Message Bible.

God's Message to me: "What do you people mean by going around the country repeating the saying,
The parents ate green apples,
The children got the stomachache?
"As sure as I'm the living God, you're not going to repeat this saying in Israel any longer. Every soul—man, woman, child—belongs to me, parent and child alike. You die for your own sin, not another's."
Imagine a person who lives well, treating others fairly, keeping good relationships—

doesn't eat at the pagan shrines,
doesn't worship the idols so popular in Israel,
doesn't seduce a neighbor's spouse,
doesn't indulge in casual sex,
doesn't bully anyone,
doesn't pile up bad debts,
doesn't steal,
doesn't refuse food to the hungry,
doesn't refuse clothing to the ill-clad,
doesn't exploit the poor,
doesn't live by impulse and greed,
doesn't treat one person better than another,
But lives by my statutes and faithfully
honors and obeys my laws.
This person who lives upright and well
shall live a full and true life.
Decree of God, the Master.

"But if this person has a child who turns violent and murders and goes off and does any of these things, even though the parent has done none of them—
eats at the pagan shrines,
seduces his neighbor's spouse,
bullies the weak,
steals,
piles up bad debts,
admires idols,
commits outrageous obscenities,
exploits the poor
"—do you think this person, the child, will live? Not a chance! Because he's done all these vile things, he'll die. And his death will be his own fault.

"Now look: Suppose that this child has a child who sees all the sins done by his parent. The child sees them, but doesn't follow in the parent's footsteps—
doesn't eat at the pagan shrines,
doesn't worship the popular idols of Israel,
doesn't seduce his neighbor's spouse,
doesn't bully anyone,
doesn't refuse to loan money,
doesn't steal,
doesn't refuse food to the hungry,
doesn't refuse to give clothes to the ill-clad,
doesn't live by impulse and greed,
doesn't exploit the poor.
He does what I say;
he performs my laws and lives by my statutes.

"This person will not die for the sins of the parent; he will live truly and well. But the parent will die for what the parent did, for the sins of—
oppressing the weak,
robbing brothers and sisters,
doing what is dead wrong in the community.

"Do you need to ask, 'So why does the child not share the guilt of the parent?'

"Isn't it plain? It's because the child did what is fair and right. Since the child was careful to do what is lawful and right, the child will live truly and well. The soul that sins is the soul that dies. The child does not share the guilt of the parent, nor the parent the guilt of the child. If you live upright and well, you get the credit; if you live a wicked life, you're guilty as charged.

"But a wicked person who turns his back on that life of sin and keeps all my statutes, living a just and righteous life, he'll live, really live. He won't die. I won't keep a list of all the things he did wrong. He will live. Do you think I take any pleasure in the death of wicked men and women? Isn't it my pleasure that they turn around, no longer living wrong but living right—really living?

"The same thing goes for a good person who turns his back on an upright life and starts sinning, plunging into the same vile obscenities that the wicked person practices. Will this person live? I don't keep a list of all the things this person did right, like money in the bank he can draw on. Because of his defection, because he accumulates sin, he'll die.

"Do I hear you saying, 'That's not fair! God's not fair!'?

"Listen, Israel. I'm not fair? You're the ones who aren't fair! If a good person turns away from his good life and takes up sinning, he'll die for it. He'll die for his own sin. Likewise, if a bad person turns away from his bad life and starts living a good life, a fair life, he will save his life. Because he faces up to all the wrongs he's committed and puts them behind him, he will live, really live. He won't die.

"And yet Israel keeps on whining, 'That's not fair! God's not fair.'

"I'm not fair, Israel? You're the ones who aren't fair.

"The upshot is this, Israel: I'll judge each of you according to the way you live. So turn around! Turn your backs on your rebellious living so that sin won't drag you down. Clean house. No more rebellions, please. Get a new heart! Get a new spirit! Why would you choose to die, Israel? I take no pleasure in anyone's death. Decree of God, the Master.

"Make a clean break! Live!"

