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LeveLUp!LeveLUp!Up!Up!

D r . T i e r i n i H o D g e s - M U r a DD r . T i e r i n i H o D g e s - M U r a D

FORWARD BY Jacquie Hood Martin, Ph.D.

Living on the Levels God intended

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LeveL Up!Living on the Levels God Intended

Published byDr. Tierini D. Hodges-Murad/Dr. Tierini enterprises drtierini.com

Copyright © 2017 Dr. Tierini D. Hodges-Murad

All rights reserved. except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

printed in the United States of America

Book cover and interior layout design by vickie Swisher, Studio 20/20

ISBN 978-0-9980425-0-3 (softcover)

Scripture taken from the New King James version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NeW INTeRNATIONAL veRSION®, NIv® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Scripture quotations marked (KJv) are taken from the King James version.

“Scripture quotations are from the eSv® Bible (The Holy Bible, english Standard version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

erik D. Demaine, Giovanni viglietta, and Aaron Williams, “Super Mario Bros. is Harder/easier than We Thought”, in Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2016), La Maddalena, Italy, June 8–10, 2016, 13:1–13:14.

Nintendo 73rd annual stockholder meeting in 2013 http://web.archive.org/web/20130704101400/http://www.p4rgaming.com/majority-of-gamers-today-cant-finish-level-1-in-super-mario-bros/

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inTRODuCTiOn

i don’t mean to say that i have already achieved these things or that i have already reached perfection. But i press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. no, dear brothers and sisters, i have not achieved it, but i focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, i press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

~ Philippians 3:12-14 (nLT)

As an avid reader, I understand and respect the fragile relationship between that of an author and the reader. So as I embark on this labor of love and begin the process of pouring out my pain onto these blank pages, I want to take a second to tell you who I am. I am the only child of my mother, the baby girl (punkin) of my step-father, and the eldest daughter of my father. I am the apple of my grandmother’s eye and my grandfather’s “buddy.” I have more cousins than I can count, I am the only doctor in my family, and one of the few in my family that moved away from my hometown in Tennessee. I have endured an estranged relationship with my father, a tumultuous relationship with my mother, illnesses that threatened my ability to hear as a child, and maladies that endanger my ability to reproduce as an adult. I have survived deceitful friends, depression, self-doubt, a broken heart, a broken spirit, and being broke in my bank account. I have often taken the path less traveled by my family and friends, work out regularly, eat right-ish, and I am fiscally prudent. When others describe me, they often say that I am someone that “has done everything right.” When asked how I excelled at all that I did, my reply would differ based upon my current stage of life. As a

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child, I would give credit to my grandmother for loving me and to my mother for the life lessons that aided in the development of a strong work ethic. As an undergraduate, I would credit my professors and advisors for helping me to navigate a complex college environment. After college, however, I took all the credit for myself; my intelligence, my hard work, my tenacity, my money, my excellent credit, etc. etc. The list of “my” was never-ending. Until one day, God spoke to me and told me to quit my job. At the time I was progressing toward earning my doctorate degree, attending school full-time, and working a full-time job. I had a lot of responsibility in my role, I loved what I did, and I was good at what I did. I was making decent money and had just gotten to that place where the ramen noodles of college were well in my rearview. So God telling me to quit was, in my eyes, insane! Who quits a perfectly fine job!?!? Nevertheless, I was obedient to His direction. But only because I thought He was telling me to resign so that I could excel in my dissertation research and defense. Little did I know, God had so much more in store for me. Yes, He wanted me to excel in my dissertation, but what I did not realize was that God wanted me to excel in living life through Him. The only way to get my attention off of myself was to kill everything that was “my” so that He could replace it with Him. As I began to reflect on all that I have learned, loved, lost, and grown through, it began to occur to me that my struggles might help others who are facing the same or similar challenges. Now, this revelation did not come to me right away. It took several people to speak into my life and help me to see what was blind to my view, to encourage me to keep fighting when I was ready to give up and to validate me when I thought too little of myself and the gifts that God gave me. So here I am, a bruised and battle-tested Dr. Tierini; one that the Lord is carrying through some scary, confusing, and painful places. I am writing this, not from a place of one who has all the answers, rather, from a place of one who has a lot of questions. Questions about God, life, love, and how it all equates to my every day. How do I have a God-centered healthy marriage when all I’ve seen is dysfunction and divorce? What do I do when what the preacher said on Sunday does not line up with what I see and feel on Monday? Why does God seem so far away when I need Him the most? Let me again repeat; I do not have the answers to these questions. Nevertheless, despite not having

