Even when I'm sleeping?

Have you ever had that disorienting sleep where you lay down for a nap and then wake up and you aren't quite sure what time it is? I especially don't like the feeling when you look at the clock and based upon the time and the time of year it could either be early in the morning or sometime in the evening.

In the disorientation, your mind races to find out if you should be racing to get to work, or if in a few hours it's time for bed.

I hate that feeling, and I'm glad that it only happens once in a while...

I lay down and slept; I awoke again, for the Lord sustained me. Psalm 3:5

Sometimes, we take even something as simple as sleep for granted. We expect to fall asleep, then wake up the next morning and continue with our mundane life. When we're sleep, we're completely helpless to the world. However, God sustains us.

I try to stay in the habit of hearing God's voice when I awake in the morning. I lie still in bed and listen. It's seems so much easier to hear His voice before the craziness of the day starts, and even more of a struggle to remember what He said as the day goes on...

Let us struggle to remember that God is there and that He cares for us, even in the things that we take for granted, like sleep. If He cares for us in our sleep, how much more does He care about how we conduct ourselves during our waking hours?

How do you view the world?

I once visited a church where the people held up their tithes and offerings and yelled "Money, come unto me now!" I was amazed. It was as if God would only supply them with money, all their problems would be solved. God would give them the money and they would be able to get their houses, cars, and everything that was needed to be financially well off.

I honestly don't have a problem with people acquiring wealth, I just really think that they may have missed the point.

God's people are never called to view things from the perspective of the world, we're called to view things through the heart of God.

"...Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations,' But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, "Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them." 1 Sam 8:5-7

Here, there people saw what the "world" looked like, and they wanted be to like the world. As a result of not looking to God, the people had kings over them that led them away from God because they looked towards man instead of looking towards God.

However, in the fullness of time, God sent His son to be king over us. Born in a stable, coming as a servant instead of a warrior that bridged the gap between men and God.

So, I guess the question is, are we trying to work through the issues of our life based upon what we now and how we see others resolving their issues, or are we depending on God? Let us struggle to see God's plan and not measure our successes in the views of the world.

A Christmas Retrospective

I remember when I was a about 5 years old, I really believed in Santa Claus. I would go to bed early, barely able to fall asleep due to the anticipation of seeing what was under the tree. I remember waking up at 4am in the morning and knocking on everyone's door so they would see what surprises were under the tree. I remember the joy of ripping open presents and the delight of seeing what gifts I received I can honestly say that I don't remember what anyone else received... that moment was all mine!

I also remember when I had my own children. We would wait until Christmas Eve when everyone. After everyone went to bed, we would go through this frenzy of putting up a Christmas tree, decorations, and wrapping gifts. We made sure that we were awake before the kids and that wait for that moment when they walked around the corner and see how the house had been transformed with lights, a tree, and presents!

Now that most of the kids are grown, I think I may have missed the point or at last not emphasized the importance of the season correctly. In my mind, it was always about giving of gifts and making sure that thy were happy - even though the happiness was temporary... toys eventually forgotten, but in my younger days, the bills remained for much longer.

Around 6am on Christmas Eve I went into Walmart to buy a belt because mine had broken, and I stopped to talk with a man that worked there. He told me about how he stopped a man trying to steal $700 worth of presents. His words were, "That's a felony! I know he wanted to do something for his family this year, but this changes their whole life!"

I know we all think about the fact that God sent His son, and that the 3 wise men came bearing gifts, but there is one scripture that I think we should all pay closer attention to:

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” Matt 2:1-2

 We get so caught up on the fact that they brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh, that we forget that the real reason they came was to worship Jesus, born King, the Savior of us all!

Going into the new year, let's try to keep things in perspective and remember to worship God because He devised a plan to reconcile man back to Himself because he loved us. Selah.

Sometimes, obedience is hard...

There is an account in the Bible of an unknown prophet who had a very short tenure in the service of God. For years, I've wrestled with story and think I finally have an understanding of why things happened the way they did.

In 1st Kings 13, an unknown prophet is instructed by God to prophesy against King Jeroboam who had been leading God's people astray by having them worship false Gods. The Kings' hand withers and is restored, the stone altar is miraculously ripped in half... this guy is demonstrating God's power and signs and wonders are following.

Here's the catch, God instructs this prophet to not stay to eat or drink there, but to leave immediately.

The problem is that an older prophet heard of this and was so excited that another man of God was there that he asked the unnamed prophet to come to his house. He even lied and told him that God said that it was okay.

The result of this disobedience was that the unnamed prophet was eaten by a lion!

