So in today's culture, we like to be busy. We naturally create schedules that have us all over the place all the time. American culture is such a fast-paced culture. We have microwaves, fast-food restaurants, quick dieting plans, etc. We are all about being fast. Patience is not commonplace in the world today.
Well I, live many people my age, am not much different. I am a college student with a part-time job and Church commitments. I have places to be, people to see, and things to do. And being active can be a good thing...but being too busy is not. And I was succeeding very well at being much too busy.
So God, in His sovereignty, made me slow down. How? Well what is the obvious thing I need in order to fullfill my busy schedule? A car to get me all these places.
And so God has taken my car away for a little while. He did it in the perfect time, I have access to my mom's car to get to school and I may end up using it as my delivery vehicle, but losing MY car really hit home.
God never ceased to be a part of my life. As many of you know, I have been keeping up with a Book of Romans study on Facebook and have been actively praying and keeping God around in my schedule. But He was no longer the main part of it. College, work, and church had become the three giants of my schedule and God was the thing I used to fill in the cracks. And no, church and God aren't always the same thing.
Anyway, losing my car has forced me to slow down. My busy schedule is now rocked a bit and I have a bit more time on my hands than before. To do what? Study extra? No...to get back where I need to be spiritually. I have a stack of biblical books that I need to get into again...I have a prayer life that needs sparking again. I have priorities to change and that can never be done while I'm "busy".
So God fixed it! It may cost me several hundred dollars in the end, but it could have been much, much worse. And through it, I am learning a lesson. God comes first, everything else second. He is more important than my education and my work. Does that mean I neglect those things? No. But it does mean those things do not come before me spending time with Him. He is the main thing. And I lost focus on that when I got too busy. But God has fixed my schedule now and I have plenty of time to get this right.
Even in the midst of what seems to be a bad situation, God is good. And He is looking out for me. But I can only see that when I slow down and look at a big picture...with Him at the center. :-)
Friday, October 29, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
A God of Size
So this week I started an 8 week long Math course. Because we have fewer weeks to meet, we fly through the material faster and there is more homework...Math is not my strong point. So extra Math work on top of my normal classes and work schedule has made this week...interesting. This week, I really needed a break and a re-focusing, so I pulled out a DVD copy of Louie Giglio's sermon called "How Great Is Our God." Yes, the sermon title is based off of Chris Tomlin's worship song. :-)
Anyway, I popped the DVD in and sat down and just watched in absolute awe as Louie shared some astronomy with his audience and showed images of different planets and stars. Truly, by the end of the sermon...I felt very small.
Let me give you just a few examples Mr. Giglio used in his sermon to express God's greatness: the sun is 93 million miles away from the earth. The SUN!!!! The star that we can best see and is most involved with life here on earth is 93 MILLION MILES away?!?!?!?! Wow!!!!!
But it gets better! If the earth were the size of a golf ball, the sun would be 15 feet in diameter! That would mean we could 960,000 earths in the sun (enough to fill a school bus)! And guess what? The sun is pretty darn small compared to a lot of the stars out there.
What's the biggest star out there? Canis Majoris. If the earth were a golf ball, Canis Majoris is the size of Mt. Everest! There would be enough earths to fit inside Canis Majoris to cover the entire state of Texas 22 inches deep! This star is HUGE!!!!!
Psalm 33:6 says "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth." Can you imagine our God in heaven breathing out a star like Canis Majoris? Science tells us that there are hundreds of billions of stars out there...Cani Majoris is the biggest one we have found SO FAR. I'm sure there are even bigger stars out there. And God created them. We are specks on a golf ball that is barely seen in our own solar system which is just a dot on the canvas of the universe. And yet sometimes we want to act like everything revolves around us. In truth, NOTHING revolves around us.
You and I are very, very, very, small in the grand scheme of creation. We like to forget that God created outside of our little box called Earth. We are not the focus on His creation. We are ants in our own little ant hills surrounded by miles and miles of forest. We are not the focus.
But God Almighty is a God of size! He holds the universe in His hand! A universe that we haven't even come close to exploring all of. I'd guess we have only seen about 2% of the whole universe.
And yet we spend a lot of our time when we pray telling God what He should do, we councel Him, suggest to Him, argue with Him, we try to reason with the God of creation. How arrogant are we that we diss such a great God?
He is not a God that needed help when He fashioned the stars and the planets. When He wove the fabric of time together and spoke light into existence, we were not there. So why then, do we sometimes act like we know what's best for us? He is the universe-maker and mankind's Savior. Does He need our help? Does He need us at all?
I think not. Our God is a great God, and He is without need of help or guidance. He is holy in all He does and everything He creates, He creates perfectly. Let's think twice before we question the judgement of the One who created the universe that we dwell in.
Let's give Him the praise and glory that He so rightly deserves.
Anyway, I popped the DVD in and sat down and just watched in absolute awe as Louie shared some astronomy with his audience and showed images of different planets and stars. Truly, by the end of the sermon...I felt very small.
Let me give you just a few examples Mr. Giglio used in his sermon to express God's greatness: the sun is 93 million miles away from the earth. The SUN!!!! The star that we can best see and is most involved with life here on earth is 93 MILLION MILES away?!?!?!?! Wow!!!!!
But it gets better! If the earth were the size of a golf ball, the sun would be 15 feet in diameter! That would mean we could 960,000 earths in the sun (enough to fill a school bus)! And guess what? The sun is pretty darn small compared to a lot of the stars out there.
