Loving God More Must Be More Than A "Want"

…being justified freely by His grace… —Romans 3:24

We have to realize that we cannot earn or win anything from God through our own efforts. We must either receive it as a gift or do without it. The greatest spiritual blessing we receive is when we come to the knowledge that we are destitute. Until we get there, our Lord is powerless. He can do nothing for us as long as we think we are sufficient in and of ourselves. We must enter into His kingdom through the door of destitution. As long as we are “rich,” particularly in the area of pride or independence, God can do nothing for us. It is only when we get hungry spiritually that we receive the Holy Spirit. The gift of the essential nature of God is placed and made effective in us by the Holy Spirit. He imparts to us the quickening life of Jesus, making us truly alive. He takes that which was “beyond” us and places it “within” us. And immediately, once “the beyond” has come “within,” it rises up to “the above,” and we are lifted into the kingdom where Jesus lives and reigns (see John 3:5). - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

One morning Martie, my wife, asked me what I was thinking about that I would write in my BLOG for the next day.  I told her that I really didn’t do it that way.  I often read Chamber’s devotion and then ask the Lord, "What am I supposed to say today".  And “out it comes”.  Very often, there may be some event – interaction from the previous day that the Lord uses as a launching point from Chambers.  So in that regard what I write is not premeditated as such, but more spontaneous … although that is not to say that there are not years of life that undergird what I write.  At this writing I’ve done this 3646 times so far, plus this one …. Frankly I am amazed by the process and perhaps more amazed that God is using me in this way.

So to the point. As Christians we live our lives on this earth with a tension between the spiritual and the natural.  The preaching of the earthly health and wealth gospel … that is that God wants you to be rich and healthy … is the carnal Christian's attempt to resolve that tension.  The idea is that God will give you money .. but He tells you not to love money because it is at the root of all kinds of evil … and health .. even though His Word tells you that you will face affliction and hardship of many kinds … Underlying health and wealth is that idea that you can really be independent of God .. all of your earthly needs will be met … do you see the heresy in this? God wants us to give up our dependence upon earthly comforts and assurances and trust Him, alone.  When Job lost everything, the assumption was that he had done something wrong .. why?  Because he lost his earthly possessions. What was the truth .. there was something spiritual at work that superseded the natural.  The same is true in our lives.  The thing is, you must be willing to submit to that … to yield your devotion and dependence upon the natural and trust God's provision - whatever from that may take.  What do you hunger for?  I see people struggling after disasters and war and poverty, while Americans are trying to figure out if they should go ahead and buy that $1000 iPhone and get rid of their $700 iPhone.  The Church in the United States is a “frog in the pot” with respect to materialism. We don’t know that we are being cooked … instead, we think the water temperature is just right.

I watched the Black Friday phenomenon  .. which it seems to be absorbing Thursday. I am trying to find money to help people recover from Hurricane Harvey and people were spending money – hand over fist – to satisfy their lust for more – because they certainly don’t need it – not really.  Pastor Brian, pastor of the church we were connected to in Texas, preached on needs and wants one Sunday.  With respect to the rest of the world, I think it is safe to say that 99% of what we buy is to satisfy our wants.  Our needs were met a long time ago.   

 Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart -  Psalm 37:4 

That is not health and wealth but rather, the emphasis here is on our focus on God and His changing what we desire to conform to what He desires.

You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. - James 4:2-4

Ugh! That does not leave a lot of wiggle room does it. I guess I should quote Jesus to bring this to a close.  

And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, And seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear - Matthew 13:14-16

.....  And I would add .. He who is convicted – let him repent.”  

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

God Knows - Is That Enough For You?

 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." - Jeremiah 29:11

There is a saying that I picked up while on staff with Promise Keepers in the mid 90's. "You can't teach what you don't know, you can't lead where you won't go, and you can only recreate what you are." It's true and can be convicting. 

