Return to Comfort

As I read through the gospel accounts I have found it very intriguing that the one man that God would reveal the nature of His son to would also be the same man who would deny even knowing Him. There is something else for you to think about Peter lived with Jesus everyday for roughly three years, they were close friends, and he saw the miracles Jesus preformed; even with all of that when Christ died Peter ran back to what was comfortable for him…fishing.

I don’t want to seem judgmental because to some degree we all may run from God back to some things that are comfortable to us (whether good or bad). A great thing we can take away from this is that even though Peter would deny Christ because he was gripped by the fear of man, he would be allowed to follow Him again. Not only would he follow Christ he would lead become a great leader in the church, bringing about the conversion of over 3,000 men on the day of Pentecost.

To encourage you today, Paul tells us “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1 ESV) Take hope if you have been like Peter, repent of your sins and fully trust and love the Lord and He will restore you to life.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

Loving God

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.”
(John 14:15-17 ESV)

When Jesus spoke the multitudes would listen, but this time He was speaking to his disciples informing them of what was to come. He told them several important truths in these sentences. These truths can also be applied to our lives, the same way they were applied to the lives of the disciples. Christ specifically told them “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” What does it look like to keep His commandments since He came to complete/fulfill the Law? To answer that question Christ tells us, “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV)

This is not something that we can accomplish on our own or the nation of Israel would have been more successful at it. But Christ promises us a Helper who will give us the ability to accomplish many things. Only those who believe in Christ will receive this help, because it comes through God in the form of His Holy Spirit. He dwells in you and with you, so if you have God dwelling inside of you then how can you not have the power to accomplish things you set your mind to? Especially when it deals with the will of God you can do great things.

So what things can you do now that you know you are not by yourself and that if you are in Christ he is with you? What would you change to love God better? How would you put feet to the gospel, and love your neighbor as yourself? If you have some ideas feel free to share them and show the love of God with those around you.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

First Things First

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

(Matthew 6:33 ESV)

For whatever reason I have starred at this verse for about a week thinking of what to say. It’s not that there is nothing to say, but rather so many things to say, and trying to figure out what is appropriate. I am not one who wants to rush into something to have it misconstrued as a prosperity gospel, because that is not what I am about.

What does it mean to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness? Well when we look at the context, the Lord is talking with his disciples who were becoming anxious about how they will provide for themselves. And His response is pretty much seek me and live according to what you are learning from me and all of your needs will be met.

This is not always an easy thing to hear. It makes it more difficult when the way He provides for our needs is not in the manner we would like to expect it to be done. But as long as we give ourselves over completely to Christ, who would refer to himself as the kingdom of God here on earth and seek to live according to His righteous standard he will provide for our material needs. This does not mean that we will not screw up from time to time; He does not say “Follow me perfectly, and all these things will be added unto you.”

So, what are you struggling with trusting that He will provide? Are you doing as He has told you to do by seeking to live the most righteous life that you can? If so then trust that He is faithful especially when we are not, He will provide. It may not come to you in the ways you want or expect but He always keeps his promises.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

Let Your Light Shine

“No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.” (Luke 11:33 ESV)

How often do you think about the condition of your Christian walk? For some of us it may never come to mind, while for others we keep vigilant to make sure that we are doing our best. Over the last month or so I have been working with the youth in my local church and have seen some things begin to emerge. The kids that have a relationship with the Lord seem to struggle with peer pressure much more than those who don’t.

However, it’s not just limited to kids I have seen it in adults also. Depending upon the situation we are in; some of us will act completely out of character. Why is that? The best answer I have been able to come up with is our fear of man. We all want to be accepted by others, to feel included in the crowd because it’s lonely on your own.

The Lord tells us that once we have a light we don’t hide it. So we should make a decisive stand to let our light shine no matter the situation. Because if there is something we are not comfortable we should voice that opinion. The Book of Proverbs is full of warnings about those we hang out with and our dealings with other people. We should have a higher standard for our lives and those around us.

Let the Holy Spirit shine through you and make the difference in your life so that others may see you and know that you have been with Christ. What good can you do in the darkness of others lives if you are diminishing the light you have in your own.

Pray and ask the Lord to reveal to you where you are hiding your light, and to give you the wisdom and courage to let it shine brightly for Him. It will not always be easy to take a stand and be the light in the darkness, but it was not easy for Christ to go to the cross and take the punishment for your sin! Which one would you rather do?

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

The Need of Fellowship

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24-25 ESV)

There are some things in life that are just easier done with the help of others. Life as a whole is usually easier when you have others around to do life with. As a Christian my life as a whole should be representative of what I believe. Even though I am a Christian there are times in my life when I grapple with very deep depression. If I did not have others around me or in my life to care and pray for me, my seasons of depression could be a lot longer.

