Tag Archives: Christian

February 17, 2016 · 5:30 AM

Finding Forward

  
I’ve always heard that if you’re not going forward, you’re going backwards. Sometimes it’s all we can do to put one foot in front of the other. When your life has been flipped upside down, you become directionally challenged. What seems like the right direction may not be right. It’s tough to know which way forward is in those moments. You may feel like you’re drowning and you can’t stay still, so you move in the direction you hope is forward just so you can leave the place where you are.

I remember taking swimming lessons as a kid. They warned us that under water, you can lose your sense of direction. In those moments it’s easy to panic, and to start swimming thinking you’re moving closer to air, when in reality, you’re going further down. Going the wrong direction can cost you more than time. To help, they taught us a simple rule to help determine the right way to swim. Be still. When you quit fighting and are still, your body will naturally float to the top. Once you’re moving in that direction, swim with all your might.

The same thing is true for us spiritually. When were lost and confused as to which way is forward, be still. You’ve heard Psalm 46:10 as, “Be still and know that I am God,” but I like the Good News Translation even better. It says, “’Stop fighting,’ He says, ‘and know that I am God.’” When you’re under water and you’re drowning, it’s natural to fight, but God says, “Stop fighting. Be still.” When we do that, not only will we know He is God, but we will find the way forward. Quit panicking trying to get out of this phase and be still. When God sends you in the right direction, go forward with all your might.

4 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

February 12, 2016 · 6:15 AM

Don’t Be Afraid

  
One message that God repeats over and over in the Bible is, “Fear not. Don’t be afraid.” Fear shows a lack of faith in God as your protector, your provider, and your deliverer. Each of us deal with fear in our lives because none of us know the future. It’s easy to be afraid of the unknown, but God rarely calls us to do something easy.

The Bible doesn’t give a formula for overcoming fear. As you’ll see in the scriptures below, it is usually an imperative statement to stop being afraid. For me, trusting God is how I let go of fear. Trust doesn’t change my situation, it just changes my perspective on how it will turn out. When we feel like things are left in our hands, fear creeps in because we are incapable. When we trust God to handle it, we don’t have to worry about how it will turn out because God will have His way.

I hope these verses encourage you to let go of fear and embrace your trust in God.

1. This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9 NLT

2. The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in GOD protects you from that.

Proverbs 29:25 MSG

3. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”

Isaiah 41:13 ESV

4. Do not be afraid—I am with you! I am your God—let nothing terrify you! I will make you strong and help you; I will protect you and save you.

Isaiah 41:10 GNT

5. Say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, and do not fear, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.”

Isaiah 35:4 NLT

6. You will not be afraid when you go to bed, and you will sleep soundly through the night. You will not have to worry about sudden disasters, such as come on the wicked like a storm. The Lord will keep you safe. He will not let you fall into a trap.

Proverbs 3:24-26 GNT

7. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.

Jeremiah 1:8 ESV

8. Do not be afraid of them; the Lord your God himself will fight for you.

Deuteronomy 3:22 NIV

9. See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. The LORD GOD is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.

Isaiah 12:2 NLT

10. Israel, the Lord who created you says, “Do not be afraid—I will save you. I have called you by name—you are mine. When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you; your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire, you will not be burned; the hard trials that come will not hurt you.”

Isaiah 43:1-2 GNT

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

January 28, 2016 · 6:37 AM

Obedience In The Silence

  
Since I was a child, I have heard the story of King Saul in I Samuel 13. The army of Israel had won a small skirmish with a Philistine garrison. The Philistines then mustered an army several times the size of the Israelite army. As they waited for battle, fear crept into the Israelite camp. Men began to desert the army. Those that remained were visibly afraid. Saul looked around, saw their fear, and then checked the calendar. Where was the prophet Samuel? He had said he would be there by now.

As he watched more troops leave, he decided decisive action is what was needed to keep the troops. Verse 9 says, “So he demanded, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings!” And Saul sacrificed the burnt offering himself” (NLT). Wouldn’t you know that as soon as he finished with the burnt offerings, Samuel showed up. Saul realized that he jumped the gun. He ran to Samuel hoping to smooth things over, but Samuel wouldn’t hear it. He explained what a foolish thing he had done, and now God would take the kingship from him.

