“You can be glad when people put you down for me. All heaven applauds.” ~~Jesus

Jesus knows that if we are radically committed to Him, we are going to get in trouble. We will get put down, people will lie about us, we may get kicked out of places or we may even get killed. We should count the cost of following Jesus. Yes, there is a cost but Jesus is also clear on the benefit.

We will be pleasing Him.  Everyone in Heaven will cheer and we will be in good company!! What is better than know we have pleased Jesus?

“You can be glad when people put you down for me—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like what you are doing, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company.” ~~Jesus (Matthew 5:11-12 The Message)

How can you do anything other than obey?

God doesn’t make us do anything. It is all voluntary. It is our choice.

Have you seen Him? How can you do anything other than obey?

“Jesus never insists on obedience, but when we truly see Him we will instantly obey Him.” ~~ Oswald Chambers

It is all about relationships

It is all about relationships. Our relationship with God. Our relationship with all those we know or even don’t know but come in contact because God has something in mind. Am I willing to humble myself? Can I give everything I have for what God wants me do in love of others? I can with His gift of Power of the Holy Spirit. That is His promise. That is the benefit of His new agreement based on love.

And in relationships, we should have the same attitude of mind that Jesus had. He lived in the moment. He did what He saw His Father doing. He came to serve, to love, to give, to do the “tough” things. He was obedient. He didn’t dodge what His Father sent Him here to do. He gave Himself to it.

In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind the Messiah Jesus had: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human being, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death–even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, Philippians 2:5-10 TNIV

Beer for my horses

There is a celebration going on. The forces of evil have been defeated. Justice has been served. Yea God!!

We’ll all raise up our glasses against evil forces Singing “Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses.” Whoo hoo!! God is God, good and great. Let the celebration begin.

This is a great song by Toby Keith.

Well a man, come on
Six o’clock news
Says somebody been shot
Somebody’s been abused
Somebody blew up a building
Somebody stole their car
Somebody got away
Somebody didn’t get too far, yeah
They didn’t get too far
Grandpappy told my pappy
Back in my day, son
A man had to answer
For the wicked thing he done
Take all the rope in Texas
Find a tall oak tree
Round up all of them bad boys
And hang ‘em high in the street
For all the people to see
And justice is the one thing
You should always find
You gotta saddle up your boys
You gotta draw a hard line
When the gun smoke settles
We’ll sing a victory tune
And we’ll all meet back
At the local saloon
We’ll raises up our glasses
Against evil forces
Singing, “Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!”

We got too many gangsters
Doing dirty deeds
Too much corruption
And crime in the streets
It’s time the long arm of the law
Put a few more in the ground
Send them all to their Maker
And he’ll set them on down
You can bet, He’ll set ‘em down
Cause justice is the one thing
You should always find
You gotta saddle up your boys
You gotta draw a hard line
When the gunsmoke settles
We’ll sing a victory tune
And we’ll all meet back
At the local saloon
And we’ll raise up our glasses
Against evil forces
Singing, “Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!”

Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!
You know justice is the one thing
You should always find
You gotta saddle up your boys
You gotta draw a hard line
When the gunsmoke settles
We’ll sing a victory tune
And we’ll all met back
At the local saloon
We’ll raise up our glasses
Against evil forces
Singing, “Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!”
Singing ,”Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses!’

What should I worry about as a parent?

As parents, we worry about all kinds of things. We fret. We get angry.

Here is something to think (worry … ) about. Our children are watching us. The examples we set or don’t tell the story.

May our children see loving parents, grounded in God.

“Don’t worry that your children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.” ~Robert Fulghum

“The person who obeys God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” ~~Jesus

Jesus is clear. When his earthly family showed up one day and wanted to see him, he looked at everyone around him and let them know how important they were to him.

We are a part of the family of God. We have been adopted in to the family. We have everything that goes with that.

The only condition is that we obey God. That is all. We are a part of the family because of our obedience, not because of our birthright.

“The person who obeys God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” ~~Jesus (Mark 3:35 The Message)

Will I choose God?

We get to choose who we will serve. If it isn’t the living God, we get what we want. God doesn’t make us worship him. He wants our love and adoration freely. It has been that way from the beginning. It still is today.

So today we get to choose.

May I choose wisely.

