Warning Misdirection…

 

Great magicians perfect two intentional arts that set them apart from other magicians.  The first is the art of misdirection, getting the audience’s attention to focus on an unimportant object or action so nobody notices the important movements happening right before their eyes.  The second is the sly physical manipulation of objects with imperceptible movement, commonly known as sleight of hand.

On Wednesday afternoon January 6, 2021 my sister asked me, “have you seen the news?”  So, I clicked on the news.  Our White House in Washington D.C. was being swarmed.  I seriously could not believe what I was seeing and hearing.  People scaling the walls of the White House, news that a woman had been shot that later died, people vandalizing offices, stealing objects and as I write this today five more died from that day.  But the most serious thing that came to my mind was the epitome of the state of lawlessness of our country symbolized by the disrespect shown to the White House as it was breached.  No matter where your loyalty in politics fall, that was a sad day for our country. 

As I watch all the anger, blame, destruction, and chaos I see the craftiness of the enemy.  Like a great magician creating misdirection, and sleight of hand.  Making sure in the physical that all eyes are drawn to the chaos daily through the media.  Which allows him to continue his path which is to kill, steal, and destroy (see John 10:10).

These things going on in our nation are things we used to see on the evening news regarding foreign nations and would never have believed it would be our nation someday. And yet, here we are.  And you know what?  Many of our missionaries/missionary families serve in foreign countries that live with this type of instability most of the time.

How do they handle it?  Well, they are not perfect by any means.  And they do go through their own times of struggles.  However, their ability to handle it is no different than yours or mine as a believer, it lies in our trust or lack of trust in the Father and His Word.  

 His Word tells us ….

2 Timothy 3:1-5 (ESV)  

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

My friends we are in the last days. The enemy wants you to believe this is something new.  No!  It is misdirection!  The truth is those last days started over 2000 years ago when Jesus was crucified for our sins, was buried, rose again, and ascended to the Father.  And things have steadily become more difficult throughout the ages.  Read that passage again.  Why have the times of difficulty come? Because people will be lovers of self, etc.  Notice that verse started out with lovers of self.  Everything else becomes a consequence of that behavior.

 His Word tells us….

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Have you taken a good look around you lately regarding marriages, families, and specifically at all the finger pointing that has gone on at every level of human existence? The enemy wants you to fight horizontally.  So, you only see through your eyes or the eyes of the distortion of this world.  It is his sleight of hand movement manipulating people through their differences, using the media (one of his greatest tools), encouraging people to turn on one another instead of being able to agree to disagree on the issues. 

Please understand that your spouse, children, family, friends, peers, etc., are not the enemy!  Do not be deceived!!  This is a “spiritual battle” we are in.  You must fight from a vertical position. 

His Word tells us…

Psalm 33:13 (ESV)The LORD looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man…

 Proverbs 5:21 (ESV)For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his paths.

Psalm 18:6 (ESV)In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.

Our God sees! He hears!!  Do not be deceived into thinking He does not know what is happening in your life with all the things going on in this world and that He does not care.

Those are lies from the enemy! While we may get tripped up by the misdirection and sleight of hand, He does not!  But may I encourage you to me more mindful of what is going on in the Middle East and Western Europe while keeping your focus on God! The enemy would have you be ignorant of those areas.  And remember…

He is a God that cares for you and a God that will lead you through.  So, look up as we journey through these days of trouble and trials.

Isaiah 26:3-4 (ESV) You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

 His,

Vickie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From all of us at Pure Joy International Retreat Ministry...

 

Breaking Bread Together….

 

Finally, the Pure Joy International Staff was able to break bread together in person in an exclusive location of a dear friend.  It is the first time our ministry staff has been able to meet since January of this year.  Wow!  We have met through Zoom meetings, but it is not the same as being with each other and hearing each other’s hearts.  Time was spent in prayer for each other and for the future of the ministry.  God was so good to guide our hearts into focus and direction for the year ahead.  Having said that let me share a couple of things we are looking at going forward. 

We hope to be able to honor our trip scheduled for Portugal last year in the Spring by projecting a possibility of the Fall of 2021.  Counseling with missionaries overseas and stateside continue via all means possible.  In the meantime, the staff came up with a few good possibilities to keep ministering to our people group (missionary women) in some interesting ways.  First, however, it will require some leg work on our end.  We have set the end of January to get that accomplished.  So, please pray that God will make a way for us to get the information we need to move forward.  Also, pray for the staff, board, and advisors of Pure Joy International and their families.

