Effie Darlene Barba

^{II Corinthians  5:21}For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him

Romans 5: ¹Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: ²By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Ephesians 2: ⁸For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: ⁹Not of works, lest any man should boast. ¹⁰For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

II Corinthians 3:  ¹⁷Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. ¹⁸But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

 

I begin this story with great trepidation; because the subject can so easily be  misunderstood.  I pray that God guide each word that you might understand.  It is very difficult to openly deal with my own failures.  If I reveal the truth of my past will others judge me and then “not like me” because of my imperfections.   If I speak earnestly about the differences between grace and legalism, will some misunderstand and thereby lose their way?  Yet, Paul the apostle, also dealt with the same fear as he carefully and cautiously wrote the book of Romans.  For this entire week, I have been burdened with the desire to write this for you; yet, my own inadequacy to explain it looms before me. 

I accepted Christ as my Savior when I was 5 years old.  Immediately, I began to search and learn scriptures, seeking Him before all else.  Despite my knowing that the truth is that salvation is by grace alone, I continually felt that I needed to work very hard to earn His favor.  This was a mirror of how I believed about the world as well.  I believed, deep within me, that I was not good enough to be loved.  What was the reason a small child believed this?  I cannot say.  I only knew I constantly worked hard to be accepted and loved by those whom I met and I constantly worked hard to hopefully be loved by God.  Although I knew the scripture which was that salvation was by grace, I still believed that favor was earned and that God stood with a lightening bolt to strike me with whenever I failed.  If I could only work a little harder, maybe He could bless me.  Well, God had a lot to work before Him to undo all of this fear and guilt; yet, His Love was so great that He patiently went about the transforming work in my life.

I would go through seasons of what seemed to be successful; yet, this always was followed by my tumbling forward and my failure would once more loom before me.  How could it be that I was seeking Him and wanting to please Him  and still failing to get it right?  The area in which this was most evident was in relationships.  My entire life I had been taught by my mother that the only thing honorable for a woman was to be wife and mother.  In other words, God would not bless me unless I could get this right; as though, this would be the symbol of God’s love for me.  Perhaps that is why this was where I was consumed with the pursuit of someone to love me as proof of God’s love for me.  I got married at age 16 more to try to please my mother than for any other thing.  That began a  spiraling road of great sorrow and failure.  By age 23, despite my desperately trying to get it right, wanting to honor God—I was twice divorced and believed that God could never forgive me this.  I never questioned my salvation, I merely questioned my ability to be used of God for anything meaningful.  Then I married Pete and I worked extremely hard to gain his love so that I might thereby gain favor with God.  I was with him until his death through some very tough trials that forced me to learn to lean on God for everything and amazingly I began to learn that God’s love for me was unconditional.  It did not depend on me, it depended on Him.   He had chosen me to be His child.  He had formed me uniquely His from my mother’s womb.  He knew that He would love me.  About two years after Pete’s death, I again married this time with great hope that God was finally going to reward me for my faithfulness.  How devastating it was to discover that this man only wanted my money and when it was gone and I was facing cancer, he continued to count how much money he would have when I died.  Beyond this, he despised my precious children for their Hispanic heritage; a thing he hid before the marriage.  I had told him before I married him that one thing he would not do is ever interfere with my children; so, once more divorced, recovering from cancer and post total colectomy for ulcerative colitis—once more I was divorced.  The only thing was what money I had was now gone; but God provided each step of the way what I needed for the moment.  Many well meaning Christians, including Mom, constantly reminded me that all my trials were a result of my sin.  I kept studying scripture and began to stand up and declare “No, that is not true”   Christ had died for my sin and the price was paid there on Calvary—once and for all—never to entrap me again in it’s condemnation.   Twice more, I with great hope dated again and twice more my heart was broken.  Then, with great sadness I laid down the dream.   For about six months, I was so broken hearted that I could not seem to overcome the sorrow.  Finally, one day I looked into heaven and cried, “My time is in Your hands”  My time for sorrow, my time for joy, my time for illness and my time for wellness—all is in Your hands Lord.  Amazing, what He has done since—my only hope and joy is in Him.   It is me and God—He is all I need. 

