I wanted to post some of the message I heard this morning from Chip Ingram on his daily radio show. I find his insight to be intellectually stimulating and certainly thought provoking and that causes me to think past the usual recesses of my mind and delve into areas I often neglect..Often times things that seem so simple can also be very profound..The idea that certain thoughts can trigger an avalanche of "light bulb" moments or those moments that cause you to say to yourself.."wow" that is big.. That is my reaction to today's message..not something that was truly brand new but delivered in such a way that all the circles came together..
Faith..What is genuine faith? How do we know? Most of say we have Faith but when faced with very difficult situations or problems we "project"...ie..we say to ourselves..OMG..how am I going to handle this..Oh no, I will be ___________. something along these lines..Now I am not saying everyone, but this is often true for me..I find myself worrying(worrying is anti Faith)..feeling anxiety over looming issues and simply getting out of sync with God because of earthly issues..jobs, money, illness, debt, deadlines, appointments,relationships, political issues, etc..this list is just to name a few..
I would submit that Genuine Faith does not project..Does not worry..feels no anxiety..Now as I write this I am saying to myself..Is it possible to work our way thru life and not worry, not feel anxiety and not project..but when you really think about this, and you ponder the possibility of being able, you are limiting a HOLY, ALL POWERFUL GOD..Who is capable of whatever He desires..Genuine Faith is a Belief in that which is NOT SEEN but to the degree that doubt has no room..Doubt is the enemy against faith and tries to crumble the Faith we have..
God allows "life" to happen as it does to strengthen us..To refine us..to mold us
1. What can I control? My attitude..My attitude is all I can really control and that means how I choose to view any given circumstance or situation, trial or triumph..
2. What do I do? Endure..God calls us to endure..Paul says to run the race as to win the prize..Endurance is built..You can run a marathon unless you train for it..Endurance for God requires training as well..Real life training..Tribulation produces perseverance, perseverance character, character hope and Hope does not disappoint..
3. What Hope do I have for tomorrow? If you cooperate wit God, He will take the worse part of life and use it for good, for His glory..but you must cooperate..That means when being refined by God's hand, you allow that process to be. You are not to try and circumvent the Sovereign Hand of God.. God is performing a work in us..with one goal in mind..To make us Christ Like..James 1:3-4 says "3for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
See...God is perfecting you as you endure the trials of life, into a more perfect creation until the day He calls you home and completes that work into perfection..
4. How does it work? First, this forces a greater dependence on God to new levels..Second it slowly weens us from the world. It helps us to evaluate our priorities and values in life..slowly things that once mattered just do not matter anymore..If the stock market crashes, or the economy falls into a recession, or a job is lost..Your focus moves away from the earthly ideals and narrows itself on the eternal perspective.. Thirdly, trials allows us to witness 1st hand the power and grace of God. We experience Him more and begin to get closer and closer to Him because we can see and feel the saving Grace and His provision for our lives..If you can just imagine that time after time, God's faithfulness shines thru what that does to your Faith..How endurance is built up..by simply allowing God's provisions and sovereignty to play out..as He so wills..and lastly...adversities serve as testimonies to the unbelieving world..Our reactions and attitudes toward life circumstances depict our TRUST and FAITH in Christ..The most inspiring thing for me to see even as a believer is another believer enduring in Christ, Trusting in Christ amidst some of the most horrific situations one can imagine..ie..Cancer stricken bodies, loss of children suddenly and unexpectedly, loss of loved ones....When this is in plain view for me to see and experience, I say to myself..I want Faith like that..I want to Trust so explicitly that my life is constantly praising the Holy Sovereign Lord I claim to follow, no matter the storm, no matter the season..even unto my last breathe here in this world..
So..the meaning behind all this was to say..ENDURE..Let the Refiner refine..the Molder mold..be the clay in the Potter's hand..and allow the work in you that Christ has started to be perfected so that you "lack nothing." Faith in this process is the real deal..Genuine..
Eddie
(Chip Ingram)
How He Loves _ Dave Crowders Band
He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree, Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy. When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory, And I realise just how beautiful You are, And how great Your affections are for me. And oh, how He loves us so, Oh how He loves us, How He loves us all Yeah, He loves us, Oh! how He loves us, Oh! how He loves us, Oh! how He loves. We are His portion and He is our prize, Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes, If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking. And Heaven meets earth like an unforseen kiss, And my heart turns violently inside of my chest, I don’t have time to maintain these regrets, When I think about, the way…
A small article towards the back of a People magazine told the story of a little girl named Ashlyn.(1) She was described as an incredibly happy child, eager and energetic. According to her mother, Ashlyn has the best laugh in the world, and according to her kindergarten teacher, she fearlessly goes headfirst into everything. In many ways she is a typical, lovable five year-old. But Ashlyn is one of only 50 people in the world with a genetic condition that leaves her unable to feel pain. She can feel touch and be tickled, but she cannot sense pain or extreme temperatures.
Ashlyn's parents are used to being asked why such a condition is daunting news at all. Their reply is one racked with the sting of experience: Pain is there for a reason. When she was a toddler, they had to wrap her with athletic tape because of all the damage she was causing to limbs that knew no fear. She has knocked eight teeth out and dug a hole in her eye without shedding a tear. She once came in from outside proclaiming she couldn't get the dirt off her skin. But it wasn't dirt. Ashlyn was covered with hundreds of biting fire ants.
It is hard to read such a story without coming away with the difficult conclusion that pain is necessary. Imagine not knowing when you have scalded your mouth on a hot meal or bit your tongue so badly that it bled. Imagine your child reaching out for the flickering light of a candle and not having the pain of burned fingers to reinforce your scolding plea not to play with fire.
The great majority of our philosophical frustration about pain is aimed at asking why a loving God would allow it in the first place. And yet, the closing lines of Ashlyn's story were the words of a heartbroken parent: "I would give anything, absolutely anything, for Ashlyn to feel pain."(2) Pain is the body's signal for danger, however severe or slight. It is a navigating force through unknown corridors of life, without which we find ourselves numb to reality, robbed of caution, and disoriented to the world. "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pain," says C.S. Lewis.
There is no doubt something wonderful about the thought of pain removed and eyes wiped dry. We are rightly comforted by the image of heaven as the place where God will wipe away every tear from our eyes. There is indeed much hope in the promise that there will one day "be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Revelation 21:4). But perhaps there is also something wonderful about a God who gives us pain as a guide, an orienteer, a loud speaker.
There is a line uttered by the psalmist that has been comforting to my grandmother through many years. To God the psalmist confesses, "You have kept count of my tossings, put my tears in your bottle" (Psalm 56:8, ESV). Tear-bottles were small urns of glass or pottery, created to collect the tears of mourners at the funeral of a loved one, and placed in the sepulchers at Rome and in Palestine where bodies were laid to rest. In some ancient tombs these bottles are found in great numbers, collecting tears that were shed with great meaning.
Perhaps equally comforting as knowing God will one day wipe away every tear from our eyes is the thought that God does not see our pain here as a pointless or empty occurrence. Just as our tears will be tended to in eternity, the psalmist reminds us that so our tears on earth do not go unnoticed. Our pain is not haphazardly viewed by the one who made tear ducts that spill over with grief and anguish. God has kept count of our sorrowful struggling; each tear is recorded as pain steeped with meaning. Like a parent grieving at a child's wound, God reaches out to you in—perhaps even through—your pain, speaking gently into your heightened sense of awareness. And with the Son who wept at the grave of Lazarus, God collects your tears in his bottle until the day when tears will be no more.
Jill Carattini is managing editor of A Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia.
