Model T Party Photo by D.F. HigbeeEditorial Summer 2008
Model T Party Photo by D.F. Higbee
Survival Tips 101:
So you've been facing financial ruin, your relationships are splitting, you feel like the whole world gets more help than you and they don't even know Jesus....have you ripped your hair out and run off to parts unknown yet? Well, let's stand at the gate here together for a bit and let me pass along some survival tips.
Survival Tip #1: The Song of the Lord
King David was under an unbelievable amount of pressure as God's chosen King. First off, God knew that he was a shepherd at heart- he would protect, provide, and care for His people. He proved it in the deserts and valleys prior to his anointing by Samuel. The pressure only went UP from there. King Saul wanted him dead. Several people rose up against him, including his own sons. His own wife hated his worship of the Lord. He frequently -with anger- complained and called for God to help him in worship songs we now know as "The Psalms." God always responded with prophetic words of encouragement even within the same song.
No, David didn't start calling all the recording studios in Israel to come and do a CD to make him famous. He just worshiped. The musicians worshiped with him. He abandoned himself to the Presence of God EVEN when he had committed great sins. And God answered with grace, mercy, and favor.
Don't just sing the songs you know when you are in the thick of it, abandon yourself to singing to the Lord from the depths of your heart- both good and bad. Release EVERYTHING in praise. Then keep on singing and God will respond. Use your prayer language, if you have one, and if you don't ASK for one. Let Him flow through you and around you without thought of yourself. HE is the One who can help you, and His responses will surprise you.
2. Survival Tip #2: Encourage Yourself in the Lord--
If you're not a big Bible Reader, better find a translation that works best for you and become an expert at hunting for help in its pages. Here's a hint: Thought translations often say what you need at any given moment[ New Living Translation, Good News Bible, The Message, NIV, etc]; Word translations are the best for study [NKJV, KJV, Amplified, Jewish Bible, etc]. Devotional reading is better than no reading, but keep in mind that knowing the deeper meanings of things is often the key to God's heart in any situation.
Within the pages of a Bible are love-gifts written expressly for God's people. No one can understand them except the people for which they were intended, and no one can feel them properly until they know God personally. Otherwise they are just religious junk, rather than truth. Access them to help you, and ladle the prayer and love on top as you search the pages.
Survival Tip #3 -- Tense Down, Go Have Fun
People are the biggest time and energy takers in anyone's life. Sometimes the responsibilities work like an avalanche over the top of us all: relatives who may be ill or older and confused, friends who need advice or prayer at the drop of a hat, long illnesses, animals or livestock that need tending, husbands or wives who need tending; bills that need to be paid with no money, yard work, house repairs, and no resources; food that needs cooking, laundry and cleaning that begins to pile up.... HELP!! Is that you? It's been me on many occasions. The deeper it gets, the more you need to play and get away.
Recently we held a "model T party" at our home. We made it a sort of Block Party so that neighbors could join family and friends. We did a potluck with salads and barbequed hamburgers and hot dogs. We had as many as wanted to come in costumes, others just came to ride in the model T. Neighbors finally met neighbors. There were some who knew only us and no one else. Our family finally met some of our friends. It was a huge blessing to the people who ventured over to the Higbee household, and part of the type of ministry we do as a couple: make people feel at peace and welcomed in a world that seems bent on destroying us all.
Now for the kicker: your ministry cannot give YOU the rest you need to be healthy. Sometimes you will need to pull the plug on "ministry" so that you can rest and relax. You need to remove the responsibilities and lighten the load. That means periodically go away. Jesus took off to the wilderness alone on occasion. Follow His example: Go to the nearby town for dinner with a glass of wine and laugh. Take a bath in a hot tub or hot springs. Go camping, if that's something you like to do. Leave the cell phones or lap top home. (Yes, God will protect you). Go find a rock and worship on it while you overlook a valley of forests and rivers. Go watch wildlife at a local refuge. So sit on a dock with your lawn chair, umbrella and iced tea. Take a deep breath and forget everything you have to do. DO NOTHING!
Those are only three tips for survival, there are many more. But praise, encouraging yourself, and playing are three of the most important. We all have areas that need to be tweaked by the Lord in order to survive what is coming rapidly on the earth. But if you can learn the basics, you will be all right in the coming pitched battles.