I love to express what I feel called to say. Writing helps me to open up my heart and do that. I hope that what I write helps you in some way. I hope it makes you think, encourages you, or inspires you. If it challenges you or if you disagree, I hope you know that I respect your right to have a different point of view.
The most important thing that I carry with me is not a thing at all. I carry hope (both with me and within me). To be a bit more specific, I carry what the Bible calls: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
I want everyone to become a Christ-carrier! No one should miss out on such a glorious lifestyle! That kind of spiritual awakening depends on our full surrender to the living Jesus, not on passive sermon-hearing.
I love to see Amazing grace Gleam and shine From someone’s face.
I love to see People let Jesus replace Their self-focus With His grace, And watch Him erase Their sadness and guilt.
I love to see Christ’s joy shine On people’s face With no trace Of human pride. That happens when They embrace The risen Jesus With all their heart.
I love to see People surrender To the presence and grace Of “Christ in you,” And go far beyond Routine religion.
The reason that I blog so consistently is because I want to point people to the source of true, long-lasting hope, healing, and inner peace. Many years ago, I found that source and it has been like a fountain of refreshing water continually springing up from within me.
God (the Source) is always communicating to people even if we neglect to notice. He often goads or prompts us trying to get our attention. Often, He warns us in order to protect us from danger. He frequently directs us so that we don’t wander aimlessly. He continually calls us to come closer to Him. Sometimes He will even knock us down (like He did Saul of Tarsus in the Bible) to get our attention.
If you train your heart to focus on God, you’ll become aware that He is trying to communicate with you. Then you can be “a witness of what you have seen and will see” Christ do within you, around you, and through you.
That’s why the Bible says: “Be still and know that I am God,” and “O taste and see that the Lord is good.” That’s why Jesus said, “You will be My witnesses.” That’s why Christ-followers can overcome the devil by “the word of their testimony.” That’s why Jesus wants you to testify to people about His presence, power, and present-day reality. That’s why He is “sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified (made pure and whole) by faith in Me.’” (See Acts 26:18.) That’s why Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice.”
Circle up! Gather around Jesus face to face. Pastors and church leaders: Climb outside the same ole box! It’s time to break down the religious rows that keep people neatly lined up and confined to being stone-like Sunday spectators sitting still and looking at the backs of people’s heads — only seeing the same solitary face talking on and on up in the pulpit every single week. Make room for God’s people to freely listen to, follow, and obey what the risen Jesus has to say in their heart. Let them see the living Jesus shining through one another’s faces.
JD Walt wrote: “The Holy Spirit is at work in every person, witnessing to the reality of God, wooing faith into existence. Men and women everywhere are literally ‘kicking at the goads.’” It’s time to stop kicking and instead to surrender to God’s will and literally go and do whatever Jesus says within you! (Keep in mind that He won’t contradict the Bible or your conscience.) You can begin by forgiving everyone and by loving your enemies.
Is your back toward God? Perhaps it is time to turn around and look at Him. Go with God’s goads and inner promptings today. The longer you delay the harder your heart will become.
Too many Christians are afraid to follow God’s Spirit beyond the religious routine that has shut down the saints by repeatedly setting them in rows to silently sit through sermon after sermon. (Search for: Beyond Church Ekklesia.) Step up to follow the Spirit and be courageous!
Christianity isn’t about passively sitting for another sermon. It’s about boldly standing up for Jesus by actively demonstrating His love, power, and presence through what you say and how you live your daily life.
Christians are Supposed to be So much more than Sunday row-sitters Watching a show. They’re supposed to grow Beyond religion Into Spirit-led People of God.
Ancient people had their mythological gods, but modern people (who proudly feel that they are so much more advanced than the ancients) have their mythological gods as well. Modern gods include:
Comfort,
Pleasure,
Convenience,
Personal desires,
Sexual freedom (which is really bondage)
Love of money,
Personal possessions,
Celebrities and heroes,
Drug or alcohol highs,
Music,
Academics,
Sports,
Titles and degrees,
Streaming,
Nationalism,
Efficiency,
Screens,
Routine religion,
Race,
Tattoos,
Consumerism,
Social media,
Popularity,
Pride,
Political power
Self-protection,
And I’m sure you can think of more (that maybe even inhabit your own heart).
Here’s a description of my life in God’s alternate universe. I’m for Jesus first, Jesus last, and Jesus forever!
People who are for Jesus frequently talk about Him and about the amazing things that He has done and is doing in their heart and in their life. They daily overcome the badness that is within them and the gods that are around them by continually relying on the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus, by joyfully and excitedly sharing their testimony to glorify Jesus and point people to Him, and by freely embracing death to their self-interests and personal desires. (See Revelation 12:11.) People who are for Jesus keep Jesus first in their heart, first in their thoughts, first in their desires, first in their words, and first in their Spirit-led alternative way of life.
I live in Nashville, Tennessee where there is a full-size replica of the Athenian Parthenon and the goddess Athenia. That is a reminder that the ancient gods are not powerless and forgotten. They are still working in other forms to influence people to stay away for the living God, the Creator of all that exists.
