If you’ve got some unlovely history in your family you to recognize that your families past mistakes and sins, as well your past, do not define your future. You don’t have to repeat the sins of your fathers, or mothers. You can be the tipping point toward faith in your family and future generations.
Thoughts on the Bible, Church, life and living it to its full potential in Jesus Christ!
Friday, January 26, 2018
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Thursday - Genesis 41
What if, instead of trying to get out of your job, your marriage, school, PTO, neighborhood you instead started giving God the opportunity to make you fruitful in the land of your suffering? It would mean you’d have to do things God’s way and not your own. You’d have to honor God with your work and your life and your speech - you’d have to be obedient like David, Patient like Daniel and Forgiving like Jospeh… but man oh man, what God could do through you!
Wednesday Genesis 40
How do you keep your eyes on God enough that you don’t get upset when things seem to go wrong yet always give God the glory when things go right? It seems like it should be easy, yet many of us find it very difficult. How do you keep a right perspective through the ups and downs of life? I’d love to hear from you!
Monday, January 22, 2018
Tuesday: Genesis 39 Vlog
Joseph was blessed and over and over given greater responsibly and position because he obeyed God (His Word) and he trusted God (God's Ways). How can you use your position at work to influence others for Jesus? What would it take for you to be a blessing to your employer simply because of your faith?
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Genesis 37 Vlog
Friday, October 27, 2017
Ephesians 6 - Stand
In the first section of chapter 6 Paul continues his examples of how to live out your faith in the home and he hits pretty much every relationship that might exist in the home of that day.
1-3 - Children, it is to your benefit to listen to and obey your parents - remember that in these households there were sometimes several generations in one home - so we're not just talking about little kids but even adults listening to the wisdom of their parents. But look at the promise, "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." This is the original fountain of youth. Who knew?!
4 - Fathers, "don't exasperate your children," which means don't provoke them. Apparently this was a problem in the ancient world. Father's who would not take the time to instruct and train their children but perhaps just say, "do it because I said" without giving the why or helping them understand the importance of what they've been asked.
5-9 - Paul address the relationship between slaves and masters. It's important to remember that these were not typically slaves like we think of in the dark days of our own country. These slaves were usually given a wage, or lived in the home of the master in exchange for their labor. Many were bond-servants who had willingly given themselves to their masters and they almost all had a life outside their masters home. Think of it more like a live in butler or maid. They could be mistreated, as Paul encourages masters not to threaten them or treat them poorly. The master did have certain rights, but often the slaves did too and if they were treated poorly they had recourse.
The point Paul makes is that whether your a slave or a master we're all to be slaves of Jesus first and serve (or you could read, submit) Him by serving each other.
10-17 - In the final "meat" section of this letter to the Ephesian Church we find the famous passage about the Armor of God. Since the beginning of his letter Paul has been showing the new believers in Ephesus how to live in their new faith. From their first faith steps to becoming mature believers Paul has been walking through the how and what and why of the spiritual journey. Now he turns from the physical behavior of a Christian to the spiritual war they (and we) will face.
You can gain much from this section of Scriptures but I want to focus on a couple things as we wrap up our 6 days in Ephesus.
- You and I are to recognize that we are not strong enough in our own strength to face the spiritual onslaught that will come to every believer. Paul wants to make sure we know that we will not be able to accomplish all that he has written in this letter unless we rely on and walk in the strength of the Lord and His mighty power. If you try to face the rulers, authorities and powers of this dark world on your own you will fail. So he shows us how to be strong in the Lord in the next several verses.
- I find it really interesting that Paul doesn't say, fight or run but he tells us to simply stand. In fact he says it four times. Stand against the devils schemes. Stand your ground in the day of evil. After you've given all you have, just stand. And we're not to stand firm in our wisdom or ability or strength. We're to stand in Truth (which comes from God), in righteousness, in peace, in faith, in salvation and in the Spirit.
- Notice that all these items are defensive except one, the Sword of the Spirit - which just so happens to be the Word of God. The same Word that the writer of the letter to the Hebrew believers said was, "alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Our only "weapon" against our spiritual enemies is the Word of God. You will not fight or win with any other instrument.
- When Jesus faced satan in the wilderness (you can read about it in Luke 4) even He battled satan with the Word of God when He quoted it three times before getting satan to flee. That power is yours too...if you know what the Word says. You can't fight with a weapon you don't have - that's part of the reason a daily bible reading plan is so important - for the rest of your life - so you will know the Word and can wield it effectively in battle. That's why the last 6 days will strengthen you in your faith journey, because it's the Word and when you know the Word you can wield the Word.
In the next few verses 18-20 Paul talks about the important of prayer, constant prayer, spiritual prayer and requests. Keep on praying for all Christians and Paul asks for prayer himself too. I would do the same. Pray for me. Pray that I would be bold in sharing God's Word and would be able to stand in the face of spiritual attack in my life. Since I want to speak the truth of God's Words to a world that doesn't always accept it in a way that they might understand and apply to their lives and ours. Pray for me that I would be faithful to God's call and many would come to know Jesus through this ministry.
Finally, Paul has his pretty standard farewell in 21-24. Tychicus (tick-e-cuss) could have been from Ephesus and followed Paul around as a apprentice or he could have been from somewhere else - regardless, Paul trusted him to do 2 things - deliver his message accurately and encourage the people surely through preaching of the Word.
Then Paul closed with peach to these dear brothers and sisters in the faith, in the love of God and Jesus and for grace to be given to all who love Jesus with an undying love.
And I'm sure he would say the same to you today. There's a lot to do. A lot God has prepared for you to do in His kingdom. Seek God, walk and fight in His strength, pray and stand firm in the faith.
Thanks for taking this journey with me.
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Ephesians 5 - A Picture is Worth 1000 Words
In the first 4 chapters of Ephesians Paul takes his readers through a process of faith development. In Chapter 1 Paul sets the stage for new believers and helps them understand what is going on in their new lives and how powerful God is to save us and change us. In Chapter 2 Paul further directs the differences between the old life we used to live and the new life of faith. In Chapter 3 he makes sure everybody knows that salvation belongs to those who believe and that for each one of us who believe God has a purpose. Yesterday we read in Chapter 4 about how we are each to function in this new family and he goes over the house rules again.
In today's reading Paul continues to remind us that when we came to faith in Jesus there was a change. We're not the old person we used to be who would give into sin and acts of the flesh - we've been changed - and that change should be visible in our daily lives. He then wraps the chapter up with an example of how life is to be different in Christian homes. But it can all be summed up in a simple line from the 2nd verse.
Walk in the way of love.
If we all did this every day the world would be a much different place wouldn't it. But because Paul knew we'd have a hard time with it he goes on to explain it and then give a real world example of what it looks like.
In verse 3-20 Paul restates what he said in early chapters.
3-7 - That stuff you used to do and be okay with, that stuff that the rest of the city of Ephesus thought was perfectly alright is not acceptable in your new life. Don't follow those who do these things or get caught up in them again by those from your former way of life who still think it's okay.
8-14 - Remember that you WERE in darkness but you've come into the light. Instead of engaging in the "deeds of darkness" expose them, especially in your own life so that the light of Christ may reveal and then remove the darkness.
15-20 - Watch your life and live it to the full for Jesus glory. Faith should affect every aspect of our lives so that it changes what we do and how we speak.
In the next section Paul gives us an example of how walking walking in the way of love would look in marriage relationship.
Vereses 21
Love submits.
It just does. You don't have to be angry about that. It's not a man thing. It's not about authority or abuse. Love recognizes when it's appropriate and beneficial and then love submits. Now, don't read more into this than is there. He's not talking about parents submitting to their children. He's not talking about submitting when someone wants you to do things immoral or abusive.
A woman once came to me for counseling saying her finance - whom she was living with - told her that if she loved him she would watch porn with him to help their relationship. This is NOT an instance to submit. And this is not what Paul is talking about.
When you're walking in love you submit to one another. In a marriage it means that you sacrifice for one another. If he really wants to see the new Marvel movie and it's not that big a deal to you either way, submit. If she wants to go for Italian, submit. If one of you feels strongly about something and the other doesn't care as much, submit.
But here's the kicker - we're not just submitting because the other person is mad or their idea is better, this is a conscious decision to submit your will to the other out of your reverence for Christ. You're doing it for Him not for them.
Vereses 22-24
Wives submit.
Wives are to take this mutual submission a step further. Paul says that the husband in the spiritual head of the home, as Christ is the spiritual head of the church (His body). Just as you would expect the church to submit to the will of Jesus, wives have a spiritual obligation to submit to their husbands - as though they were submitting to the Lord. Wives, this has nothing to do with your ability, your smarts, your common sense or your personality. You're not submitting because you lack something but because you get something - you get that this is the order God prescribed way back in Genesis. He's not smarter because he's a man. He's not better because of his DNA. He's not "the boss." This doesn't make you his slave or servant in any way, shape or form. Your submission is NOT about your husband it's about your Savior.
Verses 25-29
Husbands love.
Guys - this is WAY more important and WAY more personal to God than the submissiveness of your wife. In fact, it has nothing to do with her at all, except that she is the object of your love. We are to love our wives in the same way that Jesus loved the church. He gave himself completely for her. He went to the cross for her. He gave his life so that she might receive the benefit. Nothing that Jesus endured was about him, it was all about her. The way you love her is to result in her benefit - regardless of the cost to you.
If you don't get it here's the next metaphor. Love her as you love yourself. Just as you feed and care for your physical body you should care for your wife. If you are careful about what you put in your body - whether that means clean living or BBQ at least 2x a week, you're intentionally caring for you body. Care for you wife. Put as much thought and energy into loving her as you do your car, hunting, Football or your job. In fact, loving your wife as Jesus loved the church IS your job. And honestly, most of us are close to being fired.
Verses 30 - 33
We all, husbands and wives, are part of the same body. That's what God desired in the beginning that husbands and wives would leave their families and be united to each other and become one flesh. Husbands and wives, you are not equals, you are not at odds you are not enemies you are ONE. We need to start acting like it. And Paul tells us how, submit to one another, wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord, husbands love your wives as Jesus loves the church. That's how we get make it.
One final thought. When husbands and wives follow Paul's plan the world doesn't just see a family, they see a picture of Jesus and His church. When we submit and love the world sees a heavenly, a spiritual picture. What goes on in a Christian home is just like what goes on the life of a believer - everything speaks. What is your marriage saying about Jesus and His church? Walk in the way of love.
In today's reading Paul continues to remind us that when we came to faith in Jesus there was a change. We're not the old person we used to be who would give into sin and acts of the flesh - we've been changed - and that change should be visible in our daily lives. He then wraps the chapter up with an example of how life is to be different in Christian homes. But it can all be summed up in a simple line from the 2nd verse.
Walk in the way of love.
If we all did this every day the world would be a much different place wouldn't it. But because Paul knew we'd have a hard time with it he goes on to explain it and then give a real world example of what it looks like.
In verse 3-20 Paul restates what he said in early chapters.
3-7 - That stuff you used to do and be okay with, that stuff that the rest of the city of Ephesus thought was perfectly alright is not acceptable in your new life. Don't follow those who do these things or get caught up in them again by those from your former way of life who still think it's okay.
