Check List Christianity

This is a transcript of a lesson that was shared at our last meeting of our mens group EnFuego.

What I am going to say here tonight is going to produce one of three responses in you. And if it doesn’t then I will consider this lesson a failure. After tonight you will either:

1. Cheer and applaud what is said and move forward with us.
2. Realize that there is much you have been missing and leave here a changed man.
3. Or become angry and offended at what is being asked of you.

If you fall in the latter camp of those who respond I want you to realize that it is not me that you are becoming angry at, rather it is yourself and your own misguided interpretation of what it is the scriptures are calling you to do and your offense at what Jesus is demanding of you… if you want to be considered one of His followers.

I want to start out by apologizing at the way we are going to jump around in the bible. If you want to try and follow along I will be giving each passage as we come to it, but for those who are interested I can email you a transcript of this lesson which will contain each of the passages so you can review them later.

Let start out with defining some basic terminology that we throw around in the church!

When I say someone is a Christian what comes to your mind about that person?

Now when I call that same person a disciple how do you think differently about that individual?

Let’s begin our treatise tonight with the understanding that the terms Christian and disciple are synonymous with each other, what I mean is that they are both one and the same thing. Somewhere in the History of the modern Church the definitions have begun to take on meanings that imply different or deeper levels of Christian service, but be very clear that in the mind of Jesus they mean one and the same thing.

So if a Christian is a disciple, then what is a disciple?

Webster defines it as: someone who believes and helps to spread the doctrine of another.

In Webster’s definition you can begin to see why the church has begun to imply different meanings for the two terms… we have many in the church today that ‘believe’ but very, very few who do the work of spreading the doctrine… and this is where I want to begin and end tonight.

I want to begin by illustrating a passage out of revelation.

Revelation 2:4-5
Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place.

He is saying “Return to your first Love”. But how does what it says come off of the pages of revelation and begin to be a part of your life?

Returning to your “First Love” by definition implies first that you used to be in love… but what does being in love with Jesus mean?

I want to see a show of hands of the men in this room who have been in love with a woman at some point in their life…

What did that love mean and how did it impact your life? Didn’t you find yourself day dreaming about her and thinking of the times when you would be together? Didn’t you want to call here every free moment and spend as much time as possible with her? When you had time to think didn’t you find yourself dreaming about her? You still went to work every day, you came home ate and slept, went to the grocery store and all the other normal things that surrounded your life… your basic routine didn’t really change dramatically but still everything changed didn’t it? Nothing changed… but yet EVERYTHING CHANGED… you told all your friends and family about this great girl you met and you spent hours planning the time that you would spend together and the future you hoped to one day share… your whole life began to revolve around this girl that you fell in love with. That is what this passage in Revelation is describing.

That’s what Jesus wants from you… those same feelings of devotion that you gave to your first love… that is the part of your life that He wants for Himself. For you to be wholly His! Becoming one of His eternal children is the free gift that He offers to you… you don’t really pay anything for it, yet you pay EVERYTHING FOR IT! It is a FREE, but it will cost you everything to accept it! Becoming a Christian is much like falling for your first love, nothing changes, but yet EVERYTHING CHANGES…

I was redeemed from a horrible past that some of you know about… and when I realized that Jesus still Loved and wanted me (ME… the horrible and ugly piece of sewer garbage that I was… He still loved and wanted me) it broke me… His acceptance and Love for me literally brought me to my knees crying out (balling my eyes out) in Love and adoration for Him. And since that day my life has been one continual conversation with Him. Some of it is still on my knees and some of it is while I am driving down the road in my car. It is a continual discussion that includes Him in every aspect of my life. It is like I made a phone call to Him 25 years ago and I never hung up the phone.

I want to interject something here and ask you to make an introspection of your own life...

If Jesus doesn’t already hold a place of devotion in your life like what I have described or you can not think of a time in your life when Jesus meant something like this to you … Then I would suggest to you that He is not sitting in the place of King or Lord in your life, and you just may be believing in a historical Jesus. You have not yet taken a hold of the salvation that He offers you… YOU ARE NOT YET ONE OF HIS DISCIPLES.

But, before we throw our lives up on the proverbial scales lets take a second look at the definition of ‘disciple’ from the perspective of Jesus.

What does the bible say it means to become a disciple of Jesus?

Jesus tells a story in Matthew of a rich young ruler that chased him down and told Jesus he wanted to follow Him. Here is what Jesus said.

Matthew 19:21-22 …sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

And this is how Jesus called the first twelve of His disciples.

Luke 5:10-11
Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Luke 5:27
After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.

God does not have time for you to wait and make up your mind. In fact he demands immediate surrender. If I offered to give you a brand new Ferrari or maybe an F-450 King Ranch Dually Diesel in exchange for the car or truck your driving you wouldn’t have to think about it… or if you did it was because you didn’t believe me… so which is it with God? Why are you still holding on to your life and living for your own agenda? Maybe it is because you don’t believe Him?

In Luke Jesus meets some people with some pretty compelling reasons for delaying following Him, but listen to His response.

Luke 9:57-6
As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."
He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

"No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." He did not even give the man time to say good bye to his family.

PRETTY STRONG STUFF!!!

One of my favorite verses describing our service to Him is:

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.

Peter made this statement to Jesus in Matthew!

Matthew 19:27
Peter answered him, "We have left everything to follow you!

And look at Paul’s life! He was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, he was a wealthy member of Israel’s ruling class and after his conversion he completely walked away from his old life and began a life of complete service to Jesus.

Jesus said this to the public in general about becoming His disciple:

Luke 14:25-27
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

What does He mean by “carry your cross”… In today’s terms it means “pull your own weight”! And what does this hate your family members business mean?
Jesus is not advocating hating your family members… what He is saying is that “if the devotion you have for Him does not cause everything else that you value or love to pale in comparison” then you are not fit to be His disciple!

So, now…. How is your life as a Christian… as a disciple of Jesus stacking up? I am not telling you to go out and quit your job tomorrow, sell all your possessions and join a monastery… in fact there is a passage that says:


1 Corinthians 7:17
Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.

What God is asking is for you to do is light a fire in your life that causes you to burn for Him wherever you are at, right now… a fire that is to be shared with those around you, with the people that God has placed in your life… And then again for some of you it may mean that He is calling you to change jobs, or something else in your life. But decisions like this need to be made prayerfully and under the guidance and counsel of other Godly men. But what He is not calling you to is to just show up… Showing up at Church, Life Teams or EnFuego does not make you a disciple! That’s not what He is talking about… it is not about living in the church 24/7. Those things can teach you how to be a disciple but it in and of it self they do not make you a disciple any more than putting on shoulder pads and a helmet and sitting on the side lines at a football game makes you a football player. Joyce Meyer is fond of saying “I can sit in my garage all day long and it still won’t make me a car”!

