Day 5: Smart vs. Stupid

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house, and it fell with a great crash” (Mt. 7:24-27).

I’d like to describe what I will call “the stupid syndrome”. Sunday morning I wake up and go to church. After some singing the pastor delivers a powerful sermon. I feel convicted and challenged by it sensing that I have grown as a result of hearing a word from God. I come away from church with joy that the Lord has spoken to me over the course of the morning. I then find something to do (usually with people) to enjoy my day off. After playing a game or two, maybe watching a movie, eating a meal with someone, and maybe a phone call, the day is over and I go to bed. The week goes by and it’s Sunday again. I flip open my journal to take notes and notice my notes from last Sunday. I remember how I’d felt challenged and convicted, and I realize that I’ve done nothing with that conviction. This is “the stupid syndrome”.
I’m sure that all of you can identify with this situation. We have opportunities to hear from God all of the time. In our personal devotions (if you do them), in small groups (if you’re in one), in the Sunday morning service, in Sunday school and in many other things that we do in our life, we have the opportunity to hear from God. Person A doesn’t take the opportunities to hear from God and Person B does take the opportunities. Yet both of them are the same person from week to week, with little spiritual growth, and little reason to rejoice.
What’s missing? Take a look at Person C. Person C goes to church on Sunday morning and opens up the bulletin. “Oh”, he says, “the pastor is preaching on the parable of the sower and the seeds.” Though he has heard countless sermons on this passage he listens intently for the voice of God because he knows that God can speak through even the most familiar of passages. The pastor preaches with ordinary words just as every other Sunday, yet the Holy Spirit brings conviction to Person C about how seldom he shares his faith with those who ask about it at work. The service ends and Person C goes out for lunch with some friends. While eating at their favorite restaurant, one of his friends invites him to get together after the meal. Person C politely responds, “Well, I have plans until 3:00, but after 3:00 I’d love to get together.” Person C leaves the restaurant after a lovely meal and goes home. In the quiet of his bedroom, he opens up his journal to the sermon notes and his Bible to the passage that so powerfully spoke to him during the service. Person C spends the next hour communing with God, meditating on the scripture, and talking to God about his conviction to be a better witness in the work place. By the end of his time, Person C writes on the page of his journal, and the page of his day timer, “share testimony with Steven over lunch break.” The next day at work Person C warmly greets Steven before the day’s work begins. “Would you like to go for lunch?” Person C asks.
What’s the difference between Person A & B, and Person C? The difference is smart vs. stupid.
Jesus says, “everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Person C is the wise man. After hearing God’s word through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Person C takes time to meditate on the words of God and consult God regarding their significance. Person C is not content merely listening to the word. He wants to do it! Person C spent time with God seeking an application. How could he be so foolish as to ignore or forget about the conviction that the Holy Spirit brought to him during the sermon? As Person C searches for a way to put God’s words into practice, the Lord reveals a real and tangible way for him to do it. The next day Person C goes as far as welcoming an opportunity to obey God, by asking Steven to go for lunch with him.
Jesus also said, “everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.” Person B sits through the same message as person C and feels the same conviction. However, Person B shrugs off all opportunity to act upon the challenge he receives. He goes home and watches TV for the rest of the day and forgets about everything he heard. Person B missed an opportunity to learn and grow according to God’s will. By God’s grace, he won’t miss the next opportunity.

1. Can you recall a time when you decided that a sermon or Sunday school lesson was already old news – that you’d heard it before, and didn’t bother to really listen for God’s voice? How about a study that you felt you could have taught yourself because of how well you are doing in that particular area? Have you been Person A?
2. Can you recall a time when you felt God spoke to you through a message, devotional, or lesson, yet you ended up forgetting about it soon after? Have you ever felt convicted or challenged to pursue something as a result of a sermon or bible study, and forgotten about it over the course of the week? Have you been Person B?
3. Can you recall a time where God spoke to you, regarding some area in your life, which you took seriously and searched for a way to put it into practice, and finally acted upon what you heard? Has the way you live ever visibly changed as a result of conviction or challenge by the Holy Spirit? Have you ever been person C?

Do you want to grow spiritually and become mature in your faith? Do you want to know Jesus in a more intimate way? Do you want to be used by God to bring glory to His name? Do you want to have a living and dynamic love relationship with God, pleasing Him in each step, through obedience?

