One Year After a Terrorist Attack

"Looking back over today I never would have thought it would turn out as it did. The head of our safety ministry came in to our pastors meeting to tell us that there was an active shooter down the street and that we were locking down the facility. Soon after we started working again our administrator came and asked if we could bring the people from the site to our church while they were interviewed by the police. I immediately thought of the school but then knew that in a time like this we needed to be a light and extend care to our hurting community. We watched some of the news reports and then started preparing for the arrival of the people. We had snacks, sodas, water and coffee available for them. Some counsellors showed up and set up in the youth auditorium. Police and probation officers arrived first. One of the detectives who attends our church showed up with a shirt soaked in blood. I remembered I had two shirts in my office that were samples from Man Day that I went and grabbed. I gave him one and his partner the other one. They were both very grateful. When the people arrived they separated them by who saw something and who was just there. The people had tears in their eyes. They were very grateful we were open for them. When the bus pulled in and parked at the church one person yelled “Thank God we're safe!” One of our members who worked at the IRC said she has never been prouder of her church than today. Some of our other members were there and greeted me as they walked in the building. Many of the officers and peer support personnel were from our church as well. The cafe was packed. They were getting most of their names and pictures and busing them to another site to be picked up. We had a second bus load of people come bringing the total from 200 to probably 400 not counting the hundreds of volunteers, chaplains, police, detectives, and counsellors. They started to ask about if we were going to have a church service. I had told Pastor Luke we would have a prayer service tonight. They were concerned about opening the campus. We decided to move forward and believe God for safety. A guy went to Costco to buy a pallet of water for the people and when Costco asked him what he was doing and found out they dumped chickens and bagels, croissants and bread in his truck to bring. It was great to see pastors from other churches and the community uniting for this. When the sun had set I walked across to get ready for the prayer service. It was God orchestrated. There were 16 salvation's and who knows how many online. We prayed and preached the gospel. That was all. People from all over the world were texting and hitting us up on social media."

One year later after these events I woke up and came to church to pick up Pastor Luke and our Administrative team and we all headed to the IRC for a memorial gathering where they honored the organizations who opened their doors for the people being evacuated. There were somber moments and words of hope given. They presented a plaque to The Rock Church for our involvement and had Dr. Fred Adams, our administrator at the time of the event, say a few words. 

What I think left the greatest impact was the scripture he read from Matthew 11:28 "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

There are many people whose lives will never be the same after December 2, 2015. Fourteen individuals are now gone from our lives. Their families and friends left in the wake of terror. I am sure many questions and sorrows still linger. Only in Jesus will we find rest for our souls. He alone has the answers. He alone can calm our fears and give us peace amidst the storms of life. He was acquainted with sorrows and if you listen to some of the statements He made regarding current events of His day you will find that there was plenty of tragedy and many questions. 

It was the mission of Jesus to point us to and show us the Father. That is exactly what He did when He went to the cross. Not only in that one instance but also throughout His entire life He showed us the Father through his life, His words, the miracles He performed, His emotions and His actions. 

Now He calls us to the same life. He wants us to show others the love of Jesus through our lives. We can share the words of life. We can act in a way that displays the goodness of God. Whether it is through a prayer, a shoulder to cry on, buying a pallet of water at Costco or giving someone a fresh shirt it all displays the love of Jesus.

We will not forget those who lost their lives. We will work towards love and unity in our nation. Over and above all, we as Christians, will show the love of Jesus to a lost and dying world. 

The Journey

"God is taking us all on a journey." 

This past Wednesday marks the one year point that started a new phase of my journey. It was a year ago that I was named the Senior Pastor of The Rock Church and World Outreach Center. It happened in an organizational meeting and no one was expecting it. That night I wrote the words above along with a lot of other thoughts. There was a myriad of emotions that came throughout the day. I remember the feeling like I wanted to cry but no tears would come. I was excited but apprehensive. I had thoughts of what I was supposed to do for the church, for myself and for the family. I felt confident that God would give me grace for the task but had the lingering question of whether He got the right guy for the job. 

This past year has proven that God is faithful and He is in control. He has lead the church from it's inception and continues to do so. Our journey is a result of His perfect plan. He has ordained every step we take and has placed us here for such a time as this. 

I never set out to be a pastor, let alone a Sr. Pastor, on my journey. I was just a teenager who fell in love with Jesus and started following His lead. If my plans had been followed I would have been a rock star and maybe later in life done some ministry in the church once my platform had been built to speak from. God had a much greater plan. He has lead me around the world and across the U.S. through mission. He lead me to the love of my life, Jessica. He lead us together to Bible College, young adults ministry, and made us the parents of three amazing children. 

More recently God lead me to the place of being the Executive Pastor of the Rock Church and I couldn't have been in a better place in my opinion. I loved the place of supporting the vision and mission of our church and carrying out the direction from Pastor Jim. I got to lead, to serve, to preach, to be amongst the people and make ministry happen. 

Today I see after this year that God had been leading me through all those experiences to got me to the place where I am today. It was no accident. 

Hopefully as you read this blog you aren't discouraged that God hasn't lead you to where I am at. That would be tragic! Why? because God has a plan for you individually. He is leading you on a journey of your own. If everyone had my story where would all the other stories be? How bland and boring! 

You were specifically designed by God with a purpose. With that purpose in mind God has lead you through every trial and triumph. All the growth you have experienced over the years has been to the end that God intends to use you for His glory. Sometimes the process is painful and grueling. Other times you don't even know God is at work. 

