Where you at?

I drink coffee every morning. It's an addiction almost. Horrible if you think about it, to be so dependent on something to the point where I really don't care what form it comes in, so long as it has caffeine and it keeps me awake.

I heard a guy this morning while he was getting his coffee say the following: "No I don't need the sweetner or creamer, doesn't matter to me how it is I drink it, hot cold, whatever, just need it to have caffeine and be coffee." That got me thinking.

How often do we pay attention to where we are when we worship, when we pray, when we study the word? The bible tells us that we shouldn't deny the fellowship of believers (Heb 10:24-25), however, you don't have to be at church to meet up with God. It doesn't matter where we are, what we're doing, or who we are with, if we call on His name, He is there with us (Jer 29:12-13).

I don't need to be in the sanctuary to be praising Him, I don't need a worship leader to be singing in order for me to praise Him with my lips. If I were to have accepted Christ in the quiet of my own home by myself, it doesn't make it any less of a decision if then if I had done it in front of a crowd of a million people. Granted, I should tell someone so they can scream in joy with me and so I can get plugged in. What I'm getting at is this whole idea of a feeling, of depending on emotion instead of faith.

Many times as Christians, we lose sight of who God is. We know His word, but we forget who He is in His word. We get so caught up in this feeling, that we forget what faith is. "Faith isn't about how you feel, it is about acting on what you know, despite how it is you feel" - Timothy Keller I can be at work and He can speak to me, I can be in the car and He can speak to me, I can be getting coffee in the morning and He can speak to me. It doesn't matter where I am, my ears should always be perked up, waiting for Him to speak.

When God wants to serve a cup of His finest coffee, to rejuvinate my soul and lift up my spirits, it doesn't matter what cup He serves it in. I don't need the creamer or the sugar to make it sweet, it doesn't need anything added. His word is the same past, present, and future. His grace is sufficient. I don't need a feel good sugar coated environment to make it more "spiritual."

In his book, "The Screwtape Letters" (a must read!), C.S. Lewis describes a danger that many Christians, especially new believers face: "Desiring their freedom, He therefore refuses to carry them, by their mere affections and habits, to any of the goals which He sets before them: He leaves them to "do it on their own". And there lies our opportunity. But also, remember, there lies our danger. If once they get through this initial dryness successfully, they become much less dependent on emotion and therefore much harder to tempt."

We can't be so dependent on emotions. When we depend on our emotions to guide us, we are depending on ourselves, and in that dependence, we fail to depend on God. Jer 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?" Now see if you follow me on this thought, the devil may very well use the church itself, or that "feeling" as a way to get distracted. Rather than focus in on God Himself, and deny myself feelings and emotions, I'll wait for that yummy fuzzy feeling, and gauge my salvation or my "spirituality" on it, and not on fruit, not on His word, and not on what He has said to me. I'll lose sight of Him and look only to my emotions. We live by faith...not sight..

Feelings won't lead you anywhere. The Spirit will. Let's not be so dependent on our feelings; let's be sensitive to God's feelings (His spirit) and be open to receive in all places. Be ready both in and out of season (2 Tim 4:2).

Flipping out...

I don't know if you heard, but in the last 48 hours, a tornado ripped through a small town in Mississippi killing an estimated 10-17 people and injuring many more. The town was primarily Christian. Immediately one might think "Oh well why would a loving God do this to His own people?" Forget that for right now, I'll give you something to remedy that thought in a few. One of the survivors of the tornado was Coroner Ricky Shivers. According to his account, his car flipped four times as a result of the tornado. What is interesting is what he did while he was in the car. His words were the following: "If it is my time to go, I am ready Lord." WOW. Talk about humility. This man could have said a million other words. He could have cursed God, asked God why He would allow such a thing to happen to a man of faith. He said none of these things. His words were a true symbol of humility. Lord do with me as You will, should I die, I'll see You, should I live, I'll speak of You.

