When we don't get what we want . . . Part II

Loved ones, I don't know how else to explain it, but Christianity that revolves around chicken dinners and church socials doesn't mean that much. I hope that by now, you understand that I am not shunning fellowships with other believers; but it was when Jesus saw that the crowds were showing up to fill there bellies, that He told them that they would have to eat His flesh and drink His blood. He offended them, and many of them stopped following Him. But the same is true for us today. What Christ is challenging them to do, is to take Him from the outside to the inside. When a man eats bread, the bread disappears; and even a small child understands that the bread goes from the outside of a man to the inside. That, loved ones, is where the nourishing begins. When we imbibe Christ, He nourishes us from inside. It is only, Christ on the inside, that transforms a man into a servant of the Most High God.

It is then, dear souls, in the worst of it, that Christ becomes life and peace; not when He is one of a dozen things that we fancy, but when we can't breathe with out Him, because with out Him we do not know how we will make it to the next day. It is when our lives are broken into pieces, that we experience God. What do I mean by that? Even a novice can sail with a light breeze, but it takes stormy seas to make a sailor: experience. How are you ever going to learn what it means for God to do exceedingly and abundantly above all that we ask or think in love, unless you are so broken that only God can help you?

What are you doing, Father, that you would allow me to be hurt this way? I'm making you more like Jesus.

Listen to me, dear ones, God is working in us to make us more like His precious Son. It is the greatest love, that this Father allows His children to be hurt, not to their ruin, but to their benefit. When Christ fed the 5,000, He didn't wink at His disciples and say watch this: He was moved with compassion for them; and then He said bring me what you have, then He blessed it and fed them all. Are you moved with compassion to help others? My father, on one of our drives together, told me, "Son, you don't love people in spite of their weakness; you love them because of it." Where else will that compassion come from, unless you become so intimately aware of your own helpless state? But, it is here, loved ones, that God can be seen working through you. Look at Peter's answer when Christ asked if they would leave Him as well, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God." Bless you all.

When we don't get what we want

What happens when you pray about something over and over again? You feel quite sure that this is where God is leading you, and yet, the results are not at all what you expected, certainly not what you wanted. The questions fill you mind, and you wonder if you were just completely out in left field. When you love the Lord and pray daily, it is incredibly troubling to believe that you are following His will, and then you find yourself up against something you can't believe that you are facing. Something that just levels you. You go from being sure that you are following God, to wondering if you were not following God at all. It is so incredibly painful, when everything that you believed is dashed to bits in front of you. You know that God is faithful, and you are left with no answers.

Loved ones, sometimes it is right in the middle of God's will, to put us up against something that just breaks us. I'm sorry, but there are no pretty words for what I am talking about. It is not just a loss of hope, or getting hurt; it is a profound wondering if you have spent weeks, months or years of your life not being able to discern the will of God. When eyes that you once knew love in are suddenly filled with hatred; how do you get up the next morning? When you are assured that you no longer belong, and one by one other friends turn away; where do you find any strength to go on? When your heart is so abstrusely broken; what can you do?

In my Bible reading, I ran across the 88th Psalm. It was stunning, because heretofore, I thought even the most lamenting psalms offered some silver lining: a reason for the badness. This one ends with a man crying out to God, with no answer or reason for his trouble. Matthew Henry offers this, "Those who are in trouble of mind may sing this psalm feelingly; those that are not ought to sing it thankfully, blessing God that it is not their case." It's an astounding measuring rod for trouble, though. Is God willing for one to end up like this?

Is this in God's plan? Dear ones, I know that I can not adequately speak for God's reasoning, nor is He obliged to share it with any of us; but this I do know, God is faithful even in the worst of it. Let me tell you another story, and see if you see a parallel. A king sent his prince to his people. He loved them, he taught them and he even healed them. This prince traveled through his kingdom giving bread, but not like any other bread; he gave them water and they didn't thirst any more. Even the children were given an audience with the prince. But some in the kingdom, didn't love the prince, the ones who should have loved him the most, hated him, the nobles of the kingdom. The scattered his friends, and they turned the people he loved against him. They beat him, they tortured him and killed him. Three days later, miraculously, the prince came back to life, and here is the beautiful part: he loved them still.

Psalm 88
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Psalm 88

Spiritual Warfare

Do you ever run up against God telling you to do something, that you just don't want to do? It is a miserable experience. You don't want to do what God wants, because you want to hold on to whatever "it" is. It may be a grudge, a lifestyle that you aren't willing to give up or some behavior that is giving you some kind of payoff, that is contrary to what God wants. You know what God wants, because His Holy Spirit is an in-dwelling guide to the believer. So we engage in church talk; "I've been praying about it", "I want to do what the Lord wants" or some derivative that will placate anybody who might actually be able to help you.

Let's clear a few things up: if God tells you to forgive somebody, then that is what you have to do, if God tells you to stop behaving a particular way, it's with good reason. You can not improve on the divine perfect will of God, but you can get in line with it. But you don't know how they hurt me! Well, you don't know what a wreck your life is going to be with you choking on your own hatred. So, you want to make them pay for what they have done: then what? Boy, you really let them know how they hurt you! Did it change the hurt? Does making them hurt make you feel better? If it does: you need to understand that doesn't come from God. Little anger fantasies that brood in your mind are plainly the work of the evil one. You need to recognize that, confess it and run to God whenever it happens until you break the cycle. Satan is going to come back again and again right down that same path, until you release it to God, and sanctify Christ as the Lord of the situation. Suppose you just check out, here's what you are doing: you are surrendering to the Satan, not God.

This is not what I want or don't want, this is spiritual warfare!!! The outcome of the battle is either victory through Christ; or being sidelined by the Devil, replaying the same hurt over and over until you wreck your life and the ones who love you over it. Listen to me, dear ones, you cannot handle the situation, the situation will handle you every time. You can't love, forgive or heal without God Almighty filling you with love until it spills over to others, enabling you to forgive and touching you with His healing hand. Loved one, I know (in the fullest since of the word) that it is not easy, it is not supposed to be; how else will you ever learn what God can do, if you don't see it with your own eyes? God is waiting to amaze you, and all you have to do is surrender what you can not help anyways. Bless you all.

Wow, I can't believe he said that!

Most like to see new posts fairly regularly, at least that's what the stats tell me. I like to write, it's just that sometimes it gets squeezed out by everything else that is going on. Some days are tough, some days are awful, but I keep trying. Sometimes, try is all I have left. There are times in everyone's life when we get beaten up and bruised, and when you are a writer, you can put your whole life on display; in fact, I'm sure that some assume that everything I write about is tied to what's going on that day. (It's incredibly frustrating, that people think I am that simple.)

There has been a great shielding of those who remain in the faith and remain incredibly immature. By saying that, I mean, that you can be as immature as you want to be with out question, as long as you show up every Sunday (in truth, about two Sundays a month.) They are, in fact, above question and expectation because pastors across the country are compelled to put up with their nonsense, for fear that any offense my cause them to quit coming all together. I have to thank my brother for this, but we are not playing to win, we are playing to not lose. In other words, we're happy with winning sometimes. Let me just come out and say it: if you can miss a few services without any sway of conscience, your service to God is junk! If you can just as easily miss as be there, what are you giving God? I wish that I was just describing the typical pew-sitter, but some of these have been placed in charge of ministries in their church. It's disgusting!

I may be the only preacher in the world to say this, but if you don't want to be there: STAY HOME! and do so with my blessing. How can you say that?! It's incredibly easy, when you come to church with that attitude, you waste God's time, contribute nothing to worship (because you sulk that you are there, instead of home worshipping yourself) and frankly, everybody knows you'd rather be "fishing". Does God think in those terms? He said to Eli, you press your sons into the service of God, and they could care less about it; "you honor them more than you honor Me." It is better for those (I wish I could say "would-be" Christians, but truthfully, I can't even give them that much credit) to stay home. Let them go do what ever they want, and then after Satan has derailed their lives, they'll come back to God, and ask Him to put the pieces back together.

What I am saying with great certainty is this: It is high time that we start playing to win. Once and for all, decide which team that you are playing for: and then line up with them. Isn't that what Joshua said in so many words? You don't want to be there, then don't! But, if you do want to be there, get your head and heart in the game. Vince Lombardi put it this way, "If you can accept losing, you can't win." I can't accept it, and further more I'm not going to. So, if this is the team you have lined up with, I expect your best, everyday from now on! Stop telling people you are a Christian, and start showing them that you are. Listen to me, loved ones, I'm not going to change the world, you are. And is is going to take more than a life that revolves around self. I like what my brother the band director said about his marching band, he said, "As long as you try, you've got a spot on the field." "Well," to quote my friend, "there it is."

Dear brother and sister in Christ, I am not saying this because I don't need you. I need all of you, and I need you at your best. Bless you all.

Following God off a cliff . . . Part III

I read a quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, he said, "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die." Dear ones, that is the unvarnished truth. I wish that so many were not "sold" on coming to Christ, but it happens over and over again. Too many, offer Christ as a cure-all for whatever ails you. I don't for a minute try to hide the fact that Christ will change your life, but so many are trained to hide how he will change it. Loved ones, most of the world's Christians are paying a higher personal cost for their faith than we here in America have ever known. They, in some countries are persecuted, and in others, they pay for their faith with their lives, and they do so willingly. That is what separates Christianity from every other form of religion, people willing give their lives rather than say that they don't believe in Christ. Lions hearts in lambs bodies, that's what makes us so incredibly different.

