Mission

You know, brothers, that our visit to you was not a failure. We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition. For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed--God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.
1 Thess. 2:1-6

Paul was a missionary. he struggled for the sake of Christ. his heart was set on pursuing Jesus, wherever He may lead. Paul mentioned his experiences with suffering and insults, along with strong opposition. he knows the reason for his pursuit of the call, to be called a man "approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel." why are you a Christian? what are you expecting from your faith? where is Jesus leading you? where's your hope? why do you do what you do? who called you?

Father,
i fall before you with my face on the floor. my heart is broken, for i know that i too often look toward the approval of men, rather than You. i desire to chase You wherever You lead. i want my heart to be set on seeking You with my whole heart, even when the going gets tough. let my heart be steadfast for Your call.
in Christ's Powerful Name ~Amen

Perseverance

i've been outta town for a few days. some of the youth from our youth group went to an event called Youth 2003 - a Methodist sponsored event which takes place every 4 years. there were some crazy things that happened while we were there, and the trip wasn't at all what i had expected. at many times i was tempted to leave this convention. when the speaker gives an hour talk which is contrary to Scripture, i think it's okay to desire for us to leave. anyway, we are back at home, safe and tired. there were some good things which happened, and mostly i think our youth liked the experience.

okay, enough with that. have you ever read the book of Habakkuk? it's pretty interesting. Habakkuk was a prophet in Judah. Habakkuk had a problem with the way God was doing things, so he complained to Him. here's one complaint, "How long, O Lord, must i call for help, but You do not listen?" {1:2}my translation, "why are you not doing anything, God?" have you ever asked that question? i know i have many times. i pray about a certain situation and nothing seems to change. sometimes the situation seems to get worse. but God didn't remain silent to Habakkuk (he must've had his ears turned on). God spoke to Habakkuk, but it wasn't what Habakkuk had in mind. God shown him that He was about to destroy Judah with an army from Babylon. isn't that great news? not only does it seem like things are terrible now, just wait! things will get much worse!

since God answered with an answer which didn't please Habakkuk, he decided to complain some more. this is his next grumbling, "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. why then do you tolerate the treacherous? why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?" {1:13} Habakkuk knows God's character. he knows that God doesn't enjoy seeing the wicked conquer the righteous, chosen people. and yet God made it clear to him this plan. so God again tries to pursuade Habakkuk that His ways are better than man's. God gives Habakkuk a revelation. God mentions that the revelation may not happen today, but it will happen. He says, "wait for it; it will certainly come." {2:3}

God revealed to Habakkuk that one day His glory will cover the heavens and His praise will fill the earth. {3:3} after grasping this revelation Habakkuk says, "i heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights." {3:16-19} did you catch it? Habakkuk wasn't concerned any more about his well-being. His heart was changed in a split second. he went from wanting things to go his way, to desiring for God to do thing His way. Habakkuk even said that he will rejoice in the Lord and be joyful. He mentions that his strength comes from the Lord. WOW!

Great Father,
let my complaining be heard in Your ears. let my mouth speak what my heart feels. i am listening for Your answers. open my heart to see what You want to do next. please don't remain silent. let Your glory fill the heavens and Your praise fill the earth. let me be patient in waiting for You. i love You and want to follow You.
In Jesus' Name ~ Amen

Loving God

*Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him. {John 14:21}

*This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome. {1 John 5:3}

*But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul. {Joshua 22:5}

*If you love me, you will obey what I command. {John 14:15}

for those of you who know me quite well know that i'm a morning person. when i wake up, my mind is automatically in high gear and is moving a mile a second. i awoke with the song, "I love You, Lord." many of you may know how the rest of it goes. but my thoughts didn't stop there. they moved onto the Scripture verses which speak of truly loving God. these verses don't speak directly anything about lifting our voices or worship Him through attending services. they speak of obeying His commands. then i began to wonder how well i knew His commands. do i know what He wants me to do?

Micah 6:8 says "To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Jesus says, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." {Matt. 22:37-40} and in Deutoronomy 10:12-13, we can see what God asks of us, "to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the LORD's commands and decrees."

bottom line: i am to obey with all my heart. how? the Holy Spirit's invasion: when i am weak He makes me strong, when i get down He lifts me up, when i tremble He gives peace.

Generous Father,
May You be praise for drawing my heart near Yours. Thanks for giving me Your Holy Spirit, so that i can be strong in You. May You continue to pour Your Spirit upon me and fill my heart so that i may willingly serve You with my whole heart.

Through Jesus's Name ~ Amen.

What's This Is All For

so, i'm 26 years old, been a Christian for quite a fews years, and only recently have i begun to understand what Christianity is all about. so last Tuesday night a group of people from our church went to a worship service called 7:22. the speaker was Louie Giglio, who is known throughout the world for his gift of speaking Truth to young people. enough of the commercial. Louie's topic was on the Christian life is not easy, tho some people may tell you it is.

so we as Christian are taught to put our faith in Jesus Christ and by His grace will be set free from the sin of death. we'll be giving the ultimate reward, existence in heaven with Jesus, which surpasses any imaginable reward. this reward in heaven is greater than the loss of everything. even with that being said, our ultimate purpose on earth is not to just know God, but for our lives to give Him glory. and we as humans don't like to think that even if He leads us to death and torture and suffering, we are still to remain faithful to Him in order for Him to receive glory. this is profound to me.

the next time you are speaking with Jesus, ask Him if God will lead you thru hard times. i bet His answer will be, "He did Me." or ask Jesus if God may lead you to foreign countries. i bet His answer will be, "He did Me." or ask Him if it is possible for even your death to give glory to God. More than likely his answer will be, "Mine did." with that being said, how can we think that our lives are going to be easy? how can we always pray for our suffering to be taken from us, when that is exactly the place where God wants us to draw closer to Him?

Louie also made this point, "Hardship exists to break us free from the stuff that suffocates our lives." chew on that one for a while. James says that we are to consider it "JOY" when we face trials. where does this "JOY" come from? the Holy Spirit; it's one of the fruit which He gives to believers. {Gal. 5:22,23} another fruit is peace. and from my experience i've discovered that peace and joy often go together. Louie commented, "internal peace is the connection with Jesus which will pull us through the tough times."

i'm not sure about you, but i'm blown away by all this. God can use even my death to bring Him glory. God desires my pain and suffering to draw me closer to Him, which ultimately give Him glory. He may ask me to surrender my life to Him, in order for glory to be brought to His Name. but i've already given Him my life, so this shouldn't be surprising to me...tho it is. anyway, i could talk all day about this, but i better get to work.

Glorious Father,
where do i start? i'm blown away by this understanding. i know that You sacrificed Your Son to bring glory to Your Name. help me always to remember that i am not my own; i was bought as a price, the price to costly for me to ever repay. help me to always remember the moment i gave my life to You, so that i will never be tempted to steal it back. let me surrender my life to You on a daily basis. use it to bring glory to Your Name.
Through Christ's Blood for my Life, amen.

t

Rewards

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Matt. 5:11-12

Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Luke 12:32-34

Less of Me

He must become greater; I must become less.
John 3:30

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
Galatians 2:20

I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies.
John 11:25

"It would be better for me to die than to live."

~Jonah

last night before i fell asleep i was reading about John the Baptist and his disciples. did you know he had disciples? anyway, they were upset because many people were being baptized by Jesus instead of them and John. John response to them by saying "He (Jesus) must become greater; i must become less." that same attitude should resound through every member of my being at any given moment of any day.... there's a challenge and a half.

so today i'm scrutinizing my life and it's many facets. i want to amplify my willingness for Jesus to reign in my life. it's easy to say that He has control over ever part of my heart, but it's a different story when reality hits.

Jesus, just as Jonah said, "it would be better for me to die than to live," so i too want to die so that i can live in You. let my heart be quick to surrender towards Your ruling. i trust that You are stirring in life to do wonderful things. let me focus on those instead of my selfish ambition. Spirit, awaken me to hark Your call. i open myself to You; quicken my heart to know Your heart. my hope is in You. may You truly become greater and i become less.
In Jesus' Name! ~Amen

Living by Truth

"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." {John 14:6}

"No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day." {John 6:44}

"And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of all that He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

it seems so simple when reading the Bible to understand that Jesus is the only way to heaven, to happiness, to joy, to hope, to fulfillment, to satisfaction, etc. but when someone argues with that Fact, it's much more difficult to defend my stand on the Truth which i base my life.

i believe that Jesus is the only way, and be it harsh that He picks and chooses who will be in heaven...but this is the Truth which i believe. i also believe that He gives us all free choice to decided whether or or not we will believe Him and His Truth. i also believe that he spent His life building the trust of 12 men so that they could carry on His message of forgiveness and hope. i believe we as Christians are called to witness and proclaim the Truth to everyone, including those in foreign countries {Matt. 28:18-20}. this is Jesus example - He didn't stay in one part of the country. i believe He desires us to pray for workers to be equipped and sent out so that others can hear the Good News. {Matt 9:37-38} i believe Jesus.

Jesus, my hope is in You. by Your mercy, may You continue to answer my many questions. Only in You am i satisfied and fulfilled. You are my joy and my delight. May You build up members of Your family to be equipped to proclaim Your Gospel. may Your hand be upon me as this servant lives to witness for You.

thru the Redemptive Blood of Jesus ~Amen

Seeing the Full Picture

i've been stunned lately at this passage - Matt. 16:21-28. Jesus tries to explain to his best friends what is scheduled to happen...He will suffer many things and He'll be killed, but then raise to life. Peter, you know... "hot-temptered" Peter, decides that he will not stand for these terrible things happening to his good Friend and Teacher. so he exclaims, "NEVER, LORD!" Jesus acted swiftly to rebuke him. Jesus plainly tells him that he is acting contrary to what God desires. then Jesus goes on to explain that if these men want to truly be followers, they will need to take up their cross (signifying death) and follow Him without reserve.

now that it's 2000 years after all these events happened, and i have the full account of what happened, i believe it's easier to understand all this. i can see the whole picture about Peter and his desire to protect Jesus from all these horrible happenings. and i can see why Jesus quickly reprimanded Peter for the out-burst. Peter had already confessed that Jesus was the Son of the living God (v. 16), and then he forgets all he's learned regarding what the Messiah must accomplish.

Peter had worldly intentions. they were not necessarily bad (saving someone from harm is not a poor excuse), but not Spirit orientated. Guess he was out of step. often i have good intentions, but they are not what Jesus wants for my life. i tend to think that if it's good, it's gotta be God's way. then i'm reminded of this verse, "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord." {Is. 55:8} what an amazing journey...

Father, let me know Your voice so that i can understand Your ways. let my head not get in the way of what You have planned. let my mouth be silence when You speak so that i can hear clearly. i ask for a Spirit of revelation and wisdom so that i can know You better. {Eph. 1:17} this is my heart's desire.
through Jesus Christ ~ Amen

Immaturity

"You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?"
1 Cor. 3:3

"Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."
1 Pet. 2:1-3

"In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!"
Heb. 5:11-12

"The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell."
James 3:6

"So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!"
1 Cor. 10:12

ever have one of those days when the words of your mouth get you into a heap of trouble? lately that seems like the story of my life. every time i open my mouth an endless supply of rubble seems to spill forth. i hate it! my tongue is a world of evil...

during the message at the saturday night worship service, God got to me. He confronted me with some of the childish ways which rule in my life. then all day sunday it was a downhill slide which eventually fell into my own grave. so today, as i attempt to dig my way back to the surface, i'm discovering how weak i am. my heart often tells me that i'm strong, that nothing can move me...then reality sets in. if it weren't for the grace of Jesus Christ, i deserve death. my life is nothing without Him. my plans are worthless, void, pointless, but His are grand, magnificent, worthwhile, meaningful.

and tho my mouth and heart get in the way, and my emotions beat me up like a bandit in the night, Christ makes me whole. and what a glorious assurance this is, b/c right now i'm not feeling very wholesome or complete.

Hey Dad, i pretty much am messed up in the head. my mouth tends to open when it should remain closed and my thoughts flow from a heart which contains much evil. Jesus, i need to You to cleanse me again. let my heart be a branch from Your vine. Holy Spirit, please guide me to listen more often and zip my lip when it feels like speaking harsh words. forgive me for i have sinned, for it is against You. let my heart be steadfast on a pursuit of You. thanks for giving me grace to survive, and the strength to continue the climb.
in Jesus' powerful Name, Amen

Know God's Word {Voice}

i have to admit that often i read my Bible in order to fix me. i know that sounds odd, but it's the truth. there are so many ways which i don't measure up to what God wants me to do. i know i'll be reprimanded when i open up my Bible. so i slide into legalism without fully understanding it.

i'm only beginning to understand that God speaks thru the Bible. actually the Bible is the very words of God. doesn't it seem strange that we have the word of God (He who create the heavens and the earth and all that is in it), and yet we have some many questions? i forget sometimes when i read the Word of God that He's a loving God, full of transforming power to rescue me from contradicting what is intended for my life. He's given me a Spirit which desire to do what God longs for. and this Spirit intercedes for me. and He reveals the Word of God to me so that i may understand it, and may succeed (by His strength) to accomplish it.

when i begin to think that i can't do what God expects of me, i've already fallen into legalism. it's true that on my own i can't please God. Galatians 5:17-18 speak of this exact thougtht. "For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law." so i guess i need more wisdom about how the Spirit frees us for the law, which is where all those "laws" come from.

Holy Spirit, come into my life with more fullness. reveal the words of God to me so that i may understand. Spirit, please continue to transform me from the inside out. let my motive be in check with Yours. Always help me to read the Scripture under Your supervision, not my own feeble understanding of how to respond. Only You can change me heart so that it obeys the Word.
In Christ's Name ~ Amen

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