mondayschoolblog

(click on the pick to listen to it) All of us have ideas of who Jesus is …. Some of them are right and some of them are wrong.
A little 8-year-old named Danny Dutton of Chula Vista wrote this when asked on a homework assignment who Jesus was:
Jesus is God’s Son. He used to do all the hard work like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn’t want to learn about God. They finally got tired of Him preaching to them and they crucified Him. But He was good and kind like His Father and He told His Father that they didn’t know what they were doing and to forgive them and God said OK. His Dad (God) appreciated everything that He had dome and all His hard work on earth so He told Him He didn’t have to go out on the road anymore, He could stay in heaven. So He did. And now He helps His Dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones He can take care of Himself without having to bother God. Like a secretary only more important. You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to hear you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time.

Several years ago, I met with a young man who just happened to stop by the church and wanted to talk. I told him that Jesus loved him so much that He went to the cross and died for him. I remember his response, he said, “I have never heard of that Jesus before.” And this past Summer at our local water park where we hold our annual outreach event, the people who worked behind the desk didn’t know that Jesus died on a cross.

Not everyone knows who Jesus is.

Before Jesus comes on to the scene in the New Testament, people were stressed out and worn out trying to please God. They were so busy trying to do good in order to be good they couldn’t see how good life was. They were trying to follow all the ridiculous laws (which was humanly impossible) set up by the religious leaders to let people know how well they were doing at pleasing God. As you could imagine they couldn’t enjoy God because they never quite measured up.  They always needed a little more holiness and  a few more good deeds before God could accept them. They were basically wearing themselves out. Before Jesus came onto the scene they saw God as a legislator, a judge, a law-enforcer, a cosmic policeman who was obsessed with keeping people in line.

It is in this context that Jesus says this:

Matthew 11:28-30 – “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

To put it in a nutshell – he was telling them I have come to make life easier. When Jesus said, I am going to make your life easier – people probably gasped! The people were sick and tired of failing to please God. They could never measure up. Serving God, to them, was hard work.

If following Jesus is hard work for you or you feel like you are always failing God – then you are probably not following Jesus.
If you are straining to live a holy life and you keep failing then you are probably not following Jesus.
If you are constantly worried about your own sin or about everybody else’s sin – then you are probably not following Jesus.
If you are trying hard not to sin – then you are probably not following Jesus.
If you are trying hard to be good – then you are probably not following Jesus.

These are the things that wear us out. These are things that convince us we are not good enough for God. These are the things keep us worried. These are the things that burden us down. These are the things that keep us emotionally and mentally exhausted. These are the things that keep us from following Jesus. If following Jesus isn’t making your life easier – well – you are probably not following Jesus. 

Being in a relationship with Christ is not an added burden. The reason why our relationship with Jesus becomes such a burden is because we make the relationship with Jesus about us. When it’s about us we try harder to please God. When it’s about us we work harder for God. When it’s about us we get busier for God.

God has never asked us to try harder, work harder, or get busier. He simply says, come to me and find rest. I will make your life easier.  A lot of people think that when Jesus came to make life easier, He will give them the house they need. He will give them the amount of money they need. He will provide the right job. He will provide all the resources we need to make life easier. That’s not what Jesus meant by making your life easier.

What’s going to make your life easier is realizing is that Jesus is the point! He is all you need. We will never be at rest as long as we are carrying the burden of trying to please God by our good deeds. It is impossible and it is unnecessary. Jesus was the only who could, and he has already done it, so we need to learn to rest in his completed work. When you enter into a relationship with Jesus you learn to rest.  Meaning, you know there is no way you can be holy without being in relationship with Jesus. You know there is no way you can meet the requirements of perfection set up by the religious leaders.  Jesus has already met all the requirements – you don’t have to. This is why we feel like a failure in our walk with Jesus most of the time. We just can’t measure up. We can’t perform well enough. We can’t do enough.

The bottom line is we are all hypocrites. We all fail in our walk with Jesus. All Christians everywhere are hypocrites. We say we need to pray more – but we don’t. We say we need to spend more time in the Word – but we don’t. We say we need to serve more – but we don’t. We say we will tithe to the church some time – but we don’t. Let’s be honest, if our talk doesn’t match our walk or our walk doesn’t match our talk then you are a hypocrite. Sorry to be a kill joy – but we all knows it true. Every church should be renamed and include the word hypocrites in the title.

I’ll never forget the pastor I worked with for 12 years, who I had a great admiration for, shared a story about when he went into Wal-mart looking for a certain kind screw. Well, he found the screw he needed in a package that had the whole parts assembly. He didn’t need the whole part – he just needed the screw.  He opened up the package neatly. Took the screw. And put the package back on the hanger. And walked out of the store. I could remember thinking, “No way!”, “He couldn’t have done that” – he’s the most holy man I know!

All of us have been hypocrites at some point on our journey. One important note here: When you turn 80 you stop being a hypocrite because I have been told that at the age of 80 you know everything.

I know plenty of Christians who beat themselves up daily because they can’t measure up, or can’t do enough, or don’t pray enough, or don’t read their Bible enough. This  is just as sinful as those who choose not to follow Jesus. It is called a false humility. It is what I call constipated Christianity. These people are always grumpy. They never experience joy. They are so worried about their own sin or about everybody else’s sin – that they can’t enjoy life. They are always under conviction and hardly ever experience the joy of the Lord. Who wants to be around spiritually constipated, grumpy, joyless, Christians? These kinds of people would do God a favor by not advertising they are a Christian. They need to take the bumper stickers off their car that say how much they love Jesus.

But this doesn’t mean we are not worthy of being Christ –followers. It simply means we need to be honest about who are and realize that Jesus went to the cross and died for that and we no longer have to be a slave to it.

Romans 6:6 tells us,

“We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.”

God knew the people Israel could never keep the whole law. That’s why he instituted an elaborate system of sacrifices from the very beginning. The law was not meant to perfect people, just to lead them toward God.

He is wanting us to come to the end of ourselves so we can discover the grace that He freely offers through Jesus. God knew that we would never measure up. God knew we would try to please him. God knew we would try to work hard. Forgiveness, compassion, and mercy lead us back to Him. When we put our faith in Him, we are made righteous. You will be no more righteous in 20 years than the first day you put your faith in him. We spend a lot of time and energy trying to make ourselves look righteous and be righteous. We spend a lot of time trying to be more righteous than others. We look at other Christians who have failed and say, “I’m more righteous than they are.” We look at other Christians who are doing things we disagree with and say “I’m glad I’m not like that sinner.” The end result of this kind of righteousness  is that we become self-righteous or spiritually constipated. 

Your faith journey is about growing from the inside out. In others words, as you follow Jesus you become selfless. John 3:30 reminds us that “he must become greater and we must become less”. This is the journey of every believer. God is simply wanting us to become obsessed with Jesus. Not be obsessed with perfecting ourselves, or trying to measure up, or do more because we think that as soon as we do God will love us more.

You will never be more righteous than you are today – just let him become greater.

There is a myth that smart Christians believe.
The myth is when any person dies they go to a better place.
You heard all kinds of responses from this video  (click on the pic to watch the first two 1/2 minutes of the video).

• One person said, “you go to a happy place.”
• Another said, “You just decay and rot like other animals
• The atheist said, “you go nowhere because I don’t believe heaven or hell exist.
• You heard a couple of people say that they know they will spend eternity in hell.
• You heard a couple of guys share that they know they will spend eternity in heaven because they accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

The truth is and the scriptures are quite clear;  the wicked don’t go to a better place. There is a real hell. It’s not the devils playground. It is not a perpetual party. It’s Satan’s worse nightmare.

It’s just not the wicked that will spend eternity in hell …. The sweet lady neighbor lady next door who would never hurt a fly but would also never bow the knee to Jesus. Or the morally upright cousin who just happened to also be a card-carrying member of cult claiming that Jesus and Satan were brothers and God was once a man. Or the sincere Buddhist coworker who graciously and heroically battled cancer without trace of bitterness thanks to his deep trust in the tenets of his faith.

Matthew 7:13-14 says,

You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it. (Jesus Speaking)

The scary part about this verse is the last 6 words – “only a few ever find it”.

Matthew 21 tells us who the few are,

I tell you the truth, corrupt tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the Kingdom of God before you do. 32 For John the Baptist came and showed you the right way to live, but you didn’t believe him, while tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even when you saw this happening, you refused to believe him and repent of your sins.

The broken are the few who find it! The truly repentant are the few who find it! Those who believe and are willing to follow are the few who find it. Those who refuse to repent, those who refuse to change, those who refuse to bow down and call Him Lord and those who are like the older brother in story of the prodigal son are not part of the few who find the gateway to life.

If the words of Jesus and the teachings of the NT mean what they say then all these wonderful people and friends aren’t going to a better place either. All the people with good hearts, all the people who are sincere in what they do, or those people who give a nod towards God but never give their life to him. It’s wishful thinking to think they are going to spend eternity in a better place.

