Christmas Salvation

Posted: December 24, 2011 in What We Believe
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Simple Joy of ChristmasJesus came for you.  You are one of His people.  When He made the plan to be born on earth more than 2000 years ago, He was thinking of you. He knew you would need saving, and He wanted to give Himself the ability to reach you in a meaningful and lasting way.  That’s why when the angel was explaining the birth of Jesus to Mary’s doubtful, soon-to-be husband, Joseph, he said,

“She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.”  -  Matthew 1:21

He will save His people from their sins. Do you believe He is capable of this?  Is Jesus capable of saving you from your sins?

The very heart of faith is to believe that not only is Jesus capable of saving you from your sins, but that He is willing and ready to accomplish this for you now.  No matter what the challenge.  No matter what the history.  No matter what the reason. Today is a new day because Jesus Christ is God and the wages of sin — the death, disease, suffering, anguish, anxiety, fear, doubt, destructive behaviors, self-loathing, hatred, anger, violence, and pain — stop today.  Right here.  Right now.  Jesus is ready to save.  It’s why He came.  To save us from our sins.

Now, many people believe that evil is so ingrained in who we are as human beings that it can’t simply be laid aside for better things.  Some fear that if they let go of the mistakes they have made, they may lose their identity, or their drive to succeed.  Others are so blinded by the lies they have accepted about themselves, either lies that they told or lies that were told about them, that they are no longer looking for a better life.  And some are so challenged by the physical presence of the enemy in their body in the form of disease, pain, and suffering that they no longer see the opportunity for healing, they no longer are believing for salvation.  And it is at these times that Jesus comes to us like a baby — innocent, hopeful, full of joy and expectation, sure of the possibilities, and ready to see what it takes to accomplish His plan which is our salvation.  He will not be discouraged.  He will not be refused.  He just looks at us with that peace of confidence, that calm of expectation, and that passionate intensity born of the excitement for what this day will bring.  He looks at us with love and offers us His hand.  Ready to help us up.  Ready to work with us side by side — guiding, teaching, directing, showing.  Stepping in for the hard parts to demonstrate how we can follow His example, and then stepping back to let us try for ourselves.  We worship an awesome God.  Patient and kind, always constructive, and passionately invested in our success.  His purpose is clear.  His vision is eternal.  And He will not rest until He accomplishes His desire to bless us.  Because that is what Christmas is all about.  That is the goal of salvation.  Our God is reaching out to us to share His abundance with those who don’t have as much as He does.  He is using His strength to lift us, His wisdom to guide us, His love to support us, His touch to heal us, His wealth to provide for us, the list goes on.  His plan is to use everything that He has and everything that He is, to provide for and bless everyone He can.  And this is the message of Christmas — Jesus came for you.  His blessings are ready for you.  His salvation is planned for you.  His birth in the manger was planned for you.

As you celebrate the holidays this year, consider what Christ’s purpose may be for you.  Think about what blessings may be in store for you.  Open your mind to the possibility of salvation from even your most challenging and personal sins.  Let go of whatever is holding you back from your best life now, and step out in faith to embrace the abundant blessings of joy, peace, health, fulfillment and prosperity that Jesus has been planning for you since before He was born.  This can be your Christmas to experience the miracle of salvation.  You can be saved.  No matter your history.  No matter your heredity.  No matter your situation, Jesus Christ was born for you.  Jesus Christ came to earth with one thing in mind, and that was saving you.  He is ready.  He is able.  All He is asking for is the opportunity to show you what He can do for you, how much better your life can be with Him as a key player.  Will you take this moment to tell Him that you want a Christmas miracle?  Will you speak up right now and tell Him that you want Him to be part of your life?  Take the time.  Share your heart with your savior.  Open your life to your God.  And He will take you places that you’ve never even believed possible.  Give Him the chance and He will bless you, restore you, heal you, and provide for you. All you have to do is ask.

A God-Given Destiny

Posted: December 17, 2011 in What We Believe
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You have a purpose.  You have a God-given destiny.  Believe it?

