Previously in this book I have spoken of demons as parasites. By the power of the Holy Spirit and the name of Christ we are able to shed these evil spirits through repentance and by replacing them with God's Holy Spirit. Not only do we want to shed the demonic but any sinful habits we have retained. So with God's help we put off complaint for praise to God ... we replace tolerance with patience .... fear with faith. We ward off an insurgence of what is unholy by resisting and rebuking the negative spirit. If some unholy spirit has led us into some form of sinful agreement we may repent. Knowledge and use of scripture is helpful. But the only way to keep evil from coming back and along with allies is to be bound to the Spirit of God. Then there is no room for the evil to take up residence in your soul. But it will look for another host so as not to return to hell.
Jesus once encountered a demoniac who lived near naked among the tombs. When Christ asked for his name the demons answered, "Legion" for they were many. Jesus had compassion on the man and rebuked the legion. Upon that rebuke the legion began to beg that Christ would not send them back to Hades. And so Jesus allowed them to enter a herd of nearby pigs which immediately went so completely berserk that they charged over a cliff and into the sea. So where did the spirits go from there?
The ocean has long been a symbol for evil and chaos. It was the Spirit of God which brooded over the waters before ordering and structuring the creation. Scriptures also tell us that in the new heavens and the new earth that there shall be no sea and no night. Perhaps even more of a reason we should recite the hymns and prayers for sailors at sea.
O Sacred Spirit, who dids't brood
Upon the chaos dark and rude,
Who badd'st its angry tumult cease,
And gavest light and life and peace:
O hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea.
~William Whitting
We may go anywhere safely with Jesus. He is able to rebuke the winds and the waves, men and demons. But we still struggle here below and so if we have tasted heaven we long to enter in. But there are such things as would tie us to this earth .... unfinished tasks, loved ones and duty. As a Christian my task on this earth is to glorify God and work for his kingdom to come and replace the realm and rule of Satan. There are spiritual forces that stand behind earthly thrones.
Tomorrow is Epiphany, the twelfth day of Christmas. The celebration of Epiphany is about a group of kings (wise men) who came to kneel before the child Jesus. It has long stood as a celebration of rejoicing over the Gentiles being included in the kingdom of God. For Christ came to seek and save the lost sheep of Israel but his grace was sufficient and extended to every tribe, people and tongue.
Many years ago after the birth of my fourth son I asked God if I would have any future children. He let me know that I would have a girl child whom I should name Ana Tasha (Anastasia). Since I had lost Giselle, this promise was quite precious to me along with the fact that Anastasia means resurrection. It was a picture for me of the in gathering of the Jews into God's kingdom. For if there rejection is reconciliation for the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead. (Here Giselle would like everyone to know that she is not lost or misplaced because Jesus took her straight to heaven but that she is a spiritual Jew since she is also a Christian child). But for many years I waited to conceive ... then I waited to adopt ... perhaps a Russian Jew child ... and I came close .... but then I went to Haiti and opened my heart and home to some Gentile children.
So here it is Epiphany and I have left up all the decorations .... and the stockings too waiting to see if they will come. Mail order gifts have arrived at the house in preparation ... whereas the first wise men brought their gifts to Jesus, we remember his advent with gifts to one another... it is the year 2011.
... another Christmas has come and gone and still I wait for the children. It is now 2012. Adoptions from Haiti can take up to three years. I was told nine to eighteen months. Some times at night I go to sleep holding little Samira. I think she can feel the love that I send to her in Jesus. I believe that he comforts her as well as me while we are waiting.
One of her Christmas gifts is a little heart shaped locket meant to hold pictures of her parents .... I believe only an orphan could tell you how precious it is to have a mommy and daddy .... I know orphans who have grown to adulthood and still long for parents ... "He sets the lonely in families". Like food and shelter, a loving family is something that lifts our hearts in gratitude to the maker who is well pleased and ordained it to be so.
Unlike Samira, Olivia has caring family. If all is agreeable we would have an open adoption. I have made some preparation for Livie but think she will want to do some shopping for herself, since she is a little older. Besides a loving family, what we have to give Liv is opportunity. An opportunity for a better life. An opportunity to meet her full potential in addition to her ever growing love for Jesus. I cannot tell you how precious these two children have become to me and how thankful I am for them.
to be continued when the children arrive...
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