Be encouraged today that God is taking you on a journey. Fall in love with Jesus and follow His lead. As you do God will take you on adventures and take you places you never would have imagined. The story He wants to write about your life will be far greater than your best laid plans. 

True Direction

"...love believes the best so I am going against what I think."

If we are going to stick with what is real and true then many times we will have to go against what we think and feel. I was reminded of two songs from the 90's recently that both carried the idea that if something feels good then we should do it. In the flesh we often place our immediate happiness and gratification ahead of what we know to be true in God's word. These songs just reinforce our natural tendencies towards sin and comfort. God knows where we are at and has a way of bringing us around to His truth. 

What I think doesn't always line up with God's word. I have felt at times that I was right about someone or about a situation only to find out later I was wrong. Thoughts, feelings and emotions will present themselves as the authority on reality. But when I look over my life I can see in hindsight that what I feel for a moment can change, my emotions are like the tides of the ocean and my thoughts change as I get more information. It isn't about what I think or feel but rather about what God says. 

It is important to continually study God's word so that it gets inside of you. When you have it inside of you and a situation arises that jars you then what is inside will spill out. Jesus teaches it is out of the abundance of what is in our hearts that our mouths speak. If I can stay full of God's word then I will speak it in the face of opposing factors. What we say ultimately guides our lives. James used the illustration of a bit in a horses mouth and the rudder of a ship turning and steering the life. So it is with out tongues. The words of our mouths show what is in our hearts and guide our lives. 

Believe the best. God's truth is the best for your life. When you look at others view them as God does. Let God's love flow through you. Allow the truth inside to spoken out of your mouth. Speak it over your family, your coworkers, neighbors and community. It is easy to say negative things about what we see and feel. Many times we repeat thoughts that aren't even our own. It makes all the difference in the world when speak God's word and let His love guide us. 

2 Decades of Good Times

"What a crazy ride it has been!" 

In these words I sum up twenty years of my Christina walk. I never dreamt that God would take me around the world preaching the gospel when I said yes to Jesus. I never dreamt that God would have me pioneer ministries, teach in a Bible College or pastor at one of the greatest churches on the planet (which I believe is the greatest but I am a little biased). I never dreamt that God would bless me to have the family that I do. I look at my wife and children in amazement. 

All of this is not to brag. All the praise goes to God. I couldn't have done any of this by myself. At best I would have been playing guitar in a coffee shop somewhere hoping someone would like my version of an old song and they would give me a tip with paper money rather than coins. How miserable. 

Every morning I wake up with the words 'thank you' on my lips. I think God smiles when we say thanks. He knows He is good but loves a grateful heart. The words 'be thankful' occur on several occasions in the New Testament. I guess we have to be reminded. If you look around you will see the hand of God on your life. 

I could tell stories of how I should be dead. How people on my street pulled guns on me and my friends while we were playing basketball. I could talk about car accidents that never happened and I don't know how they were avoided. To be honest there was one time in San Timoteo canyon I closed my eyes when a truck crossed over the double yellow lines on to my side of the road and when I opened them again I was just fine. Or when I rolled my car in Reche Canyon and told God on the way over "Here I come!" (That accident did happen but I was fine. Maybe I should stay away from the canyons?!)  

As I look forward to the next twenty years I wonder at what God will do. What victories are in store and what tragedies will be avoided or withstood with grace and joy? No matter what comes good or bad I do know that two words will be on my lips; "Thank you!" 

What has God done in your life since you said yes to Jesus? How grateful are you?

What the World Needs Now

"I was thinking about how we need to operate in agape love. Love covers!"

People are hurting. Times are not just tough, they are tumultuous. There is fear on every side. Terrors on the outside with divisions on the inside. If you have been following the news or the social media stream you know exactly what I am talking about.

People all over the world read this blog from every walk of life. You are concerned and feel the pain of what is going on firsthand. In our nation we are experiencing things we never would have dreamed of. Some of you are mourning the loss of a friend or the loss of an ideal you have lived by because of the actions of others.

I titled this post "What the World Needs Now" with the old song in mind. We need love. But not just any love. We need agape love. If you aren't familiar with what agape love is let me tell you about it.

Agape is a Greek word for love. It is different than our English word from love in the sense that agape is a very specific type of love. In fact the Greeks had several words they used to describe love. We in our language would say "I love my friends," "I love my spouse," "I love my dog," and "I love nachos" all in the same day. Obviously we do not love nachos the way we love our spouse. Nor do we love our friends like we love our dog. (For some they love their dog more than their friends!)

In the Greek language they had separate words for the different kinds of love. They would use phileo for the friendship type of love. Eros was used for the sensual and romantic type of love. But agape is different. We find that it is entirely a word that was used mostly by the Bible and was used for the love that we as Christians are supposed to have. It is a unique type of love that flows from God the Father.

It was the agape love of the Father that motivated Him to send Jesus to live and die for our sin and salvation. It is the agape love that Jesus lived in that caused Him to touch the unclean and heal them, to stop with a half breed outcast woman by a well and save her soul, and to weep at the death of His friend and raise him from the dead. Jesus is love incarnate because 1 John tells us that "God is love."

God is agape love. It defines Who He is and how He operates. It is this agape love that we are to operate in. It is this agape love from the Father, working through His children, that the world needs. Without it the same problems will keep going on. Division and separation, prejudice and murder will continue without agape love.

When we, God's children, the church of Jesus Christ, come together in love and spread the love of the Father it will tear down the walls of separation. The love of God will show the world that we are His disciples. Our love will be shown in our obedience to the commandments of God and people will see the difference in our lives. This love will compel us to reach out with the Word and power of God. This love will motivate and fuel our prayers for the world and cause us to pray for our enemies and bless those that spitefully use and persecute us.