So - on to my point. If you have been reading these posts then you know that Martie and I have been teaching Experiencing God which is essentially spiritual awareness training. You know at the point of salvation that God sealed you with His Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14) and your body is now the "temple of the Holy Spirit" (1 Corinthians 6:19). But did you know that God speaks to you by His Spirit through the Word (when you hear it or read it), Prayer (when you pray to God), circumstances (life as you live it) and other Christians (who also have the Spirit of God in them). That brings us to a Crisis of Belief - do we trust God and will we obey Him? It requires faith (Hebrews 11:1) and action (James 2:14-17)

In our experience God has always spoken to us about what it is that He wants us to join Him in doing in  more than one way. By way of example I want to share the most recent "conversation" that we had with God. This is not the first time we experienced this, by the way. But I will save that for another day.

I am certain you know about the hurricanes that recently paid a visit to Florida. And you probably know that Martie and I have been  involved in Disaster Relief work in 2005.  Well, a friend of ours, Sherry Buresh, posted that she was in Florida with the ministry she is connected to helping with the relief effort. I contacted her to check on her and to see how things were going.  Her response was that Martie and I needed to come to Florida to help.  I wasn't "feeling it" and so didn't think much about it. But I did tell her that our oldest daughter was available to help. Mandi has been in Florida since October.

Martie and I talked about Florida and still nothing.  Then, out of the blue, Martie talked to me about reconfiguring our RV so we could use it better. I asked her why, since it was in Louisiana being used by another ministry, and we would not be using it in Texas. But it got my attention. It told me that something was going on in her mind and heart. She expressed concern that we did not have the money to go to Florida. We know that where God guides, God provides.  We have a sedan that is 11 years old and is having some electrical issues.  We would need a truck, an F-250 equivalent to support pulling the trailer and supporting the work and maybe an SUV to replace the car. We know that God provides, but still!

So here is what happened next.

We received a letter from the Harris County Tax office. Martie told me that she had just paid our property taxes and figured it was a reminder that the taxes were due. A couple days later she was about to throw it in the trash and she thought she should open it before she did.  Inside was a check for $1000. We had overpaid our property taxes in 2019. 3 years ago. 

That same day, I picked up our mail for Pathfinder at our post office box.  There was a letter from the IRS/Treasury. I thought, "oh great!, now what!" I opened the envelope and in it was a check for $2700 for another over payment! Whaaaaatttttt!! Of course I called Martie. We have been on this path before. We know what is happening.

I am on the board of Stormwise - a disaster relief ministry that was helping 8 Days of Hope in Lake Charles. There are 1200 volunteers working on 100 homes.  I was talking with the Stormwise team and told them that we were considering going to Florida to help. They all said -"Go to Florida!" Do you see a pattern here?

I called friends of ours who live in Florida. They had served with us in Mississippi. Ray and Darla Shands. Ray told me that just the week before he was thinking about us and perhaps we might come to Florida to help. Ray said that he was no longer physically able to do recovery work, but he could connect me to some people that might help me understand the scope of the need. When I hung up, I checked our mailbox. There was a Christmas card in it. From Ray and Darla. Coincidence? I think not. It was what I call a God-insidence. 

So Martie and I yield to God's call to join Him in Florida. But to do what. Sherry had owed me a call back. When she did call she said, "Let me tell you why you are coming to Florida!" To which I said wait until we have shared what we want to tell you. "We are coming to Florida!" Then she said you are coming to Florida to build sheds like you did in Mississippi. We did not see that coming! Talk about a Crisis of Belief. Yes, we built sheds. Yes we can see where there would be a need in Florida. But we figured we would be doing rebuilds. And we probably will. There are some mountains that need moving.

This morning at church my heart was "pierced" by a song we sang called Do It Again.  I wanted to share some of the lyrics with you. I am certain you can make that connection. When I heard it, I leaned over to Martie and told her "This song is for us".  She nodded agreement. So - Here we go!

