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Today

THOUGHTS

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. – Colossians 3:1‭-‬17 ESV

WORDS

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. – James 1:19‭-‬21 ESV

ACTIONS

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. – James 1:22‭-‬25 ESV

HOW?

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”  Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”  Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?  Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,  that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.  And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.  For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.  But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” – John 3:1‭-‬21 ESV

The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price. – Revelation 22:17 ESV

As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it. For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation. We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry. In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food. We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love. We faithfully preach the truth. God’s power is working in us. We use the weapons of righteousness in the right hand for attack and the left hand for defense. We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us. We are honest, but they call us impostors. We are ignored, even though we are well known. We live close to death, but we are still alive. We have been beaten, but we have not been killed. Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything. Oh, dear Corinthian friends! We have spoken honestly with you, and our hearts are open to you. There is no lack of love on our part, but you have withheld your love from us. I am asking you to respond as if you were my own children. Open your hearts to us! Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil ? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever? And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord . Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you. And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty. ” – 2 Corinthians 6:1‭-‬18 NLY

Buckle up, precious cargo

Buckle up! You are “Precious Cargo”!

Mia wanted to be sure that Pooky and Rudolph were safe in the car.

Are you safe and ready to step out into the world today? Have you put on the full armor of God to protect you from the schemes of your enemies?
He put on righteousness as his body armor and placed the helmet of salvation on his head. He clothed himself with a robe of vengeance and wrapped himself in a cloak of divine passion. He will repay his enemies for their evil deeds. His fury will fall on his foes. He will pay them back even to the ends of the earth. In the west, people will respect the name of the Lord ; in the east, they will glorify him. For he will come like a raging flood tide driven by the breath of the Lord . “The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem to buy back those in Israel who have turned from their sins,” says the Lord . “And this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord . “My Spirit will not leave them, and neither will these words I have given you. They will be on your lips and on the lips of your children and your children’s children forever. I, the Lord , have spoken!

Isaiah 59:17‭-‬21
A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.  I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

Ephesians 6:10‭-‬20 NLT

When Passion runs High, Pride is at Work

We are on vacation at the beach this week, and I’ve been taking pictures — both of our family, and of the sights and people around us. So my eyes have been open to pay attention and see more than I would usually recognize. One thing that I’ve noticed is that it seems like long periods of time together seems to multiply the impact of emotions. As friends begin spending every waking hour together for day after day, passions can run high. Families can enjoy and appreciate time together until the breaking point when everyone just wants their own corner of the house to hide in.

 

As I was taking pictures today, I caught a picture of two girls riding on the back of a golf cart. They were apparently friends (not sisters), but they had turned away from each other and slid as far from each other as they could. I’m guessing they had a disagreement and were each pouting and mad with one another. Out here this week, I’ve seen the same thing between adults — between families — between spouses. And I don’t think that it’s any different than what happens at home, but it might be a little bit heightened because of the concentrated amount of time together.

 

Let’s be honest. Without love, we would be ready to kill each other. We can get on each other’s nerves. We can lose our patience. We can become offended over silly things that really shouldn’t compromise our relationships. But all of that comes down to pride, right? At some point, our true colors shine through once we’ve been tested to our limits. And in most cases, when the “being nice” wears off, we’re faced with whether or not we will just turn to the person and say “I’m sorry.”

 

Yesterday, we were tired and ready to head home from the pool, but someone had left their golf cart parked sideways behind ours and two others, blocking us all in. We were all parked legally in spaces, and this cart had just decided to do as they pleased with no concern for our being able to get out. We looked around for signs of anyone around to no avail. We even helped one of the carts on the side navigate their way barely past the edge of the offending cart. A security guard on his cart even saw what was happening from a short distance away and gave us no help.

 

So eventually, we got tired of waiting, and I walked over to the offending cart, pressed the gas pedal on it to release the brake, and began pushing the cart by hand out of the way. At that moment, I hear a “Stop! What do you think that you’re doing?” from behind me. I turn around to see a woman security guard walking over with a stern look, telling me “You can’t do that, don’t you know that’s a security cart?” To which I replied, “No, there are no markings on it, and no one is here at it, and it has been blocking our way.” She continued to try and tell me that what I was doing was wrong. To which I said, “Look, you have no right to be telling me about right and wrong when you’ve left this cart abandoned, illegally parked, and left multiple families blocked in with no other option than to do something about it since your buddy over there saw the whole situation playing out and didn’t lend a hand or tell us what was going on. Please move so we can get out.”

