In the beginning..

Faith is an difficult thing. There are ways that we express faith on a daily basis that we take for granted. For example, when we see a chair, we sit on it. We don't pick it up to make sure it's solid. We don't press on the seat to see if it will withstand our weight. Without thinking about it, we just sit down and trust that it will hold us.

Creation is another matter that requires faith. Whether Christian, agnostic, or atheist, it takes a lot of faith to understand how we all came into being. Somehow, we are here and no one really has an understanding of how it happened.

As Christians, we believe it's this simple:

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Gen 1:1)

As Christians, this profound statement is the cornerstone for who we are as a people. We are identified by a relationship with God who formed everything and chooses to adopt us into His family. The order, majesty, and beauty of creation points us to the very nature of God.

Whether you believe in God or not. If you have been hurt by Christianity, Islam, or any other religion, cast that aside for a moment. Take the actions of man/woman out of the equation. Meditate on the fact that God created everything... then ask Him how you should respond.

Feel free to post your reactions!

Now... is the time.

The Kingdom of Heaven is now. In order to live in the Kingdom, it's important that we do it... NOW - at every moment, with every decision.

David was a man after God's own heart, but in a moment he made a bad decision - decided to sleep with Bathsheba, then continued to make bad decisions as he conspired for the death of Uriah. The moment that you stop experiencing the Kingdom, you're in danger of going down a path that takes you away from the Kingdom of heaven.

Peter wrestled with this too. He kept his eyes on the future and missed the Kingdom moment. When he was in the garden with Jesus, he said I will never forsake you! His bold declaration about clinging to the kingdom of heaven was looking in the future and he missed what was happening in the moment. The result was that he denied Jesus 3 times before morning.

1. Matthew 3:2
   And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
2. Matthew 4:17
   From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
3. Matthew 10:7
   And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

This reminds me of a principal that I leaned called the kairos circle:

as we're living our lives on "chronos" time... God will intersect our lives... it's up to us to understand what God is saying, and respond immediately in a way that is in alignment with the Kingdom of Heaven.

Let us struggle to recognize the voice of God and respond in a way that keeps us connected with the Kingdom of Heaven.

Remember?

George Santayana said 

Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

That's a very true sentiment. If I don't remember why I eat healthy, I'll stop. If I don't remember to eat healthy, I'll grab unhealthy choices. If I don't remember to read and remember the Word of God, I will forget it and compromise what I believe.

The Bible encourages us to remember a lot of things. Today, I'm sharing a few things that we should remember:

• ... remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. Ephesians 2:12 ESV

Sometimes we forget where we came from and that without God, we were lost. As a result we take for granted where we are. If we remember why and the benefits of Salvation, we are more apt to hang on to the promises of God without compromise.

• My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from mount Mizar. Psalm 42:6

Sometimes, when we think we are without hope, we need to remember everything that God has done in the past. How He has been faithful. How He has consistently shown us love.

• Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? Matthew 16:9

Even after we have seen the miraculous move of God, it is possible to forget what he has done.

Remembering is an active process. Let us struggle to remember God and not forget his benefits.

Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: (Psalm 103 1-2)

List out the Benefits. Remember them. See how that impacts your day.

Don't move until you see it...

To be very transparent for a moment, this has been a very tough month for me. I was interviewing for my dream job that would have almost secured my future. I would not have had to worry about retirement, where I was going to be 10 or 15 years from now... this job was secure. I was their number 1 candidate and a virtual shoe in until they hired 1 person to fill 3 different positions.

I was sad and disappointed but still held on to my faith. If God could bring something like this into my path, he can definitely bring something even better! But it did reveal a few things about my relationship with God that I need to work on. So, in the regard, I understand.

The security and stability in my relationship with God is far greater than any job.

So, as I was reflecting on this, my mind drifted back to when I was younger and use to play chess. One of the guys that I would play would say "Don't move until you see it." There are so many choices in the game of chess, and sometimes there's this really great series of moves that could shift the tide of the game. One wrong move and a good position could turn into a terrible one.

I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:13-14, ESV) 

In all honesty, sometimes it's easier to say these words to someone else than it is to live them out yourself. Let us struggle to wait on God and to not move until we see His hand and His provision. The question is... what do we do while we're waiting? Let's explore that tomorrow...

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.