Lets Talk About Character

What is character? How does character apply to God?

Character is basically a large compilation of all different traits that make up the being or personality of a noun.

So in Philippians 2:6-11 Paul talks a little about how awesome God's character actually is. It's simple, to the point, it's powerful.

"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross! (which was considered to be a sign of being cursed during that time period) Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Look at God's character. Marvel in it. Meditate on it. Then embrace it. He made himself a man, perfect, upright and true, and then died a sinner's (cursed sinner at that) death for us. He didn't just die, he TOOK ON death itself so that we might spend eternity with Him. How hard is it to accept the love of the almighty God? It should be the only decision you ever make without a seconds thought.

Now, don't get me wrong...It took me years, but oh how amazing those years would have been with Him by my side. So now we must live every day as if He were standing right next to us, walking, guiding, and talking to us so that we can do the will of the Father.

A friend once told me to look at all of your decisions like this, "If Jesus were standing next to you while you were deciding whether to do something or not...Would you still do it? Because if the answer is no, or even has the possibility of no, you probably shouldn't do it."

Possibility Vs. Plausibilty: End all Faith Defense

Possible is defined on dictionary.com as "1: That may or can be, exist, happen, be done, be used etc. 2: That may be true or may be the case, as something concerning which one has no knowledge to the contrary."
Plausible is defined on dictionary.com as "having an appearance of truth or reason; seemingly worthy of approval or acceptance; credible; believable."

Here's the end all defense of your faith. Nothing more need be said as long as you live. You completely place the decision, evidence, and reality of the situation on them.

In the realm of our human reality exists the term "possibility" which was defined above (the state of being possible). The truth of our world is ANYTHING, yes anything, any human asserts no matter how absurd is immediately granted the status of "possible". This is not an arguable statement; it's a fact. Everything any man suggests is possible, however, that doesn't make it true, simply possible. Yes, even Zeus living on top of Mt. Olympus was/is indeed "possible", but is it plausible? Is it seemingly worthy of acceptance? Some say yes, others no, but the fact remains it is still possible.

So any atheist must then consider the fact that Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc. are possible, period. No matter what any of them or myself say, it's possible one is right simply on the merits of the fact that their opinion exists. Either atheists are right and nothing happens when we die, or they are wrong and something from some other religion happens, period. Someone WILL BE right. When philosophers claim that truth is relative, all philosophies have value, this is the true meaning of the statement they make, regardless of what is suggest of the phrase. This is the only form of relative truth or equivalent "value" that can be assigned to all philosophies. Unfortunately, all are possible, but not all are true. They can't be, and here's why.

The fact is all philosophies are not equivalent, and can not be due to extreme variations is their beliefs or VALUES. They are impossible to be valued the same because their VALUES are completely opposite. The opinion of equal relevance is simply a shield attempting to hide from the truth of the situation. Things can not be equivalent in terms of value if their values aren't the same. That's pretty self-explanatory if you ask me. So when philosophers say all things have equal value or merit...It's only true from one perspective, and the least important of them at that, possibility. Every philosophy book needs to be written and establish this philosophical truth: Possibility is the only relative truth in our reality, however, that's not the end all result of philosophy. You have to dig deeper, and that's when the "truth is relative" theory falls apart at the seams. All are possible, but not all are right, valued, true. They can't be because they clearly contradict each other.

The next step after proving the concept of possibility is then asking the key question: Why don't you want to believe in a religion?

This is completely valid, and don't let them convince you otherwise. There is a reason they don't want to believe in something no matter how insignificant it may be. The reason atheists don't want to believe in a religion is because they then have consequences, period. If they acknowledge a religion they are then punished for their actions according to whichever religion ends up being true, however, the problem with this theory is: all religions are possible, and they therefore MAY BE held accountable for their actions. Their desire for an opposite truth doesn't change the reality of possibility or truth. If we're right, regardless of what they wanted, we're right.

Next for someone who believes in a religion but not Christianity the question for them is: Why don't you want to believe in Christianity? There is a reason they don't want to whether it be they think it's wrong, they don't want to be disowned by their family, etc. but there IS a reason. The beauty of this is that our ability to question them about their religion is totally validated through science and historical evidence as well. We may not have PROVED our beliefs, but we have more evidence than any other religion, outside of atheism simply because their evidence isn't placed in any stock therefore they can use everything we have they just don't acknowledge what it actually points to. We don't need to defend ourselves, we have the greatest attack of all, bone crushing evidence completely and utterly in our favor. I'm not talking about some minor little piece here, little piece there; we have ULTIMATE evidence. More than any historical document of all time times 10 or something. Over 15000 valid documents backing up the New Testament compared to 643 (the next closest) for Homer's lliad. The burden of proof isn't on us, it's on them, period.

Here's the second question: What harm would come from believing in Christianity? At the very least, what bad would possibly come from following the God of the Bible?

See this is the truth: Regardless of what any atheist will say, the only "negative" thing that comes from following the Word of God is they can't keep living in their life of sin. That's it. If they were to follow the Christian faith, they would be an ultra effective force on this earth for good AND they would have an eternal security blanket backed by more evidence and real people testimonies than any other religion on earth in Jesus Christ. Only good can come from turning to the faith in God. However, they can't go on sinning which they don't like. So then the ball is in their court. You've proved to them that, like it or not, your argument (Christianity) IS possible, and not only that, it's the most plausible viewpoint in all of our existence. It covers all of its bases and benefits the world more than any other and insures your eternal security also. What's not to like? No more sinning for 60 years, purposely anyway; what a bummer.