To those of you that have asked us recently to investigate more ways to minister to you in the middle of all this craziness, keep us in your prayers and look forward to February.  If God allows this to come together it will be awesome!

 

In the meantime, be encouraged from these words of Jesus and the following thoughts.

John 14:27 (ESV) Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

When is the last time you have been stuck somewhere?  For many of you it was a traffic jam on the way to work today.  For others, it could be having to be quarantined for 5, 10, or 14 days, a job that you cannot afford to leave right now but there is no room to grow, a line at the grocery store, a delayed flight, etc.  The list of things that position us to be stuck at times is endless.  But the one word that accompanies being stuck is always the same “waiting”.

Talk about a word that stirs up a basket full of emotions.  Whew!  Waiting can trigger excitement, anticipation, frustration, anger, anxiety, fear, hopelessness, discouragement, etc.  The list is so long.

As believers we are “waiting” between time (this world) and eternity (timelessness).  Scripture tells us we are sojourners here, aliens, just passing through, this is not our home.  I suspect most believers have really have not thought about that much until this year. But with all the chaos of this world we may be reminding ourselves of that truth as a reminder during the “waiting”.  Now days being a sojourner passing through reminds us of His Sovereignty and this is not our home.

Again, take heart believer in these words from Jesus Himself...

John 14:27 (ESV)
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

And let us not forget we have a mission while we are sojourning through this world.  Seek first His kingdom and righteousness, serve others, share the gospel, baptize, and make disciples.  So, do not be deceived into living in the horizontal of this world.  Live vertically and keep walking!

His,

Vickie

Thankful for you …

 

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV)
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you

As we head into this Thanksgiving Holiday, I want to say how thankful we are here at Pure Joy International for those of you that have continued to give faithfully to the ministry, through prayer, encouragement, and financially. 

Many of you know from your own experience and through your missionary daughters, sons, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and friends that overseas travel has been deeply affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

We have many missionaries stateside in holding patterns for now.  We also have missionaries still on the ground in different countries, and Covid-19 has affected them, too, regarding ministry on the field.  We have missionaries that have come home for good because of the time lapse of not being able to renew passports, work visas, etc., and the list could go on and on.

All of this to say do not lose sight of our missionaries that God has called to the ministry of missions overseas.  They, too, are walking out the daily journey of how God would have them serve where they are.  So, as we continue to pray for family, friends and loved ones regarding this pandemic please remember to pray for our missionaries near and far.

On another note, the ministry of Pure Joy International has also been interrupted regarding overseas travel.  We highly suspect it will be the fall of 2021 before we are able to leave the country, if then.  In the meantime, we continue to provide counseling for our missionaries overseas and stateside.  We would ask you to pray with us as we seek the LORD on His continued plans for the ministry.  And may I ask you to include all missions’ ministries and organizations that travel internationally in those prayers.  If the consequence of Covid-19 has shown us anything it is that “people need the LORD”.  So much hopelessness among those that do not know Him and hard times, challenges, and difficulties among those that do.

I encourage all of us, keep walking we know the ending!

1 Chronicles 16:11 (ESV)

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! 

 

From: The Staff, Board, and Advisors of Pure Joy International Retreat Ministry

To: You

     “Happy Thanksgiving 2020”

Thankful for you …

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV) 

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

As we head into this Thanksgiving Holiday, I want to say how thankful we are here at Pure Joy International for those of you that have continued to give faithfully to the ministry, through prayer, encouragement, and fina1ncially. 

Many of you know from your own experience and through your missionary daughters, sons, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and friends that overseas travel has been deeply affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

We have many missionaries stateside in holding patterns for now.  We also have missionaries still on the ground in different countries, and Covid-19 has affected them, too, regarding ministry on the field.  We have missionaries that have come home for good because of the time lapse of not being able to renew passports, work visas, etc., and the list could go on and on.

All of this to say do not lose sight of our missionaries that God has called to the ministry of missions overseas.  They, too, are walking out the daily journey of how God would have them serve where they are.  So, as we continue to pray for family, friends and loved ones regarding this pandemic please remember to pray for our missionaries near and far.

