Have you ever wished for a personal message from God that would answer the questions you have about yourself and tell you why you are here at this precise moment in history? Perhaps you have wondered why you have certain personality quirks and traits.
Inside this fun, easy-to-read birthday book, you will find hidden messages especially for you from your Creator. You will discover clues to the exciting adventure God has for you by using the date of your birth like coordinates on a map. Some of the ideas will surprise you. Others will confirm what you have always known.
This personal message from God is aligned with your birthday, because the day you were born was truly a Date with Destiny!
Listen to every individual’s prayer concerning their private sorrow.
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The Lord cares deeply about you and surrounds you with compassion whenever you are in pain.
God sees that some of the things you go through are difficult. You know that His help is required if you are going to be able to withstand the pressure.
With the calm reassurance that God is at your side, listening to your thoughts, you find comfort and strength.
As it turns out, these struggles do not leave you weakened. Instead, you emerge from your prayers of private sorrow with gratitude for this emotional reprieve and a newfound awareness of your position of power in Christ.
You sense His presence with greater intensity during times when your burden seems too heavy to carry alone. Because of this, you are grateful for your struggles, because they generate a new level of intimacy between you and your Creator.
Knowing that God does what is right, you have come to rely on His help and are not afraid to ask for it.
Because He is there to carry the heaviness you feel after having been wronged, you are able to move freely into forgiveness where healing can be found.
You are assured that the Creator of the Universe is interested in your emotional well-being and is willing to listen as your pour out your heart. Therefore, you are able to experience hope and healing that is beyond human comprehension.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
John 14:27
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Jesus gave us this promise of peace, translated from the original word shalom, meaning: wholeness; nothing missing; nothing broken. Therefore, if we failed to experience it, we needed to know why.
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Was He a liar? Did He tease us with hope and then pull it away like Lucy holding the football in the Charlie Brown cartoon?
We developed resentment toward this Higher Power who seemingly yanked away our hope, time after time. If He controlled the universe, why didn’t He just snap His fingers and make all our misery disappear?
We questioned Him and His ways. We saw other people receive deliverance and healing from their dysfunctions and we were jealous. We finally concluded that the odds of a miracle landing on us were about the same as a rose petal falling from the sky and landing on our heads.
We knew we couldn’t raise our hopes for a miracle of our own if it was simply a cosmic lottery. We were driven to figure out what we could do to make it happen. We had been taught all our lives that a person gets what they deserve. We feared our relapses and failures had deemed us unworthy.
We knew how to work in the natural realm to get what we wanted. We worked hard. We had built personal empires and seen our own efforts succeed in other areas of life. This made it extremely difficult to understand why we couldn’t succeed in our efforts to maintain consistent sobriety.
We wanted to work for recovery and thus, control the results. We wanted to work for it, so we could own it. We wanted to know we had earned our sobriety. We wanted to receive accolades for how courageous we had been. We wanted to know it had come to us honestly, through hard work and perseverance.
Tragically, we discovered that our work just didn’t work.
We’ve all had experiences of being connected with a skeptic. Whether a close friend, a home group, or a well-meaning family member, we found our faith walk more difficult and exhausting when walking it with them at our side.
As believers, we must believe that God’s power of good is more reliable than anything we see, hear, feel, or think. Being a believer is a process which begins at the cross with the words, “It is finished!” The believer’s journey continues beyond the cross, through the waiting period of zero sensory perception, and finally to the resurrection.
In alignment with Jesus’ declaration, “It is finished!” we disconnect from the skeptics – those that live in our world and those that live in our heads.
We take a leap of faith and go all in. We shout, “Tetelestai,” to our skepticism and fling ourselves recklessly into hope springs.
Once our belief system became synchronized with the truth that Jesus could and would heal us, we declared with our Savior, “It is finished!” to skepticism. We stopped questioning our own instability and began relying on His reliability.
Liberated from the boundaries of our own powerlessness, we were finally able to explore a new realm of supernatural power. This power packed a punch and was much stronger than our addictions. It coursed through our character flaws and short-circuited our self-sabotaging configurations.
As we shared this word of deliverance with others and began hearing reports that they too experienced a power surge which supercharged their recovery, our faith was fueled. Enthusiasm for a clean and sober lifestyle grew more vibrant and robust as we watched fellow addicts enjoy the same relief we had been given. We found ourselves energized by the faith of our spiritual siblings.
We discovered strength in their faith when our own faith faltered. When our minds played tricks on us, we connected with those who would remind us:
We have the mind of Christ. I Corinthians 2:16.
When we questioned our own strength, we encouraged one another with:
I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13
Sadly, we encountered some well-meaning fellow addicts who remained skeptical. They discounted the mindset of healing and deliverance, choosing rather to focus on the power of a progressive disease. The cynics lamented their plight and moaned about their dysfunctions. They were unwilling to grasp the concept of total recovery and argued vehemently, ‘Once an addict, always an addict!” They cautioned us not to tempt fate by using such words as healed or delivered, for it might cause us to lose our resolve and fall helplessly into the abyss of relapse. We were solemnly reminded to continue calling ourselves addicts and alcoholics lest we forget and slip.