Now here's the trick. They WILL, without a doubt, pull one of any number of things to try and trip you up with theology and philosophy, and this would be the only one I recommend addressing. "Well, if God exists then why free will? He damns people to hell with it." Then in the infinite wisdom God has given us through His word we say, "I have supplied you with all the information you would ever need to take advantage of your free will. Your acknowledgment of the concept of free will is the perfect and complete demonstration of your free will." It's flawless. They may not like it, and they will throw more philosophical, elegant, fancy language at you, but you hold the truth. They will know it too. You hold the truth from the Word of God, and you have just dropped it in their lap; now it's up to them.Luckily, you have already addressed their philosophical arguments they are about to throw at you with the philosophical fact of possibility. They then have been equipped with all the tools to utilize their free will. Should they decided to capitalize on it, share the Gospel. If not they have completely exercised their free will, and you have succeeded in planting a seed by the living waters of Christ. They have defined, before you, God, and themselves, the very definition of free will, and don't hesitate to let them know this. God brought His existence into the realm of possibility, made it plausible by supporting it better than any other piece of literature in all of existence, and then gave us the right to choose it or ignore what's right in front of us. If that's not free will...I don't know what is.

The last thing I want to say is if they start talking about how you are shoving your religion down their throat say, "Trust me...If you believed you were going where I believed you were...You'd be trying to save yourself too. I think this shows how much I truly care about you. I'm willing to take time out of my day to do what I believe to be right for your benefit, not mine." It's important that they realize that you are doing this not to "shove it down their throats" but because you now the severity of the punishment if they are wrong and you are right. Demonstrate your love through the truth. Jesus said that we should "tell the truth, but season it with love." Always speak truth, but seasoned graciously with love.

I hope this helps you stand even more firm in your faith.

Officials Swear in on the Bible

Today I was watching "Law Abiding Citizen" when I realized something interesting. In the movie Jamie Fox gets sworn in as the new District Attorney, and as this process begins, the mayor tells him to go get the Bible off the shelf. He then proceeds to make an oath to do this and that, work for justice, etc. My question is: If this country is not founded on Christian beliefs, if there is a separation of church and state, why the oath on the Bible? This country is not just jogging away from its beginnings, it is fleeing from them as fast as its giant, nuclear, God persecuting legs can take them. Why do even movies recognize this fact, but us, the American people, do not? This gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I couldn't believe how messed up and uprooted this country has become...We're so out of touch with our roots that even Hollywood knows them better than the average "intellectual". That's sad...Hollywood getting something right when its countries leaders can't. That's the definition of sad. When Hollywood is on track more so than our leaders our country is in some serious trouble.

Why do those put into positions of authority have to swear on the Bible, but we as the American public deny our identity so passionately? This is discouraging and encouraging to me at the same time. It upsets me because that's how lost we really are, but it encourages me because it lets me know how badly the world truly needs to hear its message again. When our Nation collapses, where is the first place people flock to? God and Prayer. Always, and every time. We should live as though our nation is falling apart at the seems every day because without God, it is.

So lets get back to our roots America because a Godless nation is a broken nation. The closer we get to abolishing God from our country, the further down the whole we sink. It's time to recognize it, and beg Him for forgiveness so we can be dug out.

Try and Imagine

I want you to think of the most bizarre, up-side-down, backwards, "inconceivable" world of fantasy you can come up with. Okay, now...How much of it is still a concept fully functioning under the same basic laws and functions of our current state, simply exaggerated? When we realize that our minds are only able to grasp things inside of our own limitations we realize we can only exaggerate the concepts of our reality. We can only fantasize, however, the God that we all talk about is something so beyond our comprehension unless He were to make Himself known to someone in the past there would be no way for us to theorize about Him because of our limited capabilities. God, someone who operates completely and utterly outside of our physical realm, is so beyond our minds' ability, is so beyond our minds' ability that unless someone had a concrete experience with Him, not only would it be unlikely, it would actually be impossible. Humans could not create concepts as utterly confounding and preposterous as God if no one had ever experienced God for themselves. He is even beyond an exaggeration of our existence, the concept of God is the EPITOME of it.

The definition of epitome according to dictionary.com is "a person or thing that is typical of or possesses to a high degree the features of a whole class: He is the epitome of goodness." Synonyms are : embodiment, exemplification, model, typification, quintessence. He is so beyond an exaggeration which is all we are capable of doing as humans that we are cognitively incapable of inventing something so irrational. Someone HAD to have experienced Him or been created with the knowledge that He existed right from the get go. There are only two options. God is the epitome of our existence which is beyond our comprehension, and as you see our minds can only function in the governing realms that we are exposed to and never beyond those. We are forced to limit a concept so immense and great as God, to our mere mortal and limited capacity. Even God had the perfect words to describe Himself, for as humans we can't describe Him eloquently. He said to Moses, "Say, 'I Am has sent you." What more perfectly simplistic way to word the epitome of our existence as "I Am". "I Am who I Am." "Before Moses and Elijah, I Am." Not was, not will be, not currently am...Always was, forever will be, currently am. It's an all time encompassing statement. Forever and for always in both time directions "I Am". That is God, beyond our imagination, beyond our words, beyond everything we are. He is nothing more, yet everything more, than "I Am".

The Test of Life

Today I was listening to the Bob Dutko show while he was arguing with a man named Dave Neimi (or something) who is the President of the American Humanist Society. They got into a huge debate about God and all of the exceedingly exciting conversations that build from such debates. This is when the perfect example dawned on me.

Okay, regardless of what they believe or others believe, what truth is, what lies are...According to our beliefs, and the beliefs of almost all other religions, there is something after life. Call it eternity, call it heaven, call it nothing...Call it whatever you would like. Okay, no LIVING human being has proof, and therefore doesn't KNOW, for certain, whether there is something beyond our lives; whether there will be eternity or heaven, we don't actually have PROOF of. However, I want you to look at it this way. The fact of the matter is, beliefs DO exist. Like it or not, there are people that have beliefs in eternity, right from wrong, punishment, etc. So if these beliefs exist we have to come to the understanding that, regardless of possibility, all of these beliefs have been granted, even in the smallest degree, possibility. So now that these beliefs have been presented you sit back and say, "Okay, these have now been granted the characteristics of possibility, whether I like it or not, they are now possible. So now, which one, if any, is the most likely or is backed up the most effectively by what we have proven and know to be true." This is the unfortunate reality of everything. I don't care what any of you think. The fact is, even the ancient beliefs in Zeus, Hercules, Hera, etc. are POSSIBLE, but how PLAUSIBLE are they? I will not say, "They are not possible," unless I find that another belief to be true. All religions are possible due to them having been brought into existence, however, which is the most likely to be true. From here comes my comparison.