On another note, the ministry of Pure Joy International has also been interrupted regarding overseas travel.  We highly suspect it will be the fall of 2021 before we are able to leave the country, if then.  In the meantime, we continue to provide counseling for our missionaries overseas and stateside.  We would ask you to pray with us as we seek the LORD on His continued plans for the ministry.  And may I ask you to include all missions’ ministries and organizations that travel internationally in those prayers.  If the consequence of Covid-19 has shown us anything it is that “people need the LORD”.  So much hopelessness among those that do not know Him and hard times, challenges, and difficulties among those that do.

I encourage all of us, keep walking, we know the ending!

1 Chronicles 16:11 (ESV)

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! 

 

From: The Staff, Board, and Advisors of Pure Joy International Retreat Ministry

To: You

     “Happy Thanksgiving 2020”

 

Hmmm?

 

Luke 18:31-34 (ESV)
And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise” But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said. 

 The disciples did not understand what Jesus was sharing with them regarding His death and resurrection.  God’s word says, “it was hidden from them and they did not grasp what was said.” 

 Have you ever felt like God has hidden something from you and or is hiding something from you and or holding out on you?   Maybe He has not given you answers when you were/are sure that you would be fine if you just knew the answers?

 I suspect if we are honest, we have all felt that way at times.  May I encourage you to not lose sight of God as “Our Father”.  A father wants to protect his family from harm.  Just like a father and or mother measure the things they believe their children are capable of understanding or grasping developmentally God does the same with us.  We each are growing from the time we became a spiritual baby at our salvation experience until the present.

 John 1:12-13 (ESV) 

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

 So, maybe today instead of believing the lies the enemy Satan wants us to believe you could replace it with the truth that God knows all things and He knows just when to open our eyes to things around us and when not to because we couldn’t understand it and the enemy could use it for the purpose of fear, harm, discouragement, etc.

  

Regarding Pure Joy International…

We would ask you to please be praying with us as we step into the month of November.  It will be during this time that we believe God will begin to give us more direction about our travel overseas for 2021.  Please pray that God will speak clearly to us as a ministry and His good and pleasing will would become clear to us regarding His timing.

 

His,

Vickie

Grief/Grieving

 Usually when we hear the word grief/grieving, we associate it with the death of someone close to us.  But the truth is, people can experience grief for other reasons.  Any situation that causes the feeling of loss can result in a person experiencing grief. 

I believe we are in the “grieving” process as a nation and do not even realize it.  I believe we do not recognize we are grieving because “fear” is being promoted irrationally.  This does not mean there are not things we should fear.  It simply means it is out of balance. 

For those of you that do not know the stages of grieving I am listing them now with just a short definition of each which is only a breath of how much stuff could be identified for each stage. 

• Denial - The inability to accept the reality (truth) of the situation initially.  Knowledge (head) and emotions (heart) just do not connect.
• Anger – Lashing out blaming others, self, and even God for the loss.  What lies behind the anger/frustration is anxiety/fear.  Anxiety and fear cause us to feel out of control, not knowing what to do or how we will make it, what about kids, our home, etc. 
• Guilt – Usually has to do with “if I had only” statements. If I had only been there.  If I had been watching more closely.  If I had put more money in savings.  If we had gotten to the doctor sooner, etc. 
• Bargaining – This usually takes place when dealing with a terminally ill patient. In the case of a terminally ill person bargaining with God for more time. In the case of a parent bargaining with God to take them instead of their child, etc. This stage involves the hope that the person can avoid a cause of grief
• Depression - This stage brings on feelings of being overwhelmed, feeling hopeless/helplessness and belief that things will never get better.  This can result in loss of interest or desire for usual life activity, crying spells, anxiety, insomnia, loss of weight, gaining weight, anger outburst, etc.
• Acceptance/hope – This is the final stage of grief/grieving.  It is when we have had time to work through the other stages and are accepting a new normal. We can talk more freely about our loss without emotions overwhelming us. The acceptance stage does not mean we have forgotten the loss, whether a person and or other circumstances. It just means we have moved on to putting a new plan/options in place for our life without allowing the loss to keep us stuck in the past.

