Performative Christianity

I’ve spent time this past week listening to people who used to go to church and an atheist talk about their experiences with Christians and the organized church. I listened and I cannot state I disagree with their assessments. One talked about the extreme hypocrisy of Christians who got drunk and partied with him, who behaved no better than he did who put on an air of superiority and self righteousness. Another talked about the church’s obsession with former President Trump and forcing their religious beliefs on the masses with political control. She stated her mom left the church after 13 years because all they talked about was money and Trump. It wasn’t about Jesus, the poor, the Gospel, or loving one’s neighbor. I sat in a room with people who decided to divorce themselves from organized religion and they vowed not to go to anyone’s church. I told them I was done with religion too. I just want God.

There are people who say that you cannot know God outside of organized religion or membership at someone’s church. I disagree. Jesus met people outside the synagogue. He invited people into faith and relationship outside the Temple. Jesus never performed an infant baptism into a church. He did not push religion upon people as the Pharisees did. He invited people into relationship with the Father. He broke down the barriers the religious set up between the people and their Creator. He built a bridge, not a wall.

Am anti worship gatherings? No. A healthy community of people seeking to know God, love God, love their neighbors and enemies is a blessing. A community of people centered on relationship with God is a gift. Sadly many people I have encountered have not been in Christ centered communities. They have been planted in religious entertainment centers that focus on raising money, entertaining people, becoming the biggest/ most influential church, celebrity and performative Christianity, controlling people, politics, and/or putting on masks to appear good while not having genuine love to offer.

Am I anti followers of Jesus voting or involvement in the political arena? No. It is not the role of the church to use the pulpit as a campaigning tool. The purpose of the worship gathering is to glorify God, point people to God, assist people in knowing God, and caring for one another. It is not campaign headquarters. I tell people, vote how you’d like, however do not put the Lord’s name on your party or candidate. There are Christians who did this with Trump and it cost the church millions of people. The small strand of respect people had for the church was disintegrated. I meet people who’ve vowed to never trust the church again.

The atheist who spoke on Christians this week had thought provoking comments. She said, “Something is wrong with you if you need a book to tell you to be a decent human being who is good to people. I meet Christians who state they are good because they are doing what will please Jesus. They are not good on their own. They do it to bypass judgement from Jesus and hell. So, they are not genuinely interested in loving you or being kind. They are, out of obligation, doing what will make them look good to others and make Jesus happy. I have met some of the cruelest people who claim to be Christians and maybe they need the bible because I cannot imagine how evil they would be if they weren’t afraid of hell. I don’t need the threat of hell to keep me from doing evil to people.”

What she explained was performative Christianity. It is performing or pretending to be something that pleases God without it flowing from the overflow of the heart. It’s not sustainable. I cannot tell you how many fake nice Christians I have met in my lifetime who knew all the right things to say, yet the fruit of their behavior over time was manure. I have also encountered in the evangelical space the ones who want so badly to be the one to see the most miracles or lead the most people to Jesus. Jesus was moved with compassion to heal the sick and did what He saw the Father doing. He was not performing or pretending. He was not keeping tally so He could pat Himself on the back. He lived out of the overflow of intimacy with the Father. He was a walking blessing, not a performer.

Performative Christianity is the bedrock of the Pharisee. Jesus said this about them, “Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 “They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. 5 “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. 6 “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.”-Matthew 23:1-7. He also stated, ““Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like respectful greetings in the market places, 39 and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, 40 who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation.”-Mark 12: 38-40.

If we removed heaven and hell from the equation, would we be good to people? Would we serve God and love God? Would we help our communities and even our enemies? When all the fear of punishment is removed, who are we? Do we love Jesus and our interactions flow out of the fruit of God’s spirit? Or are our actions just like those of the Pharisees? Fake and phony, a religious act done to try to win the favor of God and approval of people? Honestly, only God knows the heart of every person, yet it was worth pondering. The religious mindset produces performance and self righteousness. Genuine relationship with Jesus of Nazareth produces the fruit of God’s Spirit. Unfortunately people are encountering more modern day Pharisees than people overflowing with God’s Spirit.

My encouragement is seek God for yourself. Center worship gatherings on Christ and what God wants to do, not the programs of man. Abide in Jesus of Nazareth who is not a politician. Focus life on knowing God and making Him known. Understand the way Christians behave does reflect back on God’s reputation. I have had some wonderful experiences with people who claim to know Jesus and an overwhelming amount of heart breaking ones that left me with trauma, scars, and wondering how God allowed these people to claim to know Him.

I will keep sitting with those who have PTSD over their experiences with professing Christians. I will keep seeking God for my own healing from the damages done by those who claim Him. I will keep praying for the entire world to have a genuine revelation of who Jesus is!

Dios te bendiga (God bless you)

With warm affection…

Erin Lamb

Christians vs Jesus (Why the Behaviors Differ)

Christian behavior vs the behavior of Jesus.

It comes up with street people and I have asked the same question of why “Christians” do not behave or love like Jesus. The answer is pretty simple, a person will bear the fruit of who and what they worship. “Christianity” can be rooted in going to church, giving money to a church, attending Christian events and reading Christian books, memorizing the Bible, singing Christian songs, belonging to a particular denomination or political party, pursuing marriage and raising Christian children, finding spiritual parents/mentors/priests/pastors or a Pope to follow, outward signs of piety, or in charismatic circles displays of miracles/signs/wonders. None of these things produce the fruit of God’s Spirit. None of these things mean a person is right with God, in relationship with God, following Jesus!