In high school, each and every person who went through it had a teacher who said these words: "Even if you don't know the answer, put something down. It's better to try and get it wrong than it is to leave it blank." Okay, now this needs to be addressed. According to my beliefs there is no partial credit, there is a "right" answer and a "wrong" answer, but I think it's easy to understand what I'm getting at. The fact of the matter is, like it or not (a phrase I use because I don't care what you like...I care about what is true and beneficial for you to hear), because there have been beliefs brought into the spectrum of our reality we now are obligated to look at them once we become aware of them to put them to our limited, human tests.

First off, I think we can all agree that tests are a relatively decent form of judging what you have learned, experienced, etc. otherwise I doubt almost all schools in the world would issue them. So if we can agree that tests are a form of judging what we think we know against what is actually known then we are making progress. There are "right" and "wrong" answers to tests. We know this because, as we all have found out, in school if you put the wrong answer down...You get it wrong. If you leave it blank, you get it wrong. They don't say, "Oh you don't know...That's okay. I gave it to you because I can't punish you for not even trying. Even though I spent the past several weeks showing, proving, demonstrating, and teaching you this information, I'm not going to hold you accountable for it because you don't care enough to try or pay attention." Pretty basic concept. We have all experienced this.

Okay so here's the point. Life is a test. We live, we believe what we do matters, and when we die, we go into it not knowing, for certain, what it will yield. However, regardless of our lack of understanding or knowledge, there will be a test when we die. What will happen, where will we go, what will come? You don't know, others don't know, even I don't KNOW, but we all go into this journey with faith. I have faith I'm right, atheists have faith they're right (even though they deny it), and everyone else goes into this new found experience with faith. Here's the question: When you die...Do you want to turn in your test with a blank line, or do you want to study up, figure out which is the best answer by process of elimination, and then write it down? Those are your only options, I don't care what you say, assert, etc. You will face this test, no matter what we would like to assert, we will face the test, but how do you want to enter? Prepared with the Armor and blood of Christ covering you in the sight of the Almighty, or Naked with nothing except your blank line covering your soul. Those are your two options. Pick one, and run with it, but choose wisely.

You Can't Start a Fire...

According to Bruce Springstein in his song "Dancing in the Dark" he states, "You can't start a fire. You can't start a fire without a spark." Even Bruce Springstein knows that the universe can't start without a spark...I think this may be a self-sufficient statement in and of itself. If even a musician knows the science behind the universe shouldn't scientists know it too?

I think Bruce had it right. You can't start a fire without a spark, and God is the spark. The spark of His words.

God is the Relative Force Holding us Together

This time I'm gonna try and introduce a little bit of science. I want to talk a bit about the "Strong Force".

Basically there is a force, stronger than the force of Gravity, Electromagnetic, and Nuclear forces called "The Strong Nuclear Force". Somehow this force manages to override the forces of electromagnetism, or the positive particles repel positive particles and negative repel negative particles, through what Yukawa called, "mesons". Another man named John A. Gowan, in agreement with Yukawa's initial design of the process refers to these mesons as "virtual". Virtual basically means "there but not really". There is evidence of it, but we haven't been able to actually observe it. I have two things to state about this...One: Why do people accept invisible concepts like this, but not of God? Answer: Consequences. Two: This Force which is only explainable by "virtual" mesons, is the strongest force in our universe overriding electromagnetism, gravity, and the nuclear force. This invisible force holds us together. If we can believe that a "virtual" force that we can't observe and only theorize about exists, why do we have so much trouble believing in God?

The reason people don't want to believe in God is due to consequences...They don't want to believe what they do has consequences, but unfortunately, that doesn't change the reality of it all. Regardless of whether they like it or not, consequences do exist. Lucky for us, we are covered in Christ's blood. God's grace reigns eternal over all of us. What a blessing. The God of the universe not only holds us together so that we don't just fall apart, but He gives us enough grace to allow us to reign with Him over the world and worship Him for all of His glory. That's a blessing.

Here is an interesting definition of relativity that I found on dictionary.com

Relativity - A state of dependence in which the existence or significance of one entity is solely dependent on that of another

The perfect definition of our lives in relation to God. We are solely and completely dependent on God.

Truth is NOT Relative

Okay this is so simple it's unreal.

First lets take an example of relative and absolute truth. I am the child of my parents, now this is both absolute and relative. For two reasons. It's absolute because they are absolutely, unless my birth certificate is a fraud, my parents, and this is true for everyone in the world. Everyone can say, "Caleb is in fact his parents child." However, I am not the only one who can claim this. This is where the relativity comes in. I am my parents' child, but my brothers are also my parents' children. The relativity being that we all are our parents' children (we share this amongst ourselves and no others can claim this), and the absolute being that anyone can say, "They are their parents' children." Do you see the separation? One is relational and the other is absolute. One can be shared, and the other only stated.

The other day I walked into my bathroom to plug in my laptop so I could listen to music while I took a shower. When I went to plug the cord in a blue sparkle of electricity sparked when it dawned on me, "I don't have a clue how this works...But someone else does." Just because you don't understand the truth behind something, doesn't change that the truth about it still exists. So often people think truth is relative because, "If I don't understand it, or don't think it's true...Then it's not." Unfortunately, that's not the way truth operates. Just because I don't know how electricity works, doesn't change the fact that it does, in fact, function according to absolute laws. It has truths about its function that are absolute, and if one truth exists...It opens the doors for others to exist as well. If electricity has absolute truths to its function, then, in theory, God, morals, life, etc. can have absolute truths. It verifies that the concept is not only probable, but completely plausible. This is a KEY to being a creationist. If you want to show that the absolute truth that God exists, you first have to demonstrate, through hundreds of different ways, that absolute truth exists. And it's as simple as walking into a bathroom, plugging in a laptop which you don't totally comprehend, and realizing, "Just because I don't know how to explain this...Doesn't change the truth behind it."

If one absolute truth exists for ONE OF US...It exists for all of us.

