Spiritual Fullness in Christ

Happy Halloween! I hope that your day is filled with a lot of excitement, prosperity, and hopefully nothing to spooky.

This morning I want to touch on the subject of Spiritual Fullness in Christ. I have mentioned it before a couple of times in posts that I have shared but this morning I have some scripture to go along with it. My hope for you is that you can get to the point where you experience fulfillment through Christ, not through things of this world.

Before I get there I want to share another verse with you that I just read and it fits the reason why I started this blog in the first place. This verse is like the goal that I have for anyone who reads this. Colossians 2:2-3: My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. That has been my very goal from the beginning. I want to encourage you and unite you in love so that you may know the mystery of God, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. This blog has never been about me but serving other people and encouraging. I could ask for publicity and ask for responses but I don't. I know that the people who see this and read it aren't because of me but because of God. I whole-heartly believe that encouraging people through reading and writing is what God's purpose is for me right now. Whether 50 people see my posts or a couple hundred I know that God will use this to affect at least one person. I may never know if you are encouraged by these but that really doesn't matter all to much to me, that is between you and your relationship with Christ. I know that some of you have reached out to me and have told me that you have been encouraged and that means the world to me because I know that God is doing work in your life. For the people who have seen any of these posts I appreciate you taking the time to read them or skim through them. I say that because I know that it is all a God thing. I'll say it again, because I know that God made this my purpose right now so that you are encouraged and are united in love, so that you may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that you may know the mystery of God, namely in Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Back to Spiritual Fullness. I think that it is so hard for a lot of people to experience it because of things in this world. People search for fulfillment through so many worldly things. Like music, movies, relationships, and maybe even some friendships. I think that people seek fulfillment in things that will give them pleasure. Sure, you might find pleasure in some of those things but its brief and only scratches the surface. There is a difference between pleasure and fulfillment and I think that people get confused between the two. Fulfillment is a feeling that is eternal and that feeling that you feel in your heart. Fulfillment leaves a feeling of satisfaction and want. When I experience fulfillment, it is through my time spent with Christ-that feeling of fulfillment the Spirit gives me is so great-it is something I want to experience over and over and over again. It's like an addiction. It's a healthy spiritual addiction. I am addicted to spiritual fulfillment whereas a lot of people are addicted to worldly pleasures. Some people get mixed up in the wrong crowd and get involved in doing some things that will only give brief enjoyment. I want you to think of a time where you felt like you were experiencing spiritual fulfillment. If you can think of that time, I bet that you cannot really put what you were feeling into words. That is because our God is so good! You felt that way because of him! Why do we continue to seek worldly pleasure when you have felt the presence of God? It's just the battle that we fight every single day, over and over again. It's a battle that has already been won. Satan deceives us every day-but he has been defeated. The tools and everything you need for spiritual fulfillment is right in front of you. It's a matter of us putting in the effort. I hope and pray that you can seek out those opportunities. Remember though, spiritual fulfillment doesn't happen because you want it to, it happens because of the Sprit. I am not a perfect man of God, and I am nowhere near perfect, but I can tell you that if you can carve out some time to spend with God everyday that you will experience everything that I just talked about. It takes a lot of discipline and motivation. I believe that when you become disciplined and motivated to something that it becomes a healthy addiction. If you make quite time with God a priority I bet that you will become addicted. It's not something that will happen in a couple of days or a couple of weeks...it will take a couple of months to become addicted to it. It's a process that you need to fall in love with.

Colossians 2:9-10: For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.

So, when we are in Christ, all the fullness of the Spirit lives in us. Christ brings us to fullness. When it seems like worldly things have power, they don't. Christ has the power and authority over everything.

Remember this:
-Realty is found in Christ

***A few people so dedicated in time will shake the world for God***

Run with Patience

I will be sharing a devotional from the book called Streams in the Desert. It is a 365 day devotional. I am sharing this because it is nice to switch it up.

October 30, 2017

Hebrews 12:1: Let us run with patience.

Running "with patience" is a very difficult thing to do. The word "running" itself suggests the absence of patience, or an eagerness to reach the goal. Yet we often think of it as an angel who guards the bed of the disabled. Yet I do not believe that the kind of patience a disabled person may have is the hardest to achieve. There is another kind of patience that I believe is harder to obtain-the patience that runs. Lying down during a time of grief, or being quiet after a financial setback, certainly implies great strength, but I know of something that suggests even greater strength-the power to continue working after a setback, the power to still run with a heavy heart, and the power to perform your daily tasks with deep sorrow in your spirit. This is a Christlike thing! Many of us could tearlessly deal with our greed if only we were allowed to do so in private. Yet what is so difficult is that most of us are called to exercise our patience not in bed but in the open street, for all to see. We are called upon to bury our sorrows not in restful inactivity but in active service-in our workplace, while shopping, and during social events-contributing to other people's joy. No other way of burying our sorrow is as difficult as this, for it is truly what is meant by running "with patience." Dear Son of Man, this was Your kind of patience. It was both waiting and running at one time-waiting for the ultimate goal while in the meantime doing lesser work. I see You at Cana of Galilee, turning water into wine so that the marriage feast would not be ruined. I see you in the desert, feeding the multitude with bread, simply to relieve a temporary need. Yet all the time, You were bearing a mighty grief-not shared or spoken. Others may ask for a "rainbow in the clouds" (Genesis 9:13), but I would ask for even more from You. Make me, in my cloud, a rainbow bringing the ministry of joy to others. My patience will only be perfect when it works in Your vineyard.

When all our hopes are gone, 

It is best our hands keep toiling on

For others' sake:

For strength to bear is found in duty done;

And he is best indeed who learns to make

The joy of others cure his own heartache. 

Thanksgiving and Prayer

I just started reading the book of Colossians today and could not be any more pumped about reading it. Paul wrote the book of Colossians and it was for the people of Colossae, the people of Colossae are models to how we should live our daily lives. I plan on sharing a little bit about thanksgiving and a little bit about prayer. The book of Colossians is a book that models what the gospel is and should always be like.

Colossians 1:3-6: We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God's people-the faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have already heard in the true message of the gospel that has come to you. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world-just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard and truly understood God's grace.

One of the parts that really stick out to me is that part about how the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world-just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard and truly understood God's grace. I fires me up to know that the gospel is always bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world since the day we first heard and understood God's grace. Reading that makes me want to spread the gospel to as many people as I can before I am no longer able to. It makes me want to not only spread the gospel but to spread love like wildfires.

Colossians 1:9-14: For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of the light. For he has rescued us from dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

That is such a beautiful prayer. That is may prayer for you as well.

There is a verse I want to close with is Colossians 1:29: To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.

I like that because I want to be that for everyone I know. I will use all the time I have-whether I am full of energy or extremely tired from the business of life-I will use all the strength and power that God gives me to encourage you. I hope that you can take that to heart and try and do the same. The strength God gives us is incredible. If you have ever fully felt it when you needed it the most I am sure that you can attest to it as well.

