Make Every Effort

2 Peter 1:5-9 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. Wow what a great passage! However sometimes a very difficult to practice. Two key phrases leap out of this passage: 1. Make every effort and 2. Possess these qualities in increasing measure. Make every effort means intentional, means work, means I have to make a decision to do something about it, means I cant just sit back and hope I will. Make every effort means I need to do whatever is necessary to add to my life spiritual qualities listed here in this passage. Possess in increasing measure means not only do I need to be intentional, work, choose and not be lazy about it but I need to be increasingly doing these things. Why? Two reasons, first because then they will keep me from being ineffective and unproductive in my relationship with Christ. What is is that causes us to be ineffective and unproductive, it's sin. Psalm 119:11 Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against you. These qualities are qualities that do not just come naturally but supernaturally. These are qualities that the Bible makes clear will help us in our relationship with Christ. Second if we dont is nearsighted and blind, another words unable to see the God given Passion that he desires for us to follow, the path will become extremely difficult to follow. Your Word is lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. We ignore the relationship we will be unable to discern the path of God in our life. What a scary place to be, depending on ourselves to direct our lives. UGHHH!

Why Worry

Matthew 6:25-34 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. I love it when I read a passage of scripture, while I am facing a roadblock in my path that potentially I think could keep me from doing what God is calling me to, and that passage like the one above dismantles that roadblock. It's so easy to get our focus on all things around us instead of the one who can meet all of our needs. It's so easy to get our focus on the why, whats, when's and how's that we lose focus of the one who can answer all of our questions. It's so easy to forget that God never forgets and that He knows my needs really even before I do. Thank you God for the reminder this morning that you know all my needs, that you are in control and that I have nothing to worry about it in my life. I must learn to seek first your kingdom and your righteousness and as I do you have promised to meet all of my needs. May I rest in you today knowing full well that these verses are true and point me to the one who is all truth.

2 Chronicles 20:1-30 Part 4

Today we conclude our story of King J. In verses 24-30 we find what happens to the armies that are coming to attack. The Bible says all were dead not one escaped. Then the people began to take their plunder from the armies. This was what happened after and army defeated another they would take their gold, and weapons and horses, whatever was left over. The Bible says that there was so much it took three days to remove it all. After that the people rejoiced and spent time praising and thanking God. Wow what an incredible story of a man who relied on God, God spoke, King J listened and obeyed and God blessed them far beyond what they ever expected. God will do the same for you. But the catch is that we listen and obey God. As we do God pours out His blessing upon us. Today are experiencing God’s blessing or not?

Father I want follow after you. I admit that at times it is difficult. The pull of this world upon me is great. The pull of my own human weaknesses is greater. I praise you because you are greater than both. Give me the strength to obey and the determination to follow no matter the outcome.

1 Samuel 17 Part 3

Today as we conclude this week on David and Goliath we also conclude our month of looking at God’s character. Today look specifically at verses 49-58. God comes through just as David said. God delivered Goliath into the hands of this young man. God always comes through no matter the circumstance or issue. God always prevails, always comes through just in time. You may say why does this matter in my pursuit of Godliness? Understand if you pursue Godliness, if you pursue God He will come and meet with you. When we pursue Godliness in our life God will always work all things to good. That what Romans 8:28 if all about. God works all things to the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Just as David pursued God and trusted God to do as He said. We also can trust God that as we pursue Him, He will come through for us. Just remember that sometimes we limit the good He promises to only things that make me feel good or seem to better me in some way. Don’t forget God’s ways are not ours nor His thoughts my own. Example my brother Nathan that passed away from cancer. We had prayed for years that he would get better, and then he died. Some said that God did not answer our prayer. In some ways they were right, he did not answer it the way we wanted it answered. In some ways they were dead wrong. When my brother died he was completely healed of cancer. Sure I miss him, but God’s plan was different from mine and yet it turned out to the good.

Father help me to keep your will in mind as I seek you. Thank you that you promise that if we will pursue you, you will work all things out to the good. Help me to see the good you have for my life and not limit you to the good I only think is possible.

The Path to Truth

Proverbs 1:1-5 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight; for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair; for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and discretion to the young let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance. I asked my kids yesterday as we were discussing an issue how they knew what they were saying to be true, they replied with various answers, but it led to a discussion about how we can know what is true. The above verses Solomon exhorts his readers that Proverbs is for gaining wisdom and instruction and so on. The Word of God is truth without any error and what it says we can trust. Another words for me if God's Word says it then that settles it and what I need to do is align my thinking with God's Word not the other way around. Today in our culture the later part of what I just said is becoming more and more true. Its sad but instead of leading to the above things that Solomon said this kind of practice is leading to foolishness, lack of understanding. I love how one of the mantra's of being PC is unity, peace and harmony. However what I see is completely opposite of that, why because the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, so I believe its safe to say that disregard of God is the beginning of foolishness. If we think we can have love, peace, unity apart from God then we are sadly mistaken. Why? Because God is love, God is peace, God is unity and to experience these we must experience God. Father help me to pursue you today, help me to be an expression of your love today so that others might see you in me.

The Spiritual Body

1 Corinthians 12:12-22 12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by[a] one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. Think about that God himself placed the parts of the body. As I think about my own body it causes me to praise Him because even though I do not understand fully how my body works, I know that it does. Even though I cannot see how all the parts are working together, I know that they must be. Each part doing its part to complete a given task, working together in just their God given capacity to accomplish a bigger goal. As a follower of Christ this passage gives me great encouragement especially this verse as I know that God has gifted me and has purposefully placed me in the body in order to function as a part of the Body of Christ to complete a much bigger goal than just what I can do. I am so thankful to be a part of a local body that is allowing God to use each one of us to accomplish his mission. Give me strength and help me to function properly so that the body may succeed. Father thank you for placing me in the Body just where I need to be and doing just what I need to do in order to accomplish your goal. Give me the strength to each day serve you and allow you to work through me!

You Are Gifted

1 Peter 4:10-11 New International Version (NIV) 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. This verse is my greatest desire for my children, myself, my family, my friends and all those who call Jesus as brother. Some may say well shouldn't your desire be for them to fulfill the "Great Commandment" or the "Great Commission". Think about this passage if you and I were to use the spiritual gifts that God has given us, if we were to use those natural talents that God has given us to serve others, to speak the very words of God, wouldn't those to calls on our life be fulfilled. My greatest desire is to see the people of God use the gifts of God to bring Glory to God. I believe if every Christian would allow God to work in and through their lives then the "Great Commandment" and the "Great Commission" would be realized and fulfilled. God has given each of us certain spiritual gifts and natural talents weaved together with experiences, our temperament to shape us into a tool to be used by Him to make His Glory known all around us. You may say I'm not gifted, I do not have any talents and to that I say not true. According to the Word of God even in the verse above you are gifted and God's intention is that you use that gift to Glorify Him. You may not know what it is or how to find it, but it's there and ready to be used. I want to suggest something to you, get involved in ministry(serving). Get involved in a ministry at the church, go on a mission trip, begin looking at wherever you are at as an opportunity to serve, to Glorify God. Over time and effort you will discover how God has gifted you and how that gifting can best be used to glorify Him. The question is not whether or not you are gifted the question is to you want to put it into practice. Father help us to recognize that you have gifted us for serving you, help us to take that gift that you have given and glorify you with it. May you give us understanding to discover it, and strength to practice it and the desire to glorify you with it.

