With Christmas around the corner, one can’t help but think about gifts. Giving and receiving gifts is fun but the one thing I can’t stand is wrapping gifts. I’m just so bad at it. If they offered a gift wrapping class for dummies, I’d fail miserably. I’m terrible with scissors, I can’t cut in a straight line, I always end up with either too much paper or I’ll come up too short, that I can’t even cover up the gift. Everything ends up so uneven and by the time an hour goes by and I’ve gone through the last roll of tape, I finally have another messily wrapped gift to give away. I’d rather just throw it in a bag and be done with it but since that’s not the Christmas spirit, I try my best anyway. Sometimes,  if I’m lucky, I’ll get my mom to do it. She’s like the Picasso of gift wrapping, all the corners are nicely tucked in and everything is precise and neatly presentable.  I envy people who can gift wrap. If that’s you, I applaud you. Anyway, as much as I hate gift wrapping, I will admit, when done right, it does look beautiful when all is wrapped up and placed around the Christmas tree. My favorite part about the whole gift thing though, is seeing the faces of my children light up when they see their presents. It’s so funny to observe kids opening up their gifts. Have you ever observed how a baby opens up a gift? I remember once when my son was around one or so, I gave Thomas a present and tried to help him open the wrapping paper. He proceeded to tear off a piece and then it was like the rest of the gift didn’t matter. He took that wrapping paper and started to play with it like that was the gift itself. He was so into the wrapping paper I had to yank it out of his hands before he could put it into his mouth. I had to actually finish unwrapping the rest of the gift myself, to finally get his attention onto the toy inside. I thought to myself, if wrapping paper is all he wanted, then I could’ve saved a bundle of money and just got him several roles of wrapping paper instead. It’s funny when you think about it, as Christians living in this temporary world, we kind of do the same thing. Sometimes, we tend to act like babies and get so caught up in the wrapping paper of this world, that we forget the important things in life are in the box. The wrapping paper is this world we live in, our jobs, money, our own physical bodies, even temporary relationships. Nothing wrong with any of that but when those things take all our focus and we’re neglecting what really matters, like the spiritual things in life, than that’s when it becomes a problem. I go to the gym at least three times a week and I love it, the way it makes you feel and how you look is rewarding. But I also know that I got to be careful, for it’s so easy to get caught up on how the outside of my body looks, that I neglect to work on my inner character. This outer shell of mine will eventually fade but the Spirit man inside of me needs exercise too and if I’m neglecting to spend time working out in God’s gym, than what a waste it’s going to be when my flesh fades and all I have is a scrawny spiritual body. I don’t know about you but I want to look like Thor when I get to heaven not Pewee Herman. Facial creams and anti aging lotions, cosmetic surgery, the world spends millions of dollars to dress up the wrapping paper. Look, there’s nothing wrong with a red bow or some ribbon on your wrapper and I’m not one of those Christians that says you can’t ever but just make sure we remember that real value is what’s on the inside of the package. How do we do this? First and foremost you got to have Jesus inside your package. Remember, not all gifts are worth the same. You can have two boxes all wrapped up the same but one has a laptop in it and the other a tuna fish scraper. Get what I mean? I have no idea what a tuna fish scraper is, I just made that up. So don’t go looking for one on Amazon. But seriously, only Jesus living inside of us gives us true worth and value and as we meditate on God’s Word day and night, spend time with Him in prayer and worship, then our inner character will grow as it was intended to. Been focusing on your gift wrap too much? God knows I’m guilty but thanks be to God there’s grace. Grace came to us two thousand years ago in a small little package in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger for you and me.  Jesus Christ, God wrapped in flesh.  So, as you go about your Christmas, this season, it’s okay to enjoy the gift wrap, for it does have a purpose. However, don’t play with it for too long, and whatever you do, don’t eat the gift wrap. Remember, the real gift is what’s inside.

Colossians 3:2
2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

1 Samuel 16:7
But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 

Matthew 2:17-18

Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
 weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
 and refusing to be comforted,
 because they are no more.”

