Insult(random thoughts in this entry)

I wonder if one of the bigger(est?) insults is someone lying to your face and you know for a fact they are lying(and perhaps even they know you know they're lying).

Perhaps rather injury as a better word? It definitely is a painful blow for someone to lie to your face and you see right through it. Especially if they know you know, and yet they continue lying.

--Break of thought--

I wonder how God feels when we tell him we love him, even though we don't really. I mean, Jesus said for those who love Him to keep his commandments. That's how we show our love.

In other words, if we aren't showing our love...is there really any love at all?

"I love you, God" could be the most grieving words for God to hear when he can see straight through your wall of insincerity and falsehood; when he knows you are lying and in fact don't love him.

Who are we fooling. God is truth. God is all-knowing. When we lie to God, it's not like he is getting the wool pulled over his eyes.

Freedom

Freedom starts with a choice, continues with a choice, and ends with a choice. Freedom from sin is possible to have, but until you choose it, you won't be free. Once you choose freedom over slavery to sin, you won't retain it unconditionally; you must choose to continue to live in freedom. Each and every moment you live is lived in decision to this. Freedom or slavery--your choice.

But freedom can end as quickly as it started all with a single choice.

Freedom from sin is always present and offered. It's always within grasp. It is your choice to live in it, or to live out of it.

32 thought provoking questions

Here is a pick-and-choose listing of an original 18 thought provoking questions I found off of a website. I would credit them, but there are some stuff on the website(not nec. in the post) that I wouldn't necessarily endorse/condone.

1. What do you regret most so far in life?
2. How can you apply the lesson you learned from that regret to your life TODAY?
3. If you lost everything tomorrow, whose arms would you want to run into? Does that person know how much they mean to you?
4. What would people say about you at your funeral?
5. What small thing could you do to make someone’s day better?
6. What do you believe stands between you and complete happiness?
7. (This begins a list from a new site) If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow this person to be your friend?
8. Are you holding onto something that you need to let go of?
9. When it’s all said and done, will you have said more than you’ve done?
10. Which is worse, failing or never trying?
11. If we learn from our mistakes, why are we always so afraid to make a mistake?
12. In the haste of your daily life, what are you not seeing?
13. Do you own your things or do your things own you?
14. What personal prisons have you built out of fears?
15. If you left this life tomorrow, how would you be remembered?
16. Beyond the titles that others have given you, who are you?
17. When does silence convey more meaning than words?
18. How have you helped someone else recently?
19. How are you pursuing your dreams right now?
20. What’s the next big step you need to take?
21. Are you taking it(or preparing for that step)?
22. If today was the last day of your life, would you want to do what you are about to do today?
23. What did you learn recently that changed the way you live?
24. Excluding romantic relationships, who do you love?
25. What’s been on your mind most lately?
26. What did life teach you yesterday?
27. Who makes you feel good about yourself?
28. If not now, then when?
29. Are you holding on to something that you need to let go of?
30. Are you a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits?
31. Have you been the kind of friend you want as a friend?
32. Is it possible to break a habit without changing our underlying thinking? Is it possible to break a habit without establishing a new habit to replace it with?
    
    
    

Shield of Faith

Ephesians 6:16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Have you ever wondered why faith was associated with the shield in this "parable" of armor in the Christian life?

Upon meditation, I think it is because when you decide to first take the step of preventing your heart from being stained with sin, you have to choose the right defenses.

Will power alone is not adequate. Because eventually our strength will wane.

But when we let God empower us, the defenses hold.

That's when faith comes into play. Human nature pushes us to believe we are capable of doings things on our own(until proven otherwise, but even then sometimes we want to believe we still can do things alone).

To have a shield that will quench the fiery darts of Satan, we need faith. Faith in God that He will give us victory. (Deut 20:4; Psalm 44:6-8; Luke 10:19; 1 Cor. 10:13; 1 Cor. 15:57; 2 Cor. 2:14; 2 Thess 3:3; Heb. 2:18; James 4:7-8; 1 John 4:4; 1 John 5:3-5) [Please take the time to read those verses.]