Never Changes

And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” —Genesis 28:13-15 God is speaking to Jacob in this passage and what he says to him is the same promise that God gave to Abraham. He assures Jacob that He is with him wherever and whatever he does. He promises to never leave Him. For me this is huge because so often like Jacob I "go places" that seem to take me away from God. Not true, while in my heart I may be far from Him, God is right there holding me up and calling me back to Himself. He has never left me, though I have left Him, though I have made decisions from time to time that would indicate my lack of faithfulness, God never has, not even once. God never changes and for me that brings great assurance, peace and hope. It also challenges me to live in such a way that the number of times I walk away is reduced. That the things I do would draw me nearer to God not pull me away from Him. Father thank you for always being there for me. Thank you for you faithfulness, love and forgiveness. Thank you that you are always there for me. Help me to live a life that brings you honor and glory. Help me to live in such a way that I drawer nearer to you each day.

Why Worry?

It is so easy to say it but so hard to live that out, "Why Worry?" I know that God can handle whatever comes my way, I know that He knows my future. I know that He has a plan for my life. Yet I find myself getting bogged down in "worry". What is worry? Worry is not trusting God in short. Saying to God, maybe not directly, I don't trust you, I don't want to let go and let you take whatever is creating anxiety in me today. I am pretty sure God has never held back on His promises, never withheld His grace and mercy toward me. So "Why Worry?" Because as long as I am in this mortal body I will worry, however, I can learn to trust Him, I can learn to let go. I am pretty sure the only way that will happen is if I draw nearer to Him in a relationship that is constant, intentional and full of passion. As I passionately pursue Him the worries of this day fade in the light of His grace and I am able to stand.

Father today help me to passionately pursue you so that when the worries rear their ugly head I will not fret but will trust.

Sidewalk to School

Get Out of the Boat

I am reminded today of Peter's encounter with Jesus on the water. I cannot imagine what must have been going through the disciples minds as they saw Jesus walking on water but then he calls out to them to get out of the boat and do the same. All but one play it safe, all but one allowed fear to keep them from experiencing God and doing the impossible. Peter gets out of the boat and begins to walk on water. How Peter must have been totally blown away by that opportunity. I am reminded that I need to get out of the boat of safety, the boat of comfort, the boat of ease and step out into the unknown and experience God in perhaps ways I have never and to allow Him to use me in ways that perhaps I have never been used. But I am also reminded that I like Peter can become easily distracted by the things around me and take my eyes off Jesus and immediately begin to sink. Peter became afraid, fear is really nothing more than not trusting Christ in the midst of the unknown. As long as my eyes are fixed on Him, as long as I am trusting Him taking that step of getting out of the boat and doing the impossible does not seem so hard. The second I take my eyes of Christ and begin trusting myself instead I will sink. Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding, in all my ways acknowledge Him and He will direct my paths. Lord help me today to get out of the boat and do the impossible, but more than that help me to keep my eyes fixed on you.

India: What has God taught me?

Since returning from India I have been asked this question often and I really have not had a good response other than, "It was amazing", "It was eye-opening", and many other short sweet diatribes that seem so short of the truth. So I woke up this morning with this question heavy on my heart and I feel I need to begin processing the answer through my blog.
Meeting Ananthi and hearing her story of how God has used her to reach out to the poorest of poor with the Gospel of Jesus is truly amazing as I see a clear example of what Jesus was saying throughout the Gospels of what it means to help the poor, care for the needy and fulfill the Great Commission. To hear and see her incredible dependence on God is both inspiring and convicting. Even in the midst of poverty and from my minds eye just miserable conditions I saw joy and an incredible dependence on God that I do not see in myself or in much of Christianity here in the US. Our western mindset says I need to go over there and get them out of those conditions and give them a nice home, nice clothes, nice this and that and we want to throw stuff at them and somehow believe that this is the answer. Then I look in the mirror and say wait a minute I have a nice home, nice care, nice clothes, I have basically whatever I want whenever I want and yet I find myself not satisfied, I find myself not content, I find myself miserable, I find myself not dependent on God. Has the overabundance of stuff and the chasing of the "American Dream" clouded my ability to rely on God and seek Him daily? One of the guys posed a great question, is what these people need to really pull them out of their conditions? What's amazing is the community that you see happening in the midst of those conditions, the joy on the kids faces, the dependence on God. What I saw in India through Friend of the Good Samaritan School, Ananthi, their staff was the Gospel in action as they strive to meet basic needs, education, medical, food and most importantly the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I did not seem them trying to pull kids out of the slums and give them better homes or more stuff, but rather teach them to depend on God and allow Him to meet all of your needs. On Sunday we held a church service where hundreds of people came and what blew me away was the noticeable difference between the kids that attended the Good Samaritan school and those who did not, they were healthier looking, more respectful, more joyful, and most importantly more in love with Jesus. I am reminded of this song:

Heart of Worship

When the music fades
And all is stripped away
And I simply come
Longing just to bring
Something that's of worth
That will bless your heart

I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the ways things appear
You're looking into my heart

I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You
All about You, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You
It's all about You Jesus

King of endless worth
No one could express
How much You deserve
Though I'm weak and poor
All I have is Yours
Every single breath

I'll bring You more than just a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart

I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You
All about You, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You
It's all about You Jesus

Its all about you
Jesus

I realize that our stuff is not the problem it's my heart. My prayer is that just like the people of India that I encountered who have little and whose hearts seemed bent toward God and who live in total dependence on Him, that I who am surrounded by much will learn to depend on God and allow my heart to truly love and seek after Jesus.

Sincere Love

Matthew 15:7-20 8" 'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.'

Oh how I love Jesus, Oh how I love Jesus because He first loved me. I wish that this was always true of my life. I wish that it was not so easy to allow things, circumstances, people to distract me from following Christ. I wish that I could say that every time I teach or preach that I did not just honor Christ with my lips and yet know that my heart was far from God. The Bible says, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." This is my desire, but desire can only become reality if accompanied by action. However action if done out of wrong motives is just action. I want to draw near to God out of a sincere heart, not one motivated by guilt, fear or anything other than love. Today may I pursue a relationship with Christ out of love and allow His love to shine from my life.

Eternal Focus

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

As I read this passage I could not help but think of those I know that are facing some tough times. As one who has been there and has seen the ups and downs of going through a trial here is some food for thought. For most of the trial I was plagued by the what if's, why's and keeping my focus on the light and momentary. It was not until my focus became as described in verse 18 that I not only was able to work through the trial but that God was able to work in and through my heart. The unseen that we fix our eyes on for me is the the eternal truths of God, His love, His strength, His presence, His plan, His sovereignty, His grace and mercy and so much more. That understanding comes from what verse 16 talks about in that our inner man is being renewed day by day. How? Thought getting in God's Word, through praying and while praying laying out the questions and the seen. It was at this point that God really began to give me a peace and an understanding that I cannot explain. My prayer is that each person who reads this will be challenged to seek God and by seeking Him you would turn your focus to the eternal and that God would reveal Himself to you more and more each day.

Father I do not even begin to understand why things happen the way they do or when they do, but I trust you and know that you love me and I ask that you would daily give me an eternal focus.