They say Christmas is “the most wonderful time of the year!” Christmas, a time of celebration, a time of happiness and of good cheer. It’s a special time for most, and I know for me, I have been blessed with so many wonderful memories with family and friends. However, last year was difficult for me, it was my first Christmas being separated from my wife because of the death of our marriage. Yes, that’s me smiling in my holiday pictures but deep down inside I was a mess, my world was falling apart. Being separated from those you love is hard, whether it’s your spouse, your kids, your parents, or a good friend. Death and separation from our loved ones is inevitable. We have either gone through it, are going through it now or will be going through it someday.  For some people Christmas is not the most wonderful time of the year but rather it’s the most painful time of the year. I was reading the Christmas account in the Bible where the Magi travel from the east to give their gifts to Jesus. A beautiful picture of mankind laying down their treasures and declaring Jesus king, a time of rejoicing and great joy. But the verses that follow it are hard to read. Matthew tells the account of King Herod slaughtering all the male babies in Bethlehem that were two and under while Rachel the symbol of Jewish motherhood, weeps for her children. Yes, not a pretty picture, in fact a very gloomy one but this is part of the Christmas story we tend to overlook. When we think of the Christmas story we have a warm and fuzzy view of the manger scene, with Cupid like angels on fluffy clouds, shepherds with their little lambs, Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus all a glow, singing “Silent Night”. Yet the reality is, the Christmas narrative is one of great joy for some but also deep sorrow and pain for others. However, there is encouragement and great comfort for us and it’s found in this verse referencing Jeremiah.  Although at first glance this passage reads as discouraging, Matthew’s intent for mentioning this verse was to give his readers hope. Remember, Matthew’s narrative was for the Jewish people and Matthew was trying to persuade them, that Jesus really was the coming Messiah that was prophesied about long ago by the prophets. This particular passage is first found in Jeremiah 31:15 and so the readers would have been familiar with the literal context of this verse. Jeremiah chapter 31, refers to the Babylonian exile of the Israelite men. Here these young men are being taken captive and led off to Babylon as slaves to be separated from their families. As the young men pass by a town called Ramah, where Rachel, Jacob’s wife was buried, the Jewish mothers wail loudly for their sons whom they will never see again. Matthew compares the two events because of the similarities but also makes a bold statement here. He knows that his Jewish readers are familiar with the whole context of Jeremiah’s words. Jeremiah’s prophecy following this verse is that God was going to deliver them from captivity and return them to their land. This was a message of hope. What Matthew is saying here is that the promise of deliverance from captivity is now fulfilled in Christ. That although the mothers weep now, their weeping will end for Jesus has escaped Herod. Matthew is pointing out that the exile is over because Jesus is the fulfillment of the new covenant and heir to David’s throne. Today’s believers can rejoice in this too. Yes, there is pain and hardship in this life, there is oppression of the Enemy, there is death and separation caused by this sinful world we live in but there is hope for us too that our exile is over. You see Jesus escaped and because Jesus escaped we too can escape the spiritual bondage that has held us captive for so long. We may have been born sinners but Jesus was born King. We too can escape the oppression of this sinful world and we too can be rescued from our sins by faith in Jesus. We can now experience real joy, peace and everlasting hope that only comes from Him. Our situations may not change, for there was no bringing the slain babies back to life but there is a hope now that because Jesus escaped we too can now escape death once and for all. The Bible says that “He who the Son sets free is free indeed”. Praise Jesus for this everlasting hope that we have. Praise Jesus the captives are coming home. Where do you find yourself this Christmas? Are you discouraged, feeling in bondage and oppressed by your situation? Maybe it feels so overpowering and like King Herod’s army, you feel captive in your addictions with no way out. Maybe you’re overwhelmed with fear or great sadness, due to a separation in your marriage or a separation caused by death. Perhaps, you’ve lived your whole life apart from God and this separation is destroying your soul, and you wonder if there is any hope. The answer is a resounding yes! There’s always hope with Christ. You and I may be weeping over our situation and that’s okay but know this, we no longer have to remain in shackles. When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we are exiled no more. We can take off the chains, and rejoice, we are free! Jesus, The Great Escape Artist, who escaped sin and death has made a way for you and me to live in real freedom. Homesick? Not for long, put your faith in Him, follow Him and let Him lead you.  Leave the chains behind, it’s time to come home.

