Stimulated Toward Love and Good Deeds

Our church does something called, "Go Night" once per month.  Basically, we go out to a neighborhood in our community and we distribute invitations to church and talk with anyone who is outside and willing to talk... sometimes it leads to the gospel, other times it ends very quickly... but it always gets me out of my comfort zone.  Today, we had a picnic at the park afterwards and I was sitting at a table talking with a gentleman from our church and he slipped me a 3 x 5 card that had some scripture from Psalm 119 on it.  I read it and then we started talking about it... kind of a strange way to start a conversation, but it was such an encouragement to me that he would choose a spiritually beneficial topic and lead the conversation that way.  The conversation continued and he asked if I ever went out specifically to talk with people about the gospel.  Humbled, I had to say that I have only done it a couple times.  I do not see evangelism as my spiritual gift, but that is not an excuse for not doing it.  I am much more comfortable talking with someone I know about the gospel than someone I don't... but all those things really are excuses for my lack of faithfulness to the Lord in the area of sharing the gospel in word.  He asked me how I might approach a gentleman sitting on a park bench and pointed him out.  I explained how I might make small talk and find out a little bit about him and then bring up church and see if he was comfortable taking the conversation beyond surface level and then if he is... lead into the gospel if he is unsaved or asking him about his walk with the Lord if he is saved.  The conversation continued and then I got up to get another piece of watermelon... and when I got back, the gentleman that I was talking with was gone.  He had gone over to talk with that guy on the park bench.  I was so convicted and challenged by that.  It's possible that nothing will come of that conversation, but that is up to the Lord... not me.  God doesn't always lead us to stand at a street corner with a megaphone sharing the gospel, but I must be much much more aware of those around me that may no know Christ and take the opportunities He gives and follow His lead in sharing with them the glorious truth of the gospel. I am so thankful for this example from this guy at church.  He really lived out Hebrews 10:23-25 for me this evening.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

God, make me a more faithful steward of the gospel.

Careful Obedience

It's been a while since I've read Joshua, so I am reading it again.  I was encouraged and challenged by God's command to Joshua to be obedient in verses 7-9.  Take a look...

Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

These incredible promises from God are interwoven with commands to obey Him fully. The reason we meditate on the Word... the reason we memorize it... the reason we read it is all to obey it. It is a great think to have the spiritual discipline of spending time in the Word, but we must be careful to do all that we are commanded to do! Any part of the Word that we read and choose to ignore only hardens our heart toward the Lord. May God humble us by shining His light into our darkness--the areas in which we have ignored His clear commands, and may He turn our hearts to love-driven, joyful obedience.

Happy Mother's Day!

It's not too often I get to celebrate the incredible mom that the Lord has blessed me with... especially since her birthday is in the same week as Mother's Day! I was sitting in my room this morning pondering what I ought to write in the card we got for mom and my thoughts wandered to different friends of mine who don't have their mom with them anymore. The more I pondered these things, the more I realize just how blessed I am to not only have a mom to strengthen me with prayer, encourage me, push me, rebuke me, etc... but to have a mom who is incredibly brilliant and active and humorous and young at heart and wise and godly and bold and lovely... I am so blessed to have my mom. My heart goes out to those that do not have a mom with them today. For the men and women fighting overseas... some of which are mothers... others are husbands of a wife who is a mother... others are sons and daughters of mothers. For those who don't have a relationship with their mom due to some life decisions. For those that don't have a mom with them because they have moved on into eternity. My mom has had perhaps the biggest impact on me of any human on the face of the planet... and truly, I can't imagine missing that person who has had that much impact on my life... but many are missing that person in their life today. I just want to take the time to encourage you if you don't have a mom with you today with these words from "Be Still My Soul".

Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe thy sorrow and thy fears.
Be still, my soul: thy Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He takes away.

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

My prayer for you today is that in missing your mother, God would grant you greater knowledge of Him and His supreme ability to fulfill all of your needs... to fill every void... to comfort and encourage your heart. God has blessed me with an incredible mother. I don't know how long He will bless me with her... but one thing I do know... I ought to make the most of my time with her. She is so wise. She is so virtuous. My encouragement of those of us that do have our moms with us today... let's minister to their needs more than we are. Let's serve them like Christ would have us do. Let's honor them as we are commanded to do. Mother's Day is a day where we focus on them, but it doesn't have to be Mother's Day for us to choose to make sacrifices for them. Let's love on them... encourage them... pray for them!

Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying: "Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all." Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Happy Mother's Day to the most amazing mom ever. I love you, mom!

Focused Love

The sermon yesterday morning talked about the relationship between love and obedience--specifically, how love for God always results in obedience to Him. The moment we separate love and obedience, we lose the foundation for our obedience. Once we are just doing the "right thing" because it has been our pattern, it is good that we have established patterns of obedience, but we are in a very vulnerable place. It is just a matter of time before the tempter makes his move in showing us how much more fun sin would be than obedience. We have lost our foundation for obedience and we will also lose the battle of the mind if we don't turn back to the love of God as our goal in obeying Christ. Take a look at 1 John 5:1-3.

