Elizabeth Remedios’ Post

The Word for Today; The true cycle of abuse occurs when the victim becomes the abuser.   Proverbs 30:21-23 “Under three things the earth trembles, under four it cannot bear up: a servant who becomes king, a godless fool who gets plenty to eat, a contemptible woman who gets married, and a servant who displaces her mistress.” When a victim has lived a lifetime of being persecuted, the wounds are deep. When they experience the light of freedom, they will prepare to block any attempts they perceive that are designed to return them back to a cell. Unfortunately, this makes them very mistrusting for they are jaded. Their trust tends to be only within self, for they never learned to develop healthy self-esteem. Thus, any trigger that brings up memories can result in "unprovoked" attacks that are defensive. Throughout history, this paradigm is seen within groups, families, and individuals who are survivors of abuse and oppression. As they seek to rebuild, they tend to use what they have been taught. Which is that the acquisition of power is the key to self-realization. This can lead to using the same "tools" that their oppressors used on them. Unfortunately, the case is that they will use these tools on others that look like them. This is why God speaks within Deuteronomy 16:11-12 to be joyful with others for you were once like them (see Proverbs 24:17-18). This takes opening up the heart to God's ways (see Genesis 50:15-21 and Romans 12:9-21). Romans 12:1-3 exhorts to those of us who have lived under abuse and oppression to seek a change within. Yes, we are hurt and angry but to give to others what has been given is what the enemy seeks (see Ephesians 4:25-29). Victims must learn to heal if they are to be followers of God (see Acts 10:9-16 and Acts 10:23-35). As it is shown within Revelation 7:9-17, make God your center and you will be of the true human race (see Matthew 12:46-50 and Philippians 3:13-14).

The narrative in Parashat Vayera (Gen. 18:1–22:24)encompasses critical episodes in the life of Avraham, including the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah, as well as his 10th Trial, the offering of his son, Isaac. In every event, in this Torah portion, there is one crucial lesson: Through Avraham's Ten Trials, he became a fully-developed role model for the holy nation that would spring from his loins, via Isaac. Avraham possessed a perfect sense of Justice and Kindness. He knew God judged Sodom & Gomorrah for disgusting sexual practices, as well as their delight in extreme cruelty, even towards strangers, yet Avraham still pleaded with HaShem to spare the wicked cities. His petition began with a reprieve if 50 righteous men could be found, eventually reducing the minimum to ten men. Why did he stop at 10? Rashi explains that Avraham recalled the Flood of Noah, when eight righteous people could not save the world. According to the Zohar, Avraham’s negotiations, a delicate balance between mercy (chesed) and justice (din), tested the bounds of divine mercy in a way that wouldn’t unsettle the order of justice that upholds the world. Ten symbolizes completeness and structure within creation. Going below ten would undermine the world’s balance between mercy and justice which Avraham’s compassion wanted to preserve. His life offers us a plan for saving the world: Uphold justice and promote kindness. It's that simple.

Serving with Accountability, part 2 Read Colossians 4 We continue with our study in how we hold ourselves accountable to others. In the first part of verse 10 we learned how we are accountable through our suffering. In the second part we are accountable in reconciliation. We do not find the word reconciliation here at all. To read the rest of this story between Paul and Barnabas and Mark, we must go to the book of Acts. In chapters 13 and 14 we find the account of their first journey through the area today known as Turkey. Paul and Barnabas were partners in ministry. In chapter 15, when they were preparing to go out again for a second trip, Paul refused to allow Barnabas’ nephew, Mark, to go with them because Mark had quit in the middle of the journey the last time and gone home. Paul wanted to be about his ministry, and he didn’t have time to bother with someone he considered a quitter. But in the second part of verse 10 we discover that a change has come in this relationship between Paul and Mark – Paul may have sent a note to these people not to accept Mark back; but now he instructed them to welcome Mark to their church. We don’t know how the reconciliation took place. And in the lives of those around us – if we suddenly see reconciliation between people who had been at odds with each other, how that peace came to be is not ours to know before we accept them at just the word of the person we’ve called friend. Verse 11 gives us another example of accountability – faithfulness. Here were workers who had proven to be an encouragement to Paul in spite of great pressure from others to forsake him. Other Jews considered Paul a traitor to the Jewish faith. But these few people had remained faithful to Paul and to the ministry God had called all of them to do. They had become an encouragement to Paul because of this faithfulness and support.

