He wants to heal your pain....

I have never really written a blog at night, but as I was going through some Facebook posts tonight and thinking of some people/families I know, I just felt the need to write this.
Thanksgiving and Christmas are great holidays and they represent great things. Yes, we should be thankful all year round, but I have always loved that we gather each year with family and friends to celebrate the idea of being thankful. And then there is Christmas....another great time with family and friends, and a time to recognize that as we give each other gifts, we will never be able to give a gift as special as the one God gave us, His son.
But again, because of some posts I have read, some families I know....and my own personal experiences this year, sometimes the holidays can be hard to face. The joy that should be there just has a little less "joy" to it than other years. Maybe it's because you have lost a loved one, maybe it's because 2014 has been a very hard year or maybe it's because your family doesn't look like what it did last year or the year before. For whatever reason these holidays may feel like they have a dark cloud over them...and I understand that the cloud is there and it is real and you can feel it deep down inside. I am not here to deny that feeling at all. What I am here to say is that there is one who offers healing for that pain you are feeling. He is more real than the deepest pain and His love really can cover all. He offers hope to the hopeless and healing to the brokenhearted. Psalms 147:3 says "He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up there wounds." You see, if anyone can understand the different kinds of pain we go through, it is God. He sent His son to earth knowing how we would reject Him, how we would bring Him horrific physical pain and ultimately we would kill him. Imagine the pain that had to have caused God, but He did it because He loves us. He wanted to create a way for us to be able to repent for our sins, accept the biggest sacrifice that could possibly be made for us and be guided by the Holy Spirit throughout our life so we wouldn't just be walking around blindly. He did it because He wanted us to have a way to heaven, the place He intended for us to be before sin ever came into the picture. So you see why He can heal you, because He has felt your pain. He has felt the separation from Jesus while He walked the earth. He has felt the pain of watching someone He loved go through something they did NOT deserve. And He has felt the pain of watching someone He loved die. And don't think because it was Jesus it wasn't real...it was! He knew that everything Jesus felt as He was beaten and hung on that cross was real human pain. The worst any one person could ever endure.
So as this holiday comes tomorrow, whatever pain you are facing, know that He loves you and wants to help you get through it. Satan wants you to continue to feel the sting of that pain. Don't allow him to do that to you. 1 Peter 5:7 says "...cast all your care upon Him, for He cares for you". Who else do you know that is inviting you to give Him your heartache, your hurt, your sadness and your pain. He wants to heal your heart and let you feel His love.
As I too face these holidays with a family that looks completely different than it did last year, I know that I will be thankful. I will thank Him for how He has brought me and my kids through 2014...how He has been there every step of the way...how has brought new people and great friendships into my life...how He has filled the loneliest nights with His love...and how He has brought peace and joy into our lives when it didn't seem possible. Circumstances did not do this.....my God did. And tomorrow I will spend every moment thanking Him for that. Showing Him my gratitude for His unconditional, unfailing, trustworthy love. I hope you can do the same.

God You Reign!

No matter the circumstance
Or how deep the pain,
God You reign

No matter what people do
Or what they might say,
God You reign

No matter the outcome
Of the next campaign,
God You reign

No matter what leader
Thinks he leads today,
God You reign

No matter if courts
Take prayer away,
God You reign

No matter what riots
Break out today,
God You reign

No matter if marriage
Is made equal by men,
God You reign

No matter if babies
Are taken in sin,
God You reign

No matter what terrorists
Do to cause fear,
God You reign

No matter If atheists
Say Your not there,
God You reign

No matter what happens,
On this hellish earth

Jesus was real,
Jesus was birthed

He lived and He died,
With no sin or blame

To show us a love,
To make us a way

For all of those people,
I named up above

To be saved by His grace,
Forgiven and Loved

So as you are thankful,
This time of year

Be thankful He reigns,
So there's nothing to fear!!

Don't Close Your Eyes...

If I asked someone to tell me some of the things they struggle with in their effort to live healthy I would hear things like, "oh I need to eat better", "I need to exercise more", I need to cut out pop" or "I need to pay more attention to what time I am eating at night". And all of those would be very valid things. They are all things that if changed would lead to a healthier life. I know this because I have had this very talk with people. They don't have a problem seeing, pointing out or telling me what they know needs changed. What they do have a problem with is the change itself. Even when people know that the choices they are making are leading to bad health, they will continue to make them. Some because it's just easier, some because they like the unhealthy stuff to much and some because they just can't push themselves to do it better. I'm not speculating here..these are very real conversations that I've had with people.
Today I want to be very blunt and very real about our spiritual health. And when I say our, I mean you...me...anyone who is reading this. Let's get real for a minute, and then do something about it.
Just like with our physical health, each of us are doing things on a daily basis that is harming, or maybe even killing our spiritual health. These are sins that we allow to take root in our life and live there. For this blog we will call them "struggles", but I really do mean sinful things.
Each of us have things that we just won't do, won't tolerate and wouldn't give way to in our life. Some of those things are extreme and it's easy to say "I would never do that". For instance, I don't ever see myself struggling with murder... but there are things I struggle with that are just as sinful, and really are struggles. Things the flesh loves, doesn't want to let go of or has convinced you that you "need" in your life to be "happy", or "safe", or maybe even "secure". Obviously something as ugly as murder is easy, but was about something like envy, greed, bitterness, lust, selfishness, unforgiveness, dishonesty, sexual sins......or whatever it may be for you? How much of a grip does something like that have on you that you are just choosing to close your eyes to? How honest can you be with yourself (and let God be with you) to say that this "thing" really is a struggle for me. It really has it's claws down in me and I have learned how to close my eyes to it and let it live in my life, rather that open my eyes up to it's ugliness and deal with it. Cut it out at the very roots and rip it out of my life before it causes any more damage than it already has. And most of the time we have our eyes closed to the damage it's causing too. Just like we say "oh this snack, this donut, this candy or this meal it's going to make me fat"....we will also say "this sin, this struggle, this one time isn't going to send me to hell". Let that idea camp out in your head long enough and I promise you it's going to wreak havoc on you more than you know. You cannot choose to just close your eyes to the struggle (or sin) in your own life that goes against God's word. You cannot choose to just close your eyes to the sin around you that goes against God's word. You must always be alert to what the enemy is trying to bring into your life to get you to be comfortable with. Just like some unhealthy choices over a period of time can make you overweight, some unhealthy spiritual choices can also take you to a place you never intended to be.
I have been meditating on these verses for a few days now. They are bold, they are blunt and they couldn't be more truthful. James 1:14-16 says "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when its full-grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren." There are not words like "if" or "may be" in this scripture. It is "when you are drawn away by your own desires", "sin will bring forth death" and "don't be deceived". This is a very real warning! The enemy just wants us to relax, close our eyes and pretend like that is for everyone else. He wants us to believe that we have a grip on our "thing" (whatever it is), and it doesn't have a grip on us. Lies, lies and more lies. If a doctor told you to change something about your life or it is going to kill you, point blank. Would you continue doing it and just act like he didn't really mean "death"? I would hope not! You would use that info as a wake up call and change what needed to be changed. Ask God for a wakeup call today and let Him show you what He desires for you to change before it brings forth spiritual death and/or destruction in your life.
There is a song that has been around for a while by Switchfoot called "This Is Your Life" and in the chorus of that song they repeat again and again "don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes". Very powerful and very true words. Don't choose to close your eyes to the things in your life that God wants to expose to you. He knows the more you allow Him to filter out of your life, the closer you will get to Him...and this is His true desire for us all.
God, thank you that Your word is blunt, bold and full of truth. Thank You that You love us enough to tell us what will happen if we stay on the path we are on. Wake us up TODAY to even the smallest things in our life that we have become comfortable with that go against Your word. Help us give our struggles to you and leave them there. Not walk away from You still taking them with us. Get real with us today and give us the courage to get real with ourselves. In Jesus name, Amen.

