Challenges

   

 How do you respond to challenges you face? Some people say you can tell a lot about a person based on this one act. I know for me it depends on the challenge. Is it something mental or physical? Is it something I have been able to train for does it appear out of the blue? These are factors I have to take into consideration. But what about challenges mad against your character, how does one respond to that type of attack? I say we take our cue from our Chief shepherd. He was brought before the chief priest at the time and said nothing as  a sheep being lead to slaughter. Is is going to be easy to sit back and let someone attack your character? NO it’s not! But do it anyway. 

     I say that because the Lord will vindicate you there are several different places in the Bible in the Psalms especially where writers like David are crying out because people are coming after him. Take Psalm 3 as an example. David is being chased by his own son Absalom. David says in Psalm 3:4, that he cried out and God heard. In this Psalm David is resting in the Lord, not on his own ability to take care of any given circumstance. Why should you be any different, I know I’m not. I want to rely on God more like David did. Do I? No, not as often as I would like. I tend to take things into my own hands and seek God when the going gets too tough. When I should have started by seeking God and seen how much smoother things would have turned out. 

     There is a situation right now I thought was going to work out one way and I did seek the Lord over it, and it looks as though it may not work out; or it is going to work out in a way I never imagined. That doesn’t make it any less difficult to deal with because if it doesn’t work out I will have to do some scrambling to find  another class to fill its place. And find the money for those books. So I am being stretched in my faith right now. But like I have been saying all I can do is rely upon God to take care of the situation. He is opening doors that I hadn’t even thought of a month or two ago. 

So what challenges are you facing, that you need to trust God to intervene for?

Something for the Last Sunday of Advent

   

 Okay so here it is the Last Sunday of Advent and i hadn’t dedicated any post to the coming of our Lord and Savior. To some people that may not be a big deal, but in our house we enjoy using our advent calendar. Actually my oldest son who wakes up before anyone rushes into the living room to be the one to move the mouse. This calendar is something we use to countdown to Christmas, but why are we really excited to count to the day our Lord was supposedly born? Or are we just excited because we are going to be getting stuff? I think for most of us if we are honest it is the second option. I have done a post before about Christ’s birth and his death. 

     Why is this important? Because it gives us something to celebrate with the giving of gifts. NO THAT IS NOT THE REASON. The reason it is important is because it is to be a reminder of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. While I know that this is the season to celebrate his birth I feel we should take a closer look at his death. I know someone is going to say it’s not Easter why is this guy worried about his death? I want to talk about his death because that was the reason he was born. Christ was born to die for our sins. That was his sole mission here on Earth. While he did many great things during his time on the planet the greatest thing he did was die and rise again so that we would never have to fully taste death. Even though we imagine this sweet baby wrapped in swaddling cloths, I want you to never forget the blood stained cross. That is the greatest gift that anyone could give. Jesus said "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13 That my friends is the best reason for this season. 

     Don’t get me wrong I love the holiday season and the spirit that it brings with it. But I think we can give the gospel to people and see them changed for more than six weeks out of the year. We can see effectual life change. We could not have had the cross without the manger, we could not have the resurrection without the birth. As I once heard Pastor Ruffin Alphin say, “Christ is the only man who ever got to choose to die.” That quote has stuck with me for close to eight years. 

Tweet: We could not have had the cross without the manger, we could not have the resurrection without the birth.

Do you have any special things you do for Advent? Do you agree or disagree with this post?

New Endeavors

     

This is season of my life where I am trying something new. I have joined a writing program called Tribe Writers. It is something I hope will be a good benefit for me and also for you my readers. It is helping me to find my voice in how I write. I am not sure if you guys like having the more personal side of me, or if you prefer the deeper theological side of me. I know for me it is easier to create the content that is personal with a small mix of the theological. I love to hear from you guys as to what are you looking for and how I can help you find that. While I plan on continue writing how I am, I want to try my best do do things that interest you.

     Speaking of new endeavors I have recently gotten into the world of Twitter, and I am hoping to reach 100 followers sooner than later. If I can do that I plan on having a book give-away. By now you may be asking yourself why do I care about all of this? And that is understandable. I hope you care because at some point you were blessed by a piece I have written and I want you to continue to be blessed. I am not the first person to do any of this. It is good to try new things in life because you never know what you will actually succeed at. I am finding out who I truly am and finding what makes my voice unique. If you would like to let me know what you think about my previous works I am all ears.

