The Morning Star

I was reading in the beginning of Revelation this morning and something kind of jumped out at me.

In the second and third chapters of the book of Revelation an angel instructed John to write a letter to the seven churches. Most of the letters are critical of the way the churches were living and treating their Christian walk. However, after each rebuke Jesus offered a reward for overcoming this life. I have listed below the seven rewards mentioned to each of the churches and then combined all of them into a paragraph at the end.

Revelation 2-3

To Ephesus He wrote:
Rev. 2:7 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

To Smyrna He wrote:
Rev. 2:10-11 I will give you the crown of life… He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.

To Pergamum He wrote:
Rev. 2:17 To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

To Thyatira He wrote:
Rev. 2: 26-28 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— 'He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery'— just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give him the morning star.

To Sardis He wrote:
Rev. 2: 5 He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.

To Philadelphia He wrote:
Rev. 2:12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.

To Laodicea He wrote:
Rev. 2:21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

And He finishes each letter to the seven churches with; “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”.

The Greek word for Overcome is Nikaō, which means to overcome, overpower, to conquer, triumph. So, Jesus is telling us that to those of us are triumphant in this life… To those who can conquer our desire for this world, He offers… the right to eat from the tree of life, the crown of life and will not be hurt at all by the second death, some of the hidden manna, a white stone with a new name written on it known only to him who receives it, authority over the nations, I will also give him the morning star *. I will never blot out his name from the book of life. I will make (him) a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, and I will also write on him my new name, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

*In both 2 Peter 1:19 and Revelation 22:16 Jesus is referred to as the morning star

That sounds like some pretty special treatment for overcoming! But it also sounds like there isn’t a whole lot of room for a bunch of people on that throne!

Matthew 7:14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

I don’t know about you, but I want my own special name and a seat next to the Morning Star on His thrown… and there is nothing in this life I won’t trade for it!

Up Crap Creek

I remember when I was growing up my Father had a saying that aptly describes how I feel this morning. When things were going badly for someone he would say; “Buddy, it looks like your up ‘crap’ creek in a chicken wire canoe without a paddle”.(expletive removed). And when I lived in Florida we had a saying; “When you’re up to your neck in alligators, it’s hard to remember that your original objective was to drain the swamp”…

This morning I feel tired, a little beat up, and worn out. I know in the book of James it tells us:
(James 1:2) Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds.

And I would love to tell you that I got that thing down pat… but I was reading in Lamentations this morning, and I found that the words of Jeremiah have more of a familiar ring to them…

(Lamentations 3:1-18)
I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath.
He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness rather than light;
indeed, he has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long.
He has made my skin and my flesh grow old and has broken my bones.
He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
He has made me dwell in darkness like those long dead.
He has walled me in so I cannot escape; he has weighed me down with chains.
Even when I call out or cry for help, he shuts out my prayer.
He has barred my way with blocks of stone; he has made my paths crooked.
Like a bear lying in wait, like a lion in hiding,
he dragged me from the path and mangled me and left me without help.
He drew his bow and made me the target for his arrows.
He pierced my heart with arrows from his quiver.
I became the laughingstock of all my people; they mock me in song all day long.
He has filled me with bitter herbs and sated me with gall.
He has broken my teeth with gravel; he has trampled me in the dust.
I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.
So I say, "My splendor is gone and all that I had hoped from the LORD."

I know Jeremiah was watching the destruction of Israel when he penned these words, so his plight and mine are far from the same. But I found a certain sense of familiarity with the feelings he poured onto the page.

The latter part of this chapter opens the door for Gods hand of mercy and compassion, but it would be some time into the future before Israel would see this side of God again… It makes me wonder when I too will see His mercy and compassion in this period of my earthly life, and this arduous chapter of my existence will begin to close.

The ship I sail is not my own, the course set before me is unseen beyond the moment.
Though my ship burns, still I do not feel the flames.
Though it is cast upon the shoals, yet I have no fear.
Though my mind is numb I still have clarity of purpose.
Though the pain of life overwhelms me yet I still can find peace...

(Job 13:15-17 )
Though he slays me, yet will I hope in him;
I will surely defend my ways to his face.
Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance,
for no godless man would dare come before him!

Open Hands

If you are holding on to what you have with both hands you do not have a hand open to receive more of what God offers you. Lend & Give freely, without expectation, that is how it is given to us and it is how we are COMMANDED by God to give to others. (Deuteronomy 15:11) Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.

Do not fear losing a life that is not yours to keep! Instead fear losing the Life inside that desires God, while we still live.

Bailing Out!

I think I finally understand this whole 700 billion dollar bail out thing.

We have to do something quick because the Ship is sinking! But that isn’t the worst part, we have a bunch of bottom feeders we elected to fix the hole, but instead of fixing it, for years they have been dismantling the ship and parsing it out to the highest bidder to line their own pockets. And now that the trickle has become a flood our government’s solution to the whole mess is, instead of getting rid of the bottom feeders and fixing the hole they want to give us a bigger bucket to bail with. That’s why they call it a bail out!

One way or another someone is getting bailed out! If the 700 billion isn’t passed or something like it, then about half of our banks will go under. If that happens then we will be bailing out the FDIC. They don’t have enough money to even come close to covering the tab. Heck; the failure of Washington Mutual today would have bankrupted the FDIC if it hadn’t been bought by JP Morgan. If they can't even cover the deposits of one big bank how are they going to cover a bunch of big banks failing? We are in DIRE times, and unless someone is going to step up and start fixing the leaks in the ship then this 700 billion is just the beginning.

I am confident and grateful that God has me, my family and so many other Christian families in His hand… and whether or not it is from protection by divine intervention or a sudden ride up into the sky to meet him for the rapture, I know (because He said so) that everything will work out one way or another.

I am reminded of a quote by Helen Keller that I think is appropriate for these times.

Security is a man made illusion. No where in Gods creation can security be found. The animals must depend upon Gods provision daily, and he intends for us to as well. The only security He offers is where we will spend eternity, every thing else is a lesson.
Helen Keller (paraphrased)

Riding Roller Coasters

I was thinking today about how many similarities there are between living life as a Christian and riding the wildest roller coaster you can imagine.

Life is a continuous cycle of highs and lows. The highs can be tremendously exhilarating and terrifying all at the same time and the lows can make our stomach feel like it is turning itself inside out. And no matter whether or not you are on a high, low or just transitioning in between, there is no getting off until the ride stops.