If you remember Christ as He approached Simon Peter before he denied Him and said as recorded in Luke 22:³¹And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: ³²But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

God does not ordain our sin; yet, sometimes He allows Satan to sift us that we might grow up to be more like Him.  All the chafe and false hood must be removed that we may become a true testimony of the truth.  The amazing thing, His grace and mercy is so great that He brought good even out of my failure.  How could I not savor and long for His presence above all else?  The more I savor Him, the more my life is transformed to display His glory to the rest of the world.  Not from the outside in am I transformed; it is from the inside out.  It is His work, not mine.  The more I recognize the very depth of His Love, the more I revel in His Joy; His peace, and find I want to shout forth to the rest of the world of His mercy.  If you don’t know Him, please come just as you are to seek this free gift of love.  The true gift is His presence in you and with you.  Nothing else matters so much.  Nothing else fulfills that void in your life. 

Now perhaps you understand this poem which I wrote, Lord, let me see me through Your eyes as is presented in this video. 

There are so many things that I want to share with you, the words keep pouring through my brain and yet alas at this moment my work schedule is keeping me running.  In the meantime, let me share with you this poem and hope it warms your heart. 

A TALK WITH GOD

Oh, let me Lord delight in You

And lay all else I hold aside

For no desire could mean as much

As hear Your voice, to feel your touch

And in Your arms abide

I feel the safety of your arms

Surrounding me throughout each storm

And when the bitter winter wind

Would bid my very spirit bend

Your breath will keep me warm

Forgive me Lord, this fragile heart

Sometimes desires too much

Forgetting You are all I need

Then comes my tears, my plead

To stop and feel Your touch

I then can hear your gentle laugh

The love within Your voice

“My child I love you evermore

My gifts on you I freely pour

The best for you my choice”

Oh, Lord I want to stay right here

And sit here at Your feet

To never step away from You

And then I cannot lose my view

No chance for fear, defeat

“But child I ask then who would go

To tell the wounded broken heart

That I their lonely heart would mend

If not but you, who can I send?

If you refuse to start”

Then Father, Dear, I must say yes

To go and run Your bidding do

And You will cast aside my fears

Your hand will wipe away my tears

And keep my eyes on You

I know that You go with me now

You’re ever present in my heart

I feel Your joy arise within

I feel Your wondrous strength again

Your love will ne’er depart

II Cor 4:16For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 17For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 18While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Sorry that it has been a while since I last posted.  There have been so many things happening.  My work has required many hours beyond the usual with less days off.  In addition, last Monday I received a call to tell me that a very dear friend was in hospice with only days to live.  I had tried many times to reach her; but her phone was turned off and I had no other way of reaching her.  Knowing that she had been battling cancer, I had come to believe she had already gone to be with the Lord with no chance for me to say goodbye.  With this opportunity, I rushed to her side to hold her hand and kiss her cheek one last time.   She was in such agony and on so many pain medications which barely relieved the pain for moments at a time; yet, she recognized me and whispered “I love you” one last time.  She left this world to be with the Lord Wednesday night.  She stood on faith throughout a life plagued with pain and suffering; yet, she was always the one to remind me that God was in Control and had the perfect plan for our lives—no matter what.  Her name is Machelle Luna.  I want to tell you a little about her life in hopes to help you understand this truth and  I dedicate this blog to her and to my belated husband as proof that God is truly the Master Weaver of our lives and for that reason we have no reason for fear or despair in any circumstance of this life because God who is omnipotent has a plan of love for each and every one of our lives that plan is to show forth His grace, mercy, and love to a world so in need of Him. 

Machelle’s gift was prophecy—therefore she strongly stood on truth and justice at whatever cost.  As I have previously told you, my primary gift is mercy.  What a fateful day, that I once more with broken heart stood before her desk at Florida Cardiology with tears streaking down my face.  I knew Machelle by sight only before that day; however, she looked up and saw me there that day and began to listen to my blubbering words.  She reminded me of God’s perfect love and plan.  We talked for quite some time and in that moment a true friendship began that superseded space and time.