What's the biggest star out there? Canis Majoris. If the earth were a golf ball, Canis Majoris is the size of Mt. Everest! There would be enough earths to fit inside Canis Majoris to cover the entire state of Texas 22 inches deep! This star is HUGE!!!!!
Psalm 33:6 says "By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth." Can you imagine our God in heaven breathing out a star like Canis Majoris? Science tells us that there are hundreds of billions of stars out there...Cani Majoris is the biggest one we have found SO FAR. I'm sure there are even bigger stars out there. And God created them. We are specks on a golf ball that is barely seen in our own solar system which is just a dot on the canvas of the universe. And yet sometimes we want to act like everything revolves around us. In truth, NOTHING revolves around us.
You and I are very, very, very, small in the grand scheme of creation. We like to forget that God created outside of our little box called Earth. We are not the focus on His creation. We are ants in our own little ant hills surrounded by miles and miles of forest. We are not the focus.
But God Almighty is a God of size! He holds the universe in His hand! A universe that we haven't even come close to exploring all of. I'd guess we have only seen about 2% of the whole universe.
And yet we spend a lot of our time when we pray telling God what He should do, we councel Him, suggest to Him, argue with Him, we try to reason with the God of creation. How arrogant are we that we diss such a great God?
He is not a God that needed help when He fashioned the stars and the planets. When He wove the fabric of time together and spoke light into existence, we were not there. So why then, do we sometimes act like we know what's best for us? He is the universe-maker and mankind's Savior. Does He need our help? Does He need us at all?
I think not. Our God is a great God, and He is without need of help or guidance. He is holy in all He does and everything He creates, He creates perfectly. Let's think twice before we question the judgement of the One who created the universe that we dwell in.
Let's give Him the praise and glory that He so rightly deserves.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The Concept of Truth
So I have been having several short discussions with people over the past few days revolving around God and His existence. I have interacted with athiests and pluralistic people before, but it seems that more than usual have been showing up in my social circles over the past few days.
So what exactly is truth? Is it something that we create and define or is it beyond us? Is truth something that we can ever really know or is something that we can guess about and hope to get close?
From what I have heard and seen from the people around me...and from my college Ethics class, truth is not attainable. Truth is transcedent and we have no idea what real truth is. We can only guess and hope we're right. But truth itself is elusive and different people see a different angle. What is true for you may not be true for me. And that is okay. In the end, we'll all end up in the same place anyway and live happily ever after.
Really?!?!? The culture we live in today defies anything that supports the idea of absolutism. Did you know that there are philosophers out there today who question whether or not you and I exist? They believe that all of life may be one big illusion and that nothing is as it seems. Nothing is real. The chair that they sit on as they contemplate life may not be real...it may just be their imagination.
Did you know that there are those who know God exist and refuse to acknowledge Him anyway? The Book of Romans talks about that...for more on that, check out my Facebook Note on Romans 1.
But seriously guys, we live in a day and age where I can't even be sure of my own breathing! Humanity has tried to quench the concept of absolutism to the point where they believe that anything is possible...thus believing nothing. That is not how I will live.
God is real. He exists and operates in the universe whether you and I give Him permission to do so or not. Simple as that. Our beliefs do not dictate reality. And yet we try to assume some sort of god attitude when examining life around us and we assume we got it all figured out without God ever entering the picture.
You see, we were really created by a chemical reaction that exploding out of nothingness and formed a simple-celled organism that evolved over millions and millions of years into a complex and intelligent human being that can reason and use logic. And now we are the masterminds of the universe who have mastered the art of creating and think that one day, we will know all that there is to know and nothing will be hidden from us. We rule our own fate and nothing can rule over us because we are a great people.....yeah.......not. Yet that is the filthy lie that people today sell.
Well one, explain to me how we were created out of nothingness if there was nothing there to start with? Have you ever tried to create something? Maybe a picture or a sculpture....well try drawing a picture without paper and pencil. Just stand there and wrinkle your nose and concentrate on a picture until it explodes out of nothingness....absurd, right? Well that is exactly the mindset of evolution!
Next, people who continue to deny God try to explain that this absurd evolution idea is only possible because the earth is millions and millions of years old. If the earth was only a few thousand years old, then this evolution idea of theirs wouldn't work...so they make Earth older to accommodate their theory. Doesn't matter that they use circular reasoning when trying to explain how they measure the earth's age and they really have no idea...
Then once they got all that out of the way, they have succeeded in "explaining" life without God around. But now something has to sustain it. Nature does! Nature is just so awesome that it can take care of itself apparently. We just don't understand how it does everything it does, so we study nature and how science works in order to create loop holes around the obvious fact that an intelligent Creator was responsible for what we see.
And then they have the boldness and pride to say that one day, we will understand all there is to know about Science. That the things we can't explain right now will be explained in time. One day, they will have an answer for how the millions of stars were placed into space and how all the hundreds of galaxies fit together into the universe which is ever expanding. They will have an answer for it all...and a divine Being will not be it.
How arrogant are we today? God, who created all of existence with nothing more than His voice, is ignored, discredited, and insulted by our pretending to comprehend truth without Him in it.
The problem is, truth does not exist outside of God. He is truth. All that He says is true and His every character trait is character in its truest form. God is absolute truth. You cannot understand how the universe operates without getting to know the God that made it.
Whether you like it or not. God does not stoop to our feeble will. He does not recognize any man-made authority. He is the God of the heavens and we are but ants underneath Him. He chooses to love us despite ourselves, but that doesn't mean we have any real voice when it comes to nature and when it comes to reality. We can choose to side with the truth that God is who He says He is, or we can continue to rebel against it. End of story. :-)
So what exactly is truth? Is it something that we create and define or is it beyond us? Is truth something that we can ever really know or is something that we can guess about and hope to get close?
