McCain's Brilliant Choice

I have spent a few minutes this evening reading what some people, mostly in blog comments, had to say about Senator McCain’s Vice President selection. Governor Sarah Palin may not have been a house hold name, but she was an excellent choice. Here are the reasons why:

1. She is a woman. Now either ticket can claim to have a first: the first black president or the first woman vice president. While we may want to believe that people don’t vote for such superficial reasons, the reality is that they do. So this will give those women, who were aching to vote for Senator Clinton so she could be the first woman president, a new choice. It may not be a huge block of voters, but they are out there.

2. Her accomplishments. I haven’t looked into her accomplishments, so I can’t give you a list, but I am willing to bet that what she has accomplished in 1 1/2 as governor is more than the accomplishments the Senator Obama can list. Here is the thing about experience, it isn’t just about the amount of time on the job, it is also about what you were able to do in that time. While Senator Obama has worked his way through a few different political positions, his actual accomplishments haven’t prepared him to be president. Sure Governor Palin is the governor of a small population state, it is a huge state area wise. What she has done as chief executive of Alaska makes her more qualified to be president than Senator Obama. If he can’t stack up to her, the vice president candidate, when it comes to actual accomplishments, then how will he compare to Senator McCain?

3. Not Politics as usual. Governor Palin went after corrupt Republicans in Alaska. She appointed Independents and Democrats to political positions. When you add this to Senator McCain who has stepped across the aisle (for good or bad) to author legislation with Democrats you have a ticket that has not toed the party line and has not sought to keep the status quo. What have Senators Obama and Biden done? The answer is the same as what I hear outside my bedroom window: crickets chirping.

4. She is a conservative. Governor Palin gives the conservative base of the Republican party reason to hope that John McCain will do the right thing when it comes to nominations. It shows us that he is willing to listen and that perhaps, just perhaps, we can trust him as president. Here is another thing to remember: if the conservatives as energized and mobilized then Senator McCain will win. Governor Palin will help motivate conservative voters who may have been planning to sit this election out.

I had already decided to vote for Senator McCain. I had arrived at that decision for two reasons. First, I don’t know if the country can survive four years of Senators Obama and Biden. Where does Senator Obama think he is going to get the money for all of his wonderful programs? Second, their is no guarantee that a conservative movement would arise from the ashes of a Barrack Obama presidency. I figured I had to go with what was there and hope for the best. So Governor Palin’s selection today gave me hope that I made the right decision.

---- Update --- September 7, 2008 ---

While I still believe that Senator McCain's selection of Governor Palin was a brilliant political move, I have decided not to vote McCain/Palin come November. I am not for sure what I will do at this point, but I don't think I have the stomach to vote for Senator McCain.

Life Robbers

In John 10:10 we read that Jesus promised that He came to give us life. One of the my passions is to help people (and in the process help me) live that abundant life Jesus promised His followers. Jesus also taught that there is a thief who is out to steal, kill, and destroy the life that He offers. Based on this I have been on the lookout for the different ways Satan tries to steal away our life. I have come to call these things “life robbers.” Here is a list of life robbers that I have come up with.

1. Sin
2. Guilt
3. Fear
4. Discouragement
5. Addiction
6. Resentment (not being able to forgive)
7. Doubt (not being loyal to God)
8. Pride
9. Loneliness
10. Ungrateful
11. Bitterness
12. Laziness

I have a question for my readers: Do you have any other “life robbers” you would add to the list? What would they be? I would love to know your thoughts, my comments section is just begging to be used.

Sunday Quote: The End Will Be Glorious

"To those of us who are Christians and faithful, when we are 'made alive in the spirit' we shall be living with our heavenly Father forever. Hence, regardless of the sufferings we may have to endure here, the end will be glorious." ~ Bruce Oberst, Bible Study Textbook: Letters From Peter, p. 90

Our Lifeblood

The Heart of All Things: Part 1

Jesus has come to give us life, and we know that we have this life we are connected to Him. How are we connected to Jesus? It is through our obedience that we remain connected to Jesus. This is more than adhering to the do not’s of Scripture, but it is the aligning of our wills to the will of God. We are living God’s will when we help people who are need, when we love the outcasts and rejects, and teach the truth to people who are lost. In other words it is when we follow the example of Jesus and hold on to the promises that He has given to us. Jesus is the source of abundant eternal life.

What does this life look like? How do we know if we are living the true life from Jesus? Consider this question for a moment: When do you feel the most alive? If you are anything like me I would bet that you feel the most alive when you are doing things with or for other people. You feel alive when you are with friends talking about the “good old days”. Perhaps you feel alive when you help your grandchildren make exciting discoveries. Or maybe you have felt alive when you were able to help someone who really needed your help.

Love is essential for living true life. We see glimpses of this truth as we think about the experiences we have had in our lives, when we have shared our lives with others. Think about this question: How has love enriched my life?

According to the Gospels Jesus has come to give us life (John 10:10). This life isn’t something that is reserved for us when we get to heaven, but is something that is ours right now, today. How do we live this new life Jesus has promised to us?

