Really? Could It Be?

Is Jesus really pleased with a broken and contrite heart?

So in Luke 18 two men are on their way to the Temple.  What are you in pursuit of when you are going to church on Sunday?  Well, these two men are on their way to the Temple to...pray (v.10)  Just chew on that for a second.  One of Jesus' most unique moments is when He lost His cools at the Temple.  He was so livid because the Temple was a place for people to connect with the Lord and "religious" people were using it for something of their own benefit.  So Jesus drove them out and even said, "this is a house of prayer (matthew 21:13)"  So here they are, two complete different men, but there for the same reason...or are they?  Again, what are you in pursuit of when you go to church?

Let's step in and look at these two men.

The first person is religious.  He gives 10% to the Temple.  He knows the first 5 books of the Old Testament, word for word...period upon period (without using any notecards).  He prays.  He fasts.  He is a very fine citizen in his community.  He might even teach a Sunday School class.  Let's look at his prayer:

"God, I thank you that I'm not like other people - greedy, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector (better way of saying it, or even like this person standing next to me.)  I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get."  

Now this guy must please the Lord like crazy.  This is what a solid christian life looks like, or is it?  Let's just answer one unique question.  Was this guy consumed with the Lord or with himself?  Remember that one time when Jesus says, "away from me, for I never knew you, (matthew 7:23)" that was to religious people.  Away from me.  You see, this pray of the Pharisee is so self-focused and the poor man is consumed with himself.  You see, he went to the Temple to feel better about himself.  It had absolutely nothing to do with his relationship with the Lord.  The Lord is simply NOT PLEASED with this kind of heart.  Why?  Because this man doesn't need Jesus...he just needs to compare himself with other sinners.  Now there were two men, so let's look at the other man.

The second person is a sinner.  He is despised by his own community.  He is an outcast.  He is probably nervous a bit because he never comes to the Temple.  He doesn't give, he steals.  He doesn't fast, he consumes.  He doesn't know one verse from any book of the Bible.  He is a tax collector = thief (total opposite of a religious person) it is why the Pharisee threw the tax collector under the bus.  But wait, he went to the Temple to pray (insert laughter at any moment if we are religious people).  Let's look at his prayer at least before we cast the stones.

"But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even raise his eyes to heaven (maybe he didn't even know that was a usual tradition) but kept striking his chest and saying, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."  That's it.  But can i be honest?  That is a real, honest, authentic, gut-wrenching prayer.  It is humble.  It is few words.  It is not rich in theological words.  But it pleased the heart of the Lord.  Why?  HUMILITY.  A broken and contrite heart.  The Pharisee wasn't broken and poor in Spirit.  Why should he be when he doesn't have to look at his own heart and compares himself to other sinners.  As long as he continues to show up at the Temple and people see it, he is good.  The poor tax collector shows up to church and we lose our minds.  But Jesus is pleased with this tax collector because he is poor in spirit, mourning his sins, humbled...sounds like the beatitudes that Jesus talks about in Matthew 5.  Do you know the promises of Jesus for these three beatitudes?  The kingdom of heaven is his...he will be comforted...he will inherit the earth.  Ummmm, wow!

The Lord really is pleased with a broken and contrite heart.  One more biblical truth of what the Lord is after.

Psalm 51.  David has just committed a huge sin.  Now he is in a season of repentance.  Psalm 51 is a prayer similar to the tax collectors prayer.  But the last part of the prayer gets my attention everytime.  "you do not want a sacrifice (religious stuff) or I would give it; you are not pleased with a burnt offering (religious stuff).  The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit.  You will not despise a broken and humbled heart, God"  Is Jesus really pleased with a broken and contrite heart?  You tell me?

I just read this quote the other day by Philip Yancey "human beings do not readily admit desperation.  When they do, the kingdom of heaven draws near."

Listen, we are sinners, no matter how we clothe it or cover it up.  God cannot be mocked (Galatians 6).  Nothing is hidden from Him (Psalm 139) Let's stop playing the Pharisee game (pride) and let's become more like the tax collector (humbled) because God already knows who we are.  Then let's let Him have us and let Him lead us.  He is a Master at leading.  And let's pray together tonight, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

The tax collector left the Temple and the Lord's heart was pleased with him.  Now, chew on that!!!

Checking In...

How is your December challenge going?  My has been so delicious.  I have taken a lot of notes maybe to be shared at a later time through my blogs, but today's made me want to reconnect with you all.

We are 13 days into the challenge, so my reading landed on Luke 13 and so I felt the Lord laid on my heart v.24 to take and eat.

I just simply wrote down, grab on to Jesus Christ with all that you have so that He, being the gate, won't shut you out.  Because once that gate is shut, we are done.  Ever choose to ignore an opportunity and then once it passed, you are just so doomed by it?  I can't stand that feeling, but imagine what it would be like to ignore a relationship with Jesus Christ right now...and then once the gate is shut...oh my goodness, my heart can't even imagine...oh the misery to think of one soul shut out of the gates.  We have time today, let's grab jesus and let's walk with someone to Jesus.

Fresh Water

I work at a golf course and there is a creek that runs right through the course and there are days you can see water running off of rocks and it looks both beautiful and refreshing.  Then there are days when the water is barely moving and it is full of junk and suds and looks gross.  Now, which type of water would we prefer if getting a drink?  Yes, the fresh water, right?  Well, this week the Lord taught me the beauty of fresh water even in the spiritual sense, come take a journey with me.

Let's embrace the life of David for a few minutes.  He was anointed to be the new king, was hired by King Saul to play music and lead an army, and beat Goliath.  Then, King Saul gets jealous of David's success and decides to wipe David out.  In fact, Saul chased David for about 8 years and Saul always seemed to have a spear to throw at David but David never picked up a spear to throw at King Saul (many lessons there by the way, but not tonight).  So David escapes even though Saul pursues.  There are two occasions when David has a GREAT OPPORTUNITY to kill Saul.  In fact, David's men said, "The Lord has handed Saul, your enemy, into your hands."  David responds by saying, "I will not touch the Lord's anointed one" (can you say it with me, are you kidding me!!!)  Wow!  But before we put David up on the "he is not real" shelf, 1 Samuel 27:1 states that David stop putting his trust in the Lord and he crossed over into the enemy territory and would remain there for about 16 months.  And at one point, David is even willing to fight against his own people, God's people...ok ok, so David is real, now I can relate to that, right?  Let me just say this, David entered into what I would call, a very bad bad dark season.  Not just for a few days but 16 months.
Then, David comes to his senses (with God's help of course) and begins to make his way back to Jerusalem.  As they are closing in on home, David learns that he and his 600 men's wives and children were taken by another enemy and now David's 600 men want to kill David.  Talk about a dark dark season.  Shew!  What does David do?  1 Samuel 30:6 - "but David found strength in the Lord his God."  Well, why didn't you do that in 1 Samuel 27:1 David?  Oh, that's right...he's a sinful human just like me.  I like David.  But now David turns to the Lord and finds strength, can we talk about grace for a second?  He denied the Lord and went his own way and yet, when he turns to the Lord 16 months later, the Lord is very gracious to him...as He is also very gracious to us!!!  David sought out the Lord and the Lord said, "pursue the Amalekites, for you will certainly overtake them and rescue your people."  David did and all was well.  Ok, take a breather because that was a lot of context.  Now, to the fresh water thought

2 Samuel 5:17-25

Now, David has just been anointed king and the Philistines hear about it and are ready to come after him to kill him.  It says this in verse 18 (and pay attention to the wording) "so the philistines came and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim."  What does David do?  He sought out the Lord and the Lord said go, and I will give you succes.  David went and won the battle and gave thanks to God.  Sweet!  Now, here is where it gets good...i am so giddy
Now, verse 22, "the philistines came up again and what? spread out in the Valley of Rephaim."  Just like they did a few moments back in verse 18.  Let me pause and reveal a bit of who I am in this situation.  If they did what they did, and I sought out the Lord and the Lord gave me victory and then they did what they did again, i probably would by-pass the Lord a second time and just go for it. Who is with me?  I mean, this could have just been a week apart, who knows but if it worked the first time with the Lord's blessing, then it stands to reason it would work the same way, especially since they did the same thing.  Make sense to me, right?  But look at what David does in verse 23 - "David inquired of the Lord..." and do you know what the Lord said?  "Go, and I will give you success!  NOPE.  The Lord answered "do not attack directly (like you did last time) but circle around behind them and come at them opposite the balsam trees and when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, act decisively, for then the Lord will have gone out ahead of you to strike them down."  Woa! Everything is exactly the same except God's answer.  Why?  I personally think the Philistines were toying with the Israelites to have them fall into the same trap although they had a different strategy and I personally believe that if Davd hadn't consulted with the Lord, Israel would have been in trouble.  Remember Joshua winning a certain battle and then was getting ready to go into battle with little bity tiny Ai and didn't consult the Lord, guess what happened?  Joshua and his men lost.  David would have lost.  But thankfully David had learned a valuable lesson during his 16 months in a dark season, SEEK OUT THE LORD WHILE HE MAY BE FOUND (Isaiah 55:6).  Or as Jesus prays, "give us our daily bread."

