Bed

Holy, unmatched God;

Worthy of all of my life.

Yet those thoughts and insecurities that disease my mind cut through my heart like a knife!

You have shown me that you are better and that you are more.

Without even opening Heaven’s door!

“Already but not yet”

How quick we are to forget though

Who we are and why we were made.

We stand there amazed and what comes next?

Our own selfish ways!

I wish that this wasn’t true!

But if it wasn’t true,

There leave no reason for you to die on the cross.

No reason for me to be made new.

You came and died for all of those times that I’ve lied.

All of those times that I fell?

You died and tore the veil!

So why turn back? Why sin?

Daily identity crisis and our trust is wearing thin.

It’s time.

It’s all or nothing!

Jesus isn’t some magic eight ball or a genie-toy with stuffing!

He’s living and He’s breathing and He wants YOU!

He can fix all of the brokenness.

He can make you new!

Put down the self-help book because Love and Grace are the means

By which our mighty God saved us and made us clean!

We were created for so much more.

This is way bigger than us.

You don’t have to believe me,

And maybe I am not the most qualified source.

There are struggles that I haven’t experienced:

Drunkenness, drugs, or divorce.

But what I have experienced,

What I HAVE felt,

Is Gods unconditional love.

It literally makes you melt.

So in the midst of your freshman frustrations

or your senior strife

or maybe in your 30’s or 40’s and you still want to find

LIFE.

Just know that my God is more than able;

More than qualified to handle anything we could ever put on the table.

That’s why He is God, and we are NOT.

Some of us are wondering where our life is going,

But we haven’t given Jesus a single thought!

So wake up sleeper!

Rise from the dead!

Stop wallowing in false idols!

GET OUT OF YOUR SPIRITUAL BED!

Box

When reading through the Gospels, we get the powerful accounts of Jesus' healing and teaching as he travels around with his disciples.

I had read this story before, but something caught my eye the second time around.

In Mark chapter 5 Jesus encounters a demon possessed man who has a bad reputation from around that region.

"This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones." Mark 5:1-5

… Now maybe its just me, but that doesn't sound like a person you would run into in the back alley (or I guess, in this case, the dark hillside)

But the next verse is what got me:

"When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him" 

Mind blown? 

No?

Let me explain.

We have a demon possessed man who NOBODY has been able to contain because of his power. No man or man made item has done the trick of controlling this man.

Yet "when he saw Jesus from a distance" he completely surrenders and the demons beg Jesus to be cast into the pigs. The NIV version even says in verse 13 "He gave them permission…". 

Most people who talk about this story really just hit on the fact that Jesus had the power to cast demons out of the mans body but I argue it is way more.

It took the sense of sight, from a distance, for the man to fall to his knees before Jesus.

It's nothing new to most of us to hear that Jesus had the power and authority to cast the demons out of the possessed tomb-junkie but most of us aren't rejoicing in this fact fully because in our everyday lives we aren't trusting the demon-commanding power of God, we are scared and halfway trusting some sort of flaky boxed up God.

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" Hebrews 13:8

Some of us go to this verse for reassurance that Gods love will never fail because his love is unconditional because he never changes. And this beautiful promise is definitely true, but lets remember this in the scope of Jesus' power. The same God who gave his son authority and power to drive out a legion of demons from this man in Mark, is the same God who is with his children always and is powerful enough to control every situation in your life and is good enough to work them out for your good.

Realize his power.

Jesus is not a box-worthy God.

Story Time

I recently sat down with one of my best friends, David Brandon, at one of our local coffee shops to catch up and talk before we both leave for college. We started talking about church and what God had shown us this year through all of our crazy experiences.
Our conversation almost immediately became centered on our failures…

Doesn't really make sense huh?

A conversation about healing and growth and gaining knowledge and it is being centered on failure?

Then later as I sat down to do my devotional I was lead to 2 Corinthians 12:9

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient to you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

Now if you have hung around church, cracked open a devotional or have been to your local christian bookstore, you have probably heard this verse before.

But are you using this verse in its entirety?

First of all, let's just get this out of the way.

Whoever said "God won't give you more than you can handle", could not be further from the truth.

This saying is the biggest LIE.

God gives us more than we can handle so that we can fully recognize his power, his healing, and his goodness through adversity.
 Hearing this myth literally makes me sick.

If we could handle it all, Christ had no business dying on the cross and it was all for loss.

So look at it this way:

Whatever you are going through, whatever you have gone through and whatever you WILL go through, is all a chance for you to learn, hold onto Christ and let him reveal himself to you.

