Love

Sacrificial Love

"The husband should fulfull his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband."
- 1 Cornithians 7:3

As a Christian man I am called to fulfill my marital duty to my wife. But how does a husband do this? What does he need to do to complete this marital duty?

"I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." (1 Corinthians 11:3)

What does this mean? So, leading every man should be Jesus, the man should be leading the woman, just as God is leading Jesus. The Husband is the leader of the marriage but is also equal to his wife, just as God is the leader in his relationship with Christ, but they are equal to each other.

So, how as a future husband am I supposed to love my future wife? How am I supposed to show her that I love her?

"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word." (Ephesians 5:25)

This passage is flat out amazing. As the husband we are called to love our wife sacrificially, just as Christ loved the church (body of believers) sacrifically. We are to become selfless and sacrifice our pride for our wives to truely love them unconditionally, just as Christ loved the body of believers unconditionally. We are to make her holy by leading her in the word of God, The Bible, and making your relationship with Christ the number one priority in each of your lives and in your marriage, that is how we cleanse her by the washing with water through the word, just as Christ makes us Holy by cleasing us through his sacrifical death and his love for us.

Another thing that makes this even more amazing to me, is that this blog was inspired by a question about 1 Corinthians 11:3 and its meaning. To see this Younglife kid and young and growing Christian to ask this question and to be seeking want God wants for him and his future wife, is mind boggling to me. This just reassures me more and more that God and the Holy Spirit are at work in this world and in our hearts each and everyday, whether we realize it or not.

Thirst for the Living God

The Greatest Commandments Jesus Christ gave us were these:

1) "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

2) Love your neighbor as yourself."

-Mark 12:30-31

There is no commandment greater than these.

In my life this is something I wish I strove for everyday and in every moment. I pray that, "As a deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God." (Psalm 42:1-2)

This is a goal of mine I hope that my soul pants for my Lord and my soul pants to love my Lord with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, and that my soul pants to love my neighbor as myself and to love them unconditionally as God loves me.

Turning Natural Life into Spiritual Life

This devotional from Oswald Chambers really hit home with me and the fact that Jesus has already conquered our sins for us then next step we take is making our life spiritually based on Christ through moral decisions we make every single day and demolishing our worldly habits and bringing glory to Jesus.

Oswald writes:

Do It Yourself (1)

. . . casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God . . .

— 2 Corinthians 10:5

Determinedly Demolish Some Things. Deliverance from sin is not the same as deliverance from human nature. There are things in human nature, such as prejudices, that the saint can only destroy through sheer neglect. But there are other things that have to be destroyed through violence, that is, through God’s divine strength imparted by His Spirit. There are some things over which we are not to fight, but only to "stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord . . ." (see Exodus 14:13). But every theory or thought that raises itself up as a fortified barrier "against the knowledge of God" is to be determinedly demolished by drawing on God’s power, not through human effort or by compromise (see 2 Corinthians 10:4).

It is only when God has transformed our nature and we have entered into the experience of sanctification that the fight begins. The warfare is not against sin; we can never fight against sin— Jesus Christ conquered that in His redemption of us. The conflict is waged over turning our natural life into a spiritual life. This is never done easily, nor does God intend that it be so. It is accomplished only through a series of moral choices. God does not make us holy in the sense that He makes our character holy. He makes us holy in the sense that He has made us innocent before Him. And then we have to turn that innocence into holy character through the moral choices we make. These choices are continually opposed and hostile to the things of our natural life which have become so deeply entrenched— the very things that raise themselves up as fortified barriers "against the knowledge of God." We can either turn back, making ourselves of no value to the kingdom of God, or we can determinedly demolish these things, allowing Jesus to bring another son to glory (see Hebrews 2:10).

Proverbs 24:30-34

"I went past the field of the sluggard,
past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment;

³¹ thorns had come up everywhere,
the ground was covered with weeds,
and the stone wall was in ruins.

³² I applied my heart to what I observed
and learned a lesson from what I saw:

³³ A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest-

³⁴ and poverty will come on you like a bandit
and scarcity like an armed man."

