Does God Really Love Me?

lt used to be enough that God loves you. You remember those days, right after you internalized, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in might not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

And it felt so good, so freeing. All of a sudden, you felt humility and self-worth bleeding together, overlapping. But it didn't take long. A few sermons, a few calls to start serving, to do your part, to use your gifts, to fulfill your "calling"; a few failures, a few skipped Bible studies, angry outbursts or nasty thoughts and suddenly you aren't so sure God likes you. 

Sure, sure, He loves you. He promised to never leave you and you know all the verses about His lovingkindness that endures forever, but yeah, not so sure He's really all that proud of you. His love is obligatory, kind of like a parent's. But He's not calling you His friend. You're pretty nervous to imply that you and God are all that close. So you cringe a bit when it's your turn to pray out loud. You pick up dime-a-dozen devos instead of the real Word of God. God loves you, He has to, right? 

You're not the first Christian to feel this way. That's why most of us spout off, "We are saved by grace through faith and not by works", but then try ever so hard to do just the right things. The pulpit preaches that Jesus paid the price and we cannot earn salvation, but then, once we're saved we discover the checklist of all the things we ought to do to insure our salvation. Sound familiar?

But if it's true that God's gift of salvation is free, then how is it possible that the maintenance of the same is so expensive? And if security does not come at a cost, then how can we convince our hearts to rest in the truth that God not only loved us enough to save us, but that He likes us enough to stay present with us in all our failures, to endure our screw ups, to fellowship with us in our weaknesses, to invest His Holy Spirit in us, to speak to us, to comfort us, to assure us of our salvation?

The secret is much simpler than you might fear. It is gratitude. In the KJV, Hebrews 12:28says, "Wherefore we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:". 

In the English Standard Version, it reads, "Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,".

The word translated as "grateful" in the second version is the same as is translated "grace" in the the King James. A succinct definition of the Greek word is this: The spiritual condition of one governed by the power of divine grace, the merciful influence of kindness by which God, exerting His holy influence upon our souls, turns them to Christ.*

In both translations, it is easy to see that the kingdom has already been received, therefore the readers (you and I) are assumed to have accepted Christ as our personal Savior. The next step is to worship the King of this kingdom with gratitude.
When we gather around the thanksgiving table each November, it's common to pass our plates with the query, "What are you thankful for?". This is the same principle we must apply to our worship: What do we worship for? What are we grateful for?

The difference between "love" and "like" is gratitude. The concept of love has the potential to remain nebulous, but when that love is expressed in terms of gratitude it takes on a gritty tangibleness. Thankfulness requires knowing someone, recognizing their contribution. Thanksgiving requires that we internalize God's love and recognize Him as good. 

The next time you are fearful that you've let God down and imagine Him standing over you saying, "I will always love you, but I'm so disappointed, I don't like you very much right now," pause to thank Him. Thank Him for the factual evidence of His love. In this thankfulness it will become apparent that He does indeed like you. His affection for you overflows the boundaries of unconditional love into the confidence that He treasures you, has secured you and that you have no need to impress Him. 


* Lexicon and dictionary notes taken from Blueletterbible.org

Competition: The Heart of a Man

It doesn't take too long on my Facebook newsfeed before I can see posts about either hockey, football, baseball or basketball and hear about how "OUR TEAM IS THE BEST".  It seems like competition is woven into the heart of man and some would say that is a bad thing.  I think competition gets a bad rap these days, which is a bummer because I think competition speaks to the heart of what it means to be a man.

Believe it or not, the Bible addresses this topic. Mark 9 tells the story of the disciples arguing amongst themselves about who was greatest. This is classic masculinity in action. Let's keep score and compete to see who wins. When people teach this story, they often teach it like the disciples were doing something wrong, like this desire to be first was a bad thing.

But it wasn't. Jesus doesn't scold them for wanting to be first. Instead, he sits them down and tells them how to actually do it! He says, "Whoever wants to be first among you must be the servant of all." He affirmed their desire to be first, their desire to compete for honors; he just told them they had been keeping score the wrong way. And that's it.

Like I said, competition does get a bad rap, because the gap from healthy competition to unhealthy is very narrow. When we call a person "competitive," what we usually mean is that they like to win and they get very bitter if they don't. The desire to be first place in some sport often goes hand in hand with the desire to cheat or to use performance-enhancing drugs to get there. Things like that cause people - usually women - to look at competition on the whole and say that it's a bad thing, that we should all just get along and be nice to each other so nobody has to lose.

Yet I would observe that those things are not actually the fault of competition at all. When a person cheats, his focus is not on the competition, but on the results. A "competitive" person does not like competing, most of the time; he likes winning - he is obsessed with the result. There might be great competition, but if he loses, he is still unhappy. That's the really interesting thing about the way Jesus addressed competition. According to his way of keeping score, you never really know where you are on the leaderboard. All you know is how you're doing at the competition itself - at being a servant to everyone. We'll find out the final score someday, but until then we can't know it, which keeps us from being obsessed with the results.

