Savoring the Victory

Savoring the Victory...






As I awoke this morning, I felt an extra hop in my step. Yes, the weather has changed here in Florida, a brisk 65 degree morning, but that was not it. You see, the New England Patriots put a smack down on the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football, in Miami no less. That will always bring an extra smile, and up beat gait to my day!!  I pondered this victory and my elation over not only winning a crucial AFC East battle, but knowing that my many friends, Dolphin fans, are just a little more sluggish this fine morning as they lick their wounds. Then it hit me, like a ton of bricks...why are you so happy? And not only that, but why does this victory add pep to your life, but another victory is so easily overlooked?

I know right! God was throwing me a curve ball on my celebratory morning!! Unfortunately, He was right. I have never really jumped out of bed, with an extra dose of energy, and riding a victorious high when it comes the the eternal victory won for me by Jesus. Not sure what I mean. Well just a couple of years back, I felt the silly sting of watching this same Patriot team lose a Super Bowl that would of capped off a 19-0 season, ending the 72' Dolphins claim to fame. It felt like I had died. How pathetic. You see, in truth, we have all felt that sting, but not over a silly game, but over life. It has such greater implications, and is so powerful, people do not even realize they are suffering it. It is the sting called "Death." Not a physical death, however, but a spiritual one. You see, we as human beings were losing the biggest game of all, the game of life. We were dead, forever separated from a God who so dearly loves us. Lost in our own desires, we were losing big time!

But then, as it is written in 1 Corinthians 15:56-57 "The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the VICTORY through our Lord Jesus Christ."

You see, Jesus, died for you and me. He took on our consequence and conquered death, so that we can have VICTORY for all eternity. This is incredible news. Without Jesus, our team would be really bad, so bad that we would be eternal losers. But He gave us this victory.

Are you celebrating that victory today? Do you wake up with an extra hop in your step because our guy, Jesus, the ultimate Quarterback/Coach/GM/President...and Lord, is on our team? Or maybe we are on His team...if not, what are you waiting for. It is better than anything you have ever dreamed of.

How Do You Measure Up?

How Do You Measure up?


So often in this life we are judged on our abilities to achieve greatness, on pushing our skills to their max to be the best, dominating the competition, and crushing those who are inferior to us. Now please do not mistake that opener as an opposition to healthy competition. I am not only for it, it is essential in this life that we live!! However, I am referring to the countless people wandering this earth who feel as though they can never measure up, or who may in fact have fallen short of expectations of others in their life. These thoughts can become debilitating and hinder ones ability to discover what God may will in their lives. God's ways are not the worlds ways, and God's standards of success are not the world's standards of success. He plays by a different set of rules. His rules. And He wants to use you this day for His good and pleasing will to be done. So do you think you are worthy of such a calling? If your answer is NO WAY, then think again...


Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."  1 Corinthians 2:26-31


You see, God wants to use you, at your worst, not measuring up to what the world sees as potential, to work for Him. Why? Because it is through those who may not measure up, that He achieves what He seeks most, HIS GLORY!!! I am sure there were much more qualified people to free the Israelites from Egypt, than Moses. Or much stronger, courageous men than a child, David, to face Goliath. And I am sure that there were much more educated and qualified people in which He could have built His church, instead of fishermen and a tax collector! But He chose these individuals so that they would bring Him glory, and they would boast on His power fulfilling them. He chose them because they would seek Him for their ability to accomplish that which He asks.


So, this day, if you are wondering if you will ever amount to much in this life, or why God would ever choose you, think again! You are looked upon by the most loving eyes imaginable, and seen with such potential, chosen, qualified, and redeemed to do the will of God. So if you belong to Him today, stop trying to measure up to a fallen world, and seek God's will for your life, be on the ready for what He is going to do, and then boast about Him to all the world!!


If you do not yet belong to Him, He is waiting, He has chosen you too, qualified you, desires to know you, and to reconnect you to Him through His son who died for you...all you have to do is seek Him!

Are you on a Mission?

Sound's Simple Enough


As I begin to work on this weeks sermon, I am stumped. I am stumped because of the scripture God has placed in front of my eyes. It is found in Philippians 2:14-15...Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe...