“So God said, in effect, “If that’s what you want, that’s what you get.” ~~Apostle Paul (Romans 1:24 The Message)

“You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom—you know how it works.” ~~Jesus

God has a kingdom where he rules. It doesn’t work like any government we know in this world. He is in complete control. He is the eternal King. He is light. He is love.

He cares about us so much that He has given us insight into how His government works. Our mission is to bring to bring to earth His kingdom.

May I have insight into how God’s kingdom works.

“You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom—you know how it works.” ~~Jesus (Luke 8:10)

Do I believe Jesus could come back today?

Paul lived as if Jesus could show up any minute. He believed it in his core. His passion, every minute, was about Jesus.

Paul challenges us to live the same way. Do we believe Jesus could show up any minute now? Will it make a difference in what we do today?

May I have the passion for my Jesus that I live like today is the day He will physically come back to reign on earth.

“He could show up any minute!” ~~Apostle Paul (Philippians 4:5 The Message)

Do I live like Jesus?

The Apostle John is consumed with the purity of Jesus life. It came down to one thing in John’s mind. It is all about love. Jesus is all about love. That is the essence of the commandments. That is how Jesus lived.

May I live like Jesus. May I mature my love.

“Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived.” ~~Apostle John  (1 John 2:6 The Message)

Our mission is love

Jesus challenges us to love everyone, all the time.

Jesus challenges us to love God, with a passion that can’t be replicated.

“Because we love something else more than this world, we love even this world more than those who know no other.” ~~C. S. Lewis

“The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant.” ~~Jesus

Jesus challenges us to change our minds about how to pray. We are steeped in the religious way to do it. That is not the God way.

Here’s what He wants you to do:

• Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God.
• Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage.
• The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.

May I accept the Jesus prayer challenge.

“The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant.” ~~Jesus (Matthew 6 The Message) 

Do I have a passion for God’s wisdom?

How do we get wisdom? From the world? From reading books? By watching TED?

Wisdom comes from God and it is up to us to let Him train us. He is in a good mood and wants to help us. If we passionately seek what it is He wants in any given situation, He will guide us.

May we have a passion for His wisdom.

“Be blessed, God; train me in your ways of wise living.” ~~King David (Psalm 119:12 The Message) 

“What you’re called does not matter and where you go to worship does not matter.” ~~Jesus

It is not about what religious group you are born into. It doesn’t matter what church you go to.

Jesus is challenging us. He is clear.

It’s who you are and the way you live that count before God..Our worship must engage our spirit in the pursuit of truth.That’s the kind of people that Jesus is out looking for. Those who are simply and honestly themselves before God in their worship.

Jesus challenges us to know that God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration. It is not what religious group you were born into. It is not what church you go to.

“But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you’re called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.” ~~Jesus (John 4:23 The Message)

What does God have in mind for us?

God is getting us into the shape for the goal He has for us. We need to desire reaching that goal like nothing else. We need the discipline to stay the course. We know He has a goal for us. We know it is a grand and glorious plan.

That goal is simple but not easy.

May I be ready.

What kind of insight to we have?

We have God’s wisdom in our life. The amazing Spirit of God leads us. That is amazing. While we don’t always understand everything, we have a leg up on gaining insight into how God works than the average Joe.

It is interesting that the world we live in doesn’t see this.

“But you’ve seen and heard God’s wisdom because God, by his Spirit, has brought it all out into the open before you.” ~~ Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 2:9 The Message)

“Blessings accrue on a good and honest life, but the mouth of the wicked is a dark cave of abuse.” ~~King Solomon

It seems conventional wisdom is that there is no reward for a good and honest life.  There is the eternal question of why bad things happen to good people.

I think this is a matter of the heart. Jesus challenges us to see life as a matter of what is in our heart and not the physical world. Jesus says we will be blessed when we mourn. The cause of the mourning is not seen as a good thing. It is about getting our heart right. Blessings flow from that.

“Blessings accrue on a good and honest life, but the mouth of the wicked is a dark cave of abuse.” ~~King Solomon (Proverbs 10:6)

What is worth reporting on?

What is worth reporting on, in Paul’s opinion? It is all about the love we show to others. That is it. There is nothing else.

It isn’t the new church building. It is not how moving the Worship Team sang the new song. It isn’t new car we just bought.

There are only two ways to get God’s attention. Love Him and love everyone we know and meet. That is how our faith in Jesus is demonstrated.