~ you are loved ~

The Gospel in the Air

Right now, I am reading the books of Job and Song of Songs in my Bible. I don't know if you have ever read through those books but they can be pretty difficult to understand. Even with the Holy Spirit doing work sometimes it is just a little hard to really take something away from two books like that. This morning I am going to share with you another little excerpt from the book Explicit Gospel. It's about the gospel in the air. If we hold to the gospel on the ground only, we commit the cardinal error of dismaying context. The content of the gospel message is not our benefit or our salvation; the context of the gospel is the supremacy of Christ and the glory of God.

So here is the part from the book:

Here, it is important for us to emphasize once more that we must present the total Gospel. There is a personal side to it; we must deal with that, and we must start with that. But we do not stop with that; there is a social side, indeed a cosmic side as well. We must present the whole plan of salvation as it is revealed in the Scriptures. We must show that the ultimate object, as the Apostle Paul puts it in Ephesians 1:10, is to head up in Christ in all things, "both which are in heaven, and which are in earth; even in Him." You are emphasizing that salvation is not merely something subjective, a nice feelings, or peace, or whatever it is they are seeking. All that is important, and is part of it; but there is something more important, namely that the whole universe is involved. We must give the people a conception of this, of the scope and the ambit and the greatness of the gospel in this all inclusive aspect.

The gospel in the air gives us this conception of the scope and the ambit and the greatness of the gospel. The Bible gives us a wider context than personal good news for personal sin requiring personal response, let's be faithful to it.

That is something short again and I hope and pray that it encourages you today.

~ you are loved ~

Take heart

Happy Friday to you all. I just want to give you something short and brief in hopes that it will lift you up today.

I love what Jesus said in John 16:33 "Here on earth you will have many trails and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world." What does it mean to take heart? Don't give up. Be encouraged. Lift your spirits. And do this on purpose. With intention. Literally, take courage. Choose it. When you feel tired, discouraged, disappointed, or run down, make the choice to take heart. Life gets crazy busy and you feel many types of ways throughout every single day. Some days you feel like you are on top of the world because everything is going so well, and other days, stress can take over your mindset and cause a lot of anxiety. Whether you are experiencing the highest of highs or the lowest of lows, always lift your spirits and take courage. Our God is everlasting and he is always there and will forever be there. He is the most valuable resource we have and I think that we take it for granted. I'm not telling you something I don't have to do myself. I have't always taken heart every day, but I'm trying to live this way too. It is amazing when you start living this way, how much better your life will get. I can attest to that. When I feel tired, when I feel unsure about things I am going through, I try to chose courage time and time again to believe that God's got everything under control.

Take heart, chose courage.

~ you are loved ~

The story of Job

If you have never heard the story of Job I can assure you that it is a story that you will remember. So the book go Job is a book of the Bible that explores how righteous people suffer. It is an extended conversation based on poetic speeches. The moral of the story is that we are being warned to avoid reducing God's moral rule to easy formulas.

Job 1:1-3: In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil. He had seven sons and three daughters, and he owned seven thousand sheep, thee thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people in the East.

How awesome of a man does Job seem like? He fears God and shuns evil, he has a great family, he owns thousands of animals, and more. He is obviously very wealthy and yet, he's still a great man. We should be like Job in so many ways.

So one day, the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. Next a dialogue happens between the Lord and Satan. The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?" Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it." Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil." Imagine being the type of person where the Lord literally says, "There is no one on earth like him." Satan goes on to say, "Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the world of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse your face." Here, Satan is obviously thinking that he has got this in the bag...well Satan was wrong again. Then the Lord said to Satan, "Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger." The battle is on.

The battle: Now is when things start to take a turn for the very worst for Job. First all of Job's 500 oxen are stolen by the Sabeans. Job found this out because only one person escaped to tell him. Next, Job's seven thousand sheep all burned. Again, one person was able to tell Job what had happened. Next, a group called The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and stole all of Job's three thousand camels. One person survived this and told Job of the terrible news. What else could happen to Job? Well there is another thing...another messenger came and said, "Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the dessert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead."

I don't know if you were able to pick up on this some detail in there, but after every loss for Job there was always one messenger left to tell him what had happened. I am not entirely sure why, but am trying to figure it out. How would you react to this? I would be shocked. I don't know how I would react. Satan literally took away everything that he had.

Here is how Job reacted. Job 1:20-21: At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."

If all those paragraphs seemed like just a bunch of words to you I hope and pray that you can take that last verse to heart. The Lord gives and the Lord takes, yet he will be praised. Next time you feel like God is taking away things in your life, know that he does that, and he loves you and he should still be praised forever and ever. Remember, the Lord let Satan take away everything that Job had-he does that-God will never put us through anything that we can't handle. I hope that the story of Job is encouraging to you as you face and conquer every day. I always hope that you remember to not reduce God's moral rule to easy formulas.

Purpose

God created you for a reason. He created you to be special. He created you for a purpose. Imagine that there is no God. Then you were not created for a reason. You aren’t special. You are the accidental, unintentional result of motion, matter, time, and chance. Tim Keller said, “If your origin is insignificant and your destiny is insignificant, which means someday nobody will even remember anything you ever did, have the guts to admit your life is insignificant.

Purpose is one of those words that is always thrown around so much, especially in the Christian circles. It’s hard to know exactly what it means. In our lives it seems like one day you can be in he right place at the right time and other days it’s like you have no idea what you’re doing. I honestly believe that this all correlates with your identity.

Ephesians 2:10 says: For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

I just started reading a book written by Tim Tebow called, ‘Shaken.’ He says this: “before you were even born, God wrote a beautiful poem about your life. This masterpiece is about you doing not just meaningless or average things, but good works, wonderful things that make a difference. This means that you are important, significant. You matter!” I don’t know about you but I love that so much. Our lives are literally masterpieces written, designed, and created by God.

I also want to encourage you with this. When your identity is grounded in God, when you trust in Him, you become part of a greater picture. When you do that, you begin to live out that incredible, beautiful poem written by God. When you don’t feel like you know what your purpose is remember that if you have Jesus you have everything.

Tebow concludes the chapter by saying: “Don’t worry about your skills or what you lack. Don’t worry about your past junk. Don’t worry about what you lost. Don’t worry about what lies ahead. Don’t worry about what didn’t happen or what did. Be rooted in God. And watch as he unfolds a plan that has more love, more meaning, and more purpose than you could ever possibly imagine.

~you are loved~

Train yourselves to be godly

I think that one thing in our faith that is overlooked or seen as a difficult task is being godly and training ourselves on a daily basis to be godly. I also think that we sometimes over look the importance of what is written in the Bible and how true is it.

