IBS: Set Free!

Ephesians 4:22—

To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires

I can easily say my former manner of life was corrupt, and I carried deceitful desires. But I can also say, that life is far away from me now. For so long I was in the depths of darkness and all I wanted was to escape. I tried so many times to leave my transgressions behind, but I was weak and always went back to them. It wasn’t until I came to know and trust in Jesus, the almighty Savior, that I was strengthened enough to pull off my old self.

The things of my past don’t make up who I am. I have been set free from my sins, and now I can look back on my old self and see it as a witness tool.

We sung a song during worship today that made me think of this verse. It says, “We turn our eyes from evil things, oh lord we cast down our idols. Give us clean hands, give us pure hearts.” Turning eyes from evil things, and casting down idols is a daily thing. I need to wake up in the morning and pray each day that the Lord with give me clean hands and a pure heart.

Written: 8/29/11

IBS: Empty.

Romans 12:13—Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

Give of yourself to be generous to others. As followers of Christ, but more so as missionaries, we need to be willing to empty ourselves in order to pour into others, and to fill them up. I need to let go of the parts of myself that I hold onto and allow them to spill out of me. Sometimes it seems hard to imagine that I could be a blessing to anybody, but I know that if I stepped out in faith and offered myself up to the work of the Lord He would use me in extraordinary ways.

8/26/11

IBS: Losses and Crosses

Romans 12:12—

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

Rejoice-Delight in

Patience-the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset

Constant—Occurring continuously over a period of time

I need to delight in the fact that I have hope. Lamentations 3:21-23—But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end: they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

I need to be patient during trials, when I cannot see why the Lord is putting me through pain. Hebrews 4:16—Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” During these times of tribulation I need to be patient, but I also need to be sure that I’m not being still. I need to be calling out to my Jesus daily, and drawing near to Him. 2 Samuel 22:7— In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I called. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry came to His ears.”

I need to be constant in my prayers. The Lord wants to lift us up and raise our heads in times of pain. He desires to be our comfort and our stronghold. Everything we go through we go through because he allows it. Psalm 6:9-10—The Lord has heard my plea; the Lord accepts my prayer. All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled; they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

It is in these moments and seasons of pain and tribulation that I need to remember that affliction is one of Gods greatest medicines—losses and crosses are meant to lead us to Jesus.

Written: 8/25/11

IBS: With Zeal, For The Lord!

Romans 12:11—

Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.

This should be our joy; to serve the Lord. Since I’ve been here I’ve learned a lot about serving in a quick, and thorough way. I’ve learned to “do all things unto the Lord.” This would be a good verse to have in my memory because I’m sure I’ll be asked to do many jobs that I don’t want to do while on the mission field, and I’ll have to remember to take myself out of it and do it with zeal. Do it for the Lord.

Written: 8/24/11

IBS: A Heart To Serve

Romans 12:10—

Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

To outdo one another in showing honor, to honor one another above yourself. What a concept. I’m sure it’s a foreign perception to most people of this generation; I know it has been a foreign thing to me in the past. I’m definitely learning about it here at Potters Field Ranch though. We have six hours of servant time a week, and do service projects, but when it’s mandatory is it truly honoring someone above yourself? When I first got here I didn’t understand why people were offering to clear my place from the dinner table when I was done eating, or why they were offering to make my bed for me. I now know that it is because people here at the ranch have the love and joy of the Lord in them, and when you have that, there is a desire to serve.

I have seen this desire grow in my own heart, but I also see a lot of room for the desire to continue to grow. I need to be aware of other people and their needs, and ask the Lord to continue to grow the desire to be a servant in my heart. 

IBS: What Is Evil

Romans 12:9—

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.

Abhor what is evil. My first thought was, ok, that will be easy, I already do hate murder, stealing, and evil things, I skipped over this section of the verse and began to look at the other parts. I couldn’t focus on them though, I kept thinking about evil. Ok God I do abhor evil. I promise. I was beginning to get frustrated with myself, so I closed my eyes and began to seek the Lord. I always pray before beginning the IBS process, but the one short prayer wasn’t cutting it today. I prayed that if there was something Jesus needed to tell me he would tell me through my pen, because I couldn’t pull anything out of this verse myself.

I’m embarrassed to admit, after I went back and read what I wrote; I was regretful of that prayer. God definitely had things to tell me.

Abhor what is evil. Evil fills my heart and mind daily. Evil is anything that stands between me and God, anything that pulls my eyes from Him. Things that are meant to be good can become evil when placed on a higher throne than God. Blessings can become evil when placed above God. I have so many distractions, and so many things that get between Jesus and me. I need to be in fervent prayer that God will be my center, my focus. 