1st Corinthians 8

Paul here addresses knowledge from men's limited capabilities. He talks about how a man's knowledge, and even the knowledge that God has graciously bestowed upon him, can "puff" the man up causing him to be arrogant if he is not careful, however, he states, "Love builds up." Paul says, "The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God." This shows that even when a man knows something, he still doesn't know the way he is supposed to, or hasn't come to the full realization of his knowledge. Only God knows all, and He reveals bits and pieces to us, not the whole picture at once. But God knows those who love Him and that is their source of knowledge. We are granted knowledge and wisdom through our love for God. This emphasizes the concept that man is nothing if he does not love God; God makes all men what they are.

Now Paul dives into some very interesting stuff in verses 4-6. He says, "So then about eating food sacrificed to idols: we know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many "gods" and many "lords"), yet for us there is buy one God, the Father, from whom all things came and from whom we live, and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live." Here he gets into some cool concepts. Even if other "gods" exist, which he clearly addresses later that they don't, he says, "Who cares?" (basically) For us there is only one and therefore the others that people believe in are nothing and then should be treated as nothing. Also I love his separation of the "from" in regards to the Father and the "through" in regards to Jesus. Really interesting and awesome things come from this passage.

Verse 7 states, "But not everyone knows this. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food they think of it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled." Here Paul addresses the fact that because of what we believe, if we are grounded properly in our faith, we can eat anything from the earth even if it were used for a sacrificial service to an idol because we know that the idol is nothing. The idol means nothing and represents nothing (in reality, although it does have earthly related representations), therefore the sacrifice, to us, means nothing for we know it's intended "gods" are not real. He then talks about how our weak consciences, because we lack true understanding in our faith, then lead us not to eat it for worry that it is defiled, but in reality because their "gods" are not real and everything comes from our Father, their sacrifices mean nothing. Everything came from our God, nothing in the world is evil; from the evil in men's hearts comes evil. Nothing God created on earth is evil, not even the food used to sacrifice for other 'gods', only our hearts bring forth evil. Besides, everything on earth is not only from God, it is God's. We give Him nothing that isn't already His, and we eat nothing He hasn't given us.

But now the warning comes in verses 9-13, "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrifice to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall."

He discusses here how although we may know the truth of the situation due to our strengthened conscience, those with weak consciences may be influenced by our actions and knowledge. Despite the fact that they are not actually sinning, and we know this, if they believe they are sinning our actions have no come to weaken our brother's even further because we have made it easier for them to do things they believe are wrong. We weaken their resolve to live as sin free of a life as possible because we have enabled them into sin without allowing them to experience the wisdom God gave us regarding the topic. If we perform actions that someone views as a sin and then they begin to do them despite believing they are a sin, we have sinned against our brother by making them more prone to sinning (weakening their conscience further). If our actions and knowledge create stumbling blocks for our brothers, it would be better for us to refrain from those actions, even if they are not wrong, so as to strengthen and build up our brothers. When we weaken our brothers we damage the kingdom of Christ, and the body may begin to slip into sin which is, as Paul put it, "...a sin against Christ."

Polcie/Politicians vs. Pharisee: Modern Day Translation

When you think of Police Officers and Politicians what typically comes to mind? Ideally we would think of the one cop or senator that we know personally, and love because he does his job properly, but the sad fact is, most of us have not had the same pleasant experiences with them as those who know them personally have. They're supposed to be defending the weak, upholding justice, protecting the innocent, upholding the Law, etc. While there are a few good ones out there, and for those of you that are: God bless you because you make our world a safer place. However, from the ones that are not comes the comparison.

So many are crooked, law breaking rather than upholding, law twisting rather than law obedient, law exempting rather than obeying, willing to sacrifice at others' expense but not their own, cops and politicians. So often I get the feeling that the only reason cops exist is to suck the city of its money in order to raise money for the city. When in reality, they are in place to protect us, not trap us in money sucking schemes. They are there as a guiding force to help others obey the law, and if necessary aid in the capture and punishment of those that break the law. The politicians get funded by the government (through our taxes) yet they don't pay into these taxes. They make decisions regarding our livelihood, our tax rates, our circumstance, and they are exempt from these laws. What sense does that make?

If I were a politician I would REFUSE a salary, and if they wanted to give it to me I would donate it to any cause I saw fit in order to prove a point. People don't exist to serve the government, government exists to serve the people. We have so lost sight of that it's unreal. What good am I at making laws that benefit the people if I am not one of them? How can I test it's effectiveness if it doesn't effect me? Do unto others as you would have them do unto you...Do you think politicians would be pleased with what they have done unto us if the roles were reversed? I think not.

As you read this verse I want you to just for a moment think about the loathing you have for these behaviors, the talking the talking but not walking the walk approach. Matthew 23:1-8 says, "Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 'The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi'. But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers.'"

Do you see the nearly flawless comparison? They were men that sought after worldly glory, acceptance, and praise from men. Not only that, but they preached the law, yet they themselves did not obey it. This isn't to rag on cops or all of politicians, but do you see the point? Cops and politicians exist as servants to man, to protect, serve, and aid men...Men don't exist to serve them. It's always about a power trip...Rather than being a man of integrity, pursuing what's best our nation, they come with the mindset of what's best for me or my political superior, NOT what's best for the people. I don't even think peace is what's best for our nation, Love is. From love comes all good. If every man in Congress had Love in mind when they wrote laws, made bills, all that crud, our country would be incredible. But alas, we have corrupted our system so that only the greedy, wealthy, sly, cunning, cheating, lying, can become governing bodies. In order to crawl up the ladder, they have to cheat, lie, and steal, and what's worse? We caused it. We've taken a beautiful thing, Democracy, and slandered, libeled, and driven it into oblivion. Criticize the men with rock solid morals all you like, ridicule them, spit at them, kick them when they're down, but when this world falls apart where will they crawl? Back to their morals. Jesus set the example. Let us pursue it.

Don't pursue God for power, let your pursuit of God yield power. Power will be your passion's fruit.

1st Corinthians 4:20 - For the Kingdom of God is not one of talk, but of power.

Just as You Are...

