Why am I blogging again??

What I’m about to say is going to seem odd. To answer the question posed in the title I have to connect what I’m doing on this site with my life mandate. It is odd that my life mandate from the Lord would involve updating a blog spot that few people read and if they do, it’s mostly by accident.

To answer the question simply, it’s Isaiah 11:9 that says “…and the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the seas.”

My goal and calling is to fill the earth, in whatever way I can, on this side of eternity into the next, with the knowledge of God. Enter blogging. This is a great means to develope and cultivate theological understanding and express it in the earth. This is great practice for preachers. I post stuff on this site that has to do with Jesus. I blog because He’s worthy of recieving praise, in every form and way, through worship, prayer, media, wordpress, etc etc.

What does it mean to lose our lives to gain Christ?

Today I am provoked by the apostle Paul, who was provoked by Christ.

Lately I have been hearing a lot of talk, mostly from my own mouth, about suffering and persecution and how hard it is if a supporter forgets to send a monthly support check. And after reading a few of Paul’s letters I feel kind of woozy. Which is just another way of saying that I am again getting provoked to actually live the gospel that Jesus taught and lived. What is that gospel? Death to self that the Father would receive glory and honor. To lose everything puts us in a really good way to receive anything that the Father may want to give.

I get so scared when trouble comes, not realizing that God may be redeeming other things in me that I am unaware of. I wonder how much culture, American, western mindsets have crept into my understanding of the gospel. If persecution seems so hard and unbearable then I wonder if we are really living for Jesus at all. Paul said that whatever things were gain to him, he gave up in order to gain Christ. This led Paul to imprisonment, persecution, hunger, cold, being shipwrecked, beatings, lashes, having lack in much, and being slandered. And he considered these things joyful because he found the power of Christ’s resurrection there. Jesus said it this way, “Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it and whoever loses his life for my sake will keep it eternally.”

I present this frustratingly painful post with a question that is burning in me right now; am I living for the age to come? Am I heavenly minded? The answer probably lies somewhere in the way I spend my time, energy, money and what I talk about. God, how on earth are you going to raise up a bride thats worthy of your Son??!!

Never in the history of ever has it been a better time to be a believer…

I realize that some of you out there may be reading this with a doubtful smirk upon your face with a slight nod of the head. Well just let me explain.

I think most would agree that the light of righteousness is on the verge of getting brighter. It may not be as of yet but there is a tangible presence in the air around praying churches that God is moving, and about to move powerfully.

Think about this: the signs of the time are getting clearly discernable. It doesn’t take a whole lot to read the news and know that stuff is bad and getting worse. Jesus said that if you can discern the seasons, spring and summer, fall and winter, then you can discern when the end is near. Ah, you may say, the newspapers are always bad. Correct! But, never have we seen events so bad across the entire globe. Isolated and regional bad news is not the same as global transition to complete collapse. Think about this: the Russian president is calling for a globalized currency this month with many national leaders. If you’ve been reading world news you know the end is near.

I’m not a doomsday kind of guy but I am a realist. I really am just wanting to make one clear point here. As things get worse and worse and fear is at every corner there is one thing that will get better and better; the church. As the darkness get darker the brightness and the righteous acts of the saints are going to get bright and white hot. There is only one time in human history that the church world wide will be so extravagently beautiful as to be clearly discernable to the world, that time is almost upon us. Thanks be to God who will shine on us as we run the race set before us. The next time you are quickened to the sobriety of the present moment, rejoice! God is about to put His bride on display.

Orphans and adoption

God is raising up a church that burns with a heart of compassion toward the weak and needy. There is definition and clear lines given in scripture of what justice really means. Justice is the church adopting orphans and taking care of the weak. I would love to see thousands of children adopted and established in the house of prayer. I wonder what could happen if every christian family in the USA adopted one child. What if some adopted 2 or 3? We rail on abortion, rightfully so, but are we willing to take the children nobody wants? God, give us your heart towards the unlovable, lest you cease to love us.