Walking With Jesus

The Two Faces of Pride

“Who is this pagan Philistine anyway, that he is allowed to defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26b NLT)

Pride isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it depends on the object of our pride.

In 1 Samuel 17, from which the above verse is taken, David is exhibiting pride, but his intention isn’t to exalt himself, but the living God whose majesty, glory and honor the army of Israel is supposedly defending. David is a teenager whose primary responsibility is to watch his family’s sheep, but for David, even watching sheep is a platform upon which God can put His majesty on display.

Is it fair to say that the average teenage boy, then and now, would likely be no match for a bear or a lion? Yet God equipped David to kill both, with his hands and a club. In David’s mind this giant Philistine who is blaspheming the Holy God of Israel and defying His army, is no different than an animal and should be killed.

“Where Glory May Dwell” “Used by permission, © Ray Majoran, GlimpseOfInfinity.com”

Holding the God of heaven in high esteem, and attributing to Him all praise, glory, and honor, is the essence of worship, and should be done with confidence and joy. And to the extent we’re able to reverence and appreciate God for who He is and what He has done and is doing, our pride in Him is justified and appropriate.

However, sometimes there’s a thin line between pride in our Savior and pride in ourselves. When our pride points people to us and seeks to exalt ourselves, that’s a whole different story.

In 2 Samuel 11 we see a different face of David’s pride. It’s the spring of the year when kings would normally lead their troops into battle with their enemies, but David decides to send Joab to lead the troops in his place. Nothing evil or sinful about that decision, but Satan used his absence from his troops – the place he should have been – to defeat him in ways no literal battle ever could have.

There’s a lesson here for us. Whether David was tired or sick or just didn’t “feel” like fighting, he made the “kingly” decision, which of course, was his to make, to stay behind. While there was nothing explicitly wrong in that decision, it positioned him to be an easy target for Satan. That can happen to us.

There are times we don’t feel like going to church or work or out with friends, or ___________ and, like David, that’s our right and privilege, but be very careful to understand what’s behind that decision. Is it the Lord’s leading or your selfish pride? Is it because the Lord clearly wants you to do something else or to stay behind for a specific reason? Or is it that you have something else in mind and you don’t care what the Lord thinks?

David’s pride in feeling that he didn’t have to go to battle, that his men didn’t need him or whatever else may have caused him to make that decision, it led to him being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He saw Bathsheba taking a bath.

Maybe it’s the wrong TV station, wrong magazine, or wrong internet site; maybe it’s a wrong conversation with the wrong person. Whatever it is, God will give you insight and will warn you, as I have no doubt he warned David, but if you don’t listen, regardless of how you justify it, you will pay the price, as did David, for your disobedience (see Psalm 51).

Pride can allow the Spirit to flow through you in amazing ways to exalt and lift the holy name of Jesus, but it can also pump you up and allow the enemy to exalt you and push people away from Jesus. We need to be very alert and very careful when it comes to allowing pride to rear it’s ugly head.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Decluttering Our Hearts

“Just see what this godly sorrow produced in you!” (2 Corinthians 7:11a NLT)

Yesterday’s post ended with a question: “Is there hope for our addictive behavior that we say we want to change, but inwardly desire to hold onto?” And the short answer is: “Yes and No!”

What does that mean? It means it largely depends on how badly you want to change and what you’re willing to do to prove it to yourself. We want God to do all the work. We expect God to forgive, cleanse, fill, empower, and enable us to be a completely new person, yet we also want to hang on to our old life of sin – including our addictive behaviors. If your dream and foremost desire is to love and serve Jesus, it’s not going to happen, unless and until you release your wrong motives and desires.

A.W. Tozer wrote: “Father, I want to know Thee, but my coward heart fears to give up its toys.” Being sorry for getting caught is not the same as godly sorrow that deeply desires to allow God to change us from the inside out.

A lot of people want the Jesus who saves but reject the Jesus who is Lord. Sorry, but that’s not His promise. If there’s going to be hope for a future free of slavery to sin, we’ve got to lay our lives bare before the King of kings and Lord of lords and desire Him more than our proverbial “toys,” whether that is a literal material possession or a habit we secretly harbor in our heart.