We found that these words of unbelief were inadvertently creating a cycle of cynicism which had the potential to rob us of the Word we had begun to believe. We struggled to find clarity and prayed for guidance. We turned to the sacred text gospel stories of Jesus healing the blind, the deaf, and the lame. We noticed these individuals no longer called themselves blind, deaf, or lame after their healing was received. They ran, danced, and praised God. Their healing which was very, very real was also very, very permanent.
However, we had to presume the blind man didn’t stare at the sun just to test the limits of his miraculous eyesight. We read that the crippled man, who heard the word of Jesus and was suddenly able to walk, jumped up. He obviously wouldn’t have chosen to remain on his sickbed, allowing his strengthened muscles to atrophy once again. Quite to the contrary, a person receiving miraculous healing would cherish, protect, and enjoy their newfound wholeness more purposefully than one who had never known a disability.
With this same mindset, we dared not cross the line into recreational drug use or social drinking, as this would be an unconscionable discredit to our healing and deliverance. Our permanent sobriety was a gift of great value. We treasured it as such.
We did not sever friendships or burn bridges. These skeptics were people we loved and valued. We had spent time with them on a regular basis and held deep respect for their journey. We did not disconnect our admiration or loyalty toward them.We simply stopped internalizing their words of skepticism. We chose rather to absorb the words of Christ and other faith-filled believers who would help us maintain the supercharged energy which was vital to powering through those beginning stages of total recovery.
Tetelestai Recovery – Chapter Five – Disconnect From the Skeptics
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
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The face of God shining into your life creates an aura of warmth and light in the atmosphere surrounding you.
This glow of the Spirit illuminates spaces which were once dark and gloomy. People are drawn to your light and hope to experience it for themselves.
The wonderful thing about this light is that it can be shared freely without losing its intensity.
Since the glow of God’s face is like that of the sun, all of creation can bask in its warmth. There is no limit to the number of beneficiaries who can receive the sustenance it offers.
As this warmth and light of God’s face shines on you and through you, healing comes.
Just like the sunshine persuades spring flowers to emerge, you too carry the ability to encourage the colorful expressions of God’s unique design to blossom in the lives of those you influence.
You carry a big responsibility, for without the glow of God shining through you, some who are searching for the light would remain in darkness.
This light you carry is warm and inviting. It brings healing and comfort. It is the grace of God shining on you and through you into a world that would otherwise seem very cold and dark.
The upside-down declarations of a fallen world rang out loud and clear:
Trauma causes permanent damage.
Don’t get your hopes up or you will be disappointed.
Nothing gets better; everything is getting worse.
Life will kick you down.
You are growing more weak, frail, and overwhelmed.
The world’s message was abrupt and hopeless: The end result of life is death.
The inauguration of triumph within Christ’s victory cheer, “Tetelestai!” turned these statements right side up. Much like the development of a photograph from negative filmstrip, black became white, white became black, and color emerged, as the world was submerged in the bright red solution of Jesus’ blood.
The law was fulfilled, the curtain was torn, and the New Covenant eliminated the curse, opening the floodgates of blessing for all. The responsibility of the covenant rested solely on the finished work of Jesus. No more sacrifice could outperform the one which announced, “It is finished!” His declaration broke the curse and banished the old covenant of law. Blessings became contingent on Christ’s obedience rather than our own. We found within that realm of grace, the script was flipped, and hope was born.
For forty years, from the time Peter watched his Savior and friend leave this world, airlifted by a fanfare of angels, he had been on a journey of enlightenment. He had become painfully aware of just how upside-down this natural world really was. He had learned, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to walk in a supernatural existence, free from natural limitations. He personally encountered events in which prison led to freedom, death led to life, and sickness led to health. An angel had walked him out of a maximum-security prison. People were raised from the dead on his watch. Some were healed when his shadow passed over them. When Jesus told Peter he would be doing greater miracles that the ones he had seen his Teacher do, He wasn’t exaggerating!
Peter recognized this world for what it was: an upside-down creation waiting to be turned right-side-up. Peter walked upright for many years, against the grain, in an upside-down world where most people just didn’t get it.
We wondered if Peter realized the significance of his choice to die upside-down. From that perspective, looking out on his crowd of accusers, who appeared to be hanging by their feet to a dusty sky, he was given a glimpse of how distorted one’s viewpoint could be, when looking at things upside-down.
When Jesus was spotted by His friends, coming toward the boat, they first thought He was a ghost. He knew what they were thinking. Although they should have been relieved to see Him, they were, in fact, terrified instead. He saw the horror in their eyes and realized they weren’t recognizing Him for who He was.
We recall times when we were unaware that Jesus was approaching, and we became frightened by our own misperceptions. We saw death approaching, but in the end, it proved to be the Author of Life. The disciples thought they were seeing a ghost. And much like those young men, we too become afraid of what He represents. Some fear He will leave them. Others fear He will prohibit their self-expression. Some fear He will demand too much or create too much controversy. Many of us encountered a fear of Jesus, not fully understanding who He was or why He’d come.