From what I have heard and seen from the people around me...and from my college Ethics class, truth is not attainable. Truth is transcedent and we have no idea what real truth is. We can only guess and hope we're right. But truth itself is elusive and different people see a different angle. What is true for you may not be true for me. And that is okay. In the end, we'll all end up in the same place anyway and live happily ever after.
Really?!?!? The culture we live in today defies anything that supports the idea of absolutism. Did you know that there are philosophers out there today who question whether or not you and I exist? They believe that all of life may be one big illusion and that nothing is as it seems. Nothing is real. The chair that they sit on as they contemplate life may not be real...it may just be their imagination.
Did you know that there are those who know God exist and refuse to acknowledge Him anyway? The Book of Romans talks about that...for more on that, check out my Facebook Note on Romans 1.
But seriously guys, we live in a day and age where I can't even be sure of my own breathing! Humanity has tried to quench the concept of absolutism to the point where they believe that anything is possible...thus believing nothing. That is not how I will live.
God is real. He exists and operates in the universe whether you and I give Him permission to do so or not. Simple as that. Our beliefs do not dictate reality. And yet we try to assume some sort of god attitude when examining life around us and we assume we got it all figured out without God ever entering the picture.
You see, we were really created by a chemical reaction that exploding out of nothingness and formed a simple-celled organism that evolved over millions and millions of years into a complex and intelligent human being that can reason and use logic. And now we are the masterminds of the universe who have mastered the art of creating and think that one day, we will know all that there is to know and nothing will be hidden from us. We rule our own fate and nothing can rule over us because we are a great people.....yeah.......not. Yet that is the filthy lie that people today sell.
Well one, explain to me how we were created out of nothingness if there was nothing there to start with? Have you ever tried to create something? Maybe a picture or a sculpture....well try drawing a picture without paper and pencil. Just stand there and wrinkle your nose and concentrate on a picture until it explodes out of nothingness....absurd, right? Well that is exactly the mindset of evolution!
Next, people who continue to deny God try to explain that this absurd evolution idea is only possible because the earth is millions and millions of years old. If the earth was only a few thousand years old, then this evolution idea of theirs wouldn't work...so they make Earth older to accommodate their theory. Doesn't matter that they use circular reasoning when trying to explain how they measure the earth's age and they really have no idea...
Then once they got all that out of the way, they have succeeded in "explaining" life without God around. But now something has to sustain it. Nature does! Nature is just so awesome that it can take care of itself apparently. We just don't understand how it does everything it does, so we study nature and how science works in order to create loop holes around the obvious fact that an intelligent Creator was responsible for what we see.
And then they have the boldness and pride to say that one day, we will understand all there is to know about Science. That the things we can't explain right now will be explained in time. One day, they will have an answer for how the millions of stars were placed into space and how all the hundreds of galaxies fit together into the universe which is ever expanding. They will have an answer for it all...and a divine Being will not be it.
How arrogant are we today? God, who created all of existence with nothing more than His voice, is ignored, discredited, and insulted by our pretending to comprehend truth without Him in it.
The problem is, truth does not exist outside of God. He is truth. All that He says is true and His every character trait is character in its truest form. God is absolute truth. You cannot understand how the universe operates without getting to know the God that made it.
Whether you like it or not. God does not stoop to our feeble will. He does not recognize any man-made authority. He is the God of the heavens and we are but ants underneath Him. He chooses to love us despite ourselves, but that doesn't mean we have any real voice when it comes to nature and when it comes to reality. We can choose to side with the truth that God is who He says He is, or we can continue to rebel against it. End of story. :-)
Saturday, October 16, 2010
To Save A Life
So I just had the wonderful privilege of being given the homework of having to watch and review a movie called "To Save A Life". Some of you may have heard about it.
The movie, rated PG-13 for some real elements that teens these days go through, was a fantastic portrayal of a transformed life. The whole point of the movie was to wake up the Christians to look around and see all the hurting people and DO SOMETHING.
In the movie, the main character's former best friend committed suicide. The main character had allowed other people and things to pull him away from his friend and leave him alone to be bullied and rediculed. In the end, the poor boy felt cornered and saw the barrel of a gun as his last way out.
You and I are social creatures. We naturally gravitate towards others and instinctively desire fellowship. Best friends are some of the greatest blessings in the world and that is because we are created to influence and be around others.
You are not on this earth for you. And once you have allowed Jesus Christ lordship over your life, you're really not even there because He needs you either. If your life as a Christian was just between you and God, then wouldn't it make sense for Him to sweep away into heaven the moment you enter into a relationship with Him? But no, we remain on Earth. To do what? To connect with and impact people.
What people are you impacting? What people do you pass every single day who are hurting and may be one step away from taking their life? I think the better question would be: who are you neglecting? That is probably a much bigger list.
We do not do the saving when it comes to sharing Jesus with others. God does that work Himself. But you and I are the arm that He uses to reach out to hurting people. We are the hand of God. He operates through His people. Are you allowing yourself to be used by God to help others? Or are you a handicapped part of the Body of Christ? Are you not functioning as He has designed you to?
I felt a strong convinction as I watched this movie to really examine my life and the people that I see every day. Have I grown comfortable with seeing the look of depression and pain on certain people's faces? Have I settled with the sight of the same homeless people on the same intersections at the same time of every day? Have I grown used to seeing that poor woman sitting outside the same gas station with tear-stained cheeks and hopeless eyes? What am I doing here if not to help such people?