Loved one, listen to me, God is working in your life, and it is not going to be easy. Dear souls, we are in the relentless pursuit of perfection, that means we can't check out. J.B. Phillips puts it this way:

When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don’t resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realize that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed...

Has anything in your whole experience ever taught you that growing up is easy? So, why in the world do we have preachers, of all people, trying to endure the worst of it, and at the same time, try to present to others how easy it is. Man of God, let your people deal with some of life's heartaches, so that they can grow up. Quit hiding the fact that trouble comes to everyone, especially to those who believe. Let them come to terms with the fact that when you stand in the pulpit, nothing you say can be categorized as "Easy for him to say."

Listen, loved ones, we are all in this together. God loves you too much, to let you remain in your comfortable existence, and spend the rest of your life minimally contributing to His work. Dear ones, we all get knocked down, but what I want you to get, is that you have to be one of the ones who will not stay down. Let me give you a word picture: when you get knocked down, and you get up bearing the weight of your trial, you find grace with God. You are admired by God! When Steven preached the sermon that ended his life, the very last thing that he saw, was Christ, not seated at the right hand of the Father, but so filled with admiration, that He rose to His feet, to welcome Him to glory! Loved ones, that is the way that you want to go. If you've imbibed the notion that too many peddle, that Christ offers a life of ease; then it's time you get your proper introduction to Christianity. Bless you all.

Following God off a cliff . . . Part II

Loved ones, these trials are those that have resulted in so many checking out of the ministry, and truthfully, countless others who were not in leadership positions to leave the faith. I'm not for a second trying to diminish the fact that these trials hurt and cause terrible pain. Listen to me, the difference between those whom we look to as beacons of the faith, or those whom we look to with a sigh as to what they might have been in the faith, are made by these trials and their response to them. This is why it is off absolute importance that we respond properly to them. Peter tells us, that when we bear up under our trials, that we find grace with God; and dear soul, you can not make it through these rough waters without that Divine grace.

To those of you who are teetering on the brink, let me tell you, don't check out, do you hear me? Don't in a few hours, throw away what God has been taking a life time to build in you. God has never quit on you, so don't you dare quit on Him! I know that this life can be so unbelievably hard, but that can not be an excuse for giving up, ever. You have to guard yourself against the evil one, and alone and discouraged is exactly how he wants you. You can't allow your hurt to be a reason that you seek comfort by some means outside of God's plan. It is not okay to sin, because you are hurting. You have to be watching most intently when you are in such dire straits, to make sure that you don't seek some relief from your hurt out of God's plan and into Satan's.

Listen, loved one, I know that you may have broached a subject that you never thought you would face, but in it all and through it all, God is there beside you. As William Blake put it, "Think not thou canst weep a tear, And thy Maker is not near." Turn to God, and draw closer to Him. The eyes of God are upon you, and most certainly, when you are facing great difficulty. He wants to see you trust in Him, and indeed these trials make it necessarily so. Dear ones, this is not easy stuff, but if no one ever shares the struggles of their faith, where do we leave those who come after us. Oh, they were bullet proof, until one great trial of their faith, and they just quit all together. No!!! Loved ones, these trials are so that we have something to share with our younger brothers and sisters. Do you get it? When we have found the comfort of God offers to us in these terrible trials, then we can share that consolation with those who look to us for answers. God is at work, making you some one that others will look up to! Dear souls, there is more at stake than just your broken heart: now, more than ever, it is imperative that you stay faithful to God. Bless you all.

Following God off a cliff . . .

Have you ever felt like you have followed God closely, and then you find yourself in a situation that you can hardly believe? I have. I seem to live in such situations. I'm not talking about a little discomfort, I am talking about full-on devastation. How could God allow something like this to happen to me? If you haven't said it, I have. Does God really allow those who follow Him to be hurt? The simple answer is: yes. I know that isn't pleasant to hear, but it's true. Listen to the words of the apostle Peter, "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you." The opposite side of that coin is this: Fiery trials that come upon you to test you, are perfectly normal. Why? Because, if you are not careful, especially as a Christ-follower, you can sit in the same place for decades; never growing, never learning or getting any closer to God. Sometimes, God allows us to be sifted; beaten, broken, and winnowed so that the chaff of our existence can be blown away.

That is why a devastating test is not to be counted as a strange thing. Dear one, if I haven't answered the question can it happen, well enough: it can and will happen. It happens, not to leave us broken, but so that we can be made whole. Let me tell you, loved one, this is not easy stuff, but I want to share with you something from Roy Underhill. He writes in his one of his book about making half-blind dovetails, which will be Greek to you, unless you have an understanding of fine furniture or of the cabinet makers trade. After he explains in detail how to make them, he describes the process as crossing a mountain and then peering in to the valley of cabinet makers. So the point of it all is this, a hack that can cobble together a bookshelf, cannot make half-blind dovetails, but a skilled cabinet maker can. You see, these things are only produced by those who have a great degree of skill with the tools of their trade. Decidedly difficult, hard to accomplish, but anyone who sees them instantly recognizes the mark of craftsmanship. Listen to me, loved ones, we have way too many saints cobbling together orange crate book shelves, and we are in desperate want of those who can build a case and fit it with a half-blind dovetailed drawer.

I hope that you get, that I am saying that we are lacking Christians who are mature in their faith, skilled in the Word and able to pass what they have learned on to others. It is only through those most difficult situations, that literally drive you to your knees, that you learn to completely rely on God. Those trials that hit you will all the subtlety of a bomb going off, that make you cry from you heart and send you looking for answers, drive you to God's word to look for them. It is not in any way an absence of God's faithfulness; it is the pinnacle of His faithfulness. Charles Stanley said in a sermon once, "I've never seen God do anything with a comfortable Christian." He's right! God, who loves you perfectly, will allow pain into your life, because He loves you, and He doesn't have any intention of leaving you the way that you started off. He wants you to move on to maturity. Listen, dear souls, it is absolutely necessary that you grow to maturity, and if you haven't recognized that, then it is time that you start. More coming, dear ones.

Give and it shall be given . . .

Give and it shall be given to you; I've heard that often, but I'm not sure I ever really understood it, especially the part about "good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over." I finally began to comprehend this when I came across what Matthew Poole had to say about it:

Nothing can more concur to make good measure, than the shaking of the bushel, the crowding and pressing down of the corn or meal with the hand, and the pouring in till the measure runneth over.

If we all grew up in an agrarian society, we would immediately understand this concept, but for many today, if they were given a bushel of anything, they wouldn't know what to do with it. If my sister-in-law were given a bushel of tomatoes, she would probably can them; if I were given a bushel of tomatoes, I'd be eating a tomato or two with every meal, including breakfast, until they were gone or spoiled. But, I digress, the point is the concept of a bushel basket filled with grain. It is one thing to get a bushel basket that grain has been scooped or poured; it is quite another to get a bushel basket that has been shaken, so that there are no air pockets, pressed down or compacted so that it increases in weight, and then running over the top, so that the container literally holds all that is possible. How does that sound for a blessing?

I once worked with a young man that told me he had to pay his tithes, so that his sales would be good. That expresses the attitude of so many, I'll be happy to give, so long as I get. Said or unsaid, that's why many give: at least this young man was honest about it. Everybody likes the idea of taking home a packed bushel, but how many of us like to send others away with a full and overflowing bushel. I hope that you get that I am talking about more that bushel baskets. Lord, I've put in twenty whole dollars, now open the floodgates and pour out a blessing that I can't contain.

Do you give that way, or do you pack the bushel? But wait, I want to hear more about the way God gives. Listen, God isn't honored by those who only use Him as a means to the end of getting what they want. Let me revisit the previous example, what if you gave one of your friends twenty bucks, how long do you think they would put up with you acting like they owed you, big. After about five minutes they would say, "Here's your twenty bucks back, jerk." Look, if people can see the intent of your heart that easily, how much do you think that you can hide from the One who created you?

This is what I am trying to get across to you; God is not weighing grain, He is weighing what is in your heart. He said, "Prove Me," not, wait till I start giving to you and then you start giving back to me. God measures what is in your heart, the very same way that you measure what is in the basket. Think about the widow with her two mite offering. She gave, in common language, what she was going to eat on. She stared down the decision to meet her physical need or give to the Lord; and she decided to go with out, so that she could give an offering to God. Let me tell you what happened in the spiritual realm; she packed that basket so full, it started to burst, and she was honored for all time by Christ. When you give to God that way, He will honor you too. Bless you all.

Coping with Depression . . . The Survival Kit

These are the things that will help you most in dealing with depression.

1. Read your Bible daily, at least a chapter.
2. Pray, not just a prayer from the time you get into bed and your head hits the pillow. Take your shoes off. Get on your face before God first thing in the morning. Pour out your heart to God, and then wait and listen. Get up when God says your done.
3. Go to church every time the doors are open, and then see if you can get a mature saint to meet you there and open the doors to pray with you and counsel with you.
4. Get out of bed, and get out of the house, spend time doing something fun.
5. Cry when you need to cry.
6. Adopt a loving and forgiving spirit.
7. Let God handle all of the things you can't.

