A Minute In It - I'll Keep This

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the texts below and then ponder the questions at the bottom of the post.

15 Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquet in the Kingdom of God!”

16 Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. 17 When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ 18 But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ 19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 Another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

21 “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’22 After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ 23 So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. 24 For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’” Luke 14:15-24 (NLT)

What in your life would you struggle to walk away from to follow Christ?
Now, take a few moments in prayer and ask God what he thinks.

Safe By The Fire

So they arrested him and led him to the high priest’s home. And Peter followed at a distance.  Luke 22:54 (NLT)

Peter had spent a lot of time with Jesus. Jesus spent more time with Peter, James and John than the rest of the twelve. Peter knew him and he knew him well. He’d seen him heal people. He’d seen him raise someone from the dead. He’d heard him talk about God and his mission and he knew the depth of the love that Jesus had for him.

Yet, when Jesus was arrested, Peter was afraid. The Bible says he followed at a distance. He joined a crowd by the fire and tried to blend in. He didn’t want to stand out. He didn’t want to be noticed. What he wanted was to be near enough to know what was going on but not engaged enough to be at risk.

When the people around the fire directly asked him questions about who he knew, he denied it. After all, admitting that he was a Christ follower could have consequences. There would be a ripple effect, fallout and possibly a sacrifice he was not willing to make.

Let me ask you. How often do we act like Peter? In our world of conforming and fitting in, do we shy away from being different? Do we try to walk the middle line and not stand out? Do we hide our convictions so as to not draw attention to ourselves?

God wants us to be all in. He wants us to take a stand and do what is right. He wants us to be so in love with him that we are willing to take a risk and say “Yes!” to his calling.

What about you? Are there areas in your life that you need to define more clearly? Are there areas where God is calling you to take a risk? Will you walk away from the crowd by the fire and be different?

I Wanna Be Like You!

So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT)

I spent the week last week with a couple of toddlers.  Once each day we sat and watched movies. They were usually Disney or Pixar movies. As I watched with them, I remembered the line in the Jungle Book song "I Wanna Be Like You" that says:

Ooh-bi-doo, I wan'na be like you
I want to walk like you, talk like you, too  

And I thought about God.  Shouldn't this be our goal?  To walk like Jesus and talk like Jesus?  How do we do that?  How do we start to walk like him and talk like him?

The thing is, we have to spend time with him to facilitate that change. We become what we behold. Truly, each day the goal is to represent Christ in a way that inspires people to know him. We can't do that if we don't reflect his image well.

So, as you walk through your jungle today sing the song:

Ooh-bi-doo, I wan'na be like you
I want to walk like you, talk like you, too

And remind yourself what it's really all about.

What's Your Fig Leaf?

At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. Genesis 3:7 (NLT)

Adam and Eve ate of the fruit and just as God said their eyes were open to evil. And with that, they were ashamed. Isn't that the case with us as well? We do something we should not do because we thought it would make us happy but instead, it made us feel bad about ourselves. 

Adam and Eve sowed fig leaves together to cover themselves - to hide what they had done. Wonder what they would have done if they lived today? We hide from ourselves and from God in a variety of ways. We work too much. We eat too much. We buy lots of things that we think will take away the pain of what sits inside. We stay so busy we have no time to think or to rest. We indulge in things that we shouldn't seeking to cover what is eating at us. And then, just so everyone knows that all is well, we post pictures of ourselves on social media looking "Fine."

What is your fig leaf? What are you using to cover what you are running from? Let go of the fig leaf. Talk to God about it and come out from hiding. He's near and just like he did with Adam and Eve, he wants to talk to you.

No Rules, Just Relationship

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Ephesians 3:19 (NLT)

Last week I had a conversation with someone about submitting to God. She asked me "How do you do that? What's the process?" As I was praying for her and thinking about this conversation, it occurred to me that this was the wrong question. And, we often ask the wrong question when it comes to God. We want a step by step process for how to do "religion."

This week, the posts have been about our hearts being right during offerings, praising God, repenting and representing God to others. All of these things are important for Christians and for our spiritual walk but let's be clear, if you are making yourself do these things so you can check the box, your offering is stinky (see the post from July 2.)

Often we can make ourselves do the right thing. (I personally have never been good that this.) But doing the right thing isn't at the core of what life with Christ is about. The Bible is really clear that the goal is to know him. To fall in love with him and be in a relationship with him. 

How do you do that? Here is the only thing that you can do that will truly change your life; spend time with him. It doesn't matter if it's five minutes for five hours. Spend time with him.

• Read the Bible or if you are just getting started and that's harder for you, read a devotional.
• Pray - no timer - just talk and listen. When you are done, stop. When you want to talk again, start.
• Listen to Christian music - some of the best encouragement is here.
• Praise! When you are happy, praise him! Shout it out, dance around and yell WOOHOOO!
• Find a friend or two that know Jesus. Share with them.

