08/31/18 - Eph 6

Aug 31, 2018

Be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people.  Eph 6:18

The power for living comes from our prayers, not from our paycheck.

What does your prayer list look like these days?

We pray for millions of things!  Children pray for their family, their pets, or the latest “ouchie”.  Teens pray for sporting victories, boyfriends/girlfriends, help with grades, and struggles with parents.  Adults pray for a job, more income, fixes to problems, struggles in the family or marriage, health of aging parents, or a fresh start.  The list grows throughout life, and God’s answers continue to pile on with the latest prayers.

When was the last time you prayed for more prayer? 

Yes, that’s an odd request.  Who wants more prayer --- usually we ask for answers from God so that we can “reduce” the amount of prayers we have to make.  In fact, when life is going well is when prayers seem to run dry.  But when life is in turmoil is when prayers skyrocket.  What if we are looking at it all wrong?  What if God gives us the most power for life when we are praying, and the circumstances are the only things that GET us to pray?

So instead, what if we prayed for more prayer, and took more time in prayer?  Instead of bouncing around from problem to problem, we would start finding power in our daily prayers again.   Instead of prayer becoming a pain-killer we use when necessary, it would become a multi-vitamin that empowers our daily lives. 

Paul tells the church to be alert and keep on praying – that’s because the power is in the prayer itself.  Prayer is not the power to fix the problems, Prayer IS THE POWER in spite of the problems.  Even when the problems stay, the power of prayer never goes away. 

Don’t measure your prayer life by your problems.  Measure it by your prayer life’s perseverance.  And instead of constantly looking for the latest fix and being disappointed, pray for more prayers and be empowered.

This week, start a journal for September, and pray for more prayer time with God.  Ask God to help you stay alert and keep on praying.  Look for more prayer moments, write down some of your prayer whispers, watch for the power of your prayer life and ask God to help grow it.

You might just discover more power in your life than you ever knew before.

08/30/18 - Eph 5

Aug 30, 2018

Follow God's example & walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us. Eph 5:1-2

Love sacrifices itself for another--- so love God and love others like Jesus loved you.

Take note for one week on all the things you say you “love”.   Here’s a portion of my list from yesterday.  I said I loved:  my wife, my granddaughter, my daughter, the arrival of a friend, the color of a car, the heat, the air conditioning, the taste of a DQ Ice Cream Blizzard, a song on the radio, a funny joke, and much more.  We say we “love” everything – but the fact is we love what everything does for us.

Sometimes we measure love by how it is received, but God measures love by how it is given.  That’s why the love of Jesus is so powerful!  Jesus CHOSE to sacrifice Himself and give us His love in spite of our lack of love toward Him.  Jesus didn’t wait to see if we loved Him, He chose to love us first.

The human tendency is to love with limits.  We don’t mind sacrificing ourselves when there is a compensatory return.  We are okay with sacrifice that is not too painful.  Or sometimes, we’ll sacrifice our lives for a great cause or very important person.  But few people are willing to fully sacrifice themselves for an ungrateful or selfish person.  And almost nobody would lay down their life for an evil person.

Yet that is what Jesus did for Judas.  That’s what He did for all the disciples, the Jews, the Greeks, the Romans, and the people of the earth.  And that’s what He did for you and me.  His love was boundless, because real love doesn’t set a limit on the sacrifice.  Real love does what is right and best for the person it loves.

Walking in the way of love is choosing to express love to others without reservation.  It means loving your spouse, your kids, your neighbors, your enemies, your world – all because Jesus loves them, not because they loved you back.  It is a life of sacrifice, but one that is greatly admired and highly watched.  The only way to live it out is to fully taste the love Jesus has for us.  Without a full supply of his love, we cannot keep walking in love.

So today, choose to love others by recognizing and filling up on God’s love.  Then you’ll have an endless supply to give away.

08/29/18 - Eph 4

Aug 29, 2018

I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Eph 4:1

God’s love and forgiveness calls us to something far greater in life -- offering eternal life to everyone around us.

There are some natural laws in life that are so common we tend to forget about them.

Take the law of gravity.  A man was shooting off his gun in his back yard, celebrating an event, when all of a sudden a bullet came down and grazed him (practically killed him).  Like everyone else, he knew about gravity, but simply forgot about it at the time.  (It could be he was also forgetting about the effects of alcohol on the logic section of our brains.)

One law I tend to forget about is something I will call the law of transfer.  When something is added to a system, there will always be something that eventually exits.  I tend to forget that when drinking a Super-sized ice tea on car trips, or having too much water the hour before I go to sleep.  Sooner or later, those 24+ ounces of fluid are going to transfer out of my body – which tends to lead to road stops or midnight wakeup calls. (And the older I get, the more that happens!)

