JUNE 17TH---WOW!

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. — Psalm 51:10 If you're married, then you remember when you first met your wife or husband-to-be, and how you probably had the feeling of butterflies in your stomach and even a loss of appetite. You felt nervous when he or she was around. You wanted to make the best impression. Today marks the anniversary of my first date with my first wife ( and current one for 52 years) I remember what I wore---where we went---and how I felt! I have always remembered June 17th. I hope you understand that those emotions aren't going to last throughout your entire marriage. I'm not saying that you won't have a deep, passionate love that will grow. But I am saying that I hope you're not expecting to always have the butterflies you once did. It is kind of like driving a car. There is the love that brings you together, like an explosion that starts the engine. Next comes the actual driving of the car, which means that now you need to understand what real love is. The problem is that some people don't understand that. They think that when that emotional excitement is not there on a daily basis, they have fallen out of love and it is not working out. "I suppose we have irreconcilable differences," they say, "so let's just dissolve it." Then they move on to another relationship because they don't have a clue as to what real love is. The idea is that first there is an excitement and passion that brings you together. Then you deepen and grow in what real love is. In the same way, we need to mature in our relationship with God. It is more than a journey of feeling. It is also a journey of faith. So we must deepen in our love for God, because we are in it for the long-term. You might even remember the thrill and excitement of coming into a relation ship with Christ. But let me tell you something, if it wasn’t for the fact that God poured His love into our hearts at our spiritual rebirth we wouldn’t last in a long term marriage or a lifetime walk with Him. ( Romans 5 ) God wants us in it for now and eternity. Let me say that June the 17th means a WHOLE lot more now than it did then---and we want and will finish this race well.

Be Choosey About Your Choices

Many think that life is just a set of circumstances: You can't help what happens, just try to adapt and hope for better luck next time -- which explains the greatest excuse of all time: I'm just a victim of circumstance. The Bible teaches something different. Your life is not the result of random circumstance, it's the result of the choices you make. Moses and Joshua both highlighted this simple truth. "I have set before you life and death, blessing and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live..." (Deuteronomy 30:19) "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15) Life is a series of choices. Success depends on making the same right choices again and again, day after day -- at the dinner table,on the social internet sites, in conversations with families and friends, with your paycheck, in what you read or don't read in books/internet/magazines,at your job,etc. etc---you get the idea! These choices determine who you are and what your life becomes. Every minute of every day we have the privilege of choices that go into to making your life more rewarding or more disappointing. What choices are you willing to make? Think about it. I mean REALLY think about it!

Sitting in a chicken house won't make you a chicken!

Sitting in a chicken house won’t make you a chicken!

Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. —Matthew 15:28
Faith is often found in unlikely places. The Bible tells the story of a pagan woman whom Jesus commended for her great faith. She was not raised as a Jew, knowing the Scriptures. She certainly did not have the privilege of walking and talking with Jesus as the disciples had. This woman had been raised in a godless home, in a home filled with idols. But with what little she knew about Jesus, she applied dramatic faith. We could even describe it as amazing faith.

One would have thought that the strongest faith would have come from one of Jesus’ disciples like Peter, James, or John. But it came from this pagan woman. The only other time Jesus called out someone’s faith as an example was when a Roman centurion—another Gentile—asked Him to heal his servant.

Sometimes if you have been raised in church, especially if you have been raised in a Christian home or went to a Christian school, you can take it for granted. And in the very place where your heart should be transformed, it can become hardened. It all comes down to the way you listen. Do you show up prepared to listen and wantingto  listen---or are you there just to "check the box"?
This is why Jesus often would say, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” You decide how you will react to what you hear. I hope you don’t go to church under duress or pressure, because your spouse wants you to or because your parents want you to. I hope you don’t think that if you go to church or a Bible study, you will earn favor with God. If you come with that attitude in a place where your life should be transformed, then you can get a hard heart and miss the point.