“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (Js. 1:22).

Day 4: Prayer and Thanksgiving

In my daily devotions I’ve been reading through the Intouch magazine for this month which is centered on thanksgiving. Through my reading I discovered a new level to the power of prayer and more specifically thanksgiving. I was really impressed by some of the many blessings that Charles Stanley suggests are results of thanksgiving. Let me briefly summarize them for you:

1. Praise and thanksgiving readjust our focus: When we praise and thank God we are remembering that life centers around Him and not the world we live in.
2. Thanking God reminds us of our dependence upon Him: Thanking God reminds of the many blessings that we enjoy only because of God’s goodness. In Him we live and move and have our being.
3. Offering praise causes release from anxiety: Thanksgiving in prayer is our access to peace in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).
4. Expressing gratitude refreshes our relationship with the Lord: Almost like catching up with an old friend, we deepen our intimacy with God when we warmly connect with Him in thanksgiving.
5. Thanksgiving refines our spiritual perception: “As we tell the Lord of our appreciation we will gain deeper insight into who He is, what He is like, and the way He thinks.”
6. Gratitude reinforces our faith: When we see how God has answered our prayers, met our needs, protected us, and worked in our lives, we see His character of goodness, love, and mercy which reinforces our faith.
7. Praising God rejoices our spirit: Thanking God brings us joy, deep joy which can alleviate anxiety, impatience, and restlessness.

This week I have focused a lot on thanking and praising God in everything. What a difference it has made! My personal time with God comes alive as I thank Him for the riches and blessings that He has lavished upon me. One of the chief attitudes of my past is this: I would look at my life and always be asking what was wrong in my life and what needed improvement. I would get so caught up in always looking for the weaknesses in my life that I would become self-focused rather than God-focused. Over the past month I have been learning that when I thank God for what He has done for me, and who He is I have so much more joy and have been able to abide in Him and not myself.
There are so many wonderful applications to this too! In fact, I won’t even list them. Instead, I would like you to post one specific way that you can cultivate a healthy attitude of thanksgiving toward God. I’ll share an example from my own time here at Bible College.
In Gospel of John class, we were reading through John chapter 9 where the blind man receives sight. When Jesus reveals His true identity to the man who can now see, the blind man bows down and worships Jesus saying, “I believe.” I was personally challenged to remember what God has done for me. The blind man praised Jesus deeply because of the sight that Jesus gave him. How much greater is the gift of salvation that Jesus has given me! I felt that I had lost that attitude of worship. I had fallen into the trap of basing my joy on the temporary blessings that He was giving me. When those things disappear or when I forget about them, then the joy that they brought also fades. To remind myself to worship Jesus for the eternal gift that He has given me, I printed off a piece of paper that said “Redeemed” in big letters on it and hung it on my wall. Every time I look at it, I thank God and I am reminded of what my greatest source of joy is.
What will you do to develop the practice of thanksgiving to God?

Since this post is focused on prayer and thanksgiving, I thought it would be a wonderful chance to simply pray for each other. Look back to the people that shared a need on Day 2, and write a prayer for one of them that God would meet that need. Let the glory of the Lord rise among us through prayer and thanksgiving.

Day 3: Your Identity

In Christian Life Development here at PRBI, we had one class where we did something called “The Guilt Test”. By the end of the class I was really excited because God had shown me something new that I had never realized before. So I’d like to share “The Guilt Test” with you. It comes from http://www.new-life.net as I later discovered from my CLD teacher. So without delaying it any longer let’s do it! Get out a piece of paper and number it 1 to 24. Below there are twenty four statements. It’s not uncommon for you to be able to identify with a lot of these statements. As you read through the list, put a check on you page beside the ones that you can identify with or have felt before after you’ve done something wrong. For now just ignore the letters beside them.