-Proverbs 24:30-34

I learned a amazing lesson from this passage: if you become lazy, stop thinking and living for God for even a moment all you have worked hard for could be lost. Learn from the sluggards mistake here. Continue to work hard and strive in all you do in the name of Jesus Christ our savior.

God's Amazing Power

All God created was good. He provided everything needed for humans to live. Until humans left his path and sought their own knowledge and selfish desire, there was no self reliance, but all was dependent upon God. From this point on humans are born to trouble. They are born to hardship. They are born to weakness and disappointment. They are born to struggle and fall short. Despite all of this, Satan is still under the dominion of God, God has full control and is a billion times more powerful than Satan.

With God in full control why do bad things happen? Why are there tragedies? These are questions are near impossible for humans to wrap their minds around. People how could God let the Holocaust happen? Why does God let war happen? I view it like this we are lucky that God let just the Holocaust happen. We are lucky that God just lets war happen. We should be thankful that Hitler did not unleash the Holocaust against everyone that wasn't German. The Holocaust was a horrific and terrible occurrence, and yes it is hard to imagine, but it could have been much much worse. We should be thankful that God doesn't let demons and devils run ramped around the earth destroying everything. We should be thankful that God lets us breath because no matter what we do we are not worthy of God's love, but yet God continues to love us unconditionally.

At the point of Adam and Eve being ostracized from the garden of Eden, God put full protection around the world. This protection being from Evil and Good. Now that humans have turned their backs on God, they have opened up all of the evil possible, but thanks to God for not allowing this. God keeps us from experiencing demons running around and causing mayhem across the world and only allows a certain amount of evil to enter the world. God only allows trouble that we can handle, which may seem horrible at the time, but God is blessing you by not allowing it to be worse.

Another thing God protects us from since our original separation is his physical presence. If we were to be in the presence of God right now we would surely die. Anything and everything that is unholy in the presence of God is destroyed. So me and all humans as sinners, are not perfect, and are unholy in the presence of God and would be destroyed. So, God lets us live life to the full, and we are only allow to see God upon reaching Heaven. Upon reaching Heaven you are blameless, and holy because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Writing this brings me to understand further the power God holds. This makes me further understand when the Bible says "Fear God." If God stopped protecting us at any moment we would all instantly perish, but God does not do this because of his perfect and unconditional love for every single human that God has ever created. Thank God for loving us so much, despite knowing that we are all sinners. The least we can do is to love God with all our heart, all our mind, and all our soul and love all other humans as we would love ourselves.

Be Transformed, Seek, Strive

Once we accept Jesus Christ we are transformed, new, shaped and molded into His image. We leave our desires and temptations of this world no longer rule our lives. These distractions are still in our lives trying to disrupt our focus and our purpose, but they no longer are what we strive for. We strive to please, gain knowledge, and grow closer to our savior Jesus Christ.

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is his good, pleasing, and perfect will. " ~ Romans 12:2

So now seek the kingdom of Christ 1st and foremost, before and above all. When this is done you can be assured that Jesus will take care of the other parts of your life and supply you with what is needed. No longer store your heart with treasures of this earth for they are only temporal items, but seek and strive for the joy and greatness of the treasures of heaven. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Luke 12:32-34)

Know that where your eyes are your heart will follow. When your eyes are focused on the kingdom and love of Christ your heart will be there also. But when your eyes see money, lust, material possessions, then your heart will be there as well. "Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body is also full of that light. But when they are bad, your body is also full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness." (Luke 11:34-35)

Remember to put to use what you learn at bible studies, in church, in your alone time with Christ. Let what you learn be put to use to spread the glory and love of our Lord Jesus Christ. Apply what you learn to everything you do, it is one of Satan's greatest joy's to see Christians learn from bible studies and church to only forget what they have learned once they leave.

Seek, Strive, and Be Transformed by God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit

Community

I have put this verse to memorization and find that I often do not include all people into my community.

"Here there are no, Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncirumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and is in all." - Colossians 3:11

This is speaking to what the community of Christ looks like. In the community of Christ there are no labels, there are no generalizations, there are no stereotypes. CHRIST IS ALL, regardless of race, or background, or beliefs. This is the type of community I am striving to live in, a community where the love of Christ prevails.