The biggest obstacle that we have to face in living true eternal life today is that it doesn’t feel like it is any different than what life was before. In fact at times it seems to be more difficult. That is because our lives are being opposed. Before time there was a great rebellion in Heaven as Satan set himself in opposition to the will of God. He is in constant opposition to God’s will, that includes us living the life that Jesus has secured for us through His death and resurrection.

As long as we are living here on earth life is going to be a struggle, because our lives are being opposed. We cannot afford to give up on this struggle. Remember Jesus’ promised to return and make everything right as He completes His mission to destroy the work of the devil. Find hope in the promise and strength in the example of Christ Jesus our Lord. We are going to have to fight for life.

As we struggle to live life we need to remember something very important: Love is the lifeblood of eternal life. Be reminded of what Jesus told His disciples the night He was betrayed:

“I am giving you a new commandment to love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35; ISV)

Jesus explains that if we are going to obey Him, if we are going to follow Him, then we need to love. Love must be the defining characteristic of our lives. Eternal life will continue to flow through our veins as long as we continue to love. We need to love God and love people. Without love our lives we shrivel up and die. It is love that will keep us alive for eternity.

• Point to Ponder: Love is the lifeblood of eternal life.
• Passage to Remember: John 13:34-35
• Question to Consider: How has love enriched your life?

An Old Post

I don't have anything to write about today. I started a couple of ponderings today, but they ended up being deleted. So I thought I might point you to an old post:

When I don’t make God’s Word an important part of my day the struggles with temptation and sin seem to be greater and more out of control which, in turn, overshadows the Truth of God’s love.

You can read the rest of my thoughts at Wallowing in Mud.

Two Pictures

Here are a couple of pictures I have taken recently:
The first is of my dog Barkley. Barkley is a cross between a smooth fox terrier and a rat terrier. He is 9 months old and I have had him since January. It is certainly different having a dog around all the time.



This one is a picture of the rose bush in front of the house I live in. I live in the parsonage provided by the church.

Transformed?

On Sunday I began to a sermon series through the book of Colossians that I have entitled Becoming. The premise of the series is this: Becoming the people God created us to be is the result of God’s miracles and our choices. As we follow Jesus we are transformed into the people that God desires us to be.

The problem I ran into as I evaluated my sermon from Sunday is that this idea of becoming or being transformed into the people God created us to be is not an easy one to grasp. What does it mean? According to the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:17 we are new creations when we give our lives to Jesus. If I am a new creation why do I still feel so much like the old creation? Where is the change? If this is just about a spiritual reality then how can I know that it is real?

The desire to be changed, to be transformed, is a universal desire. It is seen in many different ways in our culture. John Ortberg points this out in his book The Life You’ve Always Wanted:

“The desire for transformation lies deep in every human heart. This is why people enter therapy, join health clubs, get into recovery groups, read self-help books, attend motivational seminars, and make New Years resolutions. The possibility of transformation is the essence of hope.” (p. 20)

We can identify the desire to change, but how is the desire ultimately fulfilled? When will we be satisfied with the transformation? Remember what C. S. Lewis wrote about desire? He wrote; "If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world" (Mere Christianity, p. 121). I think it is important to remember that our desire to be transformed will not be fully met until heaven when we will appear with Jesus in glory (Colossians 3:4), but I believe we should still be able to see evidence of this transformation in our lives today.

This is what I have been pondering about the last couple of days: How do I know I am being transformed? Allow me to share with you a few thoughts I have had.

1. Transformation is seen in who I am, not what I accomplish. This process of being made new is about making us into the right kind of people, more than about doing the right things. Understand that a person can do the right things for all the wrong reasons. If we remember that God’s goal is to make us people fit for heaven, then it is more important that we have developed the right character then it is that we have done the right things. Why? When we have the right character we will do the right things. So transformation is about changing my character more than it is about changing my behavior.
2. Transformation happens as we follow Jesus. Our character is changed as we faithfully live in obedience to Jesus Christ. If we are going to live the life God planned for us to live (Ephesians 2:10) then we have to choose to surrender our dreams, desires, and standards and pick up Jesus’ teachings, example, and commands as the way we live life. As Erwin McManus wrote in Stand Against the Wind; “You cannot follow Jesus and remain the same. The journey itself will change you forever—not only your priorities but your passions” (p. 26).
3. Transformation isn’t about becoming the person I want to be, but about becoming the person God wants me to be. I think this is where many people lose their way when it comes to talk about changing and transformation. We have developed an image in our minds of who we want to be and what we would like to accomplish, and so we want God to change us into that person. Very often God has a different desire for our lives. We get frustrated with the process of transformation and give up because God isn’t fulfilling our dreams for life, but is working to re-create us into the person He wants us to be. By giving up we end the transformation process. If we are going to be transformed then we have to trust God and not insist that God do things our way.
4. Transformation is about changing the way we think. In the classic New Testament passage on transformation the apostle Paul wrote: Do not be conformed to this world, but continually be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you may be able to determine what God's will is—what is proper, pleasing, and perfect (Romans 12:2; ISV). The way we look at the world, what we put into our minds, and what we think about needs to change if we are going to be transformed. It is easy to be conformed to the patterns of this world if we allow ourselves to be immersed in what this world has to offer. To break free from the mold, to live differently, and to become the people God wants us to be requires we change what we feed our minds and our hearts. The way we live changes when we change our state of heart and mind, and that requires changing what we allow in.