“We keep getting reports on your steady faith in the Messiah Jesus, and the love you continuously extend to all Christians.” ~Apostle Paul (Colossians 1:4 The Message)

“Does it make sense to send a devil to catch a devil, to use Satan to get rid of Satan?” ~~Jesus

It is hard to imaging this actually happened but then again sometimes we have a “fantasy image” of Jesus that is not anchored in reality. When religious people don’t understand what is happening, it is easy to blame things on evil. And so,the religion scholars from Jerusalem came down spreading rumors that Jesus was working black magic, using devil tricks to impress them with spiritual power.

Jesus doesn’t ignore it. Jesus confronted their slander. He still does that today. We must face who Jesus is and not slander Him. This is very important. Jesus demands it.

If someone is doing good, in the name of God, can that be the devil?

“Does it make sense to send a devil to catch a devil, to use Satan to get rid of Satan?” ~~Jesus (Mark 3 23 The Message)

What message am I embracing?

We don’t like to think about it but there are a number of messages delivered by men of God that aren’t good news. There are many that are at odds with the gift of grace that the Messiah Jesus has bestowed on us. It happens easily. It only shows our fickleness.

We need to know what the message of good news is. We need to stick with it. We must reject anything else. May we stand firm today.

“I can’t believe your fickleness—how easily you have turned traitor to him who called you by the grace of Christ by embracing a variant message!” ~~Apostle Paul (Galatians 1:6 The Message)

Can I win two games at one time?

I can’t win two games at one time. I am going to focus on the one I am in right now. I will not start another one.

 

What is the signet that we have?

God has given us the Holy Spirit. That is a sign of His authority in our life. He has left us with power, His power. That is an amazing thing. What a great God we have.

And, that is not all. The Holy Spirit in our life is only the beginning. God has so many wonderful things in store for us. And we will receive them all. Not a one will be withheld from us. The Holy Spirit in our life is the sign of all the glory to come.

“This signet (the Holy Spirit) from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.” ~Apostle Paul (Ephesians 1:14 The Message)

Am I being a miser? Am I stingy?

We have heard a lot. God is good and tells us His secrets. Are we keeping them to ourselves or giving them away? His generosity is well known. Are we sharing it?

The more of His goodness we give away the more we get. It just keeps coming back to us over and over again.

May we not shove the light under a bed. May we set it out so everyone can see.

No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a washtub or shoves it under the bed. No, you set it up on a lamp stand so those who enter the room can see their way. We’re not keeping secrets; we’re telling them. We’re not hiding things; we’re bringing everything out into the open. So be careful that you don’t become misers of what you hear. Generosity begets generosity. Stinginess impoverishes. Luke 8:16-18

“What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit.” ~~Jesus

Jesus was about to ascend into heaven. The disciples were very concerned and wanted to know if Jesus was going to reign as King on earth. Jesus not so politely let them know that they didn’t get to know that timing. That was God’s business and not theirs.

But … and this is a big one, what they do get is the Holy Spirit. And that changed everything. For them and for us. All the power of God was about to be released on them and in them. God is in a great mood and He has given us the Holy Spirit. Not that is good news.

“What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit.” ~~Jesus (Acts 1:7 The Message)

What God wants

God wants things here to be like they are in heaven. Really. He is serious. That is what He has in mind for us.

May I tap into that power. Now.

Have we taken the time to write?

Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians was very direct. He was concerned about what was hearing. Sometimes a clearly written message can be more effective than a visit. Plus, it can be reread many, many times when the spoken word cannot.

Are we concerned about something? Have we spent months writing a clear and compelling message? Even if it isn’t sent, do we care enough to get that clear?

“That was my reason for writing a letter instead of coming—so I wouldn’t have to spend a miserable time disappointing the very friends I had looked forward to cheering me up. ” ~~Apostle Paul (2 Corinthians 2:3 The Message)

Love must …

“Love must be as much a light, as it is a flame.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

Have I mastered the basics as a disciple of Jesus? Am I ready to move on?

There are basics in being a disciple of Jesus. Are the following in place in my life?

• Do I trust in God for everything and reject “self-help”?
• Have I been properly baptized?
• Have the leaders of the church layed hands on me and have I received the Holy Spirit?
• Do I believe in the resurrection of the dead?
• Do I live like there is an eternal judgement?