My heart was stirred by the Spirit with this, seek the Lord out continuously even if the situation is the same, because the answer more than likely will be different.  Satan wants us to assume that what worked for us last time would work for us again. God is more relevant than His Word.  I reflected many times on this question that popped into my mind, how may times do I go about my christian life without consulting the Lord?  I am not going to answer that.  Satan wins when we do not consult the Lord with every aspect of our lives.  I understand that last sentence is a bit overwhelming but is it not true?  The Lord is very pleased to give us fresh water from the best source ever, but we must be willing to ask for it.  He is a good good Father who blesses us even at times we don't ask, but as a beautiful Father, He loves it when we do ask.  SEEK THE LORD WHILE HE MAY BE FOUND.  He has exactly what we need to overcome whatever it may be, that we are facing.  The river is flowing and whatever it touches, it brings to life (Ezekiel 47) so jump in and hang on...but please, not once a week, but daily and multiple times daily...the water is in His hands and He is ready to pour it on you...seek Him. 

Case in Point

As I read Luke 1 today, this is what jumped out at me this morning and all i could do was laugh because of last night's blog.  Look at Mary's Praise from vv. 46-55.  The phrase that got me was this part, "because the Mighty One has done great things for me, and His Name is Holy.  His mercy is from generation to generation on those who fear Him.  He has done a mighty deed with His arm..."  Do you know what she is quoting?  The Old Testament.  Haha, sounds like to me she sought the Scriptures, found them, and the ate them and because of that, her response to her carrying Jesus in the womb is, "I am the Lord's servant (v.38)"  Take and Eat and I promise I didn't set this up this way, i am even blown away by what the Lord has revealed to me today and all because I took and ate, now it is time to be able to declare all day long and all life long - "I am the Lord's servant."  Today, much like Mary, I am carrying Jesus in my heart to let others know of His Great and Mighty love.  Do it!

Would love to hear from you.

Take And Eat

As I continue to hang out with my friend Jeremiah, he made a comment that I absolutley have fallen in love with...truth be told, I have loved this phrase for quite some time and it was good to be reminded of where it came from.  Jeremiah is just being brutally honest with the Lord about the treatment he is receiving because of his desire to make God known.  Jeremiah says in v.15 of chapter 15 - "You know, Lord; remember me and take note of me.  Avenge me against my persecutors...know that I suffer disgrace for your honor."  Or in chapter 20:7-9a - "you deceived me Lord...you seized me and prevailed.  I am a laughingstock all the time (because of you Lord);  Everyone ridicules me (because of you Lord).  For whenever I speak (on your behalf Lord) I cry out, I proclaim, "violence and destruction!"  You ready for this, "so the Word of the Lord has become (my strength, my shield, my fortress, my anchor of hope...NOPE) constant disgrace and derision.  I say, I won't mention YOU LORD or speak any longer of YOUR NAME LORD."  Jeremiah is done.  No more God, will I do this for you.  When I proclaim the seriousness of your holiness and the depth of your love all that the people really hear is "violence and destruction!"  Thus, they want to kill me Lord.  They want to be done with me and quite frankly Lord, I want to be done...BUT I CAN'T!!!

Why? Why can't Jeremiah just walk away.  Enough is enough Lord, right?  Jeremiah answers my question deeply with Jeremiah 20:9b - Your Word becomes a fire burning in my heart shut up in my bones.  I become tired of holding it in, and I cannot prevail."  Or back to Jeremiah 15:16 - "Your Word were found, and I ate them.  Your Words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart."  I sought your word, found them, took them, and ate them...Take and Eat.

Take and Eat.  The Lord offers us the same exact invitation today that He offered to Jeremiah.  To Paul.  To Esther.  To Moses.  To Jesus.  Take and eat.

But here is the secret for these people and others through the ages, beginning of verse 16 - "your words were found"  Jeremiah sought for His Words.  Paul sought His Words.  Esther sought His Words.  Jesus sought His (own) Words.  And not only did they seek them, but once they found them, they ate them.  What does it mean to eat His Words?  It isn't a matter of hearing His Words, or repeating them, or even rememebering them (although memorizing is a beautiful discipline) but eating leads to doing.  Eating leads to becoming one with the truth of Jesus.

My 16 year old said to me, "dad, I am not spending enough time with God and I am concerned about my lack of seeking Him out."  Well, to have my 16 year old even say that blows me away.  I mean, she is concearned about her walk with Jesus.  I said to her, "you are not alone in this endeavor, in fact, i've spent way too many years living in the boat of guilt and I know so many people who feel the same way as you do."  She says, "ok, but what do I do?"  I joyfully said stop trying so hard and keep it very simple.  Do what Jeremiah did and seek out His Word and once you find something that is "tasty", eat it.  Chew it.  Savor it.  Digest it.  Pray over it.  Do it.  We make it complex, but it's not complex, it is childlike and a child doesn't give a rip what anyone thinks, they just do it.  Sadly, we grow up and our faith goes out the window.  We think, "oh, i've got to do so much for God because He is a big God who requires big things" lies...lies...lies.  Can i be frank?  That's just dumb.  Eat God's Word the same way you eat a doughnut...a slice of pizza...a steak.  One bite.  You don't shove a whole doughnut into your mouth (unless its a doughnut hole), you don't shove a whole slice of pizza into your mouth, and you def don't shove a whole steak into your mouth...so why do we do that with God's Word or vice versa, God's Word is so big that I don't even start because I am already overwhelmed by it. 

So here is a December challenge.  Pick a Gospel book (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John) and read it leading up to Christmas. But as you read, start by praying a simple prayer.  I usually start with, "Lord, I want to take and eat what you have for me today (my daily bread) so please give me Your Word."  Then I seek out a word or a phrase that stands out to me while I seek and once that word or phrase comes out, I eat it.  In fact, I stop reading the rest of the chapter (is that legal?) and spend time on that word or phrase.  I take a bite, i chew it, i digest it, and I try to do it.  And do you know what? He Works!  His Word HAS become a delight to me.  His Word HAS become my joy in my heart.  His Word is a fire in my bones and I literally want to share it.  Oh Jeremiah, you are so beautiful buddy, what a great word for me today.  Thanks for sharing that with me.  I am choosing Luke as my Gospel and I will do my best to share some of my thoughts with you through my blog this month.  I would love to hear from you as well if you would like to share.  Let's go seeking and we will find Him because He loves to be found by us (Jeremiah 29:13)

Desert or Living Water

I am just going to be brutally honest and tell you that I am very angry.  I am angry with myself, angry with what has been done to me, and angry what I have done to others.  I want to be free and I guess in time I might be or maybe, I will just know of "His grace in my time of need" (Hebrews 4:16) or that "His grace is sufficient to me" (2 Corinthians 12:9)  I even wrote in my journal the other night, maybe the miracle for me right now in life is to know His grace in the midst of my pain instead of the healing.  I swear i continually hear Jesus say over and over, "i just want you to know my grace..."  And at first, i would respond with "i don't deserve it" to now being only able to say "thank you."  Jesus and I both fully know what I deserve and what I don't deserve and I do not need to remind Him because frankly it isn't going to change things because "neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to seperate me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)  So i am going to just keep walking forward even if it is baby steps toward my Jesus...and in due time He will do what He thinks is best.  If it is for me to have a thorn in my flesh for the rest of my life here, may He be glorified through it.  If He decides to remove it after some time, may He be glorified through it.  His call...not mine.

Now, i had a good visit with a friend this morning, let me share it with you:

So I will set it up by having you picture a very hot and dry desert.  In the desert nothing grows and there is no water.  Can you imagine being out there all day long with no relief?  Shew.  This morning while having coffee a dear friend came to visit me.  His name is Jeremiah.  He shared this thought with me that I so badly needed and then of course, i thought of you my friend...let me share

"cursed is the person who trusts in mankind.  He makes human flesh his strength, and his heart is turns from the Lord.  He will be like a juniper in the Arabah (if you know me you know that when I read scripture i always ask the Lord to show me a phrase, a word, or a picture of what He would like for me to chew on...well, the juniper in the Arabah was the phrase...ill come back to it in a minute) he cannot see when good comes but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land where no one lives.  The person who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord is blessed.  He will be like a tree planted by water; it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn't fear when heat comes and its foliage remains green.  It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit."  (Jeremiah 17:5-8)

Here is my thought - nothing grows in a desert and yet, there is a juniper tree in the midst of the Arabah = trusting in mankind.  Water makes everything grow and there is a tree that is planted right by the stream with its roots soaking in it = trusting in the Lord.  Makes sense right?  But do I believe it?  Do you believe it?  Let me ask you some hard questions that I asked myself this past week:  1.  Did you trust the Lord with whatever you faced this past week?  2.  Were your emotions controlled because of the people around you this past week?  3.  Did you give yourself time each day to allow your roots to soak in His stream this past week?  4.  Did you seek out the Lord with every decision you made this week?  Now, don't be mad at me because I never ask you questions that I first haven't dealt with myself but let me tell you, i probably only passed my own questions with a 25% rating and then I wonder why I feel like a juniper tree in the midst of Arabah not being able to see the good that has come my way.  And then when things come my way fear (v.8) and worry (v.8) come into play.  And if I continue this way, i will only be good for cutting down, being thrown into a fire or turned into a boat or a house.  A tree was made to bear fruit and you know what I do believe?  That God is so majestic and powerful that if He decided to plant me (a juniper tree} in the midst of a desert and I kept my gaze upon Him, He would allow me to bear fruit but here's the deal, He doesn't want me to be a juniper tree in the desert.  He wants me to be a tree planted by water.  He wants my roots to go toward Him.  And when heat comes, i have no fear.  When a drought comes, i am not worried.  Heck, I'm not even worried about about bearing fruit because the truth is if I am planted by the streams (Jesus) i will do what I was made to do naturally.  I think we make it way too complicated because we make it more about us than Him.  I even had an aha moment this week.  In Matthew it says that Mary Magdelene took hold of Jesus' feet after His resurrection in an act of worship and Jesus allowed it.  But in John 20, when Mary Magdelene tried to take a hold of Jesus after His resurrection,  He wouldn't allow it because in that moment, she was clinging on to Him for her, not out of worship.  And I asked myself the question, "is my life about Jesus is or is Jesus about me?"  Sadly, we make Jesus about us and that is not right.  Our lives exist because God planted us and spoke us into being and if we make our lives about Jesus...hold on.