Chasing the Wind

Ecclesiastes 2:10-11 10 I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 11 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.

I am not sure I need to say a lot about this passage. Sort of speaks for itself and honestly not sure really what to say. Solomon denied himself nothing and yet found that those things brought him nothing. At the end of the book he concluded that the only thing worth chasing is to know God and obey His commands. Today what will I chase after? At the end of the day what will my money trail, my time card, my spent energy say about what I chased after?

Father help me to chase after you, help me to deny myself pick up the cross and follow you. Give me the strength to overcome the temptation to chase after anything that would take the place of you.

Contentment

Philippians 4:12-13 12I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

I read this morning this quote from a poet, "As a rule, a man's a fool. When it's hot, he wants it cool. When it's cool, he wants it hot. Always wanting what is not." I know I have been guilty of this so often with so many things. I see it in my kids and so I know that it's something that I struggle with, apples don't fall to far from trees. Paul a man who experienced so much from having everything life in his culture could give to being stoned and within a breath of losing his life no doubt had to wrestle with contentment. Through those things he learned as he said the secret to being content, a relationship with Christ. His contentment was not based on circumstances but on his relationship with Jesus. Which Jesus himself even eluded to when He said, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you." All these things are our daily needs, not wants. That I think is the problem, our wants, and that is where the relationship with Christ plays a huge part. The closer I get to Jesus the more my wants become what He wants. Not that I won't still struggle as I am sure Paul did being human, but the temptation to please myself instead of Christ is dulled by the mind that is consumed with the Word of God and is surrendered to following Him.

Father so often my wants supersede my needs and honestly distract me from knowing you. Help me like Paul to want to know you more and pursue a love relationship with you. Remove my selfish wants and fill them with yours that I might be used by you to impact others for you.

Pass It On

Proverbs 2:1-6 My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, 2 turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding,3 and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure, 5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. 6 For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

Often more is caught than taught, that's a phrase that at time really makes me cringe. I want my kids, my students to fall in love with God and desire to follow Him everyday of their lives. I know that I must teach them by being intentional and equipping them with necessary tools to navigate through life. But if in my teaching they do not see that it has made a difference in my life than more than likely they will follow my example rather than my teaching. One part of the above passage really sticks out to me, "If you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure." How valuable is my relationship with the Lord? What does my life say that I value? If I want my kids and students to fall in love with God and desire to follow Him than I must be an example of that to them. I must seek after God as a treasure and maybe just maybe through my faults and triumphs they will see that chasing after God is priceless.

Skeptism

2 Peter 1:5-7 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.

I know that many are skeptical of the Bible, Jesus and our faith. Many are skeptical because of an intellectual roadblock like Thomas who would not believe until he saw for himself the nail scares and put his hand into the side of Jesus. I often think though that many skeptics are simply that because what they hear and see often do not match and thus causes questions to rise as to the validity of our faith and claims. I know cause recently I have been confronted with this very thing and have been skeptical of my life as I have seen what I have said in the past was not true of my life in the present. Recently I had the opportunity to go to an Indian Reservation in Montana and to go to La Ceiba, Honduras on mission trips with my youth ministry. What I encountered there I pray has forever changed my life. I was confronted with the harsh reality that the majority of the world lives with and what I as an American take so greatly for granted. I was confronted with the very fact that to this point my life has really been about me and mine. I was confronted with the fact that my $38 a month that I give to Compassion which is great is really just the tip of the iceberg. I was confronted with the reality of needs vs wants and am still wrestling with how much do I really need???? I was confronted with something that is very close to the heart of God and that all in all I am doing very little about, that being the poor, the orphan and the widow. I want this to change in my life, in my church, in my faith and maybe I will no longer give fuel to those that are skeptical of my life, church and faith by showing the one thing that describes God, LOVE!!!! As I figure out how that love will be expressed in my life my prayer is that somehow others will be confronted with these realities and maybe somehow we through Christ's power can change the World!!!!

Sportianity: The Religion of Sports

I was recently given an article entitled "Whatever Happened to Play" by Shirl James Hoffman. I wanted to write this to more articulate my response to this article and what I witness day in and day out in the context of working with youth. I hope this generates discussion and thinking but if not at least it helps me think through this subject.
This whole matter of sports has become a huge area of contention for me as a youth pastor and father. I personally love sports and enjoy watching and participating in sports. I want my children to enjoy sports as well. However what I am seeing today is enjoyment of sports to an extreme that I believe is extremely unhealthy and is destroying the family and individual lives as well. Sports today has turned into a religion one that Hoffman calls "Sportianity". He gives some just crazy examples of this in his article which you can find at the Christianity Today website. I am blown away by the sheer dedication and commitment that many families and people make to sports starting at a very young age. I know students and children who have practice every night and sometimes mornings as earlier as 6am before school starts. I know 8 year olds who have games 3 or more nights a week. I know students who are playing 60-90 games a summer in softball or baseball. The kicker for me is that when I talk to some parents about their family or just their child coming to church on Sunday or Wednesday I often get back from them that it is to much to commit to and I am asking an aweful lot of students. Yet these same students are the ones described above. Families skip church to watch a certain game or go to a certain tournament. Students can't go on mission trips or help out in VBS because they have sports camp during the summer. Don't get me wrong, as Hoffman says "Youth sports programs certainly provide worthy experiences for young people, but with increasing frequency they seem to spin out of control." This is what is going on today. Sports is out of control and the sad part to me is that parents and students are not standing up to it and saying "NO". Hoffman states, "Evangelicals in the sports community have to often been followers rather than leaders, adopters of the dominant ethos rather than trendsetters who challenge it." To which I say amen. I absolutely believe that if parents and students would stand up to the status quo and say no things would change. Because what team is going to bench their star athletes if they say no and I am going to church instead of practice tonight. Please understand I am not calling us to stop sports all together, but to bring balance back in order to save our families and children from a self-destructive lifestyle that renders families from spending quality time together and students from missing opportunities that in the long run will matter more. There is no doubt that sports can and are a good thing but like anything when taken to extreme can destroy the very ones who are taking it there. Sportianity will always exist but for those of us who claim to follow Christ we must turn from the idolatry of sports and turn to the Worship of God and allow that worship to direct our choices and commitments.

Knowing Him: Temporal Events 2 Accomplish Eternal Purposes

Luke 2:1-20 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.

It always blows me away how the most seemingly obscure parts of the Bible can be some of the most important. In this case it blows me away the way God works. Little did Caesar know that he was playing an important part in accomplishing an eternal purpose. How amazing is God's sovereignty and the mysterious ways that He accomplishes eternal purposes. I look back over my life and see how temporal events accomplished eternal purposes and for which I am thankful. However there are some events that I wish were different, events that hurt, events that led to some very difficult situations but always led to the good. It's in these events that I must trust God and allow His eternal purpose to be played out. The question is do I really believe that God will work all things together for good? My prayer is that no matter what comes my way I will trust God that He knows what is best and that He has my best in mind.

Father help me to trust you no matter what so that you can accomplish your eternal purposes through me.

No Pain, No Gain

Matthew 16:24-27 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.