You cannot have victory in your own strength because there is no faith. And without faith, we have no shield. And no shield means everything that Satan throws at us will hit us.

When we give up the foolishness of self-sustaining victory, we are able to trust in God and have faith in Him to give us the victory, to withstand the fiery darts of the devil, and to resist the devil.

Healing Begins

This is a journal entry based on a song written by Michael Donehay. I'll copy and paste it here. There really isn't anything to add to it, but I'll put some stuff at the bottom of my thoughts about it.

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed…” James 5.16

What?
God can’t be serious can He?
Doesn’t He already forgive me?
Doesn’t He already know every thought before I think it?
Can’t He just heal me Himself?
Seriously God, what’s the point?
Do we really need to drag other people into this?

Well…yes.

I don’t know when you’ll be reading this little journal entry of mine, but as I’m writing it, it’s just a few days after the new year. And I, along with many others have already begun my list of new year’s resolutions. Because it’s a new year, and that’s what you do, right? And in case you’re wondering, this year I’m going to do a work out called p90x. I’m going to learn French, and I’m going to commit much more time to reading, writing, and listening.
I want to know God, and enjoy Him more than ever. These are my resolutions.

Now, today I was driving home and I got to catch some other people’s pledges for the new year. A few resolutions were being played on the local radio station, and I couldn’t help but take note. Dieting, exercising, reading, one kid said he was going to watch more Nascar…. It was a terribly enlightening time I assure you. But you know, in all the resolutions I heard, not one person among them said, “I’m committing to confession. This year, I want to confess more of my sin than ever.” Yeah, crazy huh? Not one person.

Now, of course I’m joking, but I think there’s something to it. I mean, why is it that in all our promises, it’s all about doing better? Why do we base all our commitments on getting stronger, smarter, and more athletic? Why don’t we ever hear someone resolve to display more of their weaknesses?

Well, I’m sure there’s a lot of factors like ego and self and sin that go into it, but I can’t help but wonder if primarily, it’s because we have forgotten, or have never believed in the first place, the gospel. And by that I mean, the beautiful news that we are all more hopeless and wretched than we ever thought possible, and in the exact same moment, we are more loved than we ever dared to dream. You see, God calls us to confess, because unlike us, He isn’t expecting us to pick ourselves up by our bootstraps. He isn’t asking us to try harder, do better, or make stronger commitments. No. Instead, in James 5 He asks us to commit to admitting the opposite. He’s asking us to admit that we aren’t strong enough, good enough, or pure enough. He asks us to lay down our self-saving, pride-enhancing promises and pick up his robe of salvation. He asks us to be honest about how truly awful we are, so that we might actually despair of ourselves altogether. And yeah, I know that doesn’t sound like a glimmering, hope-filled, this year will be better than the last, kind of message. In fact, it probably sounds down right depressing, but believe me, that’s the only place where healing really can start. When we finally own up to what’s really going on in our hearts and minds, only then can we begin to come to terms with how impossible it is to save ourselves. And that’s when resolution ends and salvation begins.

You see, most of us adhere to the theological truth that we are depraved, but certainly not enough to admit it to other people. And what’s startling is that we have to confess to others to really believe the gospel….because then we have to. As long as people think we’re better than we are, then there’s really no need to cling to Jesus. Who needs a Saviour when we can cling to our reputation, our friendly demeanor, or our disposition, etc, etc, etc. It’s funny, because as long as we don’t have to confess, we can usually fool people into thinking that we’re much better than we actually are. In fact, I think we fool ourselves a lot of the time. And it’s mostly because we think things and do things that never get brought out into the light, so we just sort of push them out of our mind, forget about them, and try to do better next time. And what’s sad is as the church forgets how messed up she really is, then slowly but surely she also begins to forget the good news altogether. We forget we are sinners saved by grace, and pretty soon, we forget about grace altogether. And it’s not long before we replace the good news of God’s mercy with the burden laying news of trying harder and being better.

