The Danger of Having Been Touched By Jesus

John 12:9-11 Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.

There were those that wanted to destroy Lazarus but only because his life had been touched by Jesus. Lazarus was now a danger to them because his life now validated Jesus all the more. The Jewish leaders wanted to silence Jesus. They did not want others to believe in Him. They were not content to disbelieve themselves but the wanted to hinder the belief of others. There will be those that will want to destroy our lives for the very same reason. The fact that we have new life and that we are living our lives different testifies to the validity of Jesus. They will do and say anything to destroy Jesus and will do the same to those who have been touched by Him and have been raised from being dead...dead in their sins. They want to destroy you but only if you cause others to believe.

Q? Does my life bring validity to who Jesus is?
Or does the way I live my life invalidate the change that was suppose to have taken place. If I was dead in my sins but I have been raised to new life in Christ can it be plainly seen?
Q? Am I living a new life that points to the truth of what Jesus says?\
Or does my life look the same as it did before Jesus came into my life? Did He in fact come into my life?
Q? Am I a threat to those that would destroy Jesus and if not, why? We have to ask the question of ourselves

We need to remember that most of the time; people are not really concerned with us. It is Jesus they are concerned with. If our lives present no conflict with those in the world then we are of no threat. If we lead no others to follow Jesus then no one will bother us. But if our lives do present conflict, if we do walk in the righteousness of Christ, if we “put on” Christ, then there will be those that will want us destroyed. The good news is that if we are in Christ we can never really be destroyed, at least not in what really counts eternally.
The other side of this situation is that because of him, Lazarus, many believed in Jesus. The fact that his life was evidence that he had been touched by Jesus caused other to follow Jesus. This is what we want, for others to follow Jesus because of what they have seen Him do in us. If we are willing to be touched by Jesus we need to be willing for others to see it.

Children of Light

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. Ephesians 5:8:11

In this letter to the Ephesians Paul uses a contrast to speak to the lifestyle that some of the believers were keeping. He was not speaking to those outside the body of Christ but to those within.
The first part of the contrast was who they WERE. “You were darkness ….”, he said, and this described the life as well as the character we had before we were saved from it. In this statement Paul uses a contrast of light and dark, to opposites, to describe who we now are and who we used to be.
Because of that he exhorts us to “walk” (live out life) as children of light. In verse 9 he reminds them that the fruit (the outcome of having the Spirit in our lives) is all goodness, righteousness, and truth and what is acceptable to the Lord. He again uses a contrast of the fruit of the Spirit verses the unfruitful works of darkness. We are not to have to fellowship (to become a partaker of) with the unfruitful works of darkness but rather expose them. Having no fellowship means to have no share or participation in the darkened life-style. Instead he says to expose them? What does that mean? To say exactly what they are. But it is not as much of a verbal exposure as it is a life style exposure. That’s where it gets tough unless we are sold out to Jesus. It is tough because if we tell the truth of things then we can make ourselves pretty unpopular with people who continue to partake in them whether they are unbelievers or believers who want to continue to dabble in the flesh. If we live our lives free from the darkness it becomes very obvious and we are saying with out actions that we think the darkness is wrong. The other situation is that we ourselves can no longer partake of those things and so we must choose to say no to our flesh when it cries out like a spoiled child.
But we have such a hard time to tell the truth about things if we are not living a life that validates our words. We go see “Adult movies” and we watch TV programs with “adult themes.” We also visit “adult” websites and we refuse to acknowledge that what that means is that it is going to be sexually explicit in either what we see or what we hear or both. We partake in “adult beverages” and play “adult games” in the casinos. BUT WE ARE CHILDREN! Or at least we are supposed to be. How much goodness, righteousness, and truth and what is acceptable to the Lord is involved in “adult activities”?
When we received Jesus Christ as our savior we are given the right to become the children of God. (John 1:12). Earlier in this same letter Paul calls believers to be “imitators of God as dear children”. (Ephesians 5:1) Why is it that we think that there is a difference in sin because we are adults? Are we teaching our children that it is okay to have a double standard because we are adults? As they grow up they will look forward to a time when they can partake in “adult” activities. Unfortunately they generally want to try this while they are still very young.
Jesus saved us from our sins. He did not do this that we can continue in them, no matter what our age. He saved us from our sins so we can live in true freedom, freedom not to sin and to walk in the light with absolute freedom and confidence. And….we will be easily identified as His kids.

By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. 1John 5:2

Broken Ornaments

Someone said to me today, "Friendship is like a glass ornament, once it is broken it can rarely be put back together exactly the same way". They didn’t know who said it but it surely seems to be true. But I wonder if they are supposed to be back together exactly the same way. It seems that there was something wrong if it got broken in the first place even if it was accidental. But once broken it will never be the same. That is not to say this is not good, sometimes it be even better. It just will not be the same. Often there are pieces missing, even if they are small and so it can never be the same.
But it can be put back together with the help and the power of God and His love and the willingness of friends to extend grace as well as to seek and to give forgiveness. Often this is hard because there is a lot of self and flesh that can be involved in one or both parties in the relationship. In some cases forgiveness can only be sought when a hurt has been identified. It also takes acknowledgment that a hurt has been done. It also takes extending grace, not just the grace we would want from others but the grace we have already received from God. We may not want grace from others but we know that everything we receive from God is by grace. We deserve nothing by our own virtue and what we do deserve, by His mercy we are spared.
Going back to the subject of a restored but fractured friendship. It can be put back together by the glue of God’s love and can actually be a thing of beauty because, even though it has been rebuilt or repaired, it is still His handiwork. It reminds me of a time when Lynda and had broken a vase or something and was just going to throw it away, our daughter asked her not to and said, “Mom, I want those things that you have broken and put back together because the fact that you put them back together meant that they were important to you.”
I guess our willingness to restore a friendship, even when we know it will never be the same depends on how important the friendship was to us to begin with. Too often we throw things away without even trying to fix them or they have been broken a few times before and we don’t think they are worth it any more and we actually throw away a great treasure. When my children were small and they would break things, they would bring them to me to fix it. It may have only looked like a trinket to others but to them it was a treasure. Sometimes they had tried themselves and made a mess of things but with confidence in my abilities they would say, “Daddy, will you please fix this?” Perhaps many more friendships would be salvaged if we would go to God and ask, “Abba, Father, will you fix this please?

Appearance of Evil

1 Thes. 5:22 (NKJV) Abstain from every form of evil.
The word abstain means to hold oneself off or to refrain from something and the word form means a view (or the way things look) or form (literal or figurative) :- appearance, fashion, shape, sight.
We need to look closely at what this exhortation says. It does not say to just abstain from evil, but to abstain from the very appearance of evil. It also indicates that we should avoid every kind of evil no matter how good or how harmless it might look.
It means that if something even appears evil, we should get away from it. It means that if there is any chance whatsoever that it could be wrong, then we should leave it alone. All too often we think we can handle it but it provides the leaven that grows into full blown problems. It means that if there is even a suggestion that it could be wrong, RUN! A believer must have nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with evil-not even the appearance of it.
Many times we think that just because we are not actually doing something that is “forbidden” by the letter of the law that we are okay. But while the actual act may not be forbidden there is the “appearance” of evil. We need to be careful that things don’t look wrong. There are those times when things just look wrong and they are not. Someone just told me about recently buying a large bottle of IBC Cream Soda. When he walked out with it there were some people who thought he had just walked out with a 44oz. bottle of beer. Those things happen. But to place yourself in a constant situation that resembles evil causes a stumbling of both the world and Christians alike that know you are a follower of Jesus yet you seem be habitually doing something wrong.
David wrote, "Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it" (Psalm 34:14). Sometime we think that peace should automatically find us and we cannot understand the continuing turmoil in our lives. Quite often the reason for the turmoil is because we fail to completely depart from evil. Oh, we depart from the really evil stuff but we allow “little stuff” to remain. Proverbs 14:16 says that, "A wise man fears, and departs from evil: but the fool rages, and is confident.” The fool, simply put, continues in his rebellion and confidence in his own decisions, usually to his destruction.
Paul wrote in his second letter to the Corinthians, “We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. 2 Cor. 6:3 (NKJV). Paul's first consideration in his life, words and actions was what and how they communicated about Jesus Christ. Non- believers are watching us all the time. New believers are listening and learning. We need to be careful that our own selfish or undisciplined actions do not become another person’s excuse for rejecting Jesus or for sinning themselves. Jesus also warned against stumbling “little ones” (children or children in the Lord) in Matthew 18:6-10.
Paul indicates that we should be ready to give up our rights and our freedom (things we deem “okay” to do) to keep from the appearance of evil or from causing someone to stumble, “ It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak. Romans 14:21 (NKJV)
But avoiding evil and the appearance of it is not always easy. It takes surrender on our part into the hand and the will of God and a ever deepening desire to please Him before ourselves.