1 Timothy 4:1-8: The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer. If you point these tings out to the brother and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.

Here is a list of the thing that really stick out in those verses:

• The Spirit says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits
• some teachings come through hypocritical liars
• everything God created is good
• nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving 
• if you point these things out, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths and faith and of the good teaching
• train yourself to be godly

My favorite verse from that passage is Timothy 4:8: "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come." This verse is such a good reminder because sometimes it is easy to get caught up worrying only about physical training-like basketball for me-because it is has always been one of the most important things in my life. God is so good because I am now at the point in my faith that I know that life is such much bigger than basketball. Don't get me wrong, basketball is still one of the most important things in my life and when I play I give all the glory to God and I also know that I can use it as a platform to witness to others. I am at the point where I know that true fulfillment comes from God, and it comes from my daily time spent with him. Yeah, every single day is busy and full of some cool and fun things and I get to interact with some awesome people-but nobody-or anything of this world makes me feel more fulfilled than time spent with God. It's awesome knowing that the time spent training ourselves for godliness has so much value and holds promise for both the present life and the life to come. I encourage you to find time to experience the fulfillment that Christ longs for us to experience, for God's glory. 

Reflecting on Jesus' suffering

I am nearing the end of John and yesterday I wrote about the questioning of Jesus by the high priest and this evening I am going to write about the resurrection of Jesus. I really don't know if you have ever payed much attention to detail when it comes to the resurrection-becuase it's a little touchy of a subject. Yeah that was the plan and it was going to happen but when you read through the details it really affects you on a deep level.

Becoming like Jesus in suffering requires first reflecting on Jesus' own suffering. After eating the Last Supper, Jesus was so distressed about his impending crucifixion that, while his friends fell asleep and failed him, he remained awake late into the night, sweating drops of blood in stress-filled prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. I don't know if you have ever been told this but you can actually become like Jesus by reflecting on Jesus' own suffering.

The selection that I am going to share with you about Jesus' suffering comes from the book, 'Who Do You Think You Are,' by Mark Driscoll. I read this book about 4 years ago when I was in high school. I came across this part of the book and remember being immediately affected by it. This excerpt from the book has been something that motivates me every single day. It motivates me because I know that Jesus suffered for us and I want to do whatever I can possibly to do give God glory because of Jesus. This concept motivates me when I am working out for basketball. I push my self to the limit and go that extra mile for God every single time, there is no good in it if I do it for myself. All I do I do for him.

He was betrayed by one of his closet friends, Judas. He was arrested on trumped-up charges and brought forth by false witnesses. A mob of angry men beat him severely, and he was stripped in shame and whipped. The soldiers used a flagrum, a torture tool with a handle from which proceeded strips of leather with weight affixed to the ends, in order to tenderize Jesus' back, legs, and buttocks. Its hooks sank deeply into his flesh, ripping off skin, muscles, tendons, and bones. Jesus' body shook violently from the trauma. His blood loss was severe. His tormentors then pressed a crown of thorns into his brow in mockery. On his back they dropped a heavy, rough-hewn crossbar, which he was forced to carry through a mocking crowd to his place of crucifixion. Jesus fell under the weight of the cross, crushing his chest on the pavement under the perhaps one hundred pounds of weight, possibly puncturing his heart sac. After getting help carrying his cross, Jesus arrived at Golgotha, where the soldiers and crowd disrespectfully pulled out his beard, spat on him, and mocked him in front of his family and friends. The equivalent of railroad spikes were nailed through his hands and feet, containing the most sensitive nerve centers in the human body. As he was lifted up, the mob cursed him as his body convulsed, blood and sweat dripping off him. Soon after, Jesus gave up his sprit and died. To ensure his death, a soldier ran a spear through his side, puncturing his heart, and blood and water poured from his side. Jesus suffered greatly for our sins. He was afflicted both by us and for us. Our sin killed God, but his death brought us life. His affliction was for our salvation. But beyond that, the primary purpose of his suffering was to glorify God the Father by at once perfectly revealing true justice and mercy. If you're in Christ, you can endure affliction as he did, to the glory of God. 

Next time you are going through a tough situation-I encourage you to remember what Jesus went through. By reflecting on this, you can become more and more like Jesus. 

-you are loved- 

Don't freak out

I have been reading though John the past couple of weeks and it has been a great book of the Bible to read through. As I near the end of John the plot keeps getting more and more intense. Jesus has been arrested and he is being questioned by the high priest. He knows that his hour has come and in the midst of everything, he knows what will happen and remains calm. In our daily lives it is easy to freak out about some things-or a lot of things if you have that type of worrisome personality. Think about the last thing that totally freaked you out...I bet that is it safe to say that it was probably something not extremely important. I tend to freak out about silly things here and there as well. What I mean by freaking out in this context is not being freaked out by a creepy dude in a costume out a haunted house. The context of this freaking out is a little hard to explain. The best way I can think about to describe it is when you are sitting in class and not paying attention and the professor calls on you and you experience a sense of shock and you probably get all sweaty...but maybe that is just me. On a serious note, I would describe this type of freaking out as something that you are worrying about, and you don't have to. In a way, it's not trusting or having faith in God.

The scripture I want to share with you in John might not be the most significant scripture out there, but there is something that is so appealing about it. The appealing nature of this is how calm Jesus is. Jesus has so many amazing character traits that we need to model in our daily lives and this is one that I often forget about.

John 18:19-23: Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. "I have spoken openly to the world." Jesus replied. "I always taught in the synagogues or at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret. Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely I know what I said." When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby slapped him in the face. "Is this the way you answer the high priest?" he demanded. "If I said something wrong," Jesus replied, "testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?" 

I love those couple of verses so much. I just picture Jesus saying all these things calm, cool, and collected, even after he got slapped in the face. It is 100 percent possible that the Holy Spirit interpreted this scripture differently for you than it did for me.  You might not think this is cool, so what. I hope that you can understand how calm he was in the midst of his questioning.

In our daily lives when we get questioned about certain things how do you react? Do you get all defensive? Are you quick to listen and slow to speak? James 1:19 says: My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. God puts trails and unique situations in our lives every single day, how will you react next time you face one? I challenge you to react like you know that God has got you every single time. It's not easy...you will mess up...but it's okay because we all do. You'll just have to do it again.

- that video will make you feel like you can run through a wall

- you are loved-

The world hates you

As believers...the world hates us. That is a harsh reality but it is true. I am not planning on discouraging you with that but rather, uplifting you through was the scripture has to say about it. 

I want to begin this letter with a distinguishing mark that Paul leaves in all of his letters. It comes from 2 Thessalonians 3:16-18: Now may the Lord of peace himself give you a peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all you. I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. 

