Something New

Most of us have a desire to do something new in 2020. It could be you’d like to eat more healthy foods and lose weight. Maybe it’s get your body in better physical shape. Or possibly cut back on your social media intake. Most of us will make a New Year’s resolution. All the data says by February 15, 75% of us will not have fulfilled our commitment to be a better person.

What if I told you that while we have good intentions, God has great intentions for us? It’s true that He does. The prophet Isaiah writes down what God wants to say to his people and in Isaiah 43:18-19, God says, “Forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I’m going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” God clearly is doing new things in your life and He asks, do you not see it? So in order to see it clearly, I’d like you to honestly answer four questions.

What one thing do you desire from God in 2020? David said in Psalm 27:4 the one thing he wanted was to be in the presence of God. For you, if you knew God would grant you one thing, what would it be? Maybe helping a family member or close friend know Jesus. It could be you’d love God to remove a stronghold in your life. Maybe you’d love for your marriage to be more Christ-centered. Only you can answer your desire from God.

When it comes to your relationship with God, what one thing do you lack? For some of us, God has already shown us what we lack but for whatever reason, we refuse to acknowledge it. Maybe you lack great Christian fellowship. You don’t have a tight group of Christian friends with whom you journey. There’s no one to pray over you, hold you accountable or serve with. Maybe you lack giving back to God financially. You’d never tithed. But maybe 2020 is the year you decide to trust God. What’s something you lack but what to own in 2020.

What one thing do you need to let go? The apostle Paul told the church in Philippi he wanted to forget what was behind and press forward into what God had for him (Philippians 3:13-14). If you’re a human being, you are hanging on to stuff you need to release. Maybe someone said something demeaning to you or someone did something offensive to you. You are harboring that moment because one day you’re going to make them pay. Maybe you failed at something: education, hobby, marriage. That failure has become your identity. You’ve let yourself down by caving into temptation. You carry the guilt and shame of sin and you believe God will not forgive you. There are things you carry like an overweight suitcase and you need to let it go.

Finally, what one promise do you need to claim from God in 2020? David says in Psalm 56:9-10 that he knows God is for him. You can claim that promise as a follower of Jesus! God is FOR you! And he has many promises for you in 2020. He’s promised to meet all your needs from his glorious riches. He’s promised to forgive all your sins. He’s promised you’ll not be tempted more than you can bare. He’s promised to never leave you. He’s promised the power to defeat Satan. He’s promised us eternal life through his son, Jesus!

There are so many more promises from God. It’s time to claim yours and rejoice in the coming new year. My prayer is as we move into a new year and new decade, you’ll know Jesus better than you ever have before. Blessings on your journey!

Immanuel

Have you ever given a gift that was not received like you thought it would be? You had a purpose for the gift but the one to whom you gave it saw it differently or had a different experience than you’d hoped. I once received a remote control airplane from an uncle but try as I might, that thing never flew. The gift was given with one expectation which was not realized by me.

When Jesus came to earth as a little baby, it was a gift with purpose from the Father but we, his creation, never saw the gift in the way he wanted. The expected Messiah was not met with fanfare and glory but was simply born in a barn. The Christmas story that we’ve heard so often had an incredible story line. A baby boy was born to two peasant Israelites. The teenage mom, pregnant before marriage, had a very short engagement. The explanation of how she was pregnant seemed so unbelievable. The only visitors on the night of birth were smelly shepherds who had an unimaginable story of how angelic hosts told them to go worship the new king.

But what does the story of Jesus’ birth mean to us? His name, Immanuel, literally means God is with us. How comforting. How warm. How beautiful. We have a Savior who understands our trouble and our life. He’s been there and experienced all the life has to offer us. He is God among us. He’s made some important promises to us and we serve a God who keeps promises!

In Matthew 28, Jesus promises he’ll always be with us. God told us in Hebrews 13, He’ll never leave us nor forsake us. John tells us in John 1, Jesus became flesh and moved into our neighborhood. Jesus is with you. He knows you by name. He wants to journey with you.

Sadly, some don’t believe God’s promise. There are things in their life that veil this truth. Maybe it because you did what you were supposed to and got that degree, put your resume out there, networked but you still have no job. It could be you stayed pure until marriage but there is still no baby crying down the hallway. It’s possible you will go home alone tonight because Mr. or Mrs. Right has not appeared on your horizon. You sit in an office and the doctor tells you the cancer has returned. More than likely, you still bear the shame and guilt of past mistakes because you have not yet laid them at Jesus’ feet.

