Faith, part 8

Powerful faith was regularly on display in the New Testament from an extremely unlikely source. Demons. They did it deceptively, however, and in a way that shows their true motivation. This is shown in Luke 4:41:

“And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of God!’ And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.”

The demons didn’t just believe. They knew. They were so confident that Jesus was the Son of God that He had to shut them up to keep them from telling everyone. This may seem odd, but He did this so that people could have faith. He didn’t want those with inside knowledge to reveal the truth to humanity. He wants us to believe through faith, and not because someone told us with 100% certainty Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light.

This is why they often pleaded for mercy in His presence. They knew what He could do to them. They feared Him. He had complete power over them. He would often force them, but would even show them mercy when they asked for it.

We do not know as the demons do. Jesus doesn’t force us as He does the demons, and that is out of love. He doesn’t just want us to know. He wants us to believe. Through that belief we can come to know Christ, but it must be a choice. We must choose to have faith. Complete faith is a powerful thing. The demons were determined to make sure we knew as they did not for our benefit, but to harm us. They wanted to make faith impossible, and Jesus wisely protected its power from their interference. The demons are afraid of what we can do if we have faith. It is in their interest to rob us of that power. It is in our interest to embrace it.

Have faith, and know why demons think it’s better for you to know the truth than to have faith in the Savior. With faith we can overcome all our insecurities, our sins, and our fears. Faith makes it so demons can have no sway over us. Faith makes us into the better person Christ wants us to be. Faith makes us impossible to destroy or defeat. The demons know the real truth, and want to keep us from faith. They would prefer we never learn what a beautiful thing true faith in Christ can be.

Faith, part 7

It is easy to have faith that miracles can happen. It is more difficult to believe that they will. Sometimes we are torn down in terrible ways. Something bad happens. We make a huge mistake. We fall into a terrible trap of sin. Some things just make us feel totally worthless. In the pit of such things we can think that we have the faith to improve, but at the same time not see how things could possibly ever get better. Recovery can just seem impossible. In such times it is important to remember the words Jesus spoke in Mark 10:27:

“But Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.”

If we are depending on ourselves to fix our broken situation we are right to be without hope. If all we had was ourselves we would fall, and it might just be impossible for us to get back up. Those who have faith, however, do not need to worry about this ever happening. What is impossible for us to overcome on our own is always possible to overcome with God.

Been robbed, and left with nothing to your name? God can fix that. Have you always wanted a child, but found out it was impossible? God can fix that. He may do it through adoption, but he can fix it. Have you lost your job, and can’t find another one? God can fix that. Have you given into perversion, and been buried in sexual sin so deep that you can’t see how you can possibly ever change? God can fix that too. God can fix everything. God can help you out of your impossible situation, and lead you to His grace. It may not be easy, and it may not be pretty, but it will get done. Nothing is impossible with God.

There are some things that science cannot explain. There are some illnesses that medicine cannot heal. God can. He can defy scientific explanations because He created the laws that govern the universe, and He is not bound by His creation. He can heal more fully than medicine can because He can perform miracles. There are many things that we, as people, cannot do on our own, but the Lord can do all things because nothing is impossible for Him. Without faith many things are impossible. With it all things are possible.

Faith, part 6

In the realization that most of us lack the true faith that Christ desires we should cry out as this man did in Mark 9:24:

“Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, ‘Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”

This man was not only desperate for his child to be healed, but desperate to have faith. We must be like this man, and own up to it when we lack faith. It is normal to lack faith in our own ability to have faith. We must recognize when we both believe and don’t believe. We must recognize the times we believe God has called us to do something, but we lack the faith in ourselves to do it. In such times we must pray for the faith to do what we’ve been called to do. We must pray for faith in ourselves. It is important enough to plead with the Lord about.

A lack of faith is a very serious issue. This man realized how serious a lack of faith was, and it caused tears to flow from his eyes. We should not consider a lack of faith to be any less serious than it really is. Not having faith is the same as not believing in the power of the Lord. The Lord spent the entire Old Testament working to display His power to others. He used plagues, mana from heaven, judges, kings, prophets, pillars of fire, and so many other things to show his people they could have faith in Him. Still often they doubted, and He regularly judged them for their lack of faith.

By sending Christ in the New Testament God displayed the power He has to show us mercy. When we do not have faith we doubt that power. We doubt the Lord’s work, we doubt Christ’s sacrifice, and we doubt Him. Doubt is in opposition to faith. We must fight our doubts, and embrace our faith. The Lord understands we spend our lives living in a fallen universe. If we lack faith we should want faith. If we want faith we should ask Him for it. He will not ignore our prayers.

Faith, part 5

Those who walked in the Lord’s presence had difficulty having complete faith in Him. This is hard to comprehend considering what we know about Him, but is best explained with Mark 4:37-41:

“And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He [Christ] was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they [the disciples] awoke Him and said to Him, ‘teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, ‘Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?’ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, ‘Who can this be, that even the wind and sea obey Him?”

Just as Christ marvels at complete faith He is angered by a lack of it. The disciples spent every day by His side, and yet even they could not have complete faith in Him. Even they feared when a storm struck. Even they lacked in faith. If they cannot have complete faith how can we possibly hope to achieve it?

The disciples lacked faith in Him because they lacked an understanding. Those with the greatest faith in Christ did not come during His ministry, but afterwards. Peter, James, John, and others did not achieve complete faith in Christ until after His resurrection. Paul never met Him, and yet had the complete faith in Christ we should all hope to achieve. Having faith in Christ was more difficult for the disciples because they had yet to witness the death and the resurrection. We don’t have that problem. We are on the opposite side of the resurrection, and having faith in Christ is much easier for us.

