Tag: perfect love

You Will Make It!

Leave a comment

I am studying for an important exam, yet this morning I was inspired to write this post reflecting on the past 16 months. I won’t go into great detail over what has transpired. I will say there has been great loss, a few betrayals, multiple deaths in my family, partial blindness for me (healed now), health issues with people I love, being stalked (I had to report someone to the police last spring), sabotage of some of my efforts, gross disappointments, and so much more. There have also been incredible triumphs and joys. I believe we can learn from anything!

Here is my post from the morning and I hope it blesses you.

There is a promise attached to the pain; we must seek God for a revelation of the promise(s) (Lessons Learned the Past 16 Months). ❤️👩🏽‍💻💯

I don’t share all my business online because I recognize levels of intimacy. My closest friends know my business. Everyone else is on a need to know basis. It’s just how I roll. I share my heart fully with people who know how to steward it well. Those who know my full journey and challenges the past 16 months may get more out of this. Everyone else, I hope you find a sliver of hope. No matter your season, the valley or the mountain top, there is a God who loves you and though He does not prevent every challenge, He will walk you through them.

Some sweet things learned the past 16 months…

Even in hard seasons you can find beauty if you LOOK for it! I started journaling each day and counting blessings. I list good things that happen and express gratitude to God. I look for at least one person daily to bless. Why? Introspection will rob you of opportunities to be a blessing and enjoy God.

Even in my hardest moments, I can still love and serve others without expecting them to take care of me. I have a choice, as do you, to be a victim or a victor! It does not mean breaking your back nor forgoing rest, it does mean choosing love. Waking up each day to choose love provides focus and greater dependency on God…God who needs your love today?

The extreme power of grace; God’s supernatural ability to do what we could not do before. Wowed by grace. It is a frequent prayer to say, “God give me grace for today. Today God I receive grace.”

When I think I cannot take another step because I am exhausted physically or emotionally, how God’s super invades my natural. God will infuse you with His strength. You learn a level of God’s POWER in weakness that cannot be learned in any other season.

Who loves me for me, and who was connected for their own personal gain or to benefit from ministry. It is unfortunate, yet trials not only reveal who you truly are on the inside, they reveal who is truly for you! Bypass offense and understand you must not expect a consumer to act like a true friend. A consumer comes to take. A friend comes to give. I don’t expect a cat to be a dog. A cat will behave like a cat.

The great lengths some people will go through to help you or encourage you in their own storm has been revealed. I wrote out a thank letter this week. I was weeping as I typed out thank you to all the people willing to be obedient to God and help in some way. Don’t focus your energy on who is not for you. Focus that energy on who is for you! Mostly God is for you!!! He will put you on the heart of perfect strangers to be a blessing.

How deep the Father’s love is, vast beyond measure. I won’t even start typing out the revelations of God’s love, provision, care, comfort, goodness, beauty, and hope because I will be here all day. It just gets richer in revelation. Oh my, is God better than what humans represent or speak about Him.

I learned not to expect people who have not walked it out to understand. There is a complete and utter disconnect. #BlankStare. You release the expectation for compassion from people and talk to God. I used to be bothered by unkind people. I recognize I too can be insensitive if I lack understanding. You forgive easier and move on. You learn who to talk to and get really raw with and who to tell, “God is good,” and keep on moving.

How deep the roots and love go in my Ignite Reborn community!! They have loved me well and I thank God they are not looking for a super hero in a leader. I am only human; I am there to serve, not be a Savior. There is power in safe, loving, and mutually giving community. If you find a safe, loving tribe-cherish them, invest in them, give thanks for them, show up and do your part.

Learn to completely ignore the haters online and in real life. Unhappy people try to make others miserable. You become quicker to block, ignore, say, “Take that garbage somewhere else. I love you, but I am not your trash can.” You start to monitor your energy. It’s not proper English but, “Ain’t nobody got time for that!” I stopped trying to figure it out or explain myself.

I stopped answering the phone for energy vampires. Some days I only had strength to do one or two things (being honest), I refused to waste it on selfish people. Please go to voicemail. Protect your energy and schedule. Some people are simply distractions. Lovingly set boundaries. They want their problem to be your highest priority when you have a pile of your own.

You listen to the voice of Jesus on an even deeper level because He is close to the broken hearted and saves those crushed in spirit. He whispers and you lean in closer and closer….your friendship with God goes to a whole notha level! If you are being challenged in your health, your finances, your family…Jesus is right there. Lean in. Lean on Him. Ask Jesus for heaven’s vantage point. “God show me your truth and give me wisdom in this season.”

Understanding with every problem, every pain-there is a promise. A promise of God’s steadfast love. A promise of God’s healing. A promise of God’s protection. A promise of God’s presence-“Never will I leave you or forsake you!” A promise of beauty for ashes and joy for mourning! A promise of glory. A promise of His unwavering friendship.

Grief is temporary. Yes, it comes in waves. Some days like tidal waves, yet there are days of calm, great joy, and peace. Walk through the process of grieving without bypassing the hard parts. Don’t let religious acting Christians try to convince you that you should not grieve nor how to grieve. If they have not walked through what you have walked through they can keep their scripture one liners. Find healthy people to walk with you who possess wisdom in their speech.

Give yourself grace to be human. I love laughing with God and being positive. I also recognize my humanity and when I went through months of unexplained blindness I had human moments. It was not a fun time. Grace! Trying to be Superman or Wonder Woman is crazy. Yes, lean into God and seek His strength. Also understand you are human.

Oh the depths of desperation…I gained a greater understanding of how desperate people feel. The compassion in my heart has gone from maybe level 7 to off the charts. Pain changes the way we see things. I hope I don’t forget the trials that broke my heart and some that sought to crush my spirit. I pray my heart remains soft towards God and humanity.

