Joy is not an emotion. Joy is a choice. Joy is a person. Joy is Jesus!
This past week I have been reflecting on how does one go about getting joy. Then one morning as I woke up, it was there before me as a gift. One can attain joy only by being in His Presence...that's it!
Nehemiah said, "the joy of the Lord is my strength." He didn't say his joy was his strength. He didn't say Ezra's joy was his strength. He said, "the joy of the Lord is my strength." Well, the only way that I am going to know about the joy of the Lord is by allowing Him to show me, but in order for that to truly happen, I must push everything else to the side and just be with Him. Nehemiah's strength was in the joy of the Lord. It was the Lord's joy that Nehemiah was able to do what he did. In fact, it was the joy of the Lord that allowed Paul to suffer in prison for the advancement of the Gospel (Philippians 1). It was the joy of the Lord that allowed an innocent Jesus to die on the Cross for my sins and for your sins. Jeremiah found the Word of God and chewed on it and it became his joy. But these individuals knew the joy of the Lord by BEING with the Lord...by BEING in His Presence!
So I got to thinking, if I spent more time with Him and less time with the things of the world, my joy in Him will also increase, but I've GOT TO WANT IT. So I have been praying for God to give me the desires of my heart around being in His Presence more. And boy has He been showing me glimpses of people who have found it.
First of all, Nehemiah. When Nehemiah learned about what was happening in Jerusalem, he wept, fasted, and prayed for 4 months. (Nehemiah 1-2). He sought to be in the Presence of the Lord and to listen to His heart! Even in the midst of the calamity that Jerusalem face (his people), Nehemiah's joy came from the Lord. It came because Nehemiah set aside chaos and was with Jesus.
Secondly, David. I have been soaking on Psalm 119 a lot lately. David's joy was from being in God's Word. He uses the word joy 5x in regards to God's Word in Psalm 119. I love v.111 - "I have your decrees as a heritage forever; indeed, they are the joy of my heart." And since his joy came from the Word of the Lord, he kept going back to it more and more. I love that. Pause real quick and just ask the question to yourself...what is the joy of my heart?
Third, Jeremiah. I really don't know what to say about this guy. I have read Jeremiah 20 a few times over the last few days because I can sense his frustration of both people not listening to God's Word and the persecution he has received for teaching God's Word. Yet, you can't touch his joy. Jeremiah 15:16 - "your Words were found, and I ate them. Your Words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart." There it is again. Joy and God's Word/Presence. And even in the midst of persecution he says he can't stay quiet because joy is a fire in His bones. When the joy of the Lord is in us, we can't stay quiet, it is impossible. Jeremiah went looking for it. Am I looking for Him? Once Jeremiah found Him, he devoured Him. Am I devouring Him? Jeremiah was bent (delighted) toward God's Word and God's Presence was bent (delighted) toward Jeremiah. I want that! Do you? Go searching.
Fourth, my dear friend Paul. I have already mentioned him earlier. He wrote a book on joy from prison. I am not going to elaborate on this except to say that he wrote a book on joy from prison. Haha. Why? How? His joy was not in circumstances but in a person. Death had no hold on Paul. To be dead is to be with the Lord. To be joyful in crappy circumstance comes from Jesus. Paul learned that to know the power of His resurrection only comes from the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death. (Philippians 3:10). Think on that! Shew.
Lastly, Jesus. The joy set before Him was to endure the Cross, scourning its shame, and being seated at the right hand of the Father. (Hebrews 12) His strength to go to the Cross was the joy of the Lord. And Jesus learned this (Hebrews 5:8) by sitting in His Presence (and suffering)...and He was God in flesh. Wow. So, can you see the journey I have been on just to learn that the "joy of the Lord is my strength!" I am praying that if you read this, that you would come to a place of knowing where true joy comes from. It doesn't come from success. It doesn't come from people. It doesn't come from $. It comes from Jesus and Jesus alone. Choose right now to set aside time each day to sit at your table that He has made for you and allow Him to fill you up with His JOY. Do it right now.
Saturday, November 23, 2019
Friday, August 9, 2019
What I'm Learning
It has been awhile my friends, but I have been getting accustomed to my new role as a hospice chaplain. It is a very unique role, but I am thankful for the opportunities to advance the Gospel.
OK!
Sometimes I just want to be heard. I don't want suggestions or answers or more questions, I just want to be able to say something and be heard, like really heard and then basically be done with the situation. You ever feel like that? I seriously feel so bad for Job who rattles off how he feels in Job 3 and then for the next 34 chapters have to listen to people who are trying to fix him, correct him or "save" him. Uggh. He is hurting deeply and he wants to be able to express it...in essence, to lament. But someone has answers. Someone wants to be the hero. Someone wants to be right. I'm guilty of that way too many times. You tracking with me?
Well, yesterday as I was reading Psalm 17, I connected with David that lead me to a sweet time of lamenting with the Lord. Let me give you context to this Psalm. David has had to be on the run numerous times in his life, the worst being from King Saul. In fact, up to 8.5 years that David was on the run from Saul who tried to kill him multiple times. Poor David, could you imagine not having one ounce of peace for 8.5 years? So, we have in psalm some moments of David crying out to God for protection. By the way, I shared with a friend yesterday, I am not sure how I could survive without the psalms. It is like having a friend who I can talk to who truly understands me and gets my struggles. Well, that's David for me. I keep finding my way back to David for companionship. I am grateful to God for the Book of Psalms.
Now, there were two parts that capture my attention. The first one, is simple, sweet and short. David cries out in v. 8 - protect me as the pupil of your eye and hide me under the shadow of your wings. That just comforts my soul. Think about it, we would do anything to protect our eyes from ever getting hit by anything. I love how our eyes can blink in a split second if we sense something coming at them. If we are working around something that could get in our eyes, we wear eye gear...well, some of us wear eye gear. So imagine God protecting His eyes. There is nothing that could ever penetrate the eyes of God and David says, protect me as the pupil of your eye. Imagine we are the pupil of God's eyes, shew...now that is protection. And David believed it. He hides us under the shadow of His wings. Anytime I hear shadow of wings I can't help but think about the hen that was found after a severe forest fire that was found sitting on top of a nest burnt to a crisp. And yet, underneath the mother were four protected babies. If a mother hen would do that for her chicks, where did she get the idea to do something like that? Maybe from the One who Created her? Just chew on those two thoughts and not only chew on them, but believe them. Powerful stuff.
But here is what I am learning!!! V. 14 - "save me from men, from men of this world whose portion is in this life." Let's just go with the good possibility that David is reflecting here on King Saul pursuing him, so David cries out "Lord, save me from King Saul, whose portion is in this life." Heck (i debated on putting this next line in here), we could even say that King Saul was a "christian" and David is needing protection from a "christian?" Yep! So as I started reflecting on v. 14, I began to ask myself the question, what is my portion? The things of this world - popularity, riches, success, comfort, significance, acceptance or is my portion in His Kingdom? Someone whose portion is in this life will pursue after someone else to get what they have. Someone whose portion is in this life will destroy someone else to make themselves feel better. Someone whose portion is in this life is about building up their kingdom here on earth. David is calling out to God to protect him from this type of person. Heck, I even asked myself this question yesterday, am I one who David would be asking God for protection from?
Now, what does it look like to be one whose portion is in God's Kingdom? I couldn't help but think of two people quickly:
Luke 23:34 - Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing." - Jesus
Acts 7:60 - "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" - Stephen
Dang it! I really don't want to go on any further with this blog. Then of course, throw Paul into the mix and I am done! Philippians 1:12 - "now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me (being in prison for preaching the Gospel) has actually advanced the Gospel. Come on! Well, if my portion was in His Kingdom, then these last three verses would be my anchors of truth of how to live. I think truthfully I was reminded that I am not there yet, but I'm also glad that I am willing to get there. It is my desire to say, "Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing. Their portion is in this life." "Lord, I don't know why this all happened, but I do know that their portion is in this life." Or even deeper, "Lord, I am in this place as discipline because MY portion is in this life." I want my portion to be you Jesus! Help me Lord to get there because I believe you know my heart's desire...