But isn’t riding a rollercoaster the same thing?

You get on the ride knowing that once you sit down and buckle up there is no getting off until the ride stops. You know before it even begins to move that you are going to experience highs that scare the daylights out of you and thrill you all at the same time, and you will experience dips and lows that make your stomach do flip flops giving you the feeling that your guts are turning inside out. But no matter how terrifying the ride is, you’re never really afraid because you have seen countless hundreds of people get on and off right in front of you and none of them are any worse for the wear. And, you know that before you got on the ride, thousands if not tens or hundreds of thousands of people have already experienced the ride and they didn’t die either. So you get in sit back and enjoy the ride, because when you get off you know you will look back and say; “it was worth it”.

But as Christians shouldn’t we do the same thing in life?

God says He has our life under His control. He is the one operating the ride, and throughout history, despite the antics of the riders He has demonstrated a perfect track record without any mishaps. He already told us before we ever signed on that it would be a bumpy ride, so we shouldn’t act surprised when we hit the bumps. And we already know that when the car stops and you get off, you will look back and say; “it was worth it”.

God never said you wouldn't fall. He said; “Don't worry when you do. I will be there to catch you".

So sit down, shut up, hold on… and enjoy the ride!

Life’s Mosaic Picture

We can not avoid the pain of regret when we break the beautiful picture that God wishes to paint in our life. He knew before we broke it that we would, and He already had a plan in place to take from us the broken pieces. He is patiently waiting for us to give them to Him so He can create the beautiful mosaic that He had originally intended to be our life.

When we are in the desert, remember that it is God who applies the pressure to squeeze out the moisture needed to quench the thirst of those He has placed around us.

The LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!

I do not think words can adequately describe who or what God is in comparison to us! And I will also go as for as to say that; “I believe that you as an individual don’t understand in your heart who He is, unless you can think of a time in your life where you have become totally broken and ashamed by the realization of how unworthy you are to exist before Him as the recipient of His Love”.

So many look upon God as the Big Bopper, or the Big Guy in the Sky or the Heavenly Grandfather… and so many other trite terms that minimize His rightful place over creation! I believe that there is a terrible price to be paid for the flippant way our society has brushed aside the Living God.

I don’t line up with a single thing that the Muslims teach about Allah! But I do think that they have one up on us as Christians in the way that they revere and respect the name of Allah and the writings of Muhammad. In the countries they dominate it is a death sentence to mistreat or disrespect the Koran or the name of Allah, and in the period leading up to the birth of Jesus the Israelites shared a similar fervency and respect for the writings by God’s prophets as well as for the name of God… in fact they revered His name so much they were not allowed to write or say his actual name.

How did we lose our reverence for God? How did we get to the point of showing up in His house to worship Him and use the pew as an extension of the bed we just left to finish catching up on our sleep? That we would get ants in our pants if the preacher went even a few minutes over on the clock while giving us Gods message! Where did our love, respect and even fear of the God who redeemed us go?

Is there a price to pay for this as well?

Hebrews 10:31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Paul even tells us:

Philippians 2:12 work out your salvation with fear and trembling

If this is the way you approach the God I serve then I would be afraid. Very afraid… But if you have put God into the proper place He deserves in your life… the fear or actual terror of who He is and what we deserve from God translates into something entirely different…

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear

We become completely His, just as your child is completely yours… your children fear you in a sense of respect… but they are not afraid of you! They Love you too much and know that you Love them too much to ever do anything to make them afraid that you would harm them, and God Loves us even more than that. He has promised in several places in the Bible to Love and care for us and that He only has our collective best interests at heart for why He does what He does.

Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

But too many Christians become all too familiar with the Love side of God, and forget that He is also the same wrathful God who told Joshua in the Old Testament to kill every man, woman, child and animal in the depraved and evil cities He gave over to His wrath… and one day He will once again turn His wrath towards this earth in a way like He has never done before…

So remember that, this side of God is still very much a part of who He is today the next time you come to stand before Him… He is God, deserving of your Love and Worship… and yes, He also deserves your Fear and Respect.

He is The Lord God Almighty, creator and sustainer of all there was, is and all that will ever be.

If you have not learned to willingly bow to Him in your life, you will one day bow before Him in your death!

From the Inside Out!

Man is this country messed up!

From the greed and corruption that lives at the top to the filth and lasciviousness that flows out of the bottom, it touches almost every aspect of our lives. And the more laws we pass to protect ourselves the worse off we become. In fact most of the people in charge of making the laws are the guiltiest of them all.

When are we going to wake up to the fact that we can’t legislate or regulate morality into our lives… If we could don’t you think Jesus would have begun that way?

Look at what He asks us to do and look at what He doesn’t ask us to do.

He doesn’t ask us to clean up the mess that is our lives, get our act together, follow the Ten Commandments to the letter and then come see Him about joining His exclusive club of Christianity.

What He asks us to do is come to Him accepting what He offers, and then let Him change us from the inside out. Change is a necessary part of it and we are expected to change…

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

But it is not conditional to being accepted first.

Why don’t we as Christians make a concerted effort to take the same approach to fixing our country?

If each of us does as Jesus asks and shares are faith, baptize and make a disciple of just two people, and we teach those two people to do the same… by this time next year the entire country would be made up of God fearing, Jesus loving born again Christians. In other words we would change them and our country from the inside out!

Then we wouldn’t have a need for crooked politicians to endlessly make meaningless legislation to keep the morally bankrupt of our society from causing our country to implode from the inside out.

If Jesus Preached in Your Church!

Have you ever wondered how Jesus would do church in our day?

What would it look like?

Would we sing the songs we sing week after week with a different spirit or with more enthusiasm?

Would you raise Holy Hands to Him in worship without being embarrassed?

Would you tithe to His church better than you do in the one you currently attend?

Would we take His message more seriously than the ones that are taught by those He ordained?

Would He preach a Joel Osteen Milk Toast and Peaches life is a Rose sermon that would draw tens of thousands of pew warmers? Or would the serious nature of what He taught cause the halls of most of our churches to become vacant for a while because of the demands that He would place upon our lives?

I look around me in the church today and tend to think the sermons He would preach would make most in the church today too uncomfortable to stay… or at least stay in the condition that they are currently in.
But after all the smoke cleared, for those that remained oh what a fire they would light!

