"Exposed," Part 2 of "The Measuring Stick"

In part one of "The Measuring Stick," I talked about how we become conscious of our sin by observing God's laws. These laws are not set in place to make us righteous and to help us obtain our membership card for God's goodie-tooshoo's club, but rather they are a confirmation of our relationship with Him and they hold us to a higher standard of living.

In part two, "Exposed," I want to focus on the result of living with this higher standard. By measuring your life with Christ Jesus as your standard, your measuring stick, you will be able to live the life He has called you to live. When you measure your life against the measuring stick of culture, you will always fall short of leaving your mark on this world. In fact, following culture could lead to a life of sin, and this sinful lifestyle will make you fearful of being "exposed"

Take a look at John 3:19-21 (NIV)

19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

You know what rats do when you turn the light on in a room? They scamper, they high tail it out of the room as quickly as possible for the fear of being exposed. That is what happens to us when we don't hold ourselves accountable to living as Christ and reflecting The Image of God. We become rats and fall into sin because we say, "Everyone else is doing it." Or we rationalize and think that the only way to get ahead in business is to cheat, the only way to become popular is to have sex and get drunk on the weekends. When this happens, we hate the light, and will not come into the light for fear that our deeds will be exposed.

Follow Christ and His Teachings, allow Him to be your measuring stick and constantly compare your life with His. By doing so you will be able to live the life that honors God and you will be able to give Him the Glory that He is due...Welcome the light and Glorify God!

21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."

"Conscious" - Part 1 of "The Measuring Stick"

How do you know how tall you are? My guess is that you probably pull out a measuring stick and compare it to some standard, something that will allow you to become conscious of your height.

What about hard work? How do you know what work is? I bet it is because you know what rest is....what about pain? The reason you have a knowledge of what pain feels like is because you have the capacity to experience pleasure...

Up, Down, Left, Right.....Cold, Hot....Victory and Defeat....we have the knowledge to discern the differences in life because we have standards and these standards expose differences and allow us to be conscious of who we are and what we experience...

So let me ask you another question. What is your measuring stick? Who or what do you compare your life with in order to know whether or not you are living up to a higher standard or hiding in a life of mediocrity and sin?

Allow me to let Scripture answer this question.....see Romans 3:20 (NIV)

Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin

You see, we are called to a higher standard of living as we read God's inspired word to us through Romans 3:20. He is telling us that the law does not exist so that we can join the 'righteous club' and get a cool sticker that says we are righteous because we follow laws..

Instead, God has established the law in order for us to make comparisons, just like hot versus cold, in our life of righteous living versus sinful living...through His laws, our sin is exposed because we have a measuring stick that shows us how to become conscious of our mediocre and sinful lifestyle....

Andy Stanley explains it like this, "God did not establish laws as conditions for a relationship with Him, but rather a confirmation of a relationship with Him." We don't follow His laws in order to be accepted into The Kingdom of God, instead, we have laws that confirm our relationship with Him because He wants the best for us and calls us to a higher standard of living!

Imagine if you are a parent. You don't establish rules for your kids so that they will follow them, and IF they follow them, then and then only will you love them...NO, you establish rules for them because you hold them accountable to certain standards and these rules provide a framework that exposes them and makes them conscious of where they are falling short.

Here is a very important point we must make with all of this. Andy Stanley again explains it beautifully. He says, "Rules without Relationship Leads to Rebellion." Friends, we must establish Relationships with those we love, with our family, our co-workers, our employees, our teams and students, because without relationships, our rules will be lead to rebellion. Without relationships, rules become something that people follow out of spite instead of out of love, but when you have a loving and intense relationship with others, you want to follow rules because you love the ones who establish them and you understand that they are in place in order to create an ethos for Glorifying God!

Hot or Cold. Culture or Christ. What is your measuring stick. I want mine to be Jesus Christ. If I model my life after Him instead of culture, and if I allow God's laws to show me where I am falling short of His calling, then I will always be called to a higher standard......Join me in becoming conscious of how God wants us to live. Establish a relationship with Him. His Higher Calling will keep you and me from falling short!

Check into Part 2 of this series, "The Measuring Stick" called "Exposure" and you will want to step into the light instead of hiding in fear of being exposed

Everything you ever need to know...

"For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." (Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:2;NIV)

If you are reading this right now, you are most likely on the internet (unless you printed it off...but then again, you had to get online in order to print it). Do you enjoy the internet? I do! One can find out so much information on the "information highway"! I love information. We live in an information world. We can know so much about so much! However, I am about to tell you everything you will ever need to know in one sentence. Here it is: "Jesus Christ and Him crucified."

Jesus Christ and Him crucified is what, rather, WHO you need to know in life. If you know Jesus Christ and what He did that Friday on the Cross for us, that's really all you will ever need to know!

Sure, there are other things we need to be smart about and learn how to do. We need to know practical things, etc. But all that information is garbage unless we know Jesus Christ and the Cross that He bore!

Do you want to know how to be a better husband? Get to know Jesus Christ and His death on the Cross.

Do you want seven steps on better finances? I'll give you one step,not seven: Jesus Christ and His Cross!!!

How about how to win friends and influence people? Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Reduce stress and find joy/peace? JESUS CHRIST and HIM CRUCIFIED!