Bless you all loved ones.

Coping with Depression . . . The Power of Surrender Part III

Surrender is the diving board to freedom. Listen, when you trust God enough to let go of the hurts and let Him take care of the circumstances that you can't control anyway; you give God room to work in the situation. Why else would He say, "Be still and know that I am God?" You have two options: Let God work in the situation, and leave the results up to Him, or you can have a daily conniption fit and scream and cry why me. You are not going to be happy, if you constantly push God out of the way and try to do His work, for which you are not equipped. But, if you yield, in the fullest since of the word, to God and His providence, He is able to do exceedingly and abundantly more than you could ask or think.

Surrender to God's will, is the very thing that puts you in God's will. Look, it is one thing if you suffer for what you deserve, but it is quite another to suffer for something that you don't deserve. When you surrender to God's will and bear up under the trial, the Bible tells us that it is there, that you find grace. Do you understand that in the worst of circumstance, that you can then be honored by the Father? Loved one, there are servants of God this world is not worthy of, according to Scripture. It is because, they choose the will of God, not matter the cost. What you get in return for choosing God's will is peace.

Dear one, you must understand that you need the peace of God to make it through any trial, and that only comes with surrender. Let me just tell you plainly, if you have a score to settle: you are wasting your life. God is not interested in you vindicating yourself while passing yourself off as a Christian: that's right, no matter how well versed you are in getting your pint of blood, God doesn't have anything to do with it. Loved one, submit yourself underneath His mighty hand, let Him deal with what you are not capable of dealing with anyway. Follow God, and trust the situation to God's care, and find the freedom that comes from surrender.

Coping with Depression . . . The Power of Surrender Part II

Loved ones, this is difficult. I know that is rough going when few or no one knows what is going on inside you; when you have a heart full of hurts and no answers as to why. You are not alone. Everyone faces trials and tribulations, in fact, Paul wrote that there isn't a single testing or trial that isn't common to all men, and the beautiful end to that verse is that God is faithful. He won't let you be tested past your breaking point, but that doesn't mean the test won't get close to it. Listen, the all powerful God who is sovereign over everything, with every trial makes a way for you and I to bear it.

So how do we bear the seemingly unbearable? Surrender to God. You may think that this sounds way too simple, but trust me: the only time you will have peace is when you are surrendered to God. So, what does that mean in "real life" terms; it means you have to throw out the he did this to me, she said that or I can never forgive them for what they did to me. Why? Because God's word says get rid of it, and you won't experience peace until you do. I know that I say that unable to know all of the circumstances of those who read this, but consider for a moment the crucifixion; has there ever been a time when so many deserved what they had coming to them? Pilate, Herod, the chief priests and the scribes or the soldiers who beat Him and nailed Him to the cross; all of them deserved exactly what they had coming, and Christ stepped in and took all of their sins on Himself, and not only that He prayed for the soldiers while they were nailing Him to the cross, saying, "Forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing." Loved one, can you visit that scene and hold anything against anyone? If you have not started praying for those who have hurt you, by all means start, so that you can see them the way the Father sees them.

Let me just say, that your shoulders are not big enough for some problems. You have, however, a loving Father and a caring Savior who will bear what you are not able, and give you peace that passes all understanding. How else can you make it through the "unbearable?" It is only through the peace that is given by God, and it is only given when you surrender your will to His. No contracts, no conditions: just surrender. More soon, dear ones.

Coping with Depression . . . The Power of Surrender

Sometimes what compounds our problems is the grip that we have on them. It is so easy to get tied to an idea, or what you thought that God was preparing you for, and then when it doesn't materialize, or worse, becomes something that you never expected; it can become unbearable. This is how it happens, dear ones, and it is not an accident. God is not orchestrating events just for you to experience pain; He is doing the difficult work of bringing you to maturity. Growing up involves pain. I hear people say I would love to go back to this year or that; I wouldn't go back for anything! Not only was it rough enough the first time, but all of the difficulty in my life has made me who I am, and I wouldn't give any of it back.

One of the contributing factors to depression, is a loss of perspective. In other words, the death grip that you have on your problems, could be what has brought you to a stand still. It is more than okay to hurt, and do tell God all about it. You have to take a step back, and realize that there are more things involved that just how you feel. Listen, the loss of contentment that leads to depression, often begins by adopting a narrow view and interpreting events only in terms of me. That's not the way it works, loved one. You do not know what others are thinking, and you do not ultimately know what motivates them to do what they do. While we're on the subject; get rid of absolutes in your estimation of others: no one always nor do they never engage in a particular behavior, nor do you. (I hope that is not the coveted "triple-negative".)

If you are going to find purpose in your trials; then you have got to put things in the proper perspective. First off, God allowed whatever the situation is into your life at this time, and God is right: and that may be what hurts the most about your trial. If God didn't want a situation in your life, an all powerful God could certainly stop it from happening. Secondly, contentment can only be found for the Christian, when they are in fellowship with the will of God. That does not mean holding on to you problems and gritting your teeth, while you say God I surrender all. Fellowship with God's perfect will for your life only comes, when you release the whole situation to God. Now listen to me, loved one, that does not mean you have to understand. That may be what you need to say, "God I release this situation which I can not fix, which I do not understand and which I can not change to Your sovereign will. I surrender. I'm trusting You. I'm asking You to make a way for me to bear this trial." Bless you all.

Coping with Depression . . . The Value of a Loving Heart

Sometimes the hardest thing to have when you are depressed, is a loving heart. Why is it so important? Because you are not wrestling with flesh and blood. What that means is you are dealing with fallible people, who even at their best, are entirely capable of doing wrong, because we all deal with temptation from the evil one. I remember in high school, I had a teacher that told us that he and some of his friends in the army, helped out with a children's program; and he told us how it was impressed upon them that they smile and be pleasant to those children; the reason it was so stressed, is that they might be the only kind face that child sees that day. I hope that you get, that you are not the only one who is stressed, even when you are hurting.

The Scripture tells us that love covers a multitude of sins, and a loving heart can do so much more than one that is consumed by its own hurts. Look, if you tear yourself up on the inside; you are setting yourself up for a multitude of hurts. You will be constantly on the look out for retribution for the hurts you received, and there is nothing in the Bible to support that kind of mindset. But, I can't forgive: you got that straight and in buckets. You can't forgive, it is only when Christ is working in you, that you can be loving enough to forgive someone who hurt you. Remember: God is working; He never promised that it would be painless or that it would be easy, but it will be beautiful, when you let Him work out His will, in His way.

Listen to me, it is Satan that wants you isolated, hurt and closed-off from every one that you love. It is the love that God puts in your heart that opens you up to those around you, even the ones who hurt you. Loved one, please don't think I am recommending things to you, that haven't broken up the fallow ground of my own heart. Alone, is not how God intended you to be; single, maybe, but alone: absolutely not. Listen to me dear Christian, your work is people; loving them, caring about them, helping them and reaching them with the love of Christ. Loved one, God is working in you, and this is what it is to be held in His hand with a life that is open to His will and His way. Grace, mercy, peace and love flowing like a river; that is the work of our God. Hallelujah! Let Him work in your heart to day, dear sweet soul, let Him work in you today; so that love will win the day. Bless you all.

Coping with Depression . . . Embracing Forgiveness

There are some hurts, that are unchangeable, sometimes because of a permanent loss, or sometimes because of a hard-hearted individual, whose decisions, right or wrong are implacable. Disruptions in our lives happen, it is a fact of life, and they often hurt and hurt badly. If it happened to the apostle who penned most of the New Testament, what possible hope do we have as church goers. Paul and Barnabas became so combative over a young John Mark, who evidently was not ready for a front row seat at the persecution of an apostle, that they decided to go different directions. Barnabas, rather than have this young man spoken of as unfit for the service of the Lord, chose to go with him, instead of stay with the apostle.

The passage of time shows us that even Paul’s heart eventually softened toward John Mark, saying that he was profitable to him in the ministry. Do you think that there were hurt feelings during the exchange that prompted these two to split? For whatever the exchange was between them, I don’t think that it is much of a stretch, to think that Barnabas was most concerned with what would happen to that young man, had he agreed with Paul and walked away from him. Here’s the saddest part of this story to me, we never read of a reunion between Paul and Barnabas. Don’t you think that when Paul said, “send me John Mark . . .” that much of what he longed for was the time that he had missed with Barnabas, his friend?

Listen, before you spend weeks or months of your life vacillating between reliving the hurt and the anger you feel toward the person that hurt you: you need to adopt a forgiving spirit. You may have every reason to take someone apart limb by limb; but dear heart, that is not what love says. Love says, I can hold nothing against you, because Christ held nothing against me. And, you can’t take hold of forgiveness, until you let go of the hurt. You will never find the freedom that Christ gives, and you won't get all that God has for you until you do forgive. Loved ones, I can’t promise you much, but I can tell you that when you let go and forgive, Christ’s love will flood your heart and you can see beyond the one that hurt you, to the one who needs Christ’s love. Bless you all.

