IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STORM

Hebrews 6:19 This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast and which enters the Presence behind the veil.

Standing on the deck of our condo, I look over Pensacola Bay, there is a soft breeze, causing the waves to lap softly onto shore; such a beautiful view and a soothing sound.  A small boat rocks gently, anchored to one of the many buoys scattered up and down the shoreline as the rising sun dances over the water, mingling streaks of pink and orange with the blues and greens.  Doesn’t that sound like a “calendar-worthy” picture?  It is this morning but last night was a different story.

Last evening, the skies grew dark and started to rumble; the soft breeze became a stiff wind and the sound of waves hitting the shore, changed from a “gentle lap” to an “angry slap.”  Suddenly, three men rushed down to the beach and out into the water…WHAT???? Didn’t they know there was a storm…CRAZY SPRINGBREAKERS!

Maybe they were a little crazy but they were also on a mission…the small boat had come loose from the buoy that held it anchored and the strong wind was blowing it toward the dock where soon it would crash.

I watched one man jump in the boat to start it, while the other two stood in the water steering it away from the dock.  Finally, they got the boat started and fighting the wind and angry waters of the Bay, were able to re-anchor the boat to a buoy far away from the dangerous dock.

Such is life…As we bounce along on the “Sea of Life,” gently swaying, enjoying the rising sun on our face, we don’t realize that our moorings have loosened.  We look around and spy the anchor buoy drifting nearby and settle back, unconcerned, until….the skies darken and a storm blows into our life.  Suddenly, the anchor fades and the dock looms threatening as the cruel winds carry us swiftly toward destruction.

We cry out and He is there…Right in the MIDST OF THE STORM, Jesus will get in your boat.  He has been listening for your cry and just waiting to steer you back to the anchor.

Sometimes we don’t realize we have come loose from the anchor, until a storm begins to blow all around. 

DON’T WAIT FOR THE STORM.

Check your moorings, today; while the sun is shining and the breezes are gentle.  Are the ropes becoming a little frayed? Has the slackness increased?  Has the distance between the anchor buoy and the dangerous dock changed?  If you have just been drifting oblivious to conditions, make the necessary corrections NOW…DON’T WAIT FOR THE STORM!

“In the Eye of the Storm, you remain in control

In the Middle of the War, you guard my soul

You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn

Your love surrounds me, in the Eye of the Storm.” (Ryan Stevenson)

CARRY YOUR PASSION

Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our Faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame and has set down at the right hand of the Throne of God. 

I don’t believe there has ever been a more frustrated time with more frustrated people in the history of mankind.  Well maybe there was, but God destroyed them all except the eight people on the ark.  The Bible describes this time in Genesis 6 as “every intent of the thoughts of man’s heart was only evil continually.”  Perhaps they had become so FRUSTRATED in the pursuit of their passion that satisfaction had become an elusive prize.

Turn on the news…It is FRUSTRATING to watch all the FRUSTRATED PEOPLE embroiled in their FRUSTRATING SITUATIONS.  College students, renamed “Snowflakes” are frustrated because, suddenly they are faced with someone who doesn’t agree with them or speaks harshly to “little Jonny” and suddenly they are demanding “Safe Spaces.”  Politicians seek to not just defeat each other in elections but to actually DESTROY the other person’s character, family and legacy.  Employees are frustrated with their employers, employers with their employees; Parents are frustrated with their children, children with parents; Pastors are frustrated with their congregations, congregations with their pastors and we are all FRUSTRATED AT THE GOVERNMENT.

WHAT IS THE REAL ROOT OF OUR FRUSTRATION?

As it was in the days of Noah…Could it be we have become FRUSTRATED as we chase the ever elusive prize of our Passion?  In America we are taught to “FOLLOW OUR PASSION;” or in our vernacular, “CHASE THE AMERICAN DREAM!”  So we work, we dream, we plan, we scheme but never quite attain.

I recently heard this quote by Mike Rowe, “I DON’T FOLLOW MY PASSION; I CARRY IT WITH ME.”

WOW!!!!  THAT’S IT!!!  We are chasing a “Passion” when true “Passion” is carried with you.  TRUE PASSION is comprised of your dreams, your goals, your pursuit, your mission; you cannot separate yourself from your “Passion;” IT IS WHO YOU ARE!

The best example of TRUE PASSION is Jesus; He did not come to earth to PURSUE HIS PASSION but He CARRIED HIS PASSION TO EARTH WITH HIM!  Of course Jesus knew His destiny; He was fully aware of His mission and nothing distracted Him from completing that mission because it was HIS PASSION and He carried it with Him. 

