Walking With Jesus

The Fundamentals

“When Jesus heard this, He was amazed. Turning to the crowd that was following Him, He said, ‘I tell you, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!’” (Luke 7:9 NLT)

What is the essential ingredient without which no one will see God? According to Hebrews 11:6 it’s faith! Why is faith so foundational to all the other things we need to know and do if we’re going to follow Jesus? At its root faith is the conviction that something is true.

Years ago, I watched a movie that followed two groups of people who were trying to get to a certain destination, but they had to trek through the snow and ice that was several feet deep. As the first group came to a crevasse about 10-15 feet wide, ironically, there were two ways to cross, but they were carrying things that caused them to fear the snow bridges wouldn’t bear the weight.

One guy, who was the “expert,” used his pole to poke each one and determined one was safe and the other one wasn’t. So, one by one they crossed the “safe” bridge, but as the last person cleared, it fell, leaving only the one the expert deemed unsafe.

When the second group came and saw the people who had crossed standing on the other side, they wrongly assumed they had used the only bridge there. Despite their pleadings to the contrary, one of their group started over the other bridge and fell to his death. What was the problem? They put their faith in the wrong person.

That’s what millions of people do everyday with Jesus. They hear or read the Gospel proclaiming Jesus as the only way to heaven, but they assess their situation and conclude they have more faith in their way than His, so, ultimately, they “fall” to their eternal death.

Dr. Billy Graham wrote: “The unbelieving world should see our testimony lived out daily because it just may point them to the Savior.” Our lives can be a window to enable others to see and understand, not only who Jesus is, but why He died on the Cross in our place. The Cross is the bridge across which we can enter into the holy presence of our forgiving Father.

However, as John Stott wrote: “Before we can begin to see the cross as something done for us, we have to see it as something done by us.” Foundationally, we need to understand God didn’t create the need for the Cross, we did. If we’d followed God’s directives from the beginning, Jesus wouldn’t have had to die, but because as human beings we place more faith in lies than we do in Truth, we struggle to believe the Truth when we see it embodied in human flesh, whether being lived out in the Bible or in and through those of us who bear His holy Name.

Further, salvation isn’t created or continued by us, it is solely dependent on faith in Christ alone from start to finish. That’s why Thabiti Anyabwile’s words ring so true: “Claiming to be saved without following Jesus is demonic nonsense.”

Faith isn’t simply the pathway to salvation in Christ, it’s the proverbial “house” in which we continue to live as long as there is breath in our lungs. There is no growth or development in our walk with Jesus unless and until we yield our life and allegiance to Him.

Our faith won’t bear the weight of our sin if it’s focused on our own heart or life; otherwise, why would Jesus have died? If you haven’t placed your full trust in Christ for your eternal salvation, please click this link to Ron Hutchcraft’s Bridge Illustration and get it settled today.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Do You Long to Go to Heaven?

“And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:14 NLT)

If the evangelization of the world was up to you, how would you do it? What about reaching those in your country? Your state? Your county? Your city? Your neighborhood? Your family?

Too often we get so overwhelmed by the vastness of world evangelization we lose sight of the plan Jesus put into motion before He left this earth. Remember Matthew 28:18-20? “Jesus came and told His disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’”

Couple those verses with Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Jesus anticipated that we would need a plan, a strategy, if we were going to share the Good News with everyone on the planet. What was His plan? Start small, with those in your “Jerusalem,” then reach further and further from home. But in order to do that what MUST we have? The very two things Jesus gave us! Authority and power! Why are those so vital? We have no authority to tell anyone about Jesus unless and until we know Him and receive the authority only He can give us as His followers.

In Mark 6:6a-7 we read: “Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. And He called His twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits.” Why is that important? He was modeling what He was going to ask them to do, then giving them His authority and power to enable them to do it. It’s no different for us today.

God has commissioned and empowered each of us to reach someone for Him. He’s called us to do what only we can do, having been equipped with the tools that only He can give. Sharing your faith isn’t about you, it’s only and always about Him. And He never asks of us what He hasn’t modeled before us.