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the answers, I know these questions stem from my audacious desire to strive for a life that I have never seen before. For much of my life, I have strived toward something. As a child, I strived to have the best toys. As a teen, I strived to be pretty and smart. As a young adult, I strived to be successful (with success being defined by my resume and my bank account). But now, I am striving to achieve a place where I am the exact person God designed me to be in everything from my occupation to my attitude. paul stats it so eloquently in philippians 3, “Not that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it……” So as I pondered on how to get to a place that I have never seen or experienced, the many questions started to formulate. The funny thing is that as I started seeking God for answers to my many questions, I began to encounter Him in a new way that I never anticipated. Through these encounters, I soon realized that one rarely “arrives” or “makes it” in life or their walk with God. The Christian life is one of continual pruning, growing, stopping, starting, understanding, seeking, and asking. I also quickly realized that God is not like my professors from college that will give me a straight answer to my question just because I raised my hand. Sometimes the answer I received from God is to a question that I didn’t even ask! Or, because I was crazy enough to think God owed me an answer complete with a detailed explanation, God wouldn’t answer me at all until I came to Him correctly. There is nothing more humbling than God going radio silent on you. I now know what that old hymn meant when it said, “we will understand it better, by and by.” In this process of understanding, growing, and walking with God, I have been forced to go back to my childhood and unearth somethings that I had completely forgotten (or conveniently exiled from my memory). Some memories have been blissfully happy, some were side-splitting funny, while others were horribly painful. Surprisingly, it was one of these childhood memories that now serve as the foundation for this book. Anyone that was a child or teen in the 80’s will tell you that the original Nintendo Super Mario Bros. was the only game that mattered. It superseded Atari and was the predecessor of the Sega Genesis and its

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hero Sonic the Hedgehog. It had some of the most innovative graphics at that time and enough challenging stages to confound even the best gamer. This game contained so many secrets that we hastened to read the Nintendo power magazine for all the tips and tricks. But the thing that set Super Mario Bros. apart, in my opinion, was the introduction of the hero Mario, his brother Luigi, and obstacles that resembled real-life objects. Poisonous mushrooms/goomba, flying bullets, man-eating plants/Venus flytrap, jellyfish, and those aggravating turtles. But none of those obstacles could compare to the vicious villain King Koopa (or some may know him as Bowser). My loving memory of this game and the fear that King Koopa struck into my little 8-year old heart, still resonates with me to this day. So much so that as I was complaining to a close friend about my life struggles (and trying to understand where God has me and why) an unexpected reference to Super Mario Bros. popped out of my mouth that was just too good (and relevant) to ignore. It was at that moment that this book was born. So I submit to you this humble body of work with the aim that it sheds light on some of our questions, gives us hope in moments that seem hopeless, and reminds us that at each stage of life we all have the capacity to level up. May the honest transparency that flows from my experiences resonate with you in such a way that you are able to sense me alongside you, holding your hand as we level up together.

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Selah/ˈsēlə,ˈsel-/1: an exclamation.2: (in the Bible) a term of uncertain meaning occurring frequently in

the Hebrew text of psalms and Habakkuk.3: a liturgical or musical direction, probably a direction by the leader

to raise the voice or perhaps an indication of a pause.

Given the context within which it is used in the Bible, Selah is often used to mean praise, meditation, or pause and reflect.

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Level 6 Level 5 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1

THe ReWARD FOR WinninG THe BATTLe is TO FiGHT A BiGGeR BATTLe On A DiFFeRenT LeveL.

~ T.D. JAkes

i am not a gamer! I cannot name the most popular video game on the market, and I have no idea which version of Xbox is the most current. I stopped avidly playing video games long ago; even my Nintendo™ Wii is currently collecting dust under my television. Nevertheless, I have an appreciation for Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. games that dates back to 1988. The original Nintendo NeS (Nintendo Entertainment System) game console was my very first video game. I was even fortunate enough to have the multi-game, Super Mario/Duck Hunt/Track Meet cartridge, complete with the Nintendo power pad. Many hours of my youth were spent in attempt to master Super Mario Bros. I would have never guessed that during those many gaming hours, I was learning a valuable lesson in understanding life’s battles. However, before we jump into the discussion, allow me a moment to walk down memory lane.