Persevere

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind."

-James 1:2-6

Trust in The Lord Jesus Christ at all times and in any situation. Trust in Christ (your faith) produces perseverance in difficult situations and circumstances. Trust that in asking Christ you will receive the answer, to whatever your question may be, but the answer will be in your best interest and not necessarily the answer you are searching for.

Peace of Heart

"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace." (Romans 5:1 & 8:6)

Peace can be defined as the normal, non warring condition of a nation, group of nations or world. It can also be defined as an agreement or treaty between warring or antagonistic nations or groups to end hostilities and abstain from further fighting.

The root of war and the start of peace can be traced to an certain location, to the state of mutual harmony between people or groups in their relations. If there is a lack of mutual harmony there is war. If mutual harmony is free flowing then there is peace. Peace can even be defined more specifically as a state of tranquillity, serenity, and placidity of your heart. This is where peace or war is derived from; the heart. The peace Jesus brings is peace to your heart. The peace Jesus supplies puts an end to the war and disaster in your heart. The peace Jesus speaks of is the peace of heart. When our heart is not at peace we cannot see clearly, we view others as objects with no feelings or emotions. When our heart is at war we only accept our own viewpoint and deny others the chance to speak. When at war we view others as irrelevant, but when we are at peace others are people with hopes, needs, cares, and fears all as real as my own.

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful." (Colossians 3:15)

Peace and war both start at the heart of a person. Today we see relationships between America and the Middle East, Israel and Palestine, they both consist of war, war that kills people that takes lives. They also consist of the people fighting the war within their own hearts. Their war at heart causes them to view their enemies as objects as irrelevant which leads them to more easily kill another human being. We are called to peace. We are to let Christ's peace rule in our hearts. So if a heart at war only causes disaster and pain, why do we not seek peace and love in Jesus Christ? The relationship between nations and groups of people no matter what religion or background, the relationship was made to be peaceful. Our hearts were made for peace.

Peace or War?

Is you heart at peace?

Is your heart at war?

War clouds your vision

Peace makes your vision clear

Seek peace and pursue (Psalm 34:14)

A heart at war leaves you no clue

But to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace (Romans 8:6)

Now the war at heart will cease

Now the love will increase

No more disturbance of peace

The pain will diminish

The sorrow will vanish

Your faith will now flourish

Your heart will be nourished

Is your heart at war?

Is your heart at peace?

All I Have

Psalm 51 is written by King David after Nathan came to him after he committed adultery with Bathsheba. There is one verse that sticks out to me and is crucial to faith in God.

"My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart

you, God, will not despise." (17)

As a believer in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit I must be able to understand and act upon this verse King David lays down. Due to God's omnipotence and omnipresence God is able to do anything and everything. So, what can we give to God? If God can do anything what can we contribute to our God's cause? King David realizes here that his spirit and heart are broken and he must present his heart to God. I must realize that the only thing that I can give to God of any value is my broken heart. We all can give God our heart. God will accept your heart regardless of its condition. God accepts David's heart even though he committed adultery with Bathsheba, got her pregnant, then placed her husband, Uriah, on the front line of his army so he would be killed, then he married Bathsheba so she did not give birth to a child out of wedlock. Despite David's wrong doings God accepted his heart as presented in Psalm 51. I must realize the same for my life and this goes for everyone. No matter what you have done, no matter what the condition of your heart is, no matter how terrible you think your actions have been, God will not despise. God will accept your heart because God loves you unconditionally. Well, what happens when God has your heart? What is the next step?

"Wash me and I will be whiter than snow" (7)

"Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin." (2)

"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me... Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." (10,12)

That is what is next, Forgiveness. God washes away all your separation from him, all of your wrong doing and creates in you a pure heart. A purity whiter than snow. Once, you hand your heart to God, God will immediately begin to cleanse your heart, and forgive for your sins. God will pick you up and direct you according to the path set for you. All you have to do is give God your heart. All I have to give God, is my heart. That is all I have.

Walk Down This Road With Me

At the point when people came upon a plain in Shinar (Babylonia) they were moving Eastward in the wrong direction, the opposite direction of where God directed them to go. Also, the world had one common, universal language. Here in Babylonia these people begin to build a tower and they reasoned, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth."

