Day 13: fill the atmosphere…

Day 13: 8 May 2018

I still hear some of my own whining going on. Let’s get moved through and past it, right here, right now…

Introduction: Thanksgiving, Praise and Worship exercise – exact words are not important, what is the Holy Spirit saying to me in this moment.

SONG: Kim Walker Smith – Holy Spirit You Are Welcome Here

“There is nothing worth more, that will ever come close. Nothing can compare, you are my living hope.”

“I have tasted and seen of the sweetest loves. When my heart becomes free. And my shame is undone.”

YOU have repaired and restored my broken heart on every level. It took your physical miracle to loosen the hardness. To open the gates, allow the lifeblood inside me to flow through the exact heart that you gave me. The heart that is so uniquely mine. The one you created inside of me. The heart that is loving and kind. The heart that has immense capacity for forgiveness. The heart that allows you in, when I am not fighting the dickens out of the process!!

“Overwhelmed by your goodness, your kindness…”

“Holy Spirit, you are welcome here, come flood this place and fill the atmosphere.”

“Let us experience the goodness of your presence.”

“Your glory God, is what MY heart longs for, to be overcome by your presence Lord.”

My heart surely does long for you, Lord.

 “YOU are my living hope, may I be overcome by your presence Lord.”

“Holy Spirit, you are welcome, come flood this place and fill the atmosphere.”

Lord, may my vision expand into the atmosphere. There is SO much life to live, so much farther than what is under my nose. Holy Spirit, carefully and lovingly guide me into the atmosphere like you always have. Without this vision of you in the atmosphere, I would not see the hope that I possess only in you.

Step 1: Gather

The atmosphere is filled with some wildly awesome wonderment. I could not point out and name a star. I could not identify the Milky Way in the sky if I had to. I don’t understand why or how the moon is at different places in my windows. How does it get from one window one night to a completely different window another night? I guess I Lyme brained my way through all of those classes in school.

Or just maybe, I have never been able to see that far with my whole heart in it. I have needed all of my vision to deal with the moments at hand. Without that focus on the immediate, I would not have learned how to deal with the moment at hand. A lifetime of those experiences has equipped me with the desire to see beyond it all.

It is truly wasted human lives who do not see beyond the nonsense of this world. Turn any of my own remaining nonsense into service. God, you have given me gifts for service, not for waste. Show me Lord, specifically who to use them on instead of wasting them on the nonsense of this world.

Step 2: Focused Reflection

Holy Spirit, what do you want me to see? To see the atmosphere, past and beyond the pain. To see the glory of your goodness in other humans who you have chosen. To get back to seeing and seeking eternal value in my thoughts and choices in actions. Been there before, guide me back again.

Step 3: Journal

What is left about my toxic thought that I still need to work on, in this 21-Day Brain Detox?

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  ~ 2 Corinthians 10:5

Taking every thought captive is the simple correct answer. I know better and yet I still allow my thoughts to ramble on the nonsense of this world. I know better and yet I still allow others to instigate the stupidest of arguments.

And it is sometimes done by their cruel silence, but it is my thoughts that allow the silent arguments.

I learned something 20 years ago that has served me well. Cruel/mean-spirited people cannot have a two-sided argument where it is not allowed. As I see the universe filled with your love and power, I don’t even see these silent or loud arguments. They end up fighting with themselves because I remove my part. The true battle is between God and individual people. Has nothing to do with me, so I need to get out of the way or I end up being part of the nonsense of this world.

Only through your strength can I finish cleaning up this toxic thought. As I have spent years cleaning up these thoughts, I have had moments when the demons have danced in silence all around me, attacking in silence, and I have been so incredibly fine. I have had that indescribable peace before, many times.

I would bet I am the one making this round of cleaning up this toxic thought so much harder than it needs to be. Place my eyes on you, filling the atmosphere, beyond my own nose, and I will so easily get there again.

That made me smile. You made me smile. Got it!!!!!!

Step 4: Revisit

Focus – remember that indescribable peace that can only be found in Christ. Look far past the present in relation to time and space. God does NOT live only within that limitation. When the next quiet or loud attack comes, envision the atmosphere that the Holy Spirit engulfs. Take captive every thought, immediately.

Step 5: Active Reach        

Decision:

Focus, act, praise God for the triumph. 

Action:

When the attacks come, simply speak the power of God’s word. Repeat, repeat, repeat…

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  ~ 2 Corinthians 10:5

Activity: In case I get stuck, use NASA website to get my mind into the atmosphere and beyond. Take the Holy Spirit with me to try to see it all from God’s perspective.         

May ALL of you be blessed with vision of the Holy Spirit past your own noses,

Maribeth Baxter, MBNC (Certified Mind-Body Nourishment Coach)

Do your own 21-Day Brain Detox, by Dr. Caroline Leaf, Christian neuroscientist.

Find out about Dr. Caroline Leaf, a cognitive neuroscientist with a PhD in Communication Pathology specializing in Neuropsychology. … She frequently lectures to both Christian and secular audiences worldwide, linking scientific principles of the brain to spiritual, intellectual and emotional issues in simple and practical … Dr. Caroline Leaf

75% to 95% of the illnesses that plague us today are a direct result of our thought life. What we think about affects us physically and emotionally. It’s an epidemic of toxic emotions. The average person has over 30,000 thoughts a day. Through an uncontrolled thought life, we create the conditions for illness; we make … Dr. Caroline Leaf