I went to a viewing a number of years ago that was one of the most bizarre viewings I had ever been to. It was two viewings at once. These young girls had been murdered by the same guy who was from the church I was an associate pastor at. The murder themselves were of a bizarre and evil nature. What was bizarre at the viewing was that one of the girls had about 24 bottles of Miller lite laying in the casket with her and no family members were present. As I stood there and looked at her I remember praying, “God, this girl must have had a rough life. This is so unfair to happen to her at such a young age. I hope she found you in her moment of desperation.”

I really wanted to wish this young girl into a better place (perhaps she was in a better place. I don’t want to assume she didn’t know Christ)  because she didn’t deserve to die at such a young age but no amount of words or wishful thinking was going to take her to a better place. Only finding Jesus in her moment of desperation was going to take her to a better place. I looked at her hoping she had.

I am pretty sure my life was much different from hers. I had incredibly godly parents. I had incredible Christian brothers and sister who cared about me and held me accountable. I had an incredible grandma who I watched and listened to her reading her bible and cared whether or not I was a Christian. I had a wonderful church and great mentors in my life. I had great youth leaders and other church leaders in my life.

But I was no different from her in the sense that in order for me to spend eternity in heaven – I needed to enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ. The scriptures are pretty clear that a relationship with Jesus is the only way you get to spend eternity in a better place.

Just because I was raised in Christian home didn’t mean I was going to a better place
Just because I went to church all the time didn’t mean I was going to a better place
Just because I listened to Christian music didn’t mean I was going to a better place.
Just because I went to church camp didn’t mean I was going to a better place.
Just because I was basically a good kid didn’t mean I was going to a better place.
Just because I had great people in my life didn’t mean I was going to a better place.

The only way anybody gets to go a better place when they die is if they have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

You can make up whatever personal theology you want. You can have all the wishful thinking you want about who gets to heaven and who doesn’t  but the scriptures make it clear that Jesus must be the Lord of your life. There really is no way around this truth.

The Pharisees were very religious people but Jesus was not the Lord of their life. Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born again. Meaning there is something that needs to happen in you. It’s not simply a prayer of salvation.  It’s a commitment to being his disciple.

This myth that good people get to go to a better place is steeped in a much deeper myth that says all roads eventually lead to the same place despite what Jesus may have said. This myth is more deeply ingrained in us than we realize. This myth is so ingrained that it really doesn’t make a difference what is proclaimed from the pulpit. We believe what we want to believe. We hear what we want to hear. We live our life the way we want to live our life.

When I get to have this kind of conversation I try to convince them in a loving way that they are wrong.  What’s so scary about THIS myth is that many Bible believing Christians believe this to be true. We are no doubt living in a global village, and the more culturally diverse our nation becomes many Christians are making a broad gate by wanting to include everyone as a spiritual family member  especially those we love and have a deep relationship with. The truth is only those who are willing to acknowledge God as THEE Father and Jesus as Lord of their life will they become a part of your spiritual family.

I had a conversation a few weeks ago with a young man who said he was a Christian.  He had this belief that these other religions have their own Jesus, God, and Holy Spirit. They just call them by different names. This was my response:  “I guess that is possible because I believe God is a big God but unless the person they call Jesus died, rose on the third day, and ascended into heaven. Then it’s not Jesus. Unless grace is at the center of their teaching – then it’s not Jesus. If they don’t teach compassion mercy, forgiveness only comes through Jesus then it’s not Jesus. Unless their Jesus was fully human and fully divine then it’s not Jesus they are talking about. It’s somebody sorta like Him.”

Watch this little clip about someone being “sorta like someone”

Some one sorta like him is not the real deal. Jesus himself said in John 14:6 – “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” Jesus is simply saying I am the real deal. There is no other way to God except through Me.

It’s really difficult to grasp that a really good Jehovah witness, or Mormons as nice as they are, or the nice the Muslim I met this last Summer are only following someone sorta like Jesus.

The truth is there is a hell and good and wicked people go there.  Many think that people with good morals are going to heaven.  Many think that people who do good works are going to heaven. Many think that people who live a good virtuous life are going to heaven.

In the gospels Jesus bluntly warned the Pharisees and other religious scholars that when they died, there was no way they’d be waking up in a better place. Jesus bluntly points out to Nicodemus (The Billy Graham of Pharisees in his day) he must be born again. Jesus bluntly points out obedience is the defining mark of what it means to love God, follow God, and live for God. John bluntly points this out in I John 2:4,

The man who says, ‘I know him’ but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Paul bluntly point out in Galatians 5:19-21 if you persist in a pattern of willful disobedience you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

There is a heaven and a hell. All of us will spend eternity in one place or the other.
Whether we like it or not or agree with it or not, the wicked and the good and moral person receive the same fate. Only those who are broken, truly repentant, and  willing to follow Jesus will find the narrow gate.

Where are you spending eternity? Your friends? Your Coworkers? Your spouse? Your kids?

This is a  pretty important question to answer before you are in the ending moments of your life.

(click on the pic to listen to it)

A myth that a lot of Christians believe is that God only leads us to the mountain top.
The fact is he also leads us through the valley.

Jesus had what we would call a mountain top experience in Matthew 3. It was an incredible moment when John the Baptist Him which marked the start of His ministry here on earth.  Just a few hours later in Matthew 4, the Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tested. This was not a mountain top experience for Jesus.

The reality is, (like Jesus) there will be valleys in the life of the believer. It is not a matter of if they come – it’s a matter of when they come. In those valleys we are tempted to give into the Enemy and take the easy way out.

Psalm 23:4 reminds us,

Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil for you are with me.

Christians have this believe that if we are going through something painful or something messy or it is just one of those valley experiences when God seems distant – somehow God can’t be in it or a part of it. God actually leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tested. He was very much with Jesus when Satan showed up. I am not suggesting that God leads us to every trial, every messy situation, or every valley. Some times we mess up and create the mess ourselves.

King David’s lust for Bathsheba lead to an unexpected pregnancy; which lead to the murder of her husband; which lead King David lying about everything. This lead to family dysfunction, incest, more family murders, more political conflicts, and he left his whole family in a total disarray. All because of a one night fling with Bathsheba.

Sometimes there are situations we walk through that there are just no answers for. You look at the story of Job and Joseph and you can’t help shake your head and ask, “Why did they need to walk through the stuff they walked through?” Why do certain families walk through more pain than others? Why do some individuals seem to get their lion share of heartache and trials. The answer is – there is no answer.

Sometimes our obedience leads us to into a wilderness or trial. Look at Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego.   Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den for praying too much. Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego were thrown into a fire because they wouldn’t bow down. Look at Jesus. His obedience led him to being mocked, persecuted, beaten, and nailed to a cross.

No matter how we get into messy situations, no matter what temptation we face, if we run from every messy situation, if we sweep everything that is thrown at us under the rug as if nothing is wrong, or if we are never tempted we will never experience the miraculous power of his deliverance. 

• A miracle needs a mess.
• Hope needs a hopeless situation.
• Joy needs a jumbled up life
• Victory needs a valley.

I am not suggesting you mess up your life so that you can experience a miracle. I am not suggesting your put yourself in a hopeless situation so that you can experience hope. I am not suggesting you jumble up your life so that you can experience joy.  Nor I am suggesting you create a valley to walk through so that you can experience a victory.

Our mess ups, our hopeless situations, our jumbled up lives, our valleys, and other “Help Me” Jesus experiences aren’t always a lot of fun to go through but without them (whether we created our situation or not) there’s not much need for God to show up. If we look at these situations in our lives as an opportunity instead of an obstacle,  God could do some amazing things in us.

King David needed God to show up! He created a mess of his life. God did show up and turned his mess into a message. Look at Psalm 51 and you can read the message.

Daniel needed God to show up! He showed up in the lion’s den by keeping the lions mouths shut.

Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendego needed God to show up! He showed by protecting them from the flames and the heat of the blazing furnace.

Jesus needed His Father to show up! He showed up in Jesus’ death by resurrecting Him from the grave.

None of these were mountain tops experiences for any of these people. But they all had one thing in common, they all remained obedient even in the face of death.

When being obedience leads to trials, or a valley, or a difficult stretch of life,  the Enemy is going to come and tempt you with a way of escape the same way he tempted Jesus with a way of escape. The Enemy always provides the easy out by providing a short cut. 

I almost took the short cut before I came here to this church 8 years ago. The temptation was to give up on the church. We had experienced a difficult 3 years in the church I was pastoring at. The temptation was just to give up on church ministry because it took time away from my family. It caused a lot of pain and disappointment. Pain and disappointment I could live without. I thought,  “It would be nice to be like a regular attendee and not have to show up on a Sunday morning.” “It would be nice to have a regular 40 hours a week job and not have to worry about why people don’t want a relationship with Christ or why people are not choosing to go to church any more.”  I wouldn’t have or need to think about that stuff anymore. It would have been very easy to take this shortcut and simply surrender. Those were real temptations. They were all shortcuts to an easier way of life.