God had great plans for this man, but apparently he couldn't be trusted... he could be swayed by another person. As a result, he was useless to God. Unable to be trusted.

The story is harsh, but it still holds true today. Even though we live under grace sometimes we frustrate the grace of God instead of living the way that Paul describes in Galatians 2:20-21 where it is written:

Galatians 2:20-21
King James Version (KJV)
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

Let us struggle to remain obedient to what God says, regardless of what others are saying around us.

For your convenience, I'm copying the text of 1 Kings 13 below.

And behold, la man of God came out of Judah by the word of theLord to Bethel. Jeroboam was standing by the altar mto make offerings. 2 nAnd the man cried against the altar by the word of the Lordand said, “O altar, altar, thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, oJosiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.’” 3 And he gave pa sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign that the Lord has spoken: ‘Behold, the altar shall be torn down, and the ashes that are on it shall be poured out.’” 4 And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Seize him.” And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. 5 The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord. 6 And the king said to the man of God, q“Entreat now the favor of the Lord your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.” And the man of God entreated the Lord, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before.7 And the king said to the man of God, “Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and rI will give you a reward.” 8 And the man of God said to the king, s“If you give me half your house, tI will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, 9 for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came.’” 10 So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel.

The Prophet's Disobedience

11 Now uan old prophet lived in Bethel. And his sons1 came and told him all that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told to their father the words that he had spoken to the king. 12 And their father said to them, “Which way did he go?” And his sons showed him the way that the man of God who came from Judah had gone. 13 And he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted it. 14 And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.” 15 Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.” 16 And he said, v“I may not return with you, or go in with you, neither will I eat bread nor drink water with you in this place, 17 for it was said to me wby the word of the Lord, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor return by the way that you came.’” 18 And he said to him, “I also am a prophet as you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water.’” But he lied to him. 19 So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water.

20 And as they sat at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back. 21 And he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord and have not kept the command that the Lord your God commanded you, 22 but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’” 23 And after he had eaten bread and drunk, he saddled the donkey for the prophet whom he had brought back. 24 And as he went away xa lion met him on the road and killed him. And his body was thrown in the road, and the donkey stood beside it; the lion also stood beside the body. 25 And behold, men passed by and saw the body thrown in the road and the lion standing by the body. And they came and told it in the city where ythe old prophet lived.

26 And when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard of it, he said, “It is the man of God who disobeyed the word of the Lord; therefore the Lord has given him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word that the Lord spoke to him.” 27 And he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And they saddled it.28 And he went and found his body thrown in the road, and the donkey and the lion standing beside the body. The lion had not eaten the body or torn the donkey. 29 And the prophet took up the body of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back to the city2 to mourn and to bury him. 30 And he laid the body in his own grave. And they mourned over him, saying, z“Alas, my brother!” 31 And after he had buried him, he said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; alay my bones beside his bones. 32 bFor the saying that he called out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and againstcall the houses of the high places that are in the cities of dSamaria shall surely come to pass.”

33 After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people. Any who would, he ordained to be priests of the high places. 34 eAnd this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, fso as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth.

Who do you want in your church? People that look like you, or people who need to be there?

About 20 years ago I stopped dressing up when I went to church. One day, it just struck me to go to church in a pair of cut off sweat pants, and an old t-shirt to see how people would receive me. It was an interesting experiment that I continue to this day.

Somehow, in today's society, church has become this social club where they want to attract a certain type of person, and friends can congregate. It's the new social setting...

But, how would your church react... no, how would you react if a homeless person came in and sat next to you?

True story, I was attending a church in NY and we were serving a dinner. One of the homeless people that came from a local shelter came in and sat next to me. One of the women in the church got really offended that he was there because he was ruining her meal. The young man was truly offended because he truly loved coming to the church, and this was the first time in a long time that he was receiving a great meal.

I tried to explain to her away from the group the importance of the mission of the church and why it's important that we open our doors to people like this. She very angrily responded - which ended a great multi-year friendship between her family and mine... It didn't end because I wanted it to. It ended because she was offended when presented with the truth.

What would you have done in a similar situation?

Those who are well have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners. Mark 2:17

In this case... both people needed Jesus... only one person realized it.

Let us struggle to reach out to those who truly need Jesus, whether they realize it or not.

Not making progress? Try something else...

Any great change in life comes starts with making the decision that there is some change that needs to be made, then deciding to make that change. That, simply put is what it means to repent. To change your mind.

For most of my adult life, I have struggled with my weight. I have always used the excuses to justify why I hadn't started the change.