Will you give God a fresh surrender of your life and find victory, even over the appearance of evil?

Self Imposed Isolation

Proverbs 18:1-2 A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment. A fool has no delight in understanding, But in expressing his own heart.

Why is it that we isolate ourselves from others, especially when we need them the most? Perhaps it is because we have already isolated ourselves from God though, to others, it seems like we isolate ourselves from people first. There is a time when we can be withdrawn from others to spend time alone with God but this is not isolation. It is retreating from the influences and distractions from others to be with God and to hear from His.
Proverbs 18:1 seems to indicate that isolation is selfish because the one that isolates themselves on purpose is seeking their own desires. When we seek our own desires we stop seeking Gods. There are many reasons for isolation but the bottom line seems to be, “I want what I want.” And we stubbornly move away from anything or any one that interferes with that goal.
This attitude goes against our relationship with God because His desire is for that of others. He is “others” centered. We withdraw from Him, even though what we want to do is to withdraw from someone else. This is often an attempt to manipulate the situation for our advantage. Another reason we isolate ourselves is so that we don’t have to answer for our actions if those actions are adverse to relationships (which selfishness usually is)
We can be in a room with other people and isolate ourselves. Our attitude and posture puts people off. Then we are justified in our actions because then we can say, “They are not friendly or loving,” when in fact it is we who are unloving in our attempt to manipulate and get our way isolating ourselves from others, pouting as we go.
When approached about our self-isolation we often rage against the wise judgment that people want to give in order to bring us around to God’s way and at the very least draw us out of our self imposed isolation. That would mean that we would have to repent of our selfishness and wrong desires. We would have to admit to our childish stubbornness in having our own way.
Verse 2 goes on to say that the fool has no delight in understanding. That describes us when we want to stay in our sin and our isolation. Foolishly we resent and reject those that would bring understanding that will take us out of our self imposed isolation and sin. We would rather go on expressing our own heart. Our stubbornness and pride is more important that relationship no matter which way it is lost, with man or God.
Verse 12, expresses more of the problem, a haughty spirit. It says that before destruction. the heart of a man is haughty. To avoid destruction as well as isolation the heart has to become humble. This is a matter of choice. Many times it comes after a long time or at a very high price. It is only the humble heart that avoids destruction and it is a humble heart that welcomes friendship and seeks relationship. It is a humble heart that finds honor, not in and of itself but in the relationship it finds with God and others. It seems that the greatest honor is to be in a right relationship with God, free from selfish desires and the manipulation that goes with it. A humble heart is not necessarily shy or overly outgoing but it does seek fellowship, friendship and relationship, first with God and then his people.

The Multitude of Words

Proverbs 10:19-21 In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his lips is wise. The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; The heart of the wicked is worth little. The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of wisdom.

Sin is found when too much is said. Sometimes we speak just to be heard, to be part of a conversation. We often say more than we need to because we enjoy the fact that someone is listening. We like the fact that we are getting attention. We need to learn to speak to the point and nothing more. The problem with a multitude of words is that it seems so easy to sin when there are so many words being spoken. We need to be careful of idle chatter that easily leads to gossip and backbiting. Many times what begins by discussing a problem ends up in a gripe session. When that happens we need to look to see if there is another problem which is a critical heart, but that is hard to see and many times even harder to confess.
He who restrains his lips is wise the writer says. We are wise even though others may not think that we are. It is often our own words that get us into trouble. If we restrain our tongue from saying wrong things then what people will hear most of the time will be right (wise) things. That way we become wise, not so much by what we do say but by what we don’t say.
The “silver tongue” of the righteous is not a derogatory term meaning that it is slick or just coated with silver but that it is truly valuable. People come to value what is said by those that live and speak with righteousness. What is said is not “so much chatter or rhetoric but it has purpose and helpful. The heart of the wicked only brings out things that are of little or no spiritual value. They may say all the right things but the discerning people around them can see that they are just so much words. The wicked heart has nothing but bitterness and criticism, hatred and strife and the bible says that out of the abundance of the heart speaks. If a heart is wicked it will not speak things that bring light, life or unity, instead it will speak things that have nothing of value in the kingdom of God. A critical heart speaks critical things.
What we want are lips that will feed many. We need lips that will speak things of value to the kingdom and edification to those that hear them. If our heart is good and we get our wisdom from God and seek the leading of the Holy Spirit then all our words be a beauty to others and a glory to God.
We need to consciously restrain our lips from speaking things that have no value and we will not only edify others but bring life and nourishment to them as well. We want to make our words such so that they are the source of life. Filling our heart with the Word of God and truly living it can accomplish all of this. Our wisdom and or words must come from God, our life validates what we say.

Oh God, cleanse our hearts from criticism, bitterness and strife. Please replace it with grace, humility and love so that our words would feed, heal and edify.

Cotton Thread Bondage

2 Tim. 2:22 (NKJV) Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

In his letter to his young friend Timothy, Paul encourages him to flee, run away from, youthful lusts. Youthful lusts, strong desires, are those things that lead to compromise and sin and once we have engaged in them they can become strong(er) the longer we allow them in our lives. They can be easy to run from or break in our lives but the longer we allow sin to exist in our lives the hard they become and the harder they are to break.
If you were to take a cotton thread and tie someone’s hand together with a single strand that person can break it easily. But if it is wound, even a couple of times it can become harder. The more we wind it around their hands the harder it becomes to break, sometimes impossible.
In the biblical story of David and Bathsheba, David allowed himself to fall deeper and deeper into sin. First, David abandoned his purpose by staying home from war (2 Samuel 11:1). Then he became lazy and gave into his own desires. He was getting up in the afternoon which means he was staying up late (2 Samuel 11:3). When he was presented with temptation of looking at a woman while she bathed he did not look away but instead inquired who the woman was (2 Samuel 11:4). though he was told it was the wife of one of his trusted men, Uriah, he called for Bathsheba any way and he sinned deliberately (2 Samuel 11:4). He tried to cover up his sin by deceiving her husband and everyone else. (2 Samuel 11:6-15). and when that did not work he committed murder to continue the cover-up (2 Samuel 11:15, 17). David’s sin was exposed when Nathan the prophet was sent by God (2 Samuel 12:9) and David was punished (2 Samuel 12:10-14).
Using the cotton thread illustration, we see that David just allowed the thread to go round and round his wrists and each sin made it harder to break the cycle and allowed him to be bound more tightly. We think to ourselves that David could have chosen to stop and turn from evil at any stage along the way and technically that is true. But once sin gets started, it is difficult to stop (James 1:14-15). We are often tempted to compromise with the world using the 'just once won't make any difference' argument but we find that the further we go the more bound we get. And the deeper the mess, the less we want to admit having caused it which only leads to another "strand" of sin. The best place to stop sin is before it ever happens. If we recognize that first thread sin we need to break it before another strand is added. The best case scenario is to do what Paul said to Tim….flee from youthful lusts. But we should not just "run away" we should run in pursuit of the right things. Paul says to ...pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace and we don't have to do it alone. We join in that pursuit with those that have a like heart and a like mind ...those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