Sitting in a chicken house won’t make you a chicken anymore than sitting in a church house won’t make you a Christian!  It is by grace, not the place, that makes people believers.
                                                           
S0000----do you “have ears to hear” like the Scriptures ask? This can make the difference in your heart being changed.

IT'S RAINING---NOW WHAT?

One of my favorite musical movies is Gene Kelley's "Singing in the Rain". In the main theme scene Gene is so full of joy and excitement he is dancing and singing in a downpour. Rain or no rain his joy would not be "rained out!"

Former baseball great Satchel Paige once said, “Don’t pray when it rains if you don’t pray when the sun shines.”

This sounds like good old salt-of-the-earth wisdom, but it’s terrible advice. (For future reference, good advice never begins with the phrase, “Don’t pray.”)

Everyone knows that it’s a mistake not to pray when the sun is shining. But it’s foolish to compound this mistake by refusing to pray when the rain starts pouring down. Even if you haven’t prayed enough in the past, this is time to start praying more than ever.

Many times, when trouble strikes, our first reaction is panic. Our first emotion is fear. We need to get past that and move move in the direction of prayer.

This is what happened to King Jeshophat when he heard the news that three armies were aligned against him, prepared to attack. The Bible says…

Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the Lord for guidance. (2 Chronicles 20:3)

First came fear, a normal reaction.

Then came prayer.

Then came guidance.

Then provision.

Then victory.

This is where God’s work in your life often begins: from a place of need, or hurt, or fear. Many who walk close to Christ can tell you that it was pain that led them to pursue a deeper walk with God. Despair can be a catalyst to experiencing God’s power. There’s a reason for this. When confronted with trouble, we’re more likely to shed the religious façade and get real with God. In the journey to experiencing God, this is the first step. Whats the forecast?

SURRENDER AT GETHSEMANE

Have you ever felt lonely? Have you ever felt as though your friends and family had abandoned you? Have you ever felt like you were misunderstood? Have you ever had a hard time understanding or submitting to the will of God for your life?

If so, then you have an idea of what the Lord Jesus went through as He agonized at Gethsemane.

Hebrews tells us, "This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it" (4:15–16 NLT).

Consider the fact that Jesus, who was God, was omniscient. He was all-knowing. Therefore, He was fully aware of the horrors of the crucifixion that awaited Him.

He knew His disciples would abandon him. He knew Judas Iscariot would betray Him. He knew that Simon Peter would deny Him. He knew they would rip His back open, press a crown of thorns into His head, beat Him, spit in His face, and crucify Him. Worst of all, He knew that all the sins of the world would be placed upon Him.

The Bible tells us that Jesus was "a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3 NLT). But the sorrow He experienced in Gethsemane on the night before His crucifixion seemed to be the culmination of all the sorrow He had ever known and would accelerate to a climax the following day. The ultimate triumph that was to take place at Calvary was first accomplished beneath the gnarled old olive trees of Gethsemane.

Jesus told Peter, James, and John, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch" (Mark 14:34). Jesus' sorrow and anguish was so powerful, it threatened His very life.

In the face of this dreadful prospect of bearing God's full fury against sin, Jesus knelt to the ground and began to pray. This was not a quiet whisper of a prayer. Hebrews 5:7 tells us, "While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could deliver him out of death. And God heard his prayers because of his reverence for God" (NLT).

It is interesting that the very word Gethsemane means "olive press." Olives were pressed there to make oil, and truly, Jesus was being pressed from all sides that He might bring life to us. I don't think we can even begin to fathom what He was going through.

Maybe you are at a crisis point in your life right now—a personal Gethsemane, if you will. You have your will; you know what you want. Yet you can sense that God's will is different.

Would you let the Lord choose for you? Would you be willing to say, "Lord, I am submitting my will to yours. Not my will, but yours be done"? You will not regret making that decision.

Sometimes, we are afraid to do this because we have a false concept that God's will for us is not good. You might be thinking, "How about His plan for Jesus? That didn't seem very good."

No question, it was very difficult for Jesus, to say the least. No question, He faced the full wrath of God against all sin.

