The Election Is Over - Now What?

Proving what is acceptable to the Lord - Ephesians 5:10

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. - 2 Corinthians 3:18

To my Christian friends...we have an uncommon and rare opportunity in our culture. We have the ability to speak into it deeply and openly. Many Christians were shut out in times past and even now our world has shadows and spaces frightening to those of our faith; places where it is not safe. However, here in America (if you are in America - if not, this is a good read anyway!) we enjoy the concept of inalienable rights; the ability to live a life aimed at providing a better future, contentment, goals and happiness.

We just had an election. Many of us are now disappointed. The hope for improvement and change we desired does not seem to be on the horizon; at least it won't be as easy. Our culture, at least through means political, will not get the opportunity to improve as we had hoped. But is the Body of Christ commissioned to improve culture? Is that our commission? Is that our goal? Is that our God-given duty?

I don't think so.

We have been called to "The Way of the Cross." We are to take up our cross and we are to follow Jesus. We are to practice both discipleship (follow Jesus) and denial (do things we find distasteful) all in faith, believing God when He says this is how true change, transformation occurs.

The way of the Cross is not about improvement; not even the much celebrated "continual" improvement. Jesus marching orders to you and I was to create Transformation. This transformation is brought about by a Revelation of eternal and abiding love that extends itself to us from our heavenly Father and in God's plan through us to others. The revealing part, the revelation, was Jesus loved us in ways that weren't cool, fun, personally satisfying from a selfish perspective; Jesus did what was asked of Him regardless of how he felt about doing what was asked. He believed His Father first, He acted on the words given to Him, He did those things - Transformation!

That was the message of God before the election. It is still God's plan today.

We have the privilege, yea verily (I love yea verilys')  opportunity to speak into our culture in a way that most all who have named the name of Jesus Christ before us and in nations around us have not in their time, in their lives, their culture. But in doing so we must take it all by way of the Cross, through the blood of God's Son, the greatest selfless act of love and we must embrace it and realize it comes with a price. Actually, it comes with many prices if we want to break it down...

1. It's slow - Usually change comes one person at a time
2. It's incremental - It doesn't happen everywhere and in all places at once
3. It is humbling - We can't do it in our own power
4. It happens when we first give ourselves over to it and not much around us supports our effort to do that

There have been great revivals. There have been wonderful movements where nations, generally, have had their heart changed and their circumstance along with it turned from cursing to blessing but those instances come through sold out to the cause of God's love and not to a balanced budget.

We won't be met with instant success. We are not instantly believed, and our message and our desire, if it is a right desire, will not always be met with open arms.

God raises up and sets down Kings...and there is but one eternal King who does not fail. We put our eyes on Him and pray for the rest of them and, when opportunity gives us chance, we use the skill, the power, the ability we are blessed with to TRANSFORM our culture...not just improve it...

I pray for our President for whatever he did to bring our nation together previously didn't work. It is time for a new strategy - He, I hope, realizes the TRANSFORMING business has a future...the improvement biz? Mmm...not so much.

I remain...

InHISGrip,

For Such A Time As This - Wait!

So they told Mordecai Esther’s words. And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: “Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews.  For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: “Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!” So Mordecai went his way and did according to all that Esther commanded him. – Esther 4:12-17

I find it manly to read the book of Esther. I think that it's because it has so much to teach me that I know is foreign to my personality. And, as I got to the end I had a revelation. Here it is: Even though what happened in the three days between chapters 4 and 5 is not recorded, (read chapters 4 and 5 to understand the importance of what I am saying.) don't think for a moment that God had just sort of taken a break. Because He is the God of the Universe it is possible that we might think that His time, busy with other things, was simply in a sort of out of sight/out of mind kind of state.

When we think about God we have much to remember.

Like this…Remember, He may be invisible, but He is at work. He is invisible and just because we cannot see Him working does not mean He somehow puts our lives on that back burner. I rather think that's the beauty of His invisibility. He can be moving in thousands of places at the same time, working in circumstances that are beyond our control but not just ours but in the lives of millions, literally, millions of other people He loves fully.

It’s a big job remembering that. But, work on it. It shows progress in your relationship with God as your Father.

For you and I, during a waiting period, God is not only working in our hearts, He's working in others' hearts and in our minds and in the minds of others as well. And all the while He is strengthening the lives of all of those who name Jesus as Lord. Remember Isaiah's words about waiting?

Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary. - Isaiah 40:31

Even though the prophet's pen put these words on the sacred page centuries ago, that verse of Scripture is as pertinent and relevant as what you read in the paper this morning. More than this they are far more trustworthy and eternally more useful to you and me. From this verse we learn that four things happen when we wait.

First, we gain new strength. We may feel weak, even intimidated, when we turn to our Lord. While waiting, amazingly we exchange our weakness for His strength. Just know waiting is both required and imperative.

Second, we get a better perspective. It says we "will mount up with wings like eagles." Eagles can spot fish in a lake several miles away on a clear day. By soaring like eagles while waiting, we gain perspective on our situation. We gain God’s perspective – His line of sight.

Third, we store up extra energy. "We will run and not get tired." That is future tense and it means resting today means the ability to run without fatigue later. When we do encounter the thing we have been dreading, we will encounter it with new strength - extra energy is ours!

Fourth, we will deepen our determination to persevere. We "will walk and not become weary." The Lord whispers reassurance to us. Our spiritual and emotional backbones become like titanium! We begin to partake, take on His power and with His assurance for the task at hand justifiably feel  more invincible.

We'll gain new strength. We'll get a better perspective. We'll store up extra energy. We'll deepen our determination to persevere. All that happens when we . . . wait. Fight like a girl named Esther! Pray! Fast! Fellowship! Wait!

I remain…

InHISGrip,
  ~J~

Yesterday? Tomorrow? Today! - Live On!!!

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” – James, brother of Jesus (James 4:13-15)

I once read Chuck Swindoll say these words, “Snap a telescopic lens on your perspective for the next few minutes. Pull yourself up close . . . close enough to see the real you. From the reflection in your mental mirror, pay close attention to your life. Try your best to examine the inner "you" on the basis of time.” We need to be able to look back on our life. We need to look at our present. We then need to conjecture, based on our current spiritual state, mental state and life disposition that our future might be.

I’m asking you, as did Chuck, to look both back and forward. It is hard. It is hard primarily because we can’t look either back or forward without considering them from our current life situation.

Looking Back. I have found what seems from my narrow and subjective (as well as small sample set) analysis that if you are over 50 years of age you will come to one conclusion that seems universal: LIFE IS SHORT. I think however this is Biblical.

On your own read through Psalm 90 and you will conclude it is loaded with messages relating to the brevity of life. Life is short . . . like yesterday when it passes by . . . as a watch in the night . . . like grass, it sprouts and withers . . . like a sigh, soon it is gone.

If you aren’t feeling it now you will – Yes and amen…Life is short.

Looking Ahead. If you look back on your life and scratch your head and think to yourself, “How did I get here?” you will conclude about the future one overriding theme: LIFE IS UNCERTAIN AND THEREFORE WILL BE UNCERTAIN. “Unexpected." Could be the overarching adjective placed on most all of our future experiences.

Unexpected:

•         Surgery
•         Transfer
•         Accomplishment
•         Loss
•         Benefit
•         Sickness
•        Promotion/demotion
•        Gift
•        Death

·      (Fill in the blank)                                                                   

Guys, our lives are truly uncertain.

We’re left to come back to the nasty now and now. How should we view our “today?”

There are lots of ways to look at life. I prefer the power of God and the realization life is to be lived or feared and therefore since God does not give us fear (2 Timothy 1:7) these are 4 powerful words: LIFE IS AN ADVENTURE! They don’t contradict our behind and forward lessons. Nor do they require us to be Polly-Anna types with rose-colored glasses. But, may I also point out they don’t leave us hopeless and forlorn. For as we look at the present, we discover: LIFE IS AN ADVENTURE!

Since life is short it needs to be viewed as jam-packed with challenging possibilities and mysterious twists and turns. Because it’s uncertain, it's filled with rigorous nuance and the ability to make “on the fly” adjustments. I'm convinced that's much of what Jesus meant when He promised us an abundant life (Gospel of John 10:8-10). We should expect our lives to be abundant with challenges, both positive and negative but also running over with possibilities. We need to see from a position of “the heavenlies” that our lives are filled with opportunities to adapt, shift, alter, and change. Come to think of it, that's the secret of staying young. It is also the path that leads to changing the world for the Kingdom of God.

With each new dawn, life delivers a package to your front door. In the Spirit-filled life you answer that life full of the Power and Potential of God! When you hear that ring tomorrow morning, try something new; have Christ in you answer the door for you.