37 Years ago today, God saw fit to bring me into this world and begin a journey with me that has seen the highest of mountain tops and the lowest of valley's.. I have managed to mess up more things than I ever thought possible growing up as a young boy, searching for identity and purpose in life..So today I wanted to reflect on my journey and how thru God's overflowing Grace in my life has allowed to me get here, right here where I am..
One thing is for sure in this life... I believe I have finally figured out after many years of pain and heartache, misdirection and wasted time...that my life is not my own and "if it is to be it is up to me" is the worse piece of advice or Mantra I could have ever subscribed to..I spent most of my adult life living under this principle and strive very hard trying to be the best I could be..being told "I" can make it happen..If I will just work hard and never give up..So while I was able to acquire possessions and money and all that money could afford me, I found myself spiraling out of control..losing my integrity, my waywardness and just being LOST..Mind you during all this time I was going to church...I was trying to be a good guy...doing right by those around me..UNTIL I slipped into darkness and found myself in the grasp of a mighty foe in Satan and he had deceived me into believing all this and ran my life right off the tracks..or as some would say from the south "ran this bus off in a dirt road." Satan had convinced me that "I" should have whatever I want.. "I" deserve the best..after all I worked hard for it..So slowly but ever so shrewdly I began to trade in all my thoughts of others and only think of myself..and did not really see the consequences of such decisions and beliefs till after the damage had been inflicted on those I cared about or claimed to love..There came a day in my life when I was all "I"cared about..I mean I would not blatantly say that but boy was it evident in my actions and decisions I was making..
I could have justified this by many tragic events in my childhood like so often many people do when live begins to derail..I was adopted at an early age, never have known my biological mother, lost my grandfather(father - man who raised me) at a very early age due to heart attack, had my house burn down with no insurance and was left with the clothes on my back with no where to live, moving from family member to family member for weeks until we could find somewhere to call home..Then my grandmother(my mom, the only mom I have ever known) had congestive heart failure and almost died while I was an early teen..then the unthinkable..a few years later..She had heart failure again and died in my arms on a Tuesday night...in June just before I was to go off to college that August..My life has been full of challenges and adversities and for whatever reason, God was slinging Grace everywhere, except I was unaware until now..looking back..I dont see these events as reason to live like I deserve anything..because I dont..What I deserve is eternal condemnation for my sin..for the wickedness of my heart...the "lostness" of my soul..
What I have now is Newness of Life in Christ..I am a new creation made in His image and no longer have to carry the baggage around of my past..Remember I said I was going to church..Well that was it..I was going like it was some to do list to check off in my week..I lived no differently from Sunday at 1pm to next Sunday an 8am..just played the role during that time at church and went right on back to my worldly proud life..NO MORE.. Christ suffered immensely for my life and died so I would not have to..He came an offered me a pardon and I have accepted this pardon and now live under His Lordship..surrendered to Him..About 3 years ago, God grabbed hold of me and squeezed...he crushed everything about the man I was and the man I had become so He could start over and remake me in His image..He absolutely brought me to my knees and stripped all my pride, all my possessions and all my worth...and in that day, He began something so wonderful in me that I cant hold it in..Some may read this and say, boy He is a religious nut or some Jesus freak..but you know what...I am..because I have experienced the hand of God in my life and it is no joke..This is not some experience that you have when you need God to bail you and you promise Him that if He bails you out you will never do such and such again..This was a radical life altering event for me..There are no words to accurately describe this..God was with me and rained down His mercy and grace and but for HIM and HIM alone, I would still be living in that "I", "me", "myself" mentality destroying all things around me including my precious family.. When you experience God in this way, there are no other paths to take..You must understand this..I was saved from myself and set Free in Christ..Each day since that event, I have grown to know my Lord in ways I never imagined. The more I know Him the more I love Him..The relationship is very personal and not contrived nor fake..It is genuine in every way and my life is "fullness of Joy" and "pleasures forevermore"...Is life still challenging and difficult..You betcha (as Sarah Palin would say).. Of course it is.. I still experience all the things any one else does because we all have to live in this temporary shell while we are here on earth...and this flesh is not favorable to God and tries very hard to defy God and rear its ugliness..so yes..Bills still come, accidents happen and mistakes are made...BUT..dont miss this..Hear me....I am anchored to the immutable(never changing) Rock, the omnipotent(all powerful), omniscience(all knowing) Lord of Lords..in whom I know trust with ALL things..not just parts of my life..but all of my life..He gets it all and in return He has promised to be there with and in His presence I have been promised fullness of Joy and pleasures forevermore (Pslams 16:11) and that is exactly what He has given me..Let me place a name with some of this..There is no greater Joy in my life, other than my relationship with Jesus, than my relationship with my Wife..God has blessed me with a wonderful marriage and a partner in life who is my very best friend..He has blessed me with a love for her that surpasses all understanding..and I adore her and cherish her and am grateful I am able to experience this life with her.... That is fullness of Joy..If you are struggling with your marriage..it doesnt have to be this way..TRUST ME..It was not this way 4 years ago but when you allow God to rule and reign in your marriage..HE is faithful to bless that union and will pour out His Love in ways you cant comprehend until you allow it to happen to yourself.. You must let go of trying to do it all yourself and focus on Christ and allow Him to move in your marriage..If there is any one thing I would want someone who is struggling with a marriage to know..it is this..It can be everything you ever dreamed it could be but only on God's terms, not your own..Remember Marriage is God's institution and He knows what is best for you because He brought you together..
Pleasures forevermore are three girls who I love with all my being..CJ, Jaydin and Lilygrace..There is no greater satisfaction, no more pleasurable feeling this world has to offer than the love of your kids as they express it..Hugs, kisses, letters, looks, winks, wishes..What an immensely deep feeling I derive from holding my girls, raising them, taking care of them, loving on them and being there for them..To have them out of the blue look your square in the eyes and say with utter genuineness " Daddy, I love you"...There are very few things that can equal such moments...God has blessed me with the stewardship of raising three girls and entrusted with me not one but three precious souls, whom have an eternal significance..not just a life here on earth but an eternal life..So when God brought them into this world, He basically said..Eddie, these are your responsibility..now go and live like you know me and show them the way, the way to everlasting life with me..Once that sinks in and the significance hits you, there is little time to react..I sense enormous responsibility as the spiritual leader of my home and realize my role as a father and the impact my life can and will have on them...but what a joy it is...
So my intentions where to lift my Lord up today as He has saw fit to get me here today..to be alive where I can still have an impact for Him in this world..All my praises go to Him, for He deserves all the Glory for who He is..Without Him and the grace He pours on my life, I would be lost and confused and causing collateral damage everywhere I went..But to God be the Glory forever and ever..I give thanks that my blind eyes have been opened and allowed to see..I give thanks that my deaf ears have been unplugged and allowed to hear...I give thanks my heart has been replaced with a new one and the old one has been destroyed..God is Faithful..God is Faithful..Dont take my word for it..See for yourself..because this is not unique to me...but is afforded to anyone who is willing to crucify the old self and believe in Christ and take up His cross daily and live for Him..This is real and life changing and will not return void..I am one of many millions of people who can attest to God's faithfulness..
My life verse: Psalms 40:1-4
"I waited patiently for the Lord and He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps.
He has put a new song in my mouth - Praise to our God. Many will see it and fear and will trust in the Lord.
Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust"
In reflection of my 37th Birthday..I say "Thank you Lord"
I have been absent from this blog for a while..ashamed to admit my distance from God over the past few months and my misdirected focus to the things that so often distract us from a communion with our Creator..My life has taken some unexpected turns and as crazy as it may sound have once again found myself at a cross roads in my journey.. or maybe a better way to describe it would be "self awareness" given to me by the Holy Spirit...or a maturity yet not known by me and the opportunity to take this clearer understanding and put some feet (action) to it..
