Redefining Moments

Wash Up!

“Wash and make yourself clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight. Learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the fatherless , plead the case of the widow.  Isaiah 1:16-17

My six-year-old son loves bath time. He loves it not for the cleaning ritual, but for the opportunity to play in the water and bask in his private oasis with a few toys and lots of bubbles. And as you might imagine, there have been lots of times when he has gotten out of the tub and announced his cleaning time over, but I see that the bar of soap, which is within reach and prominently positioned, is a dry as a bone. “Did you use soap to wash?” I said.  On most of the occasions he happily returns to the already draining tub for a few more minutes of water fun and the cleaning he should have already done. “Be sure to wash all over this time,” I would say with a smile, “you don’t want to go around stinking up the place.”

            This text from Isaiah is a reminder that when it comes to your relationship with God and your Christian life, a deep wash is what is needed. Unfortunately, there are many who just wallow around in the shallow end of the Christian world, having fun and enjoying the fellowship of the Body, hoping that the filth of the world and the stain of sin will wash away with a casual dip. The text takes this issue much more serious though and clearly indicates that the only way to serve and work with God, is to get the full wash that prepares you and reshapes you for His service and Glory.

            The blood of Jesus Christ is the only thing that will make you truly clean and point you in the right direction. Recognizing and believing in faith that He lived, died, rose again, and ascended into heaven for you to be saved is all it takes. You are then declared clean by the God of heaven. As you then respond in faith and love, God sends His Spirit as a permanent fixture in your life. The result is a transformation that leads you to take your eyes off of your own needs and focus on the needs of others.

            You might be able to fool the masses by just splashing around in the wadding pool, showing off the appearance of being truly cleanliness, but it comes to your relationship with God, He knows the truth.  Be confident and thank God for His cleansing, if you have been washed in the blood Christ. If you have not made that decision, then I pray you will allow the deep cleaning wash of Mercy, Grace, and Hope to wash over you. This is always will be the only thing that will keep us from stinking up the place. 

A Troubled Heart

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” John 14: 1-3

Why does our heart get troubled? How in the world can we be troubled when we live in the land of plenty, have access to every form of entertainment possible, and are constantly feed ego-stroking words by the media? We should have a happy heart full of contentment. Shouldn’t we?

Sadly, we believe and often live the lie of this world that stuff and things bring us happiness and fullness. However, when we get what we desire or are told we deserve, the reward is short lived and we are left empty and often craving more. The truth is that any life lived, no matter how much money, fame, or success achieved, outside of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ is an empty life just existing and not really living. And the key to unlocking a real life is found in one word…trust.

The text above recognizes that our hearts get troubled and explains our need to shift focus from our problem to the solution. Learning to trust God will our whole life, everything about our life, keeps us from being dragged into the muck and mire of the trouble that will come in and out of our life. Jesus explains in this passage that God has given us a hope and a future. God is telling us that our hope will not be found in what we have right now, but when He has in store for us and what He can proved. Our troubled heart is relieved when we realize that what we have now or what this life has to offer is not it. There is more and what is to come is so much better.

The biggest hurdle to over come though is our understanding of the word trust itself. We don’t trust God and we certainly don’t trust each other. Most of us operate under the concept that people should automatically trust us because we know that we are trustworthy. However, we also believe that others should earn our trust. If most people are operating off of this falsehood, then how can we trust anyone? We are so focused on protecting our self from the hurt we have felt in the past or think we might feel, we build or protective wall thicker and higher keeping out God and others; venturing out only when we need a fix or a bit of help.

God will not let us down though. He is the one to teach us what trust means and will provide everything we really need for life. He will also teach us to trust others and how to deal with the emotions and hurt when people do fail us. Learning to trust and allowing God to teach us how to trust will not only help us focus on all the right things, but will also empower us to live right now.

Is your heart troubled? Release your burden to God and ask Him to teach you to trust Him with everything you have and are. 

Remebering Joseph

 “But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 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 1:20-21

We don’t give enough thought time to Joseph during the Christmas season. As a husband and a father I often wonder what was going through Joseph’s head when he received the news from Mary and then received the message from the Angel about the birth of Jesus. I can imagine his thoughts ranged from anger to fear. I mean, here is a man who was about to marry the women of his dreams and then finds out she is pregnant with someone else’s child. Then he hears from an Angel that this was not just some other guys kid, but it’s the Son of God.  That’s enough to fry any reasonable man’s brain.