I had interviewed at a couple of churches for children’s ministry positions. By their questions I’m sure I didn’t get those positions because I was a man. Disappointment and rejection set in.  I also had interviewed at a church about the size of this church. It had a modern facility. They had a gymnasium with a kitchen and class rooms. It was a dream situation to walk into. I wouldn’t have to raise any money. I could have taken this church that had everything I dreamed about having for doing ministry. Again …. a shortcut …. an easy way out to get what I wanted.

Then we interviewed at the present church we are in. After we interviewed here, my daughter Kaleigh said, “we’re coming here aren’t we?” How she knew that …. Is still a mystery to me. But I knew she was right. This was the place that God was calling us to. I needed to be obedient.

The shortcuts would have been a much easier way of life for me and lot of people would have told me that I was following God’s will. But I wouldn’t have been obedient.

It would be easier to give up following Jesus when things get tough. It would be a lot easier not to have to deal with temptation. It would be a lot easier to sweep things under the rug as if nothing happened. If we are  honest, many times, nobody would know that we have taken the easy out.

If you are going through a valley, or you are facing temptation, or you have given into temptation, or life has dealt you an unfair hand, the Enemy will also show up and provide you a short cut. He did it with Jesus and I am sure he will do it with you to.

There are two ways out or every trial you go through. There are two ways out of every temptation you face.There are two ways out of every valley that you walk through.There are two ways out of every mess up in life or unfair situation that comes your way.

Way #1 – The Enemy’s shortcut, which always involves compromise and disobedience.

Way #2 – The way of escape God promises to all who walk with Him.

1 Corinthians 10:13 – The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

Why doesn’t God want us  to have a feel good mountain top experiences all the time? Why does God allow us to go through valleys? Why does God allow us to sin against Him? Why does God allow us to experience heart ache, pain, trial, tribulations, and all that other bad stuff that comes with life?

There are always lessons to be learned about our self and our relationship (or lack of) with God and there is character to be built (spiritual maturity) no matter what valley or what the cause.

Larry Osbourne says, “Going through a valley of injustice helps us to identify with the suffering of our Lord. A valley of pain helps us to empathize and support others who face the same. A valley of suffering teaches us obedience and trust. Even a valley of self-induced hardship can serve as a warning sign to never go there again.”

James tells his church in chapter 1:2-4, no matter what you face – rejoice always.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Trials, valleys, and the jumbled mess we make of our lives  have the potential to teach us lessons one could never learn elsewhere. James doesn’t talk about whether their persecution was the result God’s doing, the Enemy’s doing, or just a part of life in a fallen world. He dialed in on the one thing they could benefit from no matter what, the spiritual lessons of perseverance, character, and maturity.

The only way we learn these lessons we need to learn is when we walk through these valleys, when we make our life a jumbled mess, or when we walk through the unfair things we experience in this life. 

The Enemy will show up but you don’t have to fear Him or give in to His shortcuts because the Psalmist reminds us that He is with us.

Make a wrong turn in your life – He is with you.

Going through a dark time in your life – He is with you.

Going through some tough circumstances in life – He is with you.

God will lead – you just need to follow.

(click on pic to listen)

One of the dumb things that many smart Christians believe is that God brings good luck or good fortune.
George Forman (Forman Grills) – In 1974, before he went to Africa to fight Muhammad Ali, a friend gave him a Bible to take along on my trip. He said, “George, keep this with you for good luck.” George believed the Bible was just a shepherd’s handbook, probably because the only verse he knew was “the Lord is my shepherd.” But he was always looking for luck, so he carried that Bible with him. He also had lucky pennies and good luck charms, so now he added the “lucky” Bible to his collection of superstitious items. After he lost the fight, he threw the Bible away. He never even opened it. He thought, “The Bible didn’t help me win, so why do I need it?”

There are many people (Christians and non-Christians alike) who believe that God is their good luck charm. This is nothing but an urban myth.

I found out it was a myth (an urban legend) last week. I am a Christ follower, so obviously God would be on my side and the side of the teams that I cheer for. As I was watching the Cubbies beat the team with the best record in baseball and who won the division by winning 100 games, a team, second only to the Yankees in world series appearances and wins, I prayed, “O God, let the Cardinals get that much-needed hit. O God, stop the Cubbies from hitting so many home runs.” Well God didn’t answer my prayer. My good,luck charm prayer didn’t work. I was totally disappointed that God didn’t see things my way. Now I have to bear the pain of watching them move on to the National league Championship series. This almost cost my relationship with God. God didn’t come through. He didn’t answer my prayer. I know this is trivial ….. but if we are honest ….. we do the same thing – if God doesn’t come through in the clutch – what good is he?

Many Christians wouldn’t call him a good luck charm but they say things like, “with God on my side, we can’t fail.” With God on my side, “all things are possible”. Or when we they experience success, they say, “God was in it.”  Those are all religious phrases many well meaning Christians use for “God is our good luck charm”.  This is the reason why so many Christians get so disappointed in God. Many think… since God is on my side, meaning he’s my good luck charm, if he doesn’t come through in the clutch, why on earth do we need him?

Many Christians believe that if we live God’s way it will bring us good fortune, many believe that God reaches down and tips the scales their way and life will be better and easier than before. After all, God would not let anything happen to those who believe in Him.

This is  why God is so powerless in the life of many who say they are Christ followers. He’s not really the Lord of their life – he’s the “lucky charm” of their life.

Let me challenge you early – Is he the “lucky charm’ of your life or the Lord of your life? There are some very distinct differences.

If He is your Lucky Charm you are always ….

• Wanting something from God
• Wanting God to do something for you
• Wanting God to tip the scales in your favor
• Wanting God to give you “success”

You stop following Him or trusting Him when things get tough.
If He is the Lord of Your Life you are always:

• Wanting to give God your life (seeking and pursuing Him)
• Wanting God to do something in you
• Blessing those around you by serving them
• Not needing “success” or answers to prayer to keep following Him
• Aware that God is with you in the good and bad

You continue to follow Him because you trust Him.

If he is the Lord of your life, we understand that the only thing God promises us is forgiveness, eternity, compassion, and mercy. He doesn’t promise us we will win the lottery. He doesn’t promise us that “everything thing is going to be alright.” He doesn’t promise us we will get the car and house and job that we want. He doesn’t promise us good health, godly kids, good marriage or the perfect life. That’s wishful thinking. That’s wanting God as your good luck charm.

In Psalm 73, you read about an Israeli named Asaph. He was frustrated over the success of the wicked and the long running misfortune of those who were attempting to live God’s way.

Doesn’t it make you sick to your stomach when you see the wicked prosper or you see evil win? It’s nauseating every time ISIS makes the news for killing innocent people. It’s nauseating to see the rich oppressing the poor in the name of greed. It’s nauseating every time to read about how rampant human trafficking (a modern-day term for forced slavery) is within the US and around the world for the sake of making a dollar and making our life better.  At the same time,  those who are doing it the right way are not having the same good fortune. This is Asaph’s frustration. He was disappointed with God.

He says in Psalm 73:13-14

Did I keep my heart pure for nothing?
Did I keep myself innocent for no reason?
I get nothing but trouble all day long;
every morning brings me pain.

Asaph was tempted just to give up on God, but before he did, he sought an understanding. He took his complaint to God and waited for an answer. Then one day, he entered the sanctuary of God, it hit him. For the first time he fully grasped the eternal destiny of the wicked. He saw their terrible end. Suddenly his plight didn’t seem so unfair or his deal so bad.  Asaph discovered that God has this all under control. If God would have been just his “lucky charm”, Asaph would have bailed on God a long time ago.

Many before us have bought into this myth and have been totally mislead by believing it. This is how a myth becomes a truth. If enough people believe it so it must be true. This myth has been around since the beginning of time.

Job was the Donald Trump of his day ( except a bit more humble). Job had already lost his livestock, his house, his kids, and his servants in chapter 1 of Job. Look at what happens in Job 2:

4 Satan replied to the LORD, “Skin for skin! A man will give up everything he has to save his life. 5 But reach out and take away his health, and he will surely curse you to your face!”
6 “All right, do with him as you please,” the LORD said to Satan. “But spare his life.” 7 So Satan left the LORD’s presence, and he struck Job with terrible boils from head to foot.
8 Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. 9 His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.”
10 But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.

Did you catch what Job’s wife said to him? She said, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” Why did she say this? It was because she believed God had been their lucky charm and brought them success. Job must had done something terrible because of his horrendous bad luck.  Job’s friends were also convinced that he must have done something terribly wrong to bring such misfortune into this life.

I love Job’s response and it reveals that God is really the Lord of his life:

“Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?”