I am constantly amazed at how God works in my very own life..How He shows me or exposes my weaknesses and brings to the forefront the truly important matters of life..The bible studies He has me in, the classes that He has directed me to take (not necessarily of my own knowledge) until I get to days like this..where my mind is taking in so much information and my spirit is aroused like few times in my past..I am so Thankful God desires to bring me close to Him and quench the dry parched mouth of my soul...for the last few months have been like a desert with no water in sight in that I have strayed from my Maker and lost sight of my significance in Him..But God is faithful to us(me) and has once again renewed in me a fervor to seek His will for my life and to uncover some of the great mysteries of life, at least in my mind..
Why am I here? Not just in the existence arena..But WHY HERE in this house, this town,this job, etc..
What am I to do ?
What is the best use of my earthly existence to further the Kingdom of God ?
These questions are the birth pangs from my recent studies in Psalms and a class of Apologetics..
So here is a topic that most can relate to and so I would like to unpack this in my own mind and try to put this into perspective..
Happiness vs Joy..
Happiness - Good Fortune, extreme delight, feeling gratified (Websters) Joy - the emotion of great delight caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation: (websters)
I know some may think this is a play on words because one could argue they are the same thing..but I want to challenge that thought for a moment..
America is obsessed with Happiness..I would submit that this single word comes up in almost every single marriage discussion. Some might say "I am just not happy" or " He/she does not make me happy anymore"..You usually do not hear this " He/she does not bring me Joy". Happiness has become in American Culture the great virtue we all should strive to have..We should be Happy..if not then WE should change whatever is keeping us from being Happy..Exchange our wives for a new model, a version 2.0.. or going out on the town to have some "fun" and be happy in the midst of my unhappy life.. Happiness is a fleeting idea that is rooted in very shallow temporal emotions..that have no lasting impact..Happiness is in the moment, for the moment and that is it..Happiness can be stripped from you just as easy as your parking space at work...by someone else..Someone cuts you off while your driving, someone gossips about you behind your back and you find out, someone lets you down..all these are merely symptoms of where the focus is...YOU!!
Now lets just contrast that for a moment with JOY.. Joy is rooted in something much more stable and long term and not so easily swayed by the days activities..Sure things can go terribly wrong but true Joy is not affected by those moments or situations..and that is because they are rooted in something deeper..The definition above says "caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying". Dont we all want this feeling..to be joyful, or to have the feeling of Joy no matter how each day plays out..no matter what others may or may not do to you or for you..To not be like a ship at sea tossed to and fro..
So how do we get this JOY..Answer
Psalms 16:11 -" You will show me the path of life. In your presence is FULLNESS of JOY. At Your right hand are PLEASURES forevermore.."
Who's presence? The presence of the Lord.. Dont miss this..It has nothing to do with us or other people..If you want JOY and PLEASURES in your life..that only comes from the presence of the Lord..NO OTHER WAY..You can't do anything other than be with the Lord in SPIRIT to get the everlasting JOY that brings a smile to your face in the midst of the darkest storm.. God promises us that in HIS presence we not only get JOY but FULLNESS of JOY..and to take it even further..PLEASURES FOREVERMORE..not just fleeting pleasures but forevermore..
Many people think that if they turn their life over to Christ and surrender to Him that they will no longer have a "fun" life or that things will be boring or stale or that they will no longer be happy..and the ironic thing is that unless you do accept Christ as LORD and SAVIOR you will never experience the full depth of Joy.. a state of elation unequaled by this world..and unmatched by what this world has to offer.. Why live on the emotional roller coaster of happiness that comes and goes...why subject yourself to such uncertainty in life..Why NOT choose the GIVER of LIFE who will pour out on you FULLNESS of JOY..a JOY that will sustain you in difficult times..A joy that is rooted in something exceptional like CHRIST..With this joy, the mundane throws of life are not able to strip away.. Someone cuts you off, you smile..Someone wrongs you, you pray for them..If your spouse gets you riled up, you may disagree with one another but your Joy and love for one another is never in question because it is never rooted in what they can or cant do for you but rather in Christ..the Solid Rock to which is unchanging..and will never disappoint..therefore a joy given by Christ rooted in Him is everlasting and not dependent on how others make you feel or what you did or did not accomplish..I get chills just writing this out.. Dont we all want a life with meaning and significance that is is full of JOY and PLEASURES..not anger and bitterness, looking to be offended so you can be justified in your anger..or riding the emotional roller coaster of happiness that is dependent on other people who will always disappoint you because they too are sinners..
Our trust, our life, our entire life needs CHRIST..Without Him, we are lost at sea, searching for meaning and happiness and is no where to be found until we realize we have been duped by the world..That Christ is Faithful to those who Believe in Him..God has graciously given us a pardon for our sin...but it is on His terms, not ours..His terms are His SON, Jesus Christ, to whom He sent to bear the penalty of the sins of mankind..in order for us to be counted righteous in the sight of God Almighty..and not on our own abilities..So..do we choose to accept that pardon and be set free from eternal condemnation or do we choose to face our sins ourselves..and the wrath of a JUST God who can look upon NO sin..NOT ONE..It doesnt matter if you are mostly good or not as bad as most..Once you have sinned one time..You are no longer eligible to enter into a perfect place (Heaven)..but with a belief in Christ and what He did for you, you can be granted clemency and enter..and meanwhile until that day comes that Christ calls you home..you can experience Fullness of Joy and Pleasures forevermore..here on earth and your life will begin to take on the LOVE of Christ and that will manifest itself in everything you do..
What an AMAZING TRUTH it is..to know that GOD is in control and desires to bring Joy to your life and pleasures forevermore...(beware: those pleasures are not the pleasures of this world..the world and God are at odds with one another...what is of God is not of this world and what is of this world is not of God..)
I am renewed in my very own life by reading this truth and not just reading it but placing all my trust in this truth and allowing God to reveal to me the wonders of His Self..thru His Creation, His Word, and His Son..
How am I today?..So much better than I deserve!!!!!!!!!!!
My heart has been ripped to shreds this morning after watching a video tribute to Parker and Haley Hewitt.. Crystal Hewitt, the children's mother, was driving them to pick blueberry's and was in a tragic accident killing both Parker and Haley and severely injuring Crystal..Crystal's injuries are traumatic with a broken back and many other injuries..
As I watched the video I felt such a pain in the core of my being...a pain so immense that I felt like an elephant was standing on my chest and my whole body began to sweat and tears flooded by eyes..I could feel the pain of the Hewitt's like it was my own and I am just devastated..
On one hand, as a Father of three girls, I can not say if I would be able to live thru something so traumatic...as the video was playing, I could see my life with my own girls playing in my mind and how I would feel if something similar happened to me and that is what ripped my heart to absolute shreds...and on the other hand, this gave me a new perspective, a much needed perspective on those I love and cherish...to be sure to take every moment hostage and never let the things I love most be taken for granted....for the blessings of children are among one of the greatest things God has ever entrusted me with and the joy of those blessings are indescribable..
God is truly mysterious in His ways and that is because He is ALL KNOWING and ALL POWERFUL and because I believe that I know His plan for the Hewitt's are much grander than anything I can imagine with my own little finite mind...and the testimony of the husband to stand by his lady while she recovers after losing his kids is inspiring to me and touches me in ways that only the Hand of God could.. They believe in the power of Jesus Christ to get them thru this time and that the weight of such tragedy will not be more than they can bear..
