Daily Thought: Remember God's Grace

"When rains come and the flood waters rise, remember your position in God's grace.  Your sin is not too dark, your failures not too great, your mistakes not too overwhelming for God's grace.  Reach out to him.  No matter how big the waves or how furious the wind, God will support you." ~ Jud Wilhite, Faith that Goes the Distance, p. 82

Life is a Struggle

It is no secret that life is hard. Even when we are following Jesus and doing God’s will life doesn’t get any easier. There is a part of us, even though it has never been promised, which expects things to be easy if we are living by faith. We want to be validated and reassured that we are doing the right thing.

Though I think that it would make sense that if we are truly doing God’s will then things would be difficult. Why do I think that? I think things would be difficult because the enemy is opposed to God. If we are making progress in overcoming sin in our lives, if we participating in the relationships God wants us to be a part of, if we are part of a ministry making a difference in the community, or if we are standing up for what is right then we shouldn’t be surprised if things are not easy. In fact, I might even suggest that if things are easy it might be time to evaluate what we are doing.

True we can’t evaluate things solely on the basis of whether things are going well or not. Sometimes things will go well even though it is God’s will and sometimes things will be a struggle even though it goes against God’s law. All I want to do is point out that struggling isn’t a bad thing. When God’s will become a struggle gives us an opportunity to grow and will help us appreciate what God has done for us on the other side of that struggle.

In the midst of the struggle we need to remember what Jesus said to the church in Smyrna:

“I know about your suffering and your poverty—but you are rich! I know the blasphemy of those opposing you. They say they are Jews, but they are not, because their synagogue belongs to Satan. Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life.

"Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. Whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death." (Revelation 2:9-11; NLT)

Jesus tells this group of Christ Followers not to give up in the face of persecution. “Hang in there,” He says, “this won’t last forever.” Our struggle may not be persecution, it could be as simple as circumstances not turning out the way we expected. Often reality isn’t anything like our dreams and when that is the case we wonder if we are in the right place. We ask ourselves, "Should I have faith continue on or should I just give up?"

I don’t think there are any hard and fast rules for such situations, but let me offer you a few thoughts. First, is your struggle tied to right and faithful living? If it is then we are doing what God wants us to do. When our desire is to honor God, encourage people, help others, and grow in our knowledge and faith; then there are a lot of places we can go and things we can do and yet remain in God’s will. These are certainly things that Satan would oppose, so if you are being faithful and loving God and loving people and things are a struggle, I would encourage you to stay faithful, because most likely you are in the right place.

Second, let go of your dreams. I think God allows us to struggle sometimes because our dreams need to be changed. We are missing out on the life God wants us to live because we are clinging too tightly to the dreams we have for our lives. Even good dreams need to be put aside in order to experience God’s best for our lives. Laying aside our dreams is an act of faith because we have come to believe that only in those dreams will we discover happiness. When we lay them down we are show our total reliance on God to bring joy into our lives.

A last thought I would offer is to get the opinions of different Christian people. These could be people you are close to or just acquainted with, but they need to be people you respect and who live faithful lives. While we need to evaluate what they say, more than likely they will help us see things from a knew perspective. Too often we get so close to the situation that we fail to see the entire picture. The perspective of other Christians can help us see things more clearly.

Life is tough. Just because life is tough doesn’t mean that we are not doing God’s will. Often the struggle is an indication that we are doing what God wants us to do and that we are being opposed by the Enemy. We need to stay faithful, and in the end we will experience the life God created us to live.

God Cares

{1 Peter 5:6-7; NLT}

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

There are times in our lives when we are convinced that no one is able to understand what we are going through. Even when we know that other people have been through a similar circumstances we tell ourselves that what we went through is so much worse.

What happens in these circumstances is that we have our focus in the wrong place. Our focus is all on us and what we are feeling, which then leads us to get so consumed with our feelings that we lose sight of everything else. It becomes a vicious cycle that will guarantee that we will continue to feel worse and worse and more and more isolated until something is able to come in and break it.

That is why Peter’s command in 1 Peter 5:6 is so vitally important. Humility helps us put things in their proper perspective, which allows us to deal with them more effectively. It also allows us to open our eyes to see what is happening to other people, which will allow us to realize that many people are worse of than we are. Finally, humility helps us to remember that God is still on His throne working out His plan to bless the entire world through Christ Jesus, which allows us to remember that we are just playing a small part in a bigger story.