Choosing Paths: David’s Strategy and Saul’s Despair in Crisis 1 Samuel Chapter 27: Summary and Practical Applications Summary: David seeks refuge in Philistine territory to escape Saul, settling in Ziklag. He conducts raids while misleading Achish about his targets, ensuring the safety and supply of his people. Practical Applications: 1. Strategic Relocation: Consider strategic moves to safeguard yourself and your dependents in times of threat. 2. Deceptive Strategy: Sometimes, managing perceptions can be crucial for maintaining security. 3. Provisioning Resources: Secure necessary resources strategically to sustain your group. 1 Samuel Chapter 28: Summary and Practical Applications Summary: Facing war, Saul, unable to receive guidance from God, seeks a medium to summon Samuel’s spirit, who predicts Saul’s downfall. Practical Applications: 1. Avoiding Desperation: Refrain from resorting to unethical methods in desperate times. 2. Seeking Ethical Guidance: Pursue guidance through morally sound and spiritual means. 3. Responsibility for Actions: Accept and prepare for the consequences of past decisions. These chapters underscore the importance of strategic thinking and ethical integrity in leadership, especially in adverse situations, and highlight the repercussions of neglecting spiritual and ethical standards. Heavenly Father, We come to You reflecting on the teachings from 1 Samuel chapters 27 and 28, where we see David’s strategic thinking in times of danger and Saul’s desperate actions in spiritual decline. Lord, grant us the wisdom to navigate our challenges with foresight and integrity, just as David sought safe harbor for his people while maintaining his duties and responsibilities. Help us, Lord, to rely on Your guidance and to make decisions that align with Your will, avoiding the path of despair and unethical solutions as Saul did in his time of fear. Instill in us a spirit of trust and dependency on Your divine guidance rather than resorting to forbidden practices when faced with overwhelming situations. We ask for the courage to face our battles with the assurance that You are with us, guiding our steps and protecting us. Teach us to be leaders who not only provide for those under our care but also lead them with moral clarity and righteousness. Strengthen our resolve to act responsibly and ethically, even when tempted by easy solutions during trials. May we always seek Your face, follow Your commands, and walk in the light of Your truth. In Jesus’ mighty and precious name, we pray, Amen.

TIME OF TROUBLE, DELIVERANCE RESURRECTION, AND THE WISE Dn 12:1-3 In those days, I Daniel, heard this word of the Lord: "At that time there shall arise Michael, the great prince, guardian of your people; it shall be a time unsurpassed in distress since nations began until that time. At that time your people shall escape, everyone who is found written in the book. “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake; some shall live forever, others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace. “But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever." Reflection: Daniel 12:1-3 describes a time of trouble and deliverance, and the resurrection of some who have died: Michael's rise: Michael, the great prince who protects the people, will arise. A time of trouble: A time of distress will occur that has not happened since the beginning of nations. Deliverance: The people who are "written in the book" will be delivered. Resurrection: Some who have died will be resurrected, with some waking to everlasting life and others to shame and everlasting contempt. The wise: A group of "wise" ones will give their lives in nonviolent witness to God's revelation. They will be teachers and martyrs, and their reward will be to shine like the stars of the firmament. Daniel 12:1-3 is one of the first Old Testament texts to formulate a resurrection hope. It faces fears head-on, but also speaks of God's presence and liberation.

What would Jesus do? This is an open-ended question for many who seek to follow his wisdom in their modern lives, which are so distant and different from Jesus’s time. In many current situations, there is no simple answer since there are so many factors at play. Yet Jesus was a teacher who presented his views on human life in both in story form (parables) and direct statements. Much of Jesus’s clear and definitive teaching can be found in his Sermon on the Mount. In that powerful presentation, he covered a whole series of topics and gave direct guidance: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” “You have heard it said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But is someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” “You have heard it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you so that you may be sons of the Father in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and unjust.” In these and other recorded accounts of the direct words of Jesus, there is no question about where he stands on loving your neighbor and rejecting revenge on your enemies. And what of violence, which is not addressed directly beyond the slap on the cheek? When Jesus himself was faced with violence, how did he act? And what did he teach? Confronted by a group of officials and soldiers coming at him with weapons, Jesus was very clear. In the Gospel account, it is St. Peter, Jesus’s lieutenant, who responded with violence against the enemy: “Then Simon Peter, wo had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. . . . Jesus commanded Peter put your sword away!” So, both in his preaching and in his actions, Jesus told us and showed us what he would do and what he would have us do. He would love all people as children of God, considering all to be our neighbors. He would reject revenge for harms done and disavow violence as a response to threats. Today, in our modern world, we are faced with so many conflicts, so much hatred of enemies, so much violence, and so much revenge. In the war in Gaza, the descendants of Jesus’s people, the Jews, are exacting revenge on the Palestinians for the October 7th attacks. What would Jesus do? What has he taught us? He would certainly not continue the killing of Israel’s “enemies” in Gaza. Nor the bombing of the homes and hospitals of those “enemies.” He would stand strongly for an end to the war. So, Joe Biden, a proclaimed faithful Christian, needs to follow Jesus’s directions and do what he can to end the war. And end it now. That is what Jesus would do. And it is the right thing to do.