Life's most challenging opportunities are often deceptively disguised as unsolvable problems. But when the powerful King of the Universe is in charge of problems, challenges… the impossible then huge and massive and amazing and beautiful life, health, power, grace, goodness, mercy and abundance happens! Expect it!

Oh! Once last thing…James didn’t mean to say, “If the Lord wills (which we cannot possibly know or understand) we shall do this (unknowable thing) or that (other unknowable thing). No, it means, “The Lord showed me this specific thing to do and this other specific thing and therefore I will do those things.” Apparently James wasn’t a Baptist! J

I remain…

InHISGrip,
  ~J~

Internal Combustion & the Christian Head!

All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light...- Jesus, Matthew 11:27-30

Cindy and I had a moment with some of the most hearthurt (my new word) people in the world. They've been cast out by society. Some of it their direct fault but much of it not at all. They weren't alone. It was just the immensity of having so many tossed off, impoverished, despised, ignored, beaten down...it really spoke to me about...well, me.

What I came to, in part, was this, if you are an adult, in this, the 21st Century, you understand stress and hearthurt; emotional pain that won't just go away. 

If you are an adult and/or have a job and/or have a family, get out of bed, own motorized vehicles, children, pets, etc., if any of that is you, on a weekly basis you face life's unplanned hassles and headaches. They may be as controlled as making daily preparation for our kids and spouse that requires we rise before 6:30 in the morning (controlled?) or as severe as a smashing into a rival soccer mom; your minivan into her SUV. 

It may be a runaway daughter, on the streets, selling her body and deep into drugs.

The size of the strain makes little difference. The result is "trauma." And, all of this explains the ongoing popularity of Valium!

When I think of trauma or heartache and hurt I think of Joe Bayly. The late Christian writer understood trauma. He and his wife lost three of their children: one at eighteen days (after surgery); another at five years (leukemia); a third at eighteen years (sledding accident plus hemophilia). In my wildest and most fearful imagination, I cannot fathom the depth of their loss. In the aftermath of each and then the combination of all of this tragedy, Joe and his wife stood.  Sometimes they were strong, sometimes weak. They had to stand by as they watched God place a period on the lives of their three of children. Can you imagine being close friends or family of the Bayly's? Their anguish was not relieved when well-meaning people offered shallow, simple answers amidst their grief.

H. L. Mencken wrote: "There's always an easy solution to every human problem...neat, plausible, and wrong." I think he had our stresses and pain in mind when those words were penned.

Eyes that read these words might very well be near tears. You are trying to cope without hope, and there's no relief on the horizon. You're bleeding and you've run out of bandages. You have moved from mild tension to advanced trauma or, compared perhaps to what you are accustomed to, it seems that way. 

Listen carefully! Jesus Christ opens the gate, gently looks at you, and says: "Come to Me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls]" - Matthew 11:28, Amplified).

Nothing complicated. No big fanfare, no trip to Mecca, no hypnotic trance, no strategy to get "better" first, no fee, no special password or unique understanding of some enigmatic doctrine. Jesus says, "just come." 

What does He mean? Unload on Him. Unhook the HUGE backpack and drop it in His lap. NOW! 

Does He, the God of the Universe, know what major heart and head hurt is all about? Can He handle yours? Remember, He's the One whose sweat became like drops of blood in the agony of the Garden of Gethsemane. Further, remember He went through that so He could handle yours. It's a mystery but it is a truth. If anybody understands hearthurt, Jesus does. 

He understands your stress...pain...heartache...trauma...Completely.

He's a Master at turning devastation into restoration. His provision is profound, attainable, and right.

Allow Him to take your stress as you take His rest.

I remain...

InHISGrip,
  ~J~

10 Questions That Determine Success...

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.  But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel,  so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear - Philippians 1:9-15, 

Paul, Jesus Bondservant

I stole the idea (not so much the content) from an article I saw in INC Magazine online...The idea was simply 10 questions that can determine success. So, for the follower of Jesus here are 10 questions you might consider. I am sure there are many others. Hopefully these are a good starting point for your everyday walk with God and your success in this life!

