A Better Way to Look at the Nativity

Our Christmas decorations, like many others, include nativities. In fact, we have several nativity sets...and not sure how it happened, but even duplicates of the same set! Although there are many variations of nativities...the "Precious Moments" type where babies are dressed up, to the "Woodland Creek" faceless types, to everything in between...all nativities have two things in common:

1) You're never really sure if that's Joseph or just another shepherd.

2) They all over-romanticize what happened that night and all that led up that night.

We like our Bethlehem to be quaint and quiet. We like our Mary to be clean and perhaps glowing. We like our Joseph to be standing off to the side. We like our stable to be a scene out of Better Homes and Gardens. But the reality is, none of that was the case...and that is VERY important to you and me!

First, why Bethlehem? Was it the largest city? Not even close. Did they have the best medical care...God would want His Son to be born in that type of environment, right? No. The only reason that Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem was because God wanted Him to be born in Bethlehem. Micah 5:2 says: "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me One who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days." When God refers to Bethlehem as "Bethlehem Ephrathah," as any kid knows when his/her mom goes first and middle name, something serious is up! Also, note that God points out the fact that no one really sees anything special about Bethlehem. If all the towns in Israel were to play kickball, Bethlehem would be the last one picked...she was an underdog. That is how God works! He chooses to use the underdogs to accomplish great things so that He receives the most glory. Great hope for us bunch of underdogs!

It would be amazing enough for God to use Micah to prophesy the coming Messiah to be born in Bethlehem and just fast forward to Luke 2 and see its fulfillment...but by doing so, we rob ourselves of an incredibly valuable lesson: the historical journey. Luke 2 says, 

"In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and linage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn."

There is a 700 year span of time between Micah 5:2 and Luke 2:1-7. When Micah was on the scene, the Assyrian Empire ruled much of the known world. Somewhere between 612 BC and 626 BC, it was the Babylonians that rose to the top of the proverbial food chain. As empires do, the Babylonians rose and then fell leaving the known world to the Medo-Persians for about 200 years. Then in 330 BC, a young military ruler named Alexander the Great rose to prominence and led the Greek Empire to unprecedented domination. In 63 BC, the Greeks were replaced by the Romans. In 44 BC, Julius Caesar was assassinated on the Roman Senate floor ("et tu Brute") leaving control of Rome to his adopted nephew, Octavius. Octavius joined with Marcus Lepidus and Mark Antony (famed lover of Cleopatra, not Jennifer Lopez's former boo and present purveyor of his very own clothing line at Kohl's department stores...that's Mark Anthony) to split control of the Roman Empire and form the Second Triumvirate. Octavius decided he no longer wanted to share, so he forced Marcus Lepidus into exile and defeated Mark Antony at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC to become the sole ruler and essentially the first first emperor of the Roman Empire. From then forth, Octavius was known as Octavius Caesar Augustus...the same Caesar Augustus that issued the decree for a census in Luke 2.

You may be asking, what in the world does any of this have to do with me personally? Everything! You see, just as God delivered a promise through Micah about the birthplace of the Messiah, He has given us promises to cling to and hold on to throughout His Word. And just as there was a temptation to believe that God had forgotten His promise through Micah because so much history had passed since that revelation, there is a strong temptation for us to wonder if God has forgotten His promises to us. But, just as God perfectly set the stage through the historical circumstances to fulfill His Word, He has and is perfectly setting the stage in our lives to bring about the fulfillment of His promises. God uses the roads that we travel to masterfully craft an amazingly beautiful mosaic of His love for us!

If we just causally observe the nativity without close examination, there is a second incredibly valuable lesson that we miss: the emotional journey.

Again Luke 2:1-7 says,

"In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and linage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn."

Every time we refer to the ensemble of the nativity as "The Holy Family," we strip a lot away from the reality of the situation that took place over 2000 years ago. The pregnancy of Mary was scandalous to say the least...a young unmarried woman claiming to conceive by the Holy Spirit of God Himself. The reputation of Joseph digressed into a punchline...the naiveté of this man actually believing Mary. With their public perception being less less than stellar, at least Mary had the comforts of her home and her family and her doctor to rely on...until Joseph announced that the two on them had to travel 70-80 miles to Bethlehem...in the later weeks of her pregnancy. What fears must have consumed the mind of Mary! What anxiety must have filled the heart of Joseph! Along their journey, how many times do you think Mary and Joseph calmed one another with the words, "But when we get to Bethlehem..."? What concern rushed over them when they saw the crowds streaming into Bethlehem? How many times do you think Joseph tried to assure Mary that when people see her late-term pregnancy, they will decently put her ahead of themselves and allow her the comfort and privacy of a room and bed? How deflated do you think they were when they were turned away from the inn (nothing but a series of stalls where guests built fires and cooked the food they had brought with them), and every time  Joseph came back from following a hunch to deliver the same message to rejection to his distraught wife? So they ended up settling where all the people in the inn tied their animals up for the night. And it was probably there, where Mary felt her first hard and steady contractions. This was not at all how they had planned for the birth to take place. So, now Joseph, with his rough and calloused hands of a carpenter, was expected to deliver a baby...and not just a baby, but the very Son of God come to earth. What must have been going through the minds of Mary and Joseph through the agonies of childbirth? And then, the rough and calloused carpenter hands held the newborn baby boy! The baby's shrill cry pierced the night and through that cry, God pierced the 400 years of silence between His last word in Malachi and the fulfillment of Emmanuel: "God with us."

All of us have wounds and scars from our past...but wounds and scars are evidence of God's healing! All of us have had fears, worries, anxieties, and deflated hopes and dreams...but God meets all of those things head-on with His love. And His love conquers! Through it ALL, God's love is there and is made known. We may not have chosen the path that we are currently walking. We may not have chosen the circumstances that we find ourselves in. But in our journey, God's love is there!

I love the nativity...because it reminds me of how God uses my underdog status, my history, and my difficult treks to pierce the darkness of hopelessness and usher me into the radiance of knowing without any hesitation or doubt that God loves me.

THE MAIN THING THAT KEEPS CHRISTIANS FROM EXPERIENCING MORE OF CHRIST

   At the heart of every issue is a heart issue. This is especially true when it comes to Christ-Followers seemingly not living in a way that is contagious and lacks a supernatural joy. I am becoming more and more convinced that what prohibits Christians from experiencing more of Jesus Christ is a refusal to forgive others.
   Jesus' most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7), follows a pattern of tracing an external action back to an internal root. It is not a coincident that Jesus first addressed the heart issue of unforgiveness. But, the question is, why is unforgiveness such a major deterrent to God moving in my life? Simply put, my unforgiveness of another person is a spiritual cancer, that when metastasizes, ravages me in three critical areas:
1) Consumes my joy
2) Pollutes the lenses through which I see everything around me
3) Rejects my new identity in Christ

CONSUMES MY JOY:
Living in joy is a choice. The book of Philippians is only 4 chapters long, yet uses the word "joy" or "rejoice" 16 times...all in the context of its author, Paul, being imprisoned: less than "joyful" circumstances. This runs counter to the notion that my joy is directly tied to my circumstances...it is not. Joy is a choice that I make that, many times, is inconsistent with what is going on around me. It is important to understand the root of joy, because if I refuse to forgive someone over something that was said about me or done to me, then that unforgiveness will focus me on that particular situation/person and not on the joy that I can choose for that day.

POLLUTES THE LENSES THROUGH WHICH I SEE EVERYTHING AROUND ME:
We all come at and see life through different vantage points. Many times, these vantage points, or perspectives, are different pieces of a much larger whole. The four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are four different vantage points from four different men...all different testimonies to varying degrees, yet all correct. Refusing to forgive another person has a strange, yet deadly, way of polluting the way I see and view everything around me through the lenses of negativity, cynicism, and criticalness. When God is at work around me and lives are be changed, renewed, and transformed, if I harbor unforgiveness, I will either not see God at work around me or I will explain the "God-movings" away by declaring them simply emotional-based and question their legitimacy and their longevity...but never will I be cognizant of, much less thankful for, God moving all around me.    