 

I was not very loving in my response because I was tired, frustrated, and ready to get home. I was not trying to be rude or disrespectful, but I felt justified in my pointing out that she was actually the one in the wrong and that I was just trying to deal with the situation she had left for me by her inconsiderate actions. But it completely passed over her head and she seemed as if she could care less, moving her cart over to join the other security guard she had been talking with (who had been watching the whole time). I drove up, and I asked her for her name. “Jill”, she said. At first, I was thinking of asking so that I could make a complaint. I can be honest enough to admit that.

 

But this morning, I’m going to pray for “Jill”, and I’m going to pray for myself — that I will be able to show a little more love. My daughter was witness to me standing up for what was right — but she did not see an example of what would have been the most loving way to handle the situation. Lord, help me, even in these times where my patience is stretched thin to rely upon your strength, to call out upon your name, and to trust you. Help me to leave room for your wrath, your correction, your guidance — and for your kindness to lead others to you. Help me to find points of agreement instead of falling into division and offense. Help me to die to self, and see even challenges when I feel wronged as an opportunity to remember that you truly were wronged, persecuted, mocked, and falsely accused – so that I might offer to others the same measure of forgiveness that I hope to receive myself.

 

“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

The proud insist on “finishing strong”, but only the humble will “endure to the end”

I left the starting gates sprinting, 

thinking that I was going to finish strong. 

Now I see that this is a marathon, 

and that only by the grace of God, 

and by the power of Christ who lives in me, 

am I assured that I will endure to the end. 
Not by evidences of past victories or defeats – 

but only by that true, saving faith 

that has put all trust in God 

and that has turned me away from my sin 

to fall deeply into the arms 

of a righteous, holy, and perfect God 

whose very presence would destroy me 

if it weren’t for the Blood of the Lamb.
#MoreThanConquerors
Therefore, the proud may not stand in your presence, for you hate all who do evil. – Psalms 5:5 NLT

Devoted to doing good

Remind the believers to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good. They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarreling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. But— When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.  He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone. – Titus 3:1‭-‬8 NLT
But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance. You know how much persecution and suffering I have endured. You know all about how I was persecuted in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra—but the Lord rescued me from all of it. Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil people and impostors will flourish. They will deceive others and will themselves be deceived. But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. – 2 Timothy 3:10‭-‬17 NLT

Rebellious Children

I realized last night while speaking with some undisciplined children that were showing no respect towards others —
That for some, if I stepped in and took the punishment for them, they would just smile bigger because they got away with it – and they would laugh harder with their friends because they got to watch someone else suffer. It would all seem so foolish to them. It would encourage them to grow even faster in the direction their hearts were already taking them. 
Then I remembered that is exactly what I myself do each time that I choose to trade obedience and submission to God’s will to chase another temptation or worldly/ fleshly desire. But the gospel has a very different effect than encouraging sin when a heart that is no longer hardened is in place. That old, rotten fruit if rebellion is pruned and we are given a new heart – We are grafted into a new vine that produces something quite different in our lives. There is an appreciation, a grateful response that comes from the undeserved gift. 
The Word of God is divisive. Those who resist it become harder and more distant and removed from God – and those who resist evil by faith are regenerated and are drawn closer to God – And the proud are destroyed and the humble are kept. 
Almighty God in Heaven,

Our father who rules on high, 

Forgive us our sins, 

And help us to forgive others, 

And to make amends with both

Those who we have wronged

And those who have wronged us. 

Teach us to walk in your ways, 

And to extend mercy and love –

Especially towards those who are seeking you, 

But even towards those who do not yet believe. 

Because one day every head will bow,

Every knee will bend, all men will fear, 

they will declare the work of God, 

And will consider what He has done.