I am so thankful for the Psalms. In fact, I glanced over at Psalm 18 and it is a psalm of deliverance, isn't that great? I like David. Putting Psalm 17 and 18 side by side tells me that David was a real person. I chuckle how I can have a day in which I am so glad to be alive and then the next day cry out to God, what the heck is going on? Reading the Psalms is like reading my life. I think that is why God put it in the Scriptures...it is as if God says, "I get you...I understand. And if you are tired or weary, come to me and I will give you rest." David was a man after God's own heart because David found his portion in the Lord. And when David felt threaten, he turned to God. May you and I find our portion in Jesus. When we feel threaten, may we turn to God!
OK!
Sometimes I just want to be heard. I don't want suggestions or answers or more questions, I just want to be able to say something and be heard, like really heard and then basically be done with the situation. You ever feel like that? I seriously feel so bad for Job who rattles off how he feels in Job 3 and then for the next 34 chapters have to listen to people who are trying to fix him, correct him or "save" him. Uggh. He is hurting deeply and he wants to be able to express it...in essence, to lament. But someone has answers. Someone wants to be the hero. Someone wants to be right. I'm guilty of that way too many times. You tracking with me?
Well, yesterday as I was reading Psalm 17, I connected with David that lead me to a sweet time of lamenting with the Lord. Let me give you context to this Psalm. David has had to be on the run numerous times in his life, the worst being from King Saul. In fact, up to 8.5 years that David was on the run from Saul who tried to kill him multiple times. Poor David, could you imagine not having one ounce of peace for 8.5 years? So, we have in psalm some moments of David crying out to God for protection. By the way, I shared with a friend yesterday, I am not sure how I could survive without the psalms. It is like having a friend who I can talk to who truly understands me and gets my struggles. Well, that's David for me. I keep finding my way back to David for companionship. I am grateful to God for the Book of Psalms.
Now, there were two parts that capture my attention. The first one, is simple, sweet and short. David cries out in v. 8 - protect me as the pupil of your eye and hide me under the shadow of your wings. That just comforts my soul. Think about it, we would do anything to protect our eyes from ever getting hit by anything. I love how our eyes can blink in a split second if we sense something coming at them. If we are working around something that could get in our eyes, we wear eye gear...well, some of us wear eye gear. So imagine God protecting His eyes. There is nothing that could ever penetrate the eyes of God and David says, protect me as the pupil of your eye. Imagine we are the pupil of God's eyes, shew...now that is protection. And David believed it. He hides us under the shadow of His wings. Anytime I hear shadow of wings I can't help but think about the hen that was found after a severe forest fire that was found sitting on top of a nest burnt to a crisp. And yet, underneath the mother were four protected babies. If a mother hen would do that for her chicks, where did she get the idea to do something like that? Maybe from the One who Created her? Just chew on those two thoughts and not only chew on them, but believe them. Powerful stuff.
But here is what I am learning!!! V. 14 - "save me from men, from men of this world whose portion is in this life." Let's just go with the good possibility that David is reflecting here on King Saul pursuing him, so David cries out "Lord, save me from King Saul, whose portion is in this life." Heck (i debated on putting this next line in here), we could even say that King Saul was a "christian" and David is needing protection from a "christian?" Yep! So as I started reflecting on v. 14, I began to ask myself the question, what is my portion? The things of this world - popularity, riches, success, comfort, significance, acceptance or is my portion in His Kingdom? Someone whose portion is in this life will pursue after someone else to get what they have. Someone whose portion is in this life will destroy someone else to make themselves feel better. Someone whose portion is in this life is about building up their kingdom here on earth. David is calling out to God to protect him from this type of person. Heck, I even asked myself this question yesterday, am I one who David would be asking God for protection from?
Now, what does it look like to be one whose portion is in God's Kingdom? I couldn't help but think of two people quickly:
Luke 23:34 - Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing." - Jesus
Acts 7:60 - "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" - Stephen
Dang it! I really don't want to go on any further with this blog. Then of course, throw Paul into the mix and I am done! Philippians 1:12 - "now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me (being in prison for preaching the Gospel) has actually advanced the Gospel. Come on! Well, if my portion was in His Kingdom, then these last three verses would be my anchors of truth of how to live. I think truthfully I was reminded that I am not there yet, but I'm also glad that I am willing to get there. It is my desire to say, "Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing. Their portion is in this life." "Lord, I don't know why this all happened, but I do know that their portion is in this life." Or even deeper, "Lord, I am in this place as discipline because MY portion is in this life." I want my portion to be you Jesus! Help me Lord to get there because I believe you know my heart's desire...
I am so thankful for the Psalms. In fact, I glanced over at Psalm 18 and it is a psalm of deliverance, isn't that great? I like David. Putting Psalm 17 and 18 side by side tells me that David was a real person. I chuckle how I can have a day in which I am so glad to be alive and then the next day cry out to God, what the heck is going on? Reading the Psalms is like reading my life. I think that is why God put it in the Scriptures...it is as if God says, "I get you...I understand. And if you are tired or weary, come to me and I will give you rest." David was a man after God's own heart because David found his portion in the Lord. And when David felt threaten, he turned to God. May you and I find our portion in Jesus. When we feel threaten, may we turn to God!
Thursday, July 4, 2019
What Do You Want?
So imagine this scene: You and a friend (whoever you want it to be) are sitting with John the Baptist (JB) listening to him talk about how unique yesterday was when he was baptizing all those people and especially the young man from Galilee. You were there and it was overwhelming as something happened that you find way to hard to explain. So here you are enjoying this conversation with JB, reminiscing about yesterday and then he pauses and then emotionally says, "Look, there is the Lamb of God!" So you and your friend slowly turn from JB and you decide to follow this man named Jesus.
So you and your friend are walking together with Jesus and it is pretty quiet when all of a sudden, Jesus stops, turns to you both and says, "what do you want?" Now pause. We will come back to this story in a second. How would you answer that question? There is something powerful about this man but you can't put your finger on it and your mentor has told you to follow after Him and now you find yourself with a question in your face..."what do you want?" How would you answer that? I say let your mind go with this for awhile. Ok...now let's look at the Biblical story from John 1:29-39:
Of all the answers they could give in that moment, they respond with "where are you staying?" Wait, really? Jesus says, "what do you want" and they say, "where are you staying?" Haha. Ummmm, that seems weird. Or is it? Maybe that answer is the best answer to give. Like, instead of getting something from Jesus they want to hang out with Jesus. David Platt asked this question to his congregation a few years back that rocked my boat and has been a question I wrestle with almost on a daily basis. "Would you take the promises of God without the presence of God?" I must confess that there are days that I would take the blessings regardless of His Presence and that grieves me that I fall there at times. I love Moses though, he says, "I am not going anywhere without Your Presence, even if it is the Promise Land." That is our aim friends. I'm not sure the disciples knew what they were asking but I believe that their question caused Jesus to smile as He said, "come and see." And then I love this added statement, it was about 4 in the afternoon when they went with Him to the place where He was staying and they remained with him the rest of the day (and might I add, for the rest of their lives!). Real quickly I laugh at this part of the story because it wasn't even Jesus' home. He was staying as a guest as He invited other guests to this person's home...haha.
I must be honest here, I chuckled at their response to "what do you want?" and now i find myself thinking, oh my goodness, that has to be the best answer ever!!! Jesus, where are you staying because we want to hang out with you. Think about how powerful that is friends. It is like saying to God, "we don't give a rip about the blessings and the promises to come...we just want to be with YOU." That response, I must declare, moves the heart of God. To say in the depth of our hearts, "we just want to hang out with you Jesus" is so perfect. It is so moving! It is the start of our beautiful relationship with Him. And my favorite part is that when we start hanging out with Jesus just to be with Him, it leads us to being consumed with His Presence! So let me shout loudly, if Jesus ask you personally "what do you want?" make your answer simple and true by replying, "I just want to be with You." It is life-changing!!!