REJECTS MY NEW IDENTITY IN CHRIST:
I am exactly who God declares me to be. This means that I am not my past. I am not my mistakes. I am not even my reputation. I am exactly who God declares me to be...the chief among my new identifiers are: new creation and forgiven. When I refuse to forgive someone (even over something that was said/done against me) I refuse to do for another person what Jesus Christ willingly did for me. Many of us have massive emotion scars with even deeper emotional wounds...all because someone did something unbelievably horrible to us. And because of these past wounds and scars, we begin to define ourselves not as over-comers (as God defines us), but as a victim, as damaged, and as broken. There is a direct correlation between how we see ourselves and how we see God moving in and through us. For example, if I see myself as someone who can never be used by God to do great things for Him...guess what? I'm right (although this has nothing to do with God's lack of ability, but rather my lack of faith in Him)! But if I see myself as someone that has been changed by God into a new creation that expects God to do great things in me so that I can do great things on behalf of Him...guess what? I'm right (although this has nothing to do with my abilities, but rather my dependence on the truthfulness of God's Word)!

If you're reading this post and have had something traumatic done against you by another person, you are probably saying something to the effect of, "Ben, you have no idea what they did to me! They don't deserve forgiveness!" You know what? I don't know what has been done to you...and they probably don't deserve forgiveness. But let's put everything out on the table. Forgiving someone is not you saying what they did was alright, okay, or justified. Forgiving someone is surrendering your preconceived right to take vengeance upon that person; and instead, handing that job over to God. God is just and He will not allow wrong to go unpunished. Here's another amazing thing about forgiveness: it's not about the other person, it's about you! When you harbor unforgiveness, you don't punish the other person...you punish you. But when you forgive someone else, you don't so much set them free...you mostly set yourself free!

Please understand that God will not work in your life if you have unforgiveness in your life. I don't know about you, but I desperately need God to work in and through me! So who do you need to have a tough conversation with? I'll tell you, it's not the easiest thing in the world...but I promise you, that will be the most beneficial thing you can do in your life as God seeks to continually blow your mind with all that He has in store for you!  

A CHRISTIAN'S RESPONSE TO THE DEATH OF BIN LADEN

A massive debt of gratitude needs to be extended to all the men and women that serve in the United States military and other government agencies that make the United States and the world a safer place to live!

Like many Americans, I stayed up last night to hear the news that Osama bin Laden had been killed by United States Special Forces. After 10 years, this evil man who plotted of the murders of 3,000 Americans on September 11, 2001 has finally been killed. Also, like many Americans, I sat mesmerized watching the spontaneous celebrations in Washington DC, New York City, and even in Philadelphia as word spread of bin Laden's demise at a Mets/Phillies baseball game. There was and is much flag-waving and impromptu chants of "USA! USA!" If you're like me (and you probably are, or else you probably would not be reading this blog entry!), you are also connected to the social media through FaceBook and Twitter. It was through FaceBook and Twitter that a concerning battle took place...how should a Christian respond to the death of Osama bin Laden?

As Americans who experienced the horrors of 9/11, and have lived in a world forever changed since that tragic day, we want vengeance upon bin Laden. When the news reached us last night that he had been killed, our hearts swelled with pride and soared with relief. Many, including former Southern Baptist pastor, Arkansas governor, and Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, have taken joy in the fact that bin Laden is now in the eternal torments of Hell. On this side of the issue, there are many who echo this sentiment.

On the other side of the issue, you have people that say Christians should not rejoice over the death of this terrorist. They will cite verses such as...


"Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice."
                                                                                                     (Proverbs 24:17 NIV)


"But I tell you, 'love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you...'"
                                                                                                     (Matthew 5:44 NIV)

"Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is Mine to          avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord."                                           (Romans 12:19 NIV)

This side, based on their application of these and other verses like them, receive the news of Osama bin Laden's death in a pacifist manner totally rejecting any notion of celebration as being ungodly and carnal.

And because of both of these extremes, therein lies the split among well intentioned, patriotic Christ-following Americans. So, how exactly is a Christian to biblically respond to this historic event?    

1. When quoting or citing Scripture, know the context of the passage, what it is saying, and what it is not saying. As Christians, our foundation is Scripture. Our foundation is not our interpretation of Scripture...there is a HUGE difference! When Solomon writes, "Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice." in Proverbs 24, we affirm that. We are not to gloat, but do not confuse gloating with a sense of relief that justice has been served...again, there is a HUGE difference! When Jesus teaches, "But I tell you, 'love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you...'" in Matthew 5, we affirm that. We are to love our enemies through prayer and desire that they turn to God for salvation...but do not confuse Jesus' command to love our enemies and pray for them as being a pacifistic. We love and enemies and pray for them before their time here on this earth is up and they enter into eternity to a very real, very horrible reality of Hell. When Paul writes, "Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord." in Romans 12, we also affirm that. There are a couple points of distinction that must be made about this verse...1) there is a difference between vengeance and justice, and 2) Paul was writing to Christ-Followers in Rome, not the government in Rome. So, even though there is (presumably) many in the US government that want to enact vengeance upon bin Laden, the pursuit of the United States' military was to bring Osama bin Laden to justice for his crimes against this nation.
2. Anyone's happiness over the fact that bin Laden is in Hell, speaks more to their lack of knowledge about the reality of Hell than it does about their patriotism. Jesus taught more on Hell than He did on Heaven...why...because it is such a s horrible place that He does not wish that any should have to go there even for a second...even a mass murderer such as bin Laden.  
3. Remember that Jesus Christ is our Judge...every single one of us. He is a Judge that is just...He will not allow sin to go unpunished. The death of Osama bin Laden was not his judgement...bin Laden's judgment came as he stood before Jesus Christ and had to give an account of his life to the God that created and sustains life. His punishment did not come from a US Special Forces team that killed him in a firefight...bin Laden's punishment came in the form of an eternal sentence from Jesus Christ, Himself. Just as bin Laden stood before Jesus Christ in judgment, so too every single  one of us will stand before God and give an account of our life to a holy God. We will not, however, receive a judgment that will be measured up against the life and sins of bin Laden (I think all of us look pretty good when compared to bin Laden), but our lives will be measured up against the standard of perfection (I'm sure all of us look not so good when compared to perfection). This is why accepting Jesus' free gift of salvation and exchange of our unrighteousness for His righteousness is so vitally important!
4. It is always right to celebrate justice! As a matter of fact, God gets angry when we do not celebrate, pursue, and value justice. A few verses to look over in celebration of justice...
1. "For the Lord is righteous, He loves justice; the upright will see His face." (Ps.11:7 NIV)
2. "For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake His faithful ones." (Ps.37:28 NIV)
3. "I will sing of Your love and justice; to You, Lord, I will sing praise." (Ps.101:1 NIV)
4. "When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers." (Pr.21:15 NIV)
5. "I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line..." (Is.28:17 NIV)
6. "Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore He will rise up to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice." (Is.30:18 NIV)
7. "This is what the Lord says: 'Maintain justice and do what is right...'" (Is.56:1 NIV)
8. "For I, the Lord, love justice..." (Is.61:8 NIV)
9. "Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts...but let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!" (Amos 5:15,24 NIV)
10. "And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8 NIV)
11. "This is what the Lord Almighty said: 'Administer true justice, show mercy and compassion to one another.'" (Zec.7:9 NIV)

To summarize what our response, as Christ-Followers, should be to this news that is making global headlines: know the Bible, hate Hell, know that justice has been and will be served by God Almighty, and celebrate that, in the end, justice always wins!

FBC JAX BEACH AT THE MOVIES: Alice In Wonderland

Throughout the summer months, we have used the blockbuster movies of '09/10 as modern-day parables to the truth of God's Word. "Alice In Wonderland," while very strange (can expect nothing less from the director that brought us such great flicks as "Sweeny Todd," "Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands," and "Pee Wee's Great Adventure") serves to bring about a crucial question for each person that calls him/herself a Christ Follower...you see, in this adaptation of Lewis Carroll's books,  19 year old Alice returns to Wonderland doubting the entire time that she is THE Alice and if everything around her is just merely a dream. Beyond fortifying my conviction to not use drugs, this movie made me wonder: imagine what lives we would be living if we didn't spend so much time trying to convince ourselves that we are not who God says that we are and we can never live the lives that God has freely given us to live.

To reclaim and proclaim what our true identity and reality is because of Jesus Christ, we must first look at how God defines us...not how we define us (based on our job, our line of work, our relationships, our status, or even our backgrounds). To have objective truth on the subject, I can think of no better place in all of Scripture than 1st Peter 2:9

"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His [God's] own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."

