Walking With Jesus

The Only List That Matters

“And this is what God has testified: He has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.” (1 John 5:11-12 NLT)

It’s interesting to note that when the Titanic departed on its maiden voyage the passengers were divided into first class, second class, third class, and crew, but after it sunk only two categories mattered: those who were saved and those who were lost. We can argue theology or points of view all day long, but in the end all that matters is: am I saved or lost?

So, the logical questions then become: Can I know for sure which list I’m on? And, if so, HOW do I know? There are lots of opinions and certainly once we die it will become crystal clear, but then it’s too late. What if there’d been a questionnaire distributed to each passenger on the Titanic as they left the port that said: “In the unlikely event that this ship should sink, would you be killed or would you live? Would you be lost or saved from the freezing water?”

Yes, of course, I realize that is ludicrous, but what would most people say? Their expectation would be that surely, they’d be saved, but could they know for sure? No, they could not; however, the Bible is clear that those who have the Son have life and those who don’t have the Son do not have life. Seems pretty straightforward, right? But is it?

What does it mean to “have the Son?” What does it mean to “not have the Son?” The Bible speaks of certain components or elements that should be present if we’re to have a saving relationship with Jesus. Romans 10:9 for example says: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” The writer of the Hebrew letter wrote in 11:6: “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him.”

Balance that with James 2:19 that says: “You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?” Then, at least for me, some of the most frightening verses in the Bible, found in Matthew 7:22-23: “On judgment day many will say to Me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from Me, you who break God’s laws.’”

Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list of verses, but my point is only to illustrate that we can search and know all the right verses and still not know Jesus in a saving way. So, how can we know? To me it’s pretty simple. On December 18, 1993, I had a conversion experience. I was converted from being single to being married.

When I’m tempted to believe I’m not married I have only to look at the ring on my finger, but even more convincing than that, I feast my eyes on my beautiful bride with whom I live every day of my life. Have there been days I haven’t been the perfect husband? Duh, yeh, like EVERY day! And though I’ve had to ask forgiveness and regroup many times, I know I’m still married because the relationship with my wife is still intact.

In a similar way, I can point to a day in the Spring of 1963 when I realized my sin debt was more than I could ever pay, and I knelt at an altar of prayer, confessed my sin, and invited Jesus to be the Lord of my life. That confession began a journey that has continued through the years to this day. How do I know? Because my commitment isn’t past, it’s present.

Have I always been faithful? I wish I had been. Have I sinned since that day? Regretfully, yes, I have. So, on what basis do I profess that I know I’m saved? Not on my faithfulness, but on the faithfulness of my Savior who promised He would never leave or forsake me; He would always be a very present help in time of need; who forgave and continues to forgive as I continually yield my life to Him on a moment-by-moment basis.

Let’s look at this from another angle in tomorrow’s post.

Blessings, Ed 😊

God Speaks

“So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.” (2 Corinthians 12:7b NLT)

There are things we do and directions we choose that are dangerous and dishonoring to the Lord. So, there are times, as in Paul’s life, when the Lord steps in and puts guardrails in place to keep us on the right path. For Paul it was a physical issue, but for us it may be something else. Whatever it is there are a few characteristics it will have in common with Paul’s “thorn” in his flesh.

First, Satan will use it to torment us and remind us of our weakness. For Paul it was a physical issue, but for me it was a failure. Whatever it is for you when you start to get too full of yourself and pride is beginning to surface, Satan will taunt you and the Holy Spirit will remind you that without the Lord you’re nothing and can do nothing.

Pride seeks to replace the Lord’s rightful place on the throne of our life, and the “thorn” the Lord allows to remain needs to be allowed to be a constant reminder that you and I don’t make very good governors of our own lives.

Second, it likely won’t be sin in and of itself, but if you don’t listen to the Lord and take corrective measures, it will lead you to pride, which can destroy any effectiveness you may desire for the Lord. The Lord is a gentleman and will not compete for His rightful place on the throne of your life, but His Spirit will make it clear that you’re treading on very thin ice.

Lisa Bevere writes: “God speaks to WHO we are BECOMING not to WHO we’ve BEEN. He calls forth DESTINY rather than echo HISTORY.” Our tendency as human beings is to regularly look back, reminiscing about the good times and reliving and agonizing over the bad times. Need I remind you of how God treats your sinful, forgiven past? He forgets it and reserves no capacity to remember it or ever bring it up to us again.