Whatever the veil, however you have taken the story, no matter what other people tell you, you have a Savior named Jesus who wants to have a relationship with you! You have a God who left the glory of heaven to live and die on this earth so that he could be with you. Jesus has given you the greatest Christmas gift of all time. He’s given you hope, love, forgiveness, grace and mercy. He loves you. Don’t wait to unwrap him. He’s waiting for you with open arms. Jesus is the reason for the season. So embrace Immanuel…He is Jesus…He is God with you. Blessings on your journey.

Strength in weakness

I was a really small guy growing up. I only weighed about 60 pounds in the eighth grade. And that means I was picked on a bunch. In the seventh and eighth grade, I went to a school in Glenwood, AR where grades 7-12 were on the same campus. There were many times I wanted to hide and not come out until I could go home but I figured out a way to get through it all and it made me a better person.

My guess is, you’ve had times when life’s problems dwarfed you too. Times when you felt small and weak and you weren’t sure how to get through the day. Times when you felt the prodigal was too far gone, the diagnosis was too bleak, December was too busy, the workplace too worldly, your sin too great or the battle too big. But remember, God says when we are weak then we are strong. At least those of us who have surrendered to Jesus.

We have all heard the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17. An improbable and impossible battle that David wins because he’s put his faith in the God of Heaven’s Armies. No one believed David could best the Philistine’s champion but God knew. David used the smallest, improbable weapon to put Goliath on his knees.

Then, God decided to do the improbable again. He took his smallest weapon, a baby, some 2000 years ago to put Satan and sin on it’s knees. Jesus was born in Bethlehem to fulfilled prophecy. When he was born, the angelic army leaned and said, “What an unusual way to win the battle!”

This time of year, we celebrate what God has done for us. He sent his Son, born of woman. In him, there is victory. In Jesus, we can win any battle in front of us. But to have that victory…to win the battle…to be triumphant over whatever is going on in your life, you’ve got to except Jesus and surrender fully to him.

God gave us all the most precious gift some 2000 years ago. He believed in you. Now, do you believe in him? God who spoke the world into existence choose not to show his power but his love for us through his Son Jesus. When God commands his angelic armies, it was not to wage war but to announce the birth of the King of kings and the Lord of lords. It was an unbelievable moment in history, moving from B.C. to A.D. when the prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled from Isaiah 9:6-7:

“For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen.”

Blessings on your journey and may you find the opportunity this week to share the blessing of the reason for the season.

Looking Up

Have you have been in a situation where you needed help? Many times while playing high school football and after a huge tackle, team mates would see me on the ground, put their hand out and help me up. No doubt, you’ve had lots of moments like that when people helped you as you looked up to them.

In 2010, 33 Chilean miners were trapped in a collapsed mine. They were 2300 feet down and their only hope was far above them. Sure enough, 17 days later, one by one those who were on top pulled 33 miners to safety. Below, they had looked up for hope and help. Now, help came from above.

You know that’s where we were in our sin. We were hopeless. We needed help and our help, our salvation came from above. God Most High made a decision to leave the glory of heaven, put skin on and come to earth. The name God Most High reminds us of God’s greatness and majesty. He is the best, mightiest, most powerful, first and the last, all-knowing, and everlasting Savior.

Jesus left the rights and privileges he had in heaven for the silence of his arrival and humble living of earth. He was God Most High but was born into a peasant family, in a barn, and placed in a feeding trough. Jesus did that for you and for me.

Only 3 miles from where he was born in Bethlehem, was the palace of King Herod in Jerusalem. His palace set high on a hill. The palace itself sat on 45 acres and was 90 feet tall. The grounds surrounding the palace were 200 acres of gardens and swimming pools. If he had stood on his balcony that night, he could have looked to Bethlehem to see where the King of kings was born.

And because we see how humble Jesus was in his coming, we are reminded as his followers we too are called to live out that humble lifestyle. Paul reminds us of just how humble in Philippians 2:3-11. Paul says, “We MUST have the same attitude of Jesus.” It’s an imperative, not an option.

What a gift, the best gift we’ll ever get, in Jesus Christ. He is the Name above all names. He is God Most High. He is our Savior for the ages. As we realize what we have in Jesus, it reminds us of how we are called to live as we follow him. We look to him for our hope and our example.

Two challenges this holiday season (and beyond). Respond to God Most High every day with heart-felt worship. Jesus’ Name should be on our lips and tongue every day, giving him praise and thanks for his gift of love to us. And also, live out the Christmas story through humble service to others. Whether it’s your spouse, your kids, your co-workers, the folks you are standing in line with, your brothers and sisters at your local church…wherever you find yourself, treat others like Jesus has treated you. Blessings on your journey.