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The original Super Mario Bros. started at stage 1-1. When the screen opened, it showed Mario in his red overalls standing at attention waiting on the player’s command. After the player advanced Mario a few steps, the first challenge he encountered was a brown goomba walking toward him. You had to choose whether to jump over or on top of the goomba. For those of you who were Mario masters, you knew how to kill the goomba and collect that first penny all in one jump! This stage continued by introducing us to more goombas, turtles, fire flower and invincible star power-ups, 1UP mushrooms, and more pennies than we could count. You knew you reached the end of the stage when you arrived at that tall brick staircase, the flagpole, and the castle that waited on the other side. Stage 1-1 was followed by stages 1-2 and 1-3, complete with more challenges, trials, and tests. As a kid playing Super Mario Bros., I started to get the hang of things by the time I arrived at stage 1-3. I was familiar with what Mario could do; I knew the directions the various enemies moved, I had even figured out how to “ride the flag” at the end of the stage. But once I advanced to stage 1-4, I immediately noticed that the game was very different. It was the same Mario in his red overalls waiting on my command, but the music was different, and all the color had disappeared, leaving only this world of gray and black. There were no turtles to rock or goombas to pounce, and the gray bricks would not break. One look at this ominous stage made my breath catch in my throat, and instead of making Mario run as I did on previous stages, I slowly walked Mario into this unfamiliar territory. As the spinning fireball sticks twirled and the flying fire raced across the screen, I realized that there would not be a grand staircase or beautiful castle waiting for me at the end of this stage. After several attempts and multiple deaths, I finally reached what was waiting for me at the end of the stage, none other than the villain King Koopa. If you happened to arrive at this point as Fire Mario, you could easily shoot fire at Koopa until he died. But if by chance you lost your fire ability and were forced to fight Koopa as regular Mario, you had to be more strategic. My strategy was to run straight toward Koopa, which would often result in me being shrunken into tiny Mario. However, the shrinking process would allow me those few seconds to run away and beat the stage. I will be the first to admit that this was a crude strategy, but

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sometimes you have to run straight at your enemy. (Selah) The objective of the Super Mario Bros. game was to rescue princess peach from King Koopa’s dungeon. In my haste to play the game on the best Christmas morning ever, I failed to read the instruction booklet. I did not realize that the game had eight levels, with each level containing four stages. So upon beating stage 1-4 and the toadstool informing me that the princess was in another castle, I was dismayed. Was this toadstool telling me that I did not beat the game?!?!?! After all that I went through to defeat Koopa, there was more that I would have to do!?!?! I now know that thinking the game would be over in a mere four stages is ludicrous. I am not sure why or how I arrived at this assumption, but I did, and I was not particularly excited to learn that there were more levels to play. After advancing to 2-1 and starting the whole process over again of learning how to defeat the new enemies and rising to the challenges of this new advanced level, I started to notice a pattern. The more stages and levels that I advanced, the harder the game became. Let me say it another way, the better I became at winning the battles, the harder the battles became. Once I mastered Level 2, I noticed that the challenges I encountered on Level 1 were now super easy. The same enemies that tripped me up on Level 1 did not affect my progress on Level 3. Likewise, the battle I was encountering on Level 3 was more difficult than anything I had encountered on the previous levels. While I could use some similar strategies that I employed on Levels 1 and 2, I soon realized that to beat Level 3 I had to learn a new way to play. I also realized that the ominous King Koopa only appeared on the 4th stage of each level. The most difficult battle with the most menacing enemy was reserved for that moment when you were about to advance to a higher level. What I eventually grasped was the fact that Koopa’s sole purpose was to prevent me from leveling up. Additionally, in keeping with the same pattern of the preceding stages, the Koopa stages increased in difficulty as the levels increased. In 1-4 Koopa could only hop; in 2-4 he hopped and spat fire; and to even find Koopa in 4-4, you had to complete a correct sequence of moves in the maze before he would appear. The crude strategy of running straight at Koopa, and allowing him to zap Mario’s strength was always successful at beating stage 1-4. However, stage 4-4 required that I learn a new way to approach

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the battle with Koopa, and furthermore, that I arrived at the battle with the necessary stature and fire power armor. It is against this backdrop that I want to discuss the importance of understanding that the process of leveling up often begins with a battle.

