God's Phone Number

A Preacher’s Prayer: “Lord, fill my mouth with worthwhile stuff, and nudge me when I’ve said enough.”

A little girl’s Prayer: The little girl was being punished by making her eat by herself in the corner of the room, the family paid no attention to her until they heard her pray: “I thank Thee, Lord, for preparing a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.”

A little boy’s Prayer: On a hot summer day they had guest for dinner, the mother asked her four year old son to say the prayer. “But, mom, I don’t know what to say,” he said. Just say to the Lord what you’ve heard me say,” she told him. The little boy bowed his little head and said, “oh, Lord, why did I invite those people here on a hot day like this?”

God is always aware of us. Scripture says that God will never leave us. One day, as I was reading in the book of Jeremiah, I discovered that God has a direct line for everyone that wants to talk to him. I call it God’s phone number. It is JER-333 – Jeremiah 33:3, which says, “Call to me and I will answer you. I'll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.”(The Message)

Prayer has always be a big resource in my life. However, there are times that for some reason or another, my prayer life would take a hit and I would be self-absorbed and not talk to God as much. Maybe you have heard the phrase: “Seven Prayerless Days Makes One Weak.” It is true! We are the weakest and most vulnerable when we are not calling God. Someone said, “He who is a stranger to prayer is a stranger to power!”

A Sunday school teacher asked her students, what is prayer? One student replied, “That is a message sent to God at night and on Sundays when the rates are lower.” As funny as this sounds, it is simply not true. God is always available. 24/7. Toll Free. No drop lines. No dead zones. No call waiting. No pressing 1, 2, or 3 to get God…He is always the one to answer. Proverbs 15:29, “The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous.”

One teenager’s view of prayer: “God answers prayer four ways: yes, no, wait awhile, or, you’ve got to be kidding!” I laugh at this, but in every situation, God answers no matter the request. We may not like how He does it, when He does it, or what He decides to do, but He will answer you. God is in the knowing us business and will do what is BEST for us. Trust Him. Talk to Him. Be Faithful to Him. Pray often and then pray some more.

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian

Spiritual Recyclers

There is only so much one can here about Global warming. Save the plant. Go green. We hear about the holes in the ozone layers. Pollution in the air. Melting of the ice. We are constantly told to recycle plastic, paper, aluminum, glass, batteries, computer parts and so much more.

God has given us this planet to use, not abuse. I agree that we need to take care of our planet so that our future children will have a good environment to enjoy. We need to be responsible for picking up trash, recycling, and keeping the air clean. Every one of us can do our part so that we have a clean and safe planet.

While taking care of our environment is important, it is of the utmost importance that Jesus followers are continually recycling spiritual behaviors that will bring about a godly and spiritual church and world environment.

While I may have little or no influence on global warming regulations or getting factories to stop putting out pollution in our air, I do have a tremendous amount of influence with those I am around by the way that I conduct myself as a Christ follower.

The world at large needs Christ followers who are committed to spiritual recycling. To demonstrate behaviors that is godly, holy, and helpful for others to see Christ in our lives. Here is a list of vitally important spiritual behaviors that need to be a constant in our spiritual recycle bins:

1. Be positive – Philippians 2:14 says to do everything without arguing or complaining.
2. Be a builder – Ephesians 4:29 says to build up others according to their needs.
3. Be kind – Galatians 5:22 says that kindness is a bi-product of a Spirit controlled life.
4. Be friendly – 1 Peter 4:9 says to offer up hospitality.
5. Be lovers – 1 Peter 1:22 says to love deeply from the heart.

These are just some of the spiritual characteristics that must be recycled daily so that the world will know that we are truly Christ follower. Our love for God, Jesus, and Spirit will compel us to be constantly aware of what we are to keep in our spiritual recycle bins. When we make it a habit to be filled with God-stuff, then our world with be a much better place to live.

