What Is Your Will In Christ?

I've come across a number of people over time that have a distinct disdain for anything related to "religion". I don't condemn them - in fact depending on their interpretation and descriptions attached to the word, I might even agree with them... To some, the mention of Christianity in particular immediately conjures thoughts of a guilt ridden, ritualistic servitude and life of condemnation immersed in hypocrisy. Of course and still amazingly, the opposite is very true. But one has to wonder where these ideas and impressions come from. Were they given life by the example of someone claiming to live under the banner of Christ? Were they acrimonious conclusions drawn from viewing the scripted religion of past media presentations or over zealous and over acted presentation? Each case may present a different answer, but I cringe when I think about some of the potential possibilities.   I haven't found in scripture yet where Jesus made a habit of yelling and thre...

I'm a child of grace. I'm exceedingly grateful that the challenges, trials and self designated disasters that have been allowed in my life have not been greater... The total number of opportunities for what I would be tempted to consider greater harm in my life - the absolute terror of things that I don't even know that I've been protected from, are something I can only wonder about. I only know that the horror of what could have happened hasn't. I look across the days of my life and consider that I could have been encumbered with far greater physical suffering, heart rending horror and devastating loss - the potential totality of which I can't even know. Yet I here I am still, gratefully broken by the overwhelming mercy of God's grace. What I have suffered is nothing compared to what I might be worthy of. I stand before the Lord humbled under the magnitude of His power and greatness. I'm a tender blade of grass standing before the raw and devastati...

In the busy day to day struggles to get through what's become our self made grind, what we know has a tendency to become so common to us that we really don't give it much thought. For instance, we know that somewhere "God's watching". But we've known it for so long that we may have even become complacent with the idea. I tend to think that God alone is so big and so powerful that He can see each of us individually and continually at the same time. There may be others who watch and surmise the content of our thoughts, intentions and motives in a given moment, but God alone knows the truth - even better than we know ourselves. As He watches over mankind, God's not surprised. He knows and expects with perfect clarity, knowledge and wisdom. But what we might acknowledge even less than Father God's continually watchful eye are the countless multitude of His mighty angels waiting with Him and having witnessed it all from the beginning. What must they thi...

Our lives have a voice. At times, it's a voice that can speak far louder than the one that comes forcefully out of our mouths. As followers of Christ, if the opportunity to talk about our experience with our Lord presents itself and we find our mouths shut in silent shame because of the life we've been living in front of present company... we've uncovered a problem. When the life we're living - what we say and do,  doesn't measure up  to what we might truthfully say or claim boldly in front of others, we may have a credibility issue. And that issue in that moment isn't just with the person or persons we wish we could speak freely to... but with ourselves... and we know at the same time that the Lord sees it. It suddenly becomes a moment of self acknowledgment - an instant self examination that has the opportunity to result in further growth and maturity... or to become an opportunity for discouragement and spiritual immobility. The enemy of our souls would ...

Dare...     ... to take some time to evaluate your life and ambitions by a reality bigger than the one that encompasses your daily life - by God's reality and established truth. Dare to take the time to consider what's real as established by the one who created it all... and in that process, find what your heart's "really" searching for... What's "real" to many is commonly based on the perception of our flesh and is determined by virtue of its senses. But what lives within these decaying bodies is eternal and was created with the holy and purposeful intention to have fellowship with God on His terms. Anything beyond that purpose is meaningless. We were created with an inherent desire for relationship with our creator. Nothing else completely satisfies that ever present and nagging feeling that something is missing - nothing possibly could. We were purposely created by God with a void in our hearts that only He can fill so that we'd be drawn ...

Who am I but a single lowly seed bearing a certain promise, plucked from a fire ignited by my own iniquity... The promise I bear was endowed prior by the same hand that saved me and I am saved by no redeeming quality or accomplishment of my own, but purely by the grace of my redeemer. I am but a seed, small and indistinguishable among countless others. I bear the traits of the heritage of my forefathers, stained by the same imperfections as they. I could be counted worthless as I am no noticeable prize among the innumerable horde of others. Yet, lowly as I may appear even to myself, I have been counted worthy to be saved and singled out by the hand of my savior. My redeemer knowingly suffered the burning pain of my iniquity to save this single lowly seed, saving the endowed promise within. Now I am willingly and joyfully convicted by my own conscience to bear the fruit of the promise within me to the one who gracefully saved me. And I discover that through no credit to myself,...