Okay, my whole adult-like life (12-now) I have struggled with authority, and, until recently, I have fought back only to be combative. I now, however, have had a realization that I feel is extremely important.

I envision myself as head of a church, and I'm wearing Jeans, a T-Shirt, and tennis shoes. How many people would say, "Wow...That would seriously bother me"? Here's the question: Should it?

I'm sure many of you have heard the song "Just as You Are", but how many of us understand this? It doesn't say, "Take 2 hours, put on a face that's not really you, and make a show for everyone around you!" (Singing tones included) It says, "Come! Just as you are to worship! Why don't you come, just as you are before your God. Come." Now, by no means am I saying that it's wrong to put on a suit, get a little dolled up for God, and go serve and worship His name, but is your heart right? Are we being real, true, and honest with who we are to God? Because that's what it's all about. He doesn't receive honor from our appearance, it doesn't show Him anymore love from our hearts IF our hearts aren't right to begin with. In fact, dressing up and making ourselves all fancy might actually deter people from coming to our church because they may feel as though they aren't worthy to be in our presence, when really, we are all dressed in rags before God anyway.

Here's the worst part about all of this...I know, because I've had it happen to me, that people judge inside of the church based on clothing. Do we not realize that this damages the body of Christ, ourselves, and more importantly those who are not yet secure in their beliefs? It would be better, according to Paul, to dress in rags (because that's what the rich are dressed in, in reality, anyway) to make everyone who could walk in God's door, HIS house, which is a place of prayer and worship, to feel welcome not only in spirit but in body. So the next time you put on your clothes before you go to church, thank God for the rags you put on and ask Him to use them for His glory because that's why we have them in the first place. Everything is God's.

We need to remember that everything we do is for God's glory and if it's not working for it...It's working against it.

Good Things Happen to Bad People...Why?!?

Why? Why? Why? If God exists why do good things happen to bad people? Simple. If good things only ever happened to good Christian people who would ever want to do anything else? God doesn't want to sway us with trivial earthly wealth (although He may bless us with it)...He wants us to love Him for Him. It would defeat the purpose of what Christianity is all about, loving the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and soul, and Loving your neighbor as yourself. If good things only happened to good people nobody would ever see the fact that evil exists. And why would anyone turn to God if all you need to do is be good?

Here's the key, who cares if good things happen to them on earth because they won't be reaping good things when they're gone...We so often, if not always, think of things through our limited mortal minds. People of the world reap earthly "phenomenal" rewards because that's what they invest themselves in. God said that we would reap what we sow, so if we so earthly treasures, that's what we'll receive, but if we sow heavenly treasures, that's what we'll reap. Let them have their earthly gain, and stop dwelling on their earthly blessings...Are your promises not infinitely greater than anything on earth? I'll take a shack on a rock over a castle in the sand any day, and twice on Sunday. People of the world can't see the wisdom in this because they are tuned to look at everything through their self-serving, "what's in it for me?" perspective. Instead of focusing on the right here, right now blessings, look to the future! God said that he will bless those who give and sacrifice. Let those consumed with the here and the now pleasures have them, and accept the eternal pleasure God lays out before us every day of our lives. Besides, if you ask the majority of them if they experience true FULL-BLOWN joy, I'll bet they won't say yes. Joy is the ability to be content with what you have and the willingness to give it up for those who need it more than you. And when we do this God blesses us all the more. What could be more of a blessing than knowing you put the smile on someone's face that is truly struggling in this life?

God blesses us so many ways and more than we know or ever realize...

The Bride of Christ

Several times in the Bible we are related through metaphors to a bride. We are to be the "Bride of Christ". A very interesting point of view popped into my mind while I was reading a book by Matthew McGee titled "Shaken Not Shattered". He says, "Marriage is not a relationship based on compromise; it is built on sacrifice. The nature of compromise says, 'What's in it for me?' Sacrifice says, 'No matter what, for better or worse, I'll do what it takes because I'm in it for you.'" Now listen to the standard wedding vows used in most traditional weddings, "Do you promise in covenant before God and these witnesses to be a wedded husband or wife - faithful in plenty and in want, in joy and sorrow, in sickness and health, for better or worse, forsaking all others, and giving yourself only to the other as long as you both shall live?"

Re-read that as many times as it take for it to sink in what that vow is really about. I know I had to read it twice.

Now, the application. If we are the bride of Christ, do we treat Him as our husband? Do we promise in covenant before God and these witnesses (acknowledging Christ before men), to be a wedded wife - faithful in plenty and in want, in joy and sorrow, in sickness and health, for better or worse, forsaking all others, and giving yourself only to Him as long as you both shall live? Do we take that to heart? Do we realize that this is what He asks of us? If we are to be the "bride" of Christ, we should probably live up to our vows. In our lives (relationships) and especially unto Him.

1st Corinthians 6: Lawsuits Among Brothers

"Oh man" is the only way I know to start this one. It has some serious power kickin' out of it. The very first sentence shows how passionate about this Paul is, and how backwards the Corinthians had this. "If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels?" That hit me like a rock! Not only should we not take disputes to the courts of the "ungodly", but in the end, we ourselves will become the judges of the entire WORLD with Christ!

Now here's the foundation shaker and my favorite part of all of this. Verses 7 and 8 say, "The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers." Do you catch the severity Paul reveals in these circumstances? No only are you doing the opposite of what you're supposed to, but it has resulted in your complete defeat. We, as members of Christ, are supposed to be versed in the art of being cheated, slandered, persecuted, and abused. If we don't even stand up to the challenge amongst our brothers, how will we stand them when we are amongst those who actually want to persecute and maybe even harm us? We need to not only be ready for these challenges, but to take them head on in the manner that Christ showed us, through humility, grace, and perseverance.

"But you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

1st Corinthians 4: Apostles of Christ

Paul here starts with the very core of Jesus' ministry. "Men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God." This is so powerful! Look at all that comes from the blessing of God. We get to be His servants, but look at what we gain, "entrusted the secret things of God." Now that is some serious gain. As we offer ourselves to be obedient to the Word of Christ He grants us more and more trust over His wisdom. He loves us, so when we show Him we are faithful, He rewards us accordingly.