The disciples may have had Christ by their side, but we have Him in our hearts. The Holy Spirit resides within us, and makes it so that we can feel even greater faith than the disciples. While the disciples doubted when the storm came we should be filled with the faith of Christ when we face storms in our lives. We should not doubt as they did. Our relationship with Christ is much more personal than theirs was. He does not live among us, but within us. His presence in our hearts makes it possible for Him to consume us. We should let Him, and embrace what we can gain through faith.

Faith, part 4

One of the most fascinating accounts of Jesus occurs in Matthew 21:21-22. A fig tree was to provide Him with food, and it did not. As a response Jesus caused it to wither away. When his disciples asked Him about it, He said:


“Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”


How few believe that we are capable of performing miracles? How few out of that number believe we will ever have the faith required to do so? How few with that faith ever desire to perform such miracles?

There are many reasons we don’t consider miracles. Even if we are firm believers in Christ we could have a strong desire to uphold the laws of science. Miracles defy these laws so we don’t consider them. We have more faith in science. The biggest excuse of all is that we don’t think that we are capable of performing such miracles. That indicates we don’t believe that we are capable of having complete faith in the Lord. Anytime we believe that we can’t do something it is indicative of our lack of faith. It’s possible for us to believe that we are not capable of performing miracles, moving mountains, witnessing, or even praying properly. When we don’t believe we don’t have faith. When we don’t have faith we have nothing.

Complete faith makes us as much like Christ as we are capable of being. Complete faith is the goal of our walk with Him. Complete faith will come when we believe that the Lord will forgive all of our sins, provide for our every need, and answer our every prayer.

Few things are more difficult to obtain than complete faith, and few things are such a blessing. I confess that I do not possess such faith. I realize that this is my fault, and my goal in life is to obtain this faith that can move mountains. This should be the goal of all followers of Christ. When we have faith in Him we can bring others to Him. With faith we are capable of all things.

Faith, part 3

One of the best examples of faith and Jesus’ response to it is shown in Matthew chapter 8. This chapter recounts a time a centurion came to Jesus because his servant was paralyzed. Jesus was going to accompany the man to his home, but the man’s faith was so great that he said to Jesus in Matthew 8:8:

“The centurion answered and said, ‘Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed.”

Christ responds to this in Matthew 8:10:

“When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!”

It is no wonder that Jesus marveled at someone having such faith in his powers. Christ knows the full extent of His powers. He is also fully aware that we find it very difficult to understand just how powerful He is. He is amazed when someone actually gets it.

The Lord will take care of our every need so long as we have faith. If we have such faith in Him that we don’t even need to see His presence to know that He will provide for our needs we will never have to worry about anything else again. He may not provide in a way we’d prefer or entirely understand, but He will always provide.

House, fire, and car insurance are all useful and sometimes necessary things. Having money to pay for medical expenses in case a loved one gets hurt is wise. It may be God’s will for us to have that money so we can provide for that need. We must always understand, however, that our money, insurance, or anything else can never do as much for us as faith in Christ.

Faith in Him will bring us more than any human insurance ever will. Complete marvelous faith can work the miracles that science and man consider impossible. That miracle may be to heal our loved ones or to comfort us when they are taken. Jesus healed the centurion’s servant because of the marvelous faith he displayed. He can and will also take care of us if we have the faith to believe that He will.

Faith, part 2

I could do a whole series of entries on the next set of verses (maybe I will one day). They are vitally important to our understanding of faith, for they are from a time Jesus spoke in detail about why we should have faith. These verses are from Matthew 6:25-34. A lot of verses, but they are powerful together. Every word Jesus used in this passage was essential, and His take on a subject will always be of more value than mine. I will bold certain sections, but do not take this to mean I think those words are more important than others. They are not. Each word here is rich with deep biblical truths. They deserve a thorough examination, and must be considered in their entirety:

“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

This series of verses is very clear in its meaning. Jesus explained His point well and very little needs to be said about this passage (though a lot could be). Worrying is useless and unnecessary, and should be replaced by faith in the Lord. When we have faith all we need will be provided for us. Maybe not exactly in the way we desire, but that comes from our own misunderstanding. A jet ski is not a need. It is a want. A fortune is not a need. It is a want. Don’t make the mistake of confusing the two.

The Lord will provide us our every need, and we will want for nothing. Faith has this power, and worrying does not. We have no need to worry because we have a Father in heaven who loves us, and He will provide for us. Do not doubt this, but have faith. God will provide.

Faith, part 1

Funny thing. Since I finally accepted my call into ministry I have heard God's voice much more clearly than I ever did before. I've felt called to do a lot of things, and I feel like He very clearly told me to do a series of entires on faith. I've wrriten a lot on faith in the past, and I'm gonna mix that in with stuff I'm writing in the present. I have no idea how long this series will be, and I could potentially put little intermissions on others subjects if it goes on for a while. Faith, however, is an important topic, and now is a good time to dive right into it.

Faith is completely defined by our own ability to believe in the Lord. We can only have complete faith if we fully trust Him. We can only do miracles if we believe we are capable of doing them. A lot is determined by faith, and the aspects of our life that we have faith in will be blessed.

Peter was able to walk on water because he had faith in Christ. He believed he saw Christ on the water as he stood in the safety of the boat. He soon stood in the rough waters, however, and things changed. Matthew 14:30-31 tells us:

“But when he saw the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying ‘Lord, save me!’ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

He fell in because he doubted when the storm came. I cannot criticize Peter for this because I have been the same way many times in my life. It is so easy to have faith when we feel safe. It is so easy to believe in all Christ said when we are in a church, or we are alone with God. It is far more difficult to maintain that faith when storms appear in our lives.

These storms can take many forms. We can experience the death of a loved one. We can get sucked into the traps of a sin we thought we’d wiped away long ago. Someone we thought we could trust could betray us. Others could doubt our faith. There are many types of storms, and they can all threaten our faith in Christ.

