Judging

Since you judge others for doing these things, why do you think you can avoid God’s judgment when you do the same things? Romans 2:3 (NLT)

The other night we went out to dinner with some family. One of my sons was there. We’ll call him Joe. You see, there is a group of kids (they aren’t kids any more) that grew up with my children. They call me Mama and I call them my kids. We began talking about this little coffee shop that we like. I like it because they have options that fit in my healthy lifestyle and they play Christian music.

Joe was saying that he finally won the owner over. I asked what he meant and he said he didn’t think she liked him too much because of all of his tattoos. The mama bear in me kicked in. I said “If it’s a Christian coffee shop, she shouldn’t be judging you based on how you look.” Joe smiled and my son said “Aren’t you judging her?”

Duh! Why yes I was! How easy is it for us to slip into the same behaviors we are judging others for? Maybe that’s why Jesus said not to do it. Without even thinking, trying to defend one of my own, I was doing the same thing I was criticizing this woman for. I didn’t know her. I don’t know if the problem was his tattoos. Maybe she’s just shy. Maybe she had a problem with strangers in the past. Who knows?

Only God. And truly, this is a perfect example of why we should extend grace to all people.

In John 12:47 Jesus said “I have come to save the world and not to judge it.” And there is the best reason not to judge of them all. If we are trying to be like Jesus, we need to remember his mission. Love everyone and through that love, they will know him and be saved.

Stop Digging

You brought me up from the grave, O Lord. You kept me from falling into the pit of death. Psalm 30:3 (NLT)

So what I’m going to talk about today is a little odd. I know that in advance but this imagery got stuck in my mind and I think it’s powerful. Imagine yourself standing in a field digging your grave. You have a shovel. And little by little you are digging a hole for well, yourself.

This is what our life of sin is like, right? The Bible says the wages of sin is death. So, with every sinful thought, selfish action or overtly sinful deed, we bend down and dig a little deeper. I wish I could say I don’t dig my own hole. Far from it. Have you ever been walking down the road and you see something and a really unkind thought pops into your head? I have.

Have you ever started to tell a story and while your intention was good when you started you end up making yourself look good while making someone else look not so good? I have.

Have you ever felt jealous because something good happened to someone else and not you? I have.

So, if I were going to measure the depth of my grave by my actions and thoughts, well, I’d have finished it long ago. But, here is the really cool thing.

Jesus, when he died on the cross and said “It is finished!” he covered up the hole I dig for myself. He called my name and your name and he said “Get out of there! You don’t belong in that grave! You are free.” In his death on the cross, he filled in my grave. He filled in your grave. He filled it in, packed it down, poured concrete in and threw away the shovel.

It was truly finished when he loved us so much that he gave up everything for us.

On the days when you feel like you are digging a hole; on the days when you think you are not good enough and no matter what you can’t get it right, remember. Remember that Jesus died for you. Throw away your shovel and stop digging. Your grave has been filled with love (and concrete.)

Be An Overcomer!

They triumphed over him
    by the blood of the Lamb
    and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
    as to shrink from death. Revelation 12:11 (NIV)

All throughout Revelation we are told that we should overcome. And of course, as Christians we know Jesus overcame. If you read the end of the book, it is clear that in the end, we do overcome. We triumph over Satan (the accuser). We defeat the Devil (the slanderer.) How do we do that?

First, it is really clear that it is by the blood of the Lamb. Jesus’ death on the cross once and for all defeated Satan. He is done, kaput, finished. But what else helped defeat him? Our testimony.

As I pondered this I wondered “What testimony?” I kept going over it time and again. I think I wanted a clear cut definition. A concrete thing I could point to and say “There, that’s the answer.”

The definition in the dictionary of testimony is “evidence or proof provided by the existence or appearance of something.” The funny thing about testimony is the evidence we provide is not a canned response. Evidence is specific to each case where it is presented.

That’s the amazing thing about this concept. While we all share in the blood of Jesus, our evidence (our testimonies) that he saves is completely different for each one of us. Imagine it! My testimony is not the same as yours and yours is not the same as anyone else! And therein lies the power.