Every tongue will confess that, 

“Jesus Christ is Lord.”

Help us to not forget

The price at which we were bought,

Let us not forget the precious

Blood of the Lamb.

Let us not be deceived and double minded, 

Making ourselves a friend of the world

And thereby an enemy of God.

But remember your people, 

A hard headed and rebellious people

But a people who are humbled and broken by your Good News.

Remember your people,

Who by the guidance and teaching and leading

By your Holy Spirit can walk in the Way, the Truth, and the Life,

Set before us and proclaimed to us,

“Come and follow me.”

Thus says the Lord, so we follow.

Let our many failings 

not be a stumbling block to others, 

but an example and a warning,

And even a testimony as you overcome

Because yippy are greater. 

May we become less and less

So that your glory might shine

Even in these clay vessels

You have breathed life into. 

Thank you, Lord.

We praise your holy, righteous, mighty, and wonderful name, that name above all names, as we have been taught to pay in the name of our Savior, Lord, teacher, and friend, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Trust

As a face is reflected in water, so the heart reflects the real person. – Proverbs 27:19 NLT
This is what the Lord says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the Lord . They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land. “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord , search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” – Jeremiah 17:5‭-‬10 NLT

Grown Folks

Good luck finding them “grown folks”. 

I got so much growing left to do,  

He gonna have to keep me alive after this body is gone to bring me to perfection. 
But I ain’t shrinking back,  

and I ain’t dead, 

so Imma try not to 

act a fool while I’m still getting fed. 
But I hear whatcha saying. 

Too many saying,  

“I’m just keeping it real” 

When they just keeping it 

real trashy, wicked and sick. 

But real knows real, 

and nothing more real 

than Jesus Christ on the cross 

for all us wretched sinners. 
Not so we could still pretend 

to be in chains by that accuser – 

But so we could live free indeed,  

set apart and walking in the Holy Spirit,  

not stumbling around laughing 

on some Crown Royal spirits. 
And I ain’t gaming, 

so don’t think you know my angle, player. 

I’m just praising, 

cause them my angels, player. 

They all camped around me, 

like we at the KOA, baby. 

But they ain’t playin, 

cause He’s coming back, 

not as a baby, baby.

They preparing that winepress, 

they gonna beat that chaff,  

they gonna burn away the trash, 

and refine what is precious. 
He calls me precious. 

What does He call You? 

Is your name in the book? 

Better take time to look!
Get off your corner,

Get onto your knees,

Get off your high horse,

Put down the trees.
How will you stand before the Almighty,

Who is righteous and pure,

He is Holy and mighty,

What will He have for you?
You think I’m foolish? 

You can’t believe it’s true? 

You’d rather have treasure now?

Than step out in faith too?
Just please hear me now,

Because what I say is true,

You’ve been sold a lie, 

Your Jordan’s stuck in it like glue.
Turn away from the world, 

Turn back to that one Good Father,

I know one already let you down,

But this here is another. 
He knows you by your name, 

Knows the hairs on your head, 

He will not forsake or leave you,

Even after you are dead. 
Can you hear his still, quiet voice?

It blows like the wind. 

It isn’t shame or guilt but REJOICE!

It signals the end!
You are no more a captive,

No more numbers and orange,

He’s here to set you free…
He is calling you closer, friend. 

Don’t put Him up on the shelf until you need Him again, like some genie that you think you can master. No, surrender, yield, and submit your life to the life giver. Amen.

“Last Game”