I'm learning that my anger comes because I am focused on the wrong things.  I keep placing my trust in humans and they fail me or vice versa, i fail them and it leads to anger.  Let's not live by being a juniper tree in the desert...let's put our trust in Jesus, even with what "little" we might have and go from there.  He WANTS us.  He WANTS us to place our trust in Him. HE IS TRUSTWORTHY, let's get our eyes off of us and onto Him and we will see that to be true.  He WANTS us to produce fruit.  But today we must choose, desert or living water?

This World Is Not Your Home

This world is not your home...it isn't!  We need to start living faithfully for our actual Home.  This was pressed upon my heart this past week as I was reading Matthew 21

I seriously wrestle with how Jesus did it.  I sincerely want to be faithful like Jesus was and yet, I fail moreso than succeed.  Each time I fall i think to myself, how on earth did Jesus do it.  According to Hebrews 4 - "He was tempted in everyway that I am tempted and yet He did not sin"...HOW?  Then reading Matthew 21 on His way to the Cross (beginning process of passion week) He is riding a donkey.  He is fulfilling Scripture based off of Zechariah 9:9 - "look, your King is coming to you; He is righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey..."  While He is riding this donkey faithfully, the people are shouting Hosannah...Hosannah.  It is happening, we are being released from the oppression of the Romans...but please don't miss it friends.  We aren't being released from our oppressions of the "romans"...we are being released from the death of sin.  We are being ripped from the hands of the evil one named Satan.  Don't think Jesus came to make your life easy becasue if you focus on that you will miss Jesus dearly...but KNOW that Jesus came to save you, redeem you, rescue you, declare you as HIS from Satan.  Jesus coming was bigger than being released from oppression of the "romans", His coming was for your heart to be His heart...now that is big time.  That's worth rejoicing, dancing, and celebrating even in the hard times of oppression (whatever they may be in your life right now).  Sorry, back to my original thought.

As they are screaming hosannah loudly, they later on Friday will be screaming "crucify Him...crucify Him...let His blood be on us and our children...wait, what?  The same crowd that ushered Him in praising Him now want Him dead.  Why?  Because they wanted Him to make their lives easy and when they realized He didn't, they had no use of Him...they missed it friends.  Don't miss it.  But how on earth did He stay focus and not fail?  How did He utter from the Cross, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing...or asking...or thinking.  How did He do it?  How can we do it in this broken world?

The answer!  Focus on the Kingdom that we actually belong too and not this kingdom.  This kingdom that we live in right now is broken, can be hateful, is evil but most importantly, will be destroyed...but His Kingdom will never fade or be destroyed.  His Kingdom is peaceful, pure, holy, and right and is forever.  Live now for your real Home.  I think of Jesus, Paul, Stephen, Peter, other faithful men and women who died for their God and how did they do it?  They were consumed with their True Home.  What are we consumed with right now?  Here?  It is not worth it!  Heaven?  It is how we can keep marching faithfully while being shot at.  If you are consumed with Jesus, you are at war and you will be shot at everyday...thus as Peter says, "dear friends, do not be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you as if something unusual were happening to you.  Instead, (you ready for this) rejoice as you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may also rejoice with great joy when His glory is revealed."(1 Peter 4:12-19).  Rejoice?  Yep, because as you are being shot at and keeping your eyes focused on His Kingdom, He is cheering you on.  We can do it for His Glory.  We can do it to show others the true Hope we have because we belong to a different Kingdom.  How did innocent Jesus suffer greatly at the sinful hands of humanity?  Because His attention was on His Father's Kingdom and because of that, He was able to say, "It is finished" and it was finished.  Be of good cheer because the best is yet to come my friends.  The best is yet to come.

Listen to this song as a final conclusion to my thoughts today:  Be ready!!!

https://youtu.be/Ze2paNPySGE

Oh Jesus!

I get Peter.  He wants Jesus so badly but he is just covered in his own flesh way too much.  Peter has great moments, and then not so great moments.  I get that.  There is this one special moment when Peter does something remarkable and because of it, we see the glory and beauty of Jesus...not Peter.

Jesus is out walking on water when Peter demands to come out to Him and Jesus says, "come" and Peter walks on water...........and then sinks.  As Peter is sinking he yells out "Lord save me!"  Do you know what Jesus does?  Let's play this out a bit before we look at what the Scriptures tell us:

Jesus rebuked Peter!  Nope
Jesus says to Peter, because you have dishonored me with your unbelief, you must get yourself out of this situation!  Nope
Jesus punished Peter for failing!  Nope
Jesus was ashamed of Peter!  Nope

Matthew 14:31 says this, "immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught hold of him"  IMMEDIATELY.  CAUGHT HOLD OF HIM.  I love that.  Jesus did speak to Peter about the situation, but not out of anger, but almost out of "shoot, you almost got it Peter" attitude.  I think Jesus was actually proud of Peter for putting his faith into action.  No one else did it.

Here is what I got from this.  Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore and He also said, I am with you till the very end of the age.  I want Jesus so bad, more than ever and yet, I sink.  And just like Peter I yell, "Lord save me!" and guess what He does?  He immediately takes a hold of me.  Friend, He immediately takes hold of you as well when you sink.  Why?  Because you are His and He loves you deeply.  He knows what we are made of, but He also knows what we can become because of His great love.  He wants us to step out of the boat.  He also gets us when we sink.  But He is also cheering us on because there will be a day when we step out of the boat and we won't sink and we will look at Him and He will have a smile saying, "now you got it, let's keep moving forward...knowing we will sink again, but i can hear Him whisper, "and lo, I am with you always...have courage, it is I.  Don't be afriad"

What Kind Of Love Is This?

I have been walking through Isaiah since September 1st and I have to tell you loudly, I LOVE THIS BOOK!

As my love for Jesus goes deeper, I think I am really beginning to embrace Isaiah in a whole different way.  I used to read it like, wow, God is angry and tough.  Now my attitude is, He really loves me deeply and desires me above all things.  God has every right to be angry and tough, I mean He created us...to love us...to walk with us...to be with us...and we spit in His face and go after idols...i would be angry too.  But please listen to this, it is not His anger that drives Him in Isaiah, no, it is His deep love for us.  Did you hear that?  HIS DEEP AFFECTIONATE LOVE that drives Him to us.  And I'll prove it.

Check out Isaiah 54:8-9:

"In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while (as He should actually do this all the time because of my constant sinning against Him) but with everlasting love (which means forever and can't be altered by anything) I will have compassion on you."  (Why?  Because He understands us or as the writer of Hebrews says, He is able to sympathize with us...thank you Jesus).  He has compassion on us.  He has compassion on you.  He has every right to utterly destroy me today...right now, but instead His love drives Him and He has compassion for me.  WOW!  But hold on...

"Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear (THE LORD SAYS - I SWEAR...you know what that means, right?)  NOW I SWEAR that i will never again be angry and punish you."  What?  Did I read that right?  That is a big thing to swear Lord...are you sure that is what you mean?  YEP!  Why?

JESUS!  By the way, this was written 700 years before Jesus but the Lord already had an answer to my sins.  JESUS.

Go back one chapter to Isaiah 53:10 - "But the Lord was pleased (PLEASED) to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His Hands.

The anger that I deserve ran like blood down the hands of Jesus Christ thus fulfilling the promise that the Lord swore to in Isaiah 54.  Isaiah 49:15 - "can a mother forget her nursing child?  Can she feel no love for the child she has bourne?  But even if that were possible, I WOULD NOT FORGET YOU" and He hasn't.  He has your name written on His Hands today and it gives Him great pleasure...there is no other kind of love like this my friends.  Grab a hold of Jesus today...quickly for He grabbed you on the Cross!  God's anger was satisfied in the Blood of Jesus...wow.

That Is Good!

My hero Robert Murray M'Cheyne said, "Oh, my friends, there must be a personal sitting down under the shadow of Christ if you would be saved!  Christ is the bush that has been burned, yet not consumed.  Oh, it is a safe place for a hell-deserving sinner to rest!"  Are you kidding me?  The two words that are consuming my life right now are the words "safe place."  What is your safe place?  Let me just tell you that anything short of Jesus as your safe place is not SAFE.

I am doing some major deep counseling in my life right now and the counselor is the one who presented me with the concept of safe place.  As a kid, going thru difficult moments, I learned to create a safe place to go and sadly that is what I still do today...i go to a place instead of a PERSON.  I go to "something" instead of Jesus.  And when I run toward something or somewhere instead of to Jesus, I am dissatisfied, angry, and exhausted.  This morning I ran to Jesus and I found Him...He was waiting for me and it was very good.  It was peaceful, deep, and very satisfying.  Oh my friends, run to Jesus.  Take Him up on the invitation to come to Him...if you are tired and weary...come to Jesus.  He is gentle.  He is humble in heart.  And you will find rest.  Come to Jesus.