We can maintain our faith in the face of storms only if we remember what we originally had faith in. If our faith is in Christ it cannot be harmed by man. If our faith is in Christ it is not dependant on our own physical well being. Faith and hope in Christ is beyond all these things, and can maintain us through every storm.

There is no reason to fear the storms in our lives. We will not sink as Peter did if we stay focused in Christ, and remember there is no storm God cannot guide us through. Christ can overcome and tame every storm. Our faith can sustain us throughout them.

Pessimism

Something followers of Christ should never be is pessimistic. Pessimism is wrong. Pessimism is doubt. Pessimism is unbelief. The presence of it in the church is disturbing. It has no place there. All of us who follow Christ should be optimist.

Many would claim otherwise, and that’s part of the problem. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard people say they’re not pessimist. They’re realist. How is this right for a Christian? If we truly believe in the love of Christ than being a realist is being an optimist.

“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” Matthew 21:21-22

Reading these verses with pessimism is totally different than reading them with optimism. A pessimist looks at these verses, sighs, and thinks there’s no way to move a mountain. An optimist thinks they only need to have the faith in Christ to do it. This shows one of the primary reasons why pessimism doesn’t belong in the church. Pessimism is doubt. Optimism is faith. Nowhere does Jesus say, Paul write, or anything say lacking the faith to believe is okay. Nowhere does it say we are made to look at things around us, and decide it’s hopeless because we’re too smart to have hope. Instead we are to have faith.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

People of faith ought to be optimistic. Otherwise we really are just sinners in the hands of angry God. We should be optimistic because of the things not seen. Have faith. Have hope. Be optimistic.

The Prayer List

I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time knowing just what to say during prayers. I’m not talking about the spontaneous prayer, but when you sit down and talk to God about important things. There’s always so much to ask.

How long should I pray? What can I say during prayer without God thinking I’m doing it for a pretense? Is this a good thing to pray about? Will God only hear my prayers if I use the language of the King James Bible, and end most words with th? How can I really connect with Him? This is just a small sample. These are just a few things I struggle with. I am no prayer warrior. I get distracted during prayers. I have trouble focusing. I think about other things. When I pray well it’s great, but when I don’t it bugs me. I enjoy prayer, and believe it is one of the most essential parts of maintaining a good relationship with the Lord. I think when we don’t pray regularly enough it gives Satan a chance to break in. We can start to change into darker people without prayer. Prayer protects us from that.

How then should we pray? I can’t answer that completely and not nearly as well as Christ did with the Lord’s Prayer. I can only offer advice. What I started to do years ago was keep a list of the things I thought were important enough to pray about every time I said my prayers. This helps me those times I have trouble focusing, for I can just look at my list and see what I haven’t prayed about yet. Your list can look very different than mine, but I’ll share mine since I know this could help some people with their prayer life:

Forgiveness-I first ask forgiveness of sins. I know I’ve already received this. I know I have grace. I just feel like I should never forget my need for it.

Jesus-I thank the Lord for sending Jesus to die for me, and for everyone else. I ask Him to help others to accept Jesus as their savior. I ask that He helps me to play whatever part in bringing salvation to others that He desires for me.

My wife and me-I pray about specific things involving me and my wife. Different things can take priority on different days, but I always thank Him for the wonderful relationship we share. I ask Him to help us to always be a good husband and wife to each other, and good servants to Him.

Protection-I ask God to protect me, my wife, our families, and all innocent people against those that would threaten us, and anything else throughout the night and day.

Family-I pray for our families; that God help them through their individual struggles. I pray that they will all accept Christ, and be saved.

Obama-This used to say Bush. I always pray for the President. Ask that God protect him, and help him make the best decisions he can for the US. I pray for all others in position of power in the government, and ask that he help them make right decisions. I ask that He ensures they can’t do anything if what they desire will harm the US, and that the American people will throw them out of office if they aren’t trying to do the right things. I offer up the same prayer for South Korea.

Soldiers-I pray that God protect soldiers, help them to stop those that threaten them, and give them all of His qualities they need.

Terrorism-I pray that terrorism be wiped out from the earth, and thank God for all terrorist attacks that have been stopped.

Israel-I pray that Israel and the Palestinian people can find peace with each other. I pray Israel can share such peace with all its neighbors, but that it will also know how to best defend itself against any threats.

World Stuff-Lots of stuff can fall into this part, but usually focuses on Iran and North Korea. I pray that war can be avoided with these two nations, but that the world will realize it before it’s too late if it can’t. I pray for freedom for those in these countries, and that they can live in a place where the gospel can be spread without persecution. I pray that such freedom will come to all places throughout this world.

The United States-I thank God for protecting the US, and ask that He continues to. I thank Him for blessing the US, and ask that it continue to be a nation He wants to bless.

Countries threatened by terrorism-I pray for those in Iraq, Afghanistan, and in all countries that are threatened by terrorism, and we’ve sent aid to. I pray for the people and soldiers in these countries, and ask that God helps make sure those that would threaten them cannot accomplish anything they would hope to accomplish. I pray that people in such places will achieve the freedom from such things they seek.

Threatened-I pray for those threatened by anything throughout the world. Abusive parents, human trafficking, wars, genocides, diseases, natural disasters, anything. I pray they be able to stop what it is, but if they can’t that they can at least flee from such things so they can have freedom in their lives. I pray that those who are in danger get out of it before it’s too late. I pray that others be willing and able to help them, and if it be His will let that person be me.

Suffering-I pray for God to help all those that suffer for any reason. I sometimes speak about specific things such as those who suffer because of the flooding in Pakistan and China, but also speak in general terms about any suffering. I pray that those who suffer because of the evil of others can forgive those who hurt them so they will not be consumed by their anger, and those who hurt them will not have additional victories over them. I also ask that He make sure they cannot harm anyone else ever again. I ask that God comfort all those who’ve lost loved ones, and help those who’ve been injured to recover from their injuries. I ask that all those who need aid receive whatever aid they need from both God and man. I pray that I help where I can. I pray that those who can help do not hold back, but give in abundance. I pray that none blame God, but instead come to Him for divine comfort in their time of need. Finally, I pray that all things be used for good, and that everything be used so some will come to know Christ who would not have before.