That law of ‘transfer’ also applies to Forgiveness.  When we come to Jesus and receive forgiveness, it’s like a HUGE glass of pure, fresh water to our souls.  Much like a hot shower can clean off the dirt on our bodies, this water of forgiveness has the power to cleanse our souls of all sin – past, present, and even future!  It fills our spirits with a gift of God that only comes through the saving grace of Jesus on the cross.  There is NOTHING like it in the world.  Drinking from the cup of forgiveness is the most refreshing drink ever tasted.

But with it comes a transfer.  When we were given the cup of forgiveness, it came with a calling… to transfer that forgiveness to others.  Just like water enters and exits the body, forgiveness enters and exits the soul.  Our souls were designed to release forgiveness to others as a way of processing the forgiveness we received. 

The Cup of forgiveness is an endless supply.  It never empties, and is constantly being poured into our lives by Jesus.  Our job is to release that forgiveness onto others, and allow them to have a small taste of the Cup available for them.  By touching our forgiveness, it creates a thirst for God’s forgiveness. 

Don’t try to violate the law of transfer (or whatever name it truly is called).   Offer forgiveness to EVERY person around you, and allow your soul to flow with the saving grace of Jesus.  Live a life worthy of that calling, and watch how God uses it to bring others to the watering fountain of Grace. 

Otherwise, you might find yourself dealing with a lot of road stops and wake up calls. J

08/28/18 - Eph 3

Aug 28, 2018

God's intent was that now, through the church, the wisdom of God should be made known.  Eph 3:10

We all need the church to reveal to US God's word, and we need to BE the church to reveal it to others.

People choose a church for many reasons.

Some choose a church that sings their preferred songs or song styles.  Others choose it for the different types of group options available.  Some select a church based on the children’s or youth ministry programs.  There are many these days that look at building or artistic features.  Many will tell you they chose based on the style and preaching of the senior minister or key leader.  Often, most people stay at a church because of friendships.

But that’s not what Jesus is looking for in a church.  What Jesus wants out of a church is His Word revealed.  Find a church that constantly teaches God’s Word properly, and you have found a good church!  EVEN IF I DON’T LIKE what the teaching means, it is a good church if their teaching is consistent with the Scriptures.  Being a good church has nothing to do with the programming, it has to do with the revealing of God’s Word.

That being said, it really exposes our self-centered concept about church life.  If we’re honest, we can see that churches have turned into competitors for a market more than communities for a Word.  Maybe the worship wars started that … maybe it was the church growth era … or even the mega-church season we are in these days.  Something turned church selection into a market instead of a calling.

If you’re at a church and are tempted to leave because of the programming, or building style, or even lack of friendships … Re-Evaluate!    How is God’s Word being handled?  Is it revealing truth that can transform your life?  Are you hearing truth (even if you’re not trying to listen to it)?   Don’t leave until God calls you away!  Let the Word of God be the deciding factor about your church attendance.

And if you’re not at a church, then find one that handles the Word properly.  That’s not a denomination or style decision, that’s a command of Jesus.  He left the job of revealing the Word of God to the church.  And Jesus is still calling us to come be transformed by His Word.

THEN, go out and be the church to people around you.  Those programs you are looking for… they happen when the CHURCH serves and creates them.  Those friends you are looking for … they form when WE go out and make them.  That larger impact we are wanting … it occurs when the Word sends us out to BE the church and draw people back to His Word.

It’s time to stop being in the market for a church, and start being the church sent to the market.  That happens when we assemble and worship God, and receive His Word.

08/27/18 - Eph 2

Aug 27, 2019

For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.  Eph 2:10

Today was designed & planned for you to do something great for God---so look for how God wants to use you today to love others & serve Him.

Life can seem to become a little routine – we get up, shower, dress, eat breakfast, go to work, work all day (sometimes), come home, eat dinner, do homework or chores, go to bed, and get back up the next day doing the same thing.  Even looking forward to vacations and trips can become a routine, and although different than the standard week, they can still lack adventure.

When routines become ruts, we try to take matters into our own hands and shake it up a bit.  We’ll schedule a different activity, plan a new adventure, or pursue a different dream.  Sometimes people will make more radical changes, including breaking relationships or changing their life pattern completely (even for the bad)!  Yet eventually, the routine returns, and the ruts can form again.

What if God didn’t plan your life like that?  What if instead of US being the determiners of our daily schedules, God had a different schedule already planned that you are not following?  What if EVERY DAY was not a routine, but an adventure… even INSIDE the routines we had been establishing.

Paul says that God’s handiwork was to custom-design every day with a special adventure for each one of us!  He had already planned today, and tomorrow, and every day in our lives with a special opportunity for us to impact the world and enjoy our life.  Certainly, there is room for a routine, and God is the designer of routines (like the sun rising, day & night, seasons, etc), but He is also master of Creativity, and has something planned specifically for us TODAY.  All we have to do is look for it!