Agape love is what the world needs now. Love never fails.

Super Powers

"We saw the new super hero movie. It is a bit disturbing how much they quote scripture and misapply the Word. They have a form of godliness yet deny its power. So sad that all the answers and greater power than any superhero are right in front of them and they don't even care or recognize it."

As a kid I loved comic books. So much so that whenever I made any money from mowing my grandmother's lawn I would immediately ride my bike to the comic store and spend it on the latest copies of all my favorites. It wasn't until I grew in the Lord and understood more of the things of God that I really saw how many spiritual things are hidden in these books. Eventually I made the choice to stop reading the comic books and even burned my whole collection in four small barbecues (but that is a story for another time). 

Now these same spiritual messages are being woven into the movies that are being produced. There are spiritual themes and raging wars between good and evil. I enjoy a good action flick with explosions and well won victory. What gets to me is the exaltation of evil and the err when it comes to God's truth. 

As much as we can imagine when it comes to power and ability it still pales in comparison to the power and ability of God. The movies make these super heroes and the bad guys they protect the world from look like they are in an exalted position but none of them come close to the exalted position Jesus has at the right hand of the Father. They will never come close! 

In John 19 Jesus is face to face with Pilate. During the encounter Pilate tells Jesus that he has the power to set him free or to send him to be crucified. Jesus' response is so powerful that I have to pause and take it in when I read it. He responds by saying that Pilate would have no power unless it was given from above. Wow! We think we are so great and mighty but the only reason we are anything is because of God's sovereign plan. 

The truth is that only God is powerful. Only Jesus is exalted. Only the Holy Spirit is worth being in awe of. When we try to substitute any other it will be out of place and rob us of the true blessing of what is real. So go have fun at the movies and enjoy a good story and some awesome special effects but be sure to have more fun in church praising the God who is over all. 

How have you experienced the power of God in your life? 

How Much Do You Want it?

"I gave an altar call right away and a bunch of people came forward. The service went on and at the announcements I was thinking about how to tell the people if they missed the first altar call to come and talk to the prayer teams when God told me to give them another altar call. I thought"But I only have five minutes left!“ And He responded "So, give them an altar call.” I gave the quickest altar call I ever did. It reminded me of a radio broadcast invitation for salvation. Eighteen people responded! Ten showed up but I think some were repeats and realized they had already done what we were doing. Still, ten people needed that altar call. God would spare a city for those ten. He would certainly leave the ninety nine and go after the one. At home the Lord spoke to me about a double portion. We can have it if we want it. We have to want it. We have to ask for it. And we have to stick in there to receive it. Once you get it you have to walk in it, or, use it."

Whatever we want in life, after we have settled the issue of if it is God's will, we can have. The question we all have to answer is; "How much do you want it?" The answer to this question will determine if you get what you want. 

As a pastor my life's work is to help people on their journey with God. From birth to death I work with people in all stages of life. Primarily I want to see people start their new life by being born again. Every time we have a church service there will be an altar call. I pray and seek after God for people to respond when we give the invitation. 

On morning I woke up before my alarm and had the thought to go back to sleep. As I closed my eyes I heard God whisper in my spirit, "How bad do you want it?" I knew exactly what He was talking about when I heard the question. How bad did I want to see my prayers answered for people to respond tot he call for salvation? How bad did I want to see them grow? How bad did I want our church to grow? I responded by getting up and going to prayer and preparation for the day. 

It is the same for anything we want in life. How bad do you want to grow? How bad do you want a great marriage? How bad do you want your kids to grow up right? How bad do you want to prosper in business? The answer will determine what your next move should be. 

Once you know how bad you want it then prove it with your life. Prove it to yourself, to God and to those around you. Spend the time you need to working at what is important. Work at it without getting distracted. The longer you stick with it the more progress you will make until you eventually achieve your goal. 

It sounds easy but, like with all things that truly matter, will take a lifetime. I don't know that this side of heaven we will ever say we have arrived when it comes to building a marriage or family or with our spiritual growth. We can always be growing and attaining greater heights. If you really want it, whatever it is, you will be in it for the long haul. And chances are if you stay after it you will not only get it but it will be wonderful. 

The Heart Test

"1 Chronicles 29:17 near the beginning of the verse says that the Lord tests the heart and has pleasure in uprightness. This is obviously an uprightness of heart. It is not only in the outward appearance of being good but in the recesses of the heart where no one can see except the Lord Himself. Am I pure of heart? All things are open to the eyes of Him with Whom I have to do! What will He find when He looks in me? Will it be uprightness of heart? Will it please Him?"

These questions should be asked daily. The reason is that we are exposed to the pollutants of the world daily. Between the influences of the flesh, the world and the devil we are exposed to a lot! It can be overwhelming. 

The good news is that when we are upright in our hearts we can make it through. Psalm 7:10 says that God is our defense and saves the upright in heart. We can't lose when God is protecting us. 

How do we develop uprightness of heart? First of all we have to commit ourselves to the Lord's work in the heart. It starts at the point of salvation and goes on into our spiritual walk with God. We have to also guard our hearts. Jesus talked about light and darkness going in to the body through the lamp of the eye. Obviously there is more than just a physical thing going on here. We walk by faith and not by sight. So what we 'see' is very important. What are we dwelling on in our thought life? How many ungodly influences are we listening to? These are the influences that can darken our hearts. 