Running on Empty

John 20:1-10
It is Sunday morning, the first day of the week. It has been a long weekend that was filled with incredible emotion for everyone that was in any way connected to Jesus. This was especially true for the disciples and everyone that was really close to Jesus.
They are running on empty because all their hopes, all their dreams, all the future was gone. Their teacher, their friend, their Messiah was nailed to a cross and was cruelly murdered in a joint effort by the Jewish leaders and the Roman government.
The streets were empty as Mary Magdalene walked to the Garden tomb where she, the "other Mary" and the women from Galilee had seen them lay the Lord. Those women are with her and I wonder if they passed the place of the crucifixion. I wonder if it still stood there, the cross, the cruel instrument of death that had held the One they had loved so much. If it was there it was empty but it would have stood there, the instrument of execution, reminding them that Jesus was dead.
Matthew 27 tells us that there is an earthquake and an angel comes and rolls away the stone. AND THE TOMB IS EMPTY! Understand, the stone was not rolled back for the benefit of Jesus, but for the witnesses to the resurrection! When Jesus arose, He was in His resurrection body, the spiritual body of the spiritual dimension which has no physical bounds. He was not weak, He did not stagger to the door. He did not need the stone rolled back to leave the tomb, because material substance has no bearing on spiritual substance. The stone was rolled away so the witnesses could get in. Mary saw the tomb was empty and so she ran.
But Mary ran on empty. She ran because the tomb was empty. But she ran with empty information. There was no body. She was expecting Jesus to be there...but Dead. She was one of the last to leave Jesus at the cross, she saw where they laid Him and she was one of the first to come to the tomb; and one who still called Him "Lord." Her belief was a belief of love. It was not a belief based upon intellect or understanding or anything else. She knew what Jesus had done for her, and she loved Him for it. Jesus was her Lord, dead or alive. And so she runs to tell Peter, John and the others. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don't know where they have taken Him.”
Now Peter and John run on empty and they run to the empty tomb. They were empty of hope, empty of knowledge and they were empty of memory...of what Jesus said. “The Son of man must die...but in three days he will rise.” The tomb is empty when they get there. There is no body. The grave clothes are empty. The grave clothes were strips of linen (John 19:40) that were wound around the body and then the spices and ointments were bound up in the strips (vs 41). It was a mixture of myrrh and aloes and both seem to have sticky properties to it. There are scholars that believe that the mixture would have hardened some what in the coolness of the tomb and what the disciples found was just an empty shell... but no body. The other disciple (John) saw the empty tomb and believed. It was empty in that it did not have the body of Jesus but it did have the linen clothes, still wrapped together. While our English translation says that the linen was folded together the Greek word means “wrapped together.” It is the word used for actually winding the linens around a body for burial. The Greek word is saying that the linens were “folded together,” wrapped just like they would be wrapped around a body—as if the body had just evaporated. This seems to indicate that they were not disheveled or disarranged. This says at least four things.
1. It would be impossible to extract a body from its wrappings and leave them in such good order.
2. The wrappings would have been taken with the body if the body had been removed.
3. The wrappings would have been disheveled and disarranged and scattered if thieves had ransacked the tomb. But what would the thieves have stolen???
4. The wrappings (under any circumstances that might be conceived in removing the body) could never be placed in the exact spot on the rock slab where the body lay. Yet, this is just how they were lying according to the Greek text.
It was this that led John to an immediate belief. It may have not lead to his understanding...but it led to his belief! Belief is not always because we understand what happened, how it happened or why it happened ...JUST THAT IT HAPPENED.
The tomb where they had laid Jesus was indeed empty but that was good. Eventually they will all come to understand that the tomb being empty was not just good but the most wonderful thing that could be. He is alive...just as He said. John goes on to tell us that Mary finds out Jesus is alive. No longer running on empty she is filled with joy as she runs to tell the disciples and the others. After that, Jesus appears to the disciples and fills their emptiness with the joy of His presence.
As John continues his account of the hours and the days after the resurrection, Peter still seems to be empty though. He has seen Jesus. He saw Jesus’ hands and side, He watched Jesus eat, listened as Jesus spoke to Thomas but there is still emptiness. It is his own unforgiveness of himself for his denial of the Lord. In emptiness Peter goes back to fishing, perhaps just trying to fill the emptiness. Jesus meets him on the shore of Galilee at Tobagha and there Jesus brings Peter to a place of forgiveness by asking Peter of his love...something I think that Jesus always knew was there...and then just giving Peter the invitation to partner with Him to “feed His sheep.”
Are you running on empty? Is it because of sin? Perhaps it is because of your betrayal of God or for having denied Him at a crucial point and the devil has convinced you that there is nothing there, no faith and no forgiveness and no hope. Perhaps you have realized that your unbelief has left you empty. Understand this, Jesus wants to fill you with His love, with Himself, with eternal life and with His spirit. How do you need Jesus to touch you? No matter why you are running on empty, the risen Savior, Jesus Christ, can and will fill you up.

Afflictions, the Tools God Uses

Afflictions are often confusing and baffling because there seems to be no reason, at least none that we can see. The temptation, then, is to feel sorry for ourselves and it adds to a growing list of injustices and “unfair” events where we point out how unjust life seems to be. We may feel like blaming God but we must remember that life’s trials, whether they are allowed by God our they are sent by God are all about our growth and or refinement. These are the things that will bring us into a closer relationship with God if we turn to Him instead for from Him. It brings change and improvement in our own character and nature if we surrender if we surrender to the hands of God and not resist the tool in His hand. We can do this because when we trust Him and ask, “What can I learn and how can I grow” instead of “Who is doing this to me and how can I get out of it?” Too often we focus on the tool which seems so sharp and cruel rather than focusing on the loving hands that hold it and trust the heart of God that only wants our best, whether we understand it or not

Total Commiment Part 2

There are things, even good things, which can distract us from having a total commitment to God. Jesus indicated that we are to love God more than family. Jesus gives us one of those hard sayings in Matthew 10:37 when He says,”He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. Sometimes we want to soften that down, not because we really love our family that much but family can be a great excuse and one that seems to be justified, to lessen our commitment to God. There are times though when it is absolutely true, our love for our family dictates how we will live for Jesus Christ.
Psalm 45:10-11 Listen, O daughter, consider and incline your ear. Forget your own people also, and your father's house; so the King will greatly desire your beauty because He is your Lord, worship Him. Oh how this speaks of the love relationship with God and His people. There is a call to forget our family (your father's house), forget your people (nationality, heritage, culture,) and speaks of a love for God that has first priority and separation from the world.
2 Corinthians 6:14-17 is a call to separation. It says, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people."17Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you."
We are not to be unequally yoked with the unbeliever. That does not mean that we cannot have them as friends nor do things with them but it does mean that we separate ourselves from their sin. If they persist in that sin and that sin threatens our relationship with God than we will choose God before them. We do not have fellowship or communion with them any more if we are serious about walking with God in total commitment. Fellowship means participation or interaction. We are to longer to have participation or interaction with sinful activities. Take notice, that unless their hearts are changed they do not want to have any participation in your activities now, either. There is no harmony in a relationship when two people are going separate ways. Something has to give and if the believer gives in and becomes worldlier then tyhe unbeliever has no reason to change and becomes more hardened to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes there is a yielding of the unbeliever to tolerate “God” and the life of the believer but there is never true agreement. The only way there will be true agreement is for the unbeliever to yield to the Holy Spirit and become a believer. This verse says that we must come out from them. Total commitment requires separation from the unclean thing…not the person…but the sin that they hold on to which begins with the rejection of God. Many would say that they don’t reject God but they do reject His Lordship and claim on their lives. When it says not to “touch” the unclean thing it means that we are not to “attach” ourselves to those that have attached themselves to sin and sinful living. How can we say that we are total committed to God and compromise in our lifestyle for the sake of someone, any one else?
Total Commitment begins and ends with commitment to God and acknowledging his rightful claim to our life, all of it.
Deut. 6:5 (NKJV) You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
When we separate our hearts and minds from the things and the people of this world we come into a much easier place to love the Lord with all our heart, mind and strength. There must be a turning FROM the world as well as a TURNING TO God in order to love Him as we should and as we have been commanded.

