Hope in Christ

Sometimes life seems to throw more at us than we think we can handle.  We are met with bills, health issues, car problems, relational struggles, etc.  Globally, we have witnessed people who have lost their homes and loved ones due to various tragedies such as plane crashes, earthquakes, tsunamis, and the like.  We have gone through these moments of loss and of struggle continuing in prayer and accountability with other Christians, yet in the quiet stillness of our alone time, we feel we have lost all our strength.  We have been faithful to God and can see a light at the end of the tunnel, but just aren't sure that we have the strength for the last leg of the journey.  To all of those in this place, individually and corporately, God offers us a promise of hope: Revelation 3:7-13 "To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. ⁸ I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. ⁹ I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars-- I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. ¹⁰ Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. ¹¹ I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. ¹² Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. ¹³ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Today's Prayer:
Holy God, you are our hope and our strength.  We give thanks that you have recognized our faithfulness and that you have been our shepherd in our times of need.  God we recognize that you are faithful and give thanks for all the ways you fulfill your promises in our lives.  Help us this day to rely completely on your strength.  Help us to see that you are our all in all and that you will guide us at last to the door you have opened for us.  Amen.

Alive in Christ

I was reading a Bible study once that Bill Hybels and John Ortberg had co-written while they were both at Willow Creek.  There was a story there about a woman who was always at the church everytime the doors were open.  She was on many a committee and team and always seemed to be doing things for God.  Yet the text said that in all of her busy-ness with the work of God, she completely missed the fullness of the presence of God.  I took this to mean that while she appeared to be alive on the outside, she was missing the life giving presence of God on the inside.  Simply put, she was dead even though she appeared to be alive.  We have heard that we shouldn't judge books by their covers because the inside may not always match the outside.  I know that there have been times in my life that this is true for me.  Times where I have put on a smile even though I was breaking on the inside.  Times where I have showed up to do some church activity, something that was completely honoring to God, but my heart wasn't in it.  I may have appearted alive on the outside, but my insides didn't match.

Revelation 3:1-6 "To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. ² Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. ³ Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. ⁴ Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. ⁶ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Today's Prayer:
Holy God, we want our insides and our outsides to match; both individually and corporately as a church body.  Help us to see where we have put on masks and facades.  Help us to remove those false images of who we are, and allow us to more fully live in our created image - in the image of you.  God, where there are dead spots in our lives and in our faith, renew them with the eternal life that you have promised us and that you are always faithful to give.  Amen.

Discerning Truthful Teaching

I have been blessed in my faith journey to have some really amazing mentors and teachers.  They are fully devoted followers of Christ both in word and in deed.  I give thanks for their influence and all the ways they have invested in my life and ministry.  Over the years, we have had many conversations about discernment; especially when it came to discerning the doctrines of those who teach about Christ and the church.  One of the more challenging things in my minstry has been learning to prayerfully discern sound teaching in other leaders and understanding how to redirect or remove those leaders that are not in line with God's teachings.  I still don't have a perfect answer on how to do the later; but have learned along the way that if the teacher's gifts are discerned and developed before launching them into a teaching ministry, things tend to be a lot less messy.  I say all of this to say that when we don't practice prayerful discernment and hold our leaders to accountability, we may fall into a trap that an early church fell into when they let a false prophetess influence the children of God.

Revelation 2:18-29 "To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. ¹⁹ I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first. ²⁰ Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. ²¹ I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. ²² So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. ²³ I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds. ²⁴ Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan's so-called deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you): ²⁵ Only hold on to what you have until I come. ²⁶ To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations-- ²⁷ 'He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery'--just as I have received authority from my Father. ²⁸ I will also give him the morning star. ²⁹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Today's Prayer:
Gracious God, help us all to teach in accordance with your holy scriptures.  If there is any error in us, help us to more fully understand that we may more fully share your truth with others.  Help us to follow those whom you've gifted with teaching of your doctrines.  Help us to be able to discern and know those whom are not called by you to teach us.  Help us to be your hands and feet in those instances to correct where we need to correct, admonish when we need to admonish, and avoid when we need to avoid.  Let us be ever mindful of all of our teachers of your word, that we may uphold them in prayer daily.  Amen.