If we continue to look at what Peter wrote in 1 Peter 5:6 he goes on to say that at the right time he will lift you up in honor. God does not intend for you to stay in the depths of hardship, misery, and tragedy which should add comfort to our lives, for nothing lasts forever, not even our pain.

Yet it is in these depths that God molds us into the people He created us to be. Much like the refining process which requires heat and fire, the hardships of life help refine our character and faith. As painful as these time are God is able to use them for our good. God loves us so much that He will not waste the pain we experience in our lives, but He will use it to make us more like His Son Jesus.

I want you to stop and ponder this thought for a moment. God doesn’t waste the hardships of our lives! What a wonderful thought to remember! He will use this awful experiences for our good. When Peter says that God will exalt us, he is implying two very important realities: the hardships of life are useful in our character development and they will not go on forever.

While hardships are necessary and God uses them to bring change to our lives, that does not mean that He is indifferent to our fear, pain, and suffering. God loves you! The fact that God experienced the pain of death of His Son Jesus reminds us that God knows what pain is and that He is willing to do whatever it takes to rescue us from this world of sin and death. That is why Peter, who knew about pain and tragedy, is able to write that God cares about us. What a wonderful promise this is, and one that we often forget.

Since God cares for us that means that He is not bothered by the hardships and pain in our lives, even if think they are insignificant. God wants us to come to Him with everything on our hearts and to ask for His help and guidance. That doesn’t mean that He will make everything better, but it will mean that He will give us the strength and wisdom to get through the situation.

James tells us:

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking (James 1:2-5; NLT).

The only way we can look at life’s troubles with joy is if we have God’s wisdom to guide us. It is also the only way we will be able to understand that God cares about us when we are in the middle of a tragedy. God loves us and when we go to Him in prayer He will give us what we need to get through whatever we are experiencing.

God desires that we experience life, but the problem is that in order to experience life we have to be changed. Change, as we know, often requires hardship and difficulty, which is never easy. It is in moments like those that we have to hold on to the promise that God cares about us and turn to Him for help. I believe that if we turn to God in the moment of crisis He will provide the encouragement and the strength we need to get through to the other side. Why do I believe this? I believe it because God cares about what happens to us.

Would You Still Give Thanks?

This past Saturday evening I was invited to speak at the Harvest/Thanksgiving Celebration at the Alta Church of Christ in Alta, IA. Their pastor and I are friends and we have had many great conversations riding in the car to meetings.

The point of my message was that the best way for us to say thank You to God is through our obedience (Micah 6:6-8).

At the start of the message I asked them to imagine that they were in a hospital bed, paralyzed from the neck down. All their family and friends were gone, and the only their only ministry was prayer. Then I throw out this question: Would you still offer thanksgiving to God?

The reason that so many of us are thankful are because of all the good that God had placed in our lives, but would we have the faith of Job if all of a sudden hell invaded our lives?

I think these are good questions to think about, and the reaso I think that is because they help us to shift our focus away from our lives. God is doing a whole lot more in the world than just blessing our lives. We should be thankful whenever God's Kingdom breaks into this world and when God's will is done here like it is done in heaven.

In order for us to be able to give thanks through the struggles and tragedies of our lives requires us to know what God is in doing in this world. My challenge for you today is to take some time and find an example of God making a difference in this world. How is He moving in the lives of the missionaries you support? How has God softened the heart of a family member? How has God used an Americanchurch family to make difference?

This Thanksgiving season do not just focus on the wonderful blessings in you life, but also take time to thank God for the great things He is doing in this world.

Sent from my iPod

Be Humble and See God at Work

Originally posted on Saturday, September 18, 2004

The circumstances of life have a way of reminding us that the life we are living is not the life we wanted. Too often we find ourselves in positions and situations in which we had no desire to be. Divorce is never part of our plan for a happy life nor is being stuck in a job which you hate. Being broken hearted and feeling insignificant is not what we hoped for in our lives.