Not to oversimplify, but there it is:

• "A Chosen Race"...God willingly chose to love you
• "A Royal Priesthood"...you have unfiltered access to the King of kings and Lord of lords as an heir
• "A Holy Nation"...God sees you as holy, forgiven and set free from your past mistakes
• "A People for His Possession"...life is no longer meaningless, you now have purpose 

I think, by and large, we really want to believe these things...we long to believe these things, we just don't believe these things. This question is, then, what gets in the way of me truly embracing the identity that God has bestowed on me? Each person has their own unique battles with this issue, but I believe each of these battles can placed into 1 of 4 categories:

• I allow my inadequacies to take hold of me
• I allow other people's perspectives to take hold of me
• I allow my old habits to take hold of me
• I allow my lack of understanding to take hold of me

The common denominator in all of these categories is that my eyes, attention, focus, and eventually my belief about me is that God is removed from the equation...and when that happens, all things become skewed. On the issue of my inadequacies, of course I'm inadequate...but my inadequacies/adequacies have nothing to do with how God sees me and loves me; that is a matter of His resolute choosing and will. On the issue of other people's perspectives of me, of course they vary...but my identity is not wrapped up in the shifting mindsets and emotions of people, it is anchored in the truth of God's Word. On the issue of my old habits creeping back in, of course I like to do life in my own strength (only to find out how weak and out of control I really am!) ...but I am not now defined by who I used to be and how I used to do life, but rather who God says I am now. On the issue of my lack of understanding, of course I am continually learning and do not have everything about the Christian life figured out...but, then, again I don't have to have everything figured out in order to live out what I already know about God and His love for me (after all, none of us sit in the dark because we don't have a complete understanding of electricity, wiring, conduits, and filaments...we flip the light switch on).

So how do we move from seeing ourselves through the prisms of past, people, and lack of infinite knowledge to seeing ourselves the way that God sees us: a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a people for His own possession? TRAINING

Again, not to sound overly simplistic, but we must take baby steps: visualize and then apply.

Ask yourself, "How would someone who God has freely chosen to love, who has unfiltered access to God, is declared as holy by God, and is imbued with purpose from God view today?"    

Then view today like that!

In the issues that cause us to lose sleep, cause us to worry, and trouble us, ask yourself, "How would someone who God has freely chosen to love, who has unfiltered access to God, is declared as holy by God, and is imbued with purpose from God handle this issue in their life?"

Then handle that issue in that manner!

Remember, it took time in order for you to view yourself the way you now view yourself...and it will take time and practice (visualize then apply) to begin reversing course, but stick with it...God has so much in store for you (the you He says you are), but you have to trust Him in order to become who you never thought possible and to live in a manner beyond your imagination.

"FBC JAX BEACH AT THE MOVIES: Invictus"

Let me start off by apologizing for the lack of audio for this section of our series...we're working on getting everything back up and running as it should be.

"...bearing with one another ad, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."   (Colossians 3:13 ESV)

I am loving this series that we are going through on Sunday morning and loving the feedback that we are receiving from it. Just to back-track a little, we are using clips from the most popular movies of 2009-2010 as a visual aide for biblical truth...much the way Jesus used parables. This past week, we used the movie "Invictus" to talk about the touchiest and most sensitive of subjects...forgiveness.

When I was researching this movie, I discovered something very interesting: the word "invictus" literally means "unbeaten" in Latin. This is important in each of our lives, because the one thing that will stall and "beat" us faster and more thoroughly than anything I can think of is our unforgiveness of others. To be very honest, every single one of us has been wronged, victimized, and/or abused by another person. We did not choose to be victimized, but we do, however, choose which role we will embrace: victim or victor...the distinguishing characteristic being whether or not we forgive that person(s) who wronged us.

Let's agree on one thing: we hate to forgive...it's against our nature, it's against our reflexes, it's against our instincts...we HATE it. We want to be the victor with his foot on the throat of the person who wronged us, not being the one who offers forgiveness...that just sounds weak. But, our perception of spiritual, Godly victory has become skewed by an unspiritual, ungodly world. Sure, we have our excuses (and they sound very convincing) for not forgiving and wanting to hold on to bitterness:

"I didn't do anything wrong."
(Perhaps, but forgiveness is about you letting go not casting blame.)
  
"He doesn't deserve forgiveness."
(Maybe not, but none of us deserved God's forgiveness, either...but He gave it willingly.)  

"I can't act like nothing happened and just forget about what was done."
(Who said anything about forgetting? Forgiveness and forgetting are two completely different        things...God takes all the ugliness and shrapnel in our lives and transforms it into something beautiful, outstanding, influential, and powerful...if we forget where He has brought us from, we strip grace of it's transforming power.)

"If I forgive, I look weak and I lose."
(First of all, that's pride...and pride will destroy you. Second, what takes greater strength, holding on to some perceived right or finally letting go? If forgiveness was easy and required little strength, it would not be so hard to come by.)

"If I forgive, then she doesn't have to pay for what she did to me."  
(At some point in time, we must trust God and His justice...if God were not just and did not punish wrongdoing, there would have been no reason for Him to send Jesus into the world...all wrongdoing will, in His time, be judged and dealt with. Another freeing thought: whatever punishment I could imagine upon someone who has wronged me is nothing compared to God's vengeance upon that sin.)


In the end, what we lack is a true definition for forgiveness. Here it is:


"Intentionally coming to a specific point in time that I willingly choose and decide to give up my perceived right as judge, jury, and executioner against someone who has wronged me while trusting that God, being just, will, in His time, make all things right."


Spend some time working through this definition, every facet of it is vitally important for us to move forward.


So what's behind forgiveness anyway? Why should I forgive someone who has wronged me, and may not even care about it? Well, first of all, our forgiveness of others is an issue of our obedience to God...if God says in His word to forgive (and He does), then I fight to forgive. Secondly, my forgiveness of others sets me free...the person(s) that I am bitter at and holding animosity toward doesn't care about my bitterness and animosity, so I am choosing to chain myself when I choose unforgiveness. And third, our forgiveness of others is evidence of a changed life...people aren't amazed with my talk of "grace" and "mercy," but they are amazed (and drawn in) by a life that demonstrates grace and mercy.

So how do I go about this fight to forgive?
1.  Pray, asking God to help you release true forgiveness.
On my own, I don't have the capacity to forgive someone who has really wronged me, slandered me, and/or abused me...through the power of God who indwells me, I now have a completely different power source to live off of and to operate from.

2.  If the other person is aware of the offense, go to that person 1 on 1 in hopes of reconciliation (Matt.5:24; 18:15).
The goal of forgiveness is not to be "holier-than-thou" or even the "bigger man"...the goal is to live the life that God created you to live in freedom. With that said, God brings people into our lives to help us, assist us, and encourage us...these people, are at the end of the day, fallible people who will at some point let you down. There may be a good chance that the person you need to forgive is the very person who can provide Godly assistance in life later down the road...so reconciliation is massively important. Reconciliation doesn't always happen, though...when the other person refuses to change you did not fail indoor mission; they failed. Whether or not the other person accepts and moves forward with you in relationship or not, keep the goal in mind.

3.  If the other person is unaware of the offense, make the matter between you and God only.
You make matters worse by going to someone and telling them you forgive them for something they were unaware of...trust me, I know, I've been on both sides of that equation...AWKWARD!

4.  Move on in all that God has for you.  
God has incredible plans for you...you are so much more than what has happened to you...MOVE ON!

REVOLUTION...A Movement Against Pansy Living

Let me start off by saying, I can't stand pansies! I know that this comment isn't very pastoral in nature, but it is true. I would even bet that there are more people with a distain of pansy-type qualities than would care to admit. One thing that really angers me in "pansidom" (the realm in which pansies pansy), is the ability to extinguish passionate pursuit and transfer elements of weak-mindedness and weak-living into otherwise pansy-less lives. The primary area in which this travesty has occurred is in Christianity.

Of the over 6 billion people on Earth right now, about 2.2 billion people called themselves Christians. About 2.2 billion people would check the Religious Affiliation Box of Christian. The irony of it all is the fact that Jesus never came to start a religion...He came to start a revolution! Tragically, we see more suits and ties calling themselves Christians living in agreement with a Jesus holding a lamb picture, than we see calloused hands and broken hearts living in accordance with a Jesus that came to revolutionize the souls of the people that He created. The fact is, "Christianity" as a religion is tame, boring, non-satisfying, and is passionate only when traditions are in danger of being changed. "Christ-Following" as a revolution is primal, raw, savage, and is passionate in terms of being a part of seeing God change lives...no matter the cost, discomfort, or pain. A true Christ-Following Revolutionary would rather die in the mere pursuit of seeing God bring about revolution in the lives of men, women, and children than live in the midst of the status-quo...a religious "Christian" is most interested in maintaining and arguing for what once was, content in bubble-living.