The Fullness of God's teachings

Sometimes it is a challenge to live fully into the teachings of God.  We want to lean into other teachings as superior over the word of God.  When we do this, we end up living two lives simultaneously.  We disrespect our parents because we think we have the right because they are bad at parenting.  We completely ignore our call to honor our mothers and fathers.  Or we read the words of God regarding gossip but still gather around the water cooler on Monday mornings to rehash the weekend's mishaps involving our friends with our coworkers.  We may be faithful in all other ways - serving the needs of the poor, visiting the sick and imprisoned, etc. - but we find that we struggle in an area or two relating to the other teachings of God. Revelation 2:12-17 "To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. ¹³ I know where you live-- where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city-- where Satan lives. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. ¹⁵ Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. ¹⁶ Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. ¹⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

Today's Prayer:
Holy God, meet us today in our imperfections.  Grant that we may experience the fullness of your joy in the areas of our lives that we have grounded in you.  Help us to see where we have not followed all of your teachings.  Grant us the grace to grow more fully in your image as we allow those other teachings to more fully permeate our lives.  Transform us from the inside out until we are fully devoted followers of yours; faithful in all the ways we follow your teachings.  Amen.

Enduring Suffering and Persecution

I understand that life in the 21st century and in the western part of the world is not always like life in the 1st century.  Many technological advances and changes have happened over the years.  While Christians are being martyred in other parts of the world, many who read these words will not know the level of persecution of other Christians around the globe.  But I also understand that there is a price to pay for our faith no matter where we live.  I have watched people walk away from life long friendships simply because their friend became a Christian and began to believe differently.  I have witnessed folks endure ridicule and verbal abuse because of their faith.  I have even seen people denied access to some places because of their Christian belief.  Unfortunately, I have also seen families abandon relatives once they began a life with Jesus.  While our persecutions may happen at different places along a spectrum, it seems to be true that if we decide to follow Christ, we will undoubtedly experience suffering or persecution of some sort. Revelation 2:8-11 "To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. ⁹ I know your afflictions and your poverty-- yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. ¹⁰ Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.

Today's Prayer:
Gracious God, help us to see that you are our rock and our refuge.  Help us to experience your strength, your grace and your peace, no matter what we must endure in terms of persecution and suffering.  For our brothers and sisters around the globe that experience much more persecution than we do, help us to be ever mindful and to lift them up regularly in prayer.  Open our eyes and our ears and our hearts that we may be in tune with you in all of our journeys with you.  Help us to discern when and how we might be your hands and feet with those enduring persecution of all kinds.  Amen.

Our First Love

Like a gift from Christmas past, sometimes our faith and our faithfulness can lose its luster.  We can get so wrapped up in the projects of the new year - the things we need to get done at work or want to get done around the house - that we can completely lose sight of God.  We have can have great histories and traditions of faithfulness, but sometimes other things can take the top priority in our lives over our relationship with God. Revelation 2:1-7 "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: ² I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³ You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. ⁴ Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. ⁵ Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶ But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

Today's Prayer:
Holy God, help us to remember to do the things that we did early in our journey of faith.  Help us to persevere and to do the things you have called us to do.  Help us to continue to stay strong in our faith by abiding in you.  Guide us with your Holy Spirit to lean more fully into you that we may recognize you are our first love.  We long to be in your presence and by your grace we can be restored in the fullness of our relationship with you.  Amen. 

All Things New

As we recover from the holidays and begin to ready ourselves for our return to work and school, many are making New Year's resolutions. Personally, I am not a big fan of resolutions.  Each year there is a plethora of articles on how long we are actually capable of keeping our resolutions...the statistics are not in our favor.  We simply struggle to get things done in our own power; especially when those things revolve around our deepest struggles.  I am reminded in times like these, that there is a power that is greater than us, whose face is Jesus, that can not only restore us to sanity, but can also transform us from weakness to strength, sinfulness to righteousness, and feeling worthless to treasured in the Kingdom of God.

Colossians 3:9-17 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. ¹¹ Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. ¹² Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. ¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Today's Prayer:
Holy God, help us to remember that we are not who we once were.  Help us to see that we are already and continuously being renewed in your image.  Help us in this new year to lean more fully into you, that we may know the fullness of our salvation and that our transformation and joy may be complete in you.  Amen.