Mankind was Saved through Babel

Posted: January 25, 2015 in Heaven Bound
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WTBtower-of-babel2Some of you may have read the Old Testament before and remember the story of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11). To help you recall, this story comes right after the epic saga of Noah in Biblical sequence. What I have always found to be sad in this story is how in so few years after the flood, where we saw God destroy everyone and every thing because of evil everywhere on the earth (Genesis 6:5)… that here we see once again, the people of the earth essentially following the same path. When will they learn?

God had already promised to not destroy the earth again (Genesis 8:21) but when He comes down and sees what the people are doing and saying, I can only imagine what He was thinking, something like, “here we go again”. Possibly? But I would like to give you another perspective on this issue that I heard shared recently that I found enlightening.

All my life I just took this story at face value; In other words, God came down, saw these people full of themselves to the point that they decided to build a tower to Heaven. In their minds, they were working every day on this project and as it grew taller and taller, they hoped they would somehow meet God in the air? From our vantage point now, that idea seems extremely crazy but let’s go with it for a minute; In the meantime, God comes down, sees what they are doing and instead of wiping them out…again…He confuses them by changing their languages. In other words, one minute you can communicate with the guy next to you and the next minute he is speaking French. Very quickly after that happened, the people collected together in their language groups and then went off and settled elsewhere leaving the tower project unfinished.

I would like to submit the idea to you that on that day, when God confused them with different languages, He saved them from sure destruction. Think of this scenario this way:

  • These people were doing what THEY wanted to do and NOT what God wanted them to do…
  • By pursuing what they wanted to do, they excluded God.
  • Because their pursuit was for their own glory and NOT Gods, this is a quick ticket to a very bad place.

Guys, I share this with you because I know it is easy to get sidetracked along the way in our lives. The pursuit of what we want to do is a very powerful thing and can or will overwhelm us to the point of complete exclusion from God. That is exactly what these people from the tower began to say:

Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” Genesis 11:4

I am telling you that God saved mankind that day by confusing them with different languages. They were on their way to sure destruction with the intent inside their hearts…

I am telling you the very same thing today. If your existence is to make a name for yourself at the exclusion of God, you too are on the wrong road and I caution you right now to recognize this and refocus back on Christ.

Let me leave you with this verse in Proverbs:

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:3

An easier way to look at this verse is simply this:

Commit your plans to God FIRST…and they will succeed…

 

Until next time Guys…

How can I find Gods favor?

Posted: January 10, 2015 in Something to think about
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We see numerous examples throughout God’s word of men and women gaining the favor and grace of God through their experiences. Moses, who killed the Egyptian was given the grace of God and ultimately gained God’s favor and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt…and don’t forget David, who sinned greatly with Bathsheba but was forgiven and provided grace and we all know he found favor in God Eyes. Even God’s own son came from the line of David. Today though, I want to talk a little about Noah and not the Noah that was poorly displayed in the Hollywood movie some time back, but the real Noah of the Bible. The same guy who was a preacher of God’s righteousness…did you know that?

If He did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;    2 Peter 2:5

Noah was far more than the picture we all have of him in our minds or the one Hollywood would have us believe. Let me say it to you this way, I really don’t know how many people were on earth at the time when Noah lived before the flood…whether it was thousands or even millions…all I know is what the Bible tells us:

And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.  So the Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man, and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.”  But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.     Genesis 6:6-8

So whether there were thousands of people or millions of people I don’t think it matters; What does matter is that out of all of the horrible evil that existed; the fact that man’s sole purpose was “only evil all the time”…

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.    Genesis 6:5

Noah somehow found favor in the eyes of the Lord…and he was the only one on earth to do so…I find that fact…amazing? Can you imagine being the only one at your work to be a Christian? And to walk the walk that Noah did, you would clearly have to be different and stand out from the crowd somehow in order to find favor in the eyes of the Lord.

How would you do that? How did Noah do that? What did Noah do to separate himself from literally everyone else on the planet at that time?

