The Body Is For The Lord

Well, 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 is an awkward topic because sexual immorality is so prevalent in our society.  I'm sure it's similar to the time of the church of Corith.  Today we have gay rights, porn ruling the Internet, and everyone having sex with anyone at any time.  We've made sex just an okay thing that anyone can do with anyone else.  Sex is not saved for marriage anymore.  I've even heard people say you have to have sex with someone before you marry them to make sure you are "compatible".

"The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body."  Sex joins two people together. "The two will become one flesh."  This is a real thing too.  I hate how people today have sex with anyone and everyone, and pretend that it was "just sex".  There is a connection that sex creates.  The only thing that I can agree with is, the amount of sex people are having with others numbs the connection to each other that sex causes.  Think about why people need each other.  There is a feeling of completeness for a moment.  But this is a perversion of what the body is meant for.  The body is not meant for sexual immorality.  The body is meant for the Lord.  We are called the bride of Christ.  We are meant to have that connection with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  He is the head of the church and we are the body.

Just a last minute thought, if the body was made for the type of sex people are having today, do you think there would be so many sexually transmitted diseases?  If we were meant to have sex with anyone and everyone, there wouldn't be so many dangers from having sex in this manner.  There isn't a sexually transmitted disease caused by one man and one woman having sex with each other only.

We are here for a short time.  We have lusts of the flesh that lead us to sexual immorality, but for our time here we need to fight against those urges.  If we can focus on God, and not ourselves, we will be better equipped to fight the temptations of the flesh.  It's not easy, but it's required of us.  If we can place our focus on things above, not on things of this earth, we will succeed.  Colossians 3 talks about putting on the new self and verse 2 tells us, "Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."  These instructions will help us put to death our sinful nature and live as those called to be children of God.



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Remember, "Who Cares" Is the Slogan For Earthly Troubles

1 Corinthians 6:1-11 asks believers the question, "When one of you has a grievance against another, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints?" This talks to the problems Christians have with each other. I've seen my share of Christians having issues with each other. I've been involved in church splits, pastoral resignations, and more. Almost always, someone's opinion is chosen over another's, feelings are hurt, people retaliate, and sin occurs. Instead, we should deal with this as fellow believers. Now, I will say, this passage is talking more to the fact of legal wrongs being done, because they are taking things to the local law instead of the church, but I think the application of how to handle a wrong done against you, either actual or perceived, by another Christian should be handled in a manner that pleases God.

Verse 7 asks rather than sue, "Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?" We all wrong and defraud people. Suck it up for your short time here on earth. We have so much more coming ahead that we should be focused and excited for that. We will inherit the Kingdom of God. Sinners won't inherit heaven, unless they are "washed...sanctified...and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." Just like the old saying, "like water off a ducks back" we need to let go of the troubles of this world. Try to say, "Who cares." in trials and tough times, or when you don't agree with something that wrongs you here on earth. Who cares about getting cut-off on the freeway (I say with my hand raised). Who cares that the government and some of the banking industry giants messed up our finances and housing. Who cares that I'm over looked for this or that. Who cares that the music guy wears skinny jeans. Who cares that this person or that doesn't see things the way you do. Who cares. Work on loving others. Work on showing GRACE. Work on glorifying God forever and in all things that you do.

Praise be to God, who is patient and working all things for His glory. Praise Him for the grace that He gives us. Praise Him for the gift of Jesus, who paid the price we never could so we can be saved from these sins that rule our lives here. What a wonderful perfect plan. How great is God, that we can call Him Father, Savior, and Lord. And if he is these things to you, you are saved from death and eternal sorrow. I think for 2011, I will work to make Him Lord.


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Blog Notes and Updates

Once again, it's been a while since I've updated my devotional blog. I've even had a vacation during my hiatus from blogging here. What's sad is this is really a record of how often I'm reading my Bible outside of the church setting. (Speaking of church, you should really listen to Lance's message from Christmas. It's amazing what he did with the Christmas story. I've heard the story at least 34 times, and this message really spoke to me and caused me to want to work harder this coming year at becoming a witness to those I work with.)

Another blog note before I get back to my study: I updated this blog to work better on a mobile device. Just go to www.jeremydburch.blogspot.com from a mobile device, and the site will recognize that you are on such a device and format the site accordingly. It loads a little faster and is easier to navigate. Also, I'm going to start tweeting when I update my blog. For those of you seeing this blog for the first time because of my tweets, I don't put a lot of time into the editing and formatting of the blog, so you may see lots of spelling and/or grammatical errors. Really this blog is for me to track what I've read as I go through books of the Bible. I try to work through a book in order, so I don't take things out of context, but feel free to comment or correct anything you don't agree with in my entries. Anything you can add will help sharpen me as I study God's word.

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A Little Leaven Leavens The Whole Lump

1 Corinthians 5:6-13. "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." We are called to share Christ with the world, so we are going to be around sin and sinners. But when that sin is committed by someone who calls themselves a Christian, and they are unrepentant of that sin, Paul says not to associate with them. Leaven leavens the whole lump just like association with a believer who is unrepentant of sin will corrupt others, or appear to do so. The church at Corinth was proud of their acceptance of sinners. Paul tells them not to boast because it's not good. I think they were boastful in their acceptance of sin, instead of sinners. We are called to share God's grace with sinners so they might turn from their sin to God. Corinth understood God's grace incorrectly. Just because we are saved by grace, doesn't mean sin is okay. They were accepting of people's sin, and this was not at all what grace meant. We are still called to judge the actions of believers. There is still a responsibility to live holy lives as believers. Sin is still wrong.

Life seems to get harder and harder. Sin seems to be more and more tempting. I think the early church had the same problems, only they didn't have the whole Bible to study and be encouraged by. We all need fellow believers to come along side us and encourage us too. But, if those believers are living in sin, how can they be encouraging to us? We need to be blameless for the sake of our brothers, just as we need to find ourselves surrounded by believers who are blameless and who can guide us and help us.

Delivered Over To Satan So The Spirit May Be Saved?

The memorial service for Doug Healing was amazing. He was a true example of what a Christian should live like. People got up and spoke about Doug from all aspects and times in his life, and the consistent message was that he was a godly man. Through this whole thing, I've really had to take a look at my life and I've realized there is nobody that can say the types of things about me that were said about Doug. There aren't people from work that would come and say I loved the Lord and I was always sharing my faith. I don't even know if there are people that would come say the standard, "he's a good guy."

I need a drastic turn around in my life. I need to live like I'm required. I need to glorify God and make that my chief priority. 1 Corinthians 5:1-5 talk about a sinner in the church needing to be removed. Paul pronounces judgement on this person and tells the church they are to "deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh". Yikes. They do this "so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord." I do not want to be separated from the church. I definitely don't want to be delivered over to Satan, but I'm a reached sinner living in arrogance and sin, instead of working to glorifying God with my life.

We all need to take a look at how short life can be and what our example is here. Right now, I've done the kingdom of God no good. I've failed to witness to the people I work with. I'm a Sunday morning Christian. I really don't know what the fix is either. I don't know how to recover and change at work. It's going to be a slow process of changing people's opinions with the way I act and speak. Prayer and continued study are all I have. I have no strength on my own.

Doug Went Home for Eternity

Although many people prayed for healing, God decided he wanted to bring Doug home to Himself. If we can think about it from Doug's perspective, he is in total peace with God. God decided it was time for Doug to enjoy Him in His presence, and that is so great for Doug. I feel sadness for the family. I really hurt for Josh, who was with his dad when the accident happened. Obviously, the whole family is hurting, but as a son myself, I would not want to be with my dad when a life ending accident happened to him.

Continue to pray for the Healing family. Pray for peace for them. Pray for provision for Betsy. Pray for the comfort that comes from knowing God.

We Never Know When Death or Christ Will Come

I just looked at my last post and I noticed I mentioned our time here on earth is short. We really don't know when and how we are going to die or if Christ is going to return. Monday evening, my dad received a call about a close family friend falling off a his roof. He apparently broke is neck and ribs. At this point, we are not sure he is going to make it.

I know that I often think to myself I'm going to get my life right with God later or I'll be able to be a good witness next time. But the truth is, we don't know how much time "later" we have. We don't know if there is going to be a "next time". God could decide to take us home at any minute. We need to be living our lives correctly, properly worshiping God and glorifying Him with all aspects of our lives, right now.

I really wanted to write this to request that you pray today for a miracle for Doug Healing (his actual last name). He would need major healing from all the injuries. He is probably paralyzed from the neck down. They're not sure about proper brain function at this point. God can do miracles if He desires. My pastor talked about death a few weeks ago and reminded us that the death of a Christian is awesome for that person. They get to be with God. And, although we miss them and wish they were still here with us, the truth really is, they don't want to come back. Once they are in the presence of the Almighty Creator, they are pain free, worry free, in perfect peace and joy. Please pray for comfort for the family. Pray that God is glorified through this tragic accident.

Rebuked Out of Love

Paul really does rebuke the church at Corinth a lot. But he loves the church and in 1 Corinthians 4:14-20 he reminds them that he writes to them in this manner not to make them ashamed, "but to admonish (them) as (his) beloved children." He refers to himself as their father in Christ Jesus. He also rebukes those that are arrogant and think they can get away with poor leadership and direction because Paul isn't going to come back. But Paul tells them he will come back if it's God's will. He also sent Timothy there to help the church and to report back to Paul. He tells them he will find out the power of these people and deal with that, not just what they are saying, because the kingdom of God consists of power. And Paul's final warning in this section is that when he returns he can come back ready to punish or to love in gentleness, and it's up to the people of the church.

Seriously, we have a short time here on earth. How can we make it right and good? How can we find joy and satisfaction in worshiping God with our lives and our actions? What do we need to do to avoid sin and run away from temptations? How do we clear our minds of things of this world and focus them on the things of God? Colossians 3:2 "Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."

The Apostles Had It Rough

I'm glad I'm not an apostle...OH NO. Did I say that out loud? The truth is we are all called to live sacrificially and humbly like the apostles. We are called to live sold out for Christ and to spread the word of God like they did. We are called to be lights is the dark world. But it's too hard for most of us. I know it's too hard for me.

1 Corinthians 4:11-13 is where Paul paints a small picture of the sacrifices he made living for Christ. "To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, as we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered we entreat. We have become, and are still,like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things."

As I break it down point by point, I look at my own life in comparison and find that I'm never hungry or thirsty, i have nice clothes, no one ever beats me up, and I have a nice warm place to live and sleep. My job can be stressful, but nothing like hard manual labor. Also, during Paul's day, Greeks and some in the church at Corinth thought of manual labor for slaves. On top of that, Paul was trying to preach to the world about Christ. I come home at night and relax like a lazy, tired, fool. When reviled, persecuted, or slandered I attack, defend, and return fire on my accuser. I'm pretty good and striking back with force and a great deal of harm. Unfortunately, as I type that there's a level of pride in that. CRAP! Speaking of that word...Paul finishes this section by calling himself "the scum of the world, the refuse of all things." He calls himself the crap or garbage or trash of the world, knowing that's how he is looked at by society and both Jews and gentiles.

So, back to the beginning...I'm glad I'm not an apostle, but we don't face the kind of persecution Paul did. The United States is so politically correct that no one is even allowed to persecute anyone else. But we are not out there preaching and living the way Paul did either. We don't have the passion of Paul, the zeal of the apostles. We are more like the Corinthians, who thought of themselves as kings. It's time to live as Paul.

All We Have Has Been Given To Us

We have nothing that hasn't been given to us. And we should live like that. Instead of thinking highly of ourselves, as though we earned something or deserve something, we should all realize what we have has been given by God. In 1 Corinthians 4:6-8 Paul continues his rebuke toward those who were self-satisfied because they believed they'd reached some level of spiritual greatness(like in 1 Cor. 1:10-17). He asked them this questions, "What do you have that you did not receive?" to point out that God gave them everything they had.

Verse 8-10 is where it gets a little more my style. Paul get's sarcastic with, what the John MacArthur Study Bible calls, false praise. He tells them, "Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you!" Paul goes on to call himself a fool and the church at Corinth wise, as though he was mimicking the attitude of the proud Corinthians towards him.

Now, I don't want to pretend that I translated and explained this passage as I usually try. I was a little confused by most of 8-10 because I didn't realize that Paul could be sarcastic. But it makes more sense if it is read this way, and that's why I believe the John MacArthur explanation is valid (that and Johnny Mac is a great expositor of the word and has great men working with him). The point is to be humble in our lives. I know I'm not. I even think that God allowed an error at work to humble me a little because I was getting too arrogant in my own abilities. We need to take this humble path and realize all we have comes from God and Christ crucified.

Praise God for His Son.

The Lord Is The Only Judge

1 Corinthians 4:1-5 is a hard one to understand for me. Paul reminds us that we are the be regarded as "servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God." He goes on to say that stewards are required to be found trustworthy. And up to this point I understand what he's saying. But then he goes into being judged and judging himself, or I guess the lack of judging of himself that he does. He says it is the Lord who judges. Perhaps (as I write it seems to become more clear) the word judge is talking about the opinion we form about a certain person without even being able to know their heart. On one hand, we may judge someone as "a lost cause"; someone we think would be a waste of time to share Christ with. And on the other hand, we may judge someone as holier than they really are. We do not know the heart.

All of our judgments don't matter. The Lord will come and He will shed light on all the hidden thins in our lives. He will "disclose the purpose of the heart." Only then will we receive our commendation from God. Are you going to be commended? Are you doing something in your life that God can commend you for? Does your life fulfill the great commission?

The Wisdom Of This World Is Folly With God

I had a tough week last week. I had to go to Redding Monday and Tuesday, on Wednesday and Thursday my most sound operational branch didn't do so hot in an internal review, and Friday since finding out the results of the review I haven't been able to snap out of the funk I'm in. This all coupled with the fact that I feel my life will never be in order again, I feel like I'm falling into a dark place. I can admit I've never loved people, but I think now I don't even have the ability to fake it. I have no patience, no understanding, and it just keeps getting worse. I pray and plead with God more now than I did in the past. I recognize the sin more and feel it's controlling my life.

So last night I asked God to give me this morning as a refreshing time with Him to start over. And, besides the mosquito flying around in my living room, I'm able to have a quiet time in the Word. 1 Corinthians 3:18-23 is a weird way to gain some peace about the last week, but it's what is next in my study and all parts of God's Word are important. This passage starts out, "Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise." Although I don't think I will get a commentary book deal for the way I'm about to apply this to me situation, I think there is some correlation. I believe I'm good at my job. I think of myself as a knowledgeable and efficient employee who makes good decisions in how to perform my tasks. But, this weak performance has taken a lot of the arrogant wind out of my sails. As the "best" operations employee in the district I'm in, I just showed I don't have it all figured out.

I know that God is not pleased with my life. I know that my claim to Christianity is a Sunday morning thing, and that I do no bring glory to the name of God on a regular basis, if ever. I think my job became a source of pride for me and a place where I felt I had things "figured out." But the wisdom of the world is folly to God. Although I don't consider myself wise, I think I thought of myself as really knowledgeable about how to run a branch. And now I think that God is trying to remind me that my pride is in the things of men not the things of God. It is important to work hard and be the best at what we do because it shows we have integrity and we are not lazy, but in the end, our work achievements have no baring on our Spiritual health. We need to be proud to say was we children of God and shine the bright light of salvation in what we do. Our source of pride should come from our relationship with the almighty God. Focus on God. Let the concerns of this world pass by.

Although I'm still really disappointed (and I have to face my boss today and feel like I let her down), I am going to try and focus on things that matter. I am going to work hard at not hating the people who do not do their jobs correctly. I'm going to work on patience and love. I will find a way to stay quieter and calmer than I usually do. I will not get frustrated. I sound like Stuart Smalley with daily affirmations right now. I'm not looking in a mirror though.

We Are God's Temple and Where The Spirit Dwells

Yesterday in church, our pastor talked about the Holy Spirit living in us Christians. He explained something I've never thought about from 1 Thessalonians 5:19, "Do not quench the Spirit." Our pastor talked about the fact that we have the Spirit and not Jesus on earth because the Spirit live in all of us. But we can "quench the Spirit" or grieve the Spirit like Ephesians 4:30 says. Sin and selfish desire make it as though the Spirit is silenced. And if we no longer are listening to the Spirit, we are not able to enjoy the benefit of having the Spirit of God dwelling in us, being our conscience and our guide.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17 goes a step further and tells us we are "God's temple" where "God's Spirit dwells." We must live as God's temples. We must live holy, blameless lives. Just now, when I wrote the word "blameless" I realized I am not blameless. I get blamed for things too often. I do not separate myself from situations and conversations that are not honoring to God. And, I don't mean that all conversations have to be about showing honor to God. But God is honored when we do our jobs in a professional loving way, that shows the love of God in patience and humility. We are God's temple. We need to only allow actions in our lives that are acceptable to God. Maybe if I think about the appropriateness of something I'm about to do or say in the context of being in church.

The point today is to live with an open heart for the prodding of the Holy Spirit, who lives in us and works with our conscience to direct us in everything. We must live as though the God of the universe is with us and in us; that we are a dwelling place for His Spirit and a temple for Him.

Christ Is The Foundation

1 Corinthians 3:10-15 is an analogy of salvation and the Christian life. True Christianity and salvation is built on one foundation; Christ. And we build on that foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each being tested by fire when Christ returns. If it survives the fire, you will receive a reward.if it burns up, you will suffer loss, though you will be saved.

So I really just re-wrote the analogy, I didn't clarify it. So here goes. After we are saved by the faith in Christ's saving grace, we have a duty to live as saved people, changed by the understanding of grace. We are not saved by our changed lives, but we are responsible for living differently. Sin is going to still be our lives, but it shouldn't BE our lives. We build on our salvation with different levels of Christian living. Some things we do are great and further the kingdom of God. And some things are not good at all, and we add to the confusion about salvation. These things we do, after becoming a Christian, will be tested at the day of judgement. If they are good things the will be stand the test. If they are not, they will fail. Gold, silver, and precious stones will not burn. Wood, hay, and straw will.

This passage ends with Paul restating that these works don't earn someone salvation. Salvation comes from Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Once we believe this, we are saved. Our lives from that point on need to be lived as though we understand the grace we've been given. Ephesians 2:8-9,"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Align Yourself With God, Not Man

Sometimes writing is hard because of the distractions of my kids waking up. Sometimes it's hard because I don't understand the passage. And sometimes I just don't have the motivation or a direct application to turn into a learning moment for myself. 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 starts out with something I can relate to, but then Paul takes his meaning in a direction I don't really see applying to anything I do.

In verses 1-3 Paul tells the church a Corinth that he can't address them as spiritual people because there is jealousy ans strife among them. He has to treat them like baby Christians. He uses the analogy of milk vs. solid food. I often think I can't really dive into the meat of the Bible because my life is still such a mess. And sometimes I feel like I reach a deeper understanding of spiritual things.

In verses 4-9 Paul talks about the fact that the people of the church are aligning themselves with, what I'm going to call, cliques. "I follow Paul." "I follow Apollos." The church at Corinth was dealing with these groups of people who thought they were more spiritual than the next. They associated their "holiness" with the men who were involved in their spiritual knowledge. To explain that God is who they should be following, Paul created another analogy. The people of the church are like a field where Paul planted the seed, Apollos watered, but God is responsible for the growth. Because we are called only by the grace, He is responsible for our salvation.

I don't really align myself with anyone these days, unless my love of Pepsi counts (haha). I think at one point in my past I did aligned myself with men who were good spiritual leaders. But their failures as men and leaders, is why God is to be the only one we follow. Mankind fails. God never does. Align yourself with God. Live like Jesus did. Study God's word and let it be your council.

The Spiritual Judge But Can Not Be Judged

As Christians, we have the Spirit from God living in us, departing the wisdom of God on us. 1 Corinthians 2:6-14 explains that we have this Spirit that allows us to understand the things of God that the wisdom of this world fines foolish. If the world understood the wisdom of God, Jesus would never have been crucified. This understanding, what God prepared for us, was revealed to us through the Spirit.

Verse 11 says, "For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of the God." Christians have received the Spirit which is from God to understand the things freely given us by God. The things of God are folly to the natural person, but are understood and judged by the spiritual person. But the spiritual person can not be judged because no one can understand the mind of the Lord or instruct Him. These are bold statements about believing in God and in the hope of salvation that comes from the faith in Christ. Although the world may think of the cross and salvation as foolishness, the believers have nothing to fear, because God has designed this truth for us and saved us. No one but the elect can look at our faith and judge. This is not to say they won't make some sort of judgement against us, but their judgement is invalid and meaningless in all reality. We are saved by the one true God, who can not be judged by anyone created.

Wisdom is Christ Crucified

Man, I'm crazy. My last post was really more of a cry out about being surrounded by non-Christians and how that draws me into sin. I was talking to a Christian friend about this and we both realized our lives have gone significantly sideways because we don't surround ourselves with Christian friends who can encourage us and hold us up. The problem is really the state of our churches today. They are mostly about feeling good, being welcoming, and entertaining the attendees; it's not about accountability, building up of the saints, worshiping God, and sharpening one another.

1 Corinthians 2:1-5 explains that sharing Christ is not something we do out of our own wisdom. I think man's wisdom is getting in the way of church and the Christian life today. At least here in the USA, there is a major push today for more and more and more information. We are overwhelmed and flooded with info from so many sources. The Internet has so many different types and services to provide information. Cell phones can give you instant notifications. E-mail, radio, TV, texts, social networks, etc. all provide us with a constant barrage of information. And we seem to be more and more hungry for it. It is our knowledge of things that we confuse with wisdom.

But the wisdom we can have as Christians is like Paul said, "to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified." Paul went to Corith in weakness and fear to preach Christ crucified. His message was not in "plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." He spoke about Christ crucified and lived in faith, and allowed God and the Holy Spirit to make the changes in people's hearts. I actually think we over-complicate it because we have to know and understand everything; I know I do. I have to understand everything and how and why it works. Faith in Christ is as simple as understanding our need for salvation from our sins, knowing Christ was crucified to provide that salvation. And...that's it. Faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior is the only way to Heaven and eternal life. I long for that time. No more sin. No more temptations. Being with our God, our Savior.

Here is a final reminder, and one I have to put down because I just had a hard time writing it. We do need to make Jesus our Lord too. This is the part where we let Him rule in our lives. Sin's draw makes this hard. But the account that we will have to make in Heaven is going to happen. We want to be able to hear the words, "Well done good and faithful servant."(Matt. 25:23)

Foolish Man That I Am

I'm really tire of the frustrations of life. There are too many for me to handle. I want to have a carefree attitude about the things that drive me crazy, but I don't. I'm really tired of sins, in my own life first, but in others too. I hate sin. I hate its draw and the initial attraction we have to it. I hate that the effects of sin are life long. Even if forgiveness is given and understood, there are consequences that last our lifetime. People's searching for satisfaction in life in everything except what God has promised to give through faith is so massive, so beyond what any of us can understand. Sin causes such major decisions and actions in people that our world has depravity beyond what is okay to even talk about here. So called Christians are perverting faith and religion and holiness and worship to where we can't even recognize what is right and wrong anymore. We are blending the lines between Christian religion and worldly "goodness" to make people comfortable with who they are and the sins the commit.

I'm so tired of being a fake Christian. I'm so tired of failing day after day after day. I'm tired of being mad at myself for my hate and anger and frustrations. I'm tired of blending in with the non-Christians, getting advice from their worldly perspective, living a life not focused on Christ, being able to hide my faith, living as though I have no faith. I am tired.

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 talks about God choosing what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, what is weak in the world to shame the strong, and what is low and despised in the world to bring to nothing things that are. God did this so no human can boast in the presence of God. My wisdom needs to be Jesus Christ. I need to work hard at knowing God's will and Christ's saving grace. All this crap in the world is nothing. Sins consequence is paid for. IT IS SO UNDESERVED, and that's where the falling on my face and crying out for forgiveness and striving to live a holy life comes from, but I'm not going to be able to do it. Sin is too powerful in the life of a human being. Understanding God's grace more and more will help me avoid the sin, but the temptation will still be there. The fact that we are all surrounded by sin all day, every day, will never go away on this earth. Instead, we must fill our minds with the wisdom of Christ crucified to save us from the sin of the world.

One point of clarification: I do not think that God can use me in my sinful state. I must live a holy, acceptable, blameless life to be a light to this dark world. I only think that my sin makes me a lowly foolish weakling; and therefore, God can use me if He so chooses, just like the sinful men that surrounded Christ, or like David or Moses or any of the men of the Bible, besides Jesus. Sin is part of our human nature and is going to happen. Our faith that God has forgiven that sin and will continue to forgive our future sins is the key to overcoming sin. By understanding grace more, we will understand holiness more.

Christ Is The Wisdom We Need

Jews wanted signs and Greeks wanted wisdom, and the cross demands faith. 1 Corinthians 1:20-25 continues to talk about the foolishness of man's wisdom. People today want these same things before they will believe in Christ. Some people want God to give them a sign of His power and existence. Others want scientific proof of God or something they can do to earn salvation. Hebrews 11:1 tells us, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." This is how the people of the old testament were saved too (keep reading in Hebrews 11), prior to Christ's death. They had faith in the coming payment for their sins.

The power of Christ crucified is a stumbling block for some and folly to others, but to those who are called, "Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." Really, if we could figure it all out on our own, we would be taking the power away of God, and we would not need God. But "the foolishness of God is wiser than men" (ALL MEN COMBINE), and "the weakness of God is stronger than men" (ALL MEN COMBINE). If God had a weak point in His being, it would still be stronger than all of the strength of mankind. All of our creations as mankind, don't add up the the complexity of one grain of matter. This reminds me of a joke:

One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and tell Him that they were done with Him.

The scientist walked up to God and said, "God, we've decided that we no longer need you. We're to the point that we can clone people and do many miraculous things, so why don't you just go on and get lost."

God listened very patiently and kindly to the man and after the scientist was done talking, God said, "Very well, how about this, let's say we have a man making contest." To which the scientist replied, "OK, great!"

But God added, "Now, we're going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam."

The scientist said, "Sure, no problem" and bent down and grabbed himself a handful of dirt.

God just looked at him and said, "No, no, no. You go get your own dirt!"

The Wisdom and Discernment of the World Will Be Destroyed

I wake up earlier and earlier to be able to study. What happens? My kids seem to wake up earlier and earlier too. Argh!

1 Corinthians 1:18-19 are all I'll cover today but for a good reason. These verses address part of my own problem. Verse 18 is great, and I believe in the power of the cross to save. I believe I've been saved by Jesus' death and resurrection. But then verse 19 quotes Isaiah 29:14, and all goes downhill for me. Verse 19 says, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart." Much of my own pride and sin comes from my belief that I an a discerning person. I think I can look past the words that people are saying and know their true thoughts, the heart of the issue. This is why I don't like people. I see through the words they are saying to what they are really thinking and wanting, and I'm annoyed and frustrated by their dishonesty.

On some levels this discerning sounds okay, like I am able to help a person see truth or dig down to the heart of some matter this person is facing, but what makes it not okay is my heart and my own actions. I sit hear and write about reading my Bible, and then I go to work and would rather tell someone "where they can go", than to show them the love of God in patience. I lack the love of God in my own life. I lack the truth of the cross. My pride is based on an ability that is most likely not really what I think it is. It is probably my own arrogance getting in the way of truth and light and life for the people I come in contact with. Even yesterday, I had an incident where I found myself making fun of the uptight people who couldn't take a joke. Uptight? My role is to be set apart from the things of the world.

The wisdom and the discernment we have must be based on that of the Bible. We should be using the wisdom of God's Word to discern any situation we are involved in. The word of the cross should be the power of God to us who call ourselves Christians. Christ saved us from our sin, from ourselves. Live like we are saved. Live like we are grateful. Live like we believe.

Paul Begins To Correct The Church At Corinth - Part 2

Continuing from where I left off last time in 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Paul points to the fact that he did not baptize any of the people of the church at Corinth, except a small number of people. I'm assuming these people he did baptize are not the major divisive members. One of the named people is Crispus, the former leader of the Jewish church. He was mentioned in Acts 18:8, where Paul's fellow writer (Sosthenes) of this letter was mentioned. Paul tells the church, "Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." It doesn't take eloquent speech or persuasive words to lead people to Christ; it takes doing.

There is a huge lesson for us to learn here. WE SHOULD BE PASSIONATE ABOUT PREACHING THE GOSPEL TO EVERYONE because it has nothing to do with our ability to preach and persuade. It is the power of the cross that changes lives. If you're like me, the power of persuasion is non-existent in your life because of the complete lack of spirituality and living as an example to those around you. Although my church did something yesterday I don't agree with at a Sunday morning service, I did realize through their "Engage" service that I do not have any kind of witness to those in my life. For me, it comes back to loving others. I don't do it. It's so hard for me. I think it has to become my constant prayer.

And because I'm me, when the word "Engage" appeared on the screen at church yesterday, I thought of Captain Picard from Star Trek TNG.

Also, this word is one of those annoying words at my church. "You've got to engage with God," is one of the leadership's catch phrases. Also, calling us, God's "kids" instead of children is annoying. It seems like they are trying to be more familiar with God, taking away some of God's reverence. Oops, I don't love people. It's going to be a real struggle.

Paul Begins To Correct The Church At Corinth - Part 1

Tuesday and Wednesday I was in Redding working. I actually thought about taking my computer and Bible to blog, but I work late, go to bed at the hotel, wake up early, and get back to work so I can head home to my family. It's really a busy time because I only get up there once every two weeks or so.

Anyway, today I woke up at 4:30am with a migraine and it didn't go away until after noon. Even now, my head and stomach are not 100%. I stayed home from work to get better. I realized I didn't do a study yesterday and thought I'd try now (of course, the second I sit here and type, my early wake-up is catching up with me.

1 Corinthians 1:10-17 is where Paul begins to confront some divisions in the church at Corinth. The people of the church at Corinth were attempting to sound more holy than the next person my stating things like, "I follow Paul", or "I follow Apollos" and so on, all the way to the one's claiming, "I follow Christ." And these one's saying they follow Christ were not really any better than the one's saying the followed Paul. They were all trying to one-up each other and sound more spiritual.

Must...Sleep...I will continue.

Thankful for the Church at Corinth

1 Corinthians 1:4-9 is Paul's way of letting the church at Corinth know he is thankful for them and that he is praying for them. This is another example of Paul's love for the church. Paul is thankful that God saved them because they confirm the testimony of Paul and the other apostles that about Jesus...Paul uses, "Christ Jesus" here to be clear about Jesus as the Savior. He also says, "in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge...so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gifts." Although no one has all the spiritual gifts on their own, the church of Corinth had people with all sorts of gifts that came together to as one church (although later we will see there was some division in the church). Paul indicates that they do have a well rounded group of believers that were bold and spoke the truth of Jesus as Savior. Paul reminds the church that the Lord will sustain them until Christ returns.

We should be involved in our churches. It takes everyone to have a well rounded, spiritually gifted church. We all have different abilities and levels of some giftedness. We need to participate for the betterment of the church, the furtherance of the kingdom of God, and for our own spiritual health.

I'm pretty distracted this morning. I have a headache and the kids are already running around and fussing and eating and watching Curious George. I read today, but I couldn't focus on the text or pull something extra out of it. I'll continue tomorrow.

1 John Series Intro - Sunday Blogging

I recently had a vacation with my family in Newport Beach, CA. It was interesting to be there with all the different families descending from my mom's parents. Particularly, my uncle is a pastor...a pretty conservative one. He seems like a very serious man. Some would say he doesn't seem like a fun person. He seems quiet and reserved.

But today I skipped church. And last week I skipped church. I had "other things" that caused me to "not have time" to go. We actually decided to listen to our pastor online, but their website was not working and their podcast was not working. I decided to listen to my uncle. And when I arrived at his church's website, I found that he has a series on 1 John. Well, crap!

We are called as Christians to live as such. We need to affirm our doctrines. We need to live as saved beings. We need to live in the light, as he is in the light. I'm going to try to listen to this series.

Back to my uncle. I think we thought of him as sort of boring, because he doesn't live for himself like we often do. I remember several people in the family trying to have conversations with my uncle to sound spiritual (I, of course, did the opposite). I think that he is constantly working on his relationship with God. He had devotions. He did have conversations about God and Christ and Christian living. I believe he came across as serious and reserved because he is guarded and careful to do what is pleasing to God. He lives within the bounds of a responsible Christian.

I know that I talk a lot about grace in my blogs, knowing I seriously need grace. We all do. Even my uncle. But I think there are many Christians who use grace as an excuse to sin and live in sin and not be changed by salvation. 1 John 3:16-18, "By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down out lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth." We are going to love if we are truly saved. Again, crap! I'm in trouble.

I don't love people. I almost don't love anyone. It's almost my calling card these days. I don't care about people. I don't care about feelings. I don't love.

To have assurance of eternal life, I must have genuine Christian actions. I must have these beliefs/actions/changes in me and my life:

Assurances
1. I must believe Orthodox Christian doctrines (Jesus is the only way, etc.)

2. I have experienced moral transformation (not perfectly but characteristically). I walking in the light.

3. I must love (involved, working, caring).

1 John is a great book of the Bible for believers to reflect on their own salvation. One saved, always saved, but are we living as though we are saved by the grace of God? Are we walking in light? Are we loving? I know I have a lot of work to do. A LOT!!!

Not Just a Standard Greeting

I find my mind wandering a bit this morning, I'm having a hard time focusing. 1 Corinthians, like most of Paul's books, starts with his greeting. Yesterday I wrote about the Paul being called by the will of God. Today, I want to finish the greeting.

1 Corinthians 1:1-3 is similar to all of Paul's greetings. It's basically the "from", "to" and "greeting" of a letter. After introducing himself, Paul includes in the "from" portion of the greeting a co-writer or fellow Christian he is working with, Sosthenes. I don't know anything about Sosthenes, and I have no books about 1 Corinthians to gain knowledge about him. I turned to the good ol' Internet for some answers and found that the name Sosthenes is mentioned one other time, in Acts 18:17.

Acts 18 talks about Paul's first trip to Corinth, where Paul preaches for a year and a half and many are converted and believe in the Lord. Paul is accused of persuading people to worship God contrary to the the law, but Gallio won't prosecute Paul because it is not a crime against Rome. The Jews get so update they attack and beat the current ruler of the synagogue, Sosthenes. Unless there was a second un-mentioned Sosthenes in Corinth, I think this synagogue ruler was converted, just like the previous one there in Corinth named, Crispus (Act 18:8).

The greeting continues to the "to" portion, where Paul addresses the letter to "the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints..." Key words he uses, that we often overlook are in this description of the believers. "Sanctified", "called". Salvation is from God, given to whom He wills. This is clear in who Paul addresses the letter.

Finally, the "greeting" portion. "Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Grace, something given not earned, creating peace we could not have without that grace, from God our Father, who loves us as a father loves his children, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, our ruler, who understands the human condition, and our savior. That run-on sentence is my attempt at describing all the parts of the greeting at once.

Called By The Will of God

I'm going to do my next study of on 1 Corinthians. Why? Not really sure. I did learn something about skipping over the greeting at the beginning of Paul's books, because there is even depth there. 1 Corinthians starts out with Paul's introduction of himself as "called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus".

For some reason, this is as far as I got today. "Called by the will of God" struck me because we use the word "called" often without thinking about the will of God. Paul's understanding of grace was so far beyond mine. He recognized he was called because it was the will of God. This understanding should lead us to a deeper commitment to live lives that please God.

Understanding the Amount of Forgiveness

Today I read a passage that I wrote a note about a few Sunday's ago at my church. We have such an amazing pastor. His teaching style and knowledge are very rare, in fact I've not ever heard someone that can be deep and simple at the same time.

But enough about him. My note says, "Who loves Jesus more? The one who is forgiven more. This is an understanding of the amount of forgiveness, not an actual amount of sin committed." The passage that was taught and caused me to write this note, and that I read today is Luke 7:36-50.

Jesus was invited to the home of a Pharisee, where a "woman of the city" followed Him to wash his feet with her tears and hair, and anoint them with an ointment because she knew who he truly was and that he could offer forgiveness. The Pharisee didn't understand it because he didn't realize his need for that forgiveness.

We all have sinned. We all need the grace of God. We all need to understand that need. No one is good. The Pharisee was not any better than the prostitute. In fact, he was most likely not saved from his sin because of his unbelief in Jesus and his lack of understanding of his need for the grace of God.

Here Again

Well, here I am again. I woke up early, read my Bible, and still have so much to do to get my spiritual life back on track. This is, I hope, the start to a re-kindling of my studies. It is really the only way to learn and grow in understanding of God's grace, which is the only thing that can truly save me from my sin.

This is short and sweet and to the point because I haven't decided what I'm going to read and study. I read 1 Corinthians 1 today, but if I decide to stay in Corinthians, I will break it down the way I did with Romans.

The Conclusion of Romans

I've been studying Romans since 11/3/08, and I'm coming to the end today. And what a way to end a letter about God's saving grace than to speak to the greatness of God.

"Now to Him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith - to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen."

Now on to another book of the Bible. Any suggestions?

When Jesus Was My Age

It's my birthday. I'm 34 today (I just had a typo and typed 24. Boy do I wish). 34 is one of those ages that don't really matter. I think the whole 30's are like that. Of course, after I type that I realize it's commonly thought that Jesus was around 33 when he....DIED FOR THE SINS OF MANKIND! So maybe these years aren't as meaningless as I think. Maybe the way I'm living them is the problem. Not "maybe", I am the problem. I get in the way of God.

The weird thing is, I'm frustrated with it to no end. I don't want to have a meaningless, sin filled life. I want to be pleasing to God. But for some reason I just keep sinning and getting discouraged and sinning and getting angry with myself and on and on and on. By this point in His life, Jesus Christ had led thousands to God, healed people, rebuked sinners, cleansed the temple, shocked the world, and DIED FOR THE SINS OF MANKIND!

In Romans 16:19 Paul says he wants the people of the Church at Rome "to be wise as to what is good, and innocent as to what is evil." We are not innocent to what is evil. In fact, in the world today, we have so much access to evil it's as easy as pushing the power button on the TV remote. Verse 20 goes on the say, "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of out Lord Jesus Christ be with you" I think we have to have faith that God will save us...literally save us...from our sin. That is the hope that we need to realize so we are not discouraged by our sin. Sure sin sucks and it should make us angry with ourselves, but to get discouraged is to doubt that God will grant us the grace promised by His Son on the cross.

Praise God for His Son, who in His 30's died for the sins of all mankind.

Avoid Them

It was definitely hard to get up this morning; I was close to changing my alarm by 15 minutes. It did help that Ryan, my youngest, woke up and had to be fed. He is drinking a bottle right here next to me.

So, Romans 16:1-23 is mostly a list of people Paul wanted to say "hi" to in Rome. Literally verse 1-16 is listing people to greet. Verse 17 he does warn his brothers to "watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that (they) have been taught." He says to "avoid them." The "causing division" part makes me think right to the split of FBC (and actually there has been more than one split). These type of people "do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive."

I can't help but think that I in some way acted as a naive person, flattered for my talents in music. I think I was blinded to the fact that changes were being made not in love but in arrogance. The fact is, there was not a teaching of the saints the purpose for the changes, but and ultimatum was given to the people. Love would tell me that we should spend time with the people of the church (at least the amount of time it took the "spiritually mature men" to write the changes) teaching and explaining to the church why the leaders believed this was an important and crucial change needing to be made.

I have to wrap this up so I can get ready for work. I will continue next time in verse 19.

God is Good. Praise God for His Love.

I Should Be Humble, Loving, and Full of Grace

Romans 15:22-33 is really Paul just telling his friends in Rome that he longs to see them and plans to come visit and stay with them for a while on his way to Spain. As he finishes his letter to them he turns from the teaching portion to the loving friend portion of this letter, letting the church of Rome know he longs to visits them.

The more I look at my life I realize I'm no longer developing friendships with people, which I believe is important because friends listen to and respect each other. This is a place of ministry and sharing of our faith. It's a place where you can be encouraged at the same time as you are encouraging.

I'm still saddened by the foolishness of the FBC split that happened, not because a doctrinal statement wasn't accepted, but because the sin of men and the lack of friendships entered into the process for change. Men against spread rumors about the affects of the changes. Men for it were to proud to take the time to explain the importance of acceptance. There was not a closeness between the leaders and the congregation like Paul had with the church at Rome.

I have too long prided myself on being the "A-hole" who doesn't take crap from anyone and who is always quick to put people in there place. I correct through mocking. I make laugh through ridicule. I am a jerk. These are not the traits of a Christian man, who should instead be humble, loving, and full of grace. Who better to understand grace then a person who has received the grace of God?

Lastly, it's obvious that I haven't been doing my blog, which means I haven't been having my own quiet times in God's word. I'm a mess. The new job is going to be my excuse, but this is so much more important than anything else I do in my life. It's time for me to get up early again and buckle down and read God's word every morning. I hope I will get up tomorrow.

Praise God for His Faithfulness.
Praise God for His Grace.

Live to Share God's Greatness with Others

In Romans 15:17-21 Paul talks about the work he has done in and for Christ Jesus. He talks about the fact that he doesn't want to go where people have already heard of Jesus, but he wants to go where, "Those who have never been told of Him will see, and those who have never heard will understand," which is a direct quote from Isaiah 52:15.

I started working on praying every morning on my way to work. There is so much to pray about, both requests and praises, and I need to be in consistent communication with God. When I am there is so much more peace in my life. When I'm not in prayer my life is a mess. Right now, with the start of my new position with the bank, I am praying that I become a light to the large group of people I will now have influence over and opportunity to be a light and example to. This dark world is so easy to get wrapped up in; and when our focus changes from God to ourselves and our own desires, we fail to recognize the misery we are creating. Simply trusting in God and living to glorify Him WILL bring joy and fulfillment to our lives. Although life will not be easy, it will be complete and satisfying.

Praise God with Our Lives.

Full of Goodness, Filled With All Knowledge

Romans 15:14 says, "I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct on another."

Paul really does spell out a lot of important truths and key elements for understanding salvation and grace and our responsibilities as Christians in his letter to the Romans. And, although he says this statement above, he goes on to explain in verses 15-16 that he wrote with boldness the rest of Romans as a reminder, "so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit." We are the Gentiles, originally not part of the chosen people, but who are now saved by the same grace as the Jews. Their rejection of Christ ushered in an understanding for the rest of us that he is our only hope of eternal life and salvation from what our sin has earned us, which is hell.

We, the elect, are saved by faith in Jesus Christ and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Working in conjunction with our self conscience, the Holy Spirit makes us aware of right and wrong; and he prompts us and guides us in our decisions. If we listen and don't ignore Him, we will avoid the frustration of sin. We are only full of goodness if we are walking in the Spirit and striving to obey God's commands. We are sin apart from God.

Praise God for the Holy Spirit.

Answered Prayers and More Requests...New Jobs

Well, exciting news for me, I was offered the job I applied to. I am now an Operations Specialist. I'm better suited for this type of job because it is not a sales or customer service job. Although I can do both of those things, I don't enjoy them as much as I do enjoy Ops. This is a huge answer to prayer. God is good.

I am going to have a new group of people that I work with and around, and I need continued prayer for wisdom and grace. I need to start out as a humble, patient person, and I need to be a good witness with my attitude and actions. There is nothing good in me aside from Christ, and my sin nature does not allow the knowledge of God's grace to be evident in my life. I'm so gross. And I'm tired of recognizing it and not changing. I need huge prayer for this too.

My dad just called and told me he got a job with a maintenance company. This is great for him. This will be steady work instead of the extremely slow construction industry. I know he will miss the freedom of working for himself, but consistent work will be great for him. This is another answer to prayer.

God is Great.

Hope In Christ, Listen to the Spirit

It happens so often that I should know by now that when I need ANYTHING I should just open my Bible. Today I have an interview for a different position with the bank. I'm very nervous about it because I really want the position. And, although my training and experience is right of the position, I want to do a good job in this interview of relaying that. I'm nervous and anxious about it. I've been praying about it a lot, but I think with a weak faith. So much is wrong with my spiritual life, that I can't just hope that God is listening to my prayers.

Well, Romans 15:8-13 reminds me of a greater hope. Christ. And from that hope comes joy and peace in believing. The power of the Holy Spirit is with us who are saved. Too often we ignore the Holy Spirit and drown out His comforts and the hope that comes from the Spirit with worries about life. Our purpose here is to bring glory to God, not to be successful in our worldly endeavors. Verses 11-12 are quotes from the old testament about praising God and rejoicing and hoping in Him (2 Sam. 22:50, Psa. 18:49, Deut. 32:43, Psa. 117:1, and Isa. 11:10). We must listen to to the Holy Spirit. We must recognize we are here for a short time and must strive to glorify God in what we do.

Praise God for His Holy Spirit.
Praise God for Hope.

Can't We All Just Get Along?

Romans 15:1-7

My title is sort of silly; I think Rodney King was the one who said it. But in the Christian world there are so many disagreements that actually lead to Christians not getting along with each other. Even in my own short experiences I've had disagreements with other Christians that led to a parting of ways. This is not productive or appropriate for Christians. We have the example of Christ who was selfless and giving to those who wanted Him dead. He died for the sins of all people. And, as Romans 15 tells us in verse 3 (as a quote from Psalms 69:9), "the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on Me." Christ took on the rebukes and blames from others for us.

We have a duty as Christians to work together in love and patience, welcoming one another as Christ has welcomed us. There is a saying that says something like, "a house divided can not stand." The church struggles against itself here because too often we are not welcoming of others. Although we may have disagreements about different doctrine, we should be constantly loving one another more than fighting about our differing views. "(The) strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves." If someone was to tell me that, I'd probably disagree. But that's verse one of Romans 15. It doesn't say rebuke them for their failings. It says bear with them. This is a way to show love. My current way would be rebuke, criticize, mock, and reject. I think that's a sign that I'm not one of the strong.

Bear with the weak. Love others.

Praise God for His Love.

I Can't Sleep

I'm so out of the habit of writing my blogs that I feel I'm losing the ability to write them clear enough to understand. I don't believe I'm really that good of a writer to begin with, but it seems like it's getting increasingly harder to do. I almost feel like there may be something medically wrong with me due to sleep issues. I think I'm having some major sleep issues that are causing all sorts of issues. My frustration with everything in life has grow to proportions that I can't handle. I have absolutely no patience and I can't focus on anything.

Not only do I grind my teeth at night (and I do wear a mouth guard to help), I think I stop breathing anytime I fall asleep. Then, that wakes me up. I would bet I wake up over 20 times a night with this. I keep saying I need to go to a doctor, but I really think it is time to find one that helps with this.

I say all this today because I feel like not just my work life is suffering, but my personal life is too. I don't want to be like I am, and I pray about it all the time. I know that God can answer prayers, but at what point do I stop waiting for the miraculous healing power of God and go to a doctor? I'm only hoping this sleep thing is part of my issue. I constantly pray about my anger and frustration, but I don't feel like anything is changing. My dad says he thinks it has to do with me always wanting to be in control of everything. While that may be true, I'm so tired of these problems, I just want it to be fix. My wife says I still harbor a bunch of bitterness about losing my job with the county. That feels more true because I feel so unjustly terminated. But even that doesn't seem like something that would push me the levels of frustration I'm at. Some people say I should work out. Some say more prayer. Some say it is God building patience in me. I think all of these things are probably part of it, but I still do not want to be the crazy man I'm becoming.

Today's passage is going to have to wait for tomorrow now. I wrote all that I'm feeling and dealing with today. I'll call it a prayer request.

Praise God for His Faithfulness.
Praise God for the sins His Son bore for us.

Do All in Faith

I spoke to my friend Stuart yesterday morning about Romans 14:13-23 and we discussed the fact that in context this is about food, but that it's also about not finding fault with a fellow Christian who may not believe a particular type of food or drink is wrong. For example alcohol. There are many people who believe you should not drink any alcohol, and there are others who enjoy it responsibly and without sin.

It comes down to the reasons. If someone abstains from a particular food or beverage another may not have a problem with, not judgment on either person's part should be made. It comes down to faith, and not causing another to stumble. If a new Christian who may have participated in heavy drinking prior to salvation is now not comfortable with the consumption of alcoholic beverages, there should not be another who believes it is okay to drink alcohol pushing beverages on the one who has the problem. Why would we make someone feel like they are wrong or foolish or cause them to think they are sinning for something that does not build up that brother? Verse 23 ends with this: "For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." Do all things in faith. Know our great God. Understand His desires and the freedoms He gives in faith.

Praise God in Faith.

Serve God so No Evil is Spoken of You

"So, do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." - Romans 14:16-17

Romans 14:13-23 is, again, a hard passage to understand. We live with a set of rules that set things as right vs. wrong and what pleasing and not pleasing to God. Often, we live attempting to do all the things on the right and pleasing list so we are deemed "good" people. Too often we think of ourselves as good enough for heaven. I know when I was helping with youth and music ministries in my church, I felt like I was much more "better" and i "knew" I was saved. Now that I've been uninvolved, out of practice with my studies, angry with my job, frustrated with my financial situation, etc., I feel as though my salvation is not as sure.

I think this passage points to the fact that nothing matters because we all deserve hell, non of us can earn salvation or heaven, and everything we do in wrong/evil/sinful unless we are doing it in the belief that we are doing it for God's glory. And that is something I struggle with. I don't do much for His glory. Even all the ministry I used to do, I did it for my own glory most of the time. But God knows this too. Verses 18-19 almost read as God's way to combat this weakness. In light of verses 16-17 our self glorification, we have verses 18-19. They say, "Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding."

Obviously, there is no excuse for sin. And if we are doing things for our own glorification, we are not living lives that are pleasing to God. But at some point we need to realize our sin nature is very present and until we get our new body in heaven, we will have to fight that sin nature. We need to be serving Christ and pursuing what makes peace.

I may have complicated these passages even more, but that's how I feel right now. I'm struggling with my Christian life, and my horrible witness at work, and role as the father and husband in my family. Even yesterday in church, I felt out of place. I feel like one of the people who says he's a Christian and then goes out and lives exactly like the rest of the world, going to church only to check it off on the list of things a "Christian" does. Of course, every week I hear amazing sermons from our pastor too. Yesterday I thought to myself, the pastor must be on something to be so happy and full of passion. How sad for me. I am so far gone right now that I can't be so full of the Spirit that I am on a high? God's grace is so huge, a proper understanding of what His love for us has done, should produce joy and passion. We have this gift from God that saves us from all the sin we live in. Despite our sin, God saved us for Himself. We are saved to glorify Him eternally in heaven. We are only here on earth for a brief moment. Eternity will be in heaven with our Lord and Savior.

Praise God for Jesus.
Praise God for His Faithfulness.