     Just remember I am not the only person to ever do something different the prophet Elisha was a farmer before he became a prophet. Jesus was a carpenter. Paul was  a tent maker. David was a shepherd. These are just a few examples of men in the Bible who entered into new endeavors from what they ended up becoming. So this is a step on my journey. Yes, I am still planning on becoming a pastor, but that doesn’t mean I cannot write on the side. I have several friends who are already pastors who do some form of writing along with their main job. Who knows maybe this will be the ministry the Lord chooses to use for me to bless the world. I can only hope that you will stick with me on this journey. It is going to be a fun ride (I hope). I cannot guarantee that I will not have some missteps along the way, but I’m going to enjoy the trip. Because it’s not just about the final destination its about the trip along the way. 

What is a new journey in life you are starting on? What impact are you anticipating on having?

Running Away!

   

I have to admit that I can be rather obsessive about numbers. Like how many followers I have on Twitter, or how many page views did the blog have today. That is not necessarily a good thing, because when I allow those things to rule my life it becomes a god thing. I personally do not want any other gods in my life other than my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Isn’t it easy though to allow functional saviors to enter lives? I know for me it can be, I cannot speak for anyone else. One thing I do know is that it can be destructive to our lives, because they can become all consuming. Where do you run if you are not running to the Lord? My guess is you are running to your functional savior, whether that is drinking, smoking (of either sort), writing, or even family. Yes I said it family can become a functional savior in our lives that will keep us from turning to God when we need to the most. 

     It is easy to try and discount that we are not running away from God, when in reality we are. You know I can think of one story in the Bible in particular when someone should have done what God wanted to do but instead he ran away. Can you think of who I am speaking about…? Times up! I am speaking about Jonah. God had given Jonah a plan of action that he wanted him to take and Jonah thinking that he was wiser than God proceeded to run away to the land of Tarshish (his functional savior). If you don’t know the story let me give you a brief synopsis. God tells Jonah that he wants him to go to he land of Ninevah to preach to the people there and Jonah decides he doesn’t want to do that. He boards a boat head to Tarshish. Along the way a great storm arose and the men on board the ship were afraid and began throwing their cargo overboard, until Jonah said that it was his fault. Then he has the men throw him overboard and the storm calms. While in the water Jonah is swallowed by a giant fish. And lives in its belly for 3 days. After that he is spit up on the the shore and goes and does what he should have initially done. 

     All of that to say when the Lord is our savior we should trust him and run to him, not away from him. He does not have plans to hurt us. While somethings may be unpleasant for us they are ultimately for our good.(Romans 8:28). So please if you feel the Lord pulling you in a particular direction do not run from him and make things harder on yourself go where he is leading it will be a blessing to you and those you are called to. I know there were times in my life I wanted to run away and not follow, it wasn’t until I got on the correct path that things started making sense. I would always run from my calling saying I couldn’t find a school to go to and earn my degree, then the Lord showed me an online school Liberty University which is where I completed my Bachelor’s in Religion and am now working on my Master’s of Divinity.

What do you need to stop running from?

Everything is Not Meant to Last Forever!

   

At least that is what my wife keeps telling me. I was telling her how I was afraid to turn off a 20 year old ceiling fan because it may no want to turn back on. And her response was “It is not supposed to last forever.” But something inside of me wanted to cry out thats not right. Things should last forever, so we don’t ‘have to keep re-buying the same things over and over again. I cannot say much this fan has been in our house for almost 20 years. But this conversation brought to mind something else for me and that was the resurrection of believers. You may be asking yourself how did we go from a fan dying to the resurrection of Christians. It’s simple actually, one of those things dies never to be reborn while the other dies once to live and never die again. 