The enemy would have you believe that you’re nothing special — that life is some combination of chance, circumstance, and heredity.  But God has so much more for you.  God has blessings, opportunities, promises, and a destiny that He has been planning to give you since He first decided to create you.  It’s like He said to the prophet Jeremiah,

“Before I formed you in your mother’s womb, I knew you.  Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you” – Jeremiah 1:5

Each of us is unique.  Each of us is a gift.  Each of us is set apart and appointed.  Each of us is chosen.  Each of us has a destiny.  God identified you before you were born, He gifted you with exactly what you need to pursue the opportunities He is opening before you. He appointed you for a significant purpose. He selected you specifically because of who you are.  It is your God-given destiny to take your life to the next level, to accomplish something of meaning, to make this world a better place because you have been a part of it.

Now, the enemy would like us to believe that we are evil, corrupted, beyond repair, and that change is near to impossible.  But the good news is that this is not how God sees us.  God created us.  God knows us with all our strengths and weaknesses.  He sees all of our potential and the challenges that stand in our way.  God knows our history, our heredity, and our circumstances and still His plans for us are to bless us, to lift us up to new levels of joy, fulfillment, peace, and prosperity.  He sees everything that is happening in our lives and He specifically tailors blessings, opportunities, and promises for us so that we can come to enjoy everything that He has been preparing for us. He is constantly moving in ways seen and unseen to provide new and improved relationships, more accessible resources, better connections, greater opportunity, richer health, fuller knowledge, deeper wisdom, clearer vision, and ever-increasing levels of success.

To embrace our God-given destiny, we must believe and embrace the fact that God is good, He is a very persistent giver, and He has promised to bless us because He loves us.   We must refuse to believe the lies of the enemy that would tell us that God is distant, not concerned with our lives, or not invested in our success.  We must reject the voices that would say that we are trapped, entrenched, confirmed, or limited by our past, by our traditional ways of thinking, by our family history, by our heredity, or by our circumstances.  Because, as we step out in faith to engage with the reality of the goodness of Jesus Christ, our God, we will discover that His plans for us are better than we have even dreamed of, His ability to reach into our lives and lift us up to new levels of well-being and success is not limited, and His willingness to bless us is not constrained to just the few areas in our lives that we think about as “spiritual”, because His work with us is all-encompassing, reaching into every area and aspect of our lives to bless us, to lift us up, and to strengthen us so that we can accomplish great things.  God is ready to take your life to the next level.  Are you?

 

 

Born of the Spirit

Posted: November 28, 2011 in What We Believe
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Being born again, being born of the spirit, is the central calling in every believer’s life.  Whether you are a pastor or a musician, a business executive or a garbage collector — no matter your profession or position in life your primary purpose on this earth is to be born again.  When Nicodemus, a teacher and leader in the church, was astonished by Jesus suggesting that people could be born a second time, Jesus explained that being born again was required in order to be a part of the kingdom of God, and to explain why this is, He went on to say,

“The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it is coming from, or where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the spirit” – John 3:8

Everyone who is born of the spirit, everyone who is born again lives life at a new level of awareness and is able to accomplish things that others may only understand in the most limited way.  People can see that believers are different.  Believers are able to achieve success, happiness, peace, fulfillment, and that kind of radical inner joy that cannot be compromised by what is happening around them.  However, without being born again themselves, non-believers simply can’t figure out where this level of purpose, dedication, commitment, faith, and vision are coming from or where they are going.  In other words, they can see that something is working for those who are born again, but they aren’t sure why and they aren’t sure if it is just a coincidence or if there is actually a permanent improvement in the lives of those who follow Christ and accept His teaching.

So, which side of the line do you find yourself on today?  Have you committed your life to Christ?  Have you embraced the opportunity to change your life for the better both now and forever?  Are you living your best life now?  Experiencing all the blessings that God has in store for you?  Or are you finding it hard to commit?  Are you unsure what to commit to?  Do you think you have committed but you haven’t seen any results?  Did you commit to something a while ago, but haven’t really done anything about it since?