Believe it or not, Paul actually commands us to compete with one another. In Romans 12:10, he says, "Love with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor." Find out how your neighbor is doing at showing honor, and one-up him. Love more; love harder. Something tells me men get more excited about the possibility of outdoing each other than they would about simply showing honor without the idea of a competition. See, we tend to think that comparing ourselves to other people is inherently a bad thing, because many times it is, but many does not equal always. It can be a very good thing when comparing myself to my neighbor leads me to conclude that I'm not loving people as well as he is. As a man, that competition might just be what I need to spur me to the next level. Proverbs says that friends are supposed to have this effect on each other, just like iron sharpens iron.

Furthermore, the idea of a reward for one's work is very common throughout the Bible. Hebrews 11 observes, "Anyone who comes to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." In Revelation 22, Jesus promises, "Behold, I am coming soon, and my reward is with me." Rewards are a form of competition: some people will get the prize, and other people won't, and it all depends on how you live during your life. But the thing about God's prizes, which distinguishes them from earthly prizes, is that one person winning does not prevent the rest of us from winning. There are plenty of prizes to go around. If I compete with my friend to see who can outdo the other in showing honor, we both win. It's the healthiest kind of competition. It's all the intensity of competing, which men like, coupled with all the gentleness of "nobody loses," except for the people who don't try at all to win the prizes.

Polling company Rasmussen Reports has found that 56% of churchgoers are women. In other words, for every 2 men in church, there are 3 women. Why the disparity? What is it about the way the gospel is preached that appeals to women more than men, and why are all those other men choosing football and golf over church on Sunday mornings? I don't mean to suggest that churches are failing to reach men, because there are still a lot of Christian men in this country; nor do I even mean to suggest that all men enjoy and are motivated by a dynamic of competition. But Jesus himself affirmed his disciples when they expressed a desire to be first. He told them exactly how to do it. Shouldn't we conclude that even Jesus understood that some people simply get more excited when they have the ability to compete against other people? If we can introduce that dynamic back into faith somehow, won't we reach a lot of men who feel that Christianity is a good story but is lacking something?

Of course, the man in me wishes there was some way to actually watch my score go up, because that's what I like about sports and video games: I always know exactly how I'm doing at all times. Showing love is tougher. Do I have a 36%, or is it more like a 58.2%? Because I don't know the score, I just have to focus on the process: loving more, showing honor more, serving everyone. And I have to know that God is watching me, keeping my score, preparing my rewards for the day I take hold of them.

Comfort Comes When Repentance Comes

Matthew 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted (KJV). 

Mourning connects with repentance as it works in concert with conviction. While often identified with grief as the result of a loss, it also can be known as godly sorrow as the result of an awakening. That awakening is the product of the Holy Spirit convicting people of sin, righteousness, and judgment (see John 16:7-11). With conviction comes an awareness of the separation between God and the individual. Consequently, sorrow grips the heart and soul of those who receive that conviction, which in turn leads to a change in the way they think about sin, the righteousness of God and the Judgment to come. With their eyes thus opened, they are able to turn form darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they are able to receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among those sanctified by faith that is in Christ Jesus (see Act 26:12-18). 

Comfort comes when repentance comes. While tears often accompany godly sorrow, they in of themselves are not necessary a sign of repentance. Any hypocrite can produce tears in order to appear sorrowful. There may be some legitimate grieving, but that does not mean there has been a change of heart or change in the way a person thinks. We find an example of sorrow leading to repentance with the Church at Corinth. They had allowed sin to enter into the camp, and as a result, Paul wrote concerning this issue in 1Corinthians 5-6. In his second letter to the Corinthians, we find that repentance took place as a result. 

2Corinthians 7:8-11 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season. Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter (KJV). 

Without repentance, none will ever experience the complete comfort of the Holy Spirit while on the earth. Nor will they experience the Ultimate Comfort when God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away (Revelation 21:4, KJV [see also Revelation 7:17]). Mourning is also attached to humility. As we find in James 4:6-10,“God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up” (KJV). 

There comes a time when we need to put away merriment, so we can properly grieve. Some seek constant pleasure to avoid the suffering attached to sorrow. They use laughter to inoculate themselves from weeping; but without weeping, there can be no real healing. Weeping is a spiritual and emotional cleaning process that also flows into the physical realm. Tears literally remove poisons from the body caused by heaviness. That is why when people have a “good cry,” they feel better mentally and physically. When we allow the healing process to take place, we find that mourning turns to dancing. This is especially true when repentance is involved. There comes a time when we have to face the reality of where we are in life. At times, we may need to properly mourn for a loss, instead of stuffing the pain. To move on in such instances, one must mourn first. We may find we have sin in our life and need repentance. Often, tears accompany the restoration process the Lord takes us through as we genuinely sorrow. However, He also turns them into tears of joy and laughter. Psalm 30:10-12 “Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me: Lord, be thou my helper. Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever (KJV). 

