MIND OF TRUTH

I can't believe I missed a few days of posting. I was asked to speak at a Life Group seminar Saturday and that took up a lot of my mental space. No worries, I'll get caught up today. I'm slowly learning how to better process tasks or events in life that push me past my normal stress levels. It's hard sometimes not to go into survival mode where all your time and effort is being dedicated to one thing. Unless it really is a survival situation, this response is usually an overreaction based on anxiety. Being aware this is happening is the first step to improving. The second step is to keep reminding yourself that you can increase your efforts in one area without totally ignoring other areas. It's really more of a flow from one thing to the next, increasing in some areas and decreasing as needed in others. It's not moving from one over reaction to another over-correction and back and forth. The third step is to be more intentional about your schedule and each of yo

In his book, Life Worth Living , theologian Miroslav Volf says “Most of the time, (life) is a series of small, seemingly insignificant decisions and nondecisions. It’s made up of habits and assumptions and incremental changes.”  We grow spiritually through the application of truth. Life is not always big leaps of faith. As we say yes to take the small seemingly insignificant steps, we are moving closer to God. We grow as we take the spiritual journey before us. A nondecision is significant as well. When we say no to God or put off the decision, we are making a decision for self. That nondecision can hinder our relationship with the Lord. Don't miss all that God has in store for you. Just keep taking one step after the next.

Three years ago today my father-in-law Charlie Mongan passed away. I still miss him. They lived in Salisbury, Md for several years and would stay with us when they came for a visit. The highlight of the weekend was always getting pizza and watching the Caps games together. Saturday mornings we would do a guy's breakfast and go for a short hike somewhere. He loved being useful and helping with projects. I would always save a project I needed to work on until he was in town. I think he sometimes felt I didn't always need his help, but it was nice to work together on something. He had his moments, but I always respected him. He was kind in his own way and always generous. I know he loved us all a great deal and we loved him. I can't wait to see him again someday!

 A decision to not apply truth which you have received is not a static decision. Your relationship with God is not on hold until a move convenient time presents itself for you to obey. A no decision is like not paddling your canoe up stream. In Heb. 5 11-13, the writer of Hebrews tells those believers that they have become dull of hearing and need to have the elementary things of God taught to them all over again. This is because they have not put those things into practice. A yes decision on the other hand, moves us closer to God even before we have fully applied the truth to our life. A decision to obey starts us on a process that takes us ever closer to the Lord. In Ps. 51:10-12, David prayed, "Create in me a clean heart oh God and renew a right spirit within me." That did not happen overnight I'm sure, but every prayer drew him closer to the goal. Don't hesitate to respond to God. Even if it means acknowledging the truth and telling him you want to obey, but you&#

Seeing God move in your life always requires your participation. We are part of the process. God designed it that way because he wants to have relationship with us.  Maybe there are things in your life hindering your sensitivity to God. Maybe you need to plan some quiet meditative time. Maybe there are things you need to confess and make right with the Lord or with others. The Bible is clear that we need to love as we are loved and forgive as we have been forgiven. Maybe that is blocking your way. Too often I have other things taking God's place in my mind. Things like anxiety, fear, worry, my own sense of inadequacy, my own doubts, my comfort zones, my lack of trust, and on and on. Sometimes we need to address idols in our life that have taken God's place. We need to confess those things to the Lord and allow him to restore us.  Whatever it is, make the time to let the Holy Spirit bring you through that separation. Get back to a place where you can participate with God to see

In 2 kings 4:8-17 there is a story of a wealthy Shunammite woman who receives a blessing from Elisha. He prays that she will have a son and she does and when that son dies, Elisha prays again, and God brings the son back to life.  How do these blessings come about? It's because this woman positions herself to receive from the prophet. Rather than going about her business while the prophet passes by, she takes the time to offer him a meal. Sometimes positioning ourselves to receive from the Lord can be that simple. Then the prophet stops in for a meal whenever he passes by. Then this woman decides to build a room for Elisha. Notice how the opportunity to spend more time with the prophet come because of the initial act of positioning herself to receive. Because of her kindness, Elisha prays for her to have a son. We don't have to know all that God is doing or wants to do in our life. We just take the next step of obedience and be open to receive. Then take the next step and the n

Jesus' sermon on the mount is recorded for us in Matthew 5-7. I've read Mat. 7:24-27 a thousand times and even acted it out with that children's song we would sing in Sunday school. Jesus said, "Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock." Right there it is in plain sight - learning and living. The man who does not live out the words of Jesus is the foolish man who builds his life on the sand. Receiving truth and doing truth leads to spiritual growth, which is why we are then able to withstand the storms in this life that come against us. The wise person will spend their life living what Jesus taught us.

