Is There Not a Cause?

Ephesians 3:14
For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

What is the cause of your prayers? You wouldn't believe this but many people pray. I know of people who aren't professing Christians that have prayed. I know that while I was a lost sinner I prayed. But my cause of prayer was due to my situation. It was the, "Lord, if you'll get me out of this, I'll serve you," kind of prayer. There was no conviction of who God was in my prayers. There was no meaning or truth to my prayer. It had no cause to it.

Paul has just told us in the previous scriptures that he was the least of all Christians and not worthy of what God has called him to do. He was rejoicing about the ministry of the Gospel and it caused something to happen. He said, "For this cause I bow my knees..."

Can I ask you this morning what causes you to pray? Is it a difficult situation that actually drives you to your knees? Is it a spiritual thanks that takes you there? Maybe it's a disciplined or embedded practice that is your cause today? But what is the cause? What is the reason? What is your prayer about?

Remember this today and forever, When praying...
Find the cause... "Know your reason for talking to God in prayer"
Direct the cause... "Don't direct it to others, but to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ"
Always Pray with a cause... What is your cause of prayer today?

If we are to see a change in ourselves, our families, our churches and our world, we should find that cause in our prayers. Why don't you list some causes for your prayers right now. Just for a moment before you pray and go about your day, think of at least one cause that has brought you to your knees in prayer. Is there not a cause?

Put Down the Gun!

1 Thessalonians 4:9
But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.

God tells us that love in the life of a Christian is everything. It's not something that comes later or secondary, but it is the very first fruit that is seen. God's word says that He is love. So if God lives inside the believer then His love is going to be the first characteristic shown. God also says in the word that he who says he loves God but doesn't love his brother is a liar. Jesus tells us that they will know us by our love for one another.

But let someone do one thing wrong and you'll see an immediate reaction of anger and almost hatred toward that person. This attitude is expected of the world because they don't know God, but it is one that has crept into much of the Christians. How could this be possible? It could be because God is not in us. It could also be that we have fed the fleshly side of us so much instead of the spiritual side that it rules our thoughts and hearts. Either way, it's a sinful and dangerous place to be. Dangerous for the lost person because of dying without Christ and sinful to the child of God because it's not of God.

If we are supposed to be know by our fruit, and our main fruit is love, then how are you known today? Do you tell those around you that you love them until they mess up? If they come against you or do something contrary to you do you immediately pick up your imaginary gun in order to take them down like some kind of bad cowboy or indian?

The truth of it all is that God shouldn't have to tell us how to love if He dwells in us. Paul shouldn't have to preach a three-point message on why we should love one another if Jesus is our Savior. Adrian Rogers shouldn't need to do a sermon series on why we should love the brethren if the Holy Spirit is our guide.

So kindly put down that gun and pick up the Bible. Read how God loves you and how He lives inside and through the believer.

Seven Times a Day

Psalms 119:164
Seven times a day do I praise thee
because of thy righteous judgments.

Think of this... How many times per day do you eat? Most would say breakfast, lunch and dinner. Three times a day would seem to be the normal. Some would say they eat five to six times per day. They will eat breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon snack, dinner and maybe a snack before bedtime. Some will eat three large meals while others eat six small meals. Either way, they are receiving the nourishment they need to continue throughout the day.

What if you treated God in this same manner? What if you met with God seven times a day? Most of us could meet with Him seven times a day to complain about what is going on in the world. We could go on and on with needs and requests. But how many of you could stop seven times today and just praise Him for who He is?

Try it today! Try formulating a pattern today where you could stop seven times to just praise the Lord. Just take seven moments out of your day to tell God how great He is. Tell Him how great are His works. Tell Him how thankful you are for a God who is like no other. I think you will find that you could easily pass seven times a day.

Are You Going To Wear That To Bed?

Ephesians 4:20-24
But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

I love working with my hands. I love building things out of wood. Ever since I was a little boy I have always loved building. My dad would let me help him when he was a contractor. We would work all day long during the summer months. Some of the memories that I have are promotion days. I started out just as a clean up crew and then worked my way up to the cut man on the saw. Little by little he would let me do things that mom didn't necessarily want me doing. I enjoyed many, many days working on room additions or remodeling jobs.

My absolute favorite thing of the day was when we called it quits. Not because I wanted to stop, but we were so tired that we knew we had to. On the drive home from a deck job we would have the windows down. No air conditioning, "it will make you sick" he said. Back then my hair would blow in the wind so saw dust would be flying everywhere. As soon as we got home it would be time to eat but shortly after dinner would come my favorite part. Taking a shower and taking off those old clothes.

When we have surrendered our lives to Jesus, we should take off that old man and put on the new. Most people just want to jump right into bed when they get home and not even change. You would defile the bed and all the pillows if you did that. Just as well with Christians, some want Christ and the same old person they used to be. People used to say, "Come as you are." But now folks are saying, "Come as you are and stay the same cause God loves you." That's right, He loves you that's why He wants to change you. Put off those old sinful clothes today. Come and put on the new man that is created after God in righteousness and true holiness.