Jesus is a Gentleman and will not go where He’s not invited. The only way He’ll change our heart is if we give Him access. Eugene Peterson wrote: “If our future is dominated by the coming again of Jesus, it declutters our lives.”

Often the most effective way to initiate change in our lives is to change our focus. I often say: “What you think about comes about.” If all you can think about is your next fix, whether that’s a literal drug, worry, sex, pornography, alcohol, money, juicy tidbit of gossip, or whatever – right behavior follows right thinking. And I’m not talking about behavior modification. I’m talking about heart and mind transformation.

There are things you must do and things only God can do. The most profound and life altering thing you can do is confess and repent. To confess is essentially to agree with God’s estimation of something. For example, His assessment is that your sin is separating you from Him and must be dealt with. He is able and willing to offer forgiveness and cleansing, but you need to ask/confess.

Repentance is your willingness and determination to turn from your sins and allow Him to create in you a clean and attentive heart. So many today have the attitude that sin isn’t a big deal. God’s grace will cover me when I mess up, so life is good. Sin from which you have no intention of turning is unrepentant sin and God’s grace will not cover that.

God’s plan is for you to be holy. Hebrews 12:14 says: “Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.” Then in verse 15: “Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God.”

The blood of Jesus alone cleanses us and purifies our hearts and minds, but it’s a partnership. Not only between us and God, but between us and other believers. The walk of faith is not and will never be a solo venture. We become part of the Body of Christ when we’re born again and our hope in Jesus is fleshed out in our hope of transformation in Christ that largely takes place in community.

Decluttering our hearts is a “family of God” concern. If you’re trying to “fly solo,” and expecting to walk in newness of life, you’re only fooling yourself. Deliverance and transformation of life and character happen in community with other like-minded brothers and sisters. We really do need each other.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Defining Our Wants

“I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.” (Mark 11:24 NLT)

In some ways I believe we tend to “water down” the things Jesus says to us in His Word. We too often want to “spiritualize” verses like the one above until we choke the life out of them. What do I mean?

In the two verses that frame the above verse, Jesus is talking about having faith in God and forgiving those against whom we are holding a grudge. One is, for lack of a better term, ethereal, but the other is very practical.

In verse 23 Jesus tells His disciples: “I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart.” Is He speaking of “spiritual” mountains? Possibly. But I choose to believe He was speaking literally. So, if you’re a pragmatist, you may be thinking: “Of what value would it be to throw a mountain into the ocean?” Maybe it would make your journey easier! I don’t know for sure.

But what I do know is we sell the power of faith far short. I mentioned in a post a few days ago that I wrestled with lust for years, but God finally took it away in an instant. Was God slow to answer? No, I was “slow” to ask. What’s my point?

Often, we choose to deal with addictive behaviors for years, not because God isn’t able to deliver us, but because we’re not willing to give them up. Lust, pornography, alcohol, drugs, gossip, fear, worry, and on and on they go. Behind the guilt, shame, embarrassment, helplessness, and hopelessness is a very strong desire that we enjoy and don’t want to give up. “That’s sick!” you may be thinking. And you’re exactly right.

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

Sin is sickness that we crave, but secretly don’t believe we can live without. Yes, of course, there are moments, usually when we’re “caught” or the addiction bumps into a relational or legal matter, when we desperately wish we weren’t in the circumstance we’re in. But when the moment passes and the “heat” is no longer boiling us alive, we revert to our old habits.

Habits die hard, and sin, in whatever form of habitual behavior it takes in us, is the worst habit to break. But what’s impossible for man is possible with God. But you must allow Him to change your heart.

Behind strong faith is the same thing that drives strong addictions – desire! Desire isn’t the problem, it’s the object of that desire. In the King James Version Mark 11:24 says: “Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them.”

That word “desire” can also be translated “beg, require, crave, call for,” which can paint a different picture. We may desire God to heal us, but we crave our addiction. God will not violate our will to do something we really don’t want Him to do, even when we mouth the words, He hears our heart’s cry.

When my first wife told me she was leaving, my heart changed – radically! Before, my lustful heart thought nearly every other woman I saw was more beautiful and attractive than my wife. When my heart changed, my wife suddenly became the most beautiful woman on earth. Did she change? No, I did, but it was too late. Satan loves it when that happens.