If we’re God’s child, with every conversation, regardless of who it is, we’re doing one of three things: we’re planting Gospel seeds, watering them, or harvesting the seeds we or someone else have planted. We talk about what we love! It may be sports, cooking, bowling, vacationing, our family, or Jesus, but we can’t help ourselves, we’re going to talk about what means the most to us.

Sharing your faith is going to be hard until you realize it’s only sharing with someone else what is most important in your life. We share about our spouse, kids, grandkids, our pastor, group leader, whoever we love and care about, not because we “have to,” but because we can’t help ourselves, it just comes naturally.

J.C. Ryle wrote: “Happy indeed is that Church whose members not only desire to reach heaven themselves, but desire also to take others with them.” If you’re excited about going to heaven, you’re going to talk about it with others. So, what if you’re not talking about heaven or Jesus or your church with others, besides your saved friends?

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Evidence That Demands a Verdict

“Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from His love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? (Philippians 2:1 NLT)

My wife and I enjoy watching crime dramas on TV. Blue Bloods is our favorite, and as we watch an episode, we find ourselves making predictions as to who did what and why. Presumably, in every crime there is a corresponding reason, which often leads to the person who committed the crime.

The goal is to gather overwhelming evidence that will identify the right suspects that will lead to the right person who committed the crime. Joyce Meyer said: “If you are accused of being a Christian, there should be enough evidence to convict you.” What evidence in your life and mine would be good enough to convict us of being a Jesus follower?

Related to that question: “If someone isn’t a Jesus follower, what overwhelming evidence might they need to see in order to move them in the direction of following Him?” My experience is that there are some who are just closed to ANY information regarding becoming a Jesus follower. And notice I steer away from the overused term “Christian,” because it’s become so distorted, people who now live vile and ungodly lifestyles still refer to themselves as “Christian.”

Dr. Steven J. Lawson wrote: “No one can be saved until they know they are lost. No one believes the good news until they know the bad news.” If you follow Jesus today, what led you to believe? And please don’t say: “I’ve always believed!” That may be true, but you haven’t always been a Jesus follower. How do I know that?

It’s like saying “I’ve always been married.” Maybe it feels like that sometimes, but the truth is, if you’re married it happened on a specific day and time. It required a set of vows that you exchanged promising to be faithful, and so forth. Similarly, if you can’t point to a specific event, not necessarily a specific day and time, but a point in your life when you invited Jesus to become the Lord of your life, you probably haven’t.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of “conformers” to Christian teaching that don’t know the Christ. They’re so busy doing the work of the Lord they’ve forgotten (or have never truly known) the Lord of the work. Andy Mineo wrote: “You live different when you know you’ve been forgiven.” There’s a hunger, not only to serve God, but to know Him, to live and move and have your being in Him.

There develops a deep conviction that literally believes, “apart from Me you can do nothing!” A lifestyle that is seeking to become more like Jesus isn’t forced or faked. There’re no counterfeit believers, at least not in God’s mind. We’ve heard and understood the bad news and have turned control of our lives over to the Lord without reservation. Does that mean we never sin or make a mistake in judgment? No, but that’s our goal.

It should be evident in the way we live and love that Jesus is the Ruler and Owner of our lives. When He’s in control there is undeniable evidence that we belong to Him. How so? He’s the priority (see Matthew 6:33) in our habits, that ultimately will reflect His leadership; in our relationships; in our finances; in our work; in our attitudes; in our time management; in our worship; in our humility; in our unflinching devotion to Jesus in everything we do, say and think.