As a whole, I believe that many in the church approach the Book of James as a "Oh, that will step on some toes" type of book. I, however, am under the impression that the Book of James is about an all-out assault on everything "religious" in nature...it is not interested in "stepping on toes," it is (if you open yourself to it) about crushing the weekly games that we play in the name of "being a good Christian."

To understand the Book of James, we have to understand the backdrop of the book. It was written by the half-brother of Jesus (Jesus also had a half-brother named Judas, which I'm guessing Mary and Joseph later regretted that name choice) according to Mark 6:3. James, like his other brothers and sisters, did not believe that Jesus was the Son of God (can you imagine growing up being the younger sibling of Jesus? Why can't you be more like Jesus? Well, mom, why can't you be more like Jesus?), according to John 7:5, until after Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. And James became the overseer of the church in Jerusalem after the Holy Spirit came and set over 3,000 people's souls on fire with purpose and meaning in life after just one sermon, and daily after that (not because a new religion had just been birthed) because people actually spread the revolution that had happened to them. James had obviously rejected the religion that some wanted to attach to Jesus...what he could not reject was the revolution that following the risen Jesus brought to his life, heart, soul, and framework in which he now saw life. But, this is only half of the backdrop! For those not acquainted with the historical fact, the Jews and the Romans did not play "nice" together. As a matter of fact, one of Jesus' disciples, Simon, was known as being a zealot (translation: a dude that wore a coon-skin cap and had stock piles of shotgun shells and beanie-weenies in his basement) who thought that Jesus came to overthrown the Roman Empire. Tensions over taxation and mistreatment of the Jews by the Romans continued to mount after Jesus' ascension back into Heaven. In 66AD, war officially broke out to kickoff the Jewish-Roman War (66-70AD) which resulted in the destruction of the Jewish Temple (now the modern-day sight of The Dome of the Rock...Islam, not the wrestler) in 70AD by the Romans. All this to say, the political backdrop of the Book of James was revolution. James' book was not an attempt to suppress revolution...James' book is a guide defining soul revolution...not a call to arms, but rather a call to truly live.

Over the next posts, we are going to walk through the Book of James to discover the Revolution that Jesus wants to incite in our own lives in order that our lives, through Him, may set the lives of those around us aflame with passion and purpose...look forward to the journey!

        

THE PROVERBIAL PURSUIT: Seduced...Women's Edition

Several years ago, it was hilarious watching our boys, Landon (then 5) and Jax (then 4), play soccer for the first time. They honestly had absolutely no clue what they were supposed to be doing...I can't really blame them though, because I honestly had (have) no clue as to what they were supposed to be doing either. The extent of my soccer knowledge is as follows:

• You kick a ball.
• You kick a ball into the goal.
• You cannot use your hands unless someone older than you hands you the ball.
• Soccer is not an American game.
• I know kids growing up that got beat up on the playground for being what we called "Soccer-knockers"...I don't really know why this was an insult, but as a kid if you could make a word rhyme with another word then you really had something special.
• You run around a lot in soccer...this is the reason we signed Landon and Jax up: so they could run and then so they could collapse at home...it was a great plan!

When I was watching them play (the mad-chaos-cat-chase) one day, it hit me: of course they have no idea what they are supposed to be doing...they have three coaches and two sidelines of parents and grandparents yelling out in their general direction what they should be doing. On the surface, more instruction should translate to more understanding...in reality, however, this was just not the case.

Fast forward to last week. Neither of our boys are "playing" soccer anymore (Thank God...now they will be safer on the playground!), but now Landon (7) is playing flag-football. I had to attend a wedding last Saturday, so I could not be at his last game. As soon as I got home, I asked him if they won (which they did) and then I asked him if they ran "the play where the quarterback goes back to pass but the running back comes around behind him and takes the ball from the quarterback while he is in a throwing motion." Landon looked at me and said, "You mean the Statue of Liberty play, yeah, we ran that." I almost teared up...I can now talk X's and O's with my boy!

So what's one of the main differences in Landon between the chaos of soccer and the fluidity of football. Well, there are many differences, but the main difference is the fact that in football, Landon listens to only one voice: Coach Chris. Coach Chris is the coach (just to clarify), Coach Chris is knowledgeable, and Coach Chris is the one who establishes the standard of play for the football players.

God, on an infinitely larger scale, is our Coach Chris. He is the One ultimately in charge of everything, He is all-knowing (past, present, and future), and He is the One who establishes the standard by which we are to live life. Unfortunately, it is so easy to try to listen to a variety of voices (all expressing different standards), and what inevitably ensues is nothing less than chaos in life because you find yourself sincerely trying (and trying hard) to live up all the different standards of all the different voices in your life. It is at exactly this point that Satan launches his favorite weapon in his arsenal toward women: INSECURITY. It is insecurity that steals so many women's joy, it is insecurity that kills so many women's contentment in being who God created them to be, and it is insecurity that destroys so many women's relationships with others around them as well as they way they see themselves.

INSECURITY: "a lack of security within"

We live in a culture that makes so many false promises in regards to what will bring about internal security:

• "If I had $_______ in my checking/saving account, then I would have internal security."...as if the wealthy do not struggle with insecurity.
• "If I had that job/position/title, then I would have internal security."...as if your worth and identity is based on a job performed/position obtained/title given to you.
• "If I could look like _______ on TV, then I would have internal security."...as if there is no insecurity in Hollywood!
• "If my husband/children were more like ________, then I would have internal security."...as if no one else has problems and issues behind closed doors.

Fortunately, God (the One who wants to be the lone, guiding voice in our lives) has laid out His standard  for what a woman should aspire to be, to pursue. It's Proverbs 31:

"Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. She seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands. She is like the merchant ships, she brings her food from afar. She also rises while it is yet night, and provides food for her household, and a portion for her maidservants. She considers a field and buys it; form her profits she plants a vineyard. She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms. She perceives that her merchandise is good, and her lamp does not go out by night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hand holds the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household is clothed  with scarlet. She makes tapestry for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies sashes for the merchants. Strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness. She watches over the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he parses her: 'Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all.' Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates."

Now, the obvious question to me is: "How in the world is a woman to be a seamstress, caterer, manager, real-estate agent, operator of a vineyard, body-builder, fashion designer, overseer of a charity, incredible mother, boutique owner, merchant, and a great wife?" The answer is: "YOU DON'T! If you read Proverbs 31 as a checklist to help fight against insecurity, then I guarantee you that you will become even more insecure than when you first started reading! Proverbs 31 is not a checklist (which is really good for many reasons, a couple being 1) I would have no idea what "flax" is much less how to go about seeking it, and 2) I would have no clue how to "reach my hands to the distaff" when "distaff", to me, sounds like some red-neck infection: "Yep, I got distaff infection."), but rather it is a metaphor of a life that understood that God specifically created her with specific talents/gifts/abilities to be used for His specific purposes in her specific surroundings. So where do you come in? Like the woman of Proverbs 31, God specifically created you, with specific talents/gifts/abilities to be used for His specific purposes in your specific surroundings. 

David wrote in Psalm 139:14 "I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made..."

This verse is huge in how you see yourself! You are not random, you are accidental, coincidental, trash, unimportant, or forgotten. When God (the maker of the universe and all that is) created you, He exerted energy, He spent time, He expressed His creativity in you. A lot of insecurity is derived from a "I can't be more like _______" type of mindset...well, you're right, you can't (and shouldn't) be just like that person...but great news: there is no one who could ever be just like you. That's the way God intentionally designed and created you! A lot of insecurity also creeps in when standing in front of a mirror. Again, God created everyone of us unique...all shapes, all sizes. If I stood in front of a Picasso painting, chances are I would wonder what kindergartner got into the paint...some might even talk to me using words like "abstract," "hues," "tones," and other words that I frankly don't care about...but some might talk to me using words like "five-point-two-million-dollars," words that I do care about. Honestly, why is that painting worth so much money? It's because of who the artist was that painted it...somewhere along the way, somebody (are a lot of somebodies) decided that this Pablo Picasso was a really good guy, even if his artwork was really weird. So, what in the world does this have to do with you? Well, you need to understand that your beauty is not based on a reflection, but rather on the Artist that created you: God...which gives you masterpiece status!

Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

God has created you for an incredible life of significance...He has created you with unique talents/gifts/abilities to use in a way that no one else can (because no one else is you). God is absolutely for you, not against you! In struggling with insecurity, you will only find lasting, sustained inner peace and security by walking the path (a concept that covers the Book of Proverbs) that He has for you...in other words, there will not be peace and contentment in your life outside of God's will for your life. God has placed in some very important positions...if you are a wife: one of His purposes for you is to be a Godly wife, if you are a mother: one of His purposes for you is to be a Godly mom, if you are a daughter: on of His purposes for you is to be a Godly daughter, if you have friends: one of His purposes for you is to be a Godly friend, if you work outside the home: one of His purposes for you is to be a Godly employee/employer...doing all these things with the talents/gifts/abilities that He has installed within you, while at the same time knowing that you are who you are and are where you are because of Him...that's your lone standard in combatting insecurity.