So you and your friend are walking together with Jesus and it is pretty quiet when all of a sudden, Jesus stops, turns to you both and says, "what do you want?" Now pause. We will come back to this story in a second. How would you answer that question? There is something powerful about this man but you can't put your finger on it and your mentor has told you to follow after Him and now you find yourself with a question in your face..."what do you want?" How would you answer that? I say let your mind go with this for awhile. Ok...now let's look at the Biblical story from John 1:29-39:
Of all the answers they could give in that moment, they respond with "where are you staying?" Wait, really? Jesus says, "what do you want" and they say, "where are you staying?" Haha. Ummmm, that seems weird. Or is it? Maybe that answer is the best answer to give. Like, instead of getting something from Jesus they want to hang out with Jesus. David Platt asked this question to his congregation a few years back that rocked my boat and has been a question I wrestle with almost on a daily basis. "Would you take the promises of God without the presence of God?" I must confess that there are days that I would take the blessings regardless of His Presence and that grieves me that I fall there at times. I love Moses though, he says, "I am not going anywhere without Your Presence, even if it is the Promise Land." That is our aim friends. I'm not sure the disciples knew what they were asking but I believe that their question caused Jesus to smile as He said, "come and see." And then I love this added statement, it was about 4 in the afternoon when they went with Him to the place where He was staying and they remained with him the rest of the day (and might I add, for the rest of their lives!). Real quickly I laugh at this part of the story because it wasn't even Jesus' home. He was staying as a guest as He invited other guests to this person's home...haha.
I must be honest here, I chuckled at their response to "what do you want?" and now i find myself thinking, oh my goodness, that has to be the best answer ever!!! Jesus, where are you staying because we want to hang out with you. Think about how powerful that is friends. It is like saying to God, "we don't give a rip about the blessings and the promises to come...we just want to be with YOU." That response, I must declare, moves the heart of God. To say in the depth of our hearts, "we just want to hang out with you Jesus" is so perfect. It is so moving! It is the start of our beautiful relationship with Him. And my favorite part is that when we start hanging out with Jesus just to be with Him, it leads us to being consumed with His Presence! So let me shout loudly, if Jesus ask you personally "what do you want?" make your answer simple and true by replying, "I just want to be with You." It is life-changing!!!
Friday, May 24, 2019
Who Is This Guy?
So I was sitting on a mower the other day and decided to just be quiet and listen. I had my earbuds in, but no music was playing at all and because of the buds, I could barely hear the sound of the lastec machine behind me. I was just listening...and God took over. And for some unique reason, He brought to me the story of Stephen, which you can find in Acts 6-7. So I just allowed the Lord to flash through my mind the very short life of Stephen and found myself in a holy place...while sitting on a mower (it can happen that way). And I found myself saying over and over, "are you kidding me?" which is my one saying that I have used throughout my life. So today, I felt compelled to share his story with you.
All we know from Acts 6 is that the church was growing very fast and the disciples had needs of the people to meet, but they couldn't do it, so they begin to search for Spirit-filled, wisdom-driven servants to help in nurturing new disciples. Stephen was one of the seven men selected and Scripture tells us that he was a man full of faith. What does it mean to be full of faith? We will see in a few minutes. All took place and the numbers of discipleship grew even more so.
Now, Stephen was just being Stephen, serving his Lord faithfully when all of a sudden opposition arose against him. By the way, when you and I are doing the Lord's work and will, you should not be surprised in getting attacked as if some strange thing was happening to you (1 Peter 4:12). It is going to happen and I think Stephen (being full of faith) was waiting for it. So, because his loyalty was to Jesus and not to the world, he spoke to the people...he faced the opposition. And his talk is brilliant for many reasons. 1. He spoke their language. The people who are opposing Stephen love Abraham, Joseph, and Moses. Those are their boys. So as long as Stephen was talking about them, the people were happy. Side note, how many sermons today entertain us more so than challenge us? When we walk away from church, do we think "good sermon" or "i need more of Jesus and less of me?!" Stephen then transitions to 2. Jesus. They were eating out of Stephen's hands until Acts 7:51 when he called them stiff-necked people (Moses used to say the same thing) and confronted them with resisting the Holy Spirit by not embracing Jesus as THEIR LORD and SAVIOR. It has now gone from "good sermon" to "I am going to have this preacher removed from our presence!" 3. He keeps his gaze on Jesus! He knew he was going to be attacked and so this moment allowed him not to look at the worldly scene around him, but caused him to gaze to heaven and as he does guess what he sees? Friends, I believe it is the only time in Scripture you will see these words. You see, when Jesus served His purpose on the Cross and stated from the Cross, "it is finished" He then was seated at the right hand of the Father. His mission was done. Accomplished. Have a seat Jesus! Check out Hebrews 12:2-3...He endured the Cross, scorned its shame and then was seated at the right hand of God! But when Stephen looks up to heaven, he sees Jesus doing what? STANDING! ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!!!! Why is Jesus standing? We could come up with many reasons but on the mower I felt the Lord whisper to me, "it is because Jesus saw Himself in Stephen in that moment." You want to move the heart of Jesus, well, it happens when Jesus sees Himself in us. Think about it. Isn't that called worship? Isn't that called being full of faith? Isn't that a perfect definition of discipleship?
But it only gets sweeter. Allow to me finish up by telling the rest of the story. My hero CH Spurgeon said of Stephen these four thoughts: 1. Jesus was seen by Stephen. 2. Jesus was invoked by Stephen. 3. Stephen trusted Jesus. 4. Stephen imitated Jesus. After Stephen's sermon, the people yelled at the top of their voices, covered their ears, dragged him out of the city and stoned him to death. Oh, by the way, guess who was present that day? V.58 says a man by the name of Saul (who is also referred to later as Paul.) So Stephen looks up to Jesus, calls out to Jesus "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" and then cried out in a loud voice "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? That convicts me so deeply that I have a hard time reading that line. Now we see that Stephen was indeed a man full of faith. His life wasn't his own. His life pointed to Jesus. I chuckled because I thought to myself on the mower, how many people thought to themselves, if Stephen hadn't pushed the envelope that day, he might have been able to avoid opposition and death and had more years on earth...what a waste really. But to Stephen his life was pointless if he couldn't talk about Jesus and push people to a full-on relationship to Jesus. And oh, by the way, do you remember who was standing there? Pre-Jesus Christ Paul. By the way, as I was finishing my time on the mower Jesus brought these thoughts to mind...could it be that Paul was inspired to say some powerful statements because of what he saw this day????? Imagine Paul seeing Stephen be Christ-like in this moment and later Paul said these words:
"preach the word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching."
"absent in body, but present in Spirit."
"for you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God."
"i press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
and my fav...
"for to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
isn't it possible that Paul thought of Stephen when the Spirit laid those words on Paul's heart? Let's keep striving to be people full of faith and no longer afraid of this world! Let's see Jesus, invoke Jesus, trust Jesus, and imitate Jesus for His Glory and Honor. Let's live in a way that Jesus sees Himself in us! Yes and Amen!
All we know from Acts 6 is that the church was growing very fast and the disciples had needs of the people to meet, but they couldn't do it, so they begin to search for Spirit-filled, wisdom-driven servants to help in nurturing new disciples. Stephen was one of the seven men selected and Scripture tells us that he was a man full of faith. What does it mean to be full of faith? We will see in a few minutes. All took place and the numbers of discipleship grew even more so.
Now, Stephen was just being Stephen, serving his Lord faithfully when all of a sudden opposition arose against him. By the way, when you and I are doing the Lord's work and will, you should not be surprised in getting attacked as if some strange thing was happening to you (1 Peter 4:12). It is going to happen and I think Stephen (being full of faith) was waiting for it. So, because his loyalty was to Jesus and not to the world, he spoke to the people...he faced the opposition. And his talk is brilliant for many reasons. 1. He spoke their language. The people who are opposing Stephen love Abraham, Joseph, and Moses. Those are their boys. So as long as Stephen was talking about them, the people were happy. Side note, how many sermons today entertain us more so than challenge us? When we walk away from church, do we think "good sermon" or "i need more of Jesus and less of me?!" Stephen then transitions to 2. Jesus. They were eating out of Stephen's hands until Acts 7:51 when he called them stiff-necked people (Moses used to say the same thing) and confronted them with resisting the Holy Spirit by not embracing Jesus as THEIR LORD and SAVIOR. It has now gone from "good sermon" to "I am going to have this preacher removed from our presence!" 3. He keeps his gaze on Jesus! He knew he was going to be attacked and so this moment allowed him not to look at the worldly scene around him, but caused him to gaze to heaven and as he does guess what he sees? Friends, I believe it is the only time in Scripture you will see these words. You see, when Jesus served His purpose on the Cross and stated from the Cross, "it is finished" He then was seated at the right hand of the Father. His mission was done. Accomplished. Have a seat Jesus! Check out Hebrews 12:2-3...He endured the Cross, scorned its shame and then was seated at the right hand of God! But when Stephen looks up to heaven, he sees Jesus doing what? STANDING! ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!!!! Why is Jesus standing? We could come up with many reasons but on the mower I felt the Lord whisper to me, "it is because Jesus saw Himself in Stephen in that moment." You want to move the heart of Jesus, well, it happens when Jesus sees Himself in us. Think about it. Isn't that called worship? Isn't that called being full of faith? Isn't that a perfect definition of discipleship?
