How valuable to you is your walk with Christ? What are you willing to give up to follow Him?  If you are honest, what is it that  you have not been willing to give up thus far?  You may say, “I’ve tried but it’s hard.” or the famous, “God knows my heart,” or maybe in your intellectual mindset, you may even say, “God wouldn’t ask me to give up that or not do this to follow Him.”  I would encourage you to let the word of God be your guide in determining what God really requires of those who have fully committed to following Him.

“As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” He said to another person, “Come, follow me.”The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.” Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” Luke 9:57-62

In this passage of scripture, we see that nothing is placed in a higher priority than following Christ.  We see that there are no “discounts” or “breaks” or “free passes” for any situation that involves the cares of the world.  In the flesh this may seem cold but reality is there are many who do kind and caring things in lieu of doing exactly what God has called them to do and as such will be considered “not fit for the Kingdom of God.”  Remember the scripture- “obedience is better than sacrifice?” 1 Samuel 15:22.  You can give until it hurts but if God has asked you to serve in an area and you have refused, this disobedience is counted greater than any gift you could ever give.

Don’t keep looking for the discounted way-it doesn’t exist and its false “savings” are misleading at best.  Reality is the costs of following Christ are great. Sadly, many have turned their Christian walk into professional ritual that will be valued as irrelevant to what is expected of those fully committed to following Christ.  Not merely because it is not what Christ desires but more so because Christ knows it is not enough to stand the tests of the hardships and pain which are the way of anyone (and were even more so in that day) fully committed to following Him.

Quit looking to cash-in coupons of “less stress” and “easy route”.  If you’ve been given any, they are counterfeit.  For in this Christian walk, there are NO discounts.  It will cost you dearly to pick up your cross and follow Him.  Are you willing to pay full price?

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, no matter what state we find ourselves in, there is surely much to be thankful for. Allow the word of God to give you assurance that “all things-both good and bad-truly do work together for good, and more importantly for God’s glory and the advancing of His Kingdom.

¹⁴ We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. ¹⁵ All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. ¹⁶ That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. ¹⁷ For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! ¹⁸ So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. (Acts 4:14-18 (NLT))

I hope and pray that these points are clear to you from the scripture above.  Turn these points into opportunities to give thanks!

1.  Thank God for the assurance that the same God who raised Jesus will one day raise us!

2.  Thank God when you realize that so much of what you go through is not for personal attack but rather for the greater good of the Gospel.

3.  Thank God that our sufferings draw us closer to Him when we keep them in their proper perspective.

4.  Thank God that trouble won’t last always!

5.  Thank God for supernatural vision to see the invisible, or better to see “up the road” the things which are to come.

God is a great and amazing God!  Thank Him.  Focus on the truths of His word.  Thank Him for your good times.  Thank Him for your sufferings!  Thank Him and focus on having the best Thanksgiving ever!!!!!

Where are you now?  Where have you been?  Where are you going? Perhaps you don’t know the answer to any of these questions.  Don’t be alarmed. I should add don’t be alarmed if you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is leading you.  In our flesh, the safe places seem to be controlling the current conditions in our lives, knowing the future direction God will send us and getting a glimpse of what the final destination will look like when we’re travelling new territory.

God desires us to trust Him each step of the way.  Often times, He purposefully gives instruction step by step and we are required to walk “blindly” with the assurance that He has us, is keeping us and will guide us all the way.  We must work hard to not get ahead of Him.  We have peace and trust when He instructs us to leave a place or stay in a place, for a season or for a lifetime.

If you’re wondering where you are and even more where you are going, I assure you that if you will keep your hand in God’s hand and work hard to do His perfect will, allowing Him to order every step of your life, then you can move without full understanding of the future outcomes or full resources to accomplish the tasks before you.  Trust that staying in the will of God, keeping the noise out to hear Him clearly- being willing to move when He says so no matter what it looks like or being willing to stand and endure whatever comes your way-this is the safe place-this is the will of God for your life.

Today’s blog begins with the harsh reality that in every life some rain must fall.  Scripture says it this way, “But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.” Matthew 5:44-45

So how do we weather the storm and better yet since we have no control over its intensity, duration or impact what is our position in the aftermath of it all?

I heard a sermon recently entitled “One Life to Live” that reminded me that since finances, fame and fortune are so fleeting-here today and gone today, we the believer must always take the position of faith!  Yes, the rain along with its damaging winds and rain come upon the just as well as the unjust but God’s precious word reminds us that “the just (not meaning perfect or sinless but simply the believer in Jesus Christ) shall live by faith.

Before, during and after the storm we must live by trusting not in the aftermath and rubble we see but rather the promises of God which should be our hope even when we can’t see.  This my friend is survival at it’s best!

May you grow closer to God as you weather the storms of this life and purpose to go through them and live through them-knowing you will make it if you try!!!