Next Paul makes a very interesting statement that I really love. In verses 3 and 4 he says this, "I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that doesn't make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me." I'll admit I had to look down at the footnotes for this, but it was right on the money if you ask me. It talks about how Paul makes an openly admitted statement that he passes no judgment even on himself because he is human and his conscience can be mistaken and that only God is qualified to judge. He shows that the only way an accurate judgment can come from man is through the Holy Spirit and our minds are so feeble he doesn't even judge himself. This concept was foreign to me, but in the Christian life, it is almost a mandatory tool that the Holy Spirit enables us to have because as we mess up we can indeed inflict a sense of condemnation on ourselves. Rather than dwelling on his mistakes, he focuses on God's grace which gives him a clean conscience, and when he's obedient to God he won't have to feel disobedient anyway. It's the perfect system in reality. Focus on God's love and grace, and have peace in your soul. Simple and effective. (Not that it's actually simple to actually put into effect in our lives...)

Another interesting statement which is extremely important to the church and goes perfectly, hand in hand with the passage about division, in when he says, "...so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, 'Do not go beyond what is written.'" So often I feel our interpretations of things in the Bible cause us to not only miss the really important things in it, but actually cause us to begin to slip into foolish human pride. Paul also felt this way as he states right after, "Then you will not take pride in one man over against another." When we get caught up in the semantics of verses rather than putting things into context and "taking captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ" we cause levels of division in the church because we prize the opinions of men over what the Word clearly spells out. So we shouldn't take pride in our own interpretations for the Holy Spirit has already given us guidance through God's Word. All our interpretations are in reality are simplified versions of the truth so that we may more effectively reach other people. If your interpretation leads them away from the truth rather than towards it, it is not of the Holy Spirit. It's the perfect test, if you take the simplified, expanded version and enable them to understand the words straight from the text, you have effectively translated what the Holy Spirit was trying to speak through you. We need to take the Word for what it says rather than submitting it to human "wisdom", so then we can get the real truth out of it.

In verses 8-10 Paul begins to sarcastically compare what real Christians need to realize. We have wisdom, but the world should see us as fools for Christ, we have strength through Christ but the world sees us as weak, we should be dishonored by the world yet we seek for honor amongst them. This contrast is so striking to me because it reveals stumbling blocks in my own life. I feel so wise, strong, and honored, but I miss the point that I have been given these gifts by the Father, none of it is mine. Our fellow Christians will see and acknowledge the wisdom that God has given us, but if the world as a whole views you as wise, either they are all finally seeing the truth, or you aren't doing what you're supposed to be doing. Now, don't get me wrong...There will be people who will see your newly gifted wisdom as wisdom, however, the majority of people will be baffled by your actions and your words because it will run contrary to how they have chosen to live.

After this he then shows a radical difference between Christians and the world that we are supposed to abide by. In verses 11-13 he states, "To the present hour we both hunger and thirst, and we are poorly clothed, and beaten, and homeless. And we labor, working with our own hands. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we endure; being defamed, we entreat. We have been made as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things until now." This is the definition of "walking the walk, not just talking the talk". See the fact of the matter is, you don't always have to be persecuted for your faith. There will be times when everything is going fine, and you are not being persecuted for what you believe, but what he means, and what the difference is, is when you are faced with these adversities, you are to handle them as Christ would to the best of your ability (which through the Holy Spirit is pretty darn well). After that you are also not to dwell when you mess up, but to accept and turn back towards grace for that is the only way we can function according to Jesus' high demand for our lives as humans. Without some divine intervention we can not even begin to do what He asked of us.

Lastly verses 19-20 come, and for me, this was the true meat of the whole chapter. In fact, it was the sole reason for me to put this all together. It states, "But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." Here he shows the truth behind his whole message. The truth of about whether you are abiding by God's commands, and showing your obedience will be demonstrated through your actions and your power, not your words. Talking the talk isn't good enough. You have to walk it.

Challenge: WALK THE WALK

1st Corinthians 5: Expel the Immoral Brother

Lately I've been having some thoughts weighing heavily on my heart because of all of the rumors and struggles I've come to realize that the church has flowing through it and around about it. The concept of judgment and hypocrisy seem to be on the minds of all of the non-believers. This troubles me because as "Christians" we should be beacons of Jesus' love and the fruit of the Spirit should be flowing out from us. The fact that all of these awful stories about our brothers, and maybe even about some of us, are circulating is a surefire sign that these things are happening in and among us.

"The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge these with their lips and then walk out the door and deny them by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds...Unbelievable."

I feel that there is a need for some perspective here regarding the issues of judgment on sinners and Christians alike. Here is the truth of the matter for those that are willing to ponder it.

Jesus spent His time with the worst of the worst, and why? Because He was "here for the sinners of the world, not for the saved". When we look at Jesus' life we find a rather incredible characteristic. He surrounded Himself with the most "unholy of the unholy", in the eyes of Christians, and He still remained flawless. What's worse, the words that He spoke with the most passion, and the strongest tones of judgment were those aimed at the one's that believed they were holy, but were so lost in their own power and self-righteousness that they completely missed all of what God really intended for them. Jesus' comment about creating sons that were "twice the sons of hell as you are" were directed at the Pharisees, the "holiest of the holy". Does this strike you as backwards? Those who were on a path destined to hell, were less damaging to the world than those who believed they were on the path to righteousness.

So why didn't Jesus pass judgment on the sinners of the world, but He did pass it on those who believed they were holy? The truth of the matter was, they didn't need judgment and accountability in the same terms as the Pharisees, because they weren't even on the right path to begin with. He didn't concern Himself with constantly condemning people based on things they had never heard, He showed them the truth...The truth that the "holiest" were missing and outright neglecting. If there were any life in all of history to emulate, it would be that of Jesus...so why don't we? We, as Christians, should not be passing judgment on those that have yet to hear the truth! If you never tell someone to do something you can't hold them accountable for not doing it. If you noticed Jesus showed the people the truth, and then He showed His strict and passionate judgment towards those who thought they knew the truth but were really lost.