• My knee hurts from a malicious kick I received when playing soccer
• My ankles hurt because I ran so much when I was younger, I've worn the enamel from the bones
• My lower back hurts from getting kicked... when I played soccer
• There are plenty of people who are fatter than I am

There is always an excuse. But when you realize how the extra weight is causing the knee, ankle, and back pain, you can do one of 2 things... live with it - let it get worse or change your mind.

I repented, cleaned up my diet, I've been going to the gym... and I see the change!

What does that have to do with Christianity? Everything!

Any great move of God begins with repenting. The realization that the way your life is going needs to change.

Repentance is a major theme is the Bible. We'll take a look at 3 instances - spend some time this week looking at more examples and meditate on where the people were before, and how repentance changed their lives.

1. Mark 1:4-5 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan confessing their sins.
2. Mark 1:14-15 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."
3. Acts 17:29-31 Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

I think this is probably why it was easier for the people who were poor, sick, or rejected by society to accept Jesus. Their lives needed a change. It's much harder to realize that when you have 300 channels of cable tv, a car, and a job.

Let us struggle to remember repentance is key - let us not get so comfortable with ourselves that we forget that and begin to make excuses for our sins. Furthermore, let's share the gospel of repentance with those around us that we see hurting... they're probably ready to hear a message of hope.

Who is in your circle of influence?

As Christians, we tend to think that our Christian duty is to go to church on Sunday, volunteer, and give money. Christianity is far more than that.

In Mark 2:16, the religious leaders of the day ask the following question: "Why does He (Jesus) eat with tax collectors and sinners?" That may be the wrong question... the question should be:

Why would sinners eat with Jesus?

The one thing that we know about Jesus was that He was very truthful. If you were a sinner, He would tell you to stop. If there was an area that you struggled with, He addressed it head on, like He did with the rich young ruler.

So, why would sinners flock to Jesus? If we take an honest look at today's society, most people that the church views as sinners aren't given the opportunity to talk to Christians because most Christians avoid them.

Maybe it's time that we start living our life like Jesus did and spend some time with those that don't know who He is. Let's build relationships where we can sow the Word of God into their lives rather than spending 5 minutes sharing something then leaving to never see them again.

Jesus said that he came for the sick because those who are well don't need a physician. Let us struggle to open our eyes to those who are lost and struggling so we can share with them the hope that we have in Christ.

Losing the draft...

I went to see my first live NASCAR race this past Sunday. There was this interesting phenomenon that happened that I became fascinated with. Drafting. Not so much drafting, as much as the consequences of losing the draft.

Losing the draft happens when one of the cars loses touch with the pack, and as a result - regardless of how fast they drive - the cannot catch up with the other cars. As a matter of fact, within a few laps, the other cars actually catch up!

There's a benefit that comes in working together where regardless of how hard you work, you just cannot catch up on your own.

What does this have to do with Christianity? Everything!

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25, ESV)

There is power in meeting together. When you get together with like-minded people, you feel encouraged to try harder, strive more fervently. So... let us struggle to not lose the draft and let us work together in order to be all that we can be in Christ!

When is the truth a lie?

There are times when you read things in the Bible so many times that you completely miss the importance of what is being said.

God said, "Let us make man in our image."

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them. And God blessed them. - Gen 1:26-28

The lie that satan told Adam and Eve was that if they ate the fruit, they would be like God.

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Gen 3:6

Did you catch that lie? God created man in His image, but satan said "If you do this, you will be like God."

Are there areas in your life where satan is attacking the truth in your life by telling you lies? Lies like: you're not worthy, you're not good enough... the list goes on.

Let us struggle to remember what the word of God says about us. Le us not get sidetracked by distortions of the truth.

Are you a stick in the mud?

Have you ever seen a stick standing in the mud? They kind of look like a tree, except they're dead. There is no root structure, they aren't alive, but there they are standing... as if they are pretending to be a tree.

To be totally honest, there are times when I feel like I could be a stick in the mud, and other times where I know that I'm rooted and grounded and bearing fruit.

That's our struggle, right? Or am I in this alone?

I think the key is in who you surround yourself with... is your "support system" made up of people that delight in the Lord? Are there people that you can discuss the law of the Lord with? Do you meditate on the words of God day... and night? If so, you will definitely be more like a tree yielding its fruit in season.

Let us struggle to not to find ourselves in a forest of sticks in the mud.

Blessed is the man

who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

but his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree

planted by streams of water

that yields its fruit in its season,

and its leaf does not wither.

In all that he does, he prospers.

The wicked are not so,

but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Psalm 1:1-4