Dreams-I pray that I don’t have bad dreams and that I realize what it means if he chooses to speak to me in mine.

Other-Always leave space to pray for additional things. Sometimes a praise. Sometimes a request. Sometimes many things. Helps me remember important things. I occasionally like to continually pray for those that lost loved ones on 9/11, and ask God continue to help them as they go about their lives without their loved ones. I pray for those whose loved ones have disappeared, and they have spent days, months, or years wondering where they are. I thank God for all He’s blessed me with. I discuss certain events, or just seek counsel. Other can mean anything.

Prayers-I pray that God hear the prayers of all others, and ask that He answers them in whatever way is best according to His will. I thank Him for the ability to even know Him, and ask that he always help me to pray to Him just as one of His closest disciples would.

Wrapping it up-I ask that His will be done in my life and the lives of all others. I pray that he will give me a servant’s spirit. I tell Him I love Him. I ask Him to remember anything I may have forgotten.

The Lord’s Prayer-I always conclude with this. Very important to me.

Amen

There’s my list. Usually takes me about 15 minutes. I don’t say these exact words. I don’t like just reciting. I want to mean what I pray. My list may be odd, but it is a reflection of what is important to me. Yours should be a reflection of what’s important to you.

One final word of advice. Don’t always follow your list in the order you write things down. Jump around the page. Mix things up. This helps your mind to stay focused and active. Helps you to hear the words you say, and not just recite them. Whatever you do make sure you always pray. Prayer is talking to God. No life is really complete without it.

Worthy to be Praised

“Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’ And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”
Luke 19:37-40

The Lord deserves to be praised. Part of the reason He created us was to bring Him glory. Christ was praised when He was here on earth, and He should still be praised today.

This is easy to agree with, but also easy to truly live in defiance of. Too many of us sit in worship services across the world ignoring the words of the songs being sung. We don’t even notice that we are singing that there’s power in the blood of the lamb, or that our God is great. When our preacher speaks we write on bulletins instead of paying attention to the words that are being spoken to glorify Christ. We refuse to say amen, to sing loudly, or to express our praise of Christ because we will be embarrassed.

It is illogical that one should be embarrassed to praise the Lord when in His presence, but most of us are. This is because, just as the Pharisees rebuked the proper praise of Christ in this passage, many sneer at the idea of one praising God properly today. Many people praise in different ways, but most try to avoid praising Him altogether.

Many of us do not even sing to the Lord because we don’t like the song. Why should that matter? We are to praise the Lord, not complain about the words used to do it. Many people like to jump or raise their hands to worship. How many of us look at people who do that and think that they are being idiotic? Are we different than the Pharisees when we do so?

We should never insult others for praising Christ. When we do it is a problem with ourselves. We do not know the proper way to worship, and we get embarrassed when we are in the presence of one who does. It is possible to praise the Lord without raising your hands. It’s possible to praise Him without jumping. Yet when we insult those who praise Him in such ways we are not expressing that we praise Him differently. We are expressing that we don’t praise Him. Those who do make us feel ashamed of our failure to praise Him.

Many of us have received the aid of Christ in numerous instances throughout our lives, but we still do not praise Him properly. This is not uncommon. Christ once healed ten men and only one returned to praise Him (Luke 17:11-19). Christ did even more for us. He died for our sins.

Christ is worthy of our praise. We should ignore lame excuses that try to stop us from praising Him, and do it. Praise the Lord, for He is worthy to be praised.

Consuming Sin

This is something I really wanted to expand on when I was writing about mistakes, but such a specific topic didn’t fit with that well. This entry is really about one cause of mistakes. That cause is sin, which is a mistake in itself.

Sin is here to keep us separate from God. It can blind us to his purpose, or even make us feel unworthy to follow Him even if we want to. Sin can keep us from Him. It can be willful, and we can feel like we have little control over it; that we simply can’t help ourselves. This is often said by those who claim to be addicted to alcohol, porn, drugs, sex, accumulating wealth, and so many other things.

It can consume us, and become us. Instead of focusing on God we can focus on when we’ll next get laid. Instead of focusing on God we can focus on where we’ll get our next hit. Instead of focusing on God we can worry about how the changes in the stock market will impact our portfolio. It can hold us in prison chains, and we can be stupid enough to think we like the chains.

Many of us admit we don’t like the prison chains, but we tire of trying to break out. We’ve accepted Christ, but we can’t help going to those sights when we turn on the computer. We’ve accepted Christ, but we need that drink to help us fall asleep at night. We’ve accepted Christ, but that desire for someone of the same sex just won’t let us go. We believe we simply can’t help it.

How much easier would it be to just stop fighting? Fighting is painful. Feeling bad about what we do sucks. What’s wrong with just convincing ourselves it’s just part of us? It’s just who we are. It’s natural.

That’s actually true. It is natural because we have a sin nature. Giving into sin is perfectly natural. All have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God. One must, however, be fearful of such thinking. Satan is not against using the words of the Bible against us. He did the same thing with Jesus in the desert. When sin tries to get you to give up the fight, and abandon all hope remember the words of Ephesians 5:11:

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.”

It can be hard to fight sin, but it is a fight that must be fought. Sin must be defeated, for the wages of sin is death. Sometimes it may seem impossible to defeat sin, but it is not. It can never get a grasp on you that God cannot break. You can always defeat sin. This is shown in 1 Corinthians 10:13:

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear.”