8-14 - Remember that you WERE in darkness but you've come into the light. Instead of engaging in the "deeds of darkness" expose them, especially in your own life so that the light of Christ may reveal and then remove the darkness.
15-20 - Watch your life and live it to the full for Jesus glory. Faith should affect every aspect of our lives so that it changes what we do and how we speak.
In the next section Paul gives us an example of how walking walking in the way of love would look in marriage relationship.
Vereses 21
Love submits.
It just does. You don't have to be angry about that. It's not a man thing. It's not about authority or abuse. Love recognizes when it's appropriate and beneficial and then love submits. Now, don't read more into this than is there. He's not talking about parents submitting to their children. He's not talking about submitting when someone wants you to do things immoral or abusive.
A woman once came to me for counseling saying her finance - whom she was living with - told her that if she loved him she would watch porn with him to help their relationship. This is NOT an instance to submit. And this is not what Paul is talking about.
When you're walking in love you submit to one another. In a marriage it means that you sacrifice for one another. If he really wants to see the new Marvel movie and it's not that big a deal to you either way, submit. If she wants to go for Italian, submit. If one of you feels strongly about something and the other doesn't care as much, submit.
But here's the kicker - we're not just submitting because the other person is mad or their idea is better, this is a conscious decision to submit your will to the other out of your reverence for Christ. You're doing it for Him not for them.
Vereses 22-24
Wives submit.
Wives are to take this mutual submission a step further. Paul says that the husband in the spiritual head of the home, as Christ is the spiritual head of the church (His body). Just as you would expect the church to submit to the will of Jesus, wives have a spiritual obligation to submit to their husbands - as though they were submitting to the Lord. Wives, this has nothing to do with your ability, your smarts, your common sense or your personality. You're not submitting because you lack something but because you get something - you get that this is the order God prescribed way back in Genesis. He's not smarter because he's a man. He's not better because of his DNA. He's not "the boss." This doesn't make you his slave or servant in any way, shape or form. Your submission is NOT about your husband it's about your Savior.
Verses 25-29
Husbands love.
Guys - this is WAY more important and WAY more personal to God than the submissiveness of your wife. In fact, it has nothing to do with her at all, except that she is the object of your love. We are to love our wives in the same way that Jesus loved the church. He gave himself completely for her. He went to the cross for her. He gave his life so that she might receive the benefit. Nothing that Jesus endured was about him, it was all about her. The way you love her is to result in her benefit - regardless of the cost to you.
If you don't get it here's the next metaphor. Love her as you love yourself. Just as you feed and care for your physical body you should care for your wife. If you are careful about what you put in your body - whether that means clean living or BBQ at least 2x a week, you're intentionally caring for you body. Care for you wife. Put as much thought and energy into loving her as you do your car, hunting, Football or your job. In fact, loving your wife as Jesus loved the church IS your job. And honestly, most of us are close to being fired.
Verses 30 - 33
We all, husbands and wives, are part of the same body. That's what God desired in the beginning that husbands and wives would leave their families and be united to each other and become one flesh. Husbands and wives, you are not equals, you are not at odds you are not enemies you are ONE. We need to start acting like it. And Paul tells us how, submit to one another, wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord, husbands love your wives as Jesus loves the church. That's how we get make it.
One final thought. When husbands and wives follow Paul's plan the world doesn't just see a family, they see a picture of Jesus and His church. When we submit and love the world sees a heavenly, a spiritual picture. What goes on in a Christian home is just like what goes on the life of a believer - everything speaks. What is your marriage saying about Jesus and His church? Walk in the way of love.
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Ephesians 4 - All in the Family
I have known several families over the years who for one reason or another took in extra kids. In every case there was a learning curve. Think about it. If a child is born into your family they learn the rules pretty quickly. They learn when to ask dad or mom. They learn when to push it and when to tip-toe. They learn how they are expected to behave both at home and when they are out in the world.
When you bring an older child into the home they don't know all the unspoken rules. They haven't had time to know what "that look" means. All they know is what they know... and it's usually all about where they came from. So, it takes time for them to figure out the way you work verses the way it used to work.
Ephesians 4 is all about how individuals are to live together in their new family - the Church. I've broken it down below.
Vs 1- 4 The Basics
- How you are to behave in your new family (1,2)
- How you are to treat your new family members (3)
- This is the only (church) family you've got (4)
- We've all got the same Father - who is going to treat us like family (5-6)
Vs 7- 16 We're All Loved the Same but We're Not All Treated the Same
- Each one in the family has been given grace as Jesus determined - you're an individual (7)
- vs 8-10 are a theological tangent to show Jesus was came from God and went to God
- Jesus gave different people different roles within the family (11)
- We have different roles but the same GOALS (12)
- When we work together we reach unity together and mature in Jesus - attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (13 - and see chapter 3:19)
- When we mature we will know better than to play in the street or take candy from strangers (14)
- And eventually our bodies should catch up with our brains (15-16)
- A baby wants to walk before it actually can. The brain is willing but the body is weak. As the body and the brain grow though the body eventually is able to keep up with the brain so that once you think it you can do it. When the individual parts of this family (the body of Christ) grow and mature they will eventually, together, be able to carry out the will of the brain - Jesus. HOW COOL IS THAT?!
Vs 17- 19 GROW UP.
- You can't get where you're going if you're still thinking like where you've been. The thinking you had before becoming a part of God's family will not serve you well. In your new family there has to be a new way of thinking - you can't just follow your selfish desires anymore, the acts of the flesh are obvious and obsolete in your new family.
Vs 20- 24 I've Told You This a Thousand Times!
- When you came into the family of God through Jesus you had to learn what was acceptable and what wasn't. You were told that your old way of thinking and doing wasn't consistent with the new way of being. (but we all need to be reminded over and over again don't we!)
Vs 25- 32 House Rules
- Because we're now part of the same family here are the rules
- Always deal in the Truth
- If you're angry, don't sin, satan will use it against you (and us)
- Instead of taking, learn to be generous
- Don't tear others down, build them up - it's good for all of us!
- Do what God's Spirit prompts you to do
- Don't be bitter, work to be better!
- Be kind, compassionate and forgiving because that's exactly how God is toward you.
Now you know what's expected and the rules.
What do you think about the House Rules and roles in the Family of God?
Are there any you struggle with?
What do you think is the most important one?
Which do you think has the greatest impact on the family?
How can you use what God has given you individually to benefit the whole family?
Tuesday, October 24, 2017
Ephesians 3 - No Longer a Mystery... at Least to Some
Have you ever been on the outside looking in? An inside joke you didn't get. A party you weren't invited to. A group you couldn't join. There have always been the haves and the have-nots. And for centuries the Jews had it and were not about to share. After all, they were the chosen ones. A people chosen by God, protected by God, provided for by God. They wore their "faith" like a badge of honor and held so tight to their position that it was almost impossible for anyone on the outside to get in. By the way, I don't believe that was ever God's plan - but, they were human just like us... speaking of us, we still act like the Jews of Paul's day. Many of you found Real Life because you visited a church where you felt like an outsider. Maybe they used language you didn't understand, they laughed at jokes you didn't get or they had rituals that you were either excluded from or felt strange participating in.
This was the situation in the beginning of the Church. The Jews held the market on God for many years but after Jesus and the coming of Holy Spirit in Acts 2, along with the rapid spread of the Church across the known world, this new "religion" based in Jesus was now open to anyone who believed. It was a revolutionary idea and one that the religious establishment of the day hated (after all, they killed the leader).
So three things I want to point out today that are just as important as they were 2K years ago.
First - the mystery of the the Gospel of Jesus is not really a mystery at all (v 6)- it was prophesied in the Old Testament for thousands of years prior to Jesus. The mystery of the Gospel is that no one, NO ONE is better than anyone else in God's eyes. This was a HUGE shock to the Jews and a HUGE benefit to the non-Jews (Gentiles). Through the Good News of Jesus' payment for our sins, Jews and non-Jews alike, were both able to share in the promise of Jesus Christ - hope in eternal life.
Second - Paul's calling is so deeply imbedded in who he is that he is writing this letter from prison. He is in prison for preaching Jesus. He's in prison for exercising something many of us take for granted, freedom of speech. He told people about a dead guy who came back to life and who he believed was God in the flesh. Sounds scandalous.
Paul saw his calling as two fold:
1. He was to preach the Gospel of Jesus to the Gentiles - meaning, he was to tell them about Jesus, His life, teaching, miracles, death and resurrection and what that meant of every person.
2. He was to "make plain" the mystery - that the Gentiles were supposed to be "in" since the beginning and now, through Jesus it's actually happened.
2a. Part of that mystery he was sharing was that through the Church - an entirely new thing - God's plan of salvation in Jesus was finally being revealed to the heavenly beings. I think this salvation in Jesus came as a shock to the Angels and demons alike. I think Satan absolutely believed he had won and there was a huge party that lasted for about 3 days. On the other side, I think the angels were stunned. I don't think they knew what was happening. God, their eternal King, was just killed at the hands of measly humans. Unthinkable.
2b. That in Jesus and through faith in Him all people everywhere could approach God with freedom and confidence. This was unheard of in any religion. There had always been priests, temples and sacrifices. No one approached any God, let alone the God of the Hebrews, with confidence or freedom - I mean, the Jewish priests tied a rope and a bell to the ankle of the High Priest every time he went into the Holy of Holies in the Temple of God! This was so that if the bell stopped ringing they would know God had not accepted his sacrifice and they could pull his lifeless body out of the Temple, since no one but him was allowed into that room and he only went in there once a year.
Third - Paul has a prayer for the Gentiles. That they would be strengthened by the power of Holy Spirit in their inner being (this is where the attitudes of the Spirit are formed). And because of that inner strengthening there would be an even greater outcome.
1. That Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith.
2. That they would be rooted and established, not in fear or law or hate or hope or faith, but in love.
3. that they would have the power (from God) to grasp the width and length and height and depth of the love of Christ (because he knew it would forever change them).
4. That they would know this love that surpasses all knowledge and be filled to the measure of the fullness of Christ - basically that they would have all of Jesus that they could possibly hold.
So, there is a mystery that people today still need to hear - Jesus loves you and gave Himself for you that you might believe in Him, regardless of your past, your sin or even your future sin and become a part of His family. There is a calling for each and every one of us who have discovered this mystery and it is to share it with others they too might know Jesus and that through the church the message of Jesus might be known - that belief in Him makes you right before God - not your behavior. And finally, there is a prayer for you and I that the love of Jesus might be so known to us and so fill us that we actually begin to look like Jesus.
This is the result of the attitudes of the Spirit. We know the keys to the "mystery" of eternal life. We've been called to share what we know and we should pray that we, and every one else, would know the extent of the love of Jesus. Because if we did, we'd never be the same.
Remember, God's got a plan for your life. This is juts a part of it.
What makes the biggest impact to you from chapter 3?
This was the situation in the beginning of the Church. The Jews held the market on God for many years but after Jesus and the coming of Holy Spirit in Acts 2, along with the rapid spread of the Church across the known world, this new "religion" based in Jesus was now open to anyone who believed. It was a revolutionary idea and one that the religious establishment of the day hated (after all, they killed the leader).