Jesus stated quite plainly, “I am the vine, you are the branches. If you abide (remain, stay in close connection and relationship (intimacy)) with me, then you WILL bear good fruit.” This means relationship, personal relationship with Jesus on a daily and continual basis is what empowers a person to bear the fruit of God’s likeness. Whatever parts of our lives that are bearing fruit, God comes along and prunes to produce even more fruit.

Religion does NOT produce the fruit of the Spirit. Yes, reading the Bible and connecting with other people who believe in God does help with the journey. You can read the Bible, spend all your life in church, and end up in hell. God did not send Jesus to increase the roll number at churches. God sent Jesus to reconcile the world to Himself and expand His family.

I have encountered people more in love with their church than Jesus. More in love with their spouse than Jesus. More in love with their political party than Jesus. More in love with miracles, signs, and wonders than Jesus. More in love with money or power than Jesus. More in love with looking like a Christian than obeying Jesus. If a person does not abide in the real Jesus of Nazareth, they will NOT bear the fruit if His love, character, or likeness.

It’s not a pull yourself up by your bootstraps type of deal. It is a sink into knowing Jesus and pursue close relationship with God.

“Those who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons and daughters of God.” Those without the indwelling of God’s Spirit do not have the seal of God upon them.

I am not against Christian events and the outward expressions of celebrating God. I do know, as Jesus knew, with the Pharisees that you can spend your life thinking you know God because you’re religious and completely miss God. Jesus stood before the Pharisees and they rejected Him. They had their religious feasts and the Torah. They had the Law. They had their outward expressions of righteousness and piety. What they did not have was personal relationship with the Messiah.

Relationship with God is not complex. It is a conversation and yielding of one’s heart and life. It is choosing to say yes to the stirring of God on the heart. “Yes, God I long to follow you. I repent of my sins (the ways I have lived outside your holiness). I accept that apart from you I can do nothing. I want to know you for myself. I yield my life to you. Come live in my heart. I thank you for Jesus. He who knew no sin took on my sins. He is God’s Son. The sinless One who died and rose on the third day. He triumphed over life’s greatest enemy-death, for me. Jesus be Lord over my life. God fill me with your Spirit.” The next steps involve inviting God into each day. Yield to the nudging of God. Listen and follow. It’s about relationship.

The more we abide (sink into personal relationship with Jesus), the more we begin to think like Jesus, love like Jesus, and display the character traits of Jesus. When Christians place the real Jesus first, then their behavior shifts to be more like the Christ (anointed one). Sadly, when being religious replaces relationship, what manifests is behavior that does not mirror Jesus at all.

Let’s be ones who abide in Jesus and display His glory (reputation) on earth.

Love,

Erin Lamb

Change is Good & Moving Posts the Book Blog

Good morning! I hope the sun is shining on you. It is peering through my windows as a simple, “Hello, Spring is almost here.” The changing of the seasons reminds me that life involves change and hopefully growth. Change can be uncomfortable, yet beneficial for us. There is beauty on the other side of change, if we can trust the process.

From 2018 until today has involved drastic changes. Changes with transitioning from the job I had since college to an entirely different industry, changes in my relationships/friendships, leaving a church I loved to remain more local, my dad moving local because of a serious illness, helping my parents navigate through his health challenges, my worldview shifting with COVID 19/the political uproar/death of George Floyd, losing countless supposed “Christian” friends because I do not support their Christian Nationalism or political point of view, facing backlash for being authentic to who I am, and moving to an ethnically diverse church because I was tired of the racism (blatant or subliminal) in white evangelical churches.

I asked God around 2017 to remove anything and anyone from my life that was unnecessary for my destiny. He answered that prayer and continues to answer that prayer. I am thankful. There is plenty that was left behind. There is far greater in the years to come. I hold fast to Psalm 84:11, “The Lord my God is a sun and shield, no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” My life belongs to God. My destiny belongs to God. Who I am and who I become is written in the book of God. Unlike Eve, I refuse to believe that God is holding out on me! He’s not, nor is he holding out on anyone else. “Every good and perfect gift comes from above from the Father of Lights who does not change like the shifting shadows.” A seed must fall to the ground, be covered by dirt, and be nourished by rain to become that tall oak.

Changes will come! Transitions are necessary. If they are God led, they always lead to something better. Job (in the bible) was given double for his trouble. God is faithful. This is a truth I hold onto.

I landed a far better job where I am valued and respected for what I do. I am valued instead of tolerated. I’ve advanced into higher levels of leadership and influence within my department and at the senior levels. I’ve met incredible people who add value to my life instead of me being the person who does that for others. I have a church where the pastor speaks out against sexism, racism, injustice, and the mistreatment of immigrants. They focus on the actual teachings of Jesus instead of trying to enlist everyone in the Republican party. I feel safe to be who God created me to be and to discuss my unique challenges as a woman of color without gaslighting, neglect, being ignored, or mistreated. My dad is still here, though doctors told us he’d be dead over a year ago. I have more time with my parents and family instead of over investing my time into people from churches who could easily walk out of my life because I did not violently oppose face masks. I found even more love in Jesus, the true love of my life.

Change can make us better! So I hope you embrace change even in the discomfort.

With that being said, I will be transitioning to only managing one blog and that is https://ithoughtiknewwhatlovewas.com. Link to the latest blog post is below. Rather that running two blogs, will focus on one. I thank you for being a part of my journey over the years. You are invited and welcomed to join the book blog! We’d love to have you. After this month, I will no longer be posting regularly on this page. Once again I thank you for reading posts over the years.