God will never allow us to be tempted by anything we cannot defeat. We can put down that drink. We can go away from that website. We can refuse to have premarital sex. We can refuse it all. We are powerless to defeat such things on our own, but we do not fight alone. God fights with us, and He’s never lost a match. Sin can never overcome Him. The best way to defeat sin is to turn it over to Him. God knows exactly what needs to be done in order to defeat the sin that bothers you. His son already died so that we could live free of our sins. He did not let Jesus make that sacrifice for no reason. He made it so we could be freed of our sin.

Don’t give up when it seems hard. Others may judge you, but they are the ones who sin. Judging is for the Father. I am not Him, and I cannot judge. I condemn no one, and cannot. I have sinned greatly, and have no right to cast a single stone at another who struggles. I instead want all to know that no matter what sin attacks you, and no matter how powerful it may seem it has no power compared to the awesome power of the Lord. It can be defeated even if you’ve chosen to believe it doesn’t need to be. It needs to be. It wants to destroy you, and it will kill you. Sin can and must be driven out. Sin must always be fought, and never be accepted. All sin big and small is why Jesus needed to be murdered on that cross. All of it is evil. All of it can be overcome through the grace of God.

You Can Fix Stupid

Now that I’ve gotten through talking over many of the lessons I learned over the past month in Korea I think it’s time I made a bit of an introduction.

First thing you should know about me is I’m not special. I possess no seminary degree, no Masters of Divinity, or any of that. I may one day, but all I am today is a man created by God, who loves Jesus, and whose spent the better part of five years studying His word. I’ve gone to many great churches, been a part of excellent small groups, and I’ve tried to learn everything I can about Jesus Christ. I’m also someone who ran away from what I’m supposed to do for a long time, but those days are behind me. This is part of me facing my calling.

I’ve learned so much over the past few years, but I’ve kept much of it myself. I never should have, and will no longer. The gospel is meant to be shared, and not locked away in my head. I’ve had many excuses for keeping this stuff to myself, but I will now choose to ignore those. So long as I can keep learning from the Bible I will keep writing about it. This blog is my first step into ministry, and I intend to make many more steps in the direction it calls me to go.

Something I can tell you for certain is that I will sometimes say stupid things. I will sometimes be wrong. I know this because I can recognize what’s happening to me. I had a similar experience in middle school. I realized I enjoyed writing fiction at that time, and had first learned to access the power of my imagination. I did so as often as I could, and it was messy. I wrote a lot, and didn’t care if it was crap. I just had to write. I had to get all these thoughts out of my head. I’m currently doing that with ministry.

I just recently accepted the power of ministry God has been trying to give me for years. It excites me, and blows out of me. I’m currently exploding. I’m going nuclear, and I have to in order to keep on being a minister. In this process of expansion I will inevitably say and do some stupid things because of my inexperience. I don’t apologize for it. I just tell you that one day I think that will change.

There eventually came a day where I was able to control and focus my imagination. That will happen with ministry, but it takes work. I have to keep being stupid to stop being stupid. It doesn’t bother me. I’d rather be stupid for the Lord than be nothing without Him. I know that I can fix stupid. God can help me. I have the goal to reach people for Jesus Christ. That’s it. If I gotta be stupid to do that I will. I’m happy to. I’ll write what I’m compelled to write in the hopes that someday someone will learn to come to Christ through my ministry. If Christ can use me so that just one person can come to Him who wouldn’t have otherwise I have succeeded.

Read every entry if you want, but remember I am not Jesus. I am His servant. I am human. I make mistakes. I wouldn’t even be writing this if I didn’t.

Mistakes, part 14 of 14

14. It’s possible to run away for our entire lives.

God is love. He loves us. He may know what’s best, but He will not force us. We all have a choice. We can always run. We can always be consumed by sin, or be buried in excuses. We can always ignore what He created us for.

Consider Felix. Felix was a Roman governor who Paul appeared before one of the many times he was arrested. In chapter 24 of Acts Paul told Felix about his faith in Christ. Felix could hear the truth in his words, but was afraid. He responded to Him in verse 25, and said, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.”

This is the exact same thing many of us say to God when we feel His calling. We have excuses, we have sins we don’t want to let go of, we have insecurities that paralyze us, we have patterns of life we’re comfortable with, and so many other things that make it inconvenient for us to follow the Lord down the appointed path. We ignore Him, and put Him off until it’s convenient. Many of us do this knowing a convenient time may never come, but we don’t care. We’re scared. We want to run away. We continuously run away.

God can work hard to take away our excuses, and he can put countless big fish in our lives. We can constantly turn a blind eye. We can always refuse to admit the truth to ourselves. Even if we do admit the truth we can continue to do nothing about it. God will not force us to do the right thing. We can keep running. We can miss out on the amazing things God has in store for us. We can spend our lives refusing Him.

I learned all this because of the huge mistake I made of ignoring God’s calling for me for too many years. I know I could have kept ignoring Him. A big part of me really wanted to. I know I could have kept running. I know I ignored the truth for too long. I know God used my mistake for His good. I now know who I am, and I thank God for never giving up on me.

I pray my mistakes can be used as a ministry to others. I pray others can learn the joy that comes when you admit your mistake, and step onto the right path. God performed a miracle on my behalf. I know He can do the same for everyone.

Mistakes, part 13

13. God will give you multiple chances to come to the right path.

God knows what you need to do to feel like a complete person. Even if you’re afraid to admit it to yourself He knows what you should be doing. He will constantly put things in your path to help you see the truth. You can ignore Him, but He will continue to put such things in your path. He will constantly speak to you, and try to push you in the right direction.

The story of the Jewish people in the desert shows this off. God sent down the plagues for these people, led them out of Egypt, parted the Red Sea, and sent down bread from heaven. When bread wasn’t enough for them He sent them meat. He did all this and more for His people, and regularly they ceased to have faith in Him. He wanted to lead them to the holy land, but any minor inconvenience or thing to fear would make them long for the days they were slaves in Egypt. God wanted them to have faith in Him, and tried multiple times to convince them that He was more powerful than any enemy they could ever face.