So three things I want to point out today that are just as important as they were 2K years ago.
First - the mystery of the the Gospel of Jesus is not really a mystery at all (v 6)- it was prophesied in the Old Testament for thousands of years prior to Jesus. The mystery of the Gospel is that no one, NO ONE is better than anyone else in God's eyes. This was a HUGE shock to the Jews and a HUGE benefit to the non-Jews (Gentiles). Through the Good News of Jesus' payment for our sins, Jews and non-Jews alike, were both able to share in the promise of Jesus Christ - hope in eternal life.
Second - Paul's calling is so deeply imbedded in who he is that he is writing this letter from prison. He is in prison for preaching Jesus. He's in prison for exercising something many of us take for granted, freedom of speech. He told people about a dead guy who came back to life and who he believed was God in the flesh. Sounds scandalous.
Paul saw his calling as two fold:
1. He was to preach the Gospel of Jesus to the Gentiles - meaning, he was to tell them about Jesus, His life, teaching, miracles, death and resurrection and what that meant of every person.
2. He was to "make plain" the mystery - that the Gentiles were supposed to be "in" since the beginning and now, through Jesus it's actually happened.
2a. Part of that mystery he was sharing was that through the Church - an entirely new thing - God's plan of salvation in Jesus was finally being revealed to the heavenly beings. I think this salvation in Jesus came as a shock to the Angels and demons alike. I think Satan absolutely believed he had won and there was a huge party that lasted for about 3 days. On the other side, I think the angels were stunned. I don't think they knew what was happening. God, their eternal King, was just killed at the hands of measly humans. Unthinkable.
2b. That in Jesus and through faith in Him all people everywhere could approach God with freedom and confidence. This was unheard of in any religion. There had always been priests, temples and sacrifices. No one approached any God, let alone the God of the Hebrews, with confidence or freedom - I mean, the Jewish priests tied a rope and a bell to the ankle of the High Priest every time he went into the Holy of Holies in the Temple of God! This was so that if the bell stopped ringing they would know God had not accepted his sacrifice and they could pull his lifeless body out of the Temple, since no one but him was allowed into that room and he only went in there once a year.
Third - Paul has a prayer for the Gentiles. That they would be strengthened by the power of Holy Spirit in their inner being (this is where the attitudes of the Spirit are formed). And because of that inner strengthening there would be an even greater outcome.
1. That Christ would dwell in their hearts through faith.
2. That they would be rooted and established, not in fear or law or hate or hope or faith, but in love.
3. that they would have the power (from God) to grasp the width and length and height and depth of the love of Christ (because he knew it would forever change them).
4. That they would know this love that surpasses all knowledge and be filled to the measure of the fullness of Christ - basically that they would have all of Jesus that they could possibly hold.
So, there is a mystery that people today still need to hear - Jesus loves you and gave Himself for you that you might believe in Him, regardless of your past, your sin or even your future sin and become a part of His family. There is a calling for each and every one of us who have discovered this mystery and it is to share it with others they too might know Jesus and that through the church the message of Jesus might be known - that belief in Him makes you right before God - not your behavior. And finally, there is a prayer for you and I that the love of Jesus might be so known to us and so fill us that we actually begin to look like Jesus.
This is the result of the attitudes of the Spirit. We know the keys to the "mystery" of eternal life. We've been called to share what we know and we should pray that we, and every one else, would know the extent of the love of Jesus. Because if we did, we'd never be the same.
Remember, God's got a plan for your life. This is juts a part of it.
What makes the biggest impact to you from chapter 3?
Ephesians 2 - There's a LOT that Happens in a Little "BUT"
I remember sitting in chapel at Ozark Christian College as a sophomore in High School during a summer event when I pointed at Andrea and told my friends I was going to marry her one day. At that time I barely knew her; Had literally only talked to here for a handful of minutes and had no idea how a Kansas girl and a boy from Oregon in 1987 were ever gonna get together. BUT on November 24, 1990 she said, "I do." And from that moment on and for the last 26 years and 296 days our lives have been intertwined and at least for my part, better.
From that day in the chapel to the day we were married a LOT transpired. But that doesn't matter much. What matters is that we were once two people, separate, different names, different plans, from different places and with different dreams but everything changed. And it doesn't really matter if it took a long time or a short time what matters is the result.
In Ephesians 2 there are two "buts" I want to point out to you - in fact, you may want to get a highlighter or mark them in your bible app because just like in my relationship with Andi, everything changes for the Ephesian Christians (and us) and it all happens in a vowel sandwiched between two consonants and it happens to be a "U."
1. Verses 1-10 - He Changed Our Story
BEFORE we met Jesus (however that happened for you) we were dead, along with everyone else in history who had ever gratified the cravings of the flesh (vs3). I deserved death. So did you and everyone else who has (pretty much) ever lived.
BUT (V4) God loved us so much He changed our story! We were slatted for death but God MADE US ALIVE with Christ!
NOW, because of the work of Jesus, we are free to pursue the good works of God that He prepared in advance for us to accomplish. There is stuff that is waiting to be done in the Kingdom of God and it has YOUR name on it! Instead of living in sin through the acts of the flesh you and I get to live for God through the attitudes of the Spirit!
2. Verses 11-21 - He Changed Our Name
BEFORE we met Jesus we were separated from God because of our sin. We were NOT a part of His family. We were excluded. We were foreigners (we didn't speak the language or know the customs) we were without hope and without God. Alone.
BUT (V13) In Christ Jesus we have been brought into the family! He wanted us! He chose us! He loved us! We were orphans but God MADE US His children and gave us a new name, HIS!
NOW, because Jesus shed His blood to ransom us from our former life, we are part of a family that encompasses every people group on earth! We are not strangers or foreigners but members of God's household. We have people we can count on and who can count on us. And our family continues to grow as others are adopted!
Isn't that incredible! Regardless of our past sin or the fact that we were outsiders God not only changes our story, He changes our name and welcomes us into His family. YOU belong. You're wanted and needed. You're loved. He has stuff just for you to accomplish!
I'm guessing there's a pretty big "but" in your life too - Whatever was going on in your life before Jesus things are now different. Is your life any different? How? Why not?
A couple more things if you're up for them:
- I know this is a powerful passage about grace. You probably do to. That's why I didn't talk about it.
- We could spend a LOT of time breaking this chapter down - it's got that much stuff in it - feel free to take it from here.
- If you're a part of Christ you should be a part of His church.
- If you're in Christ He's constantly working to build you TOGETHER with other believers into a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit - it's not optional. It's powerful. It's how we all accomplish the good works He prepared for us and it's our obligation as a part of His family.
There's a lot of stuff here, what jumps off the page at you?
Sunday, October 22, 2017
Ephesians 1 - He Chose You to Be Changed
Ephesians 1 - HE CHOSE YOU TO BE CHANGED
It’s pretty easy for me to reflect on what God has done on a day like yesterday. If you missed church you missed CHURCH - it was an amazing morning of worship - one of those mornings where it just seemed like God was in the room with us. Powerful. It’s easy to reflect in times like that… but now it’s Monday morning. You have to face another long week of work or school. Maybe your health hasn’t been very good or you’re struggling through a pain that steals your joy. It always seems easier to get bogged down by our problems rather than be built up by our blessings.
But for the next minute or two I want you to put your problems and your blessings on the shelf - don’t think about your finances or your family, your failures or success I want you to consider this incredible truth from vs 4 - God CHOSE YOU… consider that just for a minute. God chose you to put your hope in His Son Jesus Christ. Whatever you are going through or will face this week, you can stand knowing that God chose you. He wanted you. He pursued you. He chose you for a purpose, to be changed into the likeness of His Son.
After church and the dinner yesterday for Pastor Appreciation I can say with Paul, I have not stopped giving thanks for you. I appreciate you all so much, your service, your love, your kindness and your desire to look more like Jesus every day. That’s seen in part by the 24 people who said “I’m In!” to reading through the book of Ephesians this week.
I want to continue to pray with Paul that this church (and the people who make it up - you!) would experience more the Spirit’s power manifested in wisdom and revelation so that we might know Him better. That the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened to know the hope of the salvation we have in Christ AND (if that all wasn’t enough) His incomparably great power.
Consider this as you starve the monster of “flesh” and feed the attitudes of the Spirit this week; that same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in a place of honor with God the Father has ALSO been given to you!
Your monster may have a scary name: Porn, alcohol, affair, pride, tobacco, food, fear - but the power in you through Jesus Christ is GREATER than every other power, authority or name that we encounter.
You can stand against your monster in the power that God gives you in Jesus because He promised that you would never face any temptation that you could not endure (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Today, begin to deprive the monster that wants to hold you hostage and instead let the Spirit make you holy as you develop the attitudes of the Spirit in your life.
If you slip, don’t give up! Just start again - indulge the Spirit’s work in your life and inhibit the acts of the flesh.
PS: Verses 22,23
Paul speaks of the church as the body of Christ and says that the church is, “the fullness of Him who fills everything in every way.” That’s a powerful statement about church and what you and I get to be a part of. On Nov 5 we’re gonna start a new series call Rethinking the Church. I hope you can make it and if you haven’t been to a coffee with Corey yet or the Discover Real Life partnership Seminar I hope you will do that soon and know what it’s like to truly be a part of the body of Christ.
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Conscious of God or Consumed with Your Gunk?
A friend of mine was recently recounting the struggles he's been having, primarily at work. He has one of those jobs where he works 12 hour shifts and because of some miss-management by those in authority he and his co-workers have been working 70+ hours a week for nearly a year now. And if that weren't bad enough his shifts vary each month from nights to days! If I were him I think I'd be getting pretty sick of that schedule.
I'll bet you could come up with at least one crummy thing that's been going on in your life in the next 30 seconds... did you think of something? There's at least a chance that you had your crummy situation thought of even while you were reading that first paragraph! For some reason we're conditioned to be consumed by our gunk. The negative situations and circumstances we flow in and out of on a consistent basis. We think about them. Worry about them. Wonder how we're gonna survive them and often say things like, "If one more thing happens I'm going to lose it!"
My friend could have focused on his crummy hours, the loss of time with his family, the irritation of his co-workers and anger toward those in authority. And he could have justified his feelings. But that's not where he chose to focus his energy. Instead he was able to look at all that God had provided for he and his family over the last year. My friend loves Jesus and was able to give more to God because he had more to give. He loves the outdoors and was able to purchase a camper (which he's wanted for a long time) and a new truck and even make some much needed improvements around the house.
It's easy to get consumed with our gunk. It seems to be prevalent. It's annoying. Sometimes there is a lot of it. But when we're consumed with our gunk we can't be conscious of what God is doing. Every time I've gone through a difficult time in my life I have found that God is also working overtime.
When we focus on our gunk we see more of it. It's a universal principle in every area of our lives:
I'll bet you could come up with at least one crummy thing that's been going on in your life in the next 30 seconds... did you think of something? There's at least a chance that you had your crummy situation thought of even while you were reading that first paragraph! For some reason we're conditioned to be consumed by our gunk. The negative situations and circumstances we flow in and out of on a consistent basis. We think about them. Worry about them. Wonder how we're gonna survive them and often say things like, "If one more thing happens I'm going to lose it!"