I hope you check out my fourth book to be released this year called Relationships 101! Join the book blog or company website to stay informed of the release date.

Latest Book Blog Post: https://ithoughtiknewwhatlovewas.com/2024/03/16/transformation-the-old-must-go-in-order-to-grow/

Company Site: Empowered-Free.com

Warmly,

Erin Lamb

The King’s Daughter

Parable: The King’s Daughter

The King sent his daughter into neighboring countries for diplomatic service. She was not adorned in royal garb. She blended into the crowds. She was there to serve and bless the town’s people. They soon recognized her generosity and made plans for exploitation. They could get their needs met without offering much or anything in return. They offered her what had the least or no value in exchange for her best offers.

They mocked her in private, and some to her face. They gossiped, and tried to sully her reputation. Obviously she was either stupid, weak, or had an ulterior motive. They worked against her efforts to help their poorest citizens. They needed the poor to feel good about themselves, “At least we are not like those people.” Some helped and were generous too. Many were offended by the expressions of kindness.

The daughter of the king kept showing up to serve, give, love. Even when those offerings from her father’s table were trampled under foot.

One day the king appeared and found his daughter. “Come with me,” he said. “I have other countries that desperately need what we have to offer. You do not need to to stay where the gifts are unwanted. Pack your things. We will leave today. I did not send you here for exploitation.”

The daughter packed her things and departed with her father. Though the town’s people did not value what was given to them, they were full of rage that the king’s daughter departed. How dare she. She owed them. They were entitled to receive from the king’s table.

They demanded she return. She did not. She and the king took their gifts, generosity, and blessings to other countries. The people in other countries were open to the king’s decrees. They rejoiced that the king chose their town to be recipients of his goodness.

The king’s daughter flourished in her new assignments. She made new alliances and assisted the king in building an empire focused on loving people. The daughter learned a valuable lesson; do not waste your gifts on those who do not appreciate them.

Warmly,

Erin L Lamb

The Peach Groves-Parable

Photo Source: The Tutu Guru Australia

Parable: Stewardship

There was a wealthy peach grove owner who left his daughter acres and acres of fertile land. Each year the harvest was abundant, more than she could eat or sell. She choose to open the gates to the grove to those from her church, town, extended family, neighboring towns yearly to share the harvest. Some were grateful and respectful. Many vandalized the groves, took way more than needed, threw fruit on the ground, spit on the property, and cursed her for not providing for them year round. The daughter spent weeks to months cleaning up the damage they caused. Her father was deeply grieved by the excessive damage done to his property, gift to his daughter, and the damage to his daughters heart.

Local church people encouraged the girl to keep opening the gates because the hungry and needy were in desperate need of love. It was her responsibility to feed them. Though the local churches required money from the town’s people and paid no taxes, they were not feeding the people.

After years of opening the gates and suffering extreme damage, the father locked the gates. He sat down with his daughter and proclaimed, “The gifts and abundance I have given you were not solely to give away. I love and cherish you. It breaks my heart to see you treated this way. You do not owe everyone access to the groves. They were my gift to you. You must manage how you share what I have given you. I am not requiring you to be destroyed in the process of caring for other people. Keep the groves locked. During harvest time, let people know if there will be extra you will drop of what you feel led to give in your heart to the towns. They are not to set foot in the grove. This area is sacred and my gift to you. If they spit on your gift, shake the dust off your feet and do not return to that town. Steward the grove as though it has tremendous value, because it does. You have tremendous value to me.”

The daughter followed her father’s instructions and apologized to him for not stewarding well his gift to her. She kept the grove locked. When she gathered excess from the harvest, she took it to various towns. If they were hostile, entitled, ungrateful or abusive…she shook the dust off her feet and did not return. Her peach grove grew to be even more abundant because she did not spend weeks to months rebuilding what people destroyed. She ceased trusting the local church people who were exploiting the people rather than helping them. She kept the grove guarded! She flourished under the guidance of her father.

Moral of the story: Guard your heart, giftings, resources from God. You do not owe everyone access. Poor stewardship can destroy you! God cares about you and how people treat you. God bless.

Love in Christ,

Erin L. Lamb

Founder & CEO of Lamb Enterprises LLC and Operation God is Love

Empowered-Free.com

OperationGodisLove.org

The Spirit of Christmas

I confess that Christmas does not get as much hype in my life as it does for others. Mainly because after studying the life of Jesus and the Bible it makes no sense that He was born on December 25th. Jesus was most likely born in the autumn/fall season around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles-Sukkot. See the references at the end. I also hated as a child seeing the faces of children who did not receive what they asked for and they tried so hard to be good all year.

Then there were the parents and families I would see stressed out because of all the money they needed to spend on Christmas. Rather than their hard work celebrated, children chanted ” Thanks Santa.” It perplexed me the amount of effort spent on purchasing things and the statement this was the season of Jesus. One waitress I encountered a few years back was working double shifts to buy thousands of dollars worth of gifts for Christmas. I wondered about those who have no parents, no money, and no means to have such an elaborate gift exchange.

Jesus provided a way to engage with the world that did not focus on going into debt, telling little white lies, or adding copious amounts of stress to people’s lives. He said, “Those who are weary, come to me, and I will give you rest.” He stated that the way of His Kingdom was one of love, and that love does not require purchasing expensive gifts, going into debt, nor forced time with family who drive you crazy. I believe the greatest gift is Jesus and no matter the season of our lives there is blessing attached to Him.

