An overflowing basket...

I never really understood the cornucopia. Every time you see one, the contents are spilled out over the table. It just seemed like an inefficient way to carry things. I mean, why not use a basket. When I was in elementary school use to color them. You don't hear about them much these days.

I was always more interested in coloring the fruit and vegetables than the actual basket itself. I wanted the right red for the apple, and dark purple for grapes (because I liked purple ones better than green...), pears, corn, bananas... Were there banana's at the first Thanksgiving? I don't think so... The thing is, you can really put what ever you want to in a cornucopia. Primarily because it's not practical for carrying things and it's just for decorative purposes.

Now... the fruit of the spirit? Those are non-negotiable. As a Christian, we are suppose to be displaying fruit. The interesting thing is that it doesn't say "fruits" implying that you might not have one or some of them. Fruit implies that we should be produce one... that manifests itself in many different ways. Kind of like an apple that can be fried in cinnamon, eaten raw, baked in a pie, made into juice... it's the same fruit... just used different ways.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23 New Living Translation

If we aren't producing all of this fruit, then maybe we need to do some pruning in our lives... let's inspect our lives and see if we're missing any of these. God will get the glory if we are! If not, He is faithful to help us get there.

Half full?

When I grew up, we would run around outside for hours and hours. We would ride bikes, climb, chase, crawl, roll... that's a hard days work for a kid. "Work" like that will really build a huge thirst. When it was time to get something to drink, there was nothing better than drinking water from a hose. Whether it came out warm or cool, it didn't matter. We just wanted to drink and be refreshed.

At that moment, there was nothing better than the taste of that water. The taste was a familiar rubbery goodness that I will never forget.

Now that I'm older, I can drink whatever kind of water I want. Tap, Fiji, Disani, filtered, Smart Water... The thing that gets me most is that most people that drink water you find a lot of bottles lying around that are slightly less than half full. If people don't finish the bottle, they'll just get a fresh bottle of water. They toss it away and move on to the next cool bottle of refreshment.

Sometimes, I treat the word of God like a half full bottle of water that's too warm. I go from my morning devotion, to my favorite radio ministers, to my favorite online blogs and never really take the time to let what I heard sink in. Think of it like running through a sprinkler. If you're thirsty, you'll never get all the water you need by running through a sprinkler. You have to be intentional, concentrate, drink it in...

So, that's my struggle for today. To take the time and really meditate on a single passage. Meditate on it to the point where it's life changing and not just informational...

1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
    follow the advice of the wicked,
    or stand around with sinners,
    or join in with mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of the Lord,
    meditating on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
    bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither,
    and they prosper in all they do. (Psalm 1:1-3 New Living Translation)

11I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.
12I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.
13Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God? (Psalm 77:11-13)

The value is what's inside...

I remember when I was in junior high school we had the chance to make clay bowls in art class. We started out with a hard lump of clay that you couldn't even bend or put a thumb print in. You had to add water and work with it until it became pliable. Once the clay would begin to bend to your touch, you would throw it on a pottery wheel that would begin to spin it around in circles. By adding pressure and water you would eventually be able to do things like make the clay rise to unimaginable heights! You could hollow out the inside, shape it and form it into something beautiful.

Once the clay is formed in the desired manner - you put it in the fire to toughen it up. The fire lets the clay hold its shape. Once it's fired, you can add a glaze to make it shiny.

Even with that, it's still a fragile piece of clay.

My bowl leaked. But it didn't keep me from pouring water into it... and as the water slowly leaked out... I would add more water. I was proud of it... it was mine.

Christians are a lot like that piece of clay. We have been hardened by the world into this lifeless lump of clay. We aren't sure what we could be, so we try to blend in with all the other lumps of clay. But God steps in and he adds living water...

37 On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! 38 Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” 39 (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.) John 7:37-40 New Living Translation

God begins to shape us and mold us. Not in any random form... but into a form that looks like Jesus.

4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.  Romans 6:4-6 New Living Translation

God toughens us up by allowing us to be put into situations where we can be sure that we are going to hold on to the form as He has shaped us.

2 Dear brothers and sisters,when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. James 1:2-3 New Living Translation

Of course, when God makes something, it's perfect. But through our own strong willed nature, sometimes we become a cracked vessel. But, as long as we stay connected to God, he will continue to pour Himself into us so we can accomplish His will in our lives.

“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3 You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5 New Living Translation

Let's spend the rest of the week struggling to stay connected to God so we can be vessels of honor that He can use as He see's fit!

 7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. 2 Corinthians 4:7 New Living Translation

Shame

I know this guy that was going to get his security clearance. He asked me if I would be a reference for him. During the course of his life, he had done a lot of stupid things, but he had really changed his life around. For him, the days of drinking too much, womanizing, bar fights were behind him. I asked him if there was anything in particular he wanted me to gloss over. His response was "tell them the whole truth, the good, the bad and the ugly."