Written: 8/22/11

IBS: Ashamed

Mark 8:38—

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.

I think of all the times I’ve been ashamed of Jesus, and all the times I’ve lied about my faith in order to be accepted into a group of people. Then I think about what it would be like to look into the face of Jesus, and have Him be ashamed of me.

I’m no longer friends with any of the people who I lied to about my faith. None of them were close friends anyway, but It’s been months since I’ve even talked to any of them. They were frivolous friendships and I’ve shamed my Jesus for no reason.

I am now here at the ranch, separated from this sinful generation and it’s easy to be proud of Jesus. It’s fun to be a Christian around Christians. I pray that when I return to the normal culture I will be strong enough to boast about the Lord in any situation. 

Written: 8/19/11

IBS: Daily Devos

Mark 8:37—

For what can a man give in return for his soul?

What are you willing to exchange for life? What are you willing to lie down?

Am I willing to lie down my own desires for what the Lord has planned for me? Can I honestly say I have laid down my life for Him? I want to be able to lay in bed at night and before I fall asleep reflect back on the day and honestly say, I laid down my desires for His. I denied my flesh so that Jesus could hold my soul.

What are you willing to give up to spend time with Jesus? I have been struggling with this lately. Here at the ranch, bedtime is 11:00, we’re in bed with the lights out by then. Since I’ve been here, the Lord has impressed it upon my heart to wake up at 5:30 to begin my day with personal quiet time. It’s easy for me to wake up and read my Bible at 6:30, but 5:30…that’s a different story. It’s extremely cold in the morning, and it’s still a bit dark out. Sometimes I sleep very restlessly and crave a few extra hours in the morning. A couple days a week we have chapel or Bible study at night, so it’s ok if I don’t spend as much time with my daily devotionals…this list of excuses goes on and on. The point is, I need to be willing to give up an extra hour and a half of sleep to spend time in the quiet with my Jesus.

Written: 8/18/11

Here are some other interns thoughts on this verse that really struck me, I would encourage you to take a look, I promise it wont be a waste of your time.

Joel—http://abeariseatingme.wordpress.com/2011/08/18/significance-in-christ/

Jaymi—http://jaymisullivan.blogspot.com/2011/08/bulimic.html

IBS: Your Soul.

Mark 8:36—

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

For me, this is a simple question with a simple answer. Nothing, he profits nothing. But I’m not so sure how simple of a question this would be to someone who doesn’t know much about his or hers soul. To gain the world is the please the flesh, (John 1:15—For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.) and I believe if you asked most people, they would say, “What else is there to please but my flesh?” I have been taught, by C.S. Lewis that “You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body.” 

Why would you please your flesh when what really counts is your soul? Forfeit nothing for your soul because the soul is where the Lord looks. The soul holds what really matters. The soul is who we truly are. Thank the Lord for your soul and protect it and build it up in the way of the Lord. 

IBS: A Sight To Behold

Mark 8:35—

For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and gospel’s will save it.

I was standing on the porch with Paige (a fellow intern) this morning, stunned by the utter beauty that the Lord blesses us with. It was still early and the air was quiet save for a few birds singing. The lake was completely hidden by a thick layer of gray fog. As the fog stretched upwards towards the heavens it slowly faded from a monotone gray to a soft purple, then pink. The tips of the trees peaked out of the pink sky. Above the fog and trees the sky that was the purest blue held the big white moon. Paige and I stared at the view in silence, praising the Lord; and then she began to tell me where the scene brought her mind.

She explained to me that when there is pollution in the sky and the sun rises or sets over it, the pollution becomes colorfully beautiful. Pollution is gross, disgusting, and bad for us, but when brought to light, it is a sight to behold. She said that looking at the colorful fog looks like the Holy Spirit. When we lift our pasts and shame to Jesus, He covers them with His beauty and turns our failures to victories.  The Lord is able to use our transgressions to further His kingdom if we allow the Holy Spirit to breathe on our lives.

If we are willing to lose our lives, leave everything we’ve ever held onto, for Christ’s sake, then he will surely transform us into something beautiful. He will use our lives that we’ve laid down for Him in a way that we couldn’t even imagine.

I am so excited to give the Lord my future, I know He could do better things with it that I could even dream for myself. But giving God the past and allowing Him to use it is something I struggle with. I need to be willing to give God every part of my life, past, present, and future.