Here’s the secret to every believer’s success — Jesus offers answers to life’s questions that require complete commitment.  You can’t be “sort of” Christian any more than you can be “sort of” born.  Either you have been born again or you have not.  It’s a commitment.  It’s a permanent change.  And like any commitment, you only reap the benefits if you are actually, fully, 100% dedicated, with no compromise.  It’s like marriage, you can’t be “sort of” married, and people who try to be discover that it is not fulfilling, successful, or joyful.  The fact is, the only way to discover the full benefits of marriage is to be 100% committed to your spouse and to God without looking back, and expecting the same of them.  And its like that with life as well. Too many people try to live life without any intention of following through.  Trying to find some sort of safe middle road that doesn’t offend anyone too badly, that seems reasonable and acceptable to most people, and that doesn’t require any significant change to how they see the world or live their lives.  They may “commit their life to Christ” in the same way that some people try “a starter marriage” before they get to the real thing.  But the tragedy is, for those who lack commitment and an understanding of the life of faith, their experience as a believer will only be limited and will likely end in disappointment, just like those who believe in starter marriages condemn themselves to the tragedy and heartache of a breakup.  Being born again is kind of like marriage, a lot of people focus on the wedding and expect the rest to just happen on its own, when, in fact, the wedding itself is only significant because it marks the beginning of the marriage.  It’s like life, while it is extremely significant that you were born, it is perhaps more relevant that you are alive.

When Jesus explained that every person must be born again in order to enter the kingdom of God, He was revealing that every life has the opportunity to experience a complete overhaul, a revolutionary change for the better that takes us to a new level of understanding, a new level of vision, a new level of decision making, a new level of accomplishment, success, fulfillment, peace, happiness, the list goes on.  The benefits of being born again are limitless and eternal, and to get them started in your own life, all it requires is a commitment without compromise.  A choice that will require every day of your life for as long as you live.  A decision that will determine your bedrock, your foundation, your direction, and your destiny.  You can’t go halfway.  It’s all or nothing and it will take everything you’ve got.  Look at your life today.  Choose today, and today could be your spiritual birthday, the first day of the rest of your life.  If this is what you want, then tell Jesus today,

“I want to be a Christian.  I commit my life, my thoughts, my stuff, and my heart to you.  Everything that I have and that I am are yours.  You are the only God for me.  From now on, I want to see what you see, I want to know what you know, I want to love who you love, I want to do what you do.  Nothing will stop me this time.  No weapon formed against me will prosper.  No distraction, obstacle, or challenge will take me away from you.  No doubt will turn me from my purpose to seek and to accomplish your will.  I know and I believe that you have great things in store for me.  I’m yours Lord, save me.”

If you prayed that prayer, than you have been born again.  Get in a good, Bible-based church, and get ready to experience all of the promises that God has in store.  He is going to take you places that you’ve never even dreamed of.

Market Driven Churches

Posted: May 25, 2011 in What We Believe
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God’s answers are always simple. God’s answers always work.

At the heart of every living church is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the vibrant and vital creator, the savior who is eager to improve the lives of those around Him – and who is looking for those who will be His friends, His allies, His ambassadors, His network, His hands and His feet – walking this world with Him, receiving and bringing His blessings to all they can reach. People who make this world a better place because they have lived in it. People who don’t hesitate to make the kingdoms of this world into the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ.

The purpose of a church is the same as the purpose of a person – to accomplish the will of God. Not because He asks. Not because He commands. Not because we feel compelled by a sense of duty. We were created to accomplish the will of God simply because it is the path of the greatest blessings that our creator has promised to give us and that need only be accepted to be received. The fact is, God’s will provides the best possible outcome in every situation. Anything short of God’s will is short of the best. And God wishes the best for every person He creates. And so it is that God wills that we receive and rejoice in the blessings He has in store for us, not for the sake of His own glory or reputation, but because He loves us deeply, passionately, individually, and intently – and so He rejoices in our successes, happiness, peace, and contentment.

So, when it comes to churches, what is that key element that causes some to succeed where so many fail?

The answer is salvation. Successful churches are those where people find salvation – actual salvation. It’s not about doctrine. It’s not about ritual. It’s not about facilities or choice of music. It’s not about good systems or a Sunday school program. It’s about reaching into the actual lives of actual people and making them better because you were a part of them. It’s about healing the broken and the sick, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the lonely and the imprisoned, rehabilitating the addicts and the convicts, and so much more. It’s about salvation. Not a some day, some where, theoretical or allegorical pursuit of heaven after death, but a right here, right now, unequivocal difference that occurs when someone experiences the presence and the power of God to change lives, to conquer, to overcome, to raise up, and to heal. Salvation. It’s not a theological construct. It’s lives that will never be the same again. It’s the unquestionable fact of the new life that is possible for those who are born again. And it is this vital power of the presence of God moving on, in, and through the lives of believers that makes living churches thrive.