Would all of you who read this please watch this video...and when you do, think of your kids and how life would be if they were suddenly no longer with us and try to remember to hug them, love on them and spend time with them....no matter what...Sacrifice for them !!!
I was listening to the radio this morning and heard some things, I feel compelled to share. This ought to be short but powerful...at least it was for me..
The guy on the radio (I believe it was Pastor James McDonald) was speaking about "exclusive romance" and what it meant to be in marriage and not just married but in a fulfilling loving marriage.. I have run the spectrum on marriage from one extreme to the now total opposite..One extreme I thought marriage was a doomed project with loftiness that was not sustainable for the human species..Of course my view during this time was when I was full throat deep in darkness, with deception and conniving as my best friends..to the view I now cling to and that is a marriage fulfilling and rewarding and just a special part of my life as I now know it...I cant say I am much different now except to say I have left that intentional deception behind and have allowed myself to be in plain view of God's shining light exposing me for who I am..but still a wicked person at my nature and but for God's grace and mercy am I not still deceiving all those I love..
So this brings me to the message I desire to share..
"We as humankind, desperately want what we can not have and take for granted the things we do have"...THINK about this for a minute or two..Does this sound like our marriages and what might be the crux of the destruction of marriages. This is very very harmful to our Holy Unions we take before God the Father..
There are three points I picked up in this message this morning that will help us regain our focus and reset our priorities...and this is for men, although women can also benefit as he mentioned neither side.
1. Pursuit - We as men have stopped pursing our wives..Think back to the first few dates where you would stop at nothing in your pursuit of her..I can remember distinctly ( and my memory is nothing to be desired for sure)my unending pursuit of Nicki to win her over, to gain her approval.. Courting her, taking her to dinner, movies, doing fun things together, trying to get her to laugh. Why do we stop pursuing..? Two reasons..One is just what we mentioned above..We take for granted the things we have and now that they are our spouses, we no longer do the things we did while in pursuit.. The other is we do not value our spouses as much as we should...which leads to point #2
2. Supreme Value - It is very easy to pursue that which we perceive the value to be high..Think about this men..We want that promotion, that sell, that whatever and we pursue with an intensity that would marvel many people..and I bet our spouses would agree...that they have at one time or another seen us place things at a "high value" and then charge after them.. We need to make our spouses the "Supreme Value" in our lives and then live like that.. Think of the things that you hold in this regard..Maybe a special gift passed down from generation to generation, maybe an old restored classic, possibly your high end set of golf clubs, or your lawn..each of those garnering your attention to minute details..painstaking attention to keeping it looking like it is brand new or as close to perfection as humanly possible.. CAN YOU IMAGINE how our marriages would benefit from this type of SUPREME VALUE being placed on our spouses.. To give them the attention they so desire, the painstaking details of noticing a slight change in hairstyle, or kind gesture of loving appreciation, or even a wink right in the middle of dinner just to be flirty and fun with the one who you call Wife( or husband)..The one who you chose to enter into a relationship for better or worse, sickness and health, where no man can separate...We need to refocus our attention, our energy, our passion of the Supreme Value on our Spouses
3. Forever - Marriage is forever...there are no backup plans, no plan B's, no alternate courses to take..Marriage is forever and we as men need to make absolutely sure our wives know this down to the smallest deepest fiber of their being..This brings about comfort and security that allows our wives to be the woman we know she can be..but if we are consistently walking on planks that lead to uncertainty about the "forever" part. how can we ever expect our wives to submit to the man as the leader of the home and the spiritual guide. She will hesitate and never fully commit to that because in the back of her mind, she has to hold something back just in case we do something unspeakable like leave the marriage.. Forever means in good times on the mountain tops and in bad times in the deep valleys..It is thru the phases of life that we encounter that strengthen our love, our passion and our desires for one another and the crushing weight of the world we live will not produce a broken & battered relationship, but instead, when the intense heat and pressures of the world surrounds us, it creates a beautiful, radiant diamond...formed by the weight of this world...but produced by the goodness, grace and mercy of our surrendered life to Jesus Christ..
Nicki..You are beautiful flower, one as rare and as delicate as any known to man...and all others are but weeds...amongst your value to me.
I pray that I will never take you for granted and that you hold the designation of "Supreme Value" in my life here on earth...and may I treasure you and always give thanks to God for the Blessing he rendered in my life some 18+ years ago..Forever I am, never will I go..
God has been dealing with me for several weeks maybe months now on this topic and while this topic seems very broad on the surface...I desire to speak to the idea of religion and how it relates to me as a Christian and what is means to be a Believer.
When you hear the word "religion" what does it bring to your mind..What thoughts are conjured up? After a thorough study of James and now a class study of James in Sunday School and the Pastor speaking on a similar theme..it is obvious to me that God is trying to make this point stick with me..and hence back to this blog to try and express my ideas so that I can gain a better grasp of what is in my mind and to establish a point in my life where God was working to help me grow and attain wisdom...
Does Religion mean to you...Going to church, reading your bible, tithing, etc..?
James 1:26 "if anyone thinks he is religious, without controlling his tongue but deceiving his heart, his religion is useless. Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world"
This passage is the focal point of my message today..
See... religion to many people that are unbelievers has a negative connotation..I believe the reason for this is simple hypocrisy. We who claim the mantle of Christian can no more be differentiated from the worldly person than a set of identical twins..We have caused a stumbling block to the unbeliever because our religion is only a Sunday deal, or possibly a Wednesday night every now and then.. Believers who exhibit genuine Christianity accept God's word, act on His word and apply His word to their (our) lives. To most people, religion is the external or ceremonial rituals of public worship. We focus only on these outward activities and believe that as long as we do these, we are genuinely religious..
Religion is a way of life..governed by true Faith. First if we accept God's word as the guide book to life as in 2nd Timothy 3:16-17 " ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete(adequate), thoroughly equipped for every good work"
then we must act on His word and draw application to our lives..So many times I find myself being squeezed by the pressures of the world and when something has to give, it often times is the time I spend with the Lord..Why do I choose others activities over the time with my Savior.? That is a question I battle with on a regular basis but also confronts the very power of our (my) sinful nature and the bent we have toward wickedness.. left unchecked by the Spirit of God and the inspired Word will leave us dead...separated from God..
Our Sunday School teacher told us about the story of Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde..that this person was trying to separate good from evil and he thought that if he could separate the two and be left with good, everything would be fine...but what he found out is that the evil side was to powerful and the only way to get rid of it was to "kill it". I never really knew what this play was about until this day but I find it fascinating and a perfect example to try and help explain this..Our flesh must be crucified...and new person must be raised up in order for us to act on the word of God. We will not act on the word until it becomes the guiding force behind everything we do. Attending church, tithing, helping other people are all great gestures but are empty without a regular reading and immersion of God's Holy word in our lives.. The wisdom we need to avoid ignorance can only come from the Bible..If we choose to go thru a "checkoff" list of religious activities but never read the word of God and try to gain wisdom from it, we run the risk of being "ignorant"...ie. being deceived by what is truth and what is not. This is how we as Christians or who claim the title of Christian can have a views of homosexuality or abortion that is errant. We have become ignorant in our understanding and therefore the world has stained our viewpoint, leaving us deceived...Remember that when you are deceived, you do not even realize it...that is why it is called deceived.. Some synonyms for deceive are " Duped", Hoodwinked", "Defraud", "Ensnare". I thought these words would help drive home what is happening to Christians.. We are being hoodwinked by the devil himself...he has us believing things that are in total antagonism to the word of God because we dont know what the word of God says..because we dont read it.. We simply do our duty of being a good person for the most part, attend church regularly, volunteer, etc...and never truly dig into God's word to find the truth..because when the truth is exposed and it flies in the face of this world and we say it so, we are ostracized and labeled "kook" by those who are ignorant to the truth...and the fear of being labeled this by others has caused us to keep our views (the truth)to our self and clamour such statements as " This is how I believe and how you believe is up to you", a relative existence...versus an absolute Truth given to us for our own good..thru the inspired word...and this all results in a religion and not a genuine life built on Faith in Jesus Christ and evidenced by our "doing" or "living".