You see, 4 ways to raise your kids...3 ways to become a better listener are all good and very beneficial. But above all, life is knowing Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
That's all Paul wanted to know and wanted to preach about (1 Corinthians 1:23;2:2)!

The more you know God's Son and His sacrifice, the more you will know about life, marriage, finances, parenthood, purpose, love, humility, courage, health, careers,college, friendships, dating, purity, thought life, prayer life, Scripture study, etc. The more you know and love Jesus...the more you will know and love your wife, husband, friend, stranger. The more you and I are crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20), the more we will live! "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:21)!"

You see, life is about self-giving. That is what Jesus and Him Crucified is all about...not just giving away 'some' of yourself but ALL of YOURSELF! Jesus gave everything He was and everything He had because He loved His Father and us. Want to be a better husband or wife? Give yourself away completely to your God and to your spouse? Want to be a better employee or friend? Give yourself away entirely. Give yourself away. Lay down your life for another! That is what your life and my life is all about. It's what our Savior's life was all about. It is what Paul's life was all about!

Resolve, like Paul, to know NOTHING in this information exploded world but JESUS CHRIST and HIM CRUCIFIED! I've come to realize, we may know a lot of things...we can "google" all we want to...but until we know the Man who was murdered on a piece of wood one Friday afternoon, we know nothing.

The Affection of Christ Jesus

" God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus." (Paul to the Philippians, 1:8; NIV)

I just read my twin bro’s blog titled, ""When you come looking for Me, you'll find Me!" WOW! An AMAZING and LIFE CHANGING blog post and if you will pray through it, you will find God…He’ll even FIND YOU! Can you think of anything more life changing than that? I can’t…so get to it!

I had in mind to write a blog on suffering for Jesus tonight. I am thinking about titling it, “Chains for Christ” based off of Philippians 1:13 and some other verses in Acts that the Holy Spirit is going to use to “kung fu” you and me into action with. However, I came looking for God…I found Him and He found me in my prayer tonight. That being said, my blog post is not going to be about “Chains for Christ” but “The Affection of Christ Jesus.”

You see…I have been reading and re-reading, praying and re-praying through Philippians these past few days. Not only that, God has been reading me! He pierced my heart tonight with a love arrow for Him and for my family. I want to love the Triune God and my family with the affection of Christ Jesus.

I want the affection of Christ Jesus for God the Father and God the Spirit. I want the affection of God the Father and God the Spirit for Christ Jesus! I want to long for them! I want the affection of Christ Jesus for my beautiful wife and my precious daughter. They are what the promise of God looks like…literally! I want the affection of Christ Jesus for my mom and my dad…for my older bro and my twin bro…for my older bro’s soon-to-be wife and her children…for my mother-in-law and my father-in-law…for my brother-in-law and for his girlfriend. They are what God’s beauty looks like…literally!

I cry out to God for the affection of Christ Jesus! Paul had it…that’s why he prayed for the Philippians and thanked God every time he remembered them. He prayed with joy because of their partnership in the Gospel. He was confident that God, who began a good work in his brothers and sisters, would carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. He even goes on to say that it was right for him to feel that way about them! Why? I will let Paul answer for himself, “…Since I have you in my heart.” (Philippians 1:7)

Is God in your heart? Is your family in your heart? Are they in your heart with the affection of Christ Jesus? Can God testify to that (1:8)? The affection of Christ Jesus, in a nutshell, will cause you and me to die for the Gospel and to lay down our lives for our families! There is really NO OTHER way to love or to live.

Fill in the blank prayer for you: "Father, give me the Affection of Jesus Christ for_______________! In the Affectionate One, Jesus my Savior, Amen!

"When you come looking for me, you'll find me"

Guten Tag everyone, I decided to say 'Good Day' in German. Why? Because I thought it sounded cool! Yea, anyway, let's get back to Part 2 of our 2 part series discussing the difference between Seeking or ignoring God....

In Part 1, ("I've Reached Out To You, But You've Ignored Me.") I let Scripture speak for itself. The Passage from Proverbs showed that the reason we may not hear God's voice is because it could be that we are choosing to ignore Him...

Here in part 2, I want to allow Scripture to powerfully speak to you again as I point out verses and passages of God's inspired Word that show us how Seeking Him will Rock our world!

1. Read Jeff's Man...I don't know what I would do without... It is so rich and full of Scripture and Teaching that you will want to crave Seeking God!

2. Jeremiah 29.12-14 (MSG)

12"When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen. 13-14"When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." God's Decree. "I'll turn things around for you (Emphasis Added).

3. Psalm 91.14-16 (MSG)

14-16 "If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God,
"I'll get you out of any trouble.
I'll give you the best of care
if you'll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I'll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I'll give you a long life,
give you a long drink of salvation!" (Emphasis Added)

Enough said!

Man...I don't know what I would do without...

...without Cable TV...my weekly watching of "24" and "Dancing with the Stars"...without my cell phone..."I've got to have my morning coffee; what would I do without my morning coffee!"

We've all said these kind of things...we all "need" our coffee, our internet; our Oprah; our newspaper, our afternoon listening to Lionel Richie and organic hemp hot chocolate (okay, maybe that's just me on that last one)...we "can't" make it without these "life supports", right! I wonder if we feel the same way about Jesus and His eternal word?