Total Commitment Part One

At some point in our Christian experience, every person comes to a place where they are faced with the question of commitment. What does it mean? How much do I have to give? How will that change my life? Some people want to ignore the question of commitment but others struggle with what it means because they are afraid they cannot meet the requirements. We also want to know just exactly how far total commitment goes. By the way, do we have to be totally committed?
What we should start with is the beginning. Commitment begins with loving God. Rarely does commitment begin by being total but it will never get to that point if we don’t start by loving God first, before anything else. In the bigger scheme of things, our commitment to everything else begins by our commitment to God whether it be in our marriage, our personal walk with the Lord, our involvement in church and our involvement with those that are in church. If we are not truly committed to God first we can never be truly committed to anything or anyone else.
John the Beloved wrote. “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 1John 4:16
Our goal and the longing of our heart should be to walk in everything that God says we are and can do.
It should be our desire to live in His kingdom and enjoy the abundant life of that kingdom. It should also be our desire to be representatives of that kingdom. To be committed to His kingdom and represent His kingdom we must live and walk in love towards God and our brother's and sister's in Christ, as well as those that do not know Christ and are still prisoners of Satan, sin, the flesh and the world.
When asked about which commandment was the most important one Jesus answer, "The first of all the commandments is: 'Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This is the first commandment. He then followed that with, “And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe that asked the original question went on to say that doing this was more important than anything else we did. It was more important that offerings and sacrifice. Mark 12:28-33
So how are we to love God? The scriptures tell us it must be with our whole heart. The heart was used to mean the center of our emotions. It is that which controls our thoughts and feelings. It is also to be with all our soul., by the very breath we breathe, our very spirit. We are also to love Him with our whole mind and all our strength. The idea of the mind means with deep thought. The noun form of the word means the faculty by which you think, imagine or understand. The final part of loving God is with all our strength. The word used in the Greek implies ability, might or power. All of this must be with all we have in us and at our disposal.. It is our complete love and it must be an undivided love. Jesus told us that "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:24. John understood this when he wrote in his first epistle, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” 1 John 2:15 We cannot serve two masters. We try but that is why we fail. When we divide our heart we find it impossible to be in the world but we find it impossible serve God the way we know we should.
Loving God first is the most important thing we can do. It must take first place. Even before our earthly loves. Some earthly loves are positive and only need to be in priority. Others are negative loves and must be replaced and removed. We must ask ourselves what really is my first love? It takes great daring but if we answer that and say “God” are we willing to ask God, “Is it true?”
We do see that the greatest joy is found in serving God with our whole heart and living for Him. Loving Him with all we have is the place we will find what we need to walk in total commitment.

You Gotta Serve Somebody

Romans 6:17-18 (NKJV) But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

I was thinking about the independence we have through the freedom that was secured for us through the work of Jesus on the cross.
Paul tells us in Romans 6 that we were slaves to sin and that when we were slaves of sin, we were free in regard to righteousness. (vs.20) Being free in regards to righteousness means that we were unrestrained and did what we wanted and in some cases what we did not want to do but we were slaves to sin.
But being free in Christ does not mean that we are no longer slaves. We just serve a different Master. We have a master that has redeemed us at a great price with an even greater motive….love.
Paul goes on to say in Romans 6:22 that … having been set free from sin, we have become slaves of God. We are slaves that have been bought with a price and that price was the precious blood of Jesus. Having been set free we choose to become slaves. We are bondservants …slaves of choice. Paul concludes vs.22 with, "you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life."
Because we have obeyed God; we have believed. Now we have the opportunity to live righteously, and so also, to begin to serve God with the same fervor and energy with which we were serving sin. Our motive needs to be love too. The love returned to God for His great gift of salvation to us through Jesus. Now it is our choice and that choice is not made out of obligation but response to God’s love. We need to let righteousness enslave us and let it become the bondage and habit of our life.
It is impossible to be neutral. Every person has a master—either God or sin. Bob Dylan wrote a song a long time ago called “You Gotta Serve Somebody” and in it he said, “You may serve the devil or you may serve the Lord but you gotta serve somebody. A Christian is not someone who cannot sin, but someone who is no longer a slave to sin. He or she belongs to God. Before we were converted we had to serve sin. As Christians we have the freedom to live independent of sin but completely dependent on God.

That I might know Him

JOH 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

If there was ever a character in the bible that knew God it would be Moses. The interesting thing about the relationship that Moses had with God and our relationship with God is that God initiated both.
For Moses it began at the burning bush when God called him to deliver His people from Egypt but for God it started before Moses was born but the whole life of Moses was known by God from the beginning. When he was called, Moses could have just done what he was told. He also had some opportunities to really advance his own personal situation but he didn’t. Exodus 33:11tells us that the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Moses wanted the friendship of God
Knowing God changed Moses. He went from doing things his own way to totally relying on God. He is known in the bible as a man who was meek. Being meek did not mean he was weak. The essence of the word meek (KJV) is translated humble. Strong’s translates the word as gentle. Moses quietly trusted God in every situation. He was confident in his calling from God. This was because of relationship. DEU 34:10 says, “And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,”
God desires a face to face relationship with us all. God can use us, He can speak to us and through us, but He desires most of all that we will walk with Him in a face to face relationship. He initiated the relationship by first sending the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin and by providing Jesus Christ as a sacrifice to atone for our sins so we could have fellowship. He goes on to give us gifts and callings and then provides everything to fulfill that calling.
Moses desired the relationship. His outward life showed his inward heart. He wanted to know what God said and he trusted what God said. Because he trusted, he obeyed what God said. Most of all, he desired God more than His promises. Moses wanted more than just the Promised Land. Sad to say too many people desire God's promises and His provision more than they desire Him.
We need to desire to know God, His purpose and His will. How? It’s found in Romans 12:1,2 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Our action is to surrender. It is to present our bodies to God and to not be conformed to this world but to be transformed into the image and likeness of God. The result will be that we progress in our understanding and relationship with God. We will be able to prove (test and know) what is good, what is acceptable and what is his perfect will is. Jesus' desire for us (John 17:21) is to be one with God like He was was. How can I do that? John 5:30, 12:49,50
Jesus said, “Can do nothing by myself. “I judge only as I hear from the Father. I don't seek to please Myself but Him who sent me. I don't speak for myself but what my Father commands me to say and how to say it. I know his commandment is life everlasting. This is speaking of a relationship where the very thoughts are God's thoughts and the very words spoken are God's words. Jesus was not led by dreams or visions but by the very thoughts and words of God. That should be our goal as well. It comes from relationship. That relationship is actively pursued by God. We in turn must pursue it as well. With all our heart.