The world hates you...do you ever feel that way? I guarantee that we all have at some point. It sucks to think about because God created everything-but the world is of Satan and he is deceiving you all of the time. If you are a Bethel student reading this, you may not experience the hate of the world because of the type of place Bethel is. Which is both good and bad. When you feel like the world hates you, you have nothing to feel bad about. Like I mentioned above. It's a harsh reality. So why does the world hate us? 

John 15:18-25: If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not known the ones who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. As it is, they have seen, and yet have hated me and my Father. But this is to fulfill what is written in their law: 'They hated me without reason.' 

My favorite part of that scripture is this: "As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world." I love that because as believers we are out of this world. That just gets me fired up for Jesus! We sometimes let the world get to us when we are out of this world. Let that soak in. I want to make it clear that I am not saying that we are so much better than everyone else. We are still made and called to love one another in everything we do. The world hates us but so what? Who cares what other people think. I read a quote in a book a couple of months ago that said, "Are you seriously worried of a kitten and not a lion?" = worrying about what other people think vs. what God thinks. What is a kitten going to do you? Maybe scratch you a frustrate you a little but-which will happen-but a lion? A lion will change your life. 

You might be wondering, how might we find joy? 

John 16:20-24: Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time to grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. 

I encourage you, you will experience a great amount of joy. It is coming, and when Christ returns nobody will ever be able to take away your joy. How awesome is this-when that day comes we will no longer have to ask for anything. All we will have to do is ask in Jesus name and God will give it to us. 

The next time you experience the hate of the world. Remember this scripture and remember that when the time comes, we will get to experience joy like we never have before. We even get to experience joy now but that joy can be taken away so quickly. Eternal joy is coming! 

I want to close with a prayer that Paul prayed for the Thessalonians: 2 Thessalonians 3:1-5: As for other matters, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you. And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not everyone has faith. But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Chris's perseverance. 

-you are loved- 

Primacy of God's Glory

If you are reading this I hope that you have been outside at least a couple of times this week. It has been beautiful. The fall weather has been perfect. There is just a certain feeling that the fall weather brings to people. The leaves, the smell of bonfires, the crisp mornings and seeing carved pumpkins nearly every where you go. I don't know anyone who dislikes fall. It is that time of year where you are finally in the flow of things. There is also a great amount of excitement built around this time of year, halloween is nearing, haunted houses are open and most people are in search of a good thrill. There seems to be scary movie after scary movie coming out in theaters that we rush to see. It's one of the best times of the year. Personally, I love fall even more because it's basketball season! There is a reason why Fall is so great and it is because of the creator. 

Tonight I will be sharing some more from the book, 'Explicit Gospel.' I can't help but want to share with you all the cool thins I read in this book. 

As we examine what creation is, in all its diversity and wonder, and we ponder how this creation came to be, we must remember that all the complexity and beauty in the universe is not meant to terminate on itself but to trace its origin to the Creator. God created everything, and what he created was good, but what he created to be good was not created as an end in itself but was given to us as good in order that we might be driven to worship him. 

When you are loving every bit of the Fall and what this time of year brings, remember that God created it. It is good, and it was created for us in order that we might be driven to worship him. 

The goodness of creation is designed not to declare itself but to act as a signpost pointing upward. This is why Paul can say, "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 For. 10:31) He is working from the assumption that anything we do can be done to the glory of God. 

We should honestly not ever not be worshipping. Creation draws us to look at something other than ourselves and marvel it all. All of creation has been given to us so that we behold the awesome God who made it all and made it all good. 

John Calvin writes: Ever since the creation of the universe he brought forth those insignia whereby he shows his glory to us, whenever and wherever we can cast our gaze....And since the glory of his power and wisdom shine more brightly above, heaven is often called his palace. Yet...wherever you cast your eyes, there is not spot in the universe wherein you cannot discern at least some sparks of his  glory. 

But we are meant to worship, meant to give glory to some thing greater than ourselves. So we interact with the earth in such a way that our hearts and minds should always be being stirred up to how good, beautiful, and gracious God is to us in what he's given, from his creativity in crafting flavors, to his beneficence in dispensing the warmth of the sun. 

The scriptural testimony is consistently this: God's Chief concern is for his own glory. 

Next time you are outside or you are experiencing all the things you do during this time of year-don't forget to give God the glory for it is all a gift from him. 

-you are loved- 

God's perfect Self-Sufficency

I have been reading a book written by Matt Chandler called 'The Explicit Gospel' over the past couple of weeks. It has been a very well written book to read. I am challenged by something every time I read it.

Here is a quick summary about the book: 

Even if you go to church, it doesn't mean that you are being exposed to the gospel explicitly. Sure, most people talk about Jesus, and about being good and avoiding bad, but the gospel message simply isn't there-at least not in its specificity and its fullness. 

Inspired by the needs of both the over-churched and the unchurched, and bolstered by the common neglect of the explicit gospel with Christianity, popular pastor Matt Chandler writes to remind us what is of first and utmost importance-the gospel. 

I am going to share with you a couple of paragraphs about God's sell-sufficieny. I felt led to switch it up a little bit this morning because it's cool to learn from other people as well, especially pastors like Matt Chandler. This is also a great read because it is easy to forget or to even think about how self-sufficient our God is. 

God's Perfect Self-Sufficiency

Paul continue in Romans 11:35: "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" If everything is God's, you have nothing to give him that he doesn't already own. This means that you cannot put him into your debt. And this means, alternately, that God owes nobody anything. Our God's very existence has been gifted to us by his grace.

While we lament the parent injustice of pain and suffering, how often do we forget that every good thing in a fallen world is wholly a gift from God's mercy and grace? We think to question God when bridges fall but not to wonder at his grace that every bridge does not. Every fit of laughter, every delectable morsel of food, and every single smile is the result of his mercy and grace; he owes us none of it.

Now let me tell you why this is so terrifying. If this is true, we have nothing with which to negotiate with him, nothing to bargain with. But if has been my experience that most evangelicals believe Christians are in a bargaining position. We carry an insidious prosperity gospel around in our dark little, entitled hearts. We come to the throne and say, "I'll do this and you'll do that. And if I do this for you, then you'll do it for me."

In the end God says, "You keep trying to pay me off with stuff that's already mine." Some of us even try to bargain with our lives. But God says, "Please. I'll take that life if I want it. I'm God."

We presume upon our service, "I'll serve you, God!" we say. But he replies, "I'm not served by human hands as though I need anything. What are you going to do, give me something to eat? What are you going to do, paint my house? What are you going to give me, as if I'm lacking?"

The profitable result in these exchanges is that revealing of idolatry and pride within us. We want to live as though the Christian life is a 50/50 project we undertake with God, like faith is some kind of cosmic vending machine. And we're reinforced in this idolatry by bad preachers, by ministers with no respect for the Scriptures, by talking heads who teach out of emotion instead of texts, who tickle ears with no evident fear of God who curses bringers of alternative gospels. He owes us nothing. 