Do we ever catch ourselves saying, "Man, I can't make it today without praying through the Psalms" or "Man, I can't make it today without reading Mark 14:1-11; I have GOT TO find out what Jeremiah says today?" Do we "crave" Jesus and His word?

David did. He prayed in Psalm 27:8, "My heart has heard You say, “Come and talk with Me.” And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming. (NLT)” He says in Psalm 63:1,"God—You're my God! I can't get enough of You! I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God (MSG)." Again, Psalm 119:131 says, "I open my mouth and pant, longing for Your commands."

I know some of us have sprinted home, busted the door open, thrown our bags down, looked recklessly for the TV control (because we can never find it right), and turned on "American Idol" because our favorite performer was about to sing! I can see us now: bent over, hands on our knees, mouth wide open, panting for breath, but with huge excitement, because we got there in time to see what Simon says about our favorite singer!

That's what Psalm 119:131 is a picture of...the Psalmist...mouth wide open, panting for God's word...wanting the Lord and His word more than anything else. We see the sons of Korah doing the same thing in the famous Psalm 42:1, "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?" When was the last time you wanted to "meet" with God so badly that you "thirsted" for Him like a Holiday Gingerbread Latte from Starbucks?

In Mark 2, so many people thirsted for Jesus and His word, 4 guys had serious trouble getting their paralyzed friend into see and hear Him. His friends had to "bust the roof open" to get him to Jesus. Some of us would "bust the roof open" if we couldn't get into our email or find our chapstick (okay, maybe just me again)! These guys said, "Man...I don't know what we're gonna do if we don't get our buddy to Jesus!"

If we go tonight without Grey's Atanomy, what are we gonna do!!! If I don't have my organic agave nectar chocolate ganashe today, what am I gonna do!!! Will we care that much about spending intentional sit down time with Jesus and His word today and this week? Will we "bust the roof" open if we have to in order to see the face of our Savior through the pages of Scripture? It's saying this: I will do whatever I have to do in order to "meet" with God...no matter what my schedule is! Can you and I do without Jesus and His word? "Man, I don't know what I would do without ___________." Does "Jesus and His word" fill in the blank for you?

"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God." (John 6:68-69) (NIV)

"I've Reached Out To You, But You've Ignored Me."

Is God quiet or are you choosing to ignore Him?

In this first part of a 2 part series, I am going to let Scripture, The Word Breathed by God, speak for itself to see if we can help ourselves understand if we are seriously Seeking after God or if maybe the reason we don't hear Him is because we are choosing to ignore Him.

Part 1: Are We Ignoring God?
(Proverbs 1.20-33 MSG; Key verse: 1:24 MSG)
Lady Wisdom 20-21
Lady Wisdom goes out in the street and shouts.
At the town center she makes her speech.
In the middle of the traffic she takes her stand.
At the busiest corner she calls out:

22-24 "Simpletons! How long will you wallow in ignorance?
Cynics! How long will you feed your cynicism?
Idiots! How long will you refuse to learn?
About face! I can revise your life.
Look, I'm ready to pour out my spirit on you;
I'm ready to tell you all I know.
As it is, I've called, but you've turned a deaf ear;
I've reached out to you, but you've ignored me.

25-28 "Since you laugh at my counsel
and make a joke of my advice,
How can I take you seriously?
I'll turn the tables and joke about your troubles!
What if the roof falls in,
and your whole life goes to pieces?
What if catastrophe strikes and there's nothing
to show for your life but rubble and ashes?
You'll need me then. You'll call for me, but don't expect
an answer.
No matter how hard you look, you won't find me.

29-33 "Because you hated Knowledge
and had nothing to do with the Fear-of-God,
Because you wouldn't take my advice
and brushed aside all my offers to train you,
Well, you've made your bed—now lie in it;
you wanted your own way—now, how do you like it?
Don't you see what happens, you simpletons, you idiots?
Carelessness kills; complacency is murder.
First pay attention to me, and then relax.
Now you can take it easy—you're in good hands."

Click for Part 2 "When you come looking for me, you'll find me" to see how God responds when we seek Him with all-out Intensity!

"Give me Jesus"! Do you have Him in your life?

During my face-to-face devotional "wasted" time, I had this prayer after listening to the song titled, "Give me Jesus" and studying Matthew 25:31-46. This is an edited and adapted version. I write or type all my prayers. Here it is. May God "give you Jesus"--

"Lord, thank you for the song, “Give me JESUS”. That is my prayer for my family and for my church. Lord, help us to see Jesus in the hungry child, in the thirsty child, in the old sick lady, in the aids victim, in the poor person begging on the street, in the prisoners, in the naked, in the stranger who has no where to go, in the abnoxious person who annoys us, in the lost, in the one who has no friends and is socially ackward. Lord, I pray give me Jesus.

I will get these people in my life if I get Jesus in my life. I am wondering, how do we answer this question: “Is Jesus in your life; do you have Jesus in your life?” I wonder if Jesus IS IN our life IF the people of Matthew 25:31-46 are NOT in our life. Or, how much of Jesus is in our life if these people are not. Give me Jesus is a prayer of this: give me the poor…give me the needy…give me the sick…give me the naked…give me the prisoners…give me the one that no one else wants to be with…give me the hungry and the thirsty…that’s what Give me Jesus means does not it Lord? If I am wrong or partially right, help me to know. The song says, "In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus. When I am alone, give me Jesus. When I come to die, give me Jesus"….I wonder, in the morning, when I rise, give me the poor. When I am alone, give me the sick. When I come to die, give me the prisoners.

