Recently, I shared a two-part Victory Call dealing with the topic of forgiveness.  One of the things I have learned over the years—and continue to learn—is this thing called forgiveness is a subject that cannot be discussed, pondered, written about or thought about too much.

You see, we are people, plain and simple people who by our very nature are prone to wander like sheep. Whether we like it or not life is happening all around us and the opportunities for our toes to get stepped on or our personal sensibilities to be slighted are truly endless.

None of us will ever be ever be able to rightly say, “I got this.” Why? Because we don’t got it and the moment we’re tempted to say so, to brag on it, would be sufficient proof that we don’t.

So, dear ones, what I’ll share with you today are the words of someone many of us know of from many years of listening to his broadcast radio ministry, Focus on the Family.

In actuality, it is the conclusion of the previous two-part VC wherein he wrote:

“I can’t imagine any situation or circumstance in which the obligation to forgive would be more difficult than the one Corrie faced. She had lived with routine murder, humiliation, cruelty, and starvation at the hands of the man who now faced her. Every natural impulse—every angry emotion—would cry out for revenge against her former tormentor. She still carried with her the images of her father, emaciated sister, and other family members who died at the hands of the Nazis. I wonder if I could have had the moral strength to forgive this guard and release the passion for revenge and retribution. Yet, Corrie ten Boom was able to do just that and thereby show the world what Jesus meant by His commandment to “turn the other cheek.”

Here’s the question of the hour: If Corrie ten Boom could forgive her captors—and if Jesus could forgive the Roman soldiers and you and me for killing Him on the cross—can’t we find it in our hearts to forgive the mistakes and hurtful actions of our imperfect mate? We absolutely must, or we’ll become pathetic invalids trapped by bitterness and hate.”- James C Dobson

Dear sisters, the question will always be the same. Will we choose to forgive? Will we seventy times seven say, “Yes, Lord, yes!”

Stephanie Dale

Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

https://www.biblegateway.com/devotionals/night-light

Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.—Romans 5:5 (NKJV)

Yesterday we begin the story of a woman, Corrie Ten Boom, who was caught up in a single moment of time trying to decide—do I or don’t I, will I or won’t I? Let’s recap a bit and finish the story.

“And I stood there—I whose sins had again and again needed to be forgiven—and could not forgive. Betsie had died in that place—could he erase her slow, terrible death simply by the asking?

It could not have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.

For I had to do it—I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. “If you do not forgive men their trespasses,” Jesus says, “neither will your Father in Heaven forgive your trespasses.”

I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality. Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were also able to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. Those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and horrible as that.

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion—I knew that, too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. Jesus, help me! I prayed silently. I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.

So, woodenly and mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, and sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“I forgive you, brother!” I cried. “With all my heart.”

For a long moment, we grasped each other’s hands—the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely as I did then. But even so, I realized it was not my love. I had tried and did not have the power. It was the power of the Holy Spirit as recorded in Romans 5:5: “Because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”(1)

Dear sister, it’s quite possible that this story is not new to you. It wasn’t to me. And yet, my soul and spirit were moved to review how and what I was doing with recent insult and injury in my own life. Was I once again holding on, keeping a record of wrongs, not releasing the offenses to the Lord and choosing to forgive?

How about you?

Stephanie Dale
Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

1 https://www.biblegateway.com/devotionals/night-light-couples/2015/10/22?utm_source=bg&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Night%20Light%20for%20Couples%20-%2020150423%20(2)%2010/22/15%2005:00%20PM&utm_content=

Over the next two days I’m going to share a glimpse, a single, yet powerful moment, in the life of a sister in Christ, one who has walked a deeply dark and painful road. A road which could have scarred her to the point of death, and yet, it did not.

Many of us carry excess baggage from our own pasts because of insults and injuries to our souls. Dear sisters, today’s Victory Call and tomorrow’s, I will share a story which is meant to convey an accurate picture of what forgiveness can and does look like. We need these reminders often, simply because we are human, and as such, we are never NOT in need of remembering grace upon grace upon grace. –Stephanie Dale

“The Face of My Enemy”—by Corrie ten Boom
It was in a church in Munich that I saw him—a balding, heavy-set man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken and moving along the rows of wooden chairs to the door at the rear. The year was 1947, and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives.

This was the truth they needed most to hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite mental picture. Maybe because the sea is never far from a Hollander’s mind, I liked to think that that’s where forgiven sins were thrown. “When we confess our sins,” I said, “God casts them into the deepest ocean, gone forever. And even though I cannot find a Scripture for it, I believe God then places a sign out there that says, ‘NO FISHING ALLOWED.’”