God in the Flesh

I’ve been called lots of names over my lifetime. In a high school football game one Friday night, I got burned for a touchdown. The team called me “Toast” after that. It was just once! Sometimes names are hard on you. Sometimes they are wonderful.

Your own personal name is important. It’s yours. When people say your name, it’s special.

Jesus is called lots of names in the New Testament as well. He’s called Son of God, Messiah, teacher, rabbi, Lamb, Christ, Prince of Peace. One of the names Jesus calls himself and it’s used over 80 times in the Gospel accounts is the name “Son of Man”. That means something for us.

Son of Man indicates his purpose and identity. In Matthew 20:28, Jesus says, “The Son of Man came to serve others and give himself as a ransom for others.” In the Hebrew Bible, there are 250 prophetic sayings pointing to the coming Messiah and Son of Man. In Daniel 7, the prophet says that the Son of Man is coming and every race, language and culture will bow before him as the Name above all names.

Did you know the Son of Man was tempted just like we are? He fully understands what you are going through. He resonates with the difficult moments in our life. He acknowledges the relentless assault of the Devil as he tempts us everyday.

In Matthew 4, as Jesus, the Son of Man begins his ministry, he is led into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. Jesus withstands every attack of Satan. Every temptation is warded off by using scripture and the Spirit. Jesus understands our desire to satisfy our appetites, achieving status, compromising moral principles. He’s gone through it all by verse 11 in Matthew 4.

It reminds me we have a Savior who fully understands our human-ness and loves us anyway. Jesus is God in the flesh. He believes in you as much as you believe in him. So take heart. While Satan shows no signs of ever giving up his hope to ruin our relationship with God in the Flesh, we can overcome whatever he throws at us be staying connected to and standing firm in the Name above all names, Jesus the Christ! Blessings on your journey.

Summertime Faith

You see it every summer. At a swimming pool anywhere in America. There are very young kids wanting to get in it but they are not sure about it. It looks scary and deep. They know they can’t swim. But then something incredible happens that changes their fear. Dad gets in the pool.

It doesn’t matter whether he is in the shallow, middle or deep end, those kids see dad. He holds out his arms and they jump in, unafraid of what lies in front of them. They crawl out of the pool, run to the spot where dad is and jump in again.

As people of God who believe that God is real, we should be doing more of this in our life. There’s a story that really spells this out for us in Genesis 22. Abraham, the father of the Israelites, is old. So old, we’d have already taken the car keys away from him. God has continually told him the world (let that sink in…THE WORLD) is going to be blessed through him and his child. The only problem is two-fold: he’s very old and there is still no child…not one kiddo. But finally, Abraham has a son when he’s, get this, a hundred years old!

You have to believe Abraham and Isaac loved being together. So many memories and fun times in the pool. But then God ask the unthinkable. God tells Abraham that he wants him to sacrifice this son Isaac to him. God wants to know how much Abraham loves God.

Now what kind of a God would ask a dad to sacrifice his only son?! But, Abraham knows God and understands everything he has and is has come from God. So, I would imagine with very heavy feet, Abraham and Isaac set out for Mt. Moriah, the mountain of God, to worship.

At the base of the mountain, Abraham tells his servants they don’t need to go with them. Both he and Isaac will both go to worship and both he and Isaac will come right back. Interesting. Abraham knows God’s requirement yet says with the faith of a kid jumping into the arms of a dad, “We will be back.” He says the pronoun, “we”. Abraham didn’t know how but trusted God to provide whatever was needed to fulfill the promise God had made way back in Genesis 12.

So, on the way up, Isaac asks where the ram is for the offering. Abraham replies, “God will provide.” And God does provide. After the altar has been built, the flame lit, Isaac tied up and the knife raised above Abraham’s head, the Angel of the Lord says, “WAIT!” God now knows Abraham trusts God to provide. He loves God more than his own son.

It’s a great reminder for each of us this holiday season. Each of us will be missing someone at the dinner table. Each will experience a loss. Each of us will hope for a different outcome in a relationship. Each of us will pray for a stronger marriage. Each of us will hope to make ends meet financially. Each will plead for a prodigal to come home. We all are trudging up the mountain.

And this story in Genesis 22 is a foreshadowing of the greatest story of all time. Thousands of years later, God will send his only son, Jesus, who will eventually die for all of us. God will give us his only son in order to gain back all his children.

What we each must verbalize and live out is that we serve a God who will provide. He is the keeper of promises and giver of life. He will provide the proverbial ram in the bush. So, this holiday, lean into the only one whose arms you can jump. The only one who can catch you while you fall. The only one who truly loves you for who you are. Blessings on your journey.

