Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

If I focus on people more than Jesus, then they become the center of my life.  My life is my inner life first and foremost: my thoughts, emotions, desires.  What or who am I allowing into my heart?  How do I practically guard my heart? "Halt!  You cannot enter here!" I can speak these words out loud to anyone or anything trying to overstep my boundaries.  "You are not allowed into my heart, for it is holy ground because Jesus lives there." Things that cannot abide in the same place where Jesus is: - hurt - unforgiveness - lust - pride (being "right") - fear - doubt - people's opinion of me - confusion - worry over a perceived lack of resources - fearing the future based on past experience - comparisons This is not an exhaustive list, but you get the point.   But when I let Christ rule in my heart as the center of my heart and life, I am trading the above list in for this list of rich benefits: - peace - love - joy - boldness - courage - wisdom - knowle

I can't tell you all the reasons why God allows so many trials in my life.  But I believe that He wants to redeem each one of them and use them for His purposes. Enter, you...my readers. When I write about my woes and how God is transforming me through them, or when I write about His victory over a certain situation or obstacle, or even when I write about longstanding unanswered prayers, or how I struggle with doubt, they are all for your benefit!  How? We all need to know that we're not the "only ones" with the problems that we have, whether internal or external.  We need someone to relate to what we are going through so we don't feel alone, or strange, in our suffering. What is your testimony?  It could be that you haven't reached it yet.   Joseph in the Old Testament had a 15-year long trial when he was wrongfully imprisoned.  There, he met with more tests and trials than most of us will ever endure.   In the midst of his imprisonment, Joseph's testimon

God is Omniscient.  So not only does He know everything that is happening at all times with everyone, everywhere, but He knows the beginning from the end.  The end was already written and given to us as a precious gift in the book of Revelation, if you dare read it. For the saint, the book of Revelation is a book of praise, worship, and honor to our glorious eternal King! It tells of our glorious future with Him for which He provided and paved the way!  For the sinner, it is a terrifying revelation of what is to come.  And believe it or not, it will come. When we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we have God Himself living inside us.  Now we are not omniscient, only God is.  But He does reveal to us what we need to know out of His endless intel storehouse. So when we get a premonition, or intuit something about someone or an event, that is a gift from God, His eternal, all-knowing Spirit. What we do with it matters. If it is a revelation about evil in another person, we have a

There are so many things we are told we should be building.  A life, a career, relationships, a network, a legacy, an empire, a bank account, a reputation, a home, and the list goes on. But what does God tell us to build? When He called His disciples, He asked them to leave  whatever they were "building" - a fishing business, being a tax collector (career), etc. - to follow Him.   Where?  To do what?  These are questions that we ask Jesus all the time.  Did the disciples ask Him these questions?  We don't have record of it, if they did.  None of the gospels say that the disciples questioned Jesus' call to them to follow Him.  They just did.  They dropped whatever they were doing and listened to Him. That takes guts.   Now did they have all the trappings of life that we have today?  The modern conveniences?  Technology?  Of course not.  Did that make it easier for them to give up stuff and follow Jesus wholeheartedly?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Nowadays, problem is we have m

When we look back to our past for answers, sometimes it is helpful, sometimes not so much. The trick is to know which is which. They say if you don't know history that you are doomed to repeat it.  And there is some sense to that. We learn from our mistakes, not our successes.  I love Edison's quote about his invention of the light bulb (I realize that he actually may or may not have invented the light bulb, but bear with me): “ I have not failed.   I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work .”  Thomas Edison What isn't "working" in your life right now? Have you given up?  Have you looked to the past and figured, "Why bother?  It didn't work out then, so why would it work now?" Looking back can paralyze us.  It did Lot's wife - she literally turned into a pillar of salt when she looked back instead of moving on and forward as God commanded them to. Our minds are extremely powerful.  They can create scenarios that may or may not happen. 

  Like any other behavioral pattern we establish, I believe that forgiveness can become a habit for us, too. Instead of our knee-jerk reaction being anger when someone harms us, we can go straight away to forgiving them. How is this possible?  Practice.  Like any other habit, we need to practice it until it becomes second nature - or better yet, first nature! Think back on how many millions of times Jesus has forgiven you your sins.  Do I exagerrate when I say millions?  Maybe.  Maybe not! And when we come to Jesus asking His forgiveness, has He ever once denied us His grace?  This is miraculous, if you ask me!  Does He "hold it over our heads" for a few days until He decides to pardon us?  Thankfully, never!  Can you even imagine?!  It would be torment to our souls if Jesus did not at once forgive and restore us!  And of all people, Jesus has the "right" and power to withhold forgiveness and instead "make us pay."  But He does not. What a Savior!  What a

