The Right Stuff

 My wife and I remodeled our home. Enjoying benefits of hard work brings great satisfaction. The frustration comes with focusing on the defects.

 Looking out the window one morning I realized God’s creation has perfect form to it. His order to everything has absolute purpose.

 The colorful commentary of Psalm 139 is amazing. God’s intimate creation of each one of us overwhelms me. His creative hand makes no mistakes. Psalm 139:14 sums up the only rational conclusion we can make:

 “I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

Learning to trust The Lord takes a life time of practice. Making the decision to look at the right things about us takes a little getting use to as well. We are designed specifically the way the creator of all things intended. If we believe one of God's words are true then they are all true. If we want to know everything God has for us we don't get to pick and choose to accept what he says. It's all or nothing, in or out. When he tells us He created us for His purpose and good pleasure it means nothing about us was a mistake an oversight; and nothing was left out.

Not allowing our past to chase us into the corner of inactivity is a choice we have to make. Choosing to chase after the things of God and the hope of the future he offers us will make life more abundant. Asking Jesus how he can use the way he created us, for his purposes and His desire. Moving forward with doing our Fathers business is pleasing to Him and fulfilling for us. 

 It’s our choice how we view the journey God has placed us on. Today's choices determine tomorrows outcome. The most important choice it the next one we make. 

God wants us to stay focused on Him and His purpose instead of on ourselves.

Life is fun.

 Lord I don’t want to miss any of what you have placed in it because my focus is in the wrong place.

Dreams Are a Gift from God

As we grow in our relationship with the Lord we become connected with the desires of His heart. Ephesians 2:10 says we are His workmanship, His creative expression.

Dreams can set the purpose of God into motion in us. Our imagination is ignited by insights and revelation given to us through His words and other people He brings into our lives. We usually don’t recognize that our Father in Heaven wants to use the gift of imagination He placed in each of us. It pleases Him when we talk to Him about our passions and what we dream about. What Father doesn’t want to hear the deepest things that are in the hearts of His children?  Ask Him what He wants to do with your passions. He’s the one who gave us the ability to dream, use our imaginations and creativity.

 We need to dream, and allow God to do things in us that are different than what He has done in the past.

 It is safe to expose the deepest parts of our heart to Him.

 We are His poem, He wants to express His creativity through us.

A Day Off

 So what's wrong with a day off, right? Well a day off from work is a good thing, but a day off from our relationship with with God is actually an absurd idea. The only one who doesn't think so is  the devil, in fact he wants us to entertain the idea that a day off is OK, or even a good idea. The problem is he never takes a break. He is constantly prowling and seeks death, destruction and separation. Our life in Christ is a constant battle, that's not all it is but it is a continuous battle, and this battle has us engaged each and every minute of every day. Our enemy is always lurking to find a weak spot in our armor so he can take advantage.
 One day King David found himself alone with nothing to do, because he decided to take a vacation from his battle. He had a birds eye view of his kingdom from his palace. He allowed his thoughts to wander from the things God the day he saw Bathsheba taking a bath. What was he doing looking into someone else's back yard anyway? It seems that when we allow idle time to dominate our lives, even for short periods of time, we are more interested in what some one else is doing. When we let our minds wander we start to take liberties that get us into trouble.
 Comparing our good thoughts from the bad in light of God's words keep us in check, and in a place of understanding that it is easy for our imaginations run a muck. OK, here I go with a really bad adage, Father knows best." God knows all things, he knows what makes us tick, what  makes us wander and what keeps us pure in heart. His word keeps our paths straight. Remember that we live in a daily battle...2 Corinthians 10 and Ephesians 6 both describe that our ware fare is not fought in a physical battle, and that the weapons of our war fare are not physical, but they are mighty for the pulling down of strong holds. The largest part of our battle is won and lost in our thought life. Romans 12 is very clear that we need to stop being conformed to the way we use to live instead we are to be transformed into our new life in Christ by renewing our minds. Renewing our minds requires acquiring and applying new information. The protection of that information has to be take seriously. Psalm 119:11 says "Lord I have hidden your word in my heart so I won't sin against you." 2 Corinthians 10 says bring every thought into the captivity of Christ." King David let his thoughts run away from him, and the end result was adultery, murder and his family was a wreck. David had to live with the results of what happened on a hot summer day when he let his eyes and mind wander away from the things of God.
 Our lives are in a daily battle that will over take us if we don't understand that letting down our guard for even one day off has the potential of chaos and years of cleaning up the mess of a short lived day off, not to speak about lost intimacy with God and the happiness, joy and peace he brings through obedience.

