"You irritate me...??"

Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. Hebrews 12:2a (AMP)

It’s time to be real yet again. So recently something surfaced in me that I needed to take before the Lord and ask for help on. I noticed that when I was around a particular person in my life I became increasingly agitated. This person, for reasons of anonymity we’ll call him Joe, is a good and respected friend of mine and I couldn’t figure out why I was feeling this. I’d been around Joe a lot in the past and always looked up to him and for years I’ve never had anything like this happen. Then about two weeks ago I noticed it start. Joe would begin speaking and I would sense something rise up in me and by the time he (Joe) was done I was so irritated and found myself sighing in contempt. I knew it wasn’t of God and I also knew it wasn’t pleasing God either. As I began to go to God in prayer it wasn’t until yesterday that the answers came. 

I was led to Hebrews 12:2 in the Amplified version which reads, “Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher.” Shortly after this and through prayer and utilizing other Biblical resources I was led to an article by Dr. Dale A. Robinson titled, “Do you have a Critical Spirit?” An excerpt from this article read, “The young or immature believer who has not progressed very far in their own faith, remain overly dependent upon the faith of those within the body of Christ. Unfortunately, when they begin to notice the flaws in their brethren, subconsciously, this becomes a threat to their own sense of victory. Criticism becomes a reaction of disappointment, because their expectations in others have been crushed.” Then the light went off, “I had become dependent on Joe’s faith!” My mind began to retrace the previous weeks and I soon narrowed down the event in which I felt that Joe had “let me down.” It was then that God revealed that I had taken my eyes off of Jesus and placed them [unknowingly] on Joe. I was floored and I didn’t even realize I had done this.

I quickly prayed and brought it all before the Lord and I know that He is faithful to forgive and I truly felt a weight lifted from me as this Critical Spirit was brought to the surface and removed. The circumstances that led me to “lose faith” in Joe are completely irrelevant because my eyes should never have been on Joe in this way to begin with. So then I asked myself, “How can I be sure that this doesn’t happen again?” The only sure-fire way to prevent this from reoccurring is to intentionally and consciously live out Hebrews 12:2 and look away from all (including Joe) that distract and always look towards Jesus. By doing this I will never be let down because Jesus is the only one that cannot fail. We will all fail and even fail each other from time to time, we are only human. In a fallen world failure is almost guaranteed, but Jesus said to take heart because He (not Joe) has overcome the world (John 16:33). 

Is there someone that has really been getting under your skin that you normally don’t have any issues with? Take inventory; have you been focused on lately Jesus or a little too focused on people and their short-comings? I believe if we are truly honest with ourselves and with God the answers are there. The big question is; are we willing to accept that maybe we need to take a very hard look inwardly and ask God to reveal it in us?

 

Take Care & God Bless,

-E

“Feelings”

(Read: Genesis 22:8 & 2 Corinthians 5:7)

God has really been dealing with me about what I feel lately, let me try to explain. Do you ever have those times in life when you just feel “blah”? You can’t exactly pin-point it but something feels off. You try to press in and pray and study the Bible but still all your efforts feel in vain. Well, I have had this happen to me and I don’t believe I am alone in this. 

When I read about the faith that Abraham had to trust God (Gen.22: 8) and how Paul tells us that we are to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7) I began to really ask myself, “What are you walking by?” The response I get from God is that during these times when I “feel” this way I am allowing my ever-changing feelings to dictate my attitude. I have allowed my feelings to override what I know to be true based on the promises in God’s Word. By allowing my feelings to lead me; my attitude and outlook on things are seen through tainted eyes or have a skewed perspective. 

God’s Word is the only unchanging thing in this world which is why it should set the bar for every aspect of our lives. When we start feeling condemned of our past mistakes we can rest assured that Romans 8:1 is the truth we need to stand firm on. This is how we walk by faith and not by sight. God showed me that this portion of scripture not only includes sight but feelings as well. If you look up the word “feelings” you can see it is defined as a "level of perception". When you perceive something you see it. So in the breakdown of it, the word “feelings” does fall into the category of sight. So we are to walk by faith and not by sight (or feelings).  

I noticed in talking with many people that we all deal with this. Take the time to listen when others are talking to you. Many of the statements out of our mouths start with, “I feel…”  It may be something like “I feel God is not there” or “I feel that nobody loves me” and “I feel like I can’t count on anyone.” These are “feelings” that if you trust in God and His word just cannot be true. Once we catch this and stop leaning on our feelings and start relying on Faith there is no limit to what God can do in our lives. Our feelings can change on a minute by minute basis so we can’t depend on them, ever. This is why God has given us His Word. It's purpose is meant to guide us as we walk through this journey called life. 