This is what demolishes Satan. Each and every one of us has a testimony. Each and every testimony is a personal experience on how Jesus saved us. There will be so many attestations of his love. So many proclamations that Jesus Saves.

Let me ask you. What is your testimony? How do you know that Jesus is real and alive in your life? Your testimony is important. It will help you overcome.

Get Your Bold Back

Peter, suddenly bold, said, “Master, if it’s really you, call me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come ahead.” Jumping out of the boat, Peter walked on the water to Jesus. But when he looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, “Master, save me!”  Jesus didn’t hesitate. He reached down and grabbed his hand. Then he said, “Faint-heart, what got into you?” Matthew 14:28-31 (MSG)

The disciples were just doing what they were told. Jesus told them “Get in the boat and go to the other side of the lake.” Probably sharing stories, managing the business of rowing the boat and maybe even relaxing a bit. Unexpectedly a storm showed up. The winds began, the waves swelled and the boat started tossing and turning in the black sea. I can imagine this would be frightening if not terrifying.

As Jesus came near them, Peter was emboldened and asked to get out of the boat. I do this. Feeling great after some time with God, trusting his plan, I say something like “Lord, I want to serve you! I want to do what you want! Let me do that please.”

And God says “OK. Step out and do this.”

I look around like Peter and focus on the size of the waves, the force of the winds and what I can’t see under the dark sea. I start to sink. My reaction is to stay in the boat. It’s super easy to get out of the boat when the sea is as smooth as glass. That’s not scary. It’s predictable. But when getting out of the boat involves a stormy mess, well….that’s different.

What we want to say is “Lord, I want to follow you anywhere as long as it’s a smooth ride and there are no problems.” But that is not how it usually works. Trust is most often built when you are in the thick of it.

When Peter realized he was in over his head, he did cry out to Jesus. And immediately Jesus reached for his hand. I love the word used in the MSG when Jesus addressed Peter. Faint-heart which means lacking courage.

I am so Peter. I am bold one minute and faint-hearted the next. But Peter did a couple of things I could learn from. First, he believed that Jesus could make him walk on water. Next, he did step out of the boat. Because he did, he had an experience with Jesus that no one else had. And finally, when he started focusing on his own abilities instead of what Jesus was doing, he refocused himself and cried out for help.

Maybe the lesson is this. Throughout life, you are going lack courage and you are going to want to stay in the safety of the boat. As long as you know where to go to get your bold back, you will do just fine.

Trusting I AM

As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.”  So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Mark 4:35-40 (NLT)

Jesus, do you say that to me? “Why are you so afraid? Don’t you have faith in me? Don’t you believe what I tell you?” I am sure you do. But Lord, like the disciples I am watching the waves crash on my boat. I’m seeing it fill with water and I feel the pull as it seems to sink just a little lower into the depths of the black. I feel the sting of the cold water as it washes over my body. And Lord, I can’t swim when the waves are so rough.

“Do you trust that I will not let you sink?”

Yes, sort of, but how do I reconcile that you do let some people sink that deep. Some people lose everything - including their lives. That makes me afraid.

“They didn’t sink. I was holding them. What they learned to trust was that my love is not dependent on your circumstances. Just because the waves are fierce doesn’t mean I am not walking in the storm with you. Is it possible that you trust what you see more than you trust who I AM?”

A Minute In It - Back And To The Future

A minute in Gods' word will change your life.  These verses are a reminder that life will not always be as we see it now. Because Jesus came and overcame, we will one day live in peace; delivered from the struggles of this world.

1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse’s stump,
    from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
    the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
    the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
    will be all his joy and delight.
He won’t judge by appearances,
    won’t decide on the basis of hearsay.
He’ll judge the needy by what is right,
    render decisions on earth’s poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
    A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he’ll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
    and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.

6-9 The wolf will romp with the lamb,
    the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
    and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
    their calves and cubs grow up together,
    and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
    the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
    on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
    a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.
Isaiah 11:1-9 (MSG)