The “Foolishness” of God


The power of salvation is not found in man’s explanations about heaven and eternity.  You will come and question me in regard to my testimony about Christ.  In me you will find fault, but in the message of the cross you will find no fault.

You will look at my life and see some form of chaos, for I am but a man.  But in the salvation of God you will not find chaos.  For God’s promise is true.  God’s Holy Son has been sent into the world, that he may become the salvation of all who put their faith in him.

There is no grafication of man before the Holy Father.  There is only glorification of Christ Jesus.  What a horrible offense this is the pride of man. 

18 “For the message about the cross is nonsense to those who are being destroyed, but it is God’s power to us who are being saved. 19 For it is written,

‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the intelligence of the intelligent I will reject.'”  (1 Corinthians 1)

By His Grace

Crushing Fear


Can one man make a difference for Christ?  Do worms eat dirt?

Through the actions of one man, Adam, all humanity was condemned to die.

Through the actions of one man, Christ, all humanity is offered eternal life.

I started to write this and remembered all the leaders God has raised up.  But the intended audience for this post is not in such a position as they.  And the provocation for this post was a tiny man in a tiny place.

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I sat in the driver seat of my truck facing the sunrise,

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The pathetic body

as almost 200 people passed by the front of my truck to go to work, I kept myself busy with reading.

Did anyone notice?  That’s not my call to make.  I offered the opportunity of “Sonrise” to everyone who passed.

One slice of time in one day.  And everywhere I go, the message is brought.   

Underneath the hat, lay a Christian spy.  Everywhere he goes, he searches for weakness in the enemy camp.   Can something be done?  Can something be said?  What can I do to allow the Gospel to infiltrate the domain of wickedness?

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The parking lot

It is not reasonable to assume that everyone who dismounted from those cars is strong in Christ.  There are about 150 cars there.  Statistically speaking, 1% of those who passed by might have understood the visible message.  (I’ll round it off.  I don’t think there was a “half” person who pass by my truck).  Two people might have been influenced by the display.

I’m making a fool of myself by showing how I strive to serve the Gospel.  But I’m trying to make a difference here.  I’m trying to inspire others to do similar things.

I have found that most Christians are terrified to testify for Christ verbally.  The human body is not just a set of lips.  And the ingenuity of man is proven.  If a Christian wants to testify, he can find a way.

I will end this post with a rather sobering thought.

Try to envision your appearance before the Holy One.  What will be said of you if you died today?  Are you striving to further the cause of Christ, regardless how great or small the effort?  Or are you letting fear shove you into a dark corner?

We will all stand shoulder to shoulder with those who were beheaded for Christ.  Those who were torn apart by the rack will be there too.  Those whose bodies were ripped apart by lions will stand there with us.  Many had been imprisoned for years, for the very name of the Lord Jesus.  Perfected souls of mutilated bodies for the sake of their love to Christ.  And shall we appear empty handed?  Can you possibly imagine the shame of having hid the beautiful message of salvation because of fear?

Let us go and die with him!  For if we die with him, He has promised we shall surely live with him. 

And if by chance, you need further inspiration , read what is said in Revelation 21: 

“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars–they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

I have no strength to inspire you more powerfully.

By His Grace

Grace Displayed


What is the grace of God?

It is his faithful promise.

For even while the wicked rose from the unholy beds, God has done this as a token of his love.

Yet, with their minds full of gain, who has truly seen?

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By His Grace

The Enduring Promise


Many times death comes unannounced.  People fall in their tracks, as they work out the things of the day.  Sometimes death comes in a protracted celebration.  Some people suffer on their bed for moments, while others suffer on their bed for years.

If I am blessed to spend my celebration on a deathbed, there will be joy in me.  Though my face be racked with pain.  Though my body convulse in agony.  There will be that unspeakable joy of his promise.

How is it possible for any Christian to have a differing view of these things?  As we believe, so is his promise extended.  As we believe, so the Christian receives.

By His Grace

By His Grace


What is the heat of summer to me?

The cold of winter cannot freeze.

Winds will blow and threaten me.

Calm presides my royalty.

What sounds I’ve heard.

Nests of little birds.

Moss and bugs to me absurd.

I stand my ground unnerved.

At dawn I wave to light yet born.

Come color me, Eternal morn.

Wake with me, sleep to scorn.

And stand your ground with darkness torn!