WHY We enCOunTeR BATTLes

One would think that after the many hours spent learning battle strategies via my Nintendo, I would understand the necessity of the battle and would be ready to translate these victories into everyday life. The goombas and turtles are the endless life hurdles, Koopa is a digital representation of Satan, and the progression of difficulty is directly correlated to the amount of skill/wisdom developed along the level up journey. It is a simple equation: one goomba minus one defeated Koopa plus five newly developed skills equals a level up, right? Wrong! As I have continued to walk toward spiritual maturity and wisdom, the one thing that has become very apparent to me is the fact that there seems to be an endless supply of battles, and the victories definitely do not equate as neatly as I once assumed they would. That is when it occurred to me that I might be viewing the battle from an incorrect vantage point. How many times do we find ourselves encountering different battles in life and say ‘God why me?’ If you are anything like me, you might start going down the list of all the good things that you do to serve God, help others, and be an overall good person. You may even throw in the classic “I’m not as bad as…..” comparison for good measure. I am guilty of thinking that just because I did the “right thing” and avoided the “wrong thing” that I shouldn’t have to encounter this battle. When in truth, battles are a critical part of our leveling up process. every one of us would rapidly reply with a resounding YeS when asked if we want to live a good life filled with love, comfort, and prosperity. However, how many of us would give that same YeS to enduring inconvenient challenges and trials? Not many of us. This is because our natural instinct is to avoid pain and seek comfort. So when given a choice, we will always choose prosperity over pain and comfort over inconvenience. But here’s the catch, prosperity and pain are the two sides of the same coin; you cannot prosper without enduring some pain.

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Mario could not ride the flag and enter the castle until he pounded the goomba and dodged some fire. Furthermore, Mario could not ascend to a higher level until he faced and fought the battles at his current level. So many times we want to skip stages and bypass these uncomfortable battle seasons so that we can proceed to the seasons of comfort. We will sometimes cry out ‘Fix it Jesus!’ because we don’t want to endure the discomfort. Or we credit the devil for causing the discomfort because ‘this can’t be God.’ But what if the discomfort you are experiencing is God ordained? What if I told you that it is impossible to skip steps? Just like Nintendo would not allow me to go directly from stage 1-1 to stage 7-2, God will not allow us to skip steps in our maturing process. Why? Because there are skills we need to learn, characteristics that need to be developed, and habits that need to be broken before we can advance to a new level in our life. The battle is the training ground where the growth and development to our character happens. One of the principal lessons that my mother taught me was that, as an African American woman, I would have to battle for everything that I wanted to acquire in this life. To ensure that I was ready for the battles that lay ahead of me, my mother intentionally created mini-battles at home for me to conquer. For example, when I was 10, I earned my bi-weekly allowance via completion of my weekly chores. If my chores were not completed, I did not earn my allowance. My allowance was $5, so that totaled $10 for the month. For a while, I was satisfied with this allowance structure and amount, but once I turned 11, I realized that I wanted more from life than a candy bar and blue fingernail polish. So I complained to my mother that the amount was too low. When that didn’t work, I sought the help of my grandmother to speak on my behalf to force my mother to give me more money (because if anyone could make mom do anything, it was grandma). To my surprise, the grandma tactic was unsuccessful. For a while, I rebelled and refused to wash that one fork that stood between my mom and a perfectly clean kitchen. When my mother still did not budge, I realized that I had to improve my strategy. Instead of coming to her with childish actions, I needed to appeal to her with logic. So one day after she returned home from work, I requested a moment to discuss my allowance. My godmother, who

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helped me formulate my discussion points, was present to help validate my argument. After outlining the number of chores I was responsible for (which included cleaning my room, the bathroom, the dishes/cleaning the kitchen, mopping the kitchen floor, vacuuming the house, and feeding the dog), I then explained that the cost of a CD ranged anywhere from $12-$15. With my current allowance rate, I would have to wait two months before I was able to buy a CD. Additionally, I couldn’t afford the cute earrings from Claire’s and couldn’t buy a Fruitopia from the vending machine during lunch at school. Lastly, I told my mom that a raise in my allowance would prevent me from having to ask her for everything while also teaching me about money management and independence. This strategy got my mother’s attention, and I was immediately granted an increase from $5 to $15. Now, why did I choose to tell you about my allowance battle as opposed to the laundry battle or the pager/cell phone battle? I chose this particular example because, of the many battles that my mother set before me, the allowance battle was the very first battle. Since this was the first battle, it was the one where I was the most caught off guard and had no criterion for what to do or how to handle this situation. It was akin to the very first time that I picked up the Nintendo controller on Christmas morning to command Mario’s movements. The feel of the controller was foreign in my hand, I had no idea that I could make Mario run, and I definitely did not know that the little goomba could kill me. Since this was my first time touching the controller, I did not comprehend that something new was being required of me; a skill that I didn’t understand nor possess. But through consistent play, I eventually learned the best way to hold the controller, that I had to pound the goomba, and that the forward button plus “B” made Mario run. My mother knew that there were life skills that I needed but didn’t have and that the only way for me to acquire those skills was to present me with an opportunity to grow. I was an 11-year old child when the allowance battle appeared, and once I mastered that, I moved on to the laundry challenge at age 12. Because of the allowance battle, I had a precedent battle to reference when the laundry battle appeared. Can you see the pattern here? I’m sure you can, but it wasn’t until recently that I was able to see it for myself. I did not realize until recently that the Super Mario Bros. game and my mothers’ tough

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love are reflective of how God will sometimes use battles to teach His beloved children. This revelation hit me upon listening to a T.D. Jakes message where he stated that “the reward for winning the battle is to fight a bigger battle on a different level.” That one phrase unlocked so much understanding that had been held captive behind doors of frustration, confusion, and anger.

