Let Your Light Shine

"In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." -- Matthew 5:16

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite passages. Unfortunately, the Christian church has been reduced to worshiping their king within the four walls of their church. They have allowed the world to dictate that we worship and meet on Sunday mornings between 9 and 12. I love how this verse stresses that we let our light (Jesus) shine BEFORE all men. That means we need to get outside the church walls and allow our light to shine brightly for the world to see.

I also like how it stresses before men. It doesn't say to let your light shine among your Christian brothers and sisters. It says before men and doesn't limit it. The vast majority of those attending church are already saved. If you want to evangelize efficiently, we need to get out among the world and let your light shine there. We need to put aside our fears, our feelings of inadequacy and our past failures and walk the walk that God created us for. We need to step up and let God use us to further His Kingdom!

Get out in the streets, get out in the schools, get out in the parks and LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE!!!

Easy Button

Life has been difficult over the past year and a half. Three surgeries, physical therapy and several other pretty major problems have left me looking for the "Easy Button" for life. It has been a HARD year and a half! All I want/need is a couple of months of easy. I want all this love and peace and joy and happiness that Christians say is found in Christ. I want that. It seems to be pretty elusive though. I can't seem to grasp onto it. I'm starting to think that I am trying to grasp onto a false sense of what true happiness or true joy is. I'm starting to question what I am looking for.

 
 

It seems as though every time I take a step or two forward that Satan smacks me in the forehead to bring me back down to reality. It is starting to REALLY hurt. I find myself asking God why that happened, why He didn't warn me that it was coming or why He didn't allow me to simply step out of the way so He could stop Satan's attack. Why? Why do we have to walk through times like the past year and a half? Why? I don't get it sometimes.

 
 

So I continue searching. I continue looking. I continue searching for my "easy button" that will make life go away and everything become easier. My problem is that I judge what joy and happiness is through my human eyes. The other day God brought me back to one of my favorite passages in the bible.

 
 

It is Romans 8:38-39 - "38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." While praying, God revealed to me that true peace and joy is found in this verse. No matter what we face, no matter what we walk through and no matter what the enemy throws at us… the love of God will never leave us. Nothing will be able to separate us from that love. Nothing. Not surgeries, not financial problems, not a broken coffee pot! Nothing. There is a lot of peace and joy in that thought.

Humble Ourselves

¹⁴ if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

-- 2 Chronicles 7:14

 
 

In today's world we get so caught up in success. Everything turns back towards a me attitude. It turns to "look what I have done" or "look at what I have accomplished." Way to often it is also that way in the church. God moves in our services and we say "man the praise and worship team rocked it today" or "the pastor did an awesome job delivering the message today." We lose sight on what is really happening. We let the enemy create a me-centric approach to our ministry. We let the enemy remove God from the center of our attention and replace it with "our" accomplishments.

 
 

Have you ever been in a situation where someone else took credit for something that you did? We have all been in that situation. How did it make you feel? Now look back and think about how you would feel if the person that took the credit came back to you and asked for a favor. You would probably laugh at them. You would probably tell them that they are on their own and they could work out the solution to the dilemma they are experiencing.

 
 

It is hard to imagine helping that person but in reality we do that to God on a regular basis. There is no doubt that our land is in desperate need of healing. At the current rate, only 4% of the younger generation will be bible believing Christians. We should be scared for our younger generation. We should be praying and interceding on a regular basis. We should be seeking the face of God on a daily basis. Not simply entering into praise and worship so we can have our needs met but simply entering in and asking for God to reveal Himself to us. Only then will He truly show up in a way that satisfies all our needs.

 
 

There is no arguing that we need to turn from our wicked ways. Even as Christians we struggle with way to many areas in our lives. Whether it be pornography, lustful thoughts, partying, using the Lord's name in vain or simply failing to trust God with ALL aspects of our lives. We need to turn from our wicked ways first and foremost. Then and only then can we be part of the people who are "called by my name." We need to cast aside our worldly thoughts and actions and make room/time for God. Without that we are destined to fail.

 
 

However, after we have turned from our wicked ways we need to do something else before we enter into our prayer time and before we enter into a time where we truly seek His face. We need to humble ourselves. When used as a verb as it is in 2 Chronicles 7:14 to humble means to "lower in condition, importance, or dignity… or to destroy the independence, power or will of… or to make meek." In other words, to humble ourselves in this situation means to make less of ourselves and in turn more of God.

 
 

John the Baptist understood and displayed true humility when he said… "29The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30He must become greater; I must become less." John 3:29-30. John the Baptist realized that not only was everything he was doing not about himself but that in order for it to move forward he must become less so there could be more of Jesus. How humble is that! We all need to come to the point where we simply lay ourselves aside and accept the fact that there needs to be less of ourselves and more of God in our lives!

 
 

I am tired of doing "youth group!" It is time to let God move among the youth so that He can heal our land! To do that… WE NEED TO HUMBLE OURSELVES!!!

Approach to worship

I recently started reading God Chasers by Tommy Tenney. After reading the first chapter, I realized that I enter into praise and worship for the wrong reasons. I tend to enter into praise and worship to get something out of it. Lately, it has been for physical healing from the various aches and pains that I am encountering. Sometimes it is to seek emotional help or financial help. I tend to bring my needs before God during praise and worship and look for them to be met. This entry in my blog isn't to say that some of those needs haven't been met. They have and I have been truly blessed. God has truly been great to me. I am a blessed man.

 
 

That being said, I believe that my (and really most people's) approach towards praise and worship is wrong. 2 Chronicles 2:14 states "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. " What the verse doesn't say is that if you bring all your troubles before God that He will make everything better. That is the WRONG reason to enter into praise and worship. That approach has a "Me-Centered" approach. It makes praise and worship all about what it can do for ME and not what it does for God.

