Clay in the Hands

Occasionally, we all feel overwhelmed.  Life stacks up.  Things may be going fine one day and then the very next – wham!! – life piles up like traffic in north Dallas at 5:00 on Friday afternoon!

It is in those times we need to remind ourselves of a very important promise and truth from Jesus.  In Matthew 11, Jesus tells us that when we feel overwhelmed, weary and worn-out, that we can come to him and he will give us rest.

There are three things I take away from this promise:

1. We all get weary sometimes – that is natural.  We get really busy doing really good things and we get really tired.  Jesus reminds us that we need balance.  When we focus all our attention on really good things but neglect the best, weariness sets in – which leads to the second thing.
2. Jesus offers rest.  He is not referring to a nap, but refreshing, renewing relief.
3. We have to turn to him for this relief.  I can try and find refreshment in a lot of different places and ways, but the only real relief comes when we draw near to him.

We get worn-out when we focus all our energy on the good things in life but neglect the best – our time with Jesus.

If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed today, rest in Jesus.  He offers the only relief that makes a difference.

Be blessed!

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Flyleaf – the Christian rock group – has a song titled “Fully Alive.”  As I listened to that song this morning, I thought about my devotional reading for the day.  The lyrics of the song describe a girl who has experienced suffering but through that suffering she has learned to believe in something more – something beyond.  And because of that belief she is ready to smile and love life.  She is fully alive because she knows how to believe in something more.

This morning, I read a prayer that Jesus offered, recorded in John 17.  This text was something I had read time and time again but it took on fresh meaning this morning (that is how scripture is – new and fresh everyday).  Jesus makes a concise statement of what real life, eternal life is.  In verse 3 he says: “Now this is eternal life; that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

Jesus gives us a beautifully simple definition of a fulfilled, sustaining and lasting life – to know the one true God.  When we know God – when we believe with our entire being that he is the only true God – then we are fully alive.

Are you fully alive today?

If you know the Father – then you are fully alive.

Now go live it!

Be a blessing today!

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This past Sunday, I had the opportunity to preach from John 11 where Jesus stated that he is the resurrection and the life.  The scene was the raising of his friend Lazarus from the dead, but Jesus used this miracle as an illustration of a universal truth about himself.  The physical resurrection he offered to Lazarus, he also offers to all who will believe.

But before we can be resurrected, we must first die.  While Jesus was teaching that we would all be resurrected at some point from a physical death, he was teaching a deeper truth.  He was teaching us that the life he offers is a new life – a resurrected life.  But in order to receive that life, we must first die to ourselves.

in order to live a resurrected life, we have to first die to our own desires, our own drives, our own egos.  We must fully submit our lives to Jesus and his will for us.  And then through that submission, live for him each and every day – following his teaching and plan for us.  This is a daily commitment.  It is not a one time decision and then go and live the way we want.  

The bigger issue at work here is the distinction between seeing Jesus as Savior and Jesus as Lord.  The truth is, he is unequivocally both.  But we have a real tendency to focus on Jesus as Savior and put less emphasis on Jesus as Lord.  Yes he saves us, but he must also be the Lord of our lives.  If our faith in the risen savior does not result in a resurrected, transformed lifestyle, then James 2 would call into question whether or not it is legitimate faith.

Jesus offers a new life.

Are you living that resurrected life today?

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Each morning, I have roughly a thirty minute commute to work. While there are days I wish I could be to the office quicker, most days I use the time in prayer and meditating on the day ahead – a prayer drive.  It continues to be a beneficial time for me because I know the minute I hit the office, it will be pretty much non-stop until time to go home.

This morning, during my prayer drive I found myself praying when something hit me.  The past few weeks, we have had a lot going on.  As a family we have been facing some pretty big decisions and so I caught myself praying “at God” this morning.  I was firing off all these things I need from God – direction, peace, clarity – when I had a sense that God was telling me, “slow down and listen.”

I must be honest, that was not the first time I have heard that same instruction from God.  I tend to be a type A, get it done personality and find myself doing all the talking when I pray most of the time.  But I have to remind myself that prayer is more than airing a laundry list of needs and desires with an expectation that God’s primary role in creation is sitting patiently listening to my needs and then fulfilling them.  Prayer is a two way line of communication.  But if we fail to slow down and listen, we have made prayer something else.

So today, will you listen?  Not that you do not need to share your heart with God – but will you then allow God to share his heart with you?

It takes discipline and practice – but it is necessary as we seek to become more like the master each day.

Slow down . . . Listen.

Be blessed.

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What will 2015 hold for us – for you?  What do you think God will do this year?  What will you do this year to make 2015 at least as memorable as 2014?

All over the world, people are making resolutions – and some have most likely already been broken.  We resolve to lose weight or live more healthily.  We resolve that we will work harder at being a better employee or spouse or parent.  Some of us might even resolve to make God a bigger part of our lives in the coming year.

The reality is, as worthy as each of these resolutions is, the majority of us won’t keep our commitments.  The good intentions solidified into an actual resolution will end up being just that, good intentions.  The result?  Another year, pretty much like last.

Now, before you get frustrated with my negativity, let me offer a simple thought that could make a difference in 2015 for you.

Instead of thinking about all the things you don’t like about yourself and your situation and resolving to change, ask yourself this question:  What are the desires God has for me this year?

In listing what you believe God wants for you this year, remember this criteria:

1. God desperately wants a  relationship with you.
2. Whatever you believe God’s desires for you to be – they must line up with scripture.

If you will consider what God would want 2015 to look like for you and do so with these two thoughts in mind, I think you will arrive at some healthy goals for 2015.

Goals are important.  When we aim for nothing we normally hit it.  So give it some thought.

God does love you and desires your fulfillment – just make sure you are looking for that fulfillment in the right place.

Be blessed!

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Here we are at the onset of a brand new year.  Call it sentimental, idealistic or simply psychological – but for me, standing here refreshes my soul and ignites my passion.  I see opportunity and adventure that comes with a new year.

Some may say, “January 1st is just another day like any other.”  I suppose that is true from a literal sense.  But for me, there is something exciting – even liberating and life-giving – about starting a new segment in time, a new leg of the journey.

Sometimes it might seem safer to hold on to the past and try and maintain what we see as comfortable.  Don’t get me wrong.  We need to remember the past – to reflect on it, celebrate it and learn from it.  The path before us is often harder to see if we don’t know where we are and where we have been.  So we look to the past as a reference, but we cannot dwell there.  Life demands that we press forward.

Isaiah 43:18-19 says this:

The writer reminds us that we cannot get lost in the past, we have to keep looking forward. God is doing something new. The tone of the author is that we need to pay attention so that we don’t miss it.  Eugene Peterson in The Message translates this idea like this: “Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?” He may have taken a bit of liberty with the text but I think he nailed the intent.  

It is so easy to get wrapped up in the past and take a passive attitude toward the future – as if the future is what is going to happen to us.  The writer of Isaiah reminds us that God is at work doing something fresh and new and we need to pay attention so that we can be actively involved in what is happening.

2015 is here.  We stand on the shore of a vast sea of possibility.  God is already at work creating something new and we are invited to join in.  Don’t miss it because you are too busy looking at the past.

How will you approach this opportunity?

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We are just a week away from one of the biggest holidays and celebrations on the American calendar – in fact, on most calendars around the world.  It is a day we celebrate giving.  A day we celebrate hope.  A day we gather with family.

But is it a day we truly celebrate the coming of God to earth?

We have set this day aside on our calendars to create space in our busy lives to stop and remember but I wonder if we – if I – really grasp the significance of it all?

Luke tells the story of Jesus’ birth.  The very son of God was born to a lowly family, in a scandalous manner and in deplorable conditions.  He was not born in a palace in plush conditions.  His first bed was a feed trough.

As I have meditated on this fact, I have asked the question, “Why did the son of God come to earth in this way?”  And why was his birth first announced to a bunch of social outcasts like shepherds instead of being proclaimed to the religious leaders of the time?

What I believe is that the son of God came to earth in this manner to let us know that he is accessible.  Regardless of how messed up I am – how sinful and selfish – he is still offering salvation to even me.  I don’t have to achieve some level of holiness in order to “qualify” for his grace.

Nor do you!

Praise God that he has made a way for us to relate!

Thank you Jesus for loving us that much!

Brian

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