I don’t have children, yet if I did, I could see me taking them to serve those without around the holidays so they could see that Christmas is not about them. It’s about God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son so whosoever would place their faith in Him would not perish, they could find everlasting life!! See John 3:16. That is The GIFT. God provided a way to Him that is eternal and beautiful.

There is a simpler way to live and I want to highlight a few.

1. Choose kindness during the holidays. I am a proponent of doing this year round, yet if you want a great time to be kind-choose holidays. More people are depressed or commit suicide during the holidays.
2. Focus on something that helps the needy and unloved in society. Maybe I have some bias because I serve in monthly outreaches to the homeless. Yet, have seen how giving them 1 gift lit up their entire world.
3. Ditch entitlement and selfishness. It also amazed me that on Jesus’ supposed birthday people purchased gifts for everyone else and some people have horrible attitudes when they don’t get what they want. They feel entitled to something.
4. Find someone outside your inner circle to love and encourage. As stated the holidays are sad times for plenty of people. I wrapped an abundance of gifts for our homeless friends and my friend Greg brought them coats and boots.

I will state that I am not against the December 25th festivities. Once I get dressed-I am still in pajamas-I plan to head to my parents with a small bag of gifts for my family. They don’t simply receive from me on holidays, nor does Jesus. I don’t think Christmas is about me and getting something for myself. The Spirit of Christmas is to reveal who the Messiah is to a lost and hurting world. It does not matter how many church services or candlelight services I attend if my life does not reflect the goodness, peace, joy, love, kindness, hope, and beauty of the Messiah.

I do not believe Jesus was born in winter or December. I do believe he was born as a sign of hope in a hurting world. He was born in humble circumstances and lived a life of radical love and obedience to His heavenly Father. He made a tremendous impact on the world! He came and He served. He came and He loved. He came and walked in 100% truth. He loved deeply and sacrificed for us, for the entire world.

My hopes for Christmas is the world has a profound encounter with the real Jesus of Nazareth. My prayer is people move beyond worshiping themselves and consumerism to worship God in spirit and in truth. I pray people move beyond seeing a helpless baby in a cradle to seeing the King of kings sitting at the right hand of the Father, standing in full authority and power. He is the Lord over the Universe. Along with that, I pray that you and I reveal Jesus to others via our interactions with them. May they see the light of God through us year round. May our example be, “God is real and God is good.”

May God bless you, keep you, and His face shine brilliantly upon you. Blessing you, your family, and your new year. Shalom.

References:

Feast of Tabernacles https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4784/jewish/What-Is-Sukkot.htm

Jesus was not born in December: https://www.ucg.org/the-good-news/biblical-evidence-shows-jesus-christ-wasnt-born-on-dec-25

Myths About God-Suffering & Pain

One of the myths I have seen passed around about God, mostly from evangelical Christians is if you have enough faith you will never get sick, never suffer, never endure anything painful. Faith becomes this buffer to bypass the impact of sin on this world. I have witnessed evangelical Christians use faith as a crutch or billy club or some elitist badge of pride. “Look at my life and how blessed I am, I certainly have more faith than you.”

I have seen people who believe in this “faith prevents all pain and suffering” as a tool to condemn those hurting or sick, “Well, you must not have enough faith or you must have sinned.” I have also sadly witnessed people who are deathly ill die because they refused any medical care, mental or emotional care. Their faith in God was supposed to do all the work and if God did not heal, they would rather die.

I am not telling you to not believe God, nor to forgo praying for miracles. I am a huge proponent of praying for the sick and have seen God move mountains for people where doctors had lost all hope. I spent years working at the free clinic and my team saw amazing things that transcended my logical understanding. I have seen God raise the dead, open deaf ears, cause the lame to walk, open closed wombs, heal cancer, shrink and dissolve tumors, completely change the life of someone. I believe in healing. I believe God loves wholeness, health, and for us to live abundant lives.

The point I want to address today is this myth that walking with God prevents us from all pain, suffering, hurt, loss, grief, or even pain in the body. People who believe that it does, I question if they have read the full counsel of scripture. Jesus plainly stated that in the world there would be trouble, yet take heart because He has overcome the world. Jesus was beaten and his flesh ripped from His body (that was an injury). They pierced Him, beat Him, whipped Him, mocked Him, and hurt Him physically. Jesus had and has perfect faith. If the one who is perfect in faith was not shielded from all suffering and pain, why do we think we would be? Not only Jesus, read about all the apostles and early Christians who were martyred for their faith in Christ. We have Christians all over Asia and the Middle East today who are dying because they refuse to deny Jesus as Lord. I would say they have exceptional faith to stand in the midst of severe persecution and not waiver in their love and devotion to Christ.

In my Western culture, there are people who think persecution is someone refusing to agree with them politically or losing an election or not getting their way to press Christian beliefs onto someone else. They are not being beaten, jailed, or executed for faith in Jesus. How smug it is to tell someone they have less faith when yours has not been tested to the same level of intensity.

Let’s examine what scripture says…

Is anyone among you sick? He must call for the elders (spiritual leaders) of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;  and the prayer of faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another [your false steps, your offenses], and pray for one another, that you may be healed and restored. The heartfelt and persistent prayer of a righteous man (believer) can accomplish much [when put into action and made effective by God—it is dynamic and can have tremendous power].-James 5:14-16.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.-1 Peter 5:10.

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.-2 Timothy 3:12.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.-Isaiah 43:2.

He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.-Isaiah 53:3.

The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;-Psalm 34:19.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.-Romans 8:18.