But why would it have to take His physical presence to lead us to the level that we already know He has called us to live at? Why is serving Him here and now some far off thing for us, but it wouldn’t be if He were here? The reality is He is here with us now, and He is watching everything we do and the motives for why we do it! The demands on our life that He would make from the pulpit are not any different than the demands He places on us now.

What are those demands you ask… He says “Seek Me first”… “Love me with all that you are and all that you have”… “Give what I freely give you, freely to others”… “Be Holy even as I am Holy”… “Live as though your life here counts for nothing, and your life with me is everything”… and so many other things that make the church that He calls "His Bride" so much more than what we make of it today.

Following God should not be a waypoint marked by a weekly church visit or just part of life. It should be the very core, the center of your life that everything else should revolve around.

When you stand before Him in heaven, what explanation will you give Him for why you didn’t do for Him in His absence that which you would have done for Him in His presence?

That day WILL come, have you thought about it?

Have you thought about what your life of service to Him on earth will look like in the light of eternity?

It boils down to only one thing. You either believe it and will change how you live or you will prove you don’t by the way you live.

For some Christianity is a Philosophy, for others it is a way of life, which is it for you?

Lord Spend Me 'First'!

2 Timothy 2:4 No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.

God please grant me the strength and courage to serve you with all that I have and all that I am.

May my life take the shape that your hand finds the greatest comfort in holding.

May you seek to use me 'First', when your purpose is to be served around me.

May you spend all that I have and all that I am 'First' before you would choose to use another.

We are at war, with an enemy that seeks to devour us. And for some of us the battle is fought up close and personal.

May the life I live be counted worthy enough to fight beside you on that final day!

May the sword that I carry serve only you and may my blood be spilt 'First' when the last battle begins.

May my life from beginning to end bring Glory and Honor to you!

We are Gods Marines… Hoorah!

…Living our Faith on the front line hurts and is sometimes bloody, but the blood washes off and our pain doesn’t compare to the price He already paid for us!

Riding a Sinking Ship

I have never actually been on a ship that is sinking, but I am pretty sure I know exactly how it would feel... especially if the ship were sinking in a painfully slow dance with death.
There would be an oppressive feeling of impending doom bringing about feelings of panic and a heightened sense of survival. There would be conflicting thoughts of determination to find a way of escape, battling a resignation to the outcome that is out of your control. Fear for your loved ones and desperately wanting to rescue them from certain disaster, battling thoughts of wanting to pull the covers over your head to hide from the certainty of what you face.

Isn't that the feeling you get when you contemplate the future of our country... of our world?
Or am I alone in these thoughts?

I like to think that I am a strong, capable and resourceful man, but I'm not so sure anymore. There is so much that I do not understand and so little control I can exert over the circumstances that I face. Corruption and greed have consumed our world to the highest levels of government and hedonism permeates the very core of our society. I truly see what Paul meant when he said to Timothy:

2 Timothy 3:1-3 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good.

How much worse are we today than Sodom and Gomorrah when God destroyed them? I would venture to guess not much. More than ever I get the feeling that God has started to let the clock wind down. That He has relegated our world to its own evil lust. I would love to see revival come to our country, to our world… but I am fearful that the time for this is passing. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t continue to do our part. In fact there are still many opportunities, revival has come to many countries, China, the Middle East and a host of others have millions of people converting… but our country has begun to grow dark, and with each passing day we take one more step closer to the darkness we have embraced.

I feel like my wife places the burden for the problems we face upon my shoulders. She doesn't see it as every one is struggling to get by... just us. Never considering the problem is bigger than me and the solution beyond my control. There was a time when I could over come any obstacle, and upward and forward were the only direction we traveled... but somewhere between then and now God decided to shake things up a bit. It's weird but the farther away from Him I have been, the louder I have heard His voice... and the closer to where I know He wants me to be, the quieter He has become.
I can't figure out whether the problem is with me, or if there even is a problem. Maybe this is the way it is supposed to be... or maybe it is the times we live in, and He is just saying, ''Shhhhh, be still, be quiet, just sit down and watch, the rest is up to me... now it's my turn''.

As a Father and a Husband I wish I had the answer. I used to think I did, but I'm not so sure anymore. I know He has given us the final answer... it just seems that lately I can't find the answer for today.

In these dark days, as the light grows dim and it becomes harder and harder to see the way, more than ever I pray that my back would bear the calluses from the yoke of the guiding hand of God.

There is a song by Mercy Me that starts out with: ''Take this world from me... I don't need it anymore. I am finally free, my heart is spoken for''.

As I watch the world around me continue on its downward spiral, I long for the day when we as God's children are all finally free from the bonds of our human existence, and we can get off this sinking ship.

As a Beggar before the King!

As a beggar I come before you my King.


Risking destruction to beg for mercy but, welcoming death if mercy is not granted. My mind is at war with my soul and I am blinded by the battle that rages inside. I can no longer grasp Your purpose for my life. My only desire is to serve You; my life means nothing outside of this. If I can not see Your purpose then I will have none. Lord please reveal Your Self in me. Without Your sustaining hand I do not have the strength to carry on.

I have nothing of value to offer You in return. All that I have is ruin. You hold the only thing that matters. I pray to be consumed by You. Please Lord take me and make me your own. Only you can save me. Only you would care. If you will not, then curse the day I was born and blot my name from history. Remove the void that is my life, may the memory of my existence be erased forever from Your mind, for All of life has no meaning without you. My life has no excuse without your pardon. My guilt stands before me and it is more than I can bear.

I came to plant a garden, but sorrow is the seed I've sown. I tilled the soil to produce a bountiful harvest and stole the fruit of those who came with me. I nurtured a crop to build a better tomorrow, but destruction is the weed I grew. I have spent the tomorrow of those around me and laid to waste the dreams of those that followed. Wages of despair is what I have paid to those that have labored with me; there is nothing more I can give.

My final hope is that the destruction I have sown would over take me and spare those that I love. My heart can't bear to see the wasteland I have created; I fall to my knees and cry out for death to find me. My dreams have gone to sleep forever; I have no room left to hide my tears. I know not yet the sin I have brought upon those nearest me, but I know it is mine not theirs, turn your wrath to me I pray, please spare those that I love. I yearn for Your discipline and for the release of those who are trapped in my punishment.

This world holds nothing for me, turn the lights off... I want to go home.

Wally-Street

Isn’t that what it seems like today?

Wall Street looks a lot more like Wally World than it looks like the financial center of our world.