No matter who you are or the life you have lived I would bet that you have been broken hearted or wondered about the significance of your life. Situations and circumstances in your life make you wonder what life is all about. You even question whether or not God exists, and perhaps you come to the conclusion that a loving God would not let His people experience these painful circumstances.

When things don’t go the way we planned it is important to remember what Ravi Zacharias wrote in Cries of the Heart; “Only as we remember and remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness can we even see the pattern God has woven in our lives and learn confidence in His working.” God is working in our lives, even when our lives don’t turned out as planned.

My heart is broken. I want the pain to go away so I can get back to living life, yet the broken dream continues to haunt me. Living alone is a constant reminder of the loneliness I am experiencing in my heart, and it becomes easy for me to question God’s faithfulness and wonder about His purpose in my life. Yet, it is at times like this that I am drawn to God’s Word.

I believe when we focus on situations and circumstances we lose sight of how God has worked through our lives. All we see is the present and the selective images from the past which we use to justify the way we feel. We totally miss the bigger picture; and how God has been working through our lives to prepare us for the life He has created us to live. It is easy to forget God’s faithfulness when we focus on our current circumstances.

The apostle Peter wrote; So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you (1 Peter 5:6, 7; NLT).

Humility is the key to seeing God’s hand at work in our lives. When we are humble we are able to remember that life isn’t about us, but it is about God’s Kingdom. We are then able to understand that happiness is found, not in our dreams coming true, but in our seeking His Kingdom.

Though it is hard to believe God cares for us when our hearts are broken, it is important that we don’t allow ourselves to be swept away by our emotions. For that to happen we have to be grounded in reality, and that takes going back to the Bible. In Scripture we discover that the best life we can have is found in the Kingdom. We also discover that God allows bad things to happen to us so that we will let go of our desires for the things of this world and set our hearts on Him and His Kingdom. We can trust that God will get us through the terrible times of life, because the Bible tells us that He cares about what happens to us.

Life won’t turn out like we dreamed it would, and that is okay. Through the pain and struggles of our lives God draws us close to Him. When we humble ourselves we begin to see God’s hand at work all through our lives. He will continue to reach out to us, for He cares about us. God wants us to live the life He created us to live, and that is the best possible life that we could live.

Praise God All the Time

{Galatians 1:1-5; NLT}

This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.

All the brothers and sisters here join me in sending this letter to the churches of Galatia.

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.

In this evil world in which we live it is hard not to lose our focus. Bad things happen to us and we wonder where God is in the midst of our pain. Tragedy hits our nation and we wonder why God didn’t protect us. When we are honest with ourselves we realize that there are times in our lives when it is just plain hard to worship God.

I have been there. In trying to understand what God wanted me to do with my life I began questioning Him about every little thing that came along. I became frustrated because God continually seemed to set Himself against me and prevent me from doing what I wanted to do. During this time in my life praising God was the last thing on my mind. Instead of worshiping God I gave Him the silent treatment.

Have you been to a similar place? Perhaps you are still loyal to God and you fulfill your commitments to the church, but you don’t praise God like you should. You go through the motions because you know it is the right thing to do, but you sure don’t feel like worshipping God because He seems to be the source your trouble or at least apathetic about your condition. During these tough and dark times of life we need a reason to praise God.

Our faith is exposed in how we respond to God in the bad and tough times in life. It is easy to praise God when everything is going our way because it seems like God is right there beside us blessing us each step of the way. When trials come we have a tendency to blame God because He didn’t protect us like He should. The apostle Paul gives us one good reason why we should praise God no matter what else happens in our lives.

Why should we praise God no matter what? We should praise God because Jesus gave His life for our sins. This was God’s plan from the very beginning. God planned to show us His love through the sacrifice of Jesus. Not only does Jesus’ sacrifice show us God’s love, but it also rescues us from this evil world in which we live. How did Jesus’ death accomplish that? We are saved through Jesus’ death because He didn’t stay did, the resurrection of Christ reminds us that God has power over sin and death. The rescue was made a reality by the death and resurrection of Jesus, the two go together.

True we still feel the effects of this evil world, but the difference is that now we have hope. Hope that one day all this will be destroyed and God will come and make all things new. Things will be how they were intended to be.

If God never gave us another blessing He would still deserve our endless praise because of this reality. Not only did God create us, which is another reason we should praise Him, but He did what was necessary so we could be saved from evil and find life in Him. Glory and honor be to God forever.

