I’m Curious About How to Encourage All the Discouraged People

Posted on August 2, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
What are you curious about?
View all responses

All the discouraged people want hope. They pursue it in political figures and hunt for it in celebrity-worship. They look for it in religion and even grasp for it in mind altering substances.

I’m curious about how to encourage all the discouraged people. That curiosity causes me to think a lot about the most encouraged people I’ve ever met in person or read about in history. Those people have one thing in common. They have a life-consuming faith that resounds far beyond routine religion. The Bible is full of people like that: the Old Testament prophets, the early followers of Jesus, and of course Christ Himself.

My curiosity keeps me reading the writings of people whose faith sets my heart on fire. I’ve read many hundreds of books like that (most written by people who died long ago). Curiosity makes me want to find and spend time interacting heart-to-heart with present-day people who are unashamedly and passionately focused on and in love with the risen Jesus. (Sometimes they are difficult to find.)

No matter what I’m facing, the living Jesus gives me hope and keeps encouragement flowing from deep within me. I’m curious about how to effectively pass that encouragement on to all the discouraged people. My heart breaks because I don’t know how to effectively share Christ’s encouragement so that He becomes real to multitudes of hopeless people the way that He continually shows Himself as real to me. And my curiosity grows ever stronger.

This prayer comes from deep in my heart! “Lord, show me anything I can do to help You encourage all the discouraged people.”

Here are some of the most recent words that have come to my heart. I hope they help you find hope.

Biblical Christianity is ongoing interaction with and surrender to the risen Jesus. It is spontaneous like breathing. It’s not something that needs to be programmed or institutionalized.

You Can See Hope More Clearly

Hearing a sermon
And singing some songs
Will be deceptive
If they don’t align
With the Bible.
Search the Scriptures
And do what they say.
Hear what God’s Spirit says
So you won’t be deceived.
“Humble yourself.”
“Bless those who curse you.”
“Love your enemies.”
(See Acts 17:11 and James 1:22.)

If you feel devalued, this might be the reason. Love doesn’t applaud, approve of, or engage in behavior it believes to be wrong. When a society teaches people that prenatal lives don’t matter, they devalue post-natal lives as well. All lives matter to the risen Jesus, including yours! You can trust His voice of mercy and hope in your heart to heal, comfort, and restore you. Christ’s still small inner voice isn’t your imagination. It’s real! Confirm it by what the Bible says and let it flood you with encouragement.

Photo by Yelena Odintsova on Pexels.com
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A Lifestyle of Intentional Kindness

Posted on August 1, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
Write about a random act of kindness you’ve done for someone.
View all responses

Instead of an occasional random act of kindness, my goal is to live a daily lifestyle of intentionally being kind to everyone I encounter (whether I want to be kind to them or not). Unfortunately, I fall short of that goal and can easily be unkind. Sometimes I ignore people. Sometimes I speak harshly. Sometimes I am rude. When I am unkind, I ask people and God to forgive me. As a Christ-follower my unkindness can cause people to hear what I say about Jesus as “blah, blah, blah.” That’s one reason I strive to be kind to all.

When people hear “blah, blah, blah,” from Christians what we say is blah, blah, blocked from their awareness and they walk away unaware of the reality of the living, resurrected Jesus. It’s a great sin when Christians bore people with the most exciting news in human history–the invasion of planet earth by the God-man, Jesus the Christ.

One reason multitudes of people don’t hear, comprehend, and surrender to the Good News about Jesus is because of the way it is presented. It is presented as religious theory, as ancient history, as church routine, and as prideful theology, instead of as present-day reality. It is lectured about in formal Sunday sermons instead of being openly testified about with heart-felt vulnerability, gratitude, and humility that radiates from Christians’ faces and from their daily lives. If we want people to be able to hear about and receive Christ’s present-day forgiveness and life-transforming power, we need to point them to the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross, passionately testify about how Jesus has become real and active in our daily lives, and lay down our self-protection, self-righteousness, and self-focus. (See Revelation 12:11.)

