Click on the scripture reference and read these verses: Matthew 5:13-16
I believe that the Church is the greatest earthly hope that we have in existence. i don't mean buildings, I don't mean the Roman Catholic, or any other, denomination. I am simply referring to the people who have a relationship with Jesus Christ, God's Son, who died on a cross for our sins and came back to life three days later. For me, these are indisputable facts. Maybe science hasn't proven their validity, but neither has it disproven them. Besides, I have first-hand experience with a relationship with Jesus, through my faith and trust in Him, that would hold past any scientific challenge. "A man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument." (unknown)
Yet just as I believe that the Church is the greatest earthly hope, in that we are the tangible touch of Christ to the world around us as He is living through us, we also have developed some serious flaws through the years since our institution. In the verses we read at the beginning, which are in red and the actual words of Jesus, He calls us salt and light. I have been dwelling on these verses for a while now and want to share with you what I have learned. Though it will be in reverse order from what's listed, I'd first like to look at "light."
We, the Church, are light in this world. Darkness cannot hide from light when in the same room or space. The only way light can be kept from penetrating darkness is to be shut out in some way. Think of a dark room in a basement with no windows and only one door. If the door is sealed well, whatever light is on the outside of the door will never reach the inside of the room. However, open the door, and whatever light is shining just outside will flood the darkness and, depending on its brightness, illumine everything it touches to some degree. Darkness cannot stop it.
The light that is in us is the Light of Jesus Christ. It is the light of truth, justice, mercy, grace, love, forgiveness--all of the traits and characteristics of God; the fruit of the Spirit, if you will. Simply because Jesus, in the form of the Holy Spirit, resides in us, so does His light as even our sin nature cannot hide the glory of God. Darkness is powerless against such light. Just as God is eternal, so is the light of His glory within us. It will never be quenched. Stars that illumine our night skies are seen by the human eye thousands of years after they have been extinguished because of the time it takes for the light to reach the earth from its source. Yet this light, the light of His glory, will never be snuffed out. It is indeed eternal. It reaches past our bracketed existence on this planet.
Light is what we carry to the world. The very source of the light lives in us if we have chosen to believe in the work Jesus did on the cross and in His being who He said He was, the very Son of God. The closer we draw in relationship with Jesus, He also draws nearer to us and that light shines even the brighter. Our dark world needs light. Much of it maybe even craves light. Light is what we bring as the Church. We reflect it much in the same way the moon reflects the sun. When light is reflected, the brightness of the reflected light is dependent on the substance of the reflective material. For example, a white sheet will reflect light, but when foil is used, the reflected light is much brighter than what was elected off the sheet. The brightness of the light we reflect depends on our substance, and our substance depends on the depth of our relationship with Christ.
But just as light is what we bring, salt is how we bring it.
Let's look at just a couple of characteristics of salt. Salt makes things taste better. It seasons. When we sit down at the table, or cook food for others, we often season the food with salt to bring more flavor. Salt also preserves. You can salt meat and preserve it a little longer. However, unlike light, salt is temporary. Eventually, salt can and will lose its flavor.
As the Church, in my personal observation, we more often get the "light" part right than we do the "salt." After all, the light really isn't us, it's Jesus. We don't have to do much for light to come through. But salt? That requires much more effort. When we see evidence around us that "the world is going to hell in a hand basket," as we often put it, we normally get pretty self-righteous and feel the need to defend Jesus and/or our faith. We act surprised at what is going on.
Yet, have you ever noticed that God has never entered a day where He called Gabriel over and told him to go warm up the trumpet because God was surprised by something that a non-believer did the day before? Lost people act lost! God's not surprised by that, so why are we? When there is a Supreme Court decision, an act of terrorism, a school shooting, a video from Planned Parenthood, or some other social ill, we adopt a sudden sense of urgency to do something to stop it. Yet if we really felt that "urgent," we would've been doing something all along, right? But in our sudden urgency, we sit down the salt shaker and pick up the persimmon juice. What we offer to the world, while true, now tastes very bitter and unwelcoming. No wonder it gets rejected so often.
Salt is mined. It is in huge rocks or stones. Larger rocks of salt have their uses, but it looks much different than what we see in shakers on tables. Meat can be laid onto rocks of salt for seasoning or preservation. Unlike what is found in shakers, food must be brought to the salt, not the other way around. For salt to reach the food, it must first be crushed or ground. Could it be that this is true for us, as Christians, as well? Before we can be the most useful, there must be a season of crushing or breaking. It's not that we can't be used without being broken, but we depend on others to come to us. Our sense of urgency may be less. We still season. We still carry light. We just haven't been through a life event that has brought us to the point where we can be poured out before others as a drink offering to them.
Once salt is crushed, unless salt is poured out onto the food, it can't reach it's highest potential of seasoning the food. You can sit a salt shaker on the table. In that way, it can be among the food; it can be a part of the offering at every meal. Yet, until it is poured out, touches the food, covers the food, it cannot season the food. This is why I'm extremely apprehensive about religious freedom laws. It gives us Christians yet another excuse to not be poured out and serve in humility. It allows us to stay in the shaker and even attach a spiritual label to it so that our greed sounds legitimate. Not that everyone would do that, or be that way, but my experience has taught me that many look for just such excuses. It gives a voice that we can use to not be the tangible touch of Christ to someone who may be looking for hope, for light. Why would we ever want to do that?
We trade the seasoning power of salt to offer a "taste and see the Lord is good" opportunity to the world, and try to serve the light we carry in glasses of persimmon juice. For those who have never had persimmon juice, it is extremely bitter and makes the lips pucker. It is a very unpleasant experience. As believers, we hear or see truth and are drawn to it because the Truth lives in our hearts. The world around us is unfamiliar with Truth and that is why we are called to be salt (seasoning those around us in ways that we are pleasing to be around and deliver Truth in palatable ways) and light (also delivering truth that isn't watered down nor wavering). Why is it that we can't do both?