THe DisCOMFORT OF BATTLe

For many years I thought that the reward for winning a battle was a big shiny trophy (i.e., whatever I had been praying about and/or desiring). Realizing that the reward that I was seeking was not waiting for me at the end of my battle rendered me confused. My first instinct was to retrace my steps and see where I misstepped in my walk. Upon tracing my steps and finding no human error, I then started asking God, “Why have You forsaken me? I did everything You asked me to, and it still did not happen.” I would sit in this state of confusion and frustration for a while trying to figure out what happened and waiting for God to illuminate my understanding. After a while, I would hit anger. Yes, I have been angry at God more times than I would like to admit. My grandmother tells me that I shouldn’t say this; but to this, I respectfully respond that even if I did not verbalize it, God knew I was harboring deep-seated anger toward Him. So I might as well be honest about it. In my “fits of anger,” I would throw tantrums, begrudgingly attend church, and serve with a self-righteous heart. As if I was doing God a favor. I was reverting to that same 8-year old that would scream at Mario for not jumping the right way and getting hit by the flying flames. Or that 11-year old that refused to wash that one fork because my mother would not give me the allowance I felt that I deserved. Meanwhile, I was so focused on my pain and discomfort from not receiving what I wanted that I never stopped to remember the lessons I learned from my battle training. It was not until hearing that statement made by T.D. Jakes, which honestly was not the crux of his sermon but more a mere byproduct of his contemplative colloquy, that my anger began to ebb and a mature perspective could flow. My initial reaction to hearing T.D. Jakes say this was not one of mature acceptance. Actually, it was one of indignation and pure resentment. “So you mean to tell me that

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after all this battling the only thing I have to look forward to is MORE battling?!!?!? And what’s more, this new battle will be bigger than the battle I am in currently!?!?! No thanks, God. I did not sign up for this.” As shameful as it is to say, I actually saw that statement as grounds to thoroughly check out of the process because no one in their right mind would sign up to endure what sounds like an endless succession of battles. It was at this point that my encounter with God happened. I cannot explain precisely what happened or what I was doing when it happened, but somewhere along the way, I began to allow my mind to consider the notion that maybe there was more to the battle than what I was allowing God to show me. How many times do we only look at the surface of a thing and shut our minds to what may lie beneath? I was so angry and resentful that I closed my mind and my heart to what God was trying to show me about this journey He has me on. I should probably mention that my anger at God and my childish tantrums were not the result of being denied a superficial request that resulted in a trivial inconvenience. The battles to which I am referring threw me into bouts of mild depression, anxiety (which presented another battlefield within my mind) and sorrow. These battles were so painful and created such angst within my soul that I struggled in believing that God loved me. I wondered how God could truly love me and allow such a great magnitude of pain to come against me. Am I alone in feeling this way? I would hear that God loves His children, but this feeling I was experiencing couldn’t be love…..or was it? For years I thought my mother was the worst mother in the world because of the MANY mini-battles that she would present me with. Some people would even chastise my mother for her battleground method of parenting. I even began to internally question whether or not my mother loved me. Fortunately for me, my grandmother could (and still can) discern things about my feelings/thoughts/etc. that I did not openly share. I believe it was this discernment that led my grandmother to frequently tell me that my mother loved me. Had she not told me this, the assumption that my mother lacked love for me would have fully taken root. Today I understand that what appeared to be an extremely overzealous and completely unnecessary hate-filled exercise was actually a fundamental pruning and love-filled growth process. I can now see how my mother’s mini-battles helped to

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prepare me for the battles I would face in life. In the same way, God’s love for me was being exhibited by the fact that He wants me to be prepared to live my best life that is rooted in His purpose. The battles were not a sign of hate, but rather a big display of love. So I could not continue to allow the notion that God does not love me to begin to take root in my heart. Satan’s objective is for our hearts to turn cold toward God, so he came along ever so subtly and whispered in my ear little lies like “If God loved you, He would have prevented that” or “God does not care about you; He won’t even give you what you are asking for.” But what we have to remember is that Satan is the father of lies, and he will pervert every good thing that comes from God, even His word and promises. So to combat Satan, I had to grab hold of the truth about God and how He will sometimes lovingly parent His children.

