Losing My Life

2 Timothy 2:21 So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master prepared for every good work. (HCSB)     The Lord tell us that we are to keep ourselves pure so that we will be better equipped to do His work. Purity is more than just "sexual morality." We, as Christians, should be focused fully on Jesus. That means cutting back on all the peripheral distractions. There are a few ways we can help out minds to stay pure and focused on Jesus.     Being careful in what we fill ourselves up with is vital. We don't realize what gets into our minds when we listen to songs with bad lyrics, watch shows or movies with dark influences, or even go into environments that surround us with people who are living in unrighteousness. These influences run through our minds and plague our thoughts whether we know it or not.     Besides making ourselves aware of these things, there are a few things we can do to h

1 Peter 1:1-25     I wanted to do something a little different today. This passage of scripture was laid upon my heart today, and I would like to look more deeply into it's meaning in the context of Christian living.     What really jumped out at me was that we have been chosen by our Heavenly Father for such a time as this ( Esther 4:14 ). He foreknew and chose us to be alive in this time of the world and to fulfill a specific purpose. He even set aside gifts especially for us. This passage says that he set aside the gift of our salvation! Before Jesus, this was only available to Jews who followed the law. When He revealed this gift to the prophets of old, they wanted to know all about it! And even the angels are jealous of us! Verses 1-2 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect , exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctif

    There have been times in my life, as there are in many other Christian's lives, when I have been put down by those who hated me. The Bible tells us that there will be times when people will hate us because of our faith. Times where we suffer because of our King. And that it is of greatest honor to share in Christ's sufferings. 1 Peter 4:13  Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of the Messiah, so that you may also rejoice with great joy at the revelation of His glory. (HCSB) Philippians 3:10 My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings (HCSB)     However, when we experience these situations, it does not often feel quite so great and honorable. It is a tribulation to be the subject of hatred. A couple of years ago, I experienced this at a somewhat ridiculous level. I had done nothing to deserve the hatred I received, yet I was left with no more than one true friend.     The way I got through this time was

    I have been so blessed with great friends in my life. Never before have I had so many wonderful, Godly, friends in my life at once! It has really enhanced my life. So today I pondered what the traits of a good friend look like and this is what I have come up with. Loyal and dependable.     A good friend is someone you can count on and who you know will not desert you when you need something. These are the people who you know you could call in the middle of the night in a crisis.  Who you know will stand by your side and give you their full support through it all. Proverbs 18:24 A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (NIV ) There in good times and in bad.     This goes hand-in-hand with being loyal and dependable. You don't want a friend who is only there for the good times and backs out when things get serious or you ask for their aid. They are not a true brother or sister. But I have also realized that there

1 Corinthians 11:1   Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ       Today I conclude my "series" on leadership with one final thought. As we strive to lead like Jesus we must remember that we are not Jesus.       We have to lead always giving Him the glory and not ourselves. When people look to us for guidance we must always remind ourselves (and them) that we are role models, not idols . Exodus 20:3  You shall have no other gods before me. (ESV)     We must never put those that look up to us in a position to be disappointed. We, as humans, cannot hold that position in others' hearts. While we can be an example of Jesus, we can never live in complete perfection. The truth is that no matter how hard we try, we will always disappoint and fail others. And when we do, what will they rely on?     We need to be conscious of how others view us and also how we accept their views. We don't want to lead anyone into disappointment but rather lead them to th

1 Corinthians 11:1   Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ     When you step into a leadership position, it is not something you can decide to do half-heartedly. Becoming a leader means giving your all. Like Christ, who emptied Himself and undeservedly died on the cross for our sins, we must be self-sacrificial. Philippians 2:5-11 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant , being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord

1 Corinthians 11:1   Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ       Today while thinking through some of the aspects of leadership displayed in Jesus, a new concept popped into my mind. I had never thought of this as a leadership trait, but I began to think of the importance of the resilience displayed by Jesus throughout His ministry.     Living life the way God intends is difficult. Doing what's right has never been easy. Sadly, the reality of the world is that people either embrace or reject truth-- there is no in-between. And when you are the messenger for God, you often get shot down. Even though I have grown accustomed to this natural tendency of people, it still hurts when the people you care about reject you for the truth you carry.    The point is,  difficult circumstances become discouraging when we are living by faith and not getting positive results . Today, I realized that Jesus truly has been there and felt the same way. Think back to His disciples

1 Corinthians 11:1   Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ       In my own thoughts, I have recently been running over one phrase that Jesus said in the gospel. "I only do what my Father does." Jesus was so in tune with and locked in on the Father that He could easily discern His will and follow suit. In fact, He always did this! He never did anything of His own accord. He only did what the Father told Him. I want to live my life like that. I want to lead like that. In total submission to the Father's will. John 5:19 So Jesus explained, "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does (NIV)     When describing leadership, the last thing most people think of is "submissive." How can you be a submissive leader? By submitting to God's plan and will for your life. By following Jesus' example. Jesus followed His Father's instructio

1 Corinthians 11:1   Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ       Over these next few days, I am going to be looking at what it means to lead others by following Christ's example. Today, the attribute of leadership that I thought about was the way Jesus was so unthreatened . He walked this earth as God! He had the power to hold the universe together! And yet, not once did He point this out or push His rightful authority over others. Not once did we see Jesus outraged screaming to His transgressors, "Don't you know who I am?!"      Jesus called Himself the Son of Man and not the Son of God. He never boasted or pointed out His godliness. Yet we know that He is exalted above all ! He was humble beyond humble. He was so confident in His identity from the Father that He was never threatened by others who tried to overtake Him. He stood firm in who He was and didn't have to prove His Godship to anyone. He let the Father reveal it. Matthew 16:13-17   

   These past few weeks, I have really been pondering what it means to be a leader in the Kingdom of God. What is Jesus' outline and definition for a leader? I have come to this conclusion... Jesus Himself is our outline and definition of a leader. Everything we need is in Him. Being a leader means to follow Him and His example as others follow you. That is the very thing Paul said in 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians 11:1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ      Over the next few days, I want to look at some attributes that Jesus displayed as the true King over all, our example of real leadership. The first characteristic of Jesus' unique and supernatural leadership is His devotion to spreading the word of God so that we, as imperfect humans, could be saved. Today we call this evangelism .     Throughout the entire gospel, Jesus traveled from town to town, telling of His Father. During one of His messages, Jesus shared these three wonderfully-crafted parabl

    As humans, one of our least favorite activities is to wait. To wait in line, to wait until Christmas, to wait until marriage, even to wait until lunch! We hate to wait for anything. There is no such thing as delayed gratification in America. Our whole marketing system is based on getting what you want NOW. We try to eliminate waiting all together.     Yet again, the Bible stands in opposition to the world's view. We are instructed to do what we hate most-- wait. Almost always we find that God's plan doesn't happen in our time. We want to find a job today, meet our spouses tomorrow, and be married and settled in a week's time! But what if there's a reason that Jesus doesn't let it happen that way? What if He has a reason for us to stay put? Maybe, just maybe, there are things we need to learn before what we want to happen can actually happen. Maybe He allows for some delayed gratification to keep us from self-destruction.     The Bible tells us also, that t

    In this world we live in, there is a lot of focus on outward appearances. Businesses advertise based on our vanity; trying to sell us the next new face cream or exercise equipment guaranteed to make us look better in no time! We are all bought into this system to some extent. And it really isn't bad to want to look nice, as long as we aren't extreme and keep our focus where it should be… on the one who made us all! As a simple reminder today,  I looked into what the Bible says about beauty. 1 Peter 3:3-5   Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They trusted God and accepted the authority of their husbands. (NLT)     We are not made beautiful from how we present ourselves outwardly, but rath

    When we are going through a tough season in life, things can get a little blurry sometimes. In the midst of tribulation it can be hard to see the big picture. Many of us spend these periods in life on our knees praying for God to come through with a miracle. Doing that is appropriate and to our benefit, but what happens when He comes through… and it doesn't look like what we hoped it would?  What happens when God plays a different card than you expected?     Will we recognize His answer to prayer as what it is? Or are we blinded by our broken hopes because we falsely believed there was only one right answer? An extreme example of this is death. There will always be times when we are praying for someone to be healed and given an extension on life, but what if that is not in His will? What if it is their time to go? How do we cope?     These are convicting questions that have made me question myself. It is easy to forget how big, powerful, and in control our God is. We lim

1 Corinthians 13:1-10 (The Message) If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, Doesn’t have a swelled head, Doesn’t force itself on others, Isn’t always “me first,” Doesn’t fly off the handle, Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, Doesn’t revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back

    What is the very best way to live our lives to the fullest? We know as Christians that it is to follow God's plan for our lives and not our own. But that is a lot easier said than done. As humans we have a natural desire for control over our own lives and circumstances. Unfortunately, when we try to run our lives our own way, we often make things harder for ourselves. If we could just follow God's plan rather than our own, our lives would be a lot more fulfilling and a lot less painful!     So how do we go about doing that? Giving up control to our lives? I think it starts by firstly, recognizing we are never really in control to begin with. We have free will to go where we want, but the Lord directs our steps ( Proverbs 16:9 ). We go about making decisions, and (if we are in Christ) He cleans up after us, making them work for our good, because of His great love for us ( Romans 8:28 ). Not to say that we won't ever make mistakes! That is what that grace is there for.

    When Adam ate the fruit in the garden, he invited sin into the world. Every person born since has been born with the nature to sin. After that first bite in the garden, Satan has used sin to wreak havoc on this planet. This is important to know--  Satan  is the one who brought down destruction after tempting Adam to sin.     How many times have I heard my peers blame God for their problems. "Why is God doing this to me?!" Well, let me tell you, He isn't. There is evil in this world because Satan is in this world. He lives here, people. And he is determined to make our lives a living hell (literally). Satan and the other fallen angels live on this earth awaiting the day of destruction the Lord set apart as punishment for their rebellion. Until then, they are here amongst us, tempting us to follow fleshly desires and trying to lead as many of us as possible away from Christ. 1 John 5:19 We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the cont

    Before we were yet born, God knew everything about us. Every decision, every mistake, every victory-- every detail about us. He created man with free will knowing how we would abuse it! He gave us all a choice in everything; a choice to love Him or reject Him. Even though He provided that choice, He knew who would choose Him and who would not. Before we were ever even created. And He predestined some to serve Him. If you are a Christian, it is no accident or stroke of luck. You were chosen long ago to fulfill a specific purpose on this earth; He picked you. Ephesians 1:11   Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan. (NLT) Ephesians 1:4-6   For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to t

    Sometimes life looks hopeless. There are times when we cannot see the way out of our troubles and sadness overtakes us. We all run across circumstances that we cannot control or understand. This is unfortunately just a part of our life here on earth. There will always be darkness and sadness in this world overrun by sin. But take heart! He has overcome the world ( John 16:33 ). And through His power we can too.     When the world is wearing us down, we must turn to Him all the more. He has a plan and He sees the big picture that we cannot. When circumstances arise that we cannot understand we have to trust in Him and His plan. It doesn't mean that we can avoid sadness altogether, but the word tells us that He is near to the brokenhearted. When we cry out, He is there holding us close. In those times, we need to rest in Him.  Psalms 34:17-19   When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearte

    We are told in the Bible that our God will meet all our needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus ( Philippians 4:19 ). So how do we get those needs met? Well Philippians 4:6 tells us do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God (NIV). We pray to God and ask Him, through His son's Holy name, for those things we need in life. We may know this as Christians, yet many do not know why we need to pray. "Doesn't God already know what I need?" The answer is yes, He does. However, there is a very real reason why we must ask.     When God created this world, He gave it to Adam to watch over and subdue. When Adam sinned and obeyed Satan, he gave the rights to this earth to him! By obeying someone other than God, he relinquished his authority. And as we know, that is how sin entered the world. Well, because this earth belongs to Satan, it is run by Satan ( 2 Corinthians