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

Pastor Tim really did a good job of bringing this passage down to a practical level. Honestly, I struggled with applying this even as I was writing this blog post. I was asked to do something very reasonable and I didn't feel like doing it. Sadly, those thoughts of, "Haven't I done enough today?", or "Can't someone else do it?"... etc. flood my mind far too often. I'm thankful for the Lord's conviction in this area. Mom is a child of God and therefore, how can I do anything but love her? Okay, I have another huge reason to love her... and I do love her very very much for being my mom! But, I must not lose sight of the fact that she is also a child of God and if I love God, I truly can't even consider not loving her.

I have several married friends... many of which are starting to have kids... and I almost feel like an adopted uncle of sorts. I love those kids so much, even if I hardly know them... I know their parents and love their parents, so I must love their children! It's the natural thing to do. It's amazing how many faults we can overlook when we have set our mind to love someone. That little one spits up all over you... or dumps a whole bucket of toys all over the floor that were just picked up, but you just have to love them anyway! What if we really applied this Biblical truth with our brothers and sisters in Christ? What if we "did not take into account a wrong suffered"? What if we were so focused on loving God that we loved His children unconditionally? How would that transform our relationships within the family... physical brothers and sisters that are His children... parents... spouses... etc.? They are all fellow heirs of God and Christ! How would this transform our churches? How would this transform our attitude about people in our church... even those that intentionally do things to make us uncomfortable?

I am challenged and convicted by the truths of 1 John 5. May God give each of us His grace and help to be so focused on loving Him that disobedience isn't even a consideration and that we love His people as He would have us love them. Love is an action! We must not let it stop with how we "think or feel" about God's children... though that may be a great start!

My prayer for you and for myself is from 2 Thessalonians 3:5.

May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the steadfastness of Christ.

Only His Instruction

Sometimes I feel like I am discovering something new in the world--we see sin spreading like wildfire taking all kinds of "new" forms. We see many that we have known and loved for years walking in the counsel of the ungodly as Psalm 1 warns us about. We see "new" ways in which the church is trying to mix with the unsaved world despite all the commands throughout scripture to be set apart. We seem to miss that God called Lot out of Sodom. There is a time to "get out". There is also a time to stand firm where He has put us and be salt and light there. It take so much wisdom from the Lord to determine what we must do in every different kind of situation.

I was reading in 1 Kings 13 this evening and reminded how "old" some of these things are... things that seem "new" to me... perhaps new in my lifetime, but these things have been around since the beginning of time. Take a look at 1 Kings 13:7-25.

Then the king said to the man of God, “Come home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.” But the man of God said to the king, “If you were to give me half your house I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water in this place. For so it was commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water, nor return by the way which you came.’” So he went another way and did not return by the way which he came to Bethel. Now an old prophet was living in Bethel; and his sons came and told him all the deeds which the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words which he had spoken to the king, these also they related to their father. Their father said to them, “Which way did he go?” Now his sons had seen the way which the man of God who came from Judah had gone. Then he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him and he rode away on it. So he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak; and he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.” Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.” He said, “I cannot return with you, nor go with you, nor will I eat bread or drink water with you in this place. For a command came to me by the word of the Lord, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water there; do not return by going the way which you came.’” He said to him, “I also am a prophet like you, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’” But he lied to him. So he went back with him, and ate bread in his house and drank water. Now it came about, as they were sitting down at the table, that the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back; and he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have disobeyed the command of the Lord, and have not observed the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you, but have returned and eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which He said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water”; your body shall not come to the grave of your fathers.’” It came about after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, for the prophet whom he had brought back. Now when he had gone, a lion met him on the way and killed him, and his body was thrown on the road, with the donkey standing beside it; the lion also was standing beside the body. And behold, men passed by and saw the body thrown on the road, and the lion standing beside the body; so they came and told it in the city where the old prophet lived.

First off, this man of God has an encounter with God. In this encounter, God tells him not to even do so much as eat bread or drink water in that place... not even go back the way he came. It's a pretty amazing thing that the king invites this man of God to come eat with him. Certainly, he could have justified it. He could be salt and light to the king! What an amazing opportunity! But wait. God commanded him otherwise. We see the steadfastness of this man of God in how he turns down the king's offer in obedience to the Lord. The testing wasn't over yet. While this man of God was headed back a different way, someone pursues him and asks him to come back and eat. Okay, no problem... easy answer, "No, God told me not to eat bread or drink water!" Then comes the big test... this man too claims to be speaking the word of the Lord. We see the results of listening to this man--death.

I believe we as the church are in this kind of situation right now. There are so many claiming to be speaking the Word of God... and yet not everyone can be right. We are so tempted to just "get along" and be "salt and light" in places God has called us out of. We must be careful. Very careful. God does not take lightly to our obedience of others over being obedient to His voice. If we aren't listening to His voice to begin with, we obviously won't be obeying it... but assuming we are spending time in the Word and truly committing to hearing from the Lord and being obedient to Him, we must "test the spirits" to see if they are from God. If they are not, we must not waver in our faith... we must not justify our sinful desires. We must cast them aside and determine in our hearts to follow Him regardless of how we feel. His voice is the voice of truth. His words are the only words of life.