GOD’s PuRPOse FOR THe BATTLe

God will sometimes remove his hedge of protection from around us so that we can learn a new way to fight the good fight of faith. These various battles are not happening TO us; they are happening FOR us. James 1:2-4 (NIv) says “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” The battle is sent so that we can develop into mature and complete Christians that are not lacking in character. We must remember that the battle was not sent to kill us, despite how painful things may feel while we are in the battle. Unfortunately, I could not see the fullness of what God was trying to reveal to me, because I was so focused on the fact that I was in a painful battle. We have to look past the pain to see that the battle is present so that we might improve.

A Brief Comment About The Pain That We Feel:The purpose of the battle is to kill those behaviors, people, etc. that God is pruning from our lives, many of which have roots that go beyond our generation and stretch into many generations before us. When uprooting and pruning those things that are ingrained in us, one can expect to encounter some trauma from the cutting. Please understand that I am

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not diminishing the discomfort or saying that you will not have some battle scars. Conversely, I am trying to encourage you in the middle of the battle and let you know that the scars will heal, and the result will be a stronger, wiser, improved version of you that reflects God’s light more clearly than ever before.

The fact that these battles have increased in intensity and frequency is a good thing because it’s a sign that you are stronger and wiser than you realize. Remember, King Koopa only came against Mario when it was time to level up. (Selah) The discomfort, the pressure, the doors that are closing, and the mental/emotional toils that encroach into your heart are merely signs that you are about to ascend to another level. So instead of despising the pain, grow through the pain. The pain of the battle has its purpose as well. God’s promises are often packaged in pain because He is more concerned with our character than our comfort. God wants to make sure that when He gives us the promise, that we will have the character (i.e., wisdom, humility, fortitude) to walk in that promise. Many of us think we are ready for everything that God has in store for us, but often we are just ready for the discomfort of the battle to be over. In an effort to bypass the painful battle, we beg God to release the promise. What we fail to realize is that our most enormous and grandiose dreams still pale in comparison to what God wants to release in our lives. Contrary to what our hearts and minds believe, if He were to release the full magnitude of the promise before we were ready, the results would be disastrous at best and deadly at worst. Anyone who has ascended to levels of leadership or influence will tell you that while talent and skill will get you there, it takes character to keep you there. God wants to ensure that we have the character necessary to keep us performing at our best within the promise. The painful battle is preparation for the promise. I also believe that the size of the battle is directly correlated to the size of the promise. The bigger the battle, the bigger the promise. Just as the battle with 8-4 King Koopa was the most difficult stage because you were on the cusp of achieving the highest level of Nintendo greatness, the same applies to life’s battles. The greater the promise that God has for you, the more pruning and preparing He has to do to ensure that your

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character can sustain the promise. I know you are probably reading this and thinking to yourself “Does EVERY promise require a battle? Is my character THAT bad? Can’t God just give me the promise and keep the battle?” To answer this, let’s consider the parable of the prodigal son found in Luke 15:11-32. In this parable, the younger son asks for (some interpretations say that he demanded) his portion of his father’s inheritance. This was an insulting and brash request because the inheritance was only to be awarded upon the father’s death; however, the father obliged and gave the son 1/3 of his estate. The son, being immature and lacking in character, “gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living.” Soon thereafter, when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country. The son, who had hired himself out to a pig farmer, was so destitute that he longed to eat the same slop as the pigs. This is an example of what happens when the promise is received prior to the pruning. We are like the prodigal son in that we think that our character has endured enough pruning and we are ready to obtain the promise from our Father. While the Bible does not say this, I believe that the son only had an estimation of what his inheritance would be. He did not know all of the details of the father’s full estate and incomes; only the Father had this knowledge. So when the son received his inheritance and realized the magnitude of the amount, he did what any unwise, fiscally irresponsible person would do; he spent it all having a good time. How many times have you blown through resources (money, people, opportunities) that now in hindsight you could kick yourself for squandering? This is why the painful battle (i.e., pruning) always has to come before the promise. Because of our lack of wisdom and character, we will squander the promise given by our Father and find ourselves in foreign lands (ungodly places) so spiritually, emotionally and mentally bankrupt that we will long for the slop (worldly behaviors) of pigs (the unrighteous). God does not want us to be shooting stars; short-lived streaks of bright light that fall from atmospheric heights and are burned into oblivion. Rather, He wants us to be beacons of light that shine ever bright illuminating the world from all of its darkness. I don’t know about you, but I would rather suffer the pain of the battle and be prepared for the promise than to fall