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian

What God Offers that the World Doesn't

What God Offers That the World Doesn’t

From nursery school onward we are taught how to succeed and make it in society. The early bird gets the worm. No pain, no gain. There is no such thing as a free lunch.
Demand your rights. Get what you pay for. I want people to get what they deserve – nothing more, nothing less. It’s ALL about ME!

The world places value on material. Not so for the pursuer of righteousness. The Christian places value on spiritual matters. They hunger and thirst for right living, They see kingdom seeking as an opportunity to be a witness for Christ. They engage themselves in the spirit of God and allow the Spirit to engage, equip, and empower them. They make it about Him and not about themselves!

While the world says make it about ME…God says I am going to make it about YOU and ME. Romans 5:8 says that God demonstrated His love for us…while WE were still sinners, His Son died for US! God says, I love you deeply and forever. I want a relationship with YOU! WE really deserve death, but He gave us mercy! WE really deserved punishment, but he gave us forgiveness! We really deserved wrath, but He gave us grace! We really deserved prison, but He gave us a pardon!

God offers hope. Life. Joy. Peace. Rest. Compassion. Understanding. Patience. Caring. And, buckets full of love! The world offers a limited timeshare to happiness and material wealth. It gets redistributed and it never leaves the compound of earth. We purchase deadbolts for our houses and alarms for our cars just to protect the very things that will not last. As I have said many times: “I have never seen a hearse pull a U-Haul yet.” Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21 “Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.” (The Message)

As expensive as the material stuff that we have accumulated over years is, are spiritual life is priceless and eternal. God’s offer is not for sale, it is given freely to all who accepts. God’s offer is not a sales pitch, nor is it cheap. God is always honest and transparent. Isn’t the spiritual life worth accumulating?

Remember, Be God Controlled,

Brian McCutchen

Satan Screen

Satan-Screen

Spending a week at the beach is my kind of vacation. There is nothing like sitting on the beach in the evening and listening to the waves crash onto the shore. It is a relaxing feeling that I do not get anywhere else.

During the day, the beach is full of swimmers, surfer wannabe’s, castle builders, beach walkers, and then there are those who just can’t get tan enough soaping themselves down in tanning lotion just hoping to get that right skin tone. For me, it was throwing the football with Roman, covering Tessa from neck to toe in sand, and walking along the beach with Sondra. It was total serenity! No thought about writing this article, preaching a sermon, or teaching a class. It was heaven on earth…UNTIL we left the beach and began to dry off and noticed how red my legs were. Apparently, I have not given my legs the opportunity to explore the outside world and discover the glory of the sun. Furthermore, I did not give my legs the needed care of sunscreen to protect them from the suns brutal attack. It was not the suns fault. The sun was only doing what the sun is supposed to do…SHINE!

Protection is vitally important, not only for beach bums like me, but also in our spiritual life. Spiritual protection is a necessity to keep us from being “burned” by satanic attacks. While I have learned the valuable lessons of sunscreen, I have also learned the valuable lessons of spiritual protection. I have said many times that the best time to get dressed is before we ever get out of the bed. Spiritually speaking, we need “Satan-screen” to prevent us from being spiritually burned by Satan’s attacks.

Ephesians 6:11 says to put on the FULL armor of God so that we can take our stand against the devils schemes. Notice it does not say, put on partial, or just the helmet, but all of it. If I only protect my heart from being harmed and not my head, then I become vulnerable to wrong and twisted thinking that can lead me to wrong decision making. Just like sunscreen, if I only put it on my arms and face, but not my legs, I only set my legs up to be burned.

The next time I go to the beach, I will make sure I have a FULL bottle of sunscreen and the next time I get ready to get out of bed, I will get spiritually dressed by praying for protection for my decisions, my attitude, the places I go, and the responses I give to people. I will read the Bible to guide me in right living, and I will not hinder the Spirit to do what the Spirit is supposed to do in my life…PROTECT ME!

