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Trust

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; don’t rely on your own intelligence. Know him in all your paths, and he will keep your ways straight.” (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:5-6‬ ‭CEB‬‬) http://bible.com/37/pro.3.5-6.ceb

There has been one constant since God created the heavens and the earth, we have a lot going on. With all that is going on that usually brings two things: anxiety which brings stress. We are always so worried about what has happened, what is happening, and what will happen. We have an aversion to seeing what is now, because we are controlled by what has been done to us, what we have done and what will be done.

We don’t trust anything, let alone God.

When we are controlled by anxiety, stress, and distrust that leads to a life of fear, and we absolutely controlled by fear.

Fear is not the life that God wants us to live. It is not the desire that He has for us, there is so much more that He wants for us.

Some of you like me have heard that about God all our lives and when we hear it still we cannot comprehend a day without fear. Largely because we think that we are in control of our lives and everything we have is because of ourselves and our will to get it. You can’t live the life that God desires for us.

Think about this for a moment. God himself had to die to give us what we truly need. Even God in all His perfect glory and majesty didn’t just give us that life, but He sacrificed living in Heaven and came to earth and died a brutal death on the cross. Even God had to sacrifice so He could give.

In that He is teaching many things, but most of all that the life that God desires for us is not freely lived, freely given yes, but we must die to ourselves to live into this desire that God died for us to have.

I have a bracelet that I wear everyday, in fact I never take it off. That and my wedding ring are the two things that I never take off. Here is a picture of both of them:

Band and Ring

I always wear these two things because it is a reminder of what truly defines my life. First and foremost I am no longer my own, but I am God’s and everything that I want for my life doesn’t matter, but what God wants for my life supercedes my desire. Secondly, my commitment to my wife to be her partner in everything, in marriage, in ministry, and in life. What’s most important between these two things is that God’s will is primary in both commitments. For the best life possible to truly happen in my life and in my marriage to Amy Christ HAS to be the CENTER. The three rings symbolize that. That at the center of everything: life, marriage, and all that is Christ is and has to be the center.

No matter where you are, what you are going through I submit to you to trust in the Lord with all your heart. This is your choice and that is the point. Trusting is a choice. It’s all a choice, but its the best choice you will ever make.

Trust.

Live in that Trust.

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Integrity of Christ

Lately I have been wondering a lot of things, but mostly about an issue with ourselves and our culture. It seems that we have come to a place in our world and maybe we have always been there, but recently it has been more prevalent in my mind. It’s not just that its political season, but there is an overwhelming movement in ourselves and by ourselves I am being very broad; culture itself is moving towards a place where commitment means very little. In our culture we say things like:

If my marriage fails then that’s ok because I can always get a divorce.

or

I didn’t necessarily lie, I just didn’t tell the whole truth

We are moving further and further away from the Integrity of Christ and it’s dangerous. So dangerous that in fact we will not see the damage coming until it’s too late. We will repent when we are caught, but only because we are caught not because it was wrong. Today is Palm Sunday, a day of short celebration for Jesus coming to Jerusalem and yet the moment that always hits me in the gut is not the Palm Sunday Road, but on what happens that night. This is how it is told by the Gospel of John.

Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from the table,[a] took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered, “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet,[b] but is entirely clean. And you[c] are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

12 After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, servants[d] are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. 18 I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But it is to fulfill the scripture, ‘The one who ate my bread[e] has lifted his heel against me.’ 19 I tell you this now, before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am he.[f] 20 Very truly, I tell you, whoever receives one whom I send receives me; and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.” (John 13:1-20, NRSV) 

What a powerful moment for the Disciples to experience with their Master and Friend. What an incredible for us to ponder for the rest of our lives in the context of following Jesus and living with each other. Jesus in this moment teaches us the utmost important priority that He has and that we are called to have.

  1. Jesus shows what really matters. The relationship that we have with God and our neighbor. Relationship is the utmost important when it comes to following Jesus
  2. It’s not about us, and it never will be. It’s about uniting with Christ in transforming the world in His sight not our own. His will is always better than ours. Our will and our limited thinking is the easier way to go, but it far lesser than His.
  3. Finally, this may be a crucial one. Jesus never did anything for the sake of just doing it, there was always a purpose and that purpose was never about Him, but about furthering God’s Kingdom. Everything He did furthered the Kingdom of God.

Let’s let that sink in.

Relationships matter. Your neighbor matters. What you do matters.