The challenge to every church is to have the honesty, strength, and integrity to see the opportunities all around them to receive God’s blessings. “But,” you may say, “why does it take honesty, strength, and integrity to receive a blessing?” Because within every blessing is the motivation and the opportunity to understand yourself more clearly and to be a blessing to someone else more effectively.

So, when the question arises, “Should churches be market-driven?” maybe the question that should be asked instead is “Why would any church refuse to serve the markets they find themselves in?”

The purpose of the church is salvation. So let’s learn everything there is to know about the markets we serve. Let’s find the best way to reach them. Let’s take this opportunity to make the world a better place because we’ve lived. Let’s make this world into the kingdom of Jesus Christ.

God’s Will is Perfect. God’s Will Be Done.

Posted: November 14, 2009 in What We Believe
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Trust JesusAt the heart of every conversation with God is the opportunity to know His will.

And at the heart of God’s will is infinite love for you, and a passionate, persistent, dedicated, and instense drive to bless you.

When God’s will is accomplished, its results are amazing.  This is because God knows you and everyone else so well that He can provide for the best outcomes in every situation.  And that is what He wants to do.  He is the giver.  He is the provider.  He is the creator.  His will has no limits and His vision sees every possibility.  His willingness to invest in you is unlimited and His readiness to commit to your success is always immediate.  But for all the omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, and everything that God brings to His side of your relationship with Him, there are still limits you can place on God’s will being done.  Your willingness to believe and readiness to receive the blessings He is so urgently working to give you and the answers He provides for you — can open the door to radical blessings, or can stand in the way of achieving success and fulfillment.

The choice is yours.

And don’t forget.  This is not a one time offer.  This is not a limited time deal.  This is not a use it or lose it proposition.  This is forever and always.  This is the will of the creator and sustainer of the universe.  This is the opportunity of a lifetime for a lifetime — it never expires. His offer is perpetual.  His patience is infinite.  And you can say no every day, every time you think of it and still He won’t withdraw His offer.  You can buy the competitor’s product.  You can even sell the competitor’s product. You can do every contrary, dysfunctional, twisted, and evil thing you can think of and still God will be looking for the next opportunity to work with you and accomplish His will for your life.  Because God is playing for keeps.  His purposes are eternal and He always goes the distance with every person He creates.  God never gives up. And while He consistently respects your boundaries, and refuses to invade your space, His blessings will chase you down and overtake you when you aren’t expecting it.  He will surprise and delight you even if you only give Him the smallest opening.  And once you open the door, even ever so slightly, God is going to start bringing everything He has and handing it over to you. The blessings may come faster than you notice them or more subtly than you can resist them at first.  But open your eyes and you will see that every time you listen, every time you look, every time you step out in faith — God is right there ready to hand you the victory, bring you the success, give you the answers, and fulfill the dreams of your heart that you never believed possible before.

God is not going to give up. God is a very persistent giver.  He is going to take every opportunity to show you the value of His will, to demonstrate the quality of His blessings, and to send His gifts in such abundance that sooner or later you will take notice.  Don’t let this opportunity keep passing you by.  God’s will is perfect, and its perfect for you. Take the time to talk to Him about it. Open yourself up to the fact that His will is worth pursuing not because its His, but because its the best possible outcome in every situation.  And then get ready to receive, because when you give God the permission He will fill your life up to full and overflowing with good things.  He will give you the desires of your heart, and bless you in ways that you haven’t even imagined.  God’s will, will be done.  And that’s the best possible outcome for every situation.

How To Become a Priest

Posted: August 31, 2009 in What We Believe
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Girl in ChurchJesus is ready to empower you with a full and unmediated relationship with Him.  In fact, the only limiting factor in your relationship with Him is your willingness to change, your ability to love, your openess to seeing things from His perspective, and your dedication to knowing and accomplishing His will.  His blessings will chase you down and overcome you if you choose to engage your friendship – your closely held personal, unique, irreplaceable, mutual, and direct relationship with the God of the Universe.  This is what it means to be a priest.  A priest is anyone who commits to the rights and the responsibilities of being a person who knows God.