I see people laying down their lives for the Lord all throughout the New Testament. Paul, Timothy James, Peter, Jude—all men who call themselves bondservants of Christ Jesus.

They put themselves aside, put their lives aside, in order to serve the Lord and they were all blessed men. By giving up control of their lives, God gave them a new and better life.

Every time I see in the Bible someone introducing himself as a bondservant it grows my desire to set my life aside and be a servant of Christ.

It’s an easy thing to want; when you love the Lord with all your heart of course your desire is going to be to serve Him.

The application, however, is a bit more difficult, in Galatians is says, that if we are truly seeking to serve the Lord we will not be seeking the approval of man.

“Galatians 1:10—For am I now seeking the approval of man or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

I need to examine my heart. Who am I truly trying to please? Am I willing to lie down my own flesh and desires to follow the plans the Lord has for me?

I’m always so worried about how people see me, or if they will see me differently because of things I’ve done and places I’ve been. I need to put those worries to death and take the things I’ve done and give them to the Lord so he can use them, so that I can be a servant of the Lord.

Written: 8/16/11

IBS: Take This World But Give Me Jesus

 Mark 8:34—

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

In this verse, Jesus calls us to forsake everything other than Him, to follow in compete obedience by denying ourselves to become completely dependent on Him.

I want to Follow Jesus. I want to leave this world behind to allow Him to be my everything, to be my delight, and my glory. How can I carry the cross and follow Jesus if my arms are full of the things of this world and my feet aim towards things that lead me away from Him?

During worship this morning we sung a song that struck me. It said, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.”

This is my prayer, that I will be so lost in the beauty of the Lord that I will turn my eyes upon Him and allow the things of earth to grow strangely dim.

I need to take up my cross, die to myself, in order to become anything the Lord wants me to be, in order to be able to be molded to what He has envisioned for me. 

Written: 8/15/11

IBS: Walk By Faith

Acts 12:9—
"And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision."


Sometimes the blessing of the Lord are so immense and beautiful that they seem unreal. Sometimes the Lord moves us before we can even comprehend what he's doing.
Peter followed the angel of the Lord, even though he though he was seeing a vision. this verse makes me stop and think. How often do we want to know what were doing, how we're doing it, when were doing it, and every single little detail along the way?
I need to practice following the Lord where He leads, even when I have no idea what the reality of the situation is, or where He is leading me. After all, isn't that what the mission field is all about? Walking by faith, and forfeiting all our own plans. 


Written: 8/14/11

IBS: Shame is Residual...

Acts 12:8

And the angel said to him, “dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”

The angel gave Peter commands to prepare himself but didn’t tell him what for or where they were going. Peter had to blindly follow the angel trusting in him that he knew what he was doing. Peter asked no questions, but just did as he was told.

How many times does the Lord tell us to do things, or prepare ourselves for things and we either ignore it or ask questions.

For those of you who don’t know, I have one arm that is scarred from shoulder to wrist. More than once the Lord has told me to be prepared for inquiries about the scars on my arms, but instead of preparing my heart and mind I decided to take things into my own hands. I would cover them up with clothes and act like they didn’t exist. Without fail they would show at one point in the day and someone would ask about them or make a rude remark and walk away. Every time this happened I got so thrown off guard and began to shake, scrambling in my brain to find the words to explain the marks. In these times I could have explained the story behind them and gone on to say how I’ve been saved by the love of the Lord and seized the opportunity to witness, but because I ignored the initial command of the Lord they all turned to opportunities missed. Just because the things the Lord tells us don’t always make sense doesn’t mean we can ignore them. We can never know what the Lord has in store for us.

When the Lord tells me to be prepared for things or get ready and go, I need to listen to him with no questions asked.

As part of our IBS class we all gather around and read what the Lord has revealed to us about the daily verse. When I read this post to the class I left out the middle (the blue part) paragraph and just skipped to my application. Shaylene, who was sitting next to me, read my paper over my shoulder. After class she gently pointed out to me that she had read what I wrote and by not posting it, or even reading the whole things, I was contradicting the very application I had pulled out. Although it wasn’t easy to hear, I knew she was right. I stayed after class to talk to Pastor G and I asked him to read the whole post. He explained to me that I didn’t want to share this post out loud because I feel ashamed of my scars and shame is residual. It comes and goes.

I felt the Lord assure me that by posting this entry I would be taking another step towards being set free, and that by posting this I would be obeying him as he comes to my side in this darkness to break me free of my chains and prison cell.

Written 8/11/11

IBS: Chains

Acts 12:7—

And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands.