This is the evidence that demands the verdict in those who view our lives, that we know, love, and are following Jesus. They may not come to the Lord by watching our lives, but hopefully, it will open an opportunity for us to speak with them about Him.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Gratitude

“Then Elisha summoned Gehazi. ‘Call the child’s mother!’ he said. And when she came in, Elisha said, ‘Here, take your son!” She fell at his feet and bowed before him, overwhelmed with gratitude. Then she took her son in her arms and carried him downstairs.” (2 Kings 4:36-37 NLT)

While pastoring I met a man who had been a pastor but had been asked to step down. I don’t remember the details, but he was angry about having to leave the church he’d planted and in which he’d invested so much effort. Additionally, while pastoring, he and his wife had adopted two special needs children and they’d been a handful. It was a noble thing to do, but it was as if he expected special treatment from God because of it.

He asked me one day why God seemed to ignore his prayers, why no matter how earnestly he begged God for help, He seemed silent. Assuring him I would speak with the Lord about it, he went on his way. A few days later the Lord spoke very clearly to me about my friend’s concerns, so, the next time I saw him I told him what the Lord had told me – he needed to express more gratitude for all the Lord had done for him.

Being unsure how he would respond, at first, I was reluctant, but mustered the courage to tell him exactly what the Lord had told me. He walked away in silence. It was a few months later he came to me with a big smile, telling me how helpful what I told him had been. He hugged me and thanked me for my input. I assured him I deserved no credit, as I’d done nothing but pass along what the Lord said, but he went on and on about how that simple suggestion had literally changed his life.

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com

I thought of that scenario when I read this quote by Chris Brown: “You can’t be grateful for what you feel entitled to.” How many times we lose our way, not because we’ve fallen into sin, but because we’ve failed to be grateful for all the ways the Lord has protected, guided, filled, empowered, and used us to His glory without so much as a “Thank You, Lord!”

It’s almost as if our attitude is: “Okay, I’ve put in my time, where’s my check? I did the work, I put forth the effort, where’s my reward?” But it doesn’t work that way with the Lord. Remember the words of Jesus in Luke 17:9? “And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not. In the same way, when you obey Me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”

All gratitude and praise belong to the Lord. We’re His slaves, not His master. Thom Rainer wrote: “Anyone who believes they are entitled to something from God, know the adversary has put that thought in you, not the Holy Spirit.” Serving Jesus isn’t an obligation we fulfil, it’s a privilege and honor we rejoice in having.

Our reward for serving the Lord is the joy of a job well done; it’s the smile on His face when He says: “Well done, My good and faithful servant!” If you don’t yet know the Lord this may be foreign to you, but it’s not unlike how we’re to love our wife. If she asks us to do something, or better still, if we see something we can do that will please her and save her from having to do it, we shouldn’t be looking for thanks, the smile on her beautiful face should tell us everything we need to know.

Gratitude is an act of worship as we kneel at the feet of our Savior thanking Him for the gift of His forgiveness. If gratitude isn’t driving your service, what is?

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Independence Day

“Jesus said to the people who believed in Him, ‘You are truly My disciples if you remain faithful to My teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” (John 8:31-32 NLT)

In the USA July 4^th is the day we commemorate the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified on July 4th, 1776, but to me, especially as it relates to our freedom in Christ, independence and freedom aren’t necessarily one and the same. How so?

As I understand what the Bible teaches, our freedom in Christ doesn’t lead us into independence from Jesus, who is the embodiment of all Truth, it leads us into increasing measures of dependence upon Him. Our freedom in Christ isn’t given in order that we might do as we please, but as He pleases. With His blood He purchased our independence from sin.

Our goal in our walk with Jesus is to become more like Him, so we deny ourselves the right to do what pleases us. And yes, of course, ultimately our will and God’s should be one and the same; our desires should parallel God’s desires for us, but the reality is, as long as we’re in these bodies of clay, we have free will to do whatever we decide to do, whether it’s in line with what God’s will is or not. That’s why Jesus uses that little word “if!”

And we wouldn’t want it any other way. God doesn’t want us to be puppets on a string that He can manipulate and coordinate our every move. He desires us, in ever increasing measure, to so desire Him that what we want is only and always what He wants for us. Why would we want that? Because no one knows us better and loves us more than our heavenly Father. He never lies and He knows how to give good gifts to His kids.