And Rest In Him!!!  Now that is good!

I Think I Like Jesus

So, this may be my shortest blog ever, but could be the best ever 😅 haha.

Isaiah 53 - Jesus is refer to as "a man of sorrows"...700 years prior to His coming.  A man of sorrows.  I like that.  I get that.  Jesus really does understand me.  A man of sorrows.  A perfect man, who took on the rejection of sinful man, to love the rejected.  He became a man of sorrows to walk with me through my sorrows.  I really do like Jesus more today that ever...And He alone will never abandoned me.  I really do like that today.

Apple Tree

I made a bad decision.  I made a costly decision.  It can't be undone.  I fell short of the glory of God.

I am out of tears.  I am broken.  I want to get away.  You ever been there?  It sucks.  It hurts.  You are saying to Aslan (the lion from Narnia) how much more of this?  Here is the scene:

“You will have to let me undress you,” says Aslan the Lion.

So desperate was Eustace, even his fear of Aslan’s claws was not enough to stop him from laying down flat on his back. Laying anxious on the ground, here’s what Eustace felt.

The very first tear he made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I’ve ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off. . . .

Well, he peeled the beastly stuff right off — just as I thought I’d done it myself the other three times, only they hadn’t hurt — and there it was lying on the grass: only ever so much thicker, and darker, and more knobbly-looking than the others had been. And there was I as smooth and soft as a peeled switch and smaller than I had been. Then he caught hold of me — I didn’t like that much for I was very tender underneath now that I’d no skin on — and threw me into the water. It smarted like anything but only for a moment. After that it became perfectly delicious and as soon as I started swimming and splashing I found that all the pain had gone from my arm. And then I saw why. I’d turned into a boy again. . . .

After a bit the lion took me out and dressed me . . . in new clothes.

how much more Lord?  Please, how much more?  He says, "when I AM done."

My childhood was challenging.  And one of my safest places was a tall tree in the backyard.  It was the type of tree that says, "climb me."  And i would go to the top of the tree and allowed the thick branches and the many leaves to cover me.  No one could see me and no one could find me.  And I was there for however long I needed too to feel safe again again.

Well, i made a bad decision.  A costly decision.  Today, I want to climb to the top of a tree and hide for as long as I need to, but my Jesus said no.  You will not.  Here is what you are going to do today.  In fact, this is what you must do everyday.  Please, I am pleading with you JT, this is what you must do.  (This comes from Song of Solomon 2:3 that says - Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the young men.  In his shade I took great delight and sat down, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.)

"JT, you are not climbing the tree today, you are going to sit under My tree.  You are going to sit under My Apple Tree.  Sure, the other trees look good, but this is the only apple tree in the forest.  And yes, they all look safe to climb and hide, but that is not what I am asking you to do.  I am asking you to sit under My Apple Tree and allow my shade to protect you.  The shade from the other trees will fade away, but My Shade never fades.  And you are going to eat MY APPLES.  You are not going to eat the world's apples, they will spoil.  You are not going to eat other people's apples...not what I desire.  You are going to eat MY APPLES.  Because they are right, good, and satisfying not just for today but for eternity.  And this is where you are going to stay."

How much more Lord?  When I AM done!

Hey sinner, yay you...I'm a sinner too

As I feel like I have gotten closer to Jesus over these past few years I have also realized in those moments how much of a sinner I really am.  I have an evil heart.  Or as Revelation 3:17 says, "you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked."  And yet, because of Jesus, I am loved.  I am His.  I am redeemed!  In my weakness He is strong!  In my brokenness He is perfect!  In my stains He is spotless!  He knows me!  He already knows I am a sinner.  Why must I "avoid" Him?

So what do I do?  I come to Him and confess my sins and He responds with, "i am faithful and just and will forgive you of your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness."  Wait...what?  Really?  Yep.  But here is the kicker, but boy if I don't claim to be a sinner in need of a Savior, then I make Jesus out to be a liar...woa!  And the outcome?  His Word is not in me.  (1 John 1:9-10)

So as I wrestle with this truth, I thought, for those of us who are "not in the Word" or "His Word is not in me" does that come from a place of not taking our sins seriously?  And if we don't take our sins seriously, we sort of just skate thru life with Jesus nearby...Then there are those who understand the depravity of their sin and have no hope BUT to draw closer to Jesus, being reminded of His deep deep love for them even in their sinful state.  And how do we learn the depth of His love for us?  Simply by being in His Word!

Ok, so now it works out best for us if we wholeheartedly admit what He already knows about us, so that we can rest in His promise of grace (the forgiveness of sin) and allow ourselves to taste and see that He is good and that His love does indeed endure forever.  Or better yet, what Jesus promises to do for us if we confess our sins - "I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. (Rev. 3:18)  Wow, all this by recognizing that we are sinners and admitting our sins to Him...that is love.

I'll finish up with one more truth for us to chew on, "and if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." (1 John 2:1)  We have no reason now to avoid spending time with Jesus, so let's open up the Scriptures today and soak in His promises and His faithfulness to us!!!

We Are In Battle

My hero Charles Spurgeon said this, "consider how precious a soul must be, when both God and the devil are after it."

God has come to give us life while Satan wants to come and destroy it and yet we give in!   I was reminded of this the other day in a conversation I had with a friend that our battle according to Ephesians, is not against flesh and blood and yet, it seems that Satan deceives us by making us think that our battle IS against flesh and blood.  He, the master of lies, deceives us in fighting each other and IT WORKS!  UGGGGGGH!  Friends, it is time we wake up and fight the real battle...not a secondary battle.  Actually, as I typed that out my mind went straight to the truth of letting Jesus fight the battle and we just walk in Him...because we are no match for Satan.  I am sadden to think about how many churches and families have fallen because of this unique strategy from the devil.  Let's pause and look at what the devil means.  He is a slanderer and an accuser and he likes to accuse us day and night, which makes me wonder if that is why Joshua and David said "meditate on the Word of God day and night?"  Regardless, our battle is against the evil one...not one another.  In fact, each one of us has enough to deal with each day, we don't need any help from anyone else.  We need love.  We need encouragement.  We need grace.  We need Jesus.

We need to set ourselves up with the power of Jesus and Paul tells us how in Ephesians 6:11-20.  We need to suit up for battle and fellow soldiers, the best way for us to battle is in the full armor of God.  Which is His Word:  TRUTH.  RIGHTEOUSNESS.  GOSPEL OF PEACE.  FAITH.  SALVATION.  SWORD OF SPIRIT.  All these grow bigger and deeper on us from being in His Word...by sitting at the Table with Jesus.  And as we move into the Word we pray before we "eat" of it.  We pray while we are "devouring" it.  We pray as we are "digesting" it.  Let's start fighting the real battle...the devil.  He is coming after our souls but only to destroy it...let's surrender our souls to our Hero, our Savior, our Jesus.  Amen?  Amen!

How Could I Miss That!!!

You ever have those moments while reading Scripture that you come across something and you respond by going nuts (my favorite being Are You Kidding Me)?   I had that moment yesterday while reading about Abraham in the early years of his journey with the Lord. 

The Lord had establish a very significant covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3 and Abraham responded by doing what the Lord asked of him.  Now Abraham is on the journey to live out the covenant but as you discover quickly, there will be challenges to that covenant being fulfilled.  One of those being around becoming a "great nation."  Listen, the truth for all of us is that we want to be "great" for the Lord but if we aren't careful, we will compromise that "greatness" because we lose sight of the One who promised it in the first place.  We are so good at quickly taking our eyes off of the Lord and placing them upon ourselves and Abraham has that moment to do so.  Look at Genesis 14:21-23...how could I have missed this:

The king of Sodom said to Abram, "give me the people and keep the goods for yourself."  The king is saying let me help you by becoming a "great nation."  Let's make a deal and I promise it will work out in your favor.  This is exactly one of the temptations that Satan used on Jesus in the wilderness.  How does Abram respond?

"With his hand raised he said, I have sworn an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even A THREAD or the STRAP OF A SANDAL, so that you will never be able to say, 'I made Abram rich.'"

What?  Seriously, how did I miss that?  Great job Abraham.  You quickly learned the lesson that the Lord cannot and will not bless compromises.  And as soon as that thought came to my mind then I simply found myself struggling to swallow what I had just sipped.  Uggh.  A thread is not that big of a deal...a strap of a sandal, who cares.  Nope...to Abram those are compromises, and he wouldn't allow the king of Sodom one piece of crumb.  Jesus and Satan:  remind yourself of the three temptations in Matthew 4.  They are actually pretty sweet deals for Jesus, but like Abram, Jesus wasn't about to give Satan a crumb or Satan would have declared that he was the one who gave Jesus the kingdom of this world.  Yikes.  But Abram said no.  Jesus said no.  And because of that God was glorified and both men were blessed to experience the promise that the Lord had declared to them. 

But what about me?  Gulp, I finally swallowed that sip and drunk the truth that the Lord cannot and will not bless compromises.  It stings but yet is good for my soul to drink.  We find unique ways of saying, it's not that big of a deal...oh and that is when Satan has us.  It would have been so easy for Abram to give in, but he would have missed out on the bigger blessing.  I don't want to think about what I have missed out on, how about you?  But, by the Grace of God, today is a new day.  Abram would fall short later on.  David fell short.  Moses.  Joshua.  Shall I continue on?   But you know what I am eternally grateful for?  I am thankful that Jesus didn't fall short!  Even in the Garden when Jesus might have been tempted the greatest temptation at His weakest moment, He would not allow Satan a crumb and friends, that made all the difference for you and I.