Do It Again by Chris Brown, Mack Brock, Matt Redman, Steven Furtick

Your promise still stands

Great is Your faithfulness, faithfulness

I'm still in Your hands

This is my confidence, You've never failed me yet

I've seen You move, You move the mountains

And I believe, I'll see You do it again

You made a way, where there was no way

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

What Portion Of My New Life Belongs To God?

 In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and loading donkeys with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. And I warned them about the day on which they were selling provisions. Men of Tyre dwelt there also, who brought in fish and all kinds of goods, and sold them on the Sabbath to the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said to them, “What evil thing is this that you do, by which you profane the Sabbath day? Did not your fathers do thus, and did not our God bring all this disaster on us and on this city? Yet you bring added wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath. .... In those days I also saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. And half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod, and could not speak the language of Judah, but spoke according to the language of one or the other people. So I contended with them and cursed them, struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, “You shall not give your daughters as wives to their sons, nor take their daughters for your sons or yourselves. Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, who was beloved of his God; and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless pagan women caused even him to sin. Should we then hear of your doing all this great evil, transgressing against our God by marrying pagan women?”- Nehemiah 13:15-18, 23-27

When we are born again by the Spirit our primary perspective on our lives on this planet should and must become spiritual. But there is a problem. I included verses from Nehemiah to give you a hint that while the mandate from God has not changed since the beginning, neither has the people's wandering from their godly devotion. 

God has called us out of the world's order into His order of things. He has called us to be separate from the world and our old nature. Now when I refer to our old nature I am speaking to anything that runs contrary to His revealed will.  There are many things that are natural that are part of His created intent for mankind that do not draw our hearts away from God.

But there are many things in the natural that do draw our hearts away from our devotion to God and our new life. Things that demand our heart's devotion. In Nehemiah there were several mentioned. God made it clear that the Sabbath was His day - our tithe - a day of rest - no work - and yet there they were buying, selling, harvesting. He was explicit in His command that the Jews not be unevenly yoked in marriage with non-Jews. It always led to the Jews worshipping other gods. Yet generation after generation yielded to the temptation.

Today - we face the same challenges. Embracing the culture. Justifying why what we do is "really OK". Missing the point of what it means to be salt and light in a world that desperately needs to see Jesus in us. What we say - what we do - the way we live out our faith. To be the fragrance of Christ. 

As an example, you are driving along and I wave you to a stop to tell you that the bridge is out and the road is flooded ahead. That you should not continue on that road but should go another way - and you acknowledge that what I told you is true but continue down the road in spite of the danger. It is no different than hearing the Word of God - acknowledging that the Word is Truth and, as Dr. redmond said about 2 Timothy 3:16, that the Word of God is Doctrine - that is it's about what’s [right], Reproof - that is it's about what’s [not right], Correction - that is it's about how to [get right], and Instruction in righteousness - that is it's about how to [stay right] but you still continue on with your love relationship with your culture. Remember what Jesus said?  .... 

If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. - Matthew 16:24

Do you think denying your old nature is easy? It is a battle - every day. 

The Apostle Paul wrote

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. - Romans 12:1-2

That is an intentional - deliberate act of lying your old life down and yielding to the Spirit of God not just having a good and hopeful attitude.

'Nuff Said

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

I've Got The Love of Jesus Where?

The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. - Romans 10:8-9

We say “Jesus is in our hearts” because it’s a simple, emotional way to describe a deep spiritual reality—not a literal one.

The short answer

As Christians we use that phrase to express relationship, transformation, and presence. It’s about Jesus shaping our inner lives—our values, our motives, our identities—not about Him physically living inside our chests.

So what does the phrase really mean?

First. It describes a relationship

Saying Jesus is “in my heart” means He’s not just an idea or a historical figure. He’s someone you’ve welcomed into the center of your life. It’s relational language—like saying someone “has a place in my heart.”