Lately I have been challenged with and over and over again reminded that following Christ while extremely rewarding is not easy. We live in a culture where if we want something all we have to do is take a pill for it, charge it to a credit card or have the government bail us out, instead of saving for it, working hard, maybe breaking a sweat and actually having to earn something. As a result we miss the joy and reward that comes from the effort that we put into it and we get stuck just wanting more and believing that we deserve it. Sadly the same thing happens in many who claim to follow Christ, they want the benefits of following Christ, like overcoming sin, experiencing joy and satisfaction. Jesus in His exhortation here in the book of Matthew speaks to the fact that following Christ is work and sacrifice. Just like losing weight and exercise is tough the end results are amazing. So it is with Christ and a relationship that we work at throughout our lives. I must understand that to experience joy, to experience overcoming sin takes a daily surrender of my life to Christ (denying myself), being broken and humble (taking up the cross) and pursuing a relationship with Christ (follow me). Today my prayer is that I would experience all that a relationship with Christ offers.

Father today as I pursue a relationship with you help me to surrender to you and experience just how awesome it is to follow after you.

Metaphors of Growth

Colossians 2:6-7 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

Paul gives us three metaphors to illustrate the importance of our faith specifically our relationship with Christ. First he gives us the metaphor of a path that we are to walk. Like every path there is a beginning and an end, also throughout the middle there can be several paths or detours that will lead us off the main path to destinations unknown. Jesus declared that He is the only way to life eternal. I know often in my sometimes feeble attempts to walk with Him I often take the side paths and end up going a direction I did not want to go. But Jesus is so amazing in that I can take 10,000 steps away from the path and it only takes one to get back. Second he uses the metaphor of a tree that has roots going deep. The amazing things about roots is that if properly fed they will be twice as long as the tree and able to withstand forces that would try to knock the tree over. In life I have faced many trials and will face many more, I know that in those times that I have been fed by the Word of God that the roots of my relationship with Christ have helped me to stand firm in the midst of a storm. Third he uses on object that is being built. With every building project the foundation is absolutely critical to the overall health of the structure. Jesus himself illustrated this with the two men, one who built his house on the sand and one who built his house on the rock. They key was the foundation which was obeying the Word of God. If I want my faith to be rock solid than I must build its foundation on the Word of God and the truths within and not on my own thinking or the thinking of the "wise" or even my experiences. These things should never be used to validate the Word of God but the Word of God should validate these things. Today may I be found walking the path of a relationship with Christ as I am rooted through God's Word and build my faith as I obey it.

Father thank you for the message of Christ and relationship that comes from believing that message, give me the strength today to live for you and walk with you so that my faith might be strengthened to face the challenges of today.

So I Wait

Psalm 25:21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.

As I read this verse today I am reminded of the song Hungry, here are the lyrics.

Hungry I come to You
For I know You satisfy
I am empty but I know
Your love does not run dry

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

I'm falling on my knees
Offering all of me
Jesus You're all
This heart is living for

Broken I run to You
For Your arms are open wide
I am weary but I know Your touch
Restores my life

So I wait for You
So I wait for You

I’m falling
I’m falling for You
Jesus You’re all
This heart is living for

What an incredible song filled with the truth of who God is and the very longing but often not the practice of my life. Psalm 25:21 is an incredible challenge to my heart that integrity and uprightness should characterize my life as I wait on the Lord. Often I will sing the words of this song and truly mean them but so often my life does not reflect the hunger to which it speaks. Psalm 25 reminds me that I must not just say I am hungry, I must not just sing the words, I must live the words. Jesus you're all this heart is living for, is that true? Oh how I want it to be true. Today my prayer is that my life would be marked by integrity and uprightness and that the words of this song would be found true in me today.

Father give me the strength to live for you today. May moment by moment surrender to you and fall down on my knees as I wait for you. Today may it be said of me that Jesus you're all this heart is living for.

Practical Atheist

I have been being challenged in my life over the past few months with my spiritual lifestyle. A message that I heard from Craig Groechel called "Practical Atheist" describes it best. A practical atheist is someone who believes that God exists but does life as if God does not exist. In my life as a pastor it can best be described this way it's a minister who believes that God exists but does ministry as if God does not exist. To often my prayer life had become when I prayed on Sunday nights or Wednesday nights before I spoke to the youth or when I was expected to or my devotional life would be my preparation study for a message or a talk. My ministry had become what I do at church and that's it. Bill Hybels once said, "that the way I was doing the work of God was destroying the work of God in me." You see I have become a full time pastor but a part time lover of God. My life is described in Isaiah 29:13 The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men." On the outside I was honoring God but in my heart I was far from Him, just going through the motions. I was checking out Matthew West's website, especially the site linked to his song "The Motions." On that site he writes "I know what a "Christian" should say. I know how to act. I know how to put up a spiritual front, even if I'm not passionately seeking God. That was the inspiration behind my song, "The Motions". I was tired of settling for a stale faith. God is a God of PASSION. His true plan for our lives is anything but boring. Every day, The God of adventure beckons his sons and daughters to quit going through the motions, and walk into a life filled with passion and wonder." In verse 14 of Isaiah 29 it says "Therefore once more I will astound these people with wonder upon wonder". This is what I want, I want to once again be passionate about my relationship with Christ, I want to be passionate about reaching people with the gospel, I want to be passionate about prayer, I want to be passionate about living for Christ everyday. I want Philippians 1:20,21 to be true once again. I want to be a full time lover of God. I do not want to go through the motions and I am writing this and sharing this because I want others to hold me accountable. I want others to join me in not letting practical atheism describe our lives anymore. If you read this I ask you to please pray for me but I also ask you to evaluate your life and ask yourself am I a "Practical Atheist?"

An Attitude of Gratitude

Psalm 107

1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;his love endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say this those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, 3 those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south. 4 Some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle. 5 They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away. 6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 7 He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle. 8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men, 9 for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

From the words of James MacDonald:

Psalm 107 is all about thankfulness. Very specifically Psalm 107 repeats one verse four different times: Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of Men.
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. Praise and gratitude are inseparable. Praise starts from the soles of our feet and comes up through the muscles ans sinews and joints and organs of our bodies and bursts from our throats. It's with all of our hearts that we give God thanks. Gratitude is not something shallow or frivolous, flippant or superficial. It is the deepest expression of the soul in love with God. And that soul says, "With all my heart, I give you thanks."
What bugs me, though, is when people express their gratitude on a day like today, late in November, and then return to their self-centered, dissatisfied, hopeless, and pathetic outlook on life the other 364 days.
Gratitude is more than an annual ritual performed hastily before diving into the Thanksgiving meal. It's more than a holiday decoration, more than a snappy word that rhymes with "attitude." Of all the human emotions, gratitude is the most powerful. So powerful is gratitude, it can obliterate fear, hopelessness, and doubt. Gratitude can heal a broken heart, slow the aging process, and restore broken relationships. Gratitude creates hope,and hope brings joy. It is in joy, not fear, that we find strength.

Father,
I pray that everyday would be Thanksgiving day in my heart. I have so much to be thankful for and yet often find myself expressing it very little. Remind me daily of your goodness and may I rest in you each day. May my life be a praise offering to you.