Let's drink some truth today.  The Lord has and still wants to continue to bless us, but He is joyful to bless us when we haven't compromised with the enemy.  The enemy only comes to steal, kill, and destroy so as clever as he is, DO NOT GIVE HIM A CRUMB!  And I think Abram gives us a great choice of words to use when tempted:  Call out - "Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth" you are all that I desire please come to my rescue and get this snake out of here for me.  Amen.

Regrets

Do you ever have regrets?  Ummm, duh!  Who doesn't?  But it seems lately that a lot of my "yesterday" regrets are showing up at my door and knocking.  I peak out the door and see them standing there wanting answers...and they ain't leavin till they get answers.  I try to shew them away, ignoring their desires or at times I try to justify them, but they ain't buyin.  They know what is going on.  And the person behind them is Satan himself.  He won't back down because he gets the sense that they are getting to me.  Especially when I try to justify them.  Those are the moments that Satan is like, "ok, let's hear him out" (with a very evil smile on his face).  Sadly, this is how I have function for years and years and years.  I try to carry out the same process every time and it hasn't worked.  How are you doing in that department?

And like I said, a lot of them have been showing up.  What am I to do?  There are way too many of them to address.  But I have good news on how to deal with them.  It really is simple and the best part free.  Well, for me it is free...for someone else it was costly.  Here it is:  when satan comes knocking with all my regrets, i don't even open the door anymore, i just scream at the top of my lungs, take it up with Jesus, He handles all my problems now.  I don't let satan have any of my time.  Because i have learned, if I give satan any attention, he will just keep piling on guilt, shame, and anger.  He is the master of those things and frankly, those are things I don't want anymore.  I have carried them for way too long and they slow me down.  In fact, they make me crawl some days and I am tired of that.  I want to be free.  I want to run.  I want to dance.  I want to sing.  I want to share.  I want joy.  I want peace.  I want love.  Now those are things that get me fired up, but those are simply things that satan in his "mastery" just cannot provide.  He will be slick, but nope...he equals NOTHING.  But i don't open the door to him anymore.  I don't deal with him at all.  I just point him to Jesus...Jesus will be taking care of all my issues now.  See, it has taken me a bit, but Jesus is EVERYTHING to me, and I am just now getting the tip of the iceberg to that goodness.  I want more.  Satan has come "to steal, kill, and destroy; Jesus came that I may have life, and have it abundantly." (John 10:10)  Amen.  Make satan take it up with Jesus. 

Let's go one step deeper - take a glance at Zechariah 3...now this will preach:

"then He showed me JT the sinner standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at His right hand to accuse JT.  The Lord said to Satan, "I rebuke you, Satan!  Indeed, I, who has chosen JT (all sinners) rebuke you!  Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?"  Now JT was clothed with filthy garments (my choice) and standing before the angel.  He spoke and said to those who were standing before Him, saying, "remove the filthy garments from JT."  Again, He said to JT, "see, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes."  Then with His hands on his face He says to JT, "if you will walk in my ways and if you will perform MY service, then you will also govern MY house and also have charge of MY courts, and I will grant you free access among these who are standing here."  WHAT?  How is that?  Oh, what great love is this!!!   And since this is true, don't let satan have access to that amazing gift please!

Let me tell you what happened to me the other day.  Satan came at me big time and even question my ability and integrity with being a pastor...how could you?  And I said to him, "I am not a pastor because of me...I am a pastor because of Him.  You don't like it fine, just go take it up with Jesus...Satan left and so did the regrets.  But if I know satan, he will come back again and this time he will have more with him, but in the meantime, I'll just soak myself deeper with Jesus knowing that Jesus has me covered..."my grace is sufficient for you JT...for power is perfected in weakness." (2 Cor. 12:9).  I clearly know that I do not deserve this, but "Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.  Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life."  (1 Timothy 1:15-16)

When regrets come knocking and they will, don't answer the door...just turn your eyes to Jesus...He has already answered the door from the Cross.

Are We Advancing the Gospel

I love the phrase advancing the Gospel!  And the question arose for me today according to Philippians 1:12-18, am I advancing the Gospel?  

Let me set the scene for you.  Paul loves to talk about Jesus.  Anywhere!  Anytime!  Anyhow!  Jesus.  Believe it or not, Paul would get arrested for talking about Jesus and he considered it joyful moment...why?  It was still an opportunity to advance the Gospel.  See, even though Paul was in chains, the Gospel is never in chains.  So Paul is chained to guards according to v.13 and these guards were important people who changed shifts every 6-8 hours...so guess what happened to each guard connected to Paul?  Jesus time!  Haha.  Paul was like, "you might chain me up, but you can't chain up the Gospel, so we are going to talk about it."  See, there is no mention of them chaining up his mouth.  So let's say, every 6-8 hours a guard is changed.  So, in a days time, maybe 4 guards.  Do these guys repeat or are there 10 guards?  It doesn't matter because at that moment, whoever is chained up to Paul, they are going to hear about his Savior.  My message in prison is "get me out of here asap!"  Paul used it, since he was there anyways, as a platform to talk about Jesus.  Now, today my eyes were opened to the impact of the phrase advancing the Gospel.  Now look at Philippians 4:22 - "All God's people here send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar's household."  Wait, what?  How?  Well, go back to Philippians 1:12-13.  Paul was advancing the Gospel even though he was in chains to roman soldiers...who worked for Caesar!  Are you kidding me?  And do you know what else happened besides roman guards hearing about Jesus?  It gave Paul's brothers and sisters confidence (v.14) to preach Jesus...without fear....ADVANCING THE GOSPEL!!!

So I have to ask myself the question today, have I advance the Gospel today and if not, what is possibly my excuse?  I AM NOT IN PRISON, I am a free man!  Are you advancing the Gospel today?  What is your excuse if you aren't?  It is time to rise up!  Let's be bold and courageous fearing nothing!  

Praying

I think anytime we approach Scripture, and I mean anytime, we should pray a prayer that Paul prayed over the church of Ephesus.  In fact, I think it is critical to having our minds open to the magnitude of embracing the power of the Gospel.

Pray, "Father, would you please give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation as I approach Your Words.   May you open my eyes and heart to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Your Son Jesus that surpasses knowledge.  In the Name of Jesus."

Then, when we taste and see that the Lord is good, we will be better resourced to share that truth with others.  Then I pray the same pray over who I am about to share the Word with so that it is not just information, but that there would be a transformation that could happen because the Gospel is understood not from a knowledge point of view, but from the Spirit of wisdom and revelation.  For the love of God in the Name of Jesus.

Let's do it!

Listen to who?

I was reminded gently today while reading Acts 21 the importance, and I mean essential importance of listening to the right voice!  I will confess that it is always easier to go to another human being when I am in a bad place or need to just get something off of my chest.  Or, i go to another human being for advice or suggestions.  Please hear me on this, that in itself is not a bad thing, I think the Lord created community for those moments, but if all we ever do is run off to other human beings and never to the Lord, i think we are on very thin ice, and Acts 21 is such a valuable lesson of that.

So Paul is called to go to Jerusalem and he and his friends know what awaits him, certain death.  So they of course, want to talk him out of it.  I had a flash back of when Jesus predicted His situation and Peter tried to talk Him out of it...same thing.  So they not only try to talk Paul out of it, but they even PRAYED the journey out of his mind...i mean it was PROPHESIED over him...woa.  And I love Paul's response in v.13 - why all this weeping?  You are breaking my heart!  I am ready not only to be jailed at Jerusalem but even to die...for what?  JESUS CHRIST."  Paul is like, friends, this isn't about me...this is about the GLORY OF JESUS CHRIST.  Come on!  Thankfully they get on board with "The Lord's will be done" but do they really mean it?  Haha.

So, who are we listening too?  Again, not stating one outweighs another (well, it really does), but we need to make sure that we are seeking the face of the Lord long before we are seeking the advice of someone else.  If Paul would have listened to the voices, he would not have reacted to what he felt the Lord had called him to do in the first place?  I can't imagine that it would have ended up well for Paul if he had disobeyed the Lord in that moment!!!  And do you know what we don't see happening here, I don't see anywhere in Acts 21 of ANYONE coming up alongside Paul saying, "brother, if this is your mission and you feel it, then may the Lord bless you in this journey..."  In fact, sometimes I wonder if Barnabas would have been present in this moment, what he would have said to Paul?

I want to learn to hear His voice.  John 10 is all about the sheep recognizing the Shepherd's voice.  I have been guilty so many times of not hearing His voice because I am truthfully listening to other voices.  I want to hear His voice.  I want to be surrounded by people who care deeply for me that they long for me to hear His voice.  I want to bless people whom I deeply care about so that they learn to hear His voice.  Imagine, a community of people who are hungry to hear the voice of the Great Shepherd above all else and what kind of conversations we would have around God's purpose.  I mean, what would the conversations had looked like if everyone in Acts 21 were on board with the vision that was laid out for Paul:  Instead of talking him out of it, some might have been willing to go with him...to pray him through it...stand behind him cheering him on.  Just imagine...who are we listening too?