Paul clearly addresses this in 1st Corinthians 5:12-13 when he states, "What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. 'Expel the wicked man from among you.'" Now I think a little elaboration about this is in order because I think this is where the church begins to seriously slip up. So often the church begins to do exactly what Jesus criticized the Pharisees of which, as we all know, is a very, very dangerous place to be. They began to rely more heavily on human tradition rather than the truths that God had given them. They actually became walking contradictions to God's law because of their dependence on man's traditions which were based on proper terms, but had now been given more authority and caused a blindness to the actual truth placed plainly in His Word.

If a man's faith is weak Paul urges us not to condemn him, but to help build him up and brace him so he may stand up again. It is our job as the body of Christ to encourage one another when we stumble and we fall (which is inevitable). Here is where the tightrope walk begins. There is a fine line between passing judgment that is necessary and getting caught up in overly self-righteous, discouraging behavioral patterns. When someone makes a minor, or even a large mistake we are to demonstrate love and compassion for those that fall as long as the will to repent is there! It is not for us to judge unless they are living an immoral life with pride, and then still continue to parade around with the name of Christ. Paul warns us so starkly about having fellowship with someone who takes the good name of Christ and slanders it with is lifestyle that he flat out says, "With such a man do not even eat!" Even if someone slips into adultery and falls flat on his face, it is our job as the body of Christ to help him up and to encourage him as long as he is willing to repent and move forward in Christ and leave that life behind him. How often to we miss these opportunities? We literally drop the ball as the body of Christ so often that we drive people to leave the church which is the absolute antithesis Christ's ministry.

In the very first sentence of verse 2 Paul says the key to the whole concept, "AND YOU ARE PROUD!..." This is the key to the whole concept. If a man falls on his face, but is willing to repent, acknowledges his sin we are to embrace him as a brother and build him up just as Christ would do. How many of us view David as "A man after God's own Heart"? Do we ever really think about how many times that man fell flat on his face, yet God always picked him back up? God brought him out of more despair than maybe any other man in all of existence. He wrote more of our peace giving psalms than maybe any other man in history. If we view this man so highly, despite his flaws, should we not prize our brothers who fall in the same manner, as long as they repent and turn back towards God's love? We need to get off our high horses of righteousness and realize that we are all under the same grace as the worst of the worst. In God's eyes we are all equally putrid comparatively, but His infinite grace covers us all the same way. I know for a fact that I have done far more horrible things than many other people that I know, but I am covered by the same grace as they are. Paul said in Romans 5:20, "...But where sin increased, grace increased all the more." It's time we start living under Christ's concept of grace which is given through repentance, for none of us are righteous.

Another really important concept that I will leave to a snippet is this...When those of us do fall flat on our faces it is vital to Christ's body not to all jump on the person and make them aware of their sin. Only speak truth into the lives of those who give you access or it will fall on deaf ears regardless. We as Christians always seem to feel obligated to pass judgment and assume the worst of every situation for everything and everyone, but the real test is always, "How would you feel if this were happening to you." Right and wrong is perfectly demonstrated through your reaction to equal circumstances. We are vessels of encouragement, love, and peace NOT judgment, condemnation, and brimstone. Keep in mind who the judge is, and remember that we will be held to the same standards that we judge others according to. Judge by grace and you shall be judged by grace.

I really hope you learn from this what has been demonstrated to me. And remember, these are God's words...Not mine. None of us are anything but vessels.

Is the Bible an accurate account of history?

I was just curious what everyone thought regarding this concept? Is it historically accurate?

Live as Though the Only Law is Love

While reading Romans 4 I stumbled along a passage that references Abraham's faith. The promise of Righteousness comes through faith not through the Law. Verses 14 and 15 state, "For if those who live by the law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless, because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression."

To me this means to live, not in a lawless fashion as if there is no law, but to live as though there is no law except to Love. When we do this God has the ability to flourish. As Paul describes it, the law actually motivates and provokes sin. Despite all of its consequences, due to our human nature the law actually causes us to fall into sin, however, if we pretend and come to terms with the fact that TO LOVE is the only law, we will then automatically become obedient to all of the other laws for they are derived from the basic concept of love. Paul says literally to become "dead to sin", which to me is his urge for us to be dead to the law. To be raised up under a new law, that of grace and of love, for if we focus and live under this new law our ability to follow all of the other laws are guaranteed to proceed.

It is a beautiful concept that is such a profound truth. How perfect would our world be if we all loved? I'm not talking, dating, I love you because you love me love, I'm talking you hate my guts, but I will show you kindness, gentleness, patience, self-control, goodness, peace, faithfulness, and LOVE despite that fact. If we truly began to follow this in our lives think of how perfect the world would be...Truly try and grasp it. Regardless of what you may think about the theology of the Bible, even if you take it as nothing more than a set of moral guidelines, the world would be a heavenly place if we would just follow it. Its divine wisdom is demonstrated through its absolute truth. If the world would simply love one another, it would be a perfect place. Self-sacrifice, kindness, understanding, patience, and all other moral qualities would flourish, for where love is, the others always follow.

So here is the cool philosophical part of all of this. Jesus said, "No one is good except God alone." Since man has been born into sin due to Adam and Eve's disobedience, there was only one way for salvation to truly function. God had to create a way out of our sinful nature through a perfect GOD SACRIFICE. Only God is good therefore for Jesus to live a sinless life He could have only done it through the seed of God. The reason that a woman's womb could be used was because it isn't an actual "seed" it is simply an incubator with an egg, but the actual seed of life comes from the man. I know that it takes both, but the actual living seed comes from the man, who was born into sin due to disobedience. This is where the absolute perfection of the plan comes to fruition.

God created a perfect being through His, and only His, goodness, for no one except Him is truly good. Jesus then lived a sinless life due to His supernatural birth from the core of goodness, God Himself. Jesus obeyed the law, but He did not become a slave to the law for no man can perfectly abide by the law. The reason that men of that day and age found Him so displeasing was because He didn't rely on the traditions of men that came from the law, He was only obedient to truth, not the twisted concept of truth through man's tainted traditions. That's why when the Pharisees got upset about how Jesus' disciples didn't wash their hands before eating they got all bent out of shape because they had taken the law and formed traditions that actually cause them to contradict the law. They place their obedience in the traditions of men rather than in the absolute truth of God's word. He was a slave to the law and God, but not to the deceitful traditions of man. This is not to say that traditions are bad, but to place them higher than the ultimate truth is what Jesus was addressing. They let their traditions and customs become more valuable to them than the truth about God's word.