This parallels what Paul talks about in Phil 1:21-26. Paul is torn between the idea of death and life. He wants to die to go and be with the Lord, however, he wants to live to be able to speak of the Lord and bring others to Christ.

Now let's stop for a second and think. What would I have said in that car as it flipped uncontrollably? I'm sure most of us can't say we've been seated in a car as it is tossed about by a raging tornado, however, we all can say that at some point in our lives, we have felt as though we were sitting in the midst of a personal tornado. How did we respond? Did we do what James tells us and consider it joy? Or did we do what Job's wife said and curse God? How does one maintain such composure in the midst of such turmoil? The answer is simple: peace. Peace which leads to joy.

In the original language, the word happiness comes from the word "happenings" which implies that happiness is something that comes as a result of what is happening around us. Where as the word joy can also comes from the state "of being well". Happiness is dependent on circumstance, and circumstances are ever changing, however, joy is dependent on the ongoing state we live in. God never changes, He remains the same, and joy, if built on this foundation, should remain the same, regardless of circumstance. For me, joy is sometimes hard to come by. So easily we let the world and its weeds and rough seas trouble us to the point where we lose sight of our pure joy, and that is knowing that in all things, He works for our good, He uses all evil for good, and has created all things in order that His glory might be seen. The bible doesn't say we won't have issues, else James wouldn't have used the word "when" in verse 2. We aren't always going to happy, however, we can always have joy.

Now the kicker to this whole story is what the man did after he survived the car flips. He put on his medical clothing, and went to the hospital to aid those in need. WOW again. I bet though, that this guy, while in the car, was so humble, and so faithful, that He didn't need God to keep him safe. What I mean is, safe or not, he would remain faithful, He didn't need God to save him from this turmoil to know and love God. It didn't matter to him whether he died or lived, so long as God's will came to be. He, unlike people like me (man do I need to change) doesn't need a sign. An amazing work won't make or break his faith, it will only strengthen it. That is true humility, and it is this kind of humility that gets us God's grace. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble James 4:6. God won't use a person who is prideful to do His work, God doesn't share His glory (Isaiah 42:8).

I must humble myself. The question shouldn't always be, "What more can I do for God?" because we ourselves can do nothing, everything is from Him and for Him, our question should really be "How much less can I do for myself?" and in doing less for me, I make more room for Him. I am taking on a new life verse to go with Gal 1:10. Job 1:21 "And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD." I came with nothing, I'll leave with nothing, all I have has been given to me by Him. Let me never forget it, else I'm not humble...

By the way, a little gem to leave you with the next time you question why it is evil exists or how it is a just God allows such evil to take place... "The cross does not tell us what the answer to the question is 'Why does God allow evil and suffering to take place,' but it does tell us what the answer can't be, and that is that He doesn't care[...]Because He went into the ultimate furnace for you, there is your evidence that He is walking into your personal furnaces with you..." - Timothy Keller

Marriage of our Hearts

I've heard this before, however, it was cool to see the spirit send me a message, even if it was through some old English custom. "Something old, something new,
Something borrowed, something blue." For those that don't know, this is one of those old customs that are somehow attached to weddings. While I am not 100% certain on the origin, I can say it made me chuckle this morning when I heard it.

We are the bride, and He is the groom. When we married Him, we had something old and replaced it with something new (Eph 4:22-24). Not sure what it was we have or had that was blue, however, I can say everything I have is borrowed, nothing of mine was self-made, rather, given (Deut 8:18), and I have to give it back.