John 8:36
36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

“Joy to the world my Amazon package has come, let VISA and MasterCard sing.” Not familiar with that Christmas song? You should, cause that’s exactly what most Americans sing about on Christmas. Joy, happiness, gladness, whatever you want to call it, it’s what everyone is searching for this Christmas. For most people, Christmas season officially kicks off the day after Thanksgiving. It has now become a sacred day in our nation, we know it as “Black Friday”. That’s the day when Americans begin their pilgrimage to the holy shrine of Walmart searching for this joy in the form of a plasma t.v. or the latest iPhone, or tablet. And it’s amazing how much sacrifice is involved in the process. I talked to a co-worker who drove two and a half hours for a gift just to buy her daughter. Nothing wrong with that but it’s just amazing how we will go through great lengths to find joy or to give joy to someone else through stuff. Stuff that is only temporary and will maybe make one happy for the moment but never really lasts. How about this song, “Joy to the world my mother in law didn’t come, let everyone else at my Christmas party sing!” Some people let their joy be impacted by others. Hollywood preaches to us that Christmas is about spending time with their families and loved ones. Again not necessarily a bad thing but if all our happiness is in other people than what happens when a family member fails to show up for the Christmas party and they let us down? What if a loved one suddenly dies or a marriage falls apart? Where’s the joy in that? I guarantee you it won’t be the “most wonderful time of year”. Yet we still keep searching down the aisles of this life, shopping for joy in all the wrong places and instead of singing “Joy to the World”, our hearts are singing “Joy from this World,” and as a result we are never satisfied and at real peace. Often times even as believers we forget that the word Christmas starts with Christ. Nothing wrong with buying gifts or being with family but everything must start with Christ. When we set our hearts on the goal to seek Christ more than anything else, we will find ourselves filled with an abundance of joy that only Christ can give. We see this in Matthew with the account of the Magi or the Wise Men who came from the East to worship Jesus. When Jesus was two years of age, these men who were probably astrologers, left their homelands from far off, probably Babylon and headed their way to Bethlehem of Judea. I love how devoted they were in seeking out Jesus. First of all they had faith in Jesus as their king. For when they came to Herod the Great for help they asked him, “where is he who is born the king of the Jews?”. Their question shows us how they viewed Christ as already born king of the Jews. To them He was their king and their intentions were to worship Jesus and show their respects. Their faith was further evidenced by their full out surrender and sacrifice just to seek Jesus. Notice they went to extremely great lengths. They left the comforts of their homes to travel a long distance through rough desert terrain, risking their lives and enduring the hot days and cold desert nights. When they found the boy Jesus, they gave up their finest of treasures and they bowed down and worshipped Him. The Bible says that when they found Jesus they were filled with “exceedingly great joy”! Their faith was rewarded. For us to experience this joy that comes from Christ alone, we must have the same faith as the Magi. A faith that puts Christ on the throne of our lives as Lord and king. Too many of us however live our lives where we are seated on the throne. Contrast the faith of the Magi to that of Herod the Great. You see Herod was all about Herod and his motives for seeking Jesus were self centered. He was afraid of losing his power and more concerned about his earthly kingdom and so Jesus was a threat to him. As a result instead of experiencing great joy, the Bible says he was “greatly troubled”. When we are the king of our lives and the center of our universe rather than Jesus, we will never be satisfied, or be at peace. Nothing wrong with being rich or having a position of power, for the Magi were rich and of high status too but they knew where to lay their treasures. Herod could never truly experience real joy because it was centered around a temporary kingdom instead of an everlasting one founded in Christ. Sometimes we may miss out on real joy because we don’t seek Jesus with all our hearts, we just seek Him occasionally, a curiosity more than anything. Herod asked his scribes and religious leaders to search out the scriptures and find the passage which describes the coming of the Messiah and where to find Him. They did just that but why didn’t they go with the Magi? Instead their seeking of Jesus stopped after reading about Him. It’s so sad that many people this Christmas may hear the Christmas story, sing some carols, maybe even attend a church service but still miss out on experiencing God’s best. Simply put it’s just head knowledge and religious duty nothing more. So, how about you? Do you find yourself like me sometimes going through another holiday season without real joy? I have to admit as a believer in Christ sometimes I wish I was more like the Magi but most of the time I find myself in the Herod the Great category. You know, where its all about me and my dreams and I’m seeking God only for Him to bless me for my selfish purposes. Sometimes sadly, I fall into the category of the religious leaders and scribes. Where seeking Jesus is just going through the motions, reading a chapter in the Bible, attending church, writing another cute blog which sounds so awesome and theological but that’s just it. It’s all up here in the head and not translated into a selfless love for Jesus and for others. But thanks be to God there’s grace. Jesus is the Messiah and because of His great love for us, He is patient, forgiving, and kind. He would never ask us to do anything that He hasn’t done already for us. He gave up His throne in heaven for a manger in a stable. He gave His life for you and me by dying on the cross. Why would we not want to give Him everything in return? God is so good. May we dwell on His love for us this Christmas. Dear Heavenly Father, may you give us the strength to trust you. May we seek You with all our hearts, may we surrender our earthly thrones to you, may we lay our treasures at your feet. Holy Spirit be our guiding star of Bethlehem and fill us with all joy, that we overflow into the next year and may our hearts sing loudly than ever before, “Joy to the world the Lord has come, let earth receive her king”! Amen.