Satan will couch sin in very attractive packages, but the deeper we get into the “package,” the uglier and more sinister it becomes, and the harder our heart becomes. Is there hope?

Let’s look at this more closely tomorrow.

Blessings, Ed 😊

How Can We Warn the Lost?

“If you warn them (the lost) and they refuse to repent and keep on sinning, they will die in their sins. But you will have saved yourself because you obeyed Me.” (Ezekiel 3:19 NLT)

Some reading the above verse may respond: “Whoa, brother, that’s Old Testament. Haven’t things changed since Jesus came?” And my response would be: “Yes, they have changed, they’ve gotten more intense, our times are more desperate, and our responsibility to warn the lost is more vital now than ever.”

Do you remember the last words of Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20, commonly referred to as the Great Commission? What is a commission? It’s an order. A directive to make something happen. It’s NOT a suggestion! Yet, largely we, the Church in America, have ignored it and the state of our nation is evidence of God’s displeasure. So, what must we do? May I offer some suggestions that the Lord is stirring in my heart?

As I’ve mentioned on other occasions, as I walk around my small neighborhood of about 100 houses, I pray for each person in each house. I pray for their families, friends, and each person in their spheres of influence. Why? Primarily because prayer is the work, then God works.

Is it presumptive of me to believe God will listen when I pray? You decide. Jesus said in Matthew 7:7-8: “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”

When we ask in the context of our love for and devotion to Jesus, He promises that He WILL LISTEN. So now it becomes incumbent upon us to ask, seek, and knock. So, for what do we ask? How do we seek? On what do we knock?

This is where I’d like to have you respond. Email me at walkingwithjesus09@gmail.com. I’m just an old man who loves and desires to serve Jesus with my whole heart. I’ve very likely forgotten more than I currently know, but I believe the Lord wants us to draw near to Him in these closing months of planet earth and cry out for the hearts and lives of those in our spheres of influence who are lost.

What might that look like? That’s where you come in. I’ll share what the Lord is telling me, but I’d genuinely desire to hear what He’s saying to you.

For example, for months the Lord has been prompting me to be more outspoken when I’m walking in the neighborhood. I engage neighbors in conversation about how nice their yard looks, how much I appreciate how they care for their property, in short, any way I can to open the channels of friendship.

Lately, I’ve been letting neighbors whose names I remember, know that I pray for them every morning. I ask them to let me know if they have anything about which they’d like me to pray. I talk to them about their kids, pets, hobbies, anything I can think of to build rapport, laying the groundwork to speak about the Lord or at least, invite them to church.

Something else the Lord is prompting me to do is write a note to each neighbor, and each person He lays on my heart. This can be family, long-lost friends, old schoolmates, anyone He prompts you to write, text, email, or call. My first attempt at a “note” to the neighbors, was too long, but I haven’t given up on the idea.

One last idea, which my wife and I have done, and it worked out well, is having an open house for your neighbors or lost friends and do a BBQ or carry-in to give you an audience to begin a spiritual conversation.

What are your thoughts? Let’s get creative about ways to reach our lost loved ones, friends, and neighbors before it’s eternally too late. Let’s do what Frank Reagan (Blue Bloods) said: “Do what you can with what you have where you are.” To God be the glory!

Blessings, Ed 😊

The Road Most Traveled

“For the Lord watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.” (Psalm 1:6 NLT)

As a young person, the paths of life we walk seem new, uncharted, almost like walking on freshly fallen snow, after all, we’ve never walked them before. Yet, the Bible says in the above verse, that God is intimately aware and has a vested interest in the paths of the godly. But what about the ungodly?

Solomon wrote a couple of times in Proverbs (14:12 & 16:25): “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.” Would you choose a path you knew was going to end in eternal death – separation from God?

Many years ago, I heard someone say: “For many young people life isn’t built, it’s accumulated.” What does that mean? I grew up in a small town in West Virginia. My dad was a machinist by trade and bought and sold used cars to supplement his income. No one in my immediate family and few in my extended family, had ever gone to college.

My aspiration before coming to know the Lord was to graduate from high school, get a job, find a wife, have kids, then at some point, die. Pretty high goals, huh! But sometimes circumstances change the order and outcome of our plan. The “loftiest” goal a teenage boy in West Virginia (and I suspect in many other states) had in the 60’s was to have a girlfriend, buy a car, and survive Viet Nam.