This life is not about you and me. If you disagree, tough. Its time all of us woke up to the pain and suffering that we live with. Your neighbors are hurting, your co-workers are suicidal. They may not be at work tomorrow. Your family members are lost and are on their way to eternal fire. Your friend may be a cutter. That quiet kid you pass at school every day hates life and is planning to end his own soon...and maybe a few others as well.
These are examples of people that you and I look over so easily and so willingly! Will you and I not stop for a moment to notice and love these people? Simply inviting them to sit with you at lunch could save their life. But you have to step out of the normal and be useable to God.
When you wake up tomorrow, there is someone you will come in contact with who needs you to notice them. Someone whose life may depend on it. Will you stand by silently as they draw closer to destruction? They need the love of God and who will give it to them but the children of God?
Being a Christian is more than a label. It is a lifestyle. Let's live it. Show love to someone. Show God's heart to a hurting or needy person. If you are failing to see those around you who need your attention, stop wasting space on this earth. Let's all get in and help. Life is not about us.
The movie, rated PG-13 for some real elements that teens these days go through, was a fantastic portrayal of a transformed life. The whole point of the movie was to wake up the Christians to look around and see all the hurting people and DO SOMETHING.
In the movie, the main character's former best friend committed suicide. The main character had allowed other people and things to pull him away from his friend and leave him alone to be bullied and rediculed. In the end, the poor boy felt cornered and saw the barrel of a gun as his last way out.
You and I are social creatures. We naturally gravitate towards others and instinctively desire fellowship. Best friends are some of the greatest blessings in the world and that is because we are created to influence and be around others.
You are not on this earth for you. And once you have allowed Jesus Christ lordship over your life, you're really not even there because He needs you either. If your life as a Christian was just between you and God, then wouldn't it make sense for Him to sweep away into heaven the moment you enter into a relationship with Him? But no, we remain on Earth. To do what? To connect with and impact people.
What people are you impacting? What people do you pass every single day who are hurting and may be one step away from taking their life? I think the better question would be: who are you neglecting? That is probably a much bigger list.
We do not do the saving when it comes to sharing Jesus with others. God does that work Himself. But you and I are the arm that He uses to reach out to hurting people. We are the hand of God. He operates through His people. Are you allowing yourself to be used by God to help others? Or are you a handicapped part of the Body of Christ? Are you not functioning as He has designed you to?
I felt a strong convinction as I watched this movie to really examine my life and the people that I see every day. Have I grown comfortable with seeing the look of depression and pain on certain people's faces? Have I settled with the sight of the same homeless people on the same intersections at the same time of every day? Have I grown used to seeing that poor woman sitting outside the same gas station with tear-stained cheeks and hopeless eyes? What am I doing here if not to help such people?
This life is not about you and me. If you disagree, tough. Its time all of us woke up to the pain and suffering that we live with. Your neighbors are hurting, your co-workers are suicidal. They may not be at work tomorrow. Your family members are lost and are on their way to eternal fire. Your friend may be a cutter. That quiet kid you pass at school every day hates life and is planning to end his own soon...and maybe a few others as well.
These are examples of people that you and I look over so easily and so willingly! Will you and I not stop for a moment to notice and love these people? Simply inviting them to sit with you at lunch could save their life. But you have to step out of the normal and be useable to God.
When you wake up tomorrow, there is someone you will come in contact with who needs you to notice them. Someone whose life may depend on it. Will you stand by silently as they draw closer to destruction? They need the love of God and who will give it to them but the children of God?
Being a Christian is more than a label. It is a lifestyle. Let's live it. Show love to someone. Show God's heart to a hurting or needy person. If you are failing to see those around you who need your attention, stop wasting space on this earth. Let's all get in and help. Life is not about us.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Image and Lifestyle
So...it seems lately that God has been giving me many big lessons as I go throughout my day and I come home and share them with you and how they apply spiritually. Whether it is being robbed, having traffic slowed because of a triathlon, or just being hungry, God has been fueling me with lessons that I feel a strong call to share. Today is no different.
I was running low on gas in my car, so on my way home from work, I pulled into a gas station and filled up. Well on the sidewalk next to the gas station, there was a man standing with a sign that said "Help Me Feed Starving Families". Well I had $5 bucks on me, so I walked over and gave it to him. He was very thankful and we exchanged smiles and then I returned to my car and pulled out. I was wearing a Christian Tshirt and had Casting Crowns playing in my car...I had the whole Christian look going on.
Well as I passed him on the street corner, I was so concerned with making sure I waved to him, made eye contact and left a good Christian impression on him......that I ran the stoplight. Badly.
Thank God that I was not run over, though I ticked a few drivers off. I was so concerned with giving that one man a good image of me and of Christians that I become unfocused on the things that really mattered and ended up damaging my Christian image rather than helping it.
It was my intent to help this man's cause and while doing it, show him that Christians can be generous. Instead, I left that man with an image that Christians are reckless drivers. In this case, it would have been better to keep the $5 bucks and maintain my reputation rather than give up the money and dampen the Christian image.
I was concerned with image and it should have cost me. By God's grace, it did not. At that intersection and as red as that light was, I could have easily been killed had a car hit me. By His mercy, I only angered a few drivers because of my mistake. In my focusing on helping my image, my actions were not properly focused and I played a very dangerous game.
When we as Christians become more concerned with how people see us that we neglect to keep our eyes on the road, we too, play a very dangerous game. And in many cases, our attempt to help our image usually does nothing more than bring it lower.
It is not the image that matters. It is the lifestyle that presents the image. Me giving money to what I believed to be a good cause was not wrong. Me driving away focused on showing the man that I was a generous, caring guy was. And it could have cost me much, much more than embarrassment.