The grieving process is not an exact science and it does not always follow the 5 stages in the model Kubler-Ross shared in her book in 1969 “On Death and Dying”.  It has however become a common foundation for many to understand the grieving process. The stages do not always happen in order and many times we go back in forth between the stages and can even get stuck in the stages.  The magnitude and intensity of grieving varies between individuals, the circumstances of the loss, personality types, beliefs systems about God, etc.

Why did I take the time to give you all the information on the grieving process?  Because I want you to be able to understand what I mean when I say I believe we are grieving as a nation.

So, what are we “grieving”?  Here are just a few possibilities of many.

• Loss of freedom- The ability to come and go without considering covid-19 to church, the grocery store, hospitals, family gatherings, schools, nursing homes, funerals, etc.
• The ability to have an opposing opinion without being attacked verbally, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. 
• Loss of lives to Covid-19, rioting and murder.  The loss of jobs, homes, businesses, our   history whether you agree with it or not, good, or bad it is still history.
• The loss of feeling and or being safe.
• The loss of order that has been replaced with chaos.

That is a lot of loss my friends!

So, would you mind doing something today as you read this?  Check yourself.  Be honest. Could you be grieving?  I can promise you that many of you have been in touch with the term “fear”.   It has been being instilled in us since Covid-19 broke out.   Again, we should be wise about Covid-19 it is real, but we should not live in the fear that is being perpetuated about it.  Then add the George Floyd’s death, rioting, media, politics, and life as we knew it is gone. 

So, I took the test if you will.  I got honest with myself and I realized that I am in the grieving process.  So here is what the grieving process looks like for me. 

•  Denial –.  I have had days when I could not believe what I was seeing and hearing.  I still have them occasionally.  But in the beginning of this I could not believe this was our nation.  Each day I am confounded by the craziness of it all!  When I finally accept what is occurring at face value, I go straight to the angry stage. 
• Anger – I have a difficult time believing people can be so deceived.  I can get angry about how the loss of freedom in all those areas I mentioned earlier has affected our nation.  The anger for sure has been perpetuated by all that I see and hear.  I do hold lots of government officials responsible for where we are as a nation.  Some of my anger is righteous anger as people make a mockery of the things of God.  The absolute disrespect of authority starting with God, coming back down to governmental authority, police, etc., wears me out!  But I keep most of my thoughts to myself and immediate family members. Which stuffing things as we know can lead to the next stage.
• Depression – Yes, I for sure have been in and out of this stage.  Some due to side effects of chemo medicine.  But some from stuffing feelings about everything that has been going on in the world instead of taking it to the LORD!  He is such a Gentleman.  He does not grab it from us, but He is there waiting for us to hand it over. 
• Guilt – I suspect I get concerned that I am missing opportunities to bring truth into the middle of this chaos.  But then I am reminded by His sweet Spirit, do what I can where I am. 
• Bargaining – Not really
• Acceptance/Hope – About 2 weeks ago, I started going in and out of this stage.  Mostly by being reminded by His Word that He is Sovereign, All Knowing, All Powerful, and He fights for His Children, He avenges wrongs, and He is a shield about us.  He is our Hope and our Salvation.  He is not knocked off his throne by what is going on anywhere in this world including our nation.  Is He sad, displeased, and angry at the sin?  Yes, but as believes we know how it ends and it does end my friends.  God will not be mocked! 

So, can I ask you the question again.  Is it possible that you are grieving the loss of freedom as you knew it?  Are you really living in fear and or are you grieving loss?   I suspect many people are stuck in the angry stage of grief regarding our loss of freedom.  Are you stuck in any of these stages?  Do you realize grieving is happening to you more than fear?  Being able to move forward requires us to be able to identify the real issue.    

I would like to end this blog with a paragraph from Charles Stanley’s 30 Life Principles Bible Study, which is well worth your time if you get a chance to go through it.

And I quote, “…because His standard it higher than that of the culture in which you live, obeying His commands will set your apart from the crowd.  In certain circumstances, it will make you a target or scorn from the world that denies His authority.  As you strive to meet God’s standard, you might be accused of intolerance and narrow-mindedness, or single out on social media or in social settings.  The consequences can be sever …which is why God instructs you to leave them to Him.  He can bring ultimate good from even the direst consequences.” 

And remember Ephesians 6:12 (ESV), “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

His,  Vickie

                           Obey God and leave all the consequences to Him