This is such a powerful verse. It’s intimidating to tackle. The thing that stands out to me the most is the simple phrase, “And the chains fell off his hands.”

The Lord had a plan for Peter and his life, but he waited until the last second to reveal it to Peter. When Peter thought it was his time to die the Lord broke him free from his chains and set his life back into action.

No matter what your chains are or how long they have held you captive, they are never too strong for the Lord to break you away from. I believe the Lord longs to use the chains that used to bind us to help us grow closer to him as well as be a light for him, and give hope to those who are still bound.

Another thing that struck me was that it says, "And a light shone in the cell.” John 1:5 says, “A light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it.” This verse has been one that has helped me through this last year. 

As a group of people preparing to venture into the darkness of the world we all need to remember that if we contain the light of the Lord, and we shine that light into the darkness, the darkness cannot overcome us. 

Written: 8/10/11

IBS: Unbound

Acts 12:6—

“Now when Herod was about to bring him out on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. “

Peter was bound by chains, and kept watch over by soldiers, yet he was sleeping.

We all have our chains, things that keep us where we don’t want to be, things that torment our minds.

We all have people in our life, or voices in our heads that “stand guard” so to say, making sure we don’t move forward to a place of peace.

I, personally, have been bound by many things my whole life; some of them for only a season, some of them for many years. I remained restless and plagued by these things that bound my hands behind my back and left me completely defenseless.

Peter slept. Peter had the peace of the Lord, the peace that passes all understanding. Once I came to know the peace of the Lord I was instantly unbound. That doesn’t mean that everything I struggled with in the past left me alone and I was free from pain and sin, but through studying the Words of the Lord and communication with Him, He equipped me with the tools necessary to fight the battle. Much like Peter, I am now sleeping between two guards. There are things in the past that I still have to deal with, and suffer the consequences for, and there are things that will stumble me in the future, but for today, I can sleep peacefully in the love of the Lord.

Peter is an encouragement, and this verse is a good reminder that in the face of trials I need to remember that I have the love of the Lord and I can sleep peacefully.

IBS: Moment by Moment

Acts 12:5—

"So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church."

Peter was in a desolate place, away from his church body with his friend dead. Anyone could imagine his state of mind. Peter was a blessed man to belong to such a faithful church full of people who earnestly prayed for him and lifted him up in his trials.

Over the last few days I have learned a lot about prayer. While talking to a fellow intern the other day I was encouraged to pray for things moment by moment. For example, when you’re in a hurry to get somewhere and you’re stopped by a red light instead of being mad or irritated lift it up to God saying, “ok, God, you know my schedule so thank-you for stopping me here at this light. I believe there is a reason I’m here, and not moving forward.”

I have been striving the last few days to apply this to certain situations in my life. Praying on a moment-to-moment basis, and the difference it has made is unbelievable. Before I did this I was always worried, how will this situation go, what will people think, am I doing the right or wrong thing, am I suppose to be here right now. Even though those things are all small-scale matters I was worried about them. When I took the time to stop and pray the difference in how situations when blew me away, and I felt like I was right where is suppose to be, right where Jesus wanted me.

Through this type of prayer life I was reminded to be praying for my friend who is going through the same thing. There is something so fulfilling about fervently praying for a friend in a trial. I love when Paul says in the beginning of Philippians, “I than my God in all my remembrances of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”

Also, this verse makes me think of Katie Nielsen. Katie is an intern here who is leaving for the field this week. She is going to be placed in a foreign place, with foreign people, away from everything familiar. Everybody here at the ranch is her family, whether we’ve known her for one month or four months, we are her family and we need to be earnestly praying for her on this new journey. 

IBS: Spiritual Attacks

This is the one that I wasn't going to post. The assignment is that we post all of the thinkgs we write. I would rather have gotten in trouble for not posting it than share it with the general public. Lately, i have been hearing the Lord tell me to post it, and tell me that I'm being selfish by keeping it to myself because somebody needs it. So, here it is.

Acts 7:57

“But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. “

In this verse the men become even more enraged with Stephen and they refuse to listen. They join together to rush at him and bring him down.

As Christians proclaiming the name of the Lord this is bound to happen to us. Maybe not in this literal of a sense, but things and people will creep up on us and entangle themselves around our ankles in an attempt to trip us up.