Take Care,

-E

"They Knew God"

Today (12/22) was a struggle for me just being transparent here. I struggled staying focused and keeping my thoughts pure and on the things that Paul instructs believers to think on in Philippians 4:8. I know that when this happens it usually is a combination of a things. Either I haven't been in the word & prayer as I should or the enemy is trying to trip me up or it's a combination of both. Today to be honest I was running late and yup I didn't spend the time I normally do praying and studying so there you have it. So today I had to get alone and really press in to overcome these mental attacks and I was led to the book of Romans to combat these thoughts and God in all His faithfulness met me right there.

As I read, "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools" (Romans 1:21-22), I was hung up on the words, "although they knew God". This states that although they "knew God" they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him. I have always said that I "know God" but Lord help me not to be too lackadaisical about this. These people that Paul writes about also "knew God" yet the "sinful desires of their hearts" were stronger than that knowledge they had which was eventually their downfall.

Later on in verse 24 we see that God gave them over to their sinful desires. This tells me, to be careful what we allow to pull us away from God; especially our own hidden desires. You know, those things that only you and God know about that aren't really that bad, at least by our own definitions. This is a fight brothers & sisters and we have to war against these sinful desires and the more we do the more God will intervene and fight on our behalf. On the other hand, I believe, the more we give into these sinful desires and not stand on the word and fight we run the risk of being given over to these sinful desires and if you read on in this chapter of Romans you see what the outcome is (v32).

Lord, we need you! we can't stand in this fight without Your strength and help. Please help us to see the way out (1 Cor 10:13) when these temptations of our sinful desires try to come in and pull us back down. We know that with You we can do all things and that we are more than a conqueror through Christ. Thank You Father for your mercy, grace, and love.

In Jesus Name I pray,

Amen,

"I'm a mess!"

I recently was chatting with my wife and one of our close friends; we were discussing the challenges of being involved in ministry and how it can be frustrating from time to time. As we stood talking about things the statement was made, "I'm a mess." This really hit me hard because I too had made this exact same statement just a few days prior about myself and my own walk with the Lord. God had revealed to me that even though I was moving forward in Christ and using the talents He gave me for his kingdom that I was still not even close to where He wanted me to be. I was touched because this friend of ours was also coming to this realization. I believe that God wants to get us to this point. Where we throw up our hands and scream out, "LORD, I can't do this anymore!" Then He says, "Good, that's what I wanted to hear, now move aside and allow me to do it.” I see that God is taking many, including myself, through this process and although it can be painful it is necessary. We need to get to the place where it’s all Him and not us. I struggle with this from time to time as we all do, but we must trust that God is faithful to complete what He has started (Phil 1:6). So don’t beat yourself over still being “a mess”, this is a process and God’s grace is sufficient (2 Cor 12:9) for us when we fall short. I love the way Joyce Meyer says it, “I’m not where I need to be, but thank God I am not where I used to be.”

Take Care,

-E

"Maybe we need to change"

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. (Psalm 139:23-24)

Have you ever been praying or really had someone on your mind (heart) and just don't see your prayers coming to pass? I have, and one thing that I've come to learn is before I start asking God to change this person and change that person I need to ask, "Why am I asking God to change that person?" Compassion is something that is lost within the church today. We have a level of compassion for the hurting and the lost but we also need to have and show compassion for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We are all still human and are not perfect. Before we ask God to change someone or something why not ask him, "Lord change me, and let me see this person through your eyes." Let's take the focus off everyone else's faults for a minute and take a long hard look inward because we too have not yet arrived and still need to be molded into the image of Christ.

God Bless,

-E

"What Are You Passionate About?"

After spending something thinking about where I was just a few short years ago to where I am now I am reminded I still have things that are a part of me that shouldn’t be. God has been and is still doing an amazing work in my life and it is only by His grace & mercy that I am who I am today.  I see glimpses of change that I never thought possible in my actions, thoughts, and motives. I truly want to be all that God has called me to be but there are things that I must change in order for that to come. I heard a quote from Mark Hall (Casting Crown’s Lead Singer), and he said, “So many men are passionate today about things that don’t matter and passive about the things that do.” This hit me hard and made me really evaluate my day-to-day, as we all should. Why is it that we can get excited about a sports team, a video game, a car, money, a potential spouse, yet we are passive and sometimes unaffected by Christ? I ask this question to all of us, because I too am guilty of being passive about my walk with the Lord. This world is so filled with distractions and from every corner things are competing for our attention. Unless we are militant about spending time with God daily we are vulnerable to falling into the time traps set for us.  Balance is one of the hardest things to manage in our lives and I am speaking this from personal experience. I believe that a truly balanced life cannot be obtained unless you are spending time with God in prayer and through the studying of scripture first.

"Unless the LORD builds a house, the work of the builders is wasted."

– Psalm 127:1a