Peace In The Midst of the Storm

In this world you will have trouble. John 16:33 

I wonder if the disciples were shocked when Jesus said this? After all, by this time they had seen Jesus perform many miracles—water into wine, multiplying bread and fish, people healed, and raised from the dead. Why would the disciples expect trouble when God could work miracles? Furthermore Jesus had told them to ask “for anything in my name, and I will do it” (John 14:14). 

The real key is in the first half of the verse, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.” In Jesus we have peace. We don’t necessarily have peace in our circumstances but we can always have peace in Jesus. God could prevent difficulties but rather he often chooses to let us experience his peace in the midst of them. Being at peace in a difficult situation is a miracle in itself because it shows the world we are trusting in God; it also adds to the devil’s demise. 

When we trust God in difficult circumstances we demonstrate our belief in something greater and more enduring than temporary relief from our problems. We believe God is doing a work that has eternal consequence. We are relying on Paul's words which tells us, “What is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). 

Nevertheless it is important for us to believe God not only has the ability to perform miracles but does perform miracles from time to time. This gives us the faith to know God is indeed powerful and compassionate. However, whether God intervenes directly in our circumstances or not we know, “His works are perfect, and all his ways are just” (Deuteronomy 32:4). 

Let’s choose to trust him and avail ourselves of his peace. 

A New Heart

And I brought him to Thy disciples, and they could not cure him. Matthew 17:16

On December 3, 1967, in the Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, a team of doctors, led by Dr. Christiaan Barnard, performed the world's first heart transplant. Although the recipient, Louis Washkansky, lived for only 18 days after the surgery, other transplant recipients followed who lived for several years. Heart transplants now are relatively common, with specialists and equipment in many large hospitals capable of performing such operations. But in 1967, Dr. Barnard was venturing into new and unexplored regions of medicine. Until he successfully performed the first transplants and established the procedures for doing so, no other doctors or hospitals could even think of attempting a heart transplant. There was no cure for a severely diseased heart. Just as the man in our text discovered there was no cure for his son's demon possession. Until the Lord Jesus arrived.

The man had brought his son to the disciples, and he had high hopes of a cure. After all, these men were students and associates of the great Healer from Galilee. Surely they would know the methods and procedures of their Master. We don't know what attempts the disciples made to heal the lad; all we know is whatever they tried, it did not work. And the boy and his father were no better off. The lack of a cure meant only one resort: the only One who could heal. Many today are looking for a cure for their sin and guilt, and are going to the wrong places. Instead of going directly to the Lord Jesus, people are flocking to many other fonts of false relief. The cults are prospering as they spread their confusion and false doctrine, just as the mainline denominations of Christendom are spreading their doctrine of religion and good works. Other people are attempting to slake their thirst at the cisterns of pleasure, wealth, power, and philosophies. Like the powerless disciples, these cannot cure. But sadly, they prevent many from seeking the One Who can and will cure.

We who are saved can sing of the sin cleansing power in the blood of the Lamb. We have found that our incurable disease of sin is not incurable after all, not when the case is turned over to the Great Physician. That which is impossible with the efforts and money and ideas of men is gloriously possible when the Lord Jesus steps in.

There are some patients with diseased hearts who cannot be cured, not even with a heart transplant. But there is not one sinner who cannot be saved by the blood of Christ.

The Grace of a New Beginning

And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new."  - Revelation 21:5

It is a sign of God's immeasurable grace that no one ever reaches a stage in life where one cannot start over.  Each day that dawns is a new beginning.  Our God is the God of second chances.

Do not allow whatever may have happened in the past to cause you to lose sight of what the future may hold.  If you wish to make a fresh start, make a firm decision to be done with your old life, even though it will still try to enslave you.  All new life comes from God alone.  Continually affirm that new life flows through you as a result of God's grace, and you will receive the inheritance of new life that is yours in Christ.

Lord of new beginnings, thank you that each new day Your mercies are new and I can begin again. Amen.

Faith Laughs At Impossibilities

      Peter in prison! What a jolt!

      We are too far removed from the actual scene to catch the atmosphere of dismay the Christians of that day felt.

      Peter had moved from Pentecost to prison, from jeers to spears. He was guarded by sixteen soldiers. One wonders why such a defenseless man needed such a group to watch him. Could it be that Herod feared the supernatural, seeing he knew that Jesus escaped such a group that guarded Him?