Oh, if only we were so wise. God speaks, there’s no question of that, but His speaking is always forward, never past. When the Lord forgives us, He doesn’t tuck our sin away so He can pull it out at a later time to torment us with it. He cleanses us and sets us on a brand new course, without the shackles of past sin weighing us down and preventing us from running strong in our new race with Jesus.

He doesn’t, as Lisa Bevere suggests: “echo history.” Rather He speaks life, health, and strength into who we’re becoming, not berating us for who we used to be. That’s why it blows me away every time I think about my heavenly Father loving me (and YOU) as much as He loves His dearly begotten (One of a kind) Son, the Lord Jesus.

Is there something haunting you from your past? Something Satan continually uses to break you down and remind you of what a scumbag you are? Welcome to my world, until the Holy Spirit finally convinced me that that person is dead, those sins are not only forgiven, but forgotten. Jesus answered for those sins once for all time, never to be remembered against me (or you) again.

Yes, absolutely, God speaks. He speaks life and health; He speaks hope to those who have lost their way; He speaks forgiveness and new life into every forgiven soul; He speaks wholeness into every life transformed by His grace; He speaks joy into our cleansed hearts; and He speaks oneness with Him throughout all of eternity.

It doesn’t get any better than that! Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Blessings, Ed 😊

Created or Revealed?

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.” (Romans 5:3-4 NLT)

Have you ever seen someone endure something – a sickness, heartache, trial, setback, or difficulty – and you wondered: “How in the world did they get through that?” My Mentor lost his wife after 63 years of marriage. He grieved until his last day on earth, but it didn’t cripple him. He continued to pray, study, write, and share what God was teaching him as long as he possibly could.

Often in a conversation he would pause and say, “Ed, I miss her!” I’ve only been married 30 years, and I can’t imagine life without my wife. How do you endure such a great loss? Daniel Akin wrote: “Christian character is not created in the moment of adversity. Christian character is revealed in the moment of adversity.”

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What will adversity reveal in the moments of our greatest weakness? What is the Lord teaching us today that is building our character to enable us to endure tomorrow? The word translated “endurance” in the verse above can also be translated “patience.” In an age when we can google any fact known to man in a matter of seconds, patience isn’t high on our “to do” list.

We want to rise from the waters of our baptism and win the world. We’re baffled when it seems so many are hardened to the “Good News.” Our enthusiasm wanes and we soon settle into a fruitless life because we’re too impatient to pay the price of endurance. Never stopping to ask why our character is paper thin and can’t bear the weight of a conversation that might challenge our immaturity.

Character isn’t given, in many respects it’s earned. How so? Through hard times, difficulties, trials, heartache, and loss. Until we see those things as gifts from God, we’ll struggle to develop patience which is the pathway to character. Character isn’t a fruit we pluck, it’s a seed we plant, nurture, and painfully wait to come to full growth. But once character grows and develops it gives us “confident hope of salvation.”

Most of the Pastors at the church of which I’m a part are in their 30’s and 40’s, but they’re not cry babies and wimps. They’re not waiting for the Lord to give them maturity, wisdom, and character on a silver platter, they’re earning it in the school of hard knocks. They study hard and stand up to the issues with which they wrestle. They’re not ashamed to share their areas of struggle and to ask for help. I marvel at how God is grooming them to serve so powerfully in His Kingdom. If only I’d been as wise and insightful.

Christian character is a gift from God that is earned through the trials of life. So, if it’s a gift, how is it earned? Good question. Notice in the verse above Paul thanks the Lord, he writes: “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials…” In other words, we can be grateful for the gift of problems and trials, but why? “for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character…”

Without problems and trials there is no character development. That’s why it’s a gift from God. Rather than whining and complaining when we have issues with which we wrestle, we should be mindful of James’ words in James 1:2-4: “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

When Getting Out of Bed is an Act of Worship

“For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5:4-5 NLT)

There have been days, even seasons in my life when I felt I had no good reason to get out of bed. It may have been for physical or emotional reasons, but it was a struggle to get up, and sometimes I just couldn’t force myself to do it. When that happens, we too often conclude that God is not pleased with us, or we must have done something seriously wrong. But I’m comforted to know that great men of God like the Prophet Elijah and the central figure in the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther, also struggled with emotional issues.

In a recent Breakpoint article, John Stonestreet wrote: “Clearly, people are suffering. In a culture shaped by a ‘critical theory mood’ claims of suffering can be thought of as a desirable way of elevating a person’s moral status. It is also not a coincidence that this suffering has accompanied a culturewide loss of a sense of meaning.