Matthew 18:1-4 (ESV) At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them  and said,  “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.   Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus disciples must have been feeling pretty good about themselves to ask Jesus who was the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. I can't imagine what kind of an answer they were expecting. Rather than feed their ego, Jesus gives them a dose of reality. Jesus calls a child over to answer their question. He does not say that child is the greatest or that being like the child makes you the greatest in the kingdom. He says that unless you become like a child, you will never even get into the kingdom of God. Thats crazy to think about this being said to his closest disciples who had already given up everything

In Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus shares a parable about a man who is called before a king to pay his debts. Think like $10M in debt. The number doesn't matter except to make the point that this man could not repay his debt in a thousand lifetimes. The king shows mercy and forgives the man his debt. The servant then goes out and find a man who owes him maybe $10. He beats the man and has him thrown into jail since he was not able to pay the debt. The text rightly refers to this guy as the "Wicked servant." The story continues and the king finds out about the actions of the wicked servant. So, the king withdraws his mercy and throws the man into prison. Jesus ends the story with a warning saying, "So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from the heart." Is this what the kingdom of God is like? Is this a vengeful God looking for those who do not forgive so he can cast them into outer darkness? We tend to see a God who is

I was listening to a podcast episode on forgiveness today. It was Rob Bell of course! He shared a definition of forgiveness that I like. He said forgiveness is when you decide to set someone free and then find out it was you. How true that is. I think much of our difficulty with forgiving others stems from our unwillingness to let things go. The root of anxiety is not letting go of my perceived fears and possible, but highly unlikely bad outcomes. We struggle to grow spiritually and find a healthy rhythm with God because we don't want to let go of our own ways, our own agendas, and our own comforts.  There is freedom in letting go and trusting that the Holy Spirit will guide us. There is freedom when we let go in order to forgive others. There is joy beyond offenses and the need to be vindicated. There is an abundance of love that flows into our lives when we decide to hold nothing back from the Lord.

The proper response to truth is always belief. I was so excited to see people Sunday morning raise their hand to begin a new life in Christ. Belief is a verb, it's the choice to respond, to act on the truth. That one expression of faith in the truth is a powerful and eternally significant decision. It's such a simple thing, but it also implies a lifetime of decisions to believe and continue to be a doer of truth. Thats how life becomes a spiritual journey - one simple belief after another.

"...Choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the  LORD .” Joshua 24:15 God is still speaking this to us today. Who will you choose to serve, follow wherever he leads, love with all your heart, and obey above your own will?  Growing up, I remember I always had a hard time with that. I was always afraid of what God would ask me to do. As an introvert, that can be terrifying. Thinking about it today, I realized things are different now. God does ask me to do things I feel uncomfortable doing. The Holy Spirit does challenge and convict me on a daily basis, but it's different now.  I'm not sure how to explain it, but it's not all about those things anymore.  God means so much to me that there is nothing I would choose above him. I've grow so dependent on his voice and his presence that I don't think I could b

Easter has always been special to me. Forty-nine years ago, on an Easter Sunday I sat on the floor at the back of the church with all the other kids. We watched a film portraying Jesus dying on the cross and I can still remember how my heart was filled with gratitude and a desire to live my life for Christ. Here we are all these years later and I cannot begin to express how faithful God has been and how wonderful it is to walk with him. Easter is about the resurrection and the beginning of new life. It's the glorious message that the kingdom of God has come and that we have been resurrected to this new life with Christ. What will we do with that life? How will we live it out day after day and year after year? The journey with Jesus Christ is what matters. Walking along that path with Jesus and with others is what matters. Easter makes that all possible.