Jesus is a lot. He is all these people…he is prayer…he is the Kingdom of God…He is eternal life…the way the truth and the life…He is God’s SON and the Giver with the Father of the Holy Spirit. He is the Word of God. When we get Jesus or rather when Jesus gets us, we get all these things. I wonder, if we don’t have these things in our life if we EVEN have Jesus at all. What does it mean to have a PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with Jesus if we don’t pray. If don’t read His word. If we don’t have a burden and a weekly ministry to the Matthew 25 people (He said, "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine you did FOR ME (NIV)...(NLT) says "TO ME"-25:40)---IF that's NOT PERSONAL, what is? We are not “follow Me” Christians if we stay behind our walls and watch tv all day.

Make us “follow me” Christians not “inconvienced Christians.” Give my family Jesus for the needy. Give my pastor Jesus for his sermons. Give my school Jesus for teaching. Give my country Jesus for healing. Give our enemies Jesus for reconcilation. Give us Jesus!

Father, you have given us Jesus. I think of the widow in Luke 7:11-17. You gave her Jesus and you gave her her son back. Give me Jesus. You have given us Jesus. For God so loved the world that gave His one and only son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16). In the Name above all Names, this prayer raises above all hopes...to the Father in Heaven, Amen!

Serious about Jesus!

"---the serious living of this faith. I bear in my body scars from my service to Jesus." (Paul-"A Jesus is worth it" Christ Follower-from Galatians 6:17; MSG)

You and I say we are Christ followers. How serious are we about that statement? SERIOUSLY...how serious are you about Jesus, the Son of God, the Crucified and Risen Savior?

Paul was radically, "Jesus is worth it" serious about His Messiah! Today, as in his day, so many people are concerned and wrapped up in how we present ourselves on the "outside". We are so concerned about what everyone thinks about us as if they are gods. We live for the thoughts of people. We have become people pleasers. We want to be impressive. "I've got to be clean cut...tuck your shirt in...don't offend anyone...bla..bla...bla." Paul did not care about that dog manure. That's right, dog MANURE! The greek word is "skubala". Paul refered to it when he said the NIV word, "rubbish" (Philippians 3:8). He considered all things rubbish...dog excrement...skubala, in comparison to knowing Jesus and gaining Christ and being found in Him. Sorry if the word, "excrement", is too strong, too "offensive", not "user-friendly", "politically correct", "nice-boy Christianity", but we've got to start getting serious about Jesus! Christ is worth it!

I'm tired of all the "impressive" talk. I do this...I don't do that...then, on the inside of our souls, we don't pray; we don't read the Scripture; we don't share Jesus in normal conversation...we gossip and criticize...we're not "wasting" our lives on Jesus (Mark 14:1-11)...we're not Matthew 25:31-40 Christians...we skip over Luke 14:26-27... We look so "good" to society on the "outside", but on the "inside" of our homes, we don't love our wives, we neglect our children by letting them watch TV and play video games all day; forget about a family devotional time because we are "too busy" doing something obviously more important than taking care of our children's souls! We even do this on the "inside" of our church walls...which by the way, is where Christians are spending too much time...on the inside! We want to talk "impressive talk"..."We've got this many people coming on Sundays...baptism should be done by sprinkling...I don't think so, baptism should be done by dunking....we're right, you're wrong....we've got contemporary music...don't drink...don't smoke, don't dance...did you see how long his hair was...oh ma gosh....we've got to look "good" for our neighbors or people will not come...let's all be "do-gooders" and "people-pleasers...weeee!" Paul would tell us today...you guys are ridiculous! You are all concerned about looking good outwardly and not doing a darn thing about changing inwardly.

That's what he was telling the people in Galatians 6. They were all wrapped up circumsion. An "outward" mark. They didn't want to be persecuted for the Cross of Christ. Paul did. In fact, he was. Paul said, "You want an "outward" mark"; I'll give you an outward mark...I bear on my body the marks of Jesus (NIV)." Paul was so close...so identified with the Crucified One, that people beat him for it...he had the marks to show (see 2 Corinthians 11:23-29). Paul's readers would have identified these marks with slavery...slaves in the ancient world were sometimes "marked" with the insignia of their master as a sign of identification!

We may not receive marks from beatings like Paul, but have we been clinging so close to Christ that we are truly identified with Him? Are we clinging so close to Jesus, that His Crucified marks have become ours? Or are we more concerned about how nice our hair looks when we walk into our church and into our world? Paul did not care about his shirt being tucked in and freshly starched; He preached and lived to pleased God, not people, and was stoned for it. We need more preachers, more Christ followers like that today. Are we serious enough about bearing Jesus' marks, whatever that may mean for you and me...or have we put our cross' in our closets because it does not match our outfits?

Take a look at this parody...Christian or Christ Follower? You can copy and paste this address into your browser or scroll down and look under our 'Fusion' logo for the actual link for "Christian or Christ Follower?"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYdD-Qc7lbY&feature=related

Who Will You Serve?