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A 2021 Lifeway Research study found that nearly 60% of American adults wonder about how they can find more meaning and purpose in their lives on at least a monthly basis. Rates of depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide are up across all demographics. Even as the wider world is struggling, there is a notable exception.

In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 36% of Americans who attend church or are ‘actively religious’ regularly report being ‘very happy.’ In other words, faith in God, marriage, family, and a sense of duty to something larger than ourselves are often what provide people with the richest sense of meaning.”

Are we to conclude that we’re governed by our emotions? That how we feel trumps what we know to be true? Even when I’m emotionally struggling, it doesn’t negate my mind from understanding that if I love God I not only need to submit to His authority in my life, I want to. Because of that, sometimes just getting out of bed is an act of worship, an effort to declare in my soul that the Lord Jesus is still in control and ruling my life.

Am I as productive when I’m struggling? No, but neither am I defeated in my spirit. I know that God loves me and is for me, and while I don’t understand why He allows these “setbacks” in my walk with Him, I accept them for what they are, seek to walk faithfully through them, and trust Him to heal and help me move beyond them as quickly as I can.

A problem arises when our emotions rule our lives, and we conclude we have no choice but to give in to our negative feelings. This can be heightened especially when we have no anchor for our soul. If we have no sense of positive and ongoing meaning for our life, it’s often a short step to believing that our life has no meaning.

For me, knowing Jesus is with me and for me, and that He died in my place magnifies my life’s meaning when I yield my life and allegiance to Him. My relationship with Jesus is my anchor in the presence of my emotional, mental, and physical storms. He gives my life meaning that can’t be erased or put on the proverbial back burner simply because I’m not feeling well.

If you don’t have Jesus as your “Anchor,” please click the link to Ron Hutchcraft’s Bridge to God and commit your life to Him today. You’ll never regret it!

Blessings, Ed 😊

Are You Being Transformed?

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” (Romans 12:2 NLT)

One very easy way to answer the question asked above is this: “Are you learning to know God’s will?” But equally important is: “Are you learning to consistently DO God’s will?” I may know the mechanics of playing the piano, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to be any good at it. Knowing how to do something and actually doing it are two separate things.

As I’ve mentioned in other posts, salvation isn’t a one and done experience, any more than sanctification. Both have definitive starting points, but they build from there. Dr. David Jeremiah speaks to this when he wrote: “Consider both dimensions of the Gospel in your life: saved and being saved. Is there evidence of the power of the Gospel in your life?”

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When I had shoulder surgery, had I not done my assigned exercises at home and followed through with my physical therapy appointments, the surgery would have been pointless. It’s like that when it comes to a relationship with Jesus. As with every other relationship we enjoy, our relationship with Jesus has a beginning point. My walk with Jesus began in April of 1963, but it continues because each day of my life we spend intentional time together.

But it doesn’t end there. Jesus is Lord; therefore, He gives direction to my life. Without His guidance and instruction, largely through His Word, I wouldn’t know how to grow in my walk with Him. Perhaps that’s what Melissa Kruger had in mind when she wrote: “Faith in Jesus leads to a life transformed by Jesus.”

The word in the verse above translated “transform” is the Greek word “metamorphoo” (met-am-or-fo-o). It’s the word from which comes our English word “metamorphosis.” It literally means “to change into another form.” On the Mount of Transfiguration Jesus’ appearance was transformed, it became resplendent with divine brightness. On some levels He became unrecognizable.

In a similar way we, as a new creation in Christ Jesus, become “transfigured” into the likeness of our Savior. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” That’s a miraculous transformation in terms of how the Father now views us. How is that possible? It’s not. That’s the point. It’s a miraculous transformation in the way God the Father sees us through the lens of His sinless Son.

We’ll not be perfect until we get to heaven, but the longer we walk with the Lord, the more we should resemble Him in our thoughts, actions, and attitudes. That’s what Dr. Jeremiah was addressing when he said we are “being saved” and that there should be “evidence of the power of the Gospel in our lives.”

There’s a sense in which God the Father immediately sees us completely transformed into the likeness of His Son, but from a practical standpoint that is a lifelong process that should reveal itself in our lives by the power of the Spirit working in and through us.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

The Footprints of God

“When the waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid; indeed, the deep trembled. The clouds poured out water; the skies gave forth thunder; your arrows flashed on every side. The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lighted up the world; the earth trembled and shook. Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprints were unseen.” (Psalm 77:16-19 ESV)

Are you following the footprints of God? If you are they will surely lead you through the storms of life. We can only see God’s footprints with the eye of faith, but they are surely there. Sometimes we miss them because we mistake our troubles, tragedies, and trials as coming from the devil, which sometimes they are, but never without His permission. But just as the footprints of God led Him into the fiery furnace with three faithful teens, He walks before us in and through every detail of our lives.