Playing Dodgeball

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

It's funny how I often treat, the things in verse 10 like a game of dodgeball. Often like dodgeball I will try to avoid these things at all costs and deny that they are happening. Why? Fear of confrontation, fear of rejection, fear of admitting weaknesses, believing the myth that somehow if I just avoid it, it will go away. They don't go away in fact if not dealt with they grow into bigger problems. I believe that is why Paul writes, "Do not let the sun go down on your anger." There is something about dealing with the issue before you go to sleep. I know my dad would say that there were some nights that he and my mom would stay up pretty late dealing with an issue, but as far as I know they practiced this and did not allow issues to seperate them. According to these verses admitting weaknesses is not weakness at all but rather strength. The key here is that in dealing with the issues of my life I must look to Christ to give me the strength and I must rely on Him to help me with each one. If I try it alone it would be like playing dodgeball with just me on one side and an entire team on the other, no chance of victory.

Father today I need your strength to face the issues of my life and this day. Help me to turn to you instead of dodging them so that I might grow in strength and in my love for you instead of getting beat down.

How Different It Would Be?????

Philippians 3:13-14 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Today as I was reading my devo's a comment that the writer made hit me right between the eyes, "How different our past would be if we could relive it knowing what we know now." Let that sink in for just a minute. I know looking back at my past there are so many times that I wish I could take back something I said, or something I did or a situation I put myself into. I so wish I could go back to high school and live for Christ in order to tell everyone the good news of the gospel. But reality then sits in and I know that I cannot go back. As Pumba from Lion King says, "You got to get your behind out of the past or I mean you gotta put your past behind you." I know I cannot change my past, but as the verse above refers I sure can learn from it and then press on to do something about my future. So often we allow our past to dictate our future and that is sad. We cannot do one thing about the past, we cannot change it, we cannot relive it and thus we can only learn from it. My prayer is that the mistakes that I have made in the past I will not make again, the lessons that I have learned will help to shape the lessons of the future. My prayer is that all of that I will use to help me strain toward what is ahead. That I would be able to take hold of Christ and allow Him to guide my future and that someday I will obtain the prize that awaits.

Father help me to see my past as just that the past, may I have learned from it and may I strain forward through Christ so that I may honor and glorify you.

Honor Your Parents

Exodus 20:1-12 1 And God spoke all these words: 2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before me. 4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand {generations} of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 "You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. 8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. 11 For in six day's the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 12 "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

This verse directs all children to honor their father and mother. So how u doing at this? Here is a quote from James MacDonald: "The key word is all. Adults haven't outgrown this command. Every race and culture upon the earth is under the universal, biblical principle to honor their parents. Things will never go right with you and with your future generations until you submit to this biblical command-regardless of your parents success rating. God doesn't say, "Honor good parents" or even "Grade them on the curve." Honor means that your attitude is matched by your actions. You communicate to your parents, "You are the person God sovereignly placed in my life. You may have hurt me at times, but I take off my judge's robe and release you from the stand. I choose instead to see you with compassion as people with needs, concerns, and scars of your own. I honor you."
Honoring parents does not mean seeking their approval or making ourselves vulnerable to hurtful behavior. Honoring our parents does not mean ignoring or denying the past.
Here is what it does mean: choosing to place great value upon our relationship with our parents. It means recognizing the things they have done right. It means acknowledging the sacrifices that they have made for us. It means seeing them as Christ does with compassion and mercy. It means forgiving them as Christ has forgiven us. Honor our parents, if only because God said so.

Father I want to thank you for my amazing parents and I pray that my life will always be honoring toward them as I live to honor you as well.

Bigger Than The Storm

John 6:16-21 16When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, 17where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. 18A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. 19When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified. 20But he said to them, "It is I; don't be afraid." 21Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.

Ever notice how bad things seem to happen to the disciples when they get seperated from Jesus. In this case the storm found them and to me storms are really not that big of a deal unless you are caught in the middle of one outside of protection. Can you imagine being the disciples out at sea and a huge storm roles in and you have been out in a boat battling the storm for about six to nine hours (Matthew 14:25). This was no little storm this was huge. Then all of a sudden Jesus comes out to them walking on the waves. Check out the verse they were all freakin and rightly so as the storm was surrounding them and I am sure seemed completely overwhelming. Notice verse 20 the disciples were willing to let Jesus in the boat and at once they reached their destination. What they were in the middle of the storm but as soon as Jesus came onto the scene and they let Him in they were through it and on the other side. Jesus is able to walk on the very waves that threaten our lives. Even when it comes to those things that threaten to drown us. Jesus is stronger, greater and more powerful in every way. He isn't tossed around by the waves, and neither will we be if our lives are fully hidden in him. That is the key that we allow Jesus into the boat of our lives and He promises us to go with us no matter what and never leave us.

Father today I surrender to you my day and all the circumstances of it so that I might be hidden in you and as I face trials, temptations give me the strength to keep following after you.

Who Do I Believe

Hebrews 1:1-3 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

Charles Price said, "Knowing what you believe is fine, signing your name with a clear conscience at the end of a creed is fine but the Christian life is about knowing whom I have believed. The more you know Jesus, the more you know God, the more you love Jesus, the more you love God, and the more you trust Jesus, the more you will trust God. In fact is it only when we know Christ that we can know God. Christ is the exact representation of His being and the radiance of God's glory. Timothy said in 2 Timothy 1:12, "I know whom I have believed." Listen we can know all kinds of facts about who God is and what He has done. But head knowledge never saves anyone. Just ask the Demons, according to James they know (head knowledge) there is a God but they do know really know God. This knowledge comes from the heart or soul that has been changed by the power of Jesus Christ. I don't simply want to know facts about God I want to know God in my soul and the only way that will happen is if I surrender to Christ and begin a relationship with Him everyday. Knowing what you believe about something is great but without Jesus it's knowledge. Everything I believe from sin to abortion to end times is centered on Jesus and His Word the Bible.

Father may I today long to know Jesus more and more not just with my head but with my soul that as you are molding and shaping me it may impact me for eternity.

Overhearing God

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" 10but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

You ever overhear a conversation that you were never supposed to hear but it left you breathless, whether good or bad. The feelings that come after something like that happens are amazing. I remembering overhearing a conversation between a friend of mine and another friend, honestly I was not trying to eavesdrop I was just in a situation where there was no way out and I could not plug my ears and start yelling, lalalalalalalalalala, hey it was one of those situations. Well what I heard brought both humility and thankfulness all in one unforgettable moment. I wonder what it would be like if we could overhear the conversations God has with His Son about us. Would I be like wow, or would I be ashamed? I would imagine no matter what was said it would be seasoned with grace and mercy and "I would be overwhelmed by the extent of His affection" to quote Lisa Harper. According to this verse we have not even begun to understand, see or even hear what God has in store for us. Wow when I consider all that I have been blessed with already. I can't help but just be floored in awe of how great our God truly is, was and always will be.

Father today help me to see what I can see in order to draw me closer to you.

Wrong With Others, Wrong With God

Matthew 5:23-24 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

I cannot be wrong with others and be right with God. My relationship with others has a direct bearing on my relationship with the Lord. Jesus in the sermon on the mount makes it clear that it is my responsibility to go to the one who has a grudge against me and seek forgiveness. So often we want to sit back and wait for the person to come to us but this is not what Jesus is teaching. Sadly often we ignore Christ's teaching and try to move ahead in our relationship with Christ when in fact we are not going to grow. Grudges are simply not worth the price tag they carry. I must be willing to be reconciled in order that I might grow in my relationship with Christ and so that others might grow as well.