I don’t know if I am an closer to a nice concise definition of what it means to be transformed or to become the people God wants us to be, but I know it happens. I see it in my life. Sure I still get frustrated because I know my failures and sin, but I also know that I am not that man I was a year ago, let alone five or ten years ago. God has been transforming me, and I think that is the point we have to remember. Transformation is a process in which faithful people are re-created, in Christ Jesus, to live the lives God planned for them live. The life God planned for me to live right now prepares me for the life that He has for me to live next year which prepares me for the eventual life He has for me to live in heaven.

• Point to Ponder: God transforms the lives of faithful people.
• Passage to Remember: Romans 12:2
• Question to Consider: How has your life been transformed by God?

Sunday Quote: An Affront to God

"What grieves the Holy Spirit? Sin does. Paul urged Christians to avoid lying to one another, acting in anger toward one another, stealing from one another, and holding unwholesome conversations among themselves (Eph. 4:25-29). Christ went to immeasurable lengths to free you from your sin. Continuing by choice to live in sin is an affront to God, a blatant rejection of his grace." ~ Henry and Richard Blackaby; Hearing God's Voice, p. 85

The Most Important Thing

The most important thing we can do in our lives is to love. Jesus, reaching back into the Old Testament, told us that the two most important commandments are to love God and to love people (Mark 12:29-31). The apostle Paul wrote that if we had great faith and great sacrifice, but did not have love, then we would have nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). Do we live like love is the most important action of our lives?

How is love defined in the Bible? It is defined as service. Matthew 25:31-46, which records Jesus’ teaching on the final judgment, illustrates this reality. We cannot love people (and we cannot love God without loving people) if we do not meet their needs. Our love is seen in what we do. If we love God it will be evident in the way we live and relate with other people.

The best evidence for the truth of Christianity are Christians who love. The atheist can cause people to doubt by citing so-called evidence that dismiss the Bible’s claim, but he/she can never dismiss a persons experience. When the Church is a church of love the world needs no other evidence that God is on His throne. Love is the most important thing for the follower of Jesus Christ and the Church to possess.

The church at Ephesus had many things going for it, but Jesus had something against this church: they had lost their love. This is what Jesus told the apostle John to write to the Ephesians:

2 “‘I know your works, your toil, and your endurance. I also know that you cannot tolerate evil people. You have tested those who call themselves apostles, but are not, and have found them to be false. 3 You have endured and suffered because of my name, yet you have not grown weary. 4 However, I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Therefore, remember how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. If you don't, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. 6 But this is to your credit: You hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 ‘Let the person who has an ear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To everyone who conquers I will give the privilege of eating from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God.’” (Revelation 2:2-7; ISV)

The church at Ephesus was a church that had taken a stand. They did not tolerate evil and they made sure truth was taught. These Christians suffered for the name of Jesus. I believe that if this church were around today we would look at it as a model. A true Bible believing and truth-telling church!

For all the good things this church was doing they had missed the point. Yes, they valued truth and morality, but they forgot the most important thing: LOVE. Jesus wants us to understand that the most important thing we can have in our church families and in our lives is love. Without love everything we do is meaningless. Love is essential to living a life that is worthy of Jesus Christ.

How is our love for Jesus seen? Ultimately it is not seen in the stands we take or the truth we proclaim. Our love for Jesus is seen in our obedience to His commands. Jesus told His disciples: If you love me, obey my commandments (John 14:15; NLT). Don’t limit obedience to the don’ts of scripture. Obedience isn’t just about morality, but it is also about completing our responsibility.

Our love Jesus comes out in our commitment to the Great Commission. In other words it is about reaching out and making disciples, not just proclaiming the truth. Making disciples involves more than just sharing the truth with people, it is also about showing God’s goodness to the world.

When we love Jesus not only will we proclaim the truth, but we will also show compassion. It is easy to stand up and telling people the truth God has revealed in the Bible, it is something entirely different to love people indiscriminately.

The Ephesian Church had no trouble with the truth, but they did have trouble with love. They lost the love they had for Jesus and that flowed into a lack of love for people. To be the people God desires for us to be, and thus become the church God wants us to be, we have to love Jesus first, and allow that love to affect every other relationship we have.

Our love for Jesus is best seen in our love for people. We can be right all we want, but if we don’t show compassion to others we will be ignored. If we love Jesus and love people then we will become a magnet, drawing people to God.

• Point to Ponder: The best evidence for the truth of Christianity are Christians who love.
• Passage to Remember: Revelation 2:2-7
• Question to Consider: What is something you can do to express your love to a neighbor today?

Living Faith

How do we know if a person has faith in Christ Jesus? While faith starts out with belief, it grows into action. Faith that is living is faith is seen in the way that we live life. If you took time to examine the people who make up your church family you would discover people who had varying degrees of belief, but whose belief was not reflected in their lives. We can say that we believe something, but that doesn’t mean it has made an impact in the way we live life.

