Trading Turmoil for Tranquility

Last week’s blog post may have sounded like the plot from a Sci-fi movie; angels and demons, rolling clouds with clashing in the skies and battles of spiritual forces. The battle is real but what matters more is the battle we fight in our minds. God is completely in control of the spiritual battle among those principalities and rulers of darkness that are spoken of in scripture. We can trust Him to deal with that. But the battle in our minds over sin is where God gives us the choice. This is the part that matters most. Those things that we choose to dwell on in our minds that give birth to sin are the place where God gives us choice and power. This area of the war is what matters most to our everyday lives.

“Our life experiences begin to shape patterns in our minds that control the way we react to life’s situations. The way we react builds patterns that shape our emotions. It is quite easy for human beings to begin to live their lives from emotion instead of principle.” From the book Pursuing Peace

The mental patterns that we develop over time are going to influence deeply the way that we react to situations in life and the way we feel about those situations. Once these patterns go deeply enough to affect our souls they will affect the way we feel from hour-to-hour--whether there is any real situation going on or not. Look at it this way, your emotions and your soul work together. If your soul is at rest then your emotions will be calm and peaceful. You will walk through life with a pleasant mood and your attitude about life will be positive.  However, if your soul is in distress, then your emotions will flail about like a fish out of water. That is no way to live life.

Patterns, patterns, patters. We all have them. Nothing chaps me more than to walk to the coffee maker in the morning and see that it is not ready to give me my morning cup of Joe. But I have a pattern so my coffee gets prepared every evening before I go to bed. That healthy pattern ensures that my  early morning emotions are positive. I get to the coffee pot and it speaks softly to me with words of love and encouragement, “Good morning Jason, it’s going to be a great day, here is your Joe.” I also have another morning pattern. When I get to work, I like to start my morning by gathering my thoughts and organizing my work day. But I have to shut the door to my office to do that. If I don’t, people will start coming in to say “good morning,” to chit chat, to tell me about company problems, etc. I’ll go from bliss to extreme irritation in seconds. I used to forget to shut the door, but I have developed a pattern to make sure I do. The pattern ensures that I keep my soul at rest and my emotions at ease.  

The reverse is also true. If there are things that we do which promote unhealthy emotions then we can develop unhealthy patterns. We create an unseen switch that “sets off” those bad emotions. If I intentionally smash my finger in the door every day then after a week or so my brain will begin to develop an emotional pattern for doors. My heart rate is going to spike and my chest will get tight from the release of stress hormones every time I get around a door. If I do this every morning when I get up then it may start to happen when my alarm goes off. If I do it every evening before bed then I might start having dreams about it. But if I exchange the door with a prayer or a thought about how God’s Word says he has a plan for my life for good and not for evil then my whole pattern becomes a calmer-of-emotions instead of a stress builder.

The mind is powerful. YOUR mind is powerful. It is powerful enough to change the way you first respond to situations in life and ultimately how you feel. God blessed you with a powerful brain and a choice in how to use it. He says that you can be at peace in the midst of crisis. You can be happy in the midst of turmoil. You can have faith in God when all seems lost. To get there, you’ve got to correct your bad patterns with godly patterns. Make a list of those things that quickly make your brain send your emotions downward and start injecting godly things which send your emotions upward. Give some effort to that practice and you’ll begin to see your stress drop and your faith in the Lord increase. And when your soul begins to settle down and get quiet then you will begin to “hear” the Holy Spirit speak to you. That’s when the magic of life begins to happen.

“But I have calmed and quieted myself…” Psalm 131:2 NIV

“Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.”  Psalm 62:5-6  NIV

We are being watched

“A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.”   Ephesians 6:10-12 NLT

Do you feel the “weight of sin?” One of my men at work responded to my “good morning” this week in a different way. He opened up to me about his current struggle with sin. The type of sin is irrelevant but the struggle itself is something we can all relate to. He felt as if he was fighting and struggling more than ever with this particular sin and carrying around a heavy load; one that was invisible to the world around him and just plain wearing him out. He was feeling alone, isolated and wondered if he was the only one dealing with this. Au contraire say they French!

 Epouranios is the Greek word used in the above passage. This level of “heavenly places” refers to the air around us; the space between us and the highest sky. We’re talking about clouds here. When you see the sky change above, the clouds begin to roll and become blazed like fire then you’re seeing that heavenly place spoken of here. The Bible says that there is more going on there than meets the eye. There are battles being waged by forces of evil and by platoons of heaven’s angels. This war is being fought not over land or kingdoms we see but over you and me. There are two who lead this fight, God and the Devil. Both want us for their eternal kingdom beyond this life. They fight for each of us and no single person comes at a higher price than the other. In this, we are equal.