But it only gets sweeter. Allow to me finish up by telling the rest of the story. My hero CH Spurgeon said of Stephen these four thoughts: 1. Jesus was seen by Stephen. 2. Jesus was invoked by Stephen. 3. Stephen trusted Jesus. 4. Stephen imitated Jesus. After Stephen's sermon, the people yelled at the top of their voices, covered their ears, dragged him out of the city and stoned him to death. Oh, by the way, guess who was present that day? V.58 says a man by the name of Saul (who is also referred to later as Paul.) So Stephen looks up to Jesus, calls out to Jesus "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" and then cried out in a loud voice "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." ARE YOU KIDDING ME? That convicts me so deeply that I have a hard time reading that line. Now we see that Stephen was indeed a man full of faith. His life wasn't his own. His life pointed to Jesus. I chuckled because I thought to myself on the mower, how many people thought to themselves, if Stephen hadn't pushed the envelope that day, he might have been able to avoid opposition and death and had more years on earth...what a waste really. But to Stephen his life was pointless if he couldn't talk about Jesus and push people to a full-on relationship to Jesus. And oh, by the way, do you remember who was standing there? Pre-Jesus Christ Paul. By the way, as I was finishing my time on the mower Jesus brought these thoughts to mind...could it be that Paul was inspired to say some powerful statements because of what he saw this day????? Imagine Paul seeing Stephen be Christ-like in this moment and later Paul said these words:
"preach the word, be urgent in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching."
"absent in body, but present in Spirit."
"for you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God."
"i press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
and my fav...
"for to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
isn't it possible that Paul thought of Stephen when the Spirit laid those words on Paul's heart? Let's keep striving to be people full of faith and no longer afraid of this world! Let's see Jesus, invoke Jesus, trust Jesus, and imitate Jesus for His Glory and Honor. Let's live in a way that Jesus sees Himself in us! Yes and Amen!
Sunday, April 21, 2019
Who Do You See?
Happy Easter 2019!
The men that I do life with every Sunday night have asked if we could go thru the life of Job as our new study, which got me thinking back on my two years that I spent with Job. So as I reflected, there were a few thoughts that came to mind that I wanted to share with you as I encourage your heart to be melted by God's faithfulness or as Job says, "my heart faints within me."
Job 14:1 simply says about life, it is "few of days and full of trouble." Isn't that just great news? But is it not true? And yet, guess who is faithful to us in the midst of all that? God! He never leaves us nor does He ever forsake us. So how do we reconcile that life is "few and full of trouble" and yet God never leaves us nor forsakes us? Well, I hope to give you maybe one true golden nugget by the end of this blog, so walk with me or just simply go to the bottom of this and see if it is there. And by the way, I do pray that God awakens something within you more so than what my words say.
So majority of Job is Job being attacked by his 3 friends about why Job is going thru what he is. Listen to some assumptions that the 3 boys stated, without knowing the full story...may we learn from them in how NOT to be when we walk with someone through their afflictions.
1. Job's friends did not understand the backstory of God, Satan, and Job. Job didn't either!
2. Job's friends argued about what God was up too.
3. Job's friends relayed to Job about God's purposes. Again, dangerous ground for us to walk when we don't understand the backstory.
4. This one hurts, but Job's friends argued about Job's professed faith. Wow. Do we do that today?
5. Job's friends did not give Job grace nor room to grow.
6. Job's friends gave him a lesson in how to respond with afflictions. Wait, do they really know what Job is going through? Who on earth has answers to our afflictions?
7. Job's friends were determining God's favor or disfavor. Again, they are on very thin ice to play the role of God. They were accusing Job of sin and the curses of sin and although Job is a sinner, the afflictions were not a result of sin but the backstory of what was happening between God and Satan. No one else knew. And today, may we not act like we know. I like to say that when others are going thru afflictions, please stay quiet and just sit in their presence. Don't be like Job's friends...please, please, please.
And on top of all that, do you remember what God said about Job? "For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil." (Job 1:8) So I want to pause and ask a very serious and deep question. Who are we listening to when it comes to life stuff? "Job's friends" or God's Word? For real, think about this in the context of Job. And by the way, Job's friends' theology is very solid. And what makes this all terribly hard is that God is silent from chapters 2-37. So who do we listen to? What do we do when God seems silent? I have an answer to that question in a second, but you must keep walking with me! Haha.
So, I want to now talk about the only difference between Job's afflictions and our afflictions today. Do you know the only difference that takes place? Here it is, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus. We have what only Job could dream about. Jesus. Which by the way, Job says something very interesting on two occasions that always gives me the chills when I read them. Job 19:25-27 - "as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I SHALL SEE GOD; Whom I myself shall behold, and whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me!" Then, Job 42:5 - "...but now my eye sees You:" Wait, what happened? How did Job see God? I believe by the power of God's Words. Yes, simply by God's Words in Job 38-42. I don't know about you but I find that to be not only powerful, but life-changing. Let me ask again, because this is what got me going on this blog in the first place, when we are going thru afflictions and life stuff, who are we listening too? "Job's friends" or God's Word?
Let me wrap this up. How do we reconcile afflictions and God's faithfulness? What do we do when God seems silent? Those are the two questions I want to do my best in answering.
God did not wish or choose sin to become a part of His story. Yes, He gave His created beings the freedom to choose sin, but true love works that way. It is not true love if God controlled every aspect of His created beings. Don't get me wrong, God longed for His creatures to love Him deeply, but in order for that to happen, He had to allow them the freedom to do so. And if I may say so, I love God more than ever because of walking through my brokenness and experiencing His grace then never walking through brokenness ever. I don't think I would know anything about His grace without brokenness. I now know because of the journey I have gone through of His deep love for me. Someone wisely said, "the road to eternity is marked with difficulties" Or I have been thinking about the fact that when we struggle Scripture becomes real. Why, because it is real and full of real people's struggles, like Jesus' affliction of the Cross. And through their struggles we see God's faithfulness. I mean a third of the Psalms (around 50 chapters) are of afflictions and God's faithfulness. Scriptures from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 is God's answers to our failures. It is a picture of God's faithfulness to us. Let me finish with these two passages.
2 Corinthians 4:6 - "for God, who said, "light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ." Do we really know the Light without darkness?
1 Peter 1:6-9 - "In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not see Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls." Like Job, I have not seen Jesus. And yet, what is amazing, is that through God's Word, I have seen Jesus. Isn't that powerful?
My afflictions are on me and yet, can be used to draw me closer to Him. God's faithfulness is on Him and what a gift it is for us to live under His umbrella of faithfulness everyday. What I have that Job did not have is the full revelation of Jesus Christ. And although God might seem "silent", all Scripture shouts Jesus, so really, may we choose to be people who "take and eat" His Word and see Him in His Glory and by doing so...we do not lose heart as we prepare for HOME.
The men that I do life with every Sunday night have asked if we could go thru the life of Job as our new study, which got me thinking back on my two years that I spent with Job. So as I reflected, there were a few thoughts that came to mind that I wanted to share with you as I encourage your heart to be melted by God's faithfulness or as Job says, "my heart faints within me."
Job 14:1 simply says about life, it is "few of days and full of trouble." Isn't that just great news? But is it not true? And yet, guess who is faithful to us in the midst of all that? God! He never leaves us nor does He ever forsake us. So how do we reconcile that life is "few and full of trouble" and yet God never leaves us nor forsakes us? Well, I hope to give you maybe one true golden nugget by the end of this blog, so walk with me or just simply go to the bottom of this and see if it is there. And by the way, I do pray that God awakens something within you more so than what my words say.
So majority of Job is Job being attacked by his 3 friends about why Job is going thru what he is. Listen to some assumptions that the 3 boys stated, without knowing the full story...may we learn from them in how NOT to be when we walk with someone through their afflictions.