And we have nothing to give to him that he does't already own outright.

The customary response to this, of course, is to ask about the place of following God and serving his cause. There is plenty to call for this in the Bible. But the reality is that all God has to do is reveal himself to you, and you'll gladly join the mission in service to his kingdom. He doesn't force the issue; he just has to reveal himself as he is: mighty, wondrous, gracious, loving, and radically saving. No man goes back to saltine crackers when he's had filet mignon. And even this truth is further revelation of God's grace, because it shows that he doesn't need us; rather he wants us. When we who call ourselves Christians realize how utterly self-sufficient God is all within himself-the three in one- the gift of Christ is to us and for us becomes all the more astonishing. And we will want it this way. Because a God who is ultimately most focused on his own glory will be about the business of restoring us, who are all broken images of him. His glory demands it. So we should be thankful for a self-suffient God whose self-regard is glorious. 

There is a lot in there but the one thing that sticks out to me the most is the idea that God owes us nothing. I know I get caught up in thinking that sometimes because that's what we can't help but think when we experience trails. Or to think, if I do this you'll owe me that. God owes us nothing because he owns everything. I love that. I hope that switching it up today was a good idea and that this really leaves you in owe of God. 

-you are loved-

The Day of the Lord

1 Thessalonians 5 is what stuck out to me this evening in my reading. I am going to share with you the entire chapter. There are many different passages about the Day of the Lord and his return but this is one that has always stuck out to me because I seem to come across it quite often. This post will be mostly filled with just scripture tonight so I hope that you can learn something and find something to be encouraged by. 

I am going to share with you the end of the passage first because those are the final instructions that were given to us, then I will finish with the verses about the day of the Lord.

Final Instructions (1 Thessalonians 5:12-28)

Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. 

The Day of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11) 

Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or sleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 

There is a ton of scripture here for you to really dig into. My prayer for you is that the Holy Spirit really gives you something with these verses. Remember to rejoice always, pray continually, and to give thanks in all circumstances. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. Also-be ready-because when the Lord will come it will be like thief in the night. Don't forget that we are all children of the light and children of the day. When that day comes, we will live together with him forever-so up until that day-encourage one another and build each other up every single day. 

-you are loved-

Spiritual blindness

Have you ever read through some passages in your Bible and had read through so many cool things but couldn't really figure out what stuck out to you the most? That is where I am right now this morning. There are so many bits and pieces of the scripture that I read today that really stuck out to me, but I just couldn't really decide how to use it to encourage you today.

There was a passage in John that is about Spiritual Blindness and that is what I feel like the Holy Spirit wants me to share with you this morning. Sometimes the spirit is a little tricky and it's a little tougher to pick apart what the spirit wants you to hear or how we wants you to use it.

Spiritual Blindness 
John 9:35-41: Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" "Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."
Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you." Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshipped him. Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind." Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?" Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains." 

The verse that sticks out me the most is verse 39 which says: "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind." I think what Jesus means by that is that he came into this world so that the people who are blind to Jesus will see him, and that the people who see who become blind. That last part is a little confusing, but I believe that he is saying that the people who do see, he will make blind to the world. It's a tough concept to wrap your head around. That idea is backed up by the last verse which says: "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim to see, your guilt remains."  If you were blind it didn't know about Jesus you would have no idea that you were sinning-but since we can see, our guilt remains. Praise the Lord that we can see!

I have one last verse from John 10 that I want to share with you this morning.

John10:18: No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. 

I love that verse so much because it makes me love God even more. What we learn from God, he lays it down for us to learn. We don't have to take it from him, he lays it down. I love that so much. It motivates me to grow every single day because I know that Jesus is laying down stuff for us to learn all the time.

I hope and pray that if you are reading this that you are encouraged in some type of way. If nothing from this post stuck out to you, remember that you are loved and that your life is a precious gift from God.

-you are loved-

Becoming a model

There are many ways to be a model to believers and unbelievers on a daily basis. This evening I want to share you with you one of the ways which I read tonight that really sticks out to me. I began reading through 1 Thessalonians 1 & 2 tonight and there are a lot of good things in that book. That book is a series letters that were written to the people of Thessalonica. These letters were like letters of encouragement to the Thessalonians because of their good faith.

Thessalonians 1:6-10: You became imitators of us and the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of serve suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit. And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia-your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do no need to say anything about it, for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and the true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead-Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.

So there are a lot of things that you can take away from this short passage but the one thing I want to point out is that when the Thessalonians welcomed the message in the midst of serve suffering with joy given by the Holy Spirit, they became a model to all believers. Let that sink in and that let be encouragement to you. When things get tough in your life, which they will, welcome the message and people will notice and you will have such great impact. This impact might be something that you will never get to experience, but it is so powerful. Showing faith and welcoming the message in the midst of serve suffering is a great way to model to believers and nonbelievers on a daily basis. I have had friends go through some pretty serious things in their life and I have witnessed those people rely on their faith and when they do that, it is so encouraging. It is encouraging because if you can 'welcome' Jesus in the midst of serve suffering it should make it easier to 'welcome' Jesus in all situations during your lives.

-you are loved-

Trust me enough

This past weekend I was at home so I was lucky enough to get to go to church with my family back home in Archbold, Ohio. It was great being back because I had not been home since mid-August. I went to Sunday school with my dad this morning and his class is going through a book called, 'No More Excuses.' They didn't really talk about the book a ton this morning but it was a really great opportunity to sit and there and soak in everything that these older men of God had to say in their discussion. I encourage you if you ever have the opportunity to be around some people who are much older than you, take advantage of that.

I am going to share with you one of the daily devotional's from 'No More Excuses.' This is the encouragement I have for you.

TRUST ME ENOUGH to let things happen without striving to predict or control them. Relax, and refresh yourself in the Light of My everlasting Love. My Love-Light never dims, yet you are often unaware of My radiant presence. When you project yourself into the future, rehearsing what you will do or say, you are seeking to be self-sufficient: to be adequate without My help. This is a subtle sin-so common that it usually slips by unnoticed.
The alternate is to live fully in the present, depending on Me each moment. Rather than fearing your inadequacy, rejoice in My abundant supply. Train your mind to seek My help continually, even when you feel competent to handle something by yourself. Don't divide your life into things you can do by yourself and things that require My help. Instead, learn to rely on Me in every situation. This discipline will enable you to enjoy your life more and to face each day confidently.

Psalm 37:3-7: Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

Philippians 4:19: And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Jesus Christ.

I really hope that is something that you needed to hear tonight. I know that I certainly needed to hear that.