Matthew 2:1-12

Matthew 8:1-3

1When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
3Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy.

“I’m not in love with you anymore.”  Words no woman wants to hear coming from her husband but somewhere there’s a woman who is faced with this reality. Suddenly she finds herself alone, abandoned, and wondering what happened to her happily ever after. Somewhere, there’s a pastor of a church who has served his congregation faithfully. He falls into temptation and like David, commits adultery with his Bathsheba and just like that, everyone he cared about and ministered to for so many years has turned against him, his wife, his kids, his congregation, gone. With no one to turn to, feeling alone, and like an outcast, he believes that even God is not willing to restore him again. He takes matters in his own hands and puts a bullet to the brain. Abandonment , and rejection, no matter what the reasons, can lead one to severe depression, shame and guilt and if not treated, can kill a person, like a disease.  A disease like a leprosy, only instead of the flesh, this disease erodes the soul. Too many people find themselves with this leprosy of the soul and wonder is there any hope.  How about you? Have you ever experienced such emotional pain brought on by rejection because of how others mistreat you or judge you and do you doubt that God can ever restore you or your situation again? I got good news for you, our God is the God of the leper. Our God is the God of restoration. I love this passage in Matthew. Here we find Jesus is finished teaching on the mountain top. He descends the mountain with a huge crowd around Him and who does He perform His first miracle for? A man suffering with leprosy. Coincidence? No, there’s no coincidence with God. It’s amazing what Jesus did for this man. He didn’t just heal him from his leprosy, He gave him his life back. You see, this man was a leper and lepers were ostracized from society. Most lived outside of the town and were sequestered in caves living as social outcasts, never to be near others, always alone, abandoned. They were the social rejects because people back then associated this illness with sin and one who was a leper was considered unclean. So anyone coming in contact with them was not allowed to touch them for that would make them ceremonially unclean under the Jewish law. I can imagine the scene, Jesus comes down from the mountainside from giving one of His talks, and a huge crowd of people follow Jesus down. Here comes this leper and everyone who sees the man approaching clears out of the way, staying miles away of the sinner for fear of becoming unclean themselves. But Jesus doesn’t run from him. Jesus draws close to him. Jesus shows compassion. The crowds must have been in shock. Even the man who had faith in Jesus had some doubt for He asked if Jesus was willing. Even he wondered if Jesus would risk it all to be unclean himself by touching his diseased body. But that’s exactly what Jesus did. He reached his hand out in front of everyone there and touched the unclean person and made him well. Isn’t God good? This is so encouraging for me. You see, there have been times in my life where I have felt unworthy, abandoned, rejected, and there have been times I have felt extreme loneliness and despair as if all is hopeless. But Jesus descended from the mountain top of heaven and came down to me a sinner and He reached out His loving hand and expressed His love for me by becoming unclean for me. He took the risk and became sin for me and took my place on the cross. Through His touch I became whole again. Through His touch I became restored. And when others turned their backs on me, He continued to reach out His loving hand and restored me. Yes, me, a sinner who doesn’t deserve anything. There are things I have done that I am so ashamed of but Jesus still reaches out. He doesn’t see me as the world does or consider me differently but He restores my fallen condition and gives me a new body, a new heart, a new mind! He restores my broken relationships, He restores my confidence, He restores my name! He restores my faith in hope again! He takes what the world abandoned and left for dead and revives it once more. He the healer of this leper, praise Jesus! Thanks be to God! All because He died for me while I was still a sinner. That’s my God, and that same God is yours too. And everything He has done and did for me, He has done and will do for you too! Praise God, He is not a God who stays on the mountain top but comes down to meet us where we’re at. Praise God, He is in the business of restoration. What is it that needs restoring in your life? Like the leper, I encourage you to trust Him, bow the knee, and let Him touch you with His transforming power because He is so very willing. He loves you more than you’ll ever know. Feeling abandoned, alone, feeling unworthy? Look, to your Savior as He approaches, coming down from his mountaintop to meet with you. Praise Him! Your miracle is now, your restoration is here. No room for doubt, your Jesus, the God who touches lepers, is willing!

