Southern California

California: The State of the State

Barbara Kain Parker Biblical Insights, Inspirational , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

untitledBorn and raised in Humboldt County in the midst of the majestic redwoods of Northern CA, and living in the desert of South Orange County, I have a lifetime of roots planted throughout our wonderful state; and I have faith that God will bring it back to Him. About 17 years ago, He had me highlight every road on a CA map that I had traveled, assured me that this was my ‘promised land’, and He was on the move.

Why is our state so ‘blue’? Why do we have such unrighteous leadership? It’s simple, really; once we stand up for God and begin to move in faith, we will be a threat to the enemy’s influence on the rest of the nation and the world. The battle here isn’t between liberals and conservatives; it’s Christians against that which is unseen. Ephesians 6:12:

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

CA has been home to some of the biggest moves of God in history, not the least of which was Azusa Street and the Jesus Movement. So think about that for a moment: Azusa Street was birthed in Los Angeles, and the Jesus People came straight out of Haight Ashbury in San Francisco. See any parallels between that and the two biggest bastions of liberalism in the state today?

So what happened? Compromise! The church got all happy and full of God, but quickly turned away and compromised with the world, choosing to please man instead of God.

So what’s needed? Repentance! And not just on the part of the ‘sinners’ either, because many in the Church are right there at the top of that list. The Church Body in CA must repent of aligning with the world, of accepting such abominations into our fellowships as homosexuality, abortion, and co-habitation outside of marriage. The Church Body must repent of a multitude of sins that seem OK because ‘everybody else does it’; from the big ones just mentioned right down to the ‘little ones of ‘stretching the truth’ for personal gain, pride, self-sufficiency, and the list goes on. When the Church in CA repents, the spiritual earthquake that will occur will cause any physical earthquake we might experience here to pale in comparison!

We who live in CA can choose to focus on all of the evil that surrounds us, or we can shift our gaze a bit and focus on God, which will make all the difference in the world. We need to dive deep into Lamentations 3 and let God show us His way. He is our Hope. The thing is though, we must clean our own house before we can revolutionize our state. Lamentations 3:40-45:

Let us lift up our hearts and hands
to God in heaven:
“We have transgressed and rebelled,
and you have not forgiven.
“You have wrapped yourself with anger and pursued us,
killing without pity;
you have wrapped yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can pass through.
You have made us scum and garbage
among the peoples.

The Worst Thing That Could Ever Happen

Barbara Kain Parker Devotional, Inspirational , , , , , , , ,

 

It was the worst thing that could ever happen, or so I thought, moving all the way from the cool, lush Redwood Empire to hot, dry Southern California the day after 11th grade was over.  Sixty-five degrees to a humid one-hundred-and-eighteen in one day—I felt like I’d died and gone to you-know-where.  But that wasn’t even the worst part, because my senior year would now be spent at Indio High School and I would not be able to graduate with my friends from our beloved McKinleyville High.  The fact that my parents were about to lose their house because my dad couldn’t find steady work in Northern CA and had now found a great job out in the middle of nowhere between Indio and Blythe seemed secondary to my misery.   Plus, all of my plans to apply to a nursing school in San Francisco  went right out the window because it would now be too far away from home.

But surprise, surprise, surprise; as Gomer Pyle would’ve said at the time.  I enjoyed my new friends as well as my senior year; the Los Angeles County Hospital School of Nursing turned out to be a much better fit that the other school would’ve been; and I eventually landed back near the ocean in Santa Monica.  There I met my husband, who God had brought all the way from Alabama just for me.  And without Jack there never would’ve been Kevin, and I can’t even imagine that.  And without Kevin there wouldn’t have been my adorable grandson Casey, and, and, and…

My LORD certainly knew what He was doing then and He still does now, even as I face new “worst things that could ever happen.”  God knows best, and I choose to trust Him even when I just don’t get it.

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9

 

What a Day That Will Be…

Barbara Kain Parker Devotional, Inspirational , , , , , , , ,

 

Unlike the wild and rugged coast of the Pacific Northwest, Southern California’s beaches are more populated than isolated.  This distinction does offer some unique advantages, not the least of which is a shore dotted with wonderful seaside restaurants where great meals are enhanced by warm sun, roaring waves, peals of laughter from kids frolicking in the surf, seagulls squawking on the beach, and pelicans soaring through the sky and diving into the water to retrieve their own dinner.

And the shops!  Oh, the shopping extravaganza that is available throughout the coastal communities for those of us with that particular weakness—everything from boutiques to antiques—a shopaholic’s paradise.

On this particularly perfect day my husband and I started with a leisurely brunch on the San Clemente Pier and then strolled through the downtown shops for several hours; finally topping the afternoon off with some great tacos in a wonderful Mexican restaurant.

But later, as I pondered how relaxed we were and how we enjoyed our brief escape from the daily grind, I realized that it couldn’t compare to the wonder of what God has in store for us.  As wondrous as His creation is, it cannot compare to that moment when we see Him face to face in all of His glory.

 Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. 1 Corinthians 2:9