Plainly speaking, God’s word says, “Noah walked with God”. He just walked with God. What that means is he sought out God…He looked for God…He pursued God. And in that pursuit, Noah found favor in God’s eyes. The Bible says “Noah looked blameless before God”…What did that get Noah, honestly, a whole lot of hard work for a few years building an ark…but yet at the same time, Noah believed, he trusted and he obeyed God and he and his family were saved from death…

So my question to you guys today is simply this; Do you think you can walk with God? Can you simply take each day, one day at a time, and just trust in Him to take care of you? Honestly, this is truly that simple…the hard part comes when you are challenged to take the wrong road in life but as we saw with Noah, there were a whole lot of people who did choose the wrong way it did not end up well for them:

And all flesh died that moved on the earth, birds, livestock, beasts, all swarming creatures that swarm on the earth, and all mankind. Everything on the dry land in whose nostrils was the breath of life died. He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens. They were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark.   Genesis 7:21-23

My challenge to you is this:

Noah walked with God, you too can walk with God if you choose to…but you DO have to choose this path…

I challenge you today to pursue Him with all that you have…there is NO DOUBT in my mind this is a pursuit you will never regret…

Until Next Time Guys…

You must Resist…

Posted: January 3, 2015 in Inspirational
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I wanted to start this New Year off by going on the offensive against our common enemy…Satan. All of us are preparing on this last weekend of the holiday to head back to our regular routines…whatever that means for you, however before you take that first step this coming Monday in January, I wanted to remind you guys of the power that exists within you as believers in Christ and that when faced with life’s difficulties, we can wield this power and achieve results. I have used the verse below before in this blog but from my vantage point, it never gets old and frankly continually cuts when it needs to. So as you begin your New Year for both you and your family, I remind you to always remember to resist the evil one…

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.

1 Peter 5:8-11 NASB

This is one of those very powerful “get your attention” verses in the Bible put there to remind all of us that we are not at a country club in this life. It is an unseen war for your soul and Satan is the General in charge who is looking to beat you at all costs and he does not care who gets in his way because the more destruction he can release on you and everyone you care about…the better. Bodies in his wake are a victory for him.

Guys, I would like to point out the obvious for you…simply by using the word “resist” in the verse above God is telling us that we have the power to resist. Life is not a game of Russian roulette where we know eventually someone is going to get it and we just hope the bullet is NOT in the chamber when its our turn. Just because Satan is out there prowling around looking for you doesn’t mean he will win. My point is that your life is NOT already LOST. It is NOT inevitable that Satan is going to gain victory. In Christ, you have the power to tell Satan to “take a walk, I am NOT interested in what you are peddling today.”

Were you even aware that you could resist him?

I will tell you something else, when you wield the power that His word tells us we have because of Christ, did you know then that Satan is no longer a lion but rather more like a kitten? He can’t devour you, or affect you, or beat you, when you resist him in strong faith. When you deny him access to your personal vulnerabilities by telling him to take a hike, Satan is powerless.

What I don’t want you to hear me say however is not to be aware or be on the alert. Satan still knows your weakest areas where you are most likely to be vulnerable and those are the specific spots he will target in your life. He is not dumb. He knows where to stick the temptation and when and to NOT be prepared for that to happen is your fault not Gods.

Here is my bottom line…

You must RESIST and because of Christ…you have the power to…

Happy New Year…

 

Until next time guys…

 

Heavenly Deposit…

Posted: December 27, 2014 in Heaven Bound
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I recently spent some time with an old work friend of mine who I hadn’t seen in a long time. At one point, we had worked together and saw each other every day for two years but once I left that company, not so much anymore. However I had the opportunity where we could have some dinner so I took advantage of the chance to get back together with him. As you can imagine, we talked about the usual work stuff and family stuff but somehow the topic bent toward winning the lottery of all things. To be clear, in my mind that topic is just wasted mental energy because the chances of winning are not worth spending the time thinking about what you would do with all that money. But as I sat there and listened to my friend talk, I realized he had taken this lottery-planning topic to a whole new level. Honestly, the amount of detail he had already planned out was utterly amazing. He knew where he would invest, who he would give money to, and how much. He knew what upgrades he would make to his home, where he would take his first vacation, how he would quit his job, and the list went on and on. He even worked out a plan to help his son pay off his student loans, buy his parents, brother and nephews new homes…and guys, I could keep going. I finally interrupted him and asked him why? Why would you invest so much of your time and brainpower on a topic that will never happen? He replied simply, “ah, but it could, and I want to be prepared”

“Prepared”, I thought. “Interesting concept.”