Be light today. Be salt today. Give truth, but only in a way that is pleasing and seasons those who need the truth. That is how we change the world starting with the one beside us.
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Showing posts with label relationship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label relationship. Show all posts
Monday, August 10, 2015
Thursday, May 28, 2015
What does a "relationship" with Jesus look like?
I'm glad scripture says in Romans 10:9-10 that we only need to declare/confess with our mouth and believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead to be saved. If it had involved a relationship like I have with Him now, I'd have been up a creek without a paddle. Many who have been "saved" (in other words, they have decided to believe by faith that Jesus Christ is indeed the very Son of God, and that His death on the cross and resurrection that followed paid the sin debt of death for them) would say that making that decision is the same as having a relationship with Jesus. While it does, in fact, introduce you to Jesus, and open the door for relationship, you don't automatically just "know" your Savior in all His glory. That would be like jumping from being introduced to the person who will be your spouse, to being married with a family a few seconds later. No relationship works like that. Jesus is no different.
Maybe this disagrees with your theology some, but hang with me. I really believe that we will end up in the same place if you will continue with me here. If you're one of those that has tried to have a relationship with Jesus, or you're just wondering what one looks like, read on too.
The absolute first step in having any relationship, as described above, is being introduced to the person with whom you desire relationship. This happens at the point in your life where you make the decision to follow Jesus by confessing that decision with your mouth, and believing in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead. At that decision crossroads, you change your eternal destination to heaven in the presence of God, forever and ever and ever (per Romans 10:9-10 listed above). But what about the relationship that follows? Let's look.
The Bible speaks primarily in the Old Testament of God audibly speaking to mankind. He used judges and prophets to do this most of the time. It normally wasn't to everyone who said they believed in God. Let me bring you some comfort right now and know that in my relationship with Jesus, I have never audibly heard His voice. You do not need to worry that someone will put you on an episode of Dr. Phil because you are hearing voices inside or outside your head. This is not some spiritually induced schizophrenia.
Growing up in the church, as I did, I used to believe that a relationship with Jesus was dedicated on what I did to instigate it, or to keep it going once it started. The things I thought I had to do was, of course, go to church, serve others, worship, read my Bible, etc. My list of things was probably no different than yours in most ways. I heard the scripture quoted many times, which is true, "come near to God and He will come near to you." (James 4:8) The only things that I could think of to draw near to God were the things in my list. I determined to get busy doing what I thought God would be doing or would want me to do, and surely He would then come near to me. I was wrong.
It wasn't until my life fell apart in 2011 and God started putting me back together again in 2012, that I realized what a relationship with Jesus/God really meant. What does it look like? Not much different than any of m other relationships. Let me explain.
I remember being in the altar in early 2012 and I was extremely broken. I was pouring out my heart to God and asking Him what was going to happen to me. I'd made some terrible choices, gotten involved in sin, and was reaping the benefits of my stupidity. Then in an altar in Texas, not audibly, yet clear as day, I heard the voice of God. It was more of a thought than anything. I knew the thought wasn't mine, though, because it wasn't saying anything to myself that I believed to be either true or possible. God only said, "Let me love you." Here I was crying and blubbering and trying to give Him a list of all the reasons why that couldn't happen. After all, because of what I had done, I viewed myself as unloveable. But love me He did and does.
I have an app on my iPhone called the Bible App. It posts a "Verse of the Day" each night at midnight. I have no way to properly explain it, but I chose to read those verses almost every day, and almost every day each one seemed as though God was speaking directly into my heart. Sometimes, it even got almost to the eerie point because the verse would be so on target. Those verses still say something to me most of the time. I have come to believe that it is simply because I make myself available to hear what God has to say. I tune out the noise of my day, and allow God to speak. There's no magical time of day to do it. Actually, I enjoy keeping the conversation going throughout the whole day.
See, here's the thing. All my lists of things that I thought I needed to do to draw near to God were actually things I was supposed to do because I had already drawn near to God. The list was supposed to be a result of my relationship, not the relationship itself. The lists, the details, the commandments, the rituals, were never intended to be my relationship with God. Yet, I had made them such. But what I've found is that God, the Creator of the universe, desires to sit down and talk with me all the time--daily. The biggest change in my prayer life if that I'm still and quiet long enough for God to talk back. Before, my prayers were my lists to God in response to the lists of things I brought to Him through my actions. It was a very warped way to have a conversation. Now, it's not like that at all.
Through reading those verses, I've learned more of the character of God. I've learned to discern His voice among all the other thoughts in my head. On top of that, I've seen the things He's told me revealed in my life. If not for revelation, I might consider contacting my straight jacket tailor and setting up a fitting. Where at first, most of His communication to me was through the Bible, now it's as much in my thoughts as it is reading scripture. Sometimes He even speaks to me through others who are also Christians and I recognize His voice in their words.
There is indeed a relationship to be had. It is God's wish for all mankind. But now do you see the difference I was speaking about in the first couple of paragraphs? Our confession and belief changes the eternal destination, but it's the relationship that changes the journey getting there. Try it. Make yourself available. It may seem awkward at first, but that's ok. The benefits of your perseverance will be absolutely amazing!
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Maybe this disagrees with your theology some, but hang with me. I really believe that we will end up in the same place if you will continue with me here. If you're one of those that has tried to have a relationship with Jesus, or you're just wondering what one looks like, read on too.
The absolute first step in having any relationship, as described above, is being introduced to the person with whom you desire relationship. This happens at the point in your life where you make the decision to follow Jesus by confessing that decision with your mouth, and believing in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead. At that decision crossroads, you change your eternal destination to heaven in the presence of God, forever and ever and ever (per Romans 10:9-10 listed above). But what about the relationship that follows? Let's look.
