Love Worth Having



I’m reading “A Love Worth Giving” by Max Lucado. The book is a study of 1 Corinthians 13 or the “Love Chapter” as I call it. I always enjoy reading Max Lucado books. They are full of good information wrapped around great stories. It amazes me that Max has written as many books and leads a church. He must have good asst. pastors assisting him.

I originally bought the book to just read but as I’ve made my way through this book, I want to develop a sermon series. The insights Max offers are good stuff. I’m sure with the information in this book plus my own study, a study of 1 Corinthians would benefit our church members.

Yesterday, in the chapter that covers verse 7 ([love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.) I thought about what Christ has done for me. Christ saved me from my sins but beyond that continues to grow me and pick me up when I fail Him. I have a saying, “its tough being human but someone has to do it, and I do it so well.” Being a Christian doesn’t make a person perfect; it makes us forgiven (of our sins) and a child of God. Since we are a child of God, He loves us and wants the best for us. Agape is the Greek word used in 1 Corinthians. Agape is the word that describes how God feels for His people and for those He died for on the cross.

How can I not try to do the best I can for the One who took all my sins on Himself on the cross? In myself, I will always fail my God. The great thing is that it’s not me but Him. I can’t be perfect but He can make me perfect. As I walk with Him (daily) through my Bible reading and prayer, He molds me into the man he wants me to be; knowing that He loves me with the agape love blows my mind. Without Jesus in my life, I am nothing. It is only because of what Christ did makes me worthy. I pray that I never forget this.

Broken People



Last night I was part of something I’ve never been part of. I was part of a spiritual intervention. One of the men of our church have been telling half truths and lies, and last night his mother-in-law had me (as an Elder and his teacher) and the Sr. Pastor come to her house so we could be witnesses. I’ve met with this man several times and had been lied to about what has been going on in his house with his wife and family. I felt sad for him but knew this was needed. He has hit bottom and knows that the leadership knows of his deceit. The Sr. Pastor basically called him out and told him that he is defaulting back to his old ways when he lies, and the Pastor is completely correct. I’ve talked with Joe (not his name) today and told him that I forgive him of the lies he told me and how he mislead me. I’ve learned to trust my 6th sense or discernment; I’ve felt for sometime something wasn’t right but wasn’t sure. He has a ways to go (as we all do) but if he continues to trust that God can help him become the man he should be he will be fine.

Sometimes it takes God breaking people for them to stop playing church and be real. Palm 23 shows us that God is our shepherd. The second half of verse 4 says, “Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” The rod and staff of a shepherd are used to keep the sheep safe and on track. If a sheep doesn’t heed the shepherd’s leading and does its own thing, the shepherd will break the sheep’s front two legs. The shepherd then carries that sheep on his shoulders until the legs are healed. Most of the time, after this happens the sheep keeps close to the shepherd but if that same sheep starts on the same path the shepherd has no choice but to kill it to keep the other sheep from following the bad behavior.

This is similar to some Christians. They think once they are saved they can continue in their old ways. Our Master wants the best for us. He (through the Holy Spirit) leads us in the way we should go. If a Christian keeps doing their own thing, God breaks them. It could be in the form of losing their jobs or poor health. I know when I see a Christian going through trials, that’s when they tend to grow the most. God doesn’t always have to break people to get them to change. The shepherd knows when to use his staff to lead the sheep and when to use the rod to break a sheep’s legs. Breaking is always as the last resort. God only breaks people after he gives them changes.

Being broken will hurt; I know from experience but in the long run it’s for our benefit. God loves us so much He died for us. What we think is best isn’t even close to true best. The true best is only found in obeying and honoring God.

Dedication and Focus



My sister-in-law’s (Beth) boyfriend is a gym owner and a bodybuilder. Randy has won some bodybuilding contests and is training for one that will be held in Florence KY in March. Being a bodybuilder takes a lot of dedication and focus. Since Randy is training, he can’t have any carbs or sugar and a week before the contest he will need to limit his water intake to maximize his muscle definition. In my mind, there are bodybuilders and muscleheads. A bodybuilder is an athlete who has to balance diet and weight training along with aerobic workouts (i.e. jogging, biking, and/or swimming). A musclehead just works out with the weights with no or little thought of diet and cross training. I have a lot of respect for bodybuilders.

I wish I had the dedication and focus to be one. My M.O. over the years have been working out for 3 to 4 months and stopping for 2 months and starting back. The last year I have stopped this M.O. and have been going to the gym 5 times a week. My body is starting to look better and my lifts have improved. I’m more interested in a well rounded health and exercise program so I do more aerobic then lifting. I lift weights on Tuesdays and Thursdays (doing a full body program) with swimming and stationary biking on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and jogging on Saturdays and Sundays. I’m going up on my bench but right now I’m lifting around 210 pounds. I’m up around 110 pounds in my arm curls. I’m doing better because I’ve worked out straight now since last March and have been swimming constantly since June (I’m up to 30 minutes straight in the pool doing laps) and have run in multiple running races. I feel good.

