There was a movie that came out in the late nineties, a sports Cinderella movie called JERRY MAGUIRE.  I remember watching it when I was a student in college. There were several lines in that movie that have later become as iconic as any other famous movie quotes out there. For example, you might be familiar with, “You had me at hello,” or “Show me the money!”.  But there is one quote I still remember that doesn’t get much attention as the others. It’s from one of the early scenes in the movie where Jerry Maguire, a sports agent, wants to sign a contract with the future number one draft pick of the upcoming NFL draft. Jerry goes to visit the family and when he presents a contract, the father of the future star quarterback tells him he doesn’t do contracts but promises him that he will sign with Jerry and with a handshake the father looks him dead in the eye and says,”my word is stronger than oak”.  Of course Jerry believes him and shakes on it but unfortunately for Jerry he has to learn the hard way, that in this fickle dog eat dog world called the NFL, there really is nothing as loyalty. The father backs off of his promise leaving Jerry out in the cold while his son signs with another agent instead. Betrayed, Jerry feels lost, and humiliated for trusting in a promise that was supposed to be “stronger than oak” but instead was nothing but a twig. Perhaps you can relate to Jerry, perhaps you too have felt betrayed by someone who gave you their word and went back on their promise? Maybe you have failed to keep your own word, maybe you have let someone down yourself? If I’m honest I admit I have been there too. I’ve unfortunately failed others by not keeping my word, and I’ve also been the victim of a broken promise or two. It can be disheartening that’s for sure.  Can we really ever be assured of anything in this world?  We are constantly bombarded with empty promises, from politicians, to commercials trying to convince us that their product or their agenda will change our lives for the better and some even guarantee it.  But time and time again we listen to them, buy their product, vote them in office believing them but as usual they never deliver like they were supposed to and we get jaded and let down once again.  It can be hard to ever trust again but praise God, when it comes to God’s promises for our lives including our hope of eternal salvation, we never have to doubt or lack assurance because unlike our fallible selves, God won’t ever go back on His word but will always fulfill it. Numbers 23:19, reminds us of this. “God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” I know of some Christians who believe that assurance of our salvation is based on our spiritual growth. Yes, spiritual growth can encourage us but it is not where we get our full assurance.  No, if our assurance is based on us and how we perform for God, then how can we ever be fully assured we are saved? As Christians we don’t always get it right and spiritual growth is never complete on earth and will never be fully realized until we die.  Some days we will be living for God and on fire and the next we could find ourselves apart from God and suddenly we are no longer close and intimate but rather distant and cold.  No, our assurance is a hundred percent based on one thing and one thing only, His word. In John 6:47, Jesus says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.”  How do you fully know that you are saved? Is there a contract we have to sign, a commitment that we have to live up to in order for His promise to be fulfilled? No, it is simply trusting in Christ without any doubt that what He says is true and that is all we need for us to be sure, that is all we need to be certain that what He says about us will come to pass. So when we mess up, return to His word, when we don’t measure up, return to His word, when we hear the voice of the enemy slandering us, reminding us of our past wrongs, when we feel overwhelmed by shame and guilt, return to His word. Remember, that we have an inheritance kept in heaven for us, we have a Holy Spirit that has sealed us until the day of redemption, we have a Savior who is the author and finisher of our faith, and we have a God who calls us His kids and no one can snatch us from His hand. How do I know this, what reason do I have to be able to stand here free of any shame, no matter how bad I screw up my life? Simply this, His Word. It is and always will be His word, and no amount of awesome things I may  happen to do for God nor commands I may fail to keep, will bend or break His immovable love for me and that is what I am trusting in.  But don’t take my word for it, take His.  1John 5:13, “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.”  And those my friends are words of hope, words to trust your life with, words of a promise from a perfect God to an untrustworthy people.  Words we can count on to be true always, words stronger than oak. 

Matthew 18:12

What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?