The truth is that your walk with Christ is your walk. You choose to walk with God as a "sold-out" follower and disciple of Jesus Christ or not. You can choose life (fellowship with God) or death (separation in fellowship with God due to sin).You cannot ride on the coattails of your grandparents' nor parents' faith, any more than you will be condemned for lack of your grandparents' or parents' faith. Your walk is your walk. You are and will be held responsible for your walk....not anybody else.

And for those of you who like me, have tried desperately to encourage those around you to walk the walk only to get royally frustrated when they choose not to, be encouraged and be set free!

Wives, you are free from having to try to make your husbands see.

Mothers, you are free from having to try to make your children choose Jesus.

The Bible is clear: everyone reaps what they sow...and maybe the best thing for your spouse and your children is for you to "hand them over" as did God in Romans 1 and let them suffer the repercussions of their choices rather than trying your darnedest to protect them from them.

You can encourage, challenge, and seek to help them by sharing your heart with them. But after that, pray. And then, pray. And then, pray some more.

At the end of the day, God says, "I'll judge each of you according to the way you live." It is your walk....no one else's....own it! And don't own what is not your's....free yourself up and get out of God's way so He can move in your spouse's or children's hearts.

Hard words and hard teaching.....but so so true....may this speak deeply into your hearts this day.

God has been so gracious this week to allow our family to go to the beach for Spring Break. So, though we are veering away from I Corinthians 13 for this week, I wanted to share what the Lord revealed to me at the beach today.

First of all, it is rather cold. It wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the wind. The wind is..... chilly! Yesterday, our family ventured out and forged forth in the cold to lay out in the sun. There we lay, in our bathing suits with goose bumps from head to toe, but by-golly, we were laying out at the beach! Others fought the cold and joined us.....in their sweatsuits and blankets....I'm not lying! It really was that cold!

Today, I waited til later on in the day and decided I would just go out for a couple of hours and then come in. I got my book and ipod and headed to the windy beach for some "sun". As I lay there, these gusts of wind would sweep by, almost blowing off my ball cap and wrapping me up in the blanket underneath me. I got cold.....real cold. And just about when I thought I could take it no more, I would tense up and hold onto the lounge chair until the wind died down so I could stay a little longer. It is then that the Lord spoke to me, and asked me, "Jena, what would you withstand for Me? What are you willing to do to be with Me?"

My mind went straight to the Scripture where Paul says,

Philippians 3:7-14, "But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

Do I really want to know Jesus? Know His love? Know His heart? Above ALL things? Am I willing to do whatever it takes to really pursue Him?

God, give us Paul's heart to want to know You above all else.

Love Is Even-Tempered

Anger, hot-temperedness, being easily provoked, being easily irritated, and offering threatening responses in both word and actions are all forms of control in marriage. Why control? Because if we can exhibit these kinds of things, we can control people to act like we want them to act and get them to do what we want them to do.

Yet 1 Corinthians commands that our love be demonstrated by being even-tempered. To be even-tempered means "not easily ruffled, annoyed, or disturbed; calm". Being angry and hot-tempered is a serious problem in marriages today. At the heart of anger is a wound—our neediness and expectations have been unfulfilled, so we vent. Our spouse has done or said something that hurt us, so we lash out in anger, to get the situation and our feelings back under our control.

For example, our spouse does something that makes you feel insecure or insignificant. You might say something or do something to embarrass them or "put them in their place" so that you can then feel better about yourself and have the control over your spouse to "make up for their mistake". Instead of gently coming to them and sharing how their words or actions wounded you, you wound them, and it leaves the marriage disconnected and broken.

When intimacy is broken down by our demanding spirits, controlling attitudes, and anger, we behave totally opposite of God’s plan for loving one another. Loving your spouse in ways as described in 1 Corinthians 13 means that you make decisions that soften and do not irritate your husband or wife. You demonstrate love to your spouse in a manner that stimulates positive responses and calming attitudes, that breed growth and connectedness in the marriage, for greater intimacy.

Maybe the best way to have a fulfilling marriage relationship is not to be in control, but rather out of your control and left in the control of the Lord. When placed in His hands, His Spirit is each of you can help you respond in loving ways that promote growth and transformation in your lives and relationships.