Second. It describes a transformation

The heart represents the core of who we are:

• our desires

• our choices

• our character

• our moral compass

So when we Christians say Jesus is in our hearts, we mean His teachings and His Spirit are reshaping those things in us.

Third. It refers to the presence of the Holy Spirit

Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to live within believers. So “Jesus in my heart” is a shorthand way of saying: God’s Spirit is with me, guiding me, comforting me, and changing me from the inside out.

We must be born again by the Spirit through faith in Jesus.

Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. - John 3:3-6

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? - 1 Corinthians 3:16

Fourth. It refers to our identity

It’s also a way of saying: “My life belongs to Him. He defines who I am now.”

We don’t say "Jesus is in my heart" literally because ... 

The Bible uses “heart” symbolically. In Scripture, the heart is the seat of:

• thought

• emotion

• will

• spiritual life

So the phrase is metaphorical, but the experience it points to is real.

How the Trinity fits into all of this

Jesus - Redemption, Intercession, and Judgment

Spirit - Regeneration, Transformation

Father - Source of divine life and authority, Sender of the Son, Initiator of redemption, Provider and sustainer, Spiritual Father to all believers.

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Trust And Not Understanding Is The Prerequisite For Obedience

"Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to Him, "…are You going there again?" —John 11:7-8

"Just because I don’t understand what Jesus Christ says, I have no right to determine that He must be mistaken in what He says. That is a dangerous view, and it is never right to think that my obedience to God’s directive will bring dishonor to Jesus. The only thing that will bring dishonor is not obeying Him. I know when the instructions have come from God because of their quiet persistence. But when I begin to weigh the pros and cons, and doubt and debate enter into my mind, I am bringing in an element that is not of God. This will only result in my concluding that His instructions to me were not right. Many of us are faithful to our ideas about Jesus Christ, but how many of us are faithful to Jesus Himself? Faithfulness to Jesus means that I must step out even when and where I can’t see anything (see Matthew 14:29). But faithfulness to my own ideas means that I first clear the way mentally. Faith, however, is not intellectual understanding; faith is a deliberate commitment to the Person of Jesus Christ, even when I can’t see the way ahead.” - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest 

"I know when the instructions have come from God because of their quiet persistence." So knowing that it is God is not so much the issue, but knowing the “why” is the criteria for obedience to many people. For most, before they will do something they want to know the reason. Why? I believe because they want to know so they can decide if they agree with it. And so it is with receiving God’s direction often times.  What we are asked to do may not make "natural" sense …. Get out of the boat and walk on water … walk across a flooded river … march around a fortified city 7 times … wash yourself in the river 7 times … put your faith in Jesus and walk … draw from the well that never will run dry … trust in the Lord and do not lean on your own understanding … confess and believe and you will be saved.  (Isaiah 55:8) “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD.” 

When my daughter was taking Algebra in school, she asked me how to solve a particular problem.  I showed her but then proceeded to explain to her “why” we solved the problem that way.  A page and a half later, her eyes were glazed over and like with Charley Brown's teacher all she heard was “Wah Wa Wah Wa Wah”.  The only way we will understand the “why” is by the Spirit of God, and truth be told, we may still not “get it” fully.  Understanding is not the prerequisite for obedience, trust is.  Our mental capacity is not adequate for fully understanding God.  He is the potter and we are the clay. 

“But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” - Isaiah 64:8 

I recall when God was giving Martie and me a mission change. We had just spent 5 years in Mississippi responding to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. We knew a message was from God because the instructions have come from God with quiet persistence.  People who did not know each other - geographically separated had told us that we should go to Haiti. Honestly, I had to look up where Haiti was on the map.  But, Martie and I knew it was God.  When I told a friend in Waveland, Mississippi when asked where we might go next my reply was "God is sending us to Haiti.". He looked me square in the face and asked "Are you crazy?" To which I replied "It is not my idea - it's God's." That was not false bravado on my part but a resolution for us to go when God says "Go" and do what God says to do. 