I say all this to say that being a bodybuilder takes dedication and focus in the same way a Christian should have dedication and focus in their walk with Christ. There are Christians who have a walk (Bible reading, prayer, and church attendance) the same way I used to exercise. They are hit or miss and they haven’t grown in their Christian maturity. They are like a guy who is still bench pressing 50 pounds after exercising for years. Their M.O. could be reading their Bible for a solid 3 months and then something distracts them and they go several months without reading; could be getting up early for praying time for several months with one morning they decide to sleep in and before they know it months go by; and/or could have good church attendance until summer comes and they stop attending church. All these items are needed for a person to grow in their faith in Christ. Leaving any of these items out is like a guy who looks like he’s in a great shape (looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime) but can’t jog more than a mile before needing to stop for air. You look good and sound good but when trials come your way, you are derailed.

I mean not to come off judgmental but the Bible calls us to hold our brothers and sisters in Christ accountable. We have way too many Christians who are effete. They fall for the same sins time and again. In order that we constantly grow in our walk with Christ we must take note of the dedication and focus of a bodybuilder. We must train (read our Bible, pray, and attend church regularly) daily. We must avoid the spiritly carbs and sugars that will rob us of our hard work. Spiritly carbs and sugars can be allowing your eyes (and mind) to wonder where they shouldn’t, being part of things a Christian should have no business being part of, and the like.

Just as bodybuilders have workout partners, we as Christians should have partners. Another word for workout partners is accountability partners. An accountability partner will help us keep focused on the things that are well pleasing to God. An accountability partner will ask the hard questions; how’s your daily Bible reading going, are you praying, and how are your relationships? This is set up not to make you feel bad or like a loser but to help you and encourage you to get to the next level. This is like a workout partner helping their buddy go from bench pressing 300 pounds to bench pressing 400 pounds; by encouraging and giving them a hand when needed.

We (me included) need to be better at being dedicated and focused on our growth as Christians. God left us here for a reason; to further His kingdom. Let’s be a spiritual bodybuilder and grow lean spiritual muscles that we can flex for God and bring Him the glory.

Forgiving Others



In our world where payback is the norm and almost demanded, we called to forgive others in Luke 17:1-4.

Luke 17: 1-4

1He said to His disciples, "It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!
2"It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.
3"Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.
4"And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' forgive him."

I must admit, I do struggle with this on the road. Especially if a person is driving in the left lane slower than me and they aren’t moving to the right lane (which should have slower traffic). The word moron either is thought or said out loud. I do get over it in a few minutes, but that does get on my nerves.

There are benefits for forgiving others their debts against us. According to the current psychology, when we forgive others we have less health issues. When we forgive it releases something in our body that relieves tension. But it’s still hard to let it go when people do you wrong. I had an experience in 2002 that taught me a lot about forgiving others.

On Mother’s Day of 2002, my sister’s then husband of 12 years left her a voice message telling her that he is leaving her for another woman. That threw my sister for a loop. What followed were weeks of staying with her (either over night or until she went to bed). I was so bad at Joe (not his real name) that I wanted to hunt him down and beat the mess out of him. That’s when the Holy Spirit told me to chill out. It was revealed to me that it’s only by God’s grace that I wasn’t like Joe. It was God’s job to work in Joe and not me. After a while I have come to forgive Joe for what he did to my sister to the point of shaking his hand and wishing him the best the last time I saw him.

We have to remember that it’s only because of what Christ has done for us on the cross and that God has drawn us to Himself that we are new creatures. We grow in our walk with Him but it’s because of his grace we are forgiven. If it wasn’t for the regeneration of grace, we would be just like the people who need our forgiveness. And if the person who offends you is a believer, let God deal with them. There is a plan laid out for that in scripture. It’s up to you to forgive.

Loving This World



Andy Warhol is one of America’s best-known pop artists. He readily admitted that his world revolved around pop culture with its shallowness, fleeting pleasures, and “fifteen minutes of fame,”. He once summed it up like this: “I am a deeply superficial person…If you want to know all about Andy Warhol, just look at the surface of my paintings and films and me, there I am. There’s nothing behind it.” Contrast that with the apostle John’s perspective of 1 John 2:15-17: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” When the Bible says, “Do not love this world,” it does not mean we are not to admire and appreciate the beauty and blessings of this life. But rather, the world in the sense that John was speaking about is our world system and things that are opposed to Christ and all that He stands for. When our primary desire is for pleasure, possessions and popularity things aren’t right. We call that sin and sin destroys. Loving the world tears down our relationship with God, it denies our faith in God, and discounts our future with God. Let’s live our life for the Lord and walk with Him in fellowship sweet.

Following God's Lead



A friend sent me the below poem about the word "Guidance." It speaks volumes.

Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance,

I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word.

I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing.

When two people try to lead, nothing feels right.

The movement doesn't flow with the music,

and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky.

When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead,

both bodies begin to flow with the music.

One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back

or by pressing Lightly in one direction or another.

It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully.

The dance takes surrender, willingness,

and attentiveness from one person

and gentle guidance and skill from the other.

My eyes drew back to the word Guidance.

When I saw "G": I thought of God, followed by "u" and "i".

"God, "u" and "i" dance."

God, you, and I dance.

As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust

that I would get guidance about my life.

Once again, I became willing to let God lead.

My prayer for you today is that God's blessings

and mercies are upon you on this day and everyday.

May you abide in God, as God abides in you.

Dance together with God, trusting God to lead

and to guide you through each season of your life.