There were times He wanted to destroy them, but the one man who had real faith, Moses (though he slipped up once), always convinced Him not to. Instead of destroying them God continually delivered them, fed them, and worked to show them they could have faith in Him. He gave the Jewish people multiple chances, and even when He realized they would always doubt Him He did not wipe them out. He instead forbid them to enter the holy land until all of their stiff necked generation were no more, and the only one who actually had faith in God, Joshua, could lead the young and faithful Jewish people into the land He had promised them.

God could have given up when they doubted Him at the Red Sea, but He didn’t. God loved those people just as He loves us today. God gave them countless chances to do the right thing. He gives us just as many chances. He knew the joy having such faith in Him would have brought the Jewish people, but He did not force it on them. He knows what joy following Him down the right path will bring you, but He will not force you. Instead He will continue to work to help you make the right choice because He knows if you would just trust in Him you would have more blessings than you can ever comprehend. He knows what joy accepting the truth can bring you, and He will work hard to help you experience that joy. He will keep trying to show you the way.

Mistakes, part 12

12. It is hard to admit wrong.

We don’t like to be wrong. It can be very hard to admit when we’ve made a mistake. Satan is counting on that. We can think it would be much easier to lie to ourselves once more, and continue down the wrong path. It may be wrong, but that way we can at least believe we are right.

How many have kept making mistakes simply because they could never admit they’d made one? Pride can fill us, and compel us to keep moving in the wrong direction because it is unthinkable to ever consider we might’ve been wrong. We can’t be wrong because we can’t imagine what it will do to us if we admit to ourselves that a decision we made, no matter how big or small, was a mistake.

Some mistakes shake us so much that we aren’t certain we can ever recover from them. Even admitting mistakes can make us feel unworthy, untrustworthy, and like an overall bad person. This is exactly how Satan wants us to feel. Just because he helped us get on the wrong path doesn’t mean he has any reservations about making us feel bad when we see through our mistakes.

This can only be overcome by trusting in the Lord. We cannot let our mistakes destroy us, or those around us. We cannot allow them to make us useless. When King David realized what an awful thing he’s done by having Uriah killed so he could marry Bathsheba he did not let it destroy him. He repented, and wrote some of the greatest Psalms recorded in the Bible as he did so. When Peter denied Jesus three times he went out, and wept bitterly, but that is not how his story ends. He became the rock the church was built on, and was the first to realize that Jesus died for both Jews and Gentiles. David, Peter, and so many others have come back from their mistakes, and done absolutely amazing things with their lives. The same can happen with any of us if we can overcome our mistakes.

If God enabled us to realize our mistake it is likely because we can fix it. It may not be possible to get back the days, months, or even years we spent running from God, but it is still possible to serve Him. It is possible to follow Him now.
Admit it when you’re wrong. It will be okay. God will forgive you, and you must not carry guilt over it around with you. God forgives, and we cannot continue to let our guilt over forgiven sin destroy us. Guilt over big mistakes is hard to get over. God can help.

Being in the midst of admitting a mistake can be hard, but trust me when I say it will get better. Know that it’s possible God needed you to make that mistake so He could set you back on the right path. Sometimes he lets us fall so we can get back up on more sturdy footing. Remember that, and get over mistakes. Admit they are mistakes, and move on.

Mistakes, part 11

11.Satan will never stop trying to keep you on the wrong path.

Satan is the great enemy. He works inside us, and wants to make us evil, or, where that fails, make us useless. He will never give up. He does not want to see God make us into who we were born to be. He wants to destroy us.

He wants to stop us, and he will do his best to. He will try to set us on a slightly different path. He will guide us to an entirely new path. He will help us justify our actions, or condemn us as worthless sinners when that fails. He will never run out of excuses to give us. He will never stop trying to bury us so far in sin and the things of this world that we can’t see how we could possibly serve the Lord. He will always help us doubt ourselves, and doubt the Lord.

He will try to make us feel unworthy of our calling even if we realize what it is. He will not be scared away if we get on the right path, and accept the truth about ourselves. He hates God, and hates us following Him.

Don’t be fooled. Don’t be surprised if you accept the truth, and you still struggle. Satan will always be there, and the struggle will always be there. Even when you see through his lies he works hard to blind you once more. When I first realized my mistake he tried to use that realization to destroy everything good about me. He wanted to keep me from that revelation of the truth that was coming in just a few days.

Do not forget grace. In times where Satan is working to keep you from God remember how the sacrifice of Christ freed us from the bondage of sin. Put first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be provided unto you. Pray, and know Satan has no power over you that you do not give him. He is the great enemy, and he is weak when compared to our great God. He is nothing. He is powerless before Him.

Satan will never stop trying to bring us down. We simply have to count on grace to raise us up. Don’t be brought down, and don’t be fooled. Ignore Satan, and get or stay on the right path. Follow God. He will protect you from all forms of evil.

Mistakes, part 10

10. You will feel more authentic than you ever have when you accept God’s calling.

This is the truth all will realize who are able to overcome their excuses, turn from their mistakes, and accept who God has made them to be. I know it’s true.

God has amazing plans for us. When we accept them it will do amazing things to us. When we finally accept who we are, when we finally stop running, and when we finally admit the truth we will be filled with a truth we never could have understood otherwise.

This is difficult to explain, and impossible to fully understand for someone who’s never experienced it, but that does not make it any less true. Turning from God’s call starts turning you into something less than God made you to be. Turning to God’s call and accepting His will makes us true. It frees us from the false thoughts that reside within our mind. It clears out the other voices. It gives God the chance to turn us into who He made us to be.

Nothing can bring you more joy than accepting God, and accepting who you were formed to be. Be who you are. If you have turned from His will then stop running from Him. Turn back to Him. Accept what He’s been trying to tell you. Put first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be provided to you.