 “The Devil is pure evil. There is nothing good about him. None of his purposes are good.” Dr. Charles Stanley (When the Enemy Strikes)

Satan, the Devil, does his fighting in our minds. By the enticing bullets of temptation, he fights your mind and mine to lead us to commit sin against God. That sin, given time, becomes a stronghold in our lives that wears us out. It chokes the spiritual life out of us. In some cases, it will actually kill us. Once we are off this earth physically, our spirit joins one of these two kingdoms forever; Gods or the Devil’s. While we are here, Satan and his demonic forces fight for our hearts. They watch and learn our bad patterns and they try to use them against us. They tempt us in our weak areas and try to break through our armor. But because of the love of our God they must also fight the angles of Christ. This fierce war for mankind is ongoing, around-the-clock and unseen to the naked eye.

“The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.”  1 Corinthians 10:13

Even though you may feel alone, as if what you are dealing with is like nothing anyone else is experiencing, rest assured that most of us are fighting similar battles every day. We struggle with our own sins and our own demons; Christian and non-Christian alike. The thing we have to remember is that there is a real war going on around us. We are all a part of that war. We are being fought for. The entire human race is dealing with sin and temptation every day. The true question lies with how we deal with that temptation.  How we deal with it determines whether or not we have peace of mind from day-to-day or whether we feel overcome and weighed down. The Bible says, no matter the detail of the war, we can be at peace on a daily basis. But we have to follow God’s battle plan.

Focus on God this week. Ask Him for a break from Satan’s attacks. Meditate on the goodness of God. In next week’s blog I will discuss ways that bad patterns can be turned into good, how we can break down the strongholds of sin and enter into the peace that God says we can have in the midst of the spiritual war waging around us.

Sunny Situation

 

My oldest son was learning to write poetry this week in school. I was scanning through his great work and came across a short poem focusing on something that I have also noticed myself. My cat Mister (who turns fifteen in three weeks) has a habitual process that he goes through every day. After he has breakfast he stretches out on the rug at the back door. He rests there for a while and soaks up the sun as it shines through the glass. This is what my son’s poem is about. Mister also repeats this process at the end of the day as the setting sun shines through the front door’s glass. He stretches out on the rug at the door and warms himself to the evening sun.

We all have things like this which we do in life. We have patterns we go through. Some of them are good – they relax us, strengthen us, calm our nerves and ease our pains. Other patterns are not so good – they break us down, make us feel bad, make us uneasy about ourselves, push us away from the ones we love and push us away from God. Our Maker knows our patterns better than we do. And He wants us to turn bad patterns into good.

As we work to rectify the bad and bring life’s perspectives into focus, let’s try to remember that even nature works in patterns. If we open our eyes we will see that God has developed patterns all around us. They are there to remind us of the simple things that matter most. He will show us (if we’re looking) how nature uses the small things in life to bring good. Even a little morning sun on the body can warm the soul. Spend some time pondering what your patterns are. Ask yourself which ones bring good to your life and which ones bring bad. Ask God to help you develop healthy patterns. His Word is true and you will find that perfect peace that He freely gives. And when you see His work around you remember to praise Him!

“From the rising of the sun

unto the going down of the same

the Lord's name is to be praised.” Psalm 113:3 KJV

To learn more about brain patterns and how to turn the bad ones around, read my new book Pursuing Peace.

 

 

Tornadic Paths to Peace

From my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life

“We have to remember that we live in a fallen world. And creation itself groans because of man’s sin. The earth was not meant to be like this. When people were created, we were placed in the Garden of Eden where I believe fire ants were harmless. But when people changed the landscape of our relationship with God, so too did the landscape transform around people. And we bear the pains of that mural as nature groans.

“Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering.” (Rom. 8:20–23 NLT)

As people, we groan. Nature groans. We lived together before the fall in peace. Now we groan and fight the results of sin in this world, and our life in peace now becomes a battle for peace. But when we reconsider the pain of the day, not as some happenstance but as an opportunity to learn of God’s peace, we can see that God is there to bring good out of the bad situations.” CH2,  Made in His Image

 The destruction and loss of life left by the recent F5 tornado in Oklahoma is something that we all recall and shake our head at. We question why and how it happens. We think of God’s great hand and how He manages to let such destruction befall the innocence of children. And for us parents, the reality of the loss really hits home. But these violent acts of nature have been occurring since the dawn of man.

Scripture shows clearly that we live in the midst of a groaning creation. Not only does nature show her groanings but nature causes groanings upon her inhabitants. Life itself is in a perpetual state of misery and yearning for something more, something meaningful, something – peaceful. Since sin reared its head on this planet, the vibrations of pain began to reverberate amongst us all. Sometimes we get in the way; sometimes unknowingly and sometimes of our own choice.

But 2,000 years ago, the Son of God stepped in and took the death blow of sin and turned it on its head. The eternal results of this pain and groaning that sin first caused were forever changed by the power of the cross. Mankind now has a hope that the pain will soon end and the eternity that we can share will be without this misery and loss that we see around us. And in the Spirit of that same God, we can live now, in the midst of this misery, with peace of mind, knowing where our destiny lies. In Christ, we can live in peace, in the midst of the chaos, in the hope of His triumphant return!

