I Was Thinking The Same Thing

Philippians 2:5

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

One of the greatest things that I love about being married is the similarities in our thoughts. Someone could be speaking and my wife and I can look at each other with the same facial expressions and know what the other is thinking. It could be a raised eyebrow or a smirky smile and we know exactly what the other one would say. At times we could be driving down the road and begin to speak the exact same words. Some of you would call this a coincident but it happens all to frequent. 

This has not always been the case. But the more time we spend together, the more often we think alike. We have been married now for eighteen years. We have two children that are teenagers. We've spent a lot of time together! Whether it be fishing, church, playing ball, coaching our children or singing together, we've been together a lot. I can only imagine what our thought process and similarities will be like when we've gotten thirty to forty years into our marriage. 

Over and over in scripture our relationship with Christ is presented as a marriage. The more time we spend with Jesus, the more we should think and sound alike. Our hearts and minds should be connected. The only way this could happen is to spend more time with Jesus. When we go fishing, take Jesus with us. When we play ball, take Jesus with us. When we sing, invite Jesus into the worship. Before long, you'll be sounding just like your other half. Your judgment of things will be similar. Your love for people will be the same. Your walk will be in the same steps as His. 

Let His mind be yours today and everyday. Wouldn't it be great if someone approached you today and said, "You remind me so much of Jesus". WOW! 

Sing It With Me!

James 5:13

Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

When our boys were very young I can remember them being in their rooms all alone and playing. My wife and I would be sitting in the living room reading or relaxing and we could hear them playing in their rooms with their toys. Some of my greatest memories is of them being alone and no one paying attention to their playing. They would sing so loud and would just be having the time of their lives. We would sneak in the hallway and listen. I even remember them doing this when they couldn't even talk right and the words of their made up songs would be so crazy. But yet they just kept on singing. Still today we will sit and listen to them as they play throughout the house. Whistling seems to be the number one thing to do around here!  

I love how God's word shows us that things can change so quickly. One moment we could be singing and the next we could be praying over our sickness. Or one moment we could be sick and the next we could be singing. So if life is moment to moment and filled with ups and downs, then we must sing while we can. 

Remember the old song... If you're happy and you know it...clap your hands!  See, if we are happy (merry) then we should show it. If you're excited about Jesus and what He has done for you then show it.  If your happy with what The Lord has blessed you with then show it. Sing, sing, sing! 

A Call to Prayer

1 Thessalonians 5:25
Brethren, pray for us.

Simple! That's what I love about God's Word. It is simple, direct and straight. This is not a question of if we should pray for one another. No, it is a command. It is a statement of what we should be doing. Pray! I love an old song that says..

Brethren, we have met to worship, and adore the Lord our God;
Will you pray with all your power, while we try to preach the word?
All is vain, unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down;
Brethren, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around.

Church, pray. We need to stop aiming our talks toward government or holding prayer meetings with juicy gossip request and get serious in prayer with the Almighty God that we serve. We need to fall upon our faces about the spiritual condition of our churches instead of the bunions on our feet. Get rid of the cold and careless prayers for money and prosperity and turn up the heat until it is a fervent, boiling over prayer for the lost souls around us. Brethren...pray! Sisters...pray! Children...pray! Church...PRAY!!!

Brethren, see poor sinners round you, slumbering on the brink of woe;
Death is coming, hell is moving; Can you bear to let them go?
See our fathers and our mothers, and our children sinking down;
Brethren, pray, and holy manna will be showered all around.

What Are You Waiting For?

John 5:2-3
Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.

God's Word tells us that this certain man laid here waiting for the moving of the water. Year after year he would wait for the stirring of the water. Every single time someone would beat him into the water and it would leave him to wait on one more year. All of that changed when Jesus passed by. Once this man met Jesus he didn't wait for the stirring of the water anymore.

So let me ask you this... What are you waiting for? Are you waiting for the "right time"? Are you searching for the "right service" that just feels good before you get come to Christ? Christian, are you waiting on a series of meetings before you experience revival? Are you storing up all of your righteousness, prayers, seeking of God for a specific time? What are you waiting for?