Machelle’s life was a shining example of faith in the center of constant trials and tribulations.  She grew up very poor.  Her husband left her with two children to support with no formal education or work skills; yet, she proceeded to face life with one thought in mind which was to provide for her children against all odds.  It was during that time period that she came to find Christ as her Savior and  to rely on Him for everything.  She was one of the few women that I knew who worked as much or more than I did.  Our destinies were intertwined from that day forward with each helping the other through life’s sorrows.  Machelle later lost her job due to manipulating lies of another who had been placed in a position of manager.  This we talked about a lot after that and as the remainder played out.  This manager also professed to be a Christian and had been a very dear friend as well; yet, a Christian who is out of fellowship can prove to be more evil than anyone else.  All of this played out without the true boss knowing and his hands were tied.  The thing that I and Machelle knew was that God’s Master plan was still at work.  For that reason we knew that even this God ordained.  Machelle  always reminded me that this manager who had lost her way before God  needed our continued prayers for her to find her way back to fellowship.  Indeed, we pitied her rather than become angry; because we knew she was living in a world filled with fear and could not feel the peace of God without returning to Him.     Machelle lost her house and came to live with me for three months; but left to go back to Deland where she was from so that her daughter could be near her family and friends.   Shortly thereafter she began to have problems with excessive bleeding and multiple trips to the ER, where she was essentially ignored and despite their noting a large fibroid tumor—this too was ignored.  Of course, she had no insurance.  Despite this Machelle went back to school to become a medical assistant.   Ultimately, I demanded she return to a hospital where I worked and there met an incredible gynecologist who offered to help her, even if he never got a penny for the work.  It was then found that she had stage IV Ovarian and Uterine Cancer.  She completed all but one part of her chemo and none of her radiation therapy because she was placed in a situation of a very tough decision.  The training she had taken would all be worth nothing if she could not return to complete her internship before a certain date.  She chose to return to school that she might complete her training so she could support her family.  She stood on faith that God’s plan would still be best—no matter what His decision.  She did finish and go to work caring for an elderly couple which she loved.  Yet, the cancer returned with a vengeance about a year later with massive tumors of the peritoneum.  Some wanted her to sue the original doctors; but she refused and said that to do that would not be an example of Christ’s forgiveness.  It would also taint the truth that God is in Control.  She always said, “I do not want to look down from heaven and see the bunch of you crying at my funeral; because I will be standing before my Lord and Savior” 

Why does God allow His children to face such sorrow and tribulation in this world? Perhaps that is the question many of you have at this point in this story.  Yet, Machelle and I had both learned in life that our entire lifetime is but a moment compared to eternity and that in the center of  it all our purpose is to glorify Him.  There are many people out there who want to teach a prosperity gospel which brings glory to themselves and not to God.  There are many others who want to teach the false gospel that pain in the life of a believer is a result of sin.  This is also so very far from the truth.  Both of these gospels do not understand that Christ left His throne in heaven to suffer and die to pay the penalty for our sin once and for all that we might be brought into fellowship with Him. Romans 8: 1 “ There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Those who have truly seen and savor the truth and magnitude of Christ’s love, we fall before Him in praise even if He offered nothing in return.  We come to understand that many times, it is through those sorrows and pains we come to know Him so intimately that He becomes all that matters.  Have you ever felt joy and peace in the middle of great tribulation?  That is what Machelle had and I have because of Jesus Christ.  It is His peace and joy in the central core of our being that caused and continues to cause  us to triumph with grace—standing firm in faith.  II Timothy 2:  1 Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.  3Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.  7 Consider what I say; and the Lord give you understanding in all things. 8 Remember that Jesus Christ of the seed of David was raised from the dead according to my gospel.  9 Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evildoer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound. 10 Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sake, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.  11 It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him:  12 If we suffer, we shall also reign with him”  

Another scripture which confirms these truths is found in the writings of Paul the Apostle who suffered beatings and imprisonment for the gospel of Christ.  Romans 5 ¹Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: ²By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and REJOICE in hope of the glory of God. ³And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; ⁴And patience, experience; and experience, hope: ⁵And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. ⁶For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. ⁸But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. ¹⁰For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. ¹¹And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. ¹²Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: ¹³(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. ¹⁴Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. ¹⁵But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. ¹⁶And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. ¹⁷For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) ¹⁸Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. ¹⁹For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. ²⁰Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: ²¹That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

Paul, pretty well summed it up.  Our purpose as children are to glory God in such a way that we draw others to Him.  If for example my life was filled with no suffering and no sorrow, always blessed with riches would I be able to point you to Christ for your peace and joy?  Indeed, you might believe you want what I have, but you would never see the true source of my joy and peace which is Christ Jesus.  On the other hand, if I find hope in a hopeless situation, peace when trials abound, am able to forgive and love those who harm me, and demonstrate an underlying strength and joy in a sea of broken heartedness—then you might begin to wonder or seek He who is my strength through all of life rather than the riches of this world.  My belated husband was the proof of just that.