You will know what it’s like to be authentic if you accept His will. You will know what it’s like to really know yourself, and to really know the truth about yourself. Accepting God’s call is pleasing to Him. It is wonderful for you. No alternate path will ever satisfy you as much as the one He created you to be on.

Mistakes, part 9

9.God knows what needs to be done to get us where we need to be.

Another short point. It's really kind of a summary of all the previous ones.

God lives outside of time. Should we refuse His calling, and reject His path He knows just how to get us back to where we need to be. It could take a combination of drastic measures, clearing out excuses, using another to intercede on our path, a dream, or any number of things. God loves us, and knows more about us than we can know ourselves.

He created us. He knows us. He knows what needs to be done to us. He knows what we need to see. He knows what we need to do. He understands our struggles. He knows our pain. He can help us through them. We can come to Him through prayer, and He will listen. He will push (not force) us to make sure we are able to find our way to where we’re meant to be.

Mistakes, part 8

8. God will take drastic action if required.

Similar to point 6, but distinct.

It’s possible for us to get our heads so wrapped into the alternate path we’ve created for ourselves that even if we want to follow the right path we can’t see the way. Maybe life has beaten us up. Maybe there are too many people around us telling us too many different things. Maybe all the TV, music, games, and other media around us just gets in our head all the time. Maybe there was or is someone in our lives whose voice in our head keeps us from realizing the truth. Maybe there’s a sin we just don’t think we can overcome.

This can even happen in church. We may listen to different pastors, and each one tells us a different thing about what it is to be called. We may read different Christian books, and each one tells us a different way to interpret the same scripture. Everything sounds like good advice, but our attempts to apply everything we’ve learned together messes with our heads. Maybe we can find a hundred reasons to go in one direction, and a hundred reasons to go in another. Maybe there are countless directions you could take your life in and feel justified because you’ve compiled so much information to help you justify it.

This is essentially what happens when we try to use human logic to determine God’s will for our lives. This is what I tried to do, and is why I’m currently in Korea. We look at all the evidence, and determine what logically makes sense for us to do. I’d compiled a long laundry list of reasons that I used to justify teaching overseas that I used to convince myself and others it was the right thing to do. My head had gotten cluttered, and it became difficult for me to realize the truth. I applied human logic to the decision, and ended up here.

The problem with that is God is a lot smarter than we are. Our own human logic cannot compete with God’s divine revelation. Sometimes what God wants us to do is what seems most illogical. Is it logical for a boy in no armor to use a single stone to fight a giant? Is it logical for someone who was sold into slavery by his own brothers to become one of the most powerful men in Egypt? Is it logical for the only sinless man to ever walk the face of the earth to die for the sinning masses? No. It is not logical, but God doesn’t usually work in logic. He works in miracles. His understanding surpasses our own, but we can sometimes get so wrapped up in the situations of our lives, our own excuses, the things of this world, or the voice in our head telling us we’re not good enough that we cannot see the truth even when it’s right in front of us.

If we really want to do the Lord’s will with our lives He is going to make sure we find out just what that is. Things had gotten so messed up in my head that God had to bring me to Korea in order for me to be able to see through all the clutter that had made it nearly impossible for me to see the truth. He took drastic action with me, and the scriptures show us countless times where he took drastic action with others. This could be a big fish moment as it was with Jonah, or it could be just helping you get to a place where you can clearly hear His voice.

Jesus walked this earth as a human. He understands our struggles, and the things that keep us from seeing the truth. If we authentically pray to Him that we want to know the right path for our lives He will take such drastic action to help us see the truth. He took drastic action with me. I don’t say this so others will think I’m important, or will pat me on the back. This isn’t about me. I’m just one man, and God took drastic action with me to get me back on the right path. He will take such measures with all who would call on His name.

Mistakes, part 7

7. God will turn your excuses into nothing.

God knows us well. He knows we don’t always ignore His calling through deliberate disobedience. He knows it could be fear, desire, sins we can’t forgive ourselves for, or any number of excuses that keep us from following Him to where He leads. He gets it, but that doesn’t make it okay.

The most obvious and best example for this is Moses (Jonah also works, but I talked about him enough last time). When God called Moses to free the Jews from Egypt he was full of excuses. They can be read in chapter 3 of Exodus. “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” “But suppose they do not believe me or listen to my voice;” “suppose they say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.” “I am not eloquent; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” “O Lord, please send by the hand whomever else you may send.” Moses had lots of excuses, but not nearly so many as we are capable of making up when we want to ignore our calling.

God heard every excuse Moses had, and He had an answer for all of them. He is the same with us. God will show us why our excuses don’t matter. He may not do it with a burning bush as He did with Moses, but He will. He may take hours, days, or even years to wipe out all our excuses. He knows just how to do it, and He will. If we lack faith in ourselves He will teach us how to have the faith we need. He will remind us He lives within us, and He created us for a purpose. He knew what He was doing when He chose that purpose for us.

Moses listened to God, and spent the next forty years of his life being one of the greatest examples for those following God there has ever been. He overcame his excuses, and did the right thing. Have faith in God, and learn to have faith in the person He made you to be.

If there is a sin you just can’t defeat He will help you defeat it. If He wants you to preach, but you fear speaking in front of others He will show you how. I had that same fear, and God helped me overcome it by allowing me to be a tour guide in Charleston, SC. Can’t really be a good tour guide without talking in front of people. It just doesn’t work.

This is just one way He wiped out excuses I had (I discussed more in my first post). I had a lot of excuses, and He worked on me a long time to destroy every single one. He has done the same thing for lots of people who were making the mistake of ignoring His will because of their excuses. He can do the same for anyone. God can provide for all our needs, and wipe away all our excuses.

Mistakes, part 6

6.We may need to spend some time in the belly of the big fish in order for God to set us back on the right path.