My friend could have focused on his crummy hours, the loss of time with his family, the irritation of his co-workers and anger toward those in authority. And he could have justified his feelings. But that's not where he chose to focus his energy. Instead he was able to look at all that God had provided for he and his family over the last year. My friend loves Jesus and was able to give more to God because he had more to give. He loves the outdoors and was able to purchase a camper (which he's wanted for a long time) and a new truck and even make some much needed improvements around the house.
It's easy to get consumed with our gunk. It seems to be prevalent. It's annoying. Sometimes there is a lot of it. But when we're consumed with our gunk we can't be conscious of what God is doing. Every time I've gone through a difficult time in my life I have found that God is also working overtime.
When we focus on our gunk we see more of it. It's a universal principle in every area of our lives:
- Think about the things you don't like about your spouse and you'll start seeing more of them... and you'll get more upset because "you deserve better."
- Make a list of what you don't like about your job and there will always be one more thing to add.
- Focus on the "problem areas" of your body and soon those will be all you see.
- Constantly grip about your aches and pains and they will miraculously get worse.
- A new car will be close behind when you start cataloging all the problems with the one you have now (like, it doesn't have cooled seats).
Focus on your gunk and there will be more of it to occupy yourself with. But you'll miss all that God is doing. But here's the beauty of this principle, it works the other way too! When you're conscious of what God is doing and around you you'll start to see MORE of it!
- Make a list of what you like about your church and there will be more to like!
- Consider all the best qualities of your spouse and your attitude toward them will begin to shift.
- Look at what your crummy job provides for you and your family and you'll start to feel better about going to work everyday.
You can either be conscious of God or consumed with your gunk - you can't be both. It takes effort but it's worth it!
We'd love to hear how you stay conscious of God in the midst of your gunk - please share!
Saturday, July 15, 2017
From Autism to Awesome - Don't Let What You Can't See Keep You From What Can Be
This week part of my family and I have been in Milwaukee, WI at the Autism Society of America national conference. We came to host a booth selling my son, Trent's, art. Last year (July 2016) a video of Trent drawings animals on our trampoline went viral and has now been seen by over 51 million people worldwide.
So in the last year we've created a website selling all kinds of items with his art on them. He has 2 coloring books, T-shirts and ball caps, Tumblers and occasion cards as well as framed art prints. But I'm not telling you this to talk about Trent, but about God.
When Trent was diagnosed with Classic Autism at the age of 2 we were devastated. What took place over the next 10+ years was the biggest struggle of our lives. As Trent got older he also got violently aggressive. It got to the point that Trent could not be home unless I was there because he could over-power everyone in the house except me.
During those years of my wife and I taking turns staying up most of the night in the living room to keep eye on Trent - who didn't sleep, or fighting with him, or having to explain to our other children why he destroyed their favorite things, or never knowing what was going to set him off, we couldn't see beyond just survival.
During a spiritually difficult time in Israel when Ahab was king the prophet Elijah showed up and announced God was going to stop the rain. 3.5 years later Elijah said to Ahab, "there is the sound of heavy rain." The only problem was that it still hadn't rained. Elijah went and prayed, SEVEN times actually before the rain came.
Those years when Trent was at his worst were very difficult. Difficult on our marriage. Difficult on our kids. Difficult on our finances. And I'm sure, difficult on Trent (did I mention he has very limited verbal abilities and can't tell us if he hurts, or has a headache or a splinter?). It was difficult to see that things could ever be different than they were right then. But God had other plans.
When this post goes public we'll be on our 4th and final day at the conference and as I write this (Monday morning) I'm not fearful or worried about the trip or about how Trent is going to do. God has been so faithful to us and Trent has almost no physical outbursts, he is compliant and easy-going most of the time (unless you mess with his radio on the way to school in the morning). He laughs and makes jokes, kind of, and is a usually a joy to be around.
He's been on a mini-midwest tour already with a company, GroVia that turned his art into a cloth diaper and we've sold his art and items all over the world. We didn't think any of this was even a possibility but we're so grateful to God and His sovereignty and providence.
Here's why I'm telling you about our story - I don't want you to let what you CAN'T see, keep you from what CAN be. I know you may be struggling right now, but you won't always. I know it's difficult now, but it won't always be. You may not have the same outcome as we have, though we wish everyone could, but you have a promise that, this too shall pass. I have a friend who likes to say, we're gonna be dead a lot longer than we're alive. I think our real life will begin when this life ends - but however you want to think of it, there will come an end to your struggles, to your pain, to your sorrow. One day we'll see him face to face - that's a fantastic promise, no matter how bad it is now, God's got this.
Just because you can't see it, doesn't mean God can't make it happen. Don't let what you can't see, keep you from what can be.
What are you having a hard time seeing?
If you want to see Trent in action you can check out www.drawingsbytrent.com
So in the last year we've created a website selling all kinds of items with his art on them. He has 2 coloring books, T-shirts and ball caps, Tumblers and occasion cards as well as framed art prints. But I'm not telling you this to talk about Trent, but about God.
When Trent was diagnosed with Classic Autism at the age of 2 we were devastated. What took place over the next 10+ years was the biggest struggle of our lives. As Trent got older he also got violently aggressive. It got to the point that Trent could not be home unless I was there because he could over-power everyone in the house except me.
During those years of my wife and I taking turns staying up most of the night in the living room to keep eye on Trent - who didn't sleep, or fighting with him, or having to explain to our other children why he destroyed their favorite things, or never knowing what was going to set him off, we couldn't see beyond just survival.
During a spiritually difficult time in Israel when Ahab was king the prophet Elijah showed up and announced God was going to stop the rain. 3.5 years later Elijah said to Ahab, "there is the sound of heavy rain." The only problem was that it still hadn't rained. Elijah went and prayed, SEVEN times actually before the rain came.
Those years when Trent was at his worst were very difficult. Difficult on our marriage. Difficult on our kids. Difficult on our finances. And I'm sure, difficult on Trent (did I mention he has very limited verbal abilities and can't tell us if he hurts, or has a headache or a splinter?). It was difficult to see that things could ever be different than they were right then. But God had other plans.
When this post goes public we'll be on our 4th and final day at the conference and as I write this (Monday morning) I'm not fearful or worried about the trip or about how Trent is going to do. God has been so faithful to us and Trent has almost no physical outbursts, he is compliant and easy-going most of the time (unless you mess with his radio on the way to school in the morning). He laughs and makes jokes, kind of, and is a usually a joy to be around.
He's been on a mini-midwest tour already with a company, GroVia that turned his art into a cloth diaper and we've sold his art and items all over the world. We didn't think any of this was even a possibility but we're so grateful to God and His sovereignty and providence.
Here's why I'm telling you about our story - I don't want you to let what you CAN'T see, keep you from what CAN be. I know you may be struggling right now, but you won't always. I know it's difficult now, but it won't always be. You may not have the same outcome as we have, though we wish everyone could, but you have a promise that, this too shall pass. I have a friend who likes to say, we're gonna be dead a lot longer than we're alive. I think our real life will begin when this life ends - but however you want to think of it, there will come an end to your struggles, to your pain, to your sorrow. One day we'll see him face to face - that's a fantastic promise, no matter how bad it is now, God's got this.
Just because you can't see it, doesn't mean God can't make it happen. Don't let what you can't see, keep you from what can be.
What are you having a hard time seeing?
If you want to see Trent in action you can check out www.drawingsbytrent.com
Thursday, July 13, 2017
God Doesn't Play Probabilities
I have a friend who enjoys gambling. He's pretty good at it. He goes with a limit to spend and knows when to say enough. He's won many times and is generous with his family and others when he does.
I am not good when it comes to gambling. I'm terrible at calculating the odds in my head, on the fly, at least when I'm sitting at a blackjack or 3 card poker table. But you get me in my normal everyday life and I can figure the odds with the best of them and I'll bet you can too.
-The odds are pretty small that she'll get pregnant it it's just one time...
-I can speed here because there is almost never an officer around so I can get away with it...
-No one will notice just one missing...
-Everybody does it, I won't be the one getting caught...
We play the odds in our heads at least a couple times a day I'd guess. For me, it's more like, what is the likelihood that my wife will smack me if I say this, or if I pat her on the rear one more time?
We may play the odds in our lives, marriages, speed or as a husband, but God does not play the odds. He's not interested in probabilities. God has never been the underdog and the odds have never caused Him any concern.
Whether it's Elijah facing off with 850 prophets of false gods, Peter stuck in prison, the Israelites pinned between the sea and the advancing Egyptian army or Jesus in the tomb, the odds have never mattered to God. In fact, when the odds are stacked against Him the glory for the victory goes to Him! No matter what you're up against God is bigger. You may not be able to see how but God can! Take heart in that and walk in His strength knowing the odds are NEVER against God!
One more thing...
Would you like to know who IS interested in the odds? Satan. He is ALWAYS playing the odds. That's why he's constantly tempting you, always watching to see when you might be at your weakest. He's playing the odds. The probability that you'll give in to his temptations goes up when you're tired, when you haven't spent time with God in bible study or prayer, when you've been skipping out on church, so that's when he's gonna give it a try.
Has there been a time in your life when you thought the odds were against you but God showed up and got the victory? I'd love to hear about it!
I am not good when it comes to gambling. I'm terrible at calculating the odds in my head, on the fly, at least when I'm sitting at a blackjack or 3 card poker table. But you get me in my normal everyday life and I can figure the odds with the best of them and I'll bet you can too.
-The odds are pretty small that she'll get pregnant it it's just one time...
-I can speed here because there is almost never an officer around so I can get away with it...
-No one will notice just one missing...
-Everybody does it, I won't be the one getting caught...
We play the odds in our heads at least a couple times a day I'd guess. For me, it's more like, what is the likelihood that my wife will smack me if I say this, or if I pat her on the rear one more time?
We may play the odds in our lives, marriages, speed or as a husband, but God does not play the odds. He's not interested in probabilities. God has never been the underdog and the odds have never caused Him any concern.
Whether it's Elijah facing off with 850 prophets of false gods, Peter stuck in prison, the Israelites pinned between the sea and the advancing Egyptian army or Jesus in the tomb, the odds have never mattered to God. In fact, when the odds are stacked against Him the glory for the victory goes to Him! No matter what you're up against God is bigger. You may not be able to see how but God can! Take heart in that and walk in His strength knowing the odds are NEVER against God!
One more thing...
Would you like to know who IS interested in the odds? Satan. He is ALWAYS playing the odds. That's why he's constantly tempting you, always watching to see when you might be at your weakest. He's playing the odds. The probability that you'll give in to his temptations goes up when you're tired, when you haven't spent time with God in bible study or prayer, when you've been skipping out on church, so that's when he's gonna give it a try.
Has there been a time in your life when you thought the odds were against you but God showed up and got the victory? I'd love to hear about it!
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Mom Told Me No. I Did It Anyway.
Have you ever done something you knew you shouldn't have just because you wanted to?
For my senior prom I wanted to stay out all night with some friends. We had a great plan that involved the after prom party, a walk on the beach, a hot tub and finally breakfast at a local restaurant. But my Mom said, "No." So I went anyway.