God will deal with your enemies! He is longsuffering and gives each person time to repent. When God has had enough, He moves in with His right arm outstretched to execute judgement on your enemies. People play with fire thinking they will not be burned. Yet God has shown me on an even greater level the past 16 months that anyone who raises a weapon, tries to work evil, or places their tongue in a malicious way on His children will have consequences. God is merciful and kind. God is also a fierce warrior who will and does cast down Jezebel from her throne. God defends and avenges His own. He prepares a table before you in the PRESENCE of your enemies. Even when the devil thinks he’s winning, he loses in the end.

Don’t let people pressure you into more than you can do. I cannot tell you how many people try to pressure me into meeting their ministry or personal need. “Count it all joy! Trust the Lord!! God is just testing you. See how much more like Jesus you are becoming…yada yada yada..” Attached to that is normally some expectation I can do something for them. Well, no. I have grace to complete God’s assignments for me, not everyone else’s. I cannot tell you how many people have approached me with “God said to contact you or your were the one to do this.” If God did speak directly to me, I am not doing anything. Nope. Nada.

Lastly, your latter shall be GREATER than your former. If you sink into God, there is no limit to what can happen. It can be painful in the process, yet you must not give up on His beautiful vision. You may need to reject the visions of others, or their dreams for your life…yet keep pressing into His! God is good, and God LOVES you. Keep being a seeker of God because He is seeking you. He is seeking you in the good times and challenging seasons.

Signed…someone linked to Jesus to hopefully always overcome! Back to studying for exams I go. Have a great weekend.

God loves you! You can make it! With God you will make it. That’s what my dad says to me often. I love my earthly dad and heavenly Father. Be blessed! Praying for you to make it!! For real praying. You are loved!!

Love,

Erin Lamb

If Jesus Took On Flesh Today

Leave a comment

If Jesus took on flesh today…

Jesus had no outward beauty to draw people to Him, I wonder if He walked into our services today if we would greet Him.

A middle eastern Jew, with brown skin, a carpenter’s son-would we include Him?

Humble, not ego driven, the one who would choose to wash feet instead of push His way to a platform-would we even notice Him?

Loving, honoring, and respectful of all people-would we try to persuade Him to love who we love and dislike who we dislike?

Interested in the least of these, the poor, the outcast, sinners/prostitutes/tax collectors, would we join their table or insist He leave them to join ours?

Non political, focused on representing heaven on earth/the Father’s will, would we try to convince Him to join our political party and campaign for our rights?

Unmarried and without a girlfriend, would He be banned from ministering in our churches or restricted to the least amount of responsibility in leadership? Would He be consistently pressured into finding a mate or allowed to be who the Father created Him to be?

Insistent on loving His enemies, would we join Him in His quest to build bridges instead of cliques?

Moved by the tears of the broken, would we lay down our pride and selfishness to sit with the broken?

Deeply moved with compassion to heal the sick, would we put aside the miracles are a side show to simply love the person right in front of us?

Taking the Gospel to those in need, would we join Jesus or simply watch from the sidelines or encourage Him to do everything?

Moved by the heart of the Father He would rally others to do the same. Would we join Jesus or tell Him, “I am not called to do that? Give me the assignment where I am most comfortable?”

Would we join Jesus or deny Jesus?

Would we follow Jesus or just be a fan of Jesus?

Would we cast aside our selfish ambition to truly be a disciple who begins to look like Jesus?

Would we change the world with Jesus or simply pray Jesus do something?

It is one thing to profess love for Jesus, it is quite another lay down our lives for Jesus.

Would Jesus be Lord, or an ala cart add on to enhance our lives yet cost us nothing?

Would we be willing to follow the loving King or simply remain in the stadiums cheering with our “I love Jesus” merch?

Are we spectators or lovers?

Sold out or only in it for fire insurance?

In love or in like with Jesus?

Love will cause us to lay our pride and selfishness aside to look out for our neighbor, the least, last, lost, broken.

Love will call us out of our comfort zones and onto the frontlines with Jesus.

Love will mend us over and over when the attacks of darkness seem relentless.

Love will propel us into a glorious heaven centered destiny where His name, the name above all names is glorified.

Love dissolves our prejudice and man made boundary lines.

Love destroys hatred, bigotry, and sexism and loudly proclaims, “In Christ all are one.” One Body, one church, one Lord!

Love pushes past political lines to say, “You too are made in the image of God.”

Love pushes past “Me first” and lives for “God first! God be glorified!!”

Love breaks the shackles of “Us vs Them,” and builds a table prepared with a feast to say, “The King loves you. I will treat you with dignity. Come to Jesus.”

Love seeks to reconcile the world to itself.

Love is not a concept, not a noun but a verb.

Love has a name. It’s Jesus!

May we seek Jesus, know Jesus, abide in Jesus, focus on Jesus, exalt Jesus, and align with the heart of Jesus.

Painting: Jewish Jesus of Nazareth (Source Pinterest)

Lovingly,

Erin Lamb

Recalibration (What Grief Teaches You)

1 Comment

They say the best way to inspire others is by being transparent and vulnerable. I tried that in Christian community and well…my perspective is as follows. When you are still healing, it may be best to share with a safe community of people. Once you are healed, the story can be shared with others. Why do I say this? Because humans do not always think about the impact of their words before they speak. Some can be in a place of desiring to be helpful and they are actually quite harmful.

I love safe people, don’t you?

I met with a dear friend yesterday for lunch, a mini trip to the spa, and took her on a local tour. One of the things I love about her is her ability to listen without trying to throw a scripture on everything.

She has suffered great loss; I have suffered great loss, and we both know the unintended un-helpfulness of sometimes well meaning people. They say, “You are so strong!” Or “You just need to trust God.” “You know God is working all things together for good.”

I sat across the table from a kindred spirit. Someone who understood grief deeply and did not see it as something to wish away, but something to walk through with God. Some days are incredible and there is great joy. Some days you do not desire to laugh, your heart is full of tears. Some days agony crashes upon you like a tidal wave and you pray earnest prayers for relief.

People around you wish for you to be better. Some will avoid you because they do not know what to say or they don’t want to be in the presence of a person overcoming grief or loss. It is rare to find the ones willing to simply sit on the boat with you, riding out the storm.