Jesus comes to us in different forms. Sometimes He comes in the supernatural realm as an unmistakable tingle of the Great Spirit. Other times He approaches through the Presence of other addicts and inmates whom we fondly refer to as our cell-siblings. Addiction, incarceration, disease, and anxiety were some of the worst storms in our lives, and we were sure some of these issues would be the death of us. Yet, in the midst of these storms, Jesus appeared and offered the opportunity to take a leap of faith and join Him in the supernatural.
In the Sacred Text account, one of the men in the boat, named Peter, asked Jesus to let him come out and walk on the water alongside Him. Jesus of course said, “Sure! Come on out. The water’s fine.” Peter lunged toward the side of the boat as it was rocking and lurching, climbed cautiously over the edge, and slowly lowered his weight onto the swirling liquid. If Jesus was a fraud, the next few seconds would have been the moment of truth. In former miracles, the people who were healed and delivered could have been in cahoots with Him on some elaborate hoax. However, walking on top of water, and inviting another human being to join Him would have been impossible to pull off, had it been a ruse.
The interesting part of this story is when it is taught as an object lesson in some churches, the point always seems to hover over the fact that for a split-second Peter took his eyes off Jesus and began to sink below the surface of the waves. Many preachers belabor the point that Peter lacked faith. We disagree!
There were 11 other men in the boat who didn’t even ask if they could come out onto the water. Peter had faith! Whether he was completely successful in his faith walk or not, he was the only one with the intuition to ask if he could get out of the boat. He was the one who believed in Jesus’ ability to empower him to do it. He knew that in the midst of the storm, the safest place to be was with Jesus. In that moment of clarity, Peter suddenly received a divine revelation. Through this text, we receive the same revelation in our storms. We need not remain powerless and desperate. We are called to function alongside our King, even when natural laws dictate otherwise. Believers can overpower the Natural with the Supernatural.
The power in the spirit realm is faith, and Peter’s faith was increasing exponentially with every risk. His faith account was small, but it was growing. When Jesus asked him “Oh you have such little faith, why did you doubt me?” He was simply letting Peter know that as his faith increased, so would his ability to maintain his position of power in the Spirit realm. Pointing out that Peter had ‘little’ faith was not a reprimand but rather, an encouragement that when his faith grew bigger, it would become more reliable, enabling him to fulfill his call.
This is a word created universe, and we have been given the authority of Christ to create our world with His words. What we believe, we speak, and the manifestation takes place.
Sometimes it is instantaneous, like a light switch. Other times it is a gradual process, like a dimmer switch.
We saw in the passage in Mark 11 that the tree took some time to die. Therefore, we were faced with the challenge to first believe, then speak, and then wait. We noticed that Jesus didn’t stand there waiting for the tree to die. He went on about His business and allowed His words to do the work.
In the same mindset, we learned it was best not to examine our progress, but only to believe and continue on our path. Days, months, and even years later, when encountering humiliating experiences, or running into old acquaintances, we were surprised to see that our emotional responses were no longer rooted in shame, but rather in strength. We found those mountains which loomed in our future had disappeared and our paths were leveled.
As we learned about words creating the world we desire, we understood that our words could destroy our root of shame. Once the root was dead, no one else, including ourselves, would be subjected to the fruit that grew from it.
Those mountains which needed to move would not be moved by exertion or self-effort. We could not uproot our shame any more than we could move a mountain. Both were subject to the same force, the spoken word. Knowing that the only energy that travels from the natural realm to the spiritual realm are our words, we speak to our shame and command it to bear no fruit. We speak to our mountains, and they disappear into the sea.
We declared the words of Jesus, “It is finished!” to our roots of shame and our mountain of amends.
As our mountains dropped into the sea, a tsunami of opportunities flooded into our lives. Wave upon wave of amazing possibilities washed over us.
We were slaves to the king of Egypt, but the Lord brought us out by His great power.
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In this Exodus story, Pharaoh was a powerful oppressor of the Hebrew slaves. Moses was tasked with the assignment to secure freedom for a group of people who could not speak for themselves.
Detachment from an oppressor can be filled with chaos, conflict, and self-doubt. Moses encountered all this, yet remained firm in his commitment to secure freedom for God’s people.
Regardless of the century or the civilization, oppression is present whenever the powerful and the vulnerable co-exist.
Without excuse or explanation, you decisively detach from groups or organizations who exhibit little concern for social injustice or the negative impact it has on society.
You do not join those who belittle or diminish another’s worth. You remove yourself from environments which are darkened by oppression, hate, disrespect, or intolerance.
You speak for those who have no voice. You use the Lord’s words to bring freedom to those in bondage, healing to those in pain, and deliverance to those in despair.
Like Moses, you have been called by God for a special mission. In spite of countless questions about what to say or how to fulfill your role, you choose to simply respond, “Here I am,” and then wait for God to reveal His plan, one step at a time.
Finding Total Recovery in the Words of Christ, "It is Finished!" 