As Paul writes these words, I sit grumpy, and in a place of frustration and despair. It is exactly where the enemy of God would like me to stay! Why? The obvious reason is because if I remain in this grumpy place, it distracts me from my work, my relationships with my wife and kids, and my co-workers. But there is another issue at play here. That is, it distracts me from my mission on this earth. You see as a Christian I am called to do one very important thing above all else. Make Jesus famous. That is why we are here, first and foremost. When things don't go our way, or things begin to spiral into a frustrated frenzy, Jesus' name is last on our agenda. Our actions and attitudes do anything but make His name the name above all names. The enemy knows this. It is his greatest tool.

The bottom line is this. We have to look back at verse 13 to understand why we fail so miserably in our will. "for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose." Did you catch that? It is God working through you, helping us work out our salvation through His strength and His power. The only question that leaves us with is this. Do you have the power of God residing in you? If you belong to Him then the answer is yes according to Colossians 3:3 "for you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."

As I continue to work through this convicting passage, and as I struggle for my own desires and will to be accomplished on this day, I pray that God will continue to do a work in me, as He chisels away at my self, in order that the world may see His glory shine like stars!!! Would you join me in making this your daily prayer as well?

A Black Eye for Christianity...

What are we doing?

As I read the latest news reports from this small church in Gainesville, and their attempt to thwart the Islamic movement by burning a book, I wonder how we got to this place? There is no question that Christians in general find themselves struggling with a lukewarm attitude about their faith. When we think of how much God truly loves us and what He sacrificed to reconcile us to Him, and then we respond with an indifferent attitude to worshipping Him, it saddens me. But the answer to lukewarmness is not standing on a street corner screaming at young women walking into a clinic, or burning books of other religions. That is not passion, that is lunacy, and it is cowardice. Real courage would be to get down and dirty in people's lives, hear their cries and show them the love that God shows us. To show grace, humility and love to someone teaches them who Jesus is. To scream at them in condemnation, just pushes people further away.

If we truly believe what we read in the Scriptures, I believe Jesus would show up at this rally to burn the Koran and ask, "OK, you who are perfect, who are truly following Me and living according to My will, and are without a need for repentance, light the match!"

You see, there are people in this world who hate us, and want our beliefs and faith to die. That is not new, nor front page news. And there are times where we must take up arms to defend the innocent, and to help maintain the liberties endowed us by our Creator. But it is the power of the Holy Spirit to convict and convert people to an understanding and belief in Jesus Christ. Our job is to make the name of Jesus Christ, the name that is above all names, and show the world what it He is all about!!! There are so many men and women living this day, in the muslim community, following in the example of Paul and the first Christian pioneers, loving and spreading the Gospel to a world that does not understand the concept of Grace. Perhaps we should be returning to the words of God, and truly seeking His direction, and then start living it out!

It is within the constitutional right of this church, to burn the Koran, on Saturday. But that doesn't make it OK. Sometimes, even though we are given liberties to take action, our efforts can cause pain and hardship for others. Please join me in praying for our troops and civilians living in areas where this news will bring violence and possibly death to them, and also prayer for this small church, that they will truly seek God's will in how to best move forward "spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1:8b

New Bedtime routine

The Joys of Parenthood...

Being a parent brings so much joy to our lives, but the joy is magnified when your kids really, truly love Jesus. It reminds me of how much I sometimes forget to stop and really think about my life and if I am truly in love with Jesus too! As I see the joy in my kids heart, it fills my soul with a rejuvenated spirit and desire to give God the kind of love He gives us, a "Crazy Love."

Another Tough Question

We are currently working through the book “Crazy Love” by Francis Chan with our HS boys group and our College group. At the same time we have another group of women in our church also reading this book. Francis Chan does a marvelous job outlining how truly “Crazy” God’s love is for us, and questions if we love God as much as we should, or are we just lukewarm.

Moreover, in the very beginning of the book, a worship leader by the name of Chris Tomlin poses a very difficult question we must answer. In the book of Acts, chapter 11, at the end of verse 26 it says, “The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.” So that means that they were “called” Christians. They did not give themselves this title. Their lifestyle, and everything about them, is why they were named “Christians.”

If someone were to observe your lifestyle, read your facebook posts, myspace page, follow you on twitter, spend a day with you at work or school, or in the moments when you are by yourself, alone, no one around, would they call you a Christian?

I suppose to answer that question we must first decide what a Christian is. It is simply one who follows Christ, right? Well, yes. But what does that mean? Does it mean that you attend church occasionally, or even weekly, Sunday mornings? Attend a bible study sporadically? Have a fish on your car, wear a WWJD bracelet, and try not to swear?

I don’t think that cuts it...It means so much more than any of that!