Why do we grieve?

We grieve because we have lost someone or something we loved. Love is the reason for the grief. Those who do not love deeply and do not attach, they do not understand grief. Those who have not lost someone they loved, are sometimes clueless how to respond to a hurting person.

God knows how to deal with grief. I also highly, highly recommend grief share and support groups for those hurting; groups where others have gone through loss or are going through loss. Having a community of people who get it is absolutely vital to not only surviving, thriving. I am so thankful for safe people.

Grief has taught me so many things and it has changed me profoundly. Have you gone through a painful experience that changed you?

I am not the same person I was a year ago. I stopped doing things that seemed like a waste of time. I am still refining my priorities.

I stopped caring what people on the internet were replying to my content. I started simply deleting negative and misguided comments instead of wasting time trying to explain myself.

I stopped trying to mentor people who were disengaged, not present, not putting forth effort, and not interested in pulling their weight. I have enough to carry. I do not need dead weight nor to exert so much effort into what is not valued or appreciated.

I stopped worrying about those “friends” who just disappeared. I moved on with my life.

I stopped trying to love people who kept rejecting or misunderstanding love or it was always one sided.

Grief taught me and is teaching me to stop wasting my life on things that don’t matter.

Grief taught me and is teaching me to take one day at a time and some days it is one moment at a time.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me to stop expecting people to get it and be compassionate. I must have compassion for myself. Self care is vital. Expecting people to see a need and respond is futile. I found safe people to ask for help.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me to rest more and stop pushing myself to be strong for others. I am human, not Jesus. I started cancelling volunteer events with no support. I stopped pushing myself to be the only person to show up.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me what matters and what does not matter. It has recalibrated my focus so things I used to do, I refuse to carry with me. I believe grief can be a powerful tool to shift our focus. What about you?

Grief has taught me and is teaching me who my real friends are. It has been eye opening the past 12 months. I am not angry nor offended by people, I simply have relationships that grew closer and some that disappeared.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me the importance of saying no. When people perceive you as strong, they forget you are a human with legitimate needs. So they come with their needs, their wants, their desires, and expect you to be strong for them and you. Well, no. I have said to a few people, “I would like for you to contact someone else.”

Grief has taught me and is teaching me an even greater importance of family. Friends can come and go, but family is so important.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me not to judge my life by the lives of others. “Oh they never have anything bad happen to them, what am I doing wrong?” I have learned grief touches everyone at some point in life. If it is not your neighbors turn now, it will be one day. None of us make it out of life alive or without any challenges.

I have learned I do not have to be strong, just because that is what others desire. I learned there are days I crumble into the arms of God exhausted from grief and I am the furthest thing from strong. I find comfort in being able to just be human. I look at this man named Jesus who was and is perfect in every way. He cried out to the Father in agony, “Why have you forsaken me?” Pain has a way of making the Father seem so far away.

I understand how Jesus felt. I understand how Mother Teresa felt when she wrote in her diary that she felt forsaken by God at moments in her life. It may seem blasphemous to some, yet I see no blasphemy in Jesus. He knew agony, grief, suffering, and His friends went to sleep. He knew betrayal by one of the ones He trained and loved. My encouragement is it’s okay to be human. We were not created to live in such hard place. We were created for paradise and sin brought and brings hell.

Grief has taught me and is teaching me the closeness of God even when He does not say a thing. He speaks in ways that sometimes are not heard, but they mark us. I laugh sometimes because as silly as it sounds, I think God is filling up my Pinterest feed. It’s one encouraging picture after another.

I want to encourage you, those who have suffered loss. I am sorry for the silly and lack of empathy/lack of compassion things people say. I am sorry if you feel you must always be the one towing the superhero line. God does not expect us to pretend loss does not hurt, nor to put on the fake Christian mask, “God is working all things for good! Rejoice in the Lord always.” Let’s be real. Let’s be honest. Some days there may be a song in your heart. Some days there may be tears streaming down your face. Be human. You have permission to be human and invite God into your humanity.

I personally don’t have time for pretend. There are several things in my life/family that require a miracle. I am real, raw, and do not care how others feel about the process.

My encouragement…

God is with us on our best day.

God is with us on our worst day.

God with us is how we make it through the turbulent storms without drowning.

Let’s be real, honest, and inspire others to do so as well!

You are prayed for and so deeply loved!

Warmly,

Erin Lamb

“He comforts those who mourn and binds up the broken hearted.“

Follow Jesus Not Culture

Leave a comment

Happy Pursue God’s Kingdom! ❤️

I love the teachings and lifestyle of Jesus. I don’t always enjoy Christian culture. They don’t always match. Sometimes the focus in culture is not what Jesus focused on at all. Paul and the teachings of Paul are sometimes elevated above Jesus. Paul is the most misquoted and misunderstood author of the New Testament. Paul stated, “follow me as I follow Jesus”-not “follow me instead of Jesus.”

Things Jesus talked about and demonstrated the most: loving God & loving each other (including enemies), the Kingdom of heaven (seek first God’s kingdom), our heart conditions, helping people, discipleship (go make disciples), the nature of the Father, intimacy with the Father, eternity, how to know the Father, what it is like to be His family, and development of leaders who could duplicate what Jesus did.

Things I notice focused on in Christian culture: tithing, marriage, come to church more than be the church, men are the head/wives submit, supporting your local church/pastor, how to get God to bless you, only a few have opportunities to lead or use gifts, development of followers/spectators instead of leaders.

I highly prefer the focus of Jesus. His methods produced disciples who shifted Nations. They did not just fill buildings, they made an impact for generations.

When God is pursued first and most, the rest falls into place-we give because we love God, we support ministers because we love God, people are better spouses when they love God…our focus matters. Sometimes things whispered in the Bible are shouted in culture and they are the secondary thing. Sometimes culture and a misunderstanding of scripture is promoted above the teachings and lifestyle of Jesus…especially the teaching on submission.

The highest things are have no other gods besides God, love, and seek first God’s Kingdom.

May we grow to know Jesus and abide in Him! True Christianity is focused on knowing God and abiding in Him!