This might be a hard truth to accept but He is the Lord of the good and the bad that happen in your life.

To believe God is our “lucky charm” or that He brings us success and he doesn’t allow bad things to happen to us …. Well …. If you believe that you are being “punked” by the Enemy. This is a dangerous frame of mind to believe that God is our luck charm. We know that if were in charge we wouldn’t allow the wicked to prosper. If we were in charge, we wouldn’t let the evil people win. We wouldn’t allow anything to happen to Christians if we were charge. If we were in charge only the good people would experience success. If we were in charge only wicked people would experience tragedy, and trial. If we were in charge only the Christians would get the high paying jobs. If we were in charge abortion would be wiped out. If we were in charge we would take away all the rights of the homosexuals.

But we are not in charge. We are not God. There is evil. The wicked do prosper. The righteous do suffer. The wicked do suffer. The righteous do prosper.

The Enemy wants us to believe this myth that God is our lucky charm and brings us good fortune. Why? Because he wants you to curse God when things go bad.  The Enemy understands that if you were in charge – no one would need God. He wants you and I to doubt his existence. He wants you and I to doubt He is in control. He wants you and I to be like Job’s wife! Full of anger and disappointment and live in fear that God has left you. Ultimately, he wants you and I to lose hope.

Letting Him be the Lord of your life, from the human point of view, is the most unlucky thing you can do (at least for a short time) because what he asked us to do is so unfair.

He tells us we need to:

• take up our cross
• go the extra mile
• love our enemy
• lose our life to gain it
• give everything to the poor
• love Him more than our spouse, family, and friends.
• give up everything and follow Him

From God’s point of view, it’s the greatest thing you can do. He wants to give us eternal rewards.

You must come to grips with whether or not you want him only as your luck charm or you want him to be Lord of your life.

There was a big story floating around Facebook about the Pope saying that Jesus, in human terms, in the eyes of the world, was a failure. If you read the story, the Pope is right (in  human terms). Even his disciples thought he had failed, this is why they scattered.  They were scared. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to happen. It wasn’t supposed to end this way.

If God is a lucky charm, Jesus was the most unlucky person that walked the earth. He was spit on, shamed, mocked, beaten, nailed to the cross, and died the most cruel death a human could die. If you call that lucky …. well ….. someone should have bought Jesus a rabbits foot so all those things wouldn’t have happen to him. After all, rabbits can feel and sense danger (watch the good luck charm video by clicking the picture at the top of this post- it’s only 2 minutes long).

We must answer this question honestly:

Is He Lord of your life or just a lucky charm?

(click on the pic to listen) Hand washing has not always been believed to reduce the transmission of disease. Up until the late 1800’s surgeons didn’t scrub or wash their hands before surgery. Often Doctors and medical students would move from dissecting a corpse through to examining new mothers without washing their hands. This led to a high mortality rate in maternity wards from puerperal or ‘childbed fever’.
In the 1840’s an Austrian-Hungarian physician named Ignaz Semmelweis realised the link between hand washing and the spread of infection between patients. In the Vienna General Hospital, where Dr Semmelweis was a director, patients in the maternity ward were dying at such a rate that they were begging to be sent home rather than stay in the hospital. A colleague died from a dissection wound and Dr Semmelweis decided to analyse the situation. He found that the midwives clinic had a far lower death rate than the students clinic and through trying different hypotheses he concluded that hand washing was the answer. Through insisting the staff wash their hands with various antiseptics Dr Semmelweis greatly reduced the deaths in his wards.
At the time this was met with hostile reaction from other medical professionals who decided that even if their was some truth to the concept, it would take too long to wash their hands between patients. Dr Semmelweis continued his studies and published a book which was once again received poorly. In 1865 he was committed to an asylum  where he died shortly after. After Dr Semmelweis died the germ theory was confirmed by Louis Pasteur, a French Chemist and Microbiologist. Today hand washing is a part of our everyday life and it is accepted practice to wash our hands before eating, after toileting and sneezing or coughing.

There are things we have believed that aren’t true (click here to watch video).

There are things we have not believed that are true.

These things we believe and don’t believe help form our moral conscience.  Some us grew up believing that certain words were wrong to say. Some of us grew up believing that doing certain things were wrong. There is nothing wrong with that – our parents did the best they could. They did and taught us what they thought was right and wrong.

One of the things we believe that is not true is that our conscious is a trustworthy moral guide.

All of us  have a defined set of beliefs and we learned those even before we started reading the Bible, going to church and Sunday School. They say all the important stuff we know and learn we master by 3rd grade. Most teachers can tell you what kind of student your student will be by the 3rd grade. Meaning, by the 3rd grade you know everything about what’s right and wrong.

Many of us have been taught to trust that our conscience is a God-given, interior indicator of right and wrong. When we are faced with a tough moral dilemma, we turn to it.

There was point in our nation’s history that we thought slavery was okay. There were some preachers who preached from the pulpit misusing scripture to prove to the people that slavery was okay in God’s sight.  There was a point in our churches history that going to movies, playing cards, going to dances were evil because they caused us to do evil things. Within the last 20 years, the pastor that I worked with told me and hundreds of others that reading Harry Potter was wrong and sinful. It was the devil’s tool to deceive young minds. That made me furious because I was confident he was wrong. So I did some research … I went to Wicca sites and Christianity Today (a Billy Graham ministries publication) and found out what he was saying was not true.

The truth is, slavery is a bad thing.
The truth is, going to movies, playing cards, going to dances are not evil.
The truth is, Harry Potter was never evil – it was all a fantasy world. A similar fantasy world as that of CS Lewis’,  The Chronicles of Narnia, JR Tolkein’s,  Lord of the Rings.

The truth is our conscience is a spiritual thermostat. Thermostats don’t define hot and cold. They reflect our definitions of hot and cold. 

In any given church around the world, there people sitting in a sanctuary saying, “man, I wish they would turn the heat up – I’m freezing.” Other people are sitting in the same sanctuary saying, “man I wish they would turn the heat down – I’m burning up.” And there are still others in the sanctuary who sitting in the same sanctuary maybe a couple of pew back saying, man, they got it just right!”  The fact is, most churches have a computer thermostat that sets the temperature and widely accepted 72 degrees all year round.

We set our spiritual thermostats to respond however we like. Our conscience doesn’t tell us if we’re violating God’s standard. It tells when we’re violating our standards.

Those standards are vastly different.

Some of us grew up in legalistic homes and some of us grew up in pretty liberal homes. As we have grown, matured, gain knowledge, and have had  different kinds of experiences, our spiritual thermostats are vastly different. Put it more simply, there are some things we are doing now that we once thought were wrong that we discovered weren’t. My mom, who loved dancing, and apparently was pretty good at, was told it was wrong so she stopped dancing. An older friend of mine told me that when he was growing up in the church he was taught that playing the saxophone was sinful in the church, so he gave up playing the saxophone.

All of us have our old pre-Christian values, some legalistic values, and what – does – the Bible – actually – say values. For many of us we have no idea if our thoughts and convictions come from the Holy Spirit, the nudging of our conscience, or merely an old tape that is still playing in our heads. This is why trusting our conscience as a reliable barometer of spirituality is a dangerous thing.

Proverbs 21:2 teaches us,

People may be right in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their heart.

Jeremiah 17:9 also says,

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

The great Apostle Paul continues to say this (I Cor. 4:4-5),

My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

Paul knew what it was like to walk in the Spirit. He received divined visitations, he healed people and knew the mind of God well enough to write 13 books for the New Testament. But at the same time he struggled with his own sins. At times he misread the leading of the Lord, prayed for things God didn’t want him to have, grew discouraged, and even hated life. He failed to offer the grace and second chances he preached about to the churches when he young helpers bailed, he had a bitter split with his main mentor, trusted untrustworthy people, and planted some pretty dysfunctional churches.

He was thoroughly human. It was his recognition of his humanity and fallen nature that caused him not to put too much trust in his clear conscience. If Paul didn’t fully trust in his own conscience, it makes you wonder how much stock we should put in our own.

Read what Paul writes in Romans 7:14-17,

We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.

We can’t trust our own conscience because of the sin living in us!

This is why we need a Savior!
This is why we need a Redeemer!
This is why a relationship with Jesus is so vital!

Those who have taken Jesus and his teachings seriously and have honestly given Jesus a chance have humbled themselves, taken up their cross, changed their whole thinking process (God renewing their mind), and renewed their conscience.

In other words, those who take Jesus seriously, live by a whole new set of rules. If we are not loving our neighbor – like Jesus loves us – we have sin living inside of us. We can’t trust our conscience on who to love and who not to love.  If we are not loving our enemies – like Jesus loved his enemies – we have sin living inside of us. We can’t trust our conscience. If we are basing our life decisions on what is good for us and not God’s greater good for us – well – we can’t trust our conscience to be our guide.  If we are base our moral cues on those around us and a lot of them believe the same way, right or wrong, God would surely understand. Majority doesn’t equal morality. God nowhere promises that if enough people take the wrong path, he’ll turn it into the right path.