I asked him if he was sure, and he said - "yes, I know I've messed up in the past. I'm a different person now. What they want to do is make sure that I've told them everything. That way, no one will be able to threaten me to give out secrets because of something I'm afraid to share. There's a lot of freedom in not having skeletons in your closet."

That really made me think about Christianity for a second. Before we accepted Christ, we all did some crazy things. Many of us are ashamed of those things, and if we're honest... some of us still wrestle with some of those same things!

This... is what our enemy, the devil, uses against us. He will bring up our past, or our mistakes. As a result, we feel shame and withdraw ourselves from those around us. We crawl into our shell. Then, once we are alone, it's easy to walk away from the cross.

We should take a lesson from this. If we tell each other about our struggles, then we can get help. There is no shame in slipping and falling. We all do it. But when we embrace each other in love... when we band together - there is a smaller chance of crawling into our shell and withdrawing.

Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. (James 5:16 New Living translation)

My dear brothers and sisters, if someone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back you can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins. (James 5:19-20 New Living Translation)

There is no need to try and struggle by yourself. If we as Christians were open with each other about our struggles, then we would all work together to be better followers of Christ, instead of pretending to be something that we are not.

Re-story your life

No one is perfect. We all have some issues in our life. For some of us, it was the dysfunctional family that we grew up in. For others, it's bad relationships that we've been in as adults. On some level, we are all dealing with something.

Some people are better at hiding what's going on than others. They're life is like a nicely painted house with a manicured lawn, but on the inside, their foundation is cracked and their doors and windows don't open and close.

What causes these issues? Generally, things that we've heard. Society tells women that they need to be the perfect size. Our national obsession with fashion has gone so far that even the "perfect" models are air brushed to become... more perfect.

For others, it's the voice of their parents telling them that they would either amount to nothing resulting in low self esteem. Others had parents that pushed them to perfection and to obsessive control over area in their lives.

Women are told that they must have sex in order to keep an man. Men are told that they have to sleep with as many women as possible to be a man.

There are so many voices telling us stories about how we need to be, and none of it is really solving the real problem.

Maybe... just maybe, we need to stop listening to the stories that others tell us about how life should be lived. Maybe, we should re-story our lives by listening to something else.

Maybe, instead of trying to live our story, we should live God's story. What does that mean?

3 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.
5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. 6 Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. 7 You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. 8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. 11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. (Colossians 3:3-17 New Living Translation)

Let's start this week by stop listening to the stories that others tell us about our lives. Let us re-story our lives based upon what God says!

How far are you willing to go?

Sometimes I look at the Christian teachers on television and I ask myself, "Where is the passion?" Sometimes, it seems like Christians have been taught that we are suppose to be docile and peaceful. Passion, screaming at the top of your lungs... anything that is explosive for the most part is looked down upon.

Think about it. We live on a planet that was created by the most high God. An invader came into the house of God and turned his peaceful garden into a place that no longer welcomed their rightful King. Most of the people have been brainwashed and no longer believe that there is a king or that He will one day come back to reclaim his His throne!

This morning, I'm thinking about Jesus who entered the temple, through the money changers tables over, braided a whip and chased people out of His Fathers house screaming at the top of his lungs "My house is supposed to be a house of prayer, but you have turned it into a den of thieves!" (Matthew 21:13)

34 “Don’t imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword.
35 ‘I have come to set a man against his father,
    a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
36     Your enemies will be right in your own household!’
37 “If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. 38 If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. 39 If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it. (Matthew 10:34-37 New Living Translation)

This is not a call to physical arms. We need to be aware that we are fighting a spiritual battle. We need to be ready to stand up and say what we believe without fear and trepidation. We have the right to express our beliefs. There is a difference between passing judgment on someone and saying "You are wrong in your lifestyle", and saying "I believe homosexuality or sexual relations out of marriage is wrong."

So, how far are you willing to go to stand up for your beliefs against the masses that are telling you that you are wrong?

 

You hold the key...

Every once in a while I see something that catches my eye and it makes me think. This image immediately made me think of "the heart." By nature, every one of us is born with a heart that is hard and does not want God to enter in. It's the sin nature that we inherited from Adam.

Our sin nature is just like this block of stone with a keyhole that you can't even get a key in! There is this thing that looks like a keyhole, but as hard as you try, you just can't get a key into it.

That is the basic state that man is in. Hard heart. No way to change by ourselves.

Jesus says, "Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. (Revelations 3:20)

Just take a second and remember what life was like before you let Jesus in. Remember that he wants to have an intimate relationship with us... let's remember to spend some quality time with God today. It will change your outlook on life.