So what was the Passion of Christ?  Was it the cross?  Was it miracles?  Was it preaching and teaching?  Was it making Disciples that would carry on His good works?  No, No, No, No and No!!!  The Passion of Christ was the “Heart of God;” love for mankind, repairing the breach sin had created and bringing them back into fellowship with the Father. 

JESUS CARRIED THAT PASSION TO THE CROSS!

It is time to set frustration aside and spend a little time seeking the “Heart of God.”  Allow His “passion” to become your “passion;” then carry it with you everywhere you go.  Carry it with you to work; you’ll be a better employee.  Carry it with you as you talk to your neighbor; you’ll see that aggravating neighbor with more compassion. Carry it with you when you walk into church; you won’t care that someone sat in your pew, which songs have been chosen or even about the length of the Pastor’s sermon.

If we will stop PURSUING OUR PASSION and begin to CARRY OUR PASSION, the frustration of life will dim as the flame inside us begins to burn brighter; suddenly our vision will be that of the “Joy set before us.”

♪♪“Jesus keep me near the cross, there a precious fountain

Free to all, a healing stream, flows from Calvary’s mountain.

In the cross, in the cross, be my glory ever

Till my raptured soul shall find rest beyond the river.”♪♪

HEAVEN CELEBRATES YOU!

Early morning musings and meditations….

1 Corinthians 12:4-6 There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.  There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.

Have you ever encountered those people that just have a knack for making you feel small and insignificant?  I have!!!  

And if you are around them for any length of time, you actually begin to believe them. I did!!!

It is especially true in ministry.  You know that God has called you to something “great” but the results don’t turn out “great.”  With eager anticipation, you attend a conference, but it isn’t long until you allow yourself to retreat to that familiar “small” place because Pastors are honored and celebrated and you no longer or perhaps have never pastored a church.  Or maybe you have the privilege of loving and shepherding a very few of God’s precious children and you are not seeing the growth and hundreds of conversions of your dreams…you feel “small.”

THEN…God allows someone to come into your life that celebrates you and the gifting and ministry to which you have been called and you realize…that they are reflection of the exact way God sees you.  In God, there is nothing “small.”  We are LABORERS TOGETHER!

God views every ministry, talent, gift, and effort as a “BIG” puzzle piece of HIS KINGDOM!  And He values and honors every person. 

THINK ABOUT IT…Your calling came from GOD HIMSELF…How “BIG” is that?

Allow God to work through you today, whether in a congregation, on the job, visiting with a neighbor or even at the mall.  He has a purpose for you TODAY and as you minister to His precious people, HEAVEN CELEBRATES YOU!

Have a blessed day.

MAYBE HOLINESS DESERVES ANOTHER LOOK!

"Without faith it is impossible to please God." "He who does not love does not know God for God is love." "Follow peace with all men and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."

 The Bible tells us that we cannot please, know or see God without faith, love and holiness, yet holiness is the only one of the three that we try to legislate. Once an attribute is legislated, it must be DEBATED, DEFINED AND ENFORCED. To enforce any law there must be a penalty for violation that creates enough fear to force the individual into obedience.

EX: If wearing red is unholy, orange, pink and maroon must be DEBATED. Once red is DEFINED, the “law of red” must be ENFORCED and those who violate the law must be shown the error of wearing red so that they never want to shame God by wearing red again. 

Galatians 5: 14-15 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; you shall love your neighbor as yourself.  But if you bite and devour one another, take heed that you be not consumed one of another.

Paul made it very clear in Galatians 5, that Christ becomes of no effect to us if we choose to once again become entangled under the law. By legislating holiness, we have set love aside and begun to devour one another.  Paul said through love, however, we can fulfill the whole law.  Just as genuine love cannot be legislated, neither can we legislate holiness. 

Judgmentalism now consumes us and we assign varying degrees to holiness. According to your experience and previous teaching, the definition of holiness is subjected to individual interpretation. Our definition becomes the standard by which others are measured. 

EX: If you do not measure up to my set standard of holiness laws, you are not holy and will not see the Lord. 

WARNING: There will always be another individual that has a tougher set of holiness laws than you and will judge YOU as unholy!!!

Herein lies the problem, NO ONE CAN MEASURE UP TO GOD'S HOLINESS! IT CANNOT BE DEFINED, HE JUST IS! 

Holiness is the very essence and character of God and only He has the right to confer it on us. Just as we are saved because of the Grace of God, we are made holy by the Grace of God.

Yes, we are to be obedient, we are to walk uprightly, we are to be pure in our thoughts and conversation, but is that HOLINESS?

     1.      Nothing is holy of itself but only as it relates to God

.