Father today show me any relationships that I need to seek reconciliation and give me the strength to seek forgiveness. I want to grow in you and I know I must be right with others in order to grow in you.

Don't Lose Heart

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Losing heart seems to be something at times that I struggle with, whether it's getting discouraged or allowing Satan to work me over with his lies. The problem is that losing heart I would say most of the time is all about me. It's about focusing on those outward things, those light and momentary troubles, those things that are temporary and not eternal. Paul gives us the key to not allowing the feeling of losing heart to take control, inwardly we are being renewed day by day. To which I ask, "Am I?" Why is it so important that I am being renewed day by day because it allows me to see what is eternal and to focus on those things that will last. It's so easy to lose heart and so hard to be renewed. It really doesn't take much effort at all to lose heart, but man it really takes being intentional to be renewed. But again if I am not intentional about being renewed then I will lose heart. Any good relationship takes work, effort and intentionality in order to move the relationship forward. So it is with Christ. Today as I face "light and momentary troubles" may I not lose heart but rather be renewed in my relationship with Christ so that I can at the end of day have laid up treasure in Heaven and not here on earth.

Father give me the strength to run after you today to be renewed and may I keep my focus on you as those distractions come my way.

How Great Is Our God

Exodus 19:18-20 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently, 19 and the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder. Then Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him. 20 The LORD descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up

The description of God's presence is breath taking here in this passage. Imagine what Moses is seeing as he approaches this mountain. I am imagine Moses was trembling in awe as he realized just how awesome God is and that he was about to have a conversation with God. I can't help but think of the song, "How Great is our God" The splendor of a King, Clothed in majesty, Let all the earth rejoice, All the earth rejoice. He wraps himself in light, And darkness tries to hide. And trembles at his voice, And trembles at his voice: How great is our God, sing with me. How great is our God, and all will see How great, How great Is our God. Age to age he stands And time is in His Hands, Beginning and the End, Beginning and the End. The Godhead, Three in one Father, Spirit, Son. The Lion and the Lamb, The Lion and the Lamb. We serve an awesome God who deserves our praise today and everyday. The greatest praise we can give is a praise offering of our lives by living for Him. Like Moses we can experience God's presence, no maybe not the same exact way, but to catch of glimpse of God is special no matter the method He chooses to show Himself. May I today get caught up in His presence and allow that presence to sustain me today as I seek to serve Him.

Father wow you are amazing and worthy of all praise, glory and honor. May my life today and each day reflect all praise, glory and honor toward you that you so rightly deserve.

Living by Faith

Genesis 12:1-4 The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. 2 "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." 4 So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.

James MacDonald says "When I live by faith I win and when I live by sight I lose." Living by faith means I say yes to God and His truth and no to the lies that Satan lays before me. Living by sight means I say yes to the lies Satan lays before me and no to to God and His truth. Abraham here in this passage and for most of his life lived by faith by saying yes to God and His truth and God blessed Him. I guess the question I need to ask myself is, are the choices I am making right now characterized by faith or sight? I really want to experience God's blessing but so often I allow the lies of Satan to keep me from living by faith and thus winning. This is why it is so vital that I pursue God daily that is what the "living" is all about. I must get into His Word so that I know the truth, so that when I am faced with a lie I will be able to identify it and choose what is true. Today Lord help me to live by faith and not sight, help me to choose what is true and ignore the lies.

Father give me strength today to live for you so that I might win. Keep my eyes fixed on you all day long and that I may dwell in your house all the days of my life.

I Will Take The Consequencs Please

Romans 1:21-28 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. 28Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.

There are so many times that I refuse to follow God's directions and then suffer the consequences. Like the people described here they knew the truth and yet rejected it, I think about how many times I do the same. I think all of life choices come down to choosing between the truth and a lie. Each with its own consequences. I thing that we must understand is that while God is loving, compassionate and kind, He also is just, righteous. If we choose to reject Him (reject the truth) then as the passage says, "God gave them over" or God stood out of the way and allows us to experience the consequences of our rejection and disobedience. God does love each one of us and passionately pursues us desiring to have a love relationship, but when we reject Him and His truth, we have in effect said, "I will take the Consequences Please." As I face today I pray that I will choose to obey, choose to accept the truth and live trusting God and following after Him.

Today as I am faced with choices that will effect my life, Father give me the wisdom to see the truth from lie and give me the desire to choose the truth so that I might fall more in love with you.

Attention Parents "It's Our Job"

Joshua 4:19-24 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. 21And he said to the people of Israel, "When your children ask their fathers in times to come, 'What do these stones mean?' 22then you shall let your children know, 'Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.' 23For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.

We are living in a time when statistics tell us that 75% of teens will graduate from their faith when they graduate from high school. They also tell us that less than 4% will believe the Bible to be absolute truth, without error, that Jesus died and rose again and that there is a literal Hell. Why? I believe because of what this passage addresses specifically in verse 21, "When your children ask their fathers in times to come, 'What do these stones mean?' then you shall let your children know." What is happening today is what happened to the Israelites time and time again is that they forgot what God had done and turned away from Him because families, "fathers" in particular did not answer the question and many like it, "what do these stones mean?" Instead they loaded them up on a donkey and took them to the temple once a week for a couple of hours and expected the rabbi to tell them or they took them to see the Dead Sea Floaters play against the Jericho Walls in a game of dessert baseball. Today families have forsaken their responsibility, privilege, and call to first and foremost help their children to grow spiritually to answer questions like, "what do these stones mean?" and instead have replaced it with sports, academics, entertainment and have settled for dropping off kids at youth group in hopes that a youth pastor will be able to do spiritually help kids mature in an average of 1 to 2 hours a week. Please understand I am not saying that sports, academics, entertainment are bad but like the idols of Israel that distracted them from God, these things have become idols that have replaced the desire to know God and follow Him. I am absolutely convinced that if we are going to see a turn around in the numbers of teens leaving their faith when they leave the home we have got to put God first and begin pursuing Him as families and fathers need to step up and lead their families in answering the question, "what do these stones mean?" As a father it is my responsibility to teach my kids about God and to create an environment for them to learn about just how awesome God is and what He can and will do in their lives instead of delegating that responsibility to the church. The church should just be a supplement to an on going diet of God that begins at home. I pray that parents will step up and fathers in particular to see this generation become a generation like Joshua's that made a huge difference for God in the world.

Father help me to lead my kids spiritually as I seek to follow you. Give me the strength to remove idols that have taken the place of you and give me wisdom to effectively create an environment where my kids seek after you.

Get At It Today

Hebrews 3:7-15 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, 8do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, 9where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did.
10That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' 11So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' " 12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 14We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. 15As has just been said: "Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.

October 8,1871 D.L. Moody was preaching the gospel in the business district of Chicago. That night he challenged the crowd with the gospel and then challenged them to go home and think about their response. He asked them to come back the next night and make their decision known. That night a fire broke out in the O' Leary's cow barn which began the great Chicago fire that burned much of the city and killed many of those who attended the service Moody preached. Moody was forever changed after this event he vowed to always challenge people to make a decision today because we may control our choices but we do not control the consequences. In this passage we are challenged three times, "Today if you hear my voice, do not harden your hearts." Obviously this applies to those who need salvation but this also applies to me everyday as I choose to be or not to be obedient to God's call and will for my life. What I must realize is that when I hear God's voice or feel is leading I must obey and go for it. Today as I hear from God may I be found faithful to being obedient and go after it without haste.