I was thinking about the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11:1-9. Verse 6 has always been cryptic and mysterious to me.  " And the  LORD  said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them."  I've always been taught that the people being of one purpose and one mind was a bad thing because they would choose to live without God or feel they did not need God in their pride. I guess that would be correct if they had found unity outside of oneness with God. The world we live in today seems divided and chaotic in many ways, but when it comes to science and technology, we definitely live in a globally unified environment. Major changes and breakthroughs in humanity are happening exponentially faster than ever before. This is just a guess, but it seems like 90% of humanities scientific and technological growth has happened in the latest 1

I was thinking this morning how Easter is not even a recognized holiday anymore for most companies. I remember when we were always off on Good Friday. Now we have spring celebrations and avoid any references to Easter because it may offend non-Christians. I guess the billions of people on the planet who do celebrate Easter don't matter anymore. It's all just too strange. It doesn't matter to me though because celebrating the death and resurrection of my king is something no one can ever take away from me. Christians have spent too much time trying to fight these political battles, using natural means to accomplish super-natural ends. The crowds still want to take Jesus by force and try to make him king (Jn. 6:15). Jesus knew the path that made a way for all the enter into his kingdom. He walked that path through the cross and through the grave and back to the right hand of the Father. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe! Thank you, my Savior and my King!

I've talked about this issue many times before, but I wanted to share a great statement from Seth Godin's blog for 03/28/2024 . "If you’re not willing to consider that you’re wrong, then, in the words of a Dan Dennett, you’re a spectator, not a participant." In order for us to grow as believers and as a community of faith, we need to learn how to engage in conversations where it's possible and even probably that we will change our minds. To grow, I must be willing to thoughtfully consider everything. If not, there is no point and I'm just a spectator, not a participant.  Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to be our helper. We don't have to participate alone. He will always be in us guiding us with discernment and wisdom to keep pursuing truth.

I often see videos on YouTube where a Christian is at a college campus or in a public space speaking about God, having discussions, and answering questions. I always think "man, that guy is brave!" On one video I saw, a young lady walks by and start yelling "There is no God."  That response is common and so sad to me. These people are so sure they are right about current socially acceptable or trending thought patterns. What happened or did not happen in this girl's life that she is so sure there is no God? Why is she looking to these more radical tribes to feel a sense of purpose and belonging? We can go out and tell people there is a God all we want, but unless he is seen in us, in our actions, and through our love for others, they will not believe. What did Jesus say in John 13:35? "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." That is the proof people need to know there is a God.  The church overall coul

Reading more about the scapegoat today in Samuel Balentine's book on Leviticus. This ritual is about cleansing the temple and the people of the sins that separate them from God. Balentine says this is the "sin that diminishes their witness and compromise God's presence." (p.199) He says the "cleansing of the sanctuary reflects the priestly understanding of sin's capacity to defile not only persons but also institutions." (p.203) Sin left unchecked is a malignancy that will spread unchecked not only in the lives of the people, but though churches and communities of believers who stand as a witness to the truth. The scapegoat represents the sins of the people being taken out into the wilderness or a barren region, away from the sanctuary and the people. There it has no power or influence to disrupt God's kingdom. Throughout the Bible, the wilderness represents a place of chaos and unstructured nature. It is not a dwelling place which God has created so

I keep thinking about the scapegoat referred to in Leviticus 16:7-10. This goat was one of two chosen by lots. The high priest would ceremonially lay upon the goat all the sins of the people. It would then be sent out into the wilderness never to return to the camp. There is so much here, and I feel like the little I've been told all my life is just a small portion of the truth hidden in these verses. I plan to spend some time digging into this topic and into Leviticus as a whole. Right now, I'm planning to start with three sources. (1) Leviticus (Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching) by Samuel Balentine. (2) Rob Bell's talks on Leviticus called "Blood, Guts, and Fire: The gospel according to Leviticus." (3) The Bible Project Podcast series called "The Leviticus Scroll." These ancient narratives about rituals and animal sacrifices may seem barbaric and irrelevant to us today, but there is a lot for us to learn here. It doesn'