I love a good love story.  For me the best love stories always have a strong ending. There is always a breakup that happens midway into the story, when the lovers separate and all looks lost but towards the end, it’s usually the male love interest that gives up something that he must learn to let go, whether a job, or his pride. There is usually some decision he has to make that requires great sacrifice or that makes him seem foolish and ridiculous but instead he gives it all up and that’s when it comes to my favorite part of the story, the scene where the guy goes back to win the girl’s heart once again. You know the Bible is a love story, the greatest love story ever told. I was recently reminded of this when I was meditating on the parable of Jesus describing himself as a Shepherd. There’s a great image of Jesus going after us: His bride, His girl.  In this parable, he compares His love for us as a shepherd who would leave the flock of 99 behind for the sake of one sheep that strayed. The one sheep that strays is us and the ninety nine is the sacrifice that God makes for us. What sacrifice? Well if you think about it, any shepherd that leaves behind his flock unsupervised knows he’d be putting his sheep at risk of either being stolen by thieves, vulnerable to being eaten by wolves, or leaving them to wander off and scatter off on their own. In other words, he’d be putting his very livelihood on the line, knowing if he found the one and then returned, the ninety nine would more than likely be gone. He’d be sacrificing his earnings, what puts bread on the table for him, his very life. Of course, no shepherd would do that, but this is exactly God’s point. Jesus loved us so much that He was like a shepherd leaving his ninety nine all for us. We strayed, we sinned, went our own way but He left the comforts of heaven, gave up His title of God for the role of humbled servant and gave it all up, even His very life. Foolishness? “Reckless Love”, as one song says? Yes, that’s how much God loves us, “That while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” He left behind the ninety-nine so that He could say to us, “You are mine!” Now that’s a love story worth telling over and over again. God and His Bride, a love story for the ages. 

When I was twelve years old I remember I was placed in a class that was geared for students who liked math, who were good at building things and pretty much had the knack to be an engineer or architect. Why I had to take this class I have no idea but apparently the school heads thought it was a great idea. So, if you know anything about me, that is not who I am at all. I am not a hands on, let’s build it kind of guy. In fact today, I literally have to watch a YouTube video on how to replace a light bulb. Anyway, I will never forget our assignment. We had to construct a model of a building, or something of that nature. We had to sketch drawings of it and then we had to build the model from scratch. Well, some kids went right to work and in the coming weeks, these brilliant little engineers were building beautifully constructed wooden bridges, hockey rinks, skyscrapers, pretty impressive looking. I remember the teacher would walk around the class, marveling at some of the projects and would give them positive feedback but when he came to my workstation, it was not going so well. There I was at my desk with a glue stick putting together popsicle sticks. You see, I was going to build a popsicle stick house and all I had to show my teacher was just me gluing a few sticks together. He was polite and would smile and wish me the best but I could see he was concerned about if I even had a clue of what I was doing. Actually, I really had no clue and even I felt like I wasn’t going to be able to do this, but thankfully mom and dad came to my rescue. I really don’t think that’s how my parents wanted to spend their weekend but the day before the deadline they lovingly helped me and we finally finished my dream home. When I presented my freshly spray painted lopsided house to my teacher, he finally saw all along what my intentions were and even cracked a smile.  Yes, it wasn’t nearly as good as everyone else’s, but so what, I still did it and was proud of my accomplishment. Today, I was thinking about my spiritual journey and if I’m to be honest, it sometimes feels like I’m at my desk with a glue stick and a couple of popsicles and the deadline is approaching and what do I really have to show for God? I feel overwhelmed, disappointed in myself, I look at all my failures, feel like everyone else around me has it better. But then He reminds me to stop trying to compare myself to others, stop trying to perform for Him, it’s a process and I can’t do it without Him. Just like my parents came alongside me and helped me to finish,  God is there to glue the broken pieces of my life together. Wherever we find ourselves in this life, remember don’t give up, He has promised to complete what He’s started. Even if you feel stuck and discouraged, maybe even a little overwhelmed in your spiritual walk, with only a couple of popsicle sticks and some glue, don’t give up, just give it up to Him and watch Him transform your life into the person He knows you can become. 