When you and I walk around with Christian Tshirts, we present an image. But too many times we get obsessed with that. If I want people to know I'm a Christian, I should wear a Christian Tshirt, put on a Christian armband, and wear a cross necklace, right? False!!!!
It is not our image that leaves a lasting impact. It is the life that we lead. I could wear all the Christian clothing and be a huge jerk; or I could be wearing rags and have a bright smile and respect for those around me. The first example, I have the image of a decent Christian. But my lifestyle speaks differently. The second example, I have the image of a homeless or very poor person, and yet my lifestyle reflects something greater. Which would people remember? The rags or the smile? The Tshirt or the rude thing you said? Many times they remember both and then you best hope your clothes match your words and actions.
Today mine did not match and God taught me something through that. Image is NOT everything. Being genuine and leading an honest lifestyle IS everything. So just as God has challenged me, I challenge you.
If you did not walk around wearing a Christian Tshirt or did not have your religous view posted on your Facebook, would people know you're a Christian? We like to set up a nice Christian image and make that our witness. And that is so incorrect. It is the way we live and the choices we make that matter. Join me today in re-focusing on lifestyle and leave your concerns with your image behind. There are more important things in life that worrying about how people see you. Instead, let's focus in on how to best serve the Lord...His opinion is the one that matters. :-)
I was running low on gas in my car, so on my way home from work, I pulled into a gas station and filled up. Well on the sidewalk next to the gas station, there was a man standing with a sign that said "Help Me Feed Starving Families". Well I had $5 bucks on me, so I walked over and gave it to him. He was very thankful and we exchanged smiles and then I returned to my car and pulled out. I was wearing a Christian Tshirt and had Casting Crowns playing in my car...I had the whole Christian look going on.
Well as I passed him on the street corner, I was so concerned with making sure I waved to him, made eye contact and left a good Christian impression on him......that I ran the stoplight. Badly.
Thank God that I was not run over, though I ticked a few drivers off. I was so concerned with giving that one man a good image of me and of Christians that I become unfocused on the things that really mattered and ended up damaging my Christian image rather than helping it.
It was my intent to help this man's cause and while doing it, show him that Christians can be generous. Instead, I left that man with an image that Christians are reckless drivers. In this case, it would have been better to keep the $5 bucks and maintain my reputation rather than give up the money and dampen the Christian image.
I was concerned with image and it should have cost me. By God's grace, it did not. At that intersection and as red as that light was, I could have easily been killed had a car hit me. By His mercy, I only angered a few drivers because of my mistake. In my focusing on helping my image, my actions were not properly focused and I played a very dangerous game.
When we as Christians become more concerned with how people see us that we neglect to keep our eyes on the road, we too, play a very dangerous game. And in many cases, our attempt to help our image usually does nothing more than bring it lower.
It is not the image that matters. It is the lifestyle that presents the image. Me giving money to what I believed to be a good cause was not wrong. Me driving away focused on showing the man that I was a generous, caring guy was. And it could have cost me much, much more than embarrassment.
When you and I walk around with Christian Tshirts, we present an image. But too many times we get obsessed with that. If I want people to know I'm a Christian, I should wear a Christian Tshirt, put on a Christian armband, and wear a cross necklace, right? False!!!!
It is not our image that leaves a lasting impact. It is the life that we lead. I could wear all the Christian clothing and be a huge jerk; or I could be wearing rags and have a bright smile and respect for those around me. The first example, I have the image of a decent Christian. But my lifestyle speaks differently. The second example, I have the image of a homeless or very poor person, and yet my lifestyle reflects something greater. Which would people remember? The rags or the smile? The Tshirt or the rude thing you said? Many times they remember both and then you best hope your clothes match your words and actions.
Today mine did not match and God taught me something through that. Image is NOT everything. Being genuine and leading an honest lifestyle IS everything. So just as God has challenged me, I challenge you.
If you did not walk around wearing a Christian Tshirt or did not have your religous view posted on your Facebook, would people know you're a Christian? We like to set up a nice Christian image and make that our witness. And that is so incorrect. It is the way we live and the choices we make that matter. Join me today in re-focusing on lifestyle and leave your concerns with your image behind. There are more important things in life that worrying about how people see you. Instead, let's focus in on how to best serve the Lord...His opinion is the one that matters. :-)
Saturday, October 9, 2010
The Race
So as I was driving to Panama City today, going about 60 MPH and making great time, the road suddenly cut down to one lane and police had the 2nd lane cut off. Well this drastically increased traffic as everyone in the right lane had to suddenly merge into the left lane. So we went from 60 MPH to about 10. Why did the police have the entire right lane blocked off?
Well turns out, Destin was having a triathlon today. And cyclists were pulling out of a side street onto the main highway and so they got their own lane. Well the course kept them on the main highway for about 5 miles, so I got plenty of time to observe them as traffic slowly crept forward.
What I noticed, is that all of them were tired at this point, but they were handling it differently. I noticed some of the cylists slowed down as they tired. Others pushed harder and sped up. Others still settled into a mindless pattern of movement in an attempt to conserve energy. I never saw the end of the race, but I got a good look at several racers.
How do you and I race? When we feel like the finish line isn't even in sight yet and we are so tired? Do we slow down, do we push harder, or do we pull ourselves out mentally and just go through the motions and hope we finish?
The book of Hebrews tell us to "run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith..." The Christian lifestyle is a race. It will test our endurance and our patience. Being a Christian is not a walk in the park. If anyone tells you otherwise, they are selling something.