I still remember walking into the front door of the house to find my mom awake, eyes red and bulging, sitting in the rocker. She was not happy. But you know what, I had a good excuse. I was nearly 18 had never gotten into trouble or done anything wrong... well, anything serious. My cause - staying out all night with my friends - was more important to me than my Mom's command.
Have you ever done something you knew God had commanded you not to do because it conflicted with your cause?
-God instructs His followers to avoid debt (check out these verses from whitepaperbible.com) but often my cause, a bigger TV, a nicer car, new clothes, etc., is more important than His command.
-God's desire is that marriage be a once-for-life event (see Matthew 19:3-9) but many find good cause to ignore God's instruction and seek divorce - abuse, infidelity, got married young, I'm bored, I don't love them anymore. (Notice I threw some legitimate causes - in my opinion - in with some not so legitimate ones because we can make them all sound legitimate.)
-God warns of the dangers of sin, murder, sexual immorality - including homosexuality, the slave trade, lying and perjury, (see 1 Timothy 1:9-11) but we almost always have a good cause for stepping over the line.
I always have a good excuse for ignoring God's command and doing my own thing... well, at least I convince myself of it at the time. But whatever my cause, whatever reason I have for ignoring Him it's not good enough. God's commands were made not to limit my life or keep me on a short leash, they are there to protect me, to help me look more like Jesus, to limit the negative effects of sin in my life. And when I ignore them, whatever my cause, I only end up hurting myself and those I care about.
Whatever your cause. Whatever reason you've got that you think trumps God's command. You're not the first one to be in your position. You're not the first one to come up with that specific argument. Yours is not a special case or circumstance. God's command is always more important than my cause, or yours.
When my Mom said I couldn't stay out all night after my senior prom isn't wasn't just because she said so - even though that was the reason she gave me - it was because she knew that the likelihood of me getting into trouble physically, sexually, accidentally, was high and she wanted to spare me.
Honestly, that night could have ended much different than it did. But as I told my exhausted mother when I came through the door, "I didn't do drugs, I didn't have sex, I didn't break any laws. I'm tired and going to bed. I'll be at church at 9:30."
I'm glad that God gave me the strength to get through that night. I'm glad I had parents who wanted to protect my future, even if they weren't real good at articulating that, at least, that's how I remember it. And I'm glad that God has given me parameters for my life to protect me from harm, from evil and from myself.
Whatever your cause right now, consider God's commands more important. I think in the long-run you'll be glad you did.
God a story or an insight? Share!
For my senior prom I wanted to stay out all night with some friends. We had a great plan that involved the after prom party, a walk on the beach, a hot tub and finally breakfast at a local restaurant. But my Mom said, "No." So I went anyway.
I still remember walking into the front door of the house to find my mom awake, eyes red and bulging, sitting in the rocker. She was not happy. But you know what, I had a good excuse. I was nearly 18 had never gotten into trouble or done anything wrong... well, anything serious. My cause - staying out all night with my friends - was more important to me than my Mom's command.
Have you ever done something you knew God had commanded you not to do because it conflicted with your cause?
-God instructs His followers to avoid debt (check out these verses from whitepaperbible.com) but often my cause, a bigger TV, a nicer car, new clothes, etc., is more important than His command.
-God's desire is that marriage be a once-for-life event (see Matthew 19:3-9) but many find good cause to ignore God's instruction and seek divorce - abuse, infidelity, got married young, I'm bored, I don't love them anymore. (Notice I threw some legitimate causes - in my opinion - in with some not so legitimate ones because we can make them all sound legitimate.)
-God warns of the dangers of sin, murder, sexual immorality - including homosexuality, the slave trade, lying and perjury, (see 1 Timothy 1:9-11) but we almost always have a good cause for stepping over the line.
I always have a good excuse for ignoring God's command and doing my own thing... well, at least I convince myself of it at the time. But whatever my cause, whatever reason I have for ignoring Him it's not good enough. God's commands were made not to limit my life or keep me on a short leash, they are there to protect me, to help me look more like Jesus, to limit the negative effects of sin in my life. And when I ignore them, whatever my cause, I only end up hurting myself and those I care about.
Whatever your cause. Whatever reason you've got that you think trumps God's command. You're not the first one to be in your position. You're not the first one to come up with that specific argument. Yours is not a special case or circumstance. God's command is always more important than my cause, or yours.
When my Mom said I couldn't stay out all night after my senior prom isn't wasn't just because she said so - even though that was the reason she gave me - it was because she knew that the likelihood of me getting into trouble physically, sexually, accidentally, was high and she wanted to spare me.
Honestly, that night could have ended much different than it did. But as I told my exhausted mother when I came through the door, "I didn't do drugs, I didn't have sex, I didn't break any laws. I'm tired and going to bed. I'll be at church at 9:30."
I'm glad that God gave me the strength to get through that night. I'm glad I had parents who wanted to protect my future, even if they weren't real good at articulating that, at least, that's how I remember it. And I'm glad that God has given me parameters for my life to protect me from harm, from evil and from myself.
Whatever your cause right now, consider God's commands more important. I think in the long-run you'll be glad you did.
God a story or an insight? Share!
Saturday, July 8, 2017
God's God a Purpose, You've Just Got a Plan
Let me tell you a little secret about God... He is way more interested in His plans being accomplished than your plans.
I believe that if it's important to us it's important to God. If you love your dog or cat and they pass that's important to God because you are important to God. But if God has to choose between your plans being accomplished and His plans being accomplished you're gonna lose every time.
God himself said, "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isa 55:9). That means that what we think we know, we don't really know. Our plans are based on what we think about the future and quite often they are at lease a little selfish. God's plans are based on His perfect purpose knowing exactly how everything is going to go.
Isn't funny, knowing that God knows it all, how we get upset when God interrupts our plans? He knows everything about everything! He knows exactly what each person will say, what they will do and what they are thinking right now... and now... and now... But if God interrupts our calendar, our schedule or our financial plan we get irritated.
There is a story in 1 Kings 17 about the prophet Elijah and a widow. Elijah shows up at the edge of town and finds this widow out collecting sticks and twigs. He asks her for a drink of water and while she is going to get it he also asks her to bring him back a piece of bread. Her reply is stunning and saddening. She reveals her very devastating reality - she has only enough oil and flour for one more small cake of bread. After she and her son eat it there is nothing left for them but death. That was her life plan, gather sticks to make bread. Eat the bread. Die. Of course that doesn't happen.
What does happen is nothing short of miraculous. Because she obeys Elijah (who is speaking for God) and makes the cake of bread for him instead of her son and herself the oil in her jar doesn't run out and there is a continuous supply of flour from her canister until the drought in the land comes to an end.
But she would have never experienced this miracle of supply if she refused to change her plans in favor of God's plan. She chose life over death when she chose to obey and change her plans.
The same principle is at work in our lives too. You have to change your plans to see God's purpose. When we rigidly hold to our plans, financial plans, schedule, calendar and aren't willing to change we're saying to God, "I got this." "My plan is better than your plan." That is called Pride and I remember hearing something about it leading to a fall.
You may not think you have enough to accomplish God's purpose - the widow didn't think she had enough flour and oil - but it's not what you have, it's what God can do with what you have. I'm thinking of fish and bread right now for some reason, must be lunch time. But because the widow was willing to change her plans she was able to see God's purpose - His purpose was to save her, her son and Elijah from the drought. Had she held to her plan instead of God's purpose she and her son would have died and God would have used someone else to provide for Elijah.
Have you ever thought you didn't have enough so you ditched God's purpose in favor of your plan? Maybe you didn't think you had the financial resources to give what God asked but what if His purpose was to supply your need through your obedience?
Have you ever decided to change your plans and then got to see God's purpose unfold? I'd love to hear about it! Please share in the comments!
I believe that if it's important to us it's important to God. If you love your dog or cat and they pass that's important to God because you are important to God. But if God has to choose between your plans being accomplished and His plans being accomplished you're gonna lose every time.
God himself said, "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isa 55:9). That means that what we think we know, we don't really know. Our plans are based on what we think about the future and quite often they are at lease a little selfish. God's plans are based on His perfect purpose knowing exactly how everything is going to go.
Isn't funny, knowing that God knows it all, how we get upset when God interrupts our plans? He knows everything about everything! He knows exactly what each person will say, what they will do and what they are thinking right now... and now... and now... But if God interrupts our calendar, our schedule or our financial plan we get irritated.
There is a story in 1 Kings 17 about the prophet Elijah and a widow. Elijah shows up at the edge of town and finds this widow out collecting sticks and twigs. He asks her for a drink of water and while she is going to get it he also asks her to bring him back a piece of bread. Her reply is stunning and saddening. She reveals her very devastating reality - she has only enough oil and flour for one more small cake of bread. After she and her son eat it there is nothing left for them but death. That was her life plan, gather sticks to make bread. Eat the bread. Die. Of course that doesn't happen.
What does happen is nothing short of miraculous. Because she obeys Elijah (who is speaking for God) and makes the cake of bread for him instead of her son and herself the oil in her jar doesn't run out and there is a continuous supply of flour from her canister until the drought in the land comes to an end.
But she would have never experienced this miracle of supply if she refused to change her plans in favor of God's plan. She chose life over death when she chose to obey and change her plans.
The same principle is at work in our lives too. You have to change your plans to see God's purpose. When we rigidly hold to our plans, financial plans, schedule, calendar and aren't willing to change we're saying to God, "I got this." "My plan is better than your plan." That is called Pride and I remember hearing something about it leading to a fall.
You may not think you have enough to accomplish God's purpose - the widow didn't think she had enough flour and oil - but it's not what you have, it's what God can do with what you have. I'm thinking of fish and bread right now for some reason, must be lunch time. But because the widow was willing to change her plans she was able to see God's purpose - His purpose was to save her, her son and Elijah from the drought. Had she held to her plan instead of God's purpose she and her son would have died and God would have used someone else to provide for Elijah.
Have you ever thought you didn't have enough so you ditched God's purpose in favor of your plan? Maybe you didn't think you had the financial resources to give what God asked but what if His purpose was to supply your need through your obedience?
Have you ever decided to change your plans and then got to see God's purpose unfold? I'd love to hear about it! Please share in the comments!
Thursday, July 6, 2017
Narcissists Beware (the rest of us be aware)
If you want to be significant in the Kingdom of God you've got to be humble. I heard years ago that humility is recognizing the truth about yourself and God. The truth is, we can do nothing on our own. The very breath we take is allowed by God. That heart-beat in your chest you're not even aware of (until right now) has a limited number of beats left, God knows how many. The strength in your arms, your mental capacity, all come from God. Without his care and concern you would cease to be. Humbling, isn't it.
But here's the amazing thing about humility, our personal humility is proportionally honoring to God. The greater your level of humility, the greater God's level of honor.
Noah built a boat. It was a humiliating project for him. He lived in time when no one had ever seen it rain. He was constantly ridiculed for what he was doing. No one believed him. And while all that was going on he was building a massive boat that there is no way he could have accomplished without God's help. The door to the boat was so massive he couldn't shut it himself! If God didn't show up, all that work and all those animals, let alone Noah and his family, would have been lost like everyone else. That's a humbling place to be as the water was rising and the door still opened (I believe God waited until the last minute for any who might repent and join Noah).