So when you are delayed on the road more than normal, pay attention to the people around you, or listen more carefully to the Spirit’s whisper within you.  When buying groceries, let God use that time for holy intersections, and don’t be afraid to make a connection with someone.  Use the soccer or athletic fields as “opportunities” to find the adventure God has you on.  And when given the chance to help someone or serve, jump at it!  That may be the adventure that takes a rut and turns it into a revelation.

There are BIG opportunities that come along once in a while, but the adventure of life is primarily found in the daily activities.  Use today’s moments to find your adventure from God!  And then celebrate that together with your family every day.  Train up your kids to also look for their adventure from God.  You might just discover a new routine that never turns into a rut!

08/24/18 - Eph 1

Aug 24, 2018

God placed all things under Christ's feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is His body.  Eph 1:22

Being a part of the church means coming under His authority & protection---so be careful thinking we don't need the church, because Satan is looking for unprotected people!

During World War I, the British & German fleets engaged in heavy battles on the seas, and during the early days of the war, British ships were hit and sunk quickly.  In one battle, three ships instantly sunk, killing 1000s at sea, and leaving the British nearly defenseless.  It was discovered that although the British ships were heavily armored around their sides, they were using wood planks for the decks, and attacks by artillery from above easily destroyed their hulls.  Once the British armored their decks properly, they were able to fight and win more battles at sea.

Today’s culture has treated the church like it is unnecessary, irrelevant, and without merit.  So more and more people are putting less priority on church attendance and spending time in spiritual contexts, even exiting the church and pursuing their own methods of religious activity.  Yet in the mean time, children grow up without a moral standard, marriage has been changed to accept alternative lifestyles, killing babies and senior citizens has become acceptable practice, and our debt load continues to grow as a country.  We see more people lacking deep relationships and families splintered, and wonder why our lives are such a mess.

Independence has its benefits, but one big drawback that living ‘solo’ brings is a lack of protection.  Like those ships, we don’t realize we have vulnerabilities that cannot be protected alone.  We have blind spots that cannot be guarded by our own methods, and need the help of the Church Body.  Paul says that the church is not about our personal satisfaction, but about helping each other as we together serve the Head --- Jesus!  The church is not about us, it’s about Jesus.  He is the authority and following Him TOGETHER is our protection.  When we attend church, it’s not to be satisfied, it’s to be connected and protected.

Satan is a sly enemy.  He knows our weaknesses, and is targeting people who do not have their armor installed properly.  Don’t open yourself or your family to his deadly artillery, find a church family where God wants you to serve and stay committed to the Body of Christ.  When you do, you will find that His power and protection move your life forward through the attacks and bring you out on the other side.

08/23/18 - Gal 6

Aug 23, 2018

Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Gal 6:2

Loving people means supporting their development, not fixing all their problems... Help them as they fix their own problems.

The term is “helicopter parents”.  It is a critical term for a parent who is always hovering over their child – picking up their messes, fighting their battles, getting involved in their problems at school or on their team, and over-protecting them in every decision.  Some parents don’t like the term, but consider the behavior an endearing quality, almost proud of their watch care over the children.  The problem isn’t their parental responsibility, it is the child’s growth.  Like a tree that never has to dig deep for water, children who have been hovered over never learn how to deal with the storms and struggles of life.  They grow up immature and selfish, expecting their boss, spouse or government to fix all their problems.  Helicopter parents rob kids of maturity and resolve.

Paul wrote to the Galatians about a different parent – a spiritual one.  He reminded the church that they are not supposed to be helicopter parents for every problem that comes up in the lives of people.  Don’t think you have to swoop in and take over their families, their marriages, or their careers.  People don’t grow strong spiritually by pastors spoon-feeding them.  They grow by learning HOW to feed themselves through God’s Word, and by growing their OWN relationship with Jesus.  Sometimes pastors and church leaders start believing it is their job to hover over the flock and fix all their problems.  But just like Paul, we can be supporters of the church families without having to be physically present.

We are to carry each other’s burdens, but a verse later, Paul says we are each to carry our own.  How can this be?  By praying and supporting each other emotionally.  We don’t have to fix each other’s problems, but we can be encouragers and supporters to give them the strength to fix it themselves.  Can we help?  SURE!  Serving each other is our expression of love – and Jesus said people would know we were believers by serving each other.  But don’t take over.  Be a servant, not a boss. J

The best parents learn how to coach their kids THROUGH their problems instead of always trying to fix it for them.  These amazing parents learn the power of listening, asking questions, praying for their kids, and encouraging their progress.  They don’t see the circumstances as the primary concern, they see learning as primary.  We could also learn to do the same with our friends and family as they go through struggles.  Get involved where it helps them to grow.  Support them in a burden when it supports their own efforts.  Don’t give them a hand out, give them a hand up.

And by the same token, appreciate when others love US enough to do the same – because in doing so, we fulfill the law of Christ – truly loving each other!