We can’t go on to maturity without having mastered the basics. If we haven’t mastered Jesus 101, we can’t take the advanced courses. God doesn’t work that way.

“The basic foundational truths are in place: turning your back on “salvation by self-help” and turning in trust toward God; baptismal instructions; laying on of hands; resurrection of the dead; eternal judgment.” (Hebrews 6:2 The Message)

Summing up …

It helps to sum up and shut up. This says it all. We have a job. Let’s do it.

“Summing up: …be sympathetic …. bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.” ~~Apostle Peter

Does it make a difference to be religious?

It isn’t about who was raised in the church and has a religious background. Paul is clear on that. If the training leads to following our Master Jesus, the Messiah, that is great. It is not about the training. It is about doing what God wants. Every day!!

The mistake the religious make is to believe it is simply about showing up. It is not about going to church. It is about having a passion for Jesus and doing what He wants us to. It is about obedience. It is about having a heart for God. It is about living a free life basking in how good God is.

“So what difference does it make who’s religious and who isn’t, who has been trained in God’s ways and who hasn’t? As it turns out, it makes a lot of difference—but not the difference so many have assumed.!” ~~Apostle Paul (Romans 3:1)

How should we use our time?

There are many ways to use our time. Does our calendar devote enough attention to the creative?

“We must use time creatively.” ~~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Smile even if you are hurting. Be happy even if you are unhappy. It’s called strength!

Smile even if you are hurting. Be happy even if you are unhappy. It’s called strength!

Jesus didn’t call us to be Christians. He called us to be Disciples. He didn’t promise us a rose garden. He did guarantee that if we follow Him, we would have a joy no one can understand. Submission leads to happiness.

You can smile if you are hurting. You have Jesus, you have His strength and you can be happy in Him.

I believe …

“I believe in Christianity as I believe in the sun: not only because I see it, but by it I see everything else” ~~C.S.Lewis

Are we people of hope?

It wasn’t that long ago that by missing God’s goal for us, we weren’t living a very “smart” life. But God saved us from all of that. It was all His doing. He is God and in a very good mood.

It was not anything we could have figured out on our own. He gave us a very good bath. So we are all clean now by way of the Holy Spirit. He has been so generous to us. Through Jesus we are living a new life. What a gift to have our relationship restored with Him.

And there is more. We get to live this new life forever. No end to it at all. We are people of hope?

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:3-7 TNIV

What is your desire?

The Jews of Jesus day were practicing a very soul-killing spirituality, a lifeless religion of duty and obligation. Desire was out of the question. No wonder they feared Jesus. He came along and started appealing to desire.

To the weary, Jesus speaks of rest. To the lost, he speaks of finding your way. Again and again and again, Jesus takes people back to their desires. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” (Matt. 7:7). These are outrageous words, provocative words. Ask, seek, knock—these words invite and arouse desire. What is it that you want? They fall on deaf ears if there is nothing you want, nothing you’re looking for, nothing you’re hungry enough to bang on a door over.

Just think

Just about how much time God has on his hands. A trillion years is nothing. He has eternity. And He knows and acts like it.

He is in no hurry at all.

“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” -Winston Churchill

“Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how.” ~~Jesus

We are mistaken to think that suffering is something to be avoided. Jesus challenges us to embrace it. That is what He did. That is how He lived. He can show us how. He is our model for how to do it.

This is stunning as it requires that we change our minds about what is good for us and what isn’t. It challenges us to depend on God completely for everything.

“Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how.” ~~Jesus (The Message John 9:25)

A bad attitude is like a flat tire, you won’t get very far unless you change it!

Is Jesus about to arrive?

Paul is clear. Jesus is about to arrive.

Jesus was also clear. No one knows the time that will happen. That is God’s business.

Is this a conflict?

I don’t think so. This is the way we should live. What if Jesus does come back soon? Are we living the way He wants us to?

Should we live like it won’t be soon? Not hardly.

“Help them see that the Master is about to arrive.” ~~Apostle Paul  (Philippians 4:5 The Message) 

How do we know we are keeping God’s word?

How do we know we are keeping God’s word? Now that is a very reasonable question. God has said so much, it is easy to get overwhelmed.

The answer from the Apostle John (the one whom Jesus loved) is stunningly simple. Do we see God’s love in someone? Then they are keeping God’s word. That is what it comes down to over and over again. Love god. Love everyone else. That is the summation of the word of God.