The world wants inclusion. Inclusion! This biblical inclusion is usually ignored by Christians. “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” We human beings have “all” fallen into a rebellious self-focused mess. That includes each one of us. We all need God’s mercy, forgiveness, and ongoing restoration. “There is none righteous, no not one.” Will you join with the tax collector in the Bible who “beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me a sinner!’”? “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

If instead of joining the blame game parade, Christians would obey God’s “If my people,” instructions, He would heal our land. (See 2 Chronicles 7:14.)

If you don’t find Jesus to be exciting throughout each day, there’s still much that you aren’t yet experiencing about Him. Open wide your heart to Jesus and keep it open every day and every night.

When there’s no heart-felt thrill
About God’s gift of Christ,
People won’t believe
That Jesus is real.

Photo by Vie Studio on Pexels.com
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I’m Living in Bright Light

Posted on July 31, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
How would you describe yourself to someone who can’t see you?
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I’ve discovered that light can lead me safely through the dark tunnels in my life. I love stepping out of those dark tunnels and living in the light! I try to keep my inner eyes fixed always on life’s brightest light and not on the darkness around me or on the temptations within me. The risen Jesus is the Light who “shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome.”

My heart used to be an arid environment where the Spirit of Christ struggled for access. I resisted the Light because I was afraid. Then one day I surrendered my opinions, feelings, and desires to the living Jesus and He turned my heart into a tropical paradise where His Spirit flourishes.

When people who claim to be Jesus-followers refuse to humbly reflect the reality of the radiant character of Christ’s love, mercy, and light, few will fully believe the Bible’s claims that He is alive and actively working in human hearts. The way to spread the Gospel is to daily demonstrate the presence of the risen Jesus by pointing people to His blood, continually testifying to His present-day transforming power, and repeatedly laying down all self-righteous at the foot of His Cross. (See Revelation 12:11.)

There are no shadows
In God’s brilliant light.
There’s no place to hide
The things that aren’t right.
That’s why many choose
Darkness over light.

Be courageous.
Come to the Light.
Just say “Jesus,”
Not in your mind
But out loud.
Softly repeat His name
Several times.
Then sit quietly
And notice the things
That occur within you.
Somewhere inside
You will notice
An encouraging
And gentle thought
Or sensation
Which is Jesus knocking
On your heart’s door.
Open it wide to Him,
Not just once,
But often
Until you learn
To daily live
With your heart
Fully open
To Jesus.

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The Tradition of Blaming Others for Your Condition

Posted on July 30, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
What traditions have you not kept that your parents had?
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My mother had a tradition of blaming people for her condition. She wasn’t always vocal about it. It was usually a quiet but obvious blaming that had morphed into bitterness. You could sometimes see it on her face, sense it in her attitude, and feel it in her behaviors.

As early as I can remember, I was aware of her bitterness, and it broke my heart. I didn’t want that kind of obsession to take over my life, so I broke with the tradition and worked hard to not blame anyone for anything that happened in my life.

Life continues to give me many opportunities to work on that. I’m still sometimes tempted to blame people and I resist those temptations with all my might. One tool that helps me a lot is to pray by name for the individuals (or groups) I’m tempted to blame and to ask God to bless them in as many ways as I can. I’ve noticed that it’s harder to blame people when you are asking God to abundantly bless them.

Blame and unproven accusations flew in the Bible. The Pharisees frequently used false accusations as a way to try to discredit Jesus. Later many of the same religious people accused Paul. “They brought many serious charges against him, but they could not prove them.” (Acts 25:7)

Jesus said, “Bless those who curse you,” and “Love your enemies.” He taught and demonstrated the forgiveness that sets aside blame. Even as Jesus was dying on the Cross, He broke the blame cycle and said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

The blame cycle began in the Garden of Eden. Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed the devil, and humans have been blame shifting ever since. Perhaps our lives would be better if we focused on fixing our problems instead of on accusing other people of causing them.

When you lose,
Rather than accuse
Other people
And excuse
Your own behavior,
Pay your dues
By graciously
Admitting your loss.
To play the blame game
Of spreading your
Unproven views
In order to accuse
Will only confuse
The situation
And distort the truth.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com
Posted in accusations, bitterness, blame, forgiveness, resentment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

How to Avoid the Daze of Typical Days

Posted on July 29, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
Was today typical?
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Typical day?
No way!
Here are some ways
I avoid the daze
Of typical days.