Click here for the lyrics to the Switchfoot song "This Is Your Life"

Are you ready for "your race"?

Often times Christians don't get into the word or find a good devotional to start due to the lack of time in their day. They may say a prayer to two throughout the day, but they may not be setting aside "prayer time" in their day. I know this because I have had several people tell me they struggle with this, and I too have found myself in that place. We have a tendency to let the things of life take up the time that really should belong to God. And the bad part is, not only are we not giving Him the time that He is worthy of, but we are missing out on what God would like to show us during these times too.
Last week I got invited to do something that I have never done...and that was to run in a 5k. As much as it sounds fun, I also know it is going to be a challenge to do it. Not because 5k is a huge distance to run, but because I am not a "runner". In fact, the last time I really ran was in 2012. So to say that it's been a while isn't exaggerating at all! And to top it all off, the run was in 1 week. So I decided that I'd better spend the next 6 days running so I can be "somewhat" ready for this. As I laid out a plan of what I was going to do I realized that all I can do is take these 6 days and try to build my way up to 3 miles before the day of the race. So I set out to try and build up a little bit of endurance. And that is what I have been doing the past few days....and it hasn't been easy.
I was driving to work today thinking about this run. And the one thing that was stuck in my mind was how much easier this would be if I was just somewhat of a runner. Even if I ran some on a weekly routine it would be better than not running at all, and then trying to go run a 5k. However, because God always finds fun and interesting ways to speak to me, as I thought about this run, I also felt Him saying "this is what people do with me all the time Chad. They do nothing.....no time in My Word, no time in devotionals, no real time in prayer....then life throws something unexpected at them and they find themselves unprepared." The time we spend reading the word, doing devotionals and praying is like prepping for a race. It not only is good for you in the moment (like running), but it is building something up in you for later. And God knows this, that's why He wants us setting aside time to be with Him. But instead, sometimes we get into a situation we didn't expect and find ourselves crying out to Him for help. Much like this race....It would be pretty foolish of me to show up the day of the 5k and think that without any preparation at all, this was going to be easy. No it won't.....And neither will be getting through the tough days, weeks or even seasons of our life if we are not preparing for them.
Reading God's word, doing devotionals and prayer time all build up our inner man. And when we do this it gives us something to reach in and pull out when we find ourselves struck with the unexpected. Don't wait until that day to begin to "really" pray to God. Don't wait until that day to reach for your bible to see what it has to say about what your facing. And don't wait for that day to search for answers...because you're not prepared, and you don't have them. Set aside time to soak up Godly wisdom on a daily basis and let Him pour His strength into you, His knowledge into you and His love into you. Because I can guarantee that we will have to face a day when we will need it. And if you have spent the right kind of time with God, you will be glad it's there.
God, have your Holy Spirit show us where we need to free up time in our life to spend with You. Show us the void that is in our lives because we are not filling it with Your word. And help us be discipline enough to carve out the time, and then let YOU fill it as you see fit. Help us set aside all distractions and devote this time to You so we can soak in all you have for us, and we can spend time praising and thanking you. In Jesus name, Amen

A thankful "Attitude"....

Living with a thankful heart is one thing. To me that means that when good things happen to you, you're the type of person that will immediately be thankful for it. You will recognize the goodness in your life and express your gratefulness. However, I think living with a thankful attitude is a little bit different. This is a place that God has brought me back to again and again.
If your a Christian and a blessing comes into your life, most of the time you don't have a problem giving God the glory for it and recognizing where the blessing came from. We know ALL blessings come from God, plain and simple. (James 1:17) However, what if the thing that God wants you to be grateful for does not look like a blessing? What if it was His correction in your life? What if it was Him keeping you from something because He knows it will not be good for you? What if it was something that you know you personally desired, but He did not desire it for you? What if the answer to the prayer was, "no"? Could you still boast of His goodness and truly be thankful? To me this is the difference between having a thankful heart, and living in an attitude of thankfulness. Meaning, that because you know God wants the best for you...all the time, then when you get told no, or when He exposes something ugly inside of you or in your life, you thank Him for it. Again, this is a place God has kept me in for most of 2014. And to be honest, I want to stay in this place forever. I have had God expose some ugly things inside of me and I have dropped to my knees and said "thank you". I began to pray about a year ago for God to provide "direction and correction" in my life. Well you can't pray for correction and not expect to be corrected. And when I know that I am going through something as part of that correction process, I thank Him for it. Yes, it may not be easy and it may even "sting" a little as I'm going through it, but that is when I stop and think "He loves me this much! He will not just let me wonder off. He loves me enough to keep pulling me back to Him. Even when I don't make it easy". He loves each of us that much!
Living in and attitude of thankfulness means that when life feels like it did for the Egyptians...where it isn't great, but you know He is taking you someplace greater. It isn't perfect, but you know He is working out His perfect will for you. It isn't everything you hoped or wanted, but at this time of your life He is providing what you "need"....not just giving you what you want! And when you can express gratitude toward Him during those times, image how much you will praise Him when He showers you with blessings. And He will! I fully believe that when God sees us being thankful even in the tough "correction" times, He honors that by blessing you. He is a good good God! And it pleases Him when we show Him, and tell others, just how good He is....no matter what is going on in our lives.
I know God has a beautiful future in store for me. There may be a bend in the road that is stopping me from seeing what all He has for me right now, but I trust Him. And I know that when He gets me to the place where I am prepared to turn that corner, He will honor that I have thanked Him for the hard times and the times of correction. As long as I am praying His will over my life and following where He leads me I cannot go wrong. And I will praise and thank Him for everything I go through that gets me where He wants to take me.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 says "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you". Now I have never claimed to be a bible scholar, but I'm pretty sure what God means there is EVERYTHING. The good, the bad, the easy and the hard times....give thanks!
God, shape and mold us so we can walk in a constant attitude of thankfulness. Help us not float from one blessing to another, only giving you praise when something good happens. But instead let us see Your beautiful work in our lives at all times. We are sorry Lord that we have not always given You thanks for everything, but today we declare that we are going to change that. You are God, and You are always worthy of our praise and thankfulness. In Jesus name, Amen.

Coming To Grips With Who You Were...