I know that during the tough times in life the hope of heaven is very far from our minds. That is why we need to have some spiritual disciplines in our lives. Disciplines that help us get a proper perspective on things. Let’s face it, the reason we don’t praise God is because we are focused on the wrong thing or person. Too often our focus is on our problems and pain and we lose sight of God and what He has done for us. Spiritual Disciplines are designed to reorient our thinking so we will have the right perspective on the circumstances of our lives.

If you feel like praising God take some time and thank Him in word or song for all the blessings He has given to you. If you don’t feel like praising God, even though you know you should, get to a quiet place and pray. Ask God to open your eyes to what He has done in your life and the blessings He has given you. Write them done and take in how gracious and loving God truly is. Let those blessings move your heart to worship.

God deserves our praise, and we cannot afford to praise Him only when we feel like it. Sometimes we need to take steps to worship God even when we don’t feel like it. When we do we reveal the true content of our character and our faith.

Lonely Days and Grace

It has been one of those lonely days for me today. A day when it seems nobody really cares about you and you wonder if you suddenly disappeared if anyone would really notice. This isn't about romance as much as it is about fellowship. More than anything I would like to be with a group of people who are doing life together.

As I have felt this way today a passage kept coming to mind. The passage is 2 Corinthians 12:7-9. This is what the apostle Paul wrote:

So to keep me from being too elated by the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (ESV)

"My grace is sufficient for you," God tells the Apostle. It is hard to trust on God's grace when life isn't what you planned it to be. That is what makes my current situation so difficult, is because I know this is where God wants me to be, but it isn't where I want to be. So I end up fighting God's grace, rather than relying on God's grace.

What is the answer? How do we rely on God's grace? I really wish I knew, but I have this thought that it probably begins with thanksgiving and praise, seeing the good rather than focusing on the bad.

How do you rely on God's grace in the thorny patches of life?

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?

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?

Hope From His Promises

Living Right: Part 2

It is not always easy to do the right thing. In fact, it is one of the hardest thing to do in life. The easy way to live is to submit to the pressure, to give in, and not struggle to follow Jesus. Following Jesus is a struggle. It is a struggle because of the false teachings we hear from inside and outside the church. It is a struggle because life doesn’t go the way we planned. It is a struggle because the we get worn down by all the hassles and difficulties of life.

Yesterday we looked at Hebrews 12:1-4 and noticed that the author of that book tells us to look to the faithful of old and to Jesus to discover the encouragement we need to continue our struggle to live the life God created us to live. In 1 John 2:28-3:10 I think the apostle John helps us understand how we can keep our eyes on Jesus. John tells us we can keep our eyes on Jesus by focusing on two areas of His life.

The first area of Jesus’ life we must focus on are His promises:

28 Even now, little children, abide in him. Then, when he appears, we will have confidence and will not turn away from him in shame at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born from God.

1 See what kind of love the Father has given us in letting us be called God's children! Yet that is what we are. For this reason the world does not recognize us, because it did not recognize him either.

2 Dear friends, we are now God's children, but what we will be like has not been revealed yet. We know that when Christ is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him as he is. 3 And everyone who has this hope based on him keeps himself pure, just as he is pure. (1 John 2:28-3:3, ISV)

John apparently takes Jesus at His word when Jesus promised to return. In John 14:1-4 we read Jesus’ promise:

1 "Do not let your hearts be distressed. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 There are many dwelling places in my Father's house. Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going away to make ready a place for you. 3 And if I go and make ready a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that where I am you may be too. 4 And you know the way where I am going." (NET)

What is the purpose of this promise? Jesus makes this promise in order to give His disciples hope. “Don’t let your hearts be distressed...” Hang in there, don’t grow weary and lose heart, I am coming back, Jesus is telling us. It is a word of encouragement that we need.

In 1 John 2:3-27 the Apostle warns his readers to be on guard against antichrists and false teachings. They needed to remain connected to Jesus, the true source of life. We know we are connected to Jesus when we obey Him (vv. 3-6), when we love (vv.7-14), and when we seek truth (vv.15-27). John wants these people to remain in Jesus.