Philippians 1:6

6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Colossians 1:27
“To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, THE HOPE OF GLORY.”

Did you know that the reason people search for that pot of gold on the other side of the rainbow is because they are searching for their glory? God first designed man before sin and bestowed His glory on man. Man was truly satisfied but fell from glory when deceived by the lie that glory could be found on their own. Whenever we chase after glory outside of God, we make ourselves idols. How many times do we chase after idols? Whether money, success, praise from others, pleasure? And how often do we run to relationship after relationship chasing glory? Nothing wrong with any of those things, nothing wrong with glory either. Remember with glory comes happiness, meaning, significance, hope, fulfillment but when we stop chasing after glory through counterfeits and idols and seek Him first, giving glory to the one and only, guess what happens? The God of glory satisfies us and gives us His glory. The glory from the Father is more satisfying than anything that can come from our meaningless pursuits from other gods. The Psalmist says, “the sorrows of those who run after multiple gods will multiply.” But Christ in us is the hope of glory! He is the hope that will truly satisfy our souls as it was always intended from the beginning. Psalm 8:5
“Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with GLORY AND HONOR.” Let’s live to give our lives to God in praise and worship as living sacrifices, giving up our man made idols for a cheap imitation of glory and in return, we will be filled with more of Him, more of His best, more of His presence, more of HIS GLORY!!!!

Recently, I was reading the famous story of Jesus walking on the water to my four year old son Thomas.  After I was finished, I closed up the Picture Bible and asked him if he would actually like to walk on water someday. I even told him that in heaven that is one of my dreams, to actually take a walk with Jesus on the waves.  He seemed pretty excited about doing that as well but he then quickly warned me about the possibility of sharks. I laughed and told him that yes in heaven there will probably be sharks but they won’t eat us. They’ll probably come swim alongside us and maybe even talk to us for a while. Who knows, but later as I was processing what he said earlier about the sharks, it struck me how his response from a four year old brain, is not all that different from a grown up brain like yours or mine. In fact, there have been moments when I have been faced with a challenge or a difficult situation, and instead of trusting in Jesus like I should, I would make all the excuses in the book and tell God all the reasons why I couldn’t go out and join Him for an evening stroll on the ocean tide. “But God, how about a long walk on the beach? We can collect sea shells and feel the sand amongst our toes? Haven’t you ever seen Jaws?” Of course, He’d smile and reassure me with His loving promises “Fear not my son, for Jaws was a mechanical shark.”  Okay, okay God did not say that and we did not have that conversation together. Just to clarify but maybe you can relate with me? That despite His many promises not to fear, we allow ourselves to become afraid anyway.  We tend to want to keep to the shoreline and play it safe and in doing so, instead of walking on the waves, we end up missing out on the miracle God wants to do in and through us. The disciple, Peter had the privilege to jump out of the boat and for a while, he was actually walking on the water but when he saw the wind, that’s when he sank. The rest of the disciples just stayed in the boat. That’s typical of us isn’t it? We either stay in our comfort zones or we start off trusting in Jesus but then when things get tough, we often immediately take our eyes off Christ and instead of living by faith, we drown in our fears.  What we need to do is learn how to handle these difficult situations by learning from Christ Himself. For starters, before He walked on water, He actually spent time with His Father alone in prayer. Matthew 14:23 says,  “And after he had dismissed the crowds, ^(C)he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.” How many of us before we set out to embark on our dreams, or  face a challenging situation, or make an important decision, do we actually spend our time waiting on God? Jesus often did that many times so why not us? We too should cultivate a spiritual habit to develop a prayer life so that when the waves of life seem overwhelming we can overcome because we are in His presence and this will help us to remember God is in control.  Not only should we learn to wait on God but also we can learn from Jesus to not wait for the perfect circumstances. “Whenever my business cards come in then I’ll start making phone calls” or perhaps you have heard this one?  “When I retire then I’ll go on that mission trip for God”.  Well, tomorrow is never promised and Jesus didn’t continue to wait on the shoreline just praying, and waiting for the perfect situation to develop. In fact, scripture says, in Matthew 14:24, “the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.”   Notice it says “the boat was a long way from the land” and notice the word “waves” is used and notice it says that “the wind was against them.” I don’t know about you but that doesn’t sound like those circumstances are favorable. No, these waters weren’t calm and peaceful; it was probably more like some kind of a storm. He didn’t wait for the wind and waves to die down though, instead He ventured out into the stormy seas. Now that is faith and that is the life God calls us to live as well. Let’s not fall into the trap of waiting for the right timing or perfect circumstances because that day may never come and before you know it, you’re living alone on an island of excuses stranded on the shoreline saying to yourself, “I wish I could’ve or I should’ve.”  When God calls us to come follow Him out onto the water, it’s not going to be easy but if it was, then why would we need Jesus? How could Jesus challenge or grow our faith?  Besides, would you rather play it safe and cross the sea in a boat or would you rather experience an adventure with God by faith? Wherever you find yourself in life and no matter what you’re up against, I dare you. I dare you to trust in how much He loves you. Yes, there are sharks in the water and there will be wind and waves but remember you’re not alone, you’re in His presence and He will never let you drown.