The Bible speaks primarily in the Old Testament of God audibly speaking to mankind. He used judges and prophets to do this most of the time. It normally wasn't to everyone who said they believed in God. Let me bring you some comfort right now and know that in my relationship with Jesus, I have never audibly heard His voice. You do not need to worry that someone will put you on an episode of Dr. Phil because you are hearing voices inside or outside your head. This is not some spiritually induced schizophrenia.
Growing up in the church, as I did, I used to believe that a relationship with Jesus was dedicated on what I did to instigate it, or to keep it going once it started. The things I thought I had to do was, of course, go to church, serve others, worship, read my Bible, etc. My list of things was probably no different than yours in most ways. I heard the scripture quoted many times, which is true, "come near to God and He will come near to you." (James 4:8) The only things that I could think of to draw near to God were the things in my list. I determined to get busy doing what I thought God would be doing or would want me to do, and surely He would then come near to me. I was wrong.
It wasn't until my life fell apart in 2011 and God started putting me back together again in 2012, that I realized what a relationship with Jesus/God really meant. What does it look like? Not much different than any of m other relationships. Let me explain.
I remember being in the altar in early 2012 and I was extremely broken. I was pouring out my heart to God and asking Him what was going to happen to me. I'd made some terrible choices, gotten involved in sin, and was reaping the benefits of my stupidity. Then in an altar in Texas, not audibly, yet clear as day, I heard the voice of God. It was more of a thought than anything. I knew the thought wasn't mine, though, because it wasn't saying anything to myself that I believed to be either true or possible. God only said, "Let me love you." Here I was crying and blubbering and trying to give Him a list of all the reasons why that couldn't happen. After all, because of what I had done, I viewed myself as unloveable. But love me He did and does.
I have an app on my iPhone called the Bible App. It posts a "Verse of the Day" each night at midnight. I have no way to properly explain it, but I chose to read those verses almost every day, and almost every day each one seemed as though God was speaking directly into my heart. Sometimes, it even got almost to the eerie point because the verse would be so on target. Those verses still say something to me most of the time. I have come to believe that it is simply because I make myself available to hear what God has to say. I tune out the noise of my day, and allow God to speak. There's no magical time of day to do it. Actually, I enjoy keeping the conversation going throughout the whole day.
See, here's the thing. All my lists of things that I thought I needed to do to draw near to God were actually things I was supposed to do because I had already drawn near to God. The list was supposed to be a result of my relationship, not the relationship itself. The lists, the details, the commandments, the rituals, were never intended to be my relationship with God. Yet, I had made them such. But what I've found is that God, the Creator of the universe, desires to sit down and talk with me all the time--daily. The biggest change in my prayer life if that I'm still and quiet long enough for God to talk back. Before, my prayers were my lists to God in response to the lists of things I brought to Him through my actions. It was a very warped way to have a conversation. Now, it's not like that at all.
Through reading those verses, I've learned more of the character of God. I've learned to discern His voice among all the other thoughts in my head. On top of that, I've seen the things He's told me revealed in my life. If not for revelation, I might consider contacting my straight jacket tailor and setting up a fitting. Where at first, most of His communication to me was through the Bible, now it's as much in my thoughts as it is reading scripture. Sometimes He even speaks to me through others who are also Christians and I recognize His voice in their words.
There is indeed a relationship to be had. It is God's wish for all mankind. But now do you see the difference I was speaking about in the first couple of paragraphs? Our confession and belief changes the eternal destination, but it's the relationship that changes the journey getting there. Try it. Make yourself available. It may seem awkward at first, but that's ok. The benefits of your perseverance will be absolutely amazing!
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Thursday, June 12, 2014
A Passed Past: Grace
It's been a little over a month since my last blog. For my regular readers, I'm sorry for the delay (I normally try to write one about every two weeks or so), but to say life has been interesting in this past month would be an understatement!
Some of you know that as I type this, I'm home recovering from foot reconstructive surgery on my left foot. Surgery was on June 5. I made the decision to go ahead and have the surgery about the time of my last blog near the end of April. Stress and worry have plagued me as the enemy has tried to attack both Michelle and I with not only our emotions, but our pursuits of our personal business successes as well.
Add to that the fact that a pastor that I served under in the recent past lost his job because of moral reasons. Now understand, this was a man that had abused me and every other member of his staff, had abused church members seeking to only have relationships with "friends" if he gained something from it, and had left hundreds of people in his wake! It was two years and two months of hell on earth and the worst season of 24 years of worship ministry! I had been praying ever since I left that God would intervene there, and He did.
For years I had carried anger and maybe even some forms of hatred toward this man. The very sight of anything that reminded me of him would stir those emotions deep within me! But then, I get this news. And after jumping up and down in my living room for about 20 minutes, which I had to repent of immediately after, God gave me a very sobering thought. See, I've been where he is now. I know the sting of coming face to face with my sin and the hurt that it caused to loved ones and the body of Christ. At that moment, a page turned and I was able to not only forgive him, but almost become a crusader for his restoration. His sin (as far as I know and based on my experience) was now in the past where my Father is concerned, thus it should be with me. Repentance sought. Forgiveness given. Grace in motion.
We all have a past. Technically speaking, you started reading this blog in the past. Every split second takes us further into the future and leaves a string of moments in its wake. For many of us, we have a past we're not proud of. The past consists of scenes that flash through our minds on a daily basis playing a film in high definition reminding us of our weakest moments, our times of which we are most ashamed, or seasons of searing hurt. For some of us, years separate the present from those moments. For others, only minutes. Some of you may find yourselves reading this in a desperate cry for hope because you're in one of those times right now!
Pasts are like fires. You can run or try to pull away from the sting when you feel it, but it's already on you, burning you. By the time you recognize the pain, the mistake is made. You can't take it back. You're on fire now. And the fire uses your mind and body for fuel. As long as there's a part of you left, it seems it will never stop. And if you do get the flames put out, you stand back up only to realize you don't look like you did "before." Your past has marked you. Grossly.
