Never Forget - Never Surrender

As I begin today's blog entry, let's take a moment to remember those who are still dealing with the pain and loss of 9/11. My heart goes out to the thousands of families who lost loved ones through this senseless act of terrorism. May we never forget and may we never surrender.

The words spoken by President George W. Bush following this horrible tragedy still linger in the minds of most Americans: "Never Forget - Never Surrender." It's this mantra that has served as a battle cry for action against terrorism and a united effort to keep our country strong. They were powerful words spoken by a powerful man. However, as with all words, if we lose the resolve to flesh it out then we will find ourselves doing what we have always done - live in complacency. To be quite honest with you, I see this as one of the continual tragedies of 9/11. While we tend to pick up our resolve around the anniversary and honor the ones who are still suffering, people in our nation typically revert back to life as usual.

The issue of complacency also finds it's way into our spiritual lives. How often have people attended conferences, read books, been involved in studies, or encountered inspiration through a particular service only to revert back to the same old habits and way of life within a few days? It seems that almost every believer that I know has been through this very thing. Some may say that their resolve simply wasn't strong enough. It's my opinion that it isn't the resolve that's the problem it's that we have allowed complacency to replace it.

Consider this with me: What would our world look like if we continued to walk out all of the decisions that we have made? How would our relationships be different if we walked in the commitments we made to our spouses, our children, or our friends? What would be the environment within the community of believers (the church) if we never allowed complacency to be entered into the equation? I think all of us would agree - things would be DRASTICALLY different.

The key to overcoming complacency? Never Forget - Never Surrender.
Always be mindful of your relationship with Christ. Remind yourself of His incredible sacrifice. Think about all that God has accomplished through His death and resurrection. Remain in awe of His life changing grace. AND never surrender yourself to complacency.

Personally I believe that if we maintain a continued focus upon our relationship with Christ (you know...where He is everything) then we never give place to complacency. We continually rediscover ourselves in Him. We begin to view ourselves the way He views us. We are constancy aware of His presence in our lives. We hear His voice, we see His hand at work, and we know His heart. This is a REAL place of existence. Jesus never doubted who He was. And please don't pull out the "well He's Jesus card" because it doesn't work for me. Jesus didn't come to show us what God could do as a man but to unlock the possibilities of man rightly related to God. He did nothing of Himself but only what He saw His Father doing. Everything Jesus did, He did, as a man who was empowered by the Spirit of God. Then...before He left His followers, He said in essence "Go and do the same."

I'm actually excited about what can take place through the lives of Jesus' followers when they never forget and never surrender. I believe that we can shape this world, awaken each generation to the love of God, and continually be amazed at all that He does. We have the opportunity to see Heaven invade Earth as long as we walk in the awareness of who we are in Him.

Be blessed my friends. It's good to be back with you.