There was a time when only a few could or did know God.  But when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea all that changed.  God Himself became universally visible for the first time, not just to a select few prophets or wise men, not just to the priests and levites serving in the temple, and more importantly, not just to the few who actually met Jesus in those few years He spent building His ministry, developing a following, and initiating His kingdom on earth to coordinate in harmony with His kingdom in heaven.

“Because you have seen me you have believed.  Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed” – John 20

The key to becoming a priest is establishing an unmediated relationship with Jesus Christ as your only God.  Don’t hide.  Don’t try to enlist someone else to take care of it for you.  Its about you and God.  Its between you and God.  And only you and God can sort it out.

So, to become a priest, here are the basic steps that God has provided, for anyone who desires to find Him:

  1. Take ownership of your life.  Every decision you have made.  Every experience you have lived.  Every thing that has been done to you.  Everything that you have done.  And all of the results both good and bad.  Accept where you are and who you are with complete openness, honesty, and the willingness to see it for what it is. 
  2. Evaluate your decision making based on the results you acheive.  God’s answers always work.  So if the decisions you are making aren’t working, they aren’t God’s will for your life.  Identify where God is already blessing your life and areas where you are still in need of blessing.
  3. Commit your life, your decisions, your property, and your personal identity to Jesus Christ as your only God.  Jesus is God.  Embracing this reality will take your perspectives, your decision making ability, and the results you achieve to places you have not even thought possible before.  And commiting your life to Him changes the way you interact with other people, what you choose to do with the time and resources He provides for you, and at the heart of it all your commitment changes who you are – because by choosing a relationship with Jesus as your only God, you are born again.
  4. Get baptized by full immersion in water in the name of “Jesus Christ”.  Baptism is the physical act of commitment indicating your ordination into the priesthood.  No other names, titles, or aspects of God should be used in the baptism of new believers than “Jesus Christ”.  Although only your own commitment to walk with Christ can make your baptism effective, and so who physically helps you into the water and makes the statement “I baptize you in the name of Jesus Christ”  is of little consequence, the best practice is to be baptized by the believer who introduced you to Jesus as your only God.  This connection through shared experience will provide you with a mentor in the faith, and a fellow disciple to walk with on the path to eternal life.
  5. Take your baptism to the next level.  The baptism in water is your ordination, but your calling is to receive full immersion in the holy spirit and fire.  God’s spirit comes on those who pursue, study, pray for, and accomplish His will.  And as you discover His will, come to understand the actual gospel, and persist in your commitment to staying right in your relationship with Him, exercising your rights as a believer and facing your responsibilities as well — the passion for the salvation of souls, for making the world a better place because you have lived in it, your ability to see God’s will in the present, and receive the persistent blessings God showers on you will rise up like a flame and the power of God’s love will come into you, over you and around you — and through you into all those you reach.
  6. Make disciples.  It is the first and most important responsibility of every believer to introduce others to God.  As a priest you are a disciple, a follower and servant of Jesus Christ.  It is your job to make more disciples, not for yourself, but for God.  You may not be the first or the last person to introduce them.  They may not be ready to hear, or they may have deep seated rejection of God in their hearts.  But you make sure the witness of your life, and the testimony of your words accurately reflect, embody, and convey your relationship with Jesus Christ as your only God. 
  7. Live with integrity.  One of the best measures of your own faith, is observing how consistent you are.  God is completely consistent and so has perfect integrity.  Evil, on the other hand is completely inconsistent and lacks all integrity.  God’s vision for your life is to bless every single thing you think, say, and do.  Every word you speak.  Every decision you make.  Every task you take on.  Everything.  Everything you choose to do either empowers the presence of God on earth, or limits His ability to bless you and those around you. 
  8. Engage reality and so change it.  Don’t get bogged down in your mistakes, overcome them.  The only unforgiveable sin is one that you won’t face or for which you don’t want forgiveness.  God doesn’t hold mistakes against you, but there is nothing He can do if you don’t accept reality and choose to change it.  Our God is bigger than every challenge you face today.  And there is nothing you can do that will turn Him off of His desire to work with you.  God is a very persistent giver.  Accept the goodness of God, not because you believe you deserve it, but because you know that He wants to give it to you.  Every time you fall, get up.  Every time you stumble, take one more step.  Focus your life on discovering and accomplishing God’s will, not on reliving the past.  Every moment is a new opportunity to engage reality and so to change it.  Take that opporunity.