Our “natural man,” possessor of our sinful bent, who desires nothing of God and everything of self; whose favorite radio station is WIIFM (What’s In It For Me), and whose every intention is to do what pleases ME, not God, is our constant companion in this life on earth. So, how do we tame this “beast” and learn to yield our allegiance moment by moment to Jesus?

First, by God’s grace and through the vital ministry of His Holy Spirit, we need to declare our “old self” dead and gone. It begins when we repent of – turn away from – our sin, and are baptized as an outward, visible symbol of an inward and otherwise invisible transaction between us and God. In Romans 6 Paul explains our death to sin and how vividly that death is illustrated in Baptism.

We’re buried in our watery grave, then resurrected to new life, putting to death our old self, and declaring our freedom and allegiance to Christ alone, by faith alone. But, unfortunately, that’s not the end of the story. On many levels, it’s only the beginning.

British Evangelist Oswald Chambers said it well when he wrote: “Beware of refusing to go to the funeral of your own independence.” It’s easy in the excitement and emotion of our new life with Jesus, surrounded by friends and family supporting us, to coast right over the claws of our sinful self relentlessly seeking to drag us back into sin. But when the emotion subsides and the reality of the uphill battle we’re facing sets in, we can easily lose our way.

While baptism is typically a one-time act, submission to God’s authority over us and our declaration of “dependence” upon the Holy Spirit’s leading are ongoing, sometimes moment-by-moment acts. The good news is, we’re never alone in our battle. That’s why in the prayer the Lord taught His disciples it says: “Give us THIS day!” And sometimes it’s “This MOMENT! Even this SECOND!” to do and be everything Christ died to enable us to do and be.

The Lord is faithful to never give us more than we can handle, but it’s always a two-way process – He’s always faithful to give us everything we need to be everything He desires us to be, but we must be open to receiving His timely help. Dependence isn’t given once for all time, but in every second we seek it.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

What Story Are You Telling Yourself?

“Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace.” (Romans 8:5-6 NLT)

Everyone has a story we secretly tell ourselves that either motivates us to move to Christ, or stifles whatever He’s trying to do in and through us. What’s your story? Are you excited to know and love Jesus, or is it painful for you to even think seriously about Him? Perhaps your story doesn’t leave room to even consider God’s existence.

Whatever our story, many times it relates to something we experienced in a positive or negative way at some critical point in our life. Often when we think of turning points in our life’s journey, a face or faces will appear on the screen of our mind. A parent who was critical, demeaning, angry, mean, impossible to please, who always tore you down, or a relative or family “friend” who introduced you to things that traumatized, frightened, or hardened you to the things of God.

On the other hand, perhaps your parent(s) and or significant adults in your life were good, kind, caring, godly, living out Christlikeness in easy to embrace ways, leading you to learn of Jesus at an early age and long to follow and obey Him. You knew from your earliest remembrance that you were loved, welcomed, desired, and an integral part of a loving family.

How ever your life was impacted and whatever the resultant story that has led you to become the person you are today, if you look in the mirror and you don’t like who’s looking back, I have some great news – there’s still hope for you! Perhaps, like me and untold others, you’ve done something in your life and the story you tell yourself is that you don’t deserve forgiveness; you don’t deserve to live a healthy, whole, forgiven life, but gratefully, that’s not the story of the Savior, Jesus.

In my weaker moments the devil will still remind me that I’m nothing worthwhile and don’t deserve the good things God has given me and done for me. Far too many times across the years of my life I’ve sabotaged my own success by believing the lies of Satan and acting in ways that resulted in what I had come to expect, not what God desired for me.

I’ve learned that there’s sometimes a delicate balance between what’s true and what’s not; what’s healthy and what’s not; what’s beneficial and what’s destructive. Satan can mask himself as “an angel of light,” leading us to think and do things that are not in line with God’s will for us. How we live is in direct correlation to how we think.