So what are some practical steps that can be taken to fight well against insecurity:

1. KNOW GOD...all of us need to grow closer and closer to God each and every day. This happens in prayer and in reading the Bible. There are no short-cuts...it takes time and growth!
2. IDENTIFY YOURSELF...you are "fearfully and wonderfully made," "you are His workmanship," you are a daughter of the King and Creator of the Universe...to see yourself as anything less is heretical!
3. LIVE FULLY IN HIS PURPOSES...one of the most important words here is "fully." I say "fully" because some are not living in God's purposes at all, others are dabbling in God's purposes, and others, while they are in God's purposes, are also involved in a lot of other things (even "good" things) as well...this presents problems because 1) each "thing" you are involved in comes with it's own standards of what "success" looks like, which translates to greater potential insecurity, and 2) there is only so much "you" to go around...when you spread yourself thin, the probability of being able to do anything great is about nil. So, for some, you need to pick up God's purposes in your life...for others, you need to dive in and not be satisfied with dabbling...and others, you may need to start saying "no" to "good" things, so that you can say "yes" to "best" things.        

THE PROVERBIAL PURSUIT: Seduced...Men's Edition

It is no secret that our culture is struggling from a lack of masculinity (see feathers, sequins, and spandex...all unfortunately present in the Winter Olympic Games!)...and the lines of biblical manhood, at best, are quickly eroding. This is not at all a statement advocating the oppression or abuse of women...as a matter of fact, any man who abuses a woman in any way or oppresses a woman in way whatsoever should be (at the minimal) beaten...I'm still looking for a verse to back me up...I just know it's in the Bible somewhere! What I am talking about is how I see men, who profess to be Christ-followers, that are lazy instead of being hard-workers...men, who profess to be Christ-followers, that are selfish instead of living sacrificially for their wife and children...men, who profess to be Christ-followers, that are spiritually neglectful toward their family instead of being the spiritual head of their family...men, who profess to be Christ-followers, that are spiritually stagnant instead of spiritually growing.

I believe that many men find themselves where they find themselves in life (or in the lack of truly living) because they have not INTENTIONALLY lived otherwise...all the while, their enemy, Satan, has INTENTIONALLY sought to steal life from them, kill them, and destroy them. Satan has done this, in many cases by using his favorite weapon in his arsenal: LUST. Because of lust, some men have been convinced that they have been disqualified from living the abundant life that Jesus came to offer (past failures)...while others, because of lust, have/are choosing the temporary pleasures of lust over the life that Jesus has prepared for them (present entrapment)...either way, lust has taken them out!

In the Book of Proverbs, Solomon gives great space to the issue of lust and warning against the destruction caused by adultery (chapters 2, 5, 6, and 7). As a matter of fact, their is no other topic addressed in Proverbs as much or as in-depth as the issue of lust. To me, one of the best passages in Proverbs to examine, in regards to this subject and how to overcome this temptation is Proverbs 7:6-27...

"For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice, and saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, a young man devoid of understanding, passing along the street near her corner; and he took the path to her house in the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night."


"And there was a woman who met him, with the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart. She was loud and rebellious, her feet would not stay at home. At times she was outside, at times in the open square, lurking around every corner. So she caught him and kissed him; with an impudent face she said to him: 'I have peace offerings with me; today I have paid my vows. So I came out to meet you, diligently to seek your face, and I have found you. I have spread my bed with tapestry, colored coverings of Egyptian linen. I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey; he has taken a bag of money with him, and will come home on the appointed day.'"


"With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, with her flattering lips she seduced him. Immediately he went after her, as an ox to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks, till an arrow struck his liver. As a bird hastens to the snare, he did not know it would cost his life."


"Now therefore, listen to me, my children; pay attention to the words of my mouth: do not let your heart be turned aside to her ways, do not stray into her paths; for she has cast down many wounded, and all who were slain by her were strong men. Her house is the way to hell, descending to the chambers of death."

We read this passage and say to ourselves, "What an idiot...did you not see that coming...how did you expect things to turn out?" I wonder if this guy, on his way to the woman's house, said something stupid like, "You had me at 'tapestry.'" The fact of the matter is, if you're a guy, then you have the potential to be this idiot every day...the fact may be, that you are currently this idiot right now. Some reading this may be in the middle of an affair...whether that affair has turned physical or not, it is an affair nonetheless. Some reading this may be in the midst of a battle over lust and your thought-life. Jesus said, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'you shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.'" (Matthew 5:27-28). You see, to Jesus the heart and mind really matter...a lot!

So the question is, why would any of us fall for something so devastating to begin with? Well, the enticement and temptation has not changed all that much since Solomon watched this guy from his porch. Look a little closer at the false promises of this woman and you will see the incredible similarities of modern-day excuses for living in lust.

• It will not cost you anything.
• "...I have peace offerings with me..."
• This woman was telling this man that she had her own money, she did not need him to pay her anything...in other words, what she was offering him was free...it would not cost him anything
• In reality, lust will cost you everything!
• It will not affect your relationship with God.
• "...today I have paid my vows..."
• This woman told this man that she had already gone to the Temple and given at the door and was therefore alright with God...and if she was alright with God and he was alright with God, well then, why not be alright with God together?
• In reality, lust will absolutely wreck your walk with God...when Jesus called his disciples, He did not say, "Hey, Peter, believe in Me" or "Yo, Andrew, behave like Me" instead Jesus said, "Follow Me." If we are walking down a path of lust, how in the world do we expect to be following Jesus when we are living on a completely different path?
• It was meant to be.
• "...and I have found you..."
• This guy probably really thought, "Man, she gets me; much more than my wife understands me...how could something that feels so good be wrong...God bless the broken road that led me straight to you." Okay, Proverbs-guy may not have quoted Rascal Flatts, but you get the point.
• If you mean, "it was meant to be" in terms of Satan has intentionally sought to steal the lasting joy and purpose from your life, kill hope in your life, and destroy the plans that God has for your life...then, okay, it was meant to be. However, you mean "it was meant to be" in terms of God bringing you two together outside the boundaries of your marriage vows and wants to bless what He calls sin...then, no, it is not, nor ever was or will be, meant to be. 
• It is sustainable.
• "...let us delight ourselves in love..."
• The promise of this woman to this guy is "this is the real deal...I'll never leave your side...it's you and me forever." Who knows, maybe she even wrote out the Middle School math equation of "2 hearts + 2gether = 4ever!
• The promised pleasure of every temptation is always a mirage...and always comes up empty. 
• It is safe.
• "...for my husband is not home..."
• The false promise was "no one will ever know...this is our secret...this is private."
• For a reality check, ask Tiger Woods how that's worked out for him lately.  

So how do we overcome this temptation?

1. INTENTIONALLY realize that you are are in the midst of war...you have a very real enemy who is very intentionally seeking to wreck your life, so you better intentionally wake up to the war!
2. INTENTIONALLY ask God's protection on you each morning for each new day...pray something like, "God keep me close to You, keep me clean for You, and protect me so that I can live the life You have designed and planned for me."
3. INTENTIONALLY patrol your thoughts...Paul wrote "...bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ" (II Corinthians 10:5)...this means really give time and consideration to what you give time and consideration to...thoughts morph into meditations, meditations morph into actions.
4. INTENTIONALLY avoid "tempting situations"...you don't have to pray about whether or not it's okay to look at pornography, the answer to that is a resounding "no"...what you do need to be aware of are the lack of checks/balances/accountability in your life...do you spend time on the internet with the door closed, do you spend time on-line after everyone else's in bed (because just like Proverbs-guy knew the way to the woman's house, some of you know exactly the way to "that" site), do you take an alternate route to get to the break room at room just to "check up on her (the "her" not being your wife) and see how she (the "she" not being your wife) is doing, etc.?
5. INTENTIONALLY use your passion to know God and make Him known...many of our problems are not caused by having passion, they are brought about by misplaced passion...remember, your passion will either grow you in Godliness or destroy you in sin: your choice!  