Becoming His disciple is about discovering what it is that He is calling you to, and then doing it… along with spreading his message of salvation… Spreading the message or “evangelism” as we have called it, is the basics of what we are all called to do and it is the very first step in taking your place as His disciple… it is not something you should do… but something he has commanded us to do. It was the last commandment He gave us.

Matthew 28:19-2
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

The rest of your life is to be spent in serving the body of Christ or the Church in helping to teach others how to be disciples. And He provides a dire warning to those who become or remain Historical believers in Jesus and never complete their step of Faith.

Luke 13:6-8
Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'
" 'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it and fertilize it.

Jesus also said:

Matthew 7:19-20
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

So what is fruit? I think Jesus used fruit to illustrate what we should produce in our lives because of the example it provides for us in nature.
In nature fruit is born to a healthy fruit tree. And the fruit that it produces then becomes nourishment for those that are around the tree. And not only does it provide others nourishment but it also has the ability to recreate itself through the seeds that are found inside of it.
So it should be in our lives… we should grow to become mature Christians that are able to nourish others, and through providing nourishment be able to reproduce ourselves in the lives of those that we touch so that those who are nourished by us are able to bear fruit of their own and nourish and reproduce themselves in others and so on. This is what Jesus expects from each of you in this room… Is there fruit that you are bearing so that anyone can look into your life and tell that you are one of His? If we sat down and looked at a typical week for you would we find any evidence of service to Jesus? I am not talking about praying, going to church, Life Teams or reading your Bible… like I said before, those things are all good and should teach and bring you to a place where you can produce fruit, but they are not fruit by themselves!

And it is not just serving for the sake of serving so you can check it off of your list. There are some that are bearing fruit… but its all for show, it’s so that they can look better to others… so they can check it off their list and show others what good Christians they are. But look at the response Jesus has for those with good intentions…

Matthew 7:22-24
Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

These guys not only believed Him but believed in Him enough that they were able to perform miracles… but they did it for their own purposes with out a surrendered heart. They were Historical believers they believed in there mind who and what He was, but not in there heart… they had no devotion to him…

I know that there are many here who are His disciples and still others who are here because they want to find out what it means to become a disciple… that’s why we began EnFuego. Not to create another Bible study, but so that we can begin to disciple men and create a foundation of men… of disciples in this church, that will go out and teach other men how to disciple other men… and to once again turn this world upside down for Jesus before God closes the book on our generation. Before He closes the book on what may very well be the last generation.

Here is how I want to wrap this whole thing up… Robert Smith made an appeal to have some of you men get involved in mentoring and helping the kids he is involved with. And some of you should… But not a single one of you did! I understand that it won’t appeal to every one here... but there are many other ways that each of us can begin bearing fruit in our lives. Every one of us who wears the label of Christian or ‘Disciple’ is called into a life of service to Jesus. I firmly believe that the church that Jesus died for is the same place that He would want you to spend at least a portion of service to Him in. If what Robert Spoke about wasn’t your cup of tea, or God has not called you there… He has still called you! Maybe it isn’t clear to you yet what He has called you to but until it does become clear you need to find somewhere to begin bearing fruit in your life.

For me I began helping making phone calls to people who visit the church to say ‘Hi’ and helping out in the children’s ministry… I never thought that that children’s ministry would be something that God would call me to… but I can tell you at this point after a year of serving there I wouldn’t change it for the world. I truly enjoy it… there may be areas that you have not considered but after trying may find a similar calling in your life.

Justin is going to put a list of suggestions together to share with us next week to give each of you an opportunity to begin bearing fruit in your life… I can tell you right now that the Church has a tremendous need in the children’s department… but, I want (God wants) each of you to prayerfully consider where it is that He is nudging you to and He (God) expects each of the men in this room to become involved somewhere in their life… in serving Jesus.

Not just showing up at church events to get your check mark!

The Despisers Touch

The heaviness of a sleepless night still clouds your mind as the morning sun rises over your shoulder. Even so, the darkness that engulfs you refuses to retreat.

You stare into the corner watching… and just like the love you once shared, the roses you bought her last week dies in silence.

The spaces between seconds becoming an eternity as its pedals drift slowly to the floor just like the black ice dripping from your heart.

The weight of desecrated years rises and falls with each ragged breath.

Gnashing teeth in the pit of your stomach remind you of the hope that died the night before, taking with it what remained of your life. The void left in its absence still fills the room.

The sickeningly sweet aroma of a rotting corpse fills the air as you hear the despiser laugh from behind the roses. He reminds you of the un-forgiveness he wrought, which still lies heavy long after she left.

You move deeper under the covers as you feel his icy finger beginning to crawl up your spine, defenseless to the despair that seeps deeper into your heart with each advance of his touch.

You long for deaths sleep, to hide from the scorn of her un-forgiving heart and escape the searing heat of love’s dying promise.

Unrelenting waves of regret begin to wash over you as you remember the dreams that now lie broken on the floor around you like so many rose petals. The despiser feeds and despair takes over, as you recount her words and the violence she masked behind them.

This world holds nothing more… tomorrows hope can only be found in the promise of His rest… or her forgiveness.

The despisers touch deepens as darkness takes over.

When we Fly

When we Fly!
James Fuller ©

Pawns of chaos rule their life.
Dark skies lay ahead,
They’ve abandoned the light.
The dreams of our fathers
have been laid to waste.
Their legacy lost,
its disgrace they embrace.

We search for tomorrow
We look to the skies
We long for you Jesus
To see the day
When we Fly.
Give us our wings Lord
So we can Fly

In perversion they’re married
God’s law is ignored,
With they’re sins they’re buried.
Two plowing and grinding
And then there is one,
consumed by the darkness,
their fate won’t be undone.

We search for tomorrow
We look to the skies
We long for you Jesus
To see the day
When we Fly.
Give us our wings Lord
So we can Fly

Baleful hands lead them astray,
blindly they follow,
lost, in their wicked ways.
Under clouds of darkness
lie rainbows of light,
a haven for those
who give Jesus their life!

We search for tomorrow
We look to the skies
We long for you Jesus
To see the day
When we Fly.
Give us our wings Lord
So we can Fly

Obama-nomics

My Dad sent me this in an email today. I thought it was a perfect picture of our government today!