I pray that the crushing of my heart - the grief and repulsion that becomes exposed when revisiting the true and extreme anguish suffered by my Savior in the course of my rescue becomes unwavering resolve. His suffering leading up to the cross, every humiliation, every blow, every lash and every insult and finally, every moment that He hung on that cross was knowingly and patiently suffered with intention - to save me. I am and will be unendingly grateful for the forgiveness that I've received because of what my Lord has done for me. His grace in my salvation will always be heralded and responded to with extreme gratitude in my heart as is right. But every opportunity to meditate even briefly on the subject exposes something more in my soul that is hard for me to contain. It provokes something more, something always present, residing just beneath the surface - raw and very powerful....  I've been married to the same awesome daughter of God for forty years. We married young...

*** I wrote this piece n early five years ago   after years of attention to the changing spirit and values of our nation and surrounding world. I was considerably concerned then. Now, I'm even far more deeply concerned by what I see and hear being raised up against what was once considered valuable and acceptable and were once based on Godly standards. And while these current societal standards seemingly change on the whim of both individual and collective lust and pride, our God's standards haven't changed in the slightest. There's a collision and a reckoning coming and that day's not far off - it gets closer every day. If you've read this piece before, I hope that you'll read it again and consider while you read what's changed in the last five years to further conflict with God's standards and His people. Where are the mighty men of valor and the awesomely powerful, Godly women   warriors  standing firm and raising their voices in objection to th...

I remember that back in Mrs. Sprague's fifth grade class (many years ago) we were each given an assignment to create a poster reflecting the virtues of eating a healthy diet. The particular subject at hand was related to the benefits of drinking milk and each of us were given the task of creating an artwork reflecting the positive slogan "Milk, It Does A Body Good". With that, I began to become conscious of the physical benefits of eating a healthy diet. It wasn't too many years later that I began to realize that another popular and similar health related slogan - "You are what you eat"... might have dual implications The ability of our diet to affect our physical bodies has of course been known for a very long time. In fact, the Bible even makes some reference to this truth. For example, take our brother Daniel and his three companions Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and their all vegetable diet. The results of their experiment, taken in spite of their c...

I've wrestled with the notion that I'm about to bring up - not because I have any conscious tendency to espouse it, but because the very attitude that it conveys presents the tempting opportunity to offend me. It tempts me because I have a jealousy for, and a reverence for my greatest love. At the same time, in bringing it up, I fear that there may be some who are offended by my pointing it out. Offense in all honesty is truly not my purpose. My true purpose is to call attention to something of supreme importance out of love and concern - to sharpen those to whom it may still apply - sharpening I once needed myself. I'll let a brother in Christ who's now waiting, resting peacefully in grace, set the table... "The prevailing idea seems to be, that I come to God and ask Him for something that I want, and that I expect Him to give me that which I have asked. But this is a most dishonouring and degrading conception. The popular belief reduces God to a servant, ou...

Psalm 122 (NLT) 1 "I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD .” 2 And now here we are, standing inside your gates, O Jerusalem. 3 Jerusalem is a well-built city; its seamless walls cannot be breached. 4 All the tribes of Israel—the LORD ’s people— make their pilgrimage here. They come to give thanks to the name of the LORD, as the law requires of Israel. 5 Here stand the thrones where judgment is given, the thrones of the dynasty of David. 6 Pray for peace in Jerusalem. May all who love this city prosper. 7 O Jerusalem, may there be peace within your walls and prosperity in your palaces. 8 For the sake of my family and friends, I will say, “May you have peace.” 9 For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek what is best for you, O Jerusalem."" Jerusalem, and indeed all of Israel is threatened even now. But Israel's greatest enemy isn't her mortal foes of flesh and blood who rail against her very right to exist. Her gr...

A lot is said among Christians about the love of God and it's true that we can rest assured that His love surpasses the attempts to describe it... Ephesians 3:18-19 (NLT) 18 "And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully." In fact, beginning to understand the truth about His love opens the door to deeper relationship with Him for many. But it also opens another mystery for understanding to grasp... 1 John 4:7-8 (NLT) 7 "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love ." I have no argument with the truth regarding the love of our God or the truly indisputable fact that He is indeed love. If it were not true we would now all be condemned to a horror ...