1. Have I started my day today at the Love's source, Jesus Christ-Worship-Study-Prayer-Meditation?

2. Have I expressed the overflow of His love for me to others around me?

3. With Love as a guide, have I determined how I could better the world around me, even if it is some small thing?

4. Am I taking care of my body so I can express my best to the world around me?

5. Am I bathed in an attitude of gratitude (It will determine how I approach adventures, challenges and people)

6. Do I maintain a continual conversation with Jesus throughout the day? (It will determine how I act in private. This is where all my life plans are formed as well as in public where I act them out).

7. Have I thoughtfully approached conversations with others to strengthen and encourage them and provide God the greatest opportunity to work in and through them?

8. As I review in midday, is it clear I am accomplishing God honoring tasks?

9. Not "have I" but whom have I lifted and helped today that is less fortunate than I?

10. What are the stories and exploits I have started, attempted and/or accomplished today; write them down?

BONUS: Was this a "God-sized" day today or what!??!

Here's the thing.  The questions you ask yourself on a daily basis determine your focus, and your focus determines your effectiveness. Do you want to be passionate? Do you want to find your passion? Be fulfilled? Then plug in each day early to your Heavenly Father...Heaven itself, with all its power and lack of limitations will flow in and through you!

I remain...

InHISgrip,
  ~J~

God: Did I Not Make Myself Clear?

Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. Then he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.  So Saul said, “Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.” And he offered the burnt offering.  Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him.  And Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul said, “When I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash,  then I said, ‘The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord.’ Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.” And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. - I Samuel 13:7b-13

Samuel Anointing Saul

In order for this teaching to have a clear foundation there are some things you need to know. First, the prophet Samuel had anointed Saul the first king of Israel and it had now been quite some time. The backdrop is a war is about to start. Saul, now 30 years old is leading Israel into battle against the dreaded Philistines. The Philistines had gathered at a place called Micmash to come against the Jews. A major key to understand is that Jehovah (God) was directing Saul through the prophet Samuel. Samuel had previously instructed Saul to go ahead of him to Micmash. He told Saul that he would follow in seven days. Once Samuel arrived, as was God's requirement, he, Samuel, would then present a burnt offering on behalf of the people of Israel to God.


But, as with all great leaders, Saul was beginning to feel the pinch of leadership. The real pressure began to build as the Philistines gathered around Micmash preparing for battle. The people of Israel began to freak out. With such a huge enemy within eyesight, seeing how big and angry they were, the Jews began to scatter throughout the countryside. 
It didn't help that Saul was also afraid. 


To make things worse for Saul, Samuel did not show up on the morning of the seventh day. With no more personal strength, fearing the worst, an impending attack, Saul decided he would offer the burnt offering. And, as is the custom of all good tales of victory and defeat, Samuel shows up after he had done this.


..."You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, He would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after His own heart and appointed him leader of His people, because you have not kept the Lord's command -1 Samuel 13:13-14.

Saul believed he needed to take control of the situation. Whenever we try to take control of a situation that God had provided previous instruction, we demonstrate the power of fear in our lives. 

Saul's Disobedience - He was NO Priest!

We've all heard it said, "Desperate times call for desperate measures." But, is that really true?
Jesus came so that the balance of personal leadership and godly direction would be restored to our lives. You and I can know direction, just as it had been given to Saul. We can know what we are to do. Often we do not seek God's guidance. If that's the case then we make life a crap shoot. 

Samuel Upbraiding Saul

However, often we know how God wishes us to react and respond. We know what results our leadership should create and moreover what atmosphere within our workspace, school, church or other sphere of influence. 


I will give you a hint. What does the Bible say about God, Jesus, love and fear? 


HIS love for you and I cast's out fear. If your leading, decisions, options and actions are fear driven then you have left the great Leader behind as you are attempting to navigate this life. Don't control what God has not given you rule over. Do obey and follow, often patiently for God's timing and command.


Do you see any signs of over control in how you relate to others? This is a sign of "leadership by fear." How about this, can you, as a leader,  allow others the freedom to fail? Do you find yourself changing directions in midstream when you see something you don't like or that isn't perfect? Are you fearful of failure? Don't be! These are all symptoms of a Saul-control spirit. 
Such a season I've been going through. It drives me crazy. But God is prepping my heart for leadership roles where knowing His direction and waiting on Him is essential. It is the big payoff! 


So, for both you and I lets Pray that God will allow us both to walk in the freedom of trusting in hearing Him, trust Him and trusting that God is also working in and on those around us. 
I remain...

InHISgrip,
   ~J~

I Freak Out! HE Just Handles It - POWERFULLY!

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. He makes wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burns the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. - King Hezekiah, Psalm 46:1-11

The backdrop of Hezekiah's writing was the siege of Jerusalem by the Assyrians. Hezekiah was King but only over part of Israel, the Southern Kingdom. It was a time of great social and political stress and strife. The nation of Israel itself was doing "better." After years of following false gods or practicing a form of nationalistic agnosticism Hezekiah, at least in part, have brought revival to the land. 

However, the Assyrians, having conquered and dispersed so many other lands and peoples had set their eyes on Israel and more specifically Jerusalem. The Assyrians were a larger army. They had superior weaponry. They had strategic strength and swagger. Well, you can get more great information on this in Isaiah chapters 36 and 37. It is a powerful story. In part and lesson one is that half the battle against any enemy is standing in the confidence of your God, His word to you, His testimony in and through you and His strength; and do so in silence. 

The outcome of these battles and the pursuing Song of Victory that Hezekiah wrote and sung in Psalm 46 gives us great insight into how we handle the problem of stress.

But, let me give you three additional practical thoughts regarding this matter of God's strength through stress, as found in Psalm 46.

First, the personal emotional and spiritual strength God provides to us is immediately available. Our God is ...very present... We must know that our trials are not superficial or irrelevant to God. But they themselves are often not the issue. They are vehicles of grace that God uses to bring us growth and from them comes forth from His people supernatural and massive power and vision. 

We need to learn to see our lives from God's perspective. Superficial problems call for superficial solutions. But most of us live in a very real world. Real life isn't superficial is it? No, real life is headaches and stresses that go deeper than the right top with the right pants and whether a certain color of beige will destroy our family life as we know it should we cover the family room in its utter grossness. 

The stresses of life go right down to the bone. They touch the nerve areas of our security. But God says He is a present help in trouble. He is immediately available. Do you realize that wherever you go, whatever life situation you find yourself in and whatever the time of day, week, month, year, decade it is, you can call and He will answer? He's a very present and immediate help. Along with this is something sobering. If you are not experiencing that question self first, not God. 

We ask the wrong question and we asked it way too often. I have been the worst offender. The wrong question? "God, why is this happening to me?" It is the tone and not the question that is the problem. For me, when I am stressed, the way I ask it is accusatory. I am blaming God for having a blind spot. He certainly must not have seen what was about to come my way. Perhaps He was on break or vacation or worse. If you and I are asking God, "Lord, why me?" It better be because we want to best understand how He plans on using us and to give us HIS vision for what everyone else would deem a major catastrophe in our lives. 

A better "next step" is to fall more deeply in love with Him because daily, you are having a fresh revelation of His love for you! When we start to truly "get" the depth of His love that question will be obliterated from our thinking for we will know He is always in control and nothing has escaped Him at all, least of all our life.

The second thing I observe about God's power in this psalm is that it is overwhelmingly powerful! It's a shelter that can stretch over any stress - in fact God's power is custom made for the stress that you are going through; the army that has come against you is just the stress, the battle that He will either prepare you to fight or that one He will fight on your behalf! 

Of course, the end of the story regarding Israel and Assyria was the triumph of God's people. You could have called it couldn't you? But if you have ever experienced a David whooping a Goliath or a mother lifting a car off of her baby or a people of God crying out for a blessed miracle that would honor their God and King and having it come forth then you begin to understand God's power. 

Furthermore (and number three), His power is not dependent on our help. 

If you are any type of New Testament believer in Jesus you should have already embraced our part and God's part. Our part is to realize He made us, loves us and plans on delivering us. HIS part is to do just that because only He can do it! We're weak, remember? Can we save ourselves into eternity? No. Have you had your walls of fortification pummeled lately? Probably. Have you felt any weakness? I have. The Holy Spirit would say to you, "Child, it's time you say, 'Lord, I love You. Through Your strength I will stand fast and firm! You and I, together, we are enough. Because of your great love Father God I will not fear. I hold on to You. I will count on You to build that shelter, those walls and gates and buttresses and most of all realize the foundation of Your Son Jesus, all of this,  around me and protect me from the darts, arrows, bullets and bazooka's of the enemy.'"

God says, "Cease striving, and know that I am God. Cease lamenting and know your victory is at hand because your deliverer is standing by!"

You and I WE remain...

InHISgrip,

  ~J~