1. Job's friends did not understand the backstory of God, Satan, and Job. Job didn't either!
2. Job's friends argued about what God was up too.
3. Job's friends relayed to Job about God's purposes. Again, dangerous ground for us to walk when we don't understand the backstory.
4. This one hurts, but Job's friends argued about Job's professed faith. Wow. Do we do that today?
5. Job's friends did not give Job grace nor room to grow.
6. Job's friends gave him a lesson in how to respond with afflictions. Wait, do they really know what Job is going through? Who on earth has answers to our afflictions?
7. Job's friends were determining God's favor or disfavor. Again, they are on very thin ice to play the role of God. They were accusing Job of sin and the curses of sin and although Job is a sinner, the afflictions were not a result of sin but the backstory of what was happening between God and Satan. No one else knew. And today, may we not act like we know. I like to say that when others are going thru afflictions, please stay quiet and just sit in their presence. Don't be like Job's friends...please, please, please.
And on top of all that, do you remember what God said about Job? "For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil." (Job 1:8) So I want to pause and ask a very serious and deep question. Who are we listening to when it comes to life stuff? "Job's friends" or God's Word? For real, think about this in the context of Job. And by the way, Job's friends' theology is very solid. And what makes this all terribly hard is that God is silent from chapters 2-37. So who do we listen to? What do we do when God seems silent? I have an answer to that question in a second, but you must keep walking with me! Haha.
So, I want to now talk about the only difference between Job's afflictions and our afflictions today. Do you know the only difference that takes place? Here it is, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus. We have what only Job could dream about. Jesus. Which by the way, Job says something very interesting on two occasions that always gives me the chills when I read them. Job 19:25-27 - "as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth. Even after my skin is destroyed, yet from my flesh I SHALL SEE GOD; Whom I myself shall behold, and whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me!" Then, Job 42:5 - "...but now my eye sees You:" Wait, what happened? How did Job see God? I believe by the power of God's Words. Yes, simply by God's Words in Job 38-42. I don't know about you but I find that to be not only powerful, but life-changing. Let me ask again, because this is what got me going on this blog in the first place, when we are going thru afflictions and life stuff, who are we listening too? "Job's friends" or God's Word?
Let me wrap this up. How do we reconcile afflictions and God's faithfulness? What do we do when God seems silent? Those are the two questions I want to do my best in answering.
God did not wish or choose sin to become a part of His story. Yes, He gave His created beings the freedom to choose sin, but true love works that way. It is not true love if God controlled every aspect of His created beings. Don't get me wrong, God longed for His creatures to love Him deeply, but in order for that to happen, He had to allow them the freedom to do so. And if I may say so, I love God more than ever because of walking through my brokenness and experiencing His grace then never walking through brokenness ever. I don't think I would know anything about His grace without brokenness. I now know because of the journey I have gone through of His deep love for me. Someone wisely said, "the road to eternity is marked with difficulties" Or I have been thinking about the fact that when we struggle Scripture becomes real. Why, because it is real and full of real people's struggles, like Jesus' affliction of the Cross. And through their struggles we see God's faithfulness. I mean a third of the Psalms (around 50 chapters) are of afflictions and God's faithfulness. Scriptures from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 is God's answers to our failures. It is a picture of God's faithfulness to us. Let me finish with these two passages.
2 Corinthians 4:6 - "for God, who said, "light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ." Do we really know the Light without darkness?
1 Peter 1:6-9 - "In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not see Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls." Like Job, I have not seen Jesus. And yet, what is amazing, is that through God's Word, I have seen Jesus. Isn't that powerful?
My afflictions are on me and yet, can be used to draw me closer to Him. God's faithfulness is on Him and what a gift it is for us to live under His umbrella of faithfulness everyday. What I have that Job did not have is the full revelation of Jesus Christ. And although God might seem "silent", all Scripture shouts Jesus, so really, may we choose to be people who "take and eat" His Word and see Him in His Glory and by doing so...we do not lose heart as we prepare for HOME.
Sunday, March 24, 2019
I Don't Even...
I was hanging out with Apostle Paul this past week while watching my two oldest girls play soccer and enjoying sunlight on my skin. So as I was reading about Paul, I came across these two thoughts and I had to put the book down (always have a book with you wherever you go, always a great companion to have along) and close my eyes for a bit.
My response to what I am about to share with you is simply this, "I don't even know what to do with this!" Haha. Ready?
First thought that I connected with was found in 2 Corinthians 11:24-28 - "Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Thre
Now, when I read Scripture, I am always looking for a word or a phrase that stands out to me and then I use that as my focal point of meditation. Well, this time as I read those words the phrase that stood out to me was "from the Jews." Why? They are Paul's own people. He is one of them. Chances are, he grew up with some of them and now they are beating him senseless and, why? Jesus! So Paul takes a beating by his own people because he has embraced Jesus Christ, when really they should too, but their eyes are blinded to the reality of who Jesus is. Now, I am going to be straight up with you. After my first set of 39 lashes, I am rethinking my calling out. Heck, I might even rethink my relationship with Jesus. Like, how can I follow Jesus without all this? I mean, wow. And he received that on 5 different occasions across the same ole back. What was recovery like for Paul back then? How long was it between his lashes? Were the wounds even scabbed over from the previous lashings? All for Jesus. Whew! So here I am at a soccer game overcome with emotions about what the cost was for Paul to follow Jesus. And my feelings toward my Jewish brothers? I don't even want to go there at this moment. Then...
My second portion of reading came from Romans 9:2-3 (you sitting down for this) - "I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren"
Have you had the ah-ha moment yet like I did? The word that stood out to me is the word "brethren" meaning the same ones who probably whipped his body 39x on 5 different occasions. Paul says, "I could wish that I myself were accursed, SEPARATED from Christ for the sake of "those who beat me because they are blinded to the reality of who Jesus Christ really is." And now I am overwhelmed...i don't even know what to think, do, or say. Because, I don't think this way. And do you see who Paul is acting like, thinking like, speaking like? Jesus. Are you kidding me? Jesus is that precious to Paul. Paul's body is not worth it...or in the words of Esther, "if I perish, I perish”. Jesus is Paul's everything and he would give Jesus up if he knew that his brothers would embrace Jesus as their Savior. Then it led me to some words of Jesus (gulp) -
"you are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me. Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is in heaven." (Matthew 5:11-12)
"if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also...and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two." (Matthew 5:39, 41)
"but I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:44-45)
At this point, I'm done. Haha. But can't you at least appreciate Paul's willingness to lean into the obedience of Jesus Christ? And as I am sitting there on the bleachers, I hear the same Spirit whisper to me, "How about you?"
I'm almost done. But the part of all this that got my attention is back in Romans 9 - "that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart..." People apart from Jesus Christ break Paul's heart...and because people are lost, Paul considers his body and life as a living sacrifice to be used however for the glory of people knowing Jesus. May the same Spirit that moved the life of Jesus, that spoke into the life of Paul, that whispered to me say to you, "How about you?"
One more Scripture and a quote:
Romans 10:1 - "brothers and sisters, my heart's desire and prayer to God concerning them is for their salvation." May we start praying for people's salvation and how we can be used to bring Glory to Jesus.
"discipleship is the process of becoming who Jesus would be if he were you." Dallas Willard.
"how about you?"
Monday, March 4, 2019
What A Friend!
I love those friendships that blossom into full-on spiritual togetherness and you don't even recall what it was that moved it to the next level. It is like needing to hear from them on a daily basis just to receive encouragement or inspiration to keep moving forward. I have had this friendship since 2002. We have had our ups and downs and I, sadly, have not taken the time to fully appreciate and invest into this relationship that I believe God desired for me, but I am trekking with this person now and I am a better man for it. And I personally believe what I love about this person is that after they embraced Jesus Christ, they essentially "disappeared" for 13 years. I would love to know what transpired during these 13 years, but this person just doesn't want to share it because it is both intimate and special to them. This person has suffered dearly because of Jesus and yet, chose to remain faithful to Him. Uniquely, it is those 13 years that has caused me to write this blog, to share with whoever has ears to hear, what makes this relationship so special. I'll stop keeping you in suspense...Who is this friend?