Every morning, every day, we all decide who we will serve. It may be a conscious or unconscious decision, but either way, we will serve something or someone. Who will you serve today? The world or Christ? Your lust or love? Material possessions or gracious giving?

We want so much in life and sometimes we wonder why we are not achieving our goals. It all comes down to these types of decisions....Meditate on these Scriptures and quotes, then decide for yourself who you will serve today....

“But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”- Joshua 24:15

Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.” John Wesley

“Give me ten men who hate nothing but sin and love nothing but God, and we’ll change the world.” John Wesley

"Ready To Die, Free To Live!" Jeff Nesbit

Psalm 116 (New Living Translation) 9 And so I walk in the Lord’s presence as I live here on earth!

The Prayer of Freedom

Is Jesus worth dying for? Our Shepherd has been guiding me through Acts 20 and 21 these past two days! He has been teaching me, through His Blessed Holy Spirit, some SOUL SHAKING realities. Let me share one with you now.

I call this the "Prayer of Freedom". It is not a prayer that Paul specifically prayed (he probably prayed something like this at sometime in his life, I'm sure). It is a statement that he made that I have shaped into a transforming prayer (rather, the Spirit of God has made into a prayer for me...there is no way I could pray this prayer without the Spirit's leading and you will see why). In Acts 20, Paul is 'compelled', I love that word, to go to Jerusalem for the task of testifying to the Gospel of God's extravagant generosity (His grace)! The Spirit of God has clearly told him that he will face hardship and prison in every city that he goes to...and here it comes...you ready? Paul says, "...I consider my life WORTH NOTHING to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace. (Acts 20:24)" Paul's life was WORTH NOTHING to him...JESUS' life was WORTH EVERYTHING! Listen...it gets even MORE INTENSE from Paul...

In Acts 21, his buddies are "desperately urging" him not to go to Jerusalem. Listen to what Paul says. From what he says comes what I am calling, "The Prayer of Freedom"! Paul says in Acts 21:13.
"Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I AM READY NOT ONLY TO BE BOUND, BUT ALSO TO DIE IN JERUSALEM FOR THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS. (emphasis mine).

Here is the life lesson God's Spirit taught me to pray from this: If you want TRUE FREEDOM to live as a FULLY DEVOTED, SPIRIT FILLED, FATHER LOVING, LOST FISHING, RADICAL FOLLOWER of CHRIST, you've got to be READY to DIE for the Name of the LORD JESUS. If you are READY to DIE for Jesus Christ, then you are truly READY to LIVE for Him...no matter what happens. When you get to that point, or rather, when the Spirit of God gets you to that point in your life, you have TRUE FREEDOM TO LIVE! Stress will not be an issue. Worries will not be an isssue...negative thoughts and opinions will not be an issue! They are only issues in our lives when we are AFRAID to DIE. I could talk about this all night...let me cut to the chase...

Here is my prayer. I prayed this tonight..."Lord Jesus, make me ready to die for you." The only way we can get ready to die for Jesus is through serious, radical, prayer! I realize, or at least think I do, the magnitude of this prayer. This is not a comfortable prayer. But I have come to realize this fact: If Jesus does not consume me, the stresses of life will...when that happens, I am dead already. I don't want to live that way...it's miserable. BESIDES, JESUS IS WORTH IT! I would rather live being ready to die than to be dying wishing I would have lived!

Listen, we can honor God and bring glory to him in how we live AND in how we die. I want to be so ready to die for Jesus that nothing phases me in how I live for Him. You see, If I am ready to die for Jesus...I will preach the "heart cutting sermons" His Father calls me to preach without fear. I will do so with compassion but I will not back down. If I am ready to die for Jesus, I am ready to live for my wife and my daughter. I am FREE! If am ready to die for Jesus, time constraints, sicknesses, hardships, negative people will not phase me. If I am ready to die for Jesus, no one and nothing will intimidate me. I will live RECKLESSLY and in the words of my twin bro, "DANGEROUSLY FAITHFUL"! My only FEAR will be for GOD! My only hate will be for SIN! My only love will be for GOD, FAMILY, the CHURCH, and the LOST! I will not be worldy or consumeristic.

Now remember, to be ready to die for Jesus, you have to count YOUR life WORTH NOTHING and JESUS' life WORTH EVERYTHING... like Paul did (Acts 20:24). That's what the entire theme of this blog page is. JESUS IS WORTH IT! The "IT" must include our very life. JESUS IS WORTH MY LIFE! LORD JESUS, MAKE ME and ALL WHO READ THIS TO BE READY TO DIE FOR YOU! MAKE US READY TO DIE and FREE TO LIVE! That's the PRAYER of FREEDOM for you and for me. May it be for our families and for all of the Bride of Christ! In the Risen Jesus who was more than READY to die for us, AMEN!

Jesus Is A Warrior!

I Want to attack life like Jesus.....I want to live as He died....

From Isaiah 53.11-12 (MSG)...emphasis mine

Therefore I'll reward him extravagantly—
the best of everything, the highest honors—
Because he looked death in the face and didn't flinch,
because he embraced the company of the lowest.
He took on his own shoulders the sin of the many,
he took up the cause of all the black sheep.