Instead of being influenced by the world, the flesh and the devil allow yourself to be led by God. The Bible tells us to look unto Jesus. That looking to Jesus implies that you look away from everything else in order to focus the whole of your attention to one thing. Jesus has to be your one thing. When you focus on Him you will listen to His voice, see what He is doing and do the same and you will catch His heart; an upright heart. 

Take the spiritual heart test today and ask those tough questions. As you find the results make the changes necessary to have an upright heart. God's pleasure will be on you and you will have Him as your defense! 

The Treasury of Prayer

"Quite an imagery from Spurgeon: let every believer cast his mite into the treasury of prayer. We ought to give it our all in prayer. Everything we have. Our fellowship in prayer is with the Father. I have been with people who I know didn't want to be with me. How much more does the Father know!?"

In desperate times we need to be desperate in our prayers. Desperate for God to move. Desperate to hear God's voice. Desperate to see change in our world. 

Too often prayer is a last resort if at all. We go through life saying we have fellowship with the Father and yet don't speak to Him about our lives. We are to pray without ceasing. That doesn't mean that all you ever do is pray. Rather it means that you keep the lines of communication open with God all day long every day. 

We ought to remind ourselves that God is with us everywhere we go. How rude not to talk to someone you get up with in the morning and go to bed with at night! Sure there are times to sit and be quiet and not say anything. But relationships that are healthy have communication. We listen to God and we speak to God. It is a two way street. 

Take some time right now to connect with God through prayer. Don't let 'amen' be like ending a phone call. Leave the line open and talk to God as you go throughout your day. In desperation cast all you have into the treasury of prayer. 

I would love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to share how you keep after your passion in prayer. 

Undying and Incorruptible

"Ephesians 6:24 in the Amplified Bible says "Grace be to all those who love the Lord with an undying and incorruptible love." Our love must grow by the grace of God to be able to be like His love for us. Undying, it cannot be quenched by deep waters, blown out by the mighty winds or put out for lack of oxygen. It also will be incorruptible. It will never be tainted or grow weak or tarnished. It cannot be perverted or grow less brilliant in its quality."

The greatest love stories of our day do not compare with the lavish love God has poured out on us. We look at His expression of love and the triumph of love and cannot be anything but humbled and driven to love God back. How could we not?  

Here we see in this passage that the grace of God is given to those who love the Lord with a certain kind of love; undying and incorruptible. It seems that in our human ability this is impossible. With God though all things are possible. 

When we truly have been saved we are forever grateful. A grateful and forgiven heart is one that is not easily swayed. Our love for God will be undying because we have been saved from sin and Hell and our only response is love. 

When we truly have been saved we won't be corrupted by this world. The things that try to get us off track will be nonsense to us. Our focus will be our God. Nothing can take our gaze away from Him nor can we be tarnished in our thinking towards Him. 

When we love like this then grace will be given. Gods ability will be upon us. The power to succeed in life will be granted. We all need that. It starts with love, His love, and then our love to Him. 

Please share any comments below. 

A Double Portion

"A couple of thoughts from the Word: 1 Chronicles 16:37 “as every day's work required.”

There is a required work for today. God has a prescribed way to do life. When we follow His plan we fulfill His purpose. There are requirements. We must carry them out and be careful to fulfill all that He desires the way He desires.

1 Chronicles 16:43 David returned to bless his own house.

David had just brought the ark to Jerusalem and erected a tent for it. There has been great celebration. It wasn't enough for him to bless Jerusalem or the people that he led as King. He now would take what he had home and bless his house. God would have us to bless our families, spouse, children, even the neighbors and strangers that come around. If they will receive it. David's wife despised her husband dancing and she ended up not having children. In other words David was on his way to bless and when she rejected David and his blessing she in turn received a curse."

Is it possible to get more than one revelation from the scripture in one day? Absolutely. Sometimes I think we (or I if this is old news to you) over complicate things. Let's take hearing from God. We (I) get the idea that in order to hear from God you have to be in deep prayer for hours, sweating and tired, maybe crying a bit too, and then when you have fulfilled your pious duty of praying to God He will respond. 

Foolish. And not so. 

God can speak whenever He wants. He can also use different means to get the message to us. 

That is not to say that sweating, crying, lengthy prayer is bad. I've had some good prayers like that. Not too often though. 

What I am really saying is that these lengthy arduous prayers are not the requirement of hearing from God. You do have to be listening. 

We can help the process by being in a constant state of listening. When you are ready to hear from God and have spiritual eyes and ears open then when God speaks you will hear him. Didn't Jesus say "My sheep know my voice...?" He sure did! If you are His sheep then you don't have to worry about missing out. He will speak to you. You have to be ready to hear. 

All throughout your day God will take moments and make them communication. I have heard God's voice in prayer, through His word in the scriptures, from pastors while the preach, in conversation with others and in every day activities. God will take an experience and make it a parable for your life. 

Just recently I was watching a movie and God used it to teach me about the power of His word and at the same time gave me a tool to teach others with the gospel. What a great God He is! 

In our life it should be normal and expected to hear from God multiple times every day. If you haven't heard his voice recently it may be that you aren't listening or aren't doing what He says. It is time to change that. Live in obedience, open your eyes and your ears and most of all your heart to hear from God. He wants to speak to you today...multiple times. 

Was there ever a unique way God spoke to you?

Getting it Right

"From the Word: For because you did not do it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him about the proper order.” (‭I Chronicles‬ ‭15‬:‭13‬ NKJV) King David recognized that the outbreak of the Lord when Uzzah was driving the cart and put his hand out to steady the ark was because they were not doing what God wanted the way He wanted them to. There is a proper order in life and in our approach to God. Nature shows us proper order. There is a proper family, church and social order. When we try to do these things out of order and say we are doing what God wants we lack the wisdom of doing it the way He wants and displease the Lord."