William Lane in his book Hebrews: A Call to Commitment wrote; “A Godly life is the response of committed faith to the call of God” (p. 151). If we want to know about a person’s faith then we need to examine their life. Wait a moment. If we want to know about our faith we need to examine our lives. The choices that we make and the priorities that we have will reveal whether or not we really believe all this stuff about God and Jesus. Our faith is reflected in the way we live our lives.

I think one thing that we need to emphasis more in the Church is the call of God in our lives. That call is more than a call to moral living, it is a call to do good. One of the ways we live a moral life, a life free from the dominance of sin, is to do those things that are right. Understanding God’s will, His call, for our lives will lead us away from sin and to the life He created us to live.

The foundation of God’s call for us is the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The reality of Jesus should provide the greatest example, as well as motivator, for living a righteous life. How can we still live a sinful lifestyle when we realize Jesus did for our sins? How can we not struggle with sin when Jesus struggled to go to the cross? How can we not live differently when Jesus has conquered death? How can we not serve others when Jesus laid down His life in service to us?

The apostle Paul tells us:

14 The love of Christ controls us, for we are convinced of this: that one person died for all people; therefore, all people have died. 15 He died for all people, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for the one who died and rose for them. (2 Corinthians 5:14-15; ISV)

The love Jesus showed in His life, His death, and His resurrection should provide us with an example as well as a motivation for living differently. We will love God and people if we trust that Jesus loves us.

Faith expresses itself in the way we live. So if we are not striving to become more like Jesus, to live a life that pleases God, means that our “faith” is not real faith. We may believe the right things about Jesus and about God, but those ideas are not translated into how we live. To believe the right things, but not do the right things, makes us fools in the eyes of God.

James wrote:

14 What good does it do, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but does not have any works? This kind of faith cannot save him, can it? 15 Suppose a brother or sister does not have any clothes or daily food 16 and one of you tells them, “Go in peace! Stay warm and eat heartily.” If you do not provide for their bodily needs, what good does it do? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it does not have any works, is dead. (James 2:14-17, ISV)

Living faith is right believing that is expressed in right living. This truth takes us back to the call of God. God has not called us to be pew sitters and proposition believers, but He has called us to be Christ Followers. The call of God is a call to action and not just a call to belief. If we truly believe the right things about God it will be seen in the way we live. Our faith is proved true by the way we live.

• Point to Ponder: Living faith is right believing that is expressed in right living.
• Passage to Remember: James 2:14-17
• Question to Consider: Is your faith seen in the way you live?

Choices and Freedom

There are certain choices that we can make that will either help us live a life of freedom, or will take freedom from us. For example if you decided to murder someone, that choice will rob you of freedom. Even if you got away with it, and didn’t have to spend the rest of your life behind bars, the guilt of the deed and the constant fear of being caught would hamper your ability to enjoy being on the outside of those prison bars.

Our choices have consequences and those choices will either help or hinder our freedom. The choice of using credit to furnish a lifestyle way above your means will mean that you will be enslaved to credits. Because your money is going to pay interest, you will not be able to afford to do other things, without going deeper in debt. Your freedom is hindered by the choice that you made.

The choices we make will either bring us greater levels of freedom or restrict our freedom. There are many choices that we can freely make that will end up taking our freedom away. Our freedom and our choices are eternally connected. Erwin McManus wrote:

“Not all free acts lead to freedom. The choices you freely make may cost you a life of genuine freedom. This is why the Bible talks about the human experience in terms of being slaves to sin. Sin creates the illusion of freedom; it fools us into seeking freedom from God rather than finding freedom in God.

“Whatever else Jesus came to do, one thing is clear—He came to set you free. God is not a warden; He is a deliverer. And so earnest is He about your freedom that He was willing to be taken captive and crucified on your behalf just so you can run free.” (Stand Against the Wind; p. 14)

If we are going to be free we have to make those choices that bring and enhance the freedom in our lives. That means we are looking towards the future and not just at the moment. That means we realize that our choices have consequences, and that a life lived apart from Jesus Christ is a life that is devoid of freedom.

We can choose to follow Jesus and discover freedom, or we can choose to sin and discover slavery. This is what the apostle Paul wrote in Romans:

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or obedience resulting in righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were entrusted to, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness. 19 (I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.) For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness. (Romans 6:15-20; NET)

The follower of Jesus is free because he/she has given themselves over to the way really live life. It is the right way to live. A person who is righteous is like a jazz improviser. He/she has learned the chords and studied the music that they understand where the music is going. When they go off on their own they stay true to the music. The jazz improviser has freedom to improvise because he/she has been a slave to the music.

The person who is a slave of righteousness is able to live with freedom because they have come to understand what life is about and where life is heading. With those things in mind a great many things in life opens up to them, but those things are only possible because first they choose to do what was right.

• Point to Ponder: Our choices and freedoms are eternally connected.
• Passage to Remember: Romans 6:15-20
• Question to Consider: Who is your master?

Helping God

How I live has consequences on whether or not other people enter into God’s promises. This is a scary thing to think about, but it should also motivate us to do the right thing. When we join our lives to Jesus and follow Him, then our lives become beacons of God’s love, grace, and mercy.

