love

All Journeys Lead To Home

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When one starts on a journey it is important to have a destination in mind, and the best one is home. It is good to spend time away seeing what is happening in the rest of the world. You get the chance to see that not everything is like you or about you. Most of all, you learn to appreciate home.

I had no idea where this journey would lead when I started it in January of 2019. It has taught me much about myself and what I think of things. I have learned important things about traveling. Number one, have a plan. Know where you are going or what the purpose of going is.

By dissecting this thing called a journey, I was able to look at it from different aspects. Things like how you get there, what you take,who you take with you all affect the journey. Those type of things can make it memorable or disastrous.

I met people who don’t look like me or think like me. Sometimes my journey was about someone else.

I know now why I love home. Every home is different and usually caters to its residents. Hopefully it is a sanctuary where you find peace from the outside world. And it is dressed in love like painted walls. At the end of your journey, I hope you find yourself in a place that is full of hope, love, peace and joy.

This isn’t for everyone

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just those who said they love Jesus. I had an ah ha worship moment. God created worship to give His people insight into who He is. We repeat phrases over and over again because each repetition etches something deeper in our souls which opens our minds to what God is teaching us.

As we were singing tonight about a firm foundation, I heard it say a firm foundation is not shaken. I asked myself “how firm is this foundation I have built this life on?” Do I believe Jesus is who He says He is? If this is true, then I have to stop letting my foundation be shaken. I have to stop doubting His love because of what I see in this world.

God’s people are surrounded by darkness. We have to stop allowing the darkness determine our actions. We have to stop allowing circumstances to dictate our reactions. We can’t allow the negative to impact our love.

He has called us to love. In a place where everyone is hurting, He has called us to love. This message isn’t for everyone because everyone can’t handle it. He is calling us to love when they shoot us down in the streets. He is calling us to love when they shoot us down in our own homes. He is calling us to love when we can’t. He is calling us to love because He did.

So as you try to process all that the world offers you this week, love someone. Lots of people need it. None deserve it, but do it anyway.

This is for Atatiana. There is love and light in the midst of the darkness.

I Double Dog Dare You

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I remember it was in between the first and second service when the worship pastor pulled out a flip chart in the center of the worship team. It was not what I was expecting. Normally we do this thing where everyone checks in and tells what God is doing in their life.

He said to us, he wanted to do something a little different because he cared about our relationship with God.

He drew a circle. He placed an x inside the circle. He placed another one outside the circle.  He said many people do church like this.  The X on the inside represented people who came to church regular. Served and participated. They were doing good works. They were checking things off the list of the things they had been taught to do. 

People on the outside of the circle were not into serving or coming every time the church was open. They were not considered one of the in-crowd people. They were thought to be far away from God.

On the other side he wrote God. He put an x close, then one far away. He drew arrows pointing the x toward God. He said it is not so much that we are serving but serving is good. He asked are you doing what you are doing with a heart for Jesus or checking things off a list?

He asked if we had a heart for the things God has a heart for. It was more than coming to church every Sunday. It was more than serving and giving. It was about what kind of heart do we have for God. What heart motives our relationship with God?

He challenged us to check our heart’s motives. Is our life and service drawing us closer to God?

As a result, I have been asking God about my heart towards Him. He has been answering. I have found him in places I wouldn’t have under ordinary circumstances. In revisiting old things, He has shown me Himself in a new way.

This past week, I watched the movie Paul, the Apostle of Christ again. One thing this movie does well for me, is shows how to love in a hard space. Watching Christians being burned alive or sent to face wild animal attacks in Nero’s circus reminded me that true Christians never have it easy.  Yet what absolutely sold me was the word of God being an active participant.

Now the only thing that changed in my second viewing of this film is me. I watched as Paul continued to stress this love. I still don’t understand it, but I know it is important to God.

My challenge to you is that there is something stirring deep within you. Ask the Holy Spirit to change your heart for Him.  God has promised that his love is longer, deeper, wider, and much higher than anything we can imagine. There have been moments this week His love has taken me into the stratosphere.  There have been some moments when it just wrecked me. His love is great.

I double dog dare you to ask God to show you His love.

James C Lewis, an international photographer, created a series of images of people from the Bible.  I was inspired by his images and have drawn the ones that I like the most. This month we will turn back time follow some of mt favorite bible people. The first one is Jesus.