Obama-nomics: It is the month of August; a resort town sits next to the shores of a lake. It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It is tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.

Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town. He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 dollar bill on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one.

The hotel proprietor takes the 100 dollar bill and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.

The Butcher takes the 100 dollar bill, and runs to pay his debt to the pig raiser.

The pig raiser takes the 100 dollar bill, and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.

The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 dollar bill and runs to pay his debt to the town's prostitute that in these hard times, gave her "services" on credit.

The hooker runs to the hotel, and pays off her debt with the 100 dollar bill to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there.

The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 dollar bill back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.

At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, and takes his 100 dollar bill, after saying he did not like any of the rooms, and leaves town.

No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt, and looks to the future with a lot of optimism.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how the United States Government is doing business today.

I wish I knew who to give credit to for writing this… it is classic!

The Beginning… was the End, Part II (The Answer)

For the last few years I have struggled immensely with something. I have pretty much kept it to myself because it felt blasphemous to talk about… and most of the answers I have been given from those in the know, just seemed like double talk or rhetoric.

I think the Bible is pretty clear about Gods plan for us, and the predetermined course He has set this world on since before creation… In other words He had an exact idea of who would do what, where and when right down to the minutest detail before the first grain of sand came into existence. It seemed impossible that we could simultaneously have free will and yet each of us follow the exact course for our lives that He has already predetermined… and for years now this has made no sense to me. I have lived my life just chalking it up as a God thing, and remained eternally grateful that He chose to make me one of His, in spite of myself. But this left me with another attitude that bordered on apathy when it came to prayer. Why pray if He already knows what He is going to do anyway? If the outcome is already predetermined then what is the point! I have wrestled God for answers to this for a very long time now, and recently I have had or He has given me an epiphany of sorts, I am not sure which so I will let you be the judge as to where it came from. But it works for me.

I believe whole heartedly that God has indeed set this world on a preset course of His making… and within the framework of this, still allowed for us to decide for ourselves exactly how we want to live. And when we pray to Him He hears us and answers accordingly. Sometimes we get a “yes” and sometimes we get a “no”, but we still get His ear and an answer. But even though He has already decided thousands of years earlier what the answer would be, it is still an answer that is relevant to us and timed for where we are and what we are doing at that moment in time. TIME is the key. Remember that we exist within time… but He exists outside of time. And if we don’t pray we get the luck of the draw or His divine providence… whichever way you want to view it. Because He still answers us according to what we ask or don’t ask for, when we ask Him.

Look at it this way… when we ask Him for something He is here at this very moment in time ready to do for us according to His will and our desire as His children… but simultaneously He is also still at the beginning of creation, planning for what we would ask for (at this moment) knowing in advance that we would ask, and making a provision in His divine framework so that He can answer our prayer at the precise moment we ask. You could view it as praying to God right here and now while at the same time praying to God at the moment He was creating and setting into motion everything that would be within the complex intricacy of how He wanted the world to run. So He really is answering yours/my prayer right now and He is hearing us right now… while still hearing us thousands of year’s earlier, and making preparation for the prayer you would ask so He could make a provision for the answer.

It sounds a little convoluted because it is… but then so is anything that try’s to answer a question that relates to time and it’s existence, while dealing with a Being that does not exist within time and provide some kind of rational answer as to the how and why of its inner working…

I don’t have a Biblical reference for any of what I have shared here. All I have is an answer that satisfies my yearning for understanding when I had none.

I pray it helps you as it has helped me!

Jim

In the beginning… was the end!

Before the first molecule of creation came to be, before time began, everything that would follow was played out in reverse. God knew the end before He ever made the beginning. And He knew what would take place in between it all, right down to the minutest detail.

Psalm 139:15-16: 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, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

He has pre-ordained the moments of our lives right down to the places we would live, and call home.

Acts 17:26 From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.

God created time specifically for us, and therefore He lives outside of it. He exists simultaneously from the beginning to the end and every where in between. I once heard it described as watching a parade. We are on the street watching as it passes by. We can only see what is in front of us and what has already passed us by. But God views the parade from above, where He can simultaneously watch the parade from beginning to end.
I think Solomon understood this, and declared it when he wrote: “That which has been is that which will be, and that which has been done is that which will be done. So there is nothing new under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 1:9.

I also think that some in the early church understood this thought of Gods simultaneous existence in time, and thought or hoped that they could convince God by petition to alter history so that their loved ones who had already passed could be prayed for, and by proxy be baptized and saved.

1 Corinthians 15:28-30 When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?

I don’t believe that God would alter the course of history for them, or anyone else! But then, where does that leave us for our present and our future? If the past is indelibly written in stone, then so must be today, as well as our future! If the course of our life is already written, then where is our choice? In some respects (as it relates to His calling us to be His) we have none. In His sovereignty He decided before it all began, who He was going to call to be His children! But in another sense, just because what is already known has been written, does not mean we did not freely choose for ourselves that which we would do. We all have the choice to be who we want, to be His or not. But none of us have the strength to make the right choice, to choose Him above self, without God first choosing us.

John 6:44 "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…

It is a complete paradox. The Bible tells us that unless He chooses us first, we wouldn’t even pay attention to Him. And if He doesn’t chose us we will first choose ‘self’ over a relationship with Him. Not only that but, not every one He calls will choose Him or be chosen by Him…

Matthew 22:14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

So what is the point of all of this? The point is simple! That which will be has already been, and that which has been, forcefully leads us to that which will be. The only variable in the whole lot of it is your mindset. Choosing to do that which has been decided already or rebelling against that which you have no choice in anyway. You will either choose to do the will of your Father as His child, anticipating with joy that which He has in store for you. Or do as you will, while God molds circumstance or time to conform you to His will.

The difference between the two is interminable. One leads to a loving relationship with the Father who loves you completely for all eternity, while the other gives you exactly what you choose. An eternity spent outside of that relationship, on your own… just as you willed.

Both, in places that are befitting of your choice.

I finally figured out what’s wrong…

I finally figured out what’s wrong…

What the world has become sickens me. From the continual perversion and sexual undertones that I see on TV, to what takes place in the hearts and lives of leaders that govern the land we live in.

We face a continual stream of meaningless wars; that appear to be more of a political tool for the elite than for any real cause. We would rather fight to be politically correct than fight to win… it all seems so lost. There are so many, many things that are wrong it is impossible to focus on any one travesty and look for its cure. It is like trying to offer aspirin to someone dying of a cancer that has riddled their body.

We truly live in the time when people are lovers of themselves, with a fascination for spiritual things without any interest in substance or truth.