The truth is,

• Jesus is not concerned with the moral majority – we are – because we don’t want to do or say anything wrong and we like going with the flow.
• Jesus is not concerned about right and wrong – we are – because we want to be in the right.
• Jesus is not concerned with whether you dance, play cards, or go to certain movies. We are because .. well …. Some people are still hung up on that stuff.

What is Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, most concerned about – the condition of your heart! Because when he has your heart – he knows other changes will follow.

• Jeremiah 17 reminds us that our heart is deceitful , desperately sick, who can understand it?
• Proverbs 4:23 – Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
• Proverbs 21:2 – “ …… The Lord examines the heart”

The apostle Paul says in 1st Cor. 4, “He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts.”

Here is the truth – we cannot trust our consciences………

• If we are not first seeking and pursing the things of Christ.
• If we are not continuously aware of His presence in our lives.
• If we can’t love our neighbor, our brother, and our enemy.

As you do those things (the ifs above) – He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of your heart.

You might be like Paul and have a clear conscience but that does not make you innocent. God’s standards are far different from your standards.

• A harsh and judgmental spirit is far more dangerous than a deck playing cards.
• A selfish spirit is far more dangerous than seeing a rated R movie.
• A carnal mind is far more dangerous than the types of drinks you keep in your fridge.

When God has your heart, mind, and soul – all the things of this earth go strangely dim. When God has your heart, mind, and soul – your hidden agendas will come to light. When God has your heart, mind, and soul – he will expose the motive of your heart.

This is why we need Him …….

• Not to make us morally right.
• Not to make us look good.
• Not to make us model Christian citizens.

We need Him because we can’t trust our conscience. It is not good to let our conscience be our definitive guide while living in this world because we have been infected with a sin nature and we are not the Messiah.

We are not called to …..

• Be perfect – we are called to pursue Him
• Be right – we are called to do the right thing
• Good people – we are called to be in relationship with the one who is Good.

I am so glad we have accepted the truth that washing our hands prevents disease from spreading. Other doctors didn’t want to believe it was true and he, Dr. S.,  was committed to an insane asylum. But the results of the simple washing of hands were profound.

A lot of us in here and around the world are spiritually insane. We have believed the same thing for years expecting a different result in our world, in our families, and in our own lives. Many refuse to believe what I just wrote is true and Biblical. Those people will remain spiritually insane. Nothing in their life will ever change.

What beliefs need to change in your life? What myths have you been believing for years without really knowing if they are true or not?

I thank God I can dance with my wife without the fear of looking down upon like my mom was. I thank God I can play games with a deck of cards without the fear of being cast out of a church. I thank God I can go to movies without the fear of having to stand before a congregation and confess my sin of going into a movie house.

Don’t let your conscience be your definite guide.
Let Jesus be your definite guide.

(click on the pic to listen to it) When it comes to bad things happening to people, this is one (Romans 8:28) of the most misquoted verses in the Bible. Not only do many Christians misuse this verse but many non-Christians who have some knowledge of the Bible quote (more often misquote)  it more than all the other verses combined, I believe this is the worst verse to use when someone has just walked through a tragedy or was just diagnosed with cancer or some life debilitating disease.

In the Shakespearan language of the KJV, you get an idea of how people in 21st century would interpret this verse. (KJV) Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” On the surface, what you are telling them when you use that verse is that everything that happens is a part of God’s greater plan, that life is like a jigsaw puzzle that will make sense once all the other pieces are in place and given enough time, everything that happens will prove to have been good and necessary. The lie Christians and even non-christians believe is that God causes everything to happen in our life and it is good and necessary. Not everything happens for a good reason. 

It was not part of God’s plan for Adam and Eve to take a bite of the apple. It was not part of God’s plan for the world to become so evil he had to destroy it by flood. It was not part of God’s plan for the twin towers to fall. It was not part of God’s plan for Japanese bombers to destroy 1000’s of lives at Pearl Harbor. It was not part of God’s plan for 6 million Jews to be slaughtered by an evil dictator. It is not a part of God’s plan for people to get cancer or any kind of disease. God didn’t cause anything of those things to happen … he allows to them to happen … but he didn’t cause them to happen. They happened because there is also evil in the world. 

Why would a God who wants to prosper us and give us a hope and a future then give us cancer or some other debilitating disease? Why would God who wants us to live life to the fullest make tragedy a part of His greater plan in our life? God is the author and perfector of our faith – but is not the author of cancer, he is not the author of tragedy. He is not the author of evil acts. 

The way a lot of people interpret this scripture is that everything that happens to you is good. They say things like, “God has a purpose for this.” And say other things like, “God is good so this must be good for you.” Something evil happening to you is not good. Let’s stop trying to make evil a good thing. Evil is not a good thing. Evil is a bad thing. Evil destroys lives. The scripture actually teaches us to weep with those who weep and mourn with those who mourn, and hurt with those who hurt. Not everything that happens to you is good . It is not a part of God’s greater plan that someone should get cancer or that part of God’s plan for your life is for you to have to go through a tragedy.

This is why we get so angry and disappointed with God. We think that he is going to work out everything for our good. Meaning, God’s going to make everything better. God never promised that he would make everything better… he only promises that despite the evil that might happen to you, if you continue to love him and follow him – he will work everything out for your good. Good meaning – he will make you more like His son (vs. 29).

The truth is: not everything that happens to you is good. The truth is: God is at work in all things, even in the things that were meant for evil and harm. Disease and tragedy is not the direct action of God.  If getting a disease or walking through a tragedy is an expression of God’s goodness who would want to be in a relationship with a God like that?

The truth is

• God is at work in the midst of dreaded diseases.
• God is at work in the midst of a terrible tragedy.

The New Living translation helps us understand this verse a little better.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

In other words, even the enemies best shot can’t thwart God’s ultimate plan. God can and will accomplish his good purpose no matter what. This is a far cry from saying that everything that happens is somehow good and necessary. It is also a far cry from saying God caused it to happen.

The story of Joseph in Genesis is a great picture of how God is at work even in the worst moments of your life. He was auctioned off by his brothers into a world of slavery, falsely accused of rape, jailed, primed for early release but was forgotten, and finally brought before pharaoh to interpret a bizarre dream. When Joseph was in power and his brothers eventually came and asked him for mercy, he said these famous words, “you intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” What we need to notice is that Joseph didn’t call his brothers evil actions good or necessary. I’m fairly confident that Joseph would have rather not be thrown into a cistern, sold as a slave, thrown into a prison and forgot about. Joseph didn’t say all this happened for a reason. He simply pointed out that God was at work despite their evil intent. As you read the story you simply get to see how God works these evil actions into something good. But we must also understand that Joseph loved God and Joseph remained a faithful follower of God despite the things that happened to him.

God kept his promise to Joseph because he loved God and he remained faithful.

These are two key things – things that we most of the time over look.

This verse is not a promise for everyone. It’s not even a promise for every person who calls them self a Christian. One must love God. One must remain a faithful follower of Jesus. In other words, your friend who has an interest in spiritual things and just recently found out that he has cancer. God does love him. He has a preferred future for him. He wants to give him a hope and a future. If and when he turns to Jesus. Romans 8:28 has nothing to say to him unless of course he pursues God. It also leaves out that nice neighbor who lost his house because of the recession. Assuring that God must have something better in mind may make both of you feel better. But it’s wishful thinking. God makes no promises to anyone who refuses to follow Him. That promise to work everything out for your good.

But …. He is a loving God! ….. yes …. You are right …. God loves them both – but there is nothing he can do for them unless they have relationship with Him. He only works it out for the good for those love him and remain faithful followers. 

Larry Osbourne (an author and pastor) shares a story about the parents of a pregnant teenager who came into his office to figure out how to best handle the situation. At one point they said, “We’re not sure why God let this happen, but its good to know he has a reason.” Larry didn’t say anything but thought to himself, “unless we’re dealing with another virgin birth, God probably didn’t have much to do with her getting pregnant.” God didn’t let this happen….. the bottom line is a girl had sex with a boy and a boy had sex with a girl … when that happens a lot of things can happen. They knew their daughter shouldn’t had been sleeping with her boyfriend. I’m sure she knew it too. But now that she has repented, broken off the relationship, and turned back to God, he must have something good up his sleeve.

No … God has nothing up his sleeve. He is not a magician that will make everything disappear and make everything better. He does promise, now that she is back into a relationship with Him, that he will work behind the scenes and turn this disobedient act into something good.

Something good does not mean he is going to make everything better.  Something good does not mean he’s going to remove the consequences of our wrong decisions or sinful acts. Something good means He is going to work out those things to shape and mold you into His image. He is going to use those things to make you more like Christ. 