So the question is not ARE you running the race...it is HOW are you running? When things get rough, do you persevere and set your focus on Christ, or do you shut down any and all emotion and just try to ram through your problems? Or do you not handle stress well and whenever life hits you, you curl up into a ball on the inside and make being a Christian a hollow thing with no real meaning?
As I observed these racers, I saw in them a determination. They were all tired. And yet every one of them was huffing and weezing and driving forward with all the strength they possessed. They were not all there to get 1st place. They were there simply to finish the race and not one of them was ready to quit. Does this mindset reflect you?
Are you a contender in the race? Are you out to finish the race? Entering into a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus is not the end of the race. It is the beginning. There is much striving and running to be done. How are you faring?
I encourage you today, my brothers and sisters, to examine yourselves. How are you racing? Determine to finish. Focus on the author and perfecter of faith. Only He can keep you going. :-)
Well turns out, Destin was having a triathlon today. And cyclists were pulling out of a side street onto the main highway and so they got their own lane. Well the course kept them on the main highway for about 5 miles, so I got plenty of time to observe them as traffic slowly crept forward.
What I noticed, is that all of them were tired at this point, but they were handling it differently. I noticed some of the cylists slowed down as they tired. Others pushed harder and sped up. Others still settled into a mindless pattern of movement in an attempt to conserve energy. I never saw the end of the race, but I got a good look at several racers.
How do you and I race? When we feel like the finish line isn't even in sight yet and we are so tired? Do we slow down, do we push harder, or do we pull ourselves out mentally and just go through the motions and hope we finish?
The book of Hebrews tell us to "run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith..." The Christian lifestyle is a race. It will test our endurance and our patience. Being a Christian is not a walk in the park. If anyone tells you otherwise, they are selling something.
So the question is not ARE you running the race...it is HOW are you running? When things get rough, do you persevere and set your focus on Christ, or do you shut down any and all emotion and just try to ram through your problems? Or do you not handle stress well and whenever life hits you, you curl up into a ball on the inside and make being a Christian a hollow thing with no real meaning?
As I observed these racers, I saw in them a determination. They were all tired. And yet every one of them was huffing and weezing and driving forward with all the strength they possessed. They were not all there to get 1st place. They were there simply to finish the race and not one of them was ready to quit. Does this mindset reflect you?
Are you a contender in the race? Are you out to finish the race? Entering into a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus is not the end of the race. It is the beginning. There is much striving and running to be done. How are you faring?
I encourage you today, my brothers and sisters, to examine yourselves. How are you racing? Determine to finish. Focus on the author and perfecter of faith. Only He can keep you going. :-)
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Hungry
So its about 11:00pm as I write this and I am starving. I haven't had much to eat today and only had two pieces of pizza yesterday. I am running low on energy here. I am hungry.
What does it mean to be hungry? When you hunger and your stomach is growling, is it easy to focus on the task at hand? Do you ever try to do something very important on an empty stomach, or do you go eat before you take that big test so you're not distracted? Most of us recognize hunger as an obstacle to working. It is a sign that we are low on fuel and we need to "juice up" before going any further. Just like you shouldn't go do something that's a big deal while you're hungry, you shouldn't drive a car that has no gas in it. Why? Because you may end up harming the car in the long run.
Our spiritual lives are the same. We cannot live our Christian lives running on empty. We can't go day-by-day starving. God has a plan and purpose for every one of us and we can't, nor should we try to, fulfill that purpose when we're starved.
Christianity is not an obligation. It is a lifestyle. It is a 180 degree turn from who we were before. And such a lifestyle doesn't work if your trying to drive around without gas.
So just as I am starving now, many of us are starving spiritually. So STOP YOUR WORK. Jonathan Edwards, the famous preacher once said "No one but God can do the work of God." We are not a necessary part of this puzzle! God invites us to tag along and experience the blessing of seeing Him work...and if we are too distracted by our rumbling stomachs, how can we notice the blessings?
My friends, feed yourselves. Do not live the Christian life like some hollow obligation that you get nothing out of. If you show up on Church just to check something off on your list that week and you're not interested in growing, don't show up! Christians should not be starved people! We should be constantly filling ourselves in the glory of the Lord! And when we start to get hungry, we know its time to fill up on His Spirit.
Do not run this race on your own power. Do not work on an empty stomach. So next time you feel hungry or your stomach growls, stop for a moment and think about what you are doing with your spiritual hunger. Are you suppressing it and running on empty? Or do you stop what you are doing and fill back up? Get into His Word, play some worship Music, fellowship with trusted Christian friends. Satisfy that hunger and bask in His glory. Only then, should you get back to work.
My challenge for tonight...are you hungry? What are you doing about it?
What does it mean to be hungry? When you hunger and your stomach is growling, is it easy to focus on the task at hand? Do you ever try to do something very important on an empty stomach, or do you go eat before you take that big test so you're not distracted? Most of us recognize hunger as an obstacle to working. It is a sign that we are low on fuel and we need to "juice up" before going any further. Just like you shouldn't go do something that's a big deal while you're hungry, you shouldn't drive a car that has no gas in it. Why? Because you may end up harming the car in the long run.
Our spiritual lives are the same. We cannot live our Christian lives running on empty. We can't go day-by-day starving. God has a plan and purpose for every one of us and we can't, nor should we try to, fulfill that purpose when we're starved.
Christianity is not an obligation. It is a lifestyle. It is a 180 degree turn from who we were before. And such a lifestyle doesn't work if your trying to drive around without gas.