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.-1 Peter 4:12-13.

If you are sick or suffering, I would like you to be released from any guilt or shame that it’s simply because you don’t have enough faith. I want you to be released from any guilt or shame if you choose to seek medical care, therapy, counseling, soul healing, or use medicine. Yes, I know that is blasphemy for the “faith healing” community. I will say I have seen too many Christians die early or commit suicide because they could not muster up the “faith” to be well.

I attended a church for awhile and the pastor was diagnosed with Leukemia. He chose to use medicine and believe God for healing. He’s alive today. He was judged by the “faith healing” community for using any treatment other that quoting scriptures and believing God. I will say to those people, when you are up all night in excruciating pain, unable to eat or dress yourself, and you have prayed til you are blue in the face-then you can judge someone. Yet, if you have never had to go through what that person is going through, it may be best to remain silent about their choices of care and pray.

I have lived a pretty healthy life. I thank God for this. I do not believe its because I believe God so well. I think there are plenty of things that come into play with health. The injuries I have suffered in life have been the results of trauma. Someone outside of me did something to injury my body. God did not prevent those circumstances, God did and does walk me through them. I understand agony and getting to the place where you have no words to pray. There are only groans that come to the surface. I cannot imagine what people go through who have chronic pain, 24/7 and they have all these Christians telling them that if they just had more faith they’d be whole.

I am not stating God puts sickness, pain, nor suffering on people either. That is the other side of the pendulum. There are people who think God needs to beat you senseless to perfect godliness in your life or sickness/suffering is some badge of honor. The more they suffer, the more God is refining them. This too is not accurate. Everything we face is not from God. There are things we encounter because we are living in a sinful world with selfish people. There are things we encounter where it’s part of living in a fallen world; pesticides in food that make people sick, pollution, environmental crisis that impacts weather and causes tragedy, humans not caring properly for the planet, humans not caring for themselves, we have spiritual battles with good vs. evil, and we have human beings that make choices that are destructive which set up consequences that are not good.

God promises us comfort in our suffering and hard times. God promises to be with us. God promises to provide assistance to us. God does not promise we will bypass all pain and suffering while on this planet. This is not the perfected state, that is yet to come. We will all die some day. I know it is a harsh reality, yet it’s truth. Only the soul and spirit are eternal. These bodies came from the earth and will return there. Yes, we pray for divine health and strength. Yes, we pray for help with suffering and pain. Yes, we want the Kingdom of God to come in it’s fullness. Yes, we cling to the promises of God. We must all trust and abide in Him.

Love in Christ,

Erin

Myths About God

It’s late and I should probably be tucked away under blankets sleeping. Instead I’m writing to you. I decided to start a new series entitled, “Myths about God.”

A myth is something that may be wildly believed, yet may be unproven to be true.

Myth: “A popular belief or story that has become associated with a person, institution, or occurrence, especially one considered to illustrate a cultural ideal.“

These myths can be passed down from generation to generation without verification of whether the stated myth has any legitimacy. In my walk with Yeshua (Jesus), I have encountered countless people who have repeated something they learned in their church or community about God that I could not validate against the written texts about God, the character of God, or experiences with God. They were passed along as the truth, and people acted upon what they heard from others versus engaging in their own relationship with God.

One of the myths that is untrue I have heard and seen repeated is God requires nothing from us. People mistake “God is love,” for “God approves of everything and everyone is in relationship with God with no stipulations on that relationship.” They mistake unfailing love with covenant relationship.

Jesus was quite clear on what the requirements for family/covenant relationship with God entailed. It was not something to be taken lightly. It cost Him life. A life for a life. This belief that God requires nothing from us, that everyone has the same access to God with no regard for what He stated were His requirements, and that love means unconditional acceptance is dangerous. One, there would have been no reason for Jesus to go to the cross if God had zero standards. Second, it teaches people that God does not care how they live, love, believe, treat others or treat Him. Third, it’s simply false.

God does not just ask for our repentance and faith in His Son, He asks for our ENTIRE lives. God is asking for relationship stronger and more committed than an earthly marriage. Imagine getting married and your spouse tells you, “Don’t expect me to be faithful, spend time with you, love you, care about you, be supportive, talk to you, invest in you. You can do all those things for me, yet don’t expect anything from me.” Would you say you were truly in a loving marriage? Probably not. However, I meet people who treat God as though He should have zero desires for their devotion, faithfulness, and faith.

Since there are people who believe this myth about God, they are content living how they desire to live independent of God. I’ve also met countless Christians who think I am evil for requiring anything from them to say we are in a relationship. How dare I expect them to initiate sometimes, to care about me, to show up, and invest anything. If I loved them, I would be everything they needed me to be without expecting anything in return. This mindset is called entitlement. It’s rooted in pride, selfishness, and deception.

In order to have a thriving relationship, there needs to be two engaged participants. I am not saying that if we have genuine faith in God and do not speak to Him for season or do not give that God abandons us. I am saying it is a flawed mindset to believe that God requires nothing in order to be in relationship with Him. It is not theologically sound. He requires repentance and faith. Jesus told His followers to die to selfishness, pick up their cross, and follow Him. Paul reminded churches that their bodies were not their own but were purchased by God through the sacrifice of His Son.

Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own. You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body.-1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (Amplified Classic Version).

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not practice what I tell you?”-Jesus (Luke 6:46, Amplified Classic Version).

