change

Dunamis

Valerie Cullers 5 Comments
When we have made a decision to change for the better, that is a positive thing. Some change takes very little effort. Let’s say we need to floss our teeth at night, make our bed in the morning, or quit watching TV so late at night. Relatively, this kind of change is easy.
Other changes are harder. What about beginning to exercise, losing weight, applying ourselves at work…we may definitely need a kickstart to get going. We will also need some help to keep at our desired goal.
Some changes are almost impossible to implement in our lives without some real help. Breaking any kind of addiction, be it tobacco, alcohol, drugs, or pornography, usually requires some outside help. It is pretty hard to muster up the inner strength to kick these on our own. Some would say we need a miracle, especially if they have had a hold on us for some time.
That’s where dunamis comes in. In the Scriptures, it is one of the words used to describe God’s power. Google says it this way, “Dunamis is a Greek word meaning “power,” “strength,” or “ability,” often used in the New Testament to signify miraculous, inherent, or supernatural power from God.” It is where we get the word dynamite from.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have some dynamite power to help us make those difficult changes in our lives? The great thing is that it is available to each and every one of us. All we have to do is ask. Yes, that’s it. We just need to ask the Lord for help, and he is available to help us with whatever we need.
“But I don’t know him,” you might say to me. No problem, he knows you, and he is just waiting to help you. His hand is stretched out to help whoever calls on him. “But you don’t know what I’ve done.” True, but he does, and he is there waiting to help you make the changes you need. 
Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” Matt. 7: 7-8. When he says you, he means you. The ground at the cross is level; anyone can come, there is no litmus test you must meet. Come and ask for help. He is just waiting to give you his dynamite power to change.
Image by Ivan Thomas. Courtesy of Pixabay. 

 

 

 

Lipstick on a Pig

Valerie Cullers 40 Comments

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Have you ever seen a photo (a real one) of a pig with lipstick on? If you have, you know that it just looks bizarre. We all can agree on one thing: you just don’t want to put lipstick on a pig.

You know, though, it is something we do all the time. There are things, habits, in each of our lives that need to be dealt with. We need to change them, stop them, do something different, but instead of doing what we need to, we just accept them, put a little lipstick on them, and keep on going.

For instance, do we harbor some ill will towards someone? Instead of forgiving them and moving on, we just secretly hold on to it and make excuses for it. Do we take pleasure in gossip about someone we are jealous of? If so, we are enjoying our pet pig and putting lipstick on it to make it more palatable to our conscience. 

What about those bad habits we imbibe that are destroying our bodies? Perhaps we have one too many drinks when we come home from work. Or maybe we continue to smoke when we know it is killing us. We might be sneaking candy when we know it is making our blood sugar skyrocket. You get it, these are pet pigs we are harboring, and we just put a little more lipstick on them each time we continue to imbibe in them.

How do we confront those pigs in our lives and do something about them? The first thing we must do is to take a good, hard look at them and acknowledge them for what they are. They are pigs…and we need to get rid of them. Let’s stop putting lipstick on them and pretending that they are acceptable. They’re not, and let’s face it. Lipstick never looks good on a pig!