I have always thought that playing the stock market was more akin to white collar gambling than it is to being a legitimate business. I have a brother in law who is a day trader and I know that what he does isn’t any different than what they do in Vegas everyday, and with all the smoke and mirrors being put up by the people at the top of the financial game it’s a lot more like playing in an Indian casino than it is Vegas. In fact I bet you have better odds in an Indian casino than you do on Wall Street, unless of course you are one of the connected insiders.
When the stock market began I thought it was to help the common person buy stock in a company they liked and wanted to be a part of… so they could own a small piece of it as an investment. The money they invested would grow as the company grew. From what I understand, today it has evolved into something total different. With very few exceptions, owning stock in a company today has very little to do with what the company they invested in will look like in ten or twenty years. The only thing that matters is what the quarterly reports look like so the stock price goes higher, even if it means robbing from Peter to pay Paul with total disregard for the long term future viability of the company. It is more like owning play money that you trade amongst the other Monopoly game players as you roll the dice and make your way around the board.
Doesn’t that sound like a better description of playing Wall Street than calling it “investing”? Just the common use of the words “Playing Wall Street” makes it sound like a game!
I am no financial genius but it appears to me that the only ones making real money on Wall Street are the CEO darlings that live in the pockets of all the Wall Street bankers. They make tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars a year at the expense of all the common people they have tricked into playing their game. Yes, I realize that there are a lucky few who also hit it big, just like there are a lucky few who pull the handle on the big money slots in Vegas and hit it big. I watch my day trader brother in law go from rich to poor in a continual oscillating rhythm month after month.

IT IS INSANITY at its best!

I think the easiest solution for our entire country is to shut the whole darn thing down and start over. If some one wants to buy stock in a company let them do it like they did in the old days. If they invest in a company it’s because it is a growing viable entity, making long range strategic plans to grow bigger. And the people at the top are making decisions based on the best long term interests of the company, not the share holders interests and the Wall Street bankers who want to turn and burn their stock certificates for the next big IPO.

Faith

Hebrews 11:1 Now, faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

It is easy to just “say” you have faith in an unseen God who has prepared an unseen Heaven for your unseen Spirit to go to when you die. It is when you serve the unseen God with the tangible things you possess here that Faith becomes real. When in His absence you still give back to Him money you don't have enough of, time you would have spent in other ways and service to Him over self, proclaiming His name to others in the face of ridicule.

By these things you prove to Him and others your faith.

A History of violence

Everyone has a place only God sees. What is discovered from yesterday does not alter the reality of today it only changes the way it is seen.
Anyone who has reached the age of 30 has lived long enough to carry memories that we would just as soon forget.
We all have a past! Some develop their past in the blink of an eye and for others it was a lifetime ago.
The "Past" of those we know, when discovered today, does not change who they are to us now. It only changes how we allow our selves to see them. Don't let the past destroy the future.
Who we are now and who we intend to be is what matters. Who we were is gone and is something we all must bear. None of us wrestle against the same thing. Our internal victories in the struggle are known only to us and God and ultimately He is the one who will reward us for our efforts.
(Matthew 7:2) For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you

Win Lose or Fall

I just watched my son lose his fourth football game in a row. It is disheartening for me as both a father and a coach. Last year we almost one the championship, this year we can't even make a showing. It is easy to draw parallels between sports and life... but there is one huge difference in losing the game of life. You don't get a returning season.No matter how my sons team finishes this year there is always next season, but when the fourth quarter is over in the last game of life... well it all depends on how you played... or maybe it's better said; '' It all depends on who you played for''. So how about it, who's team are you on? Some people would like to believe that there are several teams to decide upon. There's the team of self desire, the team of career, the team of financial freedom, sexual conquest, family, freedom... and on and on. But, when you really boil it down there are only two teams, Gods team and any one playing against Him. Gods take on sportsmanship is you are either playing for Him or against him.
Jesus says in Matthew 12:30:
"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.
So do you scatter your own seed, or His? When it's all over there will be only one victor, and the team you play on has everything to do with whether or not you Win, Lose or Fall.

Blinded Existence

I am amazed at how many Christians are in complete denial when it comes to matters of the spirit. Not that they don't believe in the Spirit of God. But they become completely skeptical in the presence of a physical manifestation of His Spirit.
I must admit that I am somewhat skeptical about the number of people who claim or believe they have the gift of tongues, or the gift of healing or miracles. I do believe some can and do have these gifts... but there are whole sects of Christianity that don't believe you are saved unless you can speak in tongues. I don't want to get into a whole dissertation regarding gifts; Paul specifically mentions a list of gifts including healing, miracles and tongues, so obviously some people are given these gifts. But he also says that not all people are given the same gift and therefore not everyone can have the gift of tongues as some are inclined to believe. I also think that many of the so called healers are charlatans, out to line there pockets with what they fleece from Gods people... but once again... some are not. Enough of the tongues and healing thing... my point is most Christians struggle accepting these and many other things just like they don't want to believe someone can see an angel, or be confronted by a demon... both of which are mentioned in the Bible as possibilities. Most Christians want to live in there comfortable cocoon of blissful blind ignorance. And because they do, they miss the opportunity to see Gods awesome power displayed before them. I firmly believe that what we see in the realm of our scope of vision represents a small fraction of what actually exists, and when we finally cross over into our new neighborhood most of us will be shocked at what we denied while we lived here. Heaven, Hell, eternity, angels, demons, spiritual battles are all very real and a part of our world today. But we live in a society that tends to white wash anything we can't understand and in doing so we blind ourselves to the possibility of the supernatural. Because of this we label many gifted people as lunatics or schizophrenics... and we continue on in our benign, numb existence, blinded to the real enemy that confronts us and ignorant to the power that God has given us to defeat him.
I hate to keep delving into weird things in these posts... but we are missing so much of what the Bible tells us. If any one of us were to read the Bible and take literally the things it tells us from Old to New Testament... a lot of weird crap has transpired in our past, and there is nothing to indicate that it has come to an end. In fact if you progress into revelation... a lot more weird crap is coming…

So the sooner we wake up, the better tools we can become in our masters hands.