I am not promoting legalism. I am putting forward it is unwise to tell people that God expects nothing from them for relationship and in a relationship. I would say that God’s love is unwavering, not use the term unconditional. Why? In our society, when people hear unconditional, there are people who think that means that no matter how horribly they behave, there are no consequences. Israel thought this about God and had a rude awakening. God is not a joke. God is to be reverenced. God’s kindness, mercy, and grace is not to be mocked and treated as “He owes this to me.” God owes us nothing.

I am thankful, though at times grossly irritated by, the people in my life who have treated me poorly. They taught me what not to do to God. When I was an intercessor for ministries, people would send me long lists of things to pray for and sometimes treat me like a slot machine. People have contacted me all hours of the day and night with their problems, then excluded me from the joys of their life. I was their help line. There were the seasons of thankless service where people acted as though I owed them my time or they only showed up when they need assistance. One lady even told me at a church that she loved me so much because no matter how poorly she treated me, I kept loving her and showing up for her. God does not enjoy being mistreated, nor do I.

God has feelings. I do too. I realized I never want to treat God this way. Therefore, there are times where I just tell God I don’t want anything except to love Him. There are times I simply listen to God’s heart. I tell God thank you. I help God accomplish His mission on earth. I check my entitlement at the door because God owes me nothing. I additionally take seriously the commitment to God and invest in our relationship. God is not my Sabbath and holiday friend. God is not my part time friend. God is not my crisis hotline and God never hears from me otherwise. God is my every day, full time, love of my life. I cherish God. I love God with my life.

My hope and prayer in this series is that you and I encounter the genuine Jesus of Nazareth and grow to love Him and others more.

In closing, God is asking for our whole heart!

Sincerely,

Erin

Winds of Change

They say one of the most certain things is change. I can agree that life can present a set of unpredictable events that change the course of life for us. We can imagine one trajectory and in a split second life shifts us to something new.

I had a conversation with my financial advisor last week and she asked me where I envisioned myself 10 years ago, today, and 10 years in the future. What a loaded question. I had to journey back through the events of the past ten years and one phrase that stood out for me was “I survived.” Ten years ago I was focused on survival and overcoming all the challenges. I was not focused on thriving. My life centered around survival and service to the church. I, on several occasions, put myself last in service to the Christian church. No matter how poorly I was treated at times I kept loving and serving. I was in place of being pressured to persevere, forgive, and keep loving-even if it was negatively impacting my mental health.

There are rounds of applause in Christianity when you sacrifice yourself on the altar of of the church. Who doesn’t love a good martyr? Put yourself last, never think of your needs, and if you break down then you must have a low level of faith. It was largely ignored the 80-85% of the congregation who were spiritual consumers. They would show up week after week with their needs, wants, prayer requests, and then frolic off into the sunset under the umbrella of your intercession. Nothing more was asked of them or required. As long as they showed up, they could be the “entertain me, coddle me, make me feel good,” congregation. You, the unpaid service to the church, better show up early to set up and do it with a smile for the Lord. You better fast and pray. You better turn the other cheek. You better serve with joy because it’s for Jesus.

What I learned is everything done at churches is not for Jesus. It’s for the church and those two entities are not always aligned, especially in Western culture. What Jesus required of people was far different. He told people, “Go OUT into the world and let them see who I am through your love, light, and sharing of the Gospel.” Jesus told His followers to be active in their love, devotion and service of one another. This differs from the current model of 10-20% of the congregants do 100% of the work and the rest show up to take and add no value. The church is referred to in the Gospels as a body. If my natural body only has a few organs working, it will atrophy, be less effective or ineffective, and potentially die.

The winds of change shifted me from giving all I had to the organized church to taking better care of my mental and emotional health, my family, my career, and my overall well-being. Christians broke me of killing myself for them while they were consuming everything they could without depositing much or anything at all. They would suck any life they could out of me and then some became angry when I was not eager to be their Jesus substitute. I was expected to trust God to meet my needs, while they (some) relied on me to meet theirs. I recognized the inequity and I was not in a body that the disciples described. I was in the colonized “Christianity model” where it centered on taking from people and building spiritual empires.

I will note I have two small circles of Christian women who mutually invest, they have been a blessing. I have two-three Christian men as friends. That’s a handful of people and I have interacted with thousands of Christians in my lifetime. Overall 80-85% of the Christians I have interacted with in my life have been consumers, users, apathetic, unhelpful, unkind, or just seeking me for some form of ministry to their needs. I have not encountered the love of Jesus through them. It’s NOT what Jesus modeled or taught His followers to be.

I woke up one day desiring change…Sometimes we change because we are forced to do so! Sometimes we change or transition because it’s too painful to remain the same.

2018 forced me out of my career supporting the US Military. It also forced plenty of church friends out of my life. 2019 changed the course of my trajectory as I stepped back into corporate with a new industry. It felt like starting all over again and I am still learning. 2020 forced me to examine my mostly silent approach to racism in the church and the political spirit that is quite notably aligned with the Pharisees. It cost me more than I expected to use my voice, yet I don’t regret it. Black lives matter and I don’t care if people exit my life because I said it. I did not vote for Trump and will not in 2024. I don’t care if I lose more people over that choice either. More church friends exited my life because I chose to wear face masks to honor the sick and those who could be impacted by COVID. 2021 changed my life with my father moving closer to us to help him with a not great health prognosis. 2022 changed the trajectory of my life as I stepped into a leadership role with 8 direct reports/staff in my corporate job.