By His Grace

Growth in Christ (recovery from chaos)


No one sins all the time.  That’s just not physically possible.  Every man has a lucid moment from time to time, at least.  And because of the weakness of the body, sleep must come.

When you have those lucid moments, make the best of it.  Search out the message of the Gospel, and do it quickly.  Just as the chaos of sin cannot last forever, our lucid moments pass even quicker. 

Just as a man who wakes after a night of heavy drinking finds himself pondering what happened and why, such thoughts are signs of a lucid moment.  Treat them as a welcome friend.

Raise whatever faith you have to the surface of your conscience, and believe.  You may not have the answers.  But then is the time to approach the One who does.  And if growth is to become a part of our experience, the answer must be found in the Christ of the Living God, Jesus.

Every man is like a disturbance at the bottom of the sea.  At birth the seafloor rises in a certain place.  Then as the man grows and does the good things of God, his disturbance becomes a mound.

If the man will train his soul to listen to the words of God, eventually the nature of what he, is breaks the surface of the waters.  This “breaking forth”, lends itself to all manner of Life.

Dust in the air settles between the cracks of rock.  Storms whittle down the sharp edges, causing the filings to fill in the gaps.  The birds of the air come and deposit a few seeds.  In time, the man becomes more then a disturbance in the sea; by his nature he lends himself to the utility of the heavens.

The growth at the bottom begins when the lucid moments of a man are captured for “Good” intent.  I will admit that there are far more mounds that never break the surface of the sea, than are those who become useful to God.

And don’t we see this played out in creation, in the fact that there is more space of water on the earth than land exposed to the air.  More places for slime and few places of dazzling beauty.

But now in the emergence of the man above the surface of the waters, there comes many a travail.  Parts of the exposed land occasionally break off and fall back into the sea.  Part of the work is wasted.  But that should not stop the land from taking its rightful place.  And what broke off was not firmly committed to what must become.  Good riddance, c’est la vie.

If the use of your lucid moments has allowed you to rise above the nature of man, use them all the more as you aspire to become a place of Life.  Why remain a desolate island?

Do not let your failings cause you to plummet down under the waves.  The target here is to work diligently to produce more lucid moments than moments of chaos and decay.

If you will apply the forgiveness of Christ, as it is found in the Bible, you will find your self overcoming guilt, and far more quickly.  This does not erase what was lost.  But certainly provides more vertical growth.  And every square inch of attainment offers more potential for Life.

If you believed at the outset, if that belief has caused you to break into the air, why can’t that belief cause you to reach for the heavens?

Those who shrink back because of the storms of life, will not find themselves pleasing the soul of Jesus.  But those who believe that he cannot lie, will prosper according to the wisdom of God.  Lucid moments of righteousness will begin to grow in the place where before was nothing but chaos.

Think diligently on these things.  Apply this with diligence.  And you will find yourself growing in Christ exponentially.

When you find yourself having sinned before the Lord, in the ways you had learned and the habits you had developed, grab a hold of your belief which you had at first.  And do not delay!  When the next lucid moment comes to your mind and heart take hold and grow!

I could have held the following for another post.  But it fits so seamlessly here.

Many think that they should punish themselves after a moment of insane chaos, called sin.  Such self abuse may or may not be useful.  And I have come to understand that sometimes self abuse is only a continuance of the sin we have just committed.

It is necessary to let Jesus be God.  Who could possibly know better what is necessary and useful after restoration of lucid thought?  Should it be the one who is prone to moments of insanity, or the One who knows the very elements of righteous eternity?

I cannot speak about this to those who have not developed a relationship of communication with the Holy Lord.  A man cannot rely on his own heart to determine what should be done next.   It was, after all, your wicked heart that caused the sin and decay to abound.  Is it reasonable to trust your judgement now?

And what has been the outcome for others may not apply to you.  Prayer is necessary.  With a calm heart full of belief, wait and listen.  In reverant prayer, confess your situation to God.  Ask Him to show you what you must now do.  He will certainly respond.

Be careful not to let anxiety overwhelm you.  Anxiety is a form of self abuse.  And the best of lucid moments teach us to be at peace and trust the Living God in Christ.

If you want biblical proof of these things.  Read the story again of what David did following his sin with Bathsheba.  Take special note of how he received the judgment of God against him for his child of sin.  How is it possible that we should be any different?

By His Grace