I remember looking in the mirror and not liking what I'd become. I remember the days begging God to take me out; to just kill me! I didn't want the suffering and pain and worst of all, I didn't want to see it in the faces of those for which I cared. And these things brought me face to face with that emotion that you always hear said, but until you've experienced it for yourself, you may think it to be hogwash: The hardest person to forgive is yourself. You think of yourself as a monster! Hope has faded as a single drop of water into a raging inferno.
But in that season of tremendous loss, God reminded me of something in His word about which I had written a song years earlier. Click on the following reference link to read Isaiah 43:1-3. It's not an "if," but "when" we walk through fire and deep water. And the deformity that we saw when we looked in the mirror is nothing more than seeing our sin in the light. However, we ARE NOT defined by our sin! Let me say that again, we ARE NOT defined by our sin! Make it personal and read this out loud: I AM NOT defined by my sin! If you are in Christ, a child of God is who you are. Again from Isaiah, "I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine."
Click here and read the story of the Prodigal Son. Jesus uses this illustration to give us a glimpse of the Father's heart. When the lost son was out doing his own thing, did the father get angry? Did he cut him out of the will? Did he renounce him from the family? No. He sat. Waiting. Knowing. One day, his son would be coming down the road back home. And the father wanted to be there to see him coming when the event came into play. Not to say, "I told you so," but to run and wrap his lost son in his arms and welcome him home! That's grace. That's what happened to me. The son's past was IMMEDIATELY just...passed. It was no longer relevant to the father.
Scripture says that upon repentance, God separates our sin as far away from Him as the east from the west. It says that our sin becomes white as snow when washed under the blood of Christ. That means that there is HOPE for us all! Thanks be to God, there's HOPE!!! There may be darkness for a time. But it doesn't last! Read here what the Bible says: 1 Peter 5:10.
Now let me take a moment to talk to the "saints" reading this. You may know someone who has fallen. Their sin may scare you. Really, it may damage your good standing in the community if you are seen associating with the likes of such sinners. They have damaged the name of Christ and the work of the church. The need to see if they are truly repentant wells up inside you because of those verses you've read about "wolves in sheep's clothing!" There's danger in the camp and you need to be the one to rid those you care about of that danger! Read this passage: Galatians 6:1-3.
Still think that way? Remember the pastor I mentioned earlier in this blog? I remember sitting in church and listening to one of his messages when he said, "Show me a man who's always talking about grace, and I'll show you a man who's looking to minimize or seek an excuse for his sin." I wonder if that's what he still believes? He now has a "past." One of those that have burned him like fire.
And remember how I said that I have almost become a crusader for his restoration? I haven't done that to earn a merit badge from Jesus! As a matter of fact, that could only happen because I had been - have been - the recipient of grace. It is impossible to give what you have never received. If you've never come to fact with the weight of your own sin and the fact that just yours would have still cost Jesus His life, then how can you expect to give it to anyone else? You can't. Impossible.
My pastor's poor statement was made with the thought that grace is an excuse to sin. That grace follows repentance. That grace is earned based on some sort of demonstration by the sinner. Maybe they haven't cried enough to suit you. Maybe you haven't seen them in the altar. So what?!? Did scripture say to make sure and look for those things, it just said to do it! The heart condition is up to God, not you! The repentance is because of Him, not you. But we are to have His heart. We are to act like the person we are - a child of God.
Grace comes before repentance! Grace begs repentance! It is not an excuse to sin, but the very reason to never sin again! When we become givers of grace because we have first been recipients; when we see others not as a danger to the cause of Christ, but as the HEART of the cause of Christ; when we stop looking for the faults of others because we can't face our own faults and make a bigger deal out of their sin in order to better hide our own, then we become bearers of HOPE!!! And hope is the one thing that every person on this planet needs every single day. Without Jesus, there is none. With Him, there's nothing else.
God told me something in a prayer time when I was being attacked by those who knew details about my past. He said to me, "Son, first know that I love you and am proud of you. Second, know that any time you are reminded of your past, it is never from my voice. It is always the voice of the enemy! How can I remind you of something that has been washed from your record by the blood of my Son and that I have since forgotten?" Grace is here. Your past is passed. Live in freedom of your future.
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Some of you know that as I type this, I'm home recovering from foot reconstructive surgery on my left foot. Surgery was on June 5. I made the decision to go ahead and have the surgery about the time of my last blog near the end of April. Stress and worry have plagued me as the enemy has tried to attack both Michelle and I with not only our emotions, but our pursuits of our personal business successes as well.
Add to that the fact that a pastor that I served under in the recent past lost his job because of moral reasons. Now understand, this was a man that had abused me and every other member of his staff, had abused church members seeking to only have relationships with "friends" if he gained something from it, and had left hundreds of people in his wake! It was two years and two months of hell on earth and the worst season of 24 years of worship ministry! I had been praying ever since I left that God would intervene there, and He did.
For years I had carried anger and maybe even some forms of hatred toward this man. The very sight of anything that reminded me of him would stir those emotions deep within me! But then, I get this news. And after jumping up and down in my living room for about 20 minutes, which I had to repent of immediately after, God gave me a very sobering thought. See, I've been where he is now. I know the sting of coming face to face with my sin and the hurt that it caused to loved ones and the body of Christ. At that moment, a page turned and I was able to not only forgive him, but almost become a crusader for his restoration. His sin (as far as I know and based on my experience) was now in the past where my Father is concerned, thus it should be with me. Repentance sought. Forgiveness given. Grace in motion.
We all have a past. Technically speaking, you started reading this blog in the past. Every split second takes us further into the future and leaves a string of moments in its wake. For many of us, we have a past we're not proud of. The past consists of scenes that flash through our minds on a daily basis playing a film in high definition reminding us of our weakest moments, our times of which we are most ashamed, or seasons of searing hurt. For some of us, years separate the present from those moments. For others, only minutes. Some of you may find yourselves reading this in a desperate cry for hope because you're in one of those times right now!