Pete grew up in a world of pain and sorrow.  His father was very abusive, because he grew up abused and really did not even know how to be different.  At one point he was placed in an orphanage after his father abandoned his mother.  She went to work and to be able to do so placed Pete and his sister in an orphanage which was run by a group of abusive nuns.  He nearly died of scarlet fever, so his father removed him from the orphanage but continued to raise him with an abusive hand.  His father would place him in the best school, but send him to school dressed in rags with shoes that had holes so that he suffered constant ridicule.  Despite all of his childhood he became a brilliant doctor; yet, plagued by bipolar disease-most likely inherited from his mother who was loving one minute and abusive the next during the times she was with him.  (He never remembered this and dearly loved his mother; but his sister relayed these truths later so that I would further understand.  )   The results of all this also left him as an atheist because he saw nothing that would bring him to seek God. 

When I met Pedro Barba, I fell madly in love with this man who had a heart of gold which seemed to be tainted by a life of sorrow.  It was not until so many years later that I came to realize the magnificance of God’s plan.   Somehow, despite my failing to get it always right and many times not understanding what God was doing, God taught Pete of his unconditional love by continually placing forgiveness and unconditional love in my heart for Pete.  Despite many difficulties, pains and suffering, God revealed to me constantly the Pete He saw.   At one point, we lost everything and things looked very bleak.  That was when Pete first saw a glimpse of the strength and peace that God provided in a believer.  I remember distinctly him saying,  “You have something deep inside that causes you to always forgive and a strength that carries you through everything, I  want what you have”  I told him the truth was I, myself, was very fragile; yet, God provided me with His strength, His hope and His unconditional love.  That was Pete’s first step toward seeking God.  Six months later, he accepted Christ as his Savior merely six months before he died.  I began to understand that God’s plan was perfectly orchestrated.  I learned so much throughout this; most importantly 1.  If God could give this human heart the ability to love unconditionally then how much greater was His unconditional love for me.  2.  There is no suffering too great for the salvation of one soul.  3.  Our entire lifetime is but a blink in time compared to eternity.  

Machelle’s life has always been a testimony of faith and she now stands before Christ sharing in His Glory.  How many people will find Christ because of her life? Only God knows.  Perhaps, you who have stumbled on this website , with a heart filled with pain, need to know this Savior who is so worthy of our Praise, who can fill your heart with strength and joy and peace.  I pray that is the case.  It is for that reason, I write.  I hope that in doing so I point one person toward Christ or cause one faltering Christian to turn there eyes back on to that which is the only hope we have—Jesus Christ.

Let me share with you this poem I wrote which has been true in my life, Machelle’s life, Pete’s life and is true for everyone who knows Christ as their savior.

The Master Weaver

Broken threads my life you found

And with your love each piece you bound

A song of love your lips resound

With gentle hands, each thread you place

Oh could it be, amazing grace

A picture clear, my Savior’s face

What joy divine, could it be true

Each broken thread, you only knew

When woven tight would look like you

 

The Scarlet threads my broken heart

The deepest sorrows blue impart

Each silver thread of tears that fell

You guide my life with such detail

A brilliant gold, your love divine

My sins were washed, a white sublime

You gently weave with skillful hand

The portrait mine that you have planned

 

Oh, let me Lord remember this

That I might know with joy and bliss

You did ordain my every tear

That I might learn to never fear

That I might trust the weaver’s hand

And on this hope and promise stand

Your love will always know what’s best

Your cradling arms are where I rest

 

Broken threads my life you found

And with your love each piece you bound

A song of love your lips resound

With gentle hands, each thread you place

Oh could it be, amazing grace

A picture clear, my Savior’s face

What joy divine, could it be true

Each broken thread, you only knew

When woven tight would look like you

 

By the way, stay tuned, soon to be posted will be a video to the song version of this poem 

May God bless you with His joy, His peace and His love. 