Do We Love Him?

Okay, I admit it... I am kind of all over the place in the Word these days. I woke up a bit late this morning and ended up doing part of my devotions in the car on the way to work at red lights. I read in Deuteronomy 13 and it was a great reminder for me.

If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods (whom you have not known) and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the Lord your God is testing you to find out if you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him.

I think we all know (head knowledge that puffs up) that in the end times, there will arise people that can do signs and wonders that are not from the Lord... and yet we also know that these individuals will deceive many. They may even name the name of Christ and yet not lead us in His ways. The secret to separating truth from falsehood in such instances comes in knowing Christ. Knowledge of Christ comes by spending time in the Word. Discretion also comes through the leading of the Spirit (not to be confused with feelings). Spiritual things are spiritually discerned. We must be dependent on the Lord and not quick to "lay hands on any man", and "test the spirits" to see if they are from God.

One thing that really jumped out to me in this passage in light of the fact that God does not tempt anyone is that He does test us at times to see if we love Him. God is not looking for people who love Him when they feel like it. He is looking for those that love Him when He gives and when He takes away. He is looking for those that love Him when an alternative appears to be better than serving Him. He is looking for those that hold tightly to Him. He is looking for those that listen to and obey His voice.

God, forgive me for the ways in which I have loved the things of this world. Forgive me for my disobedience and my love of self. Forgive me for clinging to things that are not eternal. Forgive me for the ways I have served with wrong motivations. Renew in me a steadfast love for You alone. Help me listen closely to Your voice and obey it. Cause my heart to fear You as it should. Be lifted up in my eyes. Reign supreme and conquer every rebel power within this naturally wicked heart. Thank You for Your unending grace and the power of Your Spirit within me to guide me. Give me an attentive ear and a soft heart.

Over-estimating the Enemy

In church today, one of the men brought up an excellent point.  We were studying Daniel 9 and he mentioned that it says that Gabriel was caused to fly swiftly while Daniel was praying.  From this, we can be reminded that spiritual forces (good and evil) are by no means omnipresent.  I think we as a whole tend to under-estimate the powers of darkness in many regards, but we also over-estimate them in many regards.  For some reason, we ascribe characteristics that only God has to Satan.  We feel like he can be everywhere... but he is limited to one place at a time.  When God is speaking with Satan in Job 1, and God asks Satan where he is coming from, Satan says, "From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it."

Satan is not omnipresent!  Yes, there are spiritual hosts of wickedness, but they also are limited to one place at a time.  Another interesting thing is that it didn't describe Gabriel has being there instantly... he flew swiftly.  We don't know the limits of the spiritual realm and how that fits in with time and space, but we do know that only God is all knowing.  Only God is present everywhere. 

At the same time, we ought to remember the instruction from 1 Peter 5:8-11.

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.

May the Lord cause us to be firmly established in our faith so that we are not devoured by the devil. But, let's not ascribe to Satan more glory than he deserves. Satan is not everywhere. Satan does not know everything. Satan can not do anything he wants to do. Satan is under God's thumb.

Be on the alert. Know the Word. Be firm in your faith. Trust the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Trusting the Trustworthy One

God never ceases to amaze me in how He works. I don't like to get myself involved in issues unnecessarily, but sometimes things come up that I believe are important enough that I ought to step in and say or do something. This last week, there were three separate instances in three different contexts where I got to the point where I was ready to say or do something and after praying about it, just didn't sense from the Lord that it was what He wanted. I battled each one for several days and then later heard how God took care of it completely without my intervention. I was reading this morning and again this evening in 1 Peter 2 and Christ's example was such a great encouragement to me. Check out verses 11-25.

Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation. Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king. Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, Who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

The emphasis here is on doing what is right regardless of what is happening around us... and trusting that God will judge righteously. He never fails! There are times where we need to stand up, but sometimes all He wants us to do is be faithful with what He has given us and trust Him to do His part. I love that phrase about Christ--He kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously. What a powerful example for us. Let's do what is right and entrust ourselves to the One who is completely trustworthy!

Noise

I heard a sermon on the radio about a week ago that has been continually on my mind since then. The speaker was talking about noise--the distractions of life. We can get in a pattern of using noise... even good things, like God-honoring music, to district us from really having fellowship with the Lord. Sometimes we forsake the clear command from God in Psalm 46 to be still and know that He is God. It is in quietness and trust that we find our strength from the Lord (Isaiah 30:15). Rather than being still before Him and allowing Him to speak to us and responding to Him, we so often fill our every waking hour with noise... good noise and not so good noise.

I have noticed a pattern in godly individuals that have gone before us... they all have patterns of spending much time quiet before the Lord in the Word and in prayer. It is so essential to our relationship with the Lord that we take the time to be still before Him and listen. Let Him convict us of sin and righteousness and judgement. What we ought to fear more than conviction is fear of not being convicted! If we are not being convicted, we are not listening to Him. May God help us to be still before Him and give us the grace to respond to what He communicates to us.

