I'm Looking Forward to All of This Being Behind Me...

Have you ever heard someone say that? What’s crazy is that it is already behind you!

There are several ways people look back. Some look back with a longing to go back. Back to “the good old days.” They usually say something like, “…it was so much better back when you-know-who wasn’t around…” or “...back before you-know-what happened…” or “...back when things were different…” Of course, things are different every day.

Others will look back with regret. This sounds something like, “…if only he would not have…” or “if only they would have…” or “…if only it would have been different…”

Still others will look back for fear of looking forward. This sounds like, “….but we have never done anything like that before…”

The Bible teaches us that there is only one way to look back; with gratitude. We can always look back and say, “Thank You, God! You are so good and have been so good to me!” Looking back with gratitude recognizes that the blessings that God gave you in the past are still with you today because they are eternal, like God. God and His blessings are related that way. Nothing that changes can change that. The only way to lose the blessings of the past is to lose your grateful heart for them today.

With all of the things that are changing in your life, know this; Being thankful is the only way to keep your eyes on the Lord Jesus Christ. Being thankful is the only way to mature in Christ-likeness. The only way to look forward is to be able to look back with a thankful heart.

Being thankful does not ignore the problems and difficulties of the past. Being thankful enables you to see that you were not alone during those problems and trials; God was with you and got you through it, victoriously and He is still with you today.

Try this; “I’m looking forward because I know that God has taken all of this that is behind me and has formed Christ in me with it. Thank You, God. You are awesome, amazing, and all-together GOOD!!!”

The Prosperity Gospel is Bankrupt and Needs a Bailout

Have you ever heard of the “prosperity gospel?” What is that? It refers to the all-American message of success and accumulation, and it is bankrupt and needs a Biblical bailout! Praise God!!!

In our culture, success is usually measured by a lot of education, as in at least a college degree, if not post graduate degree; a good paying job, with benefits; a mortgage; good looks (usually meaning you have a membership at a health club regardless of whether you are healthy or not); two cars, some degree of recognition in the community (not with the police); and of course, storage space, for all of the stuff you don’t need but still hold on to just in case you might need it (we get attached to our things). In our culture “success” means that you do not struggle much; you have plenty of leisure time; things happen easy without delay or much effort. This is the American gospel of the abundant life, the prosperity gospel…and it has just about gone belly-up-bankrupt.

The Bible uses words like prosperous and abundance in a different way. Psalm 1 describes the blessed man as one who is prosperous, “…whatever he does, prospers.”  The Hebrew word for “prosperous” is saleah (pronounced say-lee-ah). It has the basic meaning of being victorious over an enemy. It is built on a root word that means to break through, as in breaking through an enemy’s defenses. This has nothing to do with the accumulation of things. It has much to do with trusting in the strength and provision of the Lord God Almighty for victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil! God says, “…no weapon formed against you shall prosper.” Isaiah 54:17

This is the kind of blessing we need in America, a blessing of victory over sin and the sinful lifestyles that have destroyed the foundations upon which our nation was built. But the blessing of prosperity, of victory over the enemy, does not come without repentance from the way of the ungodly, from associations with the wicked, and from a disrespect of authority that is so prevalent in our country. The break through that is needed will not happen until we meditate on God’s Word and sink the roots of our faith deep into Christ, receive the Holy Spirit as our life and daily nourishment, and present ourselves daily at the cross where the death sentence of the flesh can be carried out.

Another interesting use of this word, saleah, prosper, in the Old Testament is when David was anointed as king, when he was just a boy, by Samuel; 1 Samuel 16:13. It says that at that moment the Holy Spirit rushed upon David. He prospered David.

May the Holy Spirit prosper you in 2012!

Knock Off Everything That is Not a Horse

Michelangelo was one of the world's greatest artists and sculturers. He kept students around him constantatly who wanted to learn his talent. The story is told of how one day he stood with a student staring at a block of marble. The student said, "Master, what do you see?" Michelangelo said, "I see a magnificent horse. Can you see it?" The student just stared, wanting to, but not seeing what the artist could see. Finally, the student asked, "So how do we begin?" Michelangelo said, "We knock off everthing that is not a horse!"

