Posts Tagged ‘Christian’

Wake Up and look around you…

Posted: October 31, 2015 in Heaven Bound
Tags: , , , , ,
1

ironsharpensiron555x268

Many churches of all persuasions are hiring research agencies to poll neighborhoods, asking what kind of church they prefer. Then the local churches design themselves to fit the desires of the people. True faith in God that demands selflessness is being replaced by trendy religion that serves the selfish.

Billy Graham

So I read this quote from Billy Graham today and it hit me over the head like a hammer. In the back of my mind I may have known churches were doing this but I never fully understood the reason why. Guys simply put, if we tailor our religion to only what we want to hear, or rather only a “feel good” message, God cant help us because we are to busy enjoying ourselves to hear Him.

This idea behind what Billy Graham is saying was never Gods intent for our Christian walk. But I do think it is Satan’s. Think about it; If Satan can bend our churches into only telling us what we want to hear, then we are truly lost. Why? Because Satan can make you think there is no pain for your entire life…that is, right up until you are on the edge of the cliff, and then when you look over, you see a place that you do not want to spend eternity in…

Please listen to me here. God never intended that the life of a Christian was just perfect and great all of the time. I know I have spoken about this before in previous blogs. There will be pain and suffering while we are here on this earth. So you can either run from that or stand there like a man, be strong, and fight the fight you were meant to. Only YOU can make that decision.

Honestly guy’s that is what this blog’s purpose has been since the start. It is based upon the powerful verse in Proverbs 27:17:

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

So what I am saying is simply this and to Billy Graham’s quote above; If your church situation isn’t challenging your heart to repent each week and to live your life as Christ lived…then I would find one that does. Every single time you are there your Pastor should be causing you to think about your relationship with God. He should be challenging you to come out of your comfort zone in order to love others. There is truly no greater service than helping those around us…

Let me finish by saying this because I truly believe it. When you and I reach heaven someday, I believe that God will look for those of us who have scars on our bodies and hearts because of the fights we fought while here on earth. In eternity, God wants to be surrounded by Christians who were active for Him and not ones who atrophied while they were here.

I challenge you today to live your life fully accountable to God and not to simply feeling good…

This life as a Christian may hurt now and then, but the payoff will be amazing…

Until next time guys…

We Live as if we are going to Live Forever

Posted: March 22, 2015 in Something to think about
Tags: , , , , ,
0

polls_live_forever_5930_223223_answer_1_xlarge

I heard one of my favorite Pastors, Andy Stanley, recently speak about a topic that I think is so very relevant right now because of where we are in the world with all of its chaos and unpredictability. As Christians, many of us can honestly see the worlds events unfolding just as the Bible says they would…all right in front of our eyes and yet at the very same time, we same Christians are living on this earth as if we are going to live forever?

We live, play, and conduct ourselves as if our tomorrow is something guaranteed to us…NEWS FLASH…it isn’t.

You see as Pastor Stanley said, if we could totally see God as He is, everlasting to everlasting, we would give Him the reverence that He is due because as humans, we are only just a blip on the screen of eternity. In fact, I don’t even think we are a blip or a speck on His eternal timeline. If you really think about it, what is 70 or 80 years to a God who is truly eternal or time less?

Here are a couple of points to consider:

  • If you and I could see God as He truly is we would be much more careful with the time that we have here on this earth.
  • If you and I could see God as He truly is we would probably rethink what we do with our limited time here on this earth and how we choose to spend it.

Think about that for a second…Do you consciously think about how you will spend your time?

Because from my vantage point, it looks like many of us are just living as if the rest of our life is guaranteed and locked in permanent. We even spend our time with our children as if they’re going to be here forever. Whether that means we ignore them or we tolerate them, they too will be gone before we know it.

Moses said in Psalm 90:12

Teach us to number our days so that we may gain wisdom from you.

When we number our days and gain that wisdom from God, we carefully allocate what we choose to spend our time on each day. In other words, we pay attention to what we do and where we focus our efforts on. Simply put, this life is preparation for the next and our task here on this earth is to accomplish what GOD wants us to accomplish and NOT what WE think we should. As Christians, remembering our time is limited on earth should give us better insight into how we should not waste it.

Please trust me when I say this, wasting time is not what God would have us do while we are here on earth.

One more thing to consider:

Pastor Stanley made the point that because my time is limited means I need to limit what I do. In other words, don’t throw yourself into every single thing you are asked to participate in as well as for your kids.