                                                                          Love,  Effie Darlene Barba

Today as I reflect on all the years I have had the privilege of being a mother to Alberto, I must stand and thank God for this precious gift.  I know I spoke about Alberto in the last post; but I realized that I  had failed to include leadership in the spiritual gifts and I went back to study the wonderful study done by Charles Stanley in his series called “God’s Children Gifted for Ministry”.  It was then that I realized that Alberto’s primary gift was leadership or organization.  His secondary is exhortation, meaning he had to stretch a little to call me last week.  So let me tell you a little about leadership and why I had to admit my error.  This did not change in any way the significance that in my family lies all the gifts; it actually affirms it by including leadership. 

Those with the gift of leadership have the ability to see the big picture  and visualize the completion of any project.   They are then able to see the goal and break it down into smaller goals that lead to that completion.  They believe completely the truth that “All things are possible”   They are motivated to be organized into moving forward.   When they are handed a goal they begin to get started right away toward working to finish the goal and clearly see the steps needed.  The one thing that people with this gift cannot stand is negativity.  They are able to discern which things can be delegated and which they need to do themselves.    They are very focused on the big picture and separate themselves from the  details.  They are willing to take criticism and they move forward toward completion of the big picture.  They are very loyal and they need loyalty from those who are around them.  They are very positive and push past or remove from themselves any negativity or sadness.  They generally sit back and listen carefully to what the goal is, then they step forward to say “ I am willing to take the lead if no one else can”  They live very ordered lives.  Their greatest joy is in seeing the project completed and others enjoying the finished product.   Once they have completed a task, they are quickly ready to move on to a new  goal. They are frequently misunderstood because they are goal oriented and some think of them as being too proud, but the truth is there is an innate humility—they just must move forward toward accomplishing the goal. 

This is truly my son.  God in His omnipotence knew that he formed Alberto for this spiritual gift, so He carefully molded his traits and then throughout his life and presented situations that would guide him to learn the skills needed so that when he accepted Christ as his Savior and received his spiritual gifts-he would be ready to embrace it.   Every minute detail of his life was orchestrated by God. 

I could go back and tell you so many examples of how these traits began to show themselves from even the age of 2.  How he was always able to see the goal and moved toward it.  Even how he always stepped to the forefront to protect Ronald and myself in every situation.  Yet, those stories I will hold tightly in my memory and will not share at this time because for the leader (as he is) it is important to always follow this philosophy as Paul the apostle expressed in Philippians 3 

¹³Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

¹⁴I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

His infectious smile and refusal to accept or dwell on any negativities make him the true leader that he is.   Check out this video , I think you will find that you must agree.  

 

Happy Birthday Alberto,   Love you Mom

I should have written this answer last week when it came; but life has kept me so busy this week.  Perhaps I have been so busy in the fulfillment of joy that I delayed in writing this; but for that very reason it is even more urgent to get the post out there. 

To prevent anyone from not understanding this post; let me give you a little background into the spiritual gifts; without which, this would make no sense at all.  Romans 12

⁵So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

⁶Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;

⁷Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;

⁸Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness

Within the body of Christ, each believer at the point of salvation is endowed with certain spiritual gifts.  The framework for these gifts was born in us and propagated by our very lives; yet, their full potential cannot be seen until our rebirth and the endowment of the gift by the work of the Holy Spirit. 

Let me give you a brief synopsis of each gift. 

Prophecy is no longer in this age a prophecy into the future.  It is that unique gift to discern the truth from heresy.  Inherent to this is a very clear vision of justice.  The gift carries with it a somewhat black and white view of things.  After all, truth is truth and falsehood is false.  These are the people who define right and wrong clearly with an innate wisdom that rises above most people.  These are the people who speak forth truth and usually speak first.  They rise up against any injustice that they sense.  They have a unique ability to discern untruth and deception and can generally see straight through to the heart of people’s motives and make quick judgments.  Generally they are less concerned with feelings than they are with truth.  They are extremely loyal and find it very painful to be confronted with disloyalty.  They are willing to suffer criticism as long as they are not themselves untrue to the truth to which they cling.  They very firmly stand and know exactly what they believe. 