It is in fact the only way to be certain.

“But the one who keeps God’s word is the person in whom we see God’s mature love. This is the only way to be sure we’re in God.” ~~Apostle John  (1 John 2:5 The Message)

“Don’t think you’ve preserved your virtue simply by staying out of bed with someone who is not your wife.” ~~Jesus

Jesus knows something and he wants religious people to understand it. Who we are is a result of what we think. If we think about committing adultery, we have done it. What makes us “UN-virtuous” is what we think, not what we do.

This is a huge thing to grasp. Jesus knows, for religious people, it is way to easy to “get around” moral rules and still violate the principle God has in mind every day. We need to change how we think (repent) about God’s word.

“Don’t think you’ve preserved your virtue simply by staying out of bed with someone who is not your wife.” ~~Jesus (Matthew 5 The Message)

“I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you, I attentively watch how you’ve done it.” ~~King David

God says a lot. He has given us lots to think about. His wisdom is the key to our life, every minute of every day. When we need to know how to do something, just consider how God does it. That is what to pay attention to.

We need to give more time to thinking about God’s wisdom. It nourishes our souls to do so.

May I ponder every bit of God’s wisdom.

“I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you, I attentively watch how you’ve done it.” ~~King David (Psalm 119:14 The Message) 

Can you rest?

God has a goal for us. In His new plan, we can rest from our work and do His. We need to be careful though. We have received the same promises as those who have gone before us. The promise is not new. We have a choice to make. Jesus challenges us to choose well.

If we have supernatural courage, we can enter His rest. We have to believe. We have to keep our eyes on Him. He led the way.

“You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day.”~~Jesus

Jesus challenges us to worship in a clear way. Sometimes we are just guessing. That is not the way of God’s chosen people.

God is light. He is so clear there is nothing but truth in Him. No guessing; just clarity.

Our worship needs to be the same way.

“You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day.”~~Jesus (John 4:22 The Message)

Is it plain and simple?

It is so easy to get carried away. Paul had tried polished speeches before. Not much happened (this is detailed in the book of Acts). Am I depending on my cleverness or God’s power?

In His new plan, the order of the day is to depend on him. Plain and simple makes way for Him to do His work in people.

May we keep it plain. May we keep it simple. God will make it effective. That is His job.

You’ll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God’s master stroke, I didn’t try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2

Would we have killed Jesus?

We have lots of experts. And that is sometimes a good thing. The problem is that most experts don’t have a clue about what God’s eternal plan is. And we shouldn’t expect them to but we do exalt their opinion beyond what we should. These experts existed when Jesus was here on earth. The didn’t have a clue then either.

It would have been impossible to kill Jesus if we understood what God intends. But we have all missed God’s goal for our life. We would have killed him as well. No point blaming others. Jesus was the master of the life that God designed for us. And he was killed on a cross so that we could live that same way He did. Imagine that.

“If they had a clue about God’s eternal plan, they wouldn’t have killed the Master of the God-designed life on a cross.” ~~ Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 2:9 The Message)

“A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.” ~~King Solomon

King Solomon challenges us to see life as God wants it lived. It is not about the outside, how we look, what we wear or what we eat. It is a dead life. Imagine a stump. It sometimes looks OK but just kick it. It evaporates into dust.

We want to have a fruitful life. Let God shape it and that is the key.

“A life devoted to things is a dead life, a stump; a God-shaped life is a flourishing tree.” ~~King Solomon (Proverbs 11:28)

Should you quit thanking God?

We have a job to do. We must continue and continue to thank God for those we have relationships with. We must not quit.

Being thankful forces us to see and love our friends and family in a different way. Thankfulness is at the heart of relationships.

And taking it further, have we told everyone why we are thankful for them? Do they know why?

“We can’t quit thanking God our Father and Jesus our Messiah for you!” ~Apostle Paul (Colossians 1:3 The Message)

“Make hay while the sun shines—that’s smart; go fishing during harvest—that’s stupid.” ~~King Solomon

We know this to be true but being disciplined at it can be the challenge. There is a time to harvest and there is a time to fish. Doing them at the right time is “work – life balance”.

Wisdom from God is important. We don’t want to be stupid.

“Make hay while the sun shines—that’s smart; go fishing during harvest—that’s stupid.” ~~King Solomon (Proverbs 10:5)