Elijah stood on Mount Carmel and had the alter of God doused with water over and over again. He had just witnessed over 800 prophets of Baal beg their god to light the fire of their alter but all they got was silence. Now it was Elijah's turn. If God didn't show up Elijah would have surely been killed and Baal would have been the god of choice for the Israelites for many years to come. That's a humbling place to be, alone in a hostile environment with your life on the line.
For both Noah and Elijah God showed up BIG and changed the timeline for generations to come. God was honored because Noah and Elijah were humbled.
The same happens in my life and yours. When I start to think I can do it myself God starts to pull away. When I recognize the truth, that any good thing that has come to me or through me has been by the hand of God alone and not my ability, smarts, strength or financial ingenuity then He is honored through my life.
John the Baptizer said it this way, "He must become greater; I must become less" (John 3:30) and Jesus said to the Apostle Peter, "My power is made perfect in weakness" (2 For 12:9).
If you want to accomplish something significant for the Kingdom of God you've got to recognize this truth about yourself and God - YOU won't be accomplishing anything at all - God will see it happen and if He chooses, will use you. This is a tough lesson for those who struggle with narcissism.
It's easy to start thinking that I'm important to God's plan but really it's God's grace that allows me to play any part at all!
Do you have any strategies for reminding yourself about the truth of who you are and who He is? How do you stay humble when God is using you? Share so we can all benefit!
But here's the amazing thing about humility, our personal humility is proportionally honoring to God. The greater your level of humility, the greater God's level of honor.
Noah built a boat. It was a humiliating project for him. He lived in time when no one had ever seen it rain. He was constantly ridiculed for what he was doing. No one believed him. And while all that was going on he was building a massive boat that there is no way he could have accomplished without God's help. The door to the boat was so massive he couldn't shut it himself! If God didn't show up, all that work and all those animals, let alone Noah and his family, would have been lost like everyone else. That's a humbling place to be as the water was rising and the door still opened (I believe God waited until the last minute for any who might repent and join Noah).
Elijah stood on Mount Carmel and had the alter of God doused with water over and over again. He had just witnessed over 800 prophets of Baal beg their god to light the fire of their alter but all they got was silence. Now it was Elijah's turn. If God didn't show up Elijah would have surely been killed and Baal would have been the god of choice for the Israelites for many years to come. That's a humbling place to be, alone in a hostile environment with your life on the line.
For both Noah and Elijah God showed up BIG and changed the timeline for generations to come. God was honored because Noah and Elijah were humbled.
The same happens in my life and yours. When I start to think I can do it myself God starts to pull away. When I recognize the truth, that any good thing that has come to me or through me has been by the hand of God alone and not my ability, smarts, strength or financial ingenuity then He is honored through my life.
John the Baptizer said it this way, "He must become greater; I must become less" (John 3:30) and Jesus said to the Apostle Peter, "My power is made perfect in weakness" (2 For 12:9).
If you want to accomplish something significant for the Kingdom of God you've got to recognize this truth about yourself and God - YOU won't be accomplishing anything at all - God will see it happen and if He chooses, will use you. This is a tough lesson for those who struggle with narcissism.
It's easy to start thinking that I'm important to God's plan but really it's God's grace that allows me to play any part at all!
Do you have any strategies for reminding yourself about the truth of who you are and who He is? How do you stay humble when God is using you? Share so we can all benefit!
Tuesday, July 4, 2017
Significance follows Obedience
No one ever accomplished anything significant for the Kingdom of God without obedience to the call of God on their life.
Let me be clear: You can't earn your way to Jesus. Their is nothing you can do to make God love you more... or love you less. He loves you. He doesn't love you more than someone else, or less. He doesn't stop loving you if you mess up. He doesn't love you more if you get something right. He just loves you.
That being said, no one ever accomplished anything significant for God without obedience. Obeying God is at the core of our faith. How can you love Him if you won't obey Him? The very first step of obedience for a believer is baptism but it shouldn't be the last. Obedience is how we build trust in God, it's how we develop the spiritual muscle to trust Him in even greater ways, it's how we show Him love.
If you want to be significant in the Kingdom of God you've got to be obedient.
And obedience always starts out small. It has to be learned. Obedience has it's foundation in trust. When I told my youngest son to jump off the top of a very large tractor at the State fair years ago he obeyed because he trusted that I would catch him. That trust had to be developed over time and it started out with little things.
Here's a short personal quiz you can take to gauge your trust and obedience levels
Are you giving time to God each day? Yes - No
To know God is to love Him and if you love Him you'll obey Him - It's hard to obey if you haven't built that relationship of trust.
Are you using your abilities and aptitudes for God's glory? Yes - No
God gave you your gifts and abilities for His benefit and glory not just your own. Obedience in this area means you use what He's given to benefit Him and not just your self.
Are you giving financially to God what He has asked you to give? Yes - No
I believe God asks us all to give 10% consistently, off the top. But I know He also asks us to give more at times, above that, and sometimes, only the tithe, but always at least the tithe.
How did you do?
So many followers of Jesus dream of doing some significant thing for the Kingdom of God but if you aren't obeying in the less-significant areas of your life, how can God trust you to be faithful and obedient in the bigger things He may have for you?
Obedience doesn't earn you a place with God, but it does set you up to be used by Him in more significant ways. Is there a place in your life where you aren't being obedient to God's call? What steps are you taking/can you take to learn to obey and be ready for God when He's ready for you?
I'd love to hear about how God is using you - please comment!
Let me be clear: You can't earn your way to Jesus. Their is nothing you can do to make God love you more... or love you less. He loves you. He doesn't love you more than someone else, or less. He doesn't stop loving you if you mess up. He doesn't love you more if you get something right. He just loves you.
That being said, no one ever accomplished anything significant for God without obedience. Obeying God is at the core of our faith. How can you love Him if you won't obey Him? The very first step of obedience for a believer is baptism but it shouldn't be the last. Obedience is how we build trust in God, it's how we develop the spiritual muscle to trust Him in even greater ways, it's how we show Him love.
- Noah built a boat because He was obedient to the call of God on his life.
- Abraham left his home and the way of life that he knew and was obedient to God's call to go.
- Jonah was ultimately obedient, after some swift discipline and a whole city was saved.
- Moses went back to Egypt - where he surely thought he would be killed - out of obedience.
- Peter preached forgiveness and hope to a family that could have resulted in his death just for stepping foot in their house! But he was obedient.
- Jesus was obedient to death, even death on a cross.
If you want to be significant in the Kingdom of God you've got to be obedient.
And obedience always starts out small. It has to be learned. Obedience has it's foundation in trust. When I told my youngest son to jump off the top of a very large tractor at the State fair years ago he obeyed because he trusted that I would catch him. That trust had to be developed over time and it started out with little things.
Here's a short personal quiz you can take to gauge your trust and obedience levels
Are you giving time to God each day? Yes - No
To know God is to love Him and if you love Him you'll obey Him - It's hard to obey if you haven't built that relationship of trust.
Are you using your abilities and aptitudes for God's glory? Yes - No
God gave you your gifts and abilities for His benefit and glory not just your own. Obedience in this area means you use what He's given to benefit Him and not just your self.
Are you giving financially to God what He has asked you to give? Yes - No
I believe God asks us all to give 10% consistently, off the top. But I know He also asks us to give more at times, above that, and sometimes, only the tithe, but always at least the tithe.
How did you do?
So many followers of Jesus dream of doing some significant thing for the Kingdom of God but if you aren't obeying in the less-significant areas of your life, how can God trust you to be faithful and obedient in the bigger things He may have for you?
Obedience doesn't earn you a place with God, but it does set you up to be used by Him in more significant ways. Is there a place in your life where you aren't being obedient to God's call? What steps are you taking/can you take to learn to obey and be ready for God when He's ready for you?
I'd love to hear about how God is using you - please comment!
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Is The Mission Compelling?
What made the followers of Jesus, those 12 guys that spent the most time with Him, get up every morning knowing that their lives could be in danger? They knew few people would listen to them. They knew most would think they were crazy, a dead man brought himself back to life is a pretty far-fetched story after all. They knew they would suffer ridicule, imprisonment, poverty and even their eventual death. So what causes people to give their lives?
The mission is COMPELLING.
And it isn't just the wording of the mission that's inspiring, it's The Word the mission is established on.
In Jesus' last conversation with His followers (Matthew 28:16-20) He gave them this mission for His church:
So why do so many people stop working to accomplish their mission? Because it's not big enough. If your mission is about you or ultimately for you it won't sustain you. For instance, getting rich is not an exciting or compelling enough mission to give your life to. Booker T. Washington said, “Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.”
Jesus' mission was so compelling He gave His life to see it accomplished. As did all of His disciples and still others even today. And as followers of Jesus we are commanded to "live as Jesus did" (1 John 2:6). Jesus' personal mission was that the lost would be found, the blind see, the dead be raised and the captives set free. That's a compelling mission!
Then Jesus gave the church the mission of making disciples, baptizing and teaching. For every church that mission is going to be expressed a little differently but it should be compelling enough for us to get behind. At Real Life our mission is to help every person possible find real life in Jesus and look more like Him every day. That's why we do what we do.
If your mission isn't compelling you'll soon become complacent. What are you doing to keep your mission fresh in your life?
The mission is COMPELLING.
And it isn't just the wording of the mission that's inspiring, it's The Word the mission is established on.
In Jesus' last conversation with His followers (Matthew 28:16-20) He gave them this mission for His church:
- Make disciples of all nations.
- Baptize them in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
- Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.
So why do so many people stop working to accomplish their mission? Because it's not big enough. If your mission is about you or ultimately for you it won't sustain you. For instance, getting rich is not an exciting or compelling enough mission to give your life to. Booker T. Washington said, “Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.”
Jesus' mission was so compelling He gave His life to see it accomplished. As did all of His disciples and still others even today. And as followers of Jesus we are commanded to "live as Jesus did" (1 John 2:6). Jesus' personal mission was that the lost would be found, the blind see, the dead be raised and the captives set free. That's a compelling mission!
Then Jesus gave the church the mission of making disciples, baptizing and teaching. For every church that mission is going to be expressed a little differently but it should be compelling enough for us to get behind. At Real Life our mission is to help every person possible find real life in Jesus and look more like Him every day. That's why we do what we do.
If your mission isn't compelling you'll soon become complacent. What are you doing to keep your mission fresh in your life?
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
How I'm Conquering the Morning and You Can Too
Every person faces the same challenge every single morning. Do I get out from under these covers or do I stay here for just a few more minutes?
I have never been a morning person by choice. I've had to get up early at different times for work or to go hunting but getting up before 6am when you don't have to... ridiculous. Until recently. A few months ago I felt like I was getting into a rut and needed a change. So, I set the alarm for 5:30am. Now, I'd love to tell you that the change was immediate and made all the difference in my life but it wasn't and didn't. At least not right away. But this is not about the benefits of getting up early it's about the struggle.
Whether you are wanting to get up early, start an exercise routine, be a more consistent parent or better partner to your spouse or a more productive individual it all comes down to this one critical piece.
What's NEXT must be more important than what's NOW?