2.      Only HE is Holy and only He can make US Holy.

Maybe our definition of Holiness deserves another look.

INCANTATIONS AND PRAYERS

Last night, at midnight, a group of witches gathered, to put a “spell” on President Donald Trump.  Their incantations are to “bind” him and will continue until the summer solstice, at the stroke of midnight on waning crescent moon ritual days.  Will they work?  How effective are spell incantations?  Is there anything that can counteract or deflect “spells” or “curses”?

Do not make the mistake of lightly dismissing the “spirits” of this world; they have power.  Also, do not make the mistake of setting their “power” on a high place of fear and helplessness.  The “spirits” of this world have only the “power” that has been given to them by God.  While God allows these “spirits” to work in the earth and in people who open themselves to Anti-God thought and activity, remember this…GOD IS ALL POWERFUL; GOD IS SOVEREIGN; GOD WILL HAVE THE FINAL SAY!

Back to incantations, spells, power and the “spirits” of this world…

1Kings 18, relays the account of a battle between GOD and gods, a duel between the prophets of both and the power of prayer vs. the power of incantation and ritual…How do you think that turned out?

Elijah issues a Sacrifice Challenge to the Prophets of Baal. He tells them to choose a bull, prepare it for sacrifice, lay it on the altar, and then call upon their god to supply the fire.  1 Kings 18:26 reports the result…

1Kings 18:26 So they took the bull that was given them, they prepared it and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal hear us! But there was no voice; no one answered.

The rest of the verse tells us, they began to leap around the altar until finally at noon, Elijah suggests that perhaps their god is meditating or busy, maybe he is on a journey or sleeping.  The prophets of Baal continued to cry aloud and even cut themselves but still NO FIRE!

1 Kings 18:29 And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was NO VOICE, NO ONE ANSWERED; NO ONE PAID ATTENTION!

Finally, Elijah declared, “It’s MY turn.”  Elijah built an altar to the Lord, made a trench around the altar, placed wood on the altar and the sacrifice on the wood, then he did something so extraordinary that Preachers and Bible scholars still talk about thousands of years later…Elijah filled 4 water pots and poured the water over the sacrifice and the wood and filled the trench.

Then it was time…there were no incantations, dances, cutting or even yelling; just a simple prayer to the only GOD OF POWER; JEHOVAH, the God Elijah served.  Elijah prayed…

1 Kings 18:36-37 …”Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known this day, that you are God in Israel and I am your servant and that I have done all these things at Your Word.  Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”

And the rest of the story is…

1 Kings 18:38 Then the Fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the stones and the dust and it licked up the water that was in the trench.

NOW, back to 2017…WHO WILL BE TODAY’S ELIJAH???  Who will step out and declare, “Enough with your incantations, protests, yelling and rioting; LET US PRAY!”

We are NOT powerless; we serve the ONLY TRUE GOD; JEHOVAH; JESUS…or at least we proclaim that is our God…put some prayer with that declaration. 

I declare to you, these words from Elijah…

1 Kings 18:21… “How long will you falter between two opinions?  If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.

The method of counteracting the activity of the “spirits of this world” is the same today as it was in the time of Elijah; build an altar, prepare the sacrifice and lay it upon the wood, add a little water and PRAY!!!  The God we serve WILL ANSWER WITH THE FIRE OF THE HOLY GHOST. 

Pray daily for our President, Vice-President, Congress and our Judicial System that once again RIGHTEOUSNESS WILL PREVAIL.  Prayers of Power to the One True God will BIND incantations, curses and the “spirits of this world” and render them powerless.

AFTER THAT

EARLY MORNING MUSINGS AND MEDITATIONS...

We humans have the unique ability to see the "bad" characteristics in others while ignoring the same or similar in ourselves.  We condemn our sister and brother with one breath and with the next, justify ourselves.  Of course, we would never list our failures on our resume, our Facebook, or in social conversations, unless...it suits our purpose and we think we can get some mileage out of the "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song."  Even then, we are not confessing the failure as much as we are celebrating our victimhood.

Lest pride creeps in and we begin to elevate ourselves above the "poor sinner" that set on the pew with us Sunday, lives next door, or cut us off in traffic, pick up your Bible and check out these verses...

Titus 3:3-6 For we ourselves were also sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. 4 But AFTER THAT the kindness and love of our Savior toward man appeared, 5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us, by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 Which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior.

Two words which jumped out at me this morning, AFTER THAT.  I am reminded of the words of a song, "Not because I've been so faithful; not because I've been so good"; NOT AFTER THAT...but after my failures, in spite of my faults, before I repented, in the midst of my sin...AFTER THAT, the kindness and love of God appeared.