Being "Others" Minded

Being "others" minded is often very hard. Many times we blame our lack of being "others" minded on being busy or having our own personal issues. Jesus is ever the example. I often kid about Jesus taking the apostles away on a picnic. There may well have been another reason. In Matthew 14 Jesus is told that John the Baptist has been killed. It is about this time that the disciples are coming back from having been sent out to preach and heal. They are excited and want to share with Jesus all about their adventures.At this point Jesus has a crisis in his own life. John was his cousin and though we don’t know how close they were he was still a relative. John was a forerunner of not only Jesus' ministry but of his suffering and death. He was also concerned about the apostles and what was going on in their lives. They had much to tell Him and know doubt He was anxious to hear what they said. But they had no privacy and that was the reason they went across the lake. Do you ever feel like there is no leisure time - not even to eat? No time for communication and fellowship? Jesus knows what that is like. His desire was to take them away with Him for a time of fellowship and rest. Just about the time they were pulling up to the shore a crowd started to gather. We don’t know how long it took but eventually there were 5000 men not counting women and kids, but Jesus was concerned about the crowd. It is said in the text of the passage that He had compassion on them. He saw their need. Do you see the need of others or are you stuck on your own needs? Jesus saw that they were like sheep without a shepherd. They were without direction, protection and they needed feeding. He desired to meet their needs. He began to teach them and then he healed (Matthew 14;14). Then He fed them again with physical food.
This is where He used the disciples. He wants to use you. The disciples come and ask Jesus to send everyone away - just get rid of the problem. Not, "can you fix it" but "get rid of it. Is it possible that they were tolerant just until they saw a good reason to get back to their original plan of rest and relaxation? Jesus said, "you feed them”. But they cannot see how. That is also like us too, isn’t it? We don’t see that we have the resources to do what Jesus asks. Then Jesus asked them (and us) “What do you have?” They had 5 loaves and 2 fish. Not much with a crowd like that. But little is much in the hands of Jesus. Jesus wants to use what little you have to make a difference. The apostles are involved. They directed the people to sit. They then set the food before the people and they collected the food again. Jesus then took a little and blessed it, broke it and gave it away. Are you willing to be the bread in Jesus hands? Will you be the bread to fill the needs of others, blessed - by blessing others, broken - to be given away and then brought back again? When we give out in Jesus name much is collected back to Jesus, far more than what is ever given out. He didn't have to do everything. He had the apostle serve and collect and he refused the accolades of the crowd. Instead He went to pray after a great move of God in preparation for the next. The next was walking on water! If we are willing to let our time and situations be God’s place of opportunity we may find ourselves in some marvelous occasions where we get to do some amazing things. We may not have much but in His hands we can be part of some very amazing things.

Captured for a Purpose

And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. 3And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.2 Kings 5:2-4

Are you willing to be used by God? Whatever the cost? Consider this: Here is this little girl who was captured in some raiding party of the Syrians. She is ripped from her home, family and country and taken away to be a slave. Now no matter how well you have it you always know that you are a slave. Even in the most benevolent situations you still are aware that you are in this situation against your will. You have been taken from family and familiar situations against your will. The people you serve either captured you or bought you and you are a piece of property. You might get lucky and get a benevolent master but then again you might not. What will you do? You also might remember the story of Joseph who was sold into slavery…by his brothers! Then, even though he was doing his job he is falsely accused of attempting to rape the boss’s wife and ends up in prison. He works his way up in the prison, helps a couple of fellows close to the king but is forgotten for another couple of years.
The little girl’s sweetness, even in captivity brought a great man in touch with the living God. Though she was a captive she chose to show mercy instead of revenge. She could have said to herself, “Let the old man fall apart all over Syria.” Instead she shares a possible way out of his misery. It wasn’t so much that she wanted her boss to meet the prophet as it was to meet the prophet’s God…her God. God had placed her for a purpose, and she was faithful. Because of her faithfulness her boss, Naaman, eventually receives healing as well as faith in God.
Joseph was faithful to God. He had shown pride and arrogance (which seemed to be the reason that his brothers hocked him for thirty pieces of silver.) But the bible says that God was with him. When he was tempted to sleep with the boss’s wife (by the wife herself) he refused on two grounds. The first reason was good. My master has trusted me with everything and has kept nothing from me except you. But the second reason was the highest purpose for his faithfulness. “How can I sin against God?” That got him thrown into jail. Right there he could have questioned God, (and probably did though the bible doesn’t record it) got mad and quit. He could have lived like others, one moment at a time. But instead he honored God and God honored him. In due time God not only brought him out of jail but put him in charge of all of Pharaoh’s wealth. But that wasn’t the purpose God had in mind. Not only did he work some things out in Joseph’s mind but he dealt with the brothers as well. He also brought Israel and his family to Egypt, a place they would not have gone on their own, Here God would make a great nation and people that would be His People.
Where has God put you? No matter how humble or small your position, God can use you to spread his Word. Look for opportunities to tell others what God can do. There’s no telling who will hear your message!

A GIFT OF LOVE

John 12:1-50
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. 3Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, 5"Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" 6This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. 7But Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. 8For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."

In the book of John there is a wonderful account of a woman that gave a gift of love to Jesus. She was not the first woman to approach Jesus and pour out her love to Him. The first had been a woman with a bad reputation. Simon, the host of the dinner knew who she was and questioned in his heart how Jesus, if He was indeed a prophet, how could He let this woman touch Him. Jesus defended her and accepted her display of love as the repentance it was meant to be.
The second woman is unidentified by Matthew and Mark but John reveals that it is Mary, the sister of Lazarus.(12:3) This is not a woman that had a bad reputation. She had made it a habit to sit at the feet of Jesus. She did not come with a need for forgives but the need to express her love to Jesus. There are four things that we need to learn from her action and her expression of love to Jesus so that we can express our own love more effectively

First, it was daring. She comes into a room that was full of men. Women were only admitted to serve and then they were to leave. Mary is not concerned with what others thought. She was determined to show Jesus her love. It is possible, even probable that she was the only one in the room besides Jesus that understood that these were the last days that Jesus would spend with them. In order to be daring one must be Oblivious to self and to their reputation in the eyes of others. Mary let down her hair. (Matthew and Mark)This would be unheard of and there were those that were probably offended in her abandonment. But Mary chose to humble herself before Jesus and in front of others because she wanted to bless Him. This was between her and Jesus. No one else or what they thought mattered. The Bible says Humble yourself in the sight of the lord and he shall lift you up. Jam 4:10 Mary didn't have a towel and she didn't look for one. She wiped the feet at which she had sat at, with her hair. (vs.3)

Secondly it was costly. The price for the ointment she used was three hundred denarii (pence in Mat and Mark), almost a years wages.(vs5) It was a pound of this ointment and it was in an alabaster jar (Matthew and Mark). The alabaster jar was both precious and fragile. It was sealed in such a way that it could not just be opened and a little poured out. It was all or nothing and she broke it and poured it all out. She kept nothing back. Matthew and Mark say it was upon His head. (Mat 26/Mar 14) Joh.12:3 says that she anointed His feet. How do we reconcile the difference? She did both! Some believe that as she poured it out and it dripped (accidentally) onto his feet. Others believe she poured it out on his head and so much poured out that it dripped upon his feet. The point is... She did it!!! This was not a common gift and it did not just cost a little or nothing. It was one of sacrifice. We can hear the sentiment in the words of David,

“Then the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 2 Samuel 24:24 (NKJV)

Thirdly it was deliberate. It was something she chose to do whether the ointment was bought for this purpose or not is not known. It does not change the value, more or less. The point is that it was a decision on her part to give an offering of her love. This was not something that she had to do or was forced to do. It was not expected but in fact just the opposite. It was quite unexpected

Fourthly it was lasting. This is actually a result of the first three actions that Mary took. But consider this, because she poured out the whole gift on Him and it went over his head and upon his clothes and then on to His feet. It was at His feet where she wiped the excess away. There was an excess that covered Him. His hair and clothes bore the perfume of her love during the whole time …
• of His passion in the garden
• At his trials
• After his scourging
• All the way up the hill of Golgatha
• The terrible hours during his death
• Jesus was reminded of her love
Now let us consider the gift of our life to Jesus, because that is really what He is interested in.

First, is it daring or is governed by what others think? Do we not show our love or have any open display of it because of what other think? Or do we love Him with abandon and have little care of our own reputation? Is it oblivious to self and others and all we can think,

Second, is it costly? Is it our first and best or do we give what is leftover and not needed? Can we say that no price or service is too great or do we give God only what is left over, convenient and comfortable? We need to set aside our comfort and convenience and live out our love for the savior. We need to be less concerned about what we will get and be more concerned about what we can spend upon our Savior, simply because His love is worth it. Are you willing to sacrifice all for Him?

Third, is the gift of our life and love something deliberate or random and accidental? Is our love given freely and is our worship planned as well as spontaneous? People are deliberate about their jobs, their vacations and play times are thought out and executed with great care but their relationship with God “just happens.” Is our life given to Jesus with reluctance because everyone expects it? Or maybe because we feel like, well, we have to do something.