This reality should cause us to pause and examine our lives. Am I living in such away that others will know and experience God’s love? That is a question we need to consider, because other people are depending on us to show them love. It is through us that other people are able to experience God’s love. Your children, co-workers, classmates, parents, friends, and neighbors need you to be people of faith so they can experience God in their lives.

I started pondering this truth this morning as I read William Barclay’s Daily Study Bible on the Letter to the Hebrews. This is part of Barclay’s comments on Hebrews 11:20-22:

“Here is the great function of life. Our hopes may never be realized but we must live in such a way that we shall hasten their coming. It may not be given to every man to enter into the fullness of the promises of God, but it is given to him to live with such fidelity as to bring nearer when others will into it. To us all is given the tremendous task of helping God make his promises come true.” (p. 154)

God works through people of faith to give other people hope and make His promises a reality in their lives. While we will never experience the fulfillment of all of God’s promises here on earth, we are able to experience a few that will spur us to hope for what lays ahead. We experience God’s promises through the actions of faithful people. When we love other people we allow them to have a taste of God’s promises.

Think about what the apostle John wrote:

11 Dear friends, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us. (1 John 4:11-12; NET)

In order for us to love God we have to have faith. The foundation of faith is our belief in God and His love for us. So our love for God and our love for other people is a product of our faith. Faith comes before love. What John tells us here is that because we believe God has loved us we then love other people. Because we love other people we experience God in our lives (God resides in us) and His love is expressed through us (his love is perfected in us). Loving God and people enables us to experience God in and through our lives.

It is God at work through us that we help Him bring His promises into fulfillment. God has chosen to us, followers of Jesus Christ, to be the vessels of His love and truth. As we live lives of faith and love we allow others to experience God’s love and hear Jesus’ call to follow Him. May our lives be an extension of God’s love!

• Point to Ponder: God works through people of faith to give other people hope and make His promises a reality in their lives.
• Passage to Remember: 1 John 4:11-12
• Question to Consider: Is your life an extension of God’s love?

Limiting God

I wonder how often we fail to step out in faith, either as individuals or as church families, because we believe the task is impossible? While we talk about God being all powerful, when the rubber meets the road we decide even God can’t do what is humanly impossible. By limiting God we miss out on the wonderful experience of God working through us to redeem the world.

This is what William Barclay had to say about limiting God:

“When we listen to men planning and arguing and thinking aloud, we get the impression of a vast number of things in this world which are known to be desirable but dismissed as impossible. Men spend the greater part of their lives putting limitations on the power of God. Faith is the ability to lay hold on that grace which is sufficient for all things in such a way that the things which are humanly impossible become divinely possible. With God all things are possible, and, therefore, the word impossible has no place in the vocabulary of the Christian and of the Christian Church.” (The Daily Study Bible: Hebrews; p. 147)

It seems silly to put limitations on the Creator of the universe, but we do. We put limitations on God when we think we have God figured out and so we tell ourselves that God doesn’t work that way. We limit God when we think we have to do certain things or pray certain prayers in order to get God to respond. We limit God when we live by fear rather than by faith.

Faith is what is needed for us to experience God at work in the world. Our Heavenly Father uses those who decide to live lives of faith. That is what Hebrews 11 is about. The author of Hebrews wants us to remember what God has accomplished through people of faith. Yes, God has done some very impressive things, but more often than not, He does those things in response to a person’s faith.

Without faith Abraham would never have left Ur. Without faith Moses would never have returned to Egypt to face Pharaoh. Without faith the apostle Paul would never have endured beatings, shipwrecks, and imprisonments to take the Gospel to the world. What are we, our church families, and our world missing out on because we are not responding to God with faith. We may justify our lack of faith in religious language, the reality is that are lack of faith is the result of putting limits on God.

Faith removes the limits we put on God as we allow God to work through our actions. While we may not limit God with our words, we do limit God through our actions. Remember this: When we surrender to our fear we tell the world God is unable to help us. Living by faith means that we trust God: His promises, His power, and His purpose. Faith removes the limits we have placed on God and allow us to experience His mighty power at work in the world around us.

What is the most impossible thing that you can think of? To me it is making righteous people out of sinners. Sinners are people who have broken God’s law, and there is nothing that can be done to unbreak the law. The Law is like a glass window. Once the baseball shatters the glass there is nothing that can be done to unbreak the glass. We may be able to glue the pieces together, but the cracks will remain. The same is true with breaking God’s law. We maybe able to continue to live good lives, but 70 years of good living can never undo 7 seconds of sin.

When we put our faith in Jesus Christ we are saying that we believe that God can make us righteous people even though we are sinners. In short we are saying that God can do the impossible. Remember what the apostle Paul wrote about faith in Romans?

1 Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of God's glory. (Romans 5:1, 2; NET)

If we truly believe that God has done the impossible in this situation, then it should be evident in the way we live our lives. Instead of putting limits on God and justifying our lack of obedience; we will step out in faith and do those hard, and humanly impossible, things that He has called us to do. This is why faith is not just about what we believe, but also about how we live. We can say that God has saved us from our sins, but only through our actions is it evident that we really believe it.