Ministry is that give of service.  These are the people who will unselfishly give of their time.  Whenever they see a need , they roll their sleeves up and get busy with the task at hand.  They are not looking for the spotlight and are content to keep right on working in the background to make certain the task is completed.  They are very quick to see the needs of others and will in an organized fashion just get to work completing the job.  Their greatest joy is in seeing the job completed.  They love to see the recipient with a lighter load.   No matter how fatigued they are they keep right on working until it is done.

The teacher is just that, they love to instruct and have a gift in teaching others how to grow. They see the truth with a simplicity and are able to break that down to it’s smallest terms to help someone else who is struggling to understand.

Exhortation is that gift of motivating and urging people to full spiritual growth.  They are able to see the potential that lies in the other person and press that person toward being the best that God has for them to be.  They can uniquely see the root of the problem and give very precise steps as to how to deal with the problem and move past it.  They want to see the action take place and continue to encourage the person they are helping  to move through the necessary steps.  They also understand that if you are miserable or going through a difficult hurdle, God is working in your life.  They know that each believer learns from personal experience.  They are happiest once they see the growth take place.  They are very strong.  They encourage the person to go through the steps or face the consequences of what will happen if they don’t. 

Givers are those who know exactly how to be very frugal with their money and things in such a way as to give more away.  They prefer simplicity in their own life so that they may help others more.

Mercy is that gift of unconditional love toward people.  Those with the gift of mercy feel the joy and the distress of others.  They are constantly being drawn toward those who have emotional or mental distress.  Their greatest desire is to remove the pain; rather than to allow the other person to go through it.  They are the most cheerful, loving limb of  God’s body.  They forgive and forgive others of the discretions against themself, always seeing the good hidden deep in the heart of even the most unlikely souls that pass their pathway. 

When working out of the Spirit all of these gifts have there perfect place in the body of Christ; yet, when they get off kilter any one these gifts can cause harm.  Also, whenever they allow the task to take them away from their main focus, which is savoring and glorifying Christ, they can begin to act in a manner nearly opposite of their original gift.  Which brings us to the real heart of the story.

Most  believers have at least one major gift and a secondary gift that sits closely behind it; sometimes creating discord even within one heart unless they remain finely tuned in the spirit.  My primary gift is mercy; with my secondary gift being exhortation.  Mercy tends to get tightly involved emotionally with whatever is going on.   Because mercy wants to immediately go rushing in to fix the situation, she can become very discouraged and distraught when every effort made seems to fail.  That was the point I had reached last week.  I felt like a failure and the sheer emotion of the situation was driving me farther and farther away from the joy.  I could verbalize the truths of exhortations; but could not feel the energy and the joy of Christ. 

Then suddenly, I received a call from Alberto my son.  He saw what was happening and realized I needed a reality check.  You see, Alberto’s primary gift is exhortation with a secondary gift of prophecy.   For him it was clear what needed to be done and so he called and reminded me of the truth of the situation, firmly and strongly.  He reminded me of the work I have done and do for Christ and warned me not to let Satan destroy that work by bringing me down into despair.  All I needed to hear was that truth from him and suddenly the despair lifted and I have been steady and strongly about the tasks of helping mom; yet, maintaining my joy in Christ.  I realized that my becoming miserable would not help her or anyone and that I should not feel guilty for feeling joy and peace while she went through whatever God had ordained or allowed in her life.

Meanwhile, Ronald, my other son had displayed his gifts of primary prophecy and secondary mercy.  He had stood firm in the truth and; yet, gently listened to my sorrow.  That was a great comfort until I could get it together and also played a great role in preparing me for what Alberto had to tell me. 

Melissa, my daughter, who has the gift of ministry primary with teaching secondary had been about the task of calling me each day to reach out and give of her time to make certain I was ok.  She listened to me through it all, cheering me on.  My perfect cheerleader. 

After, my head was back on straight and I realized the magnificent truth of it all—this my family had been endowed with the package of multiple spiritual gifts and that together we are a formidable force against Satan.  That is the reason we are never an army of one.  We must join together with each gift upholding the others.  If one begins to slip, the other reaches in and realigns. 

Most importantly joy was restored and with it strength.  Perhaps there was a reason Paul reminded those with mercy to do it with cheerfulness.  As it says in Nehemiah 8

¹⁰Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our LORD: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength

Oh by the way that was the turning point for mom who is now getting better.  Thank all of you for your prayers.