You know exactly what I mean…

Busy is good…crazy busy, stressful busy, that is not careful allocation of the time we have here on earth. Something to think about…

Guys, when I heard this message it hit me between the eyes and spiritually speaking, I hope it does for you too…

Until next time guys…

 

Taking that next Step…

Posted: December 21, 2014 in Tough Times
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

15BE0C04785941A3820C6D23557A9AF8

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…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is it so Hard to Just Believe?

Posted: October 18, 2014 in Tough Times
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

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…

 

 

 

 

Perseverance

Posted: September 5, 2014 in Inspirational
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

perseverence

I was walking through our plant the other day and noticed an employee really struggling with a machine he was trying to operate. This guy was working hard, sweating and really under some pressure but what I found strange was his boss was nowhere to be found? As I surveyed the area closely, my eye came across his supervisor far off in a corner…almost hidden. When I went to see what he was doing, he told me he had his eye on this guy from a distance and he wanted to see how this young man would handle this equipment problem on his own. I turned around and looked back at the employee again with his head underneath the machine trying desperately to get the thing to run right and then I looked back at the supervisor…Clearly he noticed the look on my face and he said, “this is the kind of problem that can produce perseverance in someone”. I said, “perseverance?” where did that come from?” He said, “I have been doing this a long time…In my younger days, I would run right over right and help the newbies every time they needed help…but I learned over time, this method really didn’t help them…What they needed was to persevere through the problem until they figured out the solution on their own, then they became the kind of operator I wanted working for me”. I said, “Very impressive…and I agree with you”. But of course, that got me thinking about his lesson to this young man. So I went to the dictionary and I found the word; perseverance:

Continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition.

Wow…I know the word and I use the word all the time but when I saw what it meant, I was kind of shocked. Perseverance was the word that was meant for our Iron Sharpens Iron blog audience…this is the foundation we are built upon because perseverance is exactly what God wants Christian men to have…a little fortitude…a little toughness and a whole lot of perseverance.

Even more important, God has something to say on this subject and I found the scripture to back this up for us:

Consider it pure joy my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

James 1:2-4

So now it makes perfect sense right? Do you remember that poor guy at the beginning of my post that was struggling mightily to get that piece of equipment to run? Well ultimately… he was successful and that success has made him a better employee…all because of the simple test his boss put him through…but I will point out one key point here…

HE DID NOT GIVE UP…He kept at it, even though it was hard…

And that is why God tells us that the testing of our faith produces perseverance. He already knew before you were made all of the various predicaments you were going to find yourself in that ultimately would be opportunities to show that you can “get up off of the mat” when you are knocked down. So don’t just lay there…get up!

If you are a Christian, you will be tested. If you are tested, then hang in there because you just read a few lines ago that this same testing and adversity will produce a character quality that is huge for you…perseverance…

Because when you finally achieve the ability to keep on, keeping on, in other words, perseverance. God will truly look down from heaven and smile on you…why?

Because He understands everything YOU went through to get there and He admires the person you became as a result…

Let me leave you with this verse:

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

James 1:12

Until next time Guys…

Hidden Christians

Posted: September 1, 2014 in Something to think about
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

HIDING_toppick_crop

I recently watched the major motion picture “Gods Not Dead” where the plot was a bitter college professor who tried to push all of his freshman students to proclaim that God is dead before his class would begin each semester. He asked that each of them write, “God is dead” on a sheet of paper, then sign it, and turn it into him. In the story, one of his incoming freshman students could not do this because of his faith, which prompted this angry professor to challenge him to prove the existence of God.

From a Christian perspective, I thought the apologetics were very powerful in the movie and frankly refreshing to hear. Moreover, to understand that this was a movie released to the masses in secular theaters was very exciting to see in this current day. But if you know me and have read this blog, you know that something stood out above all else when I watched this film…and that was the verses quoted below from Matthew 10:32-33 in which Christ said,

“Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.”

Guys, this one hit me like a brick in the head because I know, like you, I am surrounded by hidden Christians who never say anything to anyone about their faith. For those of you who are a light in this world, this post isn’t for you. This particular one is for the rest of us Christian guys who exist in silence before one another and before the almighty God. I am speaking to those who go about their days focused on their “busy-ness” with the light that is supposedly inside of them, is hidden deep inside where no one can see.