I would also throw out a challenge to the wives of men: If your husband's a guy (I hope and pray so...if not, you both have much deeper problems!) then know that he struggles with this temptation...he's a guy. You, as a wife, should become alarmed when your husband no longer struggles, but has given up the struggle and given in to the temptation. So, pray that God will watch over your husband, protect your husband, strengthen your husband...and then enjoy your husband.

THE PROVERBIAL PURSUIT: Temptation On the Terrain

Every one of us struggles with temptation. Let me restate that...every one of us REALLY struggles with temptation. If we have been exposed to any type of Christianity...whether on a Sunday morning at church or by a 2:30am TV evangelist rocking a Heaven-sized combover riding his white stallion asking for your money (Jesus is not a fan of these people...in case you were wondering!)...you have probably heard a lot about sin (the 2:30am TV evangelist pronounces it "si-en-uh"with 3 syllables requiring spit to fly from your mouth for correct pronunciation) and temptation. The truth of the matter is, temptation is nothing more than an opportunity for me to attempt to short-circuit God's incredible plan for my life.

At this point, we probably need to back up a little bit and ask the obvious question, "What incredible plan?" Jesus told His followers, that He "came to give life--life in all its fullness (John 10:10)." Later on, Paul tells the people of Corinth that "no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him (I Corinthians 2:9)." I believe that too many people have taken these two promises and have tragically misapplied them...they act and live as if these promises only come into play after we die. I do believe that these promises speak of Heaven, but that's only half the story. I don't believe for an instant, that God looks down on a mopey, dopey, Eeyore of a Christian and beams with pride, "That's my boy...liven' life just like I designed it to be lived...no fun, no passion, no excitement, no joy...just endless pipe organ and church services until I say it's time for a funeral!" Jesus did not come to rob us of life, He came to give us life...after we die, yes; but also while we live here on earth. While we still receive our mail here on earth, know that God has an absolutely incredible plan for you! For those that are single, God has an absolutely incredible spouse in mind for you. For those that are drowning in purposelessness, God has an absolutely incredible way of doing life in mind for you. God wants to use you to do things you never thought were possible for you, take you places you never thought you would ever go, place in the midst of people you never thought you would be around...all for His glory! So, we come back to the nutshell definition of temptations: "Opportunities for me to attempt to short-circuit God's absolutely incredible plan for my life."

I know for me, it would be a whole lot easier if the temptations in my life didn't look, well, so tempting. I really wish that they were unattractive...it would really make following Jesus a lot easier! But I also find some of the most encouraging words in all the Bible to be I Corinthians 10:13...


"The only temptation that has come to you is that which everyone has. But you can trust God, who       will not permit you to be tempted more than you can stand. But when you are tempted, He will also give you a way to escape so that you will be able to stand it."

I find this verse so encouraging for several reasons:

• I'm not sure why, but it's good for me to know that I'm not the only one struggling. Have you ever walked into a church or been around other Christians and feel like the "black sheep" of the group...the only one struggling...the only one that doesn't have a perfect life...singing in your head "Which One of These Is Not Like the Other, Which One of These Does Not Belong" and you think that song is about you? Well, good news (in a strange way)! We all struggle. You are not the only one tempted with what you are tempted with...which also means, like others have (or are in the process of doing), you too can overcome that temptation.  
• I also really like the five words toward the beginning of the verse, "...but you can trust God..." Know that God knows exactly what He's doing. He does not seek to rob us of life, but rather to give us life at its absolute best. And as the author and creator of life, He is more than qualified to define what life at its best really looks like.
• This verse also removes some crutches for me. The crutches I like to lean on are "the-temptation-is-too-great-for-me-to-say-no-to-it" crutch under my right arm and the "I'm-only-human" crutch under my left arm. But Paul writes that God knows exactly what I can bear before I break, and in His mercy, God will not put too much on me...even if I think I'm about to break. In other words, God knows that I am stronger than I think I am, and every time I withstand temptation I start to see in me what God already knows to be true about me.
• But without a doubt, when facing temptation, the part of this verse that is most amazing to me is that part about God always providing an "escape-hatch" for me when I am tempted. This escape-hatch may be the first really "mystical" experience that you have had with God, and its around us every time we are tempted...we just have to look for it. Let me give you an example, have you ever noticed how many times that when you are in the midst of being tempted by something, the phone rings, or there is a knock at the door, etc.? You really think that's coincidence? I, for one, don't have that measure of faith in coincidence to chalk it up to coincidence! God has the very best in mind for you and knows the devastation of attempting to short-circuit His plans for our lives, so as a loving Father, He provides rescue in the middle of potential disaster.

So how do we overcome temptation when (not "if") if comes our way?

1. Begin each day with a prayer asking for God to protect you...this does not eliminate temptation, it simply makes us aware of God's presence and promise in our lives as well as keeps us on the look-out for anything that might attempt to short-circuit God's plan for me that day.
2. Make every effort to avoid "tempting settings"...for example, if you are struggling with materialism, the mall is probably not the best place for you to kill a few hours in the afternoon! If you are struggling with lust, being alone on the internet is not the wisest choice you can make! If you are struggling with gossip, spending hours on the phone is really not the best idea! You get the point.
3. When you are tempted, ask God to show you the escape-hatch...I guarantee you that He will and you will be amazed!
4. Just because you see the escape-hatch, that doesn't mean that you've overcome that temptation...you have to intentionally choose to walk with God (and use the escape-hatch) and intentionally choose to reject the "alternate route"...the temptation.

Overcoming temptation is a life-long endeavor...however, life is a choice-by-choice choice...so, start rejecting any opportunity for you to attempt to short-circuit God's plans for you; and live well as God unfolds His absolutely incredible plans for your life.

THE PROVERBIAL PURSUIT: The Fork In the Path

"When you come to a fork in the road, take it."
                 -Yogi Berra (former New York Yankee and Hall of Fame catcher)

Every choice, every decision is, in essence, a fork in the path...if we choose one way, our path veers in one direction; if we choose another way, our path veers in that direction. Evidence of God's love for us is given by the fact that He allows us to make choices and decisions knowing that these choices and decisions always lead somewhere. Often times, however, we make a choice that sets the trajectory of a path that ends in a lesser than desirable destination. We make a decision about our marriage, that has damaging consequences...we make a decision regarding our finances, that lead to further stress and anxiety...we make a decision on a situation at our workplace, that instead of making the situation better it actually makes it worse. When we realize that we have made a mistake, the wise will try to do an about-face and ask God for forgiveness.

...But what if there was a way to live life in such a way that instead of having to constantly retrace our steps and having to constantly keep coming back to God and ask for His forgiveness, we live life making headway and, with solid traction, actually blaze new trails realizing that righteousness is a choice-by-choice choice. Too many Christ-followers do not live with this realization and that is way they feel caught in a cycle of repeating the same mistakes over and over again, that is why they feel like spiritual failures, and that is why they always live reactionary instead of the revolutionary lives that Jesus offers (John 10:10).

The key to this realization, the key to this type of living is Proverbs 3:5-6:

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." 

Immediately, we can see the choice of every choice:

• I can choose to "trust in the Lord with all [my] heart"...
• I can choose to "lean on [my] own understanding"...  

What makes "leaning on my own understanding" so appealing is that it gives me some feeling of independence and allows me to take credit for the results. For example, if I "lean on my own understanding" to make financial decisions, then when I become filthy rich I can look back over my choices with an "I did it" type of attitude. The problem with my "leaning on my own understanding" is that I have an incredibly finite view and perspective of time...I only know what I know about the past (which in incredibly limited), I only know what I know about about the present (which is incredibly limited), and I only know what I know about the future (which is absolutely zero). God, on the other hand, has an infinite view and perspective of time...He knows everything about the past, He knows everything about the present, and He knows everything about the future. From a financial perspective, God is the ultimate "inside-trader"...He knows everything that happens before it ever becomes our history. On a common-sense level, if "my own understanding" is so great and spectacular, why is it then that I find myself always coming back to God and asking for His forgiveness and guidance in the end anyway? That's a rhetorical question!

The second facet about this key is when Solomon writes, "...in all your ways acknowledge Him..." he is not talking about kneeling down and pointing up when scoring a touchdown, or singing along with the radio "thanking the keeper of the stars," or even thanking God for your Grammy (award, not grandmother)...instead "acknowledge Him" is referring to the choice behind every choice...in others words, there is a motivation behind every decision that we make:

• Understand that my choices matter to God...He has a plan for me and therefore every decision has repercussions on that plan coming to reality in and through my life
• Understand that my God matters in in my choices...at the end of the day, what speaks most loudly and clear about our view of God is what decisions and choices we made, how we went about making those decisions and choices, and why we made those particular decisions and choices (in other words, was there any "acknowledgment" God in our decisions?). 