“…while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ…” Titus 2:13 NIV

The Simplicity of Peace

From my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life

“There is just something about practice. Nobody likes it. Everyone wants to be an expert and right now. Over the years, my employees have typically wanted to make more money but they didn’t want to put the time in to learn the skills that came with more money. My son Dalton loved his new bike till he realized that it wasn’t so fun after Daddy took the training wheels off. He just wanted to ride. When I got my first guitar I drove my dad nuts playing the E string. But how was I going to learn the Blues if I didn’t build one callous on one finger at a time?

Life takes practice. Working with people takes practice. Marriages take practice. Patience takes practice. My wife Alice will probably tell you that I’m taking my novice lessons in patience to this day. But becoming a Christian who lives in peace and walks in joy takes practice. And by practice I mean Practicing His Presence.

Peace comes when you get close to God. There is no stress in heaven. Heaven is glorious and peaceful. So the closer you can get to heaven the closer you can get to peace. But to get closer to heaven you have to get closer to God. And to get closer to God you must come to Him in spirit because He is Spirit.

“For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” – John 4:24 (NLT)

To worship God is to live with Him. When we walk in spirit with Christ we worship him. When we obey Him we worship Him. When we recognize Him in our daily walk and shape our decisions on our reality that He is there with us, then we worship Him.

“For we who worship by the Spirit of God…” – Philippians 3:3 (NLT)

The verb here for worship, latreuo, means to render religious service or homage.” Paul goes on to say that, “we put no confidence in human effort. We rely on what Christ Jesus has done.” So if we are merely resting in the Lord then we are honoring Him. He has done all that needs to be done. We are simply in His presence. And for a man or woman with limited time on this earth to stop and rest in the presence of God – this shows honor for Him.” CH8 Practicing His Presence

We need to not make peace more complicated than it really is. If you are striving to better your relationship with God then you will find that the Prince of Peace will stir up the peace that already indwells you (the Christian). It’s already inside; just waiting to get out. Last week’s blog discusses the great command of Christ to love God and others as yourself. Applying that in your everyday life will bring forth the peace of God in a powerful way. My book discusses many ways that you can do this in common examples that we can all relate to. Keep it simple! Start hanging out with God and you'll see the transformation take place.

A Successful Christian Life

Would you say that you have a successful Christian life? How would you define one? Would it mean that you read your Bible and pray every day, attend church every week, pay your tithe, give to missions, work Saturdays at the local charity house or tell others about Christ? These are all certainly good things. They are godly and honorable things. It would surely take a portion of your life away to give these things to God. In fact, you could say they are things that you sacrifice for His kingdom. These works are all good works. These efforts of sacrifice are all legitimate in the Christian life. But do they make you a success at it?

Two thousand years ago, scripture says that Jesus astonished the people with the answers that he gave to the religious leaders’ questions. Jesus was a threat to their power because He spoke with authority and truth. An expert in the law tested Jesus with a question. He asked Jesus what the greatest of all instruction was from God. In essence, “Boil it all down for us Jesus.” After Jesus gave the answer, scripture states a mere five verses later, “…and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.” So what was Jesus’ summary instruction?

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  Matthew 22:34-40 NLT

Jesus gave us the secret for a successful Christian life! He said to love God with all you are and love those around you as much as your own self. Imagine for a moment what you would be like if you dedicated your time and energy to simply loving God with your whole heart, soul and mind. What if you engaged Jesus Christ with every waking hour of your day; if you centered your thoughts and your decisions on Him? How would you feel if you praised Him throughout the day and prayed openly and often to Him from dawn till dusk? How would you act if you began to treat Him as your best friend who was always right there with you – living life by your side?

If you did that, you would be energized by the Holy Spirit to do the things that He would want you to do. And what He would want you to do is to love your neighbor as your own self. He would want you to show the love of Christ to those around you; the same love that He has shown to you. You see, God doesn’t need our money. He doesn’t need our church attendance or our help at the food bank. What He desires first-and-foremost is our obedience. He has tasked us with loving Him completely. He wants our primary focus to be on Him. He knows that if this is our core mission then everything else will follow. Your sacrifice (your works) is good, but your obedience to loving God and others is better than your sacrifice.

Make sure that your works stem from the roots of your personal relationship with God. Nurture and grow the seed that was planted with your salvation in Christ. Water your Christian life by simply spending your time with God. Make Him your absolute best friend. Engage Him in everything you do each day. That relationship with Jesus is the most precious thing you can offer Him in your life. To give Him this, makes you a success already. He’ll add the "Miracle Grow" when He sees that you are ready!