-You are loved-

Bread of life

How many of you have ever heard or read the phrase in the bible about Jesus saying that he is the bread of life? I know that I have read that over and over again and there is a chance that you have heard that too. What does that mean? Personally I think that it means a few things. Think of bread, I can almost guarantee you that you have always had access to bread. Bread is popular. Bread is available anywhere. You can make bread, go to any grocery store and buy bread, I am sure that you can even buy bread at gas stations too. My point-is that bread is something that you can always get your hands on it. Just like bread is something that we all eat and use every single day, Jesus is the bread of life-which we need and have every single day.

This whole bread idea started when Jesus fed the 5,000. The scripture that I am about to share with you comes a couple of verses later. 

John 6:35-40: Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day."

Read that through a couple of times and you will find some pretty cool things in there that Jesus said. My favorite part of that passage is the beginning, when Jesus says, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry and whoever believes in me will never go thirsty." I love that because it is a great reminder that we are given everything we need when we believe in Jesus. The flesh is always fighting for earthy desires, but when you know and understand that Jesus is the bread of life, I am satisfied in that. John 6:29 says this: Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." All that God wants for us, is to believe in Jesus so that we will have eternal life. Of course there are some more instructions that are given to us. I would love to share those with you as well because they are great reminders. 

Colossians 4:2-6: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. 

I pray that if you read this today that it encouraged you in some type of way. Thank you for your time and I want you to remember that you are loved! 

Open your eyes

Tonight I want to encourage you to really open your eyes. I encourage you to open your eyes on a deeper level, don't just scratch the surface. There is a deeper meaning to everything. Open your eyes to the Holy Spirit as well.

Before I get deeper into my point I want to share something else with you. It's fall break now, and we finally got to go home after some intense fall break practices-so I am feeling pretty exhausted. Today was really long and was totally booked from beginning to end. I had planned to do this blog tonight since this was going to be the only time that I could. I was watching Blue Chips in the basement with my parents and decided to come upstairs because I really wanted to finish this by midnight. I sat down at the kitchen table, started reading my bible and I could hardly keep my eyes open. The first couple of verses I read in John I don't even remember because all I wanted to do was sleep. Then I remembered. This isn't about me, it's about Christ. I was focused on my strength and didn't focus on what I should focus on and that is the power of the Holy Spirit. I needed to open my eyes to a deeper level. Every time I am about to read my bible, I always pray that the Holy Spirit really works in me, and the Spirit did just that. It was almost instantly. I felt led to share that little story because I think a lot of people feel that way when they open up their bibles. It's sometimes just really hard to focus in or even understand what you are reading through. That is how are life works sometimes. Time and time again you will have a sense of what God wants you to do with your life, or you will be doing what you feel led to do, and other times you just feel lost. That is when your vision isn't really there. You have to open your eyes up to all of the blessings that are always in your life. 

In John Chapter 4, there is a passage about when the disciples rejoined Jesus. John 4:31-36 says: Meanwhile his disciples urged him, "Rabbi, eat something." But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you know nothing about." Then his disciples said to each other, "Could someone have brought him food?" "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don't you have a saying, 'It's still four months until harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 

I love that passage so much and have read through it before but have never thought about it this way. Jesus tells the disciples that the food he had was his food, and that his food, was to do everything he does for the will of God. That is our life's as believers in Jesus Christ. We are called to live our lives for Christ and in such a way that we are doing what we are doing for the will of God. Jesus goes on to say, "don't you have a saying, 'it's four months until harvest?"  Four months till harvest? Sounds like us sitting around sometimes and waiting to see what God has in store for us. Jesus then says, "open your eyes and look at the fields." Open your eyes and look how good God has been to you!!! Everything we could ever need we have in our Father. I encourage you to harvest that crop for eternal life.

When you open your eyes-just imagine viewing everything as this: Colossians 1:15-17 says: The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: tings in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 

All things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together. Have that vision and it will change your heart. 

Trials of various kinds

Reading through James 1 today and I believe James has great practial applications to apply to our life so that we can take steps to becoming spiritually complete and mature. Now theres no such thing as pure perfection except for God, but we need to remember, God is not after perfection, He is pleased when we have progress and make steps to grow in our faith in Him and one way we can make this progress is by the way we view trials. 

James 1:2-4 says: “2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

I know for me, growing up I would be confused reading this and not understand. Because normally when we think of trials we try to run away or hide from them. But James has different approach. He’s claiming: count it all joy, as with this trial you have the opportunity to grow in faith and trust in the sovereign God and bring Him glory. You see, if we can make this shift in how we view trails we can face them not as a hurdle but as gateway to build our faith. From the testing of our faith comes a chain reaction. When our faith is tested, that produces steadfastness/perseverance. I think a good way to think of perseverance is determination to do whats right in Gods eyes, and once we do that, then its up to God to show us where He wants us to go. Whenever we see an opportunity to build our faith we should view it as joy as we know that our joy brings God glory.

I pray all of you reading this take this to heart and have the perspective of temptation as it in James 1. Take what satan intends for his good and our bad and turn it into something that is for Gods good and helps us progress towards His love.

- Jack Fisher 

Upside down kingdom

Okay, so this whole idea of an upside down kingdom wasn't exactly mine. We just got done with a team bible study and that was one of the topics we talked about. We were told to read John 1-3 and we were going to discuss parts of those three chapters throughout our time together. One of the passages in those chapters is about how Jesus changed water into wine. That miracle is one of the most miraculous miracles that God performed. If you have never heard the story about how Jesus changed water into wine I am about to tell you.

It coms from John 2:1-12 and I will just type out all of those verses so I do not miss anything.

John 2:1-12: On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine." "Woman, who do you involve me?" Jesus replied. "My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water" ; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet." They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

So where does this upside down kingdom idea come into play? When you think of a king and his kingdom what do you think of? I think of a king being in charge over all his people and I think of royalty. I think of only the royalty and close family getting all of the benefits and perks. If this story happened in a normal kingdom, only the important people in the wedding would know that Jesus was turning water into wine. The royalty would know and he would've made it known that he performed such a miracle.

This miracle is like a upside down kingdom because only the servants that were closest to Jesus knew that he turned the water into wine. The servants were obedient to Jesus and listened to his every command. That is one of the things that really sticks out to me here. They were obedient and then he performed one of his greatest miracles. I believe that this foreshadows many things to come. It definitely foreshadows the day that Jesus will come back. When he comes back only the people who were close to him will go to heaven and be with him for eternity. The righteous, obedient, and the people who love one another to name a few. God loves you so much and I hope that you never forget that.

This whole idea of an upside kingdom is foreshadowing so many things to come.

You are loved!

Power in weakness

I am sure if you have any familiarity with the Bible that you have read or have heard before that we should not boast unless we boast about our Father in heaven. I came across an interesting passage this evening that talked about another way to boast that was okay. Did you know that it is okay to boast about your weaknesses?

Here is the scripture I came across.

