Wishing You A Happy New Year

2012 is almost here!

Are you ready?

Praying that your year will be blessed. May you continue to experience the goodness and love of God. I hope that you grow closer to the Father's heart for you.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read this blog. I look forward to sharing more with you in the year to come. It's been a fun year of sharing my thoughts with you.

I leave 2011 with these thoughts from Psalm 71:14-16:
"...I will hope continually,
And I will praise You yet more and more.
May mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And Your salvation all the day,
For I do not know their limits.
I will go in the strength of the Lord God;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only."

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

The Word Became Flesh...

Just a couple of more days until Christmas. While the world may celebrate a season of giving gifts and time with family, we choose to rise above the materialism, commercialism, and routine of the holidays. We will celebrate the birth of the Christ.

Here's some tips to helping you keep Christ in your Christmas:

#1 - Remember that He would be called Emmanuel - "God with us"

#2 - Jesus Christ was the Word become flesh (according to John 1:14). The "Word" in the Greek is "Logos" - "Divine Expression".

#3 - John 1:18 also tells us that Jesus declared God to the world. The word "declared" in the Greek literally means to lead forth into full revelation. It metaphorically mean to draw out in narrative. Jesus came to reveal, manifest, and interpret God unto man. In Him we have the full revelation of God!!!

#4 - In our Christian tradition we refer to Jesus as God-incarnate. The incarnation is basically the personification, embodiment, manifestation, and materialization of God in living form. Jesus told His disciples "If you have seen Me you have seen the Father." (John 14:9).

#5 - The Bible also tells us that He will be called Jesus because He will save His people from their sins. We sing the song: "There's just something about that name" - this is why!!! At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord.

Don't allow the coming of our Lord to be clouded with the image of a young lady holding a baby. Don't get caught up with the thoughts about the actual date of His birth (I know we could spend a lot of time arguing these points). I want you to take some time to consider that the reason for His coming was to fully reveal the heart of God to the world, demonstrate a life filled with the grace of God and empowered by the Spirit of God, and to give His life as a ransom for ours.

Over the next couple of days we will be celebrating the miracle of God coming in the form of man. We will give thanks for this incredible gift of eternal life. And we will lead our families in praise to the God who loved us enough to send His Son into the world.

Many Blessings to you all & Merry Christmas!!!

Taking Another Look at Peace and Rest

I need to make a correction concerning the blog from yesterday. It was actually 1st posted in August. Today we will be looking at a blog entry from September. Hope you have enjoyed some of my "greatest hits" (LOL!). Be blessed.

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder...Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end..." [Isaiah 9:6-7]

Typically, we only hear the above portion of Scripture around Christmas time. This is part of Isaiah's prophecy concerning the coming of Jesus. And...there's something here for you.

I was listening to a sermon by Steve Thompson the other day and he shared these verses. What he said next is worth hearing: "The reason we have difficulty in sustaining a supernatural life is because of the lack of rest and peace at the core of our lives." Isaiah told us plainly that the government would be upon His shoulder - not ours. He also said that the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. Religion is good at keeping us busy but it can never bring us rest.

Have you ever noticed that some of the most spiritual people are usually not the busiest people? They're not lazy; they have just figured out something that we have been missing. And what we have been missing is the power of peace and rest.

Most of us could testify to the fact that our busiest seasons are usually our less spiritual seasons. We may be getting a lot done, and burning the midnight oil but we are normally running on adrenaline. I think a lot of folks have taken the phrase "an idle mind is the devil's workshop" and created a business mentality. It's like saying if we aren't busy enough then the enemy will have his way in our lives. The fact of the matter is that it's quite the opposite.

When we learn to rest in His peace then we will be able to hear His voice. When we learn to be still and know that He is God, then we can experience His presence. I want to encourage you to look at your calendar. If it is anything like mine then it's full of appointments, ballgames, orthodontist visits, and etc. Is there time for rest? Is there time to collect our thoughts? Is there time to simply sit in the presence of God to hear what He has to say in our lives?

Think of the words of Jesus: "Come unto me all you who are burdened and heavy laden. I will give you rest." Doesn't sound like a man who is preoccupied with keeping you busy. Of course, He saw what the religious leaders had done to the faith. The people in Israel were under a heavy burden of dogma, activity, and tradition. Jesus came to set us free from anything that would get in the way of a love relationship with God.

Are you ready to rest? Would you love to simply enjoy His peace for a while? As you think about the answer to those questions, allow me to share a quote from Kris Vallotton that will take this a little further: "Sometimes God is more interested in what He is doing in you rather than through you."

Revisiting Receiving From the Spirit

I posted this blog in September of this year. Enjoy!

"But people who aren't spiritual can't receive these truths from God's Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can't understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means." 1 Corinthians 2:14 {NLT}

There is nothing quite as difficult as trying to understand spiritual truth with the natural mind. In fact, it is impossible. Logic - the area from which most of humanity operates cannot grasp the ability, power, and moves of the Holy Spirit. Logically, we want to contextualize the work of the Spirit. We would love to have a handle on how He speaks, how He prompts us, and what He's going to do next. However, trying to box in the work of the Spirit only limits Him.