The twists and turns have taught me the following…

1. God will see me (us) through any storm.
2. The organized church is not Jesus and sadly fails to represent Him well (esp in social justice crisis), even when they think or say they do. My greatest prayer is the earthly church aligns with Jesus of Nazareth. We have a ways to go.
3. I am here on earth to bring about change, not fit in with the culture.
4. I am okay with losing people and people hating me.
5. God works all things together for good if we love and follow.
6. Change can be painful and cause grief-grieve the expectations of something different.
7. A seed must die for something new to be reborn.
8. The people who truly love me, the person, not Erin the mentor/minister/helper, are not going anywhere!
9. Queens turn pain into power.
10. Though change can be unsettling, it’s often necessary.
11. God never intended our lives be cycles of endless suffering.
12. God ordained connections are mutually life-giving.
13. God expects we will take care of ourselves.
14. I don’t owe the church my life nor every professing Christian.
15. It’s possible to be comfortable with something or someone who is holding us back.

I end with a positive note to you: Change is inevitable. In order to move forward and to become our best selves, it will involve change. A river that does not move becomes stagnant and stale. Some changes may break your heart and then align your destiny. I am certain the cross hurt Jesus. Betrayal hurt Jesus. His transformation was necessary. So is yours. So is mine. I am not stating we will all suffer greatly for greatness to emerge from us. I am stating that it’s okay to adjust your sails and allow the winds of change to carry you the next destination. Life is an adventurous journey.

Warmly,

Erin L Lamb

Coming soon, book 4-Relationships 101.

This Thing Called Love

Love is the word we hear in the media, in the movies, the songs, and campaigns around the world. “What the world needs now, is love sweet love, it’s the only thing, there is just too little of.” We talk about love as humans, yet I am not certain there is a full grasp or comprehension of what the word means. I, as a human, am stilling learning what love is and what it’s not. I will disclose some of what I have learned on my journey and maybe it will be inspiring for yours.

Love is more than feelings, for feelings can waiver and dissipate.

Love is more than admiration, fondness, and commonalities…for there may be moments of disappointment, misunderstandings, and grief.

Our culture promotes following our feelings, seeking people who make us feel good about ourselves, and looking for our own pleasure. Genuine love, God love, is interested in the best interests of the other person. It is an investment love. It does not require reminding us to do the right thing.

God love always seeks the highest good for the recipient of that love. Genuine love is not wishy washy, flakey or uncommitted. It does not leave you wondering where you stand. God love is demonstrative. It is internally motivated to give, to invest, to tell the truth, to honor, to connect, and provide support. This love is the greatest love of all. God love is compassionate and full of empathy.

Agape love is the love Yeshua (Jesus of Nazareth) told His followers to demonstrate to each other and the world. “By this (agape love) people will know that you are my disciples.” He stated plainly and more than once that those who know Him would imitate Him in love.

With billions of professing Christians on the planet, why is it rare to encounter God love?

These are simply my assessments and not law.

Wounds surrounding God. People who believe God is hard, cold, punishing will have not issues being that way with others.

Religion over relationship. Going to a temple, church, or parish and participating in religious activities does not equal intimacy with God. The only way to love like God is to know God personally.

Love is hard, especially loving people who behave in unloving ways.

It requires time to grow in love.

If you throw in life experiences, prior hurts, soul wounding, upbringing, and a host of other factors you’ll find that there is only one who is perfect in love-God. God is love. Humans are imperfect and some people give what they think is love and it’s not love at all. It requires grace and soaking in God’s love to navigate through life on this planet.

There may be people you believe should love you and they simply cannot. They cannot give you what they do not possess. Maybe their ideas of God and themselves is flawed. Maybe their love is in the toddler phase, “Me first. That’s mine. I love you when you do what I want and make me happy.” Mature love is unselfish. It’s focused on the best interests of another, not just it’s own interests.

I truly believe love like this is rare. If you dare to allow God to love through you this way, it may cause tremendous heartache. People are not accustomed to this kind of love. It is a bright light that will warm some, frighten others, and infuriate those who have partnered with evil. It can evoke a full spectrum of responses and there are not all loving. You may feel it’s one sided as it’s rare to encounter this kind of love from a human. This love through Jesus led to the murder of Jesus.

I will tell you that though your heart may feel shredded in the process, and you may be misunderstood, it’s still worth it to give someone a glimpse of love.

I am still growing in this thing called love. It’s been costly and I don’t buy into the religious antics of “If you’re doing something for God, suck it up buttercup.” Jesus suffered greatly due to the actions of people and He was not singing worship songs in the Garden of Gethsemane. We can cut out the “Count it all joy,” and retain the humanity of Jesus. You may retain your humanity too.

Love may cost you something. He was betrayed, abandoned, and slaughtered by people who sang “Hosanna” one moment and “Crucify Him,” the next. Though I have never had my flesh ripped from my body, I understand deeply the pain that occurs from loving people who claim they are with you who turn around and betray you or abandon you. You have forgiven them of plenty, yet they can easily abandon. I have met Judas and Peter has feasted from my table. I dare not tell anyone to count it as joy. Sit with your humanity and recognize human betrayals hurt Jesus too. He wasn’t a religious robot.

I end this by saying, “Love is not lust,” for lust is self satisfying. “Love is not one sided,” for love desires to give. It is a flow of giving and receiving for both parties. “Love is not a consumer,” for it seeks to invest. “Love is not hidden,” it desires to be demonstrate itself. When someone loves you, it does not leave you guessing. When they love you, you don’t have to do all the work. When they love you, it is evident in actions. Obviously we cannot love every person we meet with the intensity we have for God and from God, it would take all our energy and focus. Only God can give people 24/7 care. We can choose kindness, patience, grace, mercy, truth, hope, compassion, justice, and to do no intentional harm.

I hope you choose to abide in the one who is love. I hope God’s love heals, refreshes, and invigorates you and me too. You (we) may be the first encounter someone has with real love in human flesh. Let God love through you. In the end, I think maybe one of the questions we will be asked at the end of our lives is “Did you learn to love?”

Warm Regards,

Erin Lamb

It’s been awhile…

It’s more challenging to blog without WordPress on my phone, yet making time today to write from my laptop. Life has shifted dramatically since I last penned a blog. My father has moved locally due to his health concerns. I was promoted to a leadership position in corporate and took on a staff of 8, now I have 5. My leadership responsibilities have expanded. Similar to previous seasons, I have not been seeking leadership opportunities. They’ve found me. Someone told me, “God must trust you.” I confess there are moments where I desire to whisper back to God, “You can trust me less.”

I spent last summer remodeling my house and upgrading things that were long overdue. Redecorating and remodeling brought more joy than I expected. Beyond the house things, I ventured to Hawaii last autumn and fell in love with the islands. What’s not to love? It lead me to invest in time share properties there so I can visit yearly if I’d like to do so. I took the leap to travel to Costa Rica this spring and fell head over heels for the people, the country, and the culture. Pura Vida is certainly a motto I brought home with me. It’s the pure life, the good life, and make the most of life.

I believe it’s imperative to make the most out of life. I share what I have been doing not to boast of the good. It’s hopefully to inspire you not to wait to live! I have spent a good portion of my life serving the church, leading bible studies, helping the poor, going on mission trips, giving the coat of my back to people in need. I gave until it hurt me. I mentored, loved, prayed, interceded, and attempted to share what God gave me. 2020 was a tremendous wake up call for me that I was investing more in loving people that I was in loving myself.

The people I so freely opened my life and heart to, would easily vacate my life over politics, face masks, or the social justice imbalances highlighted in society. I learned the people I had extended love, mercy, forgiveness, friendship, encouragement, and the best of me to, were not interested in loving me the way Jesus told them to…I was expected to love. They could do as they pleased.

God instructed me and you to love our neighbor’s AS we love ourselves, not MORE than we love ourselves. I was failing at loving myself with the same intensity and intentional focus as I was loving people in the church. I was showing up to serve when exhausted, hurting, in need, in pain, and putting others first. Isn’t that what we are supposed to do as “Good Christians”? I learned religion taught me things that God never intended to be. God expects we will take care of ourselves, set boundaries, have balance and love ourselves.

The journey since 2020 lead me to write…and though I have not been blogging, I have been journaling and writing books. The next book, which is currently finishing up and heading to editors, is focused on foundational wisdom for relationships. I include things I wish I knew earlier and insight from the past 8 years of doing soul healing sessions with people. There is nothing I can think of outside of disease that has derailed more lives and hearts than relationships. The people who’ve done the most damage in my life have been bible thumping Christians.

Sadly, a chunk of the counsel we are given in religious circles leads to toxic relationships and abuse. I know the pressure to stay connected to people who made my life hell or they added zero value. I was encouraged to give everyone access and friendship, that forgives means reconciliation, and I was not to consider what I needed in connections. All of that guidance is incorrect.

“A companion of fools suffers harm,”-Proverbs 13:20.

“Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people,”- Proverbs 22:24.

“He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.”-add’l view of Proverbs 13:20.

God actually cares who we connect ourselves with and intended for relationships to be mutually beneficial, not one sided. Relationships were designed by God so we could experience the love of God through another person. God desires we have relationships that reveal His heart for us, encourage, strengthen, affirm, correct, refine, and help us step into destiny and calling. I looked around my life and I was doing copious amounts of giving and not much was flowing back. I am looking at the grand sum of connections, I do have some that are balanced. The unbalanced ones were mostly tied to church people. Before you insert, “You should give expecting nothing in return,” I want to challenge you with these thoughts.

1. Charity is intended to be done with little to no expectation of reciprocation of relationship/connection.
2. Charity is NOT the same as having a close friendship, partnership, or marriage.
3. If every connection you have is you giving and no one ever reciprocates, you are not in a relationship. You are doing ministry/charity.
4. Jesus offers us salvation and asks for our entire lives. It’s not a one sided relationship (though people paint it as such). He expects something in return. Jesus also ministered to the disciples AND asked them to stay up and pray for Him.

This next book, Relationships 101, I pray helps people to see where they may be missing out on God’s best in connections. I hope it helps people to forego being heartbroken. I believe there are things that need to be adjusted and refined in Christian teaching on relationships. I believe this because of the number of couples I see in soul healing sessions who are living in hell and told just to keep praying and God will magically fix everything. The truth is God gave us a brain and heart on purpose. We have things we need to do to have healthy relationships. One of them is to ask for wisdom. Another is to have proper boundaries. The last nugget I will leave you with is to ponder why you are spending time with the people around you and are you becoming more like Christ as a result?

My encouragement is make sure you are receiving God’s love for yourself and seeking to love yourself as God does. We cannot give away that which we do not possess. Love yourself! If you struggle with this concept, ask God for assistance. The relationship we have with ourselves sets the tone for all our connections. If we do not appropriately love ourselves, we will accept less that what God would offer us in relationships with others.

I hope you pick up the book when it’s released later this year and share with others! God longs for us to have life giving, not life draining connections.

Love,

Erin Lamb

Founder & CEO of Lamb Enterprises LLC and Operation God is Love (OGL)