Today I went back and read some and skimmed the remainder of Job. I wanted to look at Job’s interaction with his friends. I really wanted to focus in on the conversations they had with him and why they were punished for their response to Job’s crises.

I’ll admit at times I was a bit confused because it seemed that as Job begin to question God and even question his own existence, his friends seemed to help him refocus on an all powerful God who could do what He wanted because of His sovereignty.

i know Job’s friends will forever go down in history for their beliefs that God was punishing Job or that he had sinned but I think it’s important to note their commitment to Job.

Job 2:11-13 “When three of Job’s friends heard of the tragedy he had suffered, they got together and traveled from their homes to comfort and console him……When they saw Job from a distance, they scarcely recognized him. Wailing loudly, they tore their robes and threw dust into the air over their heads to show their grief. Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words.”

i think their willingness to be there for Job far outweighs any mistakes they may have made in trying to determine why so much trouble had fallen on Job.

Who do you have in your life that can go the distance? Whose willing, rain or shine to be there with you or for you? Point blank- when the storms of life are raging, who do you know that will take the lifeline with you and sit with you and be willing to be down and maybe even go down with you?

Prayerfully, there’s someone-no matter how low the place is. Reality is those are the friends you want with you when God restores all you’ve lost-that and so much more!!

Ever felt torn between two lovers? Not necessarily two “mates” but rather a love for the things that are good to you and good for you and a love for the things that often make you feel good (at least temporarily) and often times turn out not to be good for you at all. The beautiful thing about the word of God is that no subject is left untouched.  The bible puts this struggle this way:  “But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. I have discovered this principle of life-that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.”  (Romans 7:20-21).

I don’t think this is “new news” but it’s also not permission to keeping doing wrong.  It should be encouragement so that we don’t give up when we do wrong but it should also be encouragement to keep trying to do right.  Jesus knew that we could never fully conquer our sinful nature, which is why He came to die for our sins-those past, present and even in the future.

We should never take for granted what He’s done and our gratitude for such the high price He paid should be a continued determination to do our Father’s will.  Never give up the fight-which doesn’t mean you’ll never sin but rather you’ll never quit trying to do the right thing.  The reality is that as long as you are in this world you will find yourself at times “torn between two lovers.”

Everyone knows the Energizer bunny- a pink toy rabbit wearing sunglasses and blue and white striped sandals, beating a bass drum and bearing the Energizer logo. He has been promoted as being able to continue operating indefinitely, or at least much longer than similar toys using rival brands’ batteries.  In the Duracell ads, a set of battery-powered drum-playing toy rabbits (Duracell Bunnies) gradually slow to a halt until only the toy powered by a copper-top battery remains active. In Energizer’s parody, the Energizer Bunny then enters the screen beating a huge bass drum and swinging a mallet over his head.  It’s an advertisement we all remember so well.

I ask you today, what kind of advertisement are you? Who do you represent and frankly how well do you represent them?  We wear the shirts that brand our beliefs but what do our actions display? I can truly say that living a life for Christ is not easy.  Of course we are not perfect and reality is perfection will not come until Christ Himself returns but in the meanwhile, as you are the advertisement for others coming to know Him, what do your actions say?

If your actions say that the Christian life is trouble free, then that’s a misleading message to your viewers.  If your actions say that the Christian life is tooooo hard, then that’s a misleading message for your viewers.  But if your actions say that life is hard, that sometimes it will knock you down to your knees often, that you may cry and that you may walk alone then you adequately portray a potential scene in the life of a Christian.  But if you don’t finish the story, your viewers may be discouraged and fail to see the value in giving their lives over to Christ.  Be sure to tell them that Christ is the only Energizer and that while others have gone through the same things as you and given out, you are still going!  Be careful to keep cool as you go through the trials of this life cause others are watching, ready to discredit you and the God you serve.  Keep cool by trusting, hoping and believing that the best is yet to come!

Whether you want to be or not, if you openly profess your hope in Christ, you are His advertisement to the unbeliever until He returns.  Hold steadfast to every promise in His word. When the trials of life come, purpose to be like the Energizer bunny-Keep cool and keep on going!

If you did not read the title right, then you probably think I am crazy.  We all have heard that “fleas” are any numerous, wingless, bloodsucking insects and it would be virtually impossible to be at peace with having fleas.  But today’s post is concerning “flees” and we will just define them as “persons who flee from your life.”  Today’s focus comes from James 4, which focuses on drawing closer to God. I want to deal with our struggles to be in relationships and the war that goes on when at least one person in relationship values their relationship with God over the desires that drawing close to another person can evoke.  In this chapter, God gives a clear picture of why we struggle in relationships with others.