Whatever dominates our thoughts will direct our paths. If our story exalts Jesus or leaves Him out altogether it will be revealed in how we live; who we demean and who we honor, not the least of whom will be the person in the mirror.

Is your story filled with hope, forgiveness, aspiration, joy, anticipation, and love for God and others, or is it filled with self-disgust, anguish, regret, disappointment, and hopelessness? It’s hard to see light when your heart and mind are filled with darkness.

Here’s the bottom line: If your story isn’t telling you to run to Jesus, it’s a lie! The wonder and majesty isn’t that you can accept and embrace Jesus, it’s that He will accept and embrace you!

Jesus is offering you Himself today, and all you need to do is say “YES!” Check out this link to Ron Hutchcraft’s Bridge to God, so you can know for sure the story you’ll be telling yourself from now on will be one of hope and new life in Christ!

Blessings, Ed 😊

The Life Only God Can Produce

“For God wanted them to know that the riches, and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing His glory.” (Colossians 1:27 NLT)

When I was newly married I had very little money, so it wasn’t unusual for the gas tank in our car to run low. Suppose you saw me pushing my car along the side of the road and, out of the kindness of your heart, you stopped and asked me why I was pushing my car. After hearing my “out of gas” story, you took me to a station, purchased for me a 5-gallon container of fuel, and drove me back to my car.

A few hours later you were going back by the same area, and you noticed I was still trying to push my car to the gas station. So, you stop and discover – Yes, I’d put gas in my car, but I was still pushing it! THEN what would you think? That’s incredulous, right? Why would anyone in their right mind push a car that was fully capable of being driven?

Yet, that’s exactly what many professing believers in Jesus are trying to do with their lives. Upon confession and repentance, we are filled with spiritual “fuel” in the Person of the Holy Spirit, yet we’re still trying to live our lives irrespective of God’s Spirit “fueling” our lives. We’re still seeking to move our lives by “pushing ourselves” in the energy of the flesh.

I recently finished a devotional book by Major W. Ian Thomas entitled: “The Indwelling Life of Christ (All of Him in All of Me).” In it he writes: “The Christian life is nothing less than the life which He lived then… lived now by Him in you!” That’s the only life God will produce in us – HIMSELF!

To seek to live a life in the energy of the flesh after being filled, empowered, and enabled to live life in the energy of the Spirit is not only foolish, it’s blasphemous! How dare any of us ignore God’s presence in us while working feverishly to be like Jesus on our own. That’s religion, not a relationship with Jesus, and it will never work. That’s what hell is – working tirelessly to earn our own salvation.

Steven Lawson wrote: “The strongest evidence that you have been born again is the fruit of a changed life that only God can produce.” The fruit of the Spirit can be counterfeited and faked short-term but will never manifest itself long-term without the Spirit’s presence and power. Paul affirms this truth when he writes in Galatians 2:20a “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.”

How is that possible? What does it look life? Paul continues in verse 20b-21:”So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law (pushing the car) could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.”

Following the “rules,” obeying the “law,” living our lives in the energy of the flesh, trying to be good enough to deserve God’s grace, are all ways we try to produce the life of God in our lives without the power and presence of God. It’s like asking a 3-month-old to do double back flips out of his highchair to clean up his own mess on the floor.

God wants to do in and through us essentially what He did in and through Jesus as He walked the pathways of this earth – to govern, rule, equip, enable, us to exhibit the character of Christ in everything we do, think, and speak. Why? So that Jesus is honored and glorified and people’s lives are transformed, not by their own efforts, but by His!

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Same Mud, Same Blood

“Now I appeal to Euodia and Syntyche. Please, because you belong to the Lord, settle your disagreement. And I ask you, my true partner, to help these two women, for they worked hard with me in telling others the Good News. They worked along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are written in the Book of Life.” (Philippians 4:2-3 NLT)

Though I’ve never been in the military, my dad, many of my uncles, other relatives, and many close friends have served. One of my friends was among seven of his buddies who went out on night patrol. Only he lived to tell about it. Though wounded, he survived and to this day, 50+ years later, it still haunts him. His only consolation is to meet weekly with other military friends who have experienced similar trauma.