Father help me to hear your voice and give me the determination to obey right away.

Fountain or Drain

John 4:13-14 Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

It has been said that there are two types of people in this world, those who are fountains and those who are drains. I have also heard it said there are those who give life and those who take it away. As a follower of Christ I am to be a fountain or in the case of the verses above a spring of water and because of Christ I am. However flow of my fountain or spring is directly effected by whether or not something is obstructing the flow. I am to be a fountain through which Jesus can flow as "rivers of living water" in blessing to everyone. Yet sometimes I am like a drain in that I am always receiving and never giving, because my relationship with Jesus is not right. I need to ask, "Is there anything between me and Jesus?" "Is there anything that is obstructing the flow of Christ in my life?" If I truly want to be a fountain of blessing and not a drain than I must keep careful guard not to allow obstructions to hinder the flow of Christ in my life. Today I want to be a fountain of blessing in others lives may I with my whole heart seek after Christ today and avoid the obstructions that hinder that flow.

Father oh how I need you every hour, show me if there is anything that is obstructing the flow of Christ in my life.

It Is Worth It All

Ephesians 6:12-13 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Whoever has said that following Christ is easy has not read the Bible or if they have they have completely overlooked passages like this one. Following Christ is tough, sometimes extremely difficult. The Bible makes it clear to follow Christ will cost me something, that I will have trouble in this life. Words like struggle, fight, war all seem to be descriptors of following Christ. But does that mean I quit, throw in the towel, say it's not worth it, absolutely not. I have thought lately because of many really hard times in other people lives around me that even if all of my life is a constant struggle or hardship it would still be worth following Christ because the end result far out weighs the present. Does that make it any easier, of course not, but it does put in mind a focus that cannot be changed. Why, because eternity cannot be changed and where I am going cannot be changed. Following Christ is the greatest and toughest decision I have ever had to make, but it has all been worth it just to know that one day I will spend eternity in Heaven.

Father today may you strengthen my walk and keep my focus on the prize and not on the troubles that I will face.

Look at What God Has Done

Psalm 23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

I wonder how often do I take the time to stop and thank God for all He has done in my life. I know that it is not nearly enough. David here in this small says tons, but in one short phrase gives God much deserved praise. The phrase is, "my cup overflows", to which David is saying, God you have done so much more than I deserve. What an awesome, wonderful God I serve. To which I say right on. So often it is so much easier to focus on the negative that is around me and I end of losing site of just how great God is and what He has done in my life. It's not to say that I should not look at those things that are negative, but I must fight so that they do not become my focus. To often I focus on the problem instead of the problem solver. I forget what God has done in my past and somehow lose site of what He could do in my future. It's so easy in the hustle and bustle of life to get bogged down in the nitty gritty, but God wants us to stop and just know Him. One of the greatest ways I can do that is to practice giving Him praise often and for everything. When was the last time I thanked Him for waking up in the morning, for sending rain to water my plants, for giving me a job to earn money to pay bills. When was the last time I recognized His work even in the tough stuff of life. Today may I see God in everything and see that through life God is at work and desires to draw closer to me.

Father you are great and awesome, help me to see that all throughout the day. Draw me close to you and may I see just how much my cup overflows.

Running the Race is Tough

2 Timothy 4:6-8 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

I would imagine that Paul in writing this to Timothy especially verse seven had thoughts of man I am glad this is about done. While he finished the race and did it with excellence I would imagine he looked back and thought oh man that was sticking tough. I don't know where people get this idea that following Christ is easy and that everything is going to turn up rosy. But where ever it came from it wasn't the Bible. Following Christ and running this race of life is really tough stuff. There are times I have felt like throwing in the towel, of calling it quits. But then I realize that what is happening is that I am allowing Satan victory in my life when Jesus already has claimed the victory. If I try to run this race on my own, forget about it, I will fail every time. But like Paul I must keep my focus on Christ, I must rely on His strength, I must determine that there is nothing greater than running the race for Christ and with Christ. Today as trouble comes or whatever is thrown my way, may I keep Christ at the center in order to one day finish the race.

Father I need your strength today in order to run in such a way as to win the prize. Help me to finish today with my focus on Christ.

Jesus First Place, The Only Place

Colossians 1:16-18 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

James MacDonald says, "You will never experience the fullness of joy that you were created to know until Jesus Christ has first place in every area of your life." This statement carries the question, "Is He?" Is Jesus first place in every area of my life? My answer is simple yet complex. I would for sure say that my desire is to have Christ first place in every area of my life. However reality is that this is true from time to time because of my lack of surrender in a given area of my life. At times I hold to tightly to things or people or situations and not allow Christ to be first in them. Call it a lack of trust or faith or whatever, but bottom line is that I am selfish and a sinner who spirit is willing but flesh is weak. However I think the important thing here is not perfection but as Paul said in Philippians, "straining toward what is ahead." Am I straining to move forward in my relationship with Christ, am I straining toward Christ being first place in my life. While I agree with James on experiencing the fullness of joy I am not sure that is possible here on earth. That fullness will become fully experienced in Heaven in the very presence of Jesus and with sin completely absent. Today may I strive to make Christ first in every area of life, may I strain toward being completely aware of areas that He is not and then strain to make Him first.

Father I need your strength, because in my own strength I will fail. I long for Christ to be first in order to experience the fullness of joy that comes from following Him.

Heart of the Matter

John 14:1-4 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going."

Wow God's timing is great and always blows me away. Just arrived in Miami late last night and found out at 2am that one of my student lost something very important possibly on the plane or the bus that brought us from the airport. Then I read this verse this morning. "Let not your heart be troubled", which also could read "Let not your heart be agitated, or disturbed, or thrown into confusion." Wow isn't God good, He always speaks right to the heart of the matter. Trusting Him always takes being intentional, always takes action on my part. I don't know what is going to happen, I have no idea, my hope and prayer is that just as easily as it was lost we will find it. But whatever happens I hope that through it all I will trust God and not let my heart be troubled. Today as I face the uncertainty of it, I pray that I will keep my focus on the one thing that really matters, Jesus. It's funny but as I have been praying for this week in Miami my prayer is that with every circumstance I will see it as God working and trying to teach me.

Father teach me today to more fully trust you and to follow hard after you today. You are good and thank you for the promise you have shown today that you are in control and will work it out. Keep my eyes fixed on you and what you want to do in my life and the students lives.

Show Me God

Matthew 5:43-48 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Wow this passage is so chalked full of truth. There are so many things to which I could focus on but this morning I just want to pull from this passage different characteristics of God. That is the beauty of God's Word is that we find many truths and principles that we can apply to our lives. But the reason is that each one points to a characteristic of God. For example verse 44 shows us the compassion, mercy, grace and unconditional love of God. In verse 45 we see God's omnipotenence, righteousness, and that he is just. In verse 46 we see that He does not show favoritism. Verse 47 shows me His compassion for the lost and desire to reach them. In verse 48 we see His holiness and His desire for us to pursue that holiness. One of the amazing things about the Word is that it is alive and active and that as I read this passage these are the things that God shows me about Himself. But for someone else they could read this passage and see other characteristics. However what we need to understand is that all throughout scripture God reveals himself to us. The question is am I looking for Him as I read? Today as I meditate on God's Word may I see who God really is and what He desire for my life.