God is funny, He makes me laugh when I least expect it. I wanted to share this song with you. Been thinking about it all week, especially since Greg Laurie has been teaching on marriage for weeks now. Enjoy it! Oh and if you can think of some spiritual symbolism for the something blue, I am all ears. :-)




Eternal

I know this life I lead will pass away
Along with every other earthly thing
So I will set my heart on a higher plain
Where my treasure lies with You

And in this marriage of our hearts
There is no death do us part
For You are eternal
And I am eternally Yours

And I could never lose Your love to sickness
Oh I could never lose You to divorce
And there's no concept of abandonment
For I am safe within Your arms

And in this marriage of our hearts
There is no death do us part
For You are eternal
And I am eternally Yours
Oh I am eternally Yours
I am eternally Yours

(No abandonment)
(Safe within Your arms)

I never had enough until I found You
I never knew love until I met You
I never had enough until I found You
And now I have everything

And in this marriage of our hearts
There is no death do us part
For You are eternal
And I am eternally Yours
And I am eternally Yours
Oh I am eternally Yours

I could never lose You
No I will never lose You
I could never lose You

And this life will pass away
But You will never change
Oh this life will pass away
Oh but You will never change

Don't be so Ruthless....Chpt 2

So where are you in life right now? Content? Searching? Waiting? Life has its twists and turns, trials and tribulations. It is these trials and tribulations, these twists and turns, that define us. Not the trials themselves, but our response to these trials. Trials and tribulations will come, it's a guarentee. In James 1:2-4, it doesn't say consider it joy if you face a trial, but when. When. Believe it or not, this temporary world can only offer you things that like it, will pass. Everything ages, moth and rust destroy, like it or not.

Your response to trials is dependent on where your house is built? House? Yeah, the house of your trust, your foundations.

Matthew 7:24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”

Jesus, like James, says WHEN the rains come, not if. Where is your trust built? Have you built your house on sand or on stone? I guarentee that a house built on the Cornerstone cannot be shaken, but why take my words, why not look to a living example of this: Ruth.

In Chapter 2 of Ruth we see Ruth and Naomi go out together to the land of Moab. Here, the book introduces to us another character, Boaz. We know that Boaz was in some way related to Naomi, however, Ruth is never told of this, so she has nothing to motivate her into working. Ruth isn't told to do anything, she does it on her own.

Ruth 2:2 "So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor." And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” Ruth just went. She was the perfect picture of what Proverbs 16:3 tells us, "Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established." You can replace the word thoughts with plans, similar to Jer 29:11 and the word commit hear means to literally rollover on to. We must roll over our works onto the Lord, roll over our lives onto Him and in doing so, our decision making will become wiser.

Ever prayed this? "Lord, open doors for me Father. Take me from this place I am in, I hate it Lord, please place me where it is you want me." It is an honest prayer, and sure we can be dissastisfied with our current state, but what if we are where He wants us and we are letting our selfishness get in the way of His vision for our lives?

How can we expect God to do something with us on a larger scale, if we aren't willing to accept where it is He currently has us? It is all about humility. Humble yourselves before Him, and He will lift you up. He gives grace to the humble. Asking God to move you on because you think you are ready to is an act of pride and pride means you're putting yourself before God, and that isn't wholehearted service. As I say this, I am speaking it to myself. I forget that God has me in this workplace for a reason. In a sense, this workplace is my trial, and while I don't understand fully why it is I am here, I have to do His work and be about the harvest.

I imagine Ruth spent some nights wondering why it was her husband had to pass, and why it was she was at this point in her life gleaning in the fields for food like poor person. In those days to glean was to pick up the outer shell of the grain once the grain had been picked. It was the for the poorest of the poor who had little eat. Ruth, in faith, went and did the work of a harvester. Little did she know, she was gleaning in the fields of Boaz and that her work and her devotion to Naomi had found favor in his heart. Boaz, in seeing this, not only praised her for her work and dedication, but fed her, cleaned her, provided her work, and kept her safe.

Matthew 6:31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."

My favorite part about Ruth though, was her decision making while she served. Notice in verse 23 it says, "So she stayed close by the young women" which is to say she didn't stay close to the young men. She knew if she did, she would be tempted, and in her temptation, might give in. Remember in 2 Timothy it tells us to not give our enemy any reason to cause him to hold something against. She played it smart. In fact she played it so smart, that she remained in the fields until the harvest was complete. She saw her work through.