Then John writes, “continue in him...” Translation: “Life is hard, don’t give up, because Jesus is coming back, and we want to be confident on that day.” Without this hope that Jesus is coming back to make everything right, then it is next to impossible to continue in him, and the trials of life will makes us want to throw in the towel.

Our confidence doesn’t come from our good behavior, but from our trust in Jesus. Remember that is what remaining in Jesus is all about: obeying His teachings, loving His creation, and believing His truth. Faith allows us to come to know the One has made the promise, and as we begin to know Him we discover that we can trust Him.

Not only can we be certain that Jesus is coming back, but John gives us an equally impressive claim: we are Children of God! Not that we will be, but that we are. In the language of the apostle Paul we have been adopted into the family of God, He has chosen us as His children. In the language of Jesus we are the prodigal son returning home. God wants to lavish His love on us, but we have to go back to Him in order to experience that love.

As children of God we are experiencing the lavish love of God through the transformation of our lives. And just as all of us have stories about our lives being opposed by Satan, I am certain we all have stories about how God has made a difference in our lives as we have followed Jesus.

We have seen evidence of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives and we know that we are not the same people we were last year, let alone 5 or 10 years ago. Yet John makes another startling claim, what we will be has not yet been made known. But when he appears, we shall be like him...Wow. God isn’t finished with us. While we can see evidences of transformation in our lives, that transformation isn’t complete. It won’t be complete until Jesus makes His triumphant return.

When we live out this hope, this trust that Jesus will keep His promise and return, then, John writes, we purify ourselves. I think this is a verse we have difficulty with because it seems to say that it is our good works that purify us, and we have been taught that we are saved by grace through faith and not by good works.

Just as our faith is demonstrated through our actions, our hope is demonstrated through what we do as well. We show that we have hope in the return of Jesus because we take the necessary steps to clean up our lives and to struggle against temptation and overcome sin. We show that we have hope when we continue to prayer for our brother to know come to know Jesus, even though he has demonstrated hostility to the idea in the past. Hope gives us a new perspective on life.

“College football fans knew the late Woody Hayes as a fierce competitor whose passion for winning once led him to slug an opposing player who intercepted an Ohio State pass. But when columnist Bob Greene interviewed him just before his final illness and asked if anything was as important as winning, Woody said yes. ‘The important thing is not always to win. The important thing is always to hope.’

“Hope kept Red McDaniel going in his Vietnamese imprisonment. For him to abandon hope, he wrote, was to abandon survival itself and with it his sense of self and all his personhood. The Jews at Auschwitz and Treblinka lived in daily horror and fear of dying, even as they saw other Jews die. Still, they never lost hope that they personally would survive. ‘Where there is life, hope must never be relinquished,’ one said.” (Speakers Sourcebook of New Illustrations, p. 104).

Even though our lives are being opposed as Satan seeks to steal, kill, and destroy our lives, we can have hope because of Jesus’ promise to return and make everything right. We know Jesus can be counted on because God promised a Savior, and at just the right time Jesus appeared. The promise of Jesus first coming provides us with the necessary evidence to trust the promise of His second coming.

The promises of Jesus provide us with the hope we need to live righteous lives.

• Point to Ponder: The promises of Jesus provide us with the hope we need to live righteous lives.
• Passage to Remember: 1 John 2:28-3:3
• Question to Consider: How is hope made a difference in your life?

We Are Opposed

Living Right: Part 1

Jesus has come to us with the offer of life. That is the promise of John 10:10; “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly” (NET). Now we can be certain that we have access to this life when we remain in Jesus (John 15:1-8). To remain in Jesus means that we live our lives in faith. Our lives should be a reflection of Jesus’ life.

Yet, we know that just because we have this life-giving connection doesn’t mean our lives will be easy. Remember our lives are being opposed and that we are living in a world that is at war. Jesus reminds us of this fact before making His promise in John 10:10. Satan is in opposition to the will of God and that means he is opposed to us having life. The Enemy is going to do everything in his power to oppose us and to keep us from living the life God created us to live. That means life will be a struggle. I want you to consider this question: How has Satan opposed your life?