James offered up three areas of our life that could be a portrait of our Genuine Christianity..
1.) Self control illustrated by our ability to control our tongue - Self control in an inner spiritual activity, not an outward ceremonial one.. Self control is taught by the apostle Paul as a fruit of the Spirit. If you read further into James, he spends almost an entire chapter unpacking the "tongue" and goes to far as to call it "tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity" in verse 6 of Ch 3
If we claim to be devoted to a way of life that glorifies God and yet spout off hateful, destructive words is pure deception and a form of religion that is useless as James writes
2. Looking after orphans and widows - I have to admit my ignorance here and say this never really made a lot of sense to me and the understanding that I know have has eluded me for so many years. This deals directly with the heart and right attitudes.. Orphans and widows were vulnerable members of society during this time but the point hinges on this...they had nothing to offer in return. When you reach out to help, it must be from the proper motive...to not expect anything in return...but because it is the "right" thing to do.. to have a heart for those who can not offer anything for your help. That is evidence of the word of God guiding our lives.
3. Keeping oneself unstained by the world - James expounds that authentic Christians protect themselves from the sinful pollutants of the world. They apply God's word to their lives consistently thus enabling them to resist the world and exhibit genuine Christianity
Here is the larger implication of "religion" versus a genuine Christian faith. The unbelieving world seeing us act as though we are a set apart peoples in the world and that our lives are a direct reflection on the written word and not a hypocritical example.. When our actions do not line up with our words, we lose all credibility and become stumbling blocks for others..so before we lash out with our tongue, or we choose to help with the intention of gaining praise or reward, or we take on the likeness of the world..ask yourself if this is the proper response and check your motives...so as to not defame the Kingdom of God and bring shame upon His name.
We must "humbly receive the implanted word" so that our lives can be governed by the Holy Spirit. Intently read the Word and study what it has to say and then act accordingly and not allow the world to pollute the truth as we know to be and our lives as we proclaim the saving work of Christ our Lord..Just as the Sadducee's were greatly mistaken in Mark 12:18-27, let us not be mistaken in our understanding of God's word..That will only happen if we spend time in it often and intensely.
Religion is not an outward expression but an inward reality..
As I look at my life and the many opportunities I have blown in my responses to others, I have great sorrow..for my life has often more than not been an example of hypocrisy than of the genuine faith I long for..but the good news is that God has opened my eyes to this and allowed me to see me for who I really am and have spawned in me a renewed dedication to the example I might be to those who come in contact with me..to realize my time spent with God studying His word, meditating on It's meaning is paramount in my life if I ever want to evidence the desires of my heart..
Lord I am so grateful for your mercy and grace and if it not be for your abundance of such, I would be lost in the wickedness of this world and ensnared by the wiles of the evil one. Thank you so much for opening my eyes and revealing to me the truth of your Word and exposing the hypocrisy in my own life and setting a new course toward genuineness of the faith. I am in awe of your pefect knowledge and Holiness and desire to have a heart that is after yours..In Christ our Lord I pray..Ame
When the false teachings of someone like Joel Osteen, Tony Jones, or Brian McLaren are exposed to the body of Christ as we test what they teach against God’s absolute truth, we are being obedient to the command of God. Through this, He will preserve His Church and cleanse it of what is evil. We must also be alert to the fact that what we are doing will incur the wrath of our enemy and his seed. He is a liar and an expert deceiver. He has his people spinning lies disguised as prophecies in that they contain some truth, but these are coupled with teachings that tickle itching ears and will never result in their followers being edified or lead into the truth. Instead, they produce followers of men who have created another Jesus and another version of His truth, which is false.
The megachurch model is an example of a spiritual harlot. The Bible makes it clear that true preaching should not be an idolatrous attempt to entice or "schmooze" the sinner into salvation. Harlots are good at enticing. Harlots know how to entice or seduce men, since their survival depends on it. Today's megachurches 'entice' (or seduce) when they seek to conform to the world. They want to offer a gospel which they think the world will like. Megachurch pastors will even go so far as to "tweek" the scriptures in a desperate attempt to please the unrepentant sinner. This kind of compromise has also taken root since there is so much pressure to get the attendance numbers up. High attendance numbers generate more revenue, thus providing a temptation to shrink back into a worldly mindset. But, as the narrow way gets rejected, 'worldly' pastors will often fill their pews with a large number of false converts who fell prey to their own divisive smooth speeches. The smooth speeches sound good, but they do not convict men of their sins. This kind of teaching is contrary to the Bible.
True preaching contends with the world. There is no easy way around it. It is a difficult thing to contend with the world. That is why Jesus said that the way is narrow. It is a narrow path which many forsake since they have been taught that being in God's favor means that they are guaranteed paradise on earth. They are also led to believe that any form of hardship (financial struggle, sickness, or calamity) is always a sign of God's punishment, instead of his refinement. Today's man made formulas have reduced God to a strange idol, similar to an omnipotent Santa Claus, who must always answer us according to our own desires. These man -made formulas reject the notion that God would ever be angry with sin or with the sinner. They are worshipping an idol which resembles nothing more than a waiter in a restaurant, who must answer at their beck and call.
If we look at rebellious Israel, we can see that the people of that time were guilty of the same thing. They wanted all the material blessings, prosperity, and comfort, but none of the sufferings that come with it. They believed that God's favor meant that they were exempt from any kind of hardship. They looked at their material things as an affirmation of God's favor. They were given over to pleasure instead of holiness. This was of the flesh (carnal nature).
I have noticed from the blogs that some still believe that it is better to appease someone if they take pleasure in sin or they fall into error. If you are a blogger, you have probably witnessed some hateful reactions to the true gospel. There are so many different reasons why the unregenerate will justify their sin. They like their sin, so it is not unusual for them to scold you for telling them to give it up. ('Repent' is the best word to say them, even though it can make many enemies) Many unbelievers love their sin, so naturally they will become combative with anyone who tells them it is wrong. You get the typical answer which goes something like this..... "Hey! Who are you to judge?"
The neo-evangelists in our day push their evangelical emphasis to the forefront where it has become the golden calf in their churches. Instead of obeying our Lord to make disciples they seek to multiply their numbers through easy believism. They use shame tactics to get their flocks to bring their friends and relatives to church so they can hear that Jesus wants to come into their lives so they can live abundantly here and now.
If we are abiding in Christ, he will sustain us in the worst circumstances. Hardship is God's way of refining us. As we begin to make our transition from spiritual milk to spiritual meat, he can expose us to some unexpected circumstances. To the regenerate, trials and tribulations are a sign of his ownership. If you have been taught that God can mold Christians without trials and tribulations, then re-examine what you have been taught. God uses persecution and hardship to mold us. Enduring hardship and persecution for the sake of Christ results in patience and humility. Contending in the midst of hardship and persecution results in spiritual maturity.
