HOW IS YOUR HEART TODAY?

Listen! I am standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into his home and share a meal with him, and he with me. (Revelation 3:20 NET)

As a child, my parents had a picture on their living room wall of Jesus knocking on a house door (Warner Sallman).  There are two things about the picture that are of great importance - 1- there is no outside door knob and 2- the arch of the door is a picture of our heart.  It is a picture of Jesus knocking and knocking upon our hearts door and the only way He can come in is that we open it from the inside.  I think most of relate to that picture in one way or another.  Whether its been a few days since we've opened the door or a few months - the principle is the same - Christ won't force Himself into our lives unless we open our hearts to Him.  I've been challenged as of late to not let my heart grow cold and hard to the things of the Lord.  It seems at times that just the wear and tear of life causes our hearts to distance themselves from the presence of God and we don't allow His overwheling presence to fill us to overflowing.  We go through the motions, and from the outside it can often look like we are doing just fine.  But, underneath the surface is a completely different story.  Our heart can be filled with deceit, hardness, disdain, hate, jealousy, etc.  I challenge you today to do a little heart test and ask yourself the question - "Is my heart open to my Savior to come in and be welcome in my home today?"  If the answer is no then I pray that you will stop and take pause today and invite Him back into your life again.  You will be glad you did!

WHERE'S YOUR PASSION?

But I have this against you: You have departed from your first love! Therefore, remember from what high state you have fallen and repent! Do the deeds you did at the first; if not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place – that is, if you do not repent. (Revelation 2:4, 5 NET)

It's a little difficult for us to visualize that God would have somethng against us.  We hear so much about the love and mercy of God - that, to hear that God is upset with us doesn't really register.  But it's true - there are some things that puts us at odds with God, one being that we have lost our zeal and our passion for Him.  John tells us to remember what it was first like.  He tells to remember the "wonder" and "awe" we used to have with God - where we couldn't wait to go to His house and to spend time with Him in our daily devotions.  What happened?  Why is everything else so important?  What happened to the overwhelming desire to spend time with God that you used to have?  Are you mad a God for not answering a prayer?  Are you so busy that you can't give Him any time?  Are you afraid that God will see you for who you really are?  Are you in fear that He might actually ask you to do something?  The answer we are given today is that we would repent.  That, we would begin to do the things that God originally asked us to do.  Repentance means "to turn" - that is - to make an about face and go a different direction.  It might be a big thing or it might be a little thing - but the important thing is to just do it.  This is a call to everyone of us to return to our first love.  It is a call to do what God has called us to do and to not allow any more excuses to rule and reign in our life.  Ultimately, this is about Lordship in our lives.  Who is Lord of your life and who is in control today?  You make that choice today.

JUST BECAUSE

You are my God and I will give you thanks! You are my God and I will praise you! Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good and his loyal love endures! (Psalm 118:28, 29 NET)

Denise and I took a few days off this week and are now up at Big Bear Lake enjoying the beauty of God and His creation.  Everyone of us need a break from the routine of life to recreate the "wonder" of God in our lives.  We need that place where we can sit quietly to meditate and reflect what God is doing for us right now. Oftentimes we come to Him with an agenda of our needs and wants in life.  That is fine and I know God loves to answer our prayers, but... sometimes we need to come and tell Him we love Him "just because..." That, we wouldn't come with all our needs but would come only to say that we are so in love with Him.  He has been so good to us and has blessed us immeasuredbly.  I am overwhelmed today of His blessings in my life and I am blessed by all that He had done for me. I am seeing blessings in ministry that some pastors dream about. My children and their families are following God and I get the joy of serving my father and his health related issues.  It's not always easy and even, at times, very difficult but the bottom line is this "I give praise to my God and Saviour today.  I love Him with all my heart and I am coming to Him today "just because."