His name is Paul. What's unique is that I didn't like Paul at first. Today, I can't function a single day without spending a few minutes with him and allowing him to speak some truth into my life. And Paul doesn't pull any punches either. He tells it as it is but with a depth of love and grace. It is such a special friendship. Paul and I know each other only because of Jesus Christ, which makes it even more special. But let me share with you what his 13 years of "silence" is doing for me right now. I want you to know a bit about my best friend so I'll try to be clear and short. He felt, because of his relationship with God and his love for the law, that killing Christianity was honoring to the Lord, and Paul was good at it and was on his way to killing more when he encountered a Resurrected Jesus on his was to Damascus. Paul's life would forever change after that day, but it is what happens next that has impacted me greatly. Reading Acts will lead you into thinking that Paul goes straight into the ministry, but when you read his life chronologically, you get a picture of Paul's life that is very deep. He stayed in Damascus for a bit and even made a quick appearance into Jerusalem but then immediately was led to Arabia for roughly 3 years. Arabia is a desert which uniquely is about the same area where both Moses and Elijah encountered the Lord in a fresh new way. What happened there? Paul won't tell me! But you can use your imagination a bit and think about what being with Jesus for 3 years alone would be like! But Jesus did say in Acts 9:16 that He was going to reveal to Paul what he must suffer for His Name's Sake. And I love that Paul chose to move forward and boy, he suffered dearly for Jesus, but Paul has told me numerous times that he wouldn't have changed a thing. It was all for the glory of his Jesus that he did what he did. That has inspired me greatly. Then, he comes out of Arabia again for just a brief time and then was commanded to go back home to Tarsus for about 10 years. Well, what happened there for 10 years? Paul won't tell me! But as we look at the majority of the New Testament and read the letters that Paul wrote, I have the tendency to think to myself, "Man, if Paul could have been doing ministry during those 13 years, how much more impact he would have had?" And then I have to remind myself, I really don't have a clue what Paul was doing for those 13 years and frankly it doesn't matter because what really matters is that Jesus was doing something significant in Paul.
Friends, that is the key statement of this blog and of this friendship. Jesus is always on the move in your life and in my life even when we don't feel it. Paul would even tell you that even if you are in a wilderness for 13 years not doing what you feel like you should be doing, the reality is that you are in a school of hard lessons to get you ready for what is next. It even happened to my other hero David. David was anointed to be the next king over Israel and do you know what would happen to David over the next many years? He would be on the run for his life from King Saul. He eventually landed in the Cave of Adullam alone! Utterly alone! But God had David at the school of hard knocks to get him prepared for being king over Israel. And while we are at it, The Lord sent Jesus to the wilderness for 40 days to get Him ready for the next part of His journey. The Lord is always at work in us. Paul would loudly say, "He who began a new work in you will see it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus return." I love that Paul was learning and growing during those 13 years and that they were never wasted. I feel like Paul would look at me and say, those 13 years were pivotal in my ministry and effectiveness for the Glory of Jesus. I love that eventually while Barnabas was doing ministry in Antioch, he was moved by the Spirit to go find Paul and bring him back to Antioch to continue the ministry movement there. It was at this point, that there would be no more turning back for Paul, he was now leaning full-on toward Jesus sharing the good news of the Gospel message even in the midst of suffering and death. I love apostle Paul. He is my spiritual friend and inspiration. Why do I share this with you? Well, if you are like me, you find yourself in the middle of a wilderness unsure of what is next. I mean it, I literally don't know what is next for me but I also am not losing any sleep over it because I have placed it into the hands of MY JESUS. I believe that while Paul was in Tarsus, he went into the business of becoming a tent maker. You can't just sit idle while in the wilderness…you've got to press forward. Paul learned to be a tent maker and made that his career until God had something new for him. By the way, Paul was very seldom ever alone but there was this one time when he was in Corinth (Acts 18) alone and he made a connection to a married couple named Aquila and Priscilla and do you know what they did for a living? They were tent makers! Oh, how God makes me laugh sometimes. So when Paul was in between ministries, he was out making tents. Haha, I love it. Paul is reminding me that something new is coming but in the meantime, work. Continue to press into Jesus even more. And I am truly learning that even though I am not in "Ministry" the truth is I am in "ministry" because it is always before us. If I love Jesus and love my neighbor as myself, then I am doing the will of God when I fulfill both of those commands. Or as my buddy Paul has taught me, even when he was in prison chained to guards, he would advance the Gospel by proclaiming Jesus to those he was stuck to (Philippians 1:12-14). So my life and your life might not look like what we had in mind, but let me tell you this, it isn't over and it isn't wasted. Today, place yourself in the hands of an Almighty God and say, "Take my life and let it be, consecrated Lord to thee" and if you mean it, then stay ready by continually learning and growing and sharing. Even though prison is not what Paul had in mind, he used that opportunity to do ministry and it impacted Caesar's household (Philippians 4:22).
Monday, February 11, 2019
What Is Going On?
I realized something very important about myself this past week, thanks to the leading of the Holy Spirit (sometimes I don't really like those moments) that was hard for me to swallow, in fact, 6 days later, it is still lodged in my throat.
One of my many short falls is I tolerate sin. I tolerate sin that is around me and sadly and more importantly, i tolerate the sin from within. Friends, that is not good or in the words of an ancient prayer, "I have destroyed myself, my nature is defiled, the powers of my would are degraded; I am vile, miserable, strengthless, but MY HOPE is in THEE." And to cut to the crap, that was the killer for the Israelites and why they wondered in wilderness for 40 years and lived in captivity for 70 years. It is why God had to send us a Savior to free us from our love of sin.
That is pretty much the context for Ezekiel 47. It has been a very dark season for the Israelites, God's chosen people. They have been in captivity for 70 years, but as the Lord promised, after 70 years, they would experience freedom and the Lord is hoping that they have glad hearts to go back to Jerusalem. The tragedy is that some of God's people became accustomed to Babylon and Persia ways and wanted to stay. By the way, we are warned many times in the New Testament about becoming accustomed to the ways of this world because it is not where we belong. We belong in the Promised Land. We belong in the heavenly realms (Colossians 3:1). So be on guard against the things of this world. There is something far greater that awaits us. In fact, getting ahead of myself, but vv.13-23 is like reading Numbers 34:1-12 where God divided up the land for the 12 tribes in the PROMISED LAND. So cool, but i want to go back to the amazing promise in the first 12 verses of Ezekial 47. I want to help you capture this moment with snapshots:
Snapshot 1:
vv.1-2 - there was water trickling out on the south side of the temple. Imagine a vase with a crack in the side of it and water is trickling down the side of it flowing downward, that is the picture that the Spirit wants us to see. I am so giddy already. That is the first visual. Got it?
Snapshot 2:
The Spirit led me on into the east and had me stand in the water and it was ankle deep. Now visualize the ocean, i love feeling the water splash up on you as you are standing ankle-deep in the water, plus it feels really safe there, doesn't it? We like safe! And I think some of us are content to stay there, but the Spirit is not content in leaving us there.
Snapshot 3:
The Spirit led me east and now the water in knee-deep. Knee-deep is still safe but at this point, we can start feeling the power of the waves and have to take a bit of precaution to stand upright. But He doesn't want us to stay there either. But, i don't think I want to go any deeper. I still remember that stage with my kiddos when they were little. Knee-deep is good enough. It isn't though if we really want to take in the beauty and power of the ocean. We must trek on.
Snapshot 4:
He led me east some more and now we are waist-deep. At this point, some are going back to either knee-deep or maybe even to the shore to grab a towel, but Jesus wants us to not stay here, but go even deeper. What cracks me up with the waist-deep is that moment when you are chilly and know it would be much better to go completely under to get it over with, but we just can't do it yet. So we stand there like idiots with our arms out of the water and standing on our tippy-toes. But the Spirit isn't done yet.
Snapshot 5:
He took me one more step to the point that it was either swim or go back. No more luxury of standing on our own, we are totally reliant upon the power of the waves and where they want to take us. A few years ago i taught my girls how to ride waves in the Atlantic Ocean and it was a blast and yet very intimidating at the same time. I love that feeling and now I get the sense, that is what a vibrant relationship with Jesus looks like. Let go and hang on. I told my girls to take a deep breath and jump when the wave came and where we ended up was so much fun because sometimes we would get flipped around and twisted around, but when we came up, we could see again. FUN!