I know I’ve mentioned Jonah a couple of times already, but that’s because his journey teaches us so much about mistakes. It’s taught me a lot, and been on my mind extensively as God has taken me on this incredible journey.

Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. Before he was even there he was on a ship hit by a powerful storm. Jonah says right in verse 12 of chapter 1 “I know this great tempest is because of me.” That shows something significant. Jonah knew God was throwing stuff at him to keep him from running away from his purpose. Jonah still didn’t care. He didn’t want to go to Ninevah, and he wasn’t going to change his mind just because of a storm. What it took instead was him spending three days and nights in the belly of the big fish. Not pleasant for Jonah, but the end result of his repentance was remarkable.

God can and will do the same thing to us if we refuse him too long. He can put us in the belly of the big fish (figuratively) in any number of ways. Perhaps someone’s been ignoring the call of the Lord in order to get that big promotion at work. Maybe He’ll let them get it, and through that they’ll suddenly realize what they thought they always wanted was only going to destroy them. On the other hand, he could rip something away from them that was an excuse. They could lose the job they were never meant to have. There are countless ways God could give you a big fish moment, and He knows just how to make sure the big fish he sends your way has the maximum impact.

There will likely be warnings to this. God will usually try to help us see the truth the easy way on more than one occasion before He brings out the big guns. God used a storm with Jonah. With us He could use rejection, show us an opportunity to serve Him, or open our eyes to something we never knew. He could do a lot, but we could also be very determined to run. I was. God put churches like Northside, Seacoast, Emmanuel, and Elevation before me to help me see the truth, but I refused. His big fish for me was letting me come to Korea where I was finally willing to admit who I was, and what I was supposed to do.

Try to listen to God, and don’t make Him use the big fish. Jonah had to spend three days in the belly of the big fish. He could have repented immediately, but that didn’t mean he could just be let out right away. Sometimes getting out of the big fish takes time. Paul is another good display of this. It took Jesus directly speaking to him on the road to Gethsemane for him to change his ways. He knew the truth from the moment he was spoken to, but he still had to endure the scales over his eyes. I have to stay in Korea for a few months to make sure my mistake doesn’t negatively impact others. Anyone else who God has to big fish may have to stay in that big fish a while to clean up the mess. It’s just the way it goes sometimes if we are too hard headed to listen to God before he really has to step in, and knock some sense into us.

The final thing I’ll say on this point is do not be discouraged if God has to get you with the big fish. Remember that what this really means is that what God has in store for you is important enough to Him that he’s willing to do big things to us to make you see that. Consider it God’s big push to get you where you’re supposed to be. That’s amazing. Be thankful He loves you enough to pursue you in such a mighty way.

Mistakes, part 5

5. You can run away. God can follow.

God is everywhere. He can always find you. There is nowhere you can go where you are beyond His reach. You can bury yourself in all the sins of this world. He can dig you out. You can run to the other side of the world. He can call you back.

It doesn’t matter how much you hide the truth of your calling within yourself as you move toward your mistakes. God can and will find a way to make you remember what He’s called you to do. There is no better example for this than Jonah. Jonah tried to run. God followed him with a storm, and then with a big fish. He can do the same to any of us.

God is relentless in His love for us, and in His desire to see us become who we were created to be. He wants to keep us from making the mistakes ignoring His calling will lead us to. Even when we’ve made these mistakes He will not give up on us.

You can run, but you can’t hide. God will always be there. God’s plans for you will be the same no matter what you try to do, and however much you try to cover up who you know you were made to be. God knows you, and will work to make sure you know who you are as well.

Mistakes, part 4

4. God wants you to be who you are

Here's the shortest, but potentially most important point.

Ignoring your calling is trying to be someone you’re not. I understand doing this because it is what I wanted to do for many years. I wanted to run from my gifts, and be someone different. Someone better. I can now see the foolishness in this. We must embrace who we are. We cannot be better than who God made us to be. Trying to be someone different is a major mistake, and will never bring us true happiness. God is all knowing, and his plans for us are plans for good. He put us here for a reason, and made us into the unique individual we are not to destroy us, but to fulfill us. What He created us for is better than anything we can imagine for ourselves. Trust in Him. He gave you these gifts because of His faith in you. Be thankful for them, and embrace them. Be who you are.

Mistakes, part 3

3. The wrong path is the wrong path even if we try to make it pleasing to God.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:11, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers.” Each of us is uniquely made. Every one of us is granted a spiritual gift that we are made to use for Christ. Many of us, however, have different reasons to avoid using these spiritual gifts.

Jonah was given the gift to reach the people of Nineveh, but he didn’t feel they deserved salvation. Moses was able to free the Jewish people, but was afraid to even open his mouth to speak. I was filled with excuses, and consumed by fear of rejection. Many people feel a calling, but don’t want to do what they’re called to do.

Many of us desire to serve the Lord. Sometimes we just don’t want to serve Him in the way we know we’re meant to. We instead seek out an alternate path. We look for a different way to serve the Lord that we hope will satisfy Him. In our hearts we beg Him to change His mind, and to think it's okay for us to serve Him in a way that’s against His purpose. We hope he’ll change His will for us.

This won’t happen. The wrong path is always the wrong path no matter how we try to cover it up. You cannot hide from God within His arms. You cannot justify hiding from His will. No amount of human reasoning will make running from what you’re meant to do pleasing to the Lord. If He made you for ministry He will not think its fine for you to become a missionary instead. If he made you to teach you are to teach. If he made you to be an accountant be an account. Do whatever it is you were made to do, and commit it all to the service of God. If He blessed you with many gifts be sure to use them all for the Lord. Do not fear the responsibility that comes with the ability to teach, preach, write, or anything else. Embrace it, and remember that God has plans for you that are good. Do not ignore your calling. Do not forge your own path so you feel okay with running from God. Ignoring you calling is always a mistake.