This is true for everyone who wants to accomplish something more with their life. Whether it's getting up early in order to exercise and spend time with God. Or just to be more productive with the time you have. What's next may be more difficult. It may require more of you. Or it may just be something you've never done before, like me getting up early. But in order for you to get over the initial push-back and develop the habits necessary to accomplish what's next you have to be fed up with the "now."
Consider Jesus. What was next for Him was pretty miserable: torture and death. What He had was pretty good: committed friends, some celebrity, power to do whatever He wanted. Jesus' "now" seemed pretty good. But He gave it up because what was next for Him was so much more important to His mission and purpose (I'll talk more about that in Thursday's post).
If you've got a decision to make about your future it won't happen until what's next becomes more important to you than what is now. Or say it another way, until your future potential is of greater value than your current position you won't change. That new job must hold greater potential for advancement, pay, benefits or schedule or you'll stay in your current position.
For followers of Jesus this carries some extra weight. Most of us want to settle into what is now, especially spiritually, but God is constantly calling us to what's next. What's next for you might mean getting involved on a service team at church. Maybe it's stepping into a church leadership or group leader role. God might be calling you into short-term or full-time mission work. Or a greater depth of study and understanding. Whatever is next for you understand that in Jesus there is ALWAYS a next and it's always more important than what's now.
What do you think God has next for you? How can you begin setting yourself up for success right now so you can be ready to jump into what's next without hesitation? I'd love to hear how you are accomplishing what's next for you. Comment below!
I have never been a morning person by choice. I've had to get up early at different times for work or to go hunting but getting up before 6am when you don't have to... ridiculous. Until recently. A few months ago I felt like I was getting into a rut and needed a change. So, I set the alarm for 5:30am. Now, I'd love to tell you that the change was immediate and made all the difference in my life but it wasn't and didn't. At least not right away. But this is not about the benefits of getting up early it's about the struggle.
Whether you are wanting to get up early, start an exercise routine, be a more consistent parent or better partner to your spouse or a more productive individual it all comes down to this one critical piece.
What's NEXT must be more important than what's NOW?
This is true for everyone who wants to accomplish something more with their life. Whether it's getting up early in order to exercise and spend time with God. Or just to be more productive with the time you have. What's next may be more difficult. It may require more of you. Or it may just be something you've never done before, like me getting up early. But in order for you to get over the initial push-back and develop the habits necessary to accomplish what's next you have to be fed up with the "now."
Consider Jesus. What was next for Him was pretty miserable: torture and death. What He had was pretty good: committed friends, some celebrity, power to do whatever He wanted. Jesus' "now" seemed pretty good. But He gave it up because what was next for Him was so much more important to His mission and purpose (I'll talk more about that in Thursday's post).
If you've got a decision to make about your future it won't happen until what's next becomes more important to you than what is now. Or say it another way, until your future potential is of greater value than your current position you won't change. That new job must hold greater potential for advancement, pay, benefits or schedule or you'll stay in your current position.
What do you think God has next for you? How can you begin setting yourself up for success right now so you can be ready to jump into what's next without hesitation? I'd love to hear how you are accomplishing what's next for you. Comment below!
Saturday, June 24, 2017
God has a Plan for Every Single Person
When you were just a tiny speck of cells God knew you and had a plan for you.
That may seem hard to believe but when you look at the enormous number of things that could go wrong in pregnancy and birth you are a miracle. And being a miracle means that there is more to you than one might suspect.
David wrote, "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:16 NIV).
And out of every possible problem and regardless of who your parents are, YOU made it. Just like He knew you would. Your days were written in His book before one of them came to be. You may have gotten your DNA from your parents but your purpose comes from your (Heavenly) Father.
God knew you would be right where you are today. He's tried to get your attention through the years. Tried to guide you in the right direction. Tried to steer you away from the bad and toward the better. You've done what you wanted and He's patiently waited. But you were born for something more. Out of all the people and problems YOU came to be - that's significant. You're still here on the planet which means there's a purpose for it.
I can't tell you what that purpose is except to say that God knew you would be reading this right now. It was written in His book of your life before you ever came to be. He knew where you would work where you would live and who you would hang out with. The choices you made along the way may not have been the ones He wanted you to make but He knew you would make them. He didn't force you to do what He wanted, but He wants you to do what is best. If you choose not to follow His plan He's okay with that - you are your own person. Just know that you lose the right to blame Him if you refuse to listen to Him.
Have you discovered your purpose or God's plan for your life? Are you still trying to figure it out? Comment below to share your story.
That may seem hard to believe but when you look at the enormous number of things that could go wrong in pregnancy and birth you are a miracle. And being a miracle means that there is more to you than one might suspect.
David wrote, "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:16 NIV).
That's a difficult concept to grasp, that before you existed God knew the moment you would take your first breath. He knew every time you were gonna skin your knee or get stung by a bee. He knew when and where and with whom you'd have your first kiss and the moment your heart would break for the first time. Before you came to be He saw your first touchdown and the first time you were turned down - for a date or a job. He saw your marriage, your mistakes, knew your moods and even had a handle on your mortality.
And out of every possible problem and regardless of who your parents are, YOU made it. Just like He knew you would. Your days were written in His book before one of them came to be. You may have gotten your DNA from your parents but your purpose comes from your (Heavenly) Father.
God knew you would be right where you are today. He's tried to get your attention through the years. Tried to guide you in the right direction. Tried to steer you away from the bad and toward the better. You've done what you wanted and He's patiently waited. But you were born for something more. Out of all the people and problems YOU came to be - that's significant. You're still here on the planet which means there's a purpose for it.
I can't tell you what that purpose is except to say that God knew you would be reading this right now. It was written in His book of your life before you ever came to be. He knew where you would work where you would live and who you would hang out with. The choices you made along the way may not have been the ones He wanted you to make but He knew you would make them. He didn't force you to do what He wanted, but He wants you to do what is best. If you choose not to follow His plan He's okay with that - you are your own person. Just know that you lose the right to blame Him if you refuse to listen to Him.
Have you discovered your purpose or God's plan for your life? Are you still trying to figure it out? Comment below to share your story.
Thursday, June 22, 2017
No Matter How Your Life Started it Wasn't a Surprise
When you were a kid the details of your conception were kept secret. Parents don't talk about things like that with their young kids. But there comes a point when that secret isn't so secret anymore. Let me give you a scenario.
You're in High School. You've spent all afternoon getting ready for your first real date and just before he rings the doorbell, as you stand in the living room, your father and mother looking at you proudly, your dad blurts out, "It's hard to believe that we are sending you out on your first date in the very room you were conceived 17 years ago." At which point mom smacks him and fully embarrassed
ushers you out of the house.
Maybe it wasn't the living room couch. Perhaps you were conceived in the back seat of a car, or the kitchen or maybe it wasn't like that at all for you. The reality of our culture is that life is often conceived in lust, not love. The act of child making might have been exciting to your parents but the making of a child was not. Your life may not have started in the bedroom or living room but in an ally or at a frat party. You may not have been conceived in love or lust but in selfishness, anger and hate.
King David wrote in Psalm 139:15, "My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth."
No matter how your life started God didn't have to scramble to find a place for you in His creation. He knew exactly when and where and how your precious life was going to begin... no matter how your life was conceived He was not surprised. He saw you when you were made in secret.
And if you were conceived from any situation other than love - I'm sorry. You were supposed to be conceived in a loving relationship between a husband and a wife who were committed to each other for life. That was God's plan. God gave sex to humanity as a gift but too many have turned it into a game.
You however were not hidden from God. The fact that you made it means He protected your life; He has a plan for you no matter how you were conceived. I'll share more about that on Saturday, but for now, I want you to know that no matter how your life started it wasn't a surprise to God. He knew you would be born into this world and He had a place for you in His plan all along. You may not have been conceived in the way He desired, but He absolutely desired you. (To read about how God knit you together upon conception regardless of how that conception happened read my last post, You Were Put Together with Precision, here.)
What do you think would happen if God kept children from being born into the world outside of the way He planned marriage and family to work? Would that make things better or worse? Are we suffering the consequences of our actions (or the actions of a selfish, hateful, evil individual in the case of rape) or should God intervene? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
You're in High School. You've spent all afternoon getting ready for your first real date and just before he rings the doorbell, as you stand in the living room, your father and mother looking at you proudly, your dad blurts out, "It's hard to believe that we are sending you out on your first date in the very room you were conceived 17 years ago." At which point mom smacks him and fully embarrassed
ushers you out of the house.
Maybe it wasn't the living room couch. Perhaps you were conceived in the back seat of a car, or the kitchen or maybe it wasn't like that at all for you. The reality of our culture is that life is often conceived in lust, not love. The act of child making might have been exciting to your parents but the making of a child was not. Your life may not have started in the bedroom or living room but in an ally or at a frat party. You may not have been conceived in love or lust but in selfishness, anger and hate.King David wrote in Psalm 139:15, "My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth."
No matter how your life started God didn't have to scramble to find a place for you in His creation. He knew exactly when and where and how your precious life was going to begin... no matter how your life was conceived He was not surprised. He saw you when you were made in secret.
And if you were conceived from any situation other than love - I'm sorry. You were supposed to be conceived in a loving relationship between a husband and a wife who were committed to each other for life. That was God's plan. God gave sex to humanity as a gift but too many have turned it into a game.
You however were not hidden from God. The fact that you made it means He protected your life; He has a plan for you no matter how you were conceived. I'll share more about that on Saturday, but for now, I want you to know that no matter how your life started it wasn't a surprise to God. He knew you would be born into this world and He had a place for you in His plan all along. You may not have been conceived in the way He desired, but He absolutely desired you. (To read about how God knit you together upon conception regardless of how that conception happened read my last post, You Were Put Together with Precision, here.)
What do you think would happen if God kept children from being born into the world outside of the way He planned marriage and family to work? Would that make things better or worse? Are we suffering the consequences of our actions (or the actions of a selfish, hateful, evil individual in the case of rape) or should God intervene? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
You Were Put Together with Precision
When you look at the human body and the way our bones, muscles and tendons work together with our joints to give us movement. The way our veins pump blood to our extremities after somehow filling up on oxygen from our lungs. Contemplate just one of our senses. Or try to understand how the brain works. The fact that any of the millions of things going on in your body that have to be just right or they don't work proves your body is incredible.
But you might not feel the same way about that.
I have a son with special needs. I have never had a conversation with him. He can't tell his mother or me if he has a headache or needs a splinter removed. When he was younger he was incredibly violent and it would take all my strength (and there's plenty) to hold him down so he didn't hurt my wife or his siblings.
Sometimes it's difficult to agree with David when he said, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well" (Psalm 139:13-14 NIV).
If you were born with something missing or something extra, you know the pain that comes with being physically or mentally different. The idea that God "made" you (or someone you love) imperfectly on purpose is difficult to swallow.
But you might not feel the same way about that.
I have a son with special needs. I have never had a conversation with him. He can't tell his mother or me if he has a headache or needs a splinter removed. When he was younger he was incredibly violent and it would take all my strength (and there's plenty) to hold him down so he didn't hurt my wife or his siblings.
Sometimes it's difficult to agree with David when he said, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well" (Psalm 139:13-14 NIV).