The greatest tragedy of our lives isn’t our difficulties and heartaches, it’s facing those seasons without an awareness of God’s Holy presence with us. When my mom dropped dead during the Thanksgiving holiday many years ago, we grieved because we thought she was alone, but she wasn’t. When she fell, she landed in the arms of her Savior. She was never alone for one second. And neither are you, my dear brother or sister.

You’re not experiencing the circumstances in which you find yourself today by accident. If you look closely, you’ll find God’s footprints leading you through the rubble. We never suffer loss without the great gain of God’s holy presence comforting, guiding, equipping, enabling, and supporting us. Our loss is when we fail to realize we’re never alone.

Kneeling by my bed shortly after my divorce, sobbing, feeling alone and without hope, I cried out: “Lord, I’ve lost everything!” To which He responded as clearly as if He’d spoken the words audibly: “You haven’t lost everything because you haven’t lost Me, and I’m all you need!” I was in the fire, but I wasn’t alone.

Where have the Lord’s footprints led you in this season of your life? No matter how dark, lonely, or frightening, keep your eyes on Jesus and you will never lose your way. As I age, my body and mind try to scare me. It’s as if they’re seeking to be a foretaste of things to come, but I refuse to be afraid.

Whatever the future holds for me it won’t be as bad as hanging naked on a Roman cross, like my Savior did when He died in my place and yours. The Lord assures me that whatever my future holds, He holds my future, and I need not be afraid.

A neighbor on my street, whom I hadn’t met, took his own life recently. It’s as if we think we can bypass the pain of dying if we take things into our own hands, but to me it’s a coward’s way out. If I believe the footprints of God will never lead me where the arms of God won’t hold me; if I fail to believe that if I’m alive my life has purpose; if I seek to default on my commitment to live my life to the end for Him; then I’ve failed to follow where He’s leading; I’ve forfeited God’s will for my own.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

When Sin Is Celebrated

“Jesus replied, ‘I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.’” (John 8:34 NLT)

In the early 1970’s Dr. Karl Menninger published a book entitled “Whatever became of sin?” In the era in which we now live sin is so advertised, applauded, and accepted that it doesn’t seem to be problematic except to those whose sin has captured and incarcerated them.

Dr. Menninger wrote: “When a trout rising to a fly gets hooked on a line and finds himself unable to swim about freely, he begins with a fight which results in struggles and splashes and sometimes an escape. Often, of course, the situation is too tough for him. In the same way the human being struggles with his environment and with the hooks that catch him. Sometimes he masters his difficulties; sometimes they are too much for him. His struggles are all that the world sees and it naturally misunderstands them. It is hard for a free fish to understand what is happening to a hooked one.”

It seems at times that those of us who profess the sacred name of Jesus lose sight of the struggles we had, or perhaps still have, with our adversary. As an unbeliever we finally came to the end of ourselves, admitted our inability to meet our own needs, and sought forgiveness and new life in Jesus.

It seems ironic to me that we then too often forget or ignore the same issues with which we wrestled when we see them in a friend or loved one. It’s as if we look down from our ivory tower of perfection onto the peons who don’t have enough willpower or grit to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. How quickly we forget from whence we’ve come.

God’s heart grieves the lostness that infects the lives of so many today. When I was growing up there was still such a thing as public shame and humiliation. Now the vile and ungodly behaviors of people are celebrated and extolled as desirable. Pastor Corky Calhoun wrote: “Modern sin is no longer confessed and repented, it’s now declared and celebrated!”

The world today is dark and frightening. Even a trip to the grocery causes thoughts of fear from what we might encounter or who might be lurking, waiting to take whatever they can from whomever is vulnerable enough not to put up much of a fight. But my concern, as I hope is yours, doesn’t focus on how dark the world is. It’s always been dark, that’s why Jesus came in the first place.

Only the light of Christ’s purity can chase away the darkness of our dying souls. Only our devotion and determination to walk closely to Him will free us from fear and anxiety because of what “might” happen. Fellow Jesus “freaks,” we already know what the future holds, and it isn’t fear if we know, love, and serve King Jesus.

