Michelle's Strength

As I write, there is a young lady named Michelle walking up and down the halls of our church facility exercising.  She is amazingly spiritual and always has a smile on her face and a song in her heart and a Scripture ready to quote.  The first time I met Michelle, she asked me what my favorite Scripture was.  I said, “Romans 5:8.”  She said, “What does it say?”  I said, “God demonstrated his own love for us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  She said, “That is a good one.”  I asked her, “What is your favorite Scripture?”  She quickly said “Philippians 4:13, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’”  I said, “That is an awesome Scripture.”  She smiled a smile that was at least a mile long and was overjoyed by sharing her Scripture and hearing mine. 

As she is walking down each hallway, I hear her singing to the tunes of gospel music.  She just isn’t singing softly and timidly, but rather, with vigorous joy and conviction.  She stopped by my office and we chatted a bit.  She said, “I hope my singing isn’t bothering you.”  I said, “Oh no, I love to hear you sing.”  She said, “Good, I am singing to the Lord.”  She smiled another mile long smile and began to walk and sing to the Lord.

You see; Michelle isn’t like most of us.  She can’t walk fast, but she believes in Philippians 4:13, She can do all things because of Jesus!  She sees life through the lens of innocence and lives life with the joy of the Lord being her strength.  Her bible reading is a lifestyle, not a chore.  Singing to the Lord is an honor, not a burden.  Speaking about Jesus is her desire, not a task.  Smiles on her face are permanent, not an effort.  Michelle is love.  Kindness.  Joy.  Spirit-filled. 

Why is she?

Because she sees a Father who is love, kind, and joyful.  Because gospel music takes her before the throne of God with whom she loves so much that she extols him from her own heart.  Because her strength is in a Father who is walking down every hallway she walks and listens to every conversation she has with him.  Because she trusts her heavenly Father will always love and protect her. 

Imagine a world full of people who simply “…love deeply from the heart.” 1^st Peter 1:22 or a community where music is full of praise, where everyone “…worshipped the Lord with gladness and offered him joyful songs.” Psalm 100:2 or a society where our strength is in Christ Philippians 4:13 or where towns across our nations will proclaim, “I trust in you, Lord; I say, "You are my God." Psalm 31:14.

Life is a journey of unexpected twist and turns, ups and downs, happiness and sadness, calm and chaos, love and hate, laughter and crying, life and death, singing and silence.   The key is how each of us responds to every twist and turn and all the ups and downs.  When we proclaim Psalm 91:2, “…He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him” our life will be a reflection of everything that is good about God and will ultimately draw others to inquire about the lifestyle that is different from everyone around. 

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian

Who Really Matters?

 Black Lives?  Blue Lives? 

All Lives? 

“Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.  Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world.”

As I sit at my computer typing this article, I struggle to find the words to convey my inner thoughts about what and who really matters.  Our society is inundated with hate crimes, riots, brutality, and hurting people of all colors.  As a white male, I cannot imagine how those of color feel as they read the stories about the oppression of their ancestors who were enslaved; or, how one might wonder if they are the targets of police brutality.   On the other hand, I can’t imagine being a police officer that patrols the streets of a community, only to become the target of those bent on hatred, getting even or a blatant disregard for authority. 

I’ve been wondering if the clash between police officers and those of color is really about hate or does it go deeper than one’s feeling about another?  Is it possible that the clash is deeply rooted in what we teach our children about historical events and/or the dislikes about one another? 

What if…

What if parents taught their children about how we treat each other?  Jesus said it best in Matthew 7:12, “Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them.” (MSG) It is true that there are some no matter how you treat them, they will be pessimistic and hard to love; however, when kindness, gentleness and patience are the leading attributes in a person’s life, it will help clean up a world polluted by evil intentions and helps solve the problem of bigotry.

What if churches all across our nation, no matter the ethnicities or colors or beliefs would unite as a people of God?  Jesus prayed this prayer to his dad, “I’m praying not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me.  Because of them and their witness about me.  The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind—Just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, So they might be one heart and mind with us. Then the world might believe that you, in fact, sent me.” John 17:20-21 (MSG) Sunday mornings in our nation is the most segregated day of the week, yet, for believers in Jesus, it is the most important day of the week.  There are sermons preached about unity, yet it isn’t practices beyond the walls of the church house.  Sermons are preached about love, yet the evidence is clear by the segregation of believers.  It is interesting how we cannot meet in the same church house, but we can meet up with others of faith at a restaurant after the church gathering.  People of faith, it is time to change our behavior and start finding commonality in Jesus, rather than allow our traditions, theologies, ethnicity and skin color to separate us.    

What if we loved the children of the world, red and yellow, black and white?  Paul said it right to the believing Christian in Galatia, “In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ.” Galatians 3:28 (MSG) Truth be told, we all matter.  Black lives matter.  So do to the lives of white, yellow, red, brown or whatever color is out there.  Cops matter, too.  So do, doctors, janitors, lawyers, teachers, sanitation workers, preachers, and the list goes on and on and on. 