In other words…….
He will turn your mess into a message.
He will turn your disaster into a defining moment.
He will turn your tragedy into a triumph.

But he will do this for those who love Him and keep following Him.

The beauty and promise of Romans 8:28 is that those who love God and remain faithful to him is that no matter how bad things may get, God’s ultimate and eternal purpose in life won’t be foiled. His eternal purpose is found in vs 29 – he will use it to shape us into the image of His son.

Do you love him? Do you love more than your spouse and kids? Do you love him than a parent loves a child.  Do you love more than your paycheck? Do you love him more than your cell phone, your car, or your house?

When you love someone or something that intimately it changes the way the way you think. It changes the direction of your life. It changes the thing you do.

Are you following him? Like a parent follows and trusts his parents? Like a disciple that follows and trust His master?

This post is dedicated to the 100 year anniversary of the First Church of God in Marion, IN. In 1915 God inspired a group of people to start meeting in a saloon (A SALOON!!! THIS IS 1915!). As they grew, they moved to Boots street of the same city.  This particular church building is still located in Marion and is still being used as a church (as of September 21, 2015). The church continued to grow. Some land was given the church (from the Baer family) in the 1960’s to build our present building. This church was rebuilt in 1983 after it was knocked down by a tornado. It was completely demolished. An amazing group of men (there were some women too) called the “Hardly Able Crew” dedicated 1000’s of hours and rebuilt the church at its present site (Sept. 2015).

A lot of thing have changed over the last 100 years. As you just read, the buildings have changed because of growth and destruction.

The pastors have gotten better looking.

We have seen tremendous leaps in technology. We have gone from red to gray hymnals. Ok, that is not much of a technology change. But we went from hymnals to overheads and slide projectors. We have gone from slide projectors and overheads to video projection machines and flat screen tvs.

The music has changed. We have gone from singing just hymns to singing some of the new worship choruses that God has inspired others to write. Instead of singing from hymnals we are now singing from a screen. We have gone from just an organ and piano to  drums, guitars, woodwinds, and jimbaes. We have gone from having a choir to having a praise team.

The people have changed. Some of them have moved on to heaven. Others have moved on to different churches. Still others have moved to different states. We also have some who have gone into full time ministry because of God’s call.

The methods of  how we do ministry have changed. We have gone from hosting revivals to hosting block parties and other outreach events. We have gone from using quarterlies to using rightnowmedia.org video library for discipleship. We have gone from hosting church events in our building to community outreach events.

The one thing that has not changed in the last 100 years is the message. Jesus was born of a virgin. He walked the earth and never sinned. He was crucified, rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven and left us his Holy Spirit. For the last 100  years God  has been alive and well and changing lives. God still loves humanity. God is still changing lives. He is still waiting for all of humanity to love Him back.

The message of God’s love for mankind will continue on for the next 100 years and there will be more changes. God will not stop until all have heard. Changes will keep coming because the church is a living and vibrant organism that is always changing but never changing her message.

Not all have heard this message that Jesus loves them and wants a relationship with Him. This past summer (2015) the church hosted an outreach event at our local water park. For part of the evening we did Bible trivia for the kids. The kids could ask any adult for the answer. To me, these questions were simple Bible questions that anyone would know if they had been in church for any amount of time. I told the kids that they could ask the front desk workers. Little did I know, the front desk workers did not know any of the basic stories of the Bible. I was stunned. For each question I would tell them the 15 second version of the Bible story (sometimes I just gave them the answer). Not all have heard these stories. Not all have heard that there is a God who loves the world so much that He sent his one and only Son so that they could be in a relationship with Him.

We need to continue to tell these stories. None of us will be on this earth when the next group of people celebrate their 200 year anniversary. It is up to us to keep the story going. It is up to us to tell others the stories that have transformed our life. It is up to us to pass down these to stories to our children and grandchildren.

We need to continue to give away this message of hope and salvation. Why? Because not all of heard. Somebody, some day is going to sit in your spot at church some day. Who is going to be? Who are you going to tell?

If we don’t continue to tell these stories, the story could end. I don’t want God’s story to end with me. I want God’s story to continue for the next 100 years.

Go back to the beginning and click on the pic. You will hear and understand the difference that not only does a church family make in the life of a person but the difference Christ makes in the direction of a person’s life. The reason this church is still making a difference in the life of the people in this community is because they kept telling the story to anyone would listen.

Let’s keep the story going.

If you would like to read the story about the First Church of God and its people in Marion, IN just click on the “100 Celebration Book” below. (if you have a slow computer or slow internet it will take a few minutes to load up)

100 Year Celebration Book

(click on the pic to listen to it) Many Christians believe that God has a blue print for your life. A blueprint is a detailed plan of how something is put together.

Such details like:

• Who am I supposed to marry?
• What will my career be?
• What does God want me to do with my life?
• Why did this happen in my life?
• Why did this happen to the person I love?

Everyone at one point wonders why God has them on this earth (a very important detail).

God has a plan for your life. He has plans to prosper you and give a hope and a future. But he doesn’t have a blue print or a detailed way for you to do it.  We ask God questions like, “Am I to do this or this?” “Am I to work here or there?” “Am I to marry this person or that person?” “Am I to marry at all or stay single?” Sometimes you get specific answers, most of the time you don’t. Why doesn’t he give us the blue print? Why doesn’t he just give us the details. It would make our lives a lot easier. It would also take the adventure out of life and you wouldn’t need faith. Abraham went to unknown land. God didn’t tell him where he was going. God never told Noah it was going to rain.

Why doesn’t he just give us the details? A: He wants us to seek after Him. Not to seek for the answer but to seek after him. He wants us to seek after Him and not the solution. He wants us to seek after Him and not the specifics. Because when you do seek after Him you will discover the answer, the solution, and the specifics.

He does tells us, “Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. ” Ephesians 5:17

In other words, think, “what am I good at?”, What do I like to do with my spare time?” What special gifts and talents do I have?” In what way can my life bless others?”

Then listen and say, “here I am Lord, use me!”

God has designed each of us in a unique way – he wants to use you in a unique way.

Seek Him, whether He gives you the answer, the solution, or the specifics.

“I’m short. I love sports. I love family. God gave me a fun personality. You gave me a great family, help me to understand how I am to use these things to benefit others.” Everything that we own. Every experience  you have gone through, every talent  you have, every resource you have access to ….. is for the benefit of others.

You can guarantee yourself being at the center of God’s will if what you are doing is for the benefit others.How do we  know this? That’s exactly what Jesus did. Jesus got up early every morning and prayed. Seeking His father. He didn’t even give his only Son the details. He’s definitely not going to give us the details.His Father never said to him “today you are going to meet a woman at the well, and tomorrow you are going to feed 5000 people, and on Wednesday your going to meet a Roman centurion and heal his daughter, and on Thursday your going to have some guys cut through the roof of the house you are at and you will heal him.” Because he spent with His Father, those are things he did. We so much want God to give us the details (or blue print) that we spend more time asking than we do seeking and understanding.

He has a plan for your life. His plan is for good and not disaster. His plan is to give you hope and a future. But you must look for Him wholeheartedly and you will find him.

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. In those days when you pray, I will listen.     -Jeremiah 29:11-12

In other words:
If you are not sure what direction you are to take in life –seek Him.
If your not sure what decision you are to make seek Him.
If you don’t know which way to go – seek Him.
If you are in pain – seek Him.
If you are confused – seek Him.
If you are tired of waiting for answer – seek Him.

With all your questions – he says I have a plan for you – seek Him.

His plan will give you a hope. His plan will give you a future. When you seek Him wholeheartedly, watch out, because he might tell you to do something that is much bigger than you.

A friend of mine ran 46 miles  for kids with with cancer. 46 kids are diagnosed with cancer everyday. Mike is a man I coached at the beginning of his faith journey. Mike has grown exponentially in his faith journey over the last few years. At one point in his life, he was over weight. He made some lifestyle and eating  changes. He started walking then he started running. Then he met this 11 year old girl with cancer. God spoke to him and told him to help this little girl. He raised nearly 13,000 and 135 pints of blood for her. She died a year later. That wasn’t Mike’s plan for her. He got a bit angry at God for not healing her. Mike began to pray again, seek God, and asked Him,  “what am I supposed to do now?”

As Mike sought after God by asking the question, “what am I supposed to do now?”, God expanded His plan. God wanted Mike to be an advocate for Kids with Cancer. His first event to bring awareness to his area and the country was running 46 miles for the 46 kids that are diagnosed with cancer everyday. Mike does not do this just for kids, but he does it for Jesus. He shares his faith with the families that have kids with cancer. He tells them that God loves them and God loves their child.

Did Mike know in detail what he was going to do this when he was a child or teen or even a year ago. No …. he simply sought after God and God spoke to his heart. Mike discovered what he was to do  and he said, “here am I Lord use me.”