Whatever it takes!

There's a story that took place right at the beginning of Jesus' ministry in Mark's Gospel that shows us just how much Jesus is 'worth' hearing and just how much our friends are 'worth' in order to bring them to Jesus!

The Master was preaching His Word in Capernaum (as Perry Noble has said..."It's all about Jesus and His Word...Jesus and His Word...it's all about Jesus and His Word...see Mark 2v2). People were crawling over one another to hear Him speak! The doors were jam packed. This was not just a youth group meeting where students sit on top of one another...this was a full church...children's ministry, elderly ministry, music ministry, singles ministry, college ministry, young couples ministry, etc. They were all packed in to hear Jesus and His Word...the text does not say that they had free coffee or Krispy Kream doughnuts...no pool tables...no xbox 3 to attract the crowd...that's not what enticed them to pack in...it was Jesus and His Word they came for...if only the current church could grasp that! Well, on that day, 4 guys did WHATEVER IT TOOK to get their paralyzed buddy to Jesus! Because the doors were jam packed and it was standing room only, they TORE THE ROOF OFF and lowered their buddy to Jesus! The Lord saw their faith, forgave the man, and healed him completly! THEY DID WHATEVER IT TOOK to get their friend to Jesus!

Some of us are the 4 guys. We have friends who NEED JESUS. Are we willing to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to get them to our ETERNAL GOD? Are we willing to TEAR THE ROOF OFF if we need to? These 4 guys believed Jesus and their paralyzed buddy was WORTH IT! Verse 5 says, "When Jesus saw 'their' faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."

What is it going to take for you to get your friend to Jesus and have his sins forgiven? We have friends who are 'paralyzed' spiritually. Is Christ worth it? Are they worth it? Maybe you have to tear down an idol of theirs? Are they selfish? "Tear it" down? Hold them accountable. Are they money lovers? "Tear up" their credit cards. Are they addicted to porno? "Tear up" the websites...get www.xxxchurch.com! You and me have to be willing to do WHATEVER IT TAKES (in Jesus fashion of course) to get our friends to Him! Christ can do the 'amazing' if we will: "This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"

Intellectual versus Intimate knowledge of God

McManus Notes on "Passages"

Passages: Phillipians 3:3-11 and more
@ 35:02 mark

Speaking from The Book of Hosea

"The great danger is to spend your life learning about God, rather than knowing God"

note: there is a difference in the word know, we can (1) Know God Intellectually and we can (2) Know God Intimately

We must get to know God Intimately!

35... min mark:
Once you come intimate with God and you go from knowledge to knowing, you become a funnel of learning, of development and growth, then life itself can become a context of which you can grow!

McManus Reversal
God sent His Son into human history, not so that we could know that He exist, but so that we could not exist without knowing Him!

challenge questions: do you know Him, Is Jesus at the core of your being, is it impossible for you to live t/o the day without the reality of His presence. You were created by God to live in communion with Him, with every breath of your life, He longs to be the every present reality. Jesus came and died for us so that we would not have to spend one second apart from God!

When I get to know Jesus, His power changes me from the inside out...the mind of God becomes my mind, the heart of God becomes my heart, the light of God becomes my light, the life of God becomes my life!

Influence - Breathe In, Breathe Out:McManus

This morning I listened to one of my favorite podcast, "Influence - Breathe In, Breathe Out" in the "Chasing Daylight" series by Erwin McManus. In it he talks about how we Breathe In God, God then changes our character so that we can exhale, and Breathe out God onto the lives of others. This allows us to become people of influence, not of force. We don't force anything on anybody, we influence them in The Light of Christ!

I want you to think about people of influence, good or bad. I promise you this, there is a common denominator with every person who has influence and it is this: They take a stand for what they believe in. Someone can be the greatest person and have amazing qualities, but if they live in "Character Neutral" and do not stand for anything, always "riding the fence" but never choosing a side, I promise you that they
will have absolutely no influence on anyone's life.

Here is a challenge for you, and challenges are good right? We rise to our best when challenged, so take this one with me.....as part of your 30 day challenge (see post on October 21, 2007 by Christian) think about people you can be a Christ-like influence on. Ask yourself, where do I frequent? Who am I around everyday? How can I influence them. You might be the person God sends to give someone hope who is hanging on by a thread. You might be the person who God sends to someone who is searching for purpose and meaning and trying to understand who God is or if Jesus cares....even if you never know the influence you have on someone until Eternity, always have the mindset of being a Christ-like influence....it might be only saying "hey" to someone, you never know, nothing is too small....

You know, sometimes all we do is inhale God, always breathing in. Think though, if all we did was breathe in, we would never blow off any carbon dioxide and it would be life threatening.

It's like the Dead Sea, the water is nothing you would want to drink or even swim in, it is basically dead water because it does not have any channels in which to flow out of, it just stays within its boundaries.

We must not only Breathe in The Life of God, but we must also Exhale and influence others with The Spirit of Christ!

I want Jesus!