One way of expressing their closeness was the saying, they’re of the “same mud, same blood.” Serving together in war gives them a common bond that is thicker than blood. Remember, this was in the 60’s, and many returning soldiers didn’t come home to open arms and waving flags. They came home to protesters and angry mobs.

Ron Hutchcraft put it this way: “We’re talking about a time when America was convulsing with civil rights conflicts, right? But the documentary told the amazing story of how a company that started out with huge racial walls between them became molded into this group of guys who would die for each other… There was something about being in a war together that brought people close together who might otherwise have never had anything in common. Mission glue – that’s what held that racially mixed, potentially racially divided group of soldiers together. They had a life-or-death mission that brought them together and kept them together.”

One of the reasons we’re so divided in Christendom is that we fail to see our corporate mission. Jesus’ blood was spilled for each of us, not so we could “talk the talk,” bad mouthing and shunning those in His Family who don’t believe exactly like we do on points of doctrine, but that we could “walk the walk” together for the sake of the mission to “win the lost at any cost.”

I’m reminded of John Piper’s quote: “We cannot know what prayer is for until we know that life is war.” Unfortunately, there are still those in the Body of Christ, like those in the verses above of whom Paul spoke, who get bent out of shape because they don’t get their way. The “battle” isn’t only getting believers to join the mission to reach the lost, it’s to get them to see their pettiness is driving their loved ones and friends away from Christ, not serving as a means of inviting them to Him.

The Lord has shown me that everything I do, unless it focuses on and is done in the spirit of love for Christ and others, is a landmine that has the potential to “kill” other’s desire to learn of the Savior. Satan is the god of this world and to the extent we ignore Christ’s commands and directives, thus choosing to serve ourselves, to that extent the “broad” way is widened, and Satan is delighted.

As believers we may not be of the “same mud,” but we’re definitely of the “same blood.” By God’s grace and with the Spirit’s help, can we please set aside our differences long enough to love those without hope to Jesus? Can we just lay down whatever grievances we have in order that Christ’s blood might cleanse us of being more interested in having our own way than showing others His way?

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Triumphant Prayers

“One day Jesus told His disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.” (Luke 18:1 NLT)

Do you ever get discouraged asking God for the same thing day after day, yet struggling to see any evidence that it’s doing anyone any good? Admittedly, in my weaker moments, I do, but I don’t let those “down” moments dictate my confidence that God IS hearing, and what He hears, He answers. But having said that, I reinforce something I said in a post a few days ago – receiving answers isn’t our primary reason for praying – nearness to the Father is!

In the parable of the persistent widow, which is the story Jesus told after the verse above, He spoke of a judge who, as Jesus put it: “…neither feared God nor cared about people.” Yet, in the end, because of her stubborn persistence, the unjust judge gave her that for which she had asked. What’s the lesson for us?

Jesus affirmed that God would give justice to His children, but He concludes His comments by asking a question that has always troubled me. He said: “But when the Son of Man returns, how many will He find on the earth who have faith?” One clear implication to me is that deep faith is coupled with persistent prayer. So, then the question becomes: “Why won’t people of faith be praying?”

In the previous chapter, in Luke 17, Jesus said to His disciples in verse 22: “The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it.” Then He speaks of His own terrible suffering and begins to reveal how things will be before He returns. He speaks of how it was before the flood, and “in the days of Lot,” before God rained fire and burning sulfur down from heaven on Sodom.

How many people do you think were praying before the rain started falling and the door of the Ark was closed? How many people do you imagine were on their faces before God in Sodom before their demise? And, as the last days before Christ’s return are being clearly revealed, how many people in America are on their knees begging God for the salvation of themselves, their loved ones, friends, and neighbors?