We begin to look down on people who aren’t as good at being a Christian, and we actually begin to think that we don’t really need a Saviour. Or maybe I should say, we become our own Saviour. And what’s funny is that we think we have the world fooled. We think we’re actually convincing people that we’re changing and aspiring, and accomplishing all sorts of fantastic spiritual feats. Problem is, we can’t change our hearts, and everyone can see it. We may pay lip service to Jesus, and His saving work, but the way we fly off the handle when criticized, the way we can’t say we’re sorry, and the way we keep things locked away and hidden from others gives us away.

And this is probably why James tells us to be honest about our failures to people. Because healing doesn’t begin when we start fighting our vices and become better people, true healing starts when we become better people for the right reasons. And by that I mean grateful responsive love. Now, the more we’re aware of our hang ups and failures, the more we see our need for a Saviour. And the more we see our need for Him, the more we love Him. And the more we love and treasure Him, the more we want to live for Him. And then, not necessarily for Him at all, but because of Him, and because of His great love for us.

I mean, think about it. What is God thinking loving people like us? What is He doing wasting grace on a bunch of screw ups? Well, He’s showing us that there’s another way to create a new heart in someone other than human guilt and greater effort. He does it without pride, without fear, and without self-willed resolutions. Instead, he employs the humble grateful reaction of a sinner who’s been forgiven, and who is so in awe of that forgiveness, that they want to live in response to it.

That’s the goal. That’s what we’re aiming for. And if you have sin in your life, if you have secrets you don’t think anyone should ever know, trust yourself to the God who became sin for you, so that you might become the righteousness of God. I John says, that if we say we’re without sin, we make God a liar. So believe Him when He says He died for you while you were still a sinner, and believe that you’re so messed up He had to die for you, but at the same time, you were so loved, that He was glad to die for you. And if that’s true, then it no longer matters what you did, and in fact, the more sinful you are, the greater your Saviour is. Don’t try to cover it up and rob Him of all that glory. I know it’s scary. I know it’s terrifying, and I know that sometimes, people won’t be able to show you the grace that God can, but just do it. Even if it’s inconvenient, unsettling, or downright horrific. Unveil your sin, and let God be seen as the great and glorious redeemer that He is.

“So let them fall down
there’s freedom waiting in the sound
when you let your walls fall to the ground
we’re here now.”

--

The second to last paragraph stuck out to me above the rest, not to say the rest wasn't jumping in my face. (You can reread it if you like, that way I won't re-copy it here.)

When sin enters our lives by our admittance, it begins to alter our heart(Not positionally as far as salvation goes). We begin to lose a love for God, we begin to be numb to sin's effects and numb to God.

Obviously as Christians we want to change that. We want our hearts pure before God.

But the next step is usually the wrong stop. We then decide to "do better." But our hearts were altered before salvation by sin, too, but even more so. However, we couldn't "do better" to remove the sin from our lives.

To devote ourselves to "doing better" replaces God's role.

It begins with love.

Love prompted Calvary. Love prompted the empty grave. Love is what enabled our salvation.

It is our love for God that will change our hearts. David doesn't say in Psalm 51 that he would create in him a clean heart. He asked God to create a clean heart in him(David). (Psalm 51:10
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.)

So it is God who creates in us a clean heart. (This was David's prayer after his committing adultery with Bathsheba and killing Uriah.) But it began with David realizing his sin (Ps. 51:3), continued to his asking of forgiveness(Ps. 51:7, 9), then goes to the purification of the heart(done so by God).

That is how it is with us, too. We must acknowledge our sin, understand it is against God. Then seek forgiveness, then seek renewal.

And then to take James 5:16 into consideration, tear down the walls around our hearts. Seek accountability, get right with those you've wronged, be honest with those who will pray for you to overcome this sin and to maintain the love for God that will drive your desire and resolve for renewal.