HOW TO BE THE MOST AWESOME PARENT

Praise the LORD! How joyful are those who fear the LORD
and delight in obeying his commands. Their children will be successful everywhere; an entire generation of godly people will be blessed. (Psalm 112:1, 2 NLT)

It has always been of great concern of mine that I raise my children up so that they would walk fully in  the ways of the Lord.  Over the years,  with much saddness, I've watched so many young people go astray - even in Christian homes.  Now, there is nothing that I can do or say that will guarantee that my children and grandchildren will walk in the right path, but there are some things that I can do that will raise the percentage up that they will be followers of God - one of those being that I am a God-fearer myself - that, I would example what it is like to "delight in obeying His commands." If my/your children are seeing and being exposed to what a godly Christian man or woman is like - chances are they will emulate that in their own lives.  Again,  what I do is no guarantee that they will walk with Jesus but it does increase the odds.  Acts 16:31 tells us that if we believe on Christ that our household will also.  Proverbs 22:6 tells us to raise up a child in the right way and when they are old - they will not depart from it.  I don't ever want to be an excuse for why my kids don't follow God but I want to give them every opportunity to see what it is like to walk with Christ. There might be seasons of drifting away from God, but someday - when their lives are up against a wall - they will come back to the faith of their parents and they too will lead their children in the ways of the Lord.  Don't wait until tomorrow to lead your family but start today by asking God to make you the most awesome parent ever by personally following God's ways.  Your kids might not thank you now but they will thank you someday!

MADE TO SERVE A KING

O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter? says the Lord. Look, as the clay  is  in the potters hand, so  are  you in My hand, O house of Israel! (Jeremiah 18:6 NKJV)  

It is a fascinating thing to watch a potter take a lump of clay and turn it into a beautiful vessel.  He works and works the clay on the wheel and then He shapes and molds it into the desired image in His mind.   If the end product is not what He desires He returns it to the lump and starts all over.  Does that sound like what God is doing in your life right now?  Does that feel like what you might be going through?  Your life is on the potters wheel today.  He is taking His time to shape a vessel that He can use to serve others.  Don't jump off the wheel and run from the potters hand.  Submit.  Sit still and wait for the touch of the maters hand.  Don't be upset at the type of vessel that He's creating.  He knows what is best for you as He is the one who created and wired you the way you are.  This is not an overnight process but one that will take place over your whole lifetime.  When He's done you will be fit to serve a king!

The Discipline Of The Lord

Hebrews 12:5-6 (NLT) 12:5 And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, “My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. 6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child.”

This is not a verse that I necessarily like but it’s an important verse. No one likes to be corrected or disciplined. However, without it – we would never grow. As a father, discipling my children or even my grandchildren is at times very hard. I remember my dad or mom saying “this hurts me more then it does you.” At the time I didn’t believe it at the time but when I was having to discipline my own kids – I knew what they meant. God the Father so loves us and will do anything to help us become the men and women that God wants us to be. Discipline is part of growing up. We must not make light of it and always remember that God does this out of heart of love for us.

Waiting On God

Isaiah 30:18 NLT - {18} But the LORD still waits for you to come to him so he can show you his love and compassion. For the LORD is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for him to help them.

A few years ago my wife and I made a trip to Colorado to be with some friends in the month of December. Although the weather was cooler in Southern California it was very cold in Colorado – 12 degrees when we landed. Our plan was to get a hotel that night and meet up with our friends the next day. We picked up our luggage and made our way outside to stand under the sign that said Hotel Pickup. (Do you remember that I said it was 12 degrees out?) What should have been a couple of minutes wait turned into 45 minutes as the bus we needed never came around. I think it might have been one of the longest waits of my life. When we finally got to the hotel – we we’re completely frozen which was a good reminder for me why I enjoy living in Southern California. Waiting is not one of my strengths in life as I mostly am impatient for things to happen quickly. It is one of the areas my wife and I are opposite in as she has great patience for most things in life – including me which is a real miracle! I confess – I don’t understand the timetable that God has in life – especially when it comes to me and my own journey upon this earth. Waiting has always been hard for me and it is something that I’ve been forced to learn about over my 56 years of living on this earth. My wife has always called me “A Joseph” as he was one who had to endure a lot in life and had to wait for a long time to receive God’s promises that we’re given to him as a young boy. But God did come through for Joseph – perhaps not in the way or in the timing that he thought but He did come through and God has come through for me. Isaiah encourages us to wait for God who is waiting for us to come to Him in our need and to let Him know that we are ready for Him to show us His love and compassion. He reminds us also of the faithfulness of God and the blessing that are coming our way for waiting for Him. I know that I have no arrived and have a long way to go in life but I continue to learn about God and His ways by my learning to wait upon Him. I am often reminded that God is more concerned with our character then our comfort. Waiting then is a way for me to develop more character in my life. I guess… waiting isn’t so bad as it will bring about God’s best in walk and journey with Him.