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down and be consumed by fire. (Selah). Now let’s consider an example of what happens when the painful battle precedes the promise.

exAMPLe FROM THe BiBLe

David is one of the most well-known people from the Bible. He was a shepherd, poet, musician, king, and ancestor of Jesus. However, out of all that David accomplished, he is mostly known throughout the world for his epic battle against Goliath. It was through this battle that David began leveling up from shepherd boy to king. David first comes to our attention in 1 Samuel 16 when God sends the prophet Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint David, a shepherd boy, the new king of Israel. During this time, Saul was the reigning king of Israel, but God had informed Samuel to anointed David as the successor to the throne. Sometimes God will clue us in on what the promise is and/or give us a glimpse of our future purpose. The glimpse often comes during those times in life when it is quiet; when we are on the hamster wheel of life going about our mundane tasks, God will secretly give us a preview of what is to come when no one is looking. God revealed to David through Samuel the promise of being Israel’s king; however, before David could receive what was revealed, David had to endure several preparatory battles. David’s most famous battle was the one he fought against Goliath. David willingly walked into the battle with Goliath knowing that “the Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this philistine.” (1 Samuel 17:37 NIv) We know the rest of the story; David picked up five smooth stones, walked out onto the field, and told Goliath that he came “in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies – the God of the armies of Israel.” As Goliath advanced, David ran straight at his enemy, hurled the stone with his slingshot, and hit Goliath in the forehead killing him. Winning this battle against Goliath qualified David to level up and fight an even bigger battle against King Saul. Upon returning from defeating Goliath, the town’s people sang King Saul’s and David’s praises. They sang that Saul had killed his thousands and David his tens of thousands. This angered Saul, and he became jealous of David stating that “Next they’ll be making him their king!” (1 Samuel 18:8) Saul, unaware of the promise God gave David

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in secret, knew that the Lord had turned away from him and was now with David. Saul was so enraged that he tried several times to have David murdered. David, fearing for his life, had to live on the run from Saul for many years. While the Bible is not clear as to how long David ran from Saul, it is known that David escaped from Gibeah to Ramah, then back to Gibeah followed by Nob. He then fled to Gath in Philistine territory, lived in a cave of Adullam, protected the town of Keilah from the philistines, and hid in the wilderness. Notice that David ran straight at Goliath with only a slingshot, but he ran away from Saul despite having approximately 600 men by his side. If this sounds a bit odd to you, don’t worry because it did to me as well. But remember what I said earlier that the strategies used on Level 1 don’t often work on Level 2. As the battle changes, so must the battle strategy. Goliath was an uncircumcised philistine that stood in direct opposition to God, so David knew he could run straight at him in the name of the Lord and win. Saul, however, was the appointed king of Israel, and the Spirit of the Lord once rested upon him. David respected Saul’s position of authority and refused to attack “the Lord’s anointed” because David recognized that Saul was chosen by God. Twice David had the opportunity to kill Saul but refused to do so. Instead, he continued to run away from Saul’s murderous advances. Not only did David eventually become king, he became one of the most notable kings of Israel. God testified that David was “a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do” (Acts 13:22 NLT). As a king, David was known to be merciful, humble, had absolute faith in God, and was committed to following God. Now, did David make mistakes and encounter more battles after securing the throne? Absolutely! However, I believe that the early battles David faced before receiving God’s promise is what prepared him to be a victorious king. I don’t know about you, but I would much rather be like King David than the prodigal Son. I would prefer to subject myself to God’s preparatory battle before receiving the promise so that I can be successful in all that God has called me to do, like King David. Instead of being like the prodigal Son and demand my promise now, skipping the preparation battle, only to squander my promise and find myself in a pigsty. To have a discussion about understanding life’s battles without mentioning Job would be remiss. I like to remember Job when I am in