      Had Peter been hedged in by sixteen hundred soldiers, the problem would not have been increased nor the escape less sure. Peter was bound not only by two chains, but also by the thick walls of the prison, by the three wards of the prison, and finally by an iron gate.

      When Peter is in prison, does the church organize a plan to get him released? No. When Peter is jailed, do the believers offer a plea to Herod or suggest a price to offer the lawmakers for his freedom? No. Peter had released others at the hour of prayer; now others must believe for his release.

      Right through the book of Acts, which might be called The Acts of Prayer, we find prayer and more prayer. Dig into the book and discover this power that motivated the early church. In the twelfth chapter of Acts we find a group that prayed. Though a host encamped against Peter, in this were these believers confident: there was a God who could and would deliver. The one never-failing rescue operation was prayer. There was no hedging about in the prayers of those who made intercession for Peter. Prayer was made without ceasing by the church unto God for him. They did not seem to be concerned whether Herod should die or not. They did not pray that they might escape Peter's fate. They were not asking that they have another exodus to a more hospitable country. They prayed for one person: Peter. They prayed for one thing: his release. The answer proves the point: "Whatsoever ye shall ask,... that will I do"

      Some shabby interpreters of this story have said that when the pray-ers heard that Peter was at the door, they were unbelieving. I cannot accept this assumption. I am sure that they prayed with expectation. I like to think that they were for the moment staggered by the immediacy of the answer. They could be excused if they raised their eyebrows when Peter said, "I got out quite easily with an angel escort " (Next time you pass through the magic self-opening door at your supermarket, remember that the first door to open of its own accord was operated from above!)

      Angel deliverances seem to find no place in our modern theology. Perhaps we would like the Lord to answer our prayers with the least embarrassment to us. After all, who expects that the angelic ranks should be disturbed just to bring deliverance to a praying soul? But supernatural results came for many of the praying saints of apostolic days. The Lord geared a property-damaging earthquake to get deliverance for an apostle. Prayer is dynamite.

      There is no weapon formed against prayer that can neutralize it. Some things can delay answers to prayer, but nothing can stop the full purpose of God. "Though it tarry, wait for it."

      The first requirement in prayer is to believe.
            -Believe that God is and that "he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
            -Believe that God is alive and therefore has power-not only for Peter's deliverance, but for ours.
            -Believe that God is love and that He cares for His own.
            -Believe that God is power and therefore no power can stand against Him.
            -Believe that God is truth and therefore cannot lie.
            -Believe that God is kind and that He will never abdicate His throne or fail in His promise.



      Reflecting on the story of Peter, I am rebuked, humiliated, chagrined, stung. Why? Because there are some great modern saints, Watchman Nee for one, who for years have suffered and been held captive by communists and others. Many of the saints today are shut up in prison. The same fate has befallen some of God's choice witnesses in Vietnam and in the Congo.

      Such perils to other members of the Body demand concern, concentration, and consecration to a committed plan of prayer on their behalf. I fear that prayer has not been made to God without ceasing for these suffering kinsmen.

      Mr. Bunyan shows us his Christian held captive by the Giant Despair in Doubting Castle. The key to his deliverance was Promise. We Christians are in captivity on many levels today personal, domestic, church, and missionary enterprise. But fetters break and dungeons fall when prayer is made by the church unto God-
            -Prayer without ceasing;
            -Prayer that might shatter our status quo;
            -Prayer that drains us of every other interest;
            -Prayer that excites us by its immense possibilities;
            -Prayer that sees God as the One that rules on high, almighty to save;
            -Prayer that laughs at impossibilities and cries, "It shall be done";
            -Prayer that sees all things beneath His feet;
            -Prayer that is motivated with desire for God's glory.

      The praying of the believer can become a ritual. The place of prayer is more than a dumping ground for all our anxieties, frets, and fears. The place of prayer is not a place to drop a shopping list before the throne of a God with endless supplies and limitless power.

      I believe the place of prayer is not only a place where I lose my burdens, but also a place where I get a burden. He shares my burden and I share His burden. "My yoke is easy and my burden is light." To know that burden, we must hear the voice of the Spirit. To hear that voice, we must be still and know that He is God.

      This calamitous hour in the affairs of men demands a church healthier than the one we have. This blatant manifestation of evil in the youth and in the violation of God's commandments throughout the world calls for a faith that will not shrink.

      Can we let our prayer swords rust in the scabbards of doubt? Shall our prayer harps hang tuneless on the willows of unbelief
            -If God is a god of matchless power and incredible might,
            -If the Bible is the unchangeable Word of the living God,
            -If the virtue of Christ is as fresh today as when He first made the offering of Himself to God after His resurrection,
            -If He is the one and only mediator today,
            -If the Holy Spirit can quicken us as He did our spiritual fathers, Then all things are possible today.
      The seas were boiling, the winds were howling, the sails were tearing, the spars were flying, the stars were hiding, Euroclydon was blasting. The people were cringing and crying, sobbing and sighing. One man alone was praising. All were expecting death save Paul. Amidst a scene of hopelessness, if ever there was one, Paul cries, "Sirs, I believe God" (Acts 27).