     I hope you know which is which. It is only through the blood bought promise of Jesus Christ that we get the option to live forever in heaven with all three persons of the God-head. How easy is it to want to try and run away from the inevitable. I know for me there are certain things that I just don’t want to admit to and things coming to the natural end of their usefulness is one of them. However that is not the case for Christians. We do not run out of usefulness, we will be like the creatures covered in eyes, and others around the throne of God signing “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God almighty.” (Rev 4:8) Something that should give us as Christians comfort is knowing that though we will die in our bodily forms we will go on to live forever with God in the forms of new bodies or heavenly bodies. Christ in talking with Martha breaks it down to her that we may die only to live forever. (John 11:25-26) Find some peace in that and allow it to bring comfort to your soul. That everyone you love who is a Christian has been given the same promise. This does not mean that I have it all together and know everything there is to know about the resurrection. I do know that Bible says that there will be one in due time. That sir/madame is enough for me. 

What do you think should we be excited that we are going to live forever? Or is it scary to think about? 

P.S. Don't forget we are having a book giveaway when we reach 100 followed on Twitter. So go and follow to stay up to date with our posts. 

Life is hard, but God is good, 

Preach

Don't Despise the Small Things!

   

The title of todays post comes from what was  gleaned from a church service on 12-14-14. That was the biggest take-away I got. Don't despise the small things, because they can turn into great things. One thing that comes to mind are two of the biggest computer companies in the world, Microsoft and Apple. They both started out small, but with a vision. And they didn't let anything get in the way of that vision. Because they new the potential that their product had. This is a lesson I am begging to learn. While I do not have a huge following right now, I believe I will one day as long as I continue to produce material people can use. 

     My hope for this post is to encourage you, maybe even challenge you! What do you have inside of you that you are about to let die because you are upset with your meager beginnings? When I first started this blog I was happy when I had 10 visitors a day. Now I am averaging around 140 a day. Which for me is great. Do I think we can do more yes, I DO! But, I know it depends on the plans the Lord has for me and this ministry of writing he has given me. Another reason not to despise small beginnings is because that is exactly how our Lord and Savior started out. He was not born in some fancy mansion in Jerusalem no he was born in a manger  in Bethlehem. He would go on to live a normal life until the time his ministry started. He was not drawing big crowds at first either. It wasn't' until people started to take notice of what he was able to do that he grew a following. The biggest problem with Jesus following is they were always in it with the whats in it for me category. Which is okay some of the time, we have to be willing to give back. Sometimes it is the smallest gestures that make the largest impact. Looking ahead there are things we learn from Christ interactions with the disciples. 

     Christ tells the disciples a parable about the mustard seed being the smallest of seeds, yet when it is planted becomes the largest of all garden plants.(Mark 4:30-32) While Jesus was referencing the kingdom of God in this parable we can take a lot away from it.  There is another reference to a mustard seed I like for our context just a little bit more. Jesus is speaking to the disciples and tells them that if they have faith the size of a mustard seed  they can move mountains.(Matt 17:20) It lets me know that I can start out small in anything and still have potential to become more. I don't know about you but I long to do big things for the kingdom of God. While my faith may be small, God says its all I need. It will grow over time as I exercise it.So for my faithful readers I am VERY appreciative of you and say THANK YOU for all of your support. If you have been blessed by this or another post would leave me a comment letting me know. It is just one small gesture to help me to continue trying to be a blessing to you all. 

Life is hard, but God is good!

Preach

What are you exercising faith in to see it grow? What is your small thing?

Let's Talk About…

     Let's talk about the Bible for a little bit, shall we. The Bible is an awesome book, it is inspiring, it is helpful and most of all it is the inspired Word of God. That last fact alone should make you excited, especially if you are a Christian. Now I know we all have our preferred versions of the Bible(for me it's the ESV). Yours could be the KJV even though I wouldn't recommend it to anyone personally. That is for another  post. What I do want you to think about is your Bible and how often you are reading it. Not only how often you are reading it, but for how long and how much of it? 