I don’t have a message or want to try and offer a cure… I just want to go home… or see home finally come to me.

God must be sick of it too. It can’t be too far away now!

What Lies Below

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.

Significant Insignificance

That’s what we are, right? Significantly insignificant! At least that’s how it feels sometimes.

I read in Psalms where David writes in 1 Samuel; “God who am I that you would bring me and my household this far”, and I am mindful of a line in a popular song today that says; “Who am I that you are mindful of me?” There are many times when I sit out on my front step late at night staring at the stars, contemplating the sheer size of the universe and thinking similar thoughts.

In the context of the universe, we are just one of a billion microbes, living on an insignificant grain of sand on a vast beach, with countless of other billions of grains of sand. How is it that the God of all that is, can even find me in the midst of all the microbes scattered among all the other grains of sand, let alone know me by name and love and care for me! But He says He does! Not only does He know my name, but he knows me so intimately that He has numbered the very hairs on my head…

Luke 12:6-7 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

So even though at times I feel significantly insignificant, God tells me that I am significant to Him. He says that He loves me, and to prove it He laid down His life for me. And, even if I was the only microbe living in the midst of billions of grains of sand… He would still search me out and lay His life down for me, so that we could be together for eternity. And not just for me... it is an open invitation for any one wants to be exclusivly His!

Like the rest of the song says; “I AM A FRIEND OF GODS”, and you can be too!

Do we serve an awesome God or What?

Can you hear God?

I listen to a lot of Christian radio and most of what I hear is sound Biblical teaching. Once in a while (especially with some of the Pentecostal or Full Gospel preachers) I hear a thing or two that make you think; “Awe come on now!” I don’t want to discount what they saw or experienced because I have been witness to more than a few miracles in my own life, and I never want to limit how an all powerful omniscient God has chosen to reveal Himself. But one of the things that I continually hear, is preachers saying; “God told me… or God said.” Not that God can’t or doesn’t speak, I know first hand that God can and does speak audibly to people, but I really question the clarity or frequency with which some say they hear from God.
I am not talking about the still small voice you hear inside yourself nudging you in one direction or another. Or, the way He reveals His will through His word or the strong sense of direction you can have after praying or fasting. But, these guys make it sound like… “This morning, GOD SAID TO ME”… did he really say something to you? Did you physically and audibly hear His voice declaring His will to you? Or was it more of a subtle feeling? I really wish they would make it a little clearer as to the source or manner of their revelation. There have been more than a few times in my life when I could have used God’s clear and audible revelation to help me figure out what was going on… and to hear these clowns continually saying; “God said, or God told me, or my favorite, God told me to tell you”… makes me feel like I am either God’s red headed step child (which I am not) or I really need to question the credibility of their witness. If you feel the need to exaggerate how you hear from God, then what else are you willing to embellish on? Most of these people are the same ones who frequently fall into some unintelligible babble (that by the way Paul told us to keep to ourselves and do in private) and then turn around and frown on me, accusing me of being less of a Christian for not doing the same.

I feel like most of them fall into the same camp Oral Roberts fell into when he said in 1986; “God told me to raise 8 million dollars or He is going to call me home.” After that statement he should have lost all credibility as Gods spokesman! Do you really think the God we serve would threaten us with death over our ability or inability to be a fund raiser?

In the times we are living in I think it is more crucial than ever to closely examine the claims spiritual leaders make. To, analyze and scrutinize the foundation from which they are teaching to determine if it is scripturally sound or not.

Jesus warned us that there would be those who would come amongst us and lead us astray…

Matthew 7:15 "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.

And the reason they can do this, is because no one is verifying what they are teaching. I rarely meet a Christian who has even read the Bible cover to cover even one time… in their lifetime… let alone have a grasp of what the scriptures say. How can you know what God wants from you if you never read the words He uses to speak to you?

Contrary to what some may think, God is not going to stop you on your donkey and appear in a bright cloud of light to tell you His purpose for your life. But He will reveal Himself to those who diligently seek Him. And by the way, He can and does speak to us. If He has something to say and that is the only way it can be said, trust me He will do it… but it is not the norm!

The number one way each of us can hear Gods voice and also be protected against false teachers and wolves in sheep’s clothing is to pick up Gods word (daily) and determine for yourself what God is telling you…

…and if He has anything more to say after that, I am sure He will find a way to tell you.

Everything is not what it seems!

Have you ever seen the movie the Matrix?

If you have not, you need to. And while watching it, view it through the eyes of the nomadic Christian that represents our earthly existence. I think if the apostle Peter was here today he would make it required viewing for every Christian.

I believe this movie is the closest example mankind has ever created to show the reality of our eternal existence in relationship to this temporary home we call earth. My favorite part is when Morpheus introduces Neo to the concept of the Matrix. He tells him that the Matrix is not something someone can explain to you, it is something you must discover for yourself! Ultimately, Neo discovers that the world that he and everyone one else is living in is the façade which hides the reality of the prison that he and everyone else exists in. That, the control everyone believes they exercise over the course of their life is completely manipulated by the master that enslaves them. The concept of the Matrix is the perfect parallel to the life we live under the shadow of eternity.

This leads me to my point... I am completely convinced that we live in a time that was foretold of long ago. A time where God will soon shut down the Matrix and in an instant, all of us will discover the true reality of our existence. There is an odd feeling of something winding down or rapidly coming to a close.

Can you feel it, or is it just me? Isn’t there an impending sense of “Change” in the air? Not the sense of change our false messiah the ‘O’ man has offered us, but a change that is occurring all over the world. And even if you are only half awake, surely you can see that which Paul warned Timothy of in 2 Timothy 3:1-7 happening today in a lot of the churches that fly the banner of “Christian”.

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Paul’s warning to Timothy was a warning to watch for this attitude in the church, not the world. This type of person did then, does now and always will exist in the world… but it is a new attitude which you can readily find in our churches today.

We live in a time when world leaders are feverously rushing at a frenzied pace to create a worldwide monetary unit under a centralized system of government. And the last hold out… us, you and I… the good ole’ US of A, have sold our birthright of freedom and autonomy to a false messiah who on the surface has promised to be our savior of change, when in reality he is the secret agent of change that the true leaders of this world have groomed to usher you and I… the good ole’ US of A, hog tied into their New World Order. What we are facing today predates the Ford and Carter administrations, but under their watch became very organized… and today the fruit of their efforts is coming to fruition! This monetary crisis, the fluctuating price of food and oil, this newest distraction “The Swine Flu” and so much more are all tools to distract us from the real problem we face, the stripping away of our freedom and rights as Americans. They are conditioning us to accept the shearer’s knife and to remain oblivious as his knife moves ever closer to our throat!

The link below is to a ‘You Tube’ video clip that is an hour and 53 minutes long… you can verify every claim it makes. Afterwards, like Morpheus said to Neo in the Matrix; “This is your last chance, you take the blue pill and the story ends… you wake up in the Matrix and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill and you will begin to see reality… and I will show you just how deep the rabbit hole goes!”

Watch the clip below… it truly is the “Red Pill!”

Here is a link to the clip you can open or copy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAaQNACwaLw

Or you can watch it in the embedded link below.




…and go rent or buy a copy of the first Matrix, and watch or re-watch it. It really will open your eyes to a new way of thinking, the same way of worldview thinking that Jesus managed to impress upon His disciples. Neo was no more or less alive after he woke up, than he was before... but what he lived for and the way he lived were radically changed after he knew the truth!

The Healing Power of Pain

When I was much younger I discovered that I could burn the itch out of Mosquito bites in the shower by scalding the bite with super hot water. And if I gave it a prolonged burn, there was an added bonus of the welt disappearing not long after the shower ended. At first the hot water hurt but after a few seconds the water began to scratch the itch in such wonderful ways that my finger nails never could, without damaging my skin. I have since gone on to use hot shower water to scratch almost every itch that I can not reach and most that I can. It is amazing how effective it is. The hotter the water the better it scratches the itch.

As I said earlier the hot water hurts at first, but it soon becomes soothing and enjoyable. And when I reduced the temperature of the water to what previously felt hot it now felt cold. And what felt warm to me now was too hot for most people to endure.

There are many parallels in life to this. When God allows us to struggle and endure prolonged pain, if we receive it properly it becomes therapeutic. And afterwards, we emerge from the trial stronger and able to endure more than we could have previously. From this we are able to help others who are going through similar trials and give them hope beyond their moment of pain.

Receive the trials you endure with an expectation of victory and let God use the pain He allows in your life to mold you into the vessel He can use.

James 1:2-4 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

What If?

What if we lived under a sky with the heavens opened up for all to see?
What if we could see angels and demons moving in and around us as we carried out our daily lives?
What if you could see God physically watching your every move and gauging your motives for the things you do?
What if Jesus physically was within an arms reach to provide answers and guidance as we walk through this world?

WHAT IF?

Would you live your life differently than you do now?

Every day we walk under a real heaven that exists somewhere above us! It is a real physical place even though we can’t see it. We live in America and most of us have never seen nor will we see Russia, but we don’t act as if it isn’t there. We know that it exists somewhere across the ocean and we live our life accordingly.

There are physical virtual wars between angels and demons fighting for our souls that take place in and around us every day. Just as there are soldiers defending our freedom all over the world, even though we have never met or have seen them fight on our behalf. But we don’t pretend it isn’t happening.

God really does see all of what you do and why you do it… and will one day rewind your life so that you can watch it together. And when the epic tale ends He will either reward you for the things you have done in His sons name or punish you for the things you have done in your own.

And Jesus really is within reach to all who will reach out to Him. He is there with answers and guidance to everything that you will face in this world. He lovingly places our feet into the footsteps He left behind to lead and guide us home.

One day we will see all these things and more. One day we will see things as they really are. But just because we don’t see the reality of what is happening around us everyday doesn’t mean that it isn’t happening.

We wake up every day expecting there to be enough air for us to breath so that we can live another day, even though we never physically see, feel or taste it.

It is the same with Jesus, we never physically see, feel or touch Him, but He is there all the same; showing us the way until the day we are finally home.

An open letter from God…

People of earth… my children.

As God and as your Father my heart is breaking!

I have loved every one of you from the beginning, and will continue to love you until the very end. I have known each of you by name since the dawn of time, everyone which has drawn breath; even those you have murdered before their first breath was drawn… yet most of you have not known me. Since your first day of life I have called you. From your darkest hour to your greatest moment, in times of quiet solitude to the throng of voices that clamor for your attention, I call you. I have lovingly withheld my hand of righteous judgment against you, giving you every opportunity to hear my still small voice and come to me. But still you ignore me. You deny or ignore my existence, while my creation screams it from the very rocks. And still I love you; all of you!

You are surrounded by so many voices telling you; “this is the way, follow me.” And because they tell you what you want to hear, you listen. But, it is not my words they speak. I have already given you all that I intend to say! What I have spoken is truth, verified through time and history. Truth you can confirm with what has been given you. I have placed at your fingertips ways to confirm My words, which no generation before you have had access to… if you would but only look. You know in your heart, that there is more to life than what you see; it is confirmed by the emptiness in your own heart and the shattered dreams that lay around you because of the times you are living in. Yet you fill the void with everything you can find except the truth I offer.

There are two sides to the world in which you live, the one you see and the one you have yet to see. We are separated, you and I, by a chasm of sin. From the moment of your very first sin you could no longer enter the other world that I offer to you. Each and every one of you has sinned… in ways great and small you have violated my Holy and perfect law and it has separated you from Me, and because you can not save yourselves I sent my son ‘Jesus” to die in your place, to pay the price for your sin. He is the gatekeeper of the doorway to the world I have given you. He is the only one who holds the key… He is the only way in. He stands at an open door to all who will bow before Him and choose to serve Me above their own need or desires. His story, His purpose and the pathway to the world I offer can be found in the words contained in the Holy book I have given you. Read it… then use that which I have given you to verify the truth that it proclaims. In the age you live you are without excuse. Every one either serves Me or serves something else… that is the choice every one must make. Choosing not to choose is still a choice, you will either serve Me or you won’t, there is nothing in between! I am your true Father… and those who choose to serve Me are my adopted children, to them I offer eternal love, peace and life. To everyone else, by default you have chosen to serve the father of lies and to spend eternity in the prison I have created for him and those who follow him.

I have stood at the door of your hearts and knocked since the first generation of your ancestors has walked my planet. But, the time of waiting is drawing to a close, My patience has worn thin. You tolerate and even embrace that which I hate. You are a perverse and wicked people. Your hearts chase after Sodom and Gomorrah, you have lain down with whore of Babylon. The blood of those she has martyred cries out and soon it will soon be time to balance the scales.

Now is the time, today is the day. Answer me while it is still called today. There is not one of you I will not forgive, none who is so far away that I can not reach; I will receive each and every one of you who come to me, with arms held open wide.

But for those who choose 'self' over me, soon you will find that there is no where you can hide from my wrath, none who can escape.

