Built Upon

There aren't times in your life when you're just waiting; you're always on mission.  God is our one true comfort in any situation.  It's worth it to press pass resistance.  You say you have nothing in common with them, but they're heading towards hell just as fast as you were.  Everything you do for Christ will last forever. God isn't a tangible presence, but an all-encompassing presence.  The only way to be filled with the spirit is to empty myself of me.  sometimes we know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.  See the one and do something about it, instead of seeing the all and doing nothing.  "A belief, no matter how sincere, if not reflected, isn't a belief. It's a delusion." ~Kyle Idleman It's crucial to have hope and power beyond ourselves.  Don't focus on trying to change yourself, focus on God.  "True humility isn't thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less." ~C.S. Lew...

For he grew up before him like a young plant,      and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,      and no beauty that we should desire him. 3   He was despised and rejected by men;      a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces      he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4   Surely he has borne our griefs      and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken,      smitten by God, and afflicted. 5  But he was pierced for our transgressions;      he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,      and with his wounds we are healed. 6   All we like sheep have gone astray;      we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord ...

              What is prayer? Prayer isn't about us and what we get out of it or even about helping others. I've heard many times from people that you should try to pray less for yourself and more for others. So is that what prayer is about?          Let's pretend that you're a man named Billy and you live in a kingdom with a king who is willing to meet with you at any time. You go see him maybe once or twice a day. When you go, you say "Hey, how's it going?" no pause "So I have some issues, my wife's sick, one of my cows are lost, and my kids won't behave. Also my friend Joe has some financial troubles. So if you would help us out, that would be awesome. So thanks, bye, see you later, and you're pretty cool I guess."         Let's be honest. In this scenario, when you're in and out in less than three minutes, you don't really care about the king at all. It's all ...

        Sovereign is defined as "Being above all others in character, importance, excellence, etc." and "A person who has supreme power and authority." As we can see from the bible, God is sovereign in both of these aspects. Isaiah says in Isaiah 14:27 "For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?" In Proverbs 16:9, Solomon says "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." The fact that God is sovereign means He has supreme authority over everything; not in the same way as a king or queen of earth but as the supreme Lord of all creation, with control of everything. The fact that He is sovereign also means his character is impeccable, unlike all of humanity.  "For my thoughts are not your thoughts,  neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth,  so are my ways higher than your wa...

        Today I'm going to talk about something that took me a long time to realize. For the longest time, I thought that as a Christian, what you are supposed to do is live a good life (better than non-Christians) by the statutes in the bible. I thought you did this because Jesus died for  you, so you should at least TRY to be good in return.         What I've come to realize is, that in actuality, Christians aren't supposed to try as hard as possible to live by the rules in order to be a decent person. By no means! Truthfully, we aren't even really capable to change ourselves. The reality is that Christ died for us, allowed us a personal relationship with Him, and through that HE changes us. Our focus should be on our relationship with Him and growing there instead of attempting to better ourselves on our own.         I used to not understand what people meant when they spok...

        "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that you may have life and life to the full." ~John 10:10         What is Jesus promising us? Money? A good job? A family? Popularity? Success? What exactly is a life to the full?         Jesus isn't promising us any material blessings. Even though by His grace He does bless us with material things, what He is promising here is a life with Him. A life with Him means a life to the full. It also means that as you get to know Him more, He changes you to be more like Him. While this doesn't mean we won't have hard times in our life (Jesus did!) it does mean that in every circumstance we have the option of joy in Him.         Jesus gives joy. What is joy? Joy is different than happiness. Happiness is fleeting, and is experienced through transient things such as pizza, new clothes, a f...

        John 10:11- "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." Jesus shows Himself metaphorically as a shepherd and us, His people, as His sheep.          Compared to the intelligence of the shepherd, sheep are not intelligent. They can't survive for long wandering on their own. It's upon the protection of their shepherd that they must rely. Indisputably, sheep are entirely undeserving of their shepherd's protection. However, a shepherd protects and fights for his sheep even to the point of death.         In Jesus' case, He fought for us and protected us by His death on a cross. As a sheep's understanding is minuscule compared to the vast perspicacity and intellect of his shepherd, so is Jesus' understanding of this world and life infinite beyond our imaginations. Without Christ, we can't survive for long. We're headed for death. Yet with Him, we can have protection and eter...

        What is grace? If you're a Christian, no doubt you've heard this word tossed about plenty of times. "It's all by the grace of God." "Just respond to His grace." Wait, what? By definition, grace is "The free and unmerited favour of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings." To put it succinctly, everything good in your life is by the grace of God. As humans, we don't truly deserve anything from an almighty, all-powerful God of the universe. It is through His grace that He sent His son to die for our sins and make us new. Jesus is grace manifested.         In Jesus' sermon on the mount in Matthew chapter 5, He mentions that "Not an iota, not a dot has passed away" from the law. When I used to read this, I would become confused; thinking "Wait, what Jesus? I thought life wasn't just about upholding the law anymore because you died for us... right?" But now I realize...