So do you like Romance movies? Have you ever seen a movie ending like this before?

It’s a busy airport day. Alex steals a Segway from a security agent who naps on the job. He weaves his way upstream through the sea of passengers scurrying the corridor walkway to get to their gates. Alex approaches the gate where Ginger, the love of his life, hands the ticket agent her one way ticket to Paris. She steps onto the jet bridge about to embark on her new adventure. Alex calls out to her, in one last cry of desperation before she leaves for good.

Alex: Ginger, marry me!

Ginger quickly turns around and sees Alex now off the Segway and down on one knee.

Ginger: It’s no good Alex, even if I did love you, I could never marry an alligator!

Alex: But Ginger, if it’s about my spiraling gambling debts, I promise I’ll pay back every penny. And those rumors about my father being a ruthless war profiteer and my mother an alcoholic taxi dancer are all lies, I tell you. Lies!!!

Ginger: But what about my muffins? You burnt my muffins. No man I ever loved has ever burnt my muffins.

Alex: I don’t give a hill of beans about your muffins! All I know is that I love you Ginger and this is our hill and these are our beans! What about all those special moments we shared? Like the time we wet our noses and stuck them in light sockets? Doesn’t it mean anything to you? And what about our song?

He starts to sing, “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” from the Wizard of Oz.

Ginger: Shut up! Shut up, you had me at beans! You had me at beans!

They thrust themselves into each other’s arms and kiss passionately.

-The End-

Okay, maybe you’ve never seen a movie with such Oscar Award winning dialogue as that but I’m sure we’ve all seen these romantic movies with the proverbial Hollywood ending. You know the proverbial Hollywood ending? The guy and girl break up and separate and then the guy has a change of heart and then chases after the girl on his white steed and crosses over the proverbial bridge to win over her heart. Whether we want to admit it, we all love the Romantic chase scenes. Why, because secretly isn’t that what we all want? We all want to be loved, sought after and pursued by someone who loves us and desires us. That’s why Hollywood makes these pictures. Did you know as believers we are being pursued everyday by our loving Father God? In Psalm 139, the Psalmist talks about not being able to escape God’s presence. He says,
“Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.” Here we see a picture of a man that wherever he goes, there is nowhere he can escape God. God is always present and wherever he goes, God ends up following Him there. We also see this in Psalm 23. Not only does our Great Shepherd lead us through the paths of life but it also says, “surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”. The Hebrew word for “follow” is “Radaph”. It means to continually chase, pursue, closely attend to. That’s our God for us, He is always pursuing us with the intention of capturing us with His love and everlasting kindness and continually attends to us all the days of our lives. Last I checked the Bible, all the days of our lives is not just on this earth but forever. He will never stop pursuing us with His love even in the next life to come. With our God, there is no proverbial Hollywood ending, just endless scenes of new beginnings, a happily ever after that lasts forever. Now that’s a Hollywood ending that not even Hollywood could ever come up with.

Psalm 23:6
“Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever.”