      As things seem to fall apart these days, I am going to join Paul. I am going to say in faith, "Sirs, I believe God." Will you join me?

Freedom In Christ

2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (KJV). In order for our relationship with God to be pure, we must be free. Without freedom, we are still in bondage to the things of this world. If the spirit of the world is our master, we will never freely serve the Lord. Instead of agreeing with Him, we will seek to have Him agree with us. Without the Spirit, we cannot know the things of God; much less understand them (see  1Corinthians 2:9-16).

Without realizing it, it would be easy to misuse the verse that says, “The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). How often have we heard people say, “I’m walking by the spirit of the law,” which is another way of saying “I am going to walk a little bit in the flesh?” It is similar to “a little white lie.” It is still a lie and is ungodly. Walking a little bit in the flesh is still walking in the flesh. Using Scripture to do so is dangerous ground.

Without freedom in Christ Jesus, we would still be trying to earn the Father’s love and involve ourselves with dead works, trying to somehow make our way into heaven. When we walk in the freedom that comes with the Law of the Spirit of life, we will cease from our own feeble attempts to manipulate God. For example, why should we incorporate the Word of God in our prayers? Are we to quote Scripture to God in order to hold Him accountable to His Word in order to get what we want? That is fleshly prayer and borders on witchcraft. When people twist the things of God to fulfill fleshly desires, they are walking in rebellion. The reason we use Scripture in prayer is so that we come into agreement with God and pray according to His perfect will. 1 John 5:14-15 clearly says, “If we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (KJV).

When we walk in love, we will freely ask the Father for those things we desire without manipulation. Our love bonds us to His will and desires, which in turn causes us to ask for those things that are pleasing to Him. If you feel the need to manipulate anyone to get what you want, it is time to examine your heart through the Holy Spirit. We obey Him because we love Him, not because we are trying to earn His love. Everything we do for Him will spring out of the relationship. With freedom comes the desire to please Abba (Daddy), Father. In that liberty is fullness of peace and joy. Everything Jesus did was the result of His love for the Father. He had, and always will have, complete confidence in His relationship with Him. God desires us to have the same confidence. Why else would He desire to conform us into the image of Jesus?

Guard Your Heart

"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." - Proverb 4:23

Nearly 3,000 years have passed since King Solomon wrote the Book of Proverbs, yet this timeless treasure of practical wisdom is still applicable today. The wisest man of his day, King Solomon failed to heed his own advice and fell into idolatry. Let us take a look at his life, for there is much we can learn. 

King Solomon’s life had great beginnings. The young King of Israel was humble, and his heart was devoted and surrendered to God. One night he had a dream and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” Solomon replied, “Give me wisdom and knowledge to govern the people.” Pleased with Solomon’s request, God gave him not only wisdom and knowledge but also wealth and honor. 

King Solomon was greater in wisdom and wealth than all the kings of the earth. During his 40 year reign, Israel was the most powerful and prosperous nation in the region. Silver and gold were as plentiful as rocks on the roadside. His reputation as a man of great wisdom spread far and wide, and people came to hear him speak from all nations. 

King Solomon built the first Temple in Jerusalem and adorned it with the finest gold and polished stones. He engaged in massive construction projects and built cities and ships and a magnificent royal palace. He was a superb statesman who expanded commercial trade with surrounding nations, thus increasing the wealth and riches of the nation of Israel. 

Beneath the gold and glitter of Solomon’s reign, serious problems were surfacing. He made an alliance with Egypt and married the daughter of Pharaoh – one of his many political marriages – which led to his downward spiral. He had 700 royal wives and 300 concubines, many of whom practiced paganism. God had warned His people not to take multiple wives and intermarry with pagan nations, but Solomon ignored it. He compromised his faith by building pagan temples for his wives and worshiping with them. King Solomon’s divided heart resulted in a divided kingdom. The Kingdom of Israel was split during the reign of Solomon’s son, Rehoboam. 

Near the end of Solomon’s life, he wrote the Book of Ecclesiastes and reflected on his life. All of his accomplishments had left him unfulfilled. Here was a man who had everything – power, wealth, intellect and fame – yet he declared it all meaningless in the end. He had seen it all, tried it all, and done it all, yet it left him dissatisfied and wanting more. He took a hard look at his life and concluded that only through God can there be true fulfillment. 