Fourth, is this life we are living and say that we are giving to God lasting or momentary? Is what we are working for lasting or will it only last and be remembered as long as we are there to perpetuate it. Are the things we give God eternal or temporal and only to appease Him. To do our duty so we can point to something and say, see “I love God”

Expect the Judas's (and other disciples) that will be there to question your motive and there will be those that will be quick to misrepresent your motive and love. Please my friend, let Jesus defend you and He will. Just as He stood for the woman with the bad reputation as well as the woman that was His friend He will stand for you. There will be those that will ask why you are wasting your time, your money and your life on Jesus. They will not understand and they will see it as a waste but Jesus will see it for the love it is and will remember it. And as you pour out your life as a fragrant gift of love as you give Him anything out of love you will find that the excess of your love for Him will remain on you. Your life will have the fragrance of love that people will notice. They will know that there is something different. And it will be lasting. Just as Jesus said of Mary may it be said of us…

I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her." MAT 26:13

Heat Exhaustion

Just recently I experienced what I believe to be heat exhaustion. Now admittedly, this is a self diagnosis. I am stubborn when it comes to going to the doctor and such. I watch myself pretty well and eat pretty well. I have become very conscious of my sugar intake and white flour and such. I have cut way down on eating candy and cookies and sweets. I am, what I would say, in pretty good shape. My one vice, if it is a vice, would be coffee and I have cut down how much I drink over the years but still drink about five cups a day. I love a good cup of coffee and I am quicker to drink coffee than water.

My problem all started with digging a hole in the back yard for a post. The place I chose turned out to be extremely rocky but I was working in evening and though it was hot the sun was down. I sipped at my coffee as I worked. When I went into the house my wife had come home and asked if I had listened to the phone. “It’s buzzing.” The last time the phone was buzzing was when I cut into the line when doing some work in the back yard. So the next morning I went out to see what I had done because the night before the hole was filled with water. I could not see any line so I dug out the sides. Still nothing and by now it was getting hot. We concluded that it must be the repair from last year gone bad. The next morning I began to dig where I thought the problem was and ended up digging a trench about two feet deep and about twenty feet long. I never found the line. We decided to call the phone company and it turned out to be a “carbon” (a fuse) in the box. Yikeballs! All that work and now I had to fill up the trench. As it happened I did it in the later part of Friday morning, went to work and then in evening at about five o’clock I went to help pack my daughter and son-in-law’s possessions into the back of a rented truck so they could leave for Oregon the next morning. Because I have a knack for packing, another fellow and I stayed in the back of the truck and the boxes were slid over to us to pack. We did this for several hours. This was all in a week when the temperatures were in the 100’s by eight in the morning and reached 120 by two in the afternoon and didn’t cool off to the 90’s until well after dark.

My problem was not so much the work but that I did not drink enough water. I sipped my coffee in the morning when I had been digging and filling the trench and had a glass or two of water but not much. When I was in the back of the truck I drank one or two twelve ounce bottles of water but did not think much about it. At about eight that evening most all the packing was done and I went home, had something to eat and went to dinner. The next morning I woke and read my bible and then worked on the computer for a while. About an hour after I woke up I began to shiver so I went to get a shirt on but by the time I got to the room I crawled under the covers and shivered uncontrollably until I fell asleep. I got up later feeling tire but I had a memorial service to go to and I had to finish my sermon for in the morning. As soon as I finished my work I went home and was soon in bed. The next morning, Sunday, I went to church, determined to preach and attend the staff meeting. I should have just let my assistant take the service because I was too sick. The staff shooed me out and I went home to sleep, off and on, for the next thirty hours. I went to work on Tuesday but had to go home by early afternoon. I had eaten very little because I had no appetite. I was miserable and even at this writing I still do not feel the way I should. So what is the point?

Just these, relating it spiritually, many Christians suffer from spiritual heat exhaustion. They are in the heat of battle or the heat of service (or both) and don’t drink enough Living Water to keep their bodies spiritually hydrated. They drink in other things like books and music and devotionals but they never spend time at the Well of Living Water and drink deeply or often, just glassfuls here and there. They have a glassful in the morning but if they miss they think they will be all right. They will just have one tomorrow morning but then tomorrow morning comes and they miss again. They might have a good long drink on Wednesday or Sunday morning but they get to the place where they are not drinking the water and just as water is what our physical bodies need to survive, flush toxins, replenish and refresh so our spiritual lives need the water of the Word and to drink deeply of the Living Water. They don’t allow the Holy Spirit to poor the Living Water into them at times of private prayer and fellowship.

So now we have little water in our “spiritual” systems and then we get into a heated spiritual warfare we don’t expect and our strength fails. We serve in our own strength for long times and we become exhausted. We find ourselves, shivering uncontrollably, huddled in a corner trying to figure out what is wrong with us. We have lost our strength, our appetite and our desire to do anything but sleep. We even isolate ourselves because we have no interest in fellowship. This happens all because we neglect regular, deep drinking of the Water of the Word. We have sweat it out and poured it out in tears. There is nothing there because we have not put it back

We need to visit the Well every day without fail. We need to drink deep and often. We cannot be satisfied with just the other spiritual “beverages.” They are fine, and like coffee have a place and a time but we cannot find our strength in that just like we cannot expect to have spiritual strength from just listening to music or reading devotionals, we must read the word. We also must spend time with Jesus and ask Him for the water that He gives.
Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." John 4:10 (NKJV)
Let it hydrate your heart and replenish your spirit so that even in the unexpected times you will be able to enter into the heat of battle or the heat of service and not fail. But the way, it must be remembered that you cannot miss the drinking of Living Water while you battle or while you serve or you will find yourself exhausted. The day to day prepares you but when the battle or the service increases so must your intake of Living Water

John 7:37-39 (NKJV) On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." 39But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Rev. 22:17 (NKJV)
And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires let him take the water of life freely.

Looking Back at Mistakes and disappointment

My friend Deiana posted a quote from Mark Twain that caused me some immediate thoughts. I was going to just make a comment about looking back but one comment became two and then they grew too quickly and had to become this post. The quote was:

"Тwenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

My first reaction to that thought was that it was curious how when I looked back that many of the things that I remember with joy, fondness, down right laughter, were things that were accidents, mistakes and at the time painful experiences.

When I was a much younger man I would take my family camping. I desperately wanted to be their hero and planned many things to prove to them I was. Many of the planned things backfired but some didn't. However it was in the unplanned situations I found myself having to be the hero and I was. But not only did I become the hero, those are the situations that we remember with the greatest fondness and have the deepest humor. This story is about one of those time.

We were camping in the mountains in northern California. We heard about a lake nearby and decided to pack an evening dinner and go fishing. The plan was that we would watch the time and get back in plenty of time. We found the place to park and the trail head to the lake and started up the trail. At one point the trail we followed took us by a lodge that we had eaten at and then went on to the lake where we were to enjoy the evening. While my family walked along and chattered about the birds and the trees and flowers, I watched the trail. They hoped to see deer and other animals and I concentrated on landmarks so that we could get back because the trail twisted and turned and intersected with other trails. I remembered boulders by the trail and broken branches on trees. I tried to remember the twists and turns.

Because it was summer the sun stayed up late but we left the little lake with plenty of time because the sunlight would quickly become lost in the shadow of the trees. I began to direct my family home. I was the guide and I thought I knew the trail. As you may have already suspected, I missed a turn or something, misread a landmark or went the wrong way when the trails intersected and we began to go around in circles. Even by this time in our marriage, my dear wife would explain to the children, "shush children, we are just on adventure." They were quieted by her words but for me is painfully meant, "Shush children, Daddy is trying to figure out this mess we are in." Now let me be very clear, that is not what she meant at all but that was the way I made it. No because of anything she said because of my own ill conceived perception of myself.

I was the guide but now all the things that I thought were so different to guide the way began to blend. What I thought was a peculiar little tree or an odd looking rock turned out to look like every other tree and rock along the trail. Then we began to see the same tree or rock and I looked down ahead of where we were walking and saw little tennis shoe prints in the dust of the trail. Then i noticed the markings of my own boots. I realized we were going in circles and so I took a fork at the next trail intersection. Suddenly we broke in to the clearing of the little lodge. Yay, we were safe! But our car was still about a half a mile away and we were not out of the woods yet. (The pun WAS intended!).