A Little Golden Nugget

As I was reading Nehemiah 7 in my quiet time this morning, this simple verse jumped out at me.  V.2 - "i put in charge of Jerusalem my brother Hanani (remember, he was the one who gave a report to Nehemiah about the destruction of Jerusalem), along with Hananiah (do we really need to have that close of names here?  I mean the difference between those two are ah!) the commander of the citadel, because he was a man of integrity and feared God more than most people do."  I think that verse is powerful and here is why:

The Lord is always reminding me the power of being faithful with the little or small things.  If you are faithful with the little things, then you are seen as trustworthy in His eyes.  If we aren't faithful with small things, then why on earth would He give us more.  That is simply good wisdom.  Well, let's look at what Hanani is now in charge of:  JERUSALEM.  That is a big task.  Why does Nehemiah feel comfortable with his brother Hanani in charge of Jerusalem?  Because Hanani carried out a small task in Nehemiah chapter 1, that was significant in the eyes of the Lord...which got the ball rolling for the restoration of Jerusalem.  It happens because the Lord used a moment when Hanani just simply carried out a message of truth to Nehemiah and that message created a spark that turned into a forest fire within Nehemiah.  If Hanani could carry out that small task because of its significance, then why on earth would he not be trusted to carry out being in charge of Jerusalem? 

And why Hananiah?  Integrity and feared God - integrity is really another way of saying faithful with the little, is it not?  If we can be great stewards with the very little we have, then we are trustworthy to be faithful with more.

Now, we have to fight against the battle of being faithful with little just to get more, because we do have corrupted minds that think that way and of course, the Lord is not fooled.  So our challenge is to be faithful with the small things...PERIOD, regardless if anything else comes our way or not.  That is what moves the heart of the Lord and whatever He decides to do with that is His call anyways.

So let's be faithful with the little things today!  Thanks Hanani and HananiAH.

3x Grace!

Jesus says to Peter, before the rooster crows, you will deny me 3x.  Peter is like, what?  No!  Won't happen.  Peter denies Jesus 3x and the rooster crows...Peter is crushed.  3x

After the resurrection of Jesus, He appears to Peter and simply asks Peter, do you love me?  3x  And Peter responds with an answer 3x.  To me, it is like Jesus saying to Peter, alright, let's move on and carry out the vision that i laid out for you before I was crucified on the Cross.  All is well.  3x

Now, in Acts 10 Peter is on the roof praying and gets hungry.  Peter has a vision of some good meat and Jesus says get up, kill it and eat it.  Peter is like, wait a minute...i can't, it is against the Law.  I can't help but see Jesus smiling thinking, man, can't pull anything by this guy, but says to Peter, "do not call anything impure that God has made clean."  Listen, Jesus gets it.  Peter is obeying the Law...really is a beautiful moment.  But Jesus has fulfilled the Law and wants to provide for Peter's need at this moment, plus, there is something greater happening here for you and I!!!   But Peter is stuck, so do you know what Jesus does?  He has a conversation with Peter about this, how many times?  Look at v.16 - 3x.  Haha.  I had never caught that before and at first glance you might think ouch, boy Jesus has a way of stinging Peter when he is stubborn, but friends, I don't think that at all.  All I see is GRACE.  Peter has taught that you can't do this, but today is a new day and there is a new way because of Jesus and because Peter is stuck, the most impactful way for Peter to embrace Jesus as truth is for Jesus to speak to Peter about this...3x.  As soon as Jesus brings it up 3x, i see Peter smiling thinking I hope that there are some mashed potatoes involved with this ham that I am about to eat up.  3x Grace...which by the way, never runs out!!!

And because of that 3x Grace, the Gospel begins to be shared with the Gentiles and today, I am living under the beauty of 3x Grace.  Friends, today is a new day...Jesus has made a new way.  Enjoy Him!

P.S. i wonder if when Peter was being stubborn in his faith, if Jesus didn't just speak to him about it 3x.  That's Grace!

Wait....what?

I was simply reminded this morning while reading Ezra 1...GOD IS IN CONTROL!

So, the Israelites are in captivity to their worst enemy and God must have forgotten them altogether, right?  NEVER.  God promised them that because of their disobedience this was going to happen and yet, God promised them that after 70 years they would be delivered.  So, year 70 comes around and on the throne is King Cyrus, uggh!  We are going to be in exile even longer now, because King Cyrus is a pagan king...no way is he going to let us go free.  But listen, Cyrus sits on a throne that is made of earthly material, who is merely a man, here today and gone tomorrow.  Let's just get real honest friends...God is on the Throne AND IT is not man made and IT IS eternal!  NOT CYRUS.  In fact, Ezra 1 is so good because it reminds us that God is in control.  God "stirred the heart of Cyrus"!  Isn't that great.  Cyrus let the prisoners go free.  Cyrus covered the cost of rebuilding Jerusalem.  Cyrus was used mightily by God to bring freedom for His people...JUST AS GOD PROMISED. 

I simply wrote these thoughts down this morning:  1.  Wake up JT to the reality of who God is.  He is trustworthy!  He is good!  He is powerful!  He is love!  He is for me!  2.  Cyrus, who only "heard" about God responds to God better than I do, and I have a relationship with the Lord.  What is that?  Stop living in fear!  Stop being easily intimidated by men who are here today and gone tomorrow.  I was reminded in James where it says, "even the demons believe and shutter in fear."  They know who God is!  It is time for me to get more serious in my love and desire for Him.  Join me.  We have the awesome privilege to walk with the One who sits on the Eternal Throne who is powerful than all kingdoms combined and then some.

Shhhh!

If you have been around me, you have heard my heart around this, but I felt the need to type it out.

Psalm 23:5 has been my favorite verse for sometime and it continues to be my go to when talking to anyone about the importance of spending quiet time with Jesus.

It simply says that He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies; He anoints my head with oil; my cup overflows.

So here is my thought! 

He builds YOU at table.  It is for you.  It has your name on it.  Now place it somewhere in your house that you will see on a daily basis.  Why?  Because what I want you to know is that Jesus is always sitting at that table ready to spend time with you.  And my favorite part:  if you want to make the enemy ticked, then sit down with Jesus and let Him do the two things He promises to do in this verse:

1.  To anoint you.  Simply put, He uniquely reminds you that you are His.  Regardless of how you feel, when you sit with Him, He gets to tell you that you mean everything to Him.  I don't know about you but I could use that truth everyday!  Because the world is going to tell you lies.  The enemy is going to tell you lies.  If we aren't careful and we don't allow Jesus to speak truth into us, then we will leave ourselves open to believing the lies.  That works for no one!  Sit with Him and let Him anoint you.  Let Him tell you the truth.

2.  To fill your cup to overflowing.  This life requires a lot.  And if you are a disciple of Jesus, it can wipe you out.  When we catch the heartbeat of God and see that it is better to give than receive, we will spend our days giving our very best to those around us and especially to the Lord.  Well, if you do that, you will come up empty.  Thus, the best way to fill your cup is to sit before the One who specializes in filling cups...even to the point of overflowing.  And He likes doing it. 

But His greatest desire is that we just be with Him.  He'll take care of all that, but He just wants you.  He wants you to stop and be quiet and realize He is God...and nothing in this world will anoint you LIKE HE DOES and nothing in this world will fill your cup AT ALL.  Only He.  So let's discipline ourselves to stop for a few moments and be quiet before Him and allow Him to do what He desires to do...TAKE CARE OF US.  And this whole time, in the presence of our enemies (whatever those might be in your life right now)  And over time, even though the enemies don't disappear, they just won't intimidate you like they used too...you will only be consumed on Him.  And that my friends make the rest of Psalm 23 beautiful!!!

So, now that you have read this, go sit at the table with your name on it and enjoy the One who wants to enjoy you.

Grace

I love how you can learn beautiful grace from your kids.  So allow me to tell you a story of grace:

My two daughters Anna and Addie love to drive a golf cart and were taking turns doing so yesterday.  My son Jojo has an imagination out of this world and can get easily angered at things and so he is playing a game/not happy while girls are driving golf cart.  Well, at one point, he decided to pick up a rock and throw it in the direction of the golf cart, not taking into account the motion of two objects.  Sadly, the rock found its location in the center of Addie's forehead.  Thankfully no blood, but was on the verge of bad, but just a big ole gooseegg and soon a nasty looking bruise.  By the way, one of the toughest kids on the planet, she didn't cry but was upset.  So of course, I kick in to high gear of going after Jojo, who is running in the opposite direction of my voice...haha.  So I catch up with him and I swear, my kids would rather me spank them and send them on their way instead of having a conversation with me.  For about 7 minutes I wanted him to understand the foolishness of this moment.  I asked questions...he gave me answers.  He was already humiliated because he didn't intend for it to go down this way in the first place and now he has to look me into the eyes and have conversation about this humiliation.  I want him to have wisdom for his life.  Now, i am not a big fan of apologizing right away, but asked him to find a time when his heart was ready to say his sorrys and ask for forgiveness.  That was it.  Let's all move on and enjoy the day.  Later on i caught up with Addie who was already back to playing.  This is the conversation and this is GRACE!

Me:  "Addie, how's your head?"
Addie:  "it's good, don't touch it!"
Me:  "Did Jojo apologize yet?"
Addie:  "yes, he apologized twice!"
Me:  "was it sincere?"
Addie:  "yes it was."  (inside I am smiling)
Me:  "Are you good?"
Addie: "yes...can I ask you something?  Is it a lie if people ask me what happen, i just tell them i was in a golf cart driving and a rock flew and hit me in the forehead?"
Me:  "i think it is fine, why?"
Addie:  "i don't want anyone to think badly of Jojo"  (at this moment I want to run and weep) IS THAT NOT GRACE?