One of the best ways for the enemy to tries to discourage you is to remind you of your past. He will do this in a number of ways on any given day. He will use "things", like possibly scars from your past to remind you. He will use temptations from your past to remind you. And one of his personal favorites is how he will use people to remind you of who you used to be. The reason this is one of his favorite tactics is because it not only can bring you down, but he is also at work in the person who is condemning you. And if he can be effective in that method, he can hold 2 people back from where God wants them to be. We must always realize the it IS God's ultimate desire for us to be broken loose of, and set free from, our past. No matter how small or large your mistakes are, God does not want you to dwell on them or live in them day after day. As I have stated in the past, sometime what we are forced to live with are the consequences of  our past, but that is different then living defeated by our past. For example, a person may go to prison for something they did, but that does not mean they can't have a conversion while in the prison. Does it mean they will be set free from prison when they give their life to Jesus, no. But it does mean they don't have to live out the rest of their days being the person that got them there. They have a choice....we all have a choice. Even if we are forced to live with consequences of our past, we can still choose to walk out of it and into where Jesus wants us to be. Leaving the things behind that earned us those consequences and living in God's beautiful grace and mercy is one of the most freeing things we can ever do.
The reason it is important to "come to grips with who you were" is so you can see the changes you have made. If we deny who we were just because we don't want to face it, then it will be very difficult for us to see how far we have come. A person that Jesus rescues from a drug addicted past doesn't mind giving their testimony about their addiction days. They want to tell people how they have been set free. However, a person who is still living in it, struggling with it and can't quite get out of it, will have a hard time carrying on a conversation with you about how bad was. They more than likely will be in denial of the problem because they are still in it. But when you walk out of that problem, you can look back and see just how bad it was. And most important, you can see how much God has done for you. That is why your testimony is so important. However, be very careful that when something from your past, or someone from your past, rears it's ugly head, DON'T get sucked into attitude of defensiveness. If you have truly repented that past and are living out a changed life, then just defeat the enemy by saying..."yes, that unfortunately is who I used to be, or how I used to be. But because of the love, forgiveness, grace and mercy of Jesus Christ, my past has been washed clean and I no longer have to live in condemnation from it.". Believe it or not, those are some of the most powerful words you will ever say outside of "God, please forgive me and allow me to receive the gift of Jesus Christ into my heart and life and change my life".
When someone attacks your old character just stand firm with Christ and know that is not who you are now. Let that person say what they want about that old you, he/she is dead and gone anyway. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tell us "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a NEW creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come." Your job, your responsibility and your part of the commitment with Jesus is to daily die to your flesh, pick up your cross, follow Him and make sure the OLD YOU stays dead and gone! Let the new you, your character through Christ, your heart through Christ and your new actions through Christ speak for itself and don't give the past the attention that enemy wants you to. Through the blood that Jesus shed on the cross, it is dead and gone. Leave it there!
God, Thank You that Jesus lived, died and rose again to set me free! Remind me that I am free from my past when the enemy tries to bring it back up. Let the person You are making me into bring glory and honor to Your name. And may the accuser, no matter what form he shows up in, see that he can have my past...because my future belongs to You. In Jesus name, Amen.

What Would Your Journal Say About You?

If you know me or you have read some of my past posts, then you know that I have often referred to the life of staying fit to the life of being a Christian. By that I mean the discipline, dedication and ability to look ahead knowing your reward may not be "right now". If you live to stay fit, or your preparing to compete in some kind of fitness event, then you know the things you must stay away from to be all that you can be. But you also have to know that the daily choices you make won't give you instant results. It doesn't work like, if I don't eat the Big Mac today then I will have abs tonight. But it is like, if I don't eat that Big Mac day after day after day and I keep doing what I need to be doing, then yes, I will have what I am working toward....in this case abs. Much like the life of a Christian. There are daily choices we must make that get us to where God wants us to get to...and then there is also our long term goal of spending eternity with Him. No, if you abstain from things today you won't be exactly where God desires you to be tomorrow....but if you keep abstaining and listen to Him you will get there.
Once again today though, God brought an idea to my head that I have used to help people many times and showed me how to put it into my relationship with Him. So I want to share that now and hope that it challenges you like it did me.
When someone asks me for diet help I often will have them do a food journal before we even talk about any food changes. The point of this is take a week and just eat anything and everything they would normally eat. Not trying to do anything different than normal, but documenting every single thing they ate and when. The point of this is get a good look at what areas may really need work. Maybe they snack way to much. Maybe they eat way to late at night. Maybe they really do just eat bad food. But the best way to find out is not by asking them and having them sit and think about all they ate, but by documenting it and then looking back on the week. It is a true picture of the problem areas. And today God said to me what if you did a journal like this about your life with Me? What if you were completely honest about what you spent your time doing this week, what temptations you had, what temptations you fell to, what temptations you beat, what had your thoughts the most this week and what had your attention? If we could really and honestly journal our life for a week or even a month and then go back and look at it, how much would we really be convicted to change our lives? Satan wants the things we do against God to be subtle. He wants them to not seem like a big deal. He wants them to just leave our mind after we've done them. When we can blow them off like that we won't realize the impact they are really having on us. Then once he has convinced us to do enough, he will pour on the guilt and shame and all of the sudden one day you will realize the distance these actions have created between you and God. Just like a diet...nobody eats a doughnut late one night and wakes up 50 lbs over weight the next day. We do this little by little...satisfying those little desires again and again....and then over time, we become 50 lbs overweight. And also just like with our physical health, where we begin to have the defeated attitude of "well, I'm never going to be back to that weight again, so why even try"....we also can get that attitude with our relationship with Jesus...."well, I've done to much and I have to much shame to be what God 'was calling' me to be, so why even try". Both are very dangerous ways of thinking. One for your physical health...and one for your spiritual health!
I won't write out all of Romans 8, but I would highly suggest going and reading it. However I do want to point out verses 5-8, which says "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God." So would your journal show that you spend more time in the spirit trying to please God, or more time in the flesh being 'carnally minded'?
When I ask someone about their food journal sometimes they are as surprised at what they ate that week because they have never stopped and looked that closely at it. If you did a "life journal" for a week, two weeks or even a month....would you be surprised at the things you spent your time, your thoughts and your energy on. And would you be willing to make the changes needed so God could get you to the place he desires for you to be?
God, open our eyes up to the things you want us to see. Help us not walk blindly through life ignoring the little things that are causing spiritual unhealthiness for us. Move through our hearts to transform our minds into thinking upon eternal things, and not getting so caught up in the here and now that we lose sight of who you have called us to be...and for what purpose you created us. In Jesus name, Amen

Is Yours a Biography or a Testimony?