Fear is for the “fish” who are still hooked, still struggling to be free, never stopping to realize that freedom is a gift we can never give ourselves. It’s a gift that was bought and paid for by the blood of our Savior. Though sin is commonly, openly, and disgustingly celebrated, we as Jesus followers can be the light that can point the way to freedom, wholeness, and hope in Jesus.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Have You Come to the End of Yourself?

“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13 NLT)

For whom are you laying down your life? What does that even mean? The words in the verse above are the words of Jesus hours before He would be nailed to a cross. He was literally at the end of His life, laying down His literal life for His literal friends – YOU and me! Sacrifice doesn’t get any clearer than that. A person’s life’s mission and goal aren’t fulfilled in a clearer fashion than Jesus’.

We can say we’re “laying down our life” for our wife when we take out the trash or wash a few dishes, or we can “lay down our life” by going out of our way to pick someone up for church, but those things are laughable and, while good, aren’t fulfilling God’s will for our life.

We can’t lay our life down for anyone unless and until we first lay it at the feet of Jesus. Yes, of course, we can lay down our literal life for someone, and that’s admirable, but it doesn’t illustrate the kind of sacrifice Jesus made until He gets all the glory, honor, and praise. As long as there’s a twinge of desire for us to get glory from it, it robs the Lord of the glory due His Name.

B.J. Thompson wrote: “It’s not until you come to the end of yourself that you’ll discover the ugliness of your brokenness and the beauty of God’s grace.” Jesus didn’t come to the end of Himself on the Cross, but in the crib. He was born with a singular focus – to lay down His life for His friends, and that process began the moment He was born.

For us that process begins the moment we’re born again! We come to the end of ourselves when we die to ourselves, as illustrated in our water baptism. And we rise to new life in Him, offering ourselves on the altar of His will to be used in any manner He determines. To believe we can yield our life and allegiance to Jesus and continue to live anyway we choose is to misunderstand the meaning of being a Jesus follower.

Laying down our life for Jesus doesn’t signal the end of our physical life, it signals the beginning. We don’t come to the end of ourselves when we die physically, but when we’re born again of the Spirit of God. We die, not when we stop breathing, but when the Spirit of God floods our beings with Himself. G. K. Chesterton wrote: “A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.”

The trouble with “living sacrifices” such as ourselves, unlike Jesus, we want to wiggle off the altar and escape to settle for far less than the call of Jesus demands. We want to look and be respectable, so we won’t bring disgrace or shame to the beautiful name of our Savior, but the problem with that is, it’s not what He saved us to become.

Dr. David Jeremiah wrote: “Rare are the occasions when one person is called upon to die that another might live. Yet we can demonstrate the ‘greatest love’ in countless other ways when we die to our own desires and choose the good of another over ourselves.” Dying to self means dying to self-reliance and self-sufficiency, but it also must supersede our love of self.

We come to the end of ourselves when the desires of another become greater than our own desire. We don’t begrudgingly concede, but joyfully initiate the privilege of doing what will please another in favor of that which would most please us. The joy and satisfaction of seeing another’s pleasure fulfilled doesn’t become greater than our own, it becomes our own.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Humanity’s Most Dangerous Drug

“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.” (Acts 1:8 NLT)

“Power is perhaps humanity’s most dangerous drug,” writes Rebecca McLaughlin, yet power is the most cherished gift of God to a believer! The word translated “power” in the verse above is the word “dunamis (doo’-nam-is)” which is the word from which comes our English word “dynamite.”

Ideally, at least for a Jesus follower, the Holy Spirit releases His power through us to be witnesses with our words and deeds, not to point people to us, but to Jesus. Think of the words that have challenged and or changed you across the years of your life. Words like: “stupid,” “dumb,” “fat,” “ugly” and many other derogatory remarks.

Balance those with words like: “brilliant,” “gifted,” “beautiful,” “leader,” “smart,” and many more complimentary words that affirmed, encouraged, and built you up. Words have power to those who believe them, both positively and negatively. Once I invited the Lord Jesus to become my Savior and Lord, over time, I’ve learned to block out anything that didn’t agree with the words He uses to describe me. Words like: “loved,” “gifted,” “treasured,” “called,” “chosen,” “forgiven,” “empowered,” and many other life-giving affirmations.

On many levels it depends on who you choose to believe and from whom the words are derived. The Prince of Preachers, Charles Spurgeon wrote: “Self-sufficiency is Satan’s net where he catches men, like poor silly fish, and destroys them.” Self-sufficiency is often the result of believing that power is derived from pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps; by working hard and making a name for ourselves; by earning money and enjoying its accompanying prestige, often by walking over others on our way up.