2 Corinthians 11:30-31: If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying.

This is such a new and tough thing to really wrap my mind around. I say that for a few reasons. One of them being-I knew that boasting was wrong-but I never thought about it as being a lie. (in the wrong ways) When we boast about our weaknesses we are not lying. It is honestly such a weird and cool concept all in one. Where there is weakness-there is strength.

Here is some some more scripture that ties into this.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10:  The Lord says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Chris't power may rest on me.

God's love is enough for us-and his power is made perfect in weakness. When we boast about our weaknesses God's power is being made perfect. I can't stress it enough, it's absolutely okay if you mess up, and have weaknesses. Both you and me are nowhere near perfect and never will be until we are in heaven someday. If you are really struggling with some things, I encourage you to find a friend that will listen to you and that you trust and just let all those troubles out. It may not help fix the problem, but I promise you that it will make a difference. You will feel so much better. As humans we long for people to share experiences with. We were not made to be alone or isolated from everyone. We were made to love one another and to live for relationships. If you do not have someone in your life who you can talk to about your weaknesses I encourage you to pray about it. Also-do not forget that God is always right there to talk to about it as well. I know that it is tough, because you don't want to throw a pity party, but I can assure you that there are people out there who love you and who care for you and want what is best for you. People will listen to you! God will make those encounters possible. I can attest to that. This morning I got coffee with a friend and we met up just so we could talk about things and so that he could see where I was right now in my life. Before that, I had an encounter with a friend that I was not expecting at all. It was totally random. I was sitting there waiting and a friend came up to me and genuinely asked how I was doing. Out of nowhere. That friend didn't have to go out of there way to come check on me to see how I was, but they did and it lifted me up. The same thing happened the night before. I was at a coffee shop minding my own business after a tough day, and another friend came up to me and just sat and talked with me for awhile. It's the little things!!! You never really know where someone is at mentally, spiritually, or emotionally if you don't go out of your way to check in on that person. You do not even have to talk about those three things, it can be literally anything, any conversation can make someones day. Honestly, yesterday was horrible, but having a friend go out of their way to have a 5 minute conversation gave me so much life. When you step out of your comfort zone and push aside your personal agenda for someone else, it is amazing what can happen. It's tough because you need to sacrifice things in your life sometimes, but if you feel like you just don't have enough energy for extra relational things then you are forgetting one thing. God gives us strength like no other and you have to trust in that. There have been countless experiences in my life when I felt like I had nothing left to give, but when I had to give everything I had, God gave me the strength and the ability to do that.

I hope that you never feel alone-you are never alone. If you read this and thought about what I said and realized you don't have those types of people in your life, then reach out to me. I would love to talk to anyone who needs a friend to be there for them. For real, reach out to me sometime if you are interested-you have nothing to be scared of and nothing to lose.

You are loved.

Importance of service

Serving others is so important. I think it is something that people overlook and do not take seriously, whereas you will find people who are all about it. There are so many benefits that come from serving other people. While I was reading 2 Corinthians 9 this evening I came across a really cool passage that I wanted to share with you. My hope is that it will motivate you to go out of your way to do something for someone else. It doesn't even have to be something that extreme. You could open the door for someone, pick up some trash you see laying around, anything! I view service as something you should want to do for other people, not something that you feel like you have to do. Here is the passage I was talking about from up above.

2 Corinthians 9:12-15: This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.

I love those verses so much. I encourage you to read that through a couple of times and I can almost guarantee that something different will stick out every single time. I especially love the beginning. "This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. When you go out of your way to serve somebody, you are serving the Lord's people and you're doing that in thanks to God. So powerful.

I challenge you to try serving someone before the day is over!

Fueling your heart

Guest post by: Andrew Wingreen 

Fueling Your Heart

Each day we are given opportunities to choose the influences we want in our lives.  The videos we watch, the music we listen to, the books we read, and the people we spend our time with.  Each decision we make fuels our hearts with a worldview that will ultimately impact the way we carry ourselves.  So, the question is, what is fueling your heart?

It’s easy to gravitate towards popular content the world is selling to us daily, but it’s important to understand what those stories are telling us.  Just because something is portrayed as “cool” or “relevant,” doesn’t mean we should be consuming it.  We need to be intentional about fueling our hearts with substance, promoting growth and excellence in all we do.  

Here’s a few examples of what I mean:

Spotify has over 140 million users that consume over 1.7 billion hours of music each month.  Currently, the song that is streamed the most and sits at #2 on the Billboard Top 100, is “Rockstar” by Post Malone (Feat. 21 Savage).  The first lyrics that millions of people are actively choosing to put into their hearts when they listen to this song are, “Ayy, I’ve been f****** hoes and poppin’ pillies.  Man I feel just like a rockstar.”  

What music is fueling your heart?

Last month, the top grossing movie at the box office was “It,” earning $290,775,232.  It has played in over 4,000 theaters countless times, entertaining millions of people across the globe.  I understand the thrill and excitement that comes along with horror movies, but at what cost?  The description that lures people to buy a ticket to this movie is, “A group of bullied kids band together when a shapeshifting demon, taking the appearance of a clown, begins hunting children.”  Really?

What movie or video is fueling your heart today?

In 2016, 68% of high school seniors said that they tried alcohol with their friends.  Harmless parties and “fun” drinking games.  Statistics also say that alcohol causes the most harm in people under the age of 21 and is responsible for over 4,300 deaths each year.  

What kind of people do you surround yourself with?

The point of this article is not to tell you what not to do.  However, I think it’s important for us to ask ourselves the question, “what is fueling my heart?”  If we think about it, the shows we watch, the music we listen to, the content we read, and the people we spend our time with, influences our lives in a huge way.  If we want to be the best we can be, why wouldn’t we fuel our hearts with content that is positive and full of truth?  For me, it’s a battle every day.  I want to have fun and satisfy my need for entertainment, but I constantly need to examine what I’m fueling my heart with.  I encourage you to think about the influences you allow into your life every day and ask yourself if the fuel you’re putting into your heart is the fuel that will get you to your destination.  

Be out of your mind

2 Corinthians 5:13: If we are "out of our mind," as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you.

I encourage you to live and to think outside of your mind. Think as Christ would. Our right mind is of this world whereas out of our mind, is having a mind like Christ would. I really hope that you can wrap your head around that.

2 Corinthians 6:3-10: We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

I love those verses of much. Sometimes it might not seem like things are going your way. You might actually feel like that a lot. I am guilty of that everyday. I encourage you that when you feel like you have nothing, you have everything in you. You have the creator of the heavens and the universe inside you. I could go on and on about the power you possess but that would take a very long time.

I hope that you are encouraged by something I felt led to share with you today. It was short and sweet so I hope that it was nice and easy to read.

You posses everything. Live out of your mind. You are loved.