This verse breaks my heart. I feel as though I have been rushed at by an angry mob lately, the attacks of the enemy are so strong. They come and go like waves, and when there are gone everything is beautiful and I feel as though I could lift my eyes to the heavens and see the glory of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. But when they are near I feel as though I’m trapped under the undertone and my chest can’t get enough air to sustain life. It’s like suffocating by the hand of a small, demented demon, and every time I gasp for air the demon grows and grows.  The easiest thing to do would be to cower and collapse under it, but I know I must be strong and continue to seek the Lord.

I just flipped through my Bible to try and find a verse that I read the other day when old pink writing in the margins caught my attention. The sides of my Bible are completely filled up and if I were to stop at every note I’ve made I would never accomplish anything, but for some reason I couldn’t move on without reading this note and the underlined section.

Proverbs 3:24-26

If you lie down, you will not be afraid;

when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

Do not be afraid of sudden terror

Or of the ruin (storm) of the wicked, when it

comes,

for the Lord will be your confidence

and will keep your foot from being

caught.

I guess my application would be to memorize this verse and know that I don’t need to be afraid to sleep or to fear what might haunt my mind through the day, but the Lord will keep me standing tall. 

IBS: The Best Commentary On The Bible Is The Bible

 Acts 8:35

Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus.

Beginning with this scripture. The best commentary on the Bible is the Bible. Sometimes we get caught up with trying to relate through personal stories, or analogies, but the most important tool we have when telling someone about Jesus is the Bible. Don’t get me wrong; stories and personal experiences are a great tool and fun to include. But I think we, myself included, can get so wrapped up in our experiences that it takes the focus away from Jesus.

I can imagine Philip getting so excited when the eunuch asks about whom the passage is about. When someone asks me about Jesus I get so excited to just explode and tell them about the good news! He just opens his mouth and lets his love for Jesus flow out of him. I love that picture.

I need to have so much of Jesus in my heart that when I open up my mouth I can speak straight from scripture and let the love of Jesus flow over whoever I’m speaking to. 

Written:8/5/11

Just An Update!

We've had a lot of fun here at the ranch lately! Last saturday we were surprised with a trip to Glacier National Park, and surprised again on wednesday with a much needed day off to go rafting! And again to Glacier Park yesterday! I just can't get enough of this Montana Beauty!

This is the whole Ignite team with Pastor Jim and Miss Patty getting ready to explore Glacier 

Hidden Lake 

Drinkable water running down the mountain! Best water i've ever had!

My insanely awesome roommate Shaylene!

Some shots around the property 

Out in the field

Jaymi and Ben during our culture dinner

We had an Israeli Dinner

Second hike at Glacier

Ben Gilbert, Randy and Karens (interns) son

Pastor Mike, during the rafting trip we jumped off a 40 ft cliff! 

After rafting...such a great day! (this is my new family!)


Hopefully i'll get better at posting regular posts instead of just IBS all the time, but I hope everyone is enjoying the Bible posts, I know I'm enjoying writing them. I'm learning more than I expected too! Each day I'm so blessed and reminded that God is good and faithful! Keep praying for me and all of the other interns here, we are all being stretched so much!


With Love, Olivia 

IBS: Acts 8:30

Acts 8:30—

“So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

When I am sitting in a coffee shop or at the park and I see someone reading their Bible I think to myself “Wow, that’s so great. I’m in the company of a follower of the Lord.” But I never stop to see if they understand what they are reading or if they believe what they are reading. I imagine this would be a difficult thing to do, but the Lord told Philip to go and it says that he ran to the man; he was eager to follow the Lords instructions. I need to be willing, and eager, to follow the Lords instructions even if they may put me in an awkward situation.

This verse also struck a chord in my own life. So many times I am going through my morning devotional and I don’t understand something, and so many times I just shrug it off. Every time I have brought my questions to attention I have been so blessed by digging deeper into the Word, I want to get better at asking questions about things I don’t understand.

Written: 8/2/11 

IBS: Five Foot Bubble

Acts 8:29—

And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”

In the previous verses we see a spirit of the Lord direct Philip to walk toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. Philip blindly followed what the angel told him and there he encountered an Ethiopian. The Ethiopian was sitting in his chariot reading the prophet Isaiah. The angel then told Philip to go to him and join his chariot. Philip, again, blindly follows.

I get so caught up in listening for the Lord to tell me to go to Africa or go to El Salvador or do something so daring and drastic. But how often do I listen for the Lord to tell me to approach someone on the same sidewalk as me? Almost never. This verse, as short and simple as it may be, is a great reminder that our mission field can be in our own five foot bubble and for me that is something that is so easy to forget. I need to be more aware of when the Lord speaks to me and tells me where to go whether He tells me to go over seas or across the room.