Month: March 2015

As you can guess from this picture I ate at a Chinese restaurant once and for laughs I opened up the fortune cookie that they always give you and what it said spoke to me but in a different way than most people would look at it.  I’m guessing most would look at it as a motivational saying.  I took it in a totally different way.  I started to think about “sin” and why we do it.  And you wanna know why we do it?  Because we love it.  Because we enjoy it.  Because it gives us pleasure and makes us feel good…in the moment anyway.  Hebrews 11:25 talks about enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season.  Why would we bother doing it unless we got something out of it?  And that’s the devil’s trap.  And it’s like he gives us amnesia to the fact that we really want to obey God until we we’re done giving into our fleshly desire for pleasure.  Once it’s over than he changes tactics and tries to overwhelm us with feelings of guilt for failing God.  And it’s a vicious cycle.  So how do we overcome it?  You’ve got to start to see sin as God sees it.  Disgusting, repulsive, repellent, offensive and just plain gross!  Would your Mom or Dad let you do something they found offensive in front of them?  I would hope not.  But here’s the thing.  EVERYTHING we do is in “front” of God because He sees everything at all times.  Just because we aren’t aware of this at every moment doesn’t mean it’s not true.  So knowing this would you really want to put your own pleasure ahead of pleasing our Heavenly Father when you know you’re grieving Him?  Don’t look at this as changing your behavior but rather as changing your mind about sin.  Once you change your mindset then the proper behavior will automatically follow.  Ephesians 4:23 (NLT) says let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.  And Ephesians 5:26 (NLT) says we’re to be washed by the cleansing of God’s word.  So through the Bible and with the help of the Holy Spirit we can transform our mind first so that our behavior will line up with the will of God.  What do you love more?  Your sin or the God that suffered and died on the cross for you to free you from the power of sin?

For some of us the greatest obstacle to reaching toward what God wants for our future is our past. The past keeps many of us in bondage. We’re in chains of emotional pain. In prisons of feeling worthless. In shackles of “I’m just not good enough.” Handcuffed by “What if I mess up?” BUT I HAVE GOOD NEWS FOR YOU! JESUS came to set the captive free! Not only DID He do it (past tense) but it’s already done! You already are free! It’s the enemy who has lied to you and said you’re trapped in jail but Jesus busted the door wide open for you already! Get out of there people!!! God has so much more for you but you gotta move out of the past and into your future. No more waiting! The time is now! GO GO GO!!!

This might sound wacky but if you catch what I’m saying it will blow your mind. Imagine all your sin is a credit card debt. God is the credit card company and has a record of all your sin as credit card debt. He says only those who are debt free may enter into Heaven. If you still owe money on your credit card then sorry but you can’t come in. Jesus said you know what I may not be able to break that law but I still can fix this. So Jesus went into your credit card account and paid all your debt for you. And this He did with His Own Blood which is acceptable currency in Heaven. So now all those who have connected with Jesus and are His have had all their credit card debt taken care of. Heaven is now accessible to you! You are debt free! Not everyone of course but those who have turned their lives over to Him.

Jesus should be Lord of your life, not just your “get-out-of-jail-free” card.

When someone comes at you in anger the first thing we want to do is retaliate right back in anger to defend yourself. DON’T. Anger multiplies itself quickly. Remain calm and deal with the source of the issue rationally and clearly.
PROVERBS 15:1 – “A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.”

“Religious” people will judge you or make fun of you if you hang with people who aren’t like them. It happens to me and it sure happened to Jesus so I’m in good company! Jesus said we should be the salt of the earth. Why should I only spend my time with other “salt-people” when the unsalted need it more? Too much salt doesn’t taste so good! Spread it around where it’s needed! He also said we are to be a light. What’s better…to have 2 light bulbs in one room and leave the other dark or to have them in separate rooms so you can see equally in both of the rooms? This “sticking with my own” mentality isn’t helping anyone and is frankly selfish. You have something the world needs. Did you forget what a mess you used to be and how happy you were when you found the Truth? If the person God used to bring you to Him had this attitude of “I only hang with church people” then you would still be in your mess!!!