Answer my call while you still have time!

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.

Who Do You Think I Am?

This is from an email my father sent me... very interesting!

Who Do You Think I Am?

I was born in one country, raised in another. My father was born in another country. I was not his only child. He fathered several children with numerous women. I became very close to my mother, as my father showed no interest in me. My mother died at an early age from cancer.

Later in life, questions arose over my real name. My birth records were sketchy and no one was able to produce a legitimate, reliable birth certificate. I grew up practicing one faith but converted to Christianity, as it was widely accepted in my country, but I practiced non-traditional beliefs & didn't follow Christianity, except in the public eye under scrutiny. I worked and lived among lower-class people as a young adult, disguising myself as someone who really cared about them. That was before I decided it was time to get serious about my life and I embarked on a new career.

I wrote a book about my struggles growing up. It was clear to those who read my memoirs that I had difficulties accepting that my father abandoned me as a child. I became active in local politics in my 30s then with help behind the scenes. I literally burst onto the scene as a candidate for national office in my 40s. They said I had a golden tongue and could talk anyone into anything. That reinforced my conceit.

I had a virtually non-existent resume, little work history, and no experience in leading a single organization. Yet I was a powerful speaker and citizens were drawn to me as though I was a magnet and they were small roofing tacks. I drew incredibly large crowds during my public appearances. This bolstered my ego. At first, my political campaign focused on my country's foreign policy. I was very critical of my country in the last war and seized every opportunity to bash my country. But what launched my rise to national prominence were my views on the country's economy. I pretended to have a really good plan on how we could do better and every poor person would be fed & housed for free. I knew which group was responsible for getting us into this mess. It was the free market, banks & corporations.

I decided to start making citizens hate them and if they were envious of others who did well, the plan was clinched tight. I called mine "A People's Campaign" and that sounded good to all people. I was the surprise candidate because I emerged from outside the traditional path of politics & was able to gain widespread popular support. I knew that, if I merely offered the people 'hope', together we could change our country and the world.

So, I started to make my speeches sound like they were on behalf of the downtrodden, poor, ignorant to include "persecuted minorities" like the Jews. My true views were not widely known & I needed to keep them unknown, until after I became my nation's leader. I had to carefully guard reality, as anybody could have easily found out what I really believed, if they had simply read my writings and examined those people I associated with. I'm glad they didn't. Then I became the most powerful man in the world. And the world learned the truth.
Who am I?

ADOLF HITLER.

WHO DID YOU THINK I MEANT?

Nemesis

Nem●e●sis (noun): a bitter enemy, especially one who seems unbeatable.

There are two sides to the definition of ‘nemesis’.

As a Christian the first example that comes to mind and fits this definition is our archenemy Satan. The Bible tells us in 1 Peter 5:8 that, your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. That ‘someone’ is anyone who stands on the side of righteousness, anyone who stands with God. And Jesus tells us in Luke 11:23 "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.” So that would make anyone who has not chosen a side or anyone that has chosen the other side, an enemy of God and us.

But there is another example that fits this definition… one that probably escapes the grasp of most. Not because they can’t, but because they have been conditioned to see it from a singular point of view.

We too are the Nemesis!

Look at it again… “a bitter enemy”! That is what we are to Satan and those who stand with him… The remaining part says, “especially one who seems unbeatable”! Not only do we seem unbeatable to him, WE ARE! We are held protected in the very hand of God. In 2 Thessalonians 3:3 Paul tells us, “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one”. So even if Satan wanted to destroy us (and he does) he is held in restraint. And God has given us more than just protection. He has given us the power to overcome.

Luke 10:19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.

God never intended for us to cower in a corner and wait for Him to return. In fact he expects quite the opposite. He has given us his spiritual armor and weapons to destroy the strongholds of the enemy and to take this world for Jesus. But Satan has lulled so many of us into a state of complacency, we are perfectly happy just living with status quo. God forbid that we should step out of our comfort zone and actually begin the work of gathering with Jesus. And because we don’t gather with Him, we run the risk of becoming one who scatters… one who does not stand with, but against Him. Like the song says if you choose not to choose, still you have made a choice.

So today what do you choose? Will you choose to be the Nemesis, or cower before the Nemesis we face?

Joshua 24:15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."

The Cost of Service!

I remember reading the Bible to my then 6 year old. A bedtime ritual we had. That night’s story happened to fall on Abraham and Isaac found in Genesis 22. After we read it and said our prayers I could tell that my son was troubled, but he said nothing. I kissed him and started for the door and he said: “Daddy?” I turned around and he asked; “Why did the dad want to kill his son?

What do you say?

How do you explain the concept of obedience to God that supersedes the love for your family, to a six year old?

I did the best I could… (All the while fervently praying for the right words) and it seemed to satisfy him because when I was done he said; Ok Daddy, kissed me and rolled over to go to sleep.

He got it… all of it. He understood the horror of what Abraham was going to do… and why he was going to do it, but how many of us get it?

Have you ever really thought about what Abraham had to do… what he did? I doubt camping with dad was ever going to be the same again. There wasn’t a whole lot of detail in those moments before the intended sacrifice, but it doesn’t take much imagination to figure it out. The Bible says Isaac was questioning him along the way as to where the sacrificial animal was. And it also says; “Abraham bound him.” So I don’t think Isaac was a willing sacrifice, he was a young teenager and fully aware of his circumstances… He was probably freaking out that his dad was intending to kill him. Put yourself in Abrahams shoes, imagine his breaking heart as he bound his son, whom I am sure he loved more than his own life (I know I love my children that way) as Isaac was screaming, struggling and crying with a look of fear and bewilderment in his eyes while his father methodically began to take his life. I would have been weeping uncontrollably every step of the way! And the price God demanded of him did not stop there. I doubt Abraham was truthful with Sarah about his intentions for this very special camping trip… What God asked him to do not only broke his heart because of what he had to do to his son, but upon returning to the inevitable confrontation with Sarah, he lost both his wife (Sarah) and his son (Isaac). At the end of Chapter 22 we see that Abraham stayed in Bersheeba, Genesis 22:19. And at the beginning of Chapter 23 we see that Sarah was living in and died in Kiriath Arba Genesis 23:2 , which is about 20 miles south of Bersheeba. And that Isaac was living in the Negev in Beer Lahai Roi, which is about another 30 miles south of where his mother lived in Kiriath Arba… but after dad went and got Isaac a wife he didn’t go back to dad, but instead went to live where his mother had been, in her tents (she had her own residence) instead of with dad in Bersheeba, Genesis 24:62-67. And when dad (Abraham) died it says that he and Ishmael buried him with Sarah and that he was living in Beer Lahai Roi, Genesis 25:7-12. If you follow the bouncing ball between all of these verses you will see that the price Abraham paid for his obedience to God was everything that he loved on this earth.

