I’ve been going to church for most of my life, and I have seen a lot of things, I have been in all kinds of services. I have witnessed some services that were so incredibly boring and powerless I have considered chewing off my arm just for some excitement. I have been in services where the anointing of the Holy Spirit was so strong it felt like time stood still; like you never, ever wanted to leave that place. AND... I have been to everything in between those two examples.

When you are in a good service, it is easy to be inspired. When you hear wonderful, Spirit-filled music, it is great to feel lifted up and encouraged. I do hope the church you attend provides you with these things.

A problem, I find, is that many in the western world are very accepting and even EXPECTING to be inspired, but they are not so good at being changed.

(Eze 33:30-32 NLT) "Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, 'Come on, let's go hear the prophet tell us what the LORD is saying!'
31 So My people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but they have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hearts seek only after money.
32 You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don't act on it!

I think these verses are so sad. Do you? These people came and heard the word of the Lord. They enjoyed it very much, but they never let it change them. The last verse says they heard, but they didn’t act on it. Trust me. God judged them for this.

See, it isn’t enough to just enjoy something. It isn’t enough just to be inspired, if you never DO ANYTHING. We can’t keep taking stuff in without giving anything out.

You can go to a Weight Watcher meeting and hear all the testimonies of what the program has done for others, but if you never decide to DO SOMETHING about what you heard, you will not change. You have to act. You have to choose to change. You have to let what you hear produce a result in your life.

We love to be entertained. We love to watch movies, listen to music, see funny stuff on YouTube, or go to amusement parks. We have lots and lots of great experiences. We enjoy many, many things. But, honestly, what have you seen/heard lately that actually CHANGED you?

Denmark, where I live, is a very socialistic society. A lot of emphasis and value are placed on everyone being the same. We have the same rights and opportunities, the same taxes, etc. Living in this society can start to feel stifling. There is this "spirit of sameness" thing that pervades everything. There are strict rules about things, too. It's kind of funny really. When I was a teen, I never felt like I fit in, and now here I am, a ----er--- mature woman, feeling that way again. The good thing now is that I don't care. I don't see "fitting in" as a plus, especially if it means I have to compromise what I believe.

God never, EVER asks us to fit in. His people are the people swimming upstream when everyone else is just drifting down. We are the people who refuse to surrender our morals and our values for the sake of society. We are different. Different is GOOD.

(Gal, 5:16 NLT) So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.

If the Holy Spirit is truly in charge of my life, there are a LOT of things I am not going to say, do, wear, play. listen to and look at. I make the choice not to be a part of many things society offers --- not because God MAKES me, or because I am a prude, but because I am a a much-loved princess, and in my kingdom, we have different rules!

In the kingdom where I live, people are kind, even when others are not kind to them. In my kingdom, I do not need THINGS to make me happy. I find my joy in knowing the King, and when I need anything, I know He will provide. I depend on Him for strength, peace, joy, wisdom and love. These and more He gladly gives me from His endless supply. Knowing Him is the sweetest thing I can think of.

I do not spend money the same way others do. There are a lot of things people think they need to make them happy, but I know where true happiness comes from, and it is not shopping! I have to feel God's peace in my heart before I lay my money down. I do not have the same goals as those who live outside of my Father's kingdom have. My main goal is to please the King, (my Dad) and to invite other people to be a part of the Kingdom of God. I am an ambassador. I am a representative of the Kingdom of Light. His own princess.

(Col 1:12-14 NLT) ...thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that He has for us. God rescued us from dead-end alleys and dark dungeons. He's set us up in the kingdom of the Son He loves so much, the Son who got us out of the pit we were in, got rid of the sins we were doomed to keep repeating.

Once I lived in the dark kingdom. It was depressing and sad. It was empty and dirty. It never fulfilled. I never felt good enough or pretty enough or smart enough or loved enough. In that kingdom, there is NEVER enough. No matter how much people have, they want more. I am so glad I don't live in that mess now.

(Rom. 12:2 NLT) Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

We all make choices. We can live where we like. We can serve whom we will. I don't mind being different. I like living in God's kingdom. I like being His child. If your life gives you no joy or satisfaction, maybe it is time to choose a new kind of life. If your days are filled with worry and frustration, maybe it's time to serve a different King.