Johnny Cash is quoted with saying,
"Being a christian isn't for sissies. It takes a real man to live for God- a lot more man than to live for the devil."
Yes, the Man in Black, said these words. And it does. Being a christian is hard. Standing up for your beliefs and not backing down when the world tells you to, is hard. Seeing the world in black and white and choosing what you will do, then being ridiculed and made fun of or fired for your stand is hard. It is hard to have people laugh at you and and you children for being weird. But it is worth it.
Another quote, and this one from TobyMac says, "I don't want to gain the whole world and lose my soul." From his song, 'Lose my soul'.
Why would anyone want to give up living for God and live for and in this world? To let people see that you are a christian, to let them know that you are different, that you have peace that passes all understanding and then go the opposite way is mind boggling. And what does that say to your neighbors? When times get tough and you give up praying, and going to church, starting to live a worldly life. It says that you were not committed to begin with. It says that being a christian is not worth it. It says that you are a gutless flip flopper and go whichever way the wind is blowing. Worse yet, what does it say to your kids? That they shouldn't try to begin with. "Dad was a christian for a little while and the world beat him down, why should I even try?"
It is hard. But guess what, Christ gives us his strength when we ask for it. When we leave our burdens at His feet. " Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30 NIV
Living life is hard, and being a christian in this world is not for sissies. But when we trust in God and seek his face, when we lay our burdens at His feet, it gets a lot easier. Lay them down and do not pick them up again. You may have to do this multiple times a day. Give them over to Him and trust that He can take care of them and you.
Monday, February 25, 2019
Sunday, February 17, 2019
Hills and Valleys
Tauren Wells has an amazing song called 'Hills and Valleys'. Follow the link below if you have not heard it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iDuZv_5MQk
Sometimes this life is hard. And in the midst of the difficulties and heartaches, it is good to remember that God is with us. This is such a powerful message in music form. It is easy to remember that He has brought us to the mountain top. But to remember that He is with us in the valleys is somewhat more difficult.
Music is such a good way to display Gods love. David sang and played the harp, he wrote most of the Psalms, Solomon wrote Song of Songs, probably the best representation of the duality of the love that God has for his church, and the love of a man and women. Monks sing and chant their devotion. We can take that one song that just won't get out of your head or hymn that sticks with you along for the ride through the hills and valleys that God brings us to.
My favorite lines in the song are the first three lines of the second verse:
'On the mountains, I will bow my life
To the one who set me there
In the valley, I will lift my eyes to the one who sees me there'
God puts you where you are. He places you on the mountains when you get there and He is with you in the valleys when you are walking through them. There is no point of your life that God does not know you. Not knows of you. Rather, He knows you deeply. He loves you deeply. How many people do you actually know? And of those you know, how many do you love?
I will life my eyes. To focus on God and not where I am at. Not even looking at the path or lack there of because He directs our steps.
This is a good song to get stuck in your head, to live it, to meditate on it and to feel the meaning behind the words.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iDuZv_5MQk
Sometimes this life is hard. And in the midst of the difficulties and heartaches, it is good to remember that God is with us. This is such a powerful message in music form. It is easy to remember that He has brought us to the mountain top. But to remember that He is with us in the valleys is somewhat more difficult.
Music is such a good way to display Gods love. David sang and played the harp, he wrote most of the Psalms, Solomon wrote Song of Songs, probably the best representation of the duality of the love that God has for his church, and the love of a man and women. Monks sing and chant their devotion. We can take that one song that just won't get out of your head or hymn that sticks with you along for the ride through the hills and valleys that God brings us to.
My favorite lines in the song are the first three lines of the second verse:
'On the mountains, I will bow my life
To the one who set me there
In the valley, I will lift my eyes to the one who sees me there'
God puts you where you are. He places you on the mountains when you get there and He is with you in the valleys when you are walking through them. There is no point of your life that God does not know you. Not knows of you. Rather, He knows you deeply. He loves you deeply. How many people do you actually know? And of those you know, how many do you love?
I will life my eyes. To focus on God and not where I am at. Not even looking at the path or lack there of because He directs our steps.
This is a good song to get stuck in your head, to live it, to meditate on it and to feel the meaning behind the words.
Friday, February 15, 2019
Prince of Peace
Peace.
I do not know about you, but this sounds really good to me. Being able to rest in the stillness and quiet for just a minute. No distraction, no worries, no complaints, just you and the Prince that takes all of that away. Wouldn't it be amazing if you could take the feeling that you have during your devotional time with God and carry it throughout the day? To hold it in a bucket or tuck it into your shirt pocket and pull it out when you need it. A hectic day at work, dip into it a little. Kids stressing you out, dip in a little more. A miscommunication with your spouse that causes conflict, a little more. Car accident, dip again.
I feel that peace is a voluntary state of mind. One that you can choose to hold on to or let go of. Peace is different to everyone. I, for one, dislike the sound of a splashing fountain or man-made waterfall. Even one that looks natural. Others like to have one of these in their home or office. Different things for different people.
Christ is the Prince of Peace. When you come closer to becoming a man of God, this feeling of peace comes from Him. Choosing to focus on Him and what He has done for you will grant a calming spirit to fall on you. Just like counting your blessings builds a greater appreciation of what God has done for you, and the more often you do, the easier it gets. Ergo, the more that you focus your mind on Christ, the easier it becomes. Try it now. Force your mind to focus on Christ and his Peace. Deep breath. Expel from your mind all thought of worry, of weariness, of anger and shame. Give Him the loss of control that you feel and the expectations that others have on you. Focus on Him. Exhale. Feel His Peace.