"I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; and avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive." Romans 16:17-18 (ESV)
"For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." 2 Timothy 4: 3-5 (ESV)
Those who proclaim the true gospel do not edit it. They do not 'tweek' it either. They know it is inerrant and powerful. They also know that it will not always be welcomed with open arms. Instead, it can bring division and scorn. Jesus, Paul, and John the Baptist all preached the basic fundamentals. They spoke the thing which the world finds offensive...."Repent and believe in Jesus to escape God's wrath against sin." Even today, this kind of message is denounced as being "too offensive" to the unsaved. Proclaiming the untainted gospel of Christ is extremely unpopular because of its nature. This is just the way it is. We should not try to alter it so that we tamper with its nature. If we try to tamper with its nature, then we will be guilty of idolatry. Let the gospel be what it is so that it convicts men of their sins. Anything less than that is not the gospel, but a distortion of the truth, which leads to even more idolatry.
When I watch the videos and read the sermons or comments or interviews with the neo-evangelicals, I do not sense any humility there. Instead, I see arrogance and driven, highly motivated individuals who love their golden calves. These people do not know or understand how poor and filthy they are in God’s sight. Who does God use in His Kingdom? He uses the humble and obedient servants who understand that only God can take a clay pot and transform it into a chosen and useful vessel.
God’s plan for His people is that they become full of knowledge of Him. Knowledge of God is good! That is why we should learn right doctrine. People can have loads of knowledge, but still not be wise. Just look at how well educated many apostates are. People can have knowledge, but lack wisdom. However, there is no wisdom without knowledge. The mind of Christ is the having the knowledge of God in us plus the wisdom of the Holy Spirit leading us into the truth in our walk. When we learn to walk this way we will be those who practice what we learn from God and we will indeed rejoice in the Lord always.
“Giving no offense in any thing, that the ministry may not be blamed: But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in watchings, in fastings; By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left.” 2 Corinthians 6:3-7 (KJV)
The Bible never teaches cost free Christianity. In fact, the Bible says that adversity (fiery trials) can be evidence that we are being molded to the image of Christ. God tries those he loves in order to work on their character. In God’s eyes, a man’s character is worth more than material wealth or worldly standing. It is God’s sovereign right to remove comfort zones in order to keep us from becoming spiritually complacent, ungrateful, or prideful. Throughout our trials, the enemy, Satan, cannot tempt anymore than God will allow. God frequently allows circumstances which we wish he would not.
“To keep me from being conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 (KJV)
Now ask yourself. Could God have removed the thorn if he had wanted? Of course, but he didn’t. Paul explains why God didn’t remove the thorn in verse 7. Paul explains that the thorn was still there to keep him from being conceited. In plain English, it was there to keep Paul from giving himself credit for the revelations, and from becoming prideful. It was also there because it helped Paul deny himself and learn to accept that God is sovereign in all affairs –whether they are bad or good. Paul certainly learned that God is not someone we can take to court when things don’t go the way we want them to. Our mighty humble Lord is a molder of men who knows how to strip men of their pride.
God is calling us to come out of the world. It is our responsibility to separate ourselves from the false gospel as well. If you are a member of Word-Faith, then I want to encourage you to seek the true gospel. God is indebted to no one, and he cannot be taken to court if he doesn’t make you rich. He will give a man what is according to his will, even though your will may not always be the same as his. For this very reason, we should not always assume that what we want is always what he wants. God can (and will) deny a man of what he desires if those desires are not according to his sovereign will. In every case, God knows what is best for you more than you do, so I would not question his judgment. And even though the molding process may be uncomfortable and sometimes difficult, at least you will be more of what God wants you to be instead of what you think that you should be.
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” 1 John 5:14 (KJV)
God still blesses and redeems, no doubt. He can even surprise you out of no where. Those who know God, and have been walking with him for quite some time, know that he is also a 'last minute' God. Sometimes he purposely waits to show up in the very end in difficult situations in order to strengthen our faith, teach perseverance, instill patience, and to learn respect for him. All of these are demonstrations of God’s sovereignty which must be understood in order to mature spiritually. God is certainly not a genie in a bottle who answers to men’s beck and call.
"Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me. Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” Proverb 30:8-9 (KJV)
EB
(Mike Ratliff, Josh Parker, John Piper - Material taken from these individuals - God Bless)
What I have realized about myself just today is that I come to this blog when I am feeling weighted down by the demands of this world or by the feelings of unworthiness before God Almighty, or by the intense emotional roller coaster of life..Notice it is all about feelings..That is not a good thing but when I sit at this computer and I begin to unravel my thoughts and ponder over God's will for my life, His CRAZY LOVE for me and the purpose of my existence, I find this to be therapeutic..like healing rain..There are so many things about God that I just simply don't understand and most likely will never understand. His vastness and His Holiness are beyond my ability to comprehend..How can one comprehend the incomprehensible.? You cant..That is where Faith plays its part..See, as we travel through our lives here in earth, we are constantly being tugged on by this world and the demands it places on us and many times I find myself stepping outside of the Grace of God and into my flesh to try and deal with all these demands..and as soon as I do this, I begin to experience emotions of worry, anxiety and fear..The world is antagonistic to God and pulls us in the opposite direction.. and the further we let ourselves wade around in this world and apart from Christ, the further we drift out to sea and into a place of isolation...a place where in all directions there seems to be no safety, no place to rest, no place to find comfort..Imagine floating around in the middle of the ocean with no life preservers, nothing to hang on to, just you and the ocean..How long can you tread water before the burden becomes to much..? Before the ocean swallows you up and takes you over...? That is how I perceive this world.. When I step out into my flesh to handle the world and the problems it has thrown at me, I begin to drift out to sea..If I choose to stay in that frame of mind and allow myself to continue on that path, emotions like doubt and discouragement began to permeate my mind...and that means I am drifting further out to sea..If we do not return to our Faith and the TRUTH , then we continue to drift to the point the world swallows us up and we are no longer in Christ but in the world...and the deception that takes place at this point is un nerving..We slowly allow the Truth to be bent and molded into a version that is frankly no longer Truth..WE become tolerant of certain things that when Steeped in Christ, we would not be tolerant of..We simply morph into a worldly being and leave behind all we know to be godly, upright and moral lives..caving into the mesmerizing drumbeat of a lost society where Truth is defined as whatever you want it to be depending on your lifestyle and a hypnotic like state controls our actions and we simply mull thru each day, day after day, worrying, being angry and struggling against the wiles and wickedness of humankind and satan.. Life becomes a drudge and joy is replaced with discontent, peace with anxiety and love with anger..
This blog is a lifeline of sorts for me that doesn't allow me to get to far off in the distant ocean, without pulling myself back in to safety..the safety of Christ and His Saving Grace..When I sit down here and begin to share my thoughts, I am reminded again and again of where I used to be and where God has brought me to..I am reminded of the darkness that was my life and the newness I now enjoy..I am reminded of my inability to deal with life on my own and God's desire to pull me from the desolate pits and onto a secure foundation in Christ Jesus. I am reminded of my sinful self and how lost I am without Christ my Lord directing my every thought and every decision..It is so easy to allow yourself to drift away and gradually merge with the world..but when I begin to feel myself drifting, worrying, feeling high levels of anxiety, I find myself right back here..The Bible says in Romans 12:2 " Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God"
I am not saying to replace your time with God and the Precious Word...because I firmly and absolutely believe that reading the Word is paramount..however I am suggesting that we can also find supplemental ways to keep us grounded and close to God...and the ironic thing is that all this time I thought I was doing this to also help others and what I realized today is that it is for me..to keep me close..See as I woke up this morning, I begin to tackle the duty of paying the bills and this has become more and more stressful for me because when you have less coming in than you owe, then it becomes a task that is painful and truly avoided at all cost until it cant be avoided no longer...so as I was adding up what we owe and what sits in the bank account, I found myself drifting out to sea...but with a tailwind that was whipping up behind me pushing me much faster than normal.. If I would have allowed this to persist through out the day, then I would have lost touch with the joy and peace and Love that the Holy Spirit pours on me...but Thank Goodness God's Mercy is boundless and his Love is overflowing and His Grace is infinite..God does not want us living a miserable dull drab life..He desires for us to rest in His Peace, to abide in His Love and to stand firm on His promises to His children..