On any given weekend we have roughly 3,500 people who attend our services, but in our monthly prayer services we have less than 200. Am I to assume the other 3,300 don’t love Jesus or care about prayer? That’s not what I’m saying. It’s simply an indicator of what’s most important, not only to unbelievers, but for those of us who profess to believe.

According to Hebrews 11:6: “And it is impossible to please God without faith.” But that’s not the end of the verse. It continues by saying: “Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him.” In its purest form, what is prayer? Isn’t it our effort to acknowledge that we believe God exists and that He will reward our efforts by building faith in us whether He answers our prayers the way we expect or not?

Triumphant prayers aren’t only those with spectacular answers that anyone, believer and unbeliever, can see and rejoice in, they’re the ones we pray day in and day out without doubt that the God who knows us and sees us and loves us, is listening to and responding in ways we may not see, even in this lifetime, but we persist anyway. We don’t give up and we don’t give in!

They’re the prayers that rip out our hearts for fear the ones for whom we’re praying won’t see the Light before it’s eternally too late. They’re the prayers, that whether we realize it or not, are building our faith and enabling us to see the heart of our Savior as we can in no other way.

“Holy Father, help us to pray more triumphant prayers to Your honor and fame!”

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed

Life’s Greatest Compliment

“O Lord, You have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. You see me when I travel and when I rest at home. You know everything I do.” (Psalm 139:1-3 NLT)

What’s the most memorable compliment you’ve ever received? After one of my first sermons in a new church I was serving, an elderly woman shook my hand and said: “O brother Hager, that’s one of the best sermons I’ve ever heard. There’s just one thing, you’ve got to speak up, I hardly heard a word you said.”

Ironically, it was one of the most helpful “compliments” I’ve ever received. It causes me to ponder the words above from David, and ask a question: “Lord, how can you know everything about me (us), yet, still love me (us)?” Could it be we have a distorted view of love?

As we look at the people in our lives, how many people do we genuinely love? And how many people in our lives genuinely and truly love us? How can we know for sure? Because they compliment us? Because they’re kind and caring? Because they tell us they love us?

Brian Goins wrote: “Someone once defined love as focus. It’s not enough just to hear words coming out of someone’s mouth—real connection is truly seeing someone and understanding their heart.” How can we know that God’s love is real? Brian continues: “God knows us because He pays attention to us. When we call, He listens. God never interrupts our prayers to like an Instagram post. One of the greatest compliments you can give one another is your undivided attention.”

May I confess? That’s hard for me. My wife (too) often says to me: “I need you to listen to me with your whole face!” Why does she feel the need to say that? Because I’m too easily distracted by things that don’t matter! I often ask her how she got so beautiful in only 72 years, but that’s the proverbial “babbling brook” if she doesn’t feel listened to when she speaks to me.

Do you want to love well? Yeh, me too. So, how can we learn to listen more effectively? Can we take our cues from God? Obviously, the Lord knows us, literally, inside and out, but what if we began to ask questions that would give us greater insight into the hearts and minds of those we want to love the most?

Jackie Hill Perry said: “Being mean isn’t a fruit of the spirit.” That’s the kind of quote that makes me smile while the Spirit opens my heart to the ways that I’m “mean” and don’t even realize it until after the fact. Hearing someone without acknowledging what they’re saying is important enough for us to listen is mean! Being busy doing something else while we should be focused on our spouse, child, neighbor, friend, _________, is mean! Professing love for Jesus and treating our friends and loved ones like the devil is mean!

May I pray for us? “Father in heaven, thank You for genuinely and precisely loving us. You are capable of listening to billions of people speaking at the same time, yet, giving each of us your undivided attention as though we were the only one to whom You were listening. By Your grace and with Your Spirit’s help, thank You for enabling us to learn to love well by learning to listen and be attentive to those who speak to us. Sometimes we think we’ve come pretty far in our walk with You, until, like today, we see how far we have to go. You are gracious, kind, loving, and gentle with us. Thank You for equipping us to be those things for the people we most want to love and for the people we least want to love. In Your holy Name, Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen”

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