1. "I don't see how God could do anything with someone like me." (W)
2. "Now I'm going to get it." (P)
3. " I feel I am stained and everyone can see it." (R)
4. "I feel the need to justify my position, to rationalize my wrong away, I feel defensive." (P)
5. "I feel like there is a sword hanging over my head about to fall at any minute." (P)
6. "I feel like withdrawing and hiding because of what I've done." (R)
7. "I feel like God is pointing his finger at me and saying you are unacceptable." (W)
8. "I feel like God is looking down on me with anger and bitterness." (P)
9. "I feel when I pray, that God won't listen to me because I have not listened and obeyed Him." (R)
10. "I resent myself because I have let God down." (W)
11. "I deserve to be punished because of what I have done." (P)
12. "I hurt all over because I am bad." (W)
13. "I let God down and now He will leave me here to suffer my fate." (R)
14. "I feel the Lord is mad at me and will keep me in a childhood state." (P)
15. "How can God ever love a screw-up like me?" (W)
16. "I have not lived up to expectations. I feel as though I will be rejected and abandoned." (R)
17. "I can just imagine God's angry stare." (P)
18. "Mainly I feel completely embarrassed about myself." (R)
19. "I feel I have completely flopped in my relationship to Christ." (W)
20. "I feel like dirt." (W)
21. "I wonder a lot about what others would think if they knew." (R)
22. "I have let God see me weak, I have failed, I am inferior." (W)
23. "I'm afraid of what others will do to me, because of what I have done." (P)
24. "I feel like a step-child in God's family or even an exile." (R)

Okay now that you are finished the test, and you have check marks on your page beside the numbers, look at the letter in brackets beside each number and write it down beside the ones that you checked. For example, if you put a check beside #20, then write a “W” beside it. Once you have finished putting letters beside all your check marks, mark down the total number of “W”, “P”, and “R” that you have. There are eight of each.
The letters represent the various ways that we experience guilt. We experience guilt in three ways:

1. A Sense of WORTHLESSNESS
 "I'm a failure"
 I'm not "competent", "suitable", "fit" or "capable."
 "How can I call myself a Christian?"
2. A Fear of PUNISHMENT
 "Now I'm going to get it."
 "I deserve to be..."
 "God will surely punish me."
 "Now they will be angry with me for..."
3. A Feeling of REJECTION
 Fear of rejection by others
 "God won't love me if..."
 Not being accepted because of what I did or what I think or who I am.
 Loss of reputation, "losing face" before others, shame.

By looking at the individual numbers that you recorded under Ws, Ps, and Rs, you can tell in what area you feel the most guilt. Interestingly enough, all 24 statements above are statements that we never need to think as Christians.
I’d encourage you (the reader) to comment on which one of the three areas of guilt that you identify with the most. Along with your result, post one verse that shows why we need not feel guilty in that way. This test brought me a lot of freedom and joy, as I discovered my own personal understanding of how much God values me, accepts me, and has freed me from punishment. I hope God speaks to you through it.

Day 2: Your Role

“From Him the whole body, joined together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16)

I love that verse. It paints a beautiful picture of what the church should look like today. Everyone is joined together. Everyone is supporting each other. Everyone is growing building themselves up in love. How is all this possible? In some churches this can scarcely be said. I’ve attended churches where the congregation is divided. Each member supports their own opinion of what is true. The Body seems to shrink and deconstructs itself in hatred, bitterness, and unforgiveness. Why does the Body that Paul talks about seem so untrue to reality in so many local churches?
In many cases you can find two Christians who can’t even live at peace with each other. If two people can’t even achieve unity than how on earth will the whole Body of Christ ever be what Paul describes it as? It seems impossible. Is it? I thank God that I have seen the Body as Paul describes it, in several places. But what makes it or breaks it?
The key is in the last part of the verse. “From Him the whole body, joined together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16 emphasis mine). Imagine a track and field athlete. He’s at the blocks waiting for the gun. Bang! Microseconds after the gun goes off, the runner’s brain says “Go!” He takes a couple steps and then the unthinkable happens. One of his arms decides that the ears aren’t helping very much in this race so it reaches up and pulls his left ear off. The runner’s left eye is offended by the arm so he decides to leave the body and rolls out like a Ferrari getaway car. When the right knee sees that the eye has left the body, he decides that he’s only going to bend in the opposite direction from now on. The vocal chords don’t know what’s going on because they can’t see anything, so they shake with fear causing the man to bellow as he stumbles down the track. Next the runner’s feet start to feel tired because they are bearing most of the weight while the other muscles slack off. Lastly, the lower half of the runner’s body decides to go right while the upper half decides to go left and the result is the ugliest thing you have ever seen. Can you imagine what this runner would look like running down the track? Do you think that he has a hope of winning the race?
In reality, we, the Body of Christ, are like that runner. The only way that we can succeed and achieve the purposes that God has for us is if each part does its work. This doesn’t just mean do what you want or do what you can do. The principle we need to grasp from this is that each part has a purpose. Each person has a function or role in the Body of Christ, not so they can function by themselves, but so they can function together. When each part of the body does what it’s created to do and works together with the other parts, the body can move and work and grow. Similarly, when each follower of Christ acts/speaks/thinks in the way he or she is created to act/think/speak and works together with the other followers of Christ, the Body of Christ can move and work and grow.
What part of the body are you? What purpose do you serve in the body? Briefly, there are three purposes and functions to every part of the body:

1. We were created for the purpose of functioning in relationship with Jesus (Jn. 17:3).
2. We were created for the purpose of functioning in witness of Jesus (Acts 1:8, Mk. 16:15)
3. We were created for the purpose of functioning in ministry to the Body (Eph. 4)

No matter what part of the body you are, you were created for these three purposes which all fall under one big purpose of bringing glory to God. “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen” (Ro. 11:36). If every Christian remained steadfast in their relationship with Jesus walking and talking with Him every step of the way, if every Christian was a witness of Jesus to the world testifying to His power in both word and deed, if every Christian was a minister to the Body looking for the needs of brothers and sisters and meeting them, what would the church look like today? If every Christian served the Lord with the strength that He provides “…so that the Body of Christ would be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13) what would the church look like? Let me show you:

“From Him the whole body, joined together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work” (Eph. 4:16)

It all comes back to you (the reader) and I. Each of us in our own lives has to pull our weight. Each of us has to be pursuing relationship with Jesus. Each of us has to be serving and supporting our brothers and sisters in Christ. Each one of us has to be sensitive to the needs of others and sensitive to God’s leading in how we can meet them. It all comes back to the individual you and I.
I originally planned this post to be a nothing more than a discussion and a chance to open up and share how God’s been working in your life. Why? Because, through fellowship God can use someone’s comment to meet someone else’s need. In fact God can meet your own need through your own comment as you try and understand what God has been doing in your life.
I’d like to try something different. As a Body can we all take a chance to examine ourselves to see if we are living in Christ? Maybe you are or maybe you need to come back to God in this moment and begin to live in Him again. When you have come to peace with God I would like you to ask God to show you what your needs are. God is always the one who meets our needs, and often He will use others to do it. Finally, I would like you to comment on this post and share your need with the Body so we can pray for each other. I’m hoping that we can all catch a glimpse of the way that the Body was created to function. Maybe you struggle with sin, maybe you struggle with pride, maybe you struggle with being self-centered, maybe you struggle with surrendering, maybe you struggle with loving others or forgiving others, having bitterness, anger, joy or peace. It doesn’t have to be a struggle. Maybe you need to truly feel that God loves you or that He has accepted you or that He will not punish you. Maybe you need to feel free. Maybe you need to laugh. Maybe you need healing or equipping. There are so many needs that we can have that only God can fill, and if we don’t share our needs or seek our brothers’ and sisters’ needs, we miss out on opportunities to be used by God and to have our own needs met. Whether you share it anonymously or by name, please comment on what the Lord reveals to you.