God knows how life should work. He is the Author of life after all. Doesn't it make sense that we should listen to how He would have us to do life? 

We make two mistakes when it comes to getting directions. Either we don't get any direction or we get the wrong direction. 

Without getting any direction the auto pilot of our flesh will take over. The flesh will go where it pleases. I don't think I need to tell you where we end up when this happens. We could trade shameful stories about what happens when the flesh takes over. A quick study of the letters to the church will also show more of where the flesh wants to go. 

When we get fed up of going only where he flesh wants the natural place to turn is to people. Family and friends or coworkers are easily accessible and some are even happy to help. No matter how well meaning and knowledgeable they may be unless they are sending us to the Word of God they will often give bad or wrong directions. Some of what they say may be good or might even get you through to something better than the flesh. But just because it is better doesn't mean it is right. In the end a wrong direction will get you to the wrong place. So we wander. 

A lot of mistakes and pain in our wandering will send us to God for direction. Now we have what King David called the proper order. Life works when we have the proper order. We won't follow the flesh or wander in the opinions of well meaning people. Most importantly we will have God working for us and not against us. That is called blessing by the way. 

If you have been getting the wrong direction take some time to pray and seek God for direction. Read scriptures that deal with your situation and start putting things in the proper order. 

I would love be to hear any testimonies of how life worked out when you found out what God's directions were. Feel free to post in the comments. 

The Lord was with Him

"From the Word: “The Lord was with Him”. What a statement! Write it on my grave for it is written on my heart. How can I have this said of me? I must be with the Lord. If I draw near to Him He will draw near to me. If I am for Him then I am not against Him. If I open the door He knocks on in my heart He will come in and eat with me. If I call on His name as Abraham His friend, if I walk with Him as Enoch did who pleased Him so much that He took Him, if I will be obedient and follow Jesus commands then the Lord will be with me. Amen."

Plain and simple. We have access to God. He is not far away. We may have felt far away but He has always been there. We may have felt distant but He was close. He has opened the way to be with Him. 

Jesus is our access. We can go to God through Him. Our prayers are heard because of Him. We can be with God anytime and anyplace. He is already there and wherever and whenever we desire we can access His presence. 

With God's presence also comes His power. We have the power of God available to us. It is called grace. It is God's sovereign divine ability to get the job done on our behalf when we couldn't do it. Whatever it is you are endeavoring to do, know that you have the power of God available to you to do it. 

Too often we try to go at it alone. And yet the greatest power is present and available to us. Call on God, be with Him, give him your situation and ask for His grace. As you do God will empower you and walk you through the process. If God starts something then He will also finish it. God doesn't do anything substandard. He does all things well. You can trust Him with your life. 

God is with you! 

How have you seen this principle at work? 

A Foolish Thought

"I laid it out for them and brought it to three main points; don't make any provision for the flesh, neither give place to the devil and don't even give the appearance of evil."

There are a lot of people who call themselves Christians that are living no different than the world. It is for this reason that our witness is not as strong as it should be as a whole. I would imagine the confusion in some one's mind who is not a Christian when someone tells them they should get saved but their lifestyle doesn't show any contrast to the rest of the world. Why get saved if you are no different in lifestyle or priorities or anything else for that matter?

Some have tried to justify this. "I am a Christian but I...[insert vice here]". What a foolish thought. Excusing the action won't justify it by any means. It just shows that there is no repentance from dead works. 

It seems to me that Jesus died so we could be made alive. We are raised up with Him. So that means we no longer act like a dead man with dead works. Our lives should reflect the life of Christ. The Bible calls us a peculiar people. We should be weird to the world. We are also told in the word that when we don't jump in to the flood of dissipation with the people of this world that they will wonder at us. 

In my quote from last year's journal it outlines how we do this. Make no provision for the flesh, give no place to the devil and don't even give the appearance of evil. 

To make no provision for the flesh means if you know something will cause you to stumble stay away from it. If social media turns into a gossip fest every time you are on it you should delete your account. It sounds so harsh but Jesus said if your eye causes you to sin pluck it out. Imagine doing that for a second. Pretty tough to think about right. But if you had the choice of pulling out your eye with your own hands or deleting an account I think I know what you would choose. 

Giving no place to the devil takes being on guard. We should have our armor on, swords up and shields out. When the thoughts start to come we speak the word and let our faith extinguish the flaming arrows the devil is shooting at us. The Bible says to submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. You have the authority of Jesus to cast the devil out. Don't give him an inch because he will take a mile. 

Finally we are not to give even the appearance of evil. One translation of the verse I got this from says don't give any hint of evil. I know it is counter culture and I will be criticized for being legalistic or religious but I don't care. There are things that we, speaking of Christians as a whole in America and maybe in some other places in the world, that hint at evil. We need to wake up and realize that there are places that are known for being centers of evil things taking place. Not only that but our freedom in Christ could cause someone to turn away from the gospel, How would we feel if we knew someone went to hell because we wouldn't give up a non-essential thing in our life? 

I know this post may seem like an Internet rant if you don't know me but really it is a passionate cry for all of us Christians to be who we say we are. I love the Body of Christ and it is my passion and purpose to equip believers for life and service. If you look over your life and there are some areas that you are defending while reading this post you may want to take a fresh look at them. Ask someone you can trust to shoot straight with you how they view what it is you are thinking about. Ask a believer and then ask a non-believer. You may be surprised what you hear. 