Purpose in Preparation

This last week, I was really feeling somewhat spiritually dry and in need of refreshment from the Lord. You know those times where it feels like obedience is a burden rather than a joy? I was pleading with the Lord to restore my joy in obedience to Him... that I wouldn't see His commands as burdensome (because they aren't). It's the difference between head knowledge and practical application. I know God's ways are always best. I know that obeying Him will always give me the fullest joy and yet I was attempting obedience on my own strength rather than relying on the joy of the Lord as my strength. It's not fun (just in case you were wondering).

There is nothing like reading the Word with a desire to learn and obey everything that He has to show us for the day. When we are reading out of obligation or just to check it off our check list for the day, it is not in any way joyous and actually, it can harden our hearts toward the Lord. I'm not advising that any of us stop reading the Word when we don't feel like it; His Word can change our feelings! But, we do need to be reading with the desire to be molded and shaped by Him. Only He can give that desire and only He can renew that desire when we don't "feel like it".

Yesterday morning, I spent some time in the Word and pulled out my guitar... closed my door and just played and sang to the Lord. No distractions... no people to please... no other things pressing on my mind... just time with Him. The Lord answered that my pleads for restoration of joy in Him. He also showed me something about preparation. You see, I have a the blessing and privilege of being able to play guitar at church. I enjoy it greatly and find that I can often worship Him with more of me when I am playing than when I am just singing. I do realize that it is a heart condition, not an action thing, but some things draw my heart to worship and playing piano or guitar is one of those things that really helps in drawing my heart to worship. One of the elders and I usually play together, but he has been taking some time off. He is extremely talented and really could have gone professional if he wanted to. He is amazing. I kind of relied on some of his amazingness and didn't feel as "responsible" to have to play everything just right. Now that I am the only one playing, I feel a greater responsibility to play well so as to not distract from worship. Let's face it... when people play or sing wrong notes, people notice and it distracts from worship.

I generally do not spend a lot of time preparing to play on Sunday. The Lord has blessed me with being able to play by ear and so I generally kind of wing it on Sunday. We have practice before church, but outside of that, I don't practice a lot. What the Lord revealed to me is this: with the increased awareness of my responsibility to play right, I was losing the heart of worship. Yes, I wanted to please Him by playing well, but in doing so, I wasn't able to focus on the words we were singing. If I had prepared better, playing would have been easy and natural and I would have been free to worship with all of me... not distracted by the weight of having to play right.

All that to say, I am so thankful for the Lord in showing me the purpose behind preparation. It's hard to spend lots of time preparing when I know I can "wing it" without a noticeable problem. The problem is when it starts affecting my heart... when my lack of preparation turns into distraction from worship in my own heart. I'd be better off not playing at all. God wants hearts that are fully His, not distracted ones no matter how "good" we sound. That's not what God looks at. He looks at the heart.

I have two big things to be thankful for this week:

1) Renewed joy in the Lord and in obedience to Him.
2) Renewed purpose in preparing to help lead His people in worship.

A Sweet Aroma

I recently had one of the most unmanly conversations ever... yes, we were talking about candles. Apparently, one of the ladies put a pineapple candle in the guys restroom at work after hours. Then, it disappeared... apparently, they wanted it back. So, we ended up having this conversation one day about the candle and how it mysteriously appeared and disappeared. I was joking with them and complaining about how the good smelling candle was missing. The next day, it was there again. haha I kind of feel bad because I was just giving them a hard time about it, but apparently they like the fact that we like the good smelling candle. It is one of the candles that has quite a strong smell. The moment the door is opened, the fresh sweet aroma from the candle fills the hallway. All that to say, the knowledge of Christ ought to be like that in our lives to those around us. Take a look 2 Corinthians 2:14-15.

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

It is God's purpose to spread the sweet aroma of Christ to others through us... both to the saved and the unsaved. I have been reading about John Bunyan and his conversion to Christ and how God used some poor people talking about the joy in Christ to cause him to pick up the Bible and start reading. They had no idea that he was listening in on their conversations... but the sweet aroma of Christ filled the air and caught his heart.

Reading this has been a great challenge for me. How can my knowledge of Christ be used as a sweet aroma to glorify Him? You know what makes many of us like Tebow? He obviously loves the Lord and the aroma of his knowledge of Christ is a sweet one. He knows what it means to know Christ and it is sweet to his soul. That aroma of of the knowledge of Christ touching his heart cannot be contained. It is a joyous thing to know Christ... the more we know Him, the more we love Him... we can't help but love Him! He is infinitely lovely. Can I just say that Tebow is just a normal guy that God has given a big platform? I don't think Tebow would disagree. God wants faithfulness. He wants the love of Christ to touch our hearts and give off an overwhelming aroma to those around us. Oh, that they would see our good works and glorify our Father who is in Heaven. One of the things I pray for Tebow is that people wouldn't be distracted by the man, Tim Tebow, but that they would see Christ in him. God has given each of us opportunities (probably on a smaller scale), but did you know that the "Prince of Preachers", Spurgeon was saved because a normal man preached the Word when the pastor couldn't make it? God doesn't need you to have a huge platform... actually, lets be honest here... He doesn't need any of us for anything. It is a privilege to be used by Him for His glory. Let us be faithful to give off that sweet aroma in the small things and see what He might do in and through us.