I can't count the number of times I have prayed that God would open a door up for me. How many times I have neglected my current state. A friend sent me this verse yesterday and it really sank into the depths of my heart. 1 Cor 7:17 Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. Ruth knew her place, she knew her role, it was to be about the harvest, for the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. We don't always like where it is He has us, however, we can make the most of it (Eph5:16). Stop praying that God might move you where you want to go, and start praying that He might show you the harvest in your current place, and see it through!

Why would you be thinking about picking corn if you were sitting in the middle of a field of grain? First, pick grain, then once you have harvested all the grain He has for you, then He will move you on to the next field. While you pick grain remember that in being obedient out of love, He will provide, all these things shall be added unto you, He won't let the righteouss fall....(Psalm 55:22)

The burn I can't escape...

By day it keeps me in heat,
By night it keeps me awake,
It's light I can't escape from,
It's burden I can't quench.

When I try and run from it,
it follows me to my place,
leaving behind it a trail of ashes,
to remind me of what was lost.

With each day that passes,
The flame becomes larger,
A hunger fed by the air of Your lungs,
With every breath, the flame grows.

It feeds off the Word of your lips,
And brightens with every turn of the page.
When I deny it, it burns me,
and like a child I am chastened by my Father.

I am reminded to never quench it,
reminded never to hide from it,
The fire you lit within my soul,
Burns alive for you and your work.

I haven't had time to write a post due to this thing they call tax season, however, God has been giving me some sweet thoughts to dwell on while I wait for the season to end. Glory be to Him, these are not my words, but His....He owns :-)

Now I see...

I'm a fool, a fool, a fool of a man
Always in need of some type of a savior.
I look to the world to find my salvation,
only to find my own devastation.

You look upon my face, through the cloud over me,
A cloud of iniquity, so thick I can't see You,
So thick I can't see You in me,
Yet You love me so much, to blow breath into me.

Your breath moves me, Your breath heals me,
and like a gust from above, Your spirit lifts me.
Slowly the cloud begins to lift, then the longing begins.
I long to see Your face spill into my life.

My heart screams to know You, my soul dances,
My mind is overwhelmed, unable to understand You,
To understand why You made me, why You loved me,
Why You chose the weakest of men to do Your work.

My words are not mine, my thoughts are owned,
My steps pre-determined, my works not self-made,
You counted my hairs and prepared me beforehand,
To work in Your name, me, a man once blind, but now, I see...

The Beauty of not being Ruthless...

Sitting alone on Sunday morning, waiting for service to finish, I began thinking about my current state. My state of singularity and how content I was in it. I won't get into to much detail, however, I will say I was happy, but I wasn't content and it was this lack of contentment that drove me to read the book of Ruth. That and a friend once said if I ever wanted to learn what type of man I ought to be and what type of woman I ought to look for, I should read Ruth.

So I read, and read, and read. The words jumped out of the page at me. I was highlighting and noting things, circling words I felt were significant, looking into each detail of this tiny 1 page book in the bible. As I was reading it, I had several people walk by, each asking what book I was reading, two of which were pastors who provided me with some insight to blow wind into my sails as I journeyed into what seemed to be a godly disseration on living. The book of Ruth is filled with hidden jewels on godly living. Each chapter carried its weight of significance, and at the end of the book, the names of the characters bound the story in such a way, that it cannot be denied that God truly does have His hand on everything, down to the very name you have been given.

Ruth was the epitome of a godly woman, moreover, a selfless servant. She had no obligation to remain with Naomi, especially after Naomi commanded her to depart and find herself a new husband. Ruth wouldn't have it though, she refused to sell out. Check out what she says in Ruth 1:16-17:

16 Entreat me not to leave you,
Or to turn back from following after you;
For wherever you go, I will go;
And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people,
And your God, my God.