I left the church for a while after high school.  After I had my kids, I decided to go to church (that felt a little awkward.) I was sitting in the pews, the preacher was preaching and I very clearly heard "Come back." For some strange reason, I knew who it was. And, I said "No. There are too many rules and too much judging." Do you know what he said? "Come and get to know me. No rules. Just me." I thought "Well, what do I have to lose? I'm pretty sure this isn't going to work." So I said "OK." I don't remember everything but I remember starting with a five-minute devotional every morning. When I finished that, I bought another. I started praying more.....not every day at first and slowly, through life's circumstances, God's word (in the devotional) and people, I began to experience Him. That was so long ago but, God is still in it with me to this day.

Get to know who Jesus is - no rules, no check boxes, just honest curiosity. When you do this, your life will take on new meaning and you will be changed. And oh by the way, it does become an exciting adventure.  God is anything but boring. 

Walking The Walk

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

We were in the middle of a family crisis.  We'd had two unrelated family deaths in one week. As I stood in the kitchen processing I saw a mug that had the word "Journey" on it with today's text written underneath. I realized this is oh so true.

Often we think that if we are Christians life will be OK.  But God isn't interested in making us OK. He's interested in saving us. He's interested in making us more like Jesus. Often to do that, he uses the hardships of life to grow our relationship with him.

We think our walk with God is going to be like that Facebook post that says "I wish someone would say It's going to be OK. Here's some chocolate and six million dollars." But God's goal isn't to get us to lounge around and eat bonbons.  His goal is to get us anchored to Him. His goal is to grow us in such a way that no matter what happens, he is our path. He wants us to see him as the only path to take.

So, strap on your hiking shoes. Grab your walking stick and turn your face into the wind. Because God doesn't usually use feather pillows and bonbons to get our attention.

Everyone Has A Story

As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.” So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them. Mark 5:18-20 (NLT)

Jesus left. He is never going to push himself on us. He shows up and then waits for us to ask him to stay or tell him to leave. It's our choice. The folks of the town asked him to leave so he did.

But the man he healed wanted to go with him. He knew what it felt like to have God work in his life and he wanted more. But, as with all of us, Jesus had work for him to do. He had changed his life and people needed to know how. Jesus didn't ask him to get a degree and go into professional ministry. He didn't ask him to start a big non-profit to impact thousands. He asked him to go back to his family and friends, his neighborhood and tell everyone he knew what God had done for him.

The man did what Jesus asked.  And the Bible says they were amazed. Even though initially they didn't want to have anything to do with Jesus, by this man's personal testimony, their curiosity was peaked and they were willing to listen. By witnessing his life change, they were willing to hear more. Because of his story, they were amazed.

What about you? Do you share your story with others? God gives us each a story. He wants us to tell it because in every single story he is in the middle of it.  That's what people need to see.

In The Meantime

I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness,
    and you will harvest a crop of love.
Plow up the hard ground of your hearts,
    for now is the time to seek the Lord,
that he may come
    and shower righteousness upon you.’
Hosea 10:12 (NLT)

Can I just put a text on here because I love it? I came across this text this weekend and it spoke to my heart. You know, we spend a lot of time trying to figure things out. There are the little things like trying to figure out what to wear or my least favorite, trying to figure out what to have for dinner that's really fast, healthy and that hopefully I don't have to cook. Sigh.

But then we try to figure out the big stuff too. Should I change jobs? Should we move? What am I supposed to be doing with my life? Which of course leads to "God, what are you doing? What do you want?" At least it leads there for me.

Maybe, just maybe while we are pondering all this stuff there are also things God is telling us to do in the meantime. The Good Lord knows that he's told me to wait (a  (did I mention that I don't wait well - probably have). In the Bible sometimes the word wait is translated as 'to keep doing what you were last told to do until you are told something else'. That is not a technically correct definition by the way. So, I spend a lot of time, doing what I was last told to do and waiting.

One of the things God has told us all to do is to look for people that cross our paths that we are supposed to talk to, help and love on and if God says, we can tell them how much Jesus loves them. But only if. That's a whole 'nother post.

Isn't that kind of what this text is saying? We spend a lot of time working, living life and waiting but what are we supposed to be doing in the midst of all that? I think the text says it perfectly.

Plant the good seeds of righteousness (justice, honesty, something morally right).
And you will harvest a crop of love (acts of kindness, favor)
Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, (make it ready so God can expose the deep things)
for now is the time to seek (to earnestly pursue) the Lord,
that he may come and shower righteousness (what is good and just, what ought to be) upon you.’

Basically, while you live life, do good things for others, receive the good gifts intended for you, spend time pursuing God digging up the things that hinder your journey and accept what he showers upon you.

I still don’t like to wait but if I wait like God is telling me to, it’s not like waiting at all. It’s more like taking a journey – I just don’t know the destination. Again, a whole 'nother post.