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No One Left Behind
It should be pretty clear by now that being a follower of Christ is an active process. You see, Jesus is never standing still; he is always in motion: healing, loving, turning over tables, sharing the Good News, walking on water, and performing miracles. And it was these actions, in concert, that demonstrated his love for others and for us, providing numerous examples of just how we might “love our neighbors as ourselves.”
Jesus is (and has always been) God’s Word in action. That’s why his ministry kept him moving all the time. He rarely stayed in one place for very long; but when he did—and while he was traveling along the way—he was expressing his love through those actions.
It may be interesting to note that in every example Jesus ever gave us of loving others, he never told us to say “I love you” to others. His examples and teachings were always about demonstrating love through our actions.
“What is written in the Law?” [Jesus] replied. “How do you read it?” [The man] answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
Luke 10:26-28 -
Undermining Our Foundation
When we “mine under” something, we mine, drill or excavate, ultimately removing the material that supports the foundation something is built upon. As a result, the foundation itself loses the integrity it needs to support the structure on which it stands.
Typically, we don’t pay much attention to the foundation once it’s been laid. Since the foundation is typically immovable, we usually don’t expect it to shift or change over time.
Ironically, however, experience tells us that foundations do shift over time, because the earth beneath it is ever-changing. Since the planet we live upon was created from kinetic components (even the hardest rock is made up of moving particles), it’s silly to think it would never move.
In the same way, regardless of the material used to lay the foundation of our relationships, the ground on which it was laid continues to shift and settle. How much more, then, does that ground change when more dramatic forces are applied to it? How often do we see images of homes tumbling down the hillside after torrential rains? At these times, it’s not the foundation that fails, but the earth beneath it that can no longer bear the weight.
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Pick Up Your Cross
Jesus said that only when something dies can it create new life. I know that in this context he was talking about himself, alluding to his own necessary death on the cross so that New Life might be accessible to all.
“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.”
John 12:24 NLT But I see that we, too, can only create new disciples—bear new fruit—when we truly die to ourselves. Only if we can really let go of what this world has to offer, and embrace only what God offers us, will there be the humility required to impact the hearts of others. Because Jesus continued:
“Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”
John 12:25-26 NLT Only when we die to ourselves, and humble ourselves so that we can serve others and serve God, are we living a life that’s worth living. For only then, can we bear fruit in others, because only when we die to ourselves can others see the Lord. As long as “we” are alive, God is hidden from their view.
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Beautiful
You are Beautiful, my child
And I know that you are scared
Things are not as you’d hoped they would be
But I want you to know
Although you feel alone
I am with you and am working to set you freeThis is not the life I want for you
Or a pain I want you to endure
But this world is not what I intend
Though it all has gone astray
The plans for you I’ve made
Will bring your sorrow to an endTake my hand and follow me
And I will show you something new
I will show you something true
Let me put my arms around you
That you may know that you are loved
That you may know your Daddy aboveThere is hope for you, my child
So have courage in what’s to come
Even as you tread carefully in the dark
For a brand new life awaits you
Much more than can be dreamed
Where you can dare to make your markYou are precious to me, my child
And I’ve never left your side
Though you think I’ve left you far behind
Am I powerless to save you?
Do you think I cannot hear?
Is it possible that I could be so blind?Once you asked I leave you be
You thought that would make you free
But now you live more like a slave
But here I am to rescue you
Here I am to set you loose
So turn to me and in my arms be savedTake my hand and walk with me
And creation will come alive
And you will learn to thrive
Let me put my arms around you
That you may know your Daddy above
For you are Beautiful, my love -
Knowing the Word
Often we find ourselves in a place where we understand, at a rudimentary level, a need for knowing God’s Word, in one degree or another, for a number of reasons. But ultimately, there is no way to really do that without actually reading His Word, whether visually or audibly. Everything we want to know about God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit, comes from His Word. But for many of us, that Word only comes to us via a sermon or Bible study.