King Solomon’s life reminds us that the problems associated with power, lust, and greed in our modern world have existed for thousands of years. He teaches us that perishable pursuits do not satisfy in the long run, and we always want more than we have. He teaches us that life apart from God is meaningless, and true fulfillment comes from knowing His purpose for our lives. Above all, Solomon teaches us to guard our hearts against anything that will cause us to stray or compromise our walk with God. 

Father, thank you for teaching us valuable truths from the life of King Solomon. Let these truths lead us to a deeper commitment to Christ. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

Burning Fire or Cold Ash?

We are not so much called to a particular place or task. We are called upon to commit ourselves to God. He then takes us where he wants us and uses us in the way he chooses. We are not indispensible to the mission. The mission will be completed with or without us. 

We often look out upon the harvest field and we see a particular need. We then tend to sell ourselves to the need we are observing. But, there are billions of needs among billions of people in a million different places. We can’t be everywhere at once and we can’t serve in more than one place. Rather than commit ourselves to a place or a people shall we not commit ourselves to Christ and then trust him to direct our lives. It is a deception to believe that the needs far away are greater or more important than the needs nearby. A lost soul is utterly lost whether he is in the jungles of Africa or living in the house next door. 

It seems we sometimes are tempted to compromise the sovereignty of God by relegating it to an inferior position behind our organizational efforts. A high school teacher could assure you that they would be deeply offended if they walked into their classroom every day and their students were clamoring to inform them of what plans they had for class that day. Organization and structure is a necessary part of any ministry but we must take care that it does not squeeze God out of the picture. Paul says that God has “…arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.” (1 Cor. 12:18) Utter chaos would erupt if the body parts gave direction to the head but when the parts yield to the head a wonderful symphony of movement can be experienced. We are parts of the body, when we yield to Christ we become efficient kingdom builders. 

God’s operational modus is much different than that of the secular world. We so readily adopt the secular idea of go, go and go. We preach consecration and commitment and we tie those ideas to frantic action. We have to do more, go further and be better. But God says for us to “Be still, and know that I am God.” Strength and efficiency are found in the quietness of God. The idea here is to calm down, put away frenzy and trust God to do what he will. 

Moses was a man called and prepared by God to do a great and wonderful thing. He would deliver the people of Israel from slavery in the land of Egypt. Exodus chapter 2 tells the tragic story of how Moses got in the way of God’s plan for his life. He saw one of his fellows being mistreated by an Egyptian and he took care of business. He defended one of his own. His act could probably be justified to some degree, but his failure was he chose to do it his way instead of God’s way. 

Moses was well educated, he had lived among the Egyptian elite, he understood their culture, he was a fine, masculine specimen and extremely intelligent but in spite of all those things he was not yet ready to be used of God. So, God sent him away for forty years for further training. 

We so often feel comfortable in our ability, but God is not looking so much for ability as he is availability. He wants a heart that will submit to his will, a heart wise enough and willing enough to get out of the way so God can do a great work. In order to get us to that place, God sometimes allows us to experience long periods of feeling useless. We may feel insignificant and unappreciated until we finally realize that God’s way works and our way doesn’t. 
There must have come a time during those forty years of exile that Moses felt like he would never really amount to much or accomplish any great thing for God. But God has a habit of choosing “the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; … the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” (1 Corinthians 1:27) 

God didn’t call Moses out of exile until he was prepared. In Exodus 3 Moses saw a burning bush. He was fascinated by what he saw. I’m not so sure that instantaneous combustion was so unusual in the hot desert but what was so perplexing to Moses was the fact that the bush was not consumed. It just kept burning and burning. 

Did Moses compare himself to the bush? Moses had a ‘crash and burn’ moment in his life and it cost him forty years. Did he look at the bush and say? “I wish I could have just kept on burning. Instead, I was consumed by the flame of my own passion and self assertiveness”. Did Moses look at the burning bush and say, “Lord, make me to burn continually for you. Don’t let me fail. Don’t let me falter but let me burn eternally in my passion and service for you.” John Wesley seemed to get the idea when he admonished his fellow clergy to “Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” 

God called to Moses by name, “Moses, Moses!” Why does God seem to choose some for greatness and others never are called? Was Billy Graham, Mother Theresa and D.L. Moody more special than others in the eyes of God? Do Charles Stanley, John MacArthur and John Piper have certain, peculiar traits that make them more special in the eyes of God? Of course not. They are affective in service because they made themselves available. Many others will live out their entire lives in mediocrity because they never inquired why God never called them by name. They were sent into the wilderness and their fire was never rekindled. They passed their days and years in a heap of cold ash. 

How did God choose that particular bush? I don’t think it was difficult, I don’t think he spent a lot of time trying to make that decision. I think any old bush on the desert floor would suffice. You don’t need special talents, you don’t need a great education or a stellar record or even an especially winsome personality to do great things for God. You just need to be willing, to be available, and leave the rest up to him.