When we keep going back to our same sin its like God is there saying "I'm better than this sin! Only I can give you real joy and satisfaction! Come to me! I WANT YOU."

And when you finally realize that God is greater than any of your desires, and that he fills the hole in you that you have been trying to fit other things into; THEN you can look back on your struggle and say:

"This is my story"

It's when you finally realize God's perfection in your weakness and how he has revealed himself to you in the midst of your sin and has come, met you where you were, and called you his own that you realize the importance of your story.

This verse isn't just for you to treat the symptoms of your sin and make you feel better; It's to change our whole perspective on how we view the sovereign work of Christ in our lives.

     "and they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony..." Revelation 12:11

Realizing God's redemption of us through our testimony gives us power.


Are you just being contempt with Christ's death for our sin on the cross or are you boasting in it?

What struggles have you been brought through? 

How can you use them to help another believer stumbling in that same sin?

Don't waste your struggle. Run to God. Let him show you that he is better and more powerful. Learn.

What's YOUR story?

By Name

The sky and the earth and the air and the galaxy,

In all of their beauty and complexity,

Were created by the One true master. He...

 detailed everything with such skill 

but most of it goes unnoticed because of our lack of just being still.

It's like we're running through the greatest art gallery that ever will be;

Introverted and focused on just you and me.

 

So wake up and widen your gaze!

Stop going through life unengaged and in a daze!

The beauty of this all though is that while he created the entire universe and everything it contains...

He created us, his children, and he knows us by name. 

Recognition

            “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever”

                                                Psalm 107:1

 

We have all been there. Either something amazing and mind-blowing happens, or something tragic occurs and we are so quick to pull God off the backburner and incorporate him in our struggle or praise him for his goodness. We Tweet, post to Facebook, or Instagram a verse or a joyous picture and there is absolutely nothing wrong with these posts…But if we are only recognizing God’s goodness in particular life occurrences, what does this say about our view of God’s faithfulness? What does it say about our motives of being in sync with the Lord? Isn’t this limiting the power and sovereignty of the omniscient Creator of the universe?

 

NEWS FLASH:

 

                        God is good always, whether we recognize it or not.

 

God’s goodness is unconditional. He is good when you get your very first job, when you get promoted, and when you get fired. He is good when you get that college acceptance letter, when a married couple has their first child, and when a loved one passes away.

 

When you choose to realize God’s goodness only in joyous circumstances, you are limiting God’s power to work in trials and adversity and you are choosing only to rejoice in the Lord when things go well. In other words, “things go YOUR way”.

 

The flip side to that is only recognizing God’s power when the storm hits.

 

When we treat God like a dusty first-aid kit that we leave in the medicine cabinet only to treat deep wounds, we aren’t wanting more of God; we’re wanting the side-effects of having an in-tune relationship with him.

 

 To put it like one of my mentors and youth pastors, Stan Rhoden, said:

 

“We don’t want God; we want his stuff”

 

How do we fix this? How can we be aware of the unconditional goodness and faithfulness of God ALL of the time?

 

I believe this problem exposes our lack of thankfulness to the Lord due to complacency. Becoming thankful and rejoicing in all circumstances is the key to seeing God’s goodness all of the time.

 

            “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

 

Pray for the Lord to open your eyes to his workings in your life, big or small. When we do this, we become more aware of God’s working in our life no matter what the consequences. When we begin to see the small things the Lord is doing in our lives, our eyes become more accustomed to recognizing God’s goodness anywhere we look and we become more amazed by his power and his faithfulness to us on a daily basis.

 

God’s goodness is unconditional…

 

It’s just a matter of us recognizing it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Escape

                        “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful and will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

-          1 Corinthians 10:13

 

Praise the Lord that this verse is true!

 

How many times has a sin seemed to overtake you and left your heart wrecked and guilt ridden?

 

            If the answer is, “Too many times!” then listen up.

 

            Let’s talk temptations. The temptations in our life are many and strong. Some come with warning, and some sneak up on us like those school paper deadlines.

 

            A temptation also requires a response. Some of you reading this are saying “Caleb, you don’t understand. I just ignore temptation and it seems to go away.” Well, kudos to you, but the very act of ignoring is a response in itself! And there are many sins out there that are beating people down over and over again because they’re so far deep that ignoring a temptation is beyond question. They have to have a greater response; an escape plan.

 

            How do I deal with temptation?

            What does a “game plan” look like?

            Is there always an escape?

            I am not strong enough to take the escape. What do I do?