Learning to Rise Above

I am finally getting the feeling that things are coming back around full circle. I have been floundering in a funk for the better part of a year, and for about five or six years prior to that I’ve been riding the downward slide into what is akin to personal Hell on earth. It’s not as though God has been absent through all of this, quite the contrary, He has been beside me the whole way. But it hasn’t stopped me from doubting almost everything I thought I knew or believed, and it has left me feeling quite isolated and alone in my thoughts. It is and has been difficult to share my inner most thoughts during all this because quite frankly if they were known they would probably prompt most people to find someone to lock me up as a loon. I know I see things from a vastly different angle than most… just ask my wife. But I also believe that the way I think gives me the ability to think in much broader spectrums than most people are willing to contemplate. I am not trying to say that I am smarter or deeper than anyone else, I’m just crazy enough to explore the ‘what if’s’ in life (no matter how absurd they may seem) that most people might ignore. That brings me back to the full circle thing that I mentioned at the start of this thread.
Because of the events that have made a train wreck of my life over the last six or seven years I have lost site of ‘truth’ and allowed ‘the stuff’ of life to eat away at my soul. Part of the suffering I have experienced I am quite certain has been orchestrated by God to break my steel rod of a stiff neck (as God has called it when referring to the Israelites), so that I could become more pliable in His hands. I have progressed during this time from; God I can ride this out until you change it, to, God how much longer until you change it, to, apathy because He won’t change it, to, resignation to His sovereign will, even if He never changes it. I am still struggling with that last thought but my heart is in the right place. And finally I’ve come back to the place that Paul talks about in Romans.

Romans 8:18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

God is in complete control of every single second you live and aware, and in control of every circumstance of your life.

Proverbs 15:3 The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.
2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

So if all this will be a distant memory when I am in heaven and God has it all handled while I am still here, then it’s probably better to just to buckle up, hold on and enjoy the ride.

God has made it pretty clear in His word that are primary focus is to be about doing His will. All the ‘stuff’ that we call life… our jobs, our bills, our problems, our selfish desires for more and more of what doesn’t satisfy us anyway… are distractions that Satan throws in our path to get us off track. God says that He will take care of everything we need and that our number one priority is to Love Him completely with all that we are and all that we have, and to share the love He gives us with everyone we know. Like I said in an earlier post; “Life would be much easier if we could see the reality of all that is unseen”. If we could then we wouldn’t have to keep reminding ourselves that, what we experience here doesn’t really matter in the end. The only thing that will matter is our response to it and how it was reflected in our commitment to being obedient to Him!

My fervent prayer is that he will open my eyes so that I can see Him more clearly, and open my ears so that I can hear the still small voice that’s helps me find my way home.

Be Still
© James Fuller 2006

Strife and confusion are all that we see,
a world in turmoil longing to be free.

We search for happiness and the peace that it brings
We look for comfort, but like eagles it takes wing.
It soars to the heavens ever higher it flees,
never attainable, it hovers just out of reach.

Strife and confusion are all that we see,
a world in turmoil longing to be free.

Peace and security are the fodder of kings,
long life and riches such trivial things.
Distractions are many, life is so frail
and all we pursue often sets sail.

Strife and confusion are all that we see,
a world in turmoil longing to be free.

We are consumed by such trivial means,
searching for life in all the wrong things.
The peace that we seek is easy to find,
it’s held in the hands of the father of time.

Strife and confusion are all that we see,
a world in turmoil longing to be free.
Be still He says, and know that your mine,
let go of your life…
And I will give you Mine.

Its Adams Fault

Yesterday I was saddened by what one of my sons was going through… today, I am perturbed at what one of my other children has done! It is not one of those things that make you say; “what were you thinking”… this is one of those times when you wonder; “is there something seriously wrong? Do I need to get professional help? Has something happened that I am not being told about”? Compound this with my own struggle to overcome the monster that has devoured our economy, forcing us all to work harder to have less of what wasn’t enough already… and you start looking for a scapegoat. One of my many faults is to look for something or someone to blame when things go wrong, and today I am looking at Adam and the events that led to his getting kicked out of the Garden of Eden… cursing us all with the stench of his sin that permeates the world around us. What would life have been like if he hadn’t let Eve eat the apple? You moron, what were you thinking… or why weren’t you thinking? You had it made, you idiot! You were on a face to face, first name basis with the only being in the Universe capable of and willing to fix any problem you could ever face. But then I guess looking at it realistically, if Satan was there to tempt Adam and Eve, that would mean he probably would still be here to tempt me… and if no one else in the entire course of history managed to screw it up for mankind, I am quite certain that when it came my turn to be tempted I would have fallen flat on my face and every one would be pointing their finger at me… so I guess I ought to keep my finger pointing to myself. I reckon I’m pretty fortunate not to have my name mentioned in the book that explains the origin of life and tells how I screwed it up for everyone else who would come after me.

Boy, thinking about all this sure makes me long for the day when we all get to go home!

The Birth of a Butterfly

It is very difficult to watch the circumstances of life create pain for the ones you love. All of us experience life’s pain in one form or another, but when the only casualty is ‘you’ it is much easier to swallow.

I am in a melancholy mood tonight because I am watching helpless, as one of my children faces down another demon that life has brought to him. I feel powerless to intervene and help, in fact even if I wanted to I cannot, his circumstances are outside of my control. His pain is my pain… I wonder if God feels a similar emotion when He watches us face challenges. My wife and I pour ourselves into our children; they are the breath of life for us. We give God his rightful place in our lives, but aside from that our children are everything to us.

I am mindful of the story of a child watching a butterfly emerge from its cocoon. The child wanted to help the butterfly become free of the tomb it was trying to escape, and hated to watch it struggle so much. So he proceeded to cut open the cocoon and free the butterfly. After emerging from its prison the butterfly went on to wallow and flounder on the ground with its pitiful shriveled wings until it eventually died. Puzzled and saddened the boy went to his father to have him explain what happened. His father told him that even though it seemed painful and very difficult for the butterfly to fight his way out of the cocoon, this was also the process that God had designed to strengthen and inflate the butterfly’ wings, so that he would be strong enough to fly when it emerged. The struggle to extract itself from the cocoon strengthened the butterfly muscles and forced blood into its wings to inflate them and cause them to become firm enough to support its weight in flight. When he cut the cocoon open it circumvented this process and did not allow the former caterpillar the opportunity to grow strong enough to face its new life as a butterfly.

I know that most of the struggles my children face are a necessary part of life, designed to help them transition into adulthood, but it doesn’t make it any easier or less painful to watch them work their way through it.