So just as I am starving now, many of us are starving spiritually. So STOP YOUR WORK. Jonathan Edwards, the famous preacher once said "No one but God can do the work of God." We are not a necessary part of this puzzle! God invites us to tag along and experience the blessing of seeing Him work...and if we are too distracted by our rumbling stomachs, how can we notice the blessings?
My friends, feed yourselves. Do not live the Christian life like some hollow obligation that you get nothing out of. If you show up on Church just to check something off on your list that week and you're not interested in growing, don't show up! Christians should not be starved people! We should be constantly filling ourselves in the glory of the Lord! And when we start to get hungry, we know its time to fill up on His Spirit.
Do not run this race on your own power. Do not work on an empty stomach. So next time you feel hungry or your stomach growls, stop for a moment and think about what you are doing with your spiritual hunger. Are you suppressing it and running on empty? Or do you stop what you are doing and fill back up? Get into His Word, play some worship Music, fellowship with trusted Christian friends. Satisfy that hunger and bask in His glory. Only then, should you get back to work.
My challenge for tonight...are you hungry? What are you doing about it?
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
To Be Robbed
It is amazing the lessons to be learned out of life. The Lord reveals so much about who He is and how we can live for him through some of the craziest situations in life. Well to be brief, I was robbed at a local gas station this morning. I was pickpocketed by a guy as he was leaving the store and I was standing in line. He bumped me "on accident" as he left. I ended up finding him and chasing him down until he dropped my wallet and kept going. He took $20. Considering I had my credit card, military ID, Driver's License, and many prized gift cards (;-P), I consider it a blessing that just cash was taken.
At first, I was furious. I wanted to keep chasing him and see how much effort it would take to remove his arms from his torso...or how fast a man's neck can snap. I went into instant "guy" mode and was ready to tear the man apart because my privacy had been violated. That which I thought was secure, was taken. I was embarrassed and angry.
Luckily, the man got away and I am typing this in my room instead of a jail cell for attempted murder. Few friends in my life have seen me really blow up. This was one of those instances. And as much as I appreciated the $20...it was my entire tip from work last night...I realized that the thing that made me furious was that what I thought was secure, was proven to not be so. I was made a fool of. And this got me thinking about my relationship with Christ.
Friends, many of us have the perception that God uses us by taking and stealing our rights, our privacy, our dreams, our lifestyles...I could keep going. We see God as a needy being who doesn't appreciate us, but only wants us to appreciate Him. And in order to appreciate Him the way He desires, we have to give up anything and everything so we won't be distracted in our total appreciation of Him. We see God as a robber. He holds our happiness prisoner and demands a ransom to get it back. And that ransom is our whole life. Many of us treat our walk with God in this way. That God is a taker, and what He does give, He only gives in order to receive something later on. Our view of God is one of inconsideration and selfishness. I challenge you to evaluate yourself and see if this is not how you think sometimes.
But the Lord does not rob. He doesn't take. He doesn't violate our rights and our privacy as the man at the gas station did to me. He does not force Himself in any way. Simple way to put it is, He is the Maker of the world and we are the created. We have no real understanding of how life works. Anything we have managed to figure out, God knew from the beginning. And what we don't know, He has always known. And what we will never understand, He understands well. He holds the key to all the answers we need. We are created with a need for Him and only He can fill that need.
It is not that He forces Himself into our lives as much as we must have Him in order to understand our lives. What He gives, He gives because He loves us, not because He expects us to reward Him with service. When He offered up Jesus on a roman cross, I do not remember anyone agreeing to sign a contract first to ensure that we would follow God afterwards to ensure that Christ's death wouldn't be wasted. No, out of love alone, God killed His Son for the sake of mankind. We did not deserve His time or His thoughts...we are like ants to Him. How many of us would die for the ant species? We exist just fine without them and we don't really care about them all that much. God could have chosen the same, yet in incredible love and grace, He gave up the greatest thing He had: Jesus.
God is not a robber. What we entrust to Him, He secures and it CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM HIM. That includes our salvation, that includes our prayer life, that includes our service. He does not demand ransom money to keep us enslaved to His will. No, He has offered us the chance to be with Him forever and desires that we accept His offer and conduct ourselves in such a way to make His offer appealing to those who have yet to accept it.
Do you see now? God does not take. He asks us to offer up the mess of a life we have so that He can make it beautiful and make it right. We offer Him filthy rags and He creates a colorful garment out of it. Why? Does God need a garment? Does God need us? No. Again, God doesn't need anything we have to offer. So when He asks for us to yield to Him and surrender our lives to Him, He is not robbing us. Friends, He is saving us. From the sin pit that we are so good at falling in. Without Him, we can do nothing of worth or value. And He knows that. And so He offers us a chance to link our lives with Him so that we may live fullfilled lives. As Jesus said, "I come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). Tell me, where is the robbery in that statement?
So I encourage you to open your eyes as He has opened mine. Trust Him. He does not steal from us. We have nothing worth taking! Rather, recognize that He is the God of all and He desires to step into your life and make it right because you and I messed it up. We are like dirty children and all God wants to do is give us a bath. Clean us up and make things right. Do not deny Him that. Accept His offer and let Him work in all the areas of your life...He will not take advantage of you.
At first, I was furious. I wanted to keep chasing him and see how much effort it would take to remove his arms from his torso...or how fast a man's neck can snap. I went into instant "guy" mode and was ready to tear the man apart because my privacy had been violated. That which I thought was secure, was taken. I was embarrassed and angry.
