Looking the Part

We hear all the time that God chooses to use people who we may not think look the part. He will use some of the strangest people to get thing done...

I'm not going to talk about that. I believe that has been done to death... But what I will talk about is even though we may not start off looking the part, by the time God is finished with us, not only do we look the part, but we have become the new definition of what the part should look like.

Everything, every job, every profession has a "look". That's why the President that gets elected is the one who usually "looks" the best on t.v. Yeah, I know you vote based on the issues, but studies have shown that people will vote for those who look more Presidential. The same thing goes for religious leaders, teachers etc... People gravitate towards what their understanding of what the part should look like.

The religious leaders in the Gospels had all of these rules about what they should/shouldn't be doing and how they should and shouldn't look. But all the while, they had stopped doing God's work. They were cheating the people, not taking care of the poor etc... They had become the idea of what a religious leader looked like and with that came their ineffectiveness with the people. How can you trust someone who looks like they look the part and doesn't carry out the primary functions of the job?

God had to change things. He had to change the way the people thought about their leaders, and by connection him. He had to change their thoughts about how the part should look. Enters John the Baptist.  When we first encounter him he is preaching in the wilderness and baptizing people in the Jordan. He looked the farthest thing from "the part". ( Matthew 3:4, Mark 1:6). He would however, become the staple as to what the part looked like. The part looked like the people. Talked in a manner in which the people understood. The part led by example. The part changed the way you thought about who or what should be in it. The part gave glory to God not to the individual. By the time all was said and done, the idea of the part had been shattered.

In changing who we surround ourselves with, we broaden our understanding of things. We start to think outside the box in what things should look like, sound like act like. We allow for dreams to become reality. We allow ourselves to start trusting in God.... By getting away from what the "part" should look like, we gain Freedom...

Are you going to start to set yourself free? 

Changing our thoughts

I wonder if Jesus told the disciples to give up everything and follow him to change their way of thinking. Think about it... They had been doing the same thing day in and day out.. How could he have expected them to fully embrace his teachings while still worried about how they looked in the eyes of the law of the land? How could the disciples be open to anything different if all they were following was what they knew? In our time we call that insanity (Doing the same thing day after day expecting the same results). Jesus had to get them away from those who could be said to have the most influence on them, strip them bare, and then build them up in a different mindset. He has to do those things with us as well. People hit ruts in their lives because their thinking never changes. Once they get it into their heads that they cannot do it, that's it and they give up. Why is it that way? I believe its because they have not changed their way of thinking. I believe its because they keep relying on what they know (think they know) without taking that leap of Faith. I doubt that we would be here discussing this if someone had not said "I want to see what this Jesus cat is really talking about". It was a pretty radical idea to walk away from being a fisherman to being a fisher of men....


What can be done to change your way of thinking? Have you gotten into a rut and don't see a way out? Do you have a dream that no matter how hard you try it won't come to pass? Maybe, it's because you haven't decided to give up everything to follow Christ. Maybe it's because you keep doing the same thing day after day after day and expecting to see something different. Maybe it's because you keep hanging around the same people day after day after day and not broadening your circle. My favorite quote as of late is "If you're the smartest person in your group, you're group is to small.".

As we continue on with the rest of the year, lets make that apart of the things we accomplish. Let's get out and do something different everyday. Let's talk to someone different each day. Let's start a new activity. Lets       go to Church with that friend who keeps inviting us yet our belief systems might be different. Lets pray for God to work wonders in our lives instead of just asking for gas money (I'm guilty of this one myself)... Let's change how we think and see where it takes us.

Whats the Purpose?

We move through life doing the same thing day in and day out. We get caught up in an unending cycle that most people never get out of. Why is that? Why do we sit back and make plans for what we want to do without thinking of the purpose behind it?   

Part of the definition of success is the accomplishment of a purpose. A purpose.. Everything comes back to a purpose. We don't take the time to realized that the purpose of us working isn't to make a lot of money, it isn't to store up material things as they all will dissolve someday... No - the purpose of us working is to better society. Our purpose is to draw people to an enlightened mind in which they are realizing that their purpose is to make society a better place. For some the enlightenment comes from believing in a higher being from believing in something bigger than themselves. For others the enlightenment comes from realizing that they are not here just to work and then to die.... 

For those of us Christen believers, our purpose in all that we do should be to bring people closer to God. I know I'm probably guilty of not doing this as much as what I should be. You can't begin to  help others realize their purpose until you know yours.... Do you know yours? Can you say 100% that you know what you purpose is? We cannot think about our purpose, we have to be still in order to learn what it is. The moments when we have the most clarity is when we are sitting still. Still - with no distractions. But how many of us can "afford" to sit still... The better question is how many of us can afford not to sit still for a few moments everyday to tap into what our purpose is.. If Jesus had to spend time talking with God about things what makes you think we don't?

"And he withdrew himself and prayed." Matthew 5:16

What are you doing?

Have you ever had a point where you just felt like... and you just can't place what the feeling is. Some people go through life never knowing what the feeling is. Some people are so in tuned with themselves that they know not only what the feeling is, but what is causing it. Sometimes, its just the fact that you're not doing what you thought you would be doing.. Sometimes it's it's knowing what you want and being told no a few times. Being told no sucks a bit and you never know if it's that you weren't ready or if they weren't ready for you. 

How do you know? How do you keep yourself from feeling like you're free falling without a parachute. How do you keep your spirits up? Well, I can give a suggestion. Feed your Spirit. When your Spirit is malnourished it manifests itself in many different forms and for everyone it's different. What is the same though is the feeling like nothing is working... Feed your Soul... Feed your Soul... Feed Your Soul.... Feed...Your....Soul....

Think I'm going to go get a "meal" myself.... Enjoy

"Man shall not live on bread alone".  Matthew 4:4

Teachings of our faith

I got wrapped into a conversation that made me question whether I understood what I believe in. It's easy to