Today I wanted to give you something to think about. Something I myself am thinking about....
When you look back on your life right now....when you tell someone about your life.....or when your life is coming to it's last days, will the story of your life be a Biography or a Testimony?
It can be real easy to tell the stories about what we have come through or accomplished in our lives and let each story revolve around us. When you read a biography about someone you get to look at their life and some of their amazing stories and/or accomplishments. And depending on the story, you get to see how the person may have rescued themselves or someone else from something terrible or overcame something tragic, but most likely the story is still going to be about them. However, a testimony is different. A testimony is not about you....it's not about me....it's about Jesus. A testimony says look at what He did for me over and over and over. And at the end of my life I hope my life looks like story after story of what Jesus did in me or through me. I want each story to be about His love, His accomplishments, the battles won because He was there and the people helped because He was at work. I don't care how much I had to do with it, I just want it to be known that I could not have done it on my own. He is "the" reason I overcame anything, impacted anything or anyone or succeeded at anything that I may have succeeded at. Yes, I want my life to bring Him glory in the moment, but I want my testimony to do it for years to come. Whether it be me telling it, or someone else.
When we use our testimony we are defeating satan in ways we don't even realize. Satan wants us to feel like "we" overcame that situation even if it had an outcome that made satan sick. He wants to twist anything and everything that he can in your life. If he can convince us to create a biography (or autobiography) of our life, then he can get us to keep the focus on us. Then he will do his best to get us to feel prideful in the good times, and shame in the bad times. But in either of those times it still puts all the focus on us. But when you look satan in the eye and say "no, in my weakness Christ is made strong", and you lean or Jesus in the bad times, then you get to go tell people about that. And that is what satan doesn't want. Revelation 12:11 says "And they(us) have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony....". When every story you tell of victory focuses on how Jesus brought you through it, or how Jesus forgave, or how Jesus rescued, then there is a better chance of someone who hears that story wanting to know more about Jesus. In the business world this would be called advertising. :) And satan does not want us to advertise how amazing God is because that just might bring Him more "business"!
So as you tell your story.....the good times and the hard ones....make sure you are giving honor where honor is due. Be careful not to place yourself higher than the one who really brought you thru it. Proverbs 29:23 says "One's pride will bring him low, but the humble in spirit will retain honor." If you give honor to God, He will bless you for it. If you give honor to yourself, then you just received your blessing....the attention you gave yourself. God's blessings will always be better than anything you can bless yourself with. And trust me when I say this, because I have seen it in my own life.....when you tell of His blessings in your life, He will bring you more blessings. When we show God we can be trusted with what He has given us, He wants to give us more. Show Him today that He can trust you to give Him ALL the glory, not just some. Tell your testimony!
God, thank You for every situation You have ever brought us through. Thank You that we have a story to tell that revolves around You. Don't let us buy into the lies of the enemy that our story is insignificant and can't impact lives. Show us with whom, and when, we need to share our story so You will receive the most glory for it. Let lives be changed and people can be set free because we told our testimony. And let our every day lives be walking, breathing testimonies of Your greatness! In Jesus name, Amen

A Love Like No Other....

I woke up this morning just thinking about God's love. Just thinking about how much God blesses our lives...even when we fail to see it sometimes. I woke up in a warm home, had food, a car to drive to work, a job to go to, my health and a healthy family....so much to be thankful for. Even on the worst of days He is still blessing me....He's blessing us!
As I've stated in prior posts, this has been a rough year, but with weeks like this past week I am reminded that other people are going through harder stuff, deeper pain and/or greater loss than I have. And it is in those times that we are to be God's hands and feet and go love those that are going through something hard. If you can do nothing else, lift that person up in prayer and ask God to shower them with His love.....I know so many people did that for me, and what a difference it made.

But the other thing that I was reminded of today is that God He loves us despite ourselves. And that is the best news I can give you today. I was thinking about who I am as a person, who I used to be and who I am striving to be. All of which will never measure up to God's perfect standard. But He loves me despite all of that. And because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus...I don't have to live up to a perfect standard. My righteousness and perfection is found in Him. I just have to wake up each day and do my best, through Him, to be as much like Jesus as I can. And when I fail (which as humans we do), His blood will cover it. That is love! His grace and mercy will give me the chance to get up and try again...that is also love! His forgiveness will let me know I am accepted by Him despite the my shortcomings....again, true love and acceptance! All of these things are given to me because Jesus loved me enough to offer them to me. Not because I'm doing anything to earn them or deserve them. Just simply because I said that I believe, I accept and I want Him to change me.
I recently bought the new Mercy Me album and on my way into work I heard the song "Flawless". Since I was already thinking about how amazing God's love is, the lyrics really hit me. So I thought I would close this post with the lyrics to the chorus. I hope they remind you that the cross is the only thing that can make you flawless in the eyes of God. No matter where you have been, what you have been through or what the enemy tells you that you have done that is "so" bad. The price Jesus paid makes us flawless.....and again, that IS love!

As you read these, think about the fact that because of the price Jesus paid on the cross, when we accept Jesus as our savior God no longer sees our flaws. He sees us through the perfect life of Christ....how amazing is that!

No matter the bumps
No matter the bruises
No matter the scars
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless
No matter the hurt
Or how deep the wound is
No matter the pain
Still the truth is
The cross has made
The cross has made you flawless

God, thank You for the gift of Your Son. Thank You for making a way to escape the trap of sin and loving us enough to create a way to heaven for us. Let us see the seriousness of that gift and that love and not just accept it, but let it change everything about us. Every day molding us and making us more like Jesus. In Jesus name, Amen

It's His Journey For You....

As I once again made my journey to work today I was traveling down the highway asking God what we were gong to write about today. Today was a different drive because I turned off all music and made the drive in silence, asking God to just speak to me as I drove. The 1st few miles were quiet, and then I began to see everything He was going to teach me on this drive.
As I was going down the highway, car after car was either passing me, or being passed by me. I was looking intently at each car as this was happening...noticing the car and the driver. Each car was headed north on route 23, as I was headed to Circleville. However, just because we were all headed in the same direction, we were not all going where I was going. In fact, we all weren't even going to Circleville, some were going to keep going on down the road after I have stopped. I have been making this drive to the same job for 17 years now. I used the same roads, I made the same turns. Is there other ways to get to my job, yes.....are they the best way to get there, no. I have learned over the past 17 years the best way to get to where I am going....the smartest, the quickest, and the safest. But I have also had to learn that there are lots of other ways to get there....but that doesn't mean I should go that way.
As I looked at each car passing me I couldn't help but wonder where they were going? Was this their 1st time going this way? Is this a familiar road to them, or is this the 1st time they have gone this way? But the other thing I was thinking is this......Since I know where I am supposed to go, wouldn't it be so foolish of me to follow one of them and expect to get where I am supposed to? Their journey, their path, the road they are traveling, is not going to get me where I need to go. And it is VERY important for me to know that. Yes, we may be traveling in the same "direction", but eventually I am going to have to make the turn that I need to so I can end up where I am supposed to be.
Our walk with God is so much like this drive to work. As I travel this journey with God there is some place He needs me to go....someplace He needs me to be. Yes others may be traveling in the same direction as me on my journey, but I can't just follow them. He has specific directions for me. If I follow them they are going to get me where I am supposed to be. However, if I try to just follow someone else, I am not being obedient to the call of God. I am just being a follower. And just like the cars on the road beside me, just because we all "seem" to be traveling in the same direction, doesn't mean we are headed to the same place. Be very careful who you "follow" because you could end up lost. Their is a specific set of directions that are going to get you where you need to be. You are not to follow, you are not to travel blindly, you are not to just head off in one direction and hope for the best. You are to communicate with the One that knows where you need to be and let Him show you that path. He will!
One other thing....as I drove down the highway I noticed cars that were nicer than mine, and some that weren't as nice as mine. (much like the life of others around me) But this is another thing that is NOT good to be focused on. Envy and/or pride will lead you nowhere good. As you travel the path God has you on, do not let envy settle in as you look at the lives of others....and do not let pride take over as God begins to get you into a good place. If you are doing what He has called you to do, then NONE of it is of "you" anyway. It is HIS path for you...follow it...praise Him on the tough days of that path, give Him glory on the good days of that path.....but NEVER lose sight that the enemy wants to wreck you and God wants to prosper you. Don't mix those 2 things up. Rebuke the enemy and move forward when satan tries to knock you off your path.....and praise God and give thanks when He blesses you! Every good and perfect gift comes from Him. Even if it felt like "you" did that....remember who gave you the gifts and talents to do it!
God has a place that He wants to get you, and a specific way He wants to get you there. If you seek this, He will show you! You were born with a God given purpose that only you can do!
God, help us chase after all that you have for us. Help us to take our eyes off of the lives, the paths, the good and the bad of others and just go after what you have called us to do. Help be wise enough, through You, to not just follow the paths of others, but find and walk the very specific path that You have for us so we can end up at the place that always wanted us to be. And help us not to walk our journey out always comparing ourselves to those around us, but just make sure we are being exactly what you need us to be. Always trying to bring honor and glory to Your name. In Jesus name, Amen.