Dang, that was hard. But do you feel better? Yes. This can be done between breaths. Your mind is quick and nimble and can jump over a candlestick (Just like Jack). Throwing out all of those negative thoughts and feelings makes us feel lighter. It allows us to empty ourselves in order to be filled up with His Spirit and Peace. Again, this is something that you can choose to do, once or twice a day, or to do it continually. I feel that when we seek His face and come closer to Him, we can have this peaceful feeling more and more and it gets easier and easier to cast out all of the thoughts and feelings that are not from Him.
Inhale, find His Peace, exhale, repeat.
I do not know about you, but this sounds really good to me. Being able to rest in the stillness and quiet for just a minute. No distraction, no worries, no complaints, just you and the Prince that takes all of that away. Wouldn't it be amazing if you could take the feeling that you have during your devotional time with God and carry it throughout the day? To hold it in a bucket or tuck it into your shirt pocket and pull it out when you need it. A hectic day at work, dip into it a little. Kids stressing you out, dip in a little more. A miscommunication with your spouse that causes conflict, a little more. Car accident, dip again.
I feel that peace is a voluntary state of mind. One that you can choose to hold on to or let go of. Peace is different to everyone. I, for one, dislike the sound of a splashing fountain or man-made waterfall. Even one that looks natural. Others like to have one of these in their home or office. Different things for different people.
Christ is the Prince of Peace. When you come closer to becoming a man of God, this feeling of peace comes from Him. Choosing to focus on Him and what He has done for you will grant a calming spirit to fall on you. Just like counting your blessings builds a greater appreciation of what God has done for you, and the more often you do, the easier it gets. Ergo, the more that you focus your mind on Christ, the easier it becomes. Try it now. Force your mind to focus on Christ and his Peace. Deep breath. Expel from your mind all thought of worry, of weariness, of anger and shame. Give Him the loss of control that you feel and the expectations that others have on you. Focus on Him. Exhale. Feel His Peace.
Dang, that was hard. But do you feel better? Yes. This can be done between breaths. Your mind is quick and nimble and can jump over a candlestick (Just like Jack). Throwing out all of those negative thoughts and feelings makes us feel lighter. It allows us to empty ourselves in order to be filled up with His Spirit and Peace. Again, this is something that you can choose to do, once or twice a day, or to do it continually. I feel that when we seek His face and come closer to Him, we can have this peaceful feeling more and more and it gets easier and easier to cast out all of the thoughts and feelings that are not from Him.
Inhale, find His Peace, exhale, repeat.
Friday, February 8, 2019
A different Breed
There is a man in the Bible that many people do not know about. One of the best warriors in all of Israel, Benaiah became King Davids head body guard. This man was mighty in action, in heritage (his father and grand-father were mighty men also), and in character. He goes from being leader of Davids body guard to commander of Solomon's' army. This man loved David and I don't know for a fact, but I bet he was one of the 400 men that came to David while he was hiding in the cave.
Benaiah killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day. I can imagine that that lion was not happy to be in that pit and made its displeasure known. He killed an impressive, giant-like Egyptian man who had a spear and Benaiah had a club by wrestling the spear away and killing the Egyptian with it. He killed 2 lion-like men of Moab. (2 Samuel 23:20-24) Giant slayer, just like David. Lion killer, yep David did that also. There is a special type of brotherhood that people have when they share the same trials.
So when David told Benaiah that he wanted Solomon to be king in Davids place and Adonijah declares himself king, Benaiah fixes that problem (1 Kings chapters 1-2).
Benaiah had character, loyalty, honor, and he displayed them on a daily basis. When do we do the same? When are we going to allow ourselves to become better than the average Joe,at our job, in our home and communities? With our wives and children? This world needs and deserves a better breed of men that stand up and say, "I will do better". That start to love their wife like Christ loves His church. That model Christ in the home so that their children will do the same. That stop praying small prayers with a half heart and start moving mountains. When we start to display these characteristics, not on social media, not standing up and saying "look at me", but silently in our homes, this world will change.
We will become a different breed that this world needs.
Benaiah killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day. I can imagine that that lion was not happy to be in that pit and made its displeasure known. He killed an impressive, giant-like Egyptian man who had a spear and Benaiah had a club by wrestling the spear away and killing the Egyptian with it. He killed 2 lion-like men of Moab. (2 Samuel 23:20-24) Giant slayer, just like David. Lion killer, yep David did that also. There is a special type of brotherhood that people have when they share the same trials.
So when David told Benaiah that he wanted Solomon to be king in Davids place and Adonijah declares himself king, Benaiah fixes that problem (1 Kings chapters 1-2).
Benaiah had character, loyalty, honor, and he displayed them on a daily basis. When do we do the same? When are we going to allow ourselves to become better than the average Joe,at our job, in our home and communities? With our wives and children? This world needs and deserves a better breed of men that stand up and say, "I will do better". That start to love their wife like Christ loves His church. That model Christ in the home so that their children will do the same. That stop praying small prayers with a half heart and start moving mountains. When we start to display these characteristics, not on social media, not standing up and saying "look at me", but silently in our homes, this world will change.
We will become a different breed that this world needs.
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