When we get this down I believe we will have a greater and more effective witness for Jesus. It is so important that much of what is written to the church in the Bible centers around topics like this. You will find that in doing these things you will experience a greater blessing from God as well. The reason I know that is because God blesses obedience. You can't go wrong following the will of God. It isn't always easy but it is good!

What other scriptures help us in these areas? Have you experiences a greater witness or blessing when you decided to break from the world and live according to what God says? 

The Battle

"From the Word: 1 Chron 5:20, 22 the people are said to have cried out to God in battle. God hears their prayer because they trusted in him. Then it says that many men fell because the war was God's. At the point of our trust God hear's our prayer and takes on the battle."

I hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend. I know our celebrations of the resurrection were well attended and left a lasting impact on our church and on our lives personally. What a time we had! 

It was sad to come home after such joy and celebration to news that Christians were being targeted by a suicide bomber in Pakistan. Our hearts were grieved and we mourned and prayed for our brothers and sisters who were suffering on the other side of the world. We continue to pray that in the wake of such tragedy that the hope and healing power of the gospel shines in these dark times. 

This morning my wife and I were talking and she said she woke up with the song we sang at the beginning of our church service in her heart with the people of Pakistan on her mind. She commented that if it were us we would happy because we would get to be with the Lord. It's true. You will find the martyrs in Revelation asking the Lord how long and He comforts them. This is good news. With terrorist activity on the rise we need some good news. 

If we look at loss and pain we will get depressed and end up questioning God in the wrong way. God is open to questions but not to unbelief. We can ask why with a heart that believes God is good. We can ask God what He is doing without doubting His motive. 

If you are going through a personal battle, physical, spiritual, emotional, financial or whatever else, cry out to God. Give God your questions but also your faith and trust. He will meet you there. God knows our limits and the battles we face. He also is ready and willing to fight for us. When you trust Him and bring Him into your battle you can rest and know that you will come out victorious. 

I would encourage you to go back and read 1 Chronicles 5:20-22 and also study the battles of the Bible. What did the people who trust God do? What were their prayers like? How did they act in faith? What did they speak about with God and other people? As you see these things incorporate them into your life and your battle plan. 

Be encouraged that God loves you. He will fight for you! When God gets involved the battle is already won. 

What battles are you facing? What scriptures help to overcome in these battles? 

Decompression

"Very needed to have time without pressure where we can just love and decompress. "

There are gauges on pipes that carry pressure indicating safe amounts. When the amount of pressure is greater than the pipe can handle the gauge will show it by the needle going in to the red. Some of the valves have a pressure release to keep the pipe from exploding from the pressure.

There are indicators in our life that we are under too much pressure and need relief. These indicators differ from person to person but can be expressed in anger, depression, overeating, sin, silence and many other ways. We will know our own indicators and should be wise enough to take action when we see them going in to the red.

The question for all of us is when we see these indicators showing us that we have too much pressure do we have a release? If not we will explode. Maybe you have experienced that through a blowout fight or a nervous breakdown.

Our first and greatest pressure release should be to cast our cares on God. We do this by bringing our pressures to Him and talking with Him about it. In prayer and by faith you can take all that pressure and release it to the Lord Who is able to take all of that pressure and relieve you of it. Too often we carry burdens that are too great for us. God has given us access to His strength and we can let the pressure out of our lives when we give it to Him.

Another great pressure release after you have prayed is to find faith filled friends who can help you and pray for you. A burden shared is lighter. Sometimes it just helps to have someone tell you that they understand and that you can make it. Hopefully the married people reading this will find this kind of support in your spouse (and also give it when you see the indicators of your spouse's pressure).

Finally a great pressure release it to find an activity that you enjoy. Some people like to lay on a beach and others like to go to the gym. Some like to read and others want to watch a good movie. Whatever it is for you make sure it is productive and not destructive. You don't want to hurt yourself or others in the process of releasing the pressure.

Pressure is actually good for us. Without it we may not be motivated to change or to work hard. We might also find ourselves lazy or proud. God knows the good pressure can do but He also gave us the indicators for when it is too much. Know your indicators and have your release systems in place.

What are your indicators? Who are your faith filled friends and what activities help you to release it?

Ordinary Until God Shows Up

"I preached the service tonight. It was a simple message from a section of scripture that starts ordinary and ends up supernatural. So often life is like that. Ordinary until God shows up."

Without God life is ordinary. Even as Christians we can live boring and mundane lives if we choose to live in our own power. Our abilities will only get us so far in the natural. We can have a good life with a good home and a good car and a good family and still miss out on the extraordinary things God wants to do. 

This past weekend we had a missionary in our church give a message about what he had learned over the years on how to succeed. At the end of the message he told a story about a man in Toledo Ohio named Mac who did a little act of kindness that changed his life. What was amazing was that in our church was a man who grew up in Toledo and shined shoes at the bus station who knew Mac. After the church service he amazed our missionary by telling him that he knew Mac from his childhood. Our missionary always wanted to know if Mac was a Christian so he asked the man about it and he confirmed that Mac indeed was a Christian. 

Things like that happen when you are in the will of God. I cannot tell you how many people come to our church broken and hurting. Many of them separated from their families. When we give the call to respond to God they come to the altar and there have been numerous accounts that they looked over across the crowd of people giving their hearts and lives to the Lord and saw the family member or old friend that they have been separated from. Some after decades of being estranged. There at the altar they have embraced and shed tears together because God supernaturally did something when they got Him in their life. 