 
 

I am going to change my attitude towards praise and worship. Instead of bringing all my issues before God in praise and worship, I am going to simply seek His face. I am simply going to enter into praise and worship and wait upon the Lord to show His face to me. I am simply going to stand in the presence of our King and then in turn stand in the promise that He will heal our land.

 
 

I will NOT be satisfied until I see His face. I will not settle for a simplistic approach to worship that leaves me wanting more. I will not stop until God reveals himself to me.

 
 

Father I am ready to fully, completely, totally submit to you and seek Your face.

Where are the men?

Our media has begun to portray men and fathers as total dorks. Look at the popular television shows that are children are watching. Shows like Leave It To Beaver have been replaced by King of Queens. No longer does media show fathers like Ward Cleaver. Instead, we are being painted as bumbling fools like Kevin James off of King of Queens or Tim "the Tool Man" Taylor. God did not create men to be the foolish individuals that the media portrays. The next generation will become what they see on TV and in the movies.

Fathers, husbands and men in general… it is time to step up and be the spiritual leader that God desires us to be. Ephesians 5:25-28 states:

"25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself."

That is far from what we as men have become. How many television shows have at least one marriage that is on the rocks where the husband is having an affair? WAY to many! This verse is also a HUGE responsibility. Husbands need to step up and live this role! Way to often we do not spend time with our wife let alone time praying, reading the word or seeking God's will in our marriage. We need to grow together as a couple but we also need to grow together in Christ. It is the husbands job to make sure this happens.

We also need to step up as fathers and realize that our children need us to be Godly role models. We need to spend time praying with and over our children. We need to help them find their destiny and then operate within that destiny. Ephesians 6:4 states:

"4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord."

I want to be a living, breathing example of what God wants out of His children. Then my children can look at the example I am setting and build off of that. I want to give them the Godly training that they need to succeed in life not only physically and mentally but also spiritually.

Lastly, we as men need to step up in our churches! During praise and worship a spiritual battle happens. Instead of stepping up and leading the battle as the bible directs we sit back and let the women handle it. Don't get me wrong, women do a great job. However, the bible calls upon men to stand up and be the spiritual leaders. We need to step up, sing out and dance before our King. We need to let go of the inhibitions that our need to appear masculine creates. Let's let go and praise our King with our dancing. Let's let freedom reign through our churches. Let's usher in the Holy Spirit and let Him guide us into the battle that is waging within our churches right now.

FATHER… HELP ME BECOME THE SPIRITUAL LEADER THAT YOU DESIRE ME TO BE! HELP ME STEP UP AND BE THE HUSBAND AND FATHER THAT I NEED TO BE! GIVE ME THE STRENGTH TO STAND AND BE THE ROLE MODEL THAT MY CHILDREN NEED. HELP ME LEAD MY FAMILY AND MY CHURCH INTO THE SPIRITUAL BATTLE THAT LIES AHEAD. LORD I WILL STAND FOR YOU!

What Can I Do With My Obsession

Lately, God has been stirring an obsession within Lori and I. He has been creating an overwhelming desire to simply worship Him. It has become such an obsession that the enemy is trying everything he can to mess things up. The enemy has been throwing physical, emotional, spiritual or financial burdens in front of us that are all being used to put a damper on our obsession and make it so we can't realize what we can do with our obsession.

God is also at work because we keep getting these new awesome songs thrown in front of us. They are songs that REALLY speak to us and God is using them impart new revelations on Lori and I that are pulling us into a more intimate relationship with Him. It seems like we are getting to the point where we need simply stand in the presence of God and tell Him that "My Heart Burns For You!" Honestly, I think that is the point that God wants us to reach. The point where we look around and realize that during the times where it seems like God is further away then the moon is when we need to stand up and cry out "MY HEART BURNS FOR YOU!" At that point we will realize that He is truly closer than our skin.

Our obsession is to not only develop a relationship with God but to move past a simple connection with God where we only allow Him to operate on the surface and totally submit and cry out to God. I want intimacy. I want God to touch me in new ways that I never thought possible. I want to be in saturated in His love and as a result have that love pour back out of me.

Listen to Obsession on YouTube. Crank it up loud and tell God that your heart burns for Him!

I Hear the Deep, Deep, Deep Love of Jesus

Lately, I feel that we seem to be all alone in our passion. We seem to be all alone in our desires to go to new depths. We seem to be all alone and an easy target for satan to smack. I don't like that feeling. I need a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit to turn me inside out and make me new again. We as Christians need to leave our lukewarm approach towards God aside and plunge in feet first.

Revelation 3:16 - "So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

We need to realize that God has marked us for a specific job while here on earth and that it is going to take much more than a lukewarm stance on the issues. It is going to take more than a lukewarm approach to praise and worship. It is going to take much more than lukewarm evangelism. It is going to take more than lukewarm love. It is going to take strong Christians to step forward into the role that God has reserved for them and push/pull others along with them.

We need to stop running from things as soon as things become deep and we become uncomfortable. God expects more from us. He expects our all just as He has given everything. He expects us to submit to the counsel of the Holy Spirit and walk the path that He has set before us.

I realize that I have been
MARKED!

Verse 1:

I can hear the deep, deep, deep love of Jesus calling out my name
Now I’ll never be the same

Chorus:

I’ve been marked by heaven forever and ever
I’ve been marked by heaven forever and ever
I’ve been marked by heaven forever and ever
I’ve been marked by heaven forever

Verse 2:

I can feel the deep, deep, deep blood of Jesus wash away my sin
So I can look like Him

Bridge:

I’m caught up in the glory now
And I never plan on coming down

I’m moving glory to glory; I’m never looking back

Tag:

I was made for glory, I was made for glory

(You were made for glory)