Faith's Resting Place

On days like today, I am so thankful for the influence of godly young men on my life. The fellowship of bringing our requests to the Lord and bearing one another's burdens is such a blessing. I'm certainly not the most diligent person when it comes to getting up early (mostly because the night before isn't planned in such a way as to start the morning early), but it is such a delight to spend time with a brother in the Lord in prayer early in the morning. God meant fellowship and communion with Him and our brothers and sisters in Christ to be a joyous thing.

I was reading this morning in 1 Corinthians 2 and Paul's intentions jumped out to me in verses 3-5.

I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.

It is so important that our words and actions are honoring to the Lord, but God cares even more about the depths of our hearts... our intentions... our motives. We can say and do all the right things and not glorify the One who gave us the ability to do those things. As Jesus says, "They have received their reward in full." We are constantly in need of the grace of God to convict of sin and righteousness and judgement so that we would see the depths of our heart and act in such a way as to cause other people's faith to rest not on the wisdom of men... my cleverness or ingenuity, but on the wisdom of God. This is a good challenge for me this morning... to proclaim Christ today in such a way that others would forget the channel of the message as they see the infinite glory of Christ. He must increase, I must decrease.

A Letter

God has been blessing so much at work. We had a school district client of ours that purchased something like 15 or 20 scanners without consulting with us first to make sure that it was compatible with our software. I worked on it off and on in the last couple days of the week and I was able to get it to work, but it was really not the way I should have done it. I kind of just wanted to prove that it could be done with this "hacky" way of writing the code and then see if I could actually do it the "right" way. Anyway, after being stuck on this issue for quite a while, I took it to the Lord in prayer and just started typing. I'm so thankful for intellisense... for the non-programmers out there, this is basically auto-complete... but better. It gives you a list of all the things you can choose from. For example, if you had an object called, Person, you might have options like last name, first name, middle name, date of birth, height, weight, hair color, eye color, etc. Well, I started typing... and God was gracious in allowing me to find the solution to this issue that had stumped my boss and myself. It was a simple three lines of code. God is so good! It was a great reminder to me not to trust in my own strength or creativity, but to rely fully on Him.

I was reading in 2 Timothy 1 this evening and thinking of different individuals in my life who have been an encouragement to me to "take the next step" in my relationship with the Lord. Sometimes I wish that they would send me a letter... just take 10 minutes out of their day and point out the blind spots that I have and encourage me to be wholly submitted to the Lord. The reality is that I am that guy in some instances. I don't mean this in any kind of "stuck-up" way... I mean it in a sobering responsibility kind of way. God has entrusted me with some influence on the lives of others and I really feel that I need to do a better job in using that stewardship from the Lord to encourage others in Christ. Take a look at this example from Paul to Timothy.

To Timothy, my beloved son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my forefathers did, as I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day, longing to see you, even as I recall your tears, so that I may be filled with joy. For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well. For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle and a teacher. For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.

I would love to receive a letter like this... who wouldn't? In order to encourage like this, we must model it. Paul wasn't asking Timothy to suffer for Christ because he [Paul] wasn't willing to do it himself. No, Paul was leading the way and saying... hey, Timothy... I know this is hard, but I'm in it... and it's so worth it!

I am encouraged by Paul and his example. Paul probably had no idea that I would exist someday or that I would read this letter or that I'd be encouraged by it. I love the mystery and infinite wisdom of God. He doesn't tell us how much He is intending to use us for His glory... He just does it! May He give us the grace to lead by example and encourage those around us to do the same.

The Blessing of Boldness

God has been challenging me in the area of boldness this year. I cannot take any credit for the boldness that I have had for Him as it has come completely from Him. He has been so gentle and kind toward me. He sees my weakness in this area and as a loving Father, He encourages me in even the smallest progress that He sees in me. There have been several events lately where God gave me the courage to be just a little bold and God has turned those times into incredible blessings. I am continually floored! I took a small step of boldness in talking with a lady at one of our client school districts about church... and then God used the God-honoring type of gossip in their office to spread this to others in the same office.

It was the most joyous and refreshing time talking with one of the people about the Lord today. Here we were, standing in this public district office amongst all her co-workers, talking about the Lord and His goodness. Teachers don't have the freedom to talk about Him to their students (in most cases) and yet God used just the smallest hint of boldness to open a door to talk with someone above all those teachers about Him... freely! I was rushed for time and skipped my lunch, so I was able to use some of my lunch time for that conversation. God is so amazingly brilliant! I couldn't have thought that one up if I was trying to. I was so encouraged by her and by the Lord.

I echo the prayer of Paul in Ephesians 6:19.

Pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.

God has blessed some of the smallest attempts at being bold for Him... but He doesn't want me to stay there. He wants me to be a light with words as well as with actions. How can they believe in whom they have not heard, and how can they hear without a preacher? My life can demonstrate Christ-likeness, but what is that if they don't hear of Christ? They think I'm a nice guy... that glorifies Daniel, that doesn't glorify Christ. They must hear of Christ in me, the hope of glory!