 Let's not get battle weary but instead find rest in the presence of the Lord so he can daily renew our strength.

Stay strong and continually keep on the armor of God.

Men of Purpose and Men of Faith

 I've read when the Civil War Started General Ulysses S. Grant was a washed up barely employed West Point Graduate, who was forced out of military service. Done in by western outposts with an inability to hold his liquor

 Grant would later prove to be a tactical genius, a man of courage under fire and a steadfast leader. Called “the butcher” during his leadership of the Union Armed forces. Grant became known as a brilliant military leader during the Civil War.

  

 I once heard a pastor tell the story about watching his two young boys play with the Biblical action figures they got for Christmas. The boys had the action figures fighting each other, the dad asked why Moses was fighting with Jesus. The two boys had no purpose for the action figures, so they created a purpose, a vision if you will, the action figures weren’t just to look at, they need some action to be action figures, right?

 David led King Saul’s army in Israel. Excelling at his position, the woman in Jerusalem would sing “Saul has killed his thousands and David his ten thousands.” Later in life David would spy on Bathsheba resulting in the death of her husband Uriah. David stayed home from the battle season that year. His purpose was set aside and he wandered from the vision of leadership.

 Rebel without a cause was movie released in 1955 staring James Dean. The movie was a groundbreaking attempt to portray the moral decay of American youth. Teenagers wandering because they had no vision taught to them.

 History has proven men with no vision will wander trying to fill the need of purpose instilled by God. If not directed by the Lord this wandering usually leads to a continual self-reliant search for fulfillment or self-destruction.

Proverbs 29:18 is often misunderstood and misquoted …This is how we usually hear it: “For a lack of vision the people perish.” More accurately represented is: “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law.” NIV or “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.” NLT

 It seems to be the choice of each person to accept what the Lord is reveling to us or to reject it.

There appears to be a paradox at hand within the Christian community. We all need purpose, but the only real way to gain that purpose, tailored to each individual, is to surrender everything to the one who created us for that purpose that fits us so well. It’s natural to want to control our own destiny, not submitting to God’s purpose for us. The problem is what we think we need or want usually draws us away from the very relationship we so desperately need. The Lord is the only one who knows where we will be best fulfilled with what offers us purpose and vision.

Paul put it this way in Romans 7:24 “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” KJV

 We will continue to fight our self-imposed Goliath until one day we get tired or realize we have only been swinging our fists at shadows gaining no ground and no victory because we are fighting the wrong fight. Self-discovered purpose is not necessarily the one designed for who we are, if it draws us away from our relationship with Jesus, it doesn't fit.

 The beauty of God is...he is patient and long suffering. His promises are always true and are never taken back. He says "I will never leave you and I will never forsake you." He also says. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways. Then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV.

 Our land our homes our families our communities.

 The world is in desperate need of men of valor. Men who will take up the cause of being sons of God, finding their rightful places assigned by their Father carrying out his purposes.

The world is in desperate need of men to become…

 Men of Purpose and Men of Faith.

What about the Galileans

When I was 18 I worked in the oil fields of Kern County where I would work closely with my supervisor Larry on a daily basis. I was just saved and looked for any opportunity to speak about God's love and Larry's need for salvation. 

 One weekend Larry had the crew and our wives to his house for a BBQ. Using the coals as a metaphor for separation from God then describing Hell - Larry stopped me in mid-sentence asking why God would allow a baby to die with no cause. He told me the story about his sister’s infant who choked on an aspirin and died.

 One day some Jewish men asked Jesus about a tragic and appalling massacre that took place as Pontius Pilot the Roman Governor of Palestine killed a group of Galileans as the worshiped in the Temple of God in Jerusalem, he then mixed their blood with the blood of animals using it for a pagan sacrifice.

 Larry's question, like the question the Jews asked Jesus, was more than disturbing. The conversation with Larry shifted as I explained God’s heart was broken because of the loss of his niece, but it didn’t change his need for salvation and letting the death of an infant, who never did anything deserving of death, stand in his way of eternal life, it would still end in eternal separation from God. The conversation continued for months. I don’t know if Larry ever received Christ as his savior. I still pray for him today.

