What To Do When You Don’t Know What To Do

October 22, 2018 by Leave a Comment

advice, jesus christ, all things are possible with GodWhat happens when the unstoppable force meets the immovable object?  It’s a question that philosophers have been asking for ages.  Which side you argue for has a lot to do with your worldview and your spiritual condition.  Let me explain what I mean.

Depending on our point of view there can be many so called immovable objects.  Things that just are and can’t be escaped, overcome or bypassed.  Have you ever thought to yourself or heard someone else say “that’s just how I am” or “that’s just the way it is” in a way that seems completely resigned to accept?  As in, change in this area is impossible so there’s no point in trying anymore.

Whether or not we acknowledge it (because it can be completely unconscious) we have all either been in this mindset or we are there right now.  Because let’s face it, human strength is weak and our knowledge and ability is very small compared to many of our problems.  And unless we are shown differently we will live our lives thinking that some areas and some things are completely off-limits to any kind of hope or improvement.  There lies our immovable object.  Tread if you dare (and most of us don’t dare).

Back to our original question.  What happens when the unstoppable force meets the immovable object?  Because in my experience there is an unstoppable force and His name is Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  When he comes to live in our hearts and we give him control of our lives then that which was previously impossible becomes possible.  He can change that which we had previously thought as unchangeable and the most amazing miracle of God is the changed and renewed human heart.

I can look back at my life and see how God overcame my anger, my frustration, my anxiety, my fear and most of all, my hopelessness.  Because I no longer believe in being hopeless.  How can I, who has been given every hope of every promise of God, go back to being the hopeless person I once was?  I can’t.  The unstoppable force that is my God obliterated that hopelessness and replaced it with peace and a calm mind.

That was one of my immovable objects but it was by no means the only one.  If time and space permitted I could tell you how God has worked and how he has overcome time after time after time for not just me but for many.  I would also tell you that the first and most important step to God working a miracle in your life is to give him your everything and surrender yourself to him.  Pour out your heart to him and don’t hold anything back and ask him to grant you hope and belief that he is able to do all things.

Open your copy of God’s word, the Bible, and ask God to help you see and understand his ways and his truth.  Make it a point to study God’s word and to grow in your understanding and as you are doing so seek out fellow believers and especially those who are stronger and more mature in their faith.  Let those people shepherd and guide you and learn from their faith experiences because we are meant to grow and flourish together as a body and to not separate ourselves from the family of God.

God’s house is meant to be a place of teaching, of instruction, of encouragement and of healing.  And if you are facing an immovable object in your life then I can think of no better place to be.  When you don’t know what to do, turn to the one who knows all things and can do anything.  There is no such thing as an immovable object in his sight.

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The Power of the Message

March 11, 2014 by Leave a Comment

the gospel,Jesus Christ, salvationI have had the great privilege of hearing some wonderful preaching and singing recently.  Both the preaching and the singing were inspired messages from God about His great love, redeeming power and coming judgment.

Even though one was spoken and one was sung, they were both forms of the gospel message presented in such a way that all who heard it were blessed and challenged.  The message was consistent even though the delivery and the messengers were very different.  And that brings us to an important point about the gospel:  no matter who we are, where we come from or what our talents might be, we are all called to share the gospel.

The gospel message is the good news, the very best news that there has ever been.  It simply says that God loved us so much that he sent His only Son to die for us, taking the penalty for sin in our place and providing a way in which we might have eternal life.

This world is a fallen one and we are fallen creatures.  We inherited a sinful nature from the very first humans and have been making wrong choices ever since.  But God was not content to allow His most beloved creation to die in their sins and has provided a way for us to be redeemed.  By admitting that we are sinners and confessing our faith in Jesus Christ and asking Him to be our Lord forevermore we can be freed from the power of sin and the certainty of eternal damnation.

And make no mistake, without Jesus, we are eternally lost.  The penalty for our sin and rebellion against God is eternal separation in a place that God designed for the devil and his followers.  Hell was not created for man, but man may choose hell by the way in which he lives his life.  This is the truth that we must never forget.  Although we are now living in a period of grace in which all who call on the name of the Lord may be saved, judgment day is coming.  And on that day we will all be called to give an account of how we lived our lives and what we did with God’s son; whether we accepted Him or rejected Him.

The power of the message has not diminished although it is thousands of years old.  The power of the message is as fresh and real today as it was on that morning that God rolled the stone away from the tomb and Jesus walked out, alive and reborn.  The power of the message continues because it is God’s message to His creation and because He still desires all people to come to repentance.

Commit to being a messenger for the One who still has the power to save men’s souls.  Share the gospel with those you know, both in what you say and in what you do.

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Whose Footprints Are These?

November 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Live for God not the WorldWe live in a world that enjoys unprecedented ease of access to information.  At a moment’s notice, we can summon forth the entirety of The Gettysburg Address on a smartphone or Tablet PC also while catching up on the latest news and weather.  The internet savvy person can accomplish in a day’s time what would have taken his or her ancestor months or years to accomplish, and we are so accustomed to this that we often times don’t even realize the speed at which we are living.

With this kind of access to information and ideas, we often find ourselves more confused and less clear about what’s really important instead of the other way around.  Everyone has an opinion and with the explosion of social media, all of our opinions and ideas can be readily seen and heard (the irony of this statement is not lost on me, I assure you) be they good, bad or indifferent.

The problem is, no matter how politically incorrect it is to say it, there is a lot of garbage and noise out there from a lot of well meaning people.  I’m reasonably certain that most of the people that promote self-help, coaching and therapy would not tell us that their advice is going to send people to hell but in many cases, that’s exactly what it’s doing.

We all have a sin problem.  I don’t care who you are or where come from.  If you were born into the race of Adam (the human race) then you have inherited a fallible, self-driven, sin prone nature.  This sin problem is a death sentence.  Not just physically but spiritually as well.  Without a solution to the problem of sin, no amount of therapy, self-help or coaching is going to ultimately reclaim your life.

Only one person can do that.  There’s only been one human being who had the capability to defeat sin and death and reclaim humanity for God the Father.  That person was Jesus Christ, and until we submit our lost, sinful selves to His precious redeeming blood we are without hope.

I want you to look down, right now.  Look at your feet and where they are taking you in the life that you are leading.  Whose footprints are you following?  Who made the path that you now find yourself on?  Is it a Godly path, trod by our Savior and leading to Glory?  Or is it the road to hell, paved with good intentions and good advice?

By all means, improve yourself.  Learn all you can and gain as much knowledge and wisdom as you possibly can.  Be wise and not foolish.  But in doing so, make sure that you have the assurance that you have come under the blood of Jesus Christ.  Make sure that you know Him in a personal way and are daily walking in His footsteps and only His footsteps.

He is the Master Carpenter, the only true builder of people*.  We provide the material (ourselves) and He does the construction.  Let Him build you as you walk His path.  Remember friend, all other roads lead to destruction.

 

*I have to credit Pastor Alan Daniels for the idea of Jesus Christ as a Carpenter of human beings.  What a fantastic viewpoint.

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