1 Corinthians 15:57

“Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Who doesn’t love opening up gifts? Whether it’s Christmas or your birthday, everyone loves getting something for free. I remember when as a kid I received a remote control car for Christmas. I loved that car it was the coolest thing to an eight year old boy, to remotely drive the car and crash it into my sister’s Barbie dolls. But what if for some strange reason, I ignored the sign on the box which says, “batteries included “ and took the car out and pushed the car around with my own hands to try and make it go?  And what if after doing that and getting frustrated, I asked my dad to help me? And what if He would tell me to use the remote control and that the batteries were included but what if I ignored his answer? Instead of turning the car on so the batteries could operate the car, what if I still insisted that my dad come along side me and literally help me to push the car with my hands instead? And what if he stopped answering me after awhile and I got fed up with my dad? What if I decided to throw the car away and run away from home, all because my dad didn’t care for me and gave me a toy that doesn’t work and doesn’t bother to even want to help me push it? Now I don’t know about you, but if I really did act this way, you would say I had some serious issues and probably needed to be put in a mental institution or become a guest on the Jerry Springer show. Seriously though as God’s children we kind of do the same thing. We have no problem receiving the gift of eternal life, salvation from hell by faith without works but when it comes to salvation over the power of sin, the sanctification process, we forget that that’s part of the gift too and that the batteries are included. We somehow think once we are saved from the penalty of sin, in order for us to be saved from the power of sins that control us everyday, we got to somehow paddle our own canoe. We got to push the car with our hands by reading our Bible more, praying more, going to church more and by God’s strength, He will come alongside us and push the car with us. But God doesn’t do this and we wonder where’s the victory, where’s God, doesn’t He care? And then some of us eventually just give up on our faith altogether. But my friends God does care, He’s always with us and the gift has always been there. We just have to open it by faith and receive it too. The scripture says, “thanks be to God, He GIVES us the victory “. Victory is given by God, it is a gift. Yes, we grow as Christians and no ones perfect and yes we should read our Bibles and pray and go to church but not to become victorious but to remind ourselves of the victory we already have. We are not growing towards becoming victorious, we grow from a place of victory. Whenever we have to work for our victory we step out of faith and fall back into trusting our works and no salvation comes from works. Have you accepted Christ as Savior yet still find it a struggle to push the car? Then stop pushing it with your hands and go get that remote control. It’s part of the present too and it’s waiting for you in the empty tomb, wrapped up in His power and all you have to do is open and receive it by faith. Remember the batteries are included in this gift, it runs on the power of the Holy Spirit and nothing, not even the Energizer Bunny can keep up, He keeps on going and going and going…..

Tis the season to be thankful! Here we go again, that special time of year when we’re supposed to be grateful for everything we have in our lives. This is when we gather with some of our friends and family members, we haven’t seen in years and probably will never see again.  This is the time we pretend to laugh at Uncle Ned’s corny jokes, endure Aunt Edna’s latest surgery story, yell at each other over who should be in the White House and deal with little screaming brats we call our nephews and nieces. Oh and this is the time when mom brings out the cheesy Christmas records sung by famous dead guys and we still haven’t even finished Thanksgiving yet. Does it sound like I’m bitter? Maybe just a little because if you’re anything like me, I have more in my life to complain about right now than I do about being thankful. I know, I know what the Bible says but sometimes I don’t feel like “rejoicing always”, or being “thankful continually” or singing corny worship songs about “counting my blessings and naming them one by one”. To be honest, life just flat out sucks right now. So why should I be thankful? Why should I be grateful? What’s the point? Do you ever get this way? Listen, we can pretend or we can be real. Have you ever felt this way? Are you going through hardships in your life that it’s just difficult right now to be grateful? Maybe it’s a death in the family, a broken relationship, financial struggles, and you’re just barely getting by. Let’s face it, life is not easy, yet we sing hymns in church like this one, “Everyday with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.” I’m sorry but that’s a bunch of crap. Everyday with Jesus is not always sweeter than the day before, in fact it’s hard and sometimes it’s painful and it hurts. So, what to do when you’re going through this holiday season faced with circumstances not worth being thankful for? The answer is simple. Be thankful that God doesn’t expect you to be thankful. But wait a minute, you might say doesn’t the Bible command us to be “thankful continually” and to “rejoice always”? Yes, it does. Well, then you might ask me what the darn hill are you smoking? But my answer is still the same. Be thankful that YOU don’t have to be thankful!!!! You see too many times we read the Bible and we see these commands and we think it’s for us to obey them. Actually, these commands are a reminder to us that we can’t obey them. In fact, it’s a reminder for us that we are a fallen people in dire need of a Savior. A Savior who can obey the commands, one who was without sin and one who can live inside us and empower us to live this life the way it was intended. Praise Jesus! That’s something to be thankful for. You see, the same passage about “rejoicing always” is found in Philippians. When Paul wrote it, he was in prison for not committing a crime but just sharing Jesus. He had every right to complain and be bitter but he had to learn contentment. It didn’t happen overnight and that’s good news for us who are still in the process of learning ourselves. Paul had to learn and what he learned was so valuable that he couldn’t keep it a secret. What is The secret? It’s not a book recommended by The Oprah Winfrey Book Club. No, thank God for that, this is so much better. “I can do all things through Jesus Christ who strengthens me!”. That’s it! Thanks be to God, that even though my circumstances are not worth thanking God for, I can thank Him that it’s not up to me to be thankful. I can thank Him that He will transform my bitter heart to a thankful one. I can thank Him that He will give me the strength to be content no matter what. Feeling low this holiday? That’s okay, just thank Him you don’t have to be thankful and give Him your heart. Watch the great surgeon replace your bitterness with a heart of joy. You won’t be disappointed. So when Uncle Ned starts showing you scars from his glory days, and your bratty niece loses your cell phone again, just smile and tell yourself, “thank you God, I don’t have to be thankful!”. And that my friends is definitely something to be thankful for. Oh by the way, Happy Thanksgiving! Gobble gobble!!!!