Perhaps you can relate to this couple’s Paris vacation:

“Some dear friends of mine just returned from a three-week vacation in France. It had been their dream for nearly twenty-five years. What could be more romantic that strolling the Champs Élysées in the evening, as lovers do? It seemed an ideal way to celebrated their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. They’d both served God faithfully for decades, but over the years a European rendezvous seem about as reachable as the moon. Then, late last fall, things suddenly came together.

“Friends of theirs were headed to Europe and offered two tickets to come along. TIme off was available. They were going to France. And right after they made it to Paris, it all fell apart. Craig down with walking pneumonia; Lori wanted to leave the third day. All sorts of issues in their marriage surface, but since they were with friends, the issues mostly played themselves out in their own thoughts--which tended toward divorce. It wasn’t romantic; it was hard. Afterward, as we talked on the phone about the whole thing, Lori said, ‘Life never seems to turn out the way you think it will, about 90 percent of the time.’ No kidding. Haven’t we all got a story that goes with that little bumper sticker?” (John Eldredge, Waking the Dead, p. 6)

Our lives are being opposed. Satan doesn’t want you to live life, he wants you life destroyed. Doesn’t this help us make sense of the world? Why do the evil seem to prosper and the good struggle? Why do tragic events happen that erase the joy of life? Only when the answers are built upon the fact that our lives are being opposed do we even begin to make sense of what is happening.

Put this in the context of your life: You have tried to become more obedient to Jesus, but you can’t seem to break free from the habit of gossiping. You just need to be “in the know”. You want to be more loving to your next door neighbor, but then he knocks on your door to let you know all the things that are wrong with your yard and house. He leaves and you are seething inside as you visualize putting your fist through his face. You want to be certain about the truth of the Bible, but last night’s program on the Discovery Channel has you wondering if naturalistic evolution isn’t right after all. It seems so ridiculous to believe in God the Creator in the face of “scientific evidence”.

The more we try to follow Jesus, the more we will be opposed by Satan. Things don’t go as planned because Satan is out to steal, kill, and destroy our lives. Because life is hard we will be tempted to give up and do our own thing. Please remember to do so would allow Satan to win the fight for our life.

Why should we continue our struggle against the opposition of the Enemy? The writer of Hebrews wrote:

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us, 2 keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Think of him who endured such opposition against himself by sinners, so that you may not grow weary in your souls and give up. 4 You have not yet resisted to the point of bloodshed in your struggle against sin. (Hebrews 12:1-4; NET)

The inspired author of Hebrews tells us that there are two reasons why we should continue our struggle against the opposition to our lives. The first reason is because of the faithful people who went before us. Hebrews chapter 11, as many of you know, continues a list of men and women who remained faithful to God. He reminds us that not one of these people received everything God had promised them, but that they looked forward to the time when God would make everything right. We too must follow their example and look forward to Heaven.

The second is Jesus. Jesus experienced hardships, trials, and opposition, yet in the end He was obedient and faithful. Because Jesus endured so much for us, we should endure through the opposition that we will face. The life God created us to live is not going to be easy, it is going to filled with opposition, but if we endure we will discover it is the best life that we can possible live.

• Point to Ponder: The more we try to follow Jesus, the more we will be opposed by Satan.
• Passage to Remember: Hebrews 12:1-4
• Question to Consider: How has Satan opposed you?

God Can Use The Bad

Spiritual growth is not easy. It requires more than reading books, singing songs, listening to sermons, and placing a few dollars in the offering plate. For spiritual growth requires that we follow Jesus, and we do that by applying God's Word to our lives.

It would make sense that Satan, our great enemy, would throw many different obstacles into our path to prevent us from truly following Jesus and thus from maturing in our faith. Satan will throw out fear to get us to hold back rather than following Jesus into the unknown. Satan will sit the trap of temptation causing us to miss out on experiencing God at work in our lives as we pursue the pleasures of sin. He will dig the hole of guilt causing us to fall in as forget about God's grace and forgiveness and allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by the sin that is in our lives.

I have good news for you: God uses Satan's obstacles as opportunities to make us better people! Just as Joseph told his brothers; "As far as I am concerned, God turned into good what you meant for evil" (Genesis 50:20; NLT), we can be certain that God will use the bad in our lives to bring about good. God is so powerful that He can even turn evil into good!