In order to buy a car, you needed a job, so you worked at a burger joint, saved a few dollars and bought a car. Then – oops – you get your girlfriend pregnant, so whatever hopes you might have had for a decent job, turn into struggling to make ends meet. At that point your life isn’t built, it’s accumulated. More kids, more debt, more hours working, etc. Where is God in this picture?

Even today, while parents are much more proactive in helping get their children prepared for the best future possible, because we’re fallen beings, the vast majority of plans leave God out.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:13: “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.”

As I think of my life even before I met the Lord, I had no sense that the path I was following was leading me to hell. Did you? But isn’t that the point? Satan lulls us into believing a lie that says essentially – “Just do the best you can. You’ve got your whole life ahead of you! Have fun, enjoy the ride!” Then the next thing you know, you’re seventy, wondering where your life went, regretting all the wrong decisions you’ve made, without giving a thought to what lies ahead, because you’ve hardly ever given God a thought.

Or worse, you do well. You make your fortune, build a great life for yourself. Your kids are doctors, lawyers, or founders of tech companies that make “widgets” that have netted them zillions of dollars. But for what? Just to die? What’s the point of life if only to die and leave everything you sold yourself to have to someone else?

As believers we know that’s true, but Satan deceives people, even believers to some extent, into believing this life is all there is, so we pour ourselves into building our own kingdom and putting the Lord on the proverbial “shelf” until such a time as we have time for Him – like 10 minutes before we die!

Am I discouraged? No, but I pass by the houses of my neighbors, or I meet people in the course of my day, most of whom don’t have a clue what awaits them in eternity, and on some levels, I feel helpless to warn them. Why?

Let’s explore this more in tomorrow’s post.

Blessings, Ed 😊

What Would You Say?

“Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.” (Romans 14:10b NLT)

In order to get an understanding of what someone believes about whether or not they are going to heaven, I will sometimes ask: “If you were to die today and stand before God and He were to ask you: ‘Why should I let you into My perfect heaven?’ what would you say?” What do you think the most common response is? “Because I’m a good person.”

The truth is, when that day comes, the Lord will already know who’s going to heaven and who isn’t. Matthew records Jesus’ words in 24:31: “And He will send out His angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather His chosen ones from all over the world – from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.”

So why would I even raise the question? Because the trumpet hasn’t yet sounded, and I don’t want anyone to miss heaven because they don’t understand what God expects of them. Today Satan has so many deceived into believing that if they say a prayer and “ask Jesus into their heart,” they’re good. Grace will cover the rest. They can live their lives unchanged, believing they are “saved.”

Grace is a wonderful gift from God, but it doesn’t give salvation to unrepentant sinners.

We tend to treat sin like rolling through a stop sign. We get in the habit of making a quick glance and if the coast is clear, we don’t come to a complete stop. I heard about a police officer who stopped a guy who rolled through a stop sign. The guy said: “But I slowed down.” So, the officer pulled him out of his car and started beating him with a stick, then asked: “Do you want me to slow down or stop?” Do I need to tell you that’s a joke? 😊

What’s my point? God takes our sin a lot more seriously than we do. Our “rolling stops” cost Jesus His life and that’s not a small matter. Our “white lies,” casual flirtations, gossip, dishonesty, dwelling on evil thoughts, ungodly lifestyles, and on and on it goes. “But I can’t stop!”

Years ago that was the cry of my heart! Lust was eating me alive, and I hated myself for it. I understand the power of addiction and it’s gut wrenching, but at some point, I had to allow the Lord to do in and on my behalf what I couldn’t do for myself. How so?

We think it’s a “secret.” We want to believe we’re not hurting anyone, but what we don’t realize is that every second we commit to whatever our “secret sin” of choice is, is a second we’re not committing to the fulfillment of God’s purposes in our life. It’s precious time we’re pushing away those we’re wanting to be closest to; it’s time we’re redirecting our mind, heart, and energy into something destructive and unhealthy. With God’s help we could be pouring the same effort into allowing our relationships with those we love the most to become richer, more fulfilling, and more God-honoring.