The veil is torn

Happy Friday! I bet you could not be more happy that it is finally the weekend. I know I could not be more happy. This week seemed like it was extra long and every single day was jam packed from the beginning until the end. I think that sometimes when you are busy like that you can get caught up in things that take your mind away from God. Or you might get involved in some things that don't seem godly and that might from a wall between you and him. I want to encourage you that nothing can stand between you and God. Our veils are taken away and we have freedom in Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:16-18: But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

here is what sticks out to me in this scripture

- when we turn to the Lord, our veil is taken away

- the Lord is the spirit and where the Spirit is there is freedom

- we are being transformed into his image

I encourage you to turn to the Lord in the midst of all circumstances and he will transform you into his image. As believers, we have the freedom to do that and it is so awesome. 

The next think I want to encourage you with deals with us being servants of Christ. For me, when ever I share about Christ I sometimes worry that I am going to use my words and not God's words. That is silly for me to think that. The Spirit is going to fill us with what to say. 

2 Corinthians 4:5-6: For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ.

- God said, "Let light shine out of the darkness."

- he made his light shine in our hearts

- that light gives us knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ. 

God't light is always in our hearts. Never be afraid about anything or not knowing answers to questions about faith. If you are though, it's okay. We all are.

The word of God is so cool because these next few verses I am about to share really encourages you and lifts you up. 

2 Corinthians 4:16-18: Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 

- don't lose heart

- we are being renewed day by day

- our light and troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory

- fix your eyes on what is unseen, have hope and faith

I love that scripture. It is so refreshing to read that when we are at our best and when we are at our worst that those things are being used to achieve us for an eternal glory. It is also a good reminder that we need to focus on what is unseen because that is eternal. It's a foreign concept sometimes, but look around, everything you are looking at will not last forever-besides believers in Christ. 

I shared a lot with you tonight, and I pray that something really sticks out to you and encourages you tonight. 

Forgivness

Forgive...stop feeling angry or resentful toward someone for an offense, flaw or mistake

Forgiveness is a tough think to talk about for some people. It is sometimes easy to forgive and sometimes it is hard. Today I want to encourage you with some scripture about forgiveness with that hope that being able to forgive becomes easier for you and that you understand why you should forgive.

2 Corinthians 2:5-11: If anyone has caused a grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you to some extent-not to put it too severely. The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient. Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm you love for him. Another reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven-if there is anything to forgive-I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

I am no where near perfect and I screw up all the time. I know that when I really screw up and that person forgives me, there is not better feeling. Forgiveness is a lot about pushing your pride to the side. What would Jesus do? I am sure many of you have heard that saying over and over again...in that situation what would he do? He would forgive you. When you forgive somebody you are reaffirming your love for them and you are being obedient. God puts us in those situations to test us-to see if we are really obedient in everything. In my opinion I think that forgiveness, in a way, is a two way street. You can't just focus on yourself and forgiving the other person because it is the right thing to do. You also need to understand that it is also about the person who you need to forgive. They are not perfect either and if you don't forgive them, you are causing them to have an excessive amount of sorrow. Forgiveness is an act of love. We make mistakes, we screw up, and we all have flaws. We don't have to hold grudges because we are not perfect. Love somebody today by forgiving them.

I remind you again-it is written-if you have everything but do not love, you are nothing.

Investment

It's Wednesday night and I am sure that if you are reading this now, you have been swamped in homework all evening. It's that time of year where the assignments, tests and who knows what else just keeps getting poured on you. I encourage you to not let the business defeat you. There are two things that I want to encourage you with tonight that are so valuable to personal growth on a daily basis.

1.) I encourage you to reach out to some friends in the morning and ask them if they have anything they need prayer for. Try setting a reminder on your phone so that it's one of the first things you do in the morning. Imagine starting a day off where you text your friends and ask them what they need prayed for rather than waking up and scrolling through all the negativity you see on social media. If you don't know who to text just shoot for one person! It's the perfect way to start your day because you are reaching out to people (showing love) and you are praying. Try it tomorrow. It'll get your mind and your heart ready for the day.

2.) I also want to encourage you to reach out to a couple friends at night and ask them if they learned anything today. It can be something that you learn spiritually, emotionally, or mentally. I've had a mentor reach out to me with that question and it really gets me thinking and allows myself to reflect on the day. Life is too short to not reflect on what God is teaching us in our everyday lives.

I promise that if you start doing these two things that you will experience a feeling of great love and happiness. It may seem like it would take a long time...but it really doesn't. All you have to do it send out a text. Should be easy considering we all send out hundreds of texts a day. Try it out. You will not regret it.

~Invest in others~

Troubling times

Another day has gone by and another tragedy has occurred. I want to share with you a passage from 2 Timothy chapter 3. I had a friend share this scripture with me last night. I cannot stress to you how important it is to have friends who share scripture with you. Having friendships like that with people are some of the coolest must fulfilling friendships. There is just so much life shared when you have a spiritual friendship. 

All I want for this post to accomplish is for you to gain some knowledge on some very relevant scripture. My goal for you is that you share 2 Timothy 3 with somebody after you read through it. It is crazy how God works. 

2 Timothy 3: But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God-having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. 

  

They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible woman, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected. But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men, their folly will be clear to everyone. 

You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings-what kinds of things happened to be in Antioch, Iconic, and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 

- I could break this down for you but there are so many things that can be taken away from these verses

- I hope that you can share this scripture with somebody either tonight or tomorrow

Remember, you can have everything but if you don't have love you are nothing. 

...love is dope...

Love is Indispensable

As I read through 1 Corinthians 11 & 12 tonight, I was really struggling with what I wanted to share with you. There were so many cool passages throughout those 2 chapters. I got to read about communion, how we are the body of Christ and about spiritual gifts. I think the best way to fill you in with some cool points about each of those three things, will be to break this post down into three sections.

These are very brief points.

1.) ~Communion~

- 1 Corinthians 11:23-26: For I have received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread you drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

I wanted to share that with you because communion is such a cool thing that we as believers get to take part in. If you haven't gotten the opportunity to ever do that before, I encourage you to pray about it and try it out.

2.) ~Spiritual Gifts~

-1 Corinthians 12:4-6: There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

-1 Corinthians 12:11: All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

We all have spiritual gifts given to us by the Spirit. I hope that you never feel like you don't have any spiritual gifts because you do. It says it right in those verses! God is behind every spiritual gift, just like he is in charge of all things.

3.) ~Body of Christ~

- 1 Corinthians 12:18: But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every single one of them, just as he wanted them to be.

- We are made perfectly just how God wanted to make us. You literally couldn't be made any more perfect. Our body is of Christ and with that body we belong to the body of Christ. In the body of Christ there is unity and diversity.

Lastly...this is the most important thing I want you to remember from this post.

This is where 'love is indispensable.'

1 Corinthians 12:31: Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way.

It may not seem like it in the midst of your life or in the midst of all the negative things going on in our world every single day but God will show you the most excellent way. I hope that you never forget that encouragement.