Now our choices were to walk along the two way road which would be OVER a half a mile or take a trail back into the woods. There was a fellow at the lodge that said it would be a straight trail and it would be LESS than a half a mile. Throw into the choice that the sun is almost gone. The trail was also supposed to follow the road. We had no flashlight but we decided to go the shorter trail, walk quickly, and get to our destination. (Sounds like a sin illustration coming on... but I will leave that to you to see). So we plunged back into the forest and quickly, into the darkness as well. For some time we did walk along the road but then the road went one way and we went the other. It was high above us and seemed impossible to climb to so we were committed to going forward. We had gone to far and it was too dark to go back. Boy, now we were really having an adventure. Finally we came to a place where we could see the road, again. It was still high above us but the fear that the darkness brought, tripping over things and the unknown things lurking about in the darkness caused us to scramble up the hill. After climbing and sliding back and climbing again we finally found our way to the higher road. We had wasted time and had experienced fear but now we were safe. Even though the sun had gone down we could now see clearly to walk. We checked everyone for scratches and bruises and continued on to the car. After what seemed like forever we came to the parking lot. There was our car, sitting all alone, and my son CJ went running up to it and kissed the bumper and said, We are saved! I'm so glad to see you, car!"

We were tired and we had been afraid, I had many personal feelings because of what I felt I had put my family through but when we all stood there at the car we all felt a sense of accomplishment. We had overcome our adversities. We had conquered the forest, well almost. At least we escaped from it.

We now look back at that time with a fondness, joy, humor and a place of growth. Each of us grew that night in our own way. I grew in humility and yet also in determination to learn to take better care of my family. My wife grew in her ability to lift me up at a time when she could have easily torn me down. She learned to encourage and even trust me though all the outward signs said, scream your head off and cry! My children learned to be brave and to submit and to trust. And we all grew in prayer! The mistake actually turned out to be the best memory of the trip. That was over twenty years ago.

We could have missed so very much together had we allowed that to be our last "adventure". It wasn't, but that will be for another time.We could have played things safe and never done that kind of thing again but we would have missed a lot. But as a I look back at that event and the things connected to it, I am not disappointed. But I am disappointed by the things that are not there to look back at, laugh at and remember because we never did them. I don't remember anything that we ever did that disappointed us. We have never been disappointed in the adventures we have taken or the adventures that have happened. Some have been better than others but they all have memories connected to them we would never give up. My wife has come to say that life is a journey but it is also a great adventure. Don't miss it by being afraid you will be disappointed.

As Mr. Twain pointed out you will be more disappointed by what you did not do than what you did.

I would rather do something and say, "Eh, it was not so good," than to say, "Gee,I don't know, I missed my opportunity to find out."

Get out of the harbor. It will always be there when you get back. go on an adventure. Don't fear the storms, enjoy them, Sail cautiously when you must but when you can, open you sails and let the wind blow. Even your shipwrecks will become part of the grand adventure...maybe even the best part.

Hunger for Righteousness

Matthew 5:6 (NKJV) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.

Today there are many things on the market that say they are food but they are so filled with preservatives and other things that while it is listed as food it has very little “food” in it or what food is left it has no nutrition. Yet people are satisfied with it because it “tastes” good and looks good when in fact it has no nutritional value. This kind of food leads to sickness and even death but people still eat it. There is a whole industry built around it. Real food will cost more and it takes more to use it and prepare it but it brings health and provides nutrition that causes growth. Once you begin to understand its value and realize that fast foods and processed foods are not healthy you, you hunger for what is real. The same is true of true righteousness that flows from God and is worked out in our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Righteousness can be the same way. There is a lot out there that is seen and called righteousness but there is nothing in it that causes growth. It is preserved by ego and being content with how things look on the outside rather than spiritual health. We are told by Jesus that we are blessed when we hunger and thirst for righteousness. What does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness?
We might want to start by what it is not. There are those that are concerned about having righteousness around them. They, like the Pharisee’s are very concerned when someone that looks like a sinner or in their opinion is doing sinful things come near them. It might even be someone that is, in fact, a full blown sinner and there is no doubt as to the fact that they are “unclean.” They don’t want people or things that they don’t like in their near proximity. They want only “righteousness” around them. They grab up their things and avoid these people at all costs. They look at them with suspicion and even fear if they look at them at all.
Too often we only want to have righteousness around us because then we feel comfortable. That way there is nothing out of the ordinary. Everything “looks” good…including us. We also don’t have to do anything or say anything and at the same time we can be quick to point out and condemn anything we don't like or makes us uncomfortable. We do not want to be confronted by things we don’t like or things we don’t approve of. Having everything around us appear to be righteous will also give the illusion that we, ourselves are righteous so we can hide our secret sin. There are times when I can hide my judgmental spirit behind a desire for righteousness. But hungering and thirsting for righteousness is not about what is in others or how things appear but it means that you want it for yourself.
To hunger and thirst after righteousness means to have a starving, thirsty spirit in your own heart. It is a real hunger and starvation of soul. It means that your spirit longs for the righteousness of God to be worked out in your own life. But there is something more about it that needs to be understood. The hunger is for all righteousness. This hunger wants righteousness in every way and doesn’t pick and choose what it wants. It does not deem some righteousness palatable and other righteousness, well questionable. This hunger is not like the person that feels a little hungry and goes to the refrigerator and stands there, looking at all the food and then closes the door and says, “There is nothing in here to eat.” No this type of hunger means that it is a craving for righteousness. It wants to eat the whole thing. It is not satisfied with righteousness in tidbits. It does not pick and choose what righteousness it wants. It is not satisfied with things that look like righteousness but are not. It wants true righteousness.
In the Bible “righteousness” means two simple but profound things; it has a double meaning. It means to be right and to do right. It may be said another way: to be good and to do good. We cannot be good without doing good but doing good without being good has no value.
How then can a man become perfectly righteous? The answer is what Christ says: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” What happens is this. God takes a person’s “hunger and thirst after righteousness” and counts it as righteousness. The person is not righteous, but God counts him righteous. This is the great love of God. A man hungers and thirsts after righteousness; therefore, God fills him. Now one might argue that they do want righteousness but they point more to the unrighteousness of others rather than seeking true righteousness in their own lives. They are like Simon the Pharisee that thought less of Jesus because Jesus allowed a woman to touch Him. Not just any woman but one that Simon judged a sinner by her appearance. He may have even knew her by her reputation but he could not see any way that she could ever be fit for God. Jesus, on the other hand was more concerned about the heart rather than the outward appearance. On the outside Simon looked righteous and the woman a sinner but to Jesus the woman‘s heart was seen, not by her outward appearance but how she showed her love to Jesus. The same was true of Simon. His heart was shown by his lack of giving to Jesus even the common courtesy given to strangers. The woman came in faith that Jesus would forgive her and Simon lacked faith and did not see his own need of Jesus in any way. The Bible uses the word faith to explain righteousness. Faith is believing God and trusting Him to take our faith and count it as righteousness. Hebrews 11:6 says it clearly: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” That faith will result in a righteousness that begins to take place in every part of our life without our working at it. It will just happen.
Righteousness, the kind we must hunger for, involves the mind. Scripture says it involves being “renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Ephes. 4:23), and being “renewed in knowledge” (Col. 3:10).This means that the person who seeks after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” He “puts on the new man” and is “renewed in the spirit of [his] mind” (Ephes. 4:23). It means that the person who seeks after God has “put off the old man with his deeds; and [has] put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Col. 3:9-10).
The Pharisees did not seek after God’s righteousness they sought after their own. They were more concerned about the outside than the inside. They thought that pleased God when in fact they only pleased themselves. But Jesus said that our righteousness was to exceed theirs! Jesus called them whitewashed sepulchers, filled with dead men’s bones. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Matthew 23:27-28) The Pharisee’s and the hypocrite disguise inner decay with an outward show of righteousness. They are very careful how they look on the outside but on the inside they have all the corruption of the sin that they hold on to. How does this apply to us? Let's consider a few things:
On the outside – we are still going to church...making a sure we can say point to our church attendance as a proof of our righteousness
On the inside we are still living to ourselves during the week.
On the outside - we may profess to be a Christian
On the inside -We are still living and thinking like an unbeliever.
On the outside -we may give thanks as a family at meals,
On the inside we are ungrateful and covetous of what others have. We are unsatisfied with the blessings God has already given us.
On the outside - we may agree with justice and mercy,
On the inside we are unforgiving and judgmental towards others in the church
On the outside we quote the word of God and say we believe it
On the inside we refuse to obey it, question it and don’t really live it.
On the outside we may walk humbly before our peers,
On the inside we are full of pride, criticism and self righteousness.
On the outside we are very generous and giving, towards God and others
On the inside we see it as a proof of our righteousness. We don’t give as an act or worship but as a proof of righteousness.
We often forget that even though Jesus spoke against the outward sins that people see as so terrible but He spoke just as strongly the inward sins of the spirit such as pride and greed, a judgmental heart or despising others because they don’t meet OUR standards of righteousness. Jesus spoke most harshly against those that trusted in their own righteousness and so easily judged others and brought them into condemnation. Instead of drawing them to God they force them away with blame and disapproval. The disapproval is theirs, not God’s. It is interesting that Jesus, who was perfect in His righteousness, was compassionate and caring. He did not wink at sin and did not ignore it, He simply told those that were bound to walk in freedom. That freedom, as well as righteousness, is found in trusting Jesus. To trust in our own righteousness is to not trust in His.

