Category Archives: Hope

Do It!

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You may say in your heart, “I’m ready to start talking about Jesus every opportunity I get”.  But if you haven’t been doing it, you and I both know the reason.  You’re afraid of what people will say about you.  You’re afraid you’ll lose your job.  You’re afraid you’ll lose your friends and your social position.  You’re afraid your family will suffer. 

Now, for the sake of argument, let’s just say you and I sat down together to discuss this.  In the course of conversation, you made it clear that you think you’re ready.  You’d have to excuse me for not getting all excited.  If you were ready you’d already be doing it.

Count the cost.  Once you begin there’s no turning back.  And I know you’re aware of that.

Count the rewards.  Once you begin,  God will bless you in his work.  He will give you things to say.  He will give you specific things to do.  He will fill your heart with wondrous things, and his blessings will be a natural overflow that you won’t be able to stop.

Let’s say you lose your friends.  If they don’t love God, weren’t they lost already?

Let’s say you lose your job.  Do you really think God can’t provide what you need?  Isn’t that the very reason you say you’re a Christian in the first place?

And you see how my excitement dwindles quickly.  You know, the problem is not that people are afraid.  The problem is who and what they love the most.

Snooze Equals Lose

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Think Eternity:

War is nothing more than legalized murder.  That is irrefutable.  But define murder.

Murder by starvation takes a long time.  But with the intent to see it through, it is murder from the beginning.  In its essence, murder is the removal of true freedom.  And isn’t that the nature of this entire world?

This may seem a little bit of a leap in linear thought, but the withholding of the Gospel from those who desperately need it; isn’t that murder on a degree unprecedented?  The Gospel offers eternal life and true freedom.  Again, define murder.

Perhaps that’s a little harsh.  Kind of like the rude alarm clock on Monday morning.  Get in the habit of hitting snooze and you may well lose your job.

Forced to Speak!

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The compulsion to share the Gospel of Christ everywhere, is not a sign of a righteous man.  It is the sign of a man who has been forgiven a vast multitude of sins.

It is the sign of a man who knows what the end of his life would have been without Jesus the Christ of God.  And such a man knows that this potential loss belongs to everyone! 

The more vividly we see the end result of sinful lives, the less likely that fear will silence His Holy words.

Loss is a perception based on a foundation of potential gain.  (Think that one through)

“Christ has saved me from Eternal and sure destruction.  What consequence is it to me if Man despises the words of praise I have for Him?  And what strength belongs to any of their threats?”

People speak about what they adore.  People readily warn about the greatest of dangers.  Where your treasure is there your heart will be also.

Love Everybody

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How many times I’ve heard it and knew there was something wrong.  “Love everybody no matter what they’re doing.”

According to sentimental value I would rate that about a 10.  But as far as truth goes I rate that below zero.

Love does not let you stand at the edge of a cliff and smile while you jump to your death.

Love does not ignore the truth of the Living God for the sake of your injured pride.

Love will gladly take your ridicule and hatred, for don’t you already hate the one who sent us.

Love is for life, eternal life.  Love does not cater to the pleasures of sin.

See the bee sitting on my jugular vein.  Wouldn’t the one who loves me brush it off quickly.  Should I despise him because his slap hurt?

God challenges us to love the sinner enough to sacrifice ourselves so that we may wake them up!  No, we can’t all just get along!

Conquer TIME

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People like short and poignant observations.  They make it easy for us to agree and just move on.  They are like delicate carvings on the lid of a golden box.  Ya gotta open it up to see what’s inside.  Don’t be afraid of many words.  Isn’t that what’s in the box?

Reach forward.  Open this box.

   ——————————–
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The dashes represent our linear thoughts.  The solid line represents the unforgiving nature of time.

We are pathetic creatures who must reach, every moment, to our memory to add the next thought.  There is no such thing as multitasking.  We are only adding our thoughts together quicker.  Our ability to think more than one thought at a time is nothing more than an illusion.

And we are all aware that time never stops to wait for us.

If you make a mistake, time does not stop and wait for you to catch up.  If you try to think ahead, preparing an ease for your burden, time doesn’t nod with appreciation.  To us, time is a Relentless Beast.

To add to our trouble, our frantic “work” will run out.   All the while time itself will move on.  Struggling from birth to death, our lives end up a useless carcass.  Isn’t this the plight of life in this place?

Isn’t this the reason for Man’s expectations?  Isn’t this the reason for his frustration?  Isn’t this the reason for every act of violence, whether great or small?  In our frustration we lash out with whatever tools are at our disposal.   But time doesn’t even notice.

In all this however, time is not the enemy.  It is only the physical standard by which we measure our weakness.  It is only the physical standard by which we capture some perception of strength.  We are the ones who are weak, my friends.  Time is endlessly and ceaselessly strong.

You need help from beyond the boundaries of time.  You need help from the One who made time.  When do you need His help? 

All the time!

When should you call out to Him? 

All the time!

The Glorious One’s name is Jesus.  Of all the things we study, how important then does the study of God’s Holy Son become to us? 

It is inevitable that we will waste time.  But the measure of that waste belongs to us.  The Bible waits to be read.  God is patiently waiting for your prayers.  His generosity is waiting to gift you with immeasurably great things. 

Stand still.  Let time tick away.  Seek His face with great diligence.  Conquer time.

A Favor to Yourself

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The face of your existence will change, as it does with every human that has ever been born.  You will walk through the door of death and enter into a place that has always been.  That’s an absolute guarantee.

It doesn’t matter what you gain here.  You will still encounter THE radical change.

If you were to be given 300 million dollars, you could spend the rest of this life doing what you please.  But take a good look at what you please to do.  Does your pleasure involve the things of the place that has forever been?  According to the Lord’s own words, that’s very unlikely.

Perhaps a hundred years.  That’s all we have.  Then, beyond our volition, we are ushered into the place of Eternity.  Whose pleasure we have desired will determine our riches forever.  Or our extreme poverty.

I’m not talking about religion here.  I’m talking about our own will to do God’s desire.

Kelly Willard was right when she said, “If you don’t have a willing heart ask Him to give you one”. 

Count as best you can (the clock is running down), how much time are you sure you have left?  How much of you does Jesus deserve to own?  Your estimation determines God’s bounty.

Now do yourself a favor.  Act on what you know.