Now lets not become legalist here and say that every person should be reading their Bible for at least a half an hour each day, reading from mall the genres of the Bible. I do not recall anywhere in Scripture where that is commanded. What I do know is David speaking to God says I have hidden your word in my heart (Ps 119:11 NIV). Now how can one hide something in their heart when they don't spend anytime with it. Take marriage for an example, a married couple cannot do well if all they do is live together, then they are nothing more than roommates. We have to take the time to speak with our spouses so we can know their hearts and how to love them well. God is no different in that respect. We cannot know about God if we are not spending time with him in prayer and reading his word. Prayer is our communication with God, while the Bible is God communicating with us. I don't mean to sound like God cannot use what ever means he chooses to speak to us, trust me I always remember Numbers 22 when the donkey speaks to Balaam.

     

     Why do you think some people become so dogmatic or legalist about Bible reading. I would recommend the habit of reading it everyday even if it is just one chapter a day. You will get through the entire Bible in just about 3 years(give or take a few months). Again nowhere is it written that you have to read the Bible in a year! If that is something you are interested in there are several different programs out there for reading the Bible in a year, they even have Bibles specifically designed just for that goal. My suggestion is to go about it at a pace that is comfortable for you. I personally love the NT and generally read it more than the OT. But of late I have been reading bits from different portions of the Bible. Just as and example I am reading from 1KIngs, Psalms, Micah, and Revelation. I generally read one chapter from each book, except for the Psalms I may read several depending on how i feel at the time. This will usually take me anywhere from 15-30 minutes to read. There are several things you can do to develop a good habit of daily Bible reading. 

1. Pick a certain time each day to read. 
2. Have a certain spot you like to read.
3. Set a plan for what you are going to read.
4. Decide how long/much you are going to read. 

Like our post from yesterday said, consistency is key to anything. If you want to become good at something you have to work at it. The same goes for Bible study, make a plan and try and stick with it. If you miss a day don't beat yourself up about it just pick back up from where you left off and keep going! 

What things would you suggest for making Bible study easier to keep up with?

Take Time to Relax

How often do you just sit down and take the time to relax maybe even take a nap? I would suggest that you try and do it everyday or at least several times a week. .Just don't go to long with out taking the time to relax. Michael Hyatt has a blogpost about taking daily naps and its benefits. Relaxing doesn’t have to always be a nap, it can be anything that allows you to de-stress. For me I enjoy engraving glass using a Dremel. For you it may be something else. Whatever it may be make time for it, because it will make you a happier person. I have found personally when I am able to do my hobby and work with my hands my mind does not have to focus so hard I can just deflate some. It allows me the time to stop worrying about deadlines, family issues or anything else that maybe weighing me down. 

I know I normally have some scriptural support in my post. I just felt lead to write this one to help offer some encouragement for those of you who work too hard and stress yourselves out. The Lord used prayer as a way of him getting away to be alone. But he also enjoyed eating at peoples houses. There are multiple times we see him eating at someone’s home, take for example when he is at Martha and Mary’s home, or when he was with the twelve in the upper room. 

It is my hope that if you do not have something you can do to relax that you will find something. You need somewhere you can go to clear your head and just be alone with you, God and your thoughts. 

     How can you be fully effective in life if you are constantly stressed out? You can’t be, so invest in yourself. For the sake of your health and all those you love find something that you can do that will refresh you mentally and physically. I not only engrave glass, but I also hunt deer. There is something about sitting out in God’s creation and taking in all that he has made. These are just a few examples of things I do that help me to unwind and find solace. If you would like to have a more detailed view from Scripture about the importance of rest check out this post by my friend Dave Jenkins. 

What are some things you can do to relax? What hobby do you use to find solace?

photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/danielfoster/14438991011/">danielfoster437

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What's In a Name?

 Have you ever stopped to think about what is in a name? It is more than just a group of letters put together to make a certain collection of sounds. It tells people who you are. When people hear your name they make certain assumptions about you from either what they have heard or from personally knowing you. Did you know that when you come to Christ all that changes?

We first see God changing the name of one who has encountered him in the instance of Jacob becoming Israel (Gen 35:10). We also have several accounts in the NT where people had contact with Jesus and they were no longer called by the same name that they previously were. For instance we have Simon called Peter, and Saul was changed to Paul. We are able to accept these new names because we have been given a new nature.(2 Cor 5:17) This does not mean we will not struggle with things of the flesh, but what it does mean is we don’t have to let it win. In the book of Romans, Paul recounts the thoughts of him battling against sin and losing but it was no longer him desiring to do it but the sin that dwelled within him.(Rom 7:15-20). When we look at Peter he was originally a fisherman, but Christ told him to follow him and he would become a fisher of men!(Mark 1:17)


The same has rang true in my life as well. In high school I went by the nickname of Casper. I was the only white guy in the group of black people. However, since coming to know Christ I have ditched that name in exchange for either my given name or Preach. Because like Paul and Peter I have a new nature in side of me and I no longer do the things I used to do. I have gone from being a thug to going to seminary to preach God’s Word. God can do the same thing for you as he has done for tons of people.

Will you accept what Christ wants to do for you? Will you allow him to change you and give you a new name?

Observations From My Daily Bible Reading

Today as I was reading my Bible somethings jumped right out to me that I had not noticed in previous readings on these passages of Scripture. What I noticed is that the Bible is violent, not grotesquely violent getting into too many bloody details, but it still says "he went out struck him down and he died" 1Kings 2:46. This is not the first person whom Solomon had commanded to be killed in that chapter. We (the Christian community) say we don't condone violence when it is hard to deny that it is a fact of life. Just look at the Bible, it is not just some story book we should read to our kids to teach them good morals. NO it is a history book, telling us the things of old as they happened. I know I let my boys play some questionable video games, but I have made sure that they understand that what they are playing is make believe and when a person dies in real life there is no second chance, no coming back from the dead to try over again.

     I think it is funny that we will want to condemn some people for watching shows with violence when the book that we base our lives on is filled with it. Take the book of Judges as an example there is a story of a man being so fat when he was stabbed in the stomach it swallowed the sword, Judges 3:12-23. This is just one example that takes place is goes on to say that 10,000 men died in battle. These are just some things I noticed while reading the Bible today.

What observations have you made lately during your time reading Scripture?

Expository Or Experiential Preaching

In your thread, relate what you have learned about the importance of person and spiritual-preparedness in your own preaching ministry. Also explain the balance between academic, expository preparation versus solely spirit-let (or experientially-led) preparation.

            So what is the difference between expository and experiential preaching, they sound similar?  To the untrained person they would not automatically recognize the difference.  Even a trained person for that matter may still have some difficulty recognizing the difference is the latter is done well.  To be an expositor of God’s Word means that you rely on the text and what it meant to the original audience while making it applicable to todays society. An experiential preacher is one who claims to be Spirit lead and does not do very much study of the original setting and focuses the majority of the time on what the Bible does for the person, without using Scripture to fully support their stance.

            As for my preaching I am first an expositor and then an experiential preacher. I believe that in order to have a proper sermon it must be based off of the Word of God, and nothing else. That does not mean we do not use other things for emphasis, but our basis is Scripture. A good example from my life comes from delivering the same sermon to two different groups about a month ago, the first time it was to a small group of guys and I had not prayed as much over the sermon as I should have and did not feel the presence of the Lord during my delivery and relied solely on my manuscript. Fast forward about a week or two and I delivered the same message to a congregation and was “prayed up”. During that delivery I felt the Lord using me and he gave me some illustrations and things I had not thought of or used in my previous delivery. I am willing to bet that the congregation was better fed than the small group of men. Not to say that the Lord could not use my message. Charles Spurgeon says, “Feed the people always with knowledge and understanding, and let your preaching be solid, containing food for the hungry, healing for the sick, and light for those who sit in darkness.”  (An All Around Ministry, Chapter 6)There is less of a chance we can properly be solid if we don’t try and understand the work done prior by the author.

            I think that there is room for both forms of preaching in the preacher and should be used as a compliment to one another. Meyer says, “There are many kinds of preaching, and his the wise and successful man who knows how to very them.”(Meyer, Expository Preaching 25). In my humble opinion we should do the foot work of study saturated in prayer and trusting the Lord to give us the words that need to be heard by the audience. He can use your written words while giving you things to say during your time in the pulpit that we should be open to receiving. I believe that expositors have the chance to be more faithful to Scripture.

Living with Pain- My Perspective

            Pain is not something new to the follower of Yahweh. It is not how God originally intended for life to be, but due to the fall of man in Genesis 3 pain has become a part of life. God promised Eve that she would experience pain during childbirth Gen 3:16. In 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 Paul tells of a thorn that was given to him to help keep him from getting conceited. This should give us as believers some comfort that in our weakness God is getting the glory for the strength we do have. It is not of ourselves. I know suffering from fibromyalgia has changed my life and my perspective on life. And that is what things boil down to is perspective. Paul choose to see his strength lying in his weakness, and coming directly from God.

            I like Paul realize that it is no longer my own strength that things get accomplished, but through the power of Christ I am able to handle most anything. I remember what it was like to be completely healthy and do whatever I wanted; I would be remised to say I don’t miss it. However, due to my current circumstances I have grown closer and more in tune to the Holy Spirit. I can only hope to maintain the attitude of Job (Job 1:21). God gives and he takes away, but blessed be the name of the Lord. It is never easy trying to live in constant pain or dealing with the inability to concentrate going through what is called fibro-fog. Job was a special man he lost everything except for his wife, and she wanted him to curse God and die. Job 2:9. Job not only lost his lively hood, his kids, his home, he ended up losing his health to the point that he was covered in boils. Leaving him not only in a depressed state but in constant pain. Even with all that he trusted God.

            While chronic pain has taken much away from me, it has also given me something I would never have gained without it, a stronger confidence in God. There are some in the Fibro community who will disagree with me, and that is okay.  I believe it has allowed me to trust that God has a plan for my life beyond what I can comprehend, there is a Christian rapper named Trip Lee that I really connect with because he suffers from a similar condition known as CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). I mention him because he not only raps but wants to be a pastor (which is what I am studying to become). Because with Fibromyalgia comes a very heavy fatigue some days. I have met the man in person and he is very down to earth and loves Jesus very much. On another note back to my point God is working something together for my good, I have a life verse I hold on to dearly it is Romans 8:28.

            So all of this to say, don’t allow the circumstances of life to dictate how you view life. Remember it is all about perspective, you can choose to view the glass as half empty or half full. It is my hope that you will see it as full and running over because of the work Christ has done on our behalf. Romans 5:8, 1 Peter 2:23-25.

-Preach

The Great Physician

“And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 36:26 ESV)

In lieu of things I have going on with me, my mind has had me thinking of all the different doctors I have come across in my life; the good ones and the bad ones. There was one doctor who I had that got mad at me because he felt I was being rude to his staff, had the audacity to cuss at me and call me things no professional should ever call a client. He has to be to worst doctor I have ever had. I have had several pretty descent doctors but don’t recall ever having one doctor I would call extraordinary.

The only person that has ever come close to meeting that criterion is Jesus Christ himself. God promised to make a difference in my life that no doctor ever could. The lifestyle I chose to live before surrendering my life to Jesus was not one to be proud of. I was living for myself, and the things that were pleasing to me. I was cold, callus and at times downright ruthless. Some people might even say that I was hard hearted. I was a fully fledged alcoholic; I made potheads look tame with the amount of marijuana I smoked. I was also a drug dealer and a thief, all while putting on the front of being mister nice guy.

But that was my before. Since giving my life to Jesus for Him to use me as he sees fit I have been clean and sober for almost ten years in August. The spirit that lived inside of me wanting to please myself and doing what my conscience told me was right has been replaced by His Spirit dwelling in me guiding the decisions that I make. I am no longer cold and heartless, try to be loving and gentle to those around me. The times in my life where I have extreme boldness are when preaching the gospel of my Lord Jesus Christ. I hope that after someone meets me they speak of me as Peter and John were spoken of in Acts. “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13 ESV)

Have you ever encountered the Great Physician? If you have not take a moment to seek Jesus ask Him to reveal himself to you and he will. He will do it in ways that you could never imagine. However, be careful because once you meet Jesus there is no going back or denying that you have met Him. Life will not be easy should you choose to follow Him, but it will always be worth it for the glory of Him, who “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV) Today get right with God through Jesus Christ.

Live Long, Pray Hard, Die Well!

Gospel of Mark study part 1

The audio is a little low I promise to try and have this corrected by the next installment. I hope you are blessed and encouraged by what you receive from this video.