 One of the great things about Jesus is he has a tendency to cut to the chase…Knowing the hearts of the Jewish men asking about the Galileans were in reality attempting to fuse their lifestyle with being in right standing with God. Jesus basically said “anyone who is unrepentant is still separated from God.”
 Bad things happen in life, at times they are not easily explained or even can't be explained. God is not to be blamed. He understands the pain and confusion some events cause, he is also painfully aware that its only our choice that keeps us separated from him for eternity.

 Entrance into eternal life isn't complicated to understand for a reason. Everything has been done for us and it's a choice to accept or deny the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross removing our sins before a Holy God, or not. Jesus told Nicodemus unless you are born again you will not see the Kingdom of God” Is that fair? It isn't meant to be fair, we don't have a say on the issue. It's yes or no. Our arguments are usually only smoke and mirrors because a yes means submission to God giving ourselves over to God and His ways, saying no to our choices and yes to his. It’s not about the Galileans it’s about us and our relationship with God.

 HE stands at the door of my heart when he calls me, just like he stands at the door of your heart when he calls you. His call for my life is not contingent on what happens in your life nor your call contingent on anyone else because we will all stand before the throne of God alone and he will say “what did you do with my son when you had the offer given to accept the sacrifice he made for you on the cross dying for your sins?"

 It’s all in or all out. 

The decision is eternal. When, not if, we stand in front of God there are no do-overs.

 Say yes today ask to be forgiven for the life we've lived with out God. Ask Jesus to live in your heart and make you new because his blood and sacrifice on the cross are the only remedy from eternal separation from a relationship with God.

Love Looks Deeper

 Mark 10:21

 “Jesus looked at him and Loved Him”.

 I think of the days when I'm expected to do for someone. I’m not sure if the expectations are self-imposed or if they are indeed true. I have often felt like I come up short not living up to those expectations and when that is true the desire is to run for cover fills my mind with a feel of panic. I don’t feel like a leader most of the time and yet the Lord continues to put me in situations and among people who allow me to gain influence, yet I can’t help feel they could always do much better.

 Mark 10:21 speaks of The Rich Young Ruler. Mark writes that “Jesus looked at him and loved him”. I imagine this young man of influence poised himself asking Jesus the all-encompassing question, “what must I do to inherit eternal life”? Did he actually want the answer or was it expected of him to ask such a question in front of those who looked to him as an influencer?

 Jesus knowing all things; and knowing what is in the hearts of men “looked at him and loved him.”
 I’m taken by this statement because I sense a love that is sincere and loves for the purity of love. Looking deeply beyond what words say, I imagine Jesus peering into the eyes of the young man, his heart weighing heavy knowing the young man, the boy inside, like most of us, couldn’t give himself over to the requirements of a yielded heart to God.

 Jesus knew the limitations of his heart. Many times we come to the Lord wanting more but Jesus sees what holds us back even when we don’t. He knows just how far we are willing to go to get what we want, he then asks for more because he wants us to sacrifice what we prize more than him, when we come. Jesus knows where our affections are divided, where the will of God will be laid down as we embrace what we love more than him. His desire is our full affection.

 Hearing the words “One thing you lack” shakes me to the core of my manhood. Jesus knows me intimately; he knows my shortcomings and what I hold like a poker hand. His face is soothing to my spirit when I know “He looks at me and loves me”. He will always call me to an intimate relationship with him because that’s his greatest desire. He gave everything to connect with me.

 The Rich Young Man asked Jesus for the how to book on inheriting eternal life. He was the one who turned away not Jesus.

My heart is stronger because I know even in my short comings His love is steadfast.

 The question that probes my heart is what value do I place on my relationship with him?

 Am I ready to do what he asks, when he asks? Mark 10:21 causes me to think that he is patiently waiting for me to make the right choice, he isn’t impatiently tapping his foot thinking I should know better by now and should have the ability to act on a moment’s notice. He waits as "he looks at me and loves me."

 He stands at the door and knocks, he doesn’t barge his way in. I’m thankful he recognizes sometimes I need a moment because I don’t always do what is expected.