The Great Decision

There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.
Proverbs 16:25

You cannot stop the truth, and the enemy will always have a plan that is similar to the plan that God has for you, he just needs you to choose his path over the path of the Lord. Your goodness can not save you, but your badness can condemn you. 
How do you get to Heaven? 
First, let me advise you that God does not send people to hell, people choose freely to go there.  
So that makes it really easy, right? 
Wrong. 
You can spend your whole life staying busy doing good things, or what you perceive as being good, but you have to stay focused on Him, on His righteousness, and His kingdom. 
Not everyone who says they are a Christian is. I have seen lots of people that claim to be doing His work, and in reality they are only serving themselves.
Your goodness cannot save you, but your badness can condemn you.  
Don't go through life doing the least that you can to get the most, that is not going to get you into Heaven.  God says that we must be born again. Give your life to God, He will guide you. 
Just because everyone else is doing things does not mean you have to do the same - don't be a lemming! 
You weren't made to fit in, you were made to stand out! 
You get to make the decision, choose life! 

Believe

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. 

Isaiah 55:8

Have you ever wondered if you really believe in God?

Sometimes in our relationship with God, He just seems distant, and sometimes there’s a sudden doubt that hits like a hammer and you start to wonder if you’re losing your faith.

What can we do?

It is a lot like technology.  I work in a technology field. I depend on technology every day to get my job done, but I have no patience for technology and often don’t understand much about how it works. I turn on my computer or my phone and I expect to be able to do what I need to do with minimal difficulty. Yet my inability to comprehend the intricacies of the way things actually function doesn’t get in the way of my benefiting from technology.

Even though we don’t understand everything about God, that doesn’t prevent us from trusting Him. He has proven His love for us. 

We may not fully comprehend His plan, and we can call it blind trust if we want, but we need to believe in Him, trust in Him, and know that He will take care of us.

Remember the poem Footprints in the sand?  (there are actually three versions published by three authors, I am using the Carolyn Carty version, published in 1963)

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed He was walking along the beach with the LORD. Across the sky flashed scenes from His life. For each scene He noticed two sets of footprints in the sand. One belonging to Him and the other to the LORD. When the last scene of His life flashed before Him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of His life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of His life. This really bothered Him and He questioned the LORD about it. LORD you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me. The LORD replied, my precious, precious child, I Love you and I would never leave you! During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.

God would not be worthy of our worship if He could be understood by our wisdom. Have a blessed day.

Who are you representing?

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the One already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

– 1 Corinthians 3:10-11

We must be careful in how we represent Christ to others.

We all have personal agendas and bias that we bring into our Christian work.

One of the great tests of what we are doing for God lies in other’s ability to take our work forward.

Are you building in such a way that empowers the people around you?

Or do you have to be in the middle of everything that you do?

Be careful whose kingdom you are representing.

Have a blessed day!

Wait for Him

I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.

– Psalm 130:6

Have you ever felt that you had messed up so badly that darkness flooded your soul?

Instead of looking for answers, look for the Lord.

Those who take time to wait and watch with God’s promises will experience something better than answers—they will be filled with the light of God’s presence.

Take heart, for though it may seem dark now, dawn is coming

Have a blessed day!

How long?

How long, Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?

– Psalm 13:1-2

Have you ever felt that you were barely hanging on and constantly being overcome by life’s circumstances?

I recently saw a comment from someone I know “if God only gives me what I can handle, He must think that I am really strong.”

The thing is, God gives you what He will help you handle.

Asking God “How long?” is a healthy statement, because God is not there in just the good times, but also the bad.

We can face the state of our soul while we keep our faith toward the God who has answered in the past and will answer again in the future, though we may not feel that way right now.

Hang in there.

Have a blessed day! 

Go and Tell

Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.”

– Exodus 4:12

Who would have thought that I would be preaching God’s word on a daily basis?

What started out as an email between a couple of friends has grown to nearly 100 people on an email and dozens reading my blog.

We often think that God can’t use us until we are fully prepared.

But who are we to decide if we are ready?

When Moses felt unqualified, God told him that he would become the great emancipator of the Jewish people from Egypt.

God’s pattern is on the job training; so don’t wait until you feel ready to do something for God, do something and God will meet you along the way.

Have a blessed day!

Can't we all just get along?

Sorry for not sending these last week, I was out of the loop, but I am back now!

But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them.

– Titus 3:9-10

People drive me crazy – all the political posts and arguments over the candidates. I am really not a fan of politics at all. 

People get so caught up in minor theological differences that they miss the big picture of God’s purposes.

In this verse we are encouraged to determine the important issues from the non-important issues and then move on.

Move ON.

With the major challenges we are facing around the world, let’s not waste time trying to make a big deal of small controversies.

The issues of our generation demand our ability to rise above pettiness.

Have a blessed day!