Don’t live your life by making decisions that don’t matter. Every bit of success that you achieve in this world is meaningless if you are furthering the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom is the only thing we are asked to be a part, and please get that, Jesus invites us. He doesn’t force us like any other deity, he invites us, he wants us.

Money will fade.

Possessions will break.

The Kingdom is forever.

Let’s invest in what matters.

In closing for today I would like you to watch this video; I apologize for the watermark on the video:

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For Good

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28, NRSV)

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What are We Becoming?

22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. 23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves[a] in a mirror; 24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. 25 But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing.

I love this passage and advice from James, the brother of Jesus. Today I present to you this passage, but also this quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

“That which dominates our imaginations and our thoughts will determine our lives, and our character.  Therefore, it behooves us to be careful what we worship, for what we are worshiping we are becoming.”

So what are you becoming? What are we really doing in our lives?

What are we really becoming?

 

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Don’t Pull A Homer

 

When I was younger and even now I was a big fan of a certain TV show, The Simpsons. The Simpsons have been on television since December of 1989, for the majority of my life. For those of you who do not know the Simpson are an interesting family. Homer and Marge Simpson are the parents and they have three children, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. As I have grown in age my love for the show hasn’t changed but I have. Homer is one of comedic aspects of the show, but as I have grown older this character has become somewhat of a cultural norm for us.

Homer is what the world expects of us. He is who we are comfortable being, or maybe not. I am not comfortable with my life being like Homers. So, today we are going to analyze who Homer is, where he is going, and why he is going there and through this we will see hopefully that there is a better way.

A week in the life of Homer J. Simpson is a bleak one. He drinks, a lot, goes to work which is pretty much a joke to him which is quite telling, because Homer works at a Nuclear Power Plant, where if he pushes the wrong button the whole community could have a nuclear explosion. When he is not at work he is at the Bar, Moe’s Tavern where he is drinking with his buddies, usually coming up with a terrible scheme to get more money or fame, which always ends badly.

To answer the question Homer isn’t really going anywhere and being anyone.

Hey, from our end its funny. Sort of, until this becomes our life.

Parents, how many of y’all want your kids to grow up to be a Homer? Not many of you. The most telling of this entire thing is Homer goes to church, but you wouldn’t be able to tell, because he is like many of the current state of the church. Not transformed. Just present in a pew, physically present anyway.

His life is not changed however by his presence at church because He is not really there. His being at church is not a decision on his part but one where Marge, his wife has said we are going to church. Going to church doesn’t make you a disciple just like a car just being a garage makes it a GTO. Our lives are not changed by a presence of osmosis, but by a decision, a commitment, a covenant with God.

God wants so much for us, so much more abundance and we see Christmas’ go by every year and we set New Years resolution and fail them time and time again. Jesus wasn’t bored to tears in heaven; His coming may the most intentional creation that God has done in the history of everything. He meticulously designed this great moment and has been leading to this moment and every part of this moment screams to all of creation who God really is or more importantly who He is not!

He chooses Mary and Joseph, the Shepherds, Wise people from across the world and a stable to reveal Himself to the world. All will be a part of this story and in this very action God is saying all are welcome in my kingdom and in this abundant life.

Mary today is possibly the best image for what we do now. “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.”

No negotiations, no complaints, just faith and surrender. I am sure she thought of all the doubts, the concerns, and all that would happen.

Mary continues on in verse 46 by praising God:

“Mary said, “With all my heart I glorify the Lord! In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior. He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant. Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored because the mighty one has done great things for me. Holy is his name. He shows mercy to everyone, from one generation to the next, who honors him as God. He has shown strength with his arm. He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations. He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty-handed. He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, remembering his mercy, just as he promised to our ancestors, to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever.””

Listen to something similar from John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Movement:

I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will, place me with whom you will.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be put to work for you or set aside for you,
Praised for you or criticized for you.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and fully surrender all things to your glory and service.
And now, O wonderful and holy God,
Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, you are mine, and I am yours.
So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
Let it also be made in heaven.  Amen.

Who are you and I? We are Gods children, we are no longer slaves to fear and doubt but at our core we belong to God and He to us.

Where are we going? Where He leads us and we are going there because He is good and worthy of our trust and faith.

Don’t let this season of renewal in Christ go by without saying Yes to the life that God deeply wants for you, so much that He gave His own Son. Let us transformed from the inside out so that through us we can partner with God in transforming the world.

Don’t just exist in the life that God has for you, LIVE that LIFE with ABUNDANCE.

Amen.