This is exactly what God is doing in your life everyday, knocking off everything that is not Christ! But He will not do it without you. Everything good in your life, everything difficult in your life, everything triumphant in your life, everything tragic in your life, everything is a tool in the hand of God to form Christ in you, with you, through you, as you, in the world around you, for His own glory.

This is something to know, as James 1:2 instructs us. We do not rejoice in trials, we rejoice knowing something in the trials. What do we know? We know that the trial is in the hand of God. He is in control of it and He knows what He is doing with it in our lives. Not only do we rest in knowing that God has this thing under His control, we also know that God is using it to chip away everything of Adam in our lives. In Christ, we are in the creation, the new humanity, Jesus Christ. As we received our sin from Adam, in Christ, we receive our righteousness, God's righteousness, by faith in Jesus Christ. We are born from above and receive new life, a new spirit, from God. Jesus made this possible on the cross as evidenced by the empty tomb. But even in Christ, we still have much of Adam on us that needs to be chipped away. Some would call it the rough edges. The Bible calls it the flesh. It is death and it has no part in the new creation.

So how can I join up with what God is doing in my life today? Present yourself to the Lord everyday through prayerfulBiblestudy. The computer does not recognize this word, but it is one word in the Spirit, prayerfulBiblestudy. You cannot separte these. If you do, you will come up short of presenting your whole self, body, soul, and spirit, to God. Follow the lead of the Holy Spirit in your life as He convicts you, strengthens you, teaches you, and assures you. He will give you wisdom by His power at work in you, knocking off everything that is not Christ. It may be painful, but He is also the Comforter. Blessed be His Holy Name!

A Christmas Revival

What would a Christmas revival look like? It would definitely be a gift from God. Only God can revive and bring back to life what has died. There would be an atmosphere of joy, joy for the world, Jesus Christ the Lord is here. Jesus and revival are inseparable. With the One you get the other. And peace. Peace is a presence, the presence of God, who is pleased to give revival. Praising and thanksgiving to God for the gift of revival would flavor everything.

Would all our problems go away? No, but there would be something greater than our problems, the hope and assurance that God is with us and that nothing is greater than Him. We would be able to see clearly the difference between what is temporary and what is eternal. We would know that God is working all things together, good and bad, in our lives for His glory, the eternal likeness of Jesus Christ in us! The glory of God from His own work in us would shine brighter and brighter.

Would everyone be in the revival? Probably not. When Jesus was born, many missed it, like Herod and the religious leaders. But not the wise men, the shepherds, Simeon, and Anna. They were never the same again. You know you have been in a revival when you are never the same again, which is why those of us who have been in one can’t rest until it comes again.

Some of us have dreamed lately of a Christmas revival. Dreams were part of the first one. Let’s pray for a Christmas revival. The word “Christmas” means “more of Christ,” and that’s revival!

David and Samson

You may not have connected David and Samson before. Samson was born in Zorah, which is about 5 miles west of Bethlehem, David’s hometown (Judges 13-16). David fought Goliath in the valley of Elah between Azekah and Socoh, which is about  five miles south of Zorah. Samson roamed this area, having several skirmishes with the Philistines and David fought the Philistine armies in this same area of Israel.

But David and Samson were very different. Samson was very strong and yet very weak. Before he was born the angel told his mother that he would be a Nazirite his whole life. This meant that he was not to drink any wine or strong drink, not cut his hair, nor go near anything dead (Numbers 6). But Samson was always hanging around Philistine parties (I’m sure they had stuff stronger than sparkling grape juice), he would eat honey out of the carcass of a lion, he killed people with dead donkey bones; but he did have long hair! His strength was a blessing from the Lord but was strictly physical. He was weak morally and spiritually.

David, on the other hand, was small and seemed weak, and yet was very strong. As a boy, he went up against Goliath and took on the whole army of the Philistines, with nothing but the Name of the LORD of hosts, which was enough. In his weakness he was strong in the LORD.  Samson, strong and yet weak; David, weak and yet strong.