I want Jesus! I want all of my Savior! Jesus Christ is worth it! I want Him for my wife. I want Him for my daughter. I want Him for my future children (Psalm 145:13). I want Him for my mom, my dad, and my 2 brothers! I want Him for my future sister-in-law and her two kids. I want Him for my mother-in-law and my father-in-law and my brother-in-law. I want Him for my extended family! I want Him for my church. I want Him for my co-workers and for my seminary. I want Him for those I minister to. I want Him for Jefferson Jesus and family. I want Him for the people of Peru. I want Him for John and Erica and the people of Africa! I want Him for the hungry and the thirsty; the prisoners, the sick, the naked, and the stranger. I want all of my Savior Jesus Christ! I want His humility. I want His obedience. I want His vision from the Cross. I want His courage. I want His integrity...His heart for His Father and His Spirit...His intense and extravagant love for His creation...for His people...for the lost...for His disciples...for His nations. I want His prayers and His actions! I want His anger and His joys! I want His foot-washing towel and His cheek that He turned. I want His sermons that He preached and the lessons that He taught. I want His creativity and His humor. I want His eternal life giving words. I want His forgiveness and His grace! I want His church. I want His mission! I want His servant attitude! I want His love! I want my Friend who laid down His life for you and me. I want His mind. I want His compassion, His mercy, His peace, His attack mindset, His eyes, His mouth, His boldness. I want my Lord who did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness...obeying His Father unto death on a cross. I want to know Christ and the power of His Resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. I want to live like Jesus died...strong...faithful...trusting...forgiving...loving...obeying...understanding...persevering...non comprimising...recklessing committed to His Father and our Father! I want to give myself, not save myself. I want Christ face-to-face, hand-to-hand. I want to deny myself, pick up my cross, and follow my shepherd so closely that I get covered in all of His dust. I want to touch His cloak, hear the leather of His sandals as He walks me to people who need Him. I want to smell His breath and feel His grip. I want Jesus! Not some of Jesus, but all of Him. I want His smile. I want His whisper. I want His rest. I want to be crucified with Him. I want to be resurrected with Him. I want to be glorified with Him! I want to eat with Him! I want to talk to the Father with Him! I want to laugh with Him! I want the day with Him. I want forever with Him! I want Jesus! I want JESUS for YOU!

Excellence vs Perfection

Excellence vs Perfection: where is the line drawn? We must strive to be perfect, The Letter written to us by The Greatest Author of all time tells us so, but there is a difference between striving to be perfect (excellence) and being perfect (Impossibility).

Philippians 3:12 (NIV)
Pressing on Toward the Goal

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me

1 Peter 1:16 (NIV) states, "for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."

What we must understand is that perfection and excellence have the same goal, we are striving to become perfect, we will not obtain perfection in this lifetime (impossibility)... we will not become perfect until we are in Eternal union with The One who is 'Worth It', but we must strive, we must 'press on' towards this perfection and this striving is what is known as excellence...

Perfection is the goal (Eternal Life), excellence is the way to achieve it....

No one is perfect... that's why pencils have erasers. ~Author Unknown

So how does this relate to our everyday lives? Here is a list of trying to achieve perfection in the here and now and excellence which is achievable in the here and now...

Perfection says, "It's partly cloudy"
Excellence says "It's partly sunny"

Perfection is throwing one interception and losing confidence
Excellence is throwing 5 interceptions, yet coming back to lead your team to victory (see Dallas Cowboys vs Buffalo Bills week 5, 2007 NFL)

Perfection is performance based
Excellence is based on improvement

Perfection can make a victory become a failure
Excellence can turn a failure into victory

Edison example (invention of a battery): Edison must be ready to quit after having performed some 50,000 tests without success. "You must be pretty downhearted with the lack of progress", the assistant said. Edison replied, "Downhearted? We've made a lot of progress. At least we know 50,000 things that won't work!"

Perfection says, "God I am in control"
Excellence says, "God I am yours"

Perfection states intentions
Excellence creates actions

Perfection leads to insecurity
Excellence leads to greatness ( A human being in The Hands of God is an amazing tool for Greatness - Erwin McManus)

Perfection fears mistakes
Excellence sees opportunities

Perfection leads to a mess
Excellence leads to God creating a work of beauty out of our mess

Here are some inspiring quotes to sum it all up!

A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault. ~John Henry Newman

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering.
There is a crack in everything,
That's how the light gets in.
~Leonard Cohen

To escape criticism - do nothing, say nothing, be nothing. ~Elbert Hubbard

Once you accept the fact that you're not perfect, then you develop some confidence. ~Rosalynn Carter

A person's pursuit of goodness leads to greatness, but the pursuit of greatness leads to ruin, Pursue goodness and you will achieve great things. ~ John E Kramer Vice pres for communications Institute for Justice

Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best.
~Henry van Dyke

Notes and thoughts from 'The Crisis', Mosaic, Erwin McManus

Call To An Original Life: Crisis ~ 18-19 minutes

When you begin to see God clearly, you begin to live your life uniquely

When you focus on God, you see yourself more clearly If you feel small in your call, it is because you are beginning to sense the bigness in which God is calling you into....

Get ready, when God calls you to his plan on your life, you will feel the pressure, you will go through an internal crisis of, "God, who am I to do this?"...but when you feel insecure and a voice saying who am i, it is not God talking to you, it is your soul fearing failure, your soul trying to make your think you are too insignificant to be significant....

my friend, God calls us to an original life, a life of significance, and when you hear this call you can never go back, this call to significance eats await at mediocrity and you will never be the same again....you can choose not to answer this call, but it will haunt you the rest of your life....