Love,

Erin Lamb

P.S all books and audio teachings are on sale today for Valentine’s Day. Go to https://www.empowered-free.com/shop. Use the coupon code: Love2019

Our Reactions to Evil Matter (Pursuing Authentic Christianity)

Leave a comment

Today I want to tackle reactions to evil in the world. When Jesus walked the earth there was evil, injustice, mistreatment of people groups, and he faced hatred/mockery/mistreatment.

We see Jesus responding in sternness to the self righteous (Pharisees) and the disciples. We see compassion for those who were lost and not claiming to be right with God.

Jesus also has a one up on us. He was sinless. Jesus was willing to die for the same people He rebuked sternly. He was willing to be mocked, beaten, and even killed for the UNGODLY! Jesus died for His enemies. If Jesus rebukes someone sternly, He is perfect in His assessment and without any sin.

We can sin in our attempts to deal with people and be puffed up in ourselves while doing so. “Oh, I think sister Susie is wrong, let me grab my bible and go point it out to her.” Is it wrong to try to help someone? No. Yet the bible tells us to make sure we don’t have a big mega plank in our eye before we go trying to pull a splinter out of someone’s eye. We are also told to be gentle. We can be gentle, direct, and not nasty. Is it wrong as a leader to address people? No. Yet if we do not love them, our words can be correct and in the wrong spirit.

It is a trap of the evil one to convince us that we are the Holy Spirit or Jesus. We point to God. We do not become God.

It is a trap of the evil one to respond in the same spirit as the evil of this age. We overcome evil with good. If someone comes at us crazy, it does not mean God gives us permission to act crazy.

God has tested this in my life over and over. It appears as weakness to some people. Yet I do not need to yell or act crazy because someone approaches me with ignorance, hatred, evil, or nonsense. We can rebuke and address in great love understanding that the spirits of this age blind people to the truth of who God is.

They do not believe, because their minds have been kept in the dark by the evil god of this world. He keeps them from seeing the light shining on them, the light that comes from the Good News about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God,~2 Corinthians 4:4 (GNT).

Imagine going into a house and the lights are off and everyone is blind. Your method to help is to scream at them, “You are blind. You are in the dark!!!” Guess what, your screaming will not make them see. You can scream all day and it adds no value.

Imagine going to a graveyard and everyone is dead. You walk around screaming the Gospel at them. They can’t hear you! Dead people do not hear or see. The only reason a believer in Jesus can see or hear is because God opened blind eyes, deaf ears, and revealed Himself.

You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins,~Colossians 2:13 (NLT).

One of the ways we can help the world is by actually living a life that is a living testimony of the goodness, love, and power of God. I had several coworkers who were atheists, agnostic, or other faiths inquire about Jesus because of the way I acted at work. I did not bully them with the bible, point out everything they did that violated scripture, nor look down on them. I looked for ways to serve them, love them, and the topic of Jesus would just come up. One went to church because he said he could not figure out why I had so much joy. My Muslim neighbor said I was the only Christian he had encountered that did not mistreat him. One of my atheist coworkers hurt her back and because I did not mistreat her, she let me pray. God took all her pain away.

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children,~Ephesians 5:1 (NLT).

The world has heard our sermons. Have they seen Jesus through us?

Do we respond to evil with the Spirit of Jesus? Do we see people God loves and desires to redeem? Or are we like the Pharisees, our hands are full of heavy stones and we are crying out to God to punish them? I will tell you sin alone is great punishment. Without Jesus, people will have ledgers marked with every sin. Do we care about their souls or just the way they treat us?

We also don’t need to beat people up with the bible. I saw this old movie years ago called Saved. It basically mocked Christians for hypocrisy and improper methods of evangelism. I have included a very short clip of the groups attempt to lead Mary back to Jesus. This involves beating her with an actual bible. The Gospel is Not A Weapon . It’s worth watching! It is about 5 minutes long.

I am not stating we condone sin.

I am not stating we condone immorality.

I am stating the way we deal with people can be part of the determining factors on whether they turn to Jesus or run from Him.

I am stating if we don’t live what we claim to believe it impacts the world. All of creation is groaning for sons and daughters of God to rise up and shine bright (Romans 8:19-23)!

We do have a small role to play. If we are hypocrites, hateful, only love people who are a certain way, then we demonstrate to the world that our God is that way. It misrepresents Jesus to the world.

Let’s look at what Jesus said (Luke 6:32-36 (AMP)

If you [only] love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend [money] to those from whom you expect to receive [it back], what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners expecting to receive back the same amount. But love [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for] your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; for your reward will be great (rich, abundant), and you will be sons of the Most High; because He Himself is kind and gracious and good to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful (responsive, compassionate, tender) just as your[heavenly] Father is merciful.

Expecting people who don’t know Jesus to act like Jesus, is like asking a person who cannot swim to compete in Olympic swimming. They can not. We cannot. Unless we have the Spirit of God we will not manifest the likeness of His character.

Honestly, I have met numerous people in my lifetime in churches who claim Jesus and look and act nothing like Jesus. I have had some of them yell at me, leave my fellowships, act hateful and nasty because I actually taught them what Jesus said. I could write a mega book on mistreatment from professing believers. Shouting “Praise the Lord,” on Sunday and gossiping about you on Monday. I will not even unpack the prejudice, jealousy, competing, pettiness, sexism, sabotage, and racism that I have encountered with professing Christians.

My point is as follows, to expect the world or people who do not know Jesus to flow in tune with God is unreasonable. It is also unfair if we (Christians) are not willing to submit to God to act in ways that actually look like God and then tell others they need God. It confuses the world when the Gospel we teach is not the Gospel we live.

How we react to evil is important. We do not condone it. We do not agree with it. We also do not stoop to low levels of conduct and act in ways unbecoming of Jesus to deal with it. If we were committing evil or out of line, how would we want to be treated? Would we want to be cussed out and condemned? Or would we want someone to say, “I love you and there is a better way?”