Seven times seventy-Forgiveness

I've been living in this house here
Since the day that I was born
These walls have seen me happy
But most of all they've seen me torn
They have heard the screaming matches
That made a family fall apart
They've had a front row seat for the breaking of my heart

Seven times seventy times
I'll do what it takes to make it right
I thought the pain was here to stay
But forgiveness made a way
Seven times seventy times

There's healing in the air tonight
I'm reaching up to pull it down
Gonna wrap it all around
I remember running down the hallway playing hide and seek
I didn't know that I was searching for someone to notice me
I felt alone and undiscovered
And old enough to understand
Just when I'm supposed to be learning to love

You let me down again
I lost count of the ways you let me down
But no matter how many times you weren't around
I'm alright now...cause
God picked up my heart and helped me through
And shined light on the one thing left to do
And that's forgive you, I forgive you
Seven times seventy times if that's the cost I'll pay the price

Matthew 18:21-22
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

Luke 17:3-4
Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.
And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.


Forgiveness is important. Jesus says if we don't forgive others for their trespasses against us, God won't forgive our trespasses against him.

It's also rather hypocritical not to forgive. You were forgiven of your sins, yet, you can't forgive others of theirs?

Refusing to forgive hinders your relationship to God and your spirituality.

Are you refusing to forgive?

Are you falling from your relationship to God because you aren't forgiving?

In God's love.

I have looked you in the eyes
I have seen the tears you cried
I have heard you question why
You are here

There is a reason, there's a plan
There is a God Who understands
He's got your life inside His hands
Have no fear, 'cause He says

In all your hurt, in all your pain
I'll never leave, I won't forsake
You're my child and I'm your God
Come and rest in my love

I know this road is steep
And I know you're tired and weak
But the God of perfect peace
Is right here

He is the shelter from the storm
He is a rock, firm and secure
He is hope forever more
Have no fear, 'cause He says

In all your hurt, in all your pain
I'll never leave, I won't forsake
You're my child and I'm your God
Come and rest in my love

When everything seems out of control
I'm holding on, I won't let go
You're my child and I'm your God
Come and rest in my love

There is hope tonight
There is everlasting life
Dry away your tears
'Cause the morning sun will rise

Love will never fail
He will never fail, he says

In all your hurt, in all your pain
I'll never leave, I won't forsake
You're my child and I'm your God
Come and rest in my love

When everything seems out of control
I'm holding on, I won't let go
You're my child and I'm your God
Come and rest in my love
-Phil Wickham

I heard this one and wanted to share it. Are you going through something painful, something uncertain? Just rest in God's love.

Forgiveness and Healing

Just an under-developed thought. I was thinking about how several times Jesus healed someone sick, crippled, blind, etc. and as they departed he would say something to the affect of "Your faith has made you whole. Depart and sin no more."

I began to connect that to our spiritual lives. Sometime sin hinders us in our ministry or life in general.

Sometimes we are crippled in our spiritual lives because of sin. Sometimes we are deaf and mute(unable to listen to or to speak the things of God). Sometimes we are sick, momentarily unable to do what needs to be done. (And sometimes that sickness manifests itself to physical symptoms like nausea or loss of appetite.)

And for those unsaved, sometimes they are blind or they have leprosy where they are nearing death.

We may come to points in our life where we feel sick spiritually. Unable to appreciate God's goodness like we normally do; unable to minister and help others without the nauseating feeling of guilt and sin in our lives.

We may come to points where we are crippled. No longer able to serve in a particular ministry due to our sin, or unable to minister to that one person, or finding yourself "unable" to go to church without being reminded of your sin, therefore you do not go.

We may come to points where we are deaf or mute. Unable to hear God's voice clearly, or unable to speak of God's goodness without sin covering your mouth, reminding you of the sin you've committed.

But Christ brings healing. By his stripes we are healed.

Every time someone in the Bible was healed by Jesus, there was a prerequisite of faith. The woman with a problem with her blood, the cripple lowered through the roof, the man whose child was sick.

We are healed by Jesus through faith. Regardless of the illness. If you are alive and are looking for healing, you will obtain it through faith.

When we are forgiven, we are healed. Scars may remain, but we are healed. Trust may be broken, but we are healed.

When we seek in faith God's forgiveness our ears and mouths are opened; our legs are made whole; our health is renewed from being sick.

Don't think you can't be forgiven. You can be made whole again by Jesus through faith.