So here's the kicker. Those who are children of the law will be judged by the law, and those that are children of grace, in Jesus Christ, will therefore be judged by grace, Jesus Christ. To me, God's perfect plan is just amazing. The complexity of its simplicity is the most astounding truth in all of our existence. His infinite wisdom is so amazingly simple that we actually miss it due to our innate desire to complicate everything. Instead of reading the Bible and thinking it's all complex, read it and truly realize how simple its truths really are.

Joshua 24:15

Last night I woke up at 430 in the morning after having had quite possibly the most bizarre dream of my entire life which I will talk about another time once I get to mow over it, and decide what exactly I feel it means for sure.

Anyway, this set of thoughts really began to way heavily on my heart.

This passage is in homes, on walls, cards, picture frames, you name it...There's something made with this verse on it. But really read through this and analyze it really quickly.

15"But if serving the Lords seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord."

Lets be sure to note that in all instances this verse implies action. "As for me and my household WE WILL SERVE the Lord." Do you catch it when you read it? It's not just a catch phrase, a frame decorator, or even a passive statement. When you place this in your home you are making a declarative statement of your willingness to act on behalf of the Lord. You are offering yourself and your household into service which is not a passive action...It's an active action. Really pour over that and take into consideration the implication and declaration you are making unto the Lord when you parade this verse around. It is something that we all should take to heart, without a doubt. We need to stop passively being Christians. Christianity is an active title. If you aren't acting: teaching, preaching, helping, loving, sharing, giving...You aren't being a true Christian. Jesus said that people would know us by our love.

Are we all really living this out? Are people noticing that we are Jesus filled through our love?

Take some Time to Evaluate:

I think sometimes in our lives it's good to truly evaluate where we're at.

The other day I was watching a youtube video of an amazing concert that was performed by John Mark McMillan singing "How He Love Us". The story that he unfolds is absolutely tragic, but he then shares the impact that it had on the youth of the nation. It's incredible when you step back and really take in how God uses everything in the world to His overall advantage. He uses tragedy to soften our hearts, desperation to show and give his strength, devastation to bring us together. His power is unfathomable, and incomprehensible. To truly try and wrap our heads around His greater vision is impossible. It's best to sit back, live the way He commands, and watch Him work as if you were watching a painter paint. He is the master of artistry...After all, isn't every piece of artwork ever created only an image of the actual beauty that is already placed all around us? Joyce Meyer once said, "I've come to a place in my life where I would rather see God's ways than His miracles." Isn't that really how we should all be? We should all be longing to see His ways because when He demonstrates them we can act them out.

If you ever get the chance to watch or hear the live performance that this man put on, it will literally break your heart. I know that I sobbed like a little seven year old girl when I heard the heart wrenching story about his friend. However, here is the overall point of this post. I challenge you to take a minute, grab a piece of paper (or in my case 3 of them) and write out exactly what you would say to the people you love and know if you knew this was your last day on earth. After you do this really sit back, and pour over what you've written because if you aren't living this out every day of your life...Then you really aren't living. This applies to Christians and non-Christians alike. I think we can all agree that no matter what religious convictions you may have, love is a universal desire. Stop living like you're gonna live forever on this earth, and live like you were dying. That doesn't mean jump of buildings, but live with your heart open and flowing with never ending love.

I know for a fact that if I knew I was going to die to tomorrow, without a doubt, that I wouldn't care who was around me I would just want everyone I ever knew to know that I loved them, and what's more that Christ loves them even more than my tear soaked eyes can express. Anyone who wants to see what true love is about I challenge you to write this out, really consider it, and then live it. This is a challenge for myself as well. I don't live my life according to this nearly as much as I would like, but I'm starting to. It's time to take serious action America, let our generation be the one that TURNS THIS COUNTRY UPSIDE DOWN!

Love is a serious thing...Stop taking it for granted.

Books I have been Reading

This is my absolute first time doing this so have mercy on me because I have no idea who this will compare to the other blogs that you have been apart of. Hopefully though, this will enrich your life rather than being a waste of time.

I have been reading a ton lately, and for those of you who know me...That's a bizarre phenomenon. However, lately I have been pouring my time into different things such as, clearly, the Bible, and what I think is a must read for anyone and everyone that is struggling with the purpose of life. I think the pursuit of truth regarding religion seems to be one of the driving forces behind many of our fellow earthlings lives. If you find yourself under this particular category I have a book that I challenge you to read, and what's more than challenge, urge you to read! It's titled "I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist". If you want a book that is going to absolutely rock your world, and give you some meaning and purpose in life...That would be the place to start. It will put the Bible into perspective, as it did for me, for the very first time. If you were raised in a Christian home, are now starting to turn to religion, or just want something that will be an interesting read without being like a rocket launching clear over your head look no further. This book is so basic a 12 year old could read it, and it has more meat in it than any other book you can pick up anywhere.

Now, for those of you who have been long time Christians, I would highly recommend reading a book by Francis Chan called "Crazy Love". He sets the perfect stage for what being a Christian truly means. There is so much more to our lives than you even under stand. He didn't have the low expectations and the trivial babble that we pursue and let consume our lives planned for us. He had "greater things than even He did" in our lives planned. Greater things even than the Son of God...I think that's a pretty bold statement, and what's more, an even more amazing challenge. Instead of taking His teachings and His words lightly, like so many of us do, it's time to step up our game and turn this world into the place He meant for it to be. A place where we bring His will and make it done on earth.

He said in Matthew 6:8-10 "Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven...'"

This is almost like a direct command to us on earth to make God's kingdom come to fruition in this realm. If we are to make things like they are in heaven, which heaven clearly gets spelled out through the rest of the gospel, then why aren't we taking action?