• Point to Ponder: When we surrender to our fear we tell the world that God is unable to help us.
• Passage to Remember: Romans 5:1, 2
• Question to Consider: What limits have you put on God?

An Update and Link

I am at church camp again.  I am currently helping with leadership camp.  This is a brand new camp for us and we have 7 campers (we actually have more staff than campers), but it has been good.  One of the things we have been doing is reading Do Hard Things by Alex and Brent Harris.  It has been pretty decent, though I think they should have focused on "do the right things."

Tomorrow and Saturday I will be helping with teen retreat.  We have had some issues come up, one being we lost our worship leader for the weekend.  For things to come together it will take a miracle.

I haven't had time to right a pondering, but I thought I would link to an old one since I know I have a few new readers.  I will be back soon.

The Best Life

Follow Jesus' Call

I don’t follow Jesus the way I should. I hesitate and question, which means I don’t live by faith. It is frustrating, but it is also comfortable. When I don’t live by faith then I don’t have to hard things that would push me outside of my comfort zone. I am convinced that we don’t follow Jesus because we don’t want to take the risk faith requires.

Take a moment and consider what Erwin McManus wrote:

“Just do whatever Jesus calls you to do the moment it is clear to you. Do not procrastinate; do not hesitate, do not deviate from whatever course of action He calls you to. But I want to warn you, the closer you walk with Christ, the greater the faith required. The more you trust Him, the more you’ll risk on His behalf. The more you love Him, the more you will love others. If you genuinely embrace His sacrifice, you will joyfully embrace a sacrificial life. Your expectations of Jesus will change as your intimacy with Him deepens.” (The Barbarian Way, p. 53)

If we want to live a life which brings honor to God, this is how we must live. When we pledge our lives to Jesus, then our honor is bound to our obedience. It isn’t enough that we don’t do wrong, but we must also seek to do right. One of the motivations in our lives must be not to do anything that will bring us shame. That is one of the motivations for the apostle Paul.

20 This is according to my eager expectation and hope that I will have nothing to be ashamed of. Instead, because of my boldness Christ will be exalted in my body, now as always, whether I live or die. (Philippians 1:20; ISV)

One of the things we need to remember as we look at this verse is that Paul lived in a culture where honor was bound to fulfilling his responsibility, and in battle, to fighting with courage. When Paul says that he has nothing to be ashamed of, he is not talking about doing something that is embarrassing or living a double life of sin. What he means is that he has lived a life of courage (boldness) which has brought honor to his master, Christ Jesus.

It would have been shameful for Paul to have quit preaching the gospel because he feared prison and death. The court trials, the imprisonments, and the beatings were badges of honor that Paul wore with pride because he bravely followed Jesus.

We have lost that sense of honor in our culture. Yet, I believe that it is essential for us to understand if we are going to live the Christian life. Our lives aren’t our own, they belong to Jesus. Our honor is tied to our obedience to Him. We can live a life of perfect morality, but if we are cowards then we will not bring the honor to Jesus that He deserves. May we continually follow Jesus regardless of the risk.

Grant us the strength, Father, to live honorably for Your Son, Jesus.

• Point to Ponder: Our honor is tied to our obedience to Jesus.
• Passage to Remember: Philippians 1:20
• Question to Consider: Are you living courageously for Jesus?

Pride Is Dangerous

When I look back on my life I want to do it with a sense of pride. I want to be able to say that I don’t have regrets and that I lived a life of faith and integrity. It isn’t about feeling like I am better than other people, but about understanding that I gave my best effort. We should be proud when we do our best to complete a task.

While there is a proper time and place for pride to exist, a life defined by pride is deadly. Pride, perhaps more than any other reason, keeps people from God, and from develop close relationships with other people. The arrogance of pride seeks to elevate us about all others. Consider what John Ortberg wrote in The Life You’ve Always Wanted:

“At the deepest level, pride is the choice to exclude both God and other people from their rightful place in our hearts. Jesus said that the essence of spiritual life is to love God and to love people. Pride destroys our capacity to love...Pride moves us to exclude instead of to embrace. Pride moves us to bow down before a mirror rather than before God. Pride moves us to judge rather than to serve. Pride means not only that we want to be smart and wealthy, but also that we will not be satisfied until we are smarter and wealthier than those around us. Pride is essentially comparative in nature.” (p. 110)

How do we fight the arrogant pride our flesh calls us to embrace? Let me offer you three ideas.

1. Consider Jesus. The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians that our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5). Following verse 5, Paul describes the attitude of Jesus that we should imitate. If we are following Jesus then we need to do our best aligning our lives with His life.
2. Serve in small things. This is the essence of Christianity. In Matthew 25:31-46, the teaching on final judgment, we notice that those who are saved do the small acts of service. The give food to the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the lonely. These acts of service aren’t going to bring accolades and recognition, but they will remind us that great joy is found in the simplest things. Helping those in need is more important that making a name for ourselves.
3. Submit to God. James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5 reminds us that God gives grace to the humble and opposes pride. Then both writers basically tell us the same thing: submit to God. This is a choice that we make, it won’t come naturally to us, but is something that we do in spite of our feelings. Until we submit to God it will be impossible for us to be humble, and arrogance will haunt us every day of our lives.