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the midst of my battles because he was one of the most battle-worn people in the Bible. Job is famous mainly due to the many struggles he endured and all that he lost. Before one servant could finish bringing Job bad news about one tragedy, another servant was running up to inform him about another tragedy, then another, and another. In the span of one day, Job lost all of his oxen, donkeys, sheep, camels, and servants. As if that were not enough, all of Job’s children died, his wife abandoned him, and his body was covered with sores from head to toe. While I liked to remember Job for all that he suffered and would find solace in his pain (because misery loves company), the thing that convicted me was not Job’s suffering, but instead his faith. I think it is interesting that the first thing the Bible tells us about Job is not about his struggle or how wealthy he was but instead informs us about his impeccable character. The Bible tells us that Job was a blameless man of complete integrity that feared God and stayed away from evil (Job 1:1). As I mentioned earlier, when a battle approaches, I sometimes like to tell God how good I am, how I have tithed, and how obedient I’ve been. As if that is going to qualify me to skip the battle (we’ve already discovered that we cannot skip steps). Nevertheless, even if there was a criterion that would qualify me to skip the battle, the description of Job’s character could be used to disqualify me because I have definitely fallen short of being blameless and avoiding evil. What this tells me is that if Job, in all of his near perfection, encountered a battle, then who am I to think I will get away scot-free? Furthermore, Job’s battle came upon him because God called Satan’s attention to Job. Let me pause here for a second and speak briefly to the difference between life’s battles that are God-ordained versus those that are simply related to our disobedience. There is a distinct difference between encountering difficulties due to a growing season that God is taking us through and encountering a season of difficulties as a consequence of misguided actions. The principal difference in the two seasons is our preceding actions. How many times have you found yourself in a battle because you did something you knew was wrong or that God said not to do? Disobedience to God’s direction will always lead to a hard battle. Because God is a good and loving Father, He will often give us the grace to endure that difficulty for a brief period while He urges us to come

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back into alignment with Him. However, the mistake that we often make is that we see this grace period as permission to continue in this incorrect direction. please beware that the grace period is just that, a period. It will come to an end, and the battle will rage. The good news is that the solution to these types of battles is to turn back to our Father and repent of our wrongs. psalm 103:12 (NIv) tells us that as far “as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” So if you find yourself lost in a battle of your own design and desire to level up from that place, go directly to our Father, and He will get you back to where you need to be. As for Job, however, he was in a God-ordained battle. It’s amazing that Job was such an awesome person of such noble character that the King of kings and Lord of lords could speak so fondly of him. In Job 1:8 (NIv) God asks Satan “what do you think of my servant Job? No one on earth is like him—he is a truly good person, who respects me and refuses to do evil.” How awesome to receive such high praise from God! Moreover, to be the topic of conversation between God and Satan is an honor. Of everyone on earth, Job was on God’s lips. The conversation went something like this:

God: What are you doing Satan? satan: Looking for something to destroyGod: What about Job? He is awesome and will never do evil. satan: Well, of course he won’t! You protect him and everything connected to him. plus, You make him successful in everything he does. If You take all of that away, I bet he will curse You to Your face. God: You think so? Do your best Satan, but do not touch Job’s life.

As this conversation is transpiring, Job is here on earth, minding his business unaware of the discussion. Then in one day, he loses everything. But how did Job respond to this unexpected and seemingly unfair battle? With complaining? With bitterness? No. Job responded to the battle with worship. Job 1:20 (NLT) tells us that when Job heard all the bad news, he felt great sorrow but immediately fell on the ground and worshiped God. Job understood something that has taken me many months to grasp, and that is that everything we are, have, and hope to accomplish in this life belongs to God. In his sorrow Job said “we bring nothing

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at birth; we take nothing with us at death. The Lord alone gives and takes. praise the name of the Lord!” Despite all that came against Job, he never sinned or accused God of wrongdoing. Job maintained his faith throughout this God-ordained battle. I wish I could say that I have had the same reaction to my battles. I often spent too much time lamenting the fact that I was in a battle. Regardless of what type of battle it was (professional, financial, health, relationship, or all of them at the same time) I would complain. Worship was the last thing I thought to do. There was one season where I would often say “the only good thing that happened to me today was the fact that I woke up this morning.”, and as you can guess, everything else would go downhill from there. I blamed God for mistreating me and even felt justified to tell God what He got to fix and when He got to fix it. This vantage point continued for years because I could not understand why my life was in a constant state of battle. Have you ever felt this way? I thank God I have a great group of friends that would pray for me when I couldn’t pray for myself, encourage me when I felt like giving up, and remind me to worship when, in my bitterness, I failed to do so. We will talk more about the importance of choosing who you take into battle with you in Level 3. I admit that it took many many years before I began to adopt the perspective of Job and worship became my response to a battle (and I still have to remind myself from time to time). Over time I began to take a correct vantage point on the purpose of the battle and understand that it’s a necessity if we desire to level up in life and in our walk with God.

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seLAH MOMenTs

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seLAH MOMenTs