Luckily, the man got away and I am typing this in my room instead of a jail cell for attempted murder. Few friends in my life have seen me really blow up. This was one of those instances. And as much as I appreciated the $20...it was my entire tip from work last night...I realized that the thing that made me furious was that what I thought was secure, was proven to not be so. I was made a fool of. And this got me thinking about my relationship with Christ.
Friends, many of us have the perception that God uses us by taking and stealing our rights, our privacy, our dreams, our lifestyles...I could keep going. We see God as a needy being who doesn't appreciate us, but only wants us to appreciate Him. And in order to appreciate Him the way He desires, we have to give up anything and everything so we won't be distracted in our total appreciation of Him. We see God as a robber. He holds our happiness prisoner and demands a ransom to get it back. And that ransom is our whole life. Many of us treat our walk with God in this way. That God is a taker, and what He does give, He only gives in order to receive something later on. Our view of God is one of inconsideration and selfishness. I challenge you to evaluate yourself and see if this is not how you think sometimes.
But the Lord does not rob. He doesn't take. He doesn't violate our rights and our privacy as the man at the gas station did to me. He does not force Himself in any way. Simple way to put it is, He is the Maker of the world and we are the created. We have no real understanding of how life works. Anything we have managed to figure out, God knew from the beginning. And what we don't know, He has always known. And what we will never understand, He understands well. He holds the key to all the answers we need. We are created with a need for Him and only He can fill that need.
It is not that He forces Himself into our lives as much as we must have Him in order to understand our lives. What He gives, He gives because He loves us, not because He expects us to reward Him with service. When He offered up Jesus on a roman cross, I do not remember anyone agreeing to sign a contract first to ensure that we would follow God afterwards to ensure that Christ's death wouldn't be wasted. No, out of love alone, God killed His Son for the sake of mankind. We did not deserve His time or His thoughts...we are like ants to Him. How many of us would die for the ant species? We exist just fine without them and we don't really care about them all that much. God could have chosen the same, yet in incredible love and grace, He gave up the greatest thing He had: Jesus.
God is not a robber. What we entrust to Him, He secures and it CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM HIM. That includes our salvation, that includes our prayer life, that includes our service. He does not demand ransom money to keep us enslaved to His will. No, He has offered us the chance to be with Him forever and desires that we accept His offer and conduct ourselves in such a way to make His offer appealing to those who have yet to accept it.
Do you see now? God does not take. He asks us to offer up the mess of a life we have so that He can make it beautiful and make it right. We offer Him filthy rags and He creates a colorful garment out of it. Why? Does God need a garment? Does God need us? No. Again, God doesn't need anything we have to offer. So when He asks for us to yield to Him and surrender our lives to Him, He is not robbing us. Friends, He is saving us. From the sin pit that we are so good at falling in. Without Him, we can do nothing of worth or value. And He knows that. And so He offers us a chance to link our lives with Him so that we may live fullfilled lives. As Jesus said, "I come that you may have life, and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). Tell me, where is the robbery in that statement?
So I encourage you to open your eyes as He has opened mine. Trust Him. He does not steal from us. We have nothing worth taking! Rather, recognize that He is the God of all and He desires to step into your life and make it right because you and I messed it up. We are like dirty children and all God wants to do is give us a bath. Clean us up and make things right. Do not deny Him that. Accept His offer and let Him work in all the areas of your life...He will not take advantage of you.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Black Belt Tests & Judgement Day
So I have many friends in Virginia that are taking their black belt test at the martial arts school that I was involved with for a long time. Some of these friends are taking the test for the first time; others are taking it for the 2nd, 3rd, maybe even 4th time! I myself am a 3rd degree black belt, and have taken this test several times.
What I have learned, is that the "test" is a formality. That you have been tested every day of training leading up to that moment. The black belt test is the big event, yes, but if you have trained hard consistently over the years, then when the test comes...its not so bad.
Now the school I was at has 7 hour tests. Our classes are only about an hour. So endurance is a core ingredient to being successful on a Saturday where nerves are high. But if you want to do well at the big event, all you have to do is act in that manner every day.
It is the same for the Christian life. One day, we all stand before God the Father and He will judge and test us according to our actions. If we want to do well on that day and hear Him say "well done, My good and faithful servant", the time to earn such praise will be too late. We must live our lives in such a way before Judgement Day ever comes!
Live conistent, my friends. Work hard now in the little things and when the big events and the big storms hit, you can take them in stride. Each day matters. If you cannot act in wisdom and with strength in the little things of daily life, how can you match the storms that are a bigger deal? Train hard now and the black belt test is just a really long class. Live hard and faithfully now, and you will have nothing to fear on Judgement Day. Live well, Friends.
What I have learned, is that the "test" is a formality. That you have been tested every day of training leading up to that moment. The black belt test is the big event, yes, but if you have trained hard consistently over the years, then when the test comes...its not so bad.
Now the school I was at has 7 hour tests. Our classes are only about an hour. So endurance is a core ingredient to being successful on a Saturday where nerves are high. But if you want to do well at the big event, all you have to do is act in that manner every day.
It is the same for the Christian life. One day, we all stand before God the Father and He will judge and test us according to our actions. If we want to do well on that day and hear Him say "well done, My good and faithful servant", the time to earn such praise will be too late. We must live our lives in such a way before Judgement Day ever comes!
Live conistent, my friends. Work hard now in the little things and when the big events and the big storms hit, you can take them in stride. Each day matters. If you cannot act in wisdom and with strength in the little things of daily life, how can you match the storms that are a bigger deal? Train hard now and the black belt test is just a really long class. Live hard and faithfully now, and you will have nothing to fear on Judgement Day. Live well, Friends.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)