Abraham was blessed by God again after Sarah… In Chapter 25 it says he took another wife and that he went on to have another dozen or so kids, but…

… Was it worth it?

He is the father of the Islamic and both the Jewish and Christian faiths. He is the beginning of all that we know of God…

It makes me wonder; and sheds new light on Luke 14:26. How serious was Jesus when he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple..

Does God demand all of us… even if he never requires it? I would tell you unequivocally that the answer is yes.

So where does that leave you?

If God asked the same of you, how would you respond? Where do your loyalties lie?

I fear that in these last days… be it years, months, weeks or days, that each of us that calls our selves “Christian” will be faced with this looming question. We are once again going to face what the Christians in Nero’s gardens faced, persecution… are you ready? Do you really believe what you say you believe? Are you willing to put yours or your families life on the line to prove it?

I will close with the true story of a tight rope walker.

This gentleman had many times walked a tight rope over the Niagara Falls, and on this occasion after walking the span he asked the audience if they thought he could do it pushing a wheel barrel with a sack of potatoes in it. The crowd responded with cheers of encouragement, because they knew he could. When he reached the other side he asked the crowd if they thought he could do it again while pushing a man… they responded with even louder cheers of encouragement… until he started looking for volunteer’s…

So I ask again. How about you?

Will you climb into Gods wheel barrel, or are you just one of the crowd that is caught up in the moment?

5, 4, 3, 2…

Isn’t that what it feels like right now? That we’re in the last stages of a countdown some where between 2 and 1… zero is right around the corner, and the bottom is about to fall out. I hear stories of brokers collapsing in fear at the end of the day in the NYSE when the bell rings. People all across the world have watched family fortunes that have been around for centuries simply evaporate overnight. Some say we have seen this before, but I beg to differ. Never before have we seen such global fear and trepidation as banks all across the world teeter on the edge and then collapse like dominos. We are feverously trying to pull money out of one pocket and stuff it in another before the next domino falls… hoping and praying that there will be another dollar to pull out… that the well doesn’t run dry before we can fool the masses into believing everything will be alright, if we would all just wantonly spend again. That we should all just keep robbing from our children so we can keep the facade alive one more year… One more month… One more day!

Long ago we took rationalism and reason out to the wood shed and executed them… The party must go on! Lets all party like its 1999! Lascivious greed and a hunger for more and more power has consumed our world leaders… and we the sheep turn a blind eye because they promise to give us a slice of what they take!

Years ago I was running a Lexus dealership and the owner hired a man who was a known thief to run the Toyota store next to mine. I tried to warn him, tried to make him aware of the peril he was in… but he pushed me off. He looked me in the eye and told me; “He may be a thief, but I have made more money with him than I have ever made before… so he can keep what he is stealing.” Many months later he made him a partner in another franchise and gave him even freer reign. Years later, when the bubble finally burst the owner lost the franchise he had partnered in with this person and the cost to clean up the mess was in the millions…

I see it happening again! But this time it is on a far larger scale and the stakes are much higher. We face losing all that we have… all that we are… all that there is. The train that we are riding is teetering on the edge of derailment and the momentum it carries has made it unstoppable…

And still, we keep the party going…

There is no one who will be spared the pain from the impending crash we face. Hope will be lost and none will escape! But there will be a lull in the storm, the eye of the hurricane will briefly pass over us. As it is predicted; “A savior for the world will rise up!” The world will blindly follow where he leads because we think he has the answers we seek.

The party will begin again…

But this party will be the final hurrah! The last ball will drop from Times Square for the party to end all parties… will you be there?

Where will God find you when He calls the marker on this world?

… Who will you be following?

Matthew 24:37-39 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.

The train tracks are shaking can you here Him roll… the whistles blowing, its time to pay the toll! Jesus is coming with ten thousands on high… the time has come for our resurrection ride!

Do you have your ticket in hand?

HOPE

1 Peter 3:15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.

Hope!

It is a word that has been used a lot lately.

During this last election a certain individual rode the coat tails of hope all the way to the top! It still remains to be seen what he will do with the hype… I mean hope that the people who supported him believed he offered. Though, I believe the ‘o’ he hung over the ‘y’ is beginning to wear thin.

Where does your hope lie, or with whom?

Hope is the fuel we use to believe that there will be a better tomorrow, and without it there’s no reason for a tomorrow, only the depressing thought of another day just like the other ones. If you ask a hundred people what they hope for you will get a hundred different answers and I am certain that the vast majority of those limping through life on psychiatric drugs to offset depression really suffer from a lack of hope… depression is only a symptom.

Hope and faith are closely related. Here is the definition found on Wikipedia.

Hope is a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life.

Faith is the confident belief in the truth of or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing.

What it boils down to is who or what have you placed your hope in. What happens to your dream for tomorrow is directly related to the hope that is within you. If your hope is firmly rooted in the here and now… in some one or something that is part of what will one day pass, then one day your hope for tomorrow will pass too, it will become another day just like the one before it.

But, there is one who offers true Hope with a capital ‘H’. Not hope in what happens tomorrow, but for what happens when tomorrow is no more. For some of us there will come a day when the hope, success, fears and pain we experience in this world will be a distant memory on the horizon. When the sun has risen on an eternal sky a million years from now the memory of this earth will be as distant as kindergarten is to an aged man. But, what about the rest of us… What about you? Is your hope born by the back of one who offers hype? Or is it on the eternal promise that Jesus offers?

Where, or in who hope, or faith lies, is the only thing that will matter when all hope for this world is lost… when there is no tomorrow. For all of us, that day may be coming a lot sooner than later.

Ask God today for the hope he offers you in Jesus, while there is still time! He is listening and waiting even as you read this... what are you waiting for?

Jesus says:

Revelation 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

Psalm 23:6 And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Put another log on the fire.

Can you remember the excitement of your first kiss? Do you remember how excited you were in anticipation of your wedding night? How about the first time you drove a car alone, or driving your first brand new car off the showroom floor?

I remember buying a Toyota Supra with the white package (White car, white trim, white alloy wheels and blue leather with a Targa top). I felt so cool in that car! I distinctly remember driving it home the night I bought it thinking; “I will never get tired driving this car”.