Pride is deadly to our Christian walk. We have to take the appropriate measures to guard against it, for it will steal away from us the relationships that really matter, and will prevent us from having the type of influence that could really make a difference.

I want to encourage you to read Philippians 2:1-11 and ask God to show you how you can imitate the humility of Jesus. It is through humility that we are able to live the life God created us to live.

• Point to Ponder: It is through humility that we are able to live the life God created us to live.
• Passage to Remember: Philippians 2:1-11
• Question to Consider: How has pride hurt your relationships with God and other people?

Work to Change

Yesterday I went with my parents to visit my grandmother, my dad’s mom, and my dad and grandma had an interesting conversation about change. The discussion centered around whether change happens from internal reasons or external reasons. Though at the end it was agreed that change doesn’t occur unless the person wants to change.

Erwin McManus acknowledges this truth:

“In the end no one can make you live a life that is not about you. No one can drag you down this particular path or make you something you do not want to become. In regard to your character, you don’t have to change alone. In fact you cannot change alone, but you alone have to desire to change.” (Uprising, p. 29)

Many of us are dissatisfied with who we are. We wish we could be better at reading our Bibles, volunteering to do things that need to be done, giving our time and money to people in need, being trustworthy, at loving our family and friends, at being productive with the time that we have, or any number of other things. I have flaws in my character that I wish I could change, and I am sure that you have flaws in your character that you wish you could change. There are things about ourselves that we would like to be different.

The problem is that these flaws don’t bother us as much as changing does. It is easier to stay with what we do know than to venture into something that we don’t know. This is especially true if that path is going to take us into difficulties. Yes, we wish things would be different, but it is so much easier to sit on the couch and ignore the problems.

We are not going to change until we realize that the process of changing is going to be worth the effort. The apostle Paul continued to work on changing because he believed that in the end the work would be worth the effort:

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection! But I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ Jesus saved me for and wants me to be. (Philippians 3:12; NLT)

Paul continued to work because he believed that Jesus saved him for a reason. Paul knew he was to be a certain type of person, a person he could be proud to be, and so he kept working. While he worked he focused his mind on three actions:

No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one things: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven. (Philippians 3:13-14; NLT)

Paul says that in order for him to work on changing he had to forget about the past failure where he had come from. I think so many of look at our failures and talk ourselves out of every trying again: That didn’t work for me. If we are going to change we need to stop living and dwelling in the past and move on into today.

Paul also says that looks forward to what lies ahead. I think many of us don’t have a good idea of who we want to be or what God expects of us. It is hard to hope when we don’t know what to hope for. So we need to know God’s promises. His promises of salvation and heaven, as well as His promise to give us a new heart and to re-create us. God intends for us to be men and women of faith, so let us keep our eyes on those who have gone before us, particularly Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-4). That should give us something to work towards.

Finally, Paul says he strains for the end of the race. In other words Paul is faithful in how he lives his life. This work we are talk about is really about being faithful. God changes us when we live by faith. Through our obedience God changes us into the people He wants us to be. The change that occurs in us doesn’t happen through our effort, but through our faith. Our faith is demonstrated by the way we live (Hebrews 11).

Change will only happen when we decide that the effort to change is worth it. Even though it is God who changes us it will be an effort. Living by faith isn’t easy, and it will take us through some very difficult times, but in the end we will be changed into people even we can be proud of.

• Point to Ponder: Change will only happen when we decide that the effort to change is worth it.
• Passage to Remember: Philippians 3:12-14
• Question to Consider: What are areas in your life that you would like to change?

Sunday Quote: Why Are There Good?

"Some wonder why so many are so evil. In the face of such rampant wickedness, perhaps we should ask how any turn out to be good! The answer is that God has placed the broad principles of His law in every human heart (Romans 2:15). The good moral man responds to the law in his heart, even though he may not know God." ~ Gary Carpenter, What the Bible Says about the Heart, p. 35

Gratitude and Perspective

Consider for a moment what Erwin McManus wrote in Uprising: A Revolution of the Soul:

Perspective is not shaped in a vacuum; it is formed in the context of gratitude. An ungrateful person sees the glass as half-empty and wonders who is holding out on him. The grateful see the glass as half-full knowing that someone has shared with them more than they deserve. (p. 124)

Gratitude plays such a huge part in the perspective we have on life. When we are grateful not only will we be content with much less, but we also have a very optimistic outlook. Contentment, peace, and hope are characteristics which define a person who is grateful.

It is hard to be grateful when the life you are living isn’t the life that you want. That is basically the story of my life. So much of my life has been wasted because I have been dissatisfied with my life, and I was angry with God for not giving me the life that I wanted to live. The question being asked in my heart was, “Why is God holding out on me?”

It is hard to live life when you want a different life: different experiences, different friends, different talents, different opportunities, and a different personality. You think life would be so much better if you had the life of someone else.