These people were so lost, moving in the opposite direction of God's will. They are building a tower, to make a name for themselves. They are building the tower of babel to bring recognition to themselves, not to bring recognition to God. To teach the people the Lord said, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." So God scattered them all over the earth and confused the language of the whole world. Seeking personal recognition, ignoring the guidance and truth of the one and only God, building for their own selfish ambition, seeking selfish instant gratification, and following their own mislead path. That is what these people were doing. They ignored God's direction and guidance. In a matter of moments they went from a people of one language building a name for themselves, to disrupted, confused, separated and speaking many different languages. From community to self-seeking. Their community was disrupted, separated. They turned their backs on God and went their own way.

Do you build your own towers? Do you seek making a name for yourself? Do you go down your own path?

I do. This is the cause of ego, self-pride, selfishness, and the death of community. This is sin.

Instead praise the Lord, build your life upon Christ, make a name for the one and only the saviour of the world, Go Down The Path Of Jesus Christ, walk beside Jesus on the road of life, let the grace of Christ fill you heart, may the light and love of Jesus pour into your heart and overflow into others. This is Unity, This is Community.

Seek and You Will Find

"A generation of Christians reared among push buttons and automatic machines is impatient of slower and less direct methods of reaching their goals. We have been trying to apply machine-age methods to our relations with God. We read our chapter, have our short devotions, and rush away, hoping to make up for our deep inward bankruptcy by attending another gospel meeting or listening to another thrilling story told by a religious adventurer lately returned from afar. The tragic results of this spirit are all about us. Shallow lives, hollow religious philosophies, the preponderance of the element of fun in gospel meetings, the glorification of men, trust in religious externalities, quasi-religious fellowships, salesmanship methods, the mistaking of dynamic personality for the power of the Spirit; these and such as these are the symptoms of an evil disease, a deep and serious malady of the soul."

- A.W. Tozer

Seek and you will find what is inside. Your relationship with Jesus Christ is in your heart. Though reading a chapter in a christian book, doing devotionals, attending church, are great tools to help expand your spiritual growth and knowledge, none of these should be your main way to grow in your faith daily. With these as the basis of your faith this is a shallow and hollow spirituality and faith. Time spent between you and Jesus, one on one is the most important, and from my experiences the most influential and where I have grown the most in my faith. Spending time alone with your saviour should be at the core of your faith, what is in your heart what you have inside is what matters. Regardless of any facades you pose to other people to make it appear your faith is going well, the only true judge of your faith is God and ultimately God is the only one who knows what is behind that facade. Ultimately the ONLY thing that carries on from this temporary Earth is your relationship with Jesus Christ, that is it, nothing else.

The Habit of Having No Habits

I am going to share with you a daily devotional from Oswald Chambers' My Utmost For His Highest. It is derived from 2 Peter 1:8 "If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful"

When we first begin to form a habit, we are fully aware of it. There are times when we are aware of becoming virtuous and godly, but this awareness should only be a stage we quickly pass through as we grow spiritually. If we stop at this stage, we will develop a sense of spiritual pride. The right thing to do with godly habits is to immerse them in the life of the Lord until they become such a spontaneous expression of our lives that we are no longer aware of them. Our spiritual life continually causes us to focus our attention inwardly for the determined purpose of self-examination, because each of us has some qualities we have not yet added to our lives.

Your god may be your little Christian habit— the habit of prayer or Bible reading at certain times of your day. Watch how your Father will upset your schedule if you begin to worship your habit instead of what the habit symbolizes. We say, "I can’t do that right now; this is my time alone with God." No, this is your time alone with your habit. There is a quality that is still lacking in you. Identify your shortcoming and then look for opportunities to work into your life that missing quality.

Love means that there are no visible habits— that your habits are so immersed in the Lord that you practice them without realizing it. If you are consciously aware of your own holiness, you place limitations on yourself from doing certain things— things God is not restricting you from at all. This means there is a missing quality that needs to be added to your life. The only supernatural life is the life the Lord Jesus lived, and He was at home with God anywhere. Is there someplace where you are not at home with God? Then allow God to work through whatever that particular circumstance may be until you increase in Him, adding His qualities. Your life will then become the simple life of a child.