Pasts are like fires. You can run or try to pull away from the sting when you feel it, but it's already on you, burning you. By the time you recognize the pain, the mistake is made. You can't take it back. You're on fire now. And the fire uses your mind and body for fuel. As long as there's a part of you left, it seems it will never stop. And if you do get the flames put out, you stand back up only to realize you don't look like you did "before." Your past has marked you. Grossly.
I remember looking in the mirror and not liking what I'd become. I remember the days begging God to take me out; to just kill me! I didn't want the suffering and pain and worst of all, I didn't want to see it in the faces of those for which I cared. And these things brought me face to face with that emotion that you always hear said, but until you've experienced it for yourself, you may think it to be hogwash: The hardest person to forgive is yourself. You think of yourself as a monster! Hope has faded as a single drop of water into a raging inferno.
But in that season of tremendous loss, God reminded me of something in His word about which I had written a song years earlier. Click on the following reference link to read Isaiah 43:1-3. It's not an "if," but "when" we walk through fire and deep water. And the deformity that we saw when we looked in the mirror is nothing more than seeing our sin in the light. However, we ARE NOT defined by our sin! Let me say that again, we ARE NOT defined by our sin! Make it personal and read this out loud: I AM NOT defined by my sin! If you are in Christ, a child of God is who you are. Again from Isaiah, "I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine."
Click here and read the story of the Prodigal Son. Jesus uses this illustration to give us a glimpse of the Father's heart. When the lost son was out doing his own thing, did the father get angry? Did he cut him out of the will? Did he renounce him from the family? No. He sat. Waiting. Knowing. One day, his son would be coming down the road back home. And the father wanted to be there to see him coming when the event came into play. Not to say, "I told you so," but to run and wrap his lost son in his arms and welcome him home! That's grace. That's what happened to me. The son's past was IMMEDIATELY just...passed. It was no longer relevant to the father.
Scripture says that upon repentance, God separates our sin as far away from Him as the east from the west. It says that our sin becomes white as snow when washed under the blood of Christ. That means that there is HOPE for us all! Thanks be to God, there's HOPE!!! There may be darkness for a time. But it doesn't last! Read here what the Bible says: 1 Peter 5:10.
Now let me take a moment to talk to the "saints" reading this. You may know someone who has fallen. Their sin may scare you. Really, it may damage your good standing in the community if you are seen associating with the likes of such sinners. They have damaged the name of Christ and the work of the church. The need to see if they are truly repentant wells up inside you because of those verses you've read about "wolves in sheep's clothing!" There's danger in the camp and you need to be the one to rid those you care about of that danger! Read this passage: Galatians 6:1-3.
Still think that way? Remember the pastor I mentioned earlier in this blog? I remember sitting in church and listening to one of his messages when he said, "Show me a man who's always talking about grace, and I'll show you a man who's looking to minimize or seek an excuse for his sin." I wonder if that's what he still believes? He now has a "past." One of those that have burned him like fire.
And remember how I said that I have almost become a crusader for his restoration? I haven't done that to earn a merit badge from Jesus! As a matter of fact, that could only happen because I had been - have been - the recipient of grace. It is impossible to give what you have never received. If you've never come to fact with the weight of your own sin and the fact that just yours would have still cost Jesus His life, then how can you expect to give it to anyone else? You can't. Impossible.
My pastor's poor statement was made with the thought that grace is an excuse to sin. That grace follows repentance. That grace is earned based on some sort of demonstration by the sinner. Maybe they haven't cried enough to suit you. Maybe you haven't seen them in the altar. So what?!? Did scripture say to make sure and look for those things, it just said to do it! The heart condition is up to God, not you! The repentance is because of Him, not you. But we are to have His heart. We are to act like the person we are - a child of God.
Grace comes before repentance! Grace begs repentance! It is not an excuse to sin, but the very reason to never sin again! When we become givers of grace because we have first been recipients; when we see others not as a danger to the cause of Christ, but as the HEART of the cause of Christ; when we stop looking for the faults of others because we can't face our own faults and make a bigger deal out of their sin in order to better hide our own, then we become bearers of HOPE!!! And hope is the one thing that every person on this planet needs every single day. Without Jesus, there is none. With Him, there's nothing else.
God told me something in a prayer time when I was being attacked by those who knew details about my past. He said to me, "Son, first know that I love you and am proud of you. Second, know that any time you are reminded of your past, it is never from my voice. It is always the voice of the enemy! How can I remind you of something that has been washed from your record by the blood of my Son and that I have since forgotten?" Grace is here. Your past is passed. Live in freedom of your future.
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
What's My Name?
I am a student of leadership. The study of leadership and bettering myself so that I can in turn better others around me is a passion of mine. One thing that is HAMMERED into your head in almost any basic leadership class is to use a person's name as much as possible. Why? Because people feel special when their name is used. They recognize that to the one calling them by name, they are more than a number, a demographic, or an employee. Names matter.
Any company that has survived years of building a brand around a name will tell you, names matter. There is a lot riding on a name. Reputations, lawsuits, promotions, guilt, and innocence can ride on a name. One of the first responsibilities ever given to man by God after creation was naming the animals. God gave Adam and Eve their names. Your parents probably named most of you! Names count. They matter. People, organizations, countries all respond to a name.
As I look through and read scripture, I see this fact drilled home as I see those whose names were changed after significant events in their lives. Here's a short non-exhaustive list:
Jacob - Genesis 32:27-28
Paul - Acts 13:9
Abraham - Genesis 17:1-5
Gideon - Judges 6:31-32
Each of these men had something significant happen in their lives and their names were changed as a result. And their new names reflected the events for which they would be known.