Philippians 4:4

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

Philippians 4:13

I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

Proverbs 12:15

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.

When I was 18 years old, just a young freshman in college, I will never forget what an eventful year it was for me. I learned a lot that year, college books were expensive, darks didn’t wash well with whites, Ramen noodles and Mountain Dew were a great combination for breakfast, college girls were way cuter than high school but still an enigma, Friday morning classes were meant to be avoided, and I learned how it felt to be a woman in child birth. You see, my first year of college found me sick in bed with the flu for days. I had this excruciating pain in my lower right side and it wouldn’t go away. Turned out my appendix had ruptured and I was rushed to the emergency room. I later was told by a female friend who had hers taken out, that the pain was similar to that of being in labor. It was a moment in my life I will never forget. I could’ve died that year had it not been for two wonderful girls in my dorm, my two angels, who periodically checked up on me, fed me soup, took my temperature and finally encouraged me and actually demanded me to go to the campus doctor. At first I didn’t want to see the doctor, I thought I’d be tough, man up and make it through but my friends knew better and with some tough love , told me what I didn’t want to hear but I realized they were right, something was definitely wrong and if I didn’t listen to them and go, it wasn’t going to end well. I learned a lot that year and it wasn’t just knowing what it feels like to birth a child. I learned that sometimes I don’t know it all and sometimes I’ve got to let go of my own foolishness and pride and instead of doing things my way, actually listen to wisdom when it calls out and learn to heed the warning signs. I wish I got that lesson right all the time but unfortunately I still don’t at times and I’ve had to suffer consequences because of it, especially when it comes to relationships. Why do I think I can do things on my own strength and fail to listen to the advice of others or God when all along I’m self sabotaging myself and hurting the ones I love? God help me, God help us all to learn to humble ourselves, trust you, and listen to Godly advice before it’s too late. Help us to heed the warning signs before the poison seeps too deep we find ourselves once again on the operating table of life, when all along it was never supposed to be that way.