-Oswald Chambers

Press On

Philippians is a letter written to the Church of Philippi to thank them. Paul wrote this letter while in Prison in Rome around 60 A.D. Paul's passage of Philippians 3:12-14 is in the context of him wanting to know Christ and obtaining Christ.

"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

This one thing that Paul does, I often fail to do. Forgetting what is behind and pushing on to the future, the hope that is ahead. The past cannot be changed, a mistake made last week will always be there, but what you can change, is the future. What has happened in the past is exactly what God had planned for you and now you must press on to live for God now and in the future. Pressing on towards the ultimate goal, the unconditional love, the one and only, the eternal life in the light of the Lord. I must learn to constantly desire to strive to achieve the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. I must be still and let God speak and call to me and follow the will God has written on my heart. Striving for this prize, striving for serving Christ, striving for desperate dependence on Christ, striving for loving like Christ, striving for walking with Christ, striving for a life eternally with our Father and Savior in Heaven. If you do not put your past behind then how can you live life to the fullest. If you do not put your past behind then how can you truly live for Christ.

So Press on! Because Christ has already forgot what is behind and is striving ahead in His relationship with you, shouldn't you be striving with Him?

We Can Overcome

Jesus overcame immense suffering leading up to and on the cross. Jesus overcame temptation. Jesus overcame the devil. Jesus overcame every single sin ever being placed on his heart and shoulders. Jesus overcame the ways of this world. Jesus overcame complete separation from God. Jesus overcame DEATH. Something that has never been done by a human. Jesus overcame death and is alive today.

So if Jesus overcame, what does that mean for us?

We face temptation, being doubtful, being far from God, financial difficulties, persecution, suffering, selfishness, broken relationships, and the death of loved ones. We all face hard times in our lives. We all face tribulations. These hard times are all part of life. Can we overcome like Jesus did? Yes we can because Jesus overcame so we can overcome. Like Jesus says in Mark, "If you can? Everything is possible for one who believes (9:23)." If we believe in Christ we can now overcome anything we are facing. We can look that trouble right in the eyes and know that we can overcome it because of Christ overcoming and our belief in Christ. My belief in Christ brings me assurance and hope for better things to come. "Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for yet praise him, my Savior and my God (Psalm 42:11)." Always praise God through the good and bad. Always praise your father and your savior. Jesus overcame sin and death and that allows us to overcome sin and death and this world that we are seemingly stuck in and allows us to reach Heaven and live there for eternity.

Jesus overcame so we can overcome!!

Choose Joy

"You make known to me the path of life;

in your presence there is fullness of joy;

at your right hand are the pleasures forevermore."

-Psalm 16:11

In times of struggle, in times of trial and tribulation, there is always God. God has been and always will be alive and present. So seize the day, make the best of every day and opportunity God gives you. So this choice of joy is ours and it is one I face everyday. The choice to follow Christ's path of life brings me life and joy to the fullest, but the choice to go down my own path for the day brings me nothing but despair and selfishness, neither of which I want. And always know that God has your best interest in mind. Even though God's plan may make your life more challenging or more difficult, God's will for your life is perfect. God's challenging, but rewarding life chosen for you will shape you into a disciple of Christ, following and trusting and living in God's path of life will bring you the fullness of joy.

So remember, "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice." - Philippians 4:4