All in the Family.

You have had those moments when you had that fight with your sibling from coming into your room while you were gone. That moment when your parents and you didn’t see eye to eye on the person you were dating. And that embarrassing moment with your grandparent corrected you in front of everyone…and you were 32 years old. We’ve all had difficult moments in our physical families but that didn’t mean we left and never came back. They are family so through thick and thin, good and bad times, you stuck it out.

That’s the type of stick-to-itiveness that Paul calls us to with our spiritual family in Ephesians 4. Look, we’ve all had moments when we’ve been annoyed with someone’s actions and words in our church family. There have been heated discussions about theology and ministry where we didn’t see eye to eye with the one “running the show”. But that is never cause to leave because we are family with Jesus being the oldest brother.

We learn through the example of the New Testament church, that although we are many people, we are one family. And in our family, we should be able to be authentic and real. Even in dire moments, we know we have each other’s back because that’s what family does. We take time to listen to our stories, pray together, encourage each other, do life together (see Acts 2:42-47).

Jesus calls us to be salt and light in the world (Matthew 5:13-16). And when we stand with each other and support one another, the world takes notice because it doesn’t have that. We may disagree on some things but we never let that stand in the way of our exhibited love for each other.

It’s a reminder that we also stand for each other. We actually want each other to succeed. So with patience, forgiveness and love, we stand together knowing none of us are perfect. Only one family member is and his name is Jesus Christ.

Paul reminds us that we, the church, are like a human body. Every member is important. No member can say “I don’t need that person or that family”. We discover that when all the parts of our spiritual family are functioning, the body of Christ is everything it was designed to be. We can fulfill our mission.

Finally, we discover that together, we can accomplish the mission. The mission of God is realizing our call to tell the Gospel story. It’s the story of a God who loves his creation so much He sent his Son to die for us so we might live. And when the family of God is loving on each other, we have the opportunity to be that storytelling salt and light in this chaotic world.

Together we are stronger for Jesus. Together we can get through anything. Together we represent Jesus and everything this world needs. Blessings on the journey.

Time for lavish living is now!

When you’re young and in junior high, you are searching for yourself and ways to fit in, be cool, grow up. I lived in Glenwood, AR in the 7-8th grades and I was searching for myself. About 3 years ahead of me at church was a guy named Doug and he seemed way cool. He had long hair, drove a cool car, seemed to know what he wanted in life. I wanted to imitate him, hang out with him, be him. I’m certain he had many flaws (which I did not see) but one he had I began to imitate. He cracked his fingers. So I began doing that because I thought it was cool. Now, I’m 51 and I still crack my fingers all the time. I wished I had set me sights on loftier things to emulate.

It makes me think about our goals for what we want to emulate. What is it that we truly desire? Who do we want to look like? What habits are we latching on to that will help move us toward where we’d rather be?

It’s time. It’s time we lived in a way that screams “we love Jesus”. It’s time to live lavishly so the world will take notice. It’s time to literally live in a state of worship to God everyday of our lives, not just on Sunday. Paul says in Romans 12:1-2, “…give yourselves to God because of ALL he has done for you…YOU be a living sacrifice for him.” Paul is calling us to imitate Jesus with our very lives. We realize to do that, we’ll need to worship him every day of the week, not just on Sunday mornings. So, how can we worship every day?

Well first, we must submit our schedules to him. Give him time, which includes coming together as God’s people on Sunday. But you and I must also commit to daily prayer and reading God’s Word if we are going to discover how we are called to live in this world and know how to imitate Jesus from Nazareth.

Too many do not submit their calendar to God and pay the price of shallow follow-ship. We all want to be followers of the risen King not just traveling with him. Find a rhythm in your daily journey to be in prayer and be in God’s Word, the blueprint for how we are called to live.

Secondly, we are to use our gifts, our talent to serve other people. The Holy Spirit has gifted us with at least one talent. Some of us have multiple talents. But whether great or small, use what you’ve been given for God’s glory every single day. Let your light shine for him. We must become less so that he becomes more. Find a way to serve in ministry at your local church, in your community or at your workplace. Worship Jesus with your servant heart.

Lastly, use your resources to spread the story of what Jesus has done for all of us. If you’re not giving to your local church, then you’re not submitting to the leadership of the church you are a part of. Our call as people who follow Jesus is to share in multiple ways the story of God and how much He loves this world he created. It’s a scary thing to give up something you’ve worked so hard for but doing so will remind you that you trust God to provide for your needs while you are helping someone else discover that Jesus cares for them just like he cares for you.

You see, worship is more than a Sunday morning event. It’s something we do Every. Single. Day. Worship will cost you something. It may cost you time, the use of your giftedness, or your resources. But that’s our call as people who follow a risen Savior. Every day, live lavishly as you sing your praises for what God has done for you by the way you live your life! Blessings on the journey.

White as Cotton.

My dad grew up in Western Tennessee on a farm. He was actually born in a farmhouse in Obion County. He has related to me the opportunities he had to milk cows, harvest corn, shell peas, well, farm life. He has also told me about hoeing cotton. He said it was an arduous job…long and tiring…row after row. But at harvest time, the field was white with cotton bowls.

Yesterday was our mission Sunday at church. We’ve been talking about it for weeks and weeks, encouraging the congregation to be in prayer about what they might give toward our goal so other people might have the opportunity to hear about Jesus. I don’t know where we are at on the numbers yet but I do know this church is a very generous group of people.

We support and go as far away as Kenya, Africa to help an orphanage of 40 deaf children. We buy Bibles through Eastern European Missions which puts the Bible in schools in places that the USSR used to prohibit. We support a church in Campamento, Honduras, helping create a clean water source and a daycare for the locals. During the summer, we cook all the meals all week long at a camp in Texas for at-risk-kids from the Dallas area. We serve our own community through the Big Event, Meals on Wheels, GP Pregnancy Center, Lifeline Chaplaincy, and GPISD.

Our group is a generous, selfless bunch who just want to look more like Jesus. It’s fun and exciting to be with people who want nothing more than Jesus’ story to be told and do that telling in lots of different ways. But don’t wait for the big “splash”. Don’t wait for the “right moment” before you jump in to help tell the story.

You see, this weekend, I was at a local mall trying to sell my book, Beautiful Interference, which published in June. Sales were…okay. But what struck me was the conversations. I was reminded people are hungry for the truth and a church (or group of people) who also are living for Jesus and the truth. The conversations I had were genuine and authentic. They were people who have been looking for something their life has been missing. His Name is Jesus.

We are called as Jesus’ disciples to share the good news. To BE Jesus to those around us and you don’t need to go to Kenya, Europe, or Honduras to do that. Your neighbor is looking for truth. Your coworker is looking for the answer. Your family member is hoping to find something worth fighting for. The mission field is right around you.

So don’t forget a simple smile, holding the door, allowing someone in the traffic line, a kind word at the bank or post office, sharing a meal with someone in need of a listening ear…these are all mission fields you can be a part of today. Go out and BE Jesus today. Jesus said to his disciples in John 4, “The fields are white, ready for harvest.” And he says that to you and me today.

Take some time this week. Look around. Jesus story needs to be told or even better, shown to all those looking for answers. Be the light. Look around. The field is white and we get to walk among the rows! Blessings on your journey.

Road map

For the longest time, my wife and I kept a Rand McNally atlas in the car. For you millennials that was a larger grouping of paper highway maps…every state in the USA. At the back of that “book”, we wrote down every state we had been too and where we had lived as a couple. We just called it “The Book”. I still keep in my vehicle, under the front seat.

But there really is only one road map…only one “The Book”. It’s the Word of God. What we call the Bible. Within it’s pages you’ll find the road map for the type of life you’ve been praying for. It is the blueprint for the most abundant life you or I could ever ask for. It offers a well spring of life to all who would adhere to it’s calling to follow Jesus, the risen Savior.

Now, if we aren’t careful, you can make it a rule book and offer up a lifestyle of legalism. That’s where you think God’s Word is good but not quite good enough so you add your own rules to how God has called us to live. Jesus addressed this with the religious leaders in his day. Just read Matthew 23 and you’ll discover how opposed Jesus was to legalistic thinking. It doesn’t fit for those who call themselves Jesus-followers.

But one could also move to the liberal side of reading God’s Word. It’s the thinking one believes God’s Word is good but we filter it due to culture. For example, you might read and believe Jesus calls us to care for the poor but you never reach out to the poor. You might believe God’s Word calls us to a daily prayerful life but you find you only pray when you’re in trouble. You might discover Jesus-followers gather to celebrate Jesus as a church but you only attend when it’s convenient for you. It’s the spirit of saying, “I know God’s Word says this, but I’m going to do that.”

What we all need to grasp is the Word of God is our map…it is our blueprint for life…the light to guide us on our way. When you and I decide to be in God’s Word every day, discovering how the carpenter from Nazareth has called us to follow him, we’ll discover we have the most blessed life possible. So, get into God’s Word. Follow the risen Savior. Get illuminated with God’s words. Blessings on your journey.