For me this has been one the many obstacles that I have to overcome in my journey to become the person God created me to be. The thing is it is an obstacle I have faced more than once. Like most temptations and sins that we face, this feeling of discontentment is one that keeps popping up in my life. Why do I have to struggle so hard to do what comes so naturally to others? It would be so much easier if I was... and other similar questions haunt my thoughts.

The problem with this thinking is that it ignores what God has done for me, and in the process it distracts me from living the life God created me to live. Gratitude for the blessings, experiences, and talents God has given me provides me with peace and assurance that I need to live the life God has planned for me to live.

Consider what the apostle Paul wrote about the result of the grateful heart:

6 Never worry about anything, but in every situation let your petitions be made known to God in prayers and requests, with thanksgiving. 7 Then God's peace, which goes far beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7; ISV)

God’s peace is given to those who are grateful. Worry, fear, and loneliness are some of the feelings the consume the hearts of the ungrateful. God has given each one of us so much. It is time for us to stop focusing on what we don’t have and start thanking God for what we do have. Then, and only then, do we experience the peace that God has promised to His children.

• Point to Ponder: When we are grateful not only will we be content with much less, but we also have a very optimistic outlook.
• Passage to Remember: Philippians 4:6-7
• Question to Consider: What are some of the things you are grateful for in your life?

Live Right and Follow Jesus

Living Right: Part 4

Life is tough. We all have stories about how our lives have been turned upside down and made difficult. When I look at the world, and at my life, it helps me to remember that there is an Enemy out there who hates us. He hates God and fears what we can become when we faithfully follow Jesus.

John Eldredge in his book Waking the Dead wrote:

“Until we come to terms with war as the context of our days we will not understand life. We will misinterpret 90 percent of what is happing around us and to us. It will be very hard to believe that God’s intentions toward us are life abundant; it will be even harder not to feel that somehow we are just blowing it. Worse, we will begin to accept some really awful things about God. That four-year-old girl being molested by her daddy--that is ‘God’s will’? That ugly divorce that tore your family apart--God wanted that to happen to? And that plane crash that took the lives of so many--that was desired by God?” (p. 17)

War is the context of our days, and the brutal assault that has been carried out against us is evidence to this fact. It is tough to follow Jesus. Life isn’t easy, but that doesn’t mean God has abandoned us or that Jesus isn’t worth following. It means that we are being attacked and opposed by someone who hates us and wishes to see us dead.

Because we live in a world, a universe, at war adds value to our lives. Who we are and how we live is how we fight this war. Consider what the apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 1:

27 The only thing that matters is that you continue to live as good citizens in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come to see you or whether I stay away, I may hear all about you—that you are standing firm in one spirit, struggling with one mind for the faith of the gospel, 28 and that you are not intimidated by your opponents in any way. This is evidence that they will be destroyed and that you will be saved—and all because of God. 29 For you have been given the privilege for Christ's sake not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him. 30 You have the same struggle that you saw in me and now hear that I am still having. (Philippians 1:27-30; ISV)

We are in a struggle and Paul tells the Philippians that in order to be victorious in the struggle that they have to live right, as good citizens of God’s Kingdom. When we remain strong, when we don’t give up, and when we bring honor to Christ through the way we live, then we show the world that God’s victory is insured. Our enemies will be destroyed, and we will be saved. Make not mistake about it, this is not easy. That is why Paul uses the word struggling.

If we are honest with ourselves at times it seems like it would be so much easier if we just gave up. I don’t know you, but I have been to that point. Not because I don’t think God exists, but tired of the constant struggle to do right and live up to expectations. I wanted to throw in the towel and follow the path of least resistance. It was only through the grace of God, the encouragement I received from His Word and follow believers, that I didn’t.

That is part of what is behind John’s writing which we have looked at through this series (1 John 2:28-3:10). He wanted to offer his readers a reminder of why they should stick it out, why they should continue to struggle to do what is right. That reason is Jesus. The promises of Jesus give us hope that this struggle is just temporary and that better days await us when Jesus returns and makes all things right. The mission of Jesus gives us an example to follow. It helps us understand the dangers of sin and provides us with a purpose to give our lives away to as we follow Jesus into the unknown of the future.

Here is what I want you to remember from this series: To know Jesus is the only way to live righteous lives. Without knowing Jesus there is no way we can live lives that please God. This isn’t about living up to a certain morality, but it has everything to do with living a life of faith. Giving our lives away to doing good rather than just avoiding evil. It is joining Jesus in His mission to proclaim the Gospel and set the captives free. We can live a “moral” life without Jesus, but we cannot live a righteous life, a life set on doing God’s will, apart of Jesus.

Right now your life is being opposed. Jesus said that the thief has come to steal, kill, and destroy. Don’t be surprised if you are struggling right now, because Satan wants nothing more than for you to suffer. Yet we also have to remember what Jesus promised, I have come so you can have life, and have it abundantly. Our lives may be opposed, but the promise of Jesus is when we stick with Him we will find a life beyond our wildest imagination. It starts here today and contains into eternity. It is time to live right. It is time to follow Jesus.

• Point to Ponder: To know Jesus is the only way to live righteous lives.
• Passage to Remember: Philippians 1:27-30
• Question to Consider: How can you receive strength to continue to struggle to live right?