I look at our nation and I see a Samson, strong and yet very weak. I look at the little nation of Israel and I see a David, small and yet very strong. Our nation started out small and weak and yet strong in the Lord, but has become strong in itself and weak in the Lord. We must not wait until the end, like Samson, to cry out to God.

Today is the day of salvation for our nation. We must repent of our moral and spiritual failures and depend upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Let’s not trust in our blessings, let’s trust in the One who has graciously blessed us. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. God has blessed America. It is past time for America to bless God, again, like we started out; in our weakness our strength was in the Lord!

How to be a Sweet Fighter

Sweet and fighter usually do not go together. We think of “sweet” as something soft and smooth and “fighter” as something rough and tough. And yet this is the essence of the meaning of the word that Paul uses in 2 Timothy 4:7 to describe the fight that he has fought. He said it was a sweet fight that he fought. In most translations the word is translated as “good,” and yet in other places in the Bible it is translated as “beautiful, admirable, and/or precious.”

What kind of fight is fought by a sweet fighter?

The Bible teaches us that we are engaged in a spiritual fight when we begin to follow Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. It says that we do not fight against flesh and blood, but “…against principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12). Some call this fight spiritual warfare. The key to spiritual fighting is found in the word that Paul uses in the Timothy passage; “good.”

This is the word that the Bible uses to describe God. God is good. And His Word is sweet, beautiful, precious, and good because He is. Fighting the good fight means that you fight according to the word and ways of God. How did Jesus defeat sin? By His righteous Life. How did He overcome hatred? With love. What did Jesus do when He came face-to-face with the envy, jealousy, and greed of the Pharisees? He stayed faithful to His Father and the mission He was on.

There was no meanness in the way Jesus fought, but there is power! Spiritual warfare is fought with the fruit of the Spirit. That is why Paul could call it the “good” fight that he fought. He was a beautiful fighter, a precious fighter, a sweet fighter because he fought from and with the victorious Life of Jesus Christ living in him, with him, through him, as him.

The word “good” in the Greek is a word describing something that is seen as good. You see, according to the meaning of this word, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And the Beholder in this case is God! He sees the fight that we are in and it is sweet in His eyes because He sees Himself in us as we fight with His weapons. He loves it because He won!

What about you? How do you fight? Let’s fight as sweet fighters, as beautiful fighters, as precious in the sight of our Lord. And in the end we will be able to say with Paul, “the sweet fight, I fought.”

Be a sweet fighter, go out there and giv’em Heaven!

A Tattooed Mind

Webster’s dictionary defines a tattoo as an indelible mark or figure fixed upon the body by insertion of pigment under the skin or by production of scars. Tattoos are permanent. And they advertize with a constant message. Depending upon where they are put on the body, they can be covered up, but they cannot be removed.

Did you know that you can tattoo your mind with God’s Word? There is no greater discipline to change your mind than putting God’s Word to memory and meditating on it throughout the day. And just like a tattoo on your body, the tattoo on your mind will also be permanent and speak a constant message to you. It will shape the way you think and speak. Others will hear it just like others notice a tattoo on a person’s body.

But you can also cover it up with worry, fear, busy-ness, lust, pride, anger, and wandering boredom. It is a choice every day, just like getting dressed every day; you decide whether you are going to cover it up or not.

Try this: Take one verse a day, write it on a card, and memorize it for that day (Psalm 119 is a huge reservoir of verses). Meditate on it by exploring its meaning with prayer. Think about any songs or hymns you know that are based upon it. Turn it into a prayer for that day. Share it with someone else during the day. Let it be the last thing you think about as you go to sleep and the first thing you think about before your feet hit the floor in the morning.

Warning: You cannot stay the way you are if you practice this. Your mind will change. God will tattoo your mind and it will forever be there, not just in this life, but in the next one, too. Don’t try this if you are satisfied with your own thoughts. Don’t go near it. Don’t even experiment with it.  It is addicting.

And I invite you to try it. You will never be the same again!