Have a blessed day; TODAY you have been SAVED, REGENERATED AND RENEWED!

WHEN SIN BECOMES YOUR FRIEND - PART 2

This was first published in January 2014.  Part 1 was posted yesterday.

Recently, discussing a grievous situation with a close friend, I was reminded of the oft repeated saying, “Sin always takes you further than you ever thought you would go and you end up in places you never thought you would be.”  My friend went on to comment, “I think they have fallen in love with sin and I've seen people do that and when they do, they have no conscious whatsoever.”  The next morning, in a semi-conscious state, I heard these words spoken to my spirit, “When sin becomes your friend.”  The words continued to trouble me during devotions and throughout the day as I began to ponder, “How does the friendship begin?”  “What affect does it have?”  “What are the outward manifestations of such a friendship?”  “Where does the friendship take you and how does it end?”

Genesis 2:16-17 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; ¹⁷ but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall SURELY DIE.”

James 1:1-15 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, BRINGS FORTH DEATH.

Searching the Word of God, we find that the end of sin is death but what happens between the First Embrace and the Final Kiss?

SIN SEPARATES - Sin is a jealous friend and demands your full attention.

Although Adam and Eve were not immediately struck dead because of their disobedience, they experienced immediate separation.  The Bible tells us the first thing they realized is that “they were naked.”  Up to this point they were in constant fellowship and clothed in the Glory of God.  Sin immediately separated them from the Glory and Holiness of God.  No longer would they enjoy the familiar daily fellowship with the Creator; no longer would they stroll through the beautiful garden, tending and enjoying its bounty.  Sin had destroyed the innocence and purity and they were cast out of their home and separated from the intimacy of God’s presence. 

Like his parents, Cain did not immediately die for his transgressions but he, too, faced the consequence of separation.  Genesis 4 tells us that Cain “went out from the presence of the Lord.  He became a fugitive and a vagabond.”  

When Sin becomes your friend, it will separate you from close fellowship with God and it will separate you from those who love God and love you.

SIN IS A BETRAYER

  It may begin as a mild flirtation; you pick up the sin, stroke it a few times, then lay it down and move on until you answer its next call.  Soon, however, sin will make its demands and you will become more entangled until you will betray those you love so that sin’s demands can be fulfilled.

 King David didn’t set out to sin; it was just a mild flirtation of the eyes; he lingered a little too long and “desire was conceived.”  It was a sin to bring Bathsheba to his bed, knowing that she was another man’s wife.  But the demand of sin was not satisfied with adultery.  When Bathsheba became pregnant, it was a sin to try to cover it up and pass it off as another man’s child.  But the demand of sin was not satisfied with lying.  Sin became a betrayer.  David betrayed a trusted man of valor in his Army, first by lying with his wife, impregnating her and finally having him murdered.  Sin’s final demand was death. 

When Sin becomes your friend, it may not demand that you become a murderer, but make no mistake, sin will demand betrayal.  It will cause you to betray those things that are pure and lovely, it may demand a cover-up and it will cause you to betray those who love you the most. Sin will hold your hand as you give the “Kiss of Betrayal” because Sin is a Betrayer.

SIN WILL CHANGE YOU.  Proverbs 6:27 Can a man take fire to his bosom and his clothes not be burned?  

Do not fool yourself into believing that you will not be affected by sin. You are NOT strong enough to take the “fire of sin” into your life and not be burned.   Sin will change you; it will change your behavior, your way of thinking, and even change your way of speaking.

 We find Peter, warming himself by the fire, when he is accused of being a follower of Jesus.  This is the same Peter who had walked, talked and dined with Jesus.  He had witnessed the miracles, walked on the water and even followed Him into the garden to pray.  It is the Peter that vowed he would never betray his Lord. Yet, when faced with a trial, a beating and death because of an association, sin changed him into a person he thought he would never become.  After being pointed out as a friend of Jesus, three times, Peter decided to settle the situation once and for all; he changed his speech.  Mark 14:71 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!”

Friendship with sin will take you places you never thought you would go and they won’t seem so bad.  Your speech will turn from things that are pure and lovely to those things which are base and gutter-like.   When sin becomes your friend, evil will seem good and good will seem evil because Sin will change you!!

When Sin becomes your friend, the end result is death but the good news is the friendship can be broken.  It does not have to become a “lifelong” partnership.  

Romans 5:19  For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

God already had a plan in place before the first sin.    The plan was JESUS.  He was the “Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”  Death does NOT have to be the final sentence; through Jesus Christ we can have eternal life.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

You can become a “Friend of God.”