Allow yourself to draw near to God and allow the Holy Spirit to guide you...God has given this to us as a gift, and even when we falter or screw up or even when we have doubts..God is there to remind us of His Omniscience( All Knowing), Omnipotence (All powerful), omnipresence( limitless presence), Immutable (never changing), Infinitetudeness ( Boundless, measureless).
Let me end these thoughts with this paragraph from a book I am currently reading that is totally transforming the way I know and understand God Almighty..The book is called "The knowledge of the Holy" by AW Tozer.. This book is taking my perspective of how I perceive God and expanding and stretching it to the proper perspective and taking the God I once had in this "box" and busting Him out in all HIS GLORY and SPLENDOR..Whew!!! It takes my breath away just knowing this VAST God, this CREATOR chooses to love me
"Forever God stands apart, in light unapproachable. He is as high above an archangel as above a caterpillar, for the gulf that separates the archangel from the caterpillar is but finite, while the gulf between God and the archangel is infinite. The caterpillar and the archangel, though far removed from each other in the scale of created things, are nevertheless one in they are alike created. They both belong in the category of "that which-is-not-God" and are separated from God by infinitude itself."
Lord I admit my weakness and my lostness without you and I am so very grateful for the Saving work of Jesus Christ. May I draw near to you and rest in the mastery of your peace and abide in your LOVE, a love that knows no bounds. Will you hold me close and share with me, the glories and riches and blessings of your perfect will..and allow me to bask in that perfect knowledge..In Jesus name I pray
Can we just get this out in the open and in the air...We ALL FALL SHORT!! as much as I understand that verse intellectually, I still try desperately to win God's approval...How do I? by going thru each day acting religious..I say acting..I mean by doing religious things..such as reading my bible, praying with my girls, taming my tongue, lending a hand to another in need..or even possibly writing this blog..although I have a burning passion to share my struggles and victories, my insights and curiosities with others...I do all this hoping that in the back of my mind, God will find favor in me for acting in such a way..Why do I do this? I believe the human carnal flesh is so strong and so against God's nature that it is completely normal for us to want some control..To give God entire control is antithetic to our own nature..so we devise ways to have a pseudo control..We mask it in items like this...Religious TO DO LIST's..or TASKS that make us feel better about ourselves. As I sit here and ponder the various trials that are currently going on in my very own life I often find myself desperately trying to find solutions to the trials all the while praying to God for guidance and wisdom.. HAVE I MISSED THE FOREST FOR THE TREES.. I believe I have. I believe I have allowed my ADAM nature to try and fix the broken aspects of my life all the while bringing God along for the journey..you know to keep Him abreast of my progress..Good Grief..( I think I have used "good grief" like in every single blog I have written lately..that tells me I am constantly enlightened by the word of God ..revealing to me my own ignorance and arrogance). In my heart if hearts I don't believe I have any control of my own life once a child of God's, however I continue to act like I do..I pretend that I need to be a godly Man in order for God to help out..That God would not love a ragamuffin like myself unless I was worthy enough to be Loved..What misguided doctrine is that!!! again good grief!!
Did not Christ come to save the sinner..not the righteous..? Christ came to set us free from ourselves..He Loves us as we are, and not as we should be! Amen Praise God..
Wow..My mind has exploded...an array of thoughts have flooded my mind as I try and work thru this message bottled up inside me..I find myself flailing about, looking for the right words to accurately depict the point I desire to make.. It seems this is a "hinge" point...meaning the Love of God is the top of a branch with hundreds of smaller branches falling underneath this concept. Many different lessons could be taught or thoughts pursued off this single idea of God's love...and because of all the varying directions we could take, my mind has become overwhelmed..I have literally sat here and stared at this screen for 20 minutes..stuck...looking for the words..the direction I originally set out to take..(I just want to say in this moment how awesome God is and how powerful His ways - that my simple mind can so easily be overwhelmed by the vastness he represents)
I had decided to take the girls to the bookstore yesterday after a very difficult morning of life circumstances..to be honest..an all out frontal assault by satan on my mind..Discouragement and Doubt had found a suitable place to anchor themselves in my mind. Satan has managed to gain a foothold on me and cast doubt on my Faith, my understanding of God and His willingness to take care of His people(ME)..Financial Strain (would be a light way of putting it), my role as a Man (Leader, Protector and Provider) had been exposed with all my inherent weaknesses. Hope was sailing away like a small boat on the ocean of life, barely visible in the far distance.. I felt myself succumbing to the wiles of Satan.. Nicki( my wife) sent me an email that placed an instant STOP on the slippery slope I was on..I had earlier sent her an email more or less laying out my morning and all the failures I felt as a man...and her subject line was titled " WE ARE BEING ATTACKED" and she directly confronted evil with God's Glory and evil was simply no match.. She quoted Isaiah 61:1-3 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn, 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.
I read this and felt the power of the Spirit of God come over me and begin to replace the "feelings" that were rooted in my mind so deeply..Then her ever so encouraging words that followed were no doubt a gift from God Himself ( I hope she doesn't mind me posting parts of her email here..although they were not words from her but words given to her by God)
Her words reprinted exactly as they came to me - no editing at all
**We are not supposed to live defeated…we have HOPE!! Jesus Christ has come so that we can exchange our spirit of heaviness for the garment of praise! When we do this…we glorify God! What more could we ask…than to glorify him?!
I know that I may be beating a dead horse here. But I feel like you and I are being attacked and you know as well as I do that this life is a spiritual battle... put on the armor with me…and lets use the word of God to fight this off. Let’s hold up our shield (of Faith) and maybe knock out a prideful or self pity thought. Is my faith so small that I can’t even fight off comparing my possessions to that of other people?? I have not been using my shield…and I’m certainly not using my sword. So right now…I’m done with allowing evil to throw my mind around like a wave crashing on the shore…God’s grace is sufficient to withstand whatever Satan plans for us…my faith, my hope is in my Savior…and I’m not going to let worry or discontentment rule my mind…don’t you let him in yours either. **
Just reading this again brings about a triumphant smile..what power we have in Christ..if only we will allow Him to rule and reign in our heart unrivaled and unchallenged..So now we are at Books a Million and I walked up to the table that has all the Christian books, while my girls began to rummage thru the kids section...I began to look over the books and ponder each title looking for the perfect book for the state of mind I was in..I wanted to sit down and read something that would reinforce the ideas that Nicki had left me with...As I poured over the numerous titles..my eyes landed on "brennan manning : The furious longing of God". I had no idea what I had just done by choosing that book, but once again a direct result of God's grace and mercy on me in that moment..because that book was the "perfect" one for that day in that moment..Allow me to share a few bits of this tremendous read with you..I would recommend that any who read this post to please find a way to read this book..I will be straight up honest with you..I don't have the financial means to even buy this $16.99 book but I do have the gas and the time to drive down to Books a Million and sit and read it all the way through for FREE..I read 3/4 of it yesterday and will be going back today to finish it..I cant wait.. :)
Here is how the book starts
I'm Brennan. I am an alcoholic. How I got there, why I left there, why I went back, is the story of my life. But it is not the whole story
I'm Brennan. I am a Catholic. How I got there, why I left, why I went back, is also the story of my life. But it is not the whole story
I'm Brennan. I was a priest, but I am no longer a priest. I was a married man but am no longer a married man.