 

Dealing with temptation is different for everybody. You have to find out what works for you. Be smart!

 

If you have trouble with your searches on the internet, don’t be alone with a computer.

If you have trouble with your girlfriend or boyfriend, don’t be alone with them either.

If you have trouble with drinking too much, don’t go to that party where you know there will be alcohol.

If you have trouble with gossip, leave the conversation and don’t surround yourself with people who tend to gossip.

 

It is all about finding what triggers your temptations, isolating that variable and then deciding ahead of time how to deal with it in a way that will honor God.

 

It seems pretty simple, but it is extremely hard for some people (me included) in practice.

 

Why is that?

 

If the issue is that you can’t seem to see the way out and don’t believe that God is capable of providing one to you, read the verse again.

 

            “God is faithful”

He is not going to leave you. Ever.

He knows your past, your present and your future and he still loves you.

He is not surprised at the outcome and your response to the temptation and he still loves you.

He created the entire universe and yet he cares for you because you are his child.

 

His power is not limited…he can provide an escape.

 

Most likely, it is not the issue of not seeing the way of escape that plagues Christians; it’s actually taking it.

 

Like I mentioned earlier, a temptation requires a response. You can either fall for it, or you can beat it.

 

Ok, so what if you have tried to take the escape and you still fail?

 

YOU CANNOT DO THIS ALONE.

 

“There is no temptation that has overtaken you that is not common to man”

 

You hear that?

You are not alone in this fight!

 

Galatians 6 is going to call us to “Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2)

 

This is a call to participate in gospel centered accountability with other believers. Find someone, or a group of people that are dealing with the same struggle and struggle together and with Christ.

 

Pray for eyes to see the way out.

Pray for ears to hear the Holy Spirit.

Pray for God to give you the strength, discipline and boldness to act and actually take the way out.

 

Escape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Application

 

                “My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding- indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.” Proverbs 2:1-5

 

            Sounds pretty awesome huh? Just cry out for wisdom and understanding and it’s all yours? The book of Proverbs preaches the seeking of wisdom a TON. You could take verses of Proverbs and print them in cross shaped fortune cookies and I guarantee they would be a huge hit at your local Christian bookstore. (Yes, I copyright that idea)

 

But did you catch the first couple of verses? Read it again.

 

            “applying your heart to understanding…”

 

It takes effort to study the Bible and pray daily and there is no doubt that, if you do these things daily, God will start to reveal his wisdom to you and show you things through your life and daily experiences.

 

But the hard part comes next. We read and study and pray for Gods wisdom when dealing with issues we have but when God answers, he usually intends to change you and rock the boat a little.

 

So we take what God reveals to us and we make plans. Plans to cut out sinful ways, to stop gossiping, to forgive so-and-so or whatever the Holy Spirit is pressing on our hearts.

 

But to reap the full benefit of living life in Christ, you have to APPLY the plan. You have to act.

 

Why do we as humans fall down and fail at application?

 

I believe it is because of one word.

 

            Response

 

In Matt Chandler’s The Explicit Gospel, Matt explores the idea of our response to the gospel saying basically we can accept it and be changed by it or do nothing at all. He makes the comparison of a husband cheating on his wife on their honeymoon just after he has declared his love for her and her alone.

 

Let’s dig a little deeper.

 

In its very nature, the word “response” requires some sort of action from the person who is responding to an event or action. A response would require that the person responding changes somehow to fit the action or event they are witnessing or experiencing. For example, let imagine you’re walking away from your car and it suddenly explodes. While this explosion doesn’t seem to phase action stars like the Rock or Vin Diesel, it is highly unlikely that you would maintain the same heart rate, adrenaline level, blood pressure, and thought process once your body realizes what has happened. A response.

 

In the same way, we know that encountering the gospel will mean change. We will, at some point, have to respond to the gospel.

 

As sinful humans, when we do encounter the gospel, it definitely calls for a life change and a renewal of heart.

 

Never has a person realized that Christ died for all of man-kind’s sin and said, “I don’t need to change”

 

A response requires change. A change requires action….

And let’s face it…WE’RE LAZY.

 

We try for a little bit, do all the “right studies”, gather enough knowledge to yell answers at the T.V. while watching American Bible Challenge  but we don’t want to really apply it most of the time. We are too COMFORTABLE.

 

It’s the complacency and comfort of where we are that keeps us chained to our old ways and stunts progress and growth.

 

After reading the “Response” chapter in The Explicit Gospel, I put a note on my desk that says:

 

            “How will you respond to the gospel today?”

 

 

So, how will YOU?