Are You Reaping The Right Harvest In Your Life?

James 3:18 (NLT) And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.

I don’t have the green thumb like my dad does. If you we’re to go to his house you would find that there is hardly a weed anywhere and everything that he plants grows luscious and fruitful. He has always shown a real interest in farming and planting and growing things. When I was a young boy growing up, My dad used to own a small apple farm in Littlerock, California that he, my grandpa, my brother and myself regularly worked in. There was the tilling of the soil, the irrigating, the removal of weeds, the trimming of the trees and even the bird patrol. And… eventually there was the harvest. In between the rows of trees there would often be other vegetables and plants growing that would supply food to our table and product for the local farmers market. My dad and my grandpa would be so meticulous in the way that they planted the seed and the place where they wanted every seed to germinate and grow. As farmers, they knew an important fact: what you sow is what you will reap. You couldn’t plant corn seeds and expect to get watermelons. You couldn’t plant zucchini and get a pumpkin plant. You only get what you plant in your ground. I have people tell me often that they would like a different type of crop to out of their lives. As an example, someone will say to me, “I want more peace.” That’s a great prayer that I think most of us would desire that in our lives. But peace won’t come their/my way unless they are planting seeds of peace in others. Now, I know that God can miraculously touch us and give us that miracle of peace but somewhere along the line – we need to be planting the right seeds. If we need a financial blessing – we need to be practicing giving. If we need prayers answered – we should be praying for others. If we need peace – we should be peacemakers with others. The list could go on and on. In other words, invest in what it is in that you need in your life. I read about a missionary recently who was dying and was asked about what he wanted said about his life after he died. He looked at them in the eye and said, “I want it said that when I came there was much darkness but when I left there was much light.” I’ve been mulling over this for three days now and can’t get it out of my head. That’s how I want to live my life and that’s how I want to define my life as I come to the end of my days. It is then and only then that I can be assured of reaping a harvest of righteousness!

WHAT TYPE OF MAN OR WOMAN DO YOU WANT TO BE?

“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. (Jeremiah 17:7, 8 NLT) One of the fond memories of my childhood is that of being with my father almost every summer in the highlands of Yosemite National Park. We would go backpacking and fishing along the Merced River with absolutely breathtaking scenery. It was always amazing to walk and fish along the receded riverbanks that would show the roots of huge trees that were exposed from the spring storms and rushing streams. They were thick and long and went deep into the earth and have been exposed to every type of storms imaginable. These trees would stand tall, strong and stately. Ironically, I'm writing this in the middle of the night after attending to the medical needs of my own father whose health is deteriorating very quickly right now. Like those stately trees his roots are very exposed right now but his faith remains very strong. He is an example of what and who I want to be in life - of a man who trusted in and has had a confidence in God - a man whose roots go very deep. As I read this passage again (I suggest that you do this also) I am reminded of the type of man I want to be and the type of man I want to model to my family and even to my church and community. Storms and seasons of drought are sure to come but regardless I want to be known as the man who trusts fully in the Lord and whose roots go deep - very deep.

HOW TO RECEIVE THE BLESSINGS OF THE LORD

If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:7 ESV) Often, people will read the later part of this verse and grab hold of its promises without consideration of what is said at the beginning. They like the part that whatever we pray about will be answered without understanding that we must first "abide" in Him. Abide means to "remain, continue, stay and wait." It is to be "in the presence of" - to live with in their/ your house. it is to spend time with and get to know that person. Jesus says as we abide in Him - as we pray - He will give us whatever we desire. It's like a Father who will give to His child because He knows He can trust Him with that gift. As we get to know the heart of God, He begins to trust us that we are going to be responsible and gives us what we are asking for. He will never give to us until we are ready to walk responsively with whatever gift given to us. Get to know God today. Give Him your heart and watch how much He wants to bless you today.

LOVING THE UNLOVELY

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34, 35 ESV) It's a very simple thing that has been asked of us - to love one another. Yet, it seems that reading about love is easier than actually doing it. For the most part - I get along with everyone as I'm a people person and love being with and interacting with those around me. However, if the truth be told - there are some people who absolutely grind me to the core and I have to dig deep to show love to them. (Just keeping it real!) it's at those moments that I have to go to God and see them through His eyes and look past my petty feelings. It is then that I must ask God for the strength to love inspite of my hurts and wounds. This passage reveals that when we love - it is a true sign that we are disciples of Christ - that we are His true followers. I pray that you would ask God today to fill you with His love and that the people who are "unlovable" in your eyes would be so loved by you today. May God richly bless you today! Amen!