Spiritual Warfare - Where does it really take place?

Ephesians 6:12 tells us that warfare takes place in “high places” and that our struggle is not against flesh and blood. It is against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness and spiritual wickedness.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephes. 6:12 NKJV

In our own lives there is often a struggle Paul describes them in Galatians 5:17 “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would.” Each of us has a battle going on in our life that we may be attempting to fight on a human level. Consider the idea it could be (and probably is) a spiritual battle. Open up any new possibilities to handle it?

In the book of Daniel, Chapter 10, Daniel seeks to understand what is going to happen to Israel. He recognizes that time has gone by and that there are new things in store for Israel and has asked God for that understanding. In the first part of the chapter Daniel is in prayer and is fasting. He is seeking the Lord concerning issues he is concerned about. He asked for understanding. An angel appears to him and speaks to him. In verse 12 we find out that his prayers were answered the first day. Yet we see that it was three weeks before this angel had shown up. The angel said that Prince of Persia had withstood. You can understand from the context that this was no mere man but a ruler of darkness who must have had great authority over the things in Persia. Intervention by one described by the angel as “Michael, one of the chief princes,” had enabled him to get through.

Daniel had sought the Lord on the future of Israel. God had sent an angel to come immediately to answer him. Demonic forces held him back until Michael finally came and did battle. Michael, the one we know as the arch angel seems to have the second in command under Jesus. We have only a hazy picture of a country so filled with idolatry and wickedness and such a stronghold of satanic forces that the angel couldn't get through.

Using our weapons and knowing our forces

Are we powerless against the enemy? No! Notice what Daniel did. He used the weapons of warfare. First he used prayer. He sought God. He made his request know before the throne. This was something he could not get an answer for any other way. To the prayer he added fasting. He humbled himself before the Lord. Fasting (in the spiritual sense) is voluntarily giving up food to spend time with God. If you are just giving up food and not spending time in prayer and communication with God you will find little accomplished other than being hungry and maybe losing some weight. Humbling yourself before the Lord speaks of surrender of your wants, desires and your will to God. Although the battle is fought in the heavens what we do on earth is important. Notice what Daniel did not do. First, he did not stop praying. Often people get weary of waiting and stop praying and fasting (if they ever started). There are some folks who believe you only have to pray once and then just believe that you will get what you prayed for. Because of this idea they stop praying and never even think of fasting. I have no problem with believing for something and expecting an answer from God for something. But I do have a problem with those who stop talking to God about it and are no longer seeking His heart concerning the issue. Sometimes folks have bought into the false doctrine that God owes you and so they no longer look to God. They have “said it,” “they believe” it and so that is they end of it. It is as if they have given God a command and He must respond to it. Not only is this arrogance but totally unscriptural

Knowing your forces

In Spiritual warfare it is important to know you forces. Too often we try to depend on our own strength and resources to battle sin and satanic forces that seek to rule and control our lives. There are those that would have us believe that we can seek out the enemy and his devices and that we can destroy them. When we fail we can become discouraged. We begin to think the problem is too big or that the forces of the enemy are greater than anything we have. This is true if we try to accomplish the battle on our own. But we must realize that there are the forces of God, all around us, to protect us, to hold back the enemy and ultimately to subdue the enemy. We have a beautiful picture of this in 2 Kings 6:15-17 In this area of scripture our main character is Elisha. It is a bad time in Elisha’s life. It seems that the king of Syria is planning on invading Israel and Elisha keeps giving away his plans to the king of Israel. Now the king of Syria wants to know which one of his people is a traitor and he finds out that in fact there is no traitor but Elisha is giving away their secrets. The king wants him in custody, most likely to either kill him or at the very least keep him from passing on information to Israel. In the morning the whole city of Dothan is surrounded with Syrian troops and chariots. The servant of Elisha draws attention to the physical enemy. Elisha sees his fear and tells him not to worry that there are more with them than there was of their enemy. Now we have to hit the pause button here and consider what the servant might be thinking as he looked around. Okay Elisha, there are a few prophets and maybe some towns people but I don’t think we have more than they do. The math is just not adding up. This is where Elisha says, “O Lord, open his eyes so he may see." Then the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. No fear, our forces greater.

Do you see your forces as greater? The bible says greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4) That alone says we have the greater advantage. There are angels all around. Jacob in Genesis 28:12 had a dream where he saw a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. He also saw the angels of God ascending and descending on it. It is here that God speaks to him and restates the promises he gave to Abraham. But the picture we see is that there is constant activity between heaven and earth. There angels constantly going and coming to the aid of the people of God. And there is only need one angel.

In another Old Testament situation Assyria had Jerusalem in siege. The chief of staff for the king of Assyria had come with a letter, not only to threaten Hezekiah, but to try and shake the faith in God's ability to deliver them. Isaiah tells us that over five thousand of the enemy was killed in one night by one angel (Isaiah 37:36)

When Daniel’s friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego refused to worship Nebuchadnezzer’s golden idol they were thrown into a fiery furnace (Daniel 3). An angel came to their rescue. Their ropes were removed and they moved about freely- but they were still in the furnace! Sometimes we are not delivered from the situation itself, only the results. When Daniel himself was thrown into a lions den for continuing to pray to God after a royal decree had been made than made it an offence punishable by death, an angel came to his rescue. (Dan 6). The angel shut the lions' mouths through the night so they did not hurt him. When those who had accused Daniel were thrown into the pit they were immediately eaten. (So it wasn’t like the lions were not hungry.)

Finally, one of my favorite stories is from Acts 12. It seems Peter is in prison. He doesn’t seem to be too worried because he is asleep. His sleep is so deep that the angel who wakes him has to punch him in the side. (Acts 12:7-11)

Too often we take the forces around us that we can see, too seriously and the forces we cannot see too much for granted unless they are from the satanic realm and are manifested in the physical realm. The main strategy is to trust in God. Trusting him, that he is in control and that as needed he will send his angels to minister to our needs and situations. Instead of looking to ourselves, to other flesh and blood or worldly answers for our problems, to overcome our sins or the enemy of our souls, we need to look to God. He is our Rock, our Fortress and our Deliverer.

Because You have been my help, therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. Psalm 63:7 (NKJV)

I will lift up my eyes to the hills-- from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2 (NKJV)