Do you want to know my “wake up call?” I was preparing to leave on a mission’s trip with my then 15-year-old daughter, and my wife said to me: “I’ll let you know when you return whether or not I’m leaving you.” For me it was too late. She chose to leave. But now, by God’s grace and with His powerful presence with me every second, I’ve learned to train my eyes and ears to let the Lord direct them. Does that mean I never have another lustful thought? On occasion, but I don’t permit my mind to dwell on them.

Martin Luther wisely said: “You cannot keep birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair”

Food for thought!

Blessings, Ed 😊

A Love Gone Right

“And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love.” (Romans 5:5 NLT)

Not being a fan of Country-Western style music, I rarely listen to it; however, when I’m in a restaurant or shop where it’s playing, I’ll sometimes listen to the lyrics. A common theme seems to be either not being able to find love, or the loss of love once held.

What a contrast to the songs of love I find in a Hymnal or the music I hear at church. For example, the words of Frederick M. Lehman (1917) in his hymn The Love of God. Verse one says: “The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell; it goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell. The wand’ring child is reconciled by God’s beloved Son. The aching soul again made whole, and priceless pardon won.” Then the Refrain: “O love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong! It shall forevermore endure—the saints’ and angels’ song.”

Are you experiencing God’s love in your life today?

When I was a child, I remember how my mom or dad would pull the collar of my coat up tight around my neck to keep me warm from the chill of a winter day. I didn’t see the need for all the fuss until I had children of my own, but now, on a much larger scale, I understand that’s how God’s love makes me feel.

If you search the Scriptures seeking to identify every act of kindness, mercy, generosity, and grace extended to us by God our Father, you’ll find that behind every gesture was His unending love. Even as His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, hung with outstretched arms, suspended between heaven and earth, the message of that Cross shouted across the corridors of time and space: “I LOVE YOU … THIS MUCH!”

Most people today are oblivious to God’s love, but I see evidence of His strong, abiding love on the face and in the life of nearly every person I meet each day. One of the profound mysteries of life to me is the realization that while people aren’t aware of God’s presence with them, God is always aware of their presence with Him.

Does that mean every person is saved? No, of course not. What it means is He is ever present, thus able to be with each of us simultaneously. I didn’t understand or recognize His fingerprints on my life before I became a believer, but looking back, the evidence is unmistakable.

On December 15, 1967, I was traveling home for Christmas break from where I attended school in Indiana to South Charleston, West Virginia where my parents lived. My normal route would have been to cross the Silver Bridge that connected Gallipolis, Ohio and Point Pleasant, West Virginia. I dreaded the delay I would always encounter by the Christmas traffic backed up to get across that two-lane bridge, because I usually got there right around 5:00 p.m.

What’s so special about the Silver Bridge? At 5:00 p.m. on that day it collapsed killing 46 people and injuring scores more. I had just turned 20 a few weeks earlier, and could have been on that bridge, but God took me on another route to take a friend home.

What’s my point? The love of God will sometimes interrupt our routines, our normal routes if you will, because He has other plans for us. One of His plans, that He had for me more than fifty years ago, was for me to write these words on this day for your eyes. He alone knew what you would be going through, and that you would need to read today about how much God loves you. What great lengths, breadths, heights, and depths He has gone to help you understand your need to receive His love into your heart and life today.

Perhaps the heartbreak you feel is causing you to wrongly believe that God has abandoned you. Quite to the contrary, He’s never been closer. His loving arms are enveloping you and His gentle voice is inviting you to trust Him. To believe that He will walk with you through these difficult days and prepare you for an eternal life with Him where you’ll never feel this way again.

A lot of things may seem wrong right now, but His is a love gone right – specifically for you! Please trust Him. If you’re not sure what to say to Him or how to reach out to Him, click on this link. https://hutchcraft.com/the-bridge-to-god

Blessings, Ed 😊

Learning the Hard Way! (Part 2)

“I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.” (John 21:18 NLT)

The Lord’s forgiveness is what healed and helped me to cement my will to God’s, enabling me to learn to trust Him and rely on His presence every second of every day. Does that mean I’m never tempted to do wrong or betray Him? No, of course not, but by God’s grace and with His constant presence with me I find strength in Him to overcome.