I love that even the rebukes of Jesus come because He longs for us to be right with God. Sometimes I think in culture its about us being right and not about the person being right with God.

Love is who God is and how He operates. I appreciate every rebuke and correction of God. Mainly because when God corrects it is to restore. When people do it, sometimes (not always), it is simply a critical spirit or pride. It lacks love, lacks compassion, and lacks tact. A critical spirit can seem like discernment, yet it’s not. God reveals to heal and so we can intercede or help. A critical spirit is rooted in pride and loves pointing out the flaws of others while rarely seeing it’s own flaws.

I am praying I walk in authentic Christianity. Rather than pointing the finger at others, I am asking God to help me walk out authentic faith. When people encounter me, I hope they walk away saying, “I want to know the God you worship,” not “Oh my gosh, get this person away from me. Whoever they worship must be a flake or a freak.”

I actually had a conversation with God Sunday about the way the church represents Him. I put myself in the shoes of someone completely unchurched. Would I desire Jesus just based on my encounters with believers over the years? Other than my parents and a handful of people, well, probably not. Yes, I have met some amazing people, yet as a whole (the summary of my life in Christiandom) have seen a culture that loves those who are already on the path better than the sinner. I would not feel comfortable as a way out there sinner coming into a community of faith. I would not feel comfortable as someone who was labeled liberal or alternative. I would not feel safe. How can I say this? Because I have spent my life in churches and seen the way “outsiders” are treated by a good chunk of people. The person can be a “get them saved project” or “be nice to them only at worship gatherings-ignore otherwise.” Gosh, I have encountered people who withhold love from other Christians because they go to another church or align with another political party. I have seen some pretty amazing believers too, yet as a summary-just my thoughts, we can do better.

I think we (I) can do better by abiding in Jesus (John 15:4-5). We can pray for revival all day, yet if we are not revived internally and begin to actually manifest Jesus, I do not think we will positively impact the world. I hear people chant, “They just need to get saved and come to the church.” Yet, how are we going to treat them when they get there? Is anyone going to mentor or disciple them? Is anyone going to genuinely love, invest, and treat them like Jesus would? We want these millions of souls to come to know Jesus and join our churches, yet have we learned to love the people already right in front of us?

Love is the highest standard. God speaks truth in love. The devil will tell the truth in the wrong spirit to hurt people or inappropriate times to create issues. If you don’t believe demons and the devil can speak truth, read the passages where demons cried out Jesus was the Son of God and He silenced them because it was not His time (Luke 4:41), or the slave girl who followed Paul around speaking truth from the wrong source (Acts 16).

Bottom line-we overcome evil with good.

Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good,~Romans 12:21 (CSB).

Love,

Erin Lamb

Insecurity is Not Humility

Leave a comment

Humility is a right assessment of oneself in relation to God. It is not self abasement nor “I am but a wretched worm.” It is not arrogance, “I am better than others.”

Jesus possessed humility and confidence. He could get low and wash feet. He could also stand in the synagogue and declare the words of Isaiah 61. He stated, “Today this scripture is fulfilled.” He stood bold and confident against the Pharisees. He did not shrink back and claim false humility.

The truth is, Jesus knew who He was in relation to the Father. When He prayed, it was with sincere confidence that God the Father heard His plea. Jesus is our model. Jesus is perfect theology.

I am pursuing doing a two day Confident & Free event because I believe God is raising up a company of believers who know who He is and know who they are in Him.

In Christ we are not less than nor better than; we are redeemed children of God. We are joint heirs. We are His workmanship created for His glory. Insecurity brings no glory to God! It is the flip side of pride.

False humility brings no glory to God, “Let’s pretend we are not who God says we are so others think we are humble.” God wants to free us of agreement with the devil. The devil approached Jesus and said, “If you are the Son of God.” Jesus knew who He was and responded in confidence, “It is written.”

Speakers for the Confident & Free Event will be announced this month! Whooohoooo! Instead of people coming to listen to me speak at 3-4 sessions a day for 2 days, I wanted to give others a chance to share their experiences with gaining godly confidence and freedom.

God has continued to press into my heart a need for people to see themselves as He does; not arrogant and not insecure. I sense and often see confusion over what it means to be confident and deal with numerous people in soul healing sessions who hate themselves, hide, feel bad about who they are, or a few have grandiose ideas about who they are. God intends we live in balance, and love ourselves in healthy ways. We love our neighbor AS we love ourselves.

We will have 7-8 speakers, 7 sessions, 2 panel discussions (you can ask questions), and a wonderful/intimate prophetic worship team.

The focus of day 1 is FREEDOM. Let’s break out of legalism, limiting mindsets, tear down religious strongholds, get the soul and body healed, dream BIGGER with God. I am carving out space for extended ministry time. Need healing, come! Our prayer teams would love to pray for your soul or body healing.

Day 2 is focused on confidence. What does it mean to be confident? Is confidence arrogance? What does it mean to be loving and bold? We want to talk about how to have an intimate relationship with God, hear and test His voice, step out of the boat with Jesus, properly understand and use authority, and share real testimonies of overcoming with Jesus.

The plan is to pour into those who attend. The mission is love. The mission is Jesus. The mission is getting people activated to move beyond just going to listen to someone else speak and do the works of Jesus. The works of Jesus are not just for some people or a select elite. It’s for every person who places their faith in Him!

In Christ you can see the sick healed!

In Christ you can share and preach the Gospel!

In Christ you can see people delivered from tormenting spirits!

In Christ you can love the broken!

In Christ you can make disciples!!

You can! You can! Oh yes you can!!

Jesus said, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you.” We, those who follow and abide in Jesus, have empowerment by God to do even GREATER! If you don’t know Jesus, come, we would LOVE to share who He is and how much He loves you.

I hope you join us for two days of jam packed teaching, activations (you get to participate-not just watch us do the stuff), worship, laughter, giveaways, ministry time, prayer, equipping, mentoring, and hopefully answering some questions you may have!!