Coping with Depression . . .Living with the Hurt

There are so many things that can cause depression; some that you can change, and some that you can't. I'm sure that to the depressed, they would like to see something like do this or do that, and poof! the depression will go away. I am sorry to report, no such thing exists. There is the day to day, minute to minute and second to second dealing with depression that must take place. You have to sometimes, by an act of the will, get up and do something, anything to remind yourself that you are still alive. Let me preface what I am about to say with this: I do not have all of the answers, but the answers that I have are yours for the taking.

Do not for any reason put yourself into a cell. Let me explain what I am talking about, even your living room can become a prison if you let your pain paralyze you. Get out of the house, and do so on a regular basis. You need to know that the world is still going on, and you can't sit still and rehearse the things that are grieving you over and over again, especially if somebody that you loved and trusted hurt you. Reliving bad situations, keeps the pain and hurt fresh in your mind, and though the whole world has gone on, you remain at that same point in time. I'm not asking you to deny or ignore that you hurt, but I am telling you, that you must, for your own sanity still participate in life.

Now, it occurs to me since writing that last paragraph, that some of you reading this, may indeed be in a cell to which someone else has the key. So what, can I say in that case. You too, can still participate in life, and should. Dear ones, you could even be in prison for something that you had nothing to do with, or for something you had too much to do with. As long as there is a heart beating in your chest, life is not over. You can do so much for the kingdom of God, even in a prison cell. Paul wrote the bulk of the New Testament, and much of it was written from prison. Do you ever wonder how many Roman prison guards will be in heaven, because the were chained to Paul? They were literally a captive audience to a preacher of the gospel. You can encourage missionaries all over the globe with a pen and some paper, you can pray night and day for the concerns of thousands of souls and work on your faith in God. If you think that the family of God has enough prayer warriors, you are mistaken. Listen to me, you can put your armor on and go to battle for the Lord, even in a prison cell.

Listen to me, all of you, God is not done with you yet, and He hasn't thrown in the towel; so don't you dare check out on Him. Lean on Christ for strength, let the Lord fight for you. He sent soldiers home in droves, so that everyone would understand that He was the One Who did the fighting, and the One who gave the victory. That very same God, fights for you day and night, and He never sleeps and never slumbers. Dear ones, it is more than okay to hurt, but it is not okay to quit, not now: not ever. Listen to the loving invitation of the Savior "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Loved ones, it is absolutely imperative that you keep on! Bless you all.

Coping with Depression

At times it seems there are more problems, than there will ever be answers. What does that do for us as Christians, or worse, a Christian people look to for answers? What makes matters worse, is that as trials increase in severity, there is a subtle and passive shaming that occurs. It is one thing if you have a few problems, but there seems to be a tipping point where too many problems cause our friends to check out. It seems that during dark days, even our friends become like Job's friends. Listen to me, loved one, don't you dare concede what God is doing in your life, for a trial that hurts so bad that you can't believe you will ever find joy and peace again. Believe me, I understand what it is like, to not be able to reconcile your faith with your circumstances, but don't you ever quit.

It is absolutely crucial that during such times, you draw closer to God, and that you work on your relationship with Him. There are times, that you can feel so shattered inside, that the last thing you want to do is pray or read your Bible, but those dear soul, are the times it is most necessary. In fact, your greatest asset at times like these, is to have already been on a schedule of reading the Bible and if you are not, it is imperative that you get on one. I can not count the number of times that I have been hurting and I go to a daily Bible reading, and the passage I read, spoke directly to my situation. Get this and get it good, don't you ever cut yourself off from your loving God.

When you cry, cry before God; when you pray, even if all you can say is "God, please help me", pour your heart out to God; and when you read your Bible, take it directly into your heart. I know, that there are times that you can hurt so bad, that you don't know how you will make it through the next minute with out falling apart; if you have to, take it one breath at a time, and ask God for His strength. Listen to me, even in the worst of it, God is working; and you may even wonder how God could let so much pain befall you, but moment by moment: God is working to build His purpose in your heart. Cling to God's promises, and let Him work in your heart.

God bless you.

There is no pit so deep, that God is not deeper still.

Two Christian sisters in World War II were sent to Ravensbrück prison camp. Their family helped Jews, who were traveling to escape the persecution brought on by Hitler. Their crime was giving them food and a place to stay. Over time, the helpers became the persecuted. “The Hiding Place,” is the name of the book and the movie that tells the story of the Betsy and Corrie ten Boom, and the ordeal that they faced during such a difficult time. They were persecuted because the did what was good and right.

What happened to them was wrong, the Germans knew it was wrong, and they did it still. They were imprisoned, starved and became forced labor; and faced no telling what from the prison guards day in day out. Can you even imagine the kind of climate that led family to turn in family, or life long friends to turn in friends, in order that they might escape what these women went through? David Robinson once wrote, “How can we imagine that we can endure persecution if we cannot even endure prosperity?” What I’m getting at, loved ones, is that these dear souls suffered for doing what was right, and we can’t even stomach the idea of suffering at all, for any reason.

Could God allow such a thing? Dear ones, do you have a theology that only allows for good things to come your way? I hope that isn’t so. Think about those precious souls, who come to faith in Christ; and the people who are closest in their lives say, “Today, you died to me; I never want to see your face again.” God is not only faithful to those in such situations, Scripture tells us that the eyes of God are upon them. Chuck Swindoll once said in a sermon, “You talk about a moment to talk about Christ; it’s when you have suffered unjustly, and you’re doing it with patience, now’s your moment to tell them how it happened. They will listen. You have earned the right to be heard. Because they know that there is a difference in how you’re responding to it from how they would.”

Betsy told Corrie that she had a dream and they would both be released by the new year, and she added that when they got out, "We will tell everyone that there is no pit that is so deep, that God is not deeper still: and they will believe us, because we have been there." That sweet soul died before the end of that year, and her freedom came with an abundant entrance into glory. Corrie ten Boom was released through a clerical error, which saved her from certain death. At the end of the movie "The Hiding Place," you see an aged Corrie ten Boom, and she looks right into the camera and says that she had traveled the world, ". . .and I have told everyone who would listen, that there is no pit so deep, that God is not deeper still." You see loved ones, she is a hero of the faith; because the heart of a lion, was beating in the body of a lamb. Bless you all.

Listen to Corrie ten Boom's testimony. Click on the Resource tab.

What's in a name?

[This is a little story about how this blog got it's name. It used to be a tab at the top called "About the name." I have decided to make it a blog post, so that I can free that page up to create a resource page. I will be including links to favorite sermons and hopefully some downloadable (if that is a word) resources to help you grow and share your faith. More coming loved ones.]

It turns out in light of what I have been writing, that the name "My thoughts at length" has been a rather unfortunate choice for a blog name. It all started when I decided to post something that I had previously written, in fact the first blog post, on facebook. It was a tribute to my father who passed away in July of 2002, and it was Father's Day 2009. I had only recently started using facebook, so I didn't know all of its limits, which could not accommodate my tribute. So, kids, that's how I started blogging. I had thought about it for a while, but had never done it; (for someone who has made his living using computers, I still have an incredible reluctance to use technology.) I started my blog, because what I had written wouldn't fit in a facebook post, and that is how it got its unfortunate name, "My thoughts at length."

Working under contract . . . Part VII

I've have recently been reading the book "Radical" by David Platt, and let me say that it is a fantastic book and I recommend it to you. I also hear preachers, and I listen to a number of them, describing a radical approach to Christianity. While most of what these brothers say is true; they are not describing "radical" Christianity: they are describing Christianity, the sad fact is that we are so far removed from true Christianity that we find what they teach, incredible! And in saying that, I am not disparaging their work at all. They are teaching about the genuine article, and we should heed that kind of teaching.

Who among us looks to the Bible and doesn't find someone about whom we say, "I want to be like him, or I want to be like her?" Why? Because we find something heroic about them. Let me just ask you, do you want to be some one's hero? Do you want to be the example others point out as good and righteous? Does it happen by some happy accident? Listen to me, it takes no guts at all to be one of the ten who said, even though God has given us this land, we'd rather stay in our tents in the desert rather than risk our lives in following God. Joshua and Caleb said, I don't care what it costs me, it is what God has given us: and I'm going to go and get it. That's heroic! That's the kind of person people point out as an example to follow.

The question that I am putting to you is this: Are you going to go and get what it is that God has for you? Look, you can wait in the market place your whole life waiting for the right deal, and you will have spent your life with no significant accomplishment for God; or you can go to work in the vineyard, with the faith, that the Master of the vineyard will reward you with what is right. You can be some one's hero, not because of the car you had, but because you taught them to pray, or because you knelt with them while they prayed and asked Christ to be their savior. And I unashamedly tell you that my heart's desire is that God would change you, because when He does, He will use you to change all of those around you.

God bless you all.

Working under contract . . . Part VI

Dear ones, it is an absolute necessity that you learn that faith is not a quantifiable proposition. And in saying that, it is imperative that you understand that, I am not representing a life that is lived by faith, as an unrewarding venture. The biggest obstacle to maturity, is only understanding rewards as something that comes in dollars and cents. When you get that firmly fixed in your mind, you can begin to see blessings in terms of things that money can not buy. If you think that I am trying to destroy the idea that: faith is a machine that I put mustard seeds into and get cash out of the other end; you're exactly right!