It was His Choice

Jesus is the solution to the problem, that we all have. The problem: we are all sinners, and we all turn our backs on God and go our own way. Us going our own way is a problem because without God we are helpless, we can't do anything, we need God's love it is a necessity. So how is Jesus the solution? Well, Jesus is the ONLY solution to our problem. This is only part of what Jesus went through for us: he was stripped naked, a crown of thorns smashed upon his head, receiving continuous vicious blows to the head, mocking being called "The King of the Jews", begin spat on, carrying his own cross on his back to Golgotha where he already knew he was going to be crucified, nails pierced his wrists and feet. The only way for him to breathe upon the cross was to lift himself up, which cause the nails in his wrists to dig deeper into his flesh and tear away at his wrists, but this was the only way he could survive. As Jesus suffered upon the cross, the religious leaders and Romans continued to mock him calling to him, "Come down from the cross, if you are the son of God." Jesus continued to stay and suffer upon the cross. At any point in this sequence of events Jesus could have stopped all of this, he could have stopped the suffering the crucifixion, but this was his choice. This was a plan between Jesus and God for Jesus to be the perfect and only sacrifice to repair our relationship with God. Yes, all of the physical pain Jesus suffered was excruciatingly painful, but what he experiences next brings him the most pain of all. Next, all of the sin of the world are put on Jesus' shoulders. All of the sins that existed before that point in time, all of the sin going on right now, and all of the sin that has yet to take place in our lives, all of it was placed on Jesus' heart. This was the 1st time Christ's perfect connection from God was broken and he was separated from God. For the 1st time Jesus' experiences sin, without God he could no longer survive. He was so dependent upon God and so in sync with him, that the first time Jesus experienced life without him, he died. Jesus said, " 'It is finished.' With that he bowed his head and gave up his spirit (John 19:30)." Why would Jesus' last words be "It is finished"? Why would the savior of the world's last words be "It is finished"? There is definitely a valuable meaning behind Jesus' choice of words. Jesus' plan to save the world was now complete, He had become the ultimate sacrifice for the world. The plan that Jesus and God formulated was now finished. The disbelievers that crucified Jesus now said, "Surely He is the Son of God." Now they believed. But, the story does not end here.

Jesus is now taken down from the cross and is placed in his cave-tomb and an enormous boulder is pushed in front to cover the entrance and guards are placed outside of his tomb to guard Jesus' grave. Now a couple of days pass and Mary comes to visit Jesus' grave to find that he is gone, disappeared. She asks the guards what had happened and they were clueless. Next, and angel comes to talk to Mary and tells her that Jesus has been raised from the dead, he is resurrected, He is alive. But How do we know this is true? How do we know that someone didn't come and steal Jesus' body and then spread a rumor that he was alive? We know from the Bible. After Jesus' resurrection he showed himself to his apostles and numerous people in the Bible.

This story is true. This story is incredible. Jesus was dead, but now he is alive. This changes everything, this changes the whole world. We do not worship a God that is dead and buried in a cave, but we worship a living God. We worship a God who conquered death, a God who lives with us right now no matter where we are.

Jesus was faced with a choice, suffer and die for us and the world or to continue to live his own life, sinless, in complete unison with God, perfect. He chose to suffer and die and sacrifice himself for sinners, for us. Now we have a choice to make, to live for ourselves and for the temporary things of this world or to live for a savior who died for us, to give our life to Jesus Christ. What choice will you make? I have chosen to give my life to Jesus Christ and have and still am experiencing life to the fullest. You can do the same, Jesus made his choice now it is time for you to make yours.

A New Heaven

"Look! God's dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 'He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or morning or crying or pain, for the old order of this has passed away." - Revelation 21:3-4

"I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp." - Revelation 21:22-23

The return of Christ brings us hope! We will live side by side with God in heaven, we will no longer cry in sorrow, there will be no more pain, there will be no more death. The way of the Earth and your life on Earth will be gone and your new life of constantly and uninterrupted living in the light of the Lord will start and will last for eternity.

In heaven there are no temples, churches, or chapels. Why is there no longer a place of worship you might ask? Why can't we attend church in Heaven? There is no longer a need for church in Heaven because you are constantly in sync with the Lord 100% of the time. There is no longer any chance of separation from the unconditional love, care, and comfort of the Lord. There will be continuous and constant worship not just your once a week, Sunday Church. God will be worshiped and thanked always and in every moment.

The light of the Lord will illuminate Heaven, there will no longer be a need for a sun or moon. The will be NO more darkness figuratively and literally. The darkness will be overcome and conquered completely be our God. "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it (John 1:5)." On this day darkness will NO LONGER EXIST. We will no longer be subject to evil or impurity because, "Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life (Rev. 21:27)." All of the children of God, who truly follow Jesus Christ our savior will be untied together and become neighbors with God.