How do you know if you are in God’s plan or not? The question you need to ask before that one is – “are you seeking after Him?”
In the midst of your questioning – are you pursuing him

In the midst of your trial are you pursuing him?

In the midst of your uncertainty – are pursuing Him?

In the midst of your pain are you pursuing him?

In pursuing him you will understand God’s will for your your life. When you pursue Him, he will change your attitude, your behaviors, and the way you think.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.      -Romans 12:2

When this happens to you, you will discover God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Romans 12:2 tells us not to copy the behavior of this world. It is a part of our American culture (if you will) to look out for who first and foremost?    – ourselves. Paul is telling us not to copy that custom by letting God change the way you think. When you do these things you will learn (discover) what his will for your life is.

God doesn’t have a blue print (detailed plan) for your life. On Monday you will do this. Tuesday you will do that. Wednesday and Thursday do this….etc…. The only detail He gives in both the OT/NT is seek Him.

God does know the details of your life but he is not a God who micro manages your life. In other words, He’s not a control freak. He lets you mess up. He lets you sin. He lets you go in the wrong direction.  He let the Israelites wonder in the desert for 40 years. He let Jonah go in the wrong direction and let him put. He let Peter deny him three times. God didn’t micro manage their life. But he was with them and when they sought after him – they repented and got back on track.

God doesn’t micromanage your life.He knows when you mess up. He knows when you sin. He knows the attitude of your heart. He knows your every thought. He knows the details of your life. And when you seek Him, you repent (turn away from your old habits and thoughts)  and get back on track. You become a part of His plan. He uses all those things (the good, the bad, and the ugly) to mold you and shape you into His image. He can take the good, bad, and the ugly and make them a part of His plan for your life. Our job is to become someone. His job is to shape and mold us. To God we are always becoming we are never finished. But …. what God begins in you, God ends. What God initiates in you, He will complete.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6

Stop seeking after God’s will for your life and start seeking after Him. Matthew 6:33 reminds us that if we seek after Him first He will take care of those other details that you are so worried about and wonder why God just doesn’t tell us in plain English what you are to do.

And if you have messed up your life in big way or you have gotten way off track, God is bigger than your messed up life and He can get you back on track. His plan is to show you compassion, mercy, and grace.His plan is not to condemn you but to give you new life. But you must seek Him with wholeheartedly.

He has a plan for your your life and it’s a good one. He is behind the scene working everything out. But you must seek Him with all your heart.

click on the pic to listen

Matthew 7:1-6
“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. “Don’t waste what is holy on people who are unholy. Don’t throw your pearls to pigs! They will trample the pearls, then turn and attack you.

Jesus doesn’t say, Judge not, PERIOD. But that is how we often read it. Jesus never told his followers not to judge. He told his followers how to judge, what kind of judgments to make, when to make them, and how to make them. He told them to be careful when they judge.

Where did this idea of Christians not being able to judge come from?

• Many people just simply misinterpret it. All they read is “judge not” period! Many people think Christians aren’t supposed to judge because we are to always to be loving and kind and tolerant. Christians aren’t supposed to judge because it is only God who can. . Christians aren’t supposed to judge because they aren’t perfect either. In the day and age we live, criticizing someone’s belief or moral choices is considered politically incorrect. If you make any kind of judgment today you are either arrogant or ignorant.

Homosexuality, transgender, and racism are the hot-bed issues of today. As a Christ follower, if you make any kind of judgement on these issues (agree or disagree with them) you will be judged.  If you, as a Christ follower condemn the people who practice these behaviors – you are nothing but a spiritual bully and a religious tyrant. Before we cast our religious stones, Jesus is telling you and I to look at the log in our own eye before we throw it. Because when we look at the log in our own eye we will recognize that there are some sins we need to deal with before we start worrying about everyone else’s.

We are not called to be spiritual bullies. We are not called to be spiritual tyrants. We are not called to condemn others. We are to deal with the log in our own eye first because if we don’t that’s when we become spiritual bullies and tyrants.

• Many Jesus followers have misused it. If we are honest we spend more time condemning others than we do helping others discover there is another way. Condemning others is a lot easier to do than showing compassion, mercy, and grace. Condemning others (taking the easy out) is the way we misuse it.

As Christ followers, We have no rights or privileges to condemn anyone. Those rights and privileges are God and God’s alone.  When we do misuse it we become  spiritual bullies. We become a religious tyrant with no room for grace, mercy, or compassion. We become a perfector of holiness that gives no room for error in our walk with Christ.

It is a lot easier to condemn others than to show them grace, mercy, and compassion. Just because we show others grace, mercy, and compassion does not mean we agree with their way of life, agree with the decisions they make, or the actions they take. It is because we do disagree, or it is sin, that we show them grace, mercy, and compassion.

• This idea Christians can’t came from the man-made idea that Jesus never judged all he did was love people.

The truth is Jesus never condemned but he did judge. And he judged because he loved people.

He tells us in Hebrews 12:5-6,

“the Lord disciplines those he loves, And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said,
“My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t give up when he corrects you.
For the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”

In order for him to correct us, he has to make an assessment (judgement). He makes this assessment because he loves us. This is why we discipline our children,  because we love them not because we like to inflict pain in their life and see them suffer or we enjoy finding things to punish them for. As parents we see a much bigger picture than our kids do.  Those parents who condemn their kids because of their lack of perfection, or because of their disobedience – well – they have forgotten or have never known how to love them in a better way.

Nowhere in scripture do we see Jesus condemn anybody. He does judge them but he never condemns any of them. He knew that no one is perfect. He knew we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Yet … he never condemned anyone. John 3:17 reminds us that Jesus did not come into the world to condemn it but to save it.

The woman was caught in adultery and the Pharisees wanted to stone her. The Jewish law condemned her to death because the law said, “a woman caught in adultery was sentenced to die.”  The Pharisees knew this and so did Jesus. Jesus tells the Pharisees, “whoever of you has not sinned, let them cast the first stone. In other words, “whoever of you has not sinned, let them condemn her.” He tells the woman, Where are your accusers – you are forgiven – go and sin no more.

The Pharisees wanted to condemn her because she had sinned against God.  Jesus wanted to forgive her and give her second chance. Jesus made the judgment that she was guilty of sin but he did not condemn her. He simply told her, “go and sin no more.”

Who can’t you judge?

• Unbelievers

Larry Osbourne points out that the early Christians lived in a culture and under a government system riddled with the Bible calls sin. Marriage was held in low-esteem; sexual immorality was approved; homosexuality was celebrated. Killing infants was an accepted form of family planning. The Colosseum was regularly filled with blood-thirsty crowds cheering the death of other human beings. As for Christians, there were no charitable deductions, property tax exemptions, freedom of speech protections – just the continued threat of a coming day when Christianity would be outlawed, believers jailed, and leaders martyred. Yet, Osbourne notes that the NT is strangely silent when it came to harsh judgments and condemnations for Roman government, its leaders, or its soldiers. The reason for the silence? They understood that their job was not to judge and condemn the unbelievers around them. Their job was to win them over. 

Who can you judge?

•  Fellow Christians, spiritual leaders, or anyone who claims they know Christ.

Our purpose is not to condemn others but to help restore, renew, and help them get back on the right track. We have a responsibility to hold each other spiritually accountable. We have a responsibility to sharpens each other on this faith journey.

We need to be careful not to be judgmental. This is the hard part.

We must always examine our own heart first. We also must avoid making judgments about things God doesn’t spell out or care about. We all have differences. What I think is okay to say, you might think it is okay to say. What movies you watch might be different from the movies I watch.  The bottom line on this one is if you think you are being judgmental – you probably are. When we do this … we do this with grace. We take a look in the mirror before we say anything.

When can  you judge?

When you deal with the log or logs in your own eye. Jesus makes it pretty clear:

When we  deal with our own sins first.

We need to deal with our own stuff before we start worrying about everybody else’s stuff. This means this means that as long as I’m losing the battle over a specific sin in my own life, I need to keep my mouth shut. When we have dealt with the logs in our own eyes – this is when we can speak truth into someone else’s. Keep in mind we are not called to condemn – we are called to help. Like a coach helps a player on this team. Like a parent who giving direction to a child. Like a teacher giving correction to student. Condemnation never works.

Condemnation most often comes from the log in our own eye.

When you can judge, judge  with grace. Meaning, when you can treat others the way you want to be treated then make your assessment know to them.  Everyone one wants to be treated with grace when they mess up.

How do you know if you are not judging in grace? When your judgements lead you to personal attacks, bitterness, or raging anger, you are not judging with grace.  If you can’t judge with grace – then don’t judge at all. It would be better for the kingdom if you just kept your judgments to yourself.

What can you judge?

The harshest judgements I hear people make are often in areas where the Bible seemed to be less clear about. There are many areas when the Scriptures lay down the general principle without spelling out all the specific applications. This leads a lot of disagreements of how it applies in our culture today.