God, help me be bold for You in 2012.

It Never Will Get Old

As a child, I thought heaven might get boring after a while... and then I realized that living on earth is probably significantly more activity deprived than living in heaven. Since I haven't been bored here since I was like 5 years old, I don't think boredom will be an issue in the presence of the Creator of all things. I have been enjoying reading through Paul's letters again to start off the new year and was reminded of this as I read in Ephesians 2.

Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

We lose contentment when we lose a heart of thankfulness. I believe this is one of the many reasons that God gives us so many commands throughout scripture to be thankful. It's such a blessing that we have Thanksgiving each year where everyone (for the most part) determines to find things to give thanks for. What a great, Christ-honoring thing for us to do! It's one of those times of year where there really isn't a secular part about it to "fight against"... not that we should ever let our guard down, but truly, being thankful solves so many heart issues.

The thing that I am most thankful for is Christ. Remembering where I came from as an enemy of Christ... born in sin... gives me great reason to rejoice in the gift of Christ. Without Him, there was and still is no hope. But Christ has conquered all dividing walls through His death and brought me near to God by His own blood.

Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer; but, this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom.

Thank you, Lord! May my heart of gratefulness never grow cold for all that You have done. May the love of Christ control my every thought and action.

Happy New Year!

I can't even begin to give the Lord the praise He deserves for His work in my life this year. This year has been rather different from any previous year. Life has slowed down to a major degree... God has blessed with a job that appears to be steady. Life feels much more structured and planned out. There is still plenty of room for spontaneousness, which I love... but with the schedules of those around me and my work schedule, things in general are a bit more planned out than they used to be. It's a good change.

This year has had so many highlights... the one that really sticks out to me is getting to have a Bible study in our home. This has been something that I have desired for years and thanks to God and Him enabling life to be more structured, Bible study in our home has become a reality. I am learning so much through it about spiritual leadership and studying the Word to communicate it to others... or at least guide the study as the Holy Spirit speaks to the individuals. It has been a great delight.

I was reading earlier in Matthew 6 and this was such a great reminder for me as I enter the new year.

“Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. “The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

If my life down to the very depths of my heart (motives and thoughts) would be more in-tune with the Lord and His ways, this would be a good year. I hope to have a godly carelessness about 2012. God is infinitely wise and knows my every need. Worrying about those things is not in any way honoring Him. Worrying about specific situations and how God is going to work them out is not honoring Him. Full trust based on what the Lord has done in the past for what is ahead is what honors Him.

God, You have blessed us with another year. As we enter 2012, I ask that You would transform each of us more and more into the image of Your Son. Cause our heart motives to be honoring to You... that we would not be satisfied with the empty praise of men, but only in the honor that comes from You. You are the only One that raises up and brings down. Bring me down to whatever extent is necessary this year to make me more like Christ. Raise me up to whatever level You have prepared me to give You all the glory and honor for. Provide for my needs... don't give me too much so that my dependence rests on anything but You... and don't give me too little that I seek to have my needs met through ungodly means. Take 2012 and use it for Your glory in my heart in in the hearts of Your people. Give me a heart of compassion and humility. Make me an encourager. Help me not just to serve You, but to love You with all of my heart. Grant joy in serving You. Grant contentment and sweet rest in full obedience to You this year. Put a guard over my mouth so that I speak as You would have me speak. Guard my steps so that I walk only in Your ways. Guard my eyes that I look upon only that which pleases You. Guard my ears that I give attention to only that which is well pleasing to Your ears. Put a guard over my heart that You and You only be the first in it. Put a guard on my thoughts, that I think thoughts of You and meditate on Your Word day and night. Teach me Your ways, help me to walk in Your truth, unite my heart to fear Your name this year.  Help me to yearn for only things that You want me to yearn for. Cause Your kingdom and righteousness to be at the forefront of my mind... that I seek to further Your kingdom and not a kingdom of my own creation.  Be first in my heart this year.

Make me more like Your Son in 2012.

Merry Christmas!

We celebrated Christmas with grandma yesterday and had a fairly relaxing day today. There is a part of our community that is decorated very nicely and the sidewalks are all lined with candles in paper bags with sand. Cars drive on this loop and people ride bikes, scooters, golf carts, trailers, boats (on a trailer), etc. It is a great time for everyone. Our pastor and a couple other people from church have houses in this section of the neighborhood, so we went over there and had a great time a fellowship. We had a Christmas Eve service followed by singing with the choir throughout the night in this stable/stage. We give out coffee, hot chocolate, apple cider, cookies, fudge, etc. to the people walking and/or driving by. It's always a neat time.

Today, I have been thinking quite a bit about what it means to celebrate Christ's birth. I came to the conclusion that the best way to celebrate Christ's birth is by living in the reality of His ownership of me. Christ gave all for us... we give to others to remember the perfect gift of Christ. Ephesians 2 has been on my heart all day. It is such a joyful thing to meditate on these truths.