A Foundation Is Only As Strong As It's Weakest Point

A house, no matter now nice it is, is only as good as the foundation it is build upon. A tree, no matter how strong it looks, is only as strong as it's roots are......
No matter how nice a house looks, you really don't find out the "integrity" of it until you inspect it's foundation. There have been many people back out of purchasing a home because when the home inspection is done they find out the foundation is either uneven, cracked or even crumbling. And that means that this house is not that "solid". It also means more problems are ahead for this home if that foundation is not dealt with. Things inside the home are going to start having issues, if they don't already. Floors will start to slant, doors will not open and shut as they should and walls and ceilings will develop cracks. No matter how solid and nice the house looks, the foundation....the very thing it is built upon...can and will control how long and how well that house will stand.
When the tornados hit Alabama a few years back a team of us from my church went down to do cleanup. I don't think any of us expected to see the devastation that we saw when we pulled into that town. It truly looked like a war zone out of a movie. Houses were flattened, cars were tossed around like toys and trees were splintered like toothpicks. But probably one of the most amazing things to me was the condition of the trees. There was no rhyme or reason to each tree. One would look strong and thick, yet would be ripped right out of the ground. While another, not to far from it, that was hit with the same powerful winds, would still be standing tall. Some were fully intact, but just looked like someone pushed them over. But the thing I began to notice after seeing tree after tree down, was their root system. The ones that had deep deep roots withstood the storm. The tops of the trees were damaged for sure, but they were still standing....because they had deep roots. But the trees that were tossed about and ripped from the ground would have shallow roots. They would only be 2 to 4 feet below the ground...not nearly enough depth to stop the tornados from pulling them right up. It was actually quite amazing to see.
Today, God was showing me that we are like those houses and trees. We need to have solid foundations and deep roots if we want to have powerful lives that can withstand the storms.....or just the everyday things of life.
If you are honest with yourself you already know where the "cracks" in the walls and ceilings of your life are. You know that it is harder for God to open and shut doors in your life, and you know if your "floors"(or morals) have become slanted. Just like a house, your foundation is only going to be as strong as it's weakest point. If you have a cracked or even crumbling foundation, your life might look good on the outside, but inside things are not as they should be....not as they were meant to be. And just like the tall tree, when the storms of life come along, are you going to have roots that keep you standing, or are you going to be ripped out and tossed around by the unexpected things that life throws your way. We cannot control a lot of the things that happen around us, but we can control our beliefs, our morals, our values and how much we let Christ direct us. And if you want a rock solid, unshakable foundation, then I would highly suggest that those things be build upon what the bible has to say...what Jesus had to say. The world is a shifty place....what is wrong today will suddenly be ok tomorrow. What you may think is completely unacceptable this week, will be the "next new thing" next week. If you are constantly changing what you stand on, what you believe in....the things you build your life upon, then your foundation will never be solid. But if you build it on the very things that Jesus built his life on, the very things that the bible has stood on since God breathed the first words into it, then your foundation, no matter how popular or unpopular it is, will stand the tests of time. And the roots that you build your life on, will be the roots that your children and your children's children will build theirs on.
Stand on nothing less that biblical truth. If "whatever" you are considering does not agree 100% with the bible, the very word of God, then don't let it become ok in your mind, or your life. Truth is truth and how you accept that is what will either build a strong foundation, or one that can and will eventually crumble.
God, Help us build our foundation on YOU and only YOU. Your word, Your instruction manual for our life, is what should cause us to accept or reject the things that try to enter our life. Please help us not fall into the trap of a "moral compass", but instead use the bible as the ultimate filter for what is good and acceptable to help us root our life in You. Thank you God that it is never, never too late to rebuild our foundation in and on You. Today, let someone decide that it's time they rebuild theirs. In Jesus name, Amen

Running "Your" Race...

Have you ever noticed that race horses and pull horses wear blinders that cover part of their vision. The purpose of these blinders are to stop the horse from seeing everything that is going on around it while it is doing what it is supposed to be doing. You see horses eyes are placed near the sides of their heads which gives them peripheral vision, which also means they can end up running off course unless they are forced to remain focused on what is ahead of them.
This morning during my prayer time God was showing me that even though our eyes are not set like a horse, we too have the problem of staying focused on what lies ahead of us from God. We can become very distracted on all the things going on around and start to focus on the wrong things if we're not careful. And by wrong things, I don't even mean sinful things. I just simply mean not the things God desires for us to be focused on.
There is a story about a preacher who wanted to prove that his horse could walk up the steps in his home, even though nobody thought it could be done. The preacher led the horse to the steps and was indeed able to get the horse to walk up the steps with no problem. However, when he turned the horse around and began to lead it down the steps the horse didn't want to go. The horse froze and wouldn't budge. So the preacher got the idea to cover the horse's head and lead him down that way. When the horse's head was covered the preacher was able to lead the horse down the steps with no problems. He realized that by covering the horses head, or at least part of his eyes, he could get the horse to take chances that it would not normally take.
Doesn't this sound just like us sometimes. God will call us to a certain place in life, or to do something that we have never done before, and instead of stepping out in faith with God, we begin to look around at all the things that could go wrong or look for reasons to not do it. The important part of that story about the preacher is that once the horse's head was covered it did not just walk down the steps on it's own....the man led it down the steps. The horse trusted enough to be led! God does not want us to close our eyes and just walk through life. That would be foolish! But what He does want us to do is close our eyes to all the things that the enemy wants to distract us with...including doubts, fears, insecurities and lack of faith.....and and trust Him by letting Him lead us where He needs us to go. He has a "race" set out for each of us. Yours is not the same as the person beside you and the worst thing you can do is pay so much attention to theirs that you lose focus on what God has for you. Your pace may be different, your path may be different and the work He has called you to do may be different. So don't feel as though you have mimic the lifestyle of another Christian..."close your eyes", get in your secret place with God, remove all distractions and find out what God has for you. Then let Him lead you where He wants to take you. He will NEVER steer you wrong....He is trustworthy, faithful and true!
God, help us put on spiritual blinders. Help us to not get caught up in the race of others or the distractions of life going on around us and lose focus on what You have called us to do. Help us have complete trust in you so we can close our eyes and be led by You. Your word says in John 13 that you have given us the Holy Spirit to lead us on Your behalf....so may we be led by the Spirit to bring honor and glory to Your name. In Jesus name, Amen.