Recommended reading: 1 Samuel Chapter 15

Recommended music video (an oldie but goodie):  http://youtu.be/TzWyZxlwGKI

Joyful Suffering

From my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life

“In His kindness God called you to share in His eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, He will restore, support, and strengthen you, and He will place you on a firm foundation.” - 1 Peter 5:10 (NLT)

Let’s concentrate on the word, “suffered,” in this passage. The word used here in the Greek is, “paschō,” which means, “to be affected, to feel, to suffer sadly, be in a bad plight.” This doesn’t sound like a pleasant experience does it? This is the same word that Jesus uses in Matthew 16:21 when He describes to His disciples how He will go to Jerusalem and suffer at the hands of men - and be killed. Sounds like battle to me. People suffer in battle.

Do you ever feel like you are suffering in your daily journey? Do you ever get to that point in your day where your chest is heavy and you feel like you just can’t get enough breath in your lungs – like the pressures of the day are weighing on you? This process is designed by God to try us. It is meant to strengthen our faith in Him. It brings us to a position where we cannot count on ourselves and must then submit to the Father’s strength.  CH4 - Decision Making

There is nothing peaceful about suffering. Pursuing God’s peace comes with challenges. I have learned that when you begin to get close to God, He starts this process of faith building. The account of Abraham and Isaac in the Old Testament is no exception. Abraham would get close and God would test him. He would get closer and God would test him even more. We have to ask ourselves the question, “Are my hardships simply faith-building because I am close to God or are they the results of me being far away from God.”

I can recall many times in my life where I was off the beaten, spiritual path and things were falling apart around me. I have watched similar things play out in the lives of others. This suffering is often the result of our bad choices. I have also been in dire straits at points in my life where I was as close to God as I have ever been. When I was a pre-teen I was quite close to God. I can recall praying for hours at night till I would fall asleep. Years would go by without me missing a day of lengthy prayer. I can remember God’s still, small voice speaking to me so clearly throughout the day, and yet, there was plenty of difficulty all around me in my life and in our family. These were testing times for me. God was testing my faith in Him.

We also need to ask the question, “Do we really think the sacrifice of God’s own Son should come with a 100% painless Christian life?” The way I see it, Christians should be more like the apostle Paul and glory in the pains of this life. They are allowed by God the Father for us to experience a small portion of what Christ did for us. If we could get our minds around that thought then our attitudes would change. We would harness the power of heaven as we’re allowed opportunity to suffer at His approval. Pain would simply be a reminder of the cross of Christ and joy would come from mourning.

A Christian is a follower of Christ. So it makes perfect sense that we will also follow Him in suffering of some kind. The good news is that God promises to strengthen us by the Holy Spirit as we “take up our cross.” This suffering is part of what it means to be a Christian.

“Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily (emphasis mine), and follow me.”  Luke 9:23 NLT

Let’s not water down the blessing with our poor attitude. Had you been there that day, would you have reached out and carried His cross? When the opportunity for faith building comes, be strengthened in your faith in God. Learn the positive habit of seeing the joy in suffering for Christ. When you do, you will be amazed at the power of Christ working within you. And you will see the Holy Spirit work miracles in your life.

 

 

Acquaintances

The following section from my Book concludes on some of the hardships that I have endured over the last five years. Get the book and read about how these trials emerged into the eye opening lesson of how God used difficulties in my life to help others I didn't even know and see how it helped me gain peace. It can work in your own life as well.

 

From my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life

“Aside from the impact we can have on people, God uses our money to touch the lives of those around us. Through this journey, I have spent the money I have earned at my job so that many other people— doctors, nurses, office managers, pharmacy techs, little orange bottle manufacturers, paper bag manufacturers, toll booth operators, parking lot workers, and janitors—can make money at theirs. My money has helped make the lives of other people around me better, including acquaintances and people I have never met. It is the system we live in.

 

I bought a new truck, and I was proud of the fact that it was a quality vehicle. And then the air-conditioning went out. If you have ever been without air-conditioning in Houston in the summer, then you can appreciate this. Even though my warranty covered the air-conditioning, I still made about five trips to the dealer, drove extra miles, and spent extra money. But I met people along the way. I was nice to people who dealt with annoying people on a daily basis. I thanked people for their help. God allowed me to experience the burden and spend my hard-earned money to support the rest of those around me who were also made in His image. “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them” (Rom. 8:28 NLT).

 

We need to always remember that life will change on us. We will endure trials, experience seasons in our relationships and our experiences, and gain and lose things. But the way we choose to look at these things will determine the level of peace that we will have in our lives. God uses situations to grow us spiritually. And when we rest in Him with the knowledge that He is in control and works everything for our good, then we can be at peace. Then we can give ourselves over to be used by Him for a great good in the lives of those around us.”

Chapter 3 - Family, Friends, and Acquaintances

 

 

Beauty from ashes

The last few days in America have been a whirlwind of events. They were filled with fear, anxiety, hurt, anger, restlessness, death, mourning and ultimately resolve, courageousness and even happiness. But the sting of these former things are still in play. Because of the acts of evil men, there is still hurt, still pain and still questions. The results of these acts are that there are those who will take time to heal; some physically and many emotionally. These acts are at their very core - of evil, for they in themself have torn the veil between life and death for some living, breathing and beautiful Americans. But know this - God still makes good things from the evil deeds of mankind.

My wife’s grandparents were born in Poland in the years preceding some incredibly evil years in our history. Her grandfather ultimately lived into his 90’s and died but a short drive from Boston and Watertown.  But as he took his last breath and went to be with his God, his back still bore the scars of the evil he saw firsthand in the Nazi concentration camps of Auschwitz and Flossenbürg. The stories of his trials there and the sorrows of separated family still resonate with us even today. When I think of them, I can faintly hear the rumble of my father-in-law’s hungry tummy. I can see him sit as a child beside his mother in a refugee camp in Germany - not knowing if he would ever see his daddy again. And I can hear the quiet song that his mother surely sang to him to quiet his fears.

These are the results of the decisions of evil men. They bring hurt and pain and sometimes even death. But God sees and orchestrates good even from the deeds of evil people. These brave Polish souls stood strong in the face of evil. And they clung to the God they knew had ultimate control over evil. As the days, weeks, years and decades went by, God began doing what He does best. He began to take the pieces and weave them into a new garment.

Some six decades later, that same Polish prisoner sat at a table in San Antonio, Texas - a table placed for the elite. As the wedding photographer’s video camera panned to him, he looked at the joy around him and at his granddaughter, her vibrant figure dressed in white, and spoke the words we still have on film thirteen years later – “I love him and her.” A man crushed but not destroyed, who endured the pain and sorrows of evil men and saw the joy of God’s handiwork as the Great Artisan.

“I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.

And I know that whatever God does is final. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. God’s purpose is that people should fear him. What is happening now has happened before, and what will happen in the future has happened before, because God makes the same things happen over and over again.”  Ecclesiastes 3:10-15 NLT

Evil has existed since the dawn of our time. Each of us struggles with it in some way. And some of us are even driven by it; driven to do the worst of acts. This same evil will not stop until the final day when God say “enough!” Until that day, we each have but one short life to live. Whatever evil is enacted upon us in these days cannot get around the vantage point of God. His work is to create beauty from the ashes. “…he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning…” Isaiah 61:3 NLT)

 “We must wait with patience for the full discovery of that which to us seems intricate and perplexed, acknowledging that we cannot find out the work that God makes from the beginning to the end, and therefore must judge nothing before the time.” Matthew Henry

“…but we must wait till the veil be rent, and not arraign God’s proceedings nor pretend to pass judgment on them.” Matthew Henry

The word “fear” in verse fourteen of Ecc 3 is more about “awe.” The Hebrew “yara” means – “to stand in awe of, reverence, honour, respect, to cause astonishment and awe, to inspire reverence or godly fear.” In all that transpires in this life, God wants us to revere Him as the caretaker of all things and all events. He wants us to recognize that, through good or bad events, He is the only One who can see every facet of life – past, present and future. He made time and He can shape it. Therefore, no bad aspect of this life can stand without being shaped into good by God. His eternal plan is for good. So He shapes even the evil of this life into good. For that godly intent, and in His capacity as the Almighty, we should stand in awe before Him in great respect. We should trust that He is working things all out for our good.

In the meantime, let us enjoy the good in life. Let us eat, drink, love and care for those who God has allowed to walk beside us. Hold tight to the good and trust Him with the bad. He is in control. And one day He will command the sound of the trumpet, evil will meet its end, the good of God will reign forever and we with Him in the glory of His presence! Amen.

He will lift us up

"How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?

How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and day after day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, Lord my God.

Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,
and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love;

my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing the Lord’s praise,
for he has been good to me."

Psalm 13: 1-6 NIV

The tragedy today in Boston is yet another example of the evil in this world. Our enemy, be it those fellow humans who seek to destroy us, or the army of Satan itself, it seeks to destroy us. They do indeed rejoice when we fall. It breaks my heart to see the footage of those who fell today. It throbs at the thought of those who were within the circle of smoke; those who were not seen in the footage. And to those who were not there but were waiting for their loved ones to return home from the race.

Our enemies have indeed rejoiced. But we trust in the unfailing love of the Father. In Him, we have our salvation. He oversees these acts of evil. And we trust in Him to work this evil into good for all of those affected. May His gracious favor be upon them and upon us as we mourn for them – our fellow Americans. And may the justice of the Almighty ensue swiftly.

 

 

Snippets of Peace

 

From my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life

 

 “This is where readers find that the author has taken a bad

situation and magically turned it shining in a few orchestrated

words, all to prove a point. Well, this is real life after all. And

sometimes God’s finale for proving a point ends differently.

That meager moment of mine didn’t end simply with the huge

blue moon and the sound of children’s laughter. It ended when

I recognized the message. He was giving me peace with the

pain of feet covered in fire ants.” 

CH2 - Made in His Image

 

 

“How often we go through life and swing from moments of

bliss to junctures of distress. It is as if we hang from a tree on a

hard, wooden board and sway our way through life. At times,

we may feel like we’re just swinging from one bad experience

to the next. We should be reminded of the family in our life

and the experiences we share. Use them all. The times of joy

remind us that God’s gifts of peace bring comfort. The bad ones

remind us that this life is groaning around us in anticipation of

the return of God’s perfect order and majesty. And in due time,

we shall prevail. Take heart in the hurt.”

CH3 - Family, Friends, and Acquaintances

 

 

“Grown endurance results in winning. The Olympics have

filled the news over the past few weeks. It’s that time when the

world comes together to compete for the prize. We are in a life

of spiritual Olympics. We are in training every day. Some of

us work smart, and we toil hard. Some of us just show up and

hang out on the sidelines. Unlike the sports Olympics, in the

spiritual Olympics, we all try out, and we all qualify to race.

But we don’t all win. When we feel the heat and run with

God, we develop endurance. Our gained strength results in a

successful finish.

 Descriptions of life packed with pressure fill the Bible. Yet

Christ Himself managed to take on the greatest pressure of all

when He died on the cross. He was able to do that with the

peace He had within Him. This is the same peace where we can

find calm within when we go through our own battles in life.

The process is hard, but the pursuit is simple, and the results

are amazing. And it starts with us dedicating the battle to the

Lord and resting in His promises.”

CH4 -  Decision Making

 

eBook 

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I Can See Clearly Now – the Log is Gone

Have you ever had a stye in your eye? Well I had not – until this week. I have no clue what brought it on. I just woke up the other morning and felt like my wife had punched me in the eye in the middle of the night. And with the irritation came what felt like a sinus headache without the sinus congestion. Weird, but painful. I must admit, the mental distraction that this little bump of pain gave me made me ask the question, “Lord, why do you let people get styes in their eyes? What good could come from it?”

This trivial situation reminded me of a passage in Luke. In the text, we see that Jesus took those who were following Him and went up into the mountain on the edge of Capernaum (Peter’s home town). He prayed all night. Now I have never been able to do this successfully. I have made it hours but never all night. The next morning, you would think that Jesus would be exhausted. I’m thinking an egg McMuffin and a long nap. But He gets right to business. He comes down with his followers and hand-picks his twelve disciples. Jesus may have actually been physically exhausted as a man but He was no doubt spiritually rejuvenated. In the midst of the twelve, and the multitude of people below who had come to hear Him speak, Jesus then turns to His twelve and begins to deliver his most famous sermon - “The Sermon on the Mount.”

New disciples, praying all night to prepare His speech - you would expect some powerful words to come from that. The KJV says “And He lifted up His eyes on His disciples.” If you were one of these novice disciples who had just seen this man cast out demons, heal leprosy, fill empty nets with fish to the point of bursting and stretch out the bones of a man’s withered hand, you might be ready to take notes on what He is about to say as His eyes gaze upon you. Less than thirty verses later, Jesus, looking at His chosen few, draws a powerful illustration. “Get the log out of your own eye so you can see clearly to get the speck out of your friend’s eye!” Ouch! If a little stye could do so much to distort my vision and mental clarity, I can only image what it would be like with a log in my eye. Could I see at all? Would the pain be so severe that I could not think clearly at all? Would I be in any position whatsoever to actually help someone else with anything? I think I would be absolutely useless.

Jesus was simply saying that we should be careful to not judge others for their mishaps and wrongdoings and for their sins and mistakes, because we’ve got our own problems. We sin against God in our own ways. And the Lord precedes this warning with things that we should do instead; be merciful, love your enemies, give to others - expecting nothing in return, turn the other cheek, bless those who despitefully use us. I guess this gives a whole new meaning to, “the meek shall inherit the earth.”

“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.” Luke 6:41-42 NLT

 

The Cry of a Raven

One of the last stops that Jesus made on His way to Jerusalem was just northwest of the city in the town of Jericho. You may recall the Old Testament story of when the Israelites marched around Jericho and God made the walls fall down. Jericho dates back to some 11,000 years ago. Scripture says that as Jesus entered this town that a great number of people was with Him. The Greek word ochlos describes it as a multitude of common people gathered without order. Imagine walking through your city and people just begin to walk towards you from out of the woodworks; houses, parks, stores, shops and buildings. These are people of all walks of life and backgrounds. And they are all converging on you at once. None of them have spoken to the others about a meeting of sorts. They just heard you were here and they are all coming to you at one time. This is what was happening to Jesus as He entered Jericho.