Why not a faith that allows me to accumulate a big pile of money? I'll tell you why not, imagine you just got a check for any amount you can think of, what would you do with it? Which category did it fall into? I will buy this. I will pay off this debt. I will give it all away. Oh, but I could pick two or all three categories; no, you can't. Do you get what I am trying to tell you? Until you can open your hand, just because you want to please God, you are not going to tap into the true source of blessings: namely, a heart that is open to God.

Do you have a heart that says, "God I want to work for you, and it does not matter what I get?" You see, that is exactly the attitude we find in the workers of the third, sixth, ninth and eleventh hours. The eleventh hour, the vineyard owner goes out finds these men in the market place and said, why are you still here? Answer: we want to work. Loved ones, we have it better than most of the people in the world, we are a wealthy nation, did you ever stop and ask yourself why? Why did God so bless this country, why did God give me so much that I have to pack away half of it in boxes or why did God place me here, instead of somewhere that daily survival is a ever present question mark? Is it any wonder that we have such trouble discerning God's will for our lives when we approach God with a contract that says, "Here's my ten percent, now keep me fat and happy and please don't bother me the troubles of starving and/or persecuted people that I've never met?" How about it, do you want to work?

More coming, dear ones.

Working under contract . . . Part V

Returning from last time, and the tangent, I launched into. The workers at the beginning of the day were mad, when they received their wages, why? Because their wages were the same as the workers who started just an hour before the end of the day. Were they right to be angry? For years, and without much study, I interpreted this passage as a sort of caveat for the deals you make. I didn't quite get the full weight of what is going on, and I don't know that many do. It wasn't until recently that I came to understand this passage. And I must acknowledge Brother David Robinson who wrote the adult quarterly for the Baptist Sunday School Committee, for this reasoning. The difference between the workers at the beginning of the day and the latter parts of the day is this: the first workers to the vineyard negotiated their wages before they went to the field; everyone else went to the field on the promise of the owner of the vineyard to pay them what was right.

No one in the later groups ever ask, "What will I get for my work?" You see, there is a great difference between the first workers and the last. The eleventh hour workers wanted to work, but those at the start wanted to get paid first and foremost. I remember a story; however, I don't remember where I picked it up, but here is the way it goes. It's about two men who went to work at the same time and same job for a company, and some twenty years or so later, one was still working for an hourly wage, and the other was a vice-president in the company. The one who was working for the hourly wage asked the vice-president one day why he had advanced so far ahead of him. The vice-president told him; when we started out, you went to work for an hourly wage, and I went to work for the company. (My apologies to whomever I stole this from.)

So, tell me if this hit you the way it hit me. Do I really treat the Lord this way when I go to work for Him? But that is exactly what we do, when we say, "Lord I will serve you, but I need this (whatever this is.)" So, do you say it? Have you said it? You see, when we deal with God in this way: we're asking for a contract. I hope that you get, that the blessing come when and because we don't set conditions to our service to God. I hope that this forever does away with the nonsense, that service to God has the outcome of a better than average car and a big better than average house. Are you willing to sell that which every suffering of this life is not worthy to be compared to, for something so cheap as a car and a house? Do you really want a contract?

More to come, dear ones.

Working under contract . . . Part IV

So, we pick it up at the end of the day. The owner told his foreman to call the laborers from last to first. The eleventh hour workers get, surprise! a whole day's pay. Now we are not told what the workers from the third, sixth and ninth hours got; and frankly, I am dying to know what happened between verses nine and ten. The only clue that we have to their compensation, is the expectation of those from the beginning of the day. They thought that they would get more, why? Because they saw what everyone else was getting.

Now, tell me honestly, have you ever grown bitter in the Lord's work, because you set you expectation on what someone else was getting? I can tell you from experience (in the fullest since of the word) that it can happen more easily than you can imagine; especially, when you have it harder than you think you should, and someone else has it so easy. Let me tell you something, you don't get to pick who get blessed and when or how much: that is God's business, and He is under no obligation to share His reasons for blessing one and allowing trials to befall another. This is what you need to latch on to: He is right in whatever He does. So, it may not be easy, and it may be incredibly hard; but the wonderful thing is that God is at work, to accomplish something wonderful in you and through you. You see, the best place for you, may be right in the middle of the storm.

Now, I must confess, this is not where I thought this would end up today, but having said it, I know there is a reason. The fact is that people drop out of Christianity because they have imbibed the idea that it is a formula: I put this in, and I get this out. So when, it gets difficult, and they put in their ten percent, and it gets even harder than it was the week or month before: the cry is not for patients to have its perfect work; the cry is, take away my problems. Let's get this straight, real Christianity, often resembles someone in jail, innocent of any crime; rather than someone who has every modern convenience and won't tell people about Christ, because they are afraid someone will mock them or laugh them.

More coming, loved ones.

Working under contract . . . Part III

Now, Christ, out of love for this wealthy young man, was ready to take him on as a disciple. That was the offer. Now, I want you to get past the notion that Christ offers little in comparison to what the world offers; in fact, those who believe that either openly or privately, have it the wrong way around. What the world has to offer is literally rubbish, in comparison to what Jesus offers those who follow Him. Not a fleeting this or that, but something that lasts, that can't be taken away; do you understand what that is like, loved ones? He told the rich young man to trade what he had, for what could never be taken away. Sell what you have, you will have treasure in heaven, and then, come be My disciple.

He went away sorrowful, because he loved his possessions more than, ultimately, Christ; and dear ones, how far away are we as a culture? Jesus explained that it is with great difficulty that a rich man enters heaven. So then all the disciples were astonished that this "straight A" student turned from the Way. Seeing all of this, Peter speaks up, and says in essence, Lord we've done what you just asked that man to do; what do we get? In short, what Jesus says, is that you get to rule with me; what ever you had to set aside to follow me, you will get it back 100 fold; and you get eternal life! Oh, and there is this little wrinkle; the last will be first and the first will be last.

It is from here, that Jesus goes right into the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. The first set of workers agree to a day's wage at the beginning of the day, and off they go to the vineyard. The master of the house goes out at the third hour and finds workers standing idle in the market place, so he says, Go to the vineyard and work, and I'll give you what is right; so they went. Three more times he goes out; the sixth, ninth and the eleventh hour. Each time he says, Go to work and I'll give you what is right, and each time they go.

Since this is a terrible place to leave you, and I am short on time; I want you to think about this until next time: What would you give to the workers who hired on in the latter parts of the day, and why?

More to come, loved ones.

Working under contract . . . Part II

But what does that look like, in a world (or realm, truthfully) where everyone is in it for all they can get? I’ll tell you exactly what it looks like. Look at Mary, she took an alabaster box of perfume a broke it and poured it on Christ, as an act of worship. “Oh, a box, well that’s nice,” you say, “hmm, perfume.” The King James calls the contents of the box “very precious,” and A. T. Robertson translated the term as “exceedingly precious.” Judas, the thief, assessed the value at a year’s wage for a day laborer (courtesy, again, of A. T. Robertson); now, ask yourself, why would a first century Jewish girl have such an expensive jar of perfume as a possession?

The times when no expense was spared, were times of great joy or times of great sorrow. So you see, loved ones, she had that jar for either her marriage or her funeral. And don’t for a minute imagine that because she was the sister of a rich man, that this bottle of perfume meant little to her. In the exact same way that a ring represents the earnest of the depth feelings that a young man has for the girl he gives it to, this box was a dowry and the earnest of everything that she would give to her future husband. In short, she had, not a single possession in the world, more precious to her than this alabaster box and its contents. And she brought it to Christ, broke the seal and poured it on His head and it ran down to His feet, filling the house with its beautiful aroma.

And when the rest of the disciples closed ranks with Judas to condemn her, Jesus rebuked them and told them to leave her alone, because they had yet to understand the beauty of what she had done. Christ commended her worship, and told them all, that where ever the gospel is preached from now on, what this girl has done will be spoken of as a memorial to her. Because, dear ones, she, out of a heart full of love, poured out what was most precious to her, for Him.

To be continued . . .

Working under contract . . .

It is wonderful how God chooses to teach us new truths about His Word. The Book continually comes alive, as my friend Brother Stan Smith put it recently, “No matter how many times I come back to a passage, it is always expanding; it never gets smaller.” I am so very excited about the fact that God’s Word has expanded to me, once again, and I want to share it with you.

The back story for the parable we are going to discuss is the rich young ruler. A short summation of the story has the rich young ruler coming to Jesus and asking Him what he must do to gain eternal life. Jesus first tells him to follow the commandments; he responds that he had kept them since he was a child. Then Jesus tells him he needs one more thing to be complete; sell everything that you have and give it to the poor. Ouch! We all say. Not so fast. Mark tells us that Jesus looked on him and loved him; and it is in this context that he tells the young man what he is missing. He wasn’t trying to send him away financially injured; Christ was trying to send him away with the best that He could give him. This is not some kind of curt dismissal.

You see, most of us, and I am speaking of Christians, can barely get our mind, or more to the point our will around giving a tenth of what is “ours” to God. Now, here is Jesus telling this man that he has to give everything away; not because he wanted him to go away sorrowful, but because he wanted him to go his way filled with joy. He presented him with the opportunity of a lifetime, and indeed the same opportunity is extended down through time to you and me. Namely, to take God at His word and let Him worry about the blessings. The young man went away sorrowful, not because he could not do what Jesus said, but because he would not do what Jesus said. And if you think that you are in the clear on this, what would you do if Christ ask you to sell all that you have and give it away?