“1What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? ² You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. ³ And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure. ⁴ You adulterers!  Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.” (James 4:1-4)

So you make a decision to make your relationship with God your top priority.  You know what’s right and you set your expectations in a manner that lines up with God’s instruction and plans for your life.  Everything seems to going okay and then the test comes, you stand your ground and the other person in relationship flees by causing an argument and justifying a reason for not calling, by trying to portray you in a negative light, or sometimes by simply disappearing. If your primary  goal is to please God, I ask you today why are you not at peace with the flees?  If we are honest, it is pride that makes us feel we are “above” being left or dealt with in this manner but the word of God addresses our pride this way:

 “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”  ⁷ So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. ⁹ Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.” (James 4:6-10)

Understand that when you take a stand for what’s right you are bound to have separation from things that oppose this view.  Unfortunately you do not get to “call the shots” on every separation and often times others actions can take you by surprise.  I’m encouraging you today to keep your faith and remember God’s word.  Work hard to stay loyal to God trusting in His promises for you.  As you resist, the things that don’t line up with His will for you, will dissipate and the people who come in to keep you at war between pleasing God and pleasing your fleshly desires will flee.  Unless you prefer to be a friend of the world, be at peace with the “Flees.”  Reality is you can’t have it both ways.

In last week’s blog, I mentioned how vigilant we need to be in our prayer lives.  While I still believe this to be true, what keeps ringing in my ear is that prayer alone will not give us the results we are looking for in many areas of our lives.  Mended relationships, weight loss, dream jobs, healed minds and bodies-the list is endless.  Prayer is a good start but today, we are reminded that “Faith is dead without good works.” (James 2:26 NLT). The picture above is my rendition of what I believe is a posture to take if we truly want to see change in our lives.

For so many years we have seen the slogan “PUSH”-Pray Until Something Happens.  Today I believe that God is telling us to PUSH and then PURGE-Persevere Until you Reach the Goal Every time.  Frankly, God is not hard of hearing and I’m not convinced that we have to keep praying the same prayers over and over.  If He is not answering in the way you desire, then perhaps His answer on the matter is “not now” or  simply “no”.  Scripture tells us that each day has enough worries of its own (Matthew 6:34) so surely we have plenty of petitions to render to God.

I ask you today, what actions do you take once you have made your requests known to God?  Do you ask God to “change” the other person in the relationship while you continue to do the exact same things while expecting different results.  Do you pray that one day you’ll be able to fit in a size 6 dress yet all of your extracurricular activities involve eating out and don’t include any form of exercise?  Do you pray for your “dream job” to come through yet you’ve yet to work on certification and credentials that will aid you in being more qualified than other candidates?  Do you pray for your body or mind to be healed but refuse to work on areas of unforgiveness and bitterness that have taken root and have a direct effect on your health?

I believe that PURGE is two fold and I pray that it will be embraced with as much tenacity as the PUSH acronym.  After praying, we must take action.  But first we must purge (get rid of unwanted feelings, memories, conditions-clear, cleanse) our minds of the thinking that hinders us from reaching our fullest potential.  Yes, I am a believer in fervent and effectual prayer.  But I further believe that “faith by itself isn’t enough.  Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless (James 2:17 NLT).  Pray until something happens and then you be the “happening” thing by Perservering/Pressing Until you Reach the Goal-not sometimes but Every time!

God bless and keep you always is my earnest prayer.

Over the last day or so, I’ve been reflecting over some of the major catastrophic events and our reaction to them, 9-11, Hurricane Katrina and the Charleston church shooting to name a few.  The thing I remember most is how quickly people came together, loved on one another, met at churches as specified times to pray together.  It seems so loving yet reality has been that as soon as the height and hype of the events die down, it’s business as usual with little to no time for prayer, and very little loving and supporting one another-that is until the next catastrophic event occurs.

I am really troubled by our reactive approach to life.  As Christians, we have been given the formula for healing.  Not necessarily healing of the bodies, but healing of our land which from my perspective includes every aspect of our lives. 2 Chronicles 7:14- “If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Examine your busy life and answer these questions today:

1.  Am I the “called” of Christ? (1 Corinthians 12:27)

2.  Have I humbled myself before God? (1 Peter 5:5)

3.  Do I have a consistent prayer life? (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

4.  Can I honestly say that I seek God? If I’m not sure what that means, have I consulted someone I think could help me gain clarity? (Matthew 6:33)

5. Can I truly say that I have given up my wicked ways?  Not that I am without sin, but I don’t have any habits, or regular, consistent practices that I know are against God’s instruction for me? (Mark 7:21)

If the answer to any of these questions is no, I pray that you will commit to redirecting your actions so that you may answer it again soon in the affirmative.

Prayer vigils are great in giving mad respect to those who have died, no matter what the circumstances are surrounding their death.  God is calling those of us who are left to deal with the aftermath to be proactive in our prayer life.  I’m encouraging us to be vigilant in our prayer life and trust God to heal our land in a way that reduces our need for prayer vigils after the fact.  Vigilant prayer equals less prayer vigils!