God isn’t holding anything back in His relationship with you.  His will always provides the best possible outcome in every situation.  And so as you embrace the reality of His will for you, you will be perfected not just individually in your relationship with Him, but also collectively with all other believers as we all work together in becoming the living body of Christ. 

Are you ready?  Then pray this prayer, “Lord Jesus, I accept who I am, I understand where I have been, and I repent of my sins.  Right here, right now, I commit the rest of my life to you.  Come into my heart.  I make you my one and only God.  Save me.  Amen.”

If you prayed that prayer, I believe you were born again.  Get baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, pursue and accomplish His will, and get ready to accept the blessings and the promises of God that will chase you down and overcome you now that you are a priest and a believer, a disciple of the one true God and eternal life, Jesus Christ.

God Created You For Eternal Life

Posted: July 25, 2009 in What We Believe
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Happy Healthy Smiling ChildGod is a very persistent giver. He is so persistent, in fact, that He wants to give you everything that He has.  This list is limitless and reaches beyond our biggest dreams and most expansive thoughts because God is both infinite and eternal. So when He promises to give us everything that He has, only limited by how much we want, that doesn’t just mean some goodness or some mercy — it means He wants to give us everything.

God’s promises make clear that He works everyday to give us things like,

Happiness.  Joy.  Peace.  Abundance.  Wisdom.  Increase.  Love.  Vitality.  Effectiveness.  Influence.  Insight.  Creativity.  Empowerment.  Opportunity.  Justice.  Relationships.  Friendship.

And — Eternal Life.

When faced with our own mortality, we can feel small in comparison to God’s immortality, until we realize that His immortality is on the list.  Not only does God want to give us all the good things this temporary life has to offer, God wants to give us His immortality as well.

You were not created to live for just a short time.  You were not created to exist and then pass away.  God created you to live forever.

That is why, when He explained His personal investment strategy to His disciples, He advised them,

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth…store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.  - Matthew 6:19-21

God wants to work with you to provide you with lasting health, lasting wealth, and lasting life.  God wants to invest in you in ways that will provide permanent, eternal returns. God is not in it just for the short term.  God’s perspective is eternity.  God’s will for you is to continue providing His blessings in ever increasing abundance for the rest of your life, which is the rest of eternity.

When we die, we rise.

Perhaps the single greatest witness of Jesus’ life, was His death.  It wasn’t a matter of opinion.  It wasn’t a theological argument or a healing miracle like He had done during His life.  It wasn’t just a conflict between men and God over religion and government and the matters of this life.  It wasn’t a philosophical point of contention over the nature of His kingdom, whether it was of this world or not.  At the end of the day, everyone observing the execution was sure of one thing, Jesus Christ was finished. His followers fled to their own homes and returned to their lives as best they could.  The leadership and those who had worked so hard to kill him, had some remaining worries about what might happen if stories started circulating that might make His influence after His death greater than it had been before.  But no one doubted the fact that Jesus was dead.

Jesus’ death was His final testimony to who He actually is.  It was the living witness of His power and identity.  Because on that third day following His death, the lifeless, bloodied, and pierced body of Christ rose under His own power, walked out of the tomb, and ascended to heaven — showing us the way.

This was not just a man.  Jesus Christ rose because He is the one true God and eternal life.

When we embrace Jesus Christ as our one and only God, when we choose to walk in His footsteps and embrace His will for our lives, when we first obey His commands and so become His friends.  Then when our lifeless bodies are laid to rest in the tomb, we too will rise under His power, walk out of our tombs, and ascend to live forever in heaven just like He showed us we could.

We do not worship a God of the dead, but of the living.  You were created to live forever — its just a matter of you wanting to.