Snapshot 6:
Now we are back at the bank or the beach for you ocean lovers :). He wanted me to take a look to see what He wanted me to see. And I saw trees. Many trees. And the beauty of the trees on the banks means that the water was doing some good for them and here is where this gets exciting. The water keeps flowing to the east and goes down into the Arabah and then enters the sea. Does anyone know what sea it flows into? THE DEAD SEA. And do you know what the water that started as a trickle from the Temple does? It brings life to whatever it touches because fresh water does that. And with this life giving water we see trees and plants that produce fruit and you know what else we see? Fishermen. Haha. They are standing there catching fish because the fish are lively, for they live in the fresh water from the Temple. AND IT STARTED LIKE A LEAK FROM A VASE. It is like the Mississippi River. The start of the Mississippi is small enough that you can physically jump over it, but so intimidating by the time it gets to St. Louis that it takes a dare for you to even put your toe in it.
So the way I look at it we have three options from these scenes:
1. Stay in the Temple. But let me tell you friends, life was not to be lived in the Temple. Sure, the Temple is safe but to take on the flesh and blood of Jesus, there's more than just staying in the Temple.
2. Swim in the dead sea. I've done it. You've done it. Some of you are doing it now. The dead sea is, well, DEAD! Nothing good comes out of the dead sea. It is lifeless, acidic, and destructive.
3. Jump in the river. Let the water bring you to life. Now, understand to experience life you will also experience some flips and twists and maybe even a bit of pain or suffering. But it is flowing eastward and leading us to the ULTIMATE TEMPLE where we are made new again. To stay put in the Temple, believe it or not, we will miss out being made new again. To be in the dead sea, well, that's easy...no being made new again. Both places are safe by the way, you can even float in the dead sea without fighting to stay afloat. So you can lay back and relax...and die. But the river, oh my friends, the river leads to new life. And the best part, we don't have to wait until we make it to the Promise Land to start getting a taste of the new life, we can taste it today, right now, wherever you may be, just make a decision and jump in the river with me. We can keep an eye on each other.
To finish up, I love the Pilgrim's Progress moment when Christian finally sees the Celestial City at the end of his long and tiresome journey and he just can't get to it quick enough, but there is one more challenge that lays before him and it is the river of death. To make matters worse, Christian can't swim and so he is left with a choice. Stay put or jump in the river. Christian chose wisely even though it tossed him around and caused him to be afraid, but nonetheless he is in the river and with all of his strength finally crosses it and it safely home. And guess what, he is new again. And if we asked Christian the question, was it worth it? He wouldn't even hesitate except with a smile on his face and twinkle in his eye...oh my friend, it is so worth it. Jump in the river friends, don't wait.
One of my many short falls is I tolerate sin. I tolerate sin that is around me and sadly and more importantly, i tolerate the sin from within. Friends, that is not good or in the words of an ancient prayer, "I have destroyed myself, my nature is defiled, the powers of my would are degraded; I am vile, miserable, strengthless, but MY HOPE is in THEE." And to cut to the crap, that was the killer for the Israelites and why they wondered in wilderness for 40 years and lived in captivity for 70 years. It is why God had to send us a Savior to free us from our love of sin.
That is pretty much the context for Ezekiel 47. It has been a very dark season for the Israelites, God's chosen people. They have been in captivity for 70 years, but as the Lord promised, after 70 years, they would experience freedom and the Lord is hoping that they have glad hearts to go back to Jerusalem. The tragedy is that some of God's people became accustomed to Babylon and Persia ways and wanted to stay. By the way, we are warned many times in the New Testament about becoming accustomed to the ways of this world because it is not where we belong. We belong in the Promised Land. We belong in the heavenly realms (Colossians 3:1). So be on guard against the things of this world. There is something far greater that awaits us. In fact, getting ahead of myself, but vv.13-23 is like reading Numbers 34:1-12 where God divided up the land for the 12 tribes in the PROMISED LAND. So cool, but i want to go back to the amazing promise in the first 12 verses of Ezekial 47. I want to help you capture this moment with snapshots:
Snapshot 1:
vv.1-2 - there was water trickling out on the south side of the temple. Imagine a vase with a crack in the side of it and water is trickling down the side of it flowing downward, that is the picture that the Spirit wants us to see. I am so giddy already. That is the first visual. Got it?
Snapshot 2:
The Spirit led me on into the east and had me stand in the water and it was ankle deep. Now visualize the ocean, i love feeling the water splash up on you as you are standing ankle-deep in the water, plus it feels really safe there, doesn't it? We like safe! And I think some of us are content to stay there, but the Spirit is not content in leaving us there.
Snapshot 3:
The Spirit led me east and now the water in knee-deep. Knee-deep is still safe but at this point, we can start feeling the power of the waves and have to take a bit of precaution to stand upright. But He doesn't want us to stay there either. But, i don't think I want to go any deeper. I still remember that stage with my kiddos when they were little. Knee-deep is good enough. It isn't though if we really want to take in the beauty and power of the ocean. We must trek on.
Snapshot 4:
He led me east some more and now we are waist-deep. At this point, some are going back to either knee-deep or maybe even to the shore to grab a towel, but Jesus wants us to not stay here, but go even deeper. What cracks me up with the waist-deep is that moment when you are chilly and know it would be much better to go completely under to get it over with, but we just can't do it yet. So we stand there like idiots with our arms out of the water and standing on our tippy-toes. But the Spirit isn't done yet.
Snapshot 5:
He took me one more step to the point that it was either swim or go back. No more luxury of standing on our own, we are totally reliant upon the power of the waves and where they want to take us. A few years ago i taught my girls how to ride waves in the Atlantic Ocean and it was a blast and yet very intimidating at the same time. I love that feeling and now I get the sense, that is what a vibrant relationship with Jesus looks like. Let go and hang on. I told my girls to take a deep breath and jump when the wave came and where we ended up was so much fun because sometimes we would get flipped around and twisted around, but when we came up, we could see again. FUN!
Snapshot 6:
Now we are back at the bank or the beach for you ocean lovers :). He wanted me to take a look to see what He wanted me to see. And I saw trees. Many trees. And the beauty of the trees on the banks means that the water was doing some good for them and here is where this gets exciting. The water keeps flowing to the east and goes down into the Arabah and then enters the sea. Does anyone know what sea it flows into? THE DEAD SEA. And do you know what the water that started as a trickle from the Temple does? It brings life to whatever it touches because fresh water does that. And with this life giving water we see trees and plants that produce fruit and you know what else we see? Fishermen. Haha. They are standing there catching fish because the fish are lively, for they live in the fresh water from the Temple. AND IT STARTED LIKE A LEAK FROM A VASE. It is like the Mississippi River. The start of the Mississippi is small enough that you can physically jump over it, but so intimidating by the time it gets to St. Louis that it takes a dare for you to even put your toe in it.
So the way I look at it we have three options from these scenes:
1. Stay in the Temple. But let me tell you friends, life was not to be lived in the Temple. Sure, the Temple is safe but to take on the flesh and blood of Jesus, there's more than just staying in the Temple.
2. Swim in the dead sea. I've done it. You've done it. Some of you are doing it now. The dead sea is, well, DEAD! Nothing good comes out of the dead sea. It is lifeless, acidic, and destructive.
3. Jump in the river. Let the water bring you to life. Now, understand to experience life you will also experience some flips and twists and maybe even a bit of pain or suffering. But it is flowing eastward and leading us to the ULTIMATE TEMPLE where we are made new again. To stay put in the Temple, believe it or not, we will miss out being made new again. To be in the dead sea, well, that's easy...no being made new again. Both places are safe by the way, you can even float in the dead sea without fighting to stay afloat. So you can lay back and relax...and die. But the river, oh my friends, the river leads to new life. And the best part, we don't have to wait until we make it to the Promise Land to start getting a taste of the new life, we can taste it today, right now, wherever you may be, just make a decision and jump in the river with me. We can keep an eye on each other.
To finish up, I love the Pilgrim's Progress moment when Christian finally sees the Celestial City at the end of his long and tiresome journey and he just can't get to it quick enough, but there is one more challenge that lays before him and it is the river of death. To make matters worse, Christian can't swim and so he is left with a choice. Stay put or jump in the river. Christian chose wisely even though it tossed him around and caused him to be afraid, but nonetheless he is in the river and with all of his strength finally crosses it and it safely home. And guess what, he is new again. And if we asked Christian the question, was it worth it? He wouldn't even hesitate except with a smile on his face and twinkle in his eye...oh my friend, it is so worth it. Jump in the river friends, don't wait.