Joseph had every reason to walk away at the moment Mary told him about being pregnant. In the eyes of Joseph’s family and friends this was a shameful predicament. We are not told in the text if Joseph consulted his family, but I can imagine that if he did, they would have encouraged him to let her go and move on. He had every right to. And that is what he decided to do. However, I get the picture that Joseph was an honorable man and was not going to embarrass her and decided to quietly separate from her. That’s when God stepped in and called upon him to not walk away, but to step up and take care of His Son. Talk about intimidation.

Without hesitation though, Joseph did just what he was asked and served as Jesus earthly dad. As the father of an adoptive child myself, I know what it is like to walk through the thoughts and emotions of raising a child that did not come from your genes. For me, the thoughts lasted only seconds and I would go toe-to-toe with anyone who challenged my role as a father to my adoptive son. He is my son. That’s it! For Joseph, I wonder if how he dealt with the news that this was no ordinary child. Read the last line of the text above. This was no ordinary request. This child would grow to save people from their sin. How could Joseph live up to this task? Raising children is tough enough, but raising God’s child knowing that He had a calling like no other. I may have just raised the flag and called it a day.

Joseph did not surrender nor did he back down. I am sure he sought guidance every day, but Joseph gave everything he had to fulfill the role God had given him. He turned his back on his own thoughts of saving face. He surrendered his own personal desires. He became the man God needed him to be and was Jesus earthly father. And that is the father I hope to be.

The truth is that each child was God’s first and He has a perfect plan for them. I am just called to partner with Him and, in love and discipline, prepare them for a life with God. Now, I know my boys are not like Jesus and will not take on the sins of the world. But what ever they will do in the years they have been given can have Kingdom impact. God wants me to train them up and get them ready so that when it is time, they will surrender themselves to His will. Thank you Joseph for serving as a Godly father and setting the tone for the rest of us. 

Here's a question for open discussion. Despite what you think about his policies and politics, agree or disagree, does Obama really deserve the Nobel Peace Prize at this stage in his work and life? Talk it up.

A Prophet Among Us

“The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.”                                                       Deuteronomy 18:15

Have you been looking for a sign? Our desire for clear direction and understand in a chaotic world often leads us to look for direction in various places and in various things. Even Christians are not immune to this struggle. WE are often just like the world din our quest to find and know the path in front of us. We try to rush God and run toward every sound that seems like His voice telling us where to go and what to do. We even justify our actions and reactions, by saying to God “I though that was you,” after our own choice end in more struggle and problems. The truth is that we are just no patience when He takes His time to respond and we just cannot agree and be satisfied when he says “no.” We want direction and clarity and we are often willing to go and do whatever it takes to find what we are looking for.

This is the same dilemma that was occurring for the Children of Israel when these words printed above were spoken in the book of Deuteronomy. In previous verses, God warned Israel that as they entered the Promise Land, they would encounter all kinds of various struggles and temptations. As the sought to over come their difficulties, God told them not to turn to the ways of those who already possessed the Land. Well, you know what happened when God tells people not to do something. God gave them a promise anyway and said that not only would He be with them, but he would also send them a prophet to show them the way. And that is exactly what God did. From that moment forward God sent numerous Prophets who pointed out the truth, pointed the way, and called out for repentance. Notice the strong command at the end. Well, you can probably guess how that went. Despite the fact the people of God had His promise of presence and direction, the vast majority did not listen and turned to the ways of the world and to selfish desires for direction.

You and I have the same promise given to us. God has promised to be with us and send a prophet to guide and show us the way if we are willing to listen.  We must listen. God raises up prophets around us in our church and community to point the way to Him. However, we mock, ridicule, and ignore the very people whom God has sent because we don’t see the hand of God reaching down form heaven pointing at the person and saying, “this is the one.” How do we know they are of God though and not of the world? When everything the say points right back to the Word of God.

Are you seeking to know God’s direction? Are you struggling with where to turn and what to do? Well, now is the time to seek the prophets of truth who are trying to point you back to God. God has already sent them to you and know u need to listen. Surrender to His will and ask him to help you see and hear His prophets. And when the direction comes, even if it is not what you wanted, have the courage to move in that direction. I guarantee you that God has your best at heart.