I take comfort in the fact that they were Gods children before they became mine, and He loves and cares for them just as He does me.

I stand on the promise that:

Psalm 145:20 The LORD watches over all who love him…

And that He has already fore ordained, the events to take place in our lives and is very much aware our circumstances.

Luke 12:7 Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear…

And because He is aware of our circumstances and because He is watching out for us He tells us not to worry about our life.

Luke 12:22 Do not worry about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on.

I will take comfort in these and the many other promises He has made to us, His children… and rely upon Him for strength and wisdom as He and I watch them grow.

He never said it would be easy… He only said it would be worth it.

Pursuing Obedience

God has asked us to be obedient to Him regardless of the circumstances we are facing. The consequences of our obedience are His responsibility. God has promised a special blessing to those who are obedient. The Bible says that He searches the earth looking for those who are committed to Him so that He can bless them.

2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

He also says that if we as imperfect earthly parents can Love and bless our own children, then how much more will a God who loves us perfectly bless us.

Look to the Israelites for an example:
Whenever they as a people pursued Gods will for their life and concerned themselves only with following His purpose they were immeasurably blessed. Conversely anytime they endeavored to accomplish anything outside of Gods purpose they were abandoned, defeated, enslaved and stripped of their blessing. All through out the Old Testament when the Israelites were obedient they did very little other than obey God and watch while He conquered the kingdoms He promised them, often times right in front of their very eyes. Just read the story of Gideon, or one of my favorites, the first battle that God led the Israelites into against the Midianites, it is found in Numbers 31.
God told Moses to select one thousand men from each tribe, twelve thousand men in total. Men, who up until this, moment had never experienced battle. They were told to march against the Midianite's an army so vast that after they were finished conquering them there were 32,000 virgin Midianite women left alive. These were women who were probably under the age of 12 to 15. Now let’s consider what this adds up to. If each virgin had two parents then there were a minimum of 96,000 people. Most assuredly they probably had other sisters and brothers. Families in those days very rarely consisted of one or two children. I would bet there were probably several Hundred Thousand people that these twelve thousand unproven soldiers defeated. But the story does not end there. A few days later the captain of the guard came to Moses with a special gift to be given to God, because after numbering themselves they discovered that NOT ONE OF THEM WERE KILLED IN ACTION. Is that powerful or what? God delivered their enemies completely into their hands with out any loss.

God holds in his hands the same blessings for you…
if you will only be obedient.

Above the Fray!

Living life Above the Fray is a byproduct of living in the very center of Gods will "For" your life. It means to live completely naked before Him and totally dependent upon Him for all of our daily provision. It is learning to rise above whom and what we are by the power of the spirit that lives inside us. A life spent living in front of God brings with it the realization that nothing "Did... Is... or Can..." happen to us that is not a part of His will "In" our life. We are to live in the shadow of Gods Omniscience, which means that "Worry" and "Fear" are useless concepts that have no part in our life. This brings tremendous calm & peace to our existence like nothing else can.

I have also discovered that even while we can live above the Fray, pain can still find us. For me it comes when I find myself as the tool God has chosen to use as the instrument of change in my family. Often times change and pain are synonymous with each other. Often I am attacked by doubt, and fear because so much of who I have become is misunderstood, even by my self. Yet even in the middle of the confusion I can feel Gods 'firm hand' and His 'still small voice' telling me to wait, and be still. To trust that He will finish the good work He has begun in and around me.
My reward will be to see Jesus glorified, either because I was obedient to the end or in spite of my "ignorant disobedience" when I fail to see beyond my own humanity.

I will be satisfied when I can look back in confidence knowing I gave Him 'everything' I had.

All that matters to me when everything is all said and done; is to hear Him say:
"Jim Fuller...
You have completed the race...
You have finished the course”...
“Well done thou good and faithful servant".

The Space between Spaces.

Can you see it? It's all around you, woven into the very core of your existence. It lives and moves about you, influencing your life day in and day out. It is as real as the air you breathe yet cannot see... and as subtle as the breeze that moves across your skin.

What is it you ask?

It is what existed long before we came to be, and will continue long after we are no more.... It is what was, and is, and always will be. It is more real than the substance of what exists and surrounds you, but for most of us it never even crosses our mind.

Can you guess what it is?

It is eternity... It is the realm of existence that God and Angels move in... And it is also the realm of existence that we move in, even though we can't see it yet. But one day we will. One day all that you see and know, all that exists around you will be know more.

(2 Peter 3:12) On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames.

And the only thing that will remain is the essence of who you are before God and the only thing you will have with you is what you have built outside the confines of time! What will remain is what you have intentionally built to exist into eternity.

(1 Corinthians 3:11-13) For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value.

(Matthew 6:20) Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.

If you could see and experience eternity right now, would it change the way you live? If Angels and Demons battled for your soul every day right before your very eyes, would it change the way you view your priorities?
If you saw for yourself the way Angels continually worshipped and revered a Holy God, would it change the place you give Him in your life?

Can I let you in on a little secret?

Just because you can't see it doesn't mean it isn't taking place around you every day.
And just because you decide not to recognize the existence of what you cannot see doesn't mean it isn't real.

Whether it happens ‘Here’... or after ‘Here’ is no more, one day eternity will become very real for all of us.

That means that for some of us as Christians we need to re-evaluate our priorities. We need to make sure that what we deem as important enough to invest our lives in is still important in the light of eternity. To make sure the life we are building now is based on how we will live there, not how we live here.

And for those of us who have not yet met the God of eternity... and do not have a relationship with the Son He sent to redeem you, now is the time to ask yourself... Where are you going to spend eternity? The only time you have to answer this question is while you are still here, now. When your time here has ended the time for answers is over.

No one knows for sure when He is coming... or when our number is up. Either way when one or the other happens you are going to step into eternity to stand before your loving Father and Creator or before your Judge and Executioner. There is no in between, and the choice is yours to make... Here and now....

(2 Corinthians 6:2) For God says’ “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.

I truly believe that if we could see eternity play out before our eyes every day ALL of us would live radically different lives. But just because we can’t see it doesn’t mean we can’t train our selves to live as though we do.

Decide today to live for what will be, not for what is… when we have lived a million years in eternity I doubt many of us will even remember the days we live in today… any more than we as adults today, spend time reflecting on how our lives were just a few short years ago in High School…

You think about it!

Partisan Pluralism:

This is not intended to be a Republican or a Democratic article. It is a non-partisan rambling about what is wrong with the people we are calling leaders.