More tomorrow loved ones. . .

To truly live . . .

I like to think that by this point in my life, I'm bullet proof; I like to think it, I didn't say it was true. The fact is, that I am engaged in what Paul called "working out your own salvation with fear and trembling." Not easy, not easy at all. You see we have somehow redefined the terms that meant death, and changed them to gum drops and lollipops. Frankly, that is why people only get so far in their faith, and then check out. They are not prepared for the truth.

There was a popular song several years ago, and the lyrics of the chorus were: giving, caring, loving, sharing these are the marks of the cross. Oh, it sounds pretty, but it's nonsense. The marks of the cross are the marks of a torturous death. Being beaten, scourged and having nails driven into your hands and feet: these, dear soul, are the marks of the cross. But somehow, we interpret Christ saying, "If any man will come after me, let him take up his cross and follow me" to mean, go get a three bedroom two bath house, two cars and a fully funded retirement, and of course any trinkets that you must have along the way. Oh, and come to church on Sundays, won't you.

The indisputable fact at hand is that we are all going to die, the lost as well as the saved. The only thing left up for grabs, is how we are going to get there. That is why this country is obsessed with anything that keeps "me" from the inevitable. That is absolutely why we have such difficulty with evangelism; because, we are scared to death of what we have to offer. So, is that what we are to say? Come to this Christ, knowing that you will die? Is that enough? Yes, dear one, it is more than enough: because, we are not offering gum drops and lollipops, we are offering Christ! And only He has the words of life.

Faith that changes lives Part III

For those of you who think what I right is somehow easy to me; it most certainly is not! You see before I write or preach any of this to you, I have to wrestle with the conviction brought to bear on my own life. If you think I or any other preacher, who rightly delivers God's word, some how get to a point where it is "easy" for them to say; you have no idea what you are talking about. It is a burden that we can barely live with, and the very same burden that we can not live without. And in saying that, don't you think for a moment that I regret what I have been called to do.

But this is what I have come to understand, that I am not alive without Christ. And this is what I so desperately want to get across to you dear soul, that you are not truly alive without Him. Let's, for a moment, throw out all of the terms: I am talking about someone who truly wants to know Christ. Because, if that is Who you truly want to know: it will change your life. When you are willing to put down the "I wants" and exchange them all for, "How could this Christ love me so?" God will begin doing an amazing work in you.

What do I have to promise you for taking this path? you may ask. If I could say "nothing," it would be so much easier than what I am about to say. Death is what I have to offer for this path. I am not kidding, and I am not apologizing. If you truly want to know Christ, you'll taste the same things that He tasted. Spending, in the fullest sense of the term, your life, is what I am talking about. Pouring out your life for the good of others. By others, I don't mean a throng of people who say thank you, I love you or bless you; some might, but most won't. I mean people who don't like you, hate you or try to harm you. But the very thing that works death in us: works life in them! So, what's the upside to signing up to die: you may change some one's life for good and always.

Faith that changes lives Part II

Everyday is different, but for the Christian there is one thing that is the same: I have to decide whether I will live this day for Christ or for me. Look at this honestly for a minute, we hold on to the things that keep us from God. That is the only reason that we don't surrender our selves to God. What is wrong with what God offers to each and every one of us? Divine guidance, love that exceeds all that we ask or think, forgiveness for every wrong, encouragement and a life filled with hope, and to all that we say, "No thanks." Do you honestly believe that we can do it better on our own? No guidance, no love, no encouragement, no forgiveness and no hope; really, that's better?

But if I let Christianity get a hold of me, there's no telling what I might be doing or where I might end up. So what! you don't know those things now; you're just under the delusion that you are pulling the strings. Ask anybody if they would have ever thought five years ago they would be where they are today. They will all say, no; because, not one of them knows the future. Would you at the same time recommend to sailors, that they keep their maps rolled up tight, and throw the compass and instruments overboard and just do what seems best to them? So, tell me why is it that you can recognize that idea as ludicrous, yet still think it is the best way for you to live your life? Sailors get where they are going, because they have a map and the tools to check their progress; you are never going to get anywhere in this Christian life, if you do not read the your Bible, spend time in prayer and spend time quiet before the Father, so that you can listen to His direction.

Listen, Christian in profession only, is no Christian at all, and in fact someone who lives like a pagan, yet happily reports to all that they belong to Christ. Check me on this, but that is what got the southern kingdom exiled to Babylon; because they claimed the Name of God and refused to live as anything other than pagans. Exile doesn't sound that bad, but when you read the accounts you find that they were hauled off as slaves, and left their dead in the streets unburied. The problem is not that we have Christians with one foot in the church and the other foot in the world; the problem is that we have "Christians" with one foot in the church and the other foot in the world on Sundays, and both feet in the world the other six days.

To the degree that you find it an untenable idea, that you should run the pursuits of your life through the filter of what God wants, it is an exact expression of your distance from God and His purpose. Go back and check the Book, we were created for His pleasure, not the other way around. God can do amazing things with any one of us, but it requires that we are in fellowship with His purpose. Time is running out, and not one of us is guaranteed tomorrow, so you've only got today to get in fellowship with His purpose. So, what are you waiting for?

Faith that changes lives

I have noted over the years, that some love God with their whole being, and others seem to handle the things of God with what can only be described as a fear that they are playing with a fire that might get out of control, if it isn't "properly handled." There is a great need for professed believers to quit "properly handling" their faith, and let their faith handle them. And by saying that, I am in no way advocating checking your brain at the door, to get some holy experience.

In the same way the nonbeliever has to reconcile the fact that Christ is the Son of the only God, and that He gave His life to pay for everything they did, do and will do wrong; they have to make a decision. In light of that fact, I either have to go with Christ or go against Him, but I can not remain neutral. The problem exists for those who haven't turned their lives over to God; I have accepted Christ as my Savior, but I can not yield control of my life to Him, why? I'll tell you why: it will mean that business as usual is over.

If you think that surrendering your life to Christ means that you go into some sort of long term brain numbness, you couldn't be more wrong! Do I, then, understand everything: no I don't, in fact there are a great many things I do not understand. But what I do understand, is that my faith requires study and reading and many other things that require my intellect to be at its best. Now, in great harmony with that, there are the things God does, that I indeed, cannot understand. I must study to show my self a workman who needs not be ashamed, and at the same time I must not quench the Spirit of God when He moves in ways that I do not understand. That is where faith comes in, that is where faith changes me, that is where business as usual bows to my God and King.

More tomorrow loved ones.

Hannah

What am I in relation to God? Am I what I think of myself everyday? It is God who started it all, I am a creation of His. The only way to achieve any success in this life is to give that creation back to God. We like to hold on to things, though. I wonder sometimes, how it is that we believe we can improve on God's plan. In case you're wondering, we can't.

Hannah is an excellent example of asking God for the means to glorify Him. She wanted a child, and not for her own selfish reasons. She wanted a child, so that the child could be given back to God. Hannah becomes the perfect example of motherhood, because she gave the child to His service.

She asked, not to fill a need in her life, but she asked for the sake of God's glory. Not so she could go to the market, and everyone could say, "What a cute boy you have; you must be a wonderful mother." My point is that if anyone would ever hold on to anything; surely, it would be a mother holding on to a child. So, when you see Hannah giving this child to God: you see extraordinary faith in the God to Whom she gives him.

It would be easy to believe that she had given Samuel to God because of His blessings. Don't miss this: she gave her child to God, specifically because He hadn't blessed her in the way that was closest to her heart. You think of the tragedy this poor soul endured, why? Because God wouldn't give her what she wanted? No, dear soul. It was through those tears and heart ache, that God was building, in her heart, His purpose for this child. It wasn't the absence of His faithfulness; it was the very expression of His faithfulness! He would give her a child in just such away, that everything surrounding the birth of this longed-for child, reflected His glory. God bless you all.

P.S. There are a great many things left unsaid in this post, so I encourage you to go back and read the story from the Bible, it will be a blessing to you. For further reading I Samuel 1 and I Samuel 2.

Extraordinary Christians

What is it that transforms some souls into extraordinary Christians? I was listening to Charles Stanley recently, and he asked the question, "How did we ever get so content to know so little of Christ?" The fact is our primary suffering, even with the current recession, is bound up in affluence. The problem caused by having more than enough is not self-reliance, the problem is believing to any degree that you caused it. The thing that is killing our churches, is that the members never stop worshipping themselves long enough to start worshipping God.

I recently heard of a lady, through my pastor, who only showed up on Easter Sunday, so that she could sing a solo. There is a great problem in our country, that too many never worship away from their bathroom mirror. It is not that wrong choices are made over what give God the most glory; it is that, generally speaking, the people in the pews, don't care if God gets any glory at all. But, that's not the "try this, it'll make you feel better" preaching that I am used to. The reason I am not hocking those ideas, is because they are absolutely useless.

