Posts Tagged ‘faith’

Paycheck to Paycheck

Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me. ~Mark 10:21 “I’m living paycheck to paycheck.” You’ve probably heard this phrase used before. But is it such a bad thing, when done for the right reason? I’ve been wrestling lately with the idea of tithes and giving gifts to the Lord. Whether or not to actually do it, isn’t the question, but the faith behind it is what has been stirring up inside of me. The world tells us to store up and prepare. That’s why we have saving accounts and 401k’s so that we can “retire happy”. Maybe my argument here is radical and over the top but I suggest that the less money you have the happier you will be. There are some conditions to this but here me out: 1. Know Christ. 2. Trust Christ…. [Read More]

Are you satisfied?

…that they might be with Him and the he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons. ~Mark 3:14-15 Am I satisfied with 2 out of 3? We can be complacent and okay with being with him and speaking about Him openly but what about the authority He has given us? The authority to bring change to someone else life. Am I willing to take that next step and grab hold of the authority? The short answer, for me anyway, is no. I’ve been completely satisfied rolling along in my life living day by day. And each day I wake up and ask myself “what am I doing?”, yet I keep doing it over and over. I’m saved, and if it gets brought up I’m happy to say that I believe in Jesus and what He’s done for me, but I lack the faith… [Read More]

legislate this

John 8:2-11 (esv) - ”Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard… [Read More]

Confrontation for Growth

Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. ~Matthew 10:34 Confrontation is always a hard pill to swallow for all the people involved. It’s always awkward and almost always involves some one calling someone else out on an issue of sin in their lives. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:4, “How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?” We all have our issues but when is the time to tell that brother or sister that what they are doing needs to stop? For anyone who knows me, they understand that there is no in between with me. I’m rough around the edges and don’t shy away from situations I feel warrant a voice. Never-the-less it… [Read More]

It smells so good!

Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. -Romans 6:11 A couple of months ago I was walking to my car after work and recognized an unmistakable smell; The smell of autumn. It was 45-50 degrees, the sun was beginning to set, and it just smelled like fall. I love that smell for some reason. Maybe it’s memories, maybe it’s the changing landscape but something about that smell seems calming. I started thinking about what the smell actually was and it dawned on me that it was leaves. And I started thinking about why leaves die and regrow, why they change color, and why do they smell so good in the fall. God gives us a perfect example of His word in a real world visual. See, leaves bud, the sun gives them light and they grow. They mature and turn in to a vibrant color… [Read More]

Devastated

The elements will be destroyed by fire. – 2 Peter 3:10 The smell of smoke and ash filled the air, choking out the breath in my lungs. But that wasn’t why my eyes began to water. Sitting on the cold, wet pavement just up the road was a young woman, wailing and sobbing. My brother came rushing in the door moments before. “Get out here, QUICK!” Confused and seeing the obvious excited panic in his eyes and went to the door in my socks. Not 500ft from my house flames licked the cold night sky. They stretched far out the top of the roof in the front, smoke billowing out from underneath the shingles in the back. It’s a sickening feeling knowing your helpless. I had heard the fire horn about 30 minutes before but thought nothing of it until now. As I walked down towards my neighbors house I… [Read More]

Don’t freak out!

For nothing is impossible with God. – Luke 1:37 I went to leave for work today and there was an odd white ring around my tire. I took a closer look and my wear bars were showing. A very bad sign and not something I should drive to work on. Okay, no problem I told myself. I called my mother who works for a tire company and got an appointment to get new tires. I can’t really afford them but it’s a need not a want at this point. With my appointment set I called work and told them I’d be working from home. As I sat on the computer doing the work thing I noticed my thermostat wasn’t on. It turns off when the furnace is blowing so I didn’t think much of it until the blower stopped and it still wasn’t on. Ooops, heat stopped working! It’s 20… [Read More]

Red Rover, Red Rover

The Farmer sows the word. -Mark 4:14 Have you ever played red rover as a kid? It’s a recess game, with two teams facing each other, their hands interlocked. Each team takes turns calling someone over to try and break through the chain. I’d like to view it in another light. As Christians we have a tendency to form an impenetrable wall. We interlock hands with each other and hold on for dear life. When someone new comes along and tries to break in to our group we resist. Even as Christians Satan can use us for evil. Jesus communed with sinners(Mark 2:16-18). They need Him more than we who are already saved. We are all farmers, chosen to plant seed. It’s amazing then that we feel our only charge is to throw the seed around and hope it sticks. Does a farmer whip seed all over his field and… [Read More]