I watched the Tom Brokaw interview with Senator Joe Biden this morning on NBC’s Meet the Press.

For those of you who would read this; I want you to analyze what he (Biden) is saying and then read between the lines for a minute to see what it means…

If what Senator Biden does in his actions run contrary to what he says he believes then, WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT WHO HE IS? And if this is also the position his running mate takes (I already know that it is based on what O’bama has said compared to the way he has voted as a Senator) then what does that say about him? Keep in mind that they are not alone in this character trait amongst the other leaders of this country (Republican or Democrat).

I want to use an example from this interview to make my point. This is Senator Biden’s take on religion and abortion.

Below is an excerpt from that interview.

MR. BROKAW: You're a lifetime communicant in the Catholic Church. You've talked often about your faith and the, and the strength of your feelings about your faith.
SEN. BIDEN: Actually, I haven't talked often about my faith. I seldom talk about my faith. Other people talk about my faith.
MR. BROKAW: I'll give you an opportunity to talk about it now.
SEN. BIDEN: Yeah.
MR. BROKAW: Two weeks ago I interviewed Senator Nancy Pelosi--she's the speaker of the House, obviously--when she was in Denver. When Barack Obama appeared before Rick Warren, he was asked a simple question: When does life begin? And he said at that time that it was above his pay grade. That was the essence of his question. When I asked the speaker what advice she would give him about when life began, she said the church has struggled with this issue for a long time, especially in the last 50 years or so. Her archbishop and others across the country had a very strong refutation to her views on all this; I guess the strongest probably came from Edward Cardinal Egan, who's the Archbishop of New York. He said, "Anyone who dares to defend that they may be legitimately killed because another human being `chooses' to do so or for any other equally ridiculous reason should not be providing leadership in a civilized democracy worthy of the name." Those are very strong words. If Senator Obama comes to you and says, "When does life begin? Help me out here, Joe," as a Roman Catholic, what would you say to him?
SEN. BIDEN: I'd say, "Look, I know when it begins for me." It's a personal and private issue. For me, as a Roman Catholic, I'm prepared to accept the teachings of my church. But let me tell you. There are an awful lot of people of great confessional faiths--Protestants, Jews, Muslims and others--who have a different view. They believe in God as strongly as I do. They're intensely as religious as I am religious. They believe in their faith and they believe in human life, and they have differing views as to when life--I'm prepared as a matter of faith to accept that life begins at the moment of conception. But that is my judgment. For me to impose that judgment on everyone else who is equally and maybe even more devout than I am seems to me is inappropriate in a pluralistic society. And I know you get the push back, "Well, what about fascism?" Everybody, you know, you going to say fascism's all right? Fascism isn't a matter of faith. No decent religious person thinks fascism is a good idea.
MR. BROKAW: But if you, you believe that life begins at conception, and you've also voted for abortion rights...
SEN. BIDEN: No, what a voted against curtailing the right, criminalizing abortion. I voted against telling everyone else in the country that they have to accept my religiously based view that it's a moment of conception. There is a debate in our church, as Cardinal Egan would acknowledge, that's existed. Back in "Summa Theologia," when Thomas Aquinas wrote "Summa Theologia," he said there was no--it didn't occur until quickening, 40 days after conception. How am I going out and tell you, if you or anyone else that you must insist upon my view that is based on a matter of faith? And that's the reason I haven't. But then again, I also don't support a lot of other things. I don't support public, public funding. I don't, because that flips the burden. That's then telling me I have to accept a different view. This is a matter between a person's God, however they believe in God, their doctor and themselves in what is always a--and what we're going to be spending our time doing is making sure that we reduce considerably the amount of abortions that take place by providing the care, the assistance and the encouragement for people to be able to carry to term and to raise their children.

If you want to read or watch the entire segment here is the link:
Article Link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26590488/
Video Link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/26591000#26591000

I cannot believe how much control we as a Christian Nation allow the minority interests in this country to exert over the way we govern ourselves. I have seen polls indicating that anywhere from 70% to as high as 90% of the people of this country label themselves as Christian. Just Google the words; “Christian population in America” and see for yourself. I am not saying there shouldn’t be freedom to express your religious beliefs in this country, but I don’t feel we as a country have to take into consideration your feelings on how our laws are reflected in your belief system. Our founding fathers established and nurtured a country upon the foundational principles of the Holy Bible, nothing else! Contrary to what the mainstream media and the educational system would lead you to believe. The moral fabric of our system of government was based on Christian principles then, and was intended to still be based on this for the times we live in today. Among the host of failings in today’s government to continue to support these principles, I want to speak specifically about the approach Biden takes on religion and abortion and relate this to the way he would like to govern…

He said; “For me to impose that judgment (His Belief System) on everyone else who is equally and maybe even more devout than I am (Regardless of whether they are Hindu, Muslim or Jim Jones followers) seems to me is inappropriate in a pluralistic society.”

I don’t know where he thinks the rest of America stands but, if he believes as he says he believes…“I'm prepared as a matter of faith to accept that life begins at the moment of conception”… and if 85% of America as Christians also agree with this position… and the courts support this position… (The courts support this position when someone other than the mother kills the unborn child, when this happens they call it; “murder”) then why do we have to allow room for any other view.

Killing is fundamentally wrong, based on the foundational premise that God tells us that it is…it does not matter what any one else thinks about it just like it doesn’t matter if you accept the foundational premise of gravity. Whether you believe in gravity or not, when you jump off of a tall building the law of gravity will still have an impact on your life.

If you are afraid to call abortion murder based on pluralism and represent the few over the many, and are afraid to enact and enforce laws based on Scriptural principles regardless of who decides to live here (Something that 85% of America would support), then where will you draw the line? If you as an individual decide to move here and call this country home then you are also deciding to live under the laws that we as Christians have decided to govern ourselves by. I would say that if you are afraid to take this position as a politician then how will you address those parents who came here previously living under Islamic law? What will you do when they decide to kill their daughter because she has dishonored their family? They have the right to do this based on Sharia law, so shouldn’t we also make room for them as well, and a whole host of other fanatical extremists who move here and want to blend their laws with ours? Where do you propose to draw the line Mr. Biden?

This is just the tip of the iceberg. The real issue I want to point out here is the lack of integrity in him and many others like him who are leading this country.