Solomon ends this life-altering passage with some of the most freeing words ever spoken or written, "...and He shall direct your paths." Did you pick up the freedom of that statement? It is not up to you to determine where you are going...that's God's job! Most of us lose countless hours popping countless Tums worrying about countless scenarios when, in the end, God wants to bring about His plan for your life and He will make sure you will get there. Think about it, do you think for an instant that when Moses is on the backside of the middle of nowhere tending sheep, that he makes his "bucket list" and it reads, "I, Moses, before I die want to return to Egypt where I killed a man and lead over 2,000,000 Israelites out of the world's most powerful empire to the banks of the Red Sea where I will lift up my stick and make the water part and the ground dry so we can go to a place that I will call the 'Promise Land'? Do you think Paul, while on surveillance on a hunting expedition for Christians, really sat down to re-evaluate his life goals and concluded that it was time for a career change...instead of hunting down and killing Christians, he would become the greatest Christ-following missionary this world has ever known? Certainly not...we would say that these were ordinary men that God used in extraordinary ways...and we would be correct! The point is, stop living life as if it were up to you! The question then is, "If it is God's job to get me where I am supposed to be, around the people that I am supposed to be around, doing what I am supposed to be doing, on the scale that I supposed to be doing it; then what is my job?" The answer to that question is one word: "surrender." Going back to the example of Moses, take some time this week to read through the Book of Exodus and note how many times you run across a phrase like this, "...and God said to Moses..." The significance of that phrase cannot be overstated...Moses did not have a clue what he was doing or where he was going...that is why over and over we see phrases like, "...and God said to Moses..." No one studying the Bible would ever say that Moses was a clueless leader, though...just the opposite, we can look at the life of Moses and see a man that was used mightily by God to accomplish massive God-size things...but never think that Moses was great because of Moses, Moses was great because his surrender to his God was great. The same principle applies to us...if our surrender to God is weak, then we will live as if life depends on us and our inadequacies are so great that, at best, we simply exist...exist within a failure-ridden, reactionary cycle. However, if our surrender to God is pervasive in all areas of our lives, then we will live in the freedom of knowing that God is directing our paths by opening and closing doors, the peace of knowing that God is in control where His power is on full display in and through us...we will find that life happens, but the way in which we live is not dictated  by what happens to us, but rather where our God is taking us and what our God is transforming us into...and that is truly revolutionary!

So, turn over the keys, turn over control...intentionally chose to intentionally surrender...God will not let you down, ever! 

Blind Melon and the Bible

   Have you ever noticed that the best music was the music that was played while you were in high school? This would explain my dad's love of Steppenwolf and Creedence Clearwater Revival, while at the same time explain why, to this day, I believe that Hootie and the Blowfish (especially "Cracked Rear View") are still incredible and that Better Than Ezra, Gin Blossoms, Matchbox 20 and Weezer all still rock! There was another song that was very popular when I was in high-school called "No Rain" by a group named Blind Melon. I don't think I've ever met anyone who knew all the words to this song, but nearly everyone remembers the video: strange little girl dressed up as a bumblebee dancing on a grassy hill...there is no proof to my knowledge to substantiate my next comment, but by seeing the video, I'm pretty sure that the band smoked a little of that grass from the hill while coming up with the idea for the video! This song (or the words that you know of it!), however, is one that gets stuck in your head and refuses to leave.

   As I was looking back through the passage that we discussed yesterday in our EVERYDAY ELIJAH series, I Kings 18:41-46, it hit me that the song "No Rain" would have been a perfect soundtrack for this particular part of the Bible. The context of this passage is that God, through the prayers of Elijah, stopped up the rain over Israel until they turned back to Him. Perhaps the strangest verse in this passage is "Then Elijah said to Ahab, 'Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.'" (vs.41). This is strange to me on two different levels:

1) If I am Ahab, I'm not going to go picnic on a hillside, I'm heading for shelter...but he did not.
2) It seems as if Elijah heard "the sound of abundance of rain" and Ahab did not.

Unless God used some kind of "prophet-doggy-whistle" (a whistle that can only be heard by a prophet due to its high-pitched spiritual frequency that far exceeds the normal hearing and discernment range of the ordinary layman)...which I do not think happened...something else happened that can explain this strange occurrence. That something else is...drum-roll, please...EXPECTATIONS! Ahab had little, to no, expectations that God would lift the rain-ban on Israel. He had been present for God's show-down and victory over the 450 prophets of Baal. Ahab was witness to God sending fire from heaven and consuming the sacrifice, the the water, the rocks, and the dust around the altar. And Ahab stood by as the nation of Israel proclaimed, "The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!" Within a matter of moments, Ahab had all the proof in front of him that he could have ever needed to convince him that God can do anything He wants to do...because He's God. However, Ahab, somehow dismissed the "sound of rain" and came up with some other excuse for what that sound could have been...why? Expectations! To Ahab, God was a god to these people and on that day that god did some pretty stuff, but at the end of the day, that god had little to nothing to do with Ahab's life or the way in which Ahab lived...that god is someone else's god.

Now follow me, one of the greatest traps that Christ-Followers can fall into is the trap of Low-God- Expectation Syndrome...thinking, "God did what He did in that person's life, but He could never do that incredible work in my life" or "It's amazing how God is using that person, but He could never use me like that." or "God's doing mind-blowing things over there, but that could never happen here [insert your address, the name of your neighborhood, community, church, region, state, nation]." Where does this come from? Expectations! Elijah trusted the fact the if God said that He would allow rain to fall again when Israel gets right with Him again, then rain would fall again when Israel got right with God again...and when Israel got right with God again, Elijah KNEW [insert the word "expected"] that it was only a matter of time before the National Broadcasting Service would be interrupting everyone's favorite TV show with that annoying buzzing alert followed by directions of what to do in the event of an emergency! Elijah actually expected great things from God! This explains why when Elijah hears a distant rumble, he knows that God is about to bring a thunderstorm...this explains why when Elijah hears from his servant that there is a lone cloud on the horizon no larger than "the size of a man's hand," he gets ready to outrun a flood.

Expectations usually determine results. For example, have you ever had to go somewhere that you really did not want to go but you had to go...and you had the expectation that you really were going to hate being there? Guess what? The time that you had to spend at that place was probably horrible! On the flip side, have you ever looked forward to going somewhere...and you just knew [insert "expected"] that that event was going to be incredible? Guess what? I bet that event was even better than you expected it to be! The strange thing is, really, that place you had to go or that event you were looking so forward to attending played just a minor role in your outlook. Let me explain, you know that place that you had to go to and it was horrible because you didn't want to be there? Guess what? There were other people at that exact same place that were living at their heart's content! And you know that event that you just couldn't wait to attend and it will go down as a fantastic memory? Guess what? There were other people at that exact same event who hated every moment if it! Same place...same event...different perspectives, due to different expectations!
 
This has immense and profound repercussions on the way we live life! If we expect little from God, we will see little of God, and we will live little lives. However, if we expect great things from God, we will see the great things of God, and we will live greatly because of God. I dare you to begin expecting great things from God! I dare you to settle for nothing less than seeing God at work all around you. I dare you to expect to hear from God when you read the Bible, pray, and go to church. I dare you to be so bold as to expect that God can pick up the pieces of your life and launch you beyond your wildest dreams...taking you places you never thought you would go, placing you around people you never thought you would be around, doing things you never thought you would be doing, living life in a way you never thought possible!        

Wavy Mullets Optional

As I look through the Bible at the type of people that God used to do incredible things for Him, it is easy to get discouraged for several reasons:

1. I am able to read in the Bible about the person's life in its entirety...I know how the story ends and how that person's life was used for future generations later on in the Bible.

2. Because that person is in the Bible, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that he/she had real struggles, real heartache, and was human.

3. My insecurities kick into to overdrive when I place my life up against any of these people.

As I look around me at a 2009 world, I see so many distortions of what a person must be/look like in order to be used greatly by God and for God.

DISTORTION #1:

To be used by God...men, you are not required to wear oversized toupees...women, you are not required to dye your hair pink.

DISTORTION #2:

To be used by God, you are not required to rock the latest in "Christian fashion."

DISTORTION #3:

To be used by God...women, you are not required to wear the Belk's makeup counter...men, the same goes for you!

DISTORTION #4:

To be used by God, you are not required to have perfectly white teeth coupled with a masterfully sculpted wavy mullet.

GOOD NEWS!!! All of these things are optional!