Where will you be when the new heaven and new earth are seen and the first heaven and the first earth have passed away? Maybe the better question is, who will you be?

Are You Weak or Are You Strong?

In 2nd Corinthians Paul gets a thorn stuck in his side.  He says that it is a message from Satan to torment him.  Paul pleaded to the Lord 3 times to take the thorn away.  Christ replied:

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."  Then Paul goes on to say, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in my weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong." 

(2 Corinthians 12:8-10)

I know I almost never delight in insults, hardships, persecutions, or difficulties, but this is what Christ calls us to do. I boast about my accomplishments, about what I did well.  I know for sure that I boast about my "strengths" and my accomplishments a lot more than I boast about my weaknesses.  What I often fail to see in the midst of hardship is that Christ's grace is sufficient for me, for you, for anyone.  Christ's power is made perfect when you are weak, vulnerable, exposed, when you completely let Christ's love overcome your own pride.   Completely let your guard down and throw aside your pride.  Self-pride is going to get you nowhere. Let Christ see fully into the depths of your heart and mind.  Then Christ's power is made perfect.  In this weakness, Christ's power and love fully rests upon you and makes you strong. 

 Christ's grace is enough, End of Story.  When you are weak, then you are strong.  So the question is, are you weak or are you strong?

Is Christ Divided?

In 1st Corinthians Paul writes to the church of God in Corinth.  Paul is writing to this church about their church being divided over their leaders.  Paul writes to them, 

"I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought (1 Corinthians 1:10)."

Paul who is called to be an apostle of Christ by the will of God is telling the church of God in Corinth to be unified to not allow pointless bickering to divide people who are to love each other.  Paul goes on to write,

"What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas(Peter)'; still another, 'I follow Christ.'  Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you?  Were you baptized into the name of Paul?"

Paul makes an amazing point here.  The early church of God in Corinth was already being lead astray and being tricked into following anyone but Christ.  They are then taking it a step further and allowing these differences to cause division among their church.  This division is separating them from the other members of their church.  Christ was never divided.  Christ was and is always in perfect unison with God and the holy spirit.  He brought and still brings that same unison here to Earth for us to see. So how does separation apply to today? How does unity and division apply to you and me?

Today we are still facing very similar issues.  In our world today society uses race, ethnicity, and religion, as tools and dividers to separate the people of God.  These differences in human beings should be left at differences, but the American society uses differences to divide, to separate, to say, "If we are different we cannot be friends, if you are a different religion I can't love you."  Completely False, all lies.  Who do you think is behind all of this separation?  Who is the culprit? Satan.  Satan's lies seep into the minds of the people and he tells them lies in attempt to disassemble the children of God.  I would even say that people's interests, looks, the clothes they wear are used to divide and cause separation among us.  Then stereotypes are formed and people are separated into different groups and cliches and often can't break the mold of that group.  Even extreme cases occur, when cults and hate groups are formed, all due to the belief that separation is necessary, that one human being is greater than another.  You often hear the words, "jock", "nerd", "goth", "computer geek", "queer", "loser", "emo", "prep" these are all terms used to separate.  

What does this say about the world?  Is our world upside down?  Is this what you want our society to represent and look like?

God has never used these words to judge someone or to divide people.  God knows no stereotypes, God loves equally, and does not love at the same standards our society does, his love in unconditional and never ending.  President Obama is no greater than a homeless man with no family and no assets and God loves them equally.  Not one human being is greater than another.  

Just Unity

God created every human being.  We all have the same creator and live on our creators earth.  God loves all people equally.  Despite some people not having a relationship with Christ or blocking God out of their life God still loves them, no matter what religion, race, ethnicity, or however you want to separate people.  And we are called to be Godly, Christ-like, holy, yet people are persecuted for their beliefs, why?  God loves you all the same whether you are Christian, Catholic, Muslim, Buddhist, Mormon, or Wicca.  Just because someone has a different belief doesn't give you any reason not to love them.  Jesus said, "A new command I give you: Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another (John 13:34)." This love Jesus speaks of here is unconditional love.  There are no exceptions in what Jesus is saying.  Why do you think there is so much war, violence, hatred?  A disregard of this commandment from Jesus.  We are all part of the same race the race of God, we are all his creations and belong to him, no exceptions, so why attack, hate, and kill our own kind?  We are all of the same blood, all created by God in this we are unified.  LOVE EVERYONE.