...instead of it haunting you, step up to the plate and strap on the full armor of God, take the call, say "it is me Lord, send me" and allow God to redirect your steps to an original life in which you are significant and you make a significant impact on your journey with God!

Sometimes we are paralyzed by our inadequacy, but other times we are terrified by our potential...sometimes we are afraid of our shortcomings, other times we are in fear of our greatness...Dont be afraid of greatness RECOGNIZE: A human being in The Hands of God is a powerful tool for good! A difference between fame and greatness, fame is something you do for yourself, greatness is something you do for others! God has entrusted all of His creation into the hands of men, why not allow Him to work in your life as well!

Do-you-trust-him? God says 'if we will only get to know and trust him......he longs for us to trust Him...."

Read this in Psalm14-16 (MSG) "If you'll hold on to me for dear life," says God, "I'll get you out of any trouble. I'll give you the best of care if you'll only get to know and trust me. Call me and I'll answer, be at your side in bad times; I'll rescue you, then throw you a party. I'll give you a long life, give you a long drink of salvation!"

30 DAY CHALLENGE!

I recently heard a sermon series titled, "30 Days to live" by Craig Groeschel from www.lifechurch.tv. (See video link below!)... It WOKE ME UP PEOPLE! It also got me thinking about the theme of this blog: "Jesus is worth it". Jesus is worth "wasting our very expensive perfumes" on Him! Jesus is worth every "wonderfully significant" thing we "can do" for Him! If you had 30 days left in your life...30 days left to spend with your family...30 days left to make an impact in someone's life...30 days left to to be a mile marker in someone's road to salvtion in Jesus Christ, how would you "SPEND IT"? By the way, in Mark 14:1-11, Jesus only had 2 days left to live when the woman decided to "spend" her" perfume (which costs a years salary) on Him! What we do for others, especially for the "least of these" we do for Jesus (check out what the Master says about this in Matthew 25:31-46)! What "wonderfully significant" thing would you do for Jesus if you only had 30 days left to live? THINK BIG! THINK SMALL! BUT WHATEVER YOU DO THINK! Psalm 39:4-5 (NLT) says, "“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered—how fleeting my life is. You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath.”

So much of our breath...some much of our day is "wasted" on arguing with family, complaining about little things, comparing ourselves to the lives of others, and veggin' out on TV. If you and I had only 30 days left to live, I hope we would WAKE UP and STOP "wasting" our life on these STUPID THINGS and start "WASTING" our life on JESUS! "WAKE UP and WASTE YOUR LIFE on JESUS TODAY as if you only had 30 days left to live! Take the 30 DAY "WASTING YOUR LIFE" Challenge...Each day, "waste" at least ONE thing on JESUS...

-How would you "waste" your time? Would you give your self "fully" to your family?
-How would you "waste" your money? Would you give money to someone needing clean drinking water?
-How would you "waste" your energy? Would you go visit a sick neighbor?
-How would you "waste" your mornings? Would you wake up early and pray for the person you know who needs Jesus?
-How would you "waste" your time on the person you don't like? Would you humble yourself and "wash" his/her feet (John 13)?

Can you WASTE at least ONE THING a day on Jesus for next 30 days? Can you do something "WONDERFULLY SIGNIFICANT" for Him beginning RIGHT NOW? IS JESUS WORTH IT TO YOU?

Jesus Said You Are Worth It!

Jesus Said that you are Worth It! That is why He died on the cross for you. His death represents life, a life that He wants you to live fully human and fully alive. A women came into the presence of Jesus, broke open a bottle of expensive perfume, poured it on His head, a pre-anointing for His burial. She loved Him so much that she did not hesitate to do so.

The high priests and religion scholars said it was a waste to pour out the perfume onto the head of Jesus, that the perfume could have been sold for money. But Jesus said she did a wonderfully significant thing for me...that wherever The Gospel was preached her story would be told!

What about you? Will your story be told in The Name of Jesus? He said you are worth it...Is He worth it to you? Will you 'Waste' your life on Him? Jesus says its a beautiful thing...a Wonderfully Significant Thing, all for Him! How will your story be told......?

Jesus Is Worth It All!

Mark 14:1-11 (The Message)

Anointing His Head

1-2 In only two days the eight-day Festival of Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread would begin. The high priests and religion scholars were looking for a way they could seize Jesus by stealth and kill him. They agreed that it should not be done during Passover Week. "We don't want the crowds up in arms," they said.
3-5Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper. While he was eating dinner, a woman came up carrying a bottle of very expensive perfume. Opening the bottle, she poured it on his head. Some of the guests became furious among themselves. "That's criminal! A sheer waste! This perfume could have been sold for well over a year's wages and handed out to the poor." They swelled up in anger, nearly bursting with indignation over her.

6-9But Jesus said, "Let her alone. Why are you giving her a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives. Whenever you feel like it, you can do something for them. Not so with me. She did what she could when she could—she pre-anointed my body for burial. And you can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she just did is going to be talked about admiringly."

10-11Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the cabal of high priests, determined to betray him. They couldn't believe their ears, and promised to pay him well. He started looking for just the right moment to hand him over.