The above verse is Jesus’ last recorded conversation with Peter and describes the kind of death Peter would experience as a means of glorifying His Savior. He would be crucified upside down because he wouldn’t feel worthy to die in the same manner as His Lord. What kind of love demands that kind of sacrifice?

The same love that nailed the only sinless, perfect Man who ever lived and walked the pathways of planet earth, to a Cross to bear your sin and mine.

Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

Have you failed Him? I’m not talking about inappropriate language when you stubbed your toe. Have you broken Jesus’ heart with your thoughtless disobedience and betrayal of everything you know is right? Have you knowingly and willfully chosen to follow your desires rather than His? Have you ignored His pleadings to stop, to run, to walk away? I have. And it breaks my heart to think about to this day.

Would it be appropriate to say I’ve learned the “hard way?’ Yes, it would, but the point isn’t how I learned, it’s that I learned. And here’s the critical truth I’m praying you’ll receive – you don’t have to learn the hard way.

Most of the original 11 disciples didn’t have to fail like Peter. Yes, they all ran away, but praise God, they didn’t stay away. They didn’t deny they’d ever known the Lord, they just ran for fear of their lives, which, in hindsight, was God’s plan all along.

Where do you find yourself today? Have you denied ever knowing Jesus? Are you still running, for fear your life will be dramatically changed if you stop? Are you just going through the motions of respectability, hoping you’ll not be noticed as one of His followers? What’s motivating you – fear or faith? Confidence or cowardice? Devotion or denial? Only two people know for sure – you and Jesus!

What’s my point?

If you’re ever going to be effective and fruitful as a Jesus follower you’ve got to make up your mind! You can’t cower in fear living your life as though He doesn’t exist. “Practical Atheism” is what that’s called. It’s saying out of one side of your mouth you’re a “Christian,” but denying Him with your lifestyle – rarely if ever praying, reading His Word, or following His directives.

Yes, you may go to church, even serve, but your heart’s not in it. You’re on the proverbial treadmill of a faithless journey that will end in a place you don’t even want to think about, yet, undeniably, you know it’s true. What are you going to do about it? Will you continue to follow the dictates of your shattered spirit, like Judas? Or will you fall at Jesus’ feet and let Him heal and restore you, like Peter? Like me?

The choice, of course, is yours, but I pray you’ll learn, whether by the hard way, or another way, to just lay it all before the Lord and let Him have His way with you. With all that is within me, I assure you that it’s worth whatever changes you must make to gain forgiveness and a new heart that will guide you into an eternity with the only One whose opinion of you matters. Learn to love and trust Jesus – today!

Blessings, Ed 😊

Learning the Hard Way!

“’No!’ Peter insisted. ‘Even if I have to die with You, I will never deny You!’” (Matthew 26:35a NLT)

Recently, I read about a man who was hit twice by the same train. “How is that even possible?” was my initial response. Apparently, he stood too close to the edge of the platform when the train was coming in and the train mangled his arm – twice!

We shake our head in wonder at a person who would allow that to happen. Yet, unfortunately, it’s all too common in many of our lives. For example, how many people do you know that come out of a nasty divorce and almost immediately jump into another relationship, with even worse results. Or how many times does Satan tempt us to view porn, lust after a person or object, gossip, gamble, lie, cheat, steal, and on and on, and though we’ve sworn a thousand times it will never happen again . . . it does!

Matthew 26:75b paints a vivid picture of us when we succumb AGAIN to the deceptions of the enemy when it says: “And he (Peter) went away, weeping bitterly.”

Regardless of how many times I’ve wished my betrayal of the Lord wasn’t true of me, it is. But, by God’s grace, I pray it will never be again. So, what changed? Nothing in me. I’m still the same weak man I’ve always been, but like Peter, I sought forgiveness and found strength in Jesus, I didn’t otherwise possess.

I’ve often wished I could have been privy to the conversation between Jesus and Peter on the beach after Jesus’ resurrection. In John 21 we read about another time Jesus appeared to His disciples, but this time Jesus was alone on the beach and Peter and six other disciples had been fishing all night but caught nothing. Jesus called out to them, telling them to “Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get some!”

Photo by Pareekshith Indeever on Pexels.com

Of course, they pulled up more fish than they could handle. As a result, John realized it was the Lord and alerted Peter, who immediately jumped into the water and made his way to shore. This was the first time Peter had opportunity to speak with Jesus alone. What do you think they talked about?