FINDING GOD'S WILL FOR YOUR LIFE

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah 1:5 ESV) Our destiny was carved out for us before we were even in our mom's womb - before we were even born. It is our responsibility to find and discover God's thumbprint on our lives by acknowledging how God wired and made us. As we go about living our lives we will naturally be drawn to certain things and situations that we enjoy doing and have a certain "gifted-ness" in doing. As we begin to do those things - God's will and purpose begin to unfold before us. Often we're just waiting for God's will to be dropped on our laps when we should be doing something with what we've already been given which in turn will help reveal God's perfect will for our lives. Get up and do something for God now and you will then find the place where you belong in life!

GOD IS LIKE OUR PARENTS

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. (Zephaniah 3:17 ESV) There is something to be said about the role of parents in our life. Ideally, No matter how bad it is - we should always be able to go home and receive comfort and encouragement from the stress we all go through. They should be our cheerleaders and motivators to keep trying and reaching for your God-given dreams. As I look at this passage about God - in a way, He's like that in our lives - nurturer - protector - motivator - cheerleader. He is on the sidelines of your game saying, "You can do it, you can do it. Hang in there!" He's like the parent who shouting up in the stands - "That's my boy, that's my girl.". God, your God is proud of you today and wants the very best for you. He loves you enough to be tough on you at times and He loves you enough to push you that you might be able to do your very best for Him. He so wants to sing over you with joy today. Don't push away from Him but rush to Him and be safe in His arms today.

THE POWER OF PRAISE

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places.(Habakkuk 3:17-19 ESV) I used to go backpacking a lot in the Olympic mountains in the state of Washington. On one of my first outings - I learned a valuable lesson that has spiritual applications for us today. While I was sleeping in the tent I heard some noises outside the tent. I quickly unzipped the tent just in time to see a mountain goat take off with my boot up the mountain. I jumped out of the tent and began chasing him - barefooted. Without any effort he was halfway up the mountain - unfortunately with my boot. God promises to make our feet like the hind feet of a deer as we learn to be people of praise. You might be in a difficult situation today - you might be facing some daunting task. Be a person of praise today and be the person who lifts God up - no matter what and God will enable you to experience victory today. PS... I eventually got my boot back after a steep hike in my bare feet.

THE LORD IS GOOD - ALL THE TIME!

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him, (Nahum 1:7 NIV) I've been a Christian a long time and have seen many highs and even many lows. But without reservation, I can say again today - God is good - all the time. There might be seasons and times that I don't understand but at the end of the day God's way is always the best way. As you go about this day today - speak a word of thanks to God by saying, "Thank you God for being so good to me and my family. I give you praise today."

JUST LIKE MY FATHER

Jesus gave them this answer: "Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. (John 5:19 NIV) The old adage "Like Father, like son," comes to mind as I read this passage this morning. Jesus did nothing without the Fathers father's glance of approval. He only ministered as He was led by His heavenly father in all matters of life. I love to watch how a young boy will emulate his father and try to be just like him. The young boy sees how his father acts and looks and tries to follow in his footsteps. We should have this attitude in regards to our relationship with our heavenly Father. We would save a lot of time and energy if we would keep our eyes focused on God's purpose and plan for our lives - that we would do nothing without our Father's approval and blessing on us. Like Jesus, we should be able to say "whatever the Father is doing - I'm doing also."

PRAY FOR EVERYTHING

Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. (Isaiah 65:24 NIV) Here's a little challenge for you today - take everything to God in prayer. Some people only pray when they eat or just before they start their day or when some crisis comes upon them. 1 Thessalonians encourages to pray without ceasing. This is learning to pray as you go about your day - on the way to work - at work - on the way fom work - at home, etc. Here's the thing... Even though God knows our needs - HE LOVES TO HEAR YOU PRAY. The Bible says that your prayer is like a sweet smelling savor. He enjoys hearing your voice and He enjoys answering your prayers. Take everything to God in prayer today - He's waiting for you right ow.