Ripple Effect

One of my all time favorite things to do in life is get away deep in the northern woods of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and take a walk along the dirt road that leads to a small foot bridge that over looks Piatt Lake to the west and the Lagoon to the east.  On a calm, sunny day when the water is like a sheet of glass, it is easy to catch a glimpse of a water bug skimming along the top of the water, a turtle popping out for a sun bath or a fish jumping to crest the surface.  This is creation in all of its beauty!  These actions will produce a ripple, a disturbance, in the calm of the water spanning in all directions.  This last summer my kids and I spent hours in this spot watching the water for these things, and before long we were doing what comes natural.  We picked up stones and sticks, and threw them in to make our own ripples.  It was effortless to cast a stone and then hypnotically watch the ripples move across the water.

Recently in Japan, we have been reminded just how devastating ripples can actually be when the force causing the ripple and the size of the wave out-scale its surroundings.  The whole world can be affected.

Have you considered the Ripple Effect?

In Joshua 7, Joshua and the Israelites experienced a pretty dramatic ripple effect.  One of the instruction that God had given them as they pursued victory over Jericho was to set a side all the spoils to Him.  No keeping any gold, silver, jewels, or clothing for themselves!  All of it was to go to God.

Can you picture the setting?  Israel was enjoying the moment.  They once again witnessed the amazing power of God and the continued fulfillment of His promises in the victory.  But one man throw a stone of trouble.  Achan looked at the spoils,wanted what he saw and stole from God!

Next, Israel was headed into another battle with a lesser power in the city of Ai.  Israel sized them up and confidently attacked only to be soundly defeated because the Lord was very angry with the Israelites because of Sin in the camp! (Joshua 7:11)

The small decisions of one man rippled out to affect the condition of an entire nation.  Men died in battle that day resulting in wives without husbands, children without fathers and mothers without sons.  More importantly a nation now had a holy God who's anger was set against them.  Achan, his family and a nation would now have to suffer the consequences in the Valley of Achor (Trouble).

Now consider the Ripples that your life may be creating.  Are you throwing stones of trouble?  (Joshua 7:26)

I am concerned that we all too often steal from God when we look at life selfishly, believe and repeat the lies of temptation and hide sin deep in our hearts much like Achan.  These ripples of trouble are devastating!   The choices we make in our lives affect more people than just ourselves.  Beware of the temptation to rationalized your sins by saying they are too small or too personal to hurt anyone but you.

Get Up!  Purify yourself! (Joshua 7:13) Today you can experience the peace of God that comes through the cleansing power of confession and repentance so that your life will produce ripples of peace and love.

Being God's Servant

John 12:26, “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am,

my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.”  NIV

Here Jesus lays out the reality that if you want to be about Serving Him then you must Follow Him.  They go hand in hand.  If anyone should know, it would be Jesus.  He is the consummate example of Service, Humility and Obedience as seen in Philippians 2:5-8.  Jesus humbled himself, took on the form of a servant and became obedient to God in all things till death on a cross.

We are to be as Jesus is a Servant, Humble and Obedient.  Matthew 20:27-28 describes Jesus’ intentions for coming to earth by coming to serve and give His life as a payment for humanity's debt to sin and death.

What does Being God’s Servant look like?  It may look a little different than you think initially.  Consider the picture below. 

In Henry Blackaby’s book Experiencing God, he describes his understanding of being a servant God is more like the Potter and Clay imagery found in Jeremiah 18:1-6.  Clay is to be useful by being moldable and once it is formed into a vessel then it must remain in the Potter’s hand for His use.

As Servants of God, we must allow God to mold us into whatever He desires and then remain available for the Master’s use.  Servants can do nothing on their own or in their own strength. Even Jesus knew this.  In John 5:19, He said that He could do nothing on His own and in John 15:5 He transfers that ability to do nothing on to us by stating that we can do nothing without Him. These words should mean something to you if you have been guilty of trying to do something in your strength. 

As Servants of God, we are the vessels that He creates to accomplish His desires and plans.  He molds us and we get to be available to be used by God to do great and mighty things for God.  Servants of God allow God to work and God to get all the glory.

I love the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 18:16-39.  Take some time to read how God’s People had turned from God to the worship of Baal and it took a Servant of God to challenge the false prophets to a public showdown of faith and worship.  Elijah was out numbered 850 to 1, but Elijah was created (molded) for this moment.  He was willing to let God work through him to do something amazing for His Glory.   Elijah obeyed God and God rained fire from heaven and God consumed the gallons of water and the sacrificed offering.  In the end, God did a mighty work through his Obedient Servant and there was no doubt where the power came from – GOD!