Day 1: The Body

In my time here at PRBI God has taught me so much about the Body of Christ and Relationships. In one of my favorite classes, Christian Life Development, we’ve spent several classes simply looking at the purpose of relationships in the Body of Christ. God has used this class as well as everyday life with people here at PRBI to show me what the church really is.
One of the most influential truths I’ve learned here concerns the purpose of all relationships with all people in general. Paul wrote, "…whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). As my CLD teacher said, "relationships are something that we do." So the underlying purpose in all relationships is to bring glory to God. Through personal reflection I’ve been challenged to examine my motivations in each of the relationships I am in. Why am I doing [insert activity] with [insert name]? Over the last month this question has been a tremendous blessing.
On several occasions this question has caused me to remember that I am acting for God’s glory. A normal game of pool turns into a wonderful time of fellowship and an opportunity to shine God’s love into a person’s life. After accepting an invitation to skateboard with a good friend, we find ourselves having thrown our boards off to the side because of more important things we needed to talk about. One evening I found myself painting a large prop for the global ministries conference here at the school simply because I wanted to be with the people painting. Soon enough the question came back and I realized that I was doing it for the wrong reasons. When I shifted my focus to bringing glory to God, I very quickly discovered a need that I was equipped to meet. All the glory was given to God.
The principle that I would like to share with you is this: When we act in our relationships to bring glory to God, we begin to see the many opportunities that God has for us to minister. With the proper motivation in a relationship God reveals to us the needs that we can meet. It may be as simple as showing God’s love to someone through a smile and a cheerful greeting. When our focus is to bring glory to God, we begin to develop a genuine care and love for all people. This principle works for both believers and non-believers. Look at what Paul says to the Ephesians: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen" (4:29). Does this mean that every conversation has to be a spiritual conversation? By no means! This is the connection:

Attitude	Result
Relationships to bring glory to myself, to make me feel good, to bring me joy and meet my needs	Unwholesome talk coming out of my mouth
Relationships to bring glory to God (1 Cor. 10:31)	Building others up according to their needs (Eph. 4:29)

Maybe a brother or sister in Christ needs the medicine of laughter. In such a situation you could build a person up simply by laughing with them, telling jokes or sharing "hi-larious" stories. Consider a brother or sister in Christ who just needs to feel the love of God. You could show God’s loving-kindness simply by caring for them when you ask how they are doing and what’s going on in their life. Both of these instances aren’t "spiritual" conversations, but they do build the person up according to their need and they bring glory to God because of this.
Another amazing reward of glorifying God comes through our personal relationship with Jesus. When we seek to glorify God in our relationships with others, we keep our focus on Christ. I am sure that at one time or another most of you have made an idol of other people. Idolatry in relationships happens in many different ways. I have made the mistake of seeking joy from others. I have made the mistake of looking to people to meet my needs. I have made the mistake of elevating a relationship in my mind to the rightful place of God. Israel made the same mistakes. The Lord declared through the prophet Jeremiah, "My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns that cannot hold water" (2:13). Notice that when we dig our own cisterns, or look for water from relationships, we also forsake God, the spring of living water. However, if we seek to glorify God in our relationships, our focus is on God. We are drinking from the spring of living water, Jesus Christ, while in our relationships we are pointing others to the spring of living water.
Imagine what the Body of Christ would look like if each member’s attitude was to bring glory to God together. Needs met, growth encouraged, unity, an accurate reflection of God’s power to the world, and most importantly, glory to God in the highest! The God whom we serve would be worshipped, praised, exalted, and revered.
Unfortunately, knowing this truth and doing it are two different things. Each and every child of God needs to function in relationship with a purpose of bringing glory to God. I encourage you to humbly examine yourselves before the Lord. What is your motivation in each of your relationships? With Mom, Dad, brothers in Christ, sisters in Christ, boyfriends and girlfriends, non-believers, and strangers. What about the people that you are currently in conflict with? I challenge you to always be asking yourself: Why am I doing [insert activity/conflict] with [insert name]? How would a determination to bring glory to God in all of your relationships help you grow?
If you would like to join me in cultivating a God-glorifying attitude in relationships, then take time each day this week to prayerfully read through Ephesians chapter 4. I would really like to get some great discussion going regarding the Body of Christ and relationships, so please comment and ask questions as the Spirit leads. I’d like to end with this verse:
"Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love as each part does its work" (Eph. 4:15-16).

Spiritual Emphasis Week

Hello Everyone!
The last couple weeks I haven't had a chance to post because I 've been really busy with assignments. I had a paper due everyday last week and a midterm exam and this weekend we had a mission conference at the school. This is my last week of school before reading break. I thought it would be neat to have a Spiritual Emphasis Week next week! Everyday next week I will be posting something including things that I have learned from my classes and even some interactive things to get some good discussion going. So mark it on your calendar! I hope it's a good chance for us to grow together as believers.

Peace On the Path

Something I've been learning alot about lately is peace. As I journey closer to Jesus on my Mountain Path there is one gift of God that I love to have - a peace within. When I have peace within I can be going through the perfect storm and still remain calm. But so often I find that peace within eludes me. Sometimes I have been discouraged because I can't even feel at peace while I spending time with God or doing my devotions. By God's grace and with the help of a book I received called "The Peacemaker" I have been learning about how we as Christians can have peace every day as we journey on our mountain paths.
"There are three dimensions to the peace that God offers to us through Christ: peace with God, peace with one another, and peace within ourselves" (Sande 44). The key to God's gift of peace is this: All of these dimensions of peace are intertwined.

Peace with God

Before we accepted Jesus as our Savior and entered into relationship with Him, we were seperated from God by our sin. Through Jesus Christ we are able to have peace with God. Think about the following verses in regards to peace with God:

"For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him [Jesus], and through Him to reconcile to himself all things...by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross" (Colossians 1:19-20)

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand" (Romans 5:1-2)

"But He was peirced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by his wounds we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5)

The gift of salvation is the essence of our peace with God. "As [we] believe in Jesus, accept His gracious gift of salvation, and draw closer to Him through the power of His Spirit, the study of His Word, the privelege of prayer, and the fellowship of His church, His peace can fill every part of [our] live[s]" (Sande 45).

Peace with Others

Because of the peace that we have in God through Jesus Christ we are also able to enjoy peace with others (Eph 2:11-18). Peace, often referred to as unity, is the "presence of genuine harmony, understanding, and good will between people" (Sande 46). It is not mearely the absence of conflict. It is God's call on our lives to "live at peace with everyone" (Romans 12:18). Peace with others is a result of obeying the second great commandment, "Love your neighbour as yourself" (Matt. 22:39). This peace or unity with others is an "essential" part of being an effective witness of Jesus.

Peace within Yourself

This is the peace that everyone wants to have. Many people strive for a peace within without a peace with God or others. The truth of the matter is that we cannot have peace within if we don't have peace with God and man. Peace within "is a gift that God gives only to those who believe in His Son and obey His commands (1 John 3:21-24). In other words, internal peace is a by-product of righteousness" (Sande 46). Let's look at the Word:

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You" (Isaiah 26:3).

"The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quitness and confidence forever" (Isaiah 32:17; cf. Psalms 85:10; 119:165).

"If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea" (Isaiah 48:18).

These verses clearly show that "it is impossible to experience internal peace if you fail to persue peace with God and peace with others" (Sande 46). My own experience testifies to the truth of these passages. Several times I know that I have not been able to find an internal peace while there is conflict between another person and myself. Two weeks ago I was troubled inside because I had been avoiding a guy because I didn't want to tell him that I had chosen someone else to be my discipler. I didn't want to have to explain why I chose the other guy over him so I avoided him, and I could not find a peace within until I found peace with the guy who was waiting for me to say something to his offer to be my discipler. This principle goes hand in hand with God's Word:

"Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember thatyour brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift" (Matthew 5:23-24).

Not only do we need peace with others to have peace within ourselves, we are to seek peace with others even ahead of worshipping God. Until recently I always thought that I could have peace with God and internal peace even though I may at odds with a brother or sister in Christ. But I have always had difficulty, wondering why I seldom had the internal peace that I wanted. Now I realize that I all three dimensions of God's gift of peace and intertwined and work together. Now I am practicing peace with God and man, and finding this: As I trust in Jesus my Savior and obey His commands AND seek harmonious relationships with those around me, I also have a peace within. On the mountain path that can be very difficult at times, peace is an amazing comfort, blessing, and gift from God.

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievance you may have against one another....Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace" (Colossians 3:13;15).

True Forgiveness

Over the last little while I’ve been learning a little about forgiveness. A lot of times I’ve thought that forgiveness is just being ok with whatever happened, but I came across a neat description of what forgiveness really is. From a book called, "The Peace Maker", "forgiveness may be described as a decision to make four promises:

"I will not dwell on this incident."
"I will not bring up this incident again and use it against you."
"I will not talk to others about this incident."
"I will not let this incident stand between us or hinder our personal relationship."

A neat little poem from the same source sums it up with:

Good thought,
Hurt you not,
Gossip never,
Friends forever.