A Bridge To The Rock

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it.  She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened." -Genesis 3:6-7

This is human's 1st separation from God.  This first wrong done.  The first sin.  Adam and Eve sought their own purpose to seek wisdom while being deceived by the serpent and ignoring God. We do this every single day.  We listen to Satan we ignore God. At this point in time in Genesis humans have been separated from God. This separation from God, this huge void, and gap between us and God is the definition of sin.  Sin is separation from God.  This separation brings loneliness, confusion, frustration, anger, and leaving you feeling lost from any sort of purpose.  So how do we fix this gap? Picture this, you are on one side of the Mississippi River and God is on the other, you want to get to him, but you can't swim.  And there is no bridge to cross the river.  So how do you get across the river to God to end your loneliness? Jesus. Jesus is the bridge from our side of the river to God's side.  Jesus died on the cross as the ultimate sacrifice for our sin and ended our separation from God.  With Jesus' death he took all of our sins with him, and built a bridge across the Mississippi to God.  With a belief in Jesus as our savior we can walk across this bridge and clearly hear and listen to the word of God. Ok so we have, crossed the river, accepted Christ as our savior, and our sin is gone. What next?  Is that the end? No. Now you build your house upon God.  

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." -Matthew 7:24-25    

Now build your life on and around that rock of God and you will not fall.  The storms may come in your own life, but if your foundation is the rock you will not fall.  You will not crumble. You will stand strong knowing that God will get you through this and there are greater things yet to come.  What else could there possibly be? But, There is another important aspect to this house you build with God.  You must have a cornerstone to your house. Without a foundation of rock and a cornerstone your house will fall.  This isn't your ordinary cornerstone though it can't be any old cornerstone.

"Jesus is the stone which you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone." - Acts 4:11

The people who murdered Jesus on the cross rejected Jesus as their cornerstone and murdered him, but now Jesus has rose from the dead and is living and he is the cornerstone your house must have.  Jesus bridges the gap between us and God and once we build our lives upon God, Jesus must also be the cornerstone of the house of our lives, knowing that in his death is our salvation.

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name given under heaven by which we must be save." - Acts 4:12 

What is Love?

Love is not made in a club

Love is not kissing you through the phone

Love is not about the loosening of lips and the swinging of hips

Love is not about licking lollipops

Love is not about having whatever you like

Love is given to you from God above

The love in your heart is abundant

Caring, sharing, and listening is Love

Love is trusting and kindness

Love is displayed by not just what you say 

Love is displayed through what you do.

Love is hope

The 1st stanza is not Love.  Today's uprising culture is skewing the definition of Love.  It is making love seem like it is obtainable through solely a physical relationship and that is sickening.  On the radios today you hear about twerking, grinding, and more sex as you can see it has taken a huge shift from the "I want to hold your hand" by the Beatles.  Culture has a huge influence on how we see and perceive things in our own life.  Satan can blind us from the real Love that God gives to us and puts into our lives.  

Real Love is what God tells us in the Bible it is right in front of us the truth is right there.  Love is not what Lil' Wayne, Soulja Boy, or Matt Nathanson says it is, Love is what Jesus has already told us, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails." (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)  The Love the media sells today is self-seeking, it does envy, it does fail, it does not persevere.  The media is selling Love that delights in evil, exactly what Love is not supposed to be.  Do not listen to Satan's lies as he tries to pull you astray.  Do not get lost.  Do you really want to buy that as Love? The Love that holds that media's stamp of approval is not real Love.  Let the word of God reign true, if you want to know what real Love is it is right in front of you, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.  

 

Closer to Love

To grow closer to love 

He will be your guide

You must look to the Father above

In Him you must confide

He will calm your worries

He works on his own time

He is in no hurry

His path is the one that you must find

Once that path is found 

He will be near to you

His spirit will be all around

But only found by a few

To grow closer to God's love