Come party with us for 2 full days and invite some friends. Right now tickets are discounted to $89. That is roughly $10-12 a session. We also don’t plan on taking up offerings-people can donate to a charity represented there or speaker, yet I won’t be passing the plate to cover event costs. You will also have an opportunity to hear about human trafficking and support being part of the solution.

  • When is it? May 17 and 18, 2019
    • Sessions: 9 am, 2 pm, and 7 pm (mid day sessions have more than one speaker)
    • Where is it? 1055 McNaughten Road, Columbus Ohio 43213
  • Use the coupon code: EarlyBird
    • When should you sign up: As soon as possible. Seats are limited and we are already at 18% capacity with registration opening January 1.
    • Who’s Invited: Everyone (yet we will not have childcare for this event). Come and bring your teenager or preteen.

    Godly confidence is for everyone!!

    Love,

    Erin Lamb

    Founder/Owner/CEO of Lamb Enterprises LLC

    (Authoring, Publishing, Events, Masterclasses, Mentoring, Soul Health, and Wellness)

    #Confidence #ConfidentandFree #JointheParty

    We Become Like The Gods We Worship

    Leave a comment

    Morning Devotion: Knowing God is the Key to Thriving. We Can Be Stuck Worshipping The God Made in Our Own Image. We Become Like the gods We Worship. Let’s Know The God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob for Who He truly Is.

    I strongly desire for every person to know God intimately for themselves, and not the “God” they think they know. There are things over the years I thought I knew about God yet the more time I spent with Him the greater the revelation. I am still learning.

    My first book is entitled I Thought I Knew What Love Was. It is so easy to gather thoughts about God from other people, from skimming the Bible, and not dive into personal intimacy. It is also possible to allow the things we have been taught about God to keep us from learning more. I want to know God for myself, not second hand knowledge.

    This journey to intimacy with God moves us being being poly parrots to living out of the very heartbeat of God. Our understanding of God will determine who we become. We become like the gods we worship, they write their names on our faces.

    If I do not believe God is good, I will be less inclined to be good to people. If I believe God is harsh, hyper critical, unmerciful or cruel, then I would be more prone to be that way. The grid or lenses by which we view God determine what we become.

    Some worship a god of religion, some traditions of men, some a god of their denomination, some a racist god, some a sexist god, some a greedy god, some an unloving god, some an indifferent god, some a god that only lives to serve them.

    Over the years I have met hundreds of people who claim to speak for God or know God with some quite backwards ideas, unloving speech, and questionable behavior.

    God is not rude. Rudeness is a weak person’s attempt at strength and power. God is all powerful and all knowing. Knowing all our faults, God chooses to move in love and compassion. He could blast all of us to dust with one word, yet instead chooses to send His Son to wash feet and serve humanity.

    God is not racist or sexist. I get the most feedback when I talk about equality. Humans desire a hierarchy system due to insecurity, pride, misunderstanding how God works, religious spirits, and misunderstanding the bible. Jesus is supposed to be the standard and we do not see racism or sexism in Jesus. Some misunderstand Paul’s letters and refuse to change their mind about his true meaning.

    God is after relationship, not religion. The goal was never to just fill buildings with people who do not engage with God outside of those meetings. The goal was and is to cultivate family with humanity. He said, “I have grafted you into my family through my Son. You have been adopted.” He did not say, “I have signed you up for a program or network.” Family functions differently than an organization. A body functions differently than an organization. The place God longs to gather is in our hearts. God longs for daily communing and a habitation-not visitation. God cultivates family, interdependent community.

    God does not live in the land of speaking death and limitations of our abilities. When Moses told God he did not speak well, God replied to Moses, “Who made the mouth?” God did not say to Moses, “Well you suck, I can’t do anything with you…what on earth am I to do. Let me replace you with someone better.” God sees our weakness or perceived limitations as an opportunity to showcase His strength. God has no weakness. I have had loads of people try to word curse me with their death words. God does not speak death over me nor limitations. God speaks life and endless possibilities to His children. Those who ultimately suffer are those not in union with Jesus.

    God is not into celebrity status and political agendas. God thinks highly of every human being and demonstrated this on the cross. In heaven there are no elections, no Christian celebrity sections, roped off areas for the VIP, etc…God looks at the heart. God examines fruit. A person can gain all the applause on earth and miss the applause of heaven. God pursues all of humanity for good, not just popular people or those on a certain side of a political fence. I have seen people grossly mistreat those who are not platform ministers or popular and think it’s okay. It’s not okay. It’s sin and ungodly. Jesus stated, “What you have done to the least of them, you have done to me.”

    God actually cares how we treat people and talk about them or to them. “I’m just telling it like it is,” that damages people is not the heart of God. Jesus spoke truth in love. If we don’t want it said to us, or about us, it may be a good thing to refrain from doing or saying. When God reveals someone in my sphere is struggling, I pray. I do not use the information to beat them to death with it. Discernment is a key to intercession not a springboard for embarrassing people or humiliating them.

    God does not seek to humiliate people or publicly embarrass them. I have seen ministers do this and say God led them to, well no! God tells us to go privately to a brother or sister if we have an issue with them. Only if necessary do we need to involve other people.

    God is not double minded, confused, nor crazy. “God told me to go left,” then “God changed His mind and told me turn around He did not mean what He said the first time.” Well, often when people are wishy washy and claim “God said,” they have yet to distinguish the voice of God from a demon, or their flesh or soul. God is accurate and not double minded. Sometimes when people want something they will say, “God told me.” And if they no longer want something, “God told me.” The voice that guides is not Holy Spirit. Yet God’s name gets attached to their desires or feelings.

    God is not mean, cruel, or hateful. If we are, we either don’t know God or have stepped out of abiding in God.

    God is not selfish nor lustful. Lust is seeking pleasure outside God’s design or boundaries for our selfish means. God loves. Love seeks to give and operate inside of the boundaries of God. Heaven does not have a “you are not accountable” pass for “boys will be boys,” or “raging hormones.” Heaven has the same standard, holiness and purity. Grace empowers righteousness not lawlessness. The bible also states where you have jealousy and selfish ambition you find every evil work. Selfishness is sin. It is using people just to meet our needs. Only caring about ourselves. We are told to not just look out for our own best interests, but the interests of others.