I met with a small, informal gathering of people last night. (I think there were 13 of us.) As we began to worship a sense of incredible awe filled the room. You could see God’s glory on each face. When I closed my eyes, I felt the same way I felt when I was worshipping in the Hughes Auditorium during the Asbury Awakening. These words kept running through my mind: “This is very significant. It is Heaven touching Earth.” When the Spirit-enriched worship ended after more than an hour and a half, we all sat in profound stillness savoring the presence of the Lord.

The Bible says that Christians are supposed to be “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” Why do so few Christians seem to fit that description? Perhaps Christianity is supposed to be a moment-by-moment relationship with the risen Jesus instead of a once-a-week religious event.

There’s nothing typical about following and obeying the risen Jesus instead of your own thoughts, feelings, and desires. Very few people do that. Come out of the haze and follow His ways!

Typical choices
And regular behaviors
Brought you where you are.
If your daily ritual
Of being habitual
Has made you unhappy,
That’s very typical.
Look beyond the routine.
Life involves the unseen.
It’s not analytical;
It is supernatural.
Open your heart to Christ
And to His invisible
Presence and love.

Typical day?
No way!
The risen Jesus
Gives me ways
To void the daze
Of typical days.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
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Christianity is More Than Sitting People in Rows

Posted on July 28, 2024 by Steve Simms

Faith is inspired
By God’s Spirit.
It’s not acquired
By studying.

An inner flash
Of sudden insight
Has more power
Than a mental stash
Of information.
Faith isn’t science.
It’s full reliance
On Christ in you.

The way faith grows
Isn’t by sitting
People in rows
To listen to
What one man knows.
It grows
When people expose
Their heart to Christ
And to one another.

Photo by Luis Quintero on Pexels.com
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I’m at the Mercy of the Court

Posted on July 28, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
How would you describe yourself to someone?
View all responses

I can quickly fall into self-righteousness, pride, and a feeling of moral superiority. But then I realize that I am no better than anyone else. Though outwardly I can appear to be morally upstanding, inwardly all sorts of evil bounces around deep down in my heart. I agree with a man named Paul who wrote: “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out,” and “What a wretched man I am.” He also wrote: “There is none righteous, no not one.”

I am a man who has learned that I can’t rely on my merit but only on God’s mercy demonstrated through Christ’s death on the Cross. I’m at the mercy of His court, but that’s a wonderful place to be. The blood of Jesus has paid the penalty for the wretchedness in me, and I have invited Him to live in me, to take moment-by-moment control of my life, and to continually direct me by His Spirit. Now I enjoy the undeserved fruit of the Spirit that Christ releases from within me, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

Continually embracing God’s mercy as a free gift sets me free from guilt and fills me with the desire to follow and obey Him forever. Every time I slip up and fall (in thought, word, or behavior), in brokenness I ask for His forgiveness. Then the risen Jesus picks me up, washes away my guilt and shame, and welcomes me back into the awareness of His presence and power.

I’m a beggar who has found the bread of life and now wants to tell everyone how wonderful it is! I’m a Jesus-lover, a sinner saved by grace!

What a crazy time we live in. We have election deniers on one side of the political spectrum and gender deniers on the other. “There is none righteous, no not one.” “Lord, have mercy on me a sinner.”

Photo by Christian Wasserfallen on Pexels.com
Posted in God's grace, grace card, growing in grace, mercy, mercy seat, saved by grace | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Dinosaur of Moral Virtue

Posted on July 27, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
If you could bring back one dinosaur, which one would it be?
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As a Boy Scout every week I recited and pledged myself to live out these moral virtues: “A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.” The world has changed since then.

The Bible says: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Those types of character traits are being swept into extinction by our chaotic contemporary culture. The morality that they proclaim is now seen as a dinosaur from the ancient past. I long for that dinosaur to be returned to the hearts of the people in the various countries around the world.