In His Presence....

In Your Presence
Is where all things
Come to light

In Your Presence
There is no darkness
There is no night

In Your Presence
Is where all peace
Can be found

In Your Presence
We stand in awe
Uttering not a sound

In Your Presence
Is where our spirits
Long to be

In Your Presence
Is where our souls
Find their safety

In Your Presence
All sickness and pain
Are cast away

In Your Presence
Satan and demons
Can NOT stay

In Your Presence
Will feel nothing like
We've every known

And one day..

In Your Presence
Will be the place
That we call home

The Goodness of God...

It is often that I write things challenging people to look inward...but today I want to challenge you to look outward. To look around you, not at your circumstances, but at your blessings. It can be so easy for us to get so caught up in our circumstances that we forget to look for the good in our lives....and we forget to look for God in our lives.
As I have stated in several posts now, this has been a trying year for me. Actually, not just a trying year, it has by far been the hardest year of my entire life. And as I say that, I can also say it is the year that I have grown the closest to God. That is not because of anything great that I have done, but it is because I have refused to only look at the bad that I have gone through this year. I have chosen to look for the goodness of God while I have walked out this terrible time in my life. James 1 is an amazing chapter to read when it comes to instruction on how we should face a trial in our life. The enemy wants us to get caught up in the circumstances, the details, the bad, the ugly....where God on the other hand wants us to look for the good, look for Him, look for His gifts, His favor, His love. It is there, but when you are facing a trial, you have to choose to look for it. No, I am not saying that you ignore the fact that you are in a trial, but yes I am saying you have to choose to not let the trial destroy you. In James 1:12-17 it talks about "blessed is the man who endures temptation"....and how "each man is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires"....and how "every good and perfect gift is from above". So you say "yeah, but I'm in a trial....I'm not being tempted, I'm being tried, I'm being hurt, I'm being broken". And to that I would say "yes, but as you walk through this trial you are being tempted to only see the bad...or to look for the good". Our human desire is to complain our way through it. Talk about all the bad stuff that we are going through, the hardship and even the pain. That is tempting....I know, because I was right there. Yes, I did find a few very close Christian friends that I could pour myself out to when I needed, but only people that I knew would help pick me up. People who would help me see God and His good in my life. But the other choice I made was when people would ask me how I was, I would make sure I pointed out the work that I saw God doing. I shared the blessings He was doing in my life and how He was drawing me near to Him. See, the temptation was to grown and complain my way through it...and most people would have totally understood that because they knew it was bad. But what I chose to do was look the enemy in the face and say "you may be controlling some circumstances in my life, but my hope rests in Jesus. My joy and my peace comes from Jesus...and you can't steal that from me because it is buried in my heart". That's how you beat the temptation. That's how you praise your way through the storm. That's how you make sure God gets the glory for the good....and you don't give the enemy the attention he wants. Yes, some days are harder than others, but that's how you live out James 1:22 and 'become doers of the word, not just hearers'. And when you are pointing all glory back to God...seeing, recognizing and speaking about His goodness, He will reward you for it!
The Psalms are full of verses to read to praise and honor God. If things are so hard that you can't muster up your own words(and I've had those days)....then just read through the Psalms and praise God that way. The one that you can choose to 'put on repeat' in your heart is Psalms 107:1 which says "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever".
Choose today to look past your circumstances and look for God's goodness. It is all around you and the enemy does not want you to see that.
God, thank You for you goodness....thank You for Your love....and thank You that it DOES endure forever! Help us to keep our hearts open to You no matter what our outside circumstances look like. Give us the strength and power in Jesus name to praise You through the storm and bring honor to Your name in the eyes of those that may be watching us walk through our trials. You are good, You are faithful...and the enemy is nothing but a lier. Help us put him in his place...and sing praises to Your name! In Jesus name, Amen.

Will sin send you to hell?

At the end of yesterday's blog I wrote that God was already stirring this topic up in my heart. "Will sin send you to hell?". I plan on showing you what God has showed me about this question... and the first thing I want to say is that the enemy wants us ALL to think the answer is just "yes". But I don't believe it is that easy. Let me explain...
I don't think anyone will end up in hell because of the sin that was in their life. I say that not caring how small or large that sin was. I believe the thing that will determine if you end up in hell or not is the CHOICE you make to receive the gift that God has for you. Once you do, sin will and should take a different place in your life.
If I gave you a gift today and you opened it and found that I bought you a new pair of shoes, does this mean every foot problem you ever had will be gone forever simply because I gave you this gift? I mean, you could simply say "no thanks, I like my old shoes" or you could say "thank you" and put them up on the shelf...or you could say "this is exactly what I needed" and actually put them on. Any of those 3 choices would be up to you. But no matter what, I still gave you the gift, right? Even if you know your old shoes are destroying your feet, it is still your choice to put the new shoes on and walk in them. And 10 years from now if you had a doctor tell you that your feet have been permanently damaged because of staying in those old shoes, then it doesn't really matter if you took my gift or not, because you didn't walk in them...ever. Some of you may already see where I am going with this...