The solemn faces stared back at me, not quite daring to believe. There were never questions after a talk in Germany in 1947. People stood up in silence, collected their wraps in silence, left the room in silence.

And that’s when I saw him working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat, the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister’s frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie, how thin you were!

The place was Ravensbruck, and the man who was making his way forward had been a guard—one of the cruelest guards.

Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: “A fine message, Fräulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!”

And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand. He would not remember me, of course—how could he remember one prisoner among those thousands of women?

But I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt. I was face-to-face with one of my captors, and my blood seemed to freeze. “You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk,” he was saying. “I was a guard there.” No, he did not remember me. “But since that time,” he went on, “I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein”—again the hand came out—“will you forgive me?”

And I stood there—I whose sins had again and again needed to be forgiven—and could not forgive. Betsie had died in that place—could he erase her slow, terrible death simply by the asking?

It could not have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.

For I had to do it—I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. “If you do not forgive men their trespasses,” Jesus says, “neither will your Father in Heaven forgive your trespasses.”

Stephanie Dale

Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

Have you ever said the words, “I’m done”?

Related to some person, place or thing most of us could come up with at least one instance when we’ve spoken or thought the words, “I’m done.”

The opportunity to utter these two simple words is connected to a wide range of situations, circumstances, etc.

For example, one that jumps to the forefront of my mind is related to children. How often in their developmental years have we, who are moms, heard the loudly proclaimed, “Mommy! I’m done!!”
More often than not their exclamation is met with resounds of praise, simply because something for which we have patiently trained and waited is now an occurrence worthy of affirming. I’m smiling to myself right now as multiple such moments play over the screen of my mind…and heart.

There are however, other times when those same words, “I’m done” are not praiseworthy. An example of this can be gleaned from childhood as well but I’m going to fast forward a few decades to a different scene. In this scenario it is you or I who are loudly exclaiming, “I am done!” The context here is relationship. Someone has disappointed or let us down; they’ve hurt us with yet another lie or failure; we’ve suffered—once again—because they didn’t show up where/when or how they promised. Perhaps the individual we are “done” with has displayed character flaws that you simply find unacceptable; they aren’t functioning or doing life the way they absolutely should. Therefore, we have come to a place of being “done with them”. We are deciding for the reasons above or any number of other inferences or judgments that they simply are not going to be on our list of favorites anymore. So, they cease to be on our radar, our friend list; we unlike them; stop following, tweeting, commenting, etc., etc., etc.

As I began ponder those words (I’m done) this morning, the question that came to mind was, “what does it mean for a person to say they are done with me? And what in the world does it deep down propose for me to think or say, ‘I am done’?”

Dear sisters, I’m not sure I have a complete and full answer but this I do know, it speaks much of my own heart for me to ponder and then act upon “being done” with another individual, sister or brother (in blood or by faith) simply because_________ . You fill in the blank.

Without casting stones at myself or anyone else, I’d have to wonder if pride was rearing its ugly head and leading me to think more highly of myself than I ought. To consider shutting someone out of one’s life is a step that we’d be wise to consider deeply on our knees in prayer before moving past go.

What is man that the Lord of all creation is mindful of him? Who are we that God, our heavenly Father, Lord and Savior is mindful of us?  We are but dust.

I can’t help but think of Job 38 when God reveals Himself. Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.” Job 38:1-3

I’d encourage you to read it fully for context and perspective and then consider this, who but God ever has the right to say, “I’m done”? Selah

Stephanie Dale

Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. Mark 1:35

Mark 1:21- 2:12 records the casting out of evil spirits from a man, the healing of Simon’s mother-in-law, the crowd coming to Jesus for healing of various diseases and  the casting out of many demons, a leper who was made clean and  a paralytic who was healed. And in between all of that Jesus was preaching in the synagogue, too! Whew! Are you as tired as I am just thinking about all He did? Right in the midst of all this activity we see Jesus taking the time to get an early start, spend time alone and pray.

What does your day look like today?  What does your week look like? I hope that in the midst of all your activities that you will be diligent to make time for prayer. I don’t know what season of life you are in but for some the mornings are more difficult. While the early hours are the example here, know that anytime is a good time to pray. Finding a solitary place can be a challenge as well. Alone time is difficult if you are a young mother. Alone time is also hard when your husband retires. Recently a friend told me she will go sit in her car in the driveway if she has to. She is also learning to let God set her agenda and relinquishing her plans for her day.

All of us are busy. Jesus was too.  Is your day so full that you have no time to be alone and pray?

Are you and I willing to make the time?