For me, this story is a reminder to stay patient when doing what God asks. If we let our circumstances dictate our obedience, we will fail and miss out on the blessings of God. It’s hard enough to stay obedient when God is silent, let alone when your circumstances show your obedience isn’t paying off. The easy thing to do is make assumptions, but assumptions often lead to disobedience. If God asked you to do something, you must keep at it until He says, “Stop.”

I Samuel 15:22 says, “But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.” Whatever God has called you to do, obedience to that calling is most important. Your calling may seem small and insignificant. It may lack the spotlight that you want, but it is a valid calling. Don’t ditch it to do something more spiritual. God has you doing exactly what He wants you to until He’s ready to give you more. Stay obedient in the silence and God will reward you in due time.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

December 30, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Life Is A Journey

  
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Life is a journey, not a destination.” One of these things is certainty and one is not. It’s all the uncertainties that make our journey worthwhile. Life is anything but certain. No one is guaranteed anything and hard times fall on each of us. It’s God’s desire that we find Him on this journey and to find our purpose in Him. I Peter 1:18 says, “Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God” (MSG).

Even though life is not a destination, we all have one. Finding God, through His Son Jesus, determines that destination. Once we have a destination, we begin to plot our course just like any other trip. Even though we have a course laid out, there will be traffic, detours, pit stops, and other unforeseen events in our path creating the journey. Some of our best stories come from those things, and the same is true of our journey to Heaven.

Since none of us are perfect and all of us are incapable of living exactly like we are supposed to, our trip to Heaven gets a little bumpy. Those bumpy times are what creates our testimony. Even though we detour at times, go through construction, or find a bumpy road, God is there with us like a GPS constantly rerouting us and asking us to take a U-Turn. We make the choice of following His direction or our own.

In John 14, Jesus told the disciples that He was going away to Heaven and that they knew the way. They responded, “Master, we have no idea where you’re going. How do you expect us to know the road?” Jesus was inviting them and us on this journey to Heaven, but they were lost as we are sometimes. So Jesus responded, “I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him. You’ve even seen him!” He was telling us how to have a deep consciousness of God. It through knowing Him.

Wherever you are in this journey, it’s important to gain a greater consciousness of Him. There is no one who has a full knowledge of Him so there is always room to grow. Each one of us has to find it on our own. It doesn’t just come through reading the Bible or hearing about other people’s journey. It comes through having a relationship with Him. It comes through spending time praying, walking by faith, and in mediating on His Word. He’s calling each of us to a deeper knowledge and consciousness of who He is. The more you know Him, the more meaningful your journey will be.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 19, 2015 · 6:12 AM

Refined Faith

  

We don’t have a choice of whether or not we will go through hard times. What we do have a choice in, however, is how we choose to respond. We can choose to look at hard times as if God is against us or that He’s making us stronger for something down the road. Some times they are a consequence of a past mistake. God rarely takes away consequences when we’ve chosen to disobey. No matter what though, He always offers us grace to endure.

God purifies our faith through hard times. I once watched an episode of “Gold Rush Alaska” on Discovery channel. Parker, who runs his grandfather’s mine, had been working all summer for gold. He took what looked like a lot of gold to the gold refinery. They heated it up and kept removing the dross from the top. In the end, he had a small bar no bigger than his hand. Though it was a small amount, it was worth more because it was pure.

God does that with our faith. He send us through the fire to remove the dross so our faith is pure. It may seem small afterwards, but it is more precious than gold. When I’m going through hard times, I like to read these verses. I hope they help you too.

1. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.

Psalms 23:4 NLT

2. My brothers and sisters, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way, for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure.

James 1:2-3 GNB

3. Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.

1 Peter 4:12-13 MSG

4. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time.

Psalms 34:19 NLT

5. But He knows the way that I take [He has concern for it, appreciates, and pays attention to it]. When He has tried me, I shall come forth as refined gold [pure and luminous].

Job 23:10 AMP

6. For You, O God, have proved us; You have tried us as silver is tried, refined, and purified.

Psalm 66:10 AMP

7. The purity of silver and gold is tested by putting them in the fire; The purity of human hearts is tested by giving them a little fame.

Proverbs 27:21 MSG

8. Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honour on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed.