Matthew 14:22-33

Every once and awhile I love listening to some old fashioned love songs. One of my favorites is the Righteous Brothers, “Unchained Melody”.  I love that song, great melody, so romantic and emotionally moving, I could listen to that one over and over.  Recently I was just thinking that one of my favorite books of the Bible, the Psalms, is actually like a collection of beautiful old fashioned  love songs, put together and written to a perfect God from an imperfect people. David, the main author, was a murderer and an adulterous person yet God still loved David and chose to include his words in our Bibles today, inspired by the Holy Spirit and God breathed.  The Sons of Korah, also authors of many of our Psalms today, came from the line of Korah, a rebellious and sinful man who revolted against God and Moses. Yet God by His great mercy chose his descendants to have the special privilege to carry out and to lead His people in temple worship.  There are many Psalms that express great joy praising and declaring the faithfulness and compassion of our God and then there are Psalms of great discouragement.  The book of Psalms is raw and filled with all kinds of emotions.  Sometimes they display the author’s fears, sometimes his anger, sometimes the words come out of loneliness and great sorrow and sometimes from a place of great joy.  Yes, I think that’s why I like the Psalms so much. Not simply because of the beautiful written passages like the “Lord is my Shepherd”, or “As the deer pants for water,” but simply because of the people who wrote them, people like you and me. They were people who were flawed, people who at times felt depressed like all was lost, people who committed horrible sins, people who questioned things and even doubted God’s love.  Yes, these were people that if we’re honest with ourselves, are a lot like us but the good news is, God allowed them to come to Him with all their humanity and He never turned His back on them. In fact, if God showed compassion and used these flawed individuals to inspire and encourage us today, don’t you think He can take measly old sinners like you and me and use our weaknesses to accomplish His greatness?  Yes, He can and yes, He will.  So, the next time you read the Psalms, ponder this.  You don’t have to come to Him as having everything altogether, just come to Him as you are, whether sad, glad or mad, it doesn’t matter. Just go to Him in all your imperfections and find comfort in this truth, that you are made perfect in His eyes already and He will love you and fulfill His plan for your life not because you behave perfectly but simply because you trust in Him, a loving and perfect God.  His perfect plan will prevail and you will find yourself singing along to this old fashioned love song,

“ My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.

  Let every creature praise his holy name

  for ever and ever.”