The freedom to ignore and disobey your conscience is the false freedom to self-destruct. That’s the freedom that is being promoted and embraced by our contemporary culture. It’s no surprise that the sadness of self-destruction surrounds us.
Here’s true freedom: Instead of passively letting your desires define and dominate you, you have the ability to define and dominate your desires.
The freedom to put individual subjectivity (feelings, desires, and compulsions) ahead of obvious physiology and to demand or bully people into public agreement, is a false freedom that leads a society into confusion and mental duress. True freedom allows people to openly make these observations: Abortion ends a human life. A person’s body declares his or her gender.
The freedom to insult and belittle people is another false freedom. It leads society into anger and bitterness. True freedom is the freedom to share our perspective with kindness and to respect other people’s right to disagree with us. People who think they know what they don’t know frequently get mad at and/or insult those who disagree with them. They are far from freedom. (The idea that you can make America great by continually insulting the Americans you disagree with is terribly misguided concept of freedom.)
If nothing produced everything it would mean that everything (including you and the entire human race) is nothing but a meaningless accident. It would mean that people are merely mechanism–machines that operate without free will. It would mean that freedom is only a myth. Fortunately, nothing has ever been shown to produce anything, so it’s impossible that nothing could have produced everything and made it all fit together and work together with intricate detail and precision. Someone has done an amazing job of designing your body and your mind!
Some racial insults Are spoken with hate, Some with ignorance, Either way they won’t Make America great.
Life is short. Breathless bodies Buried beneath The dirt Becoming dust Bring to mind My mortality And make me grateful For the blessing Of every breath And for the awareness Of Christ in me.
When hope shuts down and fear closes in, it’s good to remember that there’s a meal that no money can buy. It is a gift of value that is beyond description. It is symbolized by bread and wine. It is the gift to be “partakers of the divine nature.”
At what is called The Last Supper, “Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it and gave it to the disciples and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’ Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.'” (Matthew 20:26-27.)
That priceless meal was more than bread and wine. It was the offer to “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” It proclaimed the gift of “Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Last night during a small gathering of Christ-followers (as I was pouring out my heart in adoration to Jesus) an image of Christ appeared in my consciousness. He was walking beside me. As we walked together, He got closer and closer to me until His shoulder was touching my shoulder. Then His shoulder began to literally merge into my shoulder and suddenly His entire body moved inside of mine.
I had never had that literal of a perspective of Christ in me before. The Scripture that says, “Christ in you,” isn’t just a religious teaching. It’s real. It’s experiential. It’s powerful. It’s glorious!
Faith is to wholeheartedly rely on and daily depend on the presence, activity, and reality of the risen Jesus working inside of you, instead of on your own efforts, abilities, or resources. Train yourself to continually rely on the resurrected Jesus. He’s the same “yesterday, today, and forever.” That is the ultimate dependability!
The gift of the manifestation and inspiration of Christ in you is more satisfying and longer lasting than any human pleasure. Receive the gift of His indwelling presence now!
Open the eyes Of your heart And behold The glorious view Of Christ in you.
Christianity’s not about the size of your train. It’s about staying on track with Jesus. Let Christ freely live and work inside of you!
There’s a story that many people find uninteresting because it is too often presented as “blah, blah, blah.” However, to me it is the most exciting series of events in history. That story powerfully impacts my life throughout each day. It’s account of Jesus and His birth, life, death, resurrection, and ongoing working in human hearts! Christ’s presence in me freely flows from my innermost being as living water.
“My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.” Christ is risen! Church sometimes seems Like “blah, blah, blah,” But Christ in me Is “Rah, Rah, Rah!” Think outside Your comfort box Until you find Hope that unlocks God’s building blocks And puts you on The Cornerstone. To raise you above Life’s hard knocks– “If then you were Raised with Christ, Seek those things Which are above.”’
My wife, Ernie, and I love to bask in Christ’s living water that flows from deep within us:
Spirit-led worship that passionately flows from the heart,
Gathering with other Christ-followers as His Spirit-led town hall meeting (ekklesia).
Words about Jesus without a godly lifestyle are hypocritical. A godly lifestyle without words about Jesus makes people think you’re a good person. Don’t let people give you credit for what Christ is doing in you. Show and tell what Jesus has done and is doing in and through your life. Use actions and words to declare His glory. Both are necessary.”
Following Christ is about daily attentiveness to, obedience to, and reliance on the presence and power of the risen Jesus. Are you willing to humbly hear, obey, and rely on what Jesus has to say in your heart, even if it is something you don’t want to hear? Dare to let your heart be continually aware of and surrendered to the heart of Jesus. “Whatever He says to you, do it.” “He that has ears let him hear what the Spirit is saying . . .”
I can testify to this! Jesus said: “Therefore do not worry . . . but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.” Ever since I was 19, I’ve sought to follow and obey the risen King Jesus, and all these 30 things have been added unto me!
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.
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.
Free Gas for Your Think Tank -- Short Reflections, Lasting Encouragement 