The scriptures tell us the story of Peter who got this vision from God that everything was edible.  Others didn’t agree with Peter. But now, God told Peter you can eat any kind of animal. Can you imagine the disagreements? For one person to continue to eat as he was told he could eat is okay and the new person now is told he can eat anything, that is okay too. Well ….. to God … what you eat is just not that important any more. He tells us to stop judging each other on those things that don’t matter any more.

The scriptures also make it pretty clear that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and should be treated as such. That’s a principle. It’s left up to us how it applies. For some of us, that means avoiding cigarettes, cigars, and alcohol. For others, it means vigorous exercise and proper rest. For me, it means staying away from spinach, things that don’t look good, and things that stare at me. In the time this particular scripture was written this verse meant specifically not having sex with a temple prostitute.

Our goal is not to become like a Pharisee who judges every single little thing in other people’s lives. Judging others this way is called sin. This is called a judgmental spirit. Remember from the last blog entry  that even God doesn’t micro-manage our life. He lets us make a wrong decision, He lets us sin, He lets us get off track. But He is constantly drawing us back to him.

How are you to judge?

With grace and with the intention of restoring or renewing a fallen brother or sister to their relationship with God. Which  means ….. we are to love the sinner and hate the sin. Grace can make this happen by reminding us that we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Jesus hated the sin and loved the sinner by dying on the cross. The practical thing we need to do is look at our reflection in the mirror and ask do I have any logs in my own eye that I need to deal with before I say anything to anybody?

Want to judge?

• Remove the logs from your own eyes first.
• Judge with grace and with the intention of restoring or renewing a fellow believer’s walk with Christ.
• Don’t be like a Pharisee who judged everything little thing in everybody else’s life. Remember no one is as perfect as you.
• Do not judge unbelievers – win them over

Watch this before reading on. You will be glad you did.

If you have ever been a parent you know parenting is not the easiest thing to do. If you are a Christian parent it is even worse. When your kids don’t turn out the way you expected them to …. there is a sense of guilt. There is the question, “where did we go wrong?” We raised them in church. They went to Sunday school. They went to youth group. They grew up and they walked away from God. Many parents believe if they train up their child – meaning – if we take them church, Sunday school, have devotions with them, and even invest time and energy in them – they won’t walk away from God. You can be the best godly parents in the world and that does not guarantee your kids will follow Jesus.

If you were fortunate enough to have kids who didn’t walk away from God when they became adults – don’t take the credit. If you were unfortunate enough to have kids walk away from God when they became adults – don’t take the credit. I like what Larry Osborne says in this book, 10 Dumb things Christian Believe. He said, “when you are done raising your kids, take a nap or enjoy your life. In other words, you are done, you’ve done your best with the resources you had. There is no need to feel guilty when your kid(s) walks from God.

The urban legend is, “if you raise your kids in a godly home it guarantees your kids will be Christ followers.” Will have built this urban on Proverbs 22:6:

Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.

The God-breathed proverbs that we read in the Bible are not promises from God. All throughout the scriptures you read how the righteous are not always honored. The wicked sometime succeed. The diligent can lose it all and the lazy can strike it rich.This Proverb or any proverb doesn’t promise anything. A Proverb is an encouraging word of advice. It is not a promise.that says, if you train them up this way, they will not depart from what they are taught. The truth is some will depart from it. There are no guarantees when training your kids. Ultimately the choice is theirs. As parents you have no control of the direction they take in life. Good or bad …. We can’t take the credit of how our kids turn out. You will have your critics. You will your questioners. Most of them are people without kids.

As parents we got to be careful if our kids turn out good. It could build a sense of pride in us and we could be looked at as experts and asked, “how did you do that?” The honest answer is, “I have know idea.”  If they turn out bad a sense of guilt and shame build up in us.  We say things like, “why couldn’t my kids turn out like them.”  If we are Christian parents and our kids walk away from Christ, we feel like a failure. There is no guarantee that they will return to God. You’ve done your job.  Train them in the way he/she should go, then go take a nap and enjoy your life. That is the best thing you can do for your kids. Let them create their own journey. It could be with or without God.
All throughout the scriptures you see where kids have messed up. Who do we blame for their kids messing up? The parents. We say things like, “if only their parents would have done this”, if only they would have done that.”

Cain killed Able. They had the most godly parents in the world. They took the bite of the apple and sin entered the world but I am sure they didn’t teach their kids to kill each other.

Let’s give credit where credit is due ….. it is called sin. Cain got jealous enough of his brother and killed his brother. At the end of July 2015, a disgruntled television employee films his shooting of a reporter and a camera man. I am sure his parents didn’t train their child up  – Christian or not – to kill another human being. It’s called sin. You are born with it and your kids are born with it. And sometimes sin wins. You can’t stop it.  You can only train your child in the way he/she should go. If you do the chances of your kid killing someone diminish greatly.

You also have Jacob and Esau. Both were raised by the same parents and their lives  went in two totally different directions.

There is Eli and his two sons. Eli was a priest. His sons became bad priest. There are no guarantees that if you are a Christian parent, your kids will follow Christ. You train them up in the things of God and the chances of them returning to the faith are good – but there is no guarantee they will. It didn’t work out for Eli.

Then there is Joseph and his brothers. They all were raised by the same parents. His eleven brothers tried to kill him but instead sold him as a slave. Do you think these parents taught their kids, “hey when you little brother is smart – allecky – throw him in a pit and sell him as a slave.” Probably not.

Finally, there is Jesus mom and dad. It is said that Jesus had 6 brothers and sisters. Why couldn’t they all turn out like Jesus?  They all had the same parents. It would have been terrible to be Jesus brother or sister. Watch this little 57 second clip. Parents of the greatest kids in the Bible couldn’t guarantee their kids would go the way they trained them.

Just because you train them up the way they should go doesn’t mean they will go the way you train them up. You could do everything right as a Christian parent but there is no way you can guarantee they will live the life you taught them and there is no guarantee that they will return to it if they did depart from it.

This proverb is simply a wise saying from a wise man of 700 wives and 300 sex slaves.

As parents, we do have the sacred responsibility for how we raise our kids. But we have no ultimate control over how they will turn out.

1. We are responsible to saturate our lives with God. This is the greatest gift you can give to your family. Spending time in the Word of God, having devotions, spending time with God and coming to church together play a crucial role in the raising of your child.
2. We are responsible to pray.  Pray with them. Pray for them. Pray about them.
3. We are responsible to saturate our lives with the word of God. This is how we get to know God. This how our relationship with God is nurtured. Your spouse and your kids will be grateful. The scriptures are  full of truth and wise sayings.
4. Live a life of faith.  In other words, never give up on your relationship with God even when things don’t go your way. Your faith is the greatest thing you can pass down to those coming behind you. Tell your kids your story and why you follow Jesus,
5. Live a life of humility and be wiling to say I’m sorry. As parents we mess up, Say your sorry.
6. Live a life of worship. Worship together. This the most important thing a family can do. I have heard the rumor that a family that worships together stays together. If your kids have already walked away from the church invite them to worship with you again. Its never to late.

We know that more is caught than taught. Even if you do all six of those things there is still no guarantees. There are many variables that we as parents have no control over.  The great Indianapolis Colts coach, Tony Dungy,  trained his son in the way he should go. He son committed suicide. The great pastor of the Saddle Back Church, a church of 15,000 plus, Rick Warren (the author of the Purpose Driven Church) trained his son in the way he should go. His son committed suicide. Do we honestly think these parents trained their kids to commit suicide when they couldn’t figure things out? What is disturbing about these stories is how many in the Christian community responded.  It wasn’t with compassion and prayer for the family,  it was with criticism and questioning of their parenting skills. It is easy to criticize and question others parenting skills (Christians and non Christians alike) but let me remind you every child is born with a sin nature. Every child has the natural desire to be self-centered and display sinful behavior. It’s not something any parent can eliminate with a carefully controlled environment or even with prayers and super-human like godliness. 

Sin is real and sometimes sin wins. That is not the fault of the mom and dad.

The scriptures do teach us that parents have the greatest influence over a child’s life and we will be held responsible for HOW we raise our kids. We are not held accountable for how our kids turn out. The scriptures also makes it clear that none of us can hide behind our upbringing or environment as an excuse for our wrongful decisions or foolish behaviors.

When you drop your kids off at a university or when they move out of the house, your training is pretty much done. You hope and pray that they won’t depart from the things they know. We do train them up in the way they should go. You hope and pray they don’t depart from it. The bottom line is that some do ….. every parents wishes they could have done better. Every Christian parent wants their kids to seek after God. 

After we have trained them or in the middle of training them – We hope and we pray.

When they drive off or you drop them off at their university, you are done. We confess to God where we messed up. Then …… go take a nap and enjoy life.