To walk by faith and not by sight. - 2 Corinthians 5:7

What has God said to you? It doesn't matter how far He sends you - around the world or around the block. When He says "Go" then Go!

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Why You Do What You Do And Why You Believe What You Believe

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and depart from evil.- Proverbs 3:5-7

Before you were born again, you trusted in your own understanding of this natural life before, but when  you were born again you "should have" started trusting  - in Jesus - and in Jehovah God. I have been taking with someone who does not believe in God. And so. our conversations about religious topics are short. They have no interest and, I think, they feel sorry for me because I am so naive in my beliefs and have devoted my life to that which they believe is patently false - fiction - made up. Are you familiar with the discipline called Apologetics. 

Apologetics is the practice of defending a belief—most commonly a religion or worldview—by giving reasons, arguments, and answers to objections. People who do this are trying to show that their beliefs are rational, credible, and/or true, or at least to make them understandable and persuasive to others. You may have been tempted to try to argue someone into heaven. Throwing every verse you know at them with the hope that they would "see the light" and surrender by faith to Jesus.

You are not misguided. We are to share the gospel with words and the way we live our lives. However - comma - I think it is important to understand that it is not the power of our words but of the Spirit of God that brings conviction to the sinner - just as it was with a sinner like me.  In Matthew 16, people were trying to reason out who Jesus was. A prophet, Elijah, even John the Baptist - Jesus cousin - I never could figure that out. But then Jesus asked who the disciples thought He was and Peter answered. 

Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. - Matthew 16:17

Me understanding who Jesus is and my need for a Savior is a spiritual happening - not a result of mental gymnastics and logic. Consider what the Word says about the capacity of the natural man to understand spiritual truth, and so I question our ability, on our own, to argue someone into the kingdom.

But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. - 1 Corinthians 2:14

Pretty clear.  You will not come to faith through natural reasoning but revealed truth can be used by God to draw you to Himself. Like I have said before - you can't save anybody but you should tell everybody. 

I have heard the joyful sound - Jesus Saves!

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Stopping Short with Our Confession

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. - 1 John 1:8-10

It is a simple thing to confess that we have done something wrong - sinned against God. It can be just words - "Father forgive me for I have sinned" and then we press on with our lives.  I am certain you remember the story of the prodigal son.  You never really know at what point he realized that he had indeed sinned against his father. In fact if you read the story - the reason he went back home was that he was tired of dealing with the consequences of his sin. He had abandoned his family to go his own way, but it didn't work out - and I think that is most often the case.

So he could have said "I messed up, maybe I can go home and pretend that everything is well" When in fact there was a fracture in their relationship that he caused. His father still loved him, but the relationship was broken and there was only one way it could be mended. Repentance -  a heart change. I think that is the failing of many people who think that forgiveness is something they can get so they can continue to live the way they want to. They can continue to sin and then get that sin erased so as not to interfere with their lives and their poor choices.

When we seek forgiveness through confession it must be preceded by a change of heart. That I would love God with my whole heart and not myself. When David was confronted by the Prophet Nathan concerning his sin with Bathsheba and the death of Uriah (the Bible doesn't say that explicitly, but those two things - adultery and murder -  went hand in hand) David said "Create in me a new heart and renew a right spirit in me" Psalm 51.  

With confession must come a rending of the heart - repentance - a turning away - not seeking the opportunity to continue in my sinful ways. You would say "You are not talking about me!" and I would say "Oh really?"  I am talking about all of us. We make excuses for our sin. Perhaps are not really sorry that we sinned but that we got caught in them or are, like the prodigal, dealing with the consequences of them.

The prodigal son was certain he did not deserve to be restored to a place of sonship but was satisfied with being a servant. Repenting of his sin, the father restored him and rejoiced at his return.

"And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.  And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." - Luke 15:21-24

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone