I am the person that has a terrible gag reflex. For instance, if I smell certain odors, without warning, I start gagging.

There is a specific story from my childhood that Jay likes to repeat because when I hear the person’s name in the story, I feel the gagging start. Then I cannot get the incident out of my mind. Of course, the more I think about it, the worse my gagging gets. This particular story (that I cannot even begin to tell you about) will make me gag so much that it hurts my stomach, and I have been sore the next day.

Ask any of the girls that I have sat with (talking, mentoring, listening to them, or doing a study) what happens when something happens that I find gross. I have actually left the room only to get the dry heaving out of my system.

Heaven help me when I see pictures of kids with spaghetti on their faces or head or birthday cake smashed in their face. If I see anyone “vomiting” (excuse me for bringing that visual), there will be two messes to clean up, theirs and mine. You see, I am a sympathy “puker.” I immediately, for whatever reason, start gagging, and sometimes it ends worse than I want to admit!

This story is about 40+ years old and still is etched in my mind. I hope I can get through the story – I may need to take a break or two, but you will totally enjoy it!

SO MY CHURCHBRAT STORY begins:

Let me give you some background on this little boy, “Brian,” whom I absolutely adored. He spent a lot of time with me and George. He was so cute and so funny! Mr. Smith, George’s elderly dad, loved Brian. He loved talking to him and asking him crazy questions just to hear his response. He would ask for him if I came in without him.

Brian would say off-the-wall things. I remember one day, I was trying to get him to learn his sounds. 

I showed him a picture of an Emu. “E…E…E is for Emu!” 

Without missing a beat, he said, “That hain’t no Emu, that is a big ol’ fat chicken. Ch…Ch…Emu!” 

Of course, I went into a fit of laughter and made him tell anyone around what he thought the picture of the Emu was. That was a chicken, not an emu! He stuck by his story.

He would often sit with me in church. It was hard for him to sit still. This was before children’s church was a thing or iPads/iPhones to keep kids busy. I would give him random things that I had in my purse to make him be still. He didn’t want whatever I had handed him. He wanted down to run most of the time! He would tell me, “Just git this thing (whatever it was), I don’t want it.” I can still hear his little country voice! It makes me smile. Then I remember what he did to me! 

One night we were in church, and this was one of those Pentecostal services that was going into about the 4th hour. He was restless. He was probably hungry, and he was fidgeting like a fish trying to get back in the water. Up and down off of my lap — Going to his mom and coming back to me. I would pick him up and put him on my lap until he would slide off and run somewhere else. He was so cute, and you couldn’t get mad at him. 

He climbed up in my lap and sat really still on one of those trips back to me. I thought maybe he was feeling sick because he was sooooo still. Then I realized something was up because He kept looking at his finger with a puzzled look on his cute little face. 

After a little while, I heard him say, “Just git it off!” I “shushed” him because he was very loud, almost screaming, “Just git it off!” in his little hick accent.  

I finally turned him around to face me, and I almost fell off my seat! He put his finger about 2 inches from my nose, and I could not believe what I was looking at!

That kid was in my lap holding a really huge “boogie!” He wanted me, me of all people, to get it off his finger. Not his mom, not his dad, he brought it to me!!!!!

I started gagging, put him down, and ran to the bathroom. The image was seared in my mind, and I could not get it out, so I kept gagging until I could no longer gag! I finally pulled myself together and went back into the sanctuary to find my seat. He was still sitting there with his little finger raised. He was patiently waiting for me to return so I could, “just git it off!”

Needless to say, I did not go back to my seat, I did not “git it off,” and my stomach muscles were already aching from the violent episode I just had!

WHAT’S ON MY MIND?  GLAD YOU ASKED

Let me ask you, how many times have you not been paying attention, and something happens out of nowhere that knocks you off your feet? That knocks the wind out of you, and you wonder how it happened! One minute I was sitting listening to my dad preach, then I was gagging and running out of the room the next minute! 

A minute can change a lifetime. One moment that goes unnoticed, one moment of distraction, one split second of not paying attention! The devil looks for those moments. He looks for an opportunity to jump right in your lap and pretend to be innocent. Then he shows himself, the “boogie” man! Only he does not come in the form that you may think.

He may come in the form of discouragement. Biblical courage is the ability to face uncertainty, adversity, danger, or suffering with faith-fueled hope that God will keep his word to us, come what may. But we are not always of good courage. Why? Because unbelief in the promises of God dis-courages us. This is the focus of all Satan’s massive, multifarious strategies: to dis-courage us through dis-belief in God’s promises. His strategies are disorientingly sophisticated, but his goal is simple: to discourage Christians. Discouraged Christians are immobilized threats. They are diffused gospel bombs. They are silenced evangelists whose faith-anemia can be contagious. (Taken from an article by Jon Bloom, March 17, 2017)

Psalm 55:22 Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

Psalm 34:17-19 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

He may come in the form of a relationship you just had to have. Things were perfect, and you were content. You relaxed and quit praying and reading as you should. See, these relationships came with promises that were never fulfilled. The relationship came with a “forever,” but then trust was broken. It was all good, and it turned bad very quickly out of nowhere. It happened when you took off the armor of God to have that relationship. The devil knows that you will be sick if you do not get out of the relationship, Spiritually, emotionally, and physically. He is banking on it.

2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?

1 Corinthians 6:18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.

Romans 12:1-2 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

He may come in the form of a high-paying job. A job that takes all of your time from God, your family, and yourself. You work for more money to get more “toys,” a bigger house, or a boat you intend on using. Then one day, you realize that you cannot enjoy “the things” because you are too busy working to make money to pay for them! This is a cycle that is hard to stop. This is the devil using your desires to keep you distracted from God, keep you out of church, and keep you working until your marriage falls apart and your kids are no longer speaking to you. Then one day, you are alone. The devil rubs his hands together in glee! He has you isolated and got you alone—Depression, suicidal thoughts, and loneliness all kick in simultaneously. You feel broken. 

Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

James 4:4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

The devil is a deceiver. He will purposely place lies and doubts in your path. The devil is not lazy. He is not waiting around for someone else to do his job! He does not play fair. He is out to destroy you and to make God look weak.

2 Corinthians 2:11 ESV So that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.

1 Peter 5:8 ESV Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

James 4:7 ESV Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

But there is good news! 

God – the Word – His promises He keeps.

2 Peter 1:4 ESV By which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

2 Corinthians 1:20 ESV For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.

Titus 1:2 ESV In hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began

We are over-comers! We have something more significant in us than all the distractions Satan can throw our way! We must see what is distracting us and taking us away from the mission God has for us here on earth! Things may look cute and innocent (like little Brian did), but it comes at a greater price – your spiritual health, mental health, and physical health. 

Turn your eyes upon Jesus! Let Him redeem your life, your time, your family! It is never too late to take back what the devil took from you!

Prepare your heart for prayer. This is one of my very favorite worship songs! Turn your eyes on Jesus!

PRAY THIS WITH ME TODAY (in your own words)

Jesus,

You are my mighty fortress. You hold my head up when I feel discouraged or dismayed. Lord, I pray that I would recognize the wiles of the devil and not give in to the distractions in my path. Jesus, I know if I am looking at them, my eyes are off of You!

Open my eyes to anything that is keeping me from You. Anything that is demanding my attention that is not You, Lord, I not look to the left or right, but I will look straight ahead to You. Ruler of my heart and Defender of Your children.

I pray for strength, courage and open eyes an heart.

In Jesus Name

Amen