It is God Almighty that we serve, and don't you ever forget it! You do not come into His house on your terms. It is only when we humble ourselves (humble - to make low) that we meet with God on His terms, and you will never experience God until you are willing to do that. This is what has made the difference in the souls that we talk about hundreds after they left this life. They exalted God, and lived at his disposal; no glory for me and more glory for Christ. The only way to become an extraordinary Christian is to sacrifice your glory for His, and I promise you: you will never be sorry that you did.

Perspective

I remember when I was a young man, truthfully still a boy, about 18 or 19. I got into an argument with my father. There was a report on the news, about a murderer who had been executed. His crimes were particularly heinous, so when I saw the report, I exclaimed, "Good!" My father got on to me, and then I remember saying, "I'm glad that he's dead." He told me to in no uncertain terms to close my mouth, because I did not know what I was saying. He then explained to me that there is no cause for rejoicing at the death of an unrepentant sinner. My father was right.

"Justice has been done," that is what the President said. What the Christian should understand is this: justice has just begun. A man went out into eternity with out Christ, and he will answer for everyone of the evil deeds he committed. There is nothing that we could ever do, that would remotely compare to what the One Who can destroy the soul can do in dispensing justice. A man stands before his Maker, with nothing but evil to show for his time on earth.

Where is the cause for rejoicing? Is it in the crimes he committed that made him such a hated man? Is it in the sorrow that he caused to millions? Was it in the lives that were lost in pursuit of bringing him to justice? Can you even hear his name, without recalling the sorrow he caused us? He was a miserable murderous fiend, with nothing to show for his existence. There was no cause for joy from his life, and it is nothing but a miserable shame that we had to expend our resources to end his life.

My time or God's time?

I've known for a long time, that it is of the utmost importance to give God the very first part of your day. There is nothing that better sets you up for a successful day. I think that we have all been trained to believe that we must fit God into our lives. To many that may seem just fine, but really look at it. If we are fitting God into our lives, we are giving Him the left-overs. If you do everything else first, then God gets what is left; no way around it.

The way that we spend our time is every bit as important as the way we spend our money. We've been trained to think that our financial life is all that matters. "My time," isn't that what we call it? Does God bless a life that gives a tenth of a paycheck and nothing else? Think about this, what is a tenth of our time? Do you give God 17 hours of your time each week? What an unimaginable concept! Why? No matter how you answer, it comes down to this: if I were to do that, I would have to rearrange my whole life. Exactly!

Why are love letters so effective? Initially, it is an investment of time. The boy writes how he loves the girls eyes, her heart or that when she walks the flowers all seem to bend in her direction. It is that he takes the time, to put what is in his heart on paper. And, there is the added benefit, that she can go back and reread the letters, and remember what a sweet guy you are, when you're acting like a jerk.

Everybody understands the necessity of time when you talk about relationships with people, but why is it so hard to get the idea across when you are talking about a relationship with God? If people spent the same amount of time on their spouse as they spent on God, there is only one question: How long, before they get divorced? The problem is that most look at time with God as time lost. Let me tell you something, you only stand to gain when you give your time to God! You want the best week of your life? Give God the time that you have been keeping from Him, and see what He does with all of your time.

Dark days. . .

How do you make it through dark days? I'd like to say something brilliant here, but it is moment by moment. It is slow and agonizing: there is no quick remedy. Somebody broke your heart, unknowingly, knowingly or intentionally; doesn't matter, it still hurts. You've been waiting patiently for something; and it seems as if it just disappeared. You've trusted God, and it seems as though He has led you back to square one.

My thoughts turn to Horatio Spafford. A man who lost a great deal in the Chicago fire, and wanting to take some time away with his family, they decided to go to Europe. He was detained by business in New York, and sent his wife and daughters on ahead. Later, he received a telegram from his wife that said, "Saved alone, what shall I do?" Learning of the tragedy, he was still days away from the one he loved. When the captain slowed the ship, to show him the waters that buried his four daughters, he later wrote, "But I do not think of our dear ones there. They are safe, folded, the dear lambs, and there, before very long, shall we be too." After seeing his daughters' watery grave, he goes to his cabin and writes out of a broken heart, the most beautiful hymn, "It is well with my soul."

Dear ones, I don't mean to depress you, but dark days will fall into every life. But, listen to me, it is those deep and dark days, that add kindness to our eyes and softness to our hearts. It is one thing to bring pain on yourself through sin, but it is quite another to have done it all right and be in pain and sorrow. God is ever working in our hearts and lives, and when the storms rage, it is no different. But, if you don't love the ones who are kind to you, how do you think you will ever love the unlovable? Only through God breaking your heart and making it new. God bless you all.

. . . and all this time I thought I was a mathematician.

My dad once told me, that when I was a small boy, I used to climb into his bed in the mornings and say, "Let's talk numbers." I have one memory of it, so I must have been pretty young. He taught me math by counting his fingers, and then adding and subtracting them. My mother told me that in kindergarten, that my teacher would go and get math work from second and third grade teachers. I always liked math, and it always clicked for me; but recently, I found the results of a standardized test from 1979, which would put me in second or third grade.

I was surprised to find that my highest scores were in reading and social science. Strange, I never really liked writing, I didn't do poorly at it, I just never liked it. Reading and writing, still go hand in hand: if you don't read much, you won't write much. In fact, writing is a by-product of much reading. It wasn't until I was in seminary, writing sermons and papers, that I found something comfortable about writing. I liked the gratification that came from solving math problems, and it only took as long as it took to solve the problem. Writing is more of a process, and I just didn't know the process.

So, why this unsolicited jaunt down my memory lane? I find it incredible that the things I was most suited to then, are today, what occupy most of my time. I don't think that I am unique in this, either. It is such an awesome thing, that the Lord and Creator, put us together with His purpose in mind. I smile, as I think about seeing the same traits still active in my nieces and nephews, that were so prevalent when they were three and four. So, to bring this to a close, God put you together for a reason, and if you don't know what that reason is: Ask Him, He'll be glad to show you. God bless you all.

I have to write.

Day after day, I wonder why I do this. It takes the things that are inside of me and places them on display for the whole world to see, or at least the two or three people who read my blog; and of course the those in foreign countries that accidentally stumble upon my writings. I go through periods when I have to write, and then I go through periods when I can not write (not that the thoughts don't come, but the trials of life have taught me when to keep my mouth shut, and my pen capped, as it were.) Sometimes with ease and sometimes with great difficulty, I put my thoughts down.

It is really strange, I went through an entire English class in high school, and barely spoke the entire year; now, here I am putting much of what I think and believe at the mercy of others. I was quiet, for a while anyway.

I have long supposed, that the people who judge books by their covers make up the majority; and still suppose that they judge my blogs, by their titles. Frankly, I don't care. I write, because it is through writing, I find an outlet and an easing of the things that burden me. I hope that it is helpful, to those who read it. My desire is, that all who read it, would grow closer to the Lord. Still, I can not in good conscience write, the sugary mess that produces good feelings about lives that are lived without reference to God, and the Son Whom He gave so willingly for us. I will, however, gladly write about the God Who changes the lives of sinful men and women. God bless you all.

A life without peace.

I often wonder for many who live with no reference to God, where does your peace come from? Everyone has problems, and many times both the believer and the unbeliever have an abundance of problems. I know that even with my faith in God, sometimes, the going gets real tough. I wonder how many who don't have a relationship with God, deal with grief and loss. I do know how a few have dealt with it.

I had a friend in high school and the years following, who was not a believer. We laughed a lot, played a lot of pool, but we didn't spend much time talking about religion. My last years of high school and the years following, was a period of my life that I did not live like a Christian. My friend grew up Catholic, and when I knew him, he professed to be an atheist. We grew up, and in the mid-nineties went different directions. I eventually lost touch with him all together.

He always wanted to go to New York, never content to live in Tennessee; he described it, like it was a utopia. He always wanted something different from the way things were. He wanted a different car, some girl or some thing to make him happy. But, in all the time that I knew him, he was never really happy. He wanted a different life.

I saw his mother several months ago at a restaurant, she told me that he had committed suicide, now, about three years ago. He had gotten married, but eventually, his wife left him. It was under the weight of a failing marriage, that he took his life. His hope was gone, when his wife left. He did not have any peace or comfort for his soul. I grieved for him, in large part, because in me, he found a life that was inconsistent with what I said I believed; and I won't ever know, if I could have given him the hope that is living in me.

The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Four

So, why are the Tabernacle and the Temple relevant to believers today? I'm glad you asked. The reason that the Tabernacle and the Temple are so important, is because they give us specific insight in to the God's temple today. Wait, did they knock down the Dome of the Rock, and rebuild a the Temple, and I missed it? Not exactly, look at what Paul says in I Corinthians 3:16. The NIV put it this way, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" The believer is the temple of God, and He has made His home there. You see, the same place where, as I Chronicles 13:6 puts it, the Name is called is now in the heart of the child of God, through the person of the Holy Spirit.

Pay attention to this, when you go through the book of Acts, and you see the phrase "filled with the Holy Spirit," whether one or many, it is just like when God's glory filled the Tabernacle and the Temple. You, dear Christian, are the place where God chose for His name to dwell! The glory of the Temple dwells in you, when you are yielded to Him; so that there may be a temple of God on every street corner. Why do you think the angels rejoice over one who comes to Christ? It is, that there is one more temple that may be filled with God's glory.