My point is that our God is real, no matter how you and I feel about Him, and in my mind I believe that as each day passes, is one more day we will never get back again. For Christians, God continually places opportunities in front of us to share and be an influence for Him…no matter where we are…These are chances just for us. For you and me. They can be opportunities to just say an encouraging word or something more…

Guys…God never intended for you to be undercover. You are not a spy for Christ in this world; you are one of His disciples and its time for you to be a voice for Him rather than silent. I am NOT trying to guilt you or scare you but Christ’s words are very clear in the verse above… But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.

Please…please think about those words. They are for you and for me…Do not find yourself in that position someday…

Until next time Guys…

Sins Destructive Purpose

Posted: August 23, 2014 in Something to think about
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Sin-archery

All of us have had friends or even family that chose to go a different way other than Christianity and for those people in our lives, we continue to pray that they will someday soon, see the light that is waiting for them…In today’s post, I want you to focus on that choice they made and why they made it? Here is what I mean; what was so attractive about sin that made them change their course in life and move towards it, rather than Christ? Now you say, “they didn’t choose sin, they chose (insert choice here)” In reality though, if you did not choose Christ, then you did choose sin. Here is why I think that way…

I have titled today’s post Sins Destructive Purpose because I wanted you to have a better understanding through symbolism, of what sin is and what sin does…

What Sin is:

Sin is dark, Sin is thick, and Sin is dense

In my real life, I work with ink in the printing world and there we have what we call regular black ink we use all the time, but we also have something called dense black for specific applications. Dense black is filled with an overabundance of black pigment to make it ultra-black and highly opaque. You cannot see through dense black and therefore, light cannot pass through. One more point, if you get dense black on your hands, it doesn’t clean off…it takes several times of cleaning to lose the severe stain it leaves.

Please understand that sin is the same way, it’s filled with the darkness of the worst kind and it has a disgusting ability to stick to us. In fact, it’s like dense black like I mentioned above, because even when just a small amount gets on you, sin just doesn’t come off.

Sin has an Odor

Without being completely disgusting, you can think of the worst experience you have ever had that involves smell…road kill, skunk, changing a diaper…the smell of sin is far beyond our ability to imagine. It infects, permeates, and overwhelms an environment like nothing else. Sin is a “senses overwhelming” experience…that CANNOT be hidden. If sin is near, and you are tuned into its presence as a Christian, it cannot hide. However, believe this or not, the stink of sin is attractive at some point…otherwise why would so many people go that way?

What Sin does:

Sin is Alive

Sin is a disease that understands you…and you are a fool if you think otherwise…sin is driven to destroy. Sin’s only purpose is destruction. Satan is behind sin…he controls its desire to seek, hunt, and attack and YOU are in his crosshairs. When you move, it moves. When you think…it stops to wait to see what you are going to do…then it reacts. Sin is the ultimate in negative interactivity…

Guys, After reading the above, you probably feel like you need to take a shower but I felt impressed today to share the reality of what sin really is so you are prepared for defense. The bottom line is right now, you have the same sin as I described above, in you or on you and if you don’t do something about it, well, I think you know what ultimately will happen.

Let me briefly share with you an experience that Christ had and how it moved him when he encountered sin. There is a story in the New Testament about a friend of Christ that was ill and then died shortly after that. His name was Lazarus. Jesus was in another city and when he got word of his friend’s illness, he delayed another two days before leaving (you will have to read the story to understand why he did this) but when Jesus did arrive, he encountered a great deal of sadness and weeping people that leads us to the verse I want to share with you:

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. John 11:33

In this instance, why was Jesus so deeply moved in spirit and troubled? After looking into this further, I found that Jesus was grieved and angered by all the misery resulting from sin, Satan, and death.

The anguish He saw around him saddened him greatly, but it actually made Him angry even more. Jesus hates sin for all of the reasons I showed you above because of what it does to you and me…He hates sin. And guess what? He wants you to hate sin as well…Look at Hebrews 1:9;

You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”

I am not going to leave you hanging though…sin can be defeated through the redeeming power of what Christ did on the cross. All of the nastiness I described above can be wiped away by simply submitting to Christ’s plan for you and most importantly, asking for forgiveness…

Today’s title was Sins Destructive Purpose; which means, God has a plan for you, but so does Satan and for any of us to think otherwise is certain death. Guys, I care about you enough to be truthful to you and to share what I think is important for you in your own spiritual lives. Satan seeks to devour and God seeks to save…is sin really that attractive when you know what happens at the end of life’s story?

You get to make the choice…

I choose to eternal life…what say you?

Until next time guys.