Grace is a beautiful gift, but it needs to be embraced fully and it needs to be shared always for us to appreciate it as a gift!!!

Thank you Addie for teaching me grace in the midst of your pain.  Thank you Jesus for teachable moments about Your Grace!

Doors!!!

I am going to be honest, but I can't stand the saying, "where one door closes another door opens."  Uggh.  Someone said that to me yesterday in a conversation and out of nowhere I said this, "but what do you do when you thought the door you just left was the "right" door?  I mean it felt good, had a lot of connections to it, and was fun?  And not only that, but I keep trying to go back and pry it open or kick it open."  I think the truth is we all do one way or another.  I mean, look at the Israelites, given the promise of land flowing with milk and honey, and they wanted to go back to slavery...what is that?  We just want to go back to the good ole days.  What is it about open doors?  Well, the truth of it is we aren't in control and we have no clue what is ahead of us if we walk through that door.  At least, the previous door we had control over and in same ways, it was a good door.  Now, I get it, some of us are glad that door is shut and in fact, it is chained shut never to open again.  But the open door, what will it be like?  I don't know! 

This is where I have been lately in my own life, but there is one promise that keeps coming up within my heart...God is on the other side of that door.  God is always ahead of us.  This is so true for my life and if you take a second to reflect, you will find it to be the truth for you as well.  And He always has the best intentions for us in mind.  Friends, it only gets better and I am believing that more than ever and one of the reasons why I know it gets better is because of eternity with Him.  Now, it may be rough here on earth, but the way things function on earth are not the way things are in eternity.  I long for home more than ever but instead of shutting down and waiting, what a joy it is for me that I can experience the sweet intimacy of Jesus NOW.  What a joy it is to be able to drink Jesus in until my cup is overflowing and then offering another a chance to drink of His sweet love.  Here's the secret, if we make our lives truly about Jesus at all times, then the open door is more of Him.  Each new open door is more of Jesus.  I was convicted yesterday of how I am distrusting the Lord by longing to go back to the previous doors and not move through the new door.  Open it, whatever it may be and look hard and you will see Jesus...He is always ahead of us!!!

Jesus or Heaven?

I was simply thinking today preparing for my sermon this Sunday; are we more excited about Jesus or about Heaven?  Because the answer to that question determines how we function here on earth and one of the answers may not look as pretty as we think.

So think about it?  When you talk about eternity, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?  Is it the Presence of Jesus or the promises that are offered to us?  Is it the glory and the full-on beauty of Jesus or the promises of no more death, no more sorrow, no more pain, streets of gold, to be united with all the love ones?  Please, out of love and grace, stay with me on this.  Because it is a journey that I have wrestled with and walked through and honestly, still walking through this.  But if we are consumed with the promises of what Jesus offers in heaven, then life here on earth tends to be a little bit more about us than others, maybe even more about us than Jesus!  Think about it.  I can't wait to get to heaven because I don't have to deal with (fill in the blank).  Or I can't wait to get to heaven to see (fill in the blank).  I humorously like to say, if we go to "heaven" and Jesus isn't there that is "hell" and if we go to "hell" and Jesus is there, then it is "heaven".  But I also like that because it reminds me that heaven is not specifically a place as much as it is a Person.  Wherever Jesus is, that is Heaven.  So all that to say, I am working on getting to the place of desiring more of Jesus each day even if pain, sorrow, and death is a part of the story.  Interestingly, it says that Jesus came to give us life abundantly and think about His life...it was full of pain, sorrow, and death.  But it was also full of love, grace, joy, and beauty.  Should I expect any less here on earth?  But what is this life on earth about?  Us?  Jesus? 

And if Jesus is what I am consumed with about eternity, then think how that is played out while we are here on earth.  If Jesus is our desire, then we begin to live for Him and others here on this earth.  If we are consumed with Jesus, then we will want to know Him and His desires and guess what those desires are?  Him and others!  Two greatest commandments...Love God and Love others.  With Jesus in our vision, we begin to live out "do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but with humility consider others better than yourselves."  That was Paul who faithfully served with joy for the sake of others knowing Jesus.

Here is the point.  Be consumed with Jesus because the promises follow Him wherever He goes anyways.  Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and what?  Everything else happens as it should, even in eternity.  If we are more consumed about the promises of Jesus, we might actually miss Jesus altogether and that could not end well for us here on earth.  Today is a new day, what are we choosing to be consumed with?

Are You Thirsty?

So Jesus comes along in John 4 and starts a conversation with a samaritan woman, which was a no-no in those days, except that the Holy Spirit led Him to go there...He HAD to go!!!

So He begins this conversation with the woman to get to something I really hadn't caught before.  He wanted to talk about the living water that He offers to all mankind, but either she didn't get where Jesus was going or she wasn't going to take the bait, but then Jesus pulled a Master punch by asking her to go get her husband.  Well, here we go.  She is going to get blasted from Jesus like everyone else in the community does to her, although Jesus has a different angle here.  She stutters and finally confesses that the man she is with is not her husband.  Busted.  Death.  Except, that is not where Jesus is going with her.  In fact, I could sense silence sitting in this place and she is ready for the religious leaders to come around the corner any moment, but nothing.  And not even Jesus Himself, who just exposed her is even making a move.  She responds by changing the subject and Jesus just walks right with her...haha, He isn't leaving until her eyes are opened to who He is.  She eventually states something about the Messiah (where did she learn that concept and understanding?) to which Jesus joyfully screamed out, "I am He."  Here's the deal:

He entered into her story to lovingly escort her into His story...His story of grace and love and more importantly, that He is the Living Water, and all who drink never get thirsty again.  Isn't that beautiful?  And He does the same with you and me.  He wants to enter into your story, to get you to journey into His Story and let me tell you friends, His story is much better.  What a beautiful scene we have here, a broken, down-hearted woman who is seeking water and she would go anywhere to find it and then one day the Living Water shows up to her and part of me wonders that it showed up because she was actually looking for it.  Are you seeking the Lord?  Are you thirsty for something?  When we are thirsty, we will drink anything to quench it.  I think she is at this point, but didn't know what to do.  So Jesus entered and took care of it with her...and do you know what happened next?

She drank so much and her cup was running over that she ran back to her home town and told everyone about her encounter with the Living Water and how her thirst was quench and other people found Living Water that day because of her testimony.  Have you tasted and seen that the Lord is good today?  Well, do so right now.  And once you have found Jesus, remember that there are people around you who are thirsty and broken.  And instead of being arms length from them, embrace that they are truly looking for what this samaritan woman was looking for and you can be a part of helping them find Living Water.  I love John 4...spend some time drinking in that chapter today.

Catching Jesus' Heart

I was reading Luke 17 this morning of the classic story of Jesus healing the 10 lepors and only one of them came back to say thanks.  Here is how my reflection time went:

Lord, I am so thankful for the healing in my life and the healing that you are still doing in my life, in fact, you won't stop the healing process until you come (Philippians 1:6).  So Jesus, i am at your feet today giving you glory for your love over my life and brokenness.  And truthfully, there is a part of me that just wants to stay here but I caught something that I had never thought about before, but that is what Jesus says after this specific leper is at His feet!  "Where are the other 9?  Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?"  But here is where I was challenged..."stand up and go."  So, in Scripture, the word stand signifies that there is work to be done.  When Jesus completed His mission, He sat next to His Father.  You sit when the work is done.  You stand when there is work to be done.  Jesus says, "stand up" - still work to be done?  "And go."  Go!  Go means don't stay here.  Go means travel somewhere else...just not here.  Woa.  And then it hit me, maybe I should stand up  go find the other 9 and share with them the reality and truth of what truly happened to all of us.  We deserved leprosy because we are sinners and what we really didn't deserve is to be healed, but Jesus healed us because that is who He is.  He is love.  He is healer.  He healed us and I think we need to live a life of worship and thankfulness to Him.  We live a life of serving and striving to help others see the miracle of Jesus' love.  Let's catch Jesus' heart in this moment and that He wishes that no one depart from knowing Him.  Isaiah had it, after being healed in Isaiah 6, the Lord said who will "stand and go for me" (my paraphrase) and Isaiah said, Lord send me...and Isaiah went.  Do we truly understand what Jesus has done?

My faith has healed me and I now I want to stand and go...

Passion Warning!

I love David for his passion.  And passion is very contagious, but at the same time, passion can lead to messiness!  1 Chronicles 13 proves this point and shows us the warning:

David is broken because the Ark of Covenant is not in its correct spot.  His heart is broken because God's Glory is not being properly embraced by God's people.  David wants the Ark here and he wants God to be praised.  Friends, that is passion but sometimes passion leads to messiness.  Look at what happens next...they were in a hurry to get the Ark here and the passion was so intense that David stepped over the commands from Deuteronomy and Exodus about how the Ark was to be carried.  If you read Deuteronomy 10:8 and Deuteronomy 18:5 you would read these Words - "at that time THE LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the Ark..."  Then in Exodus 25 you will read about the fact that the Ark should be carried with poles inside of rings...it says nothing about an ox.  Thus, David's crazy passion, the use of "technology" and not honoring the Levities lead to punishment and poor Uzzah dies.  David lays low for a bit and then all of a sudden the Philistines come at Him and the Lord blesses Him.  That just blows my mind.  David and God don't miss a beat with each other even though David was very foolish.  God is utterly amazing, like for real!!!