God Guarantees Resolution

Posted: July 11, 2009 in What We Believe
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Excellent Experience SurveyWhen soldiers return from a mission it is standard practice for them to be debriefed on the events and accomplishments of their time in the field.  This is not just for the sake of intelligence gathering, it is also a tool to bring something of resolution to the soldiers for what they faced in battle.  The same is true for soldiers returning from war with emotional damage and psychological scars, the standard treatment for post traumatic stress disorder includes providing a rational context to find handles for the emotions, memories, and life experiences of that soldier at war so that they can achieve some resolution and to some degree put it behind them and so better reintegrate into civilian life and reconnect with the people they love.

Re-engaging the past, re-evaluating our memories, and awakening the emotions, images, and experiences of situations that were left unresolved for us, is a requirement for finding peace not just in the case of soldiers returning from war, but in all of our lives when we face things that are beyond our ability to process in the moment we experience them. Things that are beyond our emotional depth and outside of our rational comprehension. Its what some people call baggage.  Everything that we have pushed off or stuffed down for some other day.  All that we have left to be dealt with eventually, but we just don’t want to face yet.  For all this unresolved, incomplete, unprocessed junk – God promises us resolution.

When we really engage reality it is both challenging and encouraging. It means that we will have conflict, discomfort, and personal change.  But it also means that we can achieve real results. We can make lasting improvements to our relationships, we can turn past failures into future successes, and we can receive blessings and restoration in areas of our lives where we have learned to expect curses and damage.

Like soldiers facing life and death on the battle field, we face our successes and failures every day and deal with them in the moment as best we can.  But we need to know that nothing has to be left for the someday, somewhere bucket when it comes to towing around our baggage.  God’s promises are clear.  God gives us the opportunity to put down our baggage. And that opportunity starts with prayer.

Prayer is our opportunity to debrief with God. Tell Him what you know about the situation that left you holding the bag, what you did, what others did, what results you achieved, and why you feel like something was left undone or done wrong.  Be specific.  Be honest.  Be completely open.  Don’t try to be politically correct.  Don’t try to sound holy or right.  Don’t take sides or try to sound like the hero.  Don’t beat around the bush.  And most of all, don’t you be the judge.  Put it squarely on His shoulders to show you the right and the wrong.  Let God provide you with the solution.

God answers all prayers. Often even as we are speaking we know deep down in our soul what He is telling us.  Sometimes, like Samuel in the Bible, we don’t really hear God the first time and so He has to repeat Himself several times until we realize who it is that’s talking.  And like any relationship, as we get to know God better, we get to understand how He talks and what He says better as well.  At first we may project a lot of our own thinking on God, or our expectations might color our understanding of what He says.  But as we become friends and we start to see more and more of who God is, our expectations change, and our willingness to accept Him for who He is takes our conversations to a whole new level.  Because it is when we talk to God, and hear His Word for our lives, that we are able to find the resolution that He promises for every moment of our lives from now to eternity.

God has promised us resolution and restoration.  God knows every moment of your life and the lives of all the people around you.  And although I cannot tell you the specific solutions to each bag on your luggage cart, I know the one who can.  Talk to God, to Jesus Christ Himself, and He will take your baggage piece by piece and show you what you can do with it.

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

God’s Answers Always Work

Posted: May 18, 2008 in What We Believe
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God’s answers are always simple. God’s answers always work.

So, if the answers you are using don’t work, they aren’t God’s.

That’s what Jesus was saying when He said,

“I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE”  - John 14:6

He could have said, “I am the Lord, the Master, and the Teacher” or “I am the Highest Priest, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords.”  All of which certainly is true, but it wasn’t what mattered to Him.  What mattered to Jesus was letting us know that He always has the answers for us, He always wants to give us those answers, and His answers always work.  He is right here, right now, ready to save.

Salvation is not about someday, somewhere.  God’s answers aren’t for tomorrow and they weren’t intended for someone else.  God has answers for you right now.  He has been with you since He created you, and He knows you better than you even know yourself.  If you feel bad about stuff that you have done, if you have seen the damage that you caused to yourself or others, or problems that really are your fault — or worse, if you have been abused, repressed, or hurt by the people or circumstances of your life, do not be afraid.  God knows you.  Success and HappinessHe knows your history.  And He has been working behind the scenes to take care of you, to bless you, and to lift you up.  He has been spending every moment of every day of your entire life to save you.  That’s what matters to God.  Results are what matter to God.  And when He hasn’t been able to achieve His will for your life, when things haven’t turned out well for you and His blessings have been made of no effect in your life, He is frustrated, He is hurt, He is sad because He loves you — deeply, passionately, and completely.  He wants what is best for you in every situation and He will use everything He has to bless you.  That is His will.