But look at what it accomplished. It brought about your salvation and mine. Because of what Jesus went through at Gethsemane and ultimately at the cross, we can call upon His name. Though it was an unfathomably painful, horrific transition, it was necessary for the ultimate goal of what was accomplished.

Maybe you are going through a difficult time. Ultimately, it will be so much better if you allow the Lord to choose His plan for you. One day, you will be able to look back and say, "Lord, thank you for making that choice."

God's plans for you are good. As Jeremiah tells us, the thoughts that God thinks toward you are "thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope" (29:11).

In our moments of uncertainty, in those times when we think that everyone has let us down, remember that Jesus has been there and is there for us. God's plans for you are so much better than the plans you have for yourself.

Will you let Him choose?

IT'S A BATTLE GROUND NOT A PLAYGROUND!

Elijah came to all the people, and said, "How long will you falter (limp) between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him---if Satan, then follow him!"

— 1 Kings 18:21

I'm sure the greatest day in your life was the day you asked Jesus Christ to come into your heart and forgive you of your sin.

It was the day that your eternal destiny changed, the day that you passed from darkness to light, the day that you found new purpose and meaning for your life.

But that day was also the day that a very real spiritual war began. Some Christians are shocked to find the Christian life is not a playground but a battleground.

Like it or not, you are in a battle between good and evil, between right and wrong, between God and Satan. It's not optional, and you must choose which side you want to fight on.

As Elijah asked the people up on Mt. Carmel, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him."

I will be honest with you; I never understood the appeal of a half-hearted commitment to Jesus Christ. Neither did Elijah, he followed the Lord with all his heart. Jesus said to one of the churches in Revelations 3: "I want you to be hot or cold but since you are only lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth!"   On the battlefield, either you advance and let God use you, or you retreat.

It's time to get out of those stained glass foxholes. It's time to dust off your clothes, shine up your armor, and sharpen your sword. Because, like it or not, you have been drafted into God's service.

As a child of God you are going to be a soldier. Your choice is whether you will be a good soldier or a bad one.

Elijah had already chosen to be a spiritual soldier, and he was ready for battle. Are you?

“Never Underestimate the Power of Tears”

Have you ever wondered what it takes to earn a starting position on a National Championship college football team? Strength? Endurance? Speed?

How about...the ability to cry? Sounds crazy, but it happened.
In Lou Holtz’ second season as head coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, his team experienced a humiliating loss against Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl. Holtz said he was absolutely dejected when he walked into the locker room after the game, and he couldn’t help but notice that most of the Notre Dame players didn’t seem to be bothered at all by the loss.
With one exception. A second-string sub named Chris Zorich sat in front of his locker crying deep, gut-heaving sobs. He was thoroughly crushed by the defeat. Holtz decided at that moment the next year’s team would be composed of players who loved football as much as Chris.
The next season this young man went from sub to starter to team captain, and helped lead the Irish to a National Championship. Chris Zorich won a starting position at Notre Dame because he was the only player on the team who cared enough to cry.
Some things are worth caring about. Certain areas of your life—maybe your job, your ministry, your family, a person you’re trying to disciple or lead to Christ—will require more emotional involvement than an “ordinary” person would be willing to give. It may be tempting to tell yourself—and to tell others—that it’s not worth crying over. But remember, sometimes crying is the key to making a difference.
It is interesting to notice that before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he wept for his friend (John 11:35-36). As He approached Jerusalem toward the end of his ministry, Jesus wept over the city, saying, “If you had only known what would bring you peace...” (Luke 19:41) He cared enough to cry.
In Paul’s ministry, he experienced anguish when he learned Christians in Galatia were falling away. He wrote to them, “My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, how I wish I could be with you...” (Galatians 4:19) Paul continued to care, even when it hurt.
Caring comes with a price, but it also comes with a reward. The Psalmist wrote, “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” (Psalm 126:5)
Never underestimate the power of tears, or what those tears represent. It isn’t until you are willing to become emotionally involved—until you care enough to cry—that you are able to change people’s lives. Or your or own.