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Man, I Was Thirsty
I am not going to lie, I have been thirsty for some time and this past weekend, I got to drink from His fountain and boy, it was so refreshing. I needed it. I went into this weekend begging to hear from Him and He spoke and I would like to share with you what He said because I firmly believe some of you could be encouraged as well. There were 5 phrases that He brought to mind. I did something that I've never done though, I decided to meet with Him without anything. No Bible. No music. No phone. Just a journal and a pen...and silence. Ummm, a little intimidating to say the least, but I am so thankful for that time with Him. I was also reflecting from a book that I had just finished up as well.
Phrase 1 - TRUST ME - sitting in silence on Friday night, He and I came to this place of trust. From a depth of love, He asked me, "Do you trust me? I mean, really trust me? Do you trust me enough to let things go that you cling onto because you think you have control over them, but really they have control over you and steal the joy that I want you to have. Trust me! Stop wasting your time and energy on things that are not kingdom worthy. Trust me! Do you think I don't know what you are going through? Do you think that I am bigger than those issues? If so, let them go, and trust me!".
Phrase 2 - WALK WITH ME - August 6, 2015 I encountered Jesus is a way that I had never encountered Him before. He spoke to me from John 21 and honestly, my journey with Him has not been the same since. He spoke to me these 5 words, many of you would remember these..."what is that to you." Well, this time it was the next three words that follow those 5 words, "you follow me." In that moment, I heard my Savior say to me, "JT, I just want you to walk with me. I don't want you thinking of what you need to do or things that you aren't doing, I just want to walk with you." Just walk with me...nothing else. Why do I always feel the need to do something? I think I was reminded that He wants me, just me. He has no other expectation from me. But we both know that in a healthy right relationship with Him, WE WILL ACT but out of love, not out of duty. So right now, He is just asking me to walk with Him.
Phrase 3 - BE STILL - He then brought to mind John 20, the disciples are behind locked doors because their world has just been turned upside down by the death of Jesus. They are all huddled together hiding out when Jesus appears to them in His resurrection form and guess what He says to them, "Peace be with you.". At this point, it is very late on Friday night and all I could do was laugh. Come on Jesus, easy enough for you to say, right? Except, all I know is the here and now, but Jesus knows it all. So, He says peace. That led me to Psalm 46:10 - "Be still and know that I am God." Or Psalm 37:7 - "Be still in His Presence and wait patiently for Him to act." Peace. In fact, read all of Psalm 37, so good. He just asks me to learn the art of being still before Him.
Phrase 4 - JUST DO WHAT'S NEXT - I get a bit overwhelmed with my future. What do you want me to do Lord? The season I am in cannot be what you desire for me, but instead of letting my anxious thoughts control me around my future, He just simply encouraged me to just do what is next. That led me to Psalm 119. I couldn't remember the actual verse but it says, "Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." This is the image that came to mind as I pondered those thoughts. When you are in a dark season trying to move forward, you don't shine the light in the air or even in front of you, but you shine the light down by your feet. But the Lord reminded me that I have a tendency to skip a step or two. I could shine my light down on the next step, but the reflection of the light catches a stone maybe two steps ahead of me and guess what I do? I jump or take a big step to speed things up, but He is saying, just take the next step. No more big strides...no more jumps. Just do what is next. "Your Word is a lamp unto my feet (just do what's next) and a light unto my path (just do what's next)" No more and no less.
Phrase 5 - MY LOVE WILL NEVER LET YOU GO - So now it is late Saturday night and at this point, I wanted so badly to worship with music, so I went old school and listened to a song that was mysteriously (only Jesus) playing in my head. So I went to Robbie Seay Band and played that specific song. It then dawned on me that this is a hymn, which then led me on a trail of learning the history of the hymn. At this point, as I am listening to the song a 3rd time, my mind was blown. My emotions were flowing as I was screaming the lyrics out loud with Robbie Seay and the hymn writer, George Matheson. And in that moment, it was like Jesus sealed up the package with a bow that simply said, "My love will never let you go.". Which led me to remember the promise of Romans 8:38-39 - "and I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love...NOTHING."
So there it was, Jesus satisfied my thirst with His desires for me in this season: Trust Him. Walk With Him. Be Still. Do What's Next. His Love Won't Let Me Go. Man, I was thirsty for Him and He gave me a drink. If you are thirsty friend, consider this blog a cup of water I offer you in the Name of Jesus. As I pray over this cup, please feel free to share with anyone who you know that might be thirsty today.
Here is the song - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KUBw0B6RdBQ
Peace!
Here is the song - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KUBw0B6RdBQ
Peace!
Sunday, January 6, 2019
Huh, God is big!
Can I say this? God is becoming bigger to me than I ever thought possible! No one understands me! I think the biggest challenge about me is that no one really understands me and frankly, i don't I understand myself. I'm sure if we were to ask people about me, there would be quite a range of answers and some I wouldn't even want to know, but here is where I am today, He understands me through and through friends, that is all that matters to me. No no no, for real! He understands me so much so that He keeps pushing through my darkness to let His light shine and guess what happens to darkness when light shines? It runs away. Here is the most amazing part, it isn't anything that I am doing, but it is Him shining His light in my life because that is who He is and because of that, He is becoming bigger to me than I ever thought possible! I love Jesus more than ever and today I realized that my love for Him is still at the base of the mountain, and that I haven't even begin to journey up toward His peak...mind blown. There is so much more for me and we, to experience about the depth of God's love for us. Don't ever stop going after the heart of Jesus...please please please.
So my only commitment to 2019 was to stay committed to reading His Word and, you ready? Poetry! Haha, don't laugh, I know I am not your poetry type person but I want to both read and write poetry this year. So can I share with you my first stab at poetry? I am not sure if it even constitutes as poetry, but it's my blog!!!
I am drowning in a sea of pity, and if something doesn't happen soon, i might drown. I am below the water and it is dark, cold, and lonely. I try and take a deep breath but my body just won't embrace it. My heartbeat is fast, as if on the next beat it might leap out of my chest. I am broken and overwhelmed. And with whatever I can muster up in my voice, I yell "help, deliever me.!"
Wait, is that a glimmer of light that I see? I feel warmth, but how? Is my heartbeat slowing down, but why? I get a feeling I'm not alone, but what? Is that a whisper I hear? The Presence is so close that I can feel the hair on my neck stand straight up. And in a crackling voice I call out, "who are you?"
"It is I, your Deliverance!" It is I, your Warmth!" It is I, your Light!" It is I, your Companion!" It is I, your Provider!" "It is I, your Jesus!" "Come to Me and I will carry you...to the shore and beyond, Come!"
Friend, He DOES understand me and that is why He came! He came for me and He came for you. But will you let Him carry you? It is your choice. He is carrying me!!!
So my only commitment to 2019 was to stay committed to reading His Word and, you ready? Poetry! Haha, don't laugh, I know I am not your poetry type person but I want to both read and write poetry this year. So can I share with you my first stab at poetry? I am not sure if it even constitutes as poetry, but it's my blog!!!
I am drowning in a sea of pity, and if something doesn't happen soon, i might drown. I am below the water and it is dark, cold, and lonely. I try and take a deep breath but my body just won't embrace it. My heartbeat is fast, as if on the next beat it might leap out of my chest. I am broken and overwhelmed. And with whatever I can muster up in my voice, I yell "help, deliever me.!"
Wait, is that a glimmer of light that I see? I feel warmth, but how? Is my heartbeat slowing down, but why? I get a feeling I'm not alone, but what? Is that a whisper I hear? The Presence is so close that I can feel the hair on my neck stand straight up. And in a crackling voice I call out, "who are you?"
"It is I, your Deliverance!" It is I, your Warmth!" It is I, your Light!" It is I, your Companion!" It is I, your Provider!" "It is I, your Jesus!" "Come to Me and I will carry you...to the shore and beyond, Come!"
Friend, He DOES understand me and that is why He came! He came for me and He came for you. But will you let Him carry you? It is your choice. He is carrying me!!!
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