In my mind’s eye I see Peter falling at Jesus’ feet, unable to look into His eyes, pleading with the Lord to forgive Him; pledging never to allow his betrayal to happen again – and it didn’t! From that point forward Peter was the key leader, not only among the 11 remaining disciples, but in the early Church. What happened to Peter? How was he able to make such a remarkable turnaround?

The primary insight I have gained is through my own experience as a fallen man. It seems strange on many levels, but we tend to learn more lasting lessons through failure than through success. I know what it’s like to weep bitter tears of regret because of my denial of the Lord. I’ve wallowed in the shallows of self-pity, as I suspect Peter did, only to remain just as defeated and alone.

What changed for me, as I suspect for Peter, was feeling the touch of the Master’s hand on my bowed head as he healed my broken heart. For me, it wasn’t His voice that changed my heart, it was His healing touch.

We can run, like Jonah, or try to hide among our friends, like Peter, but ultimately what’s necessary is falling at our Savior’s feet in worship and submission to His holy authority. I was prepared to be chastised and reprimanded for my flagrant disobedience. I wasn’t prepared for His gentle, loving touch and tender voice as He said to me, “You’re forgiven.”

We’ll look at this more closely in tomorrow’s post.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Offense or Defense?

“So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.” (1 Corinthians 9:26 NLT)

My dad boxed in a Y.M.C.A. league when he was in his teens and taught me the fundamentals of boxing when I was a boy. A common expression used in a boxing match is: “styles make fights.” What does that mean? It essentially refers to the way some boxers move, how they punch, what kind of defense they use, are they fast or slow, are they predominantly an offensive or defensive fighter, right or left handed. This information is critical for a boxer to know about their opponent. Why?

Because if you enter a fight expecting the other guy to be passive, laid back, predominantly defensive in style, and he comes at you like a bull in a China shop, it could be a very short fight. What’s my point?

Satan is very crafty, but very predictable. He uses the same “tools” to attack us in virtually every fight. John 10:10 gives us insight into what Satan’s goals are when John writes: The thief’s (Satan’s) purpose is to steal and kill and destroy.”

The context is Jesus speaking regarding His being our good Shepherd. He explains that His sheep recognize His voice and come to Him. Satan is a liar and a thief. He seeks to enter the sheepfold by sneaking in another way in order to steal the sheep, kill them, or destroy them by crippling their ability to hear and or follow their master’s voice.

How does Satan do that? One of his primary tools is deception. When Paul spoke in terms of athletics, he was encouraging us to be prepared. We don’t always know if our devilish opponents will come straight at us or try to sneak up behind us. Whether his attack will be offensive or defensive.

When Muhammed Ali was boxing, one of his tactics was the “rope-a-dope.” He would lean against the ropes and pretend to be hurt, so his opponents would wear themselves out trying to finish him off. But once they were worn out from useless swinging, he’d attack and knock them out.

Satan tries to do a similar thing with us. How? By putting fear or intimidation in our hearts or minds, to deceive us into believing something that isn’t true. Satan is no match for a believer whose faith in Jesus is strong and whose dependence is clearly and fully upon the Lord.

Paul, in Ephesians 6:11 teaches us: “Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.” Satan cannot rob us of our salvation, but he can, if we allow it, render us ineffective.

In virtually any sport, the most important muscle we have is our brain. When our mind is steadfast in our dependence upon the Lord and determined to allow His Holy Spirit to fill and empower us in every circumstance, Satan is helpless to defeat us.

A little boy was telling his mom about how sometimes at night, when it was dark in his room, he would get scared. So his mom asked him what he did. “Well,” he said, “when fear knocks on my door, I just ask Jesus to answer it.” That’s sound advice.

In many sports the greatest defense is an effective offense. What does that mean? It basically means be prepared. Read and study God’s Word, pray like your life depends on it, and always know you have at least one “2 a.m.” friend you can call any time of day or night and know they will answer. His name is Jesus.

God is all-powerful. Satan is not. Be sensitive to your Shepherd’s voice and know He has never lost a battle. He’s your best defense regardless of Satan’s fight plan.

Blessings, Ed 😊