I will be married 13 years this Wednesday, and I remember thinking after our wedding that nothing could come between my wife and me…

But in my marriage, just like the Supra, I had to wash it and change the oil… and my first set of tires OMGosh were they expensive! It became work to own it, just like it has sometimes been work to stay married. I love my wife with all my heart… but there are times when I have not been in love with her. And yes, I eventually came to see my beautiful Supra as just another car and my wife as the woman I married.

How about our relationship with Jesus? I remember when I first realized just what being a Christian was. The Love God had for me and the Love I had for Him… I sometimes felt, I mean really physically felt the Love of God coursing through my body. When I would see Him move or work in front of me it blew me away…

But just like my marriage and just like the Supra… without work, with out effort without consciously deciding everyday to reaffirm and live my life for Him… it can so easily become something I do instead of something I am…

I can’t wait for the day when I can see Him face to face, to spend time alone with Him in some meadow in Heaven, and get all the answers to “Why”. Sometimes my belief in that happening is all that keeps me putting one foot in front of the other. I pray that I can finish like Paul did and say that I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I will hear Him say… “Well done, come in and rest a while”.

But we still have to get through today, and tomorrow and every tomorrow beyond that, that He gives us.

Does He still burn or did He ever burn that bright in your life?

Ask God to light or relight your fire!

He wants to be all that you desire… and He wants to posses all that you are, and until we can get to the point where HE alone is the source for the flame and not our wives, our cars, our houses our careers or what ever it is that floats your boat, then serving Him will get old and worn out just like the things that we own.

And we will finish the race in last place… or maybe we won’t even finish at all!

The Solitaire Game

I have a Solitaire game on my Palm Pilot that is the Solitaire game from Hell! I have it set on Vegas rules and there is a flaw in the way it deals the deck. Regardless of how many cards remain to be flipped (1,2 or 3) when the last of the remaining three cards is flipped before rotating the deck, it starts the next round with the last card that was showing before the deck turned over. It makes it almost impossible to beat. Sometimes I wonder why I even play it. But deep down I know why I keep on playing.

The first reason is that I enjoy a good challenge, especially if the deck is stacked against me. If something is easily won then it isn’t worth playing for. I quickly become bored with anything I can easily beat.

The second reason is that it reminds me so much of life. We play and play and play, each time starting over thinking; “This time I can do it, this time I will win”, and once in a while we do. We step up to the plate time after time and swing with all our might trying to knock it out of the park… but we hardly ever hit the ball, let alone knock it out of the park.

Many people are perfectly content to play life safe. They rarely if ever step out on a limb or take a chance that may cost them something, and will never roll the dice on what can cost them everything. They sit around saying; “I hope my ship comes in before the dock rots.” Just Kidding… I’m not knocking the idea of playing it a little safe, but I get bored on the dock. I would much rather take a chance with the sharks and go swimming every day trying to find the ship rather than wait for it to come to me. I have many times rolled the dice to start a new business or try something different occupationally. I have never been content with status quo and would absolutely die if I was stuck in a routine job, regardless of how much it paid. I have always been confident in my abilities and I am not afraid to get up and start over if I land on my back. But just like the game of solitaire on my Palm Pilot, I've had to get up off my back and start over more than a few times… sometimes I won big, sometimes I just got by and yes sometimes I landed flat on my back. But that’s what makes life interesting.

I firmly believe that you haven’t failed until you quit trying and the only thing worse than losing is quitting… the second worse thing is not even trying.

In Matthew 25:14-30 Jesus tells us a story about a rich man who goes on a trip and entrusts some of his money with his servants. His desire is for them to put the money to work so that when he comes back they will return his money with interest. All of the servants did this but one. And the one that didn’t do it, the one that buried it in the dirt and played the ultimate game of ‘playing it safe’… he cursed. I know Jesus was using this parable as an illustration of our lives and how we invest or squander them, but just as in the illustration the servants had to risk something to get a return. Our lives are the same way… we can end the same way we began and live our life with out any risk, but you will never do or be anything great. Or, we can take a chance and try and do something fantastic… and if we are doing it for the right reasons we can let God worry about the outcome. He never said that we wouldn’t fall. He said He would be there to catch us when we do.

I really like what Helen Keller said:

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, everything else is a lesson.
Helen Keller (paraphrased)

God doesn’t give us what we can handle; God helps us handle what we are given!

What Doesn’t Matter!

I have been going through a period of trial for some time now.
On the whole I would like to believe that I have walked this valley as Christ would have wanted! But if the truth be told, many times I have found myself wallowing in resentment and anger. But there have also been times where I know I have stepped in His footsteps. This morning was one of those times.


In my morning devotions I did something I don’t recommend and rarely do myself. I asked God to PLEASE speak to me in my situation and give me some insight and guidance and then I let my Bible fall open where it may and read it, hoping to hear God speak to me… and He did! It wasn’t some new revelation, but a reminder of that which I already knew, the same attitude and insight that has carried me so many miles through this valley.

It came from, 1 Peter Chapter 4. You can click on the link and read it for your self, but here is a synopsis of what I believe He showed me.

Jesus (God) became a man. And as 'God', allowed the body He inhabited to suffer torture and punishment at the hands of man. He did not consider anything He would endure (good or bad) in this temporary vessel (His/our Bodies) as significant in comparison to His purpose on earth. Another way you could say it is, what happens to Him/us while in this body doesn't really matter. And He tells us we should have the same attitude. An attitude of total devotion to Gods will regardless of what happens to us, because one day we will give an account to God as to how we have used the moments he has given us while in this body.

He has empowered each of us with specific gifts that allow Him to literally reach out from Heaven through us, and touch those people He has placed in our lives, so that through our mouths the ‘VERY WORDS OF GOD’ can be spoken by us to draw others to Himself. And just as Jesus demonstrated, we should sacrificially give all that we are (that means with everything we have) totally, completely and exclusively for this purpose. Everything in our lives should revolve around this. One of my favorite verses in the whole Bible sums this thought up in a single sentence:

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.

“And what”; do you ask can we expect in return for our faithful and loyal service in this endeavor? We can expect to suffer! Suffer at the hands of both man and Satan. He calls it a, “Painful Trial”. And regardless of the Trail or the Pain, we are to hold steadfast to our commitment in serving Him. But, that is not all that we can expect. He has promised us a crown of life in Heaven for our loyal service while here on this earth. Paul, understanding the immense reward waiting for him in Heaven said:

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.

And I don’t believe any MAN has suffered more for the Gospel than Paul did.

Like I said in an earlier post…

He never said it would be easy, He said it would be worth it!