Power isn’t given, it’s demanded, and it often leaves carnage in its wake. Power becomes our god and we’ll do anything to feed the feeling it gives us. And the irony is, we don’t have to be a Napoleon or a Hitler in order to be empowered, all we need is a small office and a title and we’re good to go.

While I was pastoring, our only other staff Pastor resigned, so we began a search that resulted in an invitation to a young couple, whom I knew well, to come and candidate for the position. They came and it was a wonderful weekend. The church seemed responsive, and, in my mind, I couldn’t have hoped for a better turnout and response. But when the vote was tallied, they received only a 51% affirmation. I was crushed.

As I reeled in disbelief, one of the members of the governing body got right in my face, almost nose to nose and said to me: “I just wanted you to know who’s really running this church.” That’s the disastrous “drug” that is crippling the church and grieving the heart of God. It reminds me of A.W. Tozer’s words: “It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular, it is why he does it.”

That experience changed the trajectory, not only of my ministry, but of my life. Admittedly, I was naïve and wanted to believe that people who served in positions of leadership at the church truly loved Jesus and were people of integrity, but I quickly learned that wasn’t always the case. I held on a few more years, but it soured my spirit and led me to leave ministry, which led to personal failure on many levels, resulting in the demise of my marriage.

Power in the wrong hands can be destructive and dishonoring to the Lord, but when the power of the Holy Spirit is released to do what only He can do in a broken life, resurrection, restoration, and renewal can become a reality.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

True Grace

“I have written and sent this short letter to you with the help of Silas, whom I commend to you as a faithful brother. My purpose in writing is to encourage you and assure you that what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you. Stand firm in this grace.” (1 Peter 5:12 NLT)

What first comes to mind when you see in print or hear the word “grace?”A workable definition is “an undeserved or unmerited favor of God.” Given that definition would you consider severe hardship and persecution a gift of grace? Likely not, yet that’s exactly the context of this letter written by Peter.

Like anyone else who loves and trusts the Lord Jesus, when we’re struggling it’s helpful to receive encouragement and assurance from someone whom we know understands what we’re going through. After my divorce, seriously wondering if the pain would ever stop, it was helpful when someone who had survived the trauma of divorce, would give me a word of encouragement.

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On one occasion someone was seeking to encourage me, and their words were genuine and helpful, so I asked him how long he’d been divorced. “Five years,” he answered. My heart sank, uncertain how I was going to make it through the next five minutes. But the reality is, by God’s grace and with His help life does go on, one difficult and weary step at a time.

Suffering, in whatever form it comes, is hard and challenging, yet, Peter gives us some sound advice when he tells us: “what you are experiencing is truly part of God’s grace for you.” So, the logical question then becomes: “How can all this hardship and pain be an undeserved and unmerited favor of God?”

Thomas Brooks wrote: “True grace works the heart to the hatred of all sin, and to the love of all truth.” And some, if you’re tracking with me, may wonder – “what’s suffering have to do with ‘the hatred of sin and the love of all truth?’” Quite a lot actually. You see, we tend to believe that grace is the “dessert” of the Christian faith. It’s like ice cream and pie instead of fruit and veggies. In other words, we see grace as “easy to swallow,” as compared with taking medicine when we’re sick.

As I understand Scripture, grace is the gift of God in helping us to become more like Jesus, and the reality is, we can’t bypass suffering if we love Him and desire to grow in His likeness. And please don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m not insinuating in any way that suffering is pleasant or even that it should be, but it is beneficial.

Like medicine when we’re sick, the Lord “gifts” us with opportunities to grow and develop our spiritual muscles when He puts us through the training of hardship, trials, and difficulties. These circumstances will either push us away from the Lord or draw us closer to Him, but they’ll never leave us the same. If we see them as the true grace gifts that they are, though we may be challenged in ways we can’t conceive how we’ll survive, if we understand they are from the Lord and are given for our good, we look for the “light” in the darkness.

We seek to be attentive to the voice of our Shepherd as He leads us through the darkness and pain. We look for the “breadcrumbs” He leaves us that confirm we’re on the right path. We hold tightly to the words He gives us – not the sermons, but the crisp and clear words of encouragement: “Hold on!” “I love you!” “You’re the apple of My eye!” “You’re precious to Me!” “I am with you!” “You’re going to make it!” “The best is yet to come!” “You’re almost there!”

These are the words of true grace.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