Hell is not a place for people who have sinned, it is a place for people who chose not to receive the gift that God has for you...Jesus. God gave you something that He knew IF you chose to receive and walk in it, would change your life forever. If sin was "the reason" that people ended up in hell, then it would mean that after you get saved, you would not be able to sin again. But we know that is not true. When we get saved something begins to happen on the inside of us that reveals the sin in our life. The old things become uncomfortable and the Holy Spirit begins to work those things out of you. And when this happens sin starts to take on a whole new look to you. This is what is referred to as the "sins of Omission" and the "sins of Commission". What's the difference? One is failure to do what one can and must/should do....while the other is to know something is wrong, and yet do it anyway.
So back to my gift of shoes....just because I gave you that, if you know the right thing to do is put them on and wear them, but you don't, did you really "receive" my gift? Is it going to change anything for you.....NO. YOU have to do something with the gift. That choice is yours. If you receive the gift of Jesus, and continue to live out the same life you lived before, then I would have to challenge you with the question..."did you really receive it at all?". Will you saying you did, and continuing to live in "knowledgeable sin" do anything for you life. I don't think so. The bible says that when you receive Jesus, your life should start to show the "fruit" of that. So it is not the sin you are still walking in the will send you to hell....it is the fact that the gift meant nothing to you. You have continued to "do" all the same things as before because "saying" your receive God's gift did nothing. You have to truly receive it. It has to change your heart. THEN, when the heart is changed, the sin in your life WILL change. That is why you begin to sin less and you don't do the blatant sin that you used to. The "lack of sin" is NOT going to keep you out of hell.....it is the gift of God that is now in your heart that is going to keep you out of hell. The bottom line is...when the gift is truly received what your life looks like should change. The sin in it should change and your appearance to others should change. You should begin to reflect Christ....
The enemy wants us to live focused on sin. It is like telling someone not to think of a pink elephant....they will think about it. If we focus on all the "sins" we can't do...that is all we will focus on. Did we commit one today, how bad was it, do I look good or bad to God now.....satan wants us to play that over in our head. Why? Because when we can live condemned and shameful we forget to focus on the grace and mercy God has for use BECAUSE OF what Jesus did. Not because of anything we did. When we are saved God tells us all He can do for us...forgive us, love us, protect us, help us in life and so on....but then He tells us our part...ACCEPT and BELIEVE that not only did Jesus die for us, but He lived the perfect life that we never could so a way to God and heaven could be made for us. He lived a perfect life right down to every letter of the law. Something we could never do....and won't have to now. If fact, the bible says if we want to still live by the law, and not by the gift of Christ, then we have to live out "every letter of the law", which no man can do. (More can be found on walking in the Spirit vs the law in Romans 7 & 8) The old covenant (before Jesus) simply did things to cover our sins, however, the new covenant made a way for us to be cleansed from our sins. Totally different! It's not by our works or by anything we can do to "earn it". Jesus did it all, paid it all and made a way for ALL! (More on this in Hebrews 9) Our works are dead. Our works won't get us to heaven and they really won't send us to hell. It about accepting, believing, having faith and walking out a life with Christ. Where you spend eternity is about a choice....

God, first of all help us ALL see the need to receive Your gift to us...Jesus Christ. Please help us to see that Your gift needs to change our life. We can not say we receive it and continue to live the same life. The enemy wants us to do that so he can make us feel condemned, but Your word says there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Holy Spirit show us how to walk free from satan's guilt and walk humbly in Your grace and mercy. Living out a changed life that other can see. Let us walk in the confidence that Your gift and only Your gift can keep us from hell, and make a way to You and to heaven. In Jesus name, Amen

What makes you Righteous?

If I were to ask you what makes a person righteous a lot of people would probably think of someone they think is pretty righteous and think about all the good that person does in life that makes them "more righteous". The definition of the word righteous is "morally right or justifiable....or very good/excellent". So I think everyone would agree that if we considered someone to be pretty righteous then their life, and the things in their life, would reflect it. Their actions, the things they do and the things they don't do. But the more you start to describe it like this, the more righteousness starts to sound like "works". And we know the bible teaches us that our righteousness is not about works, but it is because of Jesus. Any and all righteousness that our life reflects is not because of what we do....but because He can be seen IN us. So I would challenge you with this thought....Are you righteous because of the things you do.....or do you do those things because you are righteous?

Works alone are worthless......and faith alone is not the answer either. However, if you read James 2:14-26 you will see that the bible says faith and works must go together. That faith without works is dead!
If you know the story of Abraham, then you know that he was called by God to sacrifice his son Isaac. And you also know that Abraham "stepped out"... in faith... to do just that (works and faith), but God stopped him and provided a different sacrifice. So was it the act that Abraham was going to perform that made him righteous.....or was it the fact that Abraham had become a righteous man that made him willing to do this act? We must realize that it is never our acts that make us righteous and when we believe that it is we are living in a very dangerous place. Because it is in that place we will start to see ourself as righteous, not humble. In Jeremiah 29:23-24 it warns about boasting in our own righteousness. It says the Lord delights when we see that everything that is good in us comes from Him. (yes, I paraphrased a little there) It is important for us to know that the only righteousness we have is because of Him and that the good that comes out of that is also because of Him. Our righteousness simply means that we stand "right" before the Lord. And without Jesus NONE of us could do that. God's standard is too perfect for us to ever stand right before Him. However, our righteousness is because of what we believe and receive....and that is the life, death and resurrection of Jesus to cover our sin and make us right before God. It is ONLY because of Jesus that we can be made clean and stand before God!
So let me end with this.....and hopefully I don't lose anyone here! If our righteousness comes from Jesus, and we know the good we do comes out of that, then even though we are becoming more righteous, we can still mess up. So this means a righteous person can still do wrong.....And we also know that someone who has not been saved can also perform a good deed. So this means an unrighteous person can still do something good... What is the difference? God sees the heart of each of those people...that is the difference. God knows that you just did what you did because you are letting Christ shine through your life.....or you just did what you did because you want the glory. The glory is God's.....it always has been, it still is and it always needs to be. Any righteousness in our lives should bring honor and glory to Him...not ourselves!
God, please help us not get caught up in the "acts" of doing good things. Also help us to not say we have faith, but do nothing to show it. Help us show the world that when we fully trust in You, rely on You, believe in You our lives should look different. Help us fight off the temptation that enemy wants us to fall under where we boast about our "good deeds" and let everything we do be done to bring honor and glory to You. In Jesus name, Amen.

I have never done this at the end of a blog, but please come back tomorrow to read what I'm going to post about "Will sin send you to hell?" As I was writing today's blog I already felt God pressing the next one on me. I pray that He will pour His words through me on this topic tomorrow.

What Money Can't Buy...

In a world where everything seems to go by your economic status....I found my heart grateful today that our value to God is not like that. It seems like everything in society is based off of how much "you're worth". Oh, we may not say that out loud...that some people are worth more to us than others in our life. Or some people are worth more than others in our community, city, state or nation....but we all put value on people. Unfortunately, we were raised to believe that the more your worth ($$), then the more your worth as a person. This concept goes completely against the way God views us and I felt the Holy Spirit telling me that someone needed to hear that today.
I think because we live in a society like that it is very easy for us to get caught up in the idea that God views people by their worth too. Totally not true! Our value to God is the same...each and every one of us. One of the most famous verses in the bible (John 3:16) points that out to us when it says "whosoever believes in Him.....shall have everlasting life". Whosoever. Not whoever God chooses, not whoever does the best and not even whoever "works" the hardest for God. We often confuse our value, our performance and our service as if they were the same. They are not.
Our value to God never changes. I am not more valuable than anyone else, and the most famous pastor of all time is not more valuable than a man on death row....not to God. Jesus died for one just the same as He did the other.
Our performance is also another misconception. God does not expect us to outperform one another. In fact, I think He frowns upon it. There is one standard to measure yourself to and that is the life of Jesus. And even that can't be measured by performance. Jesus did everything from the heart. So when you are trying to live up to the standard He set, your heart should be the thing you are looking deep into, not your works. When we are focused on our performance, it is usually because of the way we are trying to look in the eyes of someone else, not God.
Our service...now this is an interesting one. This should be one of the freest areas of our life because the only one we offer service up to is God. When we offer God our service it should come straight from the heart. From the smallest things....to the largest things....our service should be done with the attitude of "here am I God, send me". Our attitude toward the service we offer up to God will determine the kind of service we offer up to God. Think about that.....
Then enemy wants us to confuse these 3 things. He wants us to try to "work" our way into God's heart because He knows we will fail time after time. And when we do, we will become more and more down on ourselves and see ourselves less and less valuable to God. Total lies from the enemy....don't buy into it!
Money can buy a lot of things in this world. It can "set" your economic status in the place where you live. It may even make you feel as if "you made it" in this world. But NOTHING...not wealth, not fame, not your own abilities will make you more valuable to God. He loves you as you are, he died for you as you are....BUT, He does not desire for you to stay where you are. See your worth to Him and let that drive you to serve Him from the depths of your heart. Not because it will gain you anything, but because of the absolute love you have for Him!
Thank you God that our value in this world has nothing to do with our value to You! Thank you that Jesus' life, death and resurrection was as much for ANYONE else as it was for me. Help us not find our value in the lies that the enemy tries to get us to believe, but instead find it in just knowing who You have called us to be. In Jesus name, Amen