Blessings,
Kathy

Kathy Withers is on staff at America’s Keswick and serves as Acting Director of Partner Care. Kathy has been married to her husband Dave for 30 years. They have two adult children. Kathy is active in her local Church and teaches a Bible Study for women. Her passion is to encourage women to deepen their walk with Jesus Christ by finding and living out the truths of God’s Word.

There’s a song titled: “Love Lifted Me” that I had a solo part in many, many moons ago. Today the chorus comes flooding back to me as I feel myself being ever so slowly lifted from the muck and mire of stinking—thinking.  “Love lifted me! When nothing else could help! Love lifted me.”

Have you ever had one of those days or weeks when everything seemed to cause injury to your soul? When it felt like everyone was out to get you?  Or worse yet, have you ever had a moment when you felt like nothing you ever did mattered or would ever matter again?

Regardless of what your thoughts or feelings were/are, I think it’d be true that we all have down moments. We all have hours or days when life feels bad, when all the faults and flaws of our past can assail and/or accuse.

What’s a soul to do in such moments? When the enemy of our soul stands accusing us, lying to us,k telling us that we are worthless, that the people who say they care really don’t and never did? What are we to do sisters?

In a word—FIGHT! Yes! We are to suit up and fight the battle that ever rages to capture and enslave us, rendering us totally ineffective for Kingdom work. We need to tell our souls to RISE UP! Suit up! We need to; we must remind ourselves that the battle has already been won! We have been set free!  We must preach the Gospel to our own souls!

“I once was lost but now I am found! Amazing grace!”

Dear valiant warriors! See the Master of the sea! He hears your cry and He is ever present to lift you up! May we fix our eyes on Him. He is the Alpha and the Omega! He knows the beginning AND the end, and He has everything in between all sorted out! So whether we see or not, whether or not we know all the details for how it’s all going to work out, let’s hold fast to our faith; knowing that the place where we stand is holy ground. No matter what happens, God is with us.

Stephanie Dale
Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

Are we honoring Him, who is our peace and our rest, with our all our heart, soul, mind and strength?

Some of us (most of us) do that very well with our busy beaver, busy as bees “doing.”  And praise the Lord the “doing” is a good thing.  There is no condemnation in it -not even a little bit.
My sincere heart question is, “Are we honoring Him with our ‘being’ as well as we are with our ‘doing’?”

My co-worker and I were recently talking about the tradition and practice some countries have called siesta.  This isn’t the first time we’ve had this conversation and it won’t likely be the last.  We can’t help it. Partly because we are both busy most of the time and think it would simply be neat to pause in the middle of our day for some R&R. The other part of it is—we really do need to pause, and since we don’t, our souls do the longing for us and we are left with talking about it.

Just for fun I did an internet search and here is what I learned:
Siesta is a Spanish word and is defined as “a short nap taken in the early afternoon, often after the midday meal.  Such a period of sleep is a common tradition in hot countries.  The word is from a Latin word meaning “the sixth hour” (counting from dawn, therefore noon, hence “midday rest”). The original concept of a siesta was merely that of a midday break.  This break was intended to allow people time to be spent with their friends and family.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m jealous for this “siesta time” in my own life.  More and more I am longing to be with Jesus, just resting at His feet and being still.

Dear sisters, just in case you didn’t know, being still is not a dirty word and I can’t put it any better than Jesus did when He mildly rebuked Martha in Luke 10:41-42.

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.   Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

The Lord Jesus said as plain as day, “Mary has chosen what is better.”

My encouragement and my challenge for all of us today: begin to think about the pattern of our lives.  Are we so busy doing that being, simply being alone with Him—our Lord and Savior– is a foreign concept?  For a long time now I have wanted “more.”  Well, now I want “better”.  And not “my better”, but what Jesus calls “better.”

How about you?

Stephanie Dale

Stephanie D. Paul serves as part of the Addiction Recovery Team at America’s Keswick as Director of Women of Character. She has been married for over 30 years to Sesky Paul who is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. They have two grown children.
Her single focus in ministry at Keswick is to image Christ in grace and truth to wounded and hurting women, encouraging them to make Jesus the truest Lover of their soul and the One in whom all hope lies.

I have worked in Children’s Ministry for about 7 years now, and this past summer I got the amazing opportunity of being a co-coordinator of Children’s Ministry here at Keswick with one of my best friends, Rachel. I have such a heart for little ones, and I love seeing them grow in the Lord.

Over these past few months, God has put a new generation on my heart to share the gospel with.

A “tougher” generation.

My generation.

While children are often very receptive to the good news of the gospel, college students often are not. In fact, in many cases they’re bitter to the gospel and the name of Jesus. Why? Because the name of Jesus will always spark reaction. There is power in the name of Jesus.