Can I tell you something? Stop waiting! He wants to heal you now! He wants to save you now! He wants to give you revival now! He wants to move in your life, that's right you guessed it, now! Now! Now! Now! No more waiting call on Him now!

One Big Happy Baby!

Luke 10:21
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.

Have you seen the some of the videos on the Internet of these beautiful babies laughing? Why is it that we could be in the middle of the worst day ever but see this and smile or even laugh aloud with them? It must be something about the innocence or purity of their laugh. The smile of a baby can drive out the darkest of depression. It's just amazing.

This morning I am rejoicing along with Jesus. The scripture tells us that Jesus rejoiced in the spirit. I wish I could have been there to see my Savior smile and rejoice. To hear Him laugh from the belly. You know what I'm talking about? Someone who rejoices does it with every ounce of energy. I would have loved to see Jesus rejoicing.

But something greater than that causes me to rejoice this morning. It's the reason that Jesus rejoiced. He said that His Father didn't reveal Himself to the wise and prudent, but unto babes. It wasn't that God didn't reveal Himself to those who were learned and educated, it was that they couldn't see Him because of their self-righteous wisdom. But the babes, they saw Him. We saw Him! We see Him!

Most babies at Christmas will play with the wrapping paper and boxes more that the toy. You see those wise and prudent men looked for someone wrapped in gold and who would be carrying a sceptre. But I rejoice today because my Savior was wrapped in a sinful, shameful robe carrying a cross! They looked for someone to tell them a way out, but Jesus showed me the way up! I feel like One Big Happy Baby!

Clay Jars

2 Corinthians 4:6-7
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

What a privilege! What an honor! God, who is greater than the greatest. God, who is higher than the highest. He has chosen to shine the light of the glorious gospel into our hearts. He has chosen to speak His words of life into our sinful lives. He has chosen to place His glorious Gospel light in us. Did you hear that? God has put His prized possession of the Gospel inside of us.

Who are we? Who are we that God would think of us? Much more than that, who are we that we could house this glorious light? We are an earthen, fragile, clay vessel. I understand that we keep gold bars in Fort Knox. I understand that we keep our valuables locked up in a safe where thieves cannot steal them. But I sometimes struggle with the understanding of God putting a valuable treasure such as the Gospel inside of clay jars. Not to mention weak, clay jars.

But then we see it... "The excellency of the power may be of God, and not us." God's Gospel will never be about us. The treasure isn't a treasure because of what it is kept it. It's a treasure because of the value of the treasure itself.

God, thank you for placing your glorious light in me. I am so humbled that you would allow me to carry the Gospel light. Help me to reach others every day. May they find in an old clay vessel the treasure of Your Son, Jesus Christ.

Dancing in the Rain

Psalms 16:11
Thou wilt shew me the path of life:
in thy presence is fulness of joy;
at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

What would it be like to be in the very presence of God? Have you ever given thought to this? I have most everyday of my life. It seems that my prayer every morning is to be in the presence of God. I long so much to feel the Lord in every area of my life. My prayer many times is... "Lord I want to be so close to you today that I can feel your breath upon my neck as you speak to me."

If I can be honest with you this morning, not everyday is like this. Some days I wake up and feel as if God is miles and miles away from me. I feel like there is a wall between our communication and sometimes there is, but it's always on my end of the line so I deal with confession. But then there are other days that I believe I have everything confessed. I trust that I am seeking Him and walking after Him and the closeness I desire still seems distant. Then I'm reminded that Paul tells us we must walk by faith and not by sight. On these days I trust that He is there even though I may not feel Him through emotions of certain ways that I have in the past days. I still just trust He is there.

Do you understand what I'm saying this morning? Some days I want the sunshine and all I get is rain, but that doesn't take away from God still being God or my desire to be in His presence. When my days are cloudy I try my best to ask God for His presence to be strong in my life. Then through His Word He gives me the strength that I need.

Our scripture this morning says there is joy in the presence of the Lord. God said He would never leave us nor forsake us. He would be there to see us through. When Jesus ascended to Heaven He gave us the Holy Spirit so we would never be without His presence. This is where my joy comes from.

So if it's raining outside and I can't see the sun, I'll just dance in the rain and know that His presence is with me even when I can't see or feel Him. That's faith!