Don't settle for average. Get a hold of God! The Bible says that if we draw near to God He will draw near to us. Did you notice that we start the process. God is ever present but we activate the blessing of His presence. Draw near to Him in prayer. Draw near in studying the Bible. Draw near in praise and singing to Him. Draw near in worship and in a life laid down in sacrificial obedience. As you do the supernatural power of God will be released in your life. 

Your day may start out ordinary but if you bring God in it cannot stay that way. Your story will end with a supernatural encounter with God. 

What have you experienced when it comes to God doing something supernatural? Are there other ways to draw near to God? 

Not what you thought

"I did not expect today to be what it turned out to be."

A year ago I released my first book. Not the kind I expected to be my first book but rather a children's picture book. It actually makes more sense in hindsight because really I am a big kid at heart and connect with my kids and other children as well. 

I had high hopes for the book. Big dreams accompanied by big prayers. 

This is where we have to be careful. 

I find that my faith in a big God can be attacked when my prayers aren't answered the way I want them to be or if God requires something of me in order for my dreams to be achieved. There is a distinction here that is very important. 

In everything there is a God side and a man side. God wants to partner. 

Sometimes He takes the greater portion of the activity. For instance, when praying for healing God is the Healer. We can help by eating right, exercising, confessing God's Word and keeping ourselves in healthy environments but ultimately God will be the one who does the healing. 

On the other hand there are things that we have to take action on. This is where the example of my book comes in to play. I prayed for open doors, great sales, high profits and made only half the money I invested in the book back over a year's time. I had a great product and know my target audience. I prayed and kept my heart pure. So what is the problem? Hard work. I don't the time to put in the hustle to get my book in front of people. As a husband, father and senior pastor of a large church the last thing I need is a second job. If I want to make money on book sales though that is the reality. God wants to answer my prayers but without the work it won't happen. 

I have heard people say things about prayer that I don't agree with. Things like 'God helps those who help themselves' and 'you are the only answer to your prayers'. If these statements were entirely true then there would be no need to pray. But if we understand the partnership of God with our prayers we wouldn't sit around wondering what God is doing. We do our part and God does His. 

So it didn't turn out like I expected. I am only the wiser because of it. Did I want to make a lot of money on my book? Sure. Am I disappointed that I didn't? No way. Life is more than money. 

I would love to hear your thoughts. 

Washing the Feet of the Saints

"After the service a man met me at the door and asked if he could wash my feet. He he had a shopping bag in his hand with water bottles and towels. I tried to get out of it by telling him that the fact that he asked was enough to refresh me and wash my feet in a figurative sense. He persisted. Finally I said that if he washed my feet I would have to wash his feet. He agreed. I told him to wait until I greeted everyone as they left and he took a seat on a nearby bench. After greeting everyone he came over and I looked around for an appropriate place. One of our ushers suggested the fountain and we decided it was a good place to go so we walked over. When I asked him his name he dodged for a while but finally told me his name. He is the brother of two girls who were heavily involved in the youth ministry. At the fountain he got all the towels and water set up and I sat and took off my shoes and socks and rolled up my pant legs. He even had a bar of soap, Irish Spring. While he washed my feet he spoke of how he was starting on a new road of total obedience to the Lord. He didn’t know who was preaching but knew that God had told him to ask the minister today if he could wash their feet. After he finished he put his hand on my shoulder and prayed for me. We switched places and I started to wash his feet. While I did I told him of how Christ had set the example for us and the significance of Jesus taking our dirt on Himself. Jesus even washed the feet of Judas. When I finished I prayed for him and we walked back together."

A year later after I wrote this it still impacts me. Our obedience is noticed and impacts others. It is unusual acts like this that show our hearts. 

We recently had a missions conference at our church that hosted delegates from all over the world. At the conference we held meetings, had lunches and dinners and created an atmosphere for connections to happen among the men and women who were reaching people for the Lord in the nations. After three days we had worked hard and long hours and were spent in the best way possible. The neat thing is that I felt like we had washed their feet. Not physically but in a figurative sense. 

When you take care of others and serve them as you would the Lord I believe it is a humbling expression that God sees and His pleasure is on. He says in His word that when we have done it to the least of these we have done it to Him. Our expressions of service are precious to the Lord. 

Have you ever had your feet washed or had someone wash your feet. How did that experience effect you? 

Christ in the Boat

“Christ’s presence confers success.” - Spurgeon

"Spurgeon sparked a great thought from Luke 5:4 where Jesus tells the fishermen to let down their nets for a catch. They had toiled all night but only out of obedience do they act. The result is miraculous. Peter falls at the feet of Jesus asking him to depart for he confesses he is a sinful man. Jesus rejects to offer to leave and stays giving a statement of His purpose that he will make them fishers of men. They forsake all and follow Him. We look forward to the day of Pentecost and see how Jesus purpose was accomplished when the many thousands are saved. What made the difference was Christ in the boat. The Holy Spirit in the heart makes the difference. With Him we can do all things. Without Him we can do nothing."

The question I would ask you is "What are you looking to be successful at?" Is it in business? Then Christ should be your Boss and partner. Is it in Marriage? Then let Christ be the strength of the threefold strand that is not easily broken. Is it in ministry? Then follow the Chief Shepherd and serve as He did. 

The difference is the presence of God in the middle of the endeavor. One of the greatest examples of this is when Jesus and the disciples are crossing the sea and a storm comes upon them. Here is Christ in the bow asleep. Even thought the disciples were straining against the oars and were concerned for their lives they were in the most secure place they could be as long as Jesus was in the boat. 