Father today help me to have the eyes to see you, the heart to pursue you and the mind to know you more.

So You Wanna Be A Disciple?

Matthew 9:9-13 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
10While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"12On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Being a disciple of Christ seems like a pretty amazing calling and it is. However are we not all called to be disciples. Jesus Himself said if you want to be my disciple you must deny yourself, take up the cross and follow me daily. Even Matthew a tax collector(sinner), rejected by his own people, became a disciple of Christ. Really if you look at the 12 that Jesus hand picked, one was a doubter, one was a betrayer, and one was a denier. Sound familiar, feel any connection to one or all of these guys? Yet Jesus knowing full well what each would do still chose them and poured into their lives. How often do I judge someone and maybe even wright them off like the Jews did with Matthew and not give someone a chance? Oh how I wish I could see people like Jesus saw them and treat people like Jesus treated them. Today may the Lord fill me with compassion and mercy that I might see in others the potential of following Christ just as I desire to follow Him.

Father I need your eyes and heart to see others the way you see them. May I give others a chance to follow you, just as you have given me a chance over and over to follow you.

Walk By Faith

Romans 1:17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith.

When I put my faith and trust in Christ and accepted His substitution for my payment of sin, I was given a gift. That gift is righteousness or forgiveness. As a result of forgiveness I am cleansed of my sin and set free from the slavery that sin can and will bring. All of this comes through faith which is the combination of confession and belief that leads to action. Righteousness is right living and in the case of our relationship with Christ is the desire to follow after Him. "The righteous will live by faith", faith leads us to confession and belief each and every day. Even though I have been forgiven does not mean that I will not sin. As I walk with Christ and choose sin over righteousness I must be willing to confess that sin and believe that God has forgiven me and that I am no longer under its control. But faith should lead me to hunger after Christ and to resist temptation more and more each day. Today I want to know Christ more and pray that I am willing to deal with sin as Christ reveals it to me.

Father I want to live by faith and hunger after knowing you more. As you bring sin to light may I be quick to deal with it and able to walk with you more closely.

Bread

John 6:32-35 Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." 35Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.

Bread for sure is one of my favorite foods. I would say that probably my all time fav is the bread at Biaggi's, absolutely amazing. I seriously cannot get enough of it when I have the opportunity to eat. Jesus here in this passage calls Himself "The Bread of Life." While I have a great liking of bread it should pale in comparison to my love of Christ and desire to take in His Word (the Bible). According to Erwin Lutzer, "There are some things that are more important than eating; indeed, it is better to starve within the will of God, then to eat and be satisfied apart from it." To often this is the problem is that I want to live life apart from the will of God. There are times that I do not seek Christ and spend time in His Word. Once I have truely tasted of "The Bread of Life" the desire in my heart should grow to have more and more. Oh how I want my hunger for God to grow and that my appetite would never be satisfied.

Father give me a spiritual appetite for you that can never be completely filled so that I have always hungering after you.

Following

Ephesians 5:8-10 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9(for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10and find out what pleases the Lord.

At the point of Salvation we seek to surrender our lives to Christ and follow Him. However we do not know what exactly that look likes. Salvation begins with recognizing that I am a sinner and that there is a penalty for my sin. That penalty is death and eternal separation from God. Salvation is the beginning of recognizing that God the father sent His son to pay my debt for Salvation through His death. I then accept that the gift that God gives through Christ and begin to follow Him. But what does that look like and this becomes the process of finding out just how to follow Christ. How do I find out? It's through reading the Bible and then as we find out what to do we do it. Obedience is key to the process of following Christ. Today as I walk with God my prayer is that obedience will mark my life.

Father give me the determination to follow after you and may I be obedient to whatever it is that you teach me today.

I Will Believe If.....

Deuteronomy 29:2-5 Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them: Your eyes have seen all that the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land. 3 With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those miraculous signs and great wonders. 4 But to this day the LORD has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear. 5 During the forty years that I led you through the desert, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet.

I wonder how many times that I have seen God work in my life and yet my faith waivers much like the Israelites. They saw God do amazing things like what is described in the passage above and yet they often would forget God and turn to false gods and to things that would take them away from their first love. How many times do people say, "I will believe if... God will just...." And then when that time comes they instead turn from God. Oh how often I have done the same thing. I just don't get it, God has done so many amazing things and yet I turn to things that pull me away from Him. Why? This is not my hearts desire, this is not what I want but like Paul I do what I don't want to do, but don't do what I know I need to do. Today as I see God at work I pray that I would be drawn to Him and that my eyes would be focused on Him as I strive to serve Him.

Father I need to see you today, give me eyes to see you, a heart to know you, ears to hear you and willingness to obey.

I am "Christian" Big Deal

Luke 6:43-45 "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

So many people today call themselves "Christian", yet they are no more a true follower of Christ than a black cat would be a skunk just because you paint a white strip on it's back. Many people claim to know God but there is no proof of a relationship with Him through His son Jesus. I know because for many years I claimed the same thing until I realized that all I had was head knowledge and no heart experience and there simply was no proof of life. As in this passage Jesus makes it clear that those who follow Him will have evidence (fruit) in their lives that is a dead give away that they follow Him. Man I want people to see Christ in me and if I am called a Christian great, if not so be it, I just want to be known as a follower of Christ.

Father give me strength today to live for you and may others see in me in your son.

Fruit

Galatians 5:22-24 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.

These characteristics or fruit describe the very nature of Christ. They are to be evident in my life. However this does not come from me somehow trying to produce these things but rather Christ in me doing His work. I must allow Him to do the work. I must give Him control, I must daily surrender to Him and allow Him to live in me. For if I am in Christ I am a dead man already because I have been crucified with Him. He makes me alive, He brings new hope, He is the one who lives in and through me. Today Lord may your fruit be seen in my life. May others know that I follow you.

Father help me to surrender to you so that you can live through me today.

Rest

Psalm 23:2-3 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Rest is not something that I do very well. Actually I down right stink at just chillin out and taking a load off. I don't know if you have ever had the chance to just walk through or lie down in a green pasture or maybe your lawn, but I remember as a kid my brothers and I would run out into the middle of a hay field and just lay down and look up. It was awesome we would see passing clouds and declare a shape for each one or we would see an airplane and wonder where it was going and how many people were on board. But it was amazing. I don't know if you have ever walked along a rivers bank or a large body of water but it is again awesome and peaceful all at the same time. There is something about rest that restores me when I would take the time. It restores me physically, it restores me mentally, it restores me emotionally and most importantly spiritually. Over the past couple of months I have been practicing rest in the morning by just chillin with my Bible and God and spending some time seeking Him. It has been some of the best time of my life spiritually as the Lord restores me each morning before heading off to face a great big ugly world. It is interesting that after all the restful things that the Lord does in this passage, the psalmist says, "he guides me in path's of righteousness." Maybe what David is telling me is that rest will lead to being able to hear guides voice as he directs me in life and that I am more likely to make right choices. Today may I find times of rest in order that Christ might guide me to live a holy and righteous life that would reflect Him to those around me.

Father today may you help me to rest. May I not make excuses for not resting. May I find myself making decisions that would honor you and exalt your name.