When we allow the Spirit to convict us in this, it stirs the desire to “want to” develop a habit of reading His Word with greater frequency. Yet not just for the benefits that He has already proven come from doing so—such as peace, understanding, and spiritual growth—but because we do desire to better our relationship with Him.
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Don’t Make a Resolution: Be Resolute!
res·o·lute
Determined, unwavering, purposeful, resolved, adamant, single-minded, firm, unswerving, steadfast, staunch, stalwart, unfaltering, unhesitating, persistent, indefatigable, tenacious, strong-willed, unshakable.
“But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way.”
Daniel 1:8 True Resolve
Daniel had resolved (past tense) to keep the ways of God as he had been instructed. Daniel was part of the upper echelon of exiles taken from Jerusalem during its initial siege by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in 605 BC. Daniel was only a teenager at this time, but belonged to the families of royalty and priests that best represented the Jewish nation.
On the long road to Babylon, nearly 900 miles, there would have been sufficient conversations among them to establish how they must behave to ensure the success of their people among a foreign nation. They did not travel directly east to Babylon from Jerusalem, because the trip would have been impossible across the desert. Instead, they headed north along the fertile crescent and then south along the Euphrates River. (In Ezra 7:8-9, the return trip took 4 months.)
He was already part of an upbringing that built a character of perseverance. When he was younger, of course, he probably didn’t see the long-term importance of obedience. Did it really matter? But now, on this long trip, it would become clear that the life-and-death importance of obedience would keep themselves from disappearing into the Babylonian lifestyle.
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Merry Christmas!
So I really have to admit, I just don’t understand this whole “political correctness” thing in regards to the traditional Christmas greeting.
For 30 years I lived in a world of non-Christians who cheerfully celebrated this holiday with open arms. Nobody I knew really professed any great faith, but we all looked forward to this time of year, giving and accepting gifts, and enjoying the time off from school and from work.
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Going Your Own Way
We often wonder as kids that, if I’m obedient to my parents, if I actually do what they tell me to do – if I take their advice, am I really leading my own life? Am I making my own decisions? And it’s a hard question. And ultimately we rebel because we want to be able to show that we can do our own thing. We believe that doing our own thing means just doing everything the hard way.
Tragically though, when we get through it we find that our parents were right. We didn’t realize that our parents had already gone through those same things. They tried to tell us, but we didn’t want to hear it because we needed to carve our own way. And we rejected those things that we knew to be true. Because we just needed to test them ourselves, we needed to find out. And we went through those hardships; we made the wrong decisions; we did the things that seemed right or were at least in opposition to what we’d been told in order to find out if what we were taught was true.
We ultimately come to find that “yep”, those things were true, and I made the wrong choices.
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The Little Things
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.”
Luke 16:10 While Jesus spoke these words to admonish us to take care in handling what’s been entrusted to us, it’s interesting to see how this truth applies to us in the way in which we deal with our relationships; especially the one we have with Him.
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Overflowing
Psalm 16:5-6 Life sure can be overwhelming
To the point I feel so sick inside
The world appears
To feed on my fears
And it seems I have no place to hideLord, I don’t know where I’m going
Though I certainly know where I’ve been
Can you guide me along
This path that seems wrong?
Let me fall back in your arms once againThe days just seem harder and harder
As if nothing I do makes a change
My steps seem to falter
As I fall at the altar
Of the world I’ve tried to arrangeSome say that their cup is half empty
But mine seems to be way too full
I struggle to carry
This cross that’s so heavy
If I set it down, will you help me pull?You give me so much responsibility
I feel I’m spread way too thin
It seems like enough
Is just way too much
And I know not where to beginYou can fill me with strength and with courage
To confront the challenges that come
O give me the might
To be strong through the fight
And the peace to stand tall when it’s doneMy cup was once just half empty
And my portion a tad bit too small
I struggled to see
What was in front of me
As you prepared me through it allNow I wish this chalice was half empty
Instead of spilling all over my feet
But now I would think
Should I continue to drink…I’ll need to get a bigger cup