Surely you're not gonna wear those old dirty clothes to bed? For those of you that thought the title of this devotion would lead down a different road, call me we need to counsel. :)

You Here For The Fishing Expo?

Matthew 5:16
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

I can't help but laugh when I read the title the Lord gave me for this devotion. A few years ago some friends of ours went on a vacation trip with us to the mountains of Tennessee. On the first day of our trip we stopped at this gas station to get a snack and some drinks. When I walked up to the counter to pay the cashier, he asked me, "You here for the fishing expo?" To which my wife and friends busted out laughing. I should have said, "Yep, you going?"

The reason this so funny is because of the shirt I had on. It was a yellow fishing style shirt. I wore this shirt many, many times. You see I used to wear this shirt so much because it was comfortable and when a big guy finds something comfortable he will wear it out. This cashier had never seen me before and so he didn't know that I just liked the shirt. My friends on the other hand knew that I wore it, and wore it often. So automatically he tied me together with fishing and the expo that was in town.

The beauty of it all is that I would have loved to go to the expo. I love fishing. But what if this shirt would have had skulls, death, blood, cursing, profanity, naked people on it? I would have tied myself to the shirt. The Bible tells us to let our lights shine before men that they can see our good works. I was taken as a fisherman because of what I wore.

What would you be taken as if people were to evaluate your clothing? What if they understood who you were by what your conversation was about? Last of all, who would get the glory of your good works? It should be that we shine, but that we shine for Jesus and not ourselves. So where are you headed today? You here for the fishing expo? You here for the Lord Jesus Christ? Would people look at you and tie you with Jesus and His church? I understand totally coming as you are in your sins to a Savior who can and will save you. But after you have been saved you become new and you are now a representative of Jesus. The way people see Christ is through Christians (who are imitations of Christ)

Photoshop Christians

Matthew 23:27
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

From swimsuit models to hamburgers on a commercial, everything is airbrushed and photoshopped. It reminds me of the late 80's and early 90's when everyone was getting "Glamour Shots". This was a glorified photoshoot where you could put a monkey in a dress or Tshirt and it would look fabulous, well almost.

The fact of the matter is it will still be a monkey in a dress or blue jeans and Tshirt. There wouldn't be any change in what you're taking photos of, just how your looking at it.

I can remember a story of my grandad that might can help. We were building a bank in Morris years ago and PawPaw was the cut man. His job was to stand at the saw and cut boards to the measurements we would call out. My dad called out a measurement and PawPaw cut it. He put the measuring tape back on it before handing it to my dad and just shook his head. He then took it back to the saw and cut it again. While he walked over with the board he measured it one more time. Again he shook his head and then he looked at my dad and said, "Son, I've cut this board twice and it's still too short." He was being serious. It could have been the heat of that summer sun, but he was confused because of the way he was looking at things. No matter how you look at it, that board will always be too short no matter how many times you cut it.

A pig will still be a pig, even if you bath it in buttermilk and take it to the fair. A monkey is a monkey and dead men's bones are dead men's bones. You can dress up the tombs but inside of every grave is death and decay. There is no changing it. You can take a picture of a woman and airbrush away every wrinkle and freckle. Make things bigger in places and smaller in others, change the lighting and the clothing but underneath all of that stuff is the same woman. You can take a picture of a man and give him muscles and Photoshop everything about him, but underneath it's still the same man.

We should ask Christ to change the inside first! Then allow what Jesus has done on the inside to reflect on the outside. Zuckerman might have had a famous pig, washed in the finest buttermilk, but it was still just old Wilber the pig. Pray that God will continue to make you different.

It's a Bird. It's a Plane. No it's a Christian!

Galatians 6:15
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.

In the early church days there was a competition between the circumcision and uncircumcision believers. The circumcised Jews were claiming to have a better walk with God because of the keeping of the law. While the uncircumcised Gentiles were standing in God's grace and mercy. Both seemed to go to the extreme of placing themselves into a greater position with God, when the truth of it all was that we all stand level at the foot of the cross.

God tells us that circumcision or uncircumcision doesn't make you a believer. Having this done or not is not the issue of being a believer. It is being a new creature. A new creation in Christ Jesus. Having old things pass away in your life and becoming new. Being different because of what Jesus has done in your life and true repentance taking place. A spiritual circumcision of the heart more so than the flesh.

Christianity is based on being different! You go from being lost to being saved, that is different. You go from blind to seeing, that is different. You go from wretched to born again, that is different. You move from sin to sanctification, that is different. Being different has nothing to do with being better than others. It's not how you are to others but the difference that is seen is before God. Changed! I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see.

A problem among professing Christians today is that they declare they are different but in actions they aren't. Some still talk the same, live the same, sleep around the same, use alcohol/drugs the same, still act the same, still gossip the same... and wonder why they aren't making a difference in the lives of others with the Gospel. It's because you can't make a difference until you are different. Let me say that again, YOU CAN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE UNTIL YOU ARE DIFFERENT. You can tell me that you are Superman all day long, but until I see you flying through the sky with a cap flapping behind you... it makes no difference to me. You'll still just be Clark Kent with glasses and a suitcase. Some of us need to find a phone booth, or better yet, an altar. Be different. Be like Jesus.