Paul made it very clear to the church at Corinth that anyone not operating in the Spirit of God (those who are not spiritual) will never understand the truth that God wants to bring forth. God is continually revealing His hidden wisdom to those who are willing to receive it (Go to 1 Corinthians 2 if you need a scriptural reference). The question is whether or not we truly want to operate that way.

Here's why we struggle in this area:

It's Frustrating - the natural man is more natural. That is why it is much easier to function in the natural. Trying to function in the spiritual from a natural prospective will only leave us frustrated.

It's Useless - remember the religious men who tried to cast out demons in the name of the Jesus that Paul preaches? They were overtaken. The reason why they were overtaken was because they lacked the Spirit of God at work in their own lives. They were simply operating out of hear-say. This is one of the most dangerous things that we see in the church today. We know the verbiage but we lack the power of the Spirit at work. Not only can we not receive the things of the Spirit, we can't release it either.

It's Presumptuous - While I believe each of us were created to live in a spiritual reality, not all of us do. Failing to observe the limits of what is permitted or appropriate in the Spirit gives us the idea that we can do it all in our natural ability. When God begins to move in a person's life, He does enhance natural ability. But He also gives us supernatural ability to walk in the things that He has ordained.

How do we change this?

Ask - It is that simple. God wants to reveal Himself to you.
Seek - The truth that you are looking for doesn't always show up at your door. You have to seek it out.
Knock - Jesus promised us open doors.

If you and I are willing to get before the Lord and seek His face, He will meet with us. It's not about your spirituality. It's not about you own ability. It's simply about us making ourselves available to Him. If we are willing to be empty vessels that God can pour into then He will pour into us.

One Person's Intimacy (Revisited)

Here's a blog entry from July of this year. I pray your heart is stirred...

Abraham, Moses, David, Jesus...all of these lived with an intimacy toward God that had never been displayed. Each of them had a profound impact upon God's people.

Corrie Ten Boom, He Cares for You, wrote:
"My Father prayed because he had a good Friend with whom to share the problems of the day. He prayed because he had a direct connection with his Maker when he had a concern. He prayed because there was so much for which he was thankful.
"...When I was a little girl I was sure that Jesus was a member of the Ten Boom family. It was just as easy to talk to Him as it was to carry on a conversation with my mother and father. Jesus was there. I was closer to the reality and truth of Jesus' presence than the one who makes fellowship with the Lord a problem by reasoning and logical thinking."

Sounds like Corrie Ten Boom had a father whose intimacy with God became a catalyst for her own. What she learned from him is a lesson that each of us should hope to pass on to our children. Our personal intimacy with God will impact our families, our friends, and all whom we meet. God intimacy?

Think about the names that I mentioned earlier.
Abraham (whose originally name was Abram) walked a unique path with his Maker. God told him that all of the nations of the earth would be blessed through him. Have you ever considered that your own intimacy with God had that type of impact?

Moses was God's chosen vessel to lead Israel out of bondage. While he may not have been Israel's choice, God had a unique relationship with this servant. Scripture tells us that God spoke to Moses (at that time) in such a way that was very personal - face to face. This man's intimacy with God allowed to see things no one else saw, hear things that no one else heard, and do things that no one else had done.

David was given the title "a man after God's own heart." There was no committee meeting to determine this title. He didn't apply for the position. This title was given to him by God. David's worship of his Creator impacted a nation and continues to serve as an example to us all. This intimacy with God led to the downfall of a giant, rise to a nation, and a lineage that produced the Savior of the world. By the way, it's the tabernacle of David that God says He will rebuild.

Jesus walked the most unique path of anyone. In fact, He is the only one that could walk in the earth without sin. His intimacy with the Father allowed Him to view life from Heaven's perspective, affect the world in which He lived, see what the Father was doing, and bring Heaven to earth. Jesus' intimacy with the Father allowed Him to say "Not my will but Yours be done." This intimacy led Him to the cross, paid the penalty for our sin, and allows to experience the fullness of God's love.

What can your intimacy with God accomplish? Let's start with your family. Do you think your kids can glean from your personal prayer life, your understanding of Scripture, your walk in the Spirit? Can you wife gain security in knowing your heart for the Lord as you transfer that love unto her as well? Take this same approach with others. Watch as people experience your personal walk with the Lord. Your intimacy will lead them to ask you for prayer, seek your counsel, and trust your judgement. As we walk in intimacy with the Lord then His grace and mercy spill over in our lives touching everyone.

May all the nations of the earth be blessed through you.
May God speak to you in personal ways.
May you be a man/woman after God's own heart.
And may your life be a revelation of the heart of the Father.
All of this is possible when you learn to live a life of intimacy with God. He has made it available through Jesus. The question is whether or not you will take Him up on His offer.