An amazing fact about God being infinite is that infinite is infinitely divisible.  That means that God can give everything that He has to every person in creation, every moment of every day forever.  What God wants to do for us is beyond what we can even imagine.  He wants to give us everything that He is, and all that He has.  That’s what salvation is — receiving the free gifts that God wants to give us because He loves us.  So don’t get hung up on trying to deserve it.  Don’t think that you have to do anything to be worth God’s time.  Because you already matter completely 100% to God.  Asking God to think of you, spend time with you, or take care of you, is asking for something that God already promised to give you, has already been doing His best to give you, and is at the moment you ask already offering once again to give you.

God is a very persistent giver. We may turn Him down. We might not notice Him. We might be prevented from accepting what He offers.  It doesn’t matter why we haven’t received His will for our lives.  God is ready right now for you to reach out and take what He has prepared for you, what He wants to give you — His blessings, His success, His health, His strength, His victory, His answers.  It’s all yours if you want it, because you are a child of God, a unique and priceless original creation – and God is trying to give you everything that He has, and that’s everything.

God is ready to give you the answers you need.  He wants to show you the way to receive His blessings.  He is ready to discuss your history and set a new course that will bring your life to a whole new level. God is not afraid of the dark side of your life because He is the light of life.  There is no challenge to hard and no obstacle too big for God.  And no matter where you are coming from or what has happened in your life, He is working to bless you.

There is a story of a man who asked God why so many bad things happen in the world.  And God took him up into heaven and showed him a great warehouse, far larger than any we have here on earth.  God took him inside and showed him aisle upon aisle, row upon row, rack upon rack, miles and miles of every good thing the man had ever dreamed of.  The man was amazed and asked God why He hadn’t given this stuff when it was needed most.  At this God was saddened and pointed out to the man that every container had the same tag on it.  The man, who hadn’t noticed this, took a closer look and sure enough every box, bag, and jar had the same card dangling from a string, that simply read, “Not asked for.”

What are you asking God for today?  Could you be asking for more?  If you are asking for enough food to feed your family, its time to start believing for enough not just for your family but for another family as well.  If you are asking for a job, its time to start believing for a career.  If you are asking for the ability to put up with a health problem, its time to start believing for restoration to a healthy body.  If you are asking for the ability to pay back your debts, its time to start believing that God wants to pay you back double for everything that you have lost.  God is a very persistent giver.  No matter what you are asking, it’s time to take the limits off cooperating with God.  He is ready to give you the answers you need.  He is ready to take His relationship with you to the next level.  He is ready to be a part of the conversation of your life.  He is ready to provide not just everything you need, not just everything your heart desires, but more than you have ever dreamed of.  God is ready to give you everything that He has to give, and that is everything.  

So ask yourself, “how well do my answers work?”  Because God’s answers always work.

You Are A Priest

Posted: October 14, 2007 in What We Believe
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He Wants YouThe word “Ordain” means to officially “select” or “choose”.

By this logic, business owners and managers ordain employees every day.  Every four years the United States ordains a President.  And many communities, from local churches, to neighborhood associations, to non-profits, and businesses ordain leaders to support and direct their purposes.

But more importantly, today and every day, Jesus ordains you.  He has officially chosen you.  You were hand picked.  He didn’t just ask for anybody.  He is asking for you.  In fact, He asked me to find you.  And now I have.

It’s amazing to me that He would ask ME to find you.  Who am I?  Why would He choose ME?  Simple.  He chose me because I could reach you and He needs the specific gifts, abilities, and skill sets that you bring to the table.  Your resume matches a job description He is looking to fill in His kingdom.  So if you are available, He chooses you.  Let Him know your interest in the position as soon as possible and He’ll set up a meeting to go over what you can do for His kingdom.  And just so you know, there really isn’t much competition for your position in His kingdom, because you are indispensibly unique and valuable to His mission and purpose.  So please consider accepting this ordination.  Jesus wants you.

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