It’s time to hit the Reset Button

Posted: July 19, 2014 in Inspirational
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
0

reset_button-scaled500

We recently finished a very successful Little League season that had us advancing to and winning our local city tournament. After a 24-game season and then a tournament where we faced 6 more local teams…to actually win first place, was very gratifying…

But I have to be honest it wasn’t always that way.

This season provided many of the normal low points that most seasons typically do with one exception; as a team, we discovered something we dislike universally…playing badly. But even more important, we discovered a way to stop this team from “falling off the cliff”. Honestly, this one simple moment truly saved us from being one of the worst teams into being one of the best.

I remember the actual game and frankly, the one particular inning where we literally could not do anything right. We could NOT get an out to save ourselves…hit after hit and run after run, we could not stop this train from certain destruction. When we finally hit the 10-run threshold and to many errors to count, I told the other coach “let me go talk to them”…he mumbled something completely incoherent because I honestly think he was in shock.

As I walked to the mound, I called the entire team over for a conversation. As I stared into those 11-12 year old boys faces, I saw tears and I saw anger but most of all I saw hopelessness. They literally had given up the thought they could do anything right. They were so upset and had completely lost their direction…does this sound familiar to anyone?

I told them “Guys, you are so much better than what I see here today. We have practiced these plays over and over again…frankly, to many times to count”.

“Here is what I want you to do, in this game right now…I want you to hit the reset button inside of you. From urlthis point on, we are starting this game over. We are playing from the beginning again…We are resetting”.

They all looked at me like I was crazy. Our shortstop Tyler spoke up and asked, “what do you mean coach?” “How do we reset?” I told him, “When you reset something, it clears the past or the previous from affecting the future”. Everything that has happened in this game is now over. We are each going to reset and focus on the next play, our next at bat and all of us are going to try our hardest to get out of this inning”

Our catcher chimed in at this point, “come on guys, we can do this, we have to reset. We have to hit the reset button”

So here is what I will tell you, we did not win that game. But we did get out of that nasty inning without giving up another run. More importantly however, the next time we had the beginnings of another poor inning, our catcher pulled the infield together and gave them the reset speech…and guess what, it worked…

As you can imagine, that simple life lesson got me thinking about you guys and the painful 10-run bad inning equivalents we have in our own lives. News flash: sometimes life hurts and it does NOT go our way. In fact, I firmly believe there are many of you right now reading this that are having a very hard time for a variety of reasons and frankly are just looking for some hope. Guys, I am not going to insult your intelligence by saying to just hit your internal reset button and everything will magically get better. We all know that is not the way anything in this life works.

What I will tell you though is if you hit the reset button with God…that will work.

Right now, God is patiently waiting for you to run to Him. He is not the God who will write in the sky, “Hey (your name here)…call me now and let’s fix this” we know He doesn’t work that way. Our God has a still, soft voice that is always calling…we are just too loud or too busy to hear Him.

Guys…today…take my challenge to you…

Hit the reset button with God by praying this prayer right now:

“God…things are not going well right now and I need you to help. Humbly I ask that you take over my life and cause me to reset my relationship with you. I can’t do this on my own. I need you to direct my steps and make my paths straight.

God, I trust in you and I believe in you and no matter what happens, I know you are in control. Please use your Holy Spirit to help guide me during difficult times and thank you for what you are doing for me right now”…

If you prayed that prayer and believe you hit the reset button with Him, I could not be any happier…congratulations. I would also ask that you leave me a note on this blog if you prayed that prayer. This blog has always been about encouragement and knowing you hit your reset with Him is very encouraging to me…

Until next time guys…

Make Serving God…Your Resolve

Posted: June 25, 2014 in Inspirational
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

resolveSometimes I find myself sometimes frustrated with people who struggle with making what I call “simple decisions”. Have you ever been in a line behind someone who can’t decide what kind of coffee they would like or whether to use paper or plastic bags? I often wonder how indecisive people make it through life when basic decisions seem to elude them. Now please don’t misunderstand me, I am not picking on anyone here, I am just very different about things like that.

With that said, I have found the same to be true when people choose religion or a god based upon that lifestyle. For some, they pick gods that are very similar to themselves in that there are very few rules or guardrails to worry about which means they can do what they want…no real decisions or commitments to make but the best part is, they can opt out at any time.

Other people go down a completely opposite path where they decide to commit totally and give up huge portions of their time and money to stay connected to their god. Some even commit their families and give up personal opportunities all in the name of religion…On this side, opting out is far more difficult.