The writer of Hebrews gives us three good reasons for us to maintain some form of Christian fellowship. The first two come together in a set; we should stir each other up to love and good works. What does this look like? Well this can look different in all of our lives, love and good works can seem to almost always go hand in hand. If there is something you can think to do for someone else that you have to ability to do than do it. Don’t just wait to be asked take the initiative and get it done, by doing that you show that love the other person.

Paul in 1 Corinthians 12 describes us as the body of Christ and each member has its place and function, allowing each person to be used. But if you are an eye, there are things you won’t be able to accomplish on your own. The author of Hebrews also tells us not to forsake gathering together but to encourage one another. Take a moment and thank about that, if you are not keeping some form of fellowship then how are you staying encouraged in the Lord?

I personally am part of a men’s Bible study and can tell the difference on the weeks when I am unable to attend. But, these brothers will keep in contact by giving a call, text or email to check up on how I am doing and vice versa. If you have not been able to find a church home, at least try to find a small Bible study or if you have to start your own. If you are not able to use your gifts to help the body they will fatigue and your growth will be hindered. If that happens you may never live up to the fullest potential the Lord has in store for you.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

Discipline and Reproof

“My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.” (Proverbs 3:11-12 ESV)

So this morning I was having a difficult time with my oldest son and his behavior toward everyone in the house. And during that time I had to discipline him as an attempt to get him to behave. And lately whenever he is disciplined he responds with “You hate me!, or You don’t love me!” And for the longest time I have been telling him the reason we discipline him is because we care about him. We sat down and looked at what the Bible had to tell us about God’s discipline.

Through our study we read a little bit more than half a dozen verses on discipline and a constant theme repeated itself throughout the study, discipline dealing with love. While my son is only seven years old we read these verses and discussed what each of them had to say. After reviewing God’s word I told him again and pointed out that even though he cannot see it when daddy messes up God disciplines me also.

One passage that seemed to be insightful for him was in Hebrews, “For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:10-11 ESV) While the discipline of the Lord may not include a physical touch (though sometimes it may) he gets our attention and makes us realize that we have done something wrong through conviction of the Holy Spirit. He may also keep good things from us that we assumed we were going to receive, because we have done something we should not have. This does not mean that we pay for our own sins because that is what Christ has done for us on the cross. It does mean however that we live in a physical dimension that is governed by laws (like inertia, gravity, & etc) that were created by God.

Remember that because one Israelite did not do as was told to the people the whole nation lost what should have been and easy battle against Ai. He will correct you either by conviction or by some other means, it is not fun but we grow in righteousness.

I thank the Lord for the time this morning to show my son God’s love for the both of us through discipline. May you grow in the knowledge and favor of Jesus, and not despise his discipline.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

Unexpected Turns

Generally when I write I base my thoughts off of a specific verse or set of verses. Not this time it is just a general observation of things I have seen God doing in my life lately. August will make ten years that I have been walking with the Lord, and six months after this journey started I began to have visions and dreams of me becoming a preacher. They continued for about a year and grew more intense. Over the years I have always thought that I was to a lead pastor or in a prominent position in front of the masses out of the gate.

However, over the last month or so I have become more involved in my local congregations’ youth program and have even applied to be the assistant youth pastor there. Since volunteering with the youth I have began to see the potential of ministering to the next generation, while growing in grace and knowledge of the Lord myself. The biggest reason that this is interesting is because I thought that I would NEVER be a youth pastor and as of lately I feel that this is a place that the Lord is calling me to.

This is not the first time the Lord has put me in a place that I never imagined. For anyone who knows me and my background, I was a ghetto boy. I grow up in a rather tough neighborhood, where we didn’t think about hunting deer or going fishing much if at all. With that being said about two years ago the Lord put me in a place where I was attending a Bible study with a group of outdoorsmen. The only common denominators we shared were we were men and loved Jesus. Despite the apparent lack of similarity we have been able to build friendships and I have grown to love hunting, because it allows me a quite time with God in his creation. I have grown in a place that I thought I never belonged, because I trusted Jesus and didn’t allow my own prejudice get in the way.

I write all of this to say that you may not be seeing the doors you want to open presenting themselves, but look and see what the Lord has provided for you. Once you stop putting your own agenda in the way and allow Him to guide your steps you will find more peace and joy than you could imagine. I hope to continue to be used of Jesus where ever he sees fit and I thank Him for every turn that I never would have taken without Him. Take time today and reflect on the places you have been arguing with God telling Him that you can’t do that, and realize He will bless you in the places you are fighting so hard not to go. Trust God that He has the best in store for you.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!