17 Where you die, I will die,
And there will I be buried.
The LORD do so to me, and more also,
If anything but death parts you and me.”

That should be our prayer on a daily basis to God. What's cool about it is the parallels it shares with the Lord's template prayer in Matt 6. Check this out:

16 "Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn my back from following after you." Essentially, she is asking not to be separated from Naomi. What what does sin do to us? Sin separates us from God. Similar to Matt 6:13 where Jesus says "Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." This isn't to say God tempts us, because we know He can't tempt. We are the ones who allow it to rule us (James 1:13-16). She is asking that she never be lead to be separated, just as we should also pray that we never be separated from Him.

16 "For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God." She is essentially submitted her will to that of Naomi. We ought to do the same with God, submit ourselves to Him and let His will govern our lives. Check out Jesus: Matt 6:10 "Your kingdom come, Your will be done."

I like the way the NLT puts verse 17: "Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!”

Ruth is willing to follow Naomi to ends of the earth if she has too. She is willing to die wherever Naomi died. Are you willing to die where Christ died? It says in the bible to crucify your flesh. We should all aspire to be this way toward God. The thing is, we already know where He died, and that is on the cross. When we came to the cross for salvation, on it we crucified ourselves Gal 2:20. Now on our daily walk, we should remember daily to crucify the sinful desires of the flesh and walk in the spirit (Gal 5:17-24). To die where He died.

We should all pray the Ruth prayer daily by living it out. Our hearts should never be ruthless, and if they become that way, "May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!" The best part about this portion of the verse is that for you and I as christians, death doesn't separate us from God, rather, unites us, face to face.

Ruth is loaded godly insight on how to live. We'll definitely be jumping into the next 3 chapters over the course of the next week or so. In the meantime, read Ruth, and let's all aspire not to be so Ruthless.

Leading in the Wilderness...

So I went against my promise. My next post wasn't on the ranch, instead a message from God by way of my professor. Well now it's time to see what I said through. Two weekends ago, I was blessed with an opportunity to retreat from life for a few days and experience God in the wilderness, surrounded by brothers who share the same passion, same heart, and same spirit I do. I went in with no direction, no idea, no understanding. I came back with a mission, a purpose, an idea, and a burning desire.

The desire was already there, however, it needed to be set on fire. Our journey began with a long ride up, finished off by a crazy drive into the woods. That night, Jose asked who wanted to do the morning devotion. Being the eager speaker I was, I quickly said yes and already had a great Oswald Chamber devo to go over. Little did I know, it wasn't like that. What Jose wanted wasn't a clever scholar's words of wisdom so that we could imitate another man's words, instead, he wanted something I really had never done before: one bible verse and my reflection on it.

Now I couldn't just pick any verse. It had to be one that was applicable to all of us as leaders, yet personal to me. I spent the night shaking my brain. I went to Colossians, 1 Thessolonians, 1 Timothy, James, Matthew. Nothing. That morning I had my morning devo far away from everyone else. I was trying to find something, anything. A Psalm, a Proverb, something! I couldn't find anything, at which point I gave up and told God to do it, because on my own, I couldn't find the verse. Shortly after my devo, I started speaking with Tito. Just sharing with him my disbelief at where God had me, and how just months before him and I were at lunch discussing being a leader, while I was swimming in the world. That is where he told me "God knows the desires of your heart" that is where God reminded me what it was He showed me before submitting my application. Below is the verse we discussed, along with it, in an effort to keep this one short, I'll post the other verses we discussed for devos and what we all took from it.

1 Peter 5:2-4

2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; 4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.