Remember, Be God Controlled,


Brian

Love + Obedience=God Honoring

Love + Obedience=God Honoring

During the 2004 Summer Olympics In Athens, Greece, at the Dora Stratou Theatre located near the Acropolis, the site of the Greek Parthenon; there was a sponsored event by True Love Waits that would help teens understand obedience to themselves, their dates, and to God. This event challenged teens to remain sexually pure until they get married. Over 450,000 teens from all over the world pledged to be obedient to this statement: "Believing that true love waits, I make a commitment to God, myself, my family, my friends, my future mate, and my future children to a lifetime of purity including sexual abstinence from this day until the day I enter a biblical marriage relationship."

Not only will “true love wait,” but true love for God will obey. Love is the driving force that will prompt us, motivate us, and give us the desire to be a Christ follower. Here me out: We do not obey to earn my salvation or get credit for right living. Obeying God does not save anyone. Jesus does the saving. However, obedience does demonstrate my love and thankfulness for all God has done for me without me ever asking.

Jesus said in John 14:21, "The person who knows my commandments and keeps them, that's who loves me. And the person who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and make myself plain to him."

Believers who are committed to living out God’s Word do so because of the sacrificial giving of God. The level of love for God varies from person to person. The more we get to know God, the more our love will deepen and our desire to live out our faith obediently, rather than a “have to” mentality.

Remember, Be God Controlled,

Brian

Happy Father's Day

I am grateful for the man (father) who desires to seek God first, love his wife, and be a role model for his children. It is not the sports, movie, or singing stars that is supposed to influence a child to do right (though it is good) but rather, the father who lives in the home.

God is so proud of you! Thank you for having your spiritual priorities right. Thank you for attempting to live right. Thank you for modeling godliness, integrity, and good morals.

The man that will get into the arena and at least try will not only benefit himself, but all of those who are watching. President Roosevelt said it best

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy course; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."

May your life continue to be a devotion that will leave a lasting legacy of your life and impact those who have watched you in the arena. Happy Father’s Day!

Spiritual Work Week

Spiritual Work Week

I want you to know that our life does not consist of working our way to heaven, but rather being invited in because of the grace of God.

I bear fruit in my life because I love God. I do not do “works” in my Christian life because I am afraid that God will send me to hell. I do “works” in my Christian life because I am grateful for the grace, mercy, and forgiveness He has “freely” given me!!!! God will not keep the doors of heaven shut and prevent anyone from coming in if we do not keep a 40 hour spiritual work week. Those who “love” God will always be a light. Forgive often. Tell the Good News! Be committed to discipleship. Love unconditionally. Accept people for who they are. Heavens doors are wide open for anyone who accepts the gifts God has given.

It is not our job to be the keeper of the gate and determine who is faithful and who will get heaven. It is our privilege to tell the powerful news of Jesus and share our testimony of what He has done in our lives.

Chuck Swindoll is a premier religious writer and an excellent speaker. Chuck gives some very good principles on bearing fruit when he/she is connected to God. Now, read what Chuck Swindoll has to say:

Just before His death and resurrection, Jesus revealed that the secret of growing God's fruit is in being at home with Him. That's the true definition of the familiar word abide. This is how Jesus describes what that means in John 15:5: "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing."

Spiritual fruit is not the result of self-effort. You grow more of God's fruit not when you try harder, but when you stay connected to the Source. When you abide in Christ, you invite Him to live with you each day and reproduce His character in you. God's character at work in you looks like:

LOVE: This is God's agape, love that selflessly seeks the highest good of the other person.

JOY: Joy as a fruit of the Spirit is a settled confidence because God controls the details of your life, you can trust Him in any circumstance

PEACE: The unshakable, inner calm you experience when your mind and heart are at rest because you are trusting fully in Christ.

PATIENCE: A fruit of the Spirit that means to be "long-tempered," the opposite of short-fused irritability.

KINDNESS: The Spirit's fruit that braids mercy and grace, humility and gentleness all together.

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian