Beautifully You

You are unique, set apart, and have purpose in Jesus. We do not need titles to affirm who Jesus called us to be or what He has called us to do, In the end it is all for His Glory. But if we seek after the title, long for the acknowledgement, or demand the respect we will find ourselves lacking every time. Drop the title seeking and seek to do the Lord's Will. Stay focused you can do this.
1 Peter 2:9-10

"In His JOY!"

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be Accountable

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You mad bro?

It's really hard to complain about anything when you realize Jesus has perfectly designed your life to work out for your good and His Glory. When you understand that all your mistakes, problems, JOY!, tears, and circumstances have been wonderfully woven together as part of God's plan to make you more Christ-like. I am not saying that things will be easy or always hard, but I am saying it all has a purpose designed by God.
Romans 5:3-5, 1 Peter 1:6-9

"In His JOY!"

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be Accountable

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"The Lord will Provide"

You know why I like talking to my family about what God is doing in their lives because I God always uses them to show me wonderful things about the truth of His Word. After talking with my sister today the Lord really open my eyes about trusting in His Provision and not my vision.

It is God's Will that we should have a Savior who could bear the punishment of our sin and take the penalty of death on our behalf (Isaiah 53). None of us could provide what was necessary or had the strength to endure the punishment in order to accomplish God's Will. We are all reliant upon God to provide for us the needed provision to accomplish His Will. That provision was in Jesus (Romans 5:8-11). Because whatever God Wills He provides for. Funny how we trust God enough to provide for us what is required for our redemption and salvation but we struggle to believe that God will provide what we need in order to do His Will here on Earth.

I mean think about it God has a purpose and plan for everyone on Earth. The first part of the plan is for you accept Jesus to (John 3:16, 2 Peter 3:9), the second is simply it is just to do His Will (Matthew 28:18-20). For each and everyone of us God has a plan that His has chosen for us to so we can accomplish His Will (Jeremiah 29:11). His plan does not promise us fame and fortune and it does not guarantee we will like every part of it. But the fact remains wherever He calls us to go, whatever He calls us to do, whenever He calls us to do it God will provide what we need to do it. So why worry about the provision when the Provider is your Lord? Simple question to ask but we all seem to struggle with it. I am not saying you do not need to work and money is going to fall out of the sky. All I am saying is stop fretting over what you lack and start believing that whatever God has willed in your life, He will provide what you need to do it. Whether it is people to help mentor you, a place to live, a job to have, or the strength to do to endure. He will always provide, you only need to be obedient and follow after Him (Matthew 6: 25:-34). The same God that provided what you needed for your soul will provide the things you need to do His Will. And the cool thing is this, in the end the only person that can receive the Glory is Jesus! How awesome is that! Stay focused you can do this!


"In His JOY!"

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be Accountable.

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"Assured failure"

We cannot contend against God's Will and expect to succeed. We either humbly follow His Will or we pridefully lead ourselves to assured failure.
2 Chronicles 13:12, Proverbs 16:5,18

"In His JOY!"

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be accountable. 

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Walking in pain because I am obedient

Jesus agonized over the reality of pain for the honor of doing God's Will. He made the conscience choice to walk in obedience and accept the suffering so God would receive glory. He was praying for strength to do God's Will. We too must accept any suffering that may be a direct result for doing God's Will and pray for strength to continue on despite the suffering. We do not seek to be honored for it, we only seek to bring glory to God so others may know Him.
Romans 8:36, Luke 22:39-46

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"Stop rockin' the boat, just leave"

Jonah 1-3

How do you handle direction? If God where to tell you to move to a different state, find a new job, or just some major change in your life how would you handle it? Would you consider where God is sending you, to whom He is sending, or maybe you would ask yourself "How does this benefit me?" 

I look at Jonah, God give Him clear direction to go speak to a rebellious people but Jonah rejected that notion and went the opposite direction (Jonah 1:1-3). But God got His attention by giving Jonah the worst cruise experience ever and followed it up by making Jonah seafood (Jonah 7-17).
Jonah did relent and do what the Lord had directed him to do (Jonah 2). But it took God allowing that adversity in the life of Jonah for Jonah to change his mind and obediently follow God.

So I ask you are you following God? Has God provided you with clear direction and you have clearly gone the opposite way? Is God calling out of a corporate office and into international missions. Is God calling you out of the pulpit and into an office. Is God calling you to go a speak with your next door neighbor. Is God calling you to humble yourself and take a job that does not pay well. Or God may even be calling you to share Christ with your enemy. But I assure you God is calling you to do something but if you neglect to obedient to the call do not be shocked when He "rocks your boat", and much like Jonah, God does not "rock your boat" to take His anger out on you. No He is simply trying to get you headed in the right direction. He wants you to see the bigger picture. His callings for our lives have nothing to do with what we want, it has all to do with leading others to repentance that they may know Christ.

Jonah was to go Nineveh deliver God's Word, and their godly sorrow lead them to repent (Jonah 3:6-10). That is what God has called us to do. We are to reconcile others with God through Jesus and show them how live a Christian life (Matthew 28:16-20, 2 Corinthians 5:18-21). Now where He has chosen for us to do it is His Sovereign Choice, not ours. We have to get over being selfish and wanting things done our way. It's not about "you" or "me", it's all about Him and bringing salvation to those who need it wherever they are. Stay focused, you can do this.

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be Accountable

"In His JOY!"

"Get up and move!"

Romans 12:1-2, James 1:21-25

Choosing to follow after Christ is not a passive action. But an assertive move towards God's Will and an aggressive stance against your personal will. The tool we use to accomplish this is the Word of God. Read it and live it.

Read the Word, Share the Gospel, Be Accountable

"In His JOY!"

"Stop hogging the spotlight, I can't see the real star!"

Exodus 3:1-11

God spoke to Moses through a burning bush and told him, he the instrumental to set the people of Israel free. In verse 8 God says that He has come down to deliver them and in verse 10 God tells Moses that he will be His tool for deliverance.

As the chapter goes on Moses begins to focus on his personal weakness and unbelief. Funny how we can easily turns God's purpose in our lives to focus primarily on us. God has placed a calling on all of our lives to make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). But we are quick to turn the focus on how we can benefit from God's Will. We think of how to franchise our name, get paid for our gifts, or become well-known. This leads us to seek after the promotion, inspires us to dream big, or makes us extremely self-centered. We should seek to bring God glory and not merely promote ourselves. We should inspire to dream of seeing God's Will being accomplished on Earth and not a "highway mansion in the sky". We should stay extremely Christ centered and negate self centeredness. Because God's Will has nothing to do with what we want for ourselves. It has everything to do with disciplining others and bringing God glory.

God desires for us to make disciples of the nations. He wants everyone to follow His instruction and know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Being careful not to get lost in the dreams of this world. It is tempting to use God to get what we want (as if we could). It is tantalizing to pray for everything I want but neglect to see seek after His desires for my life. We can not get lost in the fantasy of "Big Ego World", Population: You. Our gifts our not to bring us glory and benefit us. Our gifts are to give glory to God and be an aid to the Body of Christ (Romans 12:3-7, 1 Corinthians 12:12-28). We are here for one another and not our personal benefit.

God did not call Moses to stardom, he called him to serve. In the same way God has not called us to uplift our egos and be served, He has called us to uplift and serve each other. We must stop playing "American Church Idol" and allowing the world to judge if we are a success or a failure. We must start to pursue God's Will and work together as the Body Christ. We are on "Gilligan Island of Life" and we are all trying to get off the island and get home to Jesus. But when we are trying to use God to carry out our will we will forever be stuck in the muck of our "Groundhog Day of Selfishness".

It's not about you, I know the tv life coach tells you everyday it's all about you. I know the song on the radio is encouraging you to do what you want. I know that best-selling book gave you the 25 steps to becoming awesome. And I know that inspirational movie motivated you to carry out you every ambition. But I implore you to seek God's Will over your own. Discover how He wants to use you to make disciples of the nations. And I promise you, your life will never be the same.

Stay focused, you can do this!

"In His JOY!'

"He did not ask if you were ready are not...He just said GO!"

Exodus 3:1-4:17

To be courageous is to act in the presence of fear but to be a coward is to lack the courage to do or endure a dangerous or unpleasant thing. Which one are you?

God spoke to Moses through a burning bush on top of a mountain. It is common for bushes to catch fire on mountains because they are so high in elevation it just something Moses was use to seeing. But the bush Moses saw caught his eye because although it was burning the bush itself was not burnt. And all of a sudden God spoke (Exodus 3:1-4).

God told Moses that the misery of Israel had reached its peak and it was time for action (Exodus 3:5-7). In verse 8 God says " I have come down to deliver them" and in verse 10 God says "I will send you". God was calling Moses a tool and not the deliver. Moses would be used by God to declare to the Egyptians their hostile acts towards His people had come to an end. But God never asked Moses if he was ready, He never asked Moses for his qualifications, and he never asked Moses if he thought he could do it. He just told Moses to go.

If you read through chapter three and into chapter four in Exodus Moses gives God ever excuse of why he was the wrong choice. Moses said he was a nobody (Exodus 3:11) but God told Moses that Somebody (meaning God) was going with him (Exodus 3:12). Moses told God that the Israelites would not believe him but God told Moses to tell the Israelites that God Himself was sending him (Exodus 3:13-15). Moses told God that he stutters but God told Moses He would give him the words to say and someone to speak for him as well (Exodus 4:10-17).

We often give God a reason why we can't but God will always show us that with Him we can. It is easy to back away in fear and doubt because of our own limitations but that is a cowards death. Remember God said that He was going deliver His people (Exodus 3:8) and Moses was merely the tool (Exodus 3:10). The hammer does not build the house, alone by its self it is a useless tool. But in the hand of a skilled carpenter miraculous things can happen.

Yes you are not qualified, uneducated, not good enough, or you lack the required skill. But God is not looking at your lack there of He is looking at your willingness to serve. He is looking at your heart, He just wants to hear you say, "Hear I am Lord send me!" All He wants is a willing tool. So we have to lay aside every excuse about why we can't and believe that God can. You are coward alone but with the Lord's strength you are courageous.

I love Moses's honesty before the Lord and I am glad the Lord still used Moses to do His Will despite Moses' fear. Because many of us want to run like Moses and say "no one will believe me" because we don't believe in ourselves. But God never asks us if we believe in ourselves He only requires us to believe in Him! Because in our on strength we can do nothing but in Him we can do anything (that is in His Will) if we believe (Mark 9:23).

So what are you waiting for? What excuses are you giving God today? Are you a coward or will you be courageous and do His Will? Stay focused you can do this!

"In His JOY!"

"Want you be my neighbor"

Luke 10:25-37

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' " "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"  In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.' "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"  The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise."

Here is a faithful and true saying. “Ministry will always cost you something.” Whether it is your time, money, or your life, ministry will always cost. But than that raises the question, are you willing to by the price? For two weeks I have been reading this passage in the bible just trying wrap my head around what exactly took place in this story.  So I did some historical research to grasp a better understanding of what the road looked like and where it was . The road was on the way from Jericho to Jerusalem. But the road was notorious for theft and crime because the way that it was designed. The road curved in all kind of weird ways. So you literally could not see what was around the next corner. And thieves would hide in those dark corners and jump out and rob you all the time.

Now that brings us to the nice gentleman who for whatever reason decided to go down this path. And BAM, he gets attacked. They take him for all he is worth and leave him for dead. Later on that day a preacher walks by and sees him and chooses not aid him  and crosses to the other side of the road and walks away, so I know that he noticed the man in need of help. He saw someone in desperate need of “a blessing” but maybe he was scarred of what would happen to him. Maybe he crossed to the other side to see if someone was still waiting around the corner? I don’t know, but yet again someone who works in the church came by a saw the man clinging to life lying there and he just crossed the street and went on his way, he did not want any of that action. But along comes the nobody or a guy that everybody hates and sees that man and takes action. Not only does help, he gets him all cleaned up, puts him in a hotel, and tells the manager “All of his expenses are on me and oh I almost forgot tell him I will be back later to check on him when I get back.”

Now which one ministered to the wounded man? Which one showed the loved of God? Which one acted like a Christian? Before you answer think about how many times you have walked away from the opportunity to minister. I am not talking about “I’ll be praying for you” ministry I am talking about that hands on stuff that people won’t forget.  Because true ministry will always cost you something, whether it time, money, or in some parts of the world your life. It will always costs you something. The preacher (The Priest) and church worker (The Levite) saw the need of the man but perhaps saw their safety to be bigger need or maybe they were running late for service and did not have time.  But the outcast of the church (The Samaritan) made time to minister and help. He was willing to pay the price no matter the cost.  He considered the need of someone else to be greater than his own.

True ministry is when you are willing to give of yourself so that someone else can come closer to Christ.  It takes courage to do ministry. Now this does not mean that you neglect your family and those important to you. Nor does it mean that you spend 24 hours a day in the church house. But it does mean that when God presents you with the opportunity to minister you take hold of it and do it!  Will you pay the price or walk on the other side of the road?

"All aboard"

Proverbs 3:5-8

(v5)
God requires our entire dependence and unyielding trust be in Him. His Word is our assurance that whatever He speaks, promises  or proclaims to us in our lives will always come to pass (Isaiah 55:11). But to do this we must not rely on our understanding of the situation and the circumstances that surround it. 

(v5)
So we humble ourselves to the very Will and Way of God. Knowing that in His proper time He will bring His Will to pass in our lives. Thus we abandon our cares, worries, and anxieties because we are in His care now (1 Peter 5:6)

(v6)
So we acknowledge publicly and privately that the Lord is leading us and guiding us. When questioned by others, pressured to change course, or when problems bloom we still submit to God's Will. We are steadfast in our faith knowing that Lord is still guiding through the Light of His Word (Psalm 119:105), so we meditate on His Word day and night so that we are careful to follow His direction(Psalm 119:9-10).

(v7-v8)
And it is in this entire process that we see our wisdom as foolishness and God's as true genius. Our respect and awe of the Lord grows while our desire for evil dies. Because our lives have been transformed and our minds renewed, so others can see what God's perfect and acceptable will looks like (Romans 12:2). And now we gladly present our lives as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1) because in Him we are refreshed and renewed 

Friends I implore you to follow God's direction like a train does a track, and trust the conductor He knows where He is leading you. Stay focused you can do this. 


"In His JOY!"

Follow the plan

Matthew 16:13-23
"Who do you say I am?", is what Jesus asked the twelve disciples and the only one to speak up was Peter. Peter instantly responded "You are the Christ, The Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:16) Astonished and joyful Jesus quickly pointed out how God had reveled this to Peter and not some mortal man (Matthew 16:17) 

Jesus later goes on to tell Peter that "You are Peter and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18) After this phenomenal moment Jesus begins to tell His Disciples that He must go to Jerusalem to suffer, be killed, and be resurrected (Mathew 16:21). Peter being concerned pulls Him aside and rebukes Him and says, "Far be it from you Lord! This shall never happen to you. (Matthew 16:22)" But

 Jesus looked at Peter and said "Get behind me Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man. (Matthew 16:23)"

Wow! One minute Jesus is rejoicing with Peter for the things God has revealed to him and the next minute Jesus is rebuking the devil. Peter has just gone from being called a foundation rock to being called a stumbling block. I am sure Peter's head was spinning in circles.

But how often are we just like Peter. God reveals Who He is in our lives and we firmly believe that He is God and He is God. We attest and affirm that God is capable of doing any and everything He chooses to do. But it is when we hear the actual plan He has for us or someone else we are quick to say "Lord, not so, this shall never happen." It is here when we become a stumbling block to God's plan and at this point we need to be corrected. We cannot only accept Jesus for who He is we must also accept His plan and how He chooses to carry it out.

I enjoy how Christ made a distinction that Peter's revelation and faith came from God alone but Peter's doubt and unbelief in God's plan came form satan. Where are you friends? Has God revealed Himself to you, has He shown you that He is good and that He is God? Has He shown you that Jesus is the Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isiah 9:6), Christ, Lord and Savior? But have you accepted His plan for you? Have you accepted that the plans He has for someone else's life may not be what you envisioned for that particular person? Or are you doubting the plan but still confessing you belief in God? Because you cannot do both. You cannot profess to believe Jesus with your mouth a rebel against His plan for you with your actions

Trust Jesus friends regardless of where His plans for you lead you or take you. Just trust Him. Stay focused, you can do this!

"In His JOY!"