Now again, please don’t misunderstand me here, I am just trying to point out the vast differences between how and what my observations are when I watch people and the great differences in what I would call resolve.

In the dictionary it says about resolve:

To come to a definite or earnest decision about; determine (to do something): I have 

resolved that I shall live to the full.

Resolve is a strong word in my mind because it connects directly to making a decision and being determined to stay the course. When it comes to becoming a Christian, it takes great resolve to make that first step and move forward in young faith and I admire the ones that do. Many times however, like other things in our lives, the “new” can wear off and frankly, that is where your resolve comes in. Only because I have been a Christian for many years do I see this more in my own life. Honestly, sometimes I have to “make up my mind” that will not deviate from the path I am on even though it may be tiring or NOT the path of least resistance. I have determined for my own life that I am choosing God and where He takes me I do not know…but I do know that on this journey, I will not stop holding onto Him. Determined. Resolve. Anchor.

Have you made up your mind to do something and then resolved to stick with it until theI-resolve end? Maybe your marriage is on rocky ground but you are resolved to continue to work things out? Maybe your job stinks but you are determined to bloom right where you are? Sometimes we choose “resolve” in these areas because we don’t think there is any other way but to be truthful, there is. We can also choose to change or even improve these areas with effort…but when it comes to your God…it takes all the resolve you can muster…why? Because God has never promised an easy road for you or me. Your road as a Christian will probably be a rocky one not because you are a Christian, but because you have CHOSEN to be a Christian. Because of your choice, that puts you in a different category in the eyes of Satan. It will take all of your resolve to stay committed…because you are under attack.

Remember this for your dose of encouragement:

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

The purpose of this post is NOT to convince you to have resolve in your journey but to encourage you to KEEP your resolve. Guys…make your choice and then move on…be consistent, push forward, and know that God will not leave you hanging out there alone…He will be right there at your side honoring your resolve to serve Him.

Guys, today I encourage you to make serving God your resolve.

Make your choice…

Stay determined…

Live for Him…

 

Until next time guys…

 

Christians are Just Hypocrites…

Posted: February 9, 2014 in Something to think about
Tags: , , , ,
0

images

I had a great conversation with a friend of mine recently who was working very hard at making the point with me as to how Christianity can actually work when all Christians are just hypocrites? He pointed out that every time he sees a Christian, they are failing miserably at living out their stated beliefs rather than conforming to more of what Christ is all about and he can’t understand anyone would do that? If Christians are truly committed to Christ, why do they fail?

The objective of this post is to summarize the answer I gave him in order for all of you to see if you agree with me in my breakdown of his question. Any constructive feedback is welcome here.

“First of all”, I stated, “The failure of some people to live according to their stated beliefs does not invalidate Jesus’s claims to be God.” I wanted to first separate the issue…we have Christianity and the claims of Christ and then we have all of us, who are working each day to be more like Him and to his point, failing. Just because some Christians fail to live out Christianity in their personal life does not mean that Christianity and what Jesus claimed was false. Christianity is a personal choice that one makes inside their own heart and the more that person allows God to change them, the more they begin to conform into a more “Christ-like” person. In reality, everyone is different and each Christian, who has allowed God into their lives, has done so at varying degrees and therefore is experiencing God at different levels.

Secondly, the Bible is also very clear that Jesus alone is perfect, and it is honest about the failures and weaknesses of His followers. Remember these were the guys who lived and worked right next to Him. His disciples in the book of Mark were constantly making mistakes and even arguing amongst themselves as to who was the greatest among them. Each and every day, we go about our day working towards perfection but fully knowing we will never reach that goal.

Thirdly, Jesus taught that there will always be false teachers and fakes (Mark 13:6, 21-22) who pretend they are Christians but who are not and this is still true today. There are false teachers among us working to eliminate Christians from the ranks of Christ. False teachers pretend to be something that they are not, and that alone can cause anyone who does not have a strong faith in Christ to fall. Those people aren’t hypocrites, they are Christians with no roots in Christ and the allure of their former life was/is simply too strong for them to resist.

Finally, I told him, “Everyone is a hypocrite in some sense”. No matter how hard we try, we are sinners and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 2:23). That fact alone can cause some professed Christians to sometimes be hypocrites…but Jesus calls those who follow Him to change and grow more like Him; that is our responsibility as one who follows Christ. As I told my friend, don’t be discouraged if you have met some Christians who are not yet perfect. They will never be on this side of eternity.

We are all just a work in progress…

Until next time guys…

Older Entries
Newer Entries