As a leader, when I'm coaching someone else, I've started doing something that I've seen a mentor of mine do with those whom he is helping to develop a God-centered vision for their lives. I now have people write out their own obituary and their own epitaph. Macabre? Maybe a little. But see, these two things are how those who come behind you who may not have known you or anything about your life will remember you. They will look you up on the Internet, or they'll pass by your headstone in a graveyard somewhere, and there engraved in marble will be the one phrase summation of what you meant to the world while you were here.
Take a moment. Try it. Your obituary can be a little longer - a paragraph maybe. Your epitaph, what will be written on your headstone, must be much shorter. How do you want those who follow you to remember you? What do you want said about your life in one simple phrase? What difference do you want to have made when you breathe your last?
Gideon was the last name I listed above. I recently did a study on the few chapters in Judges that record for us the life of Gideon. There's not much there. But what is, is powerful! He was raised in a society that worshipped an idol named Baal. There was an altar to Baal in Gideon's parents' home where he had grown up. As a matter of fact, Gideon's first act of obedience to Jehovah God was to go to the home of his father and tear down the altar of Baal! The verses above pick up right after this event. We see the people calling for Gideon's life! Yet the name that he ended up getting was one that meant "let Baal contend for himself." Basically, "Baal Fighter."
In Revelation 2, we see the letter to the Church in Pergamum. At the end of this brief letter, click on the reference link that follows and read what is written. Revelation 2:17
Does this mean that all of us who claim the name of Christ, who have placed our faith and trust in Him as Savior, who devote our lives in the pursuit of holiness have received a "new name" that only we will understand? I think it just might.
Those of you who know me personally call me, Kevin. It is how I am known and the name to which I respond. But I believe with all my heart that there is another name. I believe it may even be the name referenced in Isaiah 43 (and surrounding chapters) when the scriptures continually remind us that God has "called you by name." (Isaiah 43:1) "I have called you by name and you are mine." It tells of how when we are overcome by waters, we won't drown. Or when we find ourselves in the fire, we won't be burned up. We are HIS and He has a name for every one of us!
So if our names represent who we were while here on this earth, what great things we did for the cause of Christ, what do you want your name to be? When you walk through the gates of heaven and you look your Savior in the face for the very first time, and He says, "Welcome home, _________." FILL IN THE BLANK! I'm afraid for so many of us, we may be trying to leave Jesus at a loss for words because we're not doing anything to earn a name greater than "Warmer of Many Seats!" As a matter of fact, when I'm coaching people in the future, I may add this to the list of assignments. Write out the name for which you want to be known by your Heavenly Father.
For me? Messenger of Hope, or Hope Bringer. That's not a very pretty name in English, but it really is how I want to be remembered! Whatever my name is that is waiting for me, aside from seeing Jesus, it'll be the best moment of the beginning of my eternity... when I get to hear my name for the first time. What's your name?
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Any company that has survived years of building a brand around a name will tell you, names matter. There is a lot riding on a name. Reputations, lawsuits, promotions, guilt, and innocence can ride on a name. One of the first responsibilities ever given to man by God after creation was naming the animals. God gave Adam and Eve their names. Your parents probably named most of you! Names count. They matter. People, organizations, countries all respond to a name.
As I look through and read scripture, I see this fact drilled home as I see those whose names were changed after significant events in their lives. Here's a short non-exhaustive list:
Jacob - Genesis 32:27-28
Paul - Acts 13:9
Abraham - Genesis 17:1-5
Gideon - Judges 6:31-32
Each of these men had something significant happen in their lives and their names were changed as a result. And their new names reflected the events for which they would be known.
As a leader, when I'm coaching someone else, I've started doing something that I've seen a mentor of mine do with those whom he is helping to develop a God-centered vision for their lives. I now have people write out their own obituary and their own epitaph. Macabre? Maybe a little. But see, these two things are how those who come behind you who may not have known you or anything about your life will remember you. They will look you up on the Internet, or they'll pass by your headstone in a graveyard somewhere, and there engraved in marble will be the one phrase summation of what you meant to the world while you were here.
Take a moment. Try it. Your obituary can be a little longer - a paragraph maybe. Your epitaph, what will be written on your headstone, must be much shorter. How do you want those who follow you to remember you? What do you want said about your life in one simple phrase? What difference do you want to have made when you breathe your last?
Gideon was the last name I listed above. I recently did a study on the few chapters in Judges that record for us the life of Gideon. There's not much there. But what is, is powerful! He was raised in a society that worshipped an idol named Baal. There was an altar to Baal in Gideon's parents' home where he had grown up. As a matter of fact, Gideon's first act of obedience to Jehovah God was to go to the home of his father and tear down the altar of Baal! The verses above pick up right after this event. We see the people calling for Gideon's life! Yet the name that he ended up getting was one that meant "let Baal contend for himself." Basically, "Baal Fighter."
In Revelation 2, we see the letter to the Church in Pergamum. At the end of this brief letter, click on the reference link that follows and read what is written. Revelation 2:17
Does this mean that all of us who claim the name of Christ, who have placed our faith and trust in Him as Savior, who devote our lives in the pursuit of holiness have received a "new name" that only we will understand? I think it just might.
Those of you who know me personally call me, Kevin. It is how I am known and the name to which I respond. But I believe with all my heart that there is another name. I believe it may even be the name referenced in Isaiah 43 (and surrounding chapters) when the scriptures continually remind us that God has "called you by name." (Isaiah 43:1) "I have called you by name and you are mine." It tells of how when we are overcome by waters, we won't drown. Or when we find ourselves in the fire, we won't be burned up. We are HIS and He has a name for every one of us!
So if our names represent who we were while here on this earth, what great things we did for the cause of Christ, what do you want your name to be? When you walk through the gates of heaven and you look your Savior in the face for the very first time, and He says, "Welcome home, _________." FILL IN THE BLANK! I'm afraid for so many of us, we may be trying to leave Jesus at a loss for words because we're not doing anything to earn a name greater than "Warmer of Many Seats!" As a matter of fact, when I'm coaching people in the future, I may add this to the list of assignments. Write out the name for which you want to be known by your Heavenly Father.
For me? Messenger of Hope, or Hope Bringer. That's not a very pretty name in English, but it really is how I want to be remembered! Whatever my name is that is waiting for me, aside from seeing Jesus, it'll be the best moment of the beginning of my eternity... when I get to hear my name for the first time. What's your name?
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. Most of you should choose the NAME/URL option and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Sunday, January 12, 2014
An Idea
I've seen a couple of sci-fi movies recently. It got me thinking. What if when we were born, the doctor took us away from our parents and we never saw them again until after we died? It's quite the morbid thought, isn't it? What if during our lives, we got a letter from them once a week, but somebody else had to read it to us? And what if when they would read it, they'd only read it in small little parts, maybe even just single sentences? We would never know much about our parents! We would only hear parts of how they felt about us. They would be little more than figments of our imagination. We would read things about parenting in history books and the idea seemed like a good one, but it would never happen in OUR lives! Any similarity between us and the people who gave life to us would be the sum total of extreme distance and dumb luck. Parents would be nothing more than an IDEA.
Yet I've just painted a picture of the average Christian. How? Just think about it. By the time we make a decision to follow Christ, we are old enough to make decisions. Therefore, there have been learned self dependency patterns in many areas of our lives. It's hard to make the turn from a tangible parent or guardian, to that of an unseen being who has become our "Heavenly Father." Then we hear words describing Him like holy, righteous, supreme, omniscient, judge, and we wonder exactly how close we can get to someone like that!
So we treat our spiritual lives much like that sic-fi picture I painted in my head. We look at a relationship with Jesus as nothing more than an idea. We don't really try to get too close because first, we don't really know how, and second, what if He sees all the ugly parts that aren't cleaned up yet? It's the equivalent of your parents finding your diary already open to the page with your biggest secret! So we keep everything at arm's length. We go to church because we need that in our lives. It's why we made the choice to follow Christ in the first place. Sometimes it fills a curiosity, but mostly it's probably social. The pastor MUST live a much closer life to God than WE ever could, so we'll just go and hear what He has to say and let him "read the letter" from our Father.
See where I'm going with this? How can we expect to KNOW our Father, which is exactly what He desires, if we only let someone else read His letter to us? There's no relational heart to heart intimacy there! And when people ask us about Him, it becomes like telling them about our great, great grandfather. We know he existed. We know we're related to him. But we've only seen few pictures, if any, and might know something about his life. But as far as if we take after him, or apply any of his life lessons to our lives, or know much about his character, we couldn't even begin to speak to those things!
Oh but we have a "relationship" with Jesus, right? No. The majority of us have an IDEA about Jesus. We know who He was/is. We know what He did on the cross and that He came back to life three days later. We know what we were taught in Sunday School or what we've heard the pastor tell us on Sunday mornings, but that's about it. When you hear things about God, do you know His character well enough that you can discern truth from untruth based on your knowledge of who He is and has been to you in your life?
I know that I'm my parents' son. You know how? First, I am a spitting image of my mom, just in male form. I have expressions like my dad. My hands look like his and my index finger is slightly crooked at the first joint right below the nail, just like his. I cough and sound just like my mom. I walk with my palms facing backward instead of inward, just like my mom and her family. I have my paternal grandfather's hair line and big hands. I scrape ice cream from the bottom of a bowl just like my dad, which Michelle points out all the time! I know these things because I've spent time with them. I've seen their actions. And I've emulated them in many ways.
So I ask us ALL this question? Other than knowing you made a decision to follow Christ, how do you know you're a child of God? Have you caught yourself emulating Him in some way? Do you look on others differently than you ever did or thought you would? Do you see yourself smiling at things you know would make Him smile or does your heart break at things you know would break His? When you hear the name, Jesus, does it warm you? Have you ever caught Him smiling at you, saying He's proud of you, or thought that maybe you heard the song He sings over you? Scripture is only where it begins. It is the guideline. Nothing happens outside of the guidelines it sets, but there's so much MORE! There's the part that's meant for you and only you!
My eyes are tearing even as I type this, because I have seen His love, His protection, His grace in my life SO strong in the last two years in spite of who I am, not because of who I am! I still mess up. I'll never be the son that I'd have liked to have been, yet I still hear God say He's proud of me. I've felt him sit beside me as my mom used to do when I was little, and put His hand on my back and console me. I've heard Him warn me when I'm about to step out of line, and I've felt His discipline when I didn't listen. I know how He reacts to others because I know how He has reacted to me! This is how I know I'm a child of His!
Yes, I made a decision when I was 11 years old to follow Christ. But it is the RELATIONSHIP that's made the difference, not so much the choice. The choice was my recognition of the need of a Savior, the relationship is my recognition of the need of a Friend, a Guide, a Counselor, and a Father, among so many other things. The choice was a change in direction, the relationship is a companion along the journey. See the difference?
I'm not speaking to you as someone who has it all figured out! Actually, the deeper you go in the relationship, the more amazed you are at the depth of its potential! In my experience, I've seen that God has so much more for me than what I'd ever imagined!!! I've seen Him work in ways that are completely outside the realm of my own understanding. In my life, it's pretty much been the equivalent of Elijah calling down fire from heaven!
So where do you begin if you want this kind of relationship with the Father? Well, as I said before, scripture is the guideline. The Bible is where it starts. Find a version that is easy for you to read and understand. Then talk to Him. Yes, out loud. Talk as you're driving. Nobody is there to look at you weird. :-) But after you talk, LISTEN. He'll speak in your thoughts, in things you see, in what you hear. He will amaze you! He's only waiting on you to ask Him. He responds to the voice of His children, just like He expects us to respond to His voice.
Today, right now, move past an idea. Get to know your Father. See if one day, you don't feel the warmth of His smile, or the comfort of His still, small voice. See if you don't have someone who follows Christ too recognize in you the "family resemblance." I only wish I could explain the difference it's made in me!!! And I've not even scratched the surface!!!
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. If not, simply choose NAME/URL and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
Yet I've just painted a picture of the average Christian. How? Just think about it. By the time we make a decision to follow Christ, we are old enough to make decisions. Therefore, there have been learned self dependency patterns in many areas of our lives. It's hard to make the turn from a tangible parent or guardian, to that of an unseen being who has become our "Heavenly Father." Then we hear words describing Him like holy, righteous, supreme, omniscient, judge, and we wonder exactly how close we can get to someone like that!
So we treat our spiritual lives much like that sic-fi picture I painted in my head. We look at a relationship with Jesus as nothing more than an idea. We don't really try to get too close because first, we don't really know how, and second, what if He sees all the ugly parts that aren't cleaned up yet? It's the equivalent of your parents finding your diary already open to the page with your biggest secret! So we keep everything at arm's length. We go to church because we need that in our lives. It's why we made the choice to follow Christ in the first place. Sometimes it fills a curiosity, but mostly it's probably social. The pastor MUST live a much closer life to God than WE ever could, so we'll just go and hear what He has to say and let him "read the letter" from our Father.
See where I'm going with this? How can we expect to KNOW our Father, which is exactly what He desires, if we only let someone else read His letter to us? There's no relational heart to heart intimacy there! And when people ask us about Him, it becomes like telling them about our great, great grandfather. We know he existed. We know we're related to him. But we've only seen few pictures, if any, and might know something about his life. But as far as if we take after him, or apply any of his life lessons to our lives, or know much about his character, we couldn't even begin to speak to those things!
Oh but we have a "relationship" with Jesus, right? No. The majority of us have an IDEA about Jesus. We know who He was/is. We know what He did on the cross and that He came back to life three days later. We know what we were taught in Sunday School or what we've heard the pastor tell us on Sunday mornings, but that's about it. When you hear things about God, do you know His character well enough that you can discern truth from untruth based on your knowledge of who He is and has been to you in your life?
I know that I'm my parents' son. You know how? First, I am a spitting image of my mom, just in male form. I have expressions like my dad. My hands look like his and my index finger is slightly crooked at the first joint right below the nail, just like his. I cough and sound just like my mom. I walk with my palms facing backward instead of inward, just like my mom and her family. I have my paternal grandfather's hair line and big hands. I scrape ice cream from the bottom of a bowl just like my dad, which Michelle points out all the time! I know these things because I've spent time with them. I've seen their actions. And I've emulated them in many ways.
So I ask us ALL this question? Other than knowing you made a decision to follow Christ, how do you know you're a child of God? Have you caught yourself emulating Him in some way? Do you look on others differently than you ever did or thought you would? Do you see yourself smiling at things you know would make Him smile or does your heart break at things you know would break His? When you hear the name, Jesus, does it warm you? Have you ever caught Him smiling at you, saying He's proud of you, or thought that maybe you heard the song He sings over you? Scripture is only where it begins. It is the guideline. Nothing happens outside of the guidelines it sets, but there's so much MORE! There's the part that's meant for you and only you!
My eyes are tearing even as I type this, because I have seen His love, His protection, His grace in my life SO strong in the last two years in spite of who I am, not because of who I am! I still mess up. I'll never be the son that I'd have liked to have been, yet I still hear God say He's proud of me. I've felt him sit beside me as my mom used to do when I was little, and put His hand on my back and console me. I've heard Him warn me when I'm about to step out of line, and I've felt His discipline when I didn't listen. I know how He reacts to others because I know how He has reacted to me! This is how I know I'm a child of His!
Yes, I made a decision when I was 11 years old to follow Christ. But it is the RELATIONSHIP that's made the difference, not so much the choice. The choice was my recognition of the need of a Savior, the relationship is my recognition of the need of a Friend, a Guide, a Counselor, and a Father, among so many other things. The choice was a change in direction, the relationship is a companion along the journey. See the difference?
I'm not speaking to you as someone who has it all figured out! Actually, the deeper you go in the relationship, the more amazed you are at the depth of its potential! In my experience, I've seen that God has so much more for me than what I'd ever imagined!!! I've seen Him work in ways that are completely outside the realm of my own understanding. In my life, it's pretty much been the equivalent of Elijah calling down fire from heaven!
So where do you begin if you want this kind of relationship with the Father? Well, as I said before, scripture is the guideline. The Bible is where it starts. Find a version that is easy for you to read and understand. Then talk to Him. Yes, out loud. Talk as you're driving. Nobody is there to look at you weird. :-) But after you talk, LISTEN. He'll speak in your thoughts, in things you see, in what you hear. He will amaze you! He's only waiting on you to ask Him. He responds to the voice of His children, just like He expects us to respond to His voice.
Today, right now, move past an idea. Get to know your Father. See if one day, you don't feel the warmth of His smile, or the comfort of His still, small voice. See if you don't have someone who follows Christ too recognize in you the "family resemblance." I only wish I could explain the difference it's made in me!!! And I've not even scratched the surface!!!
Don't forget to use the social media just below here to share to your Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ accounts directly. I welcome your comments! PLEASE leave one!!! Here's how:
1. Click on the words "No Comment" or " (#) Comment" (whichever is listed just to the right of the posting time directly below this paragraph)
2. Write your comment in the box provided.
3. You must also choose a selection from the COMMENT AS drop down list. If you have a Google+ ID, AIM, or other you wish to use, choose that. If not, simply choose NAME/URL and leave your name in the space provided. You do NOT need to leave a URL unless you wish.
4. Click the PUBLISH button. THAT'S IT!!!
THANK YOU for stopping by! Till next time...
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