Verses:

John 5:4-9, 14 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.

When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time [in that case], he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?

The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.

Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.

And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath. (14) Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.

Mark 10:51-52
And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

Matthew 9: 20-22 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind [him], and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.

Growth.

I did a mini-series of sorts on this, and I was almost certain I had posted on this, but I guess I didn't.

This January my church had a retreat for its youth group. Well, the topic of teachings was on Growth and we focused on 1 Peter chapter 1. I posted a blurb about it earlier (Am I Willing?)

I didn't, however, finish the thought of how God has promised to give us everything we need to be the Christians he wants us to be.

2Pe 1:3-4 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that [pertain] unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

So, God, according to his divine power, has given us everything we need for life and godliness. And in addition to the power, we are given promises--mega and precious ones-- that by the things we are given for our need to live as God would have us live we are able to partake of His divine nature. We are able to be holy like God!

When I posted that, I went on to how we should be willing to claim that promise. But I didn't really go on to talk about how God's promise of having everything we need should affect our lives.

In the last entry, I talked about how we may be waiting for something(A Bible, or our own privacy or something else) that we think will give us a better avenue of growth.

But that thinking would make God a liar. that thinking says that we can -not- grow and be the Christians God wants us to be right now because we are not sufficiently prepared and supplied. But, God said he has given us everything that pertains to life and godliness. So, if we say we can't be the Christians God wants us to be because we don't have that privacy or that room, we make God a liar. Either that, or we are wrong. And "Let God be true and every man a liar."


So, why aren't you becoming the Christian god wants you to be? Why are you living for yourself and not for God? Are you lying to yourself thinking that you cannot possibly be what you ought to be because you are in short supply of the needed things for growth?

Don't let Satan fool you into believing such lies. You can be the Christian God wants you to be. You can live victoriously. You can grow. You can be close to God. You don't have to wait for this or that, you can start right now. Regardless of the time. 12a,? 1am? 2am? so what? You can still begin to grow. Stop right now and pray to God. Confess whatever sins are breaking your relationship[ with Him. Seek his strength and power to follow. Claim his promise of victory. Claim his promise of having everything you need to live right.

Future Vs. Present.

A simple nugget. Something that has been nagging at me constantly.

You will not be a month from now what you are not becoming now.

So, you will not suddenly be Christ-like, Spirit-filled, God-serving whenever a deadline comes. Perhaps graduation, a new item like a Bible, finally getting your own room, whatever might be your "If I had that, I could actually grow close to God."

And that statement brings up something else, but read the entry above this for that. (I thought I already posted about it, but I guess I didn't.)

Back to subject, obtaining something won't give us more ability to grow than what we already have.

If you are not becoming today what you want to be a week or a month from now, then you will not achieve that desire. Growth is not a spontaneous thing. It takes time, effort(As far as making sure we are attached to the vine), and willpower(beyond mere desire).

It's a quite simple thought. You don't wake up one morning a murderer, you become one over time. Thoughts creep in, hatred brews, plans formulate, etc.

Being Christ-like is not an overnight ordeal. It starts with a decision of resistance to Satan. Then another, then another. Then submission to God, resisting Satan's distractions. Continues with submitting to God your prayer time, Bible reading time, etc. If you are not spending time with God, you are not growing. Simple(and tragic) as that.

Perhaps we all should pause at this point and think about this. It's not my truth; it's God's. John 15 says to abide in Christ. If we don't abide, we won't bear fruit and grow. 1 Peter testifies to the fact that the Bible is a key to growth. ...Selah...Think on this. Really. I mean it. Stop right now and think. If you're saved, I can probably bet you desire to be close to God. To live victoriously.

But. It will not happen if you don't start right now. Don't overload yourself by reading 100 verses every hour, praying 30 minutes straight, etc. Don't lolly gag, but still don't speed through it. Begin with the speed and amount that will enable you to get truths of God, think about it, apply it, and manifest it into your life.

Read a chapter in the Bible or less. Find a truth that will change your life. And then apply it. Then pray. Prayer--talking to God. Just seek his face, and turn from your (wicked) ways.