Then David goes back to the Ark being present here, so guess what he does?  1 Chronicles 15:2 - "no one but the Levities are to carry the Ark of God.  The Lord has chosen them to CARRY the ARK..."  He obeys the commands of the Law and honors the Lord properly with his passion and now the fun  part:

Once the Ark is in place, David dances out of his mind.  His passion comes out big time and there were some, who couldn't fully embrace it.  David doesn't mind because David knows that his worship is about the Glory of God and no one can stop him from that.  How beautiful!  His passion in this moment is perfect!  Passion is a beautiful gift but it needs to fall under the umbrella of God's direction as well.  I know, because I can't tell you how many times my passion has caused messiness in my life.  Uggh!  But nonetheless, I want to be a passionate person because it is how He wired me and I come alive when I can be passionate for His Glory.  I am learning as David learned.  I am thankful that God doesn't give up on me but keeps shaping and molding me into His likeness.  Amen.

A Melted Heart

I love King Josiah...in fact, it is the name of my boy, hoping that he lives out what King Josiah lived out years and years ago.  I read about King Josiah today in my Bible reading and this is what i came up with:

A melted heart (tender/humble) is a heart that not only reads the Word of the Lord, but does what it says!  I must confess, I used to be pretty good at reading the Bible almost every year.  But sadly, i wasn't doing it...i wasn't putting it into motion.  Thus, i wasn't moving and some say, if you are not moving forward, you are actually going backwards.  Lately, only because of the Spirit's work in me, I am reading and doing my very best to move forward with it.  What i can confess is that i believe my heart is being melted more than ever instead of being prideful and hard!  I still have my moments, but i love this picture that was brought to my mind this morning around God's Word.

God's Word is like a Flame!  The closer we bring our hearts to the Flame and do it, the more our hearts become melted.  The further we get from the Flame and of course, not do what He says, the more our hearts become harder.  So here is what we must choose, not just whenever, but everyday.

1.  Choose to take the time to allow yourself to get close to the Flame (Open up God's Word...find a reading plan but don't let the reading plan control you...let the Word of God control you.  For example, if you read 3 verses and you are moved by something that you read, highlight it, pray over it, and go do it...which means you can stop reading and get moving or come back to the rest of that chapter later.)  Just find a way to get to God's Word.  Tozer said in a writing of his, "you can be as full as you want to be" with the Lord.  And sadly, sometimes I get up from His table too soon because I am satisfied, but satisfaction is not what we are going after friends...we are going after Him and there is no limit to what He has to offer.

2.  Read and chew on His Word.  Don't just read it and move on.  James says that is like a person looking in the mirror at himself and then seconds later already forgetting what he looks like.  No, read and chew on it, even if it is just one verse.  Chew on it.  Just like eating a big fat juicy steak.  Chew...chew...chew.  Pray over it.  Break it apart.  When I was a boy, one of my favorite things to do was take matchbox cars out behind my house and build matchbox car cities in the dirt.  I am not kidding, listen to what amazing truth i realized at an early age...with my trusty scrapper.  Underneath the hard part of the earth's top layer, was the soft rich dirt of earth.  I could then pack it and shape it however i needed to for my cars :), isn't that cute.  But that has stuck with me from a very early age...there is so much more underneath the layer of just God's Word because underneath is the Holy Spirit who truly wants to open our eyes to His beauty...for us to know the heart and mind of Jesus (1 Cor. 2:6-16)

3.  Do it.  Just do it.  Don't be afraid because we again have the Spirit in us and it is not a Spirit of fear but of power.  We have the power within us...go do it.  Interestingly my mentor pointed out to me the other day what the last verse of John 14 says.  Before i tell you, let me give you a simple context: Jesus is about to die.  The disciples are confused.  The Cross is humiliation that Jesus is to embrace, but more than that, the actual separation from God that Jesus is about to deal with is TOO MUCH.  Death!  Listen, it is easy to stay put...i get that.  It would have been easy for Jesus and the disciples not to move, but to stay in fellowship, eating, and reclining together.  But Jesus finally says, "come now; let us leave."  In essence, Jesus is saying, I must go do what I was sent to do.  You guys need to get moving and although things won't make sense for a bit, they eventually will and I need you to do it.  No plan b.  Well, the same is true for us...we must get up with the Word in us and do it.

So let's keep our hearts melted by choosing to be in God's Word...reading it and praying it...and living it out.  Not for our sake but for His Name's Sake.  We get to choose, but to stay away from the Flame means we are leaving ourselves open to a hard heart!  Let's choose to have a melted heart.

A classic example is Rahab in Joshua 2.  Go check it out.

The Joy Before Him

This week has been very interesting to me for many reasons, but I won't get into any of that at this moment.  What I want to simply say though is that the passage of Scripture that has changed my life and impacted me greatly is Hebrews 12:2-3:

1.  Fix your eyes on Jesus...why?

2.  Because He endured the Cross and scorned the shame and is seated at the right hand of God...that's why!  And He did it with JOY?  Joy?  Joy?  Is that right...joy?  The joy set before Him!  What?

3.  Because He knew enduring the Cross and scorning its shame would do two things:
A.  He would get to go Home (John 17:5; John 13:3; John 16:28)
B.  Make a way for the Father to be reunited with His lost children

4.  Seated at the right hand of God waiting to come dwell us forever, but in the meantime He has given us His Spirit so that we...

5.  Will not grow weary and lose heart

Isn't that good?  He did that for us.  So as we wait for His coming, let us just simply fix our eyes on Him and remember that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who are cheering us on!  I love Hebrews 12.

The Lord Rested

So give me a lot of grace here as I type this thought out.  It came to me while listening to a song.  The Lord created in 6 days and on the 7th day He rested.  I am assuming He kept this pattern because He taught us to do so.  Moses commanded it.  Then Jesus comes on the scene and talks about it.  God's set pattern is labor for 6 days and rest on the 7th.  Chick-fil-a does it...does Hobby Lobby still do it?  I love the old time farmers who do it.  And God does.  So fast-forward with me to the Passion Week or the week leading up to Jesus' death.  From Sunday to Friday He labored until Friday at 3pm and then He breathed His last breath and said, "IT IS FINISHED."  He dies.  Job accomplished!  He is quickly taken from the Cross and sort of thrown into the tomb, because Sabbath was quickly approaching and you don't work on the Sabbath.  So once Sabbath is over with, then they will go back to the tomb at the first sight of daylight and give Jesus a proper burial.  Tracking with me so far?  Haha. 

So Jesus is taken off the Cross and placed in the tomb before 5:15pm.  Sabbath starts!  Let's reflect on some people shall we?  The religious leaders are joyful and thankful to be done with this Rabbi who claimed to be God.  Pilate was very confused and tried to wash his hands from this weird situation.  Peter and the rest of the disciples are crushed!  Mary (mother of Jesus...and probably Mary Magdelene) didn't sleep at all that night.  And Satan, Satan had the biggest victory party ever on the face of the earth...he thinks he has won.  But what about God?  What was God doing?  Well, believe it or not, God was resting.  I even chuckled thinking as Creation was at its worse moment ever and the enemy was rejoicing, God rested!  What?  Why?  Please please please drink these two thoughts in:

1.  He is never rattled by anything!  He is not shaken!
2.  He is still In Control.  He knows how the Story Ends!

Wait, but...nope!  In Control.  Yay but...nope!  In Control.  Death?  In Control  Cancer?  In Control  Abuse?  In Control

And not only In Control, but satisfied.  Satisfied?  Really?  Yep, the Son of God allowed the Father to be reunited with His children.  Pleased!  Jesus is dead...but not done!  Wait till tomorrow morning.  Sunday morning, first shine of light and they go back to tomb and Jesus is already back at work.  God is already back at work.  The Sabbath - day of rest is over, it's time to be poured out again and that's exactly what Jesus is doing...what are you going through right now?  Is it bigger than you are?  Well, i've got great news for you, God is bigger than whatever it is that you are facing and when it seems like everything is crashing down, God is In Control and He is not rattled...He knows how it ends.

On the worst day of all creation - God rested!  Now are we going to rest in Him?   Are we going to trust Him?

Humble Surrender

Two words that are stirring in my head these last couple of days...humble surrender!

It is from this place that we are able to receive what God has for us next.  When God's people cried out for food, God said, you need to leave your tent to receive your manna.  That is humble surrender.  You don't have to leave the tent, but the manna isn't going to be tossed in your tent for you, because you have a part to play to receive God's blessings...humble surrender. 

Elisha told the widow, go to the neighbors and asked them for empty jars.  If the widow wants help with her situation, then she needs to respond with humble surrender.  She doesn't have to leave the house and asked for help, but the neighbors are not bringing empty jars over to her.  So she leaves the house and knocks on the doors and gathers up empty jars...and every empty jar she received was full of oil that she was able to sell.  God wanted to bless her, but she had a part to play...humble surrender.

One more example, i think you get the picture.  Naaman had leprosy and was only able to get help because of a young girl who was kidnapped and made a slave...talk about humble surrender.  This young little girl has been removed from her home and her first thought is that she doesn't like her master (the thief) to be sick...ummm, wow.  So Naaman finds out that he is suppose to go to the dirty, filthy Jordan River and dip in it 7x.  Naaman has the opposite of humble surrender and instead has prideful stubbornness, thus missing out on God's blessing.  Finally, Naaman's servant lays it out for him and Naaman finally turns from prideful stubbornness to humble surrender and when he came out of the river on the 7th dip, his skin was like that of a baby.  God wants to bless us, but we have a part to play...HUMBLE SURRENDER!

In the Name of Jesus.