To me, the most encouraging verse in the Bible is James 5:17 "Elijah was a man just like us." Elijah was the man who commanded the rain to stop, raised the dead, prayed that fire would fall from Heaven...and it did, and was taken up to Heaven in a chariot of fire....no burns, no funeral. On the surface, it would seem like Elijah was so far out of our league, to say the least! Yet, James writes, "Elijah was a man just like us."

The question is not so much, "How much God do you have?" but rather, "How much of you does God have?" The fact is God WANTS to use each of us for His purposes. The variable in the equation is not God...it's us! This is the exact point where religion about God and a relationship with God dramatically part ways. A religion about God would take the statement, "The variable in the equation is not God...it's us!" and seek to "be better," "do more," "look the part," etc. These reactions are all about you and your adequacy...which will always come up short. A relationship with God would take the statement, "The variable in the equation is not God...it's us!" and respond in utter dependence upon God and complete surrender to God. These reactions are not about our adequacy to please God...or for that matter even our inadequacies...but about God's sufficiency in our lives. Elijah was a man who counted on God for everything, and God came through (as He always does!) far beyond anyone's (even Elijah's) expectations.

It is quite convicting to think that sometimes God does not use us more powerfully because we do not trust Him most fully with our moment-by-moment lives. Of course, today is a new day with new opportunities to be utterly dependent upon God and completely surrendered in every area of our lives to Him...but, that ball is in our court.

P.S.

To my Westside Jacksonville, FL friends and all the others I attend the Monster Truck Jam with every February...keep sculpting those mullets as you constantly and consistently give more and more of yourself over to God...I'll be with you soon cheering on Grave Digger and booing Maximum Destruction!

Twists of Irony...Halloween Addition

For the longest time, Christians and churches have dealt with the "issue" of Halloween...is it a day of evil, do we celebrate it, is it okay to dress up as Obi-Won Kenobi?

Many churches, in a twist of what I believe to be irony, have used Halloween as an opportunity to host an outreach event on their campuses (as a side note, many churches "require" a biblically-based costume in order to attend and participate...which screams "church kids only, go back home and change out of your Obi-Won Kenobi costume and wear something more appropriate...like a nice Hezekiah-inspired garb if you want to get our smarties or various flavored toostie rolls!"), while at the same time proclaiming the evils of Halloween. Twist of irony #1! The reason you have a "Fall Festival" is because of Halloween. This is very much akin to the fact that if you go to any LifeWay Christian Bookstore, they do not sell candy-corn in little baggies but they do sell "harvest seeds" in little baggies. What's the difference, you may ask? One is called "candy-corn" (and is obviously dark and evil) and the other is called "harvest seeds" (and is obviously good and holy)...same orange and yellow, same waxy taste, just a different name...and don't even get me started on the "testa-mints" or the t-shirts that say "Yoo-Woo is who He died for!" I am NOT saying that churches should not do outreach events on this night...I am saying do not think of yourself as being super-spiritual in that endeavor and be more focused on those outside of the walls rather than inside the walls.

I believe that God made each one of us who we are (uniqueness, not standardization...quirks, and all!), when we are (He did not create us in the Vikings era...the real ones, not the Brett Favre ones!), and where we are (my street, my workplace, my Larry's Giant Subs!) and based on all that INTENTIONAL designing by God, we will...when we die....give an account to God based on how we lived as the people He created us to be, around the people that He created us to live around and brought into our lives. Much in church, and rightly so, has been made of Jesus' words to the 11 Apostles (Matthias had not yet won the game of Yahtzee to take Judas' place...that comes in Acts 1:26) in Acts 1:8, "...you shall be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." It is no secret that the three locations/regions that Jesus named are strategic circles...Jerusalem is base, Judea is further out, Samaria is even further out, and the end of the earth is the furtherest ring. This strategy of starting where you are, then moving outward is biblically mandated. In steps twist of irony #2! The one night a year that our neighbors...those people that God created us (individually and uniquely) to be around at that exact time that we are living where we are living...actually come knock on our doors, we are intentionally not there because we are at our churches celebrating "not-Halloween." To make matters worse, our neighbors are not at our churches celebrating "not-Halloween" because they are on our empty doorsteps.

As a church, we have strategically decided to stay home (or go to other more strategic neighborhoods)...not to protest Halloween, but rather to live biblically mandated lives: to reach out to our neighbors (even if for a second on our doorsteps or in our driveways), to ask and wonder aloud with the man or woman down the street why they call them "Fun-Size" Butterfingers when they are obviously much smaller and therefore are not more fun regardless of what the wrapper may say, to dispel your neighbors' notions that you are Ned Flanders and are in fact a real human with real problems experiencing real peace through God, to spend a little more time building relationships with our "Jerusalems."

As an ending comment, God does not condemn Obi-Won Kenobi costumes...He does condemn Jar Jar Binks costumes...because Jar Jar Binks nearly ruined the entire Star Wars Saga.

Have fun, be safe, meet new people, meet previously met people...invest life into them, and always strive to know Him and make Him known wherever you are!

Sweat Moments

Before I begin, I thought of another word that I HATE:

Hearty- (as in "That was a hearty meal.")
Again, I really don't know what I have against this word...I just can't stand to hear it spoken, and, in fact, to even think about it is, to me, the equivalent of fingernails on a chalk board.

Now to the new post...sorry about the elapsed time in between!

Have you ever been in a situation where in an instant you just begin to sweat...where one second the temperature in the room goes from fine to seemingly sweat-inducing hot? The other night I had such a moment. Let me say before I go any further, I enjoy good hygiene (my own and especially that of others that I come in sniffing distance of!), but I am not "metro"...if you don't know what "metro" is then that's okay, you won't accuse me of being what you don't know...if you do know what "metro" is and you know me, you know that you probably have not used that adjective or tag to describe me. With that out of the way, I've been getting tired of having to deal with my hair lately. I have more cowlicks than a salt-block in a pasture in south Georgia, without gel I fro, and when grown longer I resemble a hybrid between my dad and Elvis. So, the other night, I decided to go short...clipper short. The next night, I came home and as I was looking in the mirror, I saw that there was a small area on the side of my head that was a little bit longer, so I decided to take care of it. Simple, good idea. Bad idea to "take care of it" forgetting that the guard was not on the clippers! This is the point that my sweat glands went to DEFCON 1 alert status! Once you "take care of" a patch of hair without the guard on, there's no turning back. As I write this, my scalp is exposed to nature's elements! I must say, that I have never really seen my scalp in full like this before. I have discovered that I do have a nicely shaped head, though! My dilemma now, every morning, is the question of do I use more face wash to scrub my entire cranium, or do I use the same amount and couple that with shampoo just for the sake of principle...I have chosen the extra-face-wash-route. To the surprise of all, I kind of like it...one less thing to worry about! At the very worst, I have a funny story!

My greatest long term fear is to look back on life and have no interesting, significant, world-changing story to tell. Looking back through Hebrews 11, which is tagged as "The Hall of Faith" chapter (which if really understood, should be tagged as "The Chapter About People Who Should Not Even Be in Scripture Had It Not Been Because of Their Faith in God") is all about people that had no earthly qualifications to change their world in their day...Abel (second born and therefore would not receive the family inheritance and blessing), Enoch (not much known about this man), Noah (old and hardly a boat-maker in the desert), Abraham (do you really think that God called him to move because of his extraordinary ability to walk long distances to unknown places on the senior circuit?)...and on and on. Hebrews 11 is filled, not necessarily with people, but the faith/risk lives of these people in their God. In other words, we know these people by their faith (the way they lived), and by their faith (the way they lived), we know their God. Their faith was not a "sit in a chair or a pew and raise your hand and affirm a religious belief" type of faith, but rather their faith was life on the move...uncaged, unsafe, non-prudent, not boring.

Isn't is strange that we trust God to take care of us when we die, but fail to trust God to take care of us as we live...and I do not say "take care of us as we live" in meaning "devoid of pain and suffering, skipping down the yellow-brick road." We must understand that there is a stark difference between existence and significance...without living faith/risk in God day-by-day, moment-by-moment we are confined to our own natural limitations and will inevitably find ourselves existing...because, let's face it: we really have nothing to bring to the table that changes history in and of ourselves! But through faith/risk in God, we are set free to unlimited possibilities because we are empowered by all-powerful, all-knowing, everywhere-present God.

In the years to come, when someone asks me about my story, I pray that it will be a little bit more than school, marriage, home, work, a the best chili dog I ever ate...I pray that it will be a story about exchanging the limited for the limitless, a story that is not caged, not safe, not prudent, not boring...shaved head and all!