Old photographs, I love looking at them. They have a story to tell. I could stare at them all day and not get bored. I love looking at family albums too. My mom has stacks of photo albums in storage somewhere in her closet. Every once and awhile I like to get those out and I reminisce. It makes me laugh when I see the outfits my family and I used to wear, the hair do’s, the silly moments, how ridiculous I looked in my clothes that I thought were so cool. I was so awkward looking, I think they did a television show based on my life called “Freaks and Geeks” cause that’s what I was. My ears stuck out like t.v. antennas, my feet and hands were so big they outgrew the rest of my scrawny body.  I had pimples all over my face, I was so quirky that I looked like a circus clown and the only thing I was missing was the red bow tie. But sometimes I like to go through a very special photo album. This one I store in the closet of my memory. It has all the photographs of my life, from when I was born till now. I’m flipping through the pages as I speak. You know what I noticed? God likes to photobomb my pictures. Not familiar with that term? Photobomb is when you are posing for a picture and someone unexpectedly gets behind you and gives you bunny ears. Yup, that’s my God. He’s literally in all my photos. Let me show you what I mean. Here’s a photo of me when I was eight years old. There we are eating ice cream together, celebrating me being born again. I think we were eating Heavenly Hash ice cream that day and there He is, giving me bunny ears. I’ve got such a big smile on my face, I didn’t even notice. I was so happy knowing I was going to be safe with Him forever. Oh look here, I love this photo too. This one is me at twelve years old now. I got a pair shorts in my hand, on my way to face my intimidating Coach Largent to tell him my gym shorts are too big. I was so afraid to face that man about my situation but wait a second, there’s God, holding my hand and walking me to school. He was there for me that day and taught me that I didn’t have to be afraid but I could trust Him. Look, He’s wearing gym shorts too. Oh, and here is me getting teased at school for my big ears. Do you see Him? There He is, standing in between the bullies and myself. He protected me that day from getting beat up, my great defender. There’s me on stage, acting in my first role in a high school musical. You got to look closely though for God, cause He’s standing backstage, giving me the spotlight. He always did that and I never deserved it. Here’s another one of me at 17 years of age. I was sitting on the front porch of my house in Alabama, calling a college administrator. I was interested in attending the school but the lady on the other end of the phone ridiculed me for not knowing my social security number by heart. That’s the photo of me just getting off the phone, tears coming down, feeling like a stupid, hopeless idiot. But there He is, my God, my Daddy, putting His hand on my shoulder and whispering in my ear, “I love you son, you’re more than just a number to me”.  I love this one, me and God, lying on the golf course late at night, looking at the stars, talking about girls, making plans about the future. Just talking about myself mostly but there He is, never bored, listening intently, beaming from ear to ear. This is the mountain I climbed, there we are enjoying the view, that there is the valley where I fell and that’s Him picking me up again, always by my side. Here’s my wedding day, He’s doing the “Funky Chicken”. He’s quite a dancer. This one’s the birth of my kids, He’s the one guiding the doctor’s hands oh so lovingly. Here’s another one. This was a hard day for me. I’m in the mediation room waiting for my lawyer to finalize the marriage. You see me? I’m the guy wearing the scarlet letter “D” on my chest, but you can’t see it, because He’s covering it with His nailed scarred hands as he holds me in His loving arms. Wow, look at all these old photographs, there’s so much more I could share. He’s been with me in every single one. They say a picture speaks a thousand words and that is so true, my photo album is a novel. It speaks volumes of His faithfulness, His unconditional love and His plans to bless me.  And I still don’t know what I’ve done to deserve all that? How about yourself? Have you gotten a chance to flip through your photo album lately? Are you feeling heart broken, need a break from your pain? Feeling hopeless? Why not go into your memory closet and just go through some old photographs. I guarantee it, you’ll notice He was always there, giving you bunny ears and blowing you kisses. As for me, my story is unfinished.  I still have more room in my photo album, more relationships to develop, new experiences to share, new adventures to post. Who knows what will unfold for me but I know one thing for sure, my Daddy will continue to carry me on top of His shoulders like He always has. All that He has done for me, His faithfulness and love, I can’t hold it in. It is well with my soul, it is well, it is well and that’s the story I will always tell.

Deuteronomy 7:9

Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,

Timothy 2:13

If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

Psalm 24
Of David. A psalm.
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”

I began reading this Psalm and stopped after the first sentence of the first verse. I didn’t even finish the rest of it. I just marveled at how profound that statement is. “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it”.  I asked myself is it true that “the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it”?  Of course it is. That is truth. But then I asked myself do I really believe it? Do I really live like “the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it”?  It seems I live my life more in forgetfulness of that truth. I live more in worry and let fear dominate my life, that I limit the God given potential that I have. If “the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it”, then why do I let the slightest problem that comes across my path impact my joy? If Bill Gates was my dad I don’t think I would have to ever worry about money again.  Think about it, Almighty God is our daddy and He owns the world. But why do we so easily forget? If you’re like me and you feel that your life doesn’t reflect the power of this truth, then perhaps we should renew our minds.  How about when faced with difficulties we should make this statement our war cry? We should confess out loud to our circumstances, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”.  When we find our hearts are crushed and broken to pieces by the betrayal of someone we truly love,  “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When we look at our checking account and see our finances dwindling and we don’t know how we’re going to make it to survive, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When our closest friends turn their backs on us when we really need them the most, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When we see our country falling apart and our political party did not win enough of the votes, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When others spread lies about us and falsely accuse us of wrongs we have never committed, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”.  When the cancer comes back and rears it’s ugly head and the doctors have no answers, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When you’ve prayed a thousand times for God to remove the “thorn in the flesh” that’s been plaguing you for years but it still won’t go away, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. When you watch your dreams and everything you’ve worked hard for get dashed upon the rocks, when your job is suddenly taken away and life gets flipped upside down, when you lose the life of your only child, when darkness surrounds you and light is a distant friend, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT!”. And when Satan attacks you and reminds you of your past, just quickly remind him of his future. Pick up your sling and grab your stone oh mighty warrior of Christ, for you are not alone. He that is in you is greater than He that is of this world. No matter what may come against us, let’s face those giants and  declare with a bold and triumphant shout, “THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND EVERYTHING IN IT”!!!