Irish Goodbyes & Advocating for Quality Time – Purity 768

To see today's photo, go to mt4christ.org or follow me, M.t. Clark, on Facebook or Twitter. Good morning! Today's photo of a sunrise fisherman and the beauty of a new day comes to us from a friend who currently resides near Sebastian, Florida, and although retired, is active in sharing the views that God puts before him. Well, it's Monday again, and after a 1-day weekend caused by a shift tour in which I was scheduled to work on Saturday, which just just happened to be my 50th birthday. I am still rejoicing this morning because it wasn't the quantity of time off that I enjoyed on my single day off yesterday that mattered. It was the quality of time that I enjoyed that has me content beyond even my hopeful expectations. Rather than another case of the Mondays, which is, I believe, a euphemism for what is actually a concentrated the campaign of the enemy to steal our joy and peace by keeping us grounded in the belief that happiness is only to be experienced when we are at rest and have manipulated all the conditions just right. I have a peaceful, easy feeling that comes from rejoicing over my, my yesterdays and being thankful for what I have today. Even though I had to work Saturday, the day was sunny and bright and the evening was wonderful. Throughout the day, I received birthday wishes from a multitude of friends on social media, and at night I received a massive outpouring of love from my wifey, Tammy Lynn, in the form of a birthday dinner complete with decorations, gifts, and a cake. And as for Sunday, my single day off, I enjoyed a great worship and, uh, well, I enjoyed great worship and a great message, uh, on Psalm 121 at Star Point Church. And later enjoyed a well-catered meeting with some Freedom in Christ Ministry friends, and I had my beloved Tammy Lynn by my side through it all. Although the day was full of activity and travel, it was quality time because my wife was with me. And even though we were fully immersed in our afternoon gathering, I made the executive decision to leave at a time that would allow my wife and I to have some alone, uh, time time alone with one another to end our day. As much as I was excited to join with our brothers and sisters in Christ as fellowship around a spread of barbecue and to share our testimonies of our work and experiences with Freedom in Christ Ministries, I kept an eye on the clock and made a rather abrupt exit when I realized that staying any longer would reduce the time I could have alone with my wife before having to separate again. Tami Lynn and I made the decision to love one another and marry, even though our situations are a little complicated, uh, due to our life situations regarding our children and divorce agreements. We maintain separate households, so when the weekend ends, I go back to my place down by the river. My time with my wife is precious, and after 2 hours at this friendly ministry gathering with no immediate end in sight, I had to step out and advocate for the time with my wife. Talk about awkward! In the midst of a group conversation with many people I had only just met, at a slight pause, I had to interject and give my regrets and announce our immediate departure, stating that due to our need to travel, we had to leave. While I did my best to assure the group that we thoroughly enjoyed the gathering and would Welcome doing it again. I wish them well and left because I wanted to get my wife back to her place and spend some time with her alone before I had to go back to my place to do laundry and prepare for the coming week. So we went. I hugged the host and offered my best encouragements to everyone gathered that the work they were doing in Freedom— with Freedom in Christ Ministries was good and important work and to keep it up, but we had to go. As in now. As in do not pass go to collect your $200. As in we outta here. So we went. And even though I was fully assured that what I did was the best for me and my wife, as I drove away, I started dealing with the guilt over my Irish goodbye. Now, it wasn't a true Irish goodbye because I actually told people I was leaving, but it was quick. For those who don't know, an Irish goodbye is leaving a gathering without telling anyone that you're departing. I have been known to employ the Irish goodbye in my past. I don't really do the Irish goodbye anymore, but I used to. So why would you do that anyway? Am I rude? Don't you love your friends and family? I don't know. I would say, of course I love my friends and family. I would say usually the Irish goodbye is employed during gatherings that are attended by a large amount of people. Are less than enjoyable, or have run long, or all of the above. It depends on the person and the situation, of course, but for me, I think my Irish goodbyes were born from my social awkwardness, low self-esteem, and my selfishness. Back in the day, I cared about myself first and foremost. I only cared about myself and didn't care what I did— cared if what I did offended anyone. And If I wanted to leave, I would leave. Even today, for me, when I get a feeling that it's time to go, it's time to go. While I won't leave without saying goodbye anymore— don't blink because you might miss it— also, I sort of hate goodbyes. In my social awkwardness and low self-esteem, I preferred slipping out unnoticed rather than having anyone make a big deal about my leaving or have to deal with any objections or questions about where I was going to. My nervousness and social anxiety made me being at a— made me be— my being at a social gathering a little painful, as I wouldn't get— feel comfortable in my own skin and don't have a penchant for small talk. So in the past, I would drink massive amounts of alcohol to get over my inhibitions. I don't do that anymore. So even though I have made great strides in being comfortable in myself and interacting with others, I still dread those awkward moments when the conversations dry up or have a lull and I don't know what to do or say. Those silent times beyond initial introductions, I don't know where to look, if I should talk or if I should remain silent. If I am among friends or I'm talking about the Lord or ministry, I could talk all day long. But if I sense that what I