How I got to those places, why I left those places, is the story of my life too. But it is not the whole story.
I'm Brennan. I am a sinner, saved by grace. That is the larger and more important story. Only God, in His fury, knows the whole of it
This passage is the genesis of his life and the book
I AM MY BELOVED'S
AND HIS DESIRE IS FOR ME
Song of Solomon 7:10
Over the past thirty years, I have prayed that passage in soaring 747's, monasteries, caves, retreat centers and deserted places. I believe His desire for you and me can best be described as a "furious longing." If you don't get anything else out of this book, I hope you begin to pray that passage. When you take those words personally, I mean very personally, a number of beautiful things come to pass:
* The drumbeats of doom in your head will be replaced by a song in your heart
* You will not be dependent on the company of others to ease your loneliness, for He is Emmanuel - God with us
* The praise of others will not send your spirit soaring, nor will their criticism plunge you into the pit. Their rejection may make you sick, but it will not be a sickness unto death
* In a significant interior development, you will move from I should pray to I must pray
* You will live with an awareness that the Father not only loves you, but likes you
*You will stop comparing yourself with others. In the same way, you will not trumpet your own importance, boast about your victories in the vineyard, or feel superior to anyone
* You will read Zephaniah 3:17-18 and see God dancing for Joy because of You
* Off and On throughout the day, you will just know that you are being seen by Jesus with a gaze of infinite tenderness
I am a witness to these truths
The furious longing of God is beyond our wildest desires, our hope or hopelessness, our rectitude or wickedness, neither concerned by sweet talk nor gentle persuasion. The furious longing of God, as Dan Berrigan writes, is " not to be reduced to a thing, a grand ideal; it is not to be reduced to a plaything, a caged songbird, for the amusement of children." It cannot be tamed, boxed, captivated, housebroken, or templebroken. It is simply and startlingly Jesus, the effulgence of the Father's Love.
The seldom stated truth is that many of us have a longing for God and an aversion to God. Some of us seek Him and flee Him at the same time. We may scrupulously observe the Ten Commandments and rarely miss church on Sunday morning, but a love affair with Jesus is just not our cup of tea.
Ok..This is just the first page or 2 but as this book unravels it opens up the mind to explore Jesus..as a being that "furiously longs for us.". I was able to get a glimpse of "Abba Father" and to finally understand that God is Love and He loves us...the same yesterday, the same today and the same tomorrow..God's love is not segmented based on who you are today as opposed to yesterday..It is not based on whether or not you had your morning devotion or quiet time..God is love and He furiously longs to love us..to share with us the abiding love of the Father..God's love does not grow or lessen..His love for you is always "furious" and is certainly not based on your own doings..but simply because you are His child..That is all..
Lets stop worring about our worthiness or our favor with God and lets have a LOVE AFFAIR with our Lord and Savior..Let us reciprocate this Love back to God...and unleash the fury!!
I pray that the Holy God of Eternity will open your minds to this message and allow you to feel the love of Christ like never before..That you and I will seek to abide in His love and to not allow our carnal nature to block or impede the flow of His abundance..In His Name..Amen
The title to this blog should cause you great pause and reflection..Think about those words just for a few moments before embarking on the rest of this entry..
Let me set this up.. I wrote a blog, oh I don't know, some few weeks back and it was an attempt to ascertain "Grace"..what it is and what it means... You see intellectually I felt as if I could at least explain what Grace is, but internally I was still and still am struggling with the concept of Grace and how it plays out of the lives of God's children. Grace is probably one of the most misunderstood concepts to the common man and we (at least I have) use the term frequently without really understanding it's true meaning and function...
Ok..Now I understand that it is by God's Grace I am able to call Him Lord and Savior...and it is by God's Grace that my marriage has survived and become one of the most enjoyable aspects of my life...and it is by God's Grace that I have been give the opportunity to Father three Girls...so that was essentially my basic understanding of Grace...but check this out..
I was sitting in church this Sunday and we had our Student Pastor fill in for Jeff to preach the message..His name is Ryan Brice..anyway He taught on Romans 1:18-23 about God's Wrath on Unrighteousness...How God has already begun to unleash His wrath on the people..Some of us think that when we hear the word wrath, we think total destruction and annihilation...but that may be more of the human terminology instead of God's use of it..at least till the day Jesus comes and splits open the skies and bears a Sword riding on a white horse..to finally destroy evil and sin.. Popular belief of God's current wrath is Him turning us over to our debased minds and allowing us to do whatever we desire without His intervening.. Just read Romans Chapter 1 versus 24-32 and you will get the picture of God's Wrath being poured out...but let me digress back to my original point about Grace..It ties into the Wrath of God but there is a more profound lesson here for us to see...
Ryan gave an illustration of a pastor friend who he admired and respected a great deal..even having him over to his home to visit...This was a man who had preached the Gospel and proclaimed the Word of God like few others he had ever heard...A man many would look up to and admire for their ability to harness the Scriptures so handily and spill out such clarity to those who listened...and then the unthinkable..It was found out that he has been covering up a major part of his life for 2 decades...(Ryan not really mentioning what this was but it seemed based on his description to be something of sexual promiscuity).. This made Ryan very ANGRY..and so he said this anger led to Pride in that he was saying to himself..I have never done anything like that...How could he do this to his wife and kids..I would NEVER put myself in a position like that..I mean what was he thinking...and then he said the Spirit of God fell on him and said to him....
"Oh, But by MY GRACE, you would do the exact same thing".
Do you see this..Here is Grace played out in all its clarity for us to see..After hearing this, my mind became overwhelmed with thoughts of my prideful self..I had been pulled from the desolate pits in September of 2006 and I give God all the credit for saving me and my life and my family..however I have been giving myself all the credit for staying on the proper path...in living my life in accordance with God's will..I would say to myself..I don't put myself in places or situations any longer that would cause me to slip and falter..I don't fill my mind with worldly things any longer such as filthy music or TV programs..I don't chase all the wrong things anymore..Do you see the pattern here..I..I...I..I..I was giving God the credit for saving me and giving myself the credit for staying "clean" if I can use that word for lack of a better way to describe it..but that is exactly what got me in the problems I was in before he saved me..I was taking credit and control of my life and Good Grief..what a disaster that was..and in my "righteous" thinking now, I once again have allowed myself to feel like I have something to do with my own current well being..How could I let this happen..God spoke to my heart this Sunday and said DIRECTLY to me.... "Oh, but by My GRACE, you would be exactly where you were before I saved you..It is not you who keeps you safe, but ME...I am the reason you are living the way you are..I am the reason you are spending time with me..I am the reason you are even writing these blogs..I am the Reason that anything Good has happened to you at all ...and it is by my GRACE, my Child..that you are no longer being a servant of this world...
How could I be so arrogant as to believe I had anything to do with my ability to do anything that glorifies God and keeps me from the wretched grasp of evil itself..This is the epitome of how strong the sinful heart is and how evil we are as people...We are evil filthy rags without God's Grace and Mercy..and the second we deviate from this understanding is the perfect opportunity for satan and his legion of demons to attack us and deceive us into believing something so utterly false, that it just seems implausible..YET we do....
Lord, I am so thankful that you spoke into my heart and allowed me to see the TRUTH as it is proclaimed in your Word..I am so undeserving of your Grace yet you allow it to flow in me anyway..I am so Thankful that you are a HOLY GOD, with powers and abilities my mind can't comprehend and that you have chosen me to be a child of Yours. Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts and see if there is any wicked way in me and lead me in the way of everlasting life
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