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A Mirage of Grace.

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​ A Mirage of Grace. For many years, I struggled with what the apostle Paul describes as a spiritual war in the human mind. Here is a powerful excerpt from Romans 7:21-25 that reveals our human nature: “So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being, I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Romans 7 Paul never claimed this war would end during our earthly life; he always pointed us to Jesus in the now not the later. Grace is God’s greatest weapon against our human flesh. There was a time when I questioned grace and how I applied it. I realized that, at times, I would premeditate sinful choices, and do them, knowing God's grace would cover me, which didn’t sit rig...
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Time will take Time

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TIME will take TIME Most of our decisions in life are based off of how we perceive time, believing we have control over it. In reality, time is nothing more than our mind's way of manipulating us, pressuring us to choose what we want now rather than what’s truly important. Time itself isn’t biased, nor does it have feelings or emotions; it doesn’t give more or less, it simply keeps ticking and moving forward. The real question is: what do you do with the time you’ve got? That largely depends on how you view your time. To use it wisely, we first need to view time unselfishly. Everyone is affected by it—your time, my time, and others’—and collectively, our actions influence the course of time we all share. If we’re not mindful, we might leave regrets about how we spent our LIVES—not just for ourselves, but for the next generation as well. These regrets can carry over, causing future generations to spend more time dealing with the consequences of our choices instead of focusing on bui...
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The Song

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The Song Nothing can move us more than a song. Even the most callus person can break down from just a simple word or phrase in a song. Throughout history, songs  have started movements, encouraged the desperate, and brought joy to a fainting heart. There are times when we'll hear a tune and it brings back memories from long ago. Some are sad, some joyful, some bring a calm peace. There are times that I'll hear a song and I can almost remember the smell in the air during the time of that particular memory that the song brings with it. But songs never remain solely in the past; new songs have a way of introducing themselves into our lives and again become a memory, adding to our cumulative collection of moments in our lives. For me, I'm not gifted in the talent of creating music, but I love songs for this reason: they unlock something  deep within me. what is unlocked and released is unexplainable; my eyes start to water and I feel exposed and vulnerable, but from sadness or ...
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Thoughts from the Journey: THE PLAYGROUND

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Thoughts from the Journey The Playground Have you ever had the chance to sit and listen to kids playing at a playground? I live near an elementary school, so I hear it every morning. Amid the chaos and loud volume of kids screaming, laughing, and playing, there’s a sense of order and joy coming from that playground. It’s not just an environment but a kind of microculture, shaped by age, ethnicity, gender, and family background. Yet, among these differences, one sound stands out: the sound of euphoric energy and joy. Last Sunday, I had the opportunity to hear testimonies from a few students who had recently been on a mission trip. Two of them shared things that made me think more deeply about their experiences during service. The first student said that as followers of Christ, we need to “love loudly,” emphasizing that Christ's love should not be controlled or sparingly given, but shared generously and without holding back. I liked those two words—“love loudly”—and then, the second ...
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i:60 Self Examination

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i:60 SELF EXAMINATION Today, a thought came to me: how do we know if we have become prideful? It sounds a little obvious - pride is pride, right? But if you say you're not being prideful, it's almost like you are being prideful. It's like saying, 'I think I'm a pretty humble individual.' Nothing is more annoying than being around a person who likes to brag or thinks they know everything. I've been around many people in my life and have found pride to be disguised in many different ways, but the worst one I've found, in my opinion, is the pride of oneself, like myself, in not assuming I am being prideful. I hate this type of pride, and when I say I hate it, I mean I hate it in myself more than I hate it in others.. Specifically, when it evolves into something unrecognizable in my life but very recognizable among others. A follower of Christ is most ineffective in sharing the love for Christ when he or she becomes intolerable to be around, or worse, people...
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I:60 Wall Licker

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A Wall Licker for Jesus. The more I give up, the more He fills up. Over the past three years, God has worked overtime in my life. What I've found is that all the things I held so strongly, God has shown me how wrong I was. In discovering this, I can't help but think of a man named Saul. For those who are not familiar with Saul, he was a strong and well-equipped Jewish leader, a rising star. He was so zealous for God that he almost missed the point of all that God was showing him. Saul loved God and did all he could to be God's enforcer in his own right regarding the Jewish religion. But God loved Saul. He loved Saul enough to break Saul and sort of give Saul a long “time out”. God's Son, Jesus, met Saul on the road to Damascus, where Paul was on his way to persecute more Christians. But Jesus overwhelmed Paul on his journey and said these words to Saul, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” The last part of what Jesus sa...
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i:60 We Are Not a Church But We Are a Church.

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We Are Not a Church But We Are a Church. Does not make much sense. But on the contrary, it does. As a follower of Christ my entire life I have been part of the American church. So I am fluent in Christianese. I know all the types of theology. I know church etiquette, the debate about worship, and the debate about free will. When it comes to men’s groups I've been around the block a few times. Most of my life I couldn't stand men's groups and when I had to attend one I would find a place to hide and have a dip of Skoal and sip on an energy drink. For those who know me would say I'm an extrovert always around people but the real me really wanted to be an introvert and when it came to men’s groups I'd easily become one and take off somewhere to be alone with God in my own way. Then something changed about 2 ½ years ago and I won't go into the details because it is hard enough to get a man to read a paragraph let alone 2 or 3 pages. I was invited to attend an event...
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