If you were born with something missing or something extra, you know the pain that comes with being physically or mentally different. The idea that God "made" you (or someone you love) imperfectly on purpose is difficult to swallow.
But what if David wasn't talking about our physical bodies. What if he was talking about the miracle that happens when what is eternal is knit together with what it temporal? Paul calls our physical bodies tents and says that when our "tent" is destroyed we have an eternal house not built by human hands (2 Cor 5:1). Our bodies were not meant to last, but we were.
No matter what shape or size or challenge you may have God loves you - not your strength, but your soul. Whatever you think of yourself when you look in a mirror the fact that a tiny cell could even have had the chance to become YOU is amazing and defies the odds. That you are here on this planet at all is miraculous and it has nothing to do with your physical form.
God put your physical form and your soul together with precision. He has a plan for your life not based on your abilities but on your attitude. Your parents may have brought together the raw materials but God knit the eternal together with the temporal with precision.
Everyone struggles with something about their physical appearance or mental abilities, everyone. But your life is LOTS more than your looks. You were put together with precision.
I'd love to hear what you think about how we were knit together. Comment below.
No matter what shape or size or challenge you may have God loves you - not your strength, but your soul. Whatever you think of yourself when you look in a mirror the fact that a tiny cell could even have had the chance to become YOU is amazing and defies the odds. That you are here on this planet at all is miraculous and it has nothing to do with your physical form.
God put your physical form and your soul together with precision. He has a plan for your life not based on your abilities but on your attitude. Your parents may have brought together the raw materials but God knit the eternal together with the temporal with precision.
Everyone struggles with something about their physical appearance or mental abilities, everyone. But your life is LOTS more than your looks. You were put together with precision.
I'd love to hear what you think about how we were knit together. Comment below.
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Sinner? You're In Good Company At Church.
If I come to church the walls will fall in... the ceiling will collapse... the place will burst into flames... Yep, I've heard them all. But as we looked at in this post, every saint was once a sinner. Which means that every person who has ever stepped foot inside a church was once where you may be at right now. And most know the unsure feeling of walking into a place they've convinced themselves is full of people who have some spiritual power to see directly into their soul. Will they somehow know what I've done? Will they call me out? Will I be exposed?
If you thought your sin was too great for Jesus you need to know that only sinners are eligible to become saints. This is true of every person who sits in any church; they aren't there because they are perfect - they are there because they have a past and want the promise of a brighter future.
The Apostle Paul is a great example. His past was full of hate. His present was overtaken by murder. He was a Christian killer. 2000 years before ISIS Christians were being hunted and killed because of their faith - only because of their faith. Saul, was responsible for the arrest, imprisonment and eventual death of perhaps 100's of Christians. That is, until he became one.
Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus and that experience changed more than Saul's name, it changed his life. Eventually He would write well over half of what we call the New Testament today. He would perform more miracles than any other Apostle that we know of and would eventually die as a martyr because of his faith - the faith he once killed others for holding on to.
Paul didn't become a great man of God because he "got it right" but because he got right with Jesus. He didn't wait to show up in church until he was living right, he got right with Jesus and then started living right. And the first actionable step in getting right with Jesus is to be baptized - in fact, that is the very first thing Paul does. In Acts 9:18 Paul believes and was immediately baptized (dunked under the water signifying a connection with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus and your own death to sin and life lived for God's glory.
When a sinner comes to church they are in good company. Every Christian was and is a sinner. None of us are perfect and in fact, if the walls were gonna fall down, they would have done it already. Since Christians are to be better at living out God's plan for our lives, and we're not, He should be most upset with us. I'm thankful that my life isn't based on me getting things right but on me getting right with Jesus.
Today, how can you encourage a family member, friend, or ever your spouse that coming to church with you is the best place for them to be?
Please share any creative ways you have used to encourage someone to come to church with you!
Thursday, June 15, 2017
What Is Sin Hiding In You?
Years ago I had a young boy come to me to complain about how he had gotten in trouble at school. Someone threw a paper ball at another student while the teacher's back was turned and this boy got blamed for it. He went on and on about how unfair it was that the teacher immediately called him out for punishment. After a short conversation the boy admitted that, while he wasn't guilty this time, he had been guilty in the past for doing this very thing.
We are most often known for what we've done.
I have a friend who was addicted to alcohol. He's been sober a long time but still calls himself an alcoholic. Another friend often changes the rules - mid game - to increase her odds of winning. She is known, to those who have ever played a game with her, as a cheater. If you've lied you're probably known as a liar. If you've stolen things you're probably called a thief. If you've broken the law there are those who know you as a criminal.
The lesson is pretty simple, when sin is your NORM sin is how you're KNOWN. All too quickly your sin: addict, liar, cheater, thief, begins to hide who you really are from the world around you. Soon, all anyone sees is your sin.
Jesus was always confronted with individuals others had labeled. A prostitute washed his feet. A tax collector served him lunch. A "dog" asked him for a miracle. (Dog was the term Jews often used when referring to Samaritans.) That's the thing about sin, it tries to hide who you can become behind what you have done.
That's why I'm thankful that Jesus SEES what sin HIDES. Jesus didn't see a prostitute he saw a woman who would become one of His greatest supporters and who, along with her family, would be very influential in the beginning of the Church. Jesus didn't see a tax collector he saw a man who would become incredibly generous. Jesus didn't see a "dog" he saw someone who had great faith and might become a great evangelist among her people. Other's may see what you've done, but Jesus sees what you can become.
Today don't let sin be your norm, make choices that affirm what you can become in Jesus instead of what you've done in sin.
How can we stop looking at what others have done and start seeing them for who they can become? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Tuesday, June 13, 2017
You Were Born To Be A Saint.
I'm pretty sure this lottery slogan was meant for me, "you can't win if you don't play." Only lottery players win the lottery. And since I don't play... I can't win.
Growing up I played basketball but will never win an NBA championship ring because I don't play at that level. I'll never earn a Purple Heart because I don't serve in any branch of the military. I'll never win an Emmy or a Grammy because I'm not an actor or a singer/songwriter.
But there is something I can be and I was born with the ability to attain it. So were you.
You've probably heard of the term Saint before. In religious circles it is used when referring to someone who has attained a high level of holiness. You've probably heard of Saint Peter, Saint John, etc. Some churches have special votes to confer the title Saint on individuals who display extraordinary holiness in their lives. For example, on September 4, 2016 Mother Teresa was declared a Saint by the Catholic Church.
Honestly, I don't believe in declaring individuals Saints because the Bible says that if you're a follower of Jesus you're already a saint. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews said that by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy, Hebrews 10:14 (emphasis mine). But here's the best part, you already are a candidate for sainthood! In fact, you were born eligible! You may not win a Super Bowl or be the President of the United States but you ALREADY qualify to be a saint.
Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome makes it very clear that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23. And since all have sinned it's the one thing every saint has in common - they all started out as sinners. That's why you have already met the qualification to become a saint because only SINNERS become SAINTS. You may be feeling bad about your sin or your inability to stop sinning. You may feel like you will never be as good as some "Saint" you know. But they started out just where you are. And if they are honest, they still struggle to do the right thing consistently.
Today, focus on who you want to be (saint) and not on what you've done (sin). Every saint has struggles but in Jesus you have been made perfect and are being made holy. It's a process and God is way more interested in your progress than in perfection. So go do today the things a Saint would do, because you are one.
Growing up I played basketball but will never win an NBA championship ring because I don't play at that level. I'll never earn a Purple Heart because I don't serve in any branch of the military. I'll never win an Emmy or a Grammy because I'm not an actor or a singer/songwriter.
But there is something I can be and I was born with the ability to attain it. So were you.
Honestly, I don't believe in declaring individuals Saints because the Bible says that if you're a follower of Jesus you're already a saint. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews said that by Jesus' sacrifice on the cross He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy, Hebrews 10:14 (emphasis mine). But here's the best part, you already are a candidate for sainthood! In fact, you were born eligible! You may not win a Super Bowl or be the President of the United States but you ALREADY qualify to be a saint.
Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome makes it very clear that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23. And since all have sinned it's the one thing every saint has in common - they all started out as sinners. That's why you have already met the qualification to become a saint because only SINNERS become SAINTS. You may be feeling bad about your sin or your inability to stop sinning. You may feel like you will never be as good as some "Saint" you know. But they started out just where you are. And if they are honest, they still struggle to do the right thing consistently.
Today, focus on who you want to be (saint) and not on what you've done (sin). Every saint has struggles but in Jesus you have been made perfect and are being made holy. It's a process and God is way more interested in your progress than in perfection. So go do today the things a Saint would do, because you are one.
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
If You're Not Ashamed... Post This As Your Status
You've seen them. Kept scrolling. Felt guilty. Caved. Reposted. We've all seen them on our social media feeds and I'll be honest, sometimes it's hard to ignore them. I mean, I'm a pastor and I still get that little twinge every once in awhile, "what if God DOES disown me because I don't repost this?" So this morning in my Bible reading time I actually read this verse in it's context. And guess what? Reducing this verse to a post on your social media account is pretty far from what Jesus was actually talking about.
When Jesus told his newly commissioned disciples, "everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven" it comes in quite a different way than what you might expect. Let me explain. Jesus makes this statement towards the end of Matthew chapter 10 when he is talking to His disciples about what they will experience as they go out and preach the Gospel. He tells them they should be prepared to endure: being taken to court, whipped, beaten, dragged before governors and kings (but are not to prepare a speech before hand), families betraying each other to death because of the Gospel, being hated and persecuted.
Then Jesus says, "everyone who acknowledges will themselves be acknowledged and everyone who denys will also be denied. And right after that he continues, "I have come to bring a sword to the earth... to set a man against his family, father against son, mother against daughter, a person's enemies will be the members of his own household... whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me... whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me."
The disciples, very early in their ministry, were tasked with taking the Gospel to a people (the Israelites) who would not only reject the Gospel, but reject the men brining it. I wonder how many would repost these verses if they knew for a fact that re-posting would bring the loss of their jobs, the rejection of their families, the loss of income or the destruction of their marriage? These followers of Jesus were actually preaching on the street corners telling strangers about Jesus in a very hostile environment. If someone didn't like it they could literally drag them out of town and murder them with no repercussions. What happens to us if someone doesn't like our FB post? They block us. But, they were probably just FB friends anyway, you probably never see them and don't really care if they are your friend or not. But you won't lose your life... or even any sleep for that matter.
Now, I'm not saying it's wrong to repost these spiritually shaming FB status images or verses... I'm saying, the context of sharing our faith should cost us something and I'm afraid that for most of us, reposting only helps us clean our FB friends list a little.
Here's the test: If you aren't sure whether you should repost something like this in the future ask yourself this question, "when was the last time I stood in room of my unbelieving friends and boldly proclaimed the Gospel TO THEM expecting them to repent and turn to Jesus?" If you've never tried to convert a friend or co-worker, if you've never acknowledged Jesus in a place that would cost you something, then posting to your FB status isn't going to get you in good with the Big Guy. If you're only willing to acknowledge Jesus on a FB post or a t-shirt or a bumper sticker, but not in your speech or actions or at work or among your non-believing friends and family then I'm not sure a FB post counts as acknowledgment at all.
Just something to think about...
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