In the midst of this multitude of excited people was a man named Bartimaeus. He was blind. But he heard the excitement in the crowd and no doubt he heard Jesus was on the scene. He couldn’t see Him, but he had heard of His power and authority of even the diseased, the sinner and the demons. This Jesus - He could heal. And this could be Bart's last chance to receive his sight. But how could blind Bart get the attention of this Jesus of Nazareth? He cried out the name of Jesus. But don’t read too fast. Keep the story in perspective. Remember the multitude of excited people moving through town like a wave with no order. Blind Bart cried aloud. The Greek word is krazo which means "the loud cry of a crow." Our friend Bart cried loudly like the sound of a crow ringing out in the sky above. But no word from Jesus. Bart cried out so loud that many people around him “charged him that he should hold his peace.” (KJV)

What did old Bart do then? “…but he cried the more a great deal, “Thou Son of David, have mercy on me!”” So what happened next? Walking among this crown of juiced up people, what of Jesus? What of the man whom Bartimaeus cried so loudly? “And Jesus stood still…” Mark 10:49 KJV.

Are you trapped in your own proverbial city of Jericho, surrounded by walls of burdens that isolate you from peace? Does your heart ache with the agony of sin, the regrets of the past, the sorrow of loss, the fear of the future? Are you surrounded by people who you feel are getting to the source of the strength and hope that you cannot seem to attain? Are you blind to the way that leads to joy and that final release of a breath of fresh resolve? Cry out! Jesus passed through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem where He would die on a cross and then the power of God Himself would raise Him from death to life everlasting. This power and strength to bring down your walls is alive today and available to those who have faith enough to cry out to Him.

The cry of blind Bartimaeus was enough to make the Son of God stand still in the midst of a pressing crowd. He got the attention of God. He received his sight because of his persistence. And he “followed Jesus in the way.” Don’t give up. Don’t give in to those around you who may tell you to simmer down and deal with your burden. Jesus walks among us. Get His attention! You won’t regret it.

Mark 10:46-52

 

 

Cinnamon Twists

My wife recently went to have dinner with a good friend of ours; girls night out. So Daddy got to come home early from work and watch the kids. After mommy left, I sat on the couch and looked at the troops. They were spaced out watching the Universal Pictures movie “Despicable Me.” I think I asked them three or four times what they wanted for dinner. I never really got an answer. I made some suggestions but they weren’t the least bit interested. Of course, the movie has earned almost $600 million so I guess it must be good (maybe I should consider writing screen plays?).

I have this dreadful, mental illness called “Taco Bell Syndrome.” When I get the opportunity to go grab some crunchy tacos, I make haste. But to my dismay, they didn’t seem interested; no crunchy tacos, soft tacos, Mexican pizzas, burritos, gorditos or nachos. Nada. Here I am trying to get my TB fix and I can’t even get one out of three Hucklets to budge. So I slowly stated with a look of melancholy, “Well, I guess we’ll go somewhere else. I sure was hoping to go to TB though and have their cinnamon twists for dessert.” Well what do you know? All of a sudden I have their attention.

“I want crunchy tacos!”

“No, I want nachos!”

“No, I want soft tacos!”

My friends, this is the exact picture of our existence before God. Our minds are wandering vagabonds, dragging the sands of life as we trek from one ill-focused thought to another. And when we are fixed on something, it always seems to be something we want and not something He wants from us. God has the desire to take us places. They are not always the same. We don’t always like them. They don’t always come with a prize inside.  But let’s not act like children. Let’s be grown-ups about it. Take notice, lest your heavenly Daddy move on without you. He doesn’t entice us along with the things we like. To do so could be considered - despicable.

 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 32:8 NIV

 

Snakes and Alligators

“Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him.” --- Psalm 105:4 NLT

I recently took my boys to a forested park that surrounds a winding, boggy creek. It is a local hotspot for bird watchers. And it just happens to also be a home for alligators. There are trails that wind their way through the forest and along the creek banks. Sometimes the trails are up to 6 feet wide, the path is easily seen and is wide open on either side with clear sky above. At other times, the trail is as narrow as a bike tire; the wood grasses hug close at either side of your feet and a fifty foot ceiling of pine forest towers overhead.

It doesn’t take long once you enter this green jungle of a maze to get lost in the details. My kids roared into the main leg of the trail with excitement and a clear vision of what was ahead. The steady sound of birds chirping all around and twisting trees throughout were enticing to the senses. But they soon became disenchanted with the unknown as the trail became more difficult to walk. As the walk became more taxing on their bodies, their emotions became more affected by what their senses were grabbing. Instead of excitement for a sound they heard or a movement in the trees, it became a nervous “what was that?!” or “did you see that?!”

Luckily for them, I had already been on this trail before. I had already experienced the change and the slight sensory deprivation. I was already accustomed to that feeling of looking down a tight trail and thinking every stick across the path was a cottonmouth. And even better for them was that I had my smartphone in hand with maps of the trails and GPS showing me exactly where I was at. I knew the path. As long as they stayed close to me they would eventually get back to the truck.