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Were it not for the gift of Christ, I would be dead in my sins. The ultimate purpose of my life would be to make myself happy. What a worthless and sad life that would be. Christ has rescued me from darkness and transferred me into His marvelous light. He has seated me with Christ in heavenly places so that He can demonstrate His abundant riches to me through Christ. It is a gift that I have accepted. There is nothing that I could do to add to the gift to make it better. I do not deserve it, but He has given His Son freely to die on my behalf so that I might live.

Now, because I believe all these things to be true, the natural next step is to live completely in the reality of this gift of Christ... we were created for good works. God ordained us to be bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit within us. He created us to fellowship in the most intimate way with Him. Let us live in the reality of Christ this Christmas. Let us serve one another in love. Let us come before the throne of Christ and rejoice in the gift of Christ. Let us see our brothers and sisters in Christ as joint heirs with Christ and treat them as such. Let us give generously... not from what we don't have or without wisdom, but freely and with pure motives. But, may the things of this earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace in each of our hearts this Christmas.

Mutual Delight

The Lord has continued to pour out His blessings... so undeserved... things that I don't even need... yet, He chooses to bless me anyway. It doesn't really make sense to be completely honest with you. I was thinking this morning and throughout the day about the word, "delight".

On the way home as I was still thinking about this word and what the Lord delights in and what I ought to delight myself in, I was listening to a sermon on the radio and the pastor was talking about obedience to parents and how God blesses with long life. I don't know about you, but sometimes I just really feel like I want to see Him face to face... not at all in the suicidal way... I just long to see Him and to be complete in Him. Long life sometimes seems like it is just delaying us getting to see Him, but you know... He created us to delight in Him right now. We are to take great pleasure in all that we have in Christ including the physical blessings of life and relationships and even the financial blessings and the things He has entrusted to us. It is not wrong to find joy in physical blessings, but that must never be the focal point of our delight. God must always be the center of our delight. God created Eve to take delight in His creation of wonderful fruit in the garden... but her delight in the creation was stronger than her delight in the Creator. In order to know what I ought to delight in, I ought to know what God delights in.
God delights in sacrifices and in obedience. He delights in blessing His children. He delights in the steps of a godly man. He delights in justice. He delights in those who walk in blamelessness. He delights in those that are faithful. He delights in wise words spoken at the right time. He delights in those that fear Him. He delights in those He has chosen for His purposes. God delights in loyalty and in our knowledge of Him. He delights in unchanging love.

That right there is a beautiful picture of God--He gave all freely, He blesses us infinitely, He sent His Son to earth and demonstrated godly living, He is always completely just, He has never once sinned, He is completely faithful, He speaks and does the right thing at the right time without failing even once, He love accomplishing His Father's will, He is loyal in every regard, He is one with the Father, His love never changes.

I will glory in my Redeemer;
My life He bought, my love He owns.
I have no longings for another;
I'm satisfied in Him alone.


What a marvelous thing it is that the God of all the universe can stoop to such a low level as to delight in me. Who am I? I'm just a passing vapor... but He chooses to delight in me.

My proper response to this is to delight myself in Him. Part of that is the delight myself in all the things that He delights in. On top of that, I am to delight myself in the place of His dwelling. I am to delight in reverencing His name. I am to delight in knowing His law and to meditate on it day and night. I am to delight in His blessings... even prosperity. I am to delight in doing God's will. I am to delight myself in His consolations. I am to study God's works and delight in them. I am to delight in the commandments of the Lord knowing that they are not burdensome. I am to delight in His statutes. I am to delight also in the path of obedience to His commandments... not just the end result. We are to delight in God's ways knowing that they are higher and better than our own. We are to delight in those that we lead and discipline. We are to delight in the work that God enables us to do. We are to delight in knowing His ways. We are to delight in the reality of the nearness of God. We are to delight in the Lord for who He is. We are to delight in His words.

I think this really sums up how we ought to live:

Yet they seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways, as a nation that has done righteousness and has not forsaken the ordinance of their God. They ask Me for just decisions, they delight in the nearness of God.

God, give us this heart for You. Put in us new desires. Fix in us Thy humble home. Rise, the woman's conqu'ring seed, bruise in us the serpent's head. Adam's likeness now efface, stamp Thine image in its place; Second Adam from above, reinstate us in Thy love. God, cause my delight to be wholly in You. Let my delight in earthly things point me only back to true delight in You as the giver of every good and perfect thing. Draw near to me as I draw near to You. Give me ever increasing delight in Your ways. Grant joy in obedience. Make me delight in the things that You delight in and hate the things that You hate. Use my delight to spur others toward love and good works. Be to me the central focus of all my delight.I long to hear Your words of delight in me, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." Make me Your servant today. I long to hear Your words of delight in me, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant." Make me Your servant today.

Joy in the Process

I had the blessing of getting to go to a conference today for most of the day (with work). My boss did a presentation on our system and its new features and I assisted him with certain parts. The people attending were current clients of ours and it was neat to be able to put a face with a name and voice. I got off a bit earlier since I had worked some extra hours previously this week and decided to put up the Christmas lights outside.