We often feel the same way when straining against the winds and currents of our life struggles. It feels as though God is asleep and doesn't care if we perish. The moment we approach and bring our need to Him He speaks to the storm and calms it completely. 

If you haven't involved God or if He is outside of your endeavors it is time to re-prioritize. Make Him your all. He should not only be a part of your endeavors but the reason for them. When you do success is assured. 

Have you seen this principle at work? What factors come in to play when determining motivation and if Christ is truly in the boat? 

Learning Forward

"This year was more organized and seemed to be better than last year. That is good that we are learning and moving forward." 

I have read that in order for a blog, or any endeavor, to be successful that you have to know who you are and who your audience is. You have to know what makes you unique and what you are aiming to say. It has taken a year to get it out but I know that Thoughts From Last Year is a platform to share how we can grow forward from the lessons of our past. 

We all want to be successful and get better at what we do. The amazing thing is that God has given us a tool to learn from called experience. Our failures are redeemable when we learn from them. Edison and many other inventors, leaders, entrepreneurs and others are proof of this. We all can be better today than yesterday. 

It is amazing to me how we often miss this in the lessons of the Bible. Joshua heaped up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan river to remember the miraculous crossing. No doubt the story of the disobedience 40 years earlier would be told as well. Jesus even taught his disciples lessons by having them remember the experiences of feeding thousands of people with loaves and fishes. (If you don't remember these stories go read your Bible!)

Today's tough times are teachers for tomorrow. Learn forward by being aware of your life. It is easy to miss out and float through life. This is especially true if your life is tough or painful. We like to numb pain and ignore problems with distractions like television and the Internet. It may be time to turn off the tv and put down the smart phone to focus on what you're facing. You should consider writing an account or journaling so that you can go back and remember the lessons you are learning today if you're not already.  

We are all in this together. We have one life to live and God is showing us the lessons every day. History does repeat itself. It is our choice to do it better when it does. 

What lessons have you learned and how did you handle the when they came up again?

The End of the Story

"This morning while driving to work I saw the first part of a rainbow in the cloud. It was wide and it was beautiful. I didn't notice the other end of it until later when I was pulling around the bend in the highway and saw the rest of it. God's promises are often like that broken rainbow. We have a promise we find and we rejoice. It's beautiful and it's wonderful and then it disappears. We get discouraged but there on the other side glowing brighter and stronger at the end is the rest of the promise; the fulfillment of it. God's promises will come. God will make sure they come to pass. We need to trust God that he will complete that good work which he began. When we see Jesus we may cry out like John, “The Lamb of God who was slain from the foundation of the world!” But just like we rejoice in his birth and mourn at his death there is a resurrection coming."

The beginning of the story can excite us can't it? I love the start of a good book or watching the opening credits of a movie. But the middle of a story can drag on. I can't tell you how many books I have not finished because it wasn't keeping me like the beginning. 

The Bible says in Ecclesiastes that the end of a thing is better than it's beginning. The end of a story or a good movie will always be better than the beginning. But even more than that the end of a time in life will be better than the beginning. 

When things take longer than you expect it can be discouraging. We lose hope in the middle of a thing. The wonderful news is that the One who began the story will be faithful to finish it. 

We have some friends who are in the middle of a terrible story. The beginning was a bad report from the doctor, lots of tests and tons of bad news. As the story continued it seemed that things went from bad to worse. Just when we thought they were at the end of a long process of chemotherapy and were out of the woods a second diagnosis came in. They are currently still stranded in the middle of a story that I know they wish they could finish. 

Life isn't as easy as putting a book down or changing the channel. We have to trust that God is in control and that our prayers are being heard. God will finish the story. I know there is a great ending ahead of my friends. Just like I know that whatever you are in the middle of right now the Author of Life will complete in a wonderful way. Follow His lead. He isn't finished with any of us yet. 

I would love to hear from you about your story, beginning, middle or end. Leave some comments below. 

The Wrong Kind of Fear

2 Kings 17:33-34 They feared the Lord, yet served their own gods—according to the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away. 34 To this day they continue practicing the former rituals; they do not fear the Lord, nor do they follow their statutes or their ordinances, or the law and commandment which the Lord had commanded the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel, 

"These two verses caught me. The people here are those brought in from Assyria after the captivity of Israel. The Lord sent lions among them and they feared The Lord because of it yet served their own gods. How foolish! They even sent a priest to teach the people how to serve The Lord and they still made their high places, carved images and their own way of worship. That is why they feared the Lord, being afraid of him sending lions, in verse 33 but did not fear the Lord in verse 34. How many are come into the church that want to dwell as a Christian in title and by proximity? When the devil, that roaring lion, comes seeking whom he may devour they fear the Lord, they listen to the teaching, and yet still serve their own gods, money, sex, self, and do not fear the Lord"

These thoughts speak of our present day condition don't they? I am reminded that in the New Testament it says that people have a form of godliness and yet deny it's power. We know who Jesus is and yet don't serve Him and operate in the power that we should. 

It comes down to having the right kind of fear. 

The wrong fear is being afraid without knowledge. It is a fear that will drive you away from God. Without knowing the loving and powerful nature of God you will see the pressures of life as cruelty and end up distanced from God. 

The right kind of fear is one that is based on the knowledge of who God is. When you know His power and love you will be in awe of Him to a place of respect. You still won't mess with God but you will not be driven from Him. Instead His power and love will draw you to Him. 

Spend time with God in prayer, worship and in His word. As you do you will get the knowledge and will fear no evil. It will produce in you the right kind of fear that is expressed in your service to Him. 

What are your thoughts? Feel free to leave some comments below.