What Does It Mean To Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus?

It means to recognise the reality of our invisible God Father, Son and Holy Ghost and the Lordship of Jesus Christ. When we look to Jesus in our daily circumstances, our failures and our victories, we acknowledge that we depend on Him, that we need Him and that we want Him to be the number one in our life. 

In this article I want to touch on three important points: 
A) How do we turn our eyes upon Jesus? 
B) What happens to us when we do it? 
C) What are we seeing? 

A) How do we turn our eyes upon Jesus in real life? 
How do we get from this spiritual term and the goose bumps it brings to every charismatic Christian, to a real application in our daily life? 

We turn our eyes to Jesus as we pray! 
Praying alone or in fellowship with other Christians will turn our focus on Jesus. 
As you acknowledge his Lordship in your live your eyes are turned to Him. 
As you discus matters of your live with him your focus is on Him and as you are listening to what he has to say to you concerning certain areas in your life - what you should do and what not. 


We focus on Jesus by having fellowship with other believer’s. 
When we meet in small groups and minister to each other, praying for and blessing one another, giving testimonies of the things God is doing in our lives – we together become focussed on Jesus. 


We turn our eyes to Jesus through the reading and hearing of the word. 
That is what every sermon and every bible reading must accomplish: Making Jesus bigger and bigger in our life. And that my dear readers is my purpose for writing the different articles: encouraging to make Jesus the number One in your life. 


We focus on Jesus when we praise and worship him. 
Every time I praise and worship the Lord on my own or by listening to some good worship music His presence increases in me. Clouds and darkness disappear in the light of His glory and grace. 


B) What happens when you turn your eyes upon Jesus? 
Who wants to be more like Jesus? Tried it? Did it work? Work harder at it! Go to church more often! Give more money! Preach on the streets! No! No! No! 

Just focus on Jesus and you will become more and more like him. You are being transferred into his image by the Spirit of God! 
2 Corinthians 3:18 states: 
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 
Many times we find it very hard to live a godly life. It seems like we never arrive. But the beauty of being a child of God is, that He doesn’t want us to struggle. 

Here is the secret of being a really godly person: Turn your eyes upon Jesus! By doing so, the Apostle Peter tells us in 2 Peter 1:3: 
“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvellous glory and excellence.” 
Spend time with Jesus, focus on Him! By doing that, He Himself will change you from the inside out. That’s living life God’s way. 


C) What do we see when we turn our eyes upon Jesus? 

We see the author of our faith. Hebrews 12:3 “...looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith...” 

“Author” here means: a leader, one, who makes the first step in a given situation and leads the way! 

Many Christians have no sense of direction in their spiritual life. They know allot about Jesus, but they do not know him as the Leader, the one that leads the way. They are governed by their senses, by what they see and focus on. But they never learned to lean on him, to look into his face. 

Are their decisions coming up in your life? Concentrate on Jesus. Get full of his word, have fellowship with Jesus, talk to him and worship him as the way the truth and the light – and he will direct your way of life. 

Every new step that you take in your spiritual journey, Jesus is going to do the first step to lead you into the right direction. That is His promise. 

And then we see him also as the finisher of our faith. 
Without Him pouring out his mercies every day anew, you will not make it into his presence, into heaven. 

He is keeping you so many times, when you are not even recognising it. In Jude it says, that he is keeping us from falling. So many times we would fall into sin - but he is keeping us from falling. 

If you put your life’s focus truly on Jesus – he will carry you through everything you are facing in your life. 

Trust Him as the finisher of your faith! He is able!!! 

Many times we tend to make the things of God so very complicated. We are so hard on ourselves. We need to understand that the Lord knows that on our own we are doomed to fail. But if we stay connected with and to Him we bring forth much fruit. The Bibles calls that abiding on the vine. 

So, my encouragement for you is this: Trust you Lord Jesus in every moment of your life. You are not the author and finisher of your faith – He is. And He is walking with you. He is also always one step ahead of you, so that you can follow Him. 

Enjoy your journey through life with Jesus- Keeping your eyes, your focus on Him

A Prayer: Smiling when your heart is weary

Dear Lord,

Help me to remember that on my darkest days, there is always someone who is experiencing something worse. Help me to smile even when my heart is weary, overburdened, and sick with worry. Lord help me smile to help brighten someone else’s day, encourage someone else’s heart, help lift another broken spirit. Help me to remember that the very thing I need and long for I must first give it away. In order for me to have sunnier days, I must learn to brighten someone else’s day. Lord help me to remember how a simple smile can change the chemical reaction in my own body and bring a natural form of healing to the inner most parts of my being. Lord help me smile when no one else is smiling around me, when the world is filled with sorrow, and even when I am not able to see the light at the end of the tunnel with the naked eye.