am saying isn't being received or understood, My tendency to talk will dry up. I don't watch a lot of TV. I don't follow politics, don't watch the news, and don't have a clue about what's happening in sports these days. So my material for small talk is limited. And frankly, because of my experience with my relationship with God, I don't find many of those things interesting anymore and would rather hear about what is happening with the people's individual lives rather than current events. I love people's stories, not the news. I want to hear about what happened in their lives, not what they think about certain political stances. I want to know about them and their relationship with God. If they don't have one, I want to encourage them that they can. I want to encourage them to have quality time with their lives on, on the earth. I don't want them to be in bondage to the things that don't matter. But to have the peace that comes from knowing that although there are big questions and concerns in this world, the Lord has answers to them all. No matter whether or not the situations in the world are going to be resolved as they wish, they can have peace and joy when they let God into their lives. Our lives are only so long. I don't know where we are on the end times timeline. I don't know if Christ will come back before I die. But I can have peace knowing that no matter what comes today, there is nothing that can separate me from God's love, and because of my relationship with Him through faith in Jesus Christ, there is nothing that He and I can't handle. I also know that my time matters, and I have to be wise in how I use the little bit of it that isn't scheduled. So I make awkward goodbyes and quick exits at gatherings I am thoroughly enjoying at times because I know that when it's all been said and done, I won't regret not staying at parties where I don't know what to say or don't know where to look, but I might regret not spending time in the presence of my loved ones where there is no awkwardness and I don't have to worry about where I look or what I say. In this life, being bold and courageous in our love for one another may require we go against the norm. It might mean we turn the conversations we are in away from the trivial and ask the questions that really matter. It might mean we decide to not worry about what others think and be open and honest with what we have come to know through our experiences with God. And it might mean we advocate for our love relationships rather than worrying about how we are perceived by the crowd. When we are free, we are free to leave and free to love. So keep walking and talking with God. Go where he leads you, and if your heart tells you it's time to move along, get going. The Lord's got places for us to see and people for us to love, and we never regret the decision to pursue them. Today's Bible verse comes to us from the New Living Translation Bible Promise Book for Men. This morning's meditation verse is Jeremiah 17:7-8, and it says, "But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence." They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach down deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. Today's Bible verse, uh, verses, uh, uses an analogy of abundant vegetation to describe those who have their hope and confidence in the Lord. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of life. God breathed eternal life into us the moment we put our faith in Jesus Christ, and when we are in Christ, we should not only have the hope of heaven, we should have confidence we are already there. And yesterday's Abruptly Left Freedom in Christ meeting, one of the guests who hadn't been through a Freedom in Christ course or the Steps to Freedom in Christ expressed his deep desire for understanding and experiencing his freedom in Christ, but confessed that he marveled over how he could be so consumed with the problems of this world and be filled with doubts if he "really believed in Jesus," quoting the line in scripture that proclaims, "Help my unbelief." While I took a point in my hasty departure to personally encourage this man to doubt his doubts and to get connected with the Freedom in Christ of course, I could totally relate to his situation. He was seeking answers still, but didn't have the confidence and hope that comes from knowing Christ personally and experientially. I think this man had a measure of faith in Christ, but he still needed to trust the Lord with more of his life. Today's verse tells us that those who trust the Lord are blessed and have an abundant, flourishing life of hope and confidence. We must all answer Christ's question in John 11, 'Do you believe this?' And if we answer yes, we, we must trust the Lord to start living by what the word of God says rather than what we have learned from our experiences in the world. The abundant life of hope and confidence comes from living our faith out— living out our faith in all the areas of our lives. It comes from a complete surrender to the Lordship of Christ. So trust the Lord. Show that the Lord that you do believe with the way you, with the way you live, and be blessed with the life of hope and confidence he has for you. As always, I invite all to go to mtforchrist.org, where I always share insights for prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from Clinton Arnold's Powers of Darkness, and today, um, it's— it— the sections are Angelic Powers Over the Nations and Increasing Jewish Interest in the Spirit Realm. So if you want to check those out, go to mtforchrist.org, uh, to read that excerpt. Um, as always, we invite you to check out our teachings on, uh, on the podcast for Victor Over the Darkness, The Bondage Breaker, and Freedom in Christ. As well as on our YouTube channel, M.t. Clark Christ 24/7. Um, today's, uh, I cut it short, guys, so we're going to cut it short and go right to prayer. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. Lord, we just pray for you to go before us and all the people listening today, Lord, that you would come alongside us in our prayers and lead us into what you want us to see and what us— what you want us to do this day. Lord, we love you, we thank you, we praise— pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.