Feed my sheep. To shepard the flock is to go before them, to lead them, but not by authority, rather, example. As leaders, or aspiring leaders, we musn't mix our age, our knowledge or our experience with our role. We weren't placed at a position of leadership because of any of the above items, if that were the case none of us would be leaders. To be a leader is to be a servant. When you have people over your house, while yes they are over your house, where you rule, under your roof, the whole time they are there, you serve them. You offer food, drinks, comfort, anything to make them feel at home. The same applies for us as leaders. We feed them through our reading of the Word and what God speaks to us, through our studies and deep sea bible diving, we quench their thirst for knowledge. It isn't by our power though that we do any of this, but by His. Never lose sight of the fact that we are conduits, or channels of His glory. Tools.


1 Timothy 4:12-16

12 Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit,in faith, in purity. 13 Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. 14 Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. 15 Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. 16 Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Everyone only reads verse 12, however, go on. We are given a command to do three things: Read the Word, Exhort or encourage one another, and know doctrine. Additionally, we are told that whatever gift we are given, we meditate on. The last verse seals it by saying that if you do all of the above, you'll not only save yourself, but others. As a leader, and really as a christian, there is half. It is all or nothing. We cannot serve two masters. You are either for Him, or against Him. Do ALL of the above. For a leader this is tenfold. Do ALL of the above, plus more. Whatever gift we are given, in this case leadership, we must meditate on it. Read the word on it, study it, know it, and never stop learning of it. By the way, those three things in verse 13 along with prayer, are essential to growing in the Lord. Reading the bible daily, encouraging one another, knowing the true doctrine, and add prayer (which really should be first) and it makes for some great fertilizer.


Daniel 1

I can't type up the whole chapter, however, this devo was interesting. On one of our midday expeditions, we all started talking about men in the bible who were near perfect examples of what happens when we remain so close to God we never doubt or worry. Daniel was the first one to come to mind. Throughout the book of Daniel, even to the age of 80, Daniel never wavered. He was firm in the Lord (Isaiah 9:7 on being firm). You realize that he went against the government when they said he could no longer pray in public and did so anyway. He knew that obediance to God was key, he also knew that God would honor that. So much so, Daniel slept with the lions. I bet the men who threw him into the den that night slept worse than Daniel did. As leaders, we must remain steadfast to God. We must remain above reproach and give no one any reason to even think twice about us (1 Tim 5:14b).

The trip was a blessing. God not only brought us closer together, He also showed us a lot about what we are called to do and be as leaders. If I had to some it all up into one word, it would be this: selfless. To be a leader is to be selfless. Remove from yourself any and all selfishness, because selfishness is the root to sin. We sin because we think of ourselves before thinking of God. Doubt, worry, lies, lust, covetousness, judgement, you name it, it all comes from us, us wanting to benefit ourselves in some way.

Be above yourself, and when I say be above yourself, I mean let your spirit, your heart, your mind, dwell on He who is above you. Dwell on the spirit, not the flesh. (Gal 5:24-25; Rom 8:5-11)

You're Fired......Up

I have around 5 blogs brewing right now. God opened the flood gates last week after I came to the realization of my salvation. He is on the move! God will not be mocked and He will see His work through. My Spirit is overjoyed, firing on all cylinders. I am dying to post something, but there is so much, and given my current workload, I won't be able to dedicate the time one of these posts needs for the next few days, however, I can't stop singing this song in my head. I wanted to share it with you, may He fire you up!

Hebrews 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire.

Mark 9:49 For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.

Exodus 24:17 The sight of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel.

Isaiah 10:16Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts, Will send leanness among his fat ones; And under his glory He will kindle a burning Like the burning of a fire.

You are my Joy




And He set me on fire, and I am burning alive.
With His breath in my lungs I am coming undone.
And he set me on fire and I am burning alive.
With his breath in my lungs I am coming undone.
And I cannot hold it in
Remain composed.
Love's taken over me
So I propose the letting myself go.
I am letting myself go.

You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.