I've seen this a lot.  Some of the most "successful" people are deeply insecure.  Why is this and how can it be?  After all, they seem to have everything they want, like they have it "all together." It's very simple. We are not created to find our identity - self-worth - outside ourselves.  Why not?  Because outer parameters can change.  In an instant. And somewhere deep down, our soul knows this.   Jobs can be lost. Relationships can fail. Homes can burn down. Reputations can be ruined. Good health can diminish. Possessions can be stolen. The stock market can crash. Everything and everyone that people try to get identity from is essentially as a vapor.  Oh these things may appear  lasting and may offer a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. But God has more for us.  God designed us for more.  God wants us.  And until He becomes our only  Source of security, we will always, on some level, feel insecure. The insecurity recipe goes something like this: 1

You may think that seeing a lot of answers to prayer is what increases your faith.  And it can and does. But did you know that there is another way that God uses to increase our faith and trust in Him?  That is, by not answering our prayers.   That's right!  But how can that be? Well first off, faith is the assurance of things unseen.  That means the answer is not seen yet!   Let's look back at our dear friend, Job.  Job was a righteous man, a blessed man.  He loved God.  Yet when the devil asked God's permission to torment Job, steal things from him, the Lord gave the devil permission to "have at it," except he couldn't touch Job's life. And boy, did the devil have at it!  He pretty much destroyed and/or took away everything and everyone in Job's life, including possessions and family. Was Job any less blessed?  Some Christians would say yes if this happened to them. But God always has the bigger picture in mind.  And that bigger picture always involv

I don't want a "yes man" for a friend.   I need friends who are going to call me out on my stuff.  Those are the friends that I trust because they are honest with me. A true friend speaks truth to us because they love us and want the best for us.  They want to see us grow in Christ, grow spiritually, grow in sanctification. So when we speak up for Christ, speaking truth, it can seem like we’re calling others out on their stuff. But it is done in love! Our current culture is a bully!  They use intimidation in trying to get us to silence God's truth.  They twist it all around and call us haters for speaking God's law.   God is not a hater.  He is a Lover.  He is love. But!  God hates sin!  He cannot tolerate it because He is holy and perfect and simply cannot look at it.  Sin is not allowed in God's Presence. So who can stand before Him? No one! But there is tremendous hope!  The hope is the Light of the Gospel. We have all sinned and fallen short of God's g

  Here's the thing about this Scripture.  Most of the time, Christians only quote verse 7.  "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." But we're missing out on how we can get to that point!  We won't cast our worries on God unless we humble ourselves before Him first. "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him." Hebrews 11:6 We don't give anything to someone that we don't trust, let alone our confidences.  We confide in those whom we trust. Is it possible to cast our cares on Jesus without humbling ourselves first?  I think the previous verse is important to this process, or else it woudn't be there. We come to the Lord because we believe He is Lord.  This takes a humble stance because we are admitting that we are not able to fully get rid of or take care of our anxieties on our own.  Oh there are quick "fixe

Do you follow any writers on amazon?  When you do, amazon sends you email alerts when an author releases a new book.  Pretty cool. So why would I follow a dead author?   Because their works are almost always deeper and richer in theology than any living author.  No, they cannot write any "new" works, obviously!  But there are publishers, God bless them, who still compile their writings, sermons, what have you, and publish them for us.   Yes, I also read current works.  But I've noticed that writers nowadays make it mor about "me."  Am "I" reaching my destiny?  Are "we" reaching our full potential? I don't see that sort of reasoning anywhere in the Bible.  Not in the Old Testament or the New. Because it's not about us, folks. I defy you to find the word "potential" in the Bible.  You won't.  Not in any translation.  I checked. Jesus was not a philisopher telling us to "be all we can be."  His message was totally

"They are: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord."  This is what I found when I Googled "character qualities of the Holy Spirit."  Yes, I am aware of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.  And those are just as true.   And there are many more writings that you will find on the topic of the Holy Spirit.  But for now, I want to write about these. When I talk with God, I talk with Jesus.  They are one and the same.  Jesus is God with a face on.  He came to earth as a human so that we could see God and know Him.  What a gift!  May we never take this for granted! Some people pray to the Holy Spirit.  Since God is a Triune God, it is the same as praying to God and Jesus. Jesus IS the Holy Spirit and vice versa.  It is not a part of who He is but who He is in total. I still can't fully understand this but maybe I'm not supposed to.   But I know that the Holy Spirit is the Comforter.  Jesus said so. "And I wil