There’s a little pool room that I grew up shooting pool in called “Reds Bar & Grill” in Spartanburg, SC. It’s always seemed to be much more of a pool hall than a bar to me because it is always had a young crowd. It is still only 25 cents per game,  and you’ll regularly find local kids gambling for a dollar a game, five a game, etc. I never was the best technically, but I knew how to manage the game of nine ball to my advantage, how to match up,  and how to “appear lucky instead of good” and “lose enough” to be able to keep winning overall. I know,  I know. Some will say that I’m glorifying gambling. No, I’m just being honest about what part this place has played in my life.
I really don’t go to Red’s that often anymore, but occasionally I drop in and shoot for a few hours. For decades, when I walked in, there was always someone inviting me in on “the action”. There was always someone who knew me and knew that I was a gambler who wasn’t afraid to bet on “fair odds”, wasn’t afraid to lose, wouldn’t quit just because he was down, and (most importantly to them) always was “good for it” if I lost. And I had even worked as a bartender there for a short while when a friend was part owner/operator in the business. So you could say that this was my “Cheers” where “everybody knows your name” at one point in my life. 
But tonight, there wasn’t a single face or name that I recognized. In fact, one of the “loud hustlers” gambling at the table beside me kept mentioning the name “Scottie Moore” as he talked about an “older guy from around here that you don’t want to mess with” and it was everything that I could do not to correct him on the name and tell him that professional player “Stevie Moore” indeed shot pool at Red’s  (and at Shooters back in the day) and that for a while he even made it back to Red’s regularly for some of the holiday gatherings that Red would put on each year. I didn’t mention all of the old names like “Mamie”, “Slim”, “John Jones”, “Brian White”, and so many others who spent so much time shooting pool around Spartanburg that the places like Reds were like a second home and a second family. You see, all of that seemed to have passed away with time and it was like a cloud of hot, stale smoke that used to linger — but was now replaced by cool, filtered and air conditioned newness. 
At the end of the night,  they still called “Last Game” over the speaker – but I think the last game had already been called some years ago on the Reds that I remember. Red wasn’t there himself reminding everyone, “It’s a dollar to play on the floor” if a ball jumped off the table. There wasn’t the old, familiar limited set of honky tonk country songs on the jukebox, but it was a mix of every genre imaginable. So much was different. An Era seemed to have passed by, but it still exists, and a new generation seemed to be there making their own new types of memories. 
It’s interesting to me how we never seem to notice these shifts, these changes in the seasons of our lives until the change is complete and we are noticing what is now drastically different. I mean, we should know that for just about everything in this life,  “Last Game” has been called and we are just whirling our way towards the end.  I mean, we aren’t even promised tomorrow,  and some won’t even make it until tomorrow. Some families will be preparing tomorrow for funerals that were unexpected today. Some young ladies will be showing a pregnancy test result to a surprised young man tomorrow. Some nurses will be handing a new bundle of joy to new parents, while some doctors will be handing over upsetting news to families with, hard decisions to make about their loved ones. 
Do we want to make it through our “Last Game” unaware and ignorant that change is coming? Or would it help us to understand the value of our time?  Wouldn’t it be profitable for us to invest this “last game” in a purpose and calling worthy of our dedicated effort and time? 
I used to be a gambler. If I was behind,  I knew that “last game” was a chance to “double or nothing” if I was behind for one last chance to “get back to even” if they would go for it,  but sometimes it was too late for that ploy to work. 
But now,  I’ve already been guaranteed the victory in Christ Jesus. He has finished my salvation at the cross. I don’t have to earn it by living a different way,  but instead, I get to make the most of this “last game” in living a purpose driven life sharing the Good News, living out my life as a living testimony of walking in the Spirit not in the flesh and trusting Him and giving God all the glory. 
Yes, that is a bit of a shift from that old life of the gambler – but the “last game” was called on him 2000 years ago at the cross, and confirmed by the empty tomb. The old has passed away and the new is come. My life is being reconciled to Christ grace by grace, faith by faith, day by day, moment by moment, breath by breath.
He has called “last game” over your life as well. Your body has a born on date and an expiration date. But more importantly,  I must ask if you are born again? Are you alive spiritually? Do you have that upward calling upon your life that extends beyond the bounds of this early realm?
The answer is between you and Him. I’m not trying to get you to “join my whatever” — no, I’m just asking you,  “Are you right with God?” And if you know that you aren’t,  I’m telling you that He is available and you shouldn’t delay even until the morning. Speak with Him. Clear the air about those areas where you know you have fallen short. Ask for forgiveness and for His strength to see your repentance be effective and fruitful in leading you in a new way. He is faithful to forgive and it is His will for sin and death to be overcome in your life. It is a process,  and, He will see you through it,  if you will walk with Him. 
May the LORD bless you and keep you.