That is why, when you carry the name of Christ, it is of the utmost importance that you carry His name well. It is a simple two step process: go to the Book and put in practice what the Book says. There is no room for living like a pagan; and there is no reason to call yourself Christian if you live with no regard for God's will. I will make you this promise, though, if you meet with God on His terms, He will change your life and you won't ever want to go back to the way things used to be. It all starts by yielding your life to His.

God bless you all.

The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Three

The oxen stumbled and upset the cart, Uzza reached out to keep the Ark from falling, none the less, God struck him dead. David in anger named the place Perez-uzza, literally breakthrough against Uzza. Well intentioned though he was, you have a sinful man touching the place where God is enthroned. Think about it, when God's glory filled the Tabernacle, Moses couldn't even go in; and when the priest came out of the Holy Place of the Temple, the cloud - God's glory, filled the house and ran the priests out of it. You see, sinful hands grabbed what Moses only touched under God's direction.

David was angry, and in the very next verse, he was afraid. Why? He full of zeal and completely off base on the method of his service. But, his heart was in the right place, you might say. No! It was not. Not until he was humbled by God; he then took to the Scriptures and learned how to please God. I think, as I am writing this, about all of those times that I had a heart full of zeal and a head full of nonsense. Hurt, embarrassed and just plain old fashioned shamed; but what was the end result, the same as for David, I had to learn by study of the Scriptures how to please God. That is exactly what is meant by II Timothy 2:15 when Paul tells him if he studies, he won't ever need to be ashamed.

Look, when your two-year old first scribbles a circle with one or two dots and a "u", you're overjoyed; but, when he's old enough for school and daddy's "portrait" is still a cyclops, you get concerned about the child's development. It is only in Christendom that a person comes year after year and no one is bothered by a complete lack of development. The fifty year old, who has been a member of the church for years, and can't even make it through a church service without losing his temper; and yet, everyone clears the way for him, instead of someone meeting him face to face and telling him to stop acting like a three year old. But, that's why we pay the pastor. Bologna! It is your job good Christian!

More tomorrow, loved ones.

Additional Scriptures: I Kings 8, Exodus 40 and I Chronicle 13

The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Two

The pandering that began in the late 70's, to get someone to belay their beer drinking and lawn mowing to the afternoon, so that they might come to church and marvel at their avant-garde pastor, who is more than happy for them to come to church dressed like a slob; has only a legacy of irreverence: so much so, that it has modern day pastors asking the lost what they would like to see in a church service. Since when, have the lost ever been called to counsel the servants of God on anything?! It is that same mind set that has left this latest generation wandering in ignorance about the things of God (not that I fault this latest generation.) Look, when you throw a call to personal holiness out of Christianity: all that is left is people who act like pagans and call themselves Christian.

You may think that I have gone overboard, but what I am describing is outward signs that indicate what is taking place on the inside. Let me prove my point. When a boy likes a girl; all of the sudden he cares, from out of nowhere, what he smells like, whether or not he is wearing his good jeans or if his hair looks right. Why? Because he is going to be around this girl, and he cares what she thinks of him. He wants to present himself as someone she might like to spend time around, and what he thinks is a covert message, is actually his desire to make that as easy of a decision for her as possible. So, from sweaty smelly boy to prince charming, my point: what is happening on the inside, is effecting what is happening on the outside.

I hope that you understand, that this is about the condition of the heart. There is the letter of the law, and there is the spirit of the law. All of Israel was celebrating and worshipping God with all their might, when God struck Uzza dead for touching the Ark of the Covenant. It isn't that they weren't trying to please God, by bringing the Ark to Jerusalem; but it is, that they did not first go to His Word and read and find out how to please him. They were worshipping in ignorance of what God had already commanded, and if they would have from the beginning searched the Scriptures and followed them, this tragedy would not have happened.

More tomorrow, loved ones.

The Place Where The Name Dwells

If you go all the way back to Deuteronomy 12:11, you will find that God would chose a place among the tribes of Israel for His name to dwell. If you go further back to Exodus 25:22, you will find that the place that God would meet with His people would be above the Mercy Seat from between the two cherubims. If you go even further back to when He called to Moses from the burning bush, and Moses asked, Whom shall I say sent me? The answer was the I AM sent you. Now, what all this it tending to, is the fact that there is great importance and reverence attached to the name of God; so much so that the scribes used to take a ritual bath before writing His name.

I am becoming one of the few who remembers the time when almost everything was closed on Sundays, and I am also part of the last generation to have a set of Sunday clothes. I remember as a boy that there was in practice, the wearing of one's Sunday best. I also remember the time when, in the face of waning attendance, pastors began making the concession of "we would rather have you here in cutoffs and a t-shirt than not at all." Suddenly, the guy who goes to work in a shirt and tie, shows up on Sunday in sandals and a t-shirt. But that's legalism! you say; as opposed to what? That's right, hedonism. Look, if you are waiting for me to sell you a God who is happy with whatever you decide He gets in one hour on a Sunday: it ain't going to happen!

Get this straight, if you do not learn reverence for God, you will remain a stunted and baby Christian, or truthfully nothing like Christ at all. Ask yourself on a given Sunday, "Am I going to meet with the Almighty, or am I just going to see my friends and do some singing?" Jesus told the woman at the well, that God was seeking those who worship Him in spirit and in truth. So please tell me, how is it that we can worship God in spirit and truth, and remain completely unchanged in our whole manner of conversation? How is it that we prepare to worship, and neglect to chose clothes, set aside offerings or even gas up our cars to drive to church?

Alas, time has escaped me. More tomorrow loved ones.

What it means to be called a Christian

I've been thinking a lot about the term "Christian." I once read an article that said, "if you can fog a mirror, you can be a contractor." I don't mean to cast aspersions at contractors, but that seems to be today's requirement for calling oneself a Christian. The fact is, there has been a tremendous cheapening of what it means to be called a Christian. Indeed, I think that the root of the problem stems from calling ourselves Christians. The disciples were called Christians at Antioch from outside their ranks. It is sad to say that the cause of Christ would be helped if some would stop telling people they are Christians; because, in every way, their lives deny it.

Let me lay out my position, for the sake of clarity. First off, being saved and being baptized does not automatically make you a Christian; it makes you a convert to Christianity. That is a good thing, such a good thing that the angels rejoice over it! But let me make this clear, you can be saved and baptized, and still not be a Christian. I have seen over and over again good Christians, whose children were pagans. They came forward and they were baptized, they said all the right things; but as soon as they were out of mommy and daddy's sight, their whole personality changed, and they could care less about God. Underpinning all of this, is that fact that we all eventually answer for our self, and no matter what our mouths say: our actions tell the tale.

If your life is not lived any different from a pagan, odds are really good that you are a pagan. But I'm so and so's kid: who cares, you don't get a pass based on pedigree, accomplishments or church membership. The question at hand is, do you follow Christ? You see, that is why they called the disciples in Antioch Christians; because, they were know for behaving like Christ. In fact, I don't think that it is a bad idea, to put our actions to the test and see if anyone calls us Christian. You are not going to succeed as a Christian, without attending to the things of Christ. Is He at the heart of what makes you tick?

You may call yourself Christian, but it is your actions that determine whether or not what you say is true. Some of this may be borne out of frustration; but honestly, it would be helpful to me as a minister, if people would just line up with the team that they are playing for. That may sound awful, but it is honest. I want a revival in this country, and I am, frankly, sick of trying to encourage people to try what it is they profess to believe. Here is the cold hard fact of the matter: if people went to the Book, and the Book changed people, we would see a revival in this country. Bless you all.

The Importance of Writing Letters

You probably know that in my last post, I stated the need to go to India (if not you can read about it in my last post, A new direction). I recently received an email from Brother Sankya, and he told me that is not a good time to visit, because of riots and turmoil in Hyderabad; and as a foreigner in India, he didn't think it would be safe for me. I still very much want to go, and I am also praying that the Lord will open up the opportunity: and I hope that you will pray with me. Now with all of that being said, I will move on to today's post.

We have all experienced that some days are just particularly hard, and many times in ways that aren't easily defined. Today started this way. On my better days, I get up read the Bible and pray, before I do anything else; and on days when I leave the house not having done so, I'm in for a rough ride. I could feel the pressure mounting as I made my way across town to cross things off of my to-do list. In short, I left the house without my armor on, and I was steadily paying for it. But, it all changed for me when I checked the mail.

If you have known me for a long time, you know that my strength is not sending cards and letters, in fact, it is a particular weakness. It certainly isn't, that I don't often think of loved ones far and near. It has been a failing on my part, to do something simple that people the world over have done for centuries: namely to write a letter, put it in an envelope, put a stamp on it and drop it in the box. There is a value in that simple task, that I am learning. You see, I am trying to mend my ways.

In a short time today, I was almost paralyzed by the troubles in my life; until I went to the mailbox. I found five letters in my box, and that is when my day changed. Those letters from fellow Christians refreshed my heart. I couldn't wait to read them all, and in no time my problems had greatly diminished in size. Now as to the importance of writing letters; I received those letters, because a week or two earlier I had sent letters. My point in all of this, is that we all need to encourage one another. So, if you need encouragement, take out a pen and a piece of paper, and encourage someone else.