And He set me on fire, and I am burning alive.
With His breath in my lungs I am coming undone.
And He set me on fire, and I am burning alive.
With His breath in my lungs I am coming undone.
And I cannot hold it in and remain composed.
Love's taken over me and so I propose the letting myself go.
I am letting myself go.

You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.

I need to catch my breath, I need to.
I need to catch my breath, give me a moment now.

You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.
You are my joy.

I'm laughing so hard
And I'm laughing so hard
And I'm laughing so hard

Sensitivity in a Desensitized World...

Sitting in class right now, my professor said something very interesting. He was talking about taxing the transfer of wealth and what happens to your money when you die, and the whole time, my mind turns off and the spirit takes over and I say to myself, "Who cares about your money, where are you going when you die?" He went on to ask, "Does money make you happy? Does the truth set you free?"

When he made that second statement it triggered a message on my heart. Like most biblical teachings, or just biblical things in general, our society, our world, the enemy, has done a fine job of desensitizing them so that they go from being these words of wisdom that guard your hearts and your life, spoken by the Living God, to things of common place, but not common place in the sense that people live by it, but rather common place in that it is a common to say, but not apply. It is a saying, something to hear, but not something to do or apply; it is said in a nonchalant tone, instead of God-Fearing tone. Essentially, the words, the symbols, the meaning, lose their weight. This reality of a desensitized society goes beyond sayings like "The truth shall set you free". Even now in the season we are in, the holiday of Easter, which holds one of the greatest weights of all the holidays (I would say greatest, but that has to go to Christmas, for without a birth, there would have been no death), is now a holiday about peeps, eggs, and bunnies. Granted, bunnies, peeps, and eggs aren't a bad thing, but they are when they remove from the glory that is God and His ultimate sacrifice.

1 Cor 10:23"Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive."

How this applies to our above example, well peeps, eggs, and bunnies are good things, I mean who wouldn't want eggs filled with chocolate, followed by cute fluffy bunnies? But what is this bunny and his chocolate filled eggs doing to the image of Christ on the cross? You mention easter today and people immediately go to the bunny, and sometimes forget the weight of what our Lord did for us. This is a sad thing, and I don't know about you, but this makes me want to megaphone the good news and tell everyone. This is evidence that this world needs it more than ever.

What my professor showed me this morning was big. He doesn't even know he showed me something, however, God used him to tell me this. This world is lost. We are the light, the salt. We can't forget that. When we see someone who is lost, someone who the Spirit tells us, "Speak to them, say something," DO IT! Whatever is stopping you needs to be ignored. The truth will set those who hear it free if they accept it. The truth will set them free from the jail cell sin has placed us in, and move them into an open field filled with the freedom and peace we have of knowing that when we die, we have a kingdom for us. (Hebrews 12:28)

God has really burdened my heart with this. We are surrounded by people who need, need, need God. We can't be selfish with what we have been given. Read Matt 25, starting at verse 14, and you'll see what I mean. Whatever we are given, use for His glory. Whatever person He places before us, plant a seed, He'll water, you just plant and pray. Pray for good soil, He'll provide good water. Be sensitive to the spirit. Listen to God when He speaks and ALWAYS be ready (1 Peter 3:15, 2 Tim 4:2), in and out of season, which is to say, be ready when it is convenient AND inconvenient. A good example of this is if you see someone on the side of the road with a dead car, sure you'll be late if you stop, yeah it is inconvenient, but of the spirit burdens you, be ready.

Don't let the opportunities pass you by, for the times are becoming more and more evil. (Eph 5:16).

One more thing, should you let one pass you by, and later on you feel regret because of it, remember this:

"God never opens doors that have been closed. He opens other doors, but He reminds us that there are doors which we have shut, doors which need never have been shut, imaginations which need never have been sullied. Never be afraid when God brings back the past. Let memory have its way. It is a minister of God with its rebuke and chastisement and sorrow. God will turn the "might have been" into a wonderful culture for the future." - Oswald Chambers

Love you guys!