He says he believes one thing… but his actions betray his beliefs because his sense of “Job Security” is threatened and out weighs this. Let’s be honest and call it what it is. He is afraid that if he stands for what he believes in then, when it comes time for re-election the lobbyists that currently support him and his pay check “Above and Below the table” will make sure that he isn’t re-elected next time around if he doesn’t keep playing on the political merry go round.

There are so many problems with the way our government is run today that I could spend weeks writing about it… Did you know that 99% of the time the bills sponsored by a Senator are written by lobbyists and most are never even read by the sponsoring Senator? If the Senator who sponsored the bill won’t read it how many of the rest of the Senators do you think will read it before they vote on it? They don’t read them because the lobbyists make them thousand of pages long… and hidden amongst those thousands of pages are earmarks for pet projects near and dear to the lobbyist or the Senator hearts. I could go on and on, but most of what we would talk about is just symptoms of the problem not the cause of the problem…

The foundational problem with this great Country; lies with character and integrity of the people we have running it. And until we fix that we will continue to get more of the same. The only thing that we will see change is the faces of those who stand before us promising to do better.

The only real way to fix this is to change the hearts of the people. To step up and step out… to go and do as Jesus told us to do when he said...
(Matthew 28:19) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
‘When’ and ‘if’ we as Christians finally do this, only then will we see the world as it should be… as God intended for it to be.

Living with a Bug Zapper

Flying too close to the Flame.

I am amazed at how far people will go to rationalize their reasons for continuing in whatever habit or sin they have integrated into their life.

I was speaking to a young man yesterday about my reasons for leaving Florida and moving to Kentucky. I was explaining how rampant drug use is in South Florida and although I know there’s drug use here just as there is everywhere, I felt that it wasn’t as widespread here than what I have experienced in Florida and that I also wanted a more manageable environment to raise my kids in. He went on to warn me about how the younger generation in Kentucky is abusing pills, especially in the school system. They grind up pills like Oxycontin and Percocet and then snort them. He told me he used to have a bad drug habit a few years ago but he doesn’t any more… he just does it a couple of times a month now, and that he has also learned to stay away from cocaine. He feels he is much wiser now that he is older… he told me that before when he had a drug problem he used to snort several pills a day, but now he can take one Percocet and make it last all day… (ARE YOU KIDDING ME!) I know first hand no matter how little you do, the more you do, the more you want to do and eventually its all you want to do… sin and drugs have great parallels, one way or another the sin you allow into your life will eventually consume you.

I don’t care what your vice is! Satan’s first goal is to make you believe you can control it or that you have it under control... “Every one else is doing it, its not that bad”… “Go ahead, just try it this one time”… “It won’t hurt anything if you do it every now and again”… “You’re not that bad you can control it, there are lots of people who are worse than you”… “I can stop any time, and one day I will”... The progression is always the same!

Some one once said; “Sin will always take you further than you wanted to go, make you stay longer than you wanted to stay, and cost you more than you were willing to pay!” No matter whether it’s pornography, drug use, alcohol abuse, gossip, (…you insert your favorite habit) it doesn’t matter; eventually what you once took pleasure in no longer satisfies and now you need to go a little further… a little deeper… be a little more twisted… to chase the feeling you used to get.

It’s like the bug in the bug zapper, flying ever closer and closer to the light… His little bug friend cries out; “DON’T DO IT BOB; DON’T LOOK INTO THE LIGHT”... as he flies ever closer and closer, then… ZAP!

(James 1:13-15) When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

That’s exactly how sin traps us, ever closer and closer, continually rationalizing our ability to handle it then ZAP! Eventually Satan has us completely in his grip.

If you are contemplating jumping off the fence and “Trying it Just This Once”, or are already deeply caught in the trap of your sin, the only way of escape is to replace it with something else… just walking away or quitting won’t work, you will eventually find yourself drawn back to it again. You must find something else to take up the void that the absence of your sin or the allure of the sin you are contemplating has left. I have also been on this yo-yo. Many people dive into sports or physical fitness, some pursue education or pour themselves into their work… but once again all these are just temporary replacements. I know from experience that the only thing that you can replace your sin with that will completely deliver you is what Jesus has offered us. By realizing that you are powerless in front of the adversary you face and dropping naked (metaphorically speaking) before a loving God who is waiting to deliver you and surrendering not only the sin you are struggling with to Him, but the rest of what you have… and all of what you are to Him and His will for your life alone. I’ve seen bumper stickers that say; “God is my co-pilot”. That is so far removed from the place God wants in your life. He wants to be the pilot, your only obligation is to sit down, shut up, and hold on. The only time you do or say anything is when He tells you to.

You will never be free of your sin unless Jesus has filled the Void that is left by sins departure. If He isn’t there, living inside of you then when sin comes knocking again you will have less resolve to resist and most times you will be far worse off than before when it regains control of your life.

(Matthew 12:43-45) “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.”

Only by becoming completely His and His alone, by becoming His Bondservant… (To put it literally) to become the SLAVE of a loving God… Only then will you truly know what it means to be free!

(John 8:36) So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.

What Lies Below

The journey of Faith.

I am lost, blind in the darkness of the depths that I have fallen to. The pressure of the deep is all around suffocating me, squeezing out the little air remaining in my lungs, yet still I am alive. My body shivers continually in the absence of warmth, strong currents continue to take me where I fear to go… ever deeper. I came here willingly, and willingly I continue on, passing the point of no return long ago. What lies above… what I left behind; is not worth returning to. It pales in contrast to the promises He made.

In blind faith I dove in to pursue Him, swimming ever deeper in search of the bottom… only to find there is none. Now, I have not the strength to continue swimming, so I fall. Drifting through the silent cold waters of what lies below. I often wonder if He knows I am here, if He even cares… I search in vain finding only the cold silence of the deep. I came here in pursuit of Him; I came here at His word, abandoning all vestiges of my life above; only to become lost as light was swallowed by the depth. As I continue downward I find others along the way returning to the hopelessness of what lies above. I plead with them to hold on a little longer, to stay the course…His course. I offer them hope and encouragement from that which I do not have. But they pay no heed, still they continue upward, returning to certain destruction.
As for me I press on. I will still cling to the promises He has made, overcoming the pain and fear that pursues me. I still believe… and because I believe, for me there is no other choice.

My only desire is to hear Him speak the words; “Well done, thou good and faithful servant!”
I WILL succeed in this endeavor… or die in my failure.