I am an almost-20-year-old student who takes online classes at my community college, and I have had a really tough time this year. Academically, I do well. However, the content my classes teach is so, so unbiblical and blasphemous. I have wrestled with the idea of dropping all of my classes a couple of times. It breaks my heart that at a place where students are supposed to be learning, they are deceived about the goodness of Jesus.

That is why it’s so important that we share the gospel with our peers. We need to share the truth with people who are being lied to. Many people might be bitter toward Christianity because they are being taught false Christianity.

 “Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.” – Psalm 96:3

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:19-20

I’ve been saved since I was a young child, but only really started getting close to God when I was about 15. I used to think “What if I don’t have the answers? What if I’m hated? What if I’m looked down upon?” Jesus says that we are blessed if we are persecuted because of righteousness, and as my favorite Christian speaker Beth Moore puts it: “If a person fears God, she has no reason to fear anything else.”

We, as Christians, can’t keep Christ to ourselves or stay in our comfort zones. We can’t only minister to those who are “easy” to minister to. We can’t fear what others think. Our role is to spread the name of Jesus to every tribe, every tongue, every nation.

No weapons formed against us shall prosper. If the LORD is with us, who can be against us? Christianity isn’t always comfortable, but being a follower of Christ is always good and right and holy and true.

____________________________________________________________________________________
Erin Culleny is a new member of America’s Keswick’s full-time staff. Erin serves as a Marketing Assistant and Staff Writer. She had served on Summer Staff since 2011, and this past summer had the unique opportunity of co-directing Children’s Ministry with one of her best friends. She is very excited to continue to build relationships with the guests and be very involved in the ministry.

Healing, eating with tax collectors, fasting, the Sabbath. These are some of the issues that the Pharisees questioned in Mark 2:13-Mark 3:6. It is clear that Jesus was all about relationship while the Pharisees were all about religion.

Years ago I began to ask myself, “Is what I believe biblical truth? Am I following truth or only what I have been taught out of tradition?”  As I started to ponder these questions I realized there was a fair amount of Pharisee in me.  My greatest struggle was what I could really do on Sundays. What was the Sabbath? What was considered work? The Pharisees ignored that it was lawful to handpick grain on the Sabbath (Duet. 23:25). Instead they held on to tradition or simply ignored the law altogether. How important it is for us to know what the Word really says.

How about you? Legalism is a killer. You and I can’t follow religion and follow it perfectly. However, following Jesus offers us relationship and GRACE. James 1:26-27 says “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” Aren’t you thankful for grace? Jesus knows we fall short and He offers us grace as we learn His ways. Legalism ties weights on us that we were never meant to carry.

William MacDonald notes that “Christianity has always suffered from man’s attempts to mix it with legalism. “ Where might you have mixed the two?

Jesus said it best, “Follow me.”  Today may you and I follow truth and leave behind the bondage of tradition that is not of God.

Blessings,
Kathy

Kathy Withers is on staff at America’s Keswick and serves as Acting Director of Partner Care. Kathy has been married to her husband Dave for 30 years. They have two adult children. Kathy is active in her local Church and teaches a Bible Study for women. Her passion is to encourage women to deepen their walk with Jesus Christ by finding and living out the truths of God’s Word.

35 Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. Mark 1:35

Mark 1:21- 2:12 records the casting out of evil spirits from a man, the healing of Simon’s mother- in- law, the crowd coming to Jesus for healing of various diseases and  the casting out of many demons, a leper who was made clean and  a paralytic who was healed. And in between all of that Jesus was preaching in the synagogue, too! Whew! Are you as tired as I am just thinking about all He did? Right in the midst of all this activity we see Jesus taking the time to get an early start, spend time alone and pray.

What does your day look like today?  What does your week look like? I hope that in the midst of all your activities that you will be diligent to make time for prayer. I don’t know what season of life you are in but for some the mornings are more difficult. While the early hours are the example here, know that anytime is a good time to pray. Finding a solitary place can be a challenge as well.

Alone time is difficult if you are a young mother. Alone time is also hard when your husband retires. Recently a friend told me she will go sit in her car in the driveway if she has to. She is also learning to let God set her agenda and relinquishing her plans for her day.

All of us are busy. Jesus was, too.  Is your day so full that you have no time to be alone and pray?

Are you and I willing to make the time?

Blessings,
Kathy

Kathy Withers is on staff at America’s Keswick and serves as Acting Director of Partner Care. Kathy has been married to her husband Dave for 30 years. They have two adult children. Kathy is active in her local Church and teaches a Bible Study for women. Her passion is to encourage women to deepen their walk with Jesus Christ by finding and living out the truths of God’s Word.