The defiant child...

If you have ever had to deal with a defiant child or even a troubled teen, then you know what it feels like to have someone stand in front of you and just refuse to listen, obey rules or simply just do what is right. A defiant child can be one of the most trying things you will ever face as a parent. The level of disrespect, frustration and pain that a defiant child can cause is also not like anything else you will ever experience. This is the person that you provide for...every need is met by you, yet this person can't find the love/respect in their heart to just do what they know is right. Instead they just want to oppose everything "you" want them to do.
The reason I bring all this up about a defiant child is because there have been several times in my life that I know I was the defiant child to God. And there have been several times when I have been very convicted for the pain that I know I have caused God by opposing everything He wanted me to do. As His children, we too can stand in the face of God like a defiant child and say things like.."I know the way you want things done...but I'm going to do them my way". You may think, I have never said that to God....no, maybe not in those words, but how about with your actions or your lifestyle? God, the provider of everything we have...the one who blesses us each and every day of our life....and we have the nerve tell him "I can do what I want", like a defiant child.
I recently had a story told to me by a dad who was praying for his adult son. His son had gone all through life staying very close to God. He had entered the military and was about to go through a special forces training and on the day of his test, the young man said these words to God..."You can sit this one out. I don't need you, I've got this." Now I know when you hear that you may think, wow, how could someone say that to God. But when I heard it I thought, how many times have I said that with my actions, not my words. The dad went on to tell us how the young man failed the physical part of the test bad and never made it into that special forces group. He also has never had quite the same relationship with God after that. It was not the ending I was hoping to hear, but it did show me what can happen to our life when God does what we ask....and sits this one out.
You may think as you read this that none of this pertains to you. You are not defiant and you would never say that to God. However, I would challenge you to ask yourself how many times have you done something or made a decision without even consulting with God about it? How many times has your way been your answer? How many times have you had to stuff down a feeling that just didn't feel right so you could have what you wanted in life? Those are those moments when you were God's defiant child. However, because our heavenly Daddy loves us, because of His amazing grace and mercy, because of what Jesus did for us.....He is always waiting on your to realize what you have done and come back to say "sorry, I want to do this the right way....Your way". And in that moment, I can hear Him saying in His loving words back to us "It's ok...my love, grace and mercy already covered that. Let's get your life back on track cause I have a plan and purpose for you".
God, we are so sorry for the times we have been that defiant child to You. Thank You for not being a God who shuts us out because of the selfish things we do, but instead lovingly accepts us back in as if we never hurt You at all. Help us to see that the enemy wants us to think that our ways are not his ways....when we know they really are. Help us to see that anything that isn't Your way, is the ways of the world and not the path You want us on. Thank you for the blood of Jesus that covers our mistakes and thank You for Your grace and mercy that always receives us back in. In Jesus name, Amen.

Hell is real....

Last night I got to go watch "Master's Welcome" at World Harvest Church. First of all I just want to say what powerful and well done production. Their depiction of what hell "could be like" was eye opening to say the least. So much so, that for the 1 week that they did this, over 1,600 people gave their life to Christ after attending it. However, the most powerful thing said during the night was that no matter how much this may have scared you or opened your eyes to how bad hell will be....they couldn't even come close to showing how bad it will really be (based on what we know from the bible). And as I woke today and began my drive to work, and my time with God, I really felt the need to write about this today.
I just wanted to start by saying that if you are reading this and you have not given your life to Christ....HELL IS REAL. The pastor gave some stats last night as to how many people believe in Jesus, how many believe in heaven and how many believe in hell. The numbers were astounding as to how many people believe in heaven, but don't believe there really is a hell. But if you look at how much we are in denial of so many things in America, it doesn't surprise me that we would be in denial of there really being a hell too. We love to accept all the good things in life, but we want to shut out and ignore the bad stuff. You can't do that! For those who have not accepted Christ, the realization of hell should frighten you because whether "you" believe it is real or not.....if you do not accept Christ, "you" will find out the hard way that it is real. I don't apologize for how blunt that came out because it is the absolute truth.
However, for those of us who have accepted Christ in our life and are living a life for him, we should not fear hell for ourselves because we have secured a place in heaven. But hell should frighten us for a whole different reason....and that is because someone you know, someone you see every day of your life....someone you care about is going to end up there. That is the reality of YOU not sharing Christ with someone! As I sat there watching the production last night all I could think about was the fact that hell was so so bad, that I didn't want anyone....not even the person who has hurt me the most in my entire life, to even end up there. It is not a place for ANYONE to end up. Hell was meant for satan and his demons. That's it! Period! It was never meant for us to go there....otherwise God would not have made a way to heaven. Just like you were never meant to go to prison...ever. From the moment you were born prison was never a place you were meant to go. But if you end up there, it is going to be due to choices you made. Same goes for hell. So we would mentor a kid from a young age to make sure they didn't end up in prison some day.....prison...a place nowhere near as bad as hell. So why are we not nearly as concerned about someone's eternity? I mean yeah, we do outreaches and "church stuff" to try to show people the way to Jesus. But how hard are we really trying to RESCUE people from hell? Not hard enough. Not me, not you, not the church....that's just the truth and that's just reality. We CAN do more....so we SHOULD do more! If you keep thinking you will later....later may not ever come for you, or the one you want to reach.
God, please let us realize the reality of hell and not rest easy just because "we" are not going to end up there....but let our hearts break for those who have not secured their place in heaven with You. Holy Spirit convict our hearts with a passion to reach ever single person we can. Let us not grow weary... or become satisfied with "the few" that we may have led to You. Instead, let us see that we MUST never stop until the day we have take our last breath because the day we don't reach out for that one person, may be the last day they had to be reached.
Thank you God for giving us the answer to give to others so that NO PERSON ever has to end up in hell! In Jesus name, Amen.

If you have read this and need help....need answers....need someone to reach out to, please feel free to email me at wordsworththought@gmail.com. I will either help you in any way I can, or I will get you in touch with someone who can. Hell is for real....BUT, so is heaven! And heaven is meant for ALL...and Jesus is the one way there!