It means that place God FIRST in your life. That He is the most important thing, and EVERYTHING else is secondary to Him. It means possibly changing who your friends are, and changing the things you do after work, at work or school. It might mean breaking up with someone who is forcing you to do or be something that does not bring God glory. It means placing your own needs and desires aside and seeking first to fulfill the needs of others. It means to serve others, joyfully, even when they do not deserve to be served, ESPECIALLY if they do not deserve to be served!! It means seeking accountability from those in your life whom you love and trust, and following through with that accountability. It means understanding that this life is impossible to live on your own, and you need a Savior to bridge the gap caused by sin, to reconcile you back to the one who formed you, and loved you from the very beginning!

It means understanding who Jesus is, how He lived His life, and following His lead...

I wonder how many of us, if we lived during the formation of Christianity, would be categorized in with the disciples. How many of us would have been called “Christians.” If you are squirming a bit while asking that question, I am too!

Some Tough Questions...

There are so many people wandering this planet searching for their purpose in life. Well, what if our purpose was bigger than ourselves? What if our purpose was bigger than what we do, who we know, how much money we make and what kind of car we drive? The fact is we share one common purpose as created beings: To glorify God. Truly, that is it! We must know God, and then make God known. Make Him famous, His name renown…

Our whole life is centered on this simple truth. Sure we are to use the gifts God has given us, the talents and intellect to make the most out of our opportunities, but it is to be done for His glory. Otherwise, all we gain is worthless. There is that void in our lives that cannot be filled with “stuff.” Once we get this concept nailed down, we experience something much different, Joy!

This takes some self-evaluation though. We need ask ourselves a series of tough questions to better analyze the areas of our lives that do not bring renown to God. A guest speaker at our recent fall retreat posed some tough questions for us to digest. The questions are:

Who ya hangin’ with?

Your relationships speak volumes about your life. Do you realize that? This is the most difficult thing to evaluate because those relationships in our lives that separate us from God are often the relationships we cannot sever. Does your peer group enhance your ability to glorify God? If not, it may be time to change “who ya hangin’ with!”

Who ya talkin’ to?

If you wanted to learn more about the new Droid phone, would you walk into a floral shop for information? Most likely you would go to a cell phone store and speak to someone with the knowledge of cell phones. So where do you turn for advice on life’s issues? Where do turn when you need some hard truth, or have questions about how to apply God’s truth in your life? If you’re talking to the wrong people, (aka friends who do not know God) then what is the point? Find some people in your life, youth pastor, small group leader, family friend who is a Christian, etc. to help you along this journey. So “who ya talkin’ to?”

Who ya servin’?

You can only serve one master. It is made clear in Matthew 6:24 that “no one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” The truth is we cannot serve God and anything else! We will eventually resent God and in some cases hate Him. So “are you servin’ him”? Are you living your life to serve Him in your everyday circumstances? If you are flipping a hamburger or operating on a patient, you are serving Him. In all that you d o, if you do it for His glory, you will impact the world in amazing ways.

Watcha celebratin’?

We get so caught up in what we have accomplished in this world, we forget to give credit to God. It is so refreshing to see a famous individual earn an award of some kind and immediately give credit to the Lord. After all He enables us to accomplish all things through Him. Celebrating God first, does two things. It glorifies His name, and it humbles our hearts. Easier said than done, but essential to our purpose.

And finally, watcha practicin’?

Are you practicing what you feel deep inside? Does your life reflect that of someone desiring to know God more intimately? Are you reading His word daily, spending time in prayer, and devotion? We must be people who practice. We must do this because without practice, without a daily connection to the vine, we drift away. The world keeps us busy, and pre-occupied. That is why these things are called disciplines. It takes work, and an intentional approach to living differently. I am sure that Lebron James and Peyton Manning do not arrive on game day without preparing or practicing their craft. Even Jesus himself spent time in prayer and devotion to God before performing some of His greatest miracles!

If we can answer these questions openly and honestly, we can begin to allow God to work in our lives so that we can truly be people who know God and make His name famous. Remember, Colossians 3:17 says “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.” (emphasis mine)

Welcome...

This blog is intended to serve you, the students at Prince of Peace, and encourage you through weekly Scripture readings, my thoughts as I read different books, blogs, devotions, articles, etc. This is an open blog, available to you for feedback, questions, and for us to connect anytime you are online. If you have an article, testimony, or thought you would like to share send it through my email and I will place it on the blog. As most of you are aware, I am never at a loss for words, so this should be fun!