    God is good. Every good and perfect gift comes from above from the Father of lights. God continually pursues our good. There is no evil in God. God dod not create evil. God created angelic and human beings with an ability to choose. Some choose to operate outside of God’s will. Evil is the abuse of free will.

    God is not insecure. God is bold, confident, courageous, and full of hope. God is aware that He is God.

    God is a Spirit and those who worship God must worship Him in Spirit and truth. God is not like a human male. God made both male and female in His image. Females are not some sub creature that has nothing in common with God. Some of the attributes we call feminine exist in God; compassion, deep love, nurturing, mothering, cultivating, wiping tears, teaching, move mountains to help their kids, etc…when God is only viewed through a human male lens, so much is missed about God’s heart and nature.

    My encouragement is we daily pursue God. God is worth knowing. It is a journey worth pursuing.

    You may pick up your copy of I Thought I Knew What Love Was; The Journey to Intimacy with God and Confident & Free (30 Day Devotional; Grow in Godly Confidence Through Intimacy with God) at Empowered & Free Store (USA & Canada). Or stop by Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble to grab copies.

    God invites is to know Him. Join the journey with me into His heart.

    Warmly,

    Erin Lamb

    When Prayer is An Excuse Not to Love

    Leave a comment

    Morning Short Devotion: When Prayer is An Excuse Not to Love.

    I am pro action. I believe our actions tell a greater story than our words. If I speak with the tongues of men and angels, yet have not God love, I am only making noise. I love that Jesus did not just talk about loving people, the love of Jesus was demonstrated through His actions, even to death on a cross.

    Love came down and pierced through the darkness, not by ego or eloquent sermons. Love extended a hand, washed feet, mentored, discipled, and met with people outside the Temple walls. Love engaged on a personal level with the least, last, and the lost.

    He stated:

    The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, for the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed,~Isaiah 61:1.

    Love is verb and moves us beyond talking about the goodness of God to manifesting the goodness of God. The love of God, as Mama Heidi says, looks like something. I say, the love of God looks like someone, Jesus. All of His life centered around this one pivotal thing, “The Father’s love.”

    I can see a person eating from a garbage can and offer them prayer. Or I can run to the store, if possible, and get them a sandwich.

    There have been people around me who suffered great loss and I could have just offered prayer, or offered groceries, a listening ear, a connection with someone else who could help them, help them with their resume or send them job alerts, check in, go sit in hospitals/hospice with them, send gift cards, offer to hang out to take their mind off their troubles. Why? Love is demonstrative.

    We cannot do everything, we can do something. There are some people I have said no to before. They sought to take advantage of kindness or I simply could not offer any assistance. I try to point people to someone who may be able to assist them. I did not have the capability to offer anything and it was not helpful. Codependency is not what I am advocating, where we think it’s our job to save people. I am advocating thinking of what is the most loving thing to do? What would we want done for us? Most importantly what would God want done for the person?

    I love the story of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) because he refused to leave someone in a painful and vulnerable state. When others walked on by, the good Samaritan saw an opportunity to love.

    Recent studies have shown people are more prone to take photos or video of someone suffering or a bad accident than help. Please call 911. Don’t just watch someone drown hoping your video goes viral. Seriously.

    We do not have unlimited resources. God does. I do not have the time nor energy to help everyone. I do have the ability many times to do more than pray. There are blessing bags in my car. I have helped people look for jobs. I have helped distract kids at the checkout so their mom has a break. I have baby sat for free so parents could get a break. I have offered odd jobs to people out of work. I have helped people clean houses when they were sick. I have given people free business start up advice. I have mentored for free. I have been a friend to the lonely. I have gone to hospitals and nursing homes and just sat with the hurting or taken my guitar. I have listened to people download their issues for hours when I needed someone to be there for me. Love is so very costly. It costs us something to love well. Yet love moves us beyond just sticking bandaids on broken bones.

    God love will transform the world, not sermons, politics, religious programs, nor meetings. The world needs genuine love and concern. God so loved the world He gave His Son. The Son so loved the world He gave His life. If we so love the world, what evidence of love is present? If prayer is removed, what evidence is there of love?

    For more devotions, check out Confident & Free:

    https://www.empowered-free.com/shop

    This weekend journals and books are on sale. I Thought I Knew What Love Was is already marked down. Use the Code Labor Day for Confident & Free and Journals.

    Love,

    Erin Lamb

    Revival is Outside Our Worship Gatherings (Stories from the Streets)

    Leave a comment

    Morning Notes & Stories: True Christianity is More Than Praying & Attending Services/Conferences. The Disciples of Jesus Went Out and Did What They Saw Jesus Doing. Prayer Does Not Replace Action.

    If anyone sees a fellow believer in need and has the means to help him, yet shows no pity and closes his heart against him, how is it even possible that God’s love lives in him?

    Beloved children, our love can’t be an abstract theory we only talk about, but a way of life demonstrated through our loving deeds. We know that the truth lives within us because we demonstrate love in action, which will reassure our hearts in his presence.~1 John 3:17-19.

    Jesus came and fulfilled Isaiah 61. The Spirit of the Soveriegn Lord was upon Him to do something to help others know God, connect with God, be healed, set free, and delivered. Jesus did not go into the Temple and sit down. He did not just teach people. He did not just hold prayer meetings. Jesus took the disciples out and had them do the stuff. Jesus activated the 12 and then they mulitpled. Jesus actually made disciples who replicated His teaching and actions.

    Revival is a super buzz word. It sounds amazing. I think people believe just praying will usher in this great societal revolution. What people fail to realize is God partners with human beings to accomplish His will on earth and that moves beyond prayer. If my neighbor has no groceries or is starving, my prayers will not get them groceries. I have to either partner with God to meet their practical needs or ask God to send someone else who can.

    I struggle with non participation in circles of people say they desperately want revival.