What does the expression, “Burn your bridges” mean? One definition is, “When you burn a bridge you can't cross it again. To burn a bridge means to be completely done with something.” A preacher once said, “You need to burn your bridges.” He was speaking about destroying everything that could bring us back to sin and death. When we first come to God, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:37-38). It has been said, “What is repentance? It is a change of mind, that leads to a change of heart, that leads to a change in actions. This change involves both a turning from sin and a turning to God.” Thayer’s Greek Lexicon includes this in definition of “repent”: “…heartily to amend with abhorrence of one's past sins…” It is feeling deeply sorry for our sins, truly hating sin and wanting to please God with our whole heart. It is getting rid of everything that has to do with that sin, so it won’t be easy to begin it again. It all needs to be “burned up” so that we are truly done forever with it. The Bible says, "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump." - Galatians 5:9 KJV Thayer’s Greek Lexicon includes in its definition of leaven: "It is applied to that which, though small in quantity, yet by its influence thoroughly pervades a thing:" Leaven is another word for yeast that multiplies in dough until it has taken over the dough. We need to get rid of the smallest things in our life that have to do with sin that can multiply and take over again. All must be eliminated. To please God, we need to leave sin behind, “burning our bridges,” with no regrets and no ways of returning to it.

CAUSE & EFFECT: THE PROBLEM WITH CODEPENDENCY! (2) The law of cause and effect is a basic law of life. The Bible calls it the Law of Sowing and Reaping. You reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. - Galatians 6:7-8 It doesn’t help just to confront the irresponsible person. A client will often say to me, “But I do confront Jack. I have tried many times to let him know what I think about his behavior and that he needs to change.” In reality, my client is only nagging Jack. Jack will not feel the need to change because his behavior is not causing him any pain. Confronting an irresponsible person is not painful to him; only consequences are. If Jack is wise, confrontation might change his behavior. But people caught in destructive patterns are usually not wise. They need to suffer consequences before they change their behavior. The Bible tells us it is worthless to confront foolish people: Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. - Proverbs 9:8 Codependent people bring insults and pain onto themselves when they confront irresponsible people. In reality, they just need to stop interrupting the law of sowing and reaping in someone’s life.

TO EDWARD LOFSTROM: A letter of great encouragement for someone who had been struggling with excessive self-awareness. 10 June 1962 You are of course perfectly right in defining your problem (which is also mine and everyone’s) as ‘excessive selfness’. But per- haps you don’t fully realise how far you have got by so defining it. All have this disease; fortunate are the minority who know they have it. To know that one is dreaming is to be already nearly awake, even if, for the present, one can’t wake up fully. And you have actually got further than that. You have got beyond the illusion (very common) that to recognise a chasm is the same thing as building a bridge over it. Your danger now is that of being hypnotised by the mere sight of the charm, of constantly looking at this excessive selfness. The important thing now is to go steadily on acting, so far as you can—and you certainly can to some extent, however small—as if it wasn’t there. You can, and I expect you daily do—behave with some degree of unselfishness. You can and do make some attempt at prayer. The continual voice which tells you that your best actions are secretly filled with subtle self-regards, and your best prayers still wholly egocentric—must for the most part be simply disregarded—as one disregards the impulse to keep on looking under the bandage to see whether the cut is healing. If you are always fidgeting with the bandage, it never will. A text you should keep much is mind is I John iii, 20: ‘If our heart condemns us God is greater than our heart.’ I sometimes pray ‘Lord give me no more and no less self-knowledge than I can at this moment make a good use of.’ Remember He is the artist and you are only the picture. You can’t see it. So quietly submit to be painted—i.e., keep on fulfilling all the obvious duties of your station (you really know quite well enough what they are!), asking forgiveness for each failure and then leaving it alone. You are in the right way. Walk—don’t keep on looking at it. From The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume III

Scripture: Psalm 50:15 “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.” (NASB) Observation: I thought I had it all under control until I had another outburst! It’s Day 2 of Victory Over Addiction and today’s verse shows where we need to turn in our day of trouble. I had an anger problem. I struggled with it from my youth and tried many different techniques and strategies to rid it from my life. It wasn’t until I fell on my knees before the Lord, cried out to Him to take it away—or take my life—did I begin to understand that it wasn’t His to take but mine to take care of. The night I cried out to the Lord, I began to seek His Word and He led me to verse after verse about anger. The more I read the more I understood that I was addicted to anger, and it was running my life! Whether it be alcohol, drugs, pornography, or wanting possessions or power, we can find help by turning to God. The best part of today’s verse is that it states God will rescue us! It’s like a safety plan in place when we need it! Application: 1) Think about what you just read. 2) Ask the Holy Spirit for clarity and insight. 3) Share this with someone who would benefit from reading it. 4) Make sure others see Jesus in YOU today.