Lord remove the veil of darkness, and give me hope. Open my spiritually blinded eyes that I may discover he truth, that even when I’m not able to smile, you are still smiling down upon me and anointing everything I touch with my hands. Lord, your grace and mercy is sufficient and you continue to smile and laugh when our enemies mock us, accuse us, and plot against us, because you see that their day is arriving. Lord, you said for me to not let my heart be troubled or afraid. You promised to carry me through every storm, heartache, and everything that threatens the plans you have for me. For you are still in control. Lord, let your light be a reflection in the midst of a darkened path, and when I stumble my way through the darkness, cover me with your protection and give your angels charge over me to keep me in all my ways.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart; be acceptable in your sight. Lord, create in me a clean heart and renew in me a right spirit, that in all of my ways I will acknowledge you and you promised to direct my path. Lord, fight every battle I am faced with, and help me to remember that You are the potter and I am only clay. While people may win battles, they never win the war with you on my side. Help me be still while you mold and shape me into the woman or man I am purposed to be, and bless everyone that crosses my path today, that they may be blessed with the beautiful smile you drew across my face with your own hands.

Help me to remember when my family and friends forsake me, that you will never leave my side, and in those moments when I’m feeling all alone, help me to remember that you are closer. You said that you are near to those who have a broken and a contrite spirit. Lord, tech me how to smile more. For we never realize the power in a smile, or what extending an encouraging word to a stranger, offering a compliment, or a performing a simple gesture could do to make someone else’s day brighter. We never know how the simple things in life could save life until this precious gift is suddenly snatched away from us. Lord, no matter what is going on around me…give me the strength to just smile.

Have You Heard His Whispers?

I remember listening to Bing Crosby sing "White Christmas" when I was a kid. I thought no one in the world had such a rich, baritone voice. Some of the greatest voices of all time belong to Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin and Otis Redding. Some may even try to put Elvis on that list. 

Ben Franklin wrote often about the great preacher, George Whitefield. Whitefield was a bit of a rebel in his day, choosing to preach in the open air rather than from an indoor pulpit. He would often position himself downwind so his voice would carry further. Up to 20,000 people would come to hear him preach and Ben Franklin observed that his voice could be heard up to a mile away. What a great voice! 

If men can possess such voices, how great must be the voice of God? Have you ever heard him speak? The Psalmist describes his voice beautifully: "The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord thunders over the mighty waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful. The voice of the Lord is majestic. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon." (Psalm 29:3-4) 

Have you heard the voice of the Lord lately? God doesn't often use a loud voice. God doesn't choose to compete with the noisy ambiance that surrounds us. The Lofty Almighty One would never stoop to compete for our attention. He does not fret when we ignore his voice. He is polite, he is patient and he generally speaks to us in whispers rather than shouts. If you seldom or never hear his voice it may be because you can't hear his soft whispers above the blare of the television, i-pods and the cell phones that continuously demand your attention. 

Failure to hear the whispers of God in your life can leave a devastating affect. His whispers change lives. His whispers could change your destiny. If you are not attuned to the whispers of God you could miss his will. You could marry the wrong one. You could miss the right job. You could spend a good portion of your life on a rabbit trail God never intended you to be on. 

After that wonderful revelation of God at Mount Carmel, Ahab came home and told Jezebel what happened. The wicked shrew was enraged. She sent a messenger to Elijah to inform him that he was as good as dead. Elijah fled to the mountains in fright. He came to Mount Sinai where he had an encounter with God. 

This was the same mountain where God spoke to Moses and the people trembled at the voice and presence of God. Elijah began whining to God, "The people have rejected you. They have rebelled and point prophets to death and now I am the only man of God left and they are determined to kill me too." God told Elijah to climb the mountain and wait. 

When trouble comes into our lives, when we are desperately in need of direction, when confusion seems to overcome us it is wise to climb the mountain and wait. " Search for the LORD and for his strength; continually seek him." (Psalm 105:4) 

Have you ever been frustrated trying to call someone and they just won't answer their phone. Caller id allows the receiver to identify the caller and a refusal to answer is sometimes taken as a personal affront. "I know they know it's me, why won't they talk to me?" 

God had caller id before the phone company; He knows when we call upon him and he never ignores the voices of his own children. 

Elijah climbed Mt. Sinai and waited for God to speak. "Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came the fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave." (1 Kings 19:11-12) 

God's voice whispered to Elijah, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" 

"Lord, I'm the last prophet standing." 

God assured Elijah that there were 7,000 people in the northern kingdom who were still faithful to him. 

One moment, perhaps when you least expect it, the voice of God will whisper to your heart. It may happen today, it may be while you are driving to work or while you are doing house work or mowing the lawn. But it's most likely to happen when you are quiet.