Consider how you lived out your life this week.  Were the words you spoke, the places you went, the actions you took, and the attitudes you expressed characterized as a Servant of God in Humility and Obedience?  How have you specifically Obeyed God (available to let God work through you) this week?

If you are having difficulty in finding specific ways in which you obeyed God this week, then perhaps the outflow of your life has been a result of devout service to Self, Sin or Something or Someone other than God.  If this is true, I suggest you confess and allow God to restore you to your rightful place of service to the one True Master and embrace His Honor according to John 12:26.

May the Master Potter be allowed to shape your life and use you abundantly this week for His Glory!

The IDEAL Family or REAL Family?

I Love this Family!



BUT, TV, Media, U-verse is a poor (sad) alternative for strong Biblical Parenting for our families.  This video is funny because it is such a distorted picture of what actually happens in the home and around the dinner table with our families.  As a Parent, I realize that I am the major Spiritual Influencer for my Family. It is my responsibility (really my pleasure) to raise, guide and influence my family to be real, in a real world.

Remember the Ideal Family is NOT Fake like the one in the Video, but Real with Real issues.  A Real Family is influenced for Christ by the Parents first and then the Church to deal with conflicts, embrace sadness and hurt, seek forgiveness, forebear much, respect appropriate boundaries, obey authorities, follow instructions, serve others first,  and intentionally love each other above all things so that Grace, Peace,  Hope and Joy prevail.

Be that Intentional Parents!
Deuteronomy 6:5-9

Experiencing God’s Will

John 4:34, “My food is to do the Will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His Work.”  NIV

For Jesus doing the Will of God was more important than anything else!  Seriously Anything!  Even the very things that is necessary for life such as Food, Water and even Sleep.  I have to ask, “Are you that committed to do the Will and Work of God?”

Ok, so this is a toughie!  Have you ever felt like you have absolutely no clue what God is doing let alone what He wants you to do in order to follow and do His Will?  I have been there recently.  One thing I found was that I was not asking God the right questions.  My questions were selfish and in a way demanding that God in His Divine power bend His Will to meet my need/want/desire/purpose.  But that is not how God operates.  I must submit or bend my will to join God where He is working.

Once you know God’s Plan and Will then you can adjust your life to Him and His purposes for it.  He has a plan and purpose for your life and it is based on what He is doing in you.  “What is God’s Will?”  So ask God to reveal his will to you in a very personal loving way. 

Henry Blackaby says, “Don’t just do something” just to be doing something.  I have this running joke (saying) with my wife and kids, “There is no benefit in flailing!” The old NIKE mission statement of “Just Do It” has penetrated all of us and often we think that if we just start doing something for God then we’ll feel closer to him and we will obviously be doing His will.  But if we are just doing something without a purpose, we flail - having no or little benefit to God’s Work and His people and using up all our strength and resources in vain.

Jesus says in John 15:5, “I am the Vine, you are the branches.  He who abides in me and I in him, bears much fruit; for without me you can do nothing!”  You see, we sometimes miss the first and most important step in doing God’s Will – Being with God, and Growing a Love Relationship with God.  God wants all of us to experience a greater knowledge of Him in every area of our lives.  When we allow Him to guide us and work through us then He will do great things through us.

God is absolutely trustworthy!   If you are concerned about knowing and doing God’s Will like I am, then remember that God is more interested in your Love Relationship with Him than He is about what your work ethic for Him. As God then fills you with His Loving presence, He will guide you to do the great things He has planned for your life.  Jesus is the Way and when you follow His leadership one day at a time, then your life will produce much fruit because you will be doing God’s Will.

Philippians 2:13 says, “It is God who works in you, both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”  All we have to do is:

·         Follow God’s leading one day at a time

·         Keep Following when He doesn’t give out all the details

·         Follow  Jesus’ lead as the “Way” through this world. 

Remember

This last week I was reading Joshua 4:1-24. It is the account when God stopped the Jordan River and all the Israelites walked across to the Promised Land on dry ground. After God did that amazing thing, He had Joshua choose 12 men to get 12 stones and construct a memorial.

What are the major Spiritual Events (when God did something amazing) in your life that you can remember?

I took an afternoon one day, and sat in my office to remember mine.  When we take the time to remember, something amazing happens.  We draw closer to the One we remember and the events and circumstances that took place with that One.  In other words, we strengthen our connection and relationship.