    Last year I spent a year serving with the city and their initiative for the poor. I was the only born again, spirit person on their committee-that I knew of anyway. I asked them why they did not have more churches involved, there are so many in my city. They stated churches often turn them down and refuse to help-they have their own programs to support. We can pay thousands of dollars to have big name people come preach to us or sing to us, and not help the city with poor??? It does not make sense.

    If all the believers took just one tiny slice of the pie, it could transform a city. Transforming a city trumps filling buildings and having packed out conferences.

    If I am constantly wrecked in the glory of God that does not shift my priorities and heart to care about what He cares about, something is wrong. Either I am not truly connecting with God or I am disobeying God.

    When I talk to people about helping the poor or abused, I will constantly get the response, “I am not called to do that,” or “I asked God and He told me not to support your ministry,” those same people (some not all) will come back with ways I can help support their vision, mission, and mandate from God. People love to give money, not so much the time, service, or feet on the ground.

    I am not asking people to join forces with me on the street. I do ask people to serve somewhere, do something other than consume, take the Gospel out somewhere, go help someone who genuinely has nothing. Jesus was not a bench dwelling passive person. The early apostles and early church were not passive bench dwellers.

    In an age of technology, the Gospel can be shared quickly with hundreds to thousands of people. If cat videos can go viral, why not Jesus? An encouraging text or email is easy to send. Letting someone go first in the grocery line-“God loves you, you go first.” Put blessing bags in the car for the homeless-include an encouraging note or bible. Stop for the neighbor and ask how they have been. Listen when people talk instead of dominating the conversation. Be a great friends instead of a one sided one. Find out what the city is doing to help people and tag along. Start a discipleship group-help people grow in their gifts. There are so many options beyond prayer. If I am starving to death, yes prayer is great. What is better is getting me a sandwich.

    I was out last winter looking for people to feed. As we were in the park, we saw a man go into the port o john and not come out. One of the ladies said, “Let’s check on him.” I was reluctant to go knock on the port o john door. Yet would not let her go alone. The man came out of the port o john eating chips. He stated he was in there to block his body from the wind and cold. We offered him more food and winter gear (socks, hand warmers, scarves, etc). He was shocked someone wanted to help him. He was reluctant to take what he needed because he said there were so many in need. I told him to take what he needed. He was so excited about socks. Socks made his day. I could have just offered him prayer and the Gospel. Yet it was far better to demonstrate the Gospel, “God cares about every single detail of your life, including your cold feet and hungry belly.”

    I was out one night with a team under the bridges. I met this elderly grandma and her grandchild. Since she had no home, her mom dropped off her child at the homeless camp for visitation. It was below freezing. This little girl had on a spring jacket, not a winter jacket. She had the most joy filled eyes. She was happy to be with grandma. I cried once I left them. I cried and cried and cried.

    Love is more than sweet words that escape our lips yet never move us to do anything.

    Love is more than warm fuzzy feelings that drive us to do only what is comfortable for us.

    Love is more than an anthem we sing that never forces us to shift our perspective or actions.

    Love is a verb that moves us beyond talking to doing.

    Can we do everything? No. Can we do something? Yes. It amazes me with all the hats I wear how many people will ask me to help them personally or support what they are doing. There are thousands to millions doing nothing but soaking up teachings, worship, and experiences and going home. Some aren’t even paying attention in services or to lessons. There is more in God and it is not about passive or idle Christianity. Revival involves transformation and transformation requires participation.

    I have yet for God to tell me to do nothing at all for anyone but myself. God highlights people on a daily basis to invest in them. God is generous, loving, kind, compassionate, looking for someone to bless through us. Love looks like someone, Jesus. Love acts like someone, Jesus. Love is demonstrated in our choices and actions-not just our words.

    If you see someone hungry, and you can feed them, feed them.

    If you see someone freezing, and you can clothe them, clothe them.

    If your city struggles with poverty, and you have the means to help, volunteer/serve/be a blessing to the city.

    If someone in your church or fellowship looks discouraged, encourage them.

    If you see someone struggling to pay their groceries, and you can help them, help them.

    If God highlights someone to you that is hurting, reach out. I will say a silent prayer is not as powerful as picking up the phone and calling, “Hey, you have been on my heart. Are you okay? I love you.”

    Love in word only is just noise (1 Corinthians 13).

    God give us your eyes and heart. Help us to see as you see. Help us to move beyond just going to services and praying for revival to going out and releasing your goodness on earth. Light a fire in our hearts for transformation. Transform us from the inside out. Transformed people transform cities. We need Jesus in the places He is needed most, all 7 mountains of influence. Heaven come through us to leave the world better than it was before we entered.

    Warmly,

    Erin Lamb

    OperationGodisLove.org

    Facebook.com/OperationGodisLove

    Raise Your Level of Expectations With God!

    2 Comments

    God longs to exceed our expectations! Is our dream too small and our expectations too low?

    Sometimes God blocks that door, opportunity, friendship, relationship, allows that sabotage, allows the heartbreak, or opportunity to pass by because He has a better idea!! As C.S Lewis so eloquently stated in the Weight of Glory, “It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

    God is in the business of increase and upgrades for those who love Him. Every good and perfect gift comes from God (James 1:17). God does exceedingly, abundantly, above ALL we could ask or image.

    Sometimes our dream is too small and our expectations too low. The greatest pleasure is found in God. The secondary pleasure is in His custom gifts for us.

    As a loving Father, God will allow doors to close where we are mistreated or will not be valued. Sometimes that thing that did not work out was a rescue mission by God. Sometimes that opportunity that did not pan out was protection from drama, trauma, and heartache!

    God is always looking out for our best interests even when we can not see it, feel it, or know. He is a loving Father who withholds nothing good from us! Thank God for the no!

    One freeing thought God gave me once. He said, “I will never allow someone to overlook you who needs to see you.” Rejection is often His protection. And some will not value you until someone they value acknowledges you; that is an opportunist, not a true friend.

    Be blessed today and dream BIGGER with God.

    Love,

    Erin Lamb