This week was spiritual emphasis week here at PRBI. On Friday we had no classes and it was a day of prayer and fasting. In the afternoon we had a time of worship and celebrated communion. Before the communion, we had a time to examine ourselves and step out of the gym with anyone that we needed to resolve something with. It was so cool to see people walk out and then walk back in with smiles on their faces after having reconciled. I was challenged with reconciling with someone this week also. Maybe there is someone in your life who you need to be reconciled with. Or maybe you just need to forgive someone of something that you’ve unintentionally held against them. Whatever your situation is, God calls us to be reconciled to our brother before we offer our sacrifice of worship at the altar and before we celebrate communion. When we forgive others we always find a greater freedom than we had before, and God is pleased because He wants to forgive others, on the basis of His forgiveness of our sin. I just thought that this was interesting and hopefully it speaks to you also. God bless!

Enjoying God’s Gifts

As I was reading for one of my classes, I was really impressed about what the Author was saying. The text I was reading from is called "The Liberated Imagination" by Leland Ryken. Our first assignment was to read about the purpose of the "arts" (music, visual art, poetry, etc..) Going into this I had no clue what it was going to say, but I was pleasantly surprised! The book talks about how the Bible says that pleasure and enjoyment are of God. Solomon writes, "I know there is nothing better for them than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live; also that it is God’s gift to man that every one should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil." (Ecc 3:12-13) He also writes, "Behold, what I have seen to be good and to be fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life which God has given him, for this is his lot. Every man also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and find enjoyment in his toil – this is the gift of God." (Ecc 5:18-19) So the Bible is pretty clear, (there are more verses too), that pleasure and enjoyment are a gift from God.
But not only this, the "arts" are a gift to be enjoyed and take pleasure in! God has created us as creative beings in His image. Just as He delights in His creation, we can delight in our creations. Things like music, poetry, drama, television, and games are all facets of our God-given creativity and are for our enjoyment. In Paul’s first letter to Timothy he says, "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." (1 Tim 6:17) From this verse we can see that our rich creativity is a gift from God for our enjoyment, as long as we don’t put our hope and trust in that rather than God. To elevate the arts, whether music, television, games, movies, or any such thing above God’s rightful place in our lives is idolatry. The freedom to enjoy things as the gifts that they are comes with a responsibility not to worship or elevate those gifts above the One who gave them.
Learning this was very refreshing for me. Most of you probably know that I’d be the first person to tell you that you are wasting your time or that your time could be better used, if you told me that you were listening to music that isn’t spiritual, or watching TV or movies that had nothing to do with God. But just because a form of art that we enjoy using, whether we are the audience or the creator of the art, isn’t spiritual or done as a ministry, doesn’t mean that we are wasting our time! God gave us beautiful and pleasurable things in life to enjoy! In fact, those of us that look at people who take time just to enjoy the beauty of life as wasting their time are very similar to the Pharisees in mindset. This is something I need to learn because until now I have been a little off balance in my perspective.
I’m still figuring a lot of this out, but I thought I’d share it with you, and I hope that it provokes some thought in you as it did for me. God Bless!

Surrendering The Mind

This week while reading from Oswald Chamber’s "My Utmost For His Highest" I was really challenged by the attitude that he had in pursuing God. His attitude is almost a mirror of Paul’s in his letter to the Philippians. Chambers says, "Shut out every other thought and keep yourself before God in this one thing only – my utmost for His highest. I am determined to be absolutely and entirely for Him and Him alone." What an amazing heart!!! That’s hard to do and hard to even want to do! Paul affirms this as his mindset in his second letter to the Corinthians saying, "…we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Co 10:5) Can you image checking yourself on every thought?! Talk about loving God with all your mind! (Matt 22:37) This means rejecting all thoughts of anxiety, worry, and doubt that seek to make a home in our mind. It means casting off every inclination to dwell on people and things outside of a God-focused frame of mind. Maybe this is what Paul was referring to when he said "pray continually." (1 Th 5:17) I can’t think of a greater surrender than this! This must be why Oswald Chambers refers to it as "my utmost". This is a great sacrifice on our part but it’s the only acceptable sacrifice when we consider Christ’s sacrifice for us. We owe Him all of our minds! This, that God may be the Highest and glorified beyond all measure in our lives. Though no one can see our thoughts or know what we’re thinking, God sees every thought, and He wants to dwell in our minds. Only God will know of the glory we bring to Him by the secret and hidden places of our thoughts.