Here are a few Memorial Words that may help you Remember the spiritual events in your life.

• Birth - On your birthday, God gives you life!  Consider the incredible truth in the fact that God created you for a purpose on purpose to be about living His purpose.
• Salvation - God gives you Jesus and new life!  It is through the life, teaching, blood, death, and resurrection of Jesus that we can truly experience New Life and live that life fully.
• Forgiveness - God gives you a second chance!  If you have ever realized that you are a sinner and flawed in every way, then you know that you need the cleansing power of forgiveness.  Face it we have all messed up at some point, but what God freely offers to anyone seeking is a fresh, clean restart.  A second chance to live for what is right.
• Calling - God gives you purpose and direction!  Our lives are to be defined and guided by a Love for God, a Love for Others and the expressions of that Love through the Good News of Jesus Christ.  I love the fact that He knows you and wants you to join His team because He created you to do something amazing with your life for Him.
• Reward - God gives out the blessing of rewards - now and in the future!  Someday He will ask you to give an account of how your life was lived.  When that happens, we will all have to stand before Him and remember.  Don't you want to remember the Faithfulness, Righteousness, Holiness, Love and Obedience that has been actively expressed throughout your life?  I do!

Take time this week to remember and embrace God who is doing amazing things in your life!

God’s Nature at Work

1 John 4:7-8  Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. NIV  Take some time this week to memorize this verse.  It's Awesome Truth!

God created you to experience a love relationship with Him.  He longs for you to love Him, and respond to His immeasurable love for you.  Consider what you know about Love.  How does it (Love) make you feel?  Now multiply that feeling by God’s Immeasurable Greaterness!  Can you imagine how His Love can make you feel if you allow Him to fill you with Love.

God’s Love never changes for you.  It is constant – always and forever!  When we don’t feel close to God or His love feels distant or just plain ol’ bad stuff happens in our lives or the world, It’s not a result of a change in God’s Love.  It is a result of something that has changed in us or in the world.  Have you ever felt distant from God?  When was that?  What were some of the circumstances going on in your life?

Consider these 3 aspects of God’s Nature that dispose Him to act the way that He does.  

• God is LOVE
• God is ALL-KNOWING
• God is ALL-POWERFUL

Each of these characteristics has special implications on how you relate to God, and how you understand and do His Will for your life.

As you better your relationship with God this week, consider how you have seen these 3 aspects of God’s Nature working in your life, and be thankful that God is All-Powerful in All Things, All knowing in Everything, and Loving You in Every Way!

Experiencing God Through Relationship

Highlights and Notes from Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God.

Jesus said in John 17:3, “And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.”   At the heart of eternal life and at the heart of experiencing God is to Know God and to Know Jesus Christ.

But how can we know God and His Son Jesus Christ?  Knowing God is a relationship with a person.   Through a love relationship God reveals His will and invites you to join Him where He is already at work.  When you obey God, He a can do only something amazing through you.

It is easy though to be frustrated or disenchanted with your Christian experience.  Because you know that God has so much more for you than you are actually experiencing.  In John 10:10, “The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.“  So where’s the rich and satisfying part of being a Christian?  Why do we have so many questions or doubts about my faith?  If God has a will and purpose for my life then why isn’t He telling me about it?

My hope for you, as we do this study together, is to:

• Hear when God is speaking to you
• Identify the activity of God in your life
• Believe God to be and do everything He promises
• Adjust your beliefs, character, and behavior to God and His ways
• See what God wants to do through your life
• Experience God doing through you what only God can do.

You come to Know God more intimately and personally as you Experience God in your life. 

Work on memorizing this verse this week:

John 17:3, “And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.”   

Merry Christmas!

My Beachbody Information

A Spiritual Fitness Check Up

Sunday, Oct 24, 2010

The Church: A Spiritual Fitness Check Up

Download this episode (44 min)   
On October 19, 2009, I decided to make some changes in his life. Such changes were necessary to improve health and vitality of life. Over the course of this last year I have learned some lessons about myself and I believe these lessons can be directly applied to the Church, the Body of Christ.

Consider the condition of the physical representation of Jesus Christ in our world today that is the Body of Christ which is You. If the Body of Christ were to take a Physical/Spiritual Fitness test, how strong, energetic, and healthy do you think it would prove to be? 

Take the time to answer the four questions toward the end of my message and allow God to work in your life so that you can be a Vital Member of the Church - The Body Christ on our world.