It doesn't usually take too long as I put up nails in previous years and can reuse them. I didn't get off quite as early as I wanted since we ended up being stuck in some traffic, so I was running out of daylight to get the lights put up. I am the "to do list" type of guy... I like to know what needs to be done and when it needs to be done and do whatever it takes to make that happen. Sometimes God needs to remind me to slow down and really take joy in the process, not just in the completion of the task. Such was the case this afternoon. Dad had taken out the box of Christmas lights for me and I went over to the neighbor to borrow a ladder. I quickly unpacked the lights and started testing them to make sure they still work. I really don't understand how Christmas lights stop working as they sit in that box in the garage all year, but anyway... almost all the lights worked which was actually just fine because some of the lights were unneeded. I got up on the ladder and put up the first story of lights pretty quickly. I went to move on to the next section when I realized that I had put that entire section backwards. After contemplating how I could run an extension cord up onto the roof to another strand and then down again to an outlet on the other side of the house, I just decided it was best to start over. God used that in my heart to remind me to take joy in the process. I was in my own world in my race against the clock (or sun going down) and found that I wasn't taking joy in it. I was just trying to finish the task. Had it not been for that incident, I would have got it done much faster, but I also wouldn't have enjoyed it nearly so much. I'm thankful that the Lord works in small ways like putting a few sections of Christmas lights on backwards to slow me down and remind me to take joy in the small things.

I was reminded of Psalm 63:1-8.

O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches, For You have been my help, And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.

The Lord has satisfied me. He has done far more than satisfied me, but I think it honors the Lord for us to be satisfied--to be content in all we have in Christ. It feels strange to use the word "satisfied" because it makes me feel like I am saying that God owes me something and He satisfied my requirements for happiness or something, which is not at all the case. He owed me nothing, but gave me everything... all spiritual blessings in Christ... everything pertaining to life and godliness... eternal life. It is a my reasonable service to respond to His indescribable gift with joyful praises to Him. As I muse on His deeds, I can't help but be joyful as I remember His deeds from the past and see work that He has "finished" and trust Him for the work that is still in progress. It would be a Christ-honoring thing for me to take more joy in the sanctification process. It feels slow and hard at times, but there so much joy to be found in Christ and His unending faithful work to conform me into His image. God, help me to take joy in the process in preparation for when Christ makes me to stand in Your glorious presence blameless and with great joy. May You be glorified now by my joy in You.

His Washing

On Friday, the Lord blessed me with getting to spend about six hours with a Christian lady at work. I had only met her once before and didn't know that she was a Christian, but my boss asked if both of us would deliver test materials because the guy that usually does it was gone. It was such an incredible blessing. I don't think we got more than a mile from the office before both of us were discussing things of the Lord. It was such an incredible encouragement to me to hear her story of God's sovereignty in providing this job for her and how God had used her getting this position to answer my prayers concerning a possible change in my job description at work. Long story short, I came away from Friday seeing another glimpse into just how brilliant God is in His plan. He is never doing just one thing... He is doing infinitely many things all at the same time for His glory and our good. What a brilliant God we serve! Thank You, Lord for doing things Your way in Your timing!

The sermon today gave me some new insights into Jesus washing the feet of Peter. I had never seen it this way before. Take a look at John 13:1-8.

Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. So He came to Simon Peter. He said to Him, “Lord, do You wash my feet?” Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not realize now, but you will understand hereafter.” Peter said to Him, “Never shall You wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

The message that I have generally got from this passage is that Jesus was a servant leader, and I should be as well. I was challenged today to see it from a new perspective--to see it as an event in the life of Peter.

Peter was the disciple that rebuked Jesus when Jesus was telling his disciples that He was going to die in Mark 8:31-33. Peter had a plan... a plan that involved Jesus not dying. But, God's ways are higher than man's ways. When Jesus told Peter that he could have no part with Him if Jesus wasn't allowed to wash him, Jesus was not talking about the physical washing of feet, but rather the washing of the heart which was about to take place at the cross. It is humbling to have God wash your feet, but infinitely more humbling to have God die because of your sin. Jesus was using this to prepare Peter's heart for the washing of his heart by His blood. We see just following this that Peter still doesn't want Jesus to die... he cuts off the ear of the servant which Jesus heals and tells Peter to put away the sword. Peter didn't understand God's big purpose. Peter then seems to give up when he denies Christ. Is this not far too often our reaction when God's plan doesn't line up with our own? When He does things in different timing than we expect or in a different way? We lose hope and give up when He is in the midst of doing His perfect work.

If God would have given Peter his way, he would have spent eternity in hell as would the rest of us. We see once again that God is so infinitely wise and His plans are so perfect. His plans don't line up with our expectations and ideals, but His plans are always best! Oh for grace to trust Him more! This same Peter later rights in 1 Peter 5:5...

...Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

Peter experienced the grace and faithfulness of God through God doing things His way. May God give us that same grace to believe with all of our heart that His ways are always best. That belief will produce the fruit of obedience and submission to Him regardless of what His plan is... because His plan is perfect.