From your perspective, what does it take to be prepared for anything? Investing time, thought and effort towards something helps one be prepared…However Christ told us to prepare by storing up for ourselves, treasures in Heaven…in other words, preparation for eternity…not preparation for a fictitious event, or for that matter, anything else here on earth.

But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust can consume, and where thieves can neither break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matt. 6:20-21

So what is a treasure in heaven? How can I have any connection with heaven while I am still here and living on this earth? Here is how I look at this; my friend was investing huge amounts of his time thinking about a fantasy event rather than thinking about how to make a difference now while he is here on earth. For example, how about spending more time with his kids, or his wife or both? What about focusing on or engaging with a particular subject that might make him better or even the people around him better? In my mind, all of these suggestions are treasures that are being stored in heaven for him. It’s like making a deposit in a bank or maybe better yet, it’s an investment in your eternal future.

Jesus said, “How will they know me? By how YOU love one another”

Pretty simple actually. If we take the time to be kind to someone, anyone…when you aren’t required to do so…YES… it helps them, but believe it or not, that is a treasure YOU have stored in heaven. What you do here on earth matters for your eternal future.

You see…everything we store up in heaven is safe…forever. There are not any malware or viruses that can wipe out your deposits in Heaven. Christ said this in the verse above, where neither moth nor rust can consume, and where thieves can neither break through nor steal.

NOTHING can destroy what you have stored there…It is safe for all eternity

My simple advice:

Lets just try to get out of our own way, focus on each other for a change, and watch what happens…

What I think you will find is a far happier group of family and friends because you aren’t 100% solely focused on you…or like my friend in the beginning of this post, who spent too much time planning for a fictitious event.

So as you begin to look and plan for this next year, 2015…my recommendation is to start making heavenly deposits sooner rather than later…

Honestly, your future depends on it…

 

Until next time Guys…

Taking that next Step…

Posted: December 21, 2014 in Tough Times
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It occurred to me recently that after the last few years of posts here on IronManStrength that I could possibly be taking something for granted with my audience…Simply put, I write to men who as believers, travel down the road of life and deal with everything that entails…pain, difficulty as well as happiness and joy and all of the above. But one thing may be true about you that I have failed to address and that is the very simple act of becoming a Christian.

You see, you can read this blog and hopefully feel somewhat encouraged and even moved to change…but if you have not placed Christ inside your personal heart, then you have missed the crux of what I speak about. Otherwise, these posts are just stories for men who hope to feel better. Although I confess that my goal is to give a strong support to guys out there who just need a lift, at the heart of why I write is just simply…God. I believe that He changed me on the inside from a tough piece of old leather to someone who is a little bit more affected by the heart of God.

What that means to me is that all of us were put here for a reason…some of us know what that reason is…while others might still be searching…and that’s ok. As long as you are moving forward, that still counts as positive. My point is, along our way we gain callouses when dealing with life and that is NOT the way God intended things to be. His original plan was far better…but that’s another blog post altogether. God understands that the journey you are on can be painful and over time, that pain changes you, on the inside and out. The reality is that we, MEN, tend to become like that old piece of leather I was talking about earlier…literally so calloused ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
that we miss out on why we are here…that is where being a believer comes into this conversation. The only way we can hear Christ is to be tapped into the heart of God and the only way to tap in…is to be a believer…

So with the help of some friends, we put together a very simple “How to become a Believer” including the prayer you must pray in order to let God know YOU mean business. Please know this is a very simple process but once you commit, you will need to get connected with a church that believes similarly to you so you can keep your heart linked to Him. Walking with God isn’t one time and forget commitment. God desires a relationship with you, and that means everyday…

How to become a Christian

  1. Understand and believe in your heart that God Loves YOU. I know this can be very painful for some of you out there simply due to the fact that this world does NOT exude love. Plainly put, this world sucks at giving love. But please understand me when I say that the God I serve loved YOU, so much that He sent His son to die so that we might have eternal life. In my book, that is an exhibition of the truest love there is…

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

  1. God has an amazing plan for your life! You were NOT put on this earth be just vanilla, with no color and barely any taste. You were put on this earth for something special. Now I understand that for some people, the word life and special probably don’t go together but hear me when I say if you haven’t had God in your life up to this point, He is the one who can put things together in a way that you would not have even expected.

I have come that they (YOU) may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)

There are 5 verses in the book of Romans in the Bible that explain the “Road to Salvation” for all of us. Read these next…

  1. Very simply…because you were born into sin, you are separated from God.
    For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  (Romans 3:23)
  2. The Penalty for your sin is death.
    For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
  3. I have good news for you…the penalty for your sin was paid by Jesus Christ!
    But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
  4. If you repent of your sin and then confess and trust Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you will be saved from your sin! It is that easy…

For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.  (Romans 10:13)

…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9,10)

Once you read these verses and confess your sin to God…and most importantly, believe in your heart that God can do all of these things…then pray this prayer with me:
Lord Jesus, I am like everyone else – I can’t make it through life on my own. I am imperfect and I’m prone

to sin. I have come to realize that there’s nothing in the world I can do to make myself acceptable to You.

But I know that You have loved me so much that You were willing to submit to the cross and die on my

behalf. That is an act of grace so amazing, that I cannot understand it; I can only accept it. And I do. I

accept Your free gift, the gift of salvation and along with that, you into my heart, and I know that from this

moment on, I am saved. I am a child of God. And I give the rest of my life to serving You and experiencing

the joy that only You can offer. Fill me now, dear Lord, and raise me to walk in the newness of life. I thank

You and praise You! Amen.

Now that you are a “new creation” in Jesus Christ, the road ahead will be full of life-changing experiences. Growing in knowledge and understanding of the Bible and your Christian walk with God is essential for your spiritual growth.

If you prayed that prayer, I am so very happy for you. Your name was written in the most important book of all, The Lambs Book of Life and from this day forward, you are truly…not alone.

I have more for you next time but for now, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from IronManStrength Blog.

Until next time Guys…

 

 

 

 

 

 

God Incomprensible

Posted: December 14, 2014 in Inspirational
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Have you ever stopped to consider the sheer massiveness of God? And I just don’t mean His size. I mean in every way humanly possible. I say humanly because simply by that fact we are bound in what we can think and know about God.

Recently, I have been reading everything I can get my hands on about God, our Creator, and the undeniable fact of His incomprehensibility. Simply put, he cannot be explained in a manner that befits Him. Human speech is far too limited for this exercise and I find myself searching for more answers. Moreover, all of this reading only makes me realize how truly BIG God is and how much I DON’T KNOW and honestly, that just makes things more difficult.

How do we think about God with our limited ability to even comprehend Him?

To clarify perspective even more, A.W. Tozer said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us” …about US. Which means if we were able to extract a complete answer to that question, we might be able to predict the spiritual future of that man.

But realistically guys, who really thinks about this besides really smart theologians? Have you ever taken the time to think about God at anytime or anywhere in your life? My guess is probably not. But don’t feel bad because in reality, most guys don’t because we don’t understand this subject well enough for it to even matter to us. The purpose of my post today is simply to explain why you should care and better yet, why you should seek God on your own to learn more about Him. Let me assure you guys up front, your personal search for Him will not go unrewarded.

We are told throughout the Bible that mankind has been created in the image of God and that makes us unique amongst all of His creation. The fact that we can think and speak makes us different. In other words, you and I can look at each another and what we see around us and as a result, can derive certain things about the image of God and who He is.

The problem as I see it is that mankind starts with such a poor idea of God the Creator that it denigrates the dignity of who He is. When you grow up with a limited understanding of God and who He is and the only information about God is what we learn on TV or maybe in a University then to me it’s very clear why 80% of today’s millennials say they are not Christians or “God-fearing” believers.

For those of you who may think otherwise, God is not hiding from us. He is not an illusive God who thinks mankind is His game and sometimes He is around and other times He is not. When we think like that, we put God in a box and I think we do this because that way, He can be more easily understandable to us.

In other words, we try to fit God into our minds but the problem is…He doesn’t fit…because our God is truly…God incomprehensible.

But before I go to far with all of this “incomprehensible” stuff and lose you, let me simply say that God’s plan for us to better understand Him came in the form of His son Christ Jesus. Without Him, the gap between mankind and God could not have been breached.

For those of you who have an inner core desire to seek God and desperately search after Him…there is a reason for that longing. Tozer said,

“The yearning to know what cannot be known, to comprehend the Incomprehensible, to touch and taste the Unapproachable, arises from the image of God in the nature of man. Deep calls unto deep and the soul senses its origin and longs to return to its source.”

Guys, simply put…inside you there exists something that longs God. As a believer, something is inside of us that desires Him and by seeking God with all you have, you are following His desire for you. He wants you to return to Him and the beauty of all of this is He gave you Christ to make it so easy. Christ said this in Matthew:

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Matthew 7:7

My point is simply all YOU have to do is ask…

I started this blog by telling you about the incomprehensibility of the God we serve and how can we even begin to think about something so massive? I am ending it by telling you to remember what He gave us to help us do that…

He gave us Christ and that my friends, is all we need to remember…

Have a blessed Holiday Season my brothers.

Merry Christmas from IronMan Strength,

I leave you with this video from Pentatonix…

Until next time guys…

Why can’t Life be easy?…revisited

Posted: November 30, 2014 in Inspirational
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Four years ago, I wrote a blog post simply called Why cant life be easy? Because it kind of fit where I was at that point. Well today, 4 years later, I have reached into the archives because it seems to fit yet again for me. Sometimes none of us can understand the ebb and flow of life’s changes both personally or collectively as a family and how they affect us. Waves roll in and out with some being just annoyances while others knock us off our feet completely. This post is just to serve as a beacon along your journey to NOT give up. Stay the course and stay strong for the people who love you. I hope you enjoy the new and improved version of Why can’t life be easy…

 

Have you ever wondered why God allows or even requires the Christian journey to be filled with pain, problems, unhappiness and sometimes misery? Because I have… Why does God put so much emphasis on perseverance, or striving for the prize and winning the race like it says in Philippians?

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

Why cant the Christian walk be more like a Sprint instead of a Marathon?

I believe that all the lessons and experiences we learn through life; the “Iron Sharpening Iron” moments like we read in Proverbs 27:17; the falling down and getting back up opportunities, but most importantly and through the adversity, is our ability to keep our eyes focused on Him in spite of whatever is set against us…

Because the reason why the Christian walk is a marathon and NOT a sprint is because God intended life to be truly ALL about the journey.

God watches how WE handle the problems we face in this world…are we the kind of guy who gives up and just walks away? Or do we get back up on our feet and keep forging ahead?

Guys, listen to me here because I truly believe that the ones that can pick themselves up from the problem and still keep their eyes on Him…They are the ones that I firmly believe God has chosen to surround Himself in eternity.

 

Life is hard…there I said it…but don’t just give up and let it overwhelm you! Fight back…

 

One of my favorite warriors of the Bible was David who wrestled with these very same questions. Look at what he says to God in Psalms:

Why, O Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? Psalms 10:1

The reality is that David, one of the greatest men in the Bible, struggled just like us. He wrestled with pain and suffering and he cried out to God continuously…and do you know what?

God did NOT forsake him.

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, Lord, for you have never forsaken those who seek you. Psalms 9:9-10

Guys, this post is titled, Why can life be easy because many times we cant help but ask that question. I encourage you today, as we move into the holiday season to remember that God hasn’t left you during these times of difficulty but rather He is right there next to you lifting you up. Just hang on and trust because someday here is what we, the ones who have persevered, have to look forward to:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Revelation 21: 3-5

Guys, enjoy the journey that you are on and keep the faith because ultimately you will overcome.

 

Until next time Guys…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Ignorance really Bliss?

Posted: October 25, 2014 in Something to think about
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Did you know that God keeps a record of our sorrows and He records our tears?

Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll, are they not in your record?

Psalm 56:8

Did you know that God keeps a record of those who fear him and honor his name?

Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name. Malachi 3:16

 

Did you know that God judges our secrets?

On that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. Romans 2:16

Did you know that God knows the number of hairs on your head?

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.  Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Luke 12:7

OK…so maybe I went a bit overboard with scriptures on this post but only because these particular verses hit a little closer to home than most do because many of us are just going about our lives living in our own bliss right? Why do I say it this way? Because if any of us actually think we are going to skate underneath Gods radar because we consider ourselves good guys and we never really get into trouble or create problems? If you are someone who thinks because of that you will get to cruise right up into heaven?

I have some bad news for you…

For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and He examines all of his paths. The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.

Proverbs 5: 21-23

Guys, simply put…Ignorance is not bliss…just because you may NOT spend time thinking about God doesn’t mean He isn’t thinking about you. He pays attention to everything you do, everything you think and everything you say and for anyone to think otherwise is foolish…or at least living in ignorance. He made you in His image and because He is God, He is completely in touch and connected to everything about you…EVEN IF YOU DON’T THINK SO.

Your secrets are NOT secrets to God.

You are NOT the only one who knows your deep personal thoughts.                                             ignorance-is-bliss

God knows them too…

I hope this post is not the first time you are hearing that God knows what you are and who you are? Because if it is…well…that knowledge does tend to change the way you handle what you are thinking about and your deep secrets…or at least it should.

My point is this: because there is a God is out there who actually cares enough to number the hairs on your head, or who pays attention to just you, or keeps a record of your tears…Honestly guys, that is the kind of God you should look into further. Where else on this earth would anyone care like that? Short answer…nowhere. No one on this earth can know as much about YOU as He does…

Please don’t ignore what I am telling you today.

My simple recommendation…instead of living in denial that He doesn’t know anything about you or that all of the verses I quoted above don’t apply to you…

Instead…try calling upon His name, Jesus Christ, in order to change your direction.

Trust me on this one guys.

In the end, Ignorance of God and His ways will NOT be bliss…

Until next time guys…

Is it so Hard to Just Believe?

Posted: October 18, 2014 in Tough Times
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believe_nischala

I know that a great deal has been written about Abraham, the patriarch of the Old Testament and honestly far more than I could ever begin to convey in a single blog post. The same thing can be said about how many times you or I have heard someone speak about this Abraham in our lifetimes. He is not only important to the Christian faith, but also to Muslims as well because he was the father of Ismael, who as it mentions in Genesis 16:12, was against everyone.

This man will be like a wild donkey. His hand will be against everyone, and everyone’s hand will be against him; he will live at odds with all his brothers.

Interesting verse, isn’t it? But let’s get back to Abraham because he does something in his lifetime that caused God to award him with status that I know all of us would give anything to have. God saw something very different in Abraham that gave Him confidence in knowing that He could essentially start over with the Jewish nation. Abraham was special in the eyes of God and that has always struck me…what made him different? What did he do that would cause the Creator to think in his mind, “that is my guy”? “He is the one I am going to work with” “I am gambling on him”.

When you read about Abraham you can see right away that he is a doer. He is a man of action when the situation calls for this. He wrestled with God over the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. He rescued his nephew Lot and his family when they were captured. But what I found most interesting with the story of Abraham is that “doing” is not what caused God to find so intriguing about him…it was Abrahams “believing” that actually moved God. In fact, the verse in the center of this post is what made me write this in the first place is in Genesis:

Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:12

Think about this for a moment…for the very first time in the Bible, we see faith and righteousness mentioned together. Why is this so important? Because of this statement:

By Abraham just simply believing in God…down deep his heart, God gave him a right standing or a “different” standing with Him.

Abraham’s heart was turned toward God in an enduring trust, obedience and submissive relationship. Because of that rock solid belief, it changed his status with the Creator of this universe. Abraham didn’t conquer the greatest army in the world or climb the highest mountain…all he did was believe, and that belief caused his position with God…to be BETTER.

Guys, in almost every post I have ever written here on IronManStrength, I have expressed the fact that living in this imagesworld, as a Christian, is not an easy road. I don’t say that to depress you, I say it to encourage you because of the amazing journey we are all on together. What I find extremely encouraging about the story of Abraham is simply the fact that even though what he saw in front of him was contrary to what God told him…He still believed. Here was a guy who was told his offspring would out number the stars and this would all begin with his very own son…and he was over 100 years old and his wife was a ripe young 95…but, guess what? He still believed…

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.”  He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then the Lord said to him, “So shall your offspring be. Genesis 15: 4-5

Guys, hear me out for a second…how does this really apply to you? How does the story of some old guy who lived over 2000 years ago make a difference to any of us right now? It’s simple really…

Abraham had problems – we have problems

Abraham had struggles – we have struggles

Abraham had family issues – all of us have family issues

God spoke to Abraham – God can speak to us

The difference:

ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD

Not lip service…but real belief…that is truly what it comes down to guy’s…actual belief that God can do what He says He can.

When you believe God inside your core that He can be trusted…your relationship with Him changes. When you are obedient and submissive toward God and not allow that arrogance inside all of us to show through…things will change.

I encourage you to take your own belief to the next level by trusting God.

Establish a “right standing” with Him…

Do you Believe?

Until next time guys…

 

 

 

 

The Christian Marketing Plan

Posted: October 4, 2014 in Something to think about
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
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Marketing Plan

Has anyone ever accused you of over thinking an idea or a plan? Maybe you were looking at something at work and you analyzed it so deeply that you lost the point in the first place? I am referring to the condition of “paralysis by analysis” sound familiar?

I was recently reading in Luke’s gospel where Christ pushed the disciples out of the proverbial nest and sent them out to spread His gospel and heal the sick in order for Him to determine if they actually learned anything because of the time spent with Him. I think the most interesting portion of these few verses was the fact that God didn’t send his disciples out with the Christian Marketing Plan or lets say, a better planned journey? No, that was not His way. Instead, He sent them out with empty hands.

 

Jesus called the Twelve together. He gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to heal sicknesses. Then he sent them out to preach about God’s kingdom and to heal those who were sick.

He told them, “Don’t take anything for the journey. Do not take a walking stick or a bag. Do not take any bread, money or extra clothes. When you are invited into a house, stay there until you leave town. Some people may not welcome you. If they don’t, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town. This will be a witness against the people living there.”

So the Twelve left. They went from village to village. They preached the good news and healed people everywhere. Luke 9:1-6 NIV

 

Why would Christ ask His disciples to begin ministry this way? Why would He specifically send his disciples out and tell them NOT to bring anything, or pack anything, but rather just go? He gave them advice and then told them to depart. He didn’t send them to classes or make them read and test out on the basic tenants of the gospel. He also didn’t load them up with the 5 steps to salvation books.

Does that sound like a great marketing plan for spreading the gospel to you?

Well, that’s the interesting part because to you and me, Christ’s marketing plan doesn’t look like much of anything that would ever succeed, let alone thrive for a couple thousand years. But as I have mentioned here before in this blog, God does not think like you and me. Christ had a very different idea in mind for His disciples while out on the road. He didn’t want them to over think any planning or preparation for this journey but rather fully rely upon Him for the strength. He didn’t want them to focus on the worry that comes from planning the itinerary, but rather focus entirely on Him for guidance.

If I were to analyze myself, I would say I’m a guy who is proactive and more of a planner than not…I do tend to spend certain amounts of my time in preparation for whatever challenge I’m about to take on and I would also say that in some cases, I probably do over think and over plan more than I should.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me here. Christ is NOT coming down on planning or planners like you and me, but rather he’s making a distinction between the “action” versus the “preparation”. In reality, all of us, during any planning process can over think something and then experience the aforementioned paralysis by analysis.

My point is simple, when it comes to just getting out there and doing something or saying something for Him,

Christ’s plan for us is very simple;

JUST DO IT…

Don’t hesitate

Don’t plan

Don’t worry

Just do

All He wants is your “doing”.

Our only job is to trust in Him exclusively and rely upon Him to take care of our needs by providing us the necessary words when we are required to speak. That is exactly the same advice He gave to his disciples.

He just told them to go with the clothes on their back and their empty hands.

To some of you who will read what I am saying you will think this is absolute craziness. There is NO way you would or could ever consider anything I am writing here. Without a plan, it is NOT happening…

Sounds like you may be paralyzed?

All I am asking from you is to just think about the real Christian Marketing Plan…

When the opportunities present themselves…just go…just speak…and He will take care of the rest…

 

Until next time guys…

 

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