New Christians and more experienced Christians alike will sometimes get distracted in life. They may get on a trail they have never been on and experience some hardships along the way. Some may stir up their souls and release emotional anxieties. Perhaps there are specific difficulties or sins that they are dealing with that find them back in an exhausted position of dire need and difficulty. Such is this path of life. Sometimes the redbirds on wide trails are replaced with mosquito infested turns near alligator laden, muddy waters. But in either case, the Owner of the forest of life knows the path because He created it. And He created the path you are on specifically for you; every inch of it.

The magic to life is in the search for God. After all, He created it, so we should expect that searching diligently for Him would uncover hidden treasures. He has already laid them before us. It’s not as much about the details but about what God shows us in them. You will never truly understand those details unless you seek Him continually. You will never have the strength you need in the difficult parts of the journey without continually searching for Him. The verb “continually” here means just that-never stopping. He won’t make you find Him. He prepares the journey and wants you to desire to search for Him in the details. March on! There is much to discover in Him.

The Foolishness of God

Have you ever thought about God’s foolishness? Have you ever considered the fact that He is engaged in foolish things? Did you know that the Bible actual speaks about it? Well it does!

“Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”1 Corinthians 1:25 (NKJV)

I have been blessed to have received some great feedback so far on my recent book about peace. One of the reasons that people have a lack of peace is because they don’t see the relationship between themselves and the Creator of the universe. They feel disconnected with God. They cannot get their arms around the fact that they can not only be connected to God but actually used by God. I think the main reason for this is because people don’t see how a wise God can hang around unwise, selfish, cynical, proud, sinful and foolish people. Well guess what? That’s what He longs for.

“So God created human beings in His own image…” Genesis 1:27 (NLT)

“Then God looked over all He had made, and He saw that it was very good!” Genesis 1:31 (NLT)

“For I was born a sinner - yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.” Psalm 51:5 (NLT)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

You can never get to the point to where you can be used by God until you understand first that you were made in His image; you were made to be perfect like Him. You have to come to the understanding that you were born a sinner from the first second of your life! You have to realize that even still, God sees you as good. And you must harness the hope you have in Him that He has a wonderful plan for your life. Regardless of how you feel, or what emotional baggage you carry around with you, the facts are still the facts. God desires you and He longs to do great things through you.

It all seems pretty foolish doesn’t it? But the Bible is full of the stories of men and women who we might deem incapable of or unworthy of a plan from God Himself. Yet, He foolishly chose them to do wonderful things on this planet. And that turned out to be a wise choice. Never underestimate God’s ability to be wise. And never forget that, regardless of what you have done up until the last breath you have taken, God is in pursuit of you. He longs for you. His Spirit tugs at your heart and He whispers to your soul, “Follow me child, I have big plans for you. Come and see.” Foolishness? Sounds like it to me. But tomorrow it could be the wisest thing you ever thought possible.

Suggested Reading – Exodus 3:1-14

The eBook is here!

Ok folks, the eBook for my new book "Pursuing Peace" is ready for download on Amazon for $3.99!

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Pride and Selfishness

An excerpt from my new book Pursuing Peace - Finding God's Peace in a Stressful Life.

 

 

“Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness

before a fall” (Prov. 16:18 NLT).

 

The word “pride” in this passage of scripture is the Hebrew

word “ga’own,” which means “exaltation, majesty, excellence.”

(Strong’s Lexicon reference H1347) And what of, say, “majesty”?

We read about this in Job as he tries to describe the majesty

of God.

 

My heart pounds as I think of this. It trembles within

me. Listen carefully to the thunder of God’s voice as it

rolls from His mouth. It rolls across the heavens, and

His lightning flashes in every direction. Then comes the

roaring of the thunder—the tremendous voice of His

majesty. He does not restrain it when He speaks. God’s

voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine

the greatness of his power. (Job 37:1–5 NLT)

 

These words that describe “pride” certainly don’t seem to

be terms I would dare describe of myself, especially because

they are used to describe the Creator of the universe in which

my small, dusty frame resides in. So it makes sense that, if I am

puffed up with pride, then I’m headed for trouble. God is holy

and majestic. And if anyone deserves the right to be proud, it

is Him.

 

I think pride breeds selfishness. When a person becomes

bigheaded about what he has, he almost assuredly will begin

to think that he should have more. I call this the “deadly duo.” I

don’t know anyone who likes to be around a selfish person. We

equate selfishness to children fighting over toys and married

couples quarrelling through a possible divorce. It’s a side of

people we just don’t like. Some people are just so proud of

themselves that they make us grind our teeth and squint our

eyes.

 

Pride is destructive. And selfishness brings on more pride.

But in the right order, pride can be a very powerful and positive

thing. My wife praises our kids’ achievements and makes sure they

know she is proud of them. And when she tells them to “show

Daddy,” the look in her eyes is easy to interpret. She seems to

express, “Be proud of them.”