Rise up, America!  See the value in our differences, unique skin tones, ideas, heritage, culture, and faith.  God has created each of us for his purposes and plans.  Stand up, America!  Stand for unity.  Stand for truth.  Stand for love.  Stand for God. 

What if the world were just like you, what kind of world would it be? 

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian

#bestdecisionever!

As a kid, I use to sing a song called, “I am a Christian.”  It goes like this:  I am a C, I am a C-H, I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N and I have C-H-R-I-S-T in my H-E-A-R-T
and I will L-I-V-E E-T-E-R-N-A-L-L-Y

For me, deciding to be a Christian is by far the best decision I have ever made.  However, the decision meant that I had to really be careful how I lived, acted and talked.  Although the decision was mine, it meant that I represent Christ who is holy and I must ensure that I do not misrepresent him in any negative way by my lifestyle. 

It is extremely hard to be a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N sometimes. It is quite difficult to say no to sin.  Sure, there is quilt that follows, but in the moment, who is really thinking much about the aftermath of giving in to sin? Sin offers the fulfillment of our passions and desires.  Happiness is the ultimate desire for most of us.  Feeling the emotions of happiness and fulfillment are often the driving force of giving in to the very sins that cause a misrepresentation of who we are as a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N! 

Whenever the decision is made to become a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N, God gives us all kinds of help to keep C-H-R-I-S-T in our H-E-A-R-T so that we can L-I-V-E E-T-E-R-N-A-L-L-Y.  Think about it, God who is perfectly holy, completely righteous, and undeniably sinless provides all the resources to unholy, unrighteous and sinful people.  Why?  Because he desires for us to L-I-V-E E-T-E-R-N-A-L-L-Y with him! 

One of the resources God provides us with is his Spirit.  His Spirit is a gift to the C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N to lead her as she walks the lifestyle of representing a Father who “demonstrated his love for us while we were still sinners by giving us his Son to be the savior of the world by saving us from our sins.”  (Romans 5:8 and Matthew 1:21) (Paraphrased)

The Spirit digs deep into our heart and soul and takes up residence to produce life-changing characteristics so that each of us will represent God well.  Sin will not be the leading fulfiller of our life; the Spirit will take its place.  The Apostle Paul told the Galatia believers that when we “live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Galatians 5:16 (NIV) Allowing the Spirit to work in our lives is crucial for our desires to be godly and honorable, not godless and dishonorable to the one we represent as a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N! 

The Spirit will provide everyone who makes the decision to be a Christ-follower a supply of fruit-seed that is cultivated in ones life.  The fruit seeds of:

-Love provides a heart-felt desire to be accepting towards everyone no matter the color, ethnicity, gender, religion or social values. 

-Joy is the sustainable inner emotion that keeps a person rooted inwardly with contentment when trials, hardship and struggles are beating a person up emotionally and physically. 

-Peace is the fruit that keeps us calm and steady because we know that the protector of the soul has provided us with the right seed to keep us from anything that can harm the eternal life. 

-Self-control gives us the ability to say no when the urge is to gratify the desires that are not honorable to God. 

Being a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N is by far the most important decision one makes in life.  It is hard.  It is challenging.  It is tough.  However, God never allows the Christian life to be without the resources to be successful in living it out every day.  Know that God loves you.  Provides for you.  Is rooting for you.  Is proud of you.  Prayerfully, all of us can sing, I am a C, I am a C-H, I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N and I have C-H-R-I-S-T in my H-E-A-R-T and I will L-I-V-E E-T-E-R-N-A-L-L-Y!

Remember, Be God Controlled!

Brian

Living in the Fast Lane

I am running late!  I’m behind!  Gotta get there fast!  Gotta keep moving!  Slowpoke driver, get out of my way!

Honk!  Honk!

Where did you get your license, out of a Cracker Jack box?  I’m late!  Gotta get there fast!  Gotta keep moving!

For some Christians, life is a constant drive through rush-hour traffic.  There are deadlines to meet at work, work to do around the house; appointments to keep and people to meet, problems to solve and money to stretch.  On top of all this, there are the Christian responsibilities:  Being a committed disciple, teaching a Bible class or serving on a ministry team.  Who has time to exit the highway?  I’m running late!  I’m behind!  Gotta get there fast!  Gotta keep moving!

Has your life felt like a rush-hour drive lately?  Zooming from one responsibility to the next?  Have you been changing lanes so fast that you’re flying by people without noticing them?

Take a look in the mirror.  Do you see a grim, determined, let’s get it done no matter what you have to do?  Are you driven by success no matter the cost?  What about your spiritual life, has it taken a hit due to living in the fast lane?  Are you tired of driving fast everywhere you go? 

Pull over at the next rest area!

Jesus said, "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." (Matthew 11:29 & 30) The Message Bible

For less life stress, allow Jesus to guide your life and keep you from being so beat up with endless “to do lists,” deadlines to meet or activities to attend.   

Remember, Be God Controlled,

Brian