1 Peter 1:7 GNB

9. I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.

Isaiah 48:10 NLT

10. We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Romans 5:3-5 NLT

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

November 2, 2015 · 5:30 AM

The Joy Of Contentment 

  
When I travel to New Orleans, there’s a certain homeless person I like to say hello to. He always makes me smile and he never asks me for anything. He’ll say, “It ain’t gonna cost you nothing to come say hello. I ain’t gonna rob you!” I then walk over and say hello and he puts a smile on my face. Except on a recent trip he called me over and said, “You know I never ask for nothing, but could you go in there and buy me an orange juice and sandwich? I’m about to curl up on my cardboard and I’m hungry.”

When I handed him his dinner, he hugged me and thanked me. He then asked, “You know what I’d change about the world?” My mind began to think of any number of answers. No more homelessness. No more hunger. No more devaluing people. No more selfishness. But before I could decide on an answer, he grabbed my shoulder, looked up at the sky, smiled a big toothless grin, and said, “Absolutely nothing!” He laughed, thanked me again and walked away.

I thought about his answer as I walked back to my hotel. Here’s a man, for whatever reason, is sleeping on a cardboard mat on the streets on downtown New Orleans and is exposed to the elements constantly, and he wouldn’t change a thing. Even though he has absolutely nothing to his name, he has found a way to be content. He’s learned to choose joy instead of bitterness over his situation. It’s a lesson we all could learn.

Paul learned that secret and told us about it in Philippians 4:12. He said, “I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little” (NLT). That secret is choosing the joy of contentment with where God has you. That joy gives us the strength to endure whatever comes our way. It takes us from being a victim of life to a victor over our situation. Don’t try to change your world. Change your attitude. The next verse tells us we can. “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 29, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Peace Through Trust

  
Life is unpredictable. It’s full of uncertainties, crossroads, and unknowns. When we are facing these things in life, our minds get consumed looking for answers and wondering what tomorrow holds. It can suck the energy right out of you if you let it. I think that’s why Jesus told us in Matthew 6:34, “Don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries” (NLT). He knew that with all of life’s uncertainties, we could easily get wrapped up in all the what if’s of life.

The truth is that even though you and I don’t know what tomorrow holds, God does. And He’s not worried. What is unknown to us is history to Him. He knows how it all plays out and He is in control. No matter what each day brings, we can trust that He has a plan for our lives and a path for us to walk down. Psalm 37:23 says, “The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Not only does He direct our lives, He knows all the details that are unknown to us.

Trusting Him in those times is paramount to our peace of mind. Where worry consumes us, His peace frees us. We get peace in uncertainty when we trust that God is in control, that He has a plan for this time, and that He is directing our path. Stress and worry come from thinking we are in control, that God doesn’t care, or that He doesn’t have a plan. He gives you and I the ability to choose in this situation. Do we want to stress or do we want peace through trust?

I’m reminded of Proverbs 3:5-6 when it comes to trusting God in uncertainty. It says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Never rely on what you think you know. Remember the Lord in everything you do, and he will show you the right way” (GNB). The word “trust”, in the original language, means to feel safe, be careless. In our most difficult times, we can feel safe and be carefree by trusting God. He will direct our path and show us the right way when the time is right. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 27, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Stronger Faith

  
In Luke 17, the disciples asked Jesus for more faith. I’ve fallen into that trap myself: believing I could have more or less faith and that my amount of faith determines God’s response. They felt like it was the amount of faith Jesus had that gave Him the ability to do the things He was doing. The response Jesus gave them in verse 6, proves it isn’t the amount of faith you have that motivates God.

Jesus said, “You don’t need more faith. There is no ‘more’ or ‘less’ in faith. If you have a bare kernel of faith, say the size of a poppy seed, you could say to this sycamore tree, ‘Go jump in the lake,’ and it would do it” (MSG). There isn’t a size of faith. Either you have faith or you don’t. If you have faith that God will do something, you will act on that faith. If you have faith, you can speak to things and they will move.

James tells us that faith without works is dead. He’s saying, if you really have faith, you will act on it. If you aren’t doing anything by faith, you have none. Either you have faith and prove it daily, or you have none and prove it too. Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right.” He understood that you will always act according to what you believe. If you don’t believe God will answer, you won’t really pray. If you do, you will pray and show you believe it.

Faith isn’t about size, it’s about action. When the disciples asked for more faith, they got schooled by Jesus. When a man in Mark 9 asked Jesus if He could heal his boy, Jesus responded in verse 23 with, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.” Our response should be like this man’s. He replied, “Then I believe. Help me with my doubts!” You only need a greater faith than your doubts if you want to act on it. If your faith isn’t strong enough to act on, then ask God to help you with your doubts.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 5, 2015 · 5:55 AM

Produce And Reproduce

I’ve been growing a garden since spring. My cucumbers were the first to become ripe. They were small, but delicious. After I picked them, the vines produced more flowers, but no more food. About that time, my tomato plants started blooming. They produced more than my cucumbers plants did. After several weeks of tomatoes, my jalapeño plants began to get buds on them. Each of them produced for a short period and then quit producing. During each plant’s harvest time, I was so excited to go check them. It left me wanting the plants to produce all year round.

I wonder if Paul felt the same way about the churches he planted. He would stay with them and cultivate them to make sure they were firmly planted. When he would leave to travel to other places to spread the Gospel, he would write to those churches to keep the weeds out so they could grow and reproduce. Some of his letters were reprimands (pulling weeds) and others were encouraging growth (cultivating).

As he was writing to the church at Phillipi to cultivate them, he wrote something that caught my attention. In Philippians 1:11, he says, “May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ —for this will bring much glory and praise to God” (NLT). Paul felt the same way about the church there as I did about my garden. He wished they would produce fruit year round instead of just for a short while. He wanted long term production.

It’s the same production God wants from us. We were not meant to be seasonal in our fruit. God expects us to produce the fruit of our salvation at all times. He doesn’t want us to be like my cucumbers where we produce a little bit and then fizzle out. He expects us to keep growing, to keep producing, and even to reproduce. We should be planting seeds in the lives of others, helping them to pull the weeds out, and cultivating their relationship with God so that they can produce and reproduce.

I heard a preacher once say that Christianity is only one generation away from extinction. If all we do is produce fruit in our own lives and never reproduce, Christianity will become extinct. Each of us should have a burning desire to reproduce through others because of what God has done for us. If we keep silent about what God has done and is doing in our lives, then the seeds we have will never be planted or be given the opportunity to reproduce, and Christianity will be no more. It’s up to you and me to produce and reproduce in order to have a continuos harvest. 

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

October 2, 2015 · 5:30 AM

Dreams And Visions

  
I believe God puts dreams, visions, and plans inside each of us. It’s an amazing feeling when they become a reality. There is a sense of accomplishment and gratitude that comes along with it. What I’ve found is that the more we expect our dreams, visions, and plans to happen, the more likely they will. Our expectations and beliefs drive our actions until we see success.

Sometimes, those dreams, visions, and plans don’t happen. In those times, it’s easy to get discouraged and to lower our expectations and believe that they can’t happen. Below are some verses that have helped me in those times. They have reminded me that my dreams come from God, and it is He who will accomplish them. They also remind me that I can’t do it on my own. I have to get other people involved. The dreams, visions, and plans God gives are rarely just for us. He expects us to share them and use them for His glory.

1. At night when people are asleep, God speaks in dreams and visions.

Job 33:15 GNB

2. And afterward I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.

Joel 2:28 AMP

3. Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams].

Ephesians 3:20 AMP

4. For a dream comes with much business and painful effort, and a fool’s voice with many words.

Ecclesiastes 5:3 AMP

5. It is pleasant to see dreams come true, but fools refuse to turn from evil to attain them.

Proverbs 13:19 NLT

6. And the Lord answered me and said, Write the vision and engrave it so plainly upon tablets that everyone who passes may [be able to] read [it easily and quickly] as he hastens by. For the vision is yet for an appointed time and it hastens to the end [fulfillment]; it will not deceive or disappoint. Though it tarry, wait [earnestly] for it, because it will surely come; it will not be behindhand on its appointed day.

Habakkuk 2:2-3 AMP

7. Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

Proverbs 29:18 KJV

8. The plans of the godly are just; the advice of the wicked is treacherous.

Proverbs 12:5 NLT

9. Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed.

Proverbs 15:22 MSG

10. May he give you what you desire and make all your plans succeed.

Psalms 20:4 GNB

4 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,