If you will steer and maneuver your mind toward hope, you can avoid the mud that messes with and muddles your mental health and moral character and fills your heart with guilt. Jesus Christ offers so much more than church attendance: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

If you want hope to soar
Get your mind off the floor.
It’s time to restore
The dinosaur
Of moral virtue
And to close the door
On self-deception
And heart corruption.

After writing this blog post about moral virtue this morning, I saw something from the opening ceremony last night at the 2024 Paris Olympics where drag queens were gathered behind a long table in a scene that looked like a mockery of Leonardo DaVinci’s painting of Christ’s Last Supper. I don’t think my desire for a return to moral virtue is a very popular position. However, without it I believe Western culture is quickly headed toward chaos. (Please don’t post a picture of the scene. That only spreads the decadence.)

The way some Christians are abandoning biblical virtues and embracing the opposite makes me think that if they had been in Sodom and Gomora they would have said to God: “What do You mean that You can’t find ten righteous people. They’re all righteous! Ours is a good city.” What a crazy time we live in. We have election deniers on one side of the political spectrum and gender deniers on the other.

True Christ-followers are called to be “speaking the truth in love” — to talk about the danger of sin with humility, brokenness, and compassion. A person who resorts to belittling other people doesn’t have much confidence in his or her political or moral position.

Posted in culture wars, moral character, moral crisis, moral relativism | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

I Don’t Know Where I’d Go

Posted on July 26, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
If you won two free plane tickets, where would you go?
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If I suddenly won two free plane tickets to anywhere, I don’t know where I would go. I’d have to ask my guide who lives inside of me. Then I’d go to wherever He tells me to go (unless He tells me to give the tickets away). I’d just need to pray and listen to what Jesus has to say.

“This is how the Holy Spirit works, not by overcoming power with brute force, but by subverting power with gentle humility. It’s astonishing really.” —JD Walt

Jesus will supernaturally manifest His presence and His wisdom (which is far greater than the wisdom of Israel’s ancient King Solomon or any other person’s wisdom) through love, faith, and humility, as His peacemakers kindly speak the truth in love and refuse to fear persecution. When the right wing and the left wing humbly care about each other as fellow human beings a country can soar like a plane. When they angrily clash, they will eventually crash.

Jesus doesn’t give us
A to-do list
Or a test
To pass or fail.
He gives us His rest
So we can be still
And know He is God.
The awareness
Of Christ’s presence
Is the essence
Of Christianity.
It’s not just a story.
Christ living in you
Will transform you
From glory to glory
Into His image.
Step into His faith-rest
And daily behold
The Lamb of God.

Photo by Sam Willis on Pexels.com
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Somebody Special Calls Me “Friend”

Posted on July 25, 2024 by Steve Simms
Daily writing prompt
What’s the story behind your nickname?
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I have a private nickname. Somebody very special calls me “Friend.” His texts comfort, inspire, and challenge me. His voice deeply touches me. His presence empowers me to be a better person.

Here’s how I got that nickname. “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” Jesus calls me Friend and from glory to glory transforms me from within. (And if you will read His texts in the Bible and listen to His still small voice in your heart, He will call you Friend too.)

We humans are surrounded by the inexplainable force beyond nature called life. Jesus, the living Word of God, is the source of that life. Christians need more than additional information about Jesus. They need to continually experience His presence.

Christians are supposed to influence the world for good. They shouldn’t swept along by the world’s anger and conspiracy theories.

Just because a group of people calls itself a church it doesn’t mean that group is functioning as the body of Christ. Jesus is the literal Head of His body. If He hasn’t been given actual and full supremacy over a group of people to personally direct and lead them by His Spirit, are they functioning as His body? (See Colossians 1:28 and Romans 8:14.)

Disciples (Friends of Christ) aren’t made by religious lectures. They are made by Spirit-led relationships.

The “disciples” of the street are certainly bolder in promoting their beliefs than the “disciples” of the church are. If church attendees would spread love the way street gangs spread anger and violence, the world would be a much better place!

Love your neighbor and humbly speak the truth in love, kindness, and compassion even if your neighbor finds the truth offensive. The one who calls me “Friend” is always kind to me, even when He corrects me.

People who accuse
And verbally abuse
The people who choose
To reject their views
Have never learned to use
The power of kindness
By speaking the truth in love.

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