The key for us is not to give up. When things aren't going our way and the weight of the world is on our shoulders it becomes so easy to throw in the towel. We convince ourselves that following Jesus isn't worth the hardships of life. Remember the promise of God is that when we remain faithful He will bring about the change. We have to live our lives by faith. Remember what the Lord's brother wrote in his epistle:

Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything. ~ James 1:2-4; NLT

James says that we should approach trials with joy, because we know God can use them to produce in us character that is more in line with the character of Jesus. Because God loves us He will not waste our painful experiences, our failures, or our troubles. He will use them to make us stronger, and in many cases, He will use them for the benefit of others.

When trials, troubles, and failures come our way shouldn't get discouraged and wonder where God is. Rather we should respond with trust knowing that through even the most horrible of circumstances God can bring about His will and create us to be a more like His Son Jesus.

• Point to Ponder: God uses Satan's obstacles as opportunities to make us better people!
• Passage to Remember: James 1:2-4
• Question to Consider: Are you willing to do whatever it takes to follow Jesus?

Struggling Through Life

It is no secret that life is hard. Even when we are following Jesus and doing God’s will life doesn’t get any easier. There is a part of us, even though it has never been promised, that expects things to be easy if we are doing what is right. We want to be validated and reassured that we are doing the right thing.

Though it would seem to me that if we are truly doing God’s will then things would be difficult. Why? Because the enemy is opposed to God. If we are making progress in overcoming sin in our lives, if we are in a relationship God wants us to be a part of, if we are part of a ministry making a difference in the community, or if we are standing up for what is right we shouldn’t be surprised if things are not easy. In fact, I might even suggest that if things are easy it might be time to evaluate what we are doing.

True we can’t evaluate things solely on the basis of whether things are going well or not. Sometimes things will go well even though it is God’s will and sometimes things will be a struggle even though it goes against God’s law. All I want to do is point out that struggling isn’t a bad thing. When God’s will is a struggle this gives us an opportunity to grow and will help us appreciate what God has for us on the other side of the struggle.

In the midst of the struggle we need to remember what Jesus said to the church in Smyrna:

9 "‘I know your suffering, your poverty—though you are rich—and the slander on the part of those who claim to be Jews but aren't. They are the synagogue of Satan. 10 Don't be afraid of what you are going to suffer. Look! The devil is going to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested. For ten days you will undergo suffering. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the victor's crown of life.

11 ‘Let the person who has an ear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will never be hurt by the second death.’" (Revelation 2:9-11; ISV)

Jesus tells this group of Christ Followers not to give up in the face of persecution. “Hang in there,” He says, “this won’t last forever.” Our struggle may not be persecution, but it maybe that circumstances haven’t turned out the way we expected. Reality isn’t anything like our dreams and we wonder if we are in the right place. Should we have faith or should we give up?

I don’t think there are any hard and fast rules for such situations, but let me offer you a few thoughts. First, is your struggle tied to right and faithful living? If it is then we are doing what God wants us to do. When our desire is to honor God, encourage people, help others, and grow in our knowledge and faith then there are a lot of places we can go and things we can do and remain in God’s will. These are certainly things that Satan would oppose, so if you are being faithful and loving God and people and things are a struggle stay faithful. You can be confident that you are in the right place.

Second, let go of your dreams. I think God allows us to struggle sometimes because our dreams need to be changed. We are missing out on the life God wants us to live because we are clinging too tightly to the dreams we have for our lives. Even good dreams need to be let go in order to experience God’s best. This is an act of faith because we have come to believe that only in these dreams will we discover happiness, so we are relying totally on God to bring joy into our lives.

A last thought I would offer is to get the opinion of different Christians. These could be people you are close with or not, but they need to be people you respect and who live faithful lives. While we need to evaluate what they say, more than likely they will help us see things from a new perspective. Too often we get so close to the situation that we fail to see the entire picture. The perspective of other Christians can help us see things more clearly.

Life is tough. Just because life is tough doesn’t mean that we are not doing God’s will. Often the struggle is an indication that we are doing what God wants us to do and we are being opposed by the Enemy. We need to stay faithful and in the end we will experience the life God created us to live.

• Point to Ponder: Struggling isn’t a bad thing.
• Passage to Remember: Revelation 2:9-11
• Question to Consider: Are you ready to give up on your struggle? Why?