Psalm 145:21

Remember always that you are God’s Masterpiece, a work of art that He has started and that He will finish. Sometimes the process is not easy and sometimes it will require discipline to sit still so that He can finish His portrait. But it’s in those moments that instead of complaining or wishing Him to rush, that we learn to be patient and when He tells you to adjust a position, do it, when He reminds you to lift up your chin, hold it high and learn to enjoy the simple fact that you are in His presence. When the great artist God is finished and He finally calls you over to view your portrait, don’t be surprised if at first you don’t recognize yourself. You will see the beauty of your soul, the person inside of you that God always knew you would become. And as you look closer you will begin to realize that the portrait of your soul bears the striking resemblance of His one and only son, Jesus Himself. And all you had to do was simply trust Him and just be still.

Ephesians 2:10

10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

You know that scripture that says “Honor God and He will honor you?” I always use to think it meant obey Him and He will bless you with good things, wife, job, good health whatever. Actually guys the blessings we seek are not found in any of those things. When we honor Him with our obedience we don’t get eternal life, no that’s a gift but when we honor Him with our lives we get the BLESSING OF HIM HONORING US WITH HIS PRESENCE. That’s the blessing. It’s hard I know because we want happiness in this life. I know it’s hard but sometimes the thing we are chasing for is and has always been there with us. Kind of like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. She was chasing after the end of the rainbow but everything she had and always needed was right where she was, home. May we as believers not forget this truth. That the God of the universe has made His home with us and is in us. May we be thankful and grateful just to be considered someone whom God wants to be with. Stop chasing the rainbow, seek His presence, be mindful of His presence, don’t take it for granted. Maybe instead of being entertained by Netflix we take the time to bask in His presence. So if you feel lonely, discontent, seeking outward circumstances to bring you the peace and satisfaction you crave, remember Dorothy. She had an amazing adventure but she never left home. Your adventure you seek, the love and comfort you need is right here all along inside you. In His presence is full joy and with God we don’t need to be singing “Somewhere over the Rainbow”. Instead, let us praise Him and enjoy His presence, and when the tornadoes strike, we will be okay because we’re with Him and He’s with us and there is no place like home, there’s no place like home!!!!

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Hebrews 12:1-3
New International Version
12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. AND LET US RUN with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross,scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

I never was really good at track and field when I was in school but I remember competing in several races. I tried them all from short distance to long distance. In the short distance races, I never was quick enough and so would end up finishing last and for the long distance races I never had the endurance to keep up with the others and I would eventually run out of gas and end up in last place once again. But there was one race that I actually won first place medal for. It was for the relay race. I remember I was the second guy to run. The first guy started us off and quickly built a huge lead and when he passed the baton to me, I ran as fast as I could with everything I had and it was just enough distance that just when I was starting to feel gassed, it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter that I didn’t have the energy anymore to win the race because by that time, all I had to do was hand off the baton to the runner who had the fresh legs and he finished the race for me. We won that day and I’ll never forget what an accomplishment it felt to actually win something. Today, I met with the Lord and as I was praying, I reminded Him of all my shortcomings and my failures, my failed races, and I apologized for all those times I had burned out in the past. Well, the Lord is compassionate and He reminded me of my track and field days and He reminded me of this verse in Hebrews about how we are in a race and we are to persevere in running the race. But He pointed out the one thing that I had failed to see before and I have looked at this verse many times, believe me. You see, I have always known that it’s not up to us to persevere, God will do it right? But there was one thing I failed to notice before. This race is not an individual race. Let me repeat that, THIS RACE IS NOT AN INDIVIDUAL ONE, ITS A RELAY!!!! For He says, “ Let US RUN”, God didn’t say I want you to run, He is talking to US THE CHURCH. If you have been trying to run this race by yourself and you keep stumbling over hurdles perhaps it’s because you have failed to see that you are not in this race alone. Perhaps, it’s time to give up the baton to our brother and sister in Christ and let them continue the race for us and then as we rest in Christ, we will be ready and refreshed to take the baton back from them when they are fatigued, so we can continue to be on pace. Guys, Christianity is not an individual sport, we need each other. Are we actively pursuing Godly relationships? Are we just doing online church? When’s the last time you had a cup of coffee with another believer and just talked and prayed with each other? When we isolate, we put ourselves in a position to be defeated. Let’s remember this truth, we are not alone. We have God with us, we have the community of believers, “the cloud of witnesses”, those who have gone before us that we can learn from and those who are in the race that we can lean on when we are tired. If we run the race as a relay with God as our coach, we will persevere! Do you hear them? It’s the chants from the saints of old cheering us on, “WIN church, WIN!”

Ephesians 2:4-8

4 “But[c] God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift.”

From time to time as Christians, we all tend to struggle with sin in our lives. Sometimes there is that one sin that dominates our lives. I call them those giants. Those sins that just keep overcoming us over and over on the battlefield and we wonder at times where is this so called power of God?  Then we find ourselves trying to regroup, we pray more and read our Bibles more in hopes that the next time we war against these giants in our lives we can somehow defeat them for good.  But then sooner or later we meet the giant of Fear or Lust and the exact opposite happens and we end up hobbling back in retreat licking our wounds. But what God had to remind me recently is to stop striving to fight my giants from an earthly position and start facing my giants from a heavenly perspective. First, He reminded me of the truth that I am dead.  When a human being stops breathing permanently, we all know, that a person ceases to function. The whole body once full of life, movement, and expression suddenly becomes a lifeless and hollow shell of what it used to be.  It cannot eat, drink, work or play.  I have been to quite a few wakes and never have I seen anyone go up to the open casket and tell a deceased person that they need to make sure they comb their hair if it is a little disheveled or button up their shirt or fix their tie.  No one tells a dead person, they need to go get a job now to pay for the funeral.  I’ve also never seen a dead person rise up out of the casket and begin to have a conversation with anyone, or get up and walk over to the guests and serve them refreshments and thank them for coming to their funeral and no one before leaving the funeral home reminds the corpse to turn the lights off and close the lid after themselves.  No, of course not and it would be foolishness to think that way.  No, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that when a person ceases to exist, they cannot do anything, and no one  in their right mind would expect them to.  Yet, when the Bible tells us in Ephesians that we were spiritually dead in our trespasses, why is it that when it comes to our salvation over the power of sin, some of us still think it’s up to us to comb our hair, brush our teeth and fix ourselves so that when we see Jesus face to face in eternity, we will look presentable before Him?  Why do we think our salvation and victory over sin and death is somehow up to our own doing?  Didn’t the Bible say we were dead? If we cannot do anything physically when our earthly bodies die, don’t assume by reading the Bible and memorizing a bunch of scripture verses that this is going to save us.  We have to first see ourselves as dead. Nothing we can do can save us, nothing. Once we understand that truth, then we can take claim of this next truth. Ephesians tells us that not only were we dead but Christ made us alive and raised us up with Him and now we are seated in the heavenly places.  Christ made you alive, not you. You had nothing to do with saving yourself from hell and you have nothing to do with saving yourself from those giants we battle day to day either.   Remember, that you are now seated in the heavenly places. This means that you reign in Christ now and nothing shall have dominion over you because nothing has dominion over Christ.   Stop approaching your battles from down below looking up at your giants, instead look down upon them from your throne where your real position is.  When we approach our battles from this perspective, we will find ourselves winning more and more because we are not striving to win, we are simply believing it is finished.  And when we read our Bibles, memorize verses and pray, we don’t do it to gain our victory or position but we do it to remind ourselves of the victory and the position we have already in Christ. So, whatever those giants are for you, remember to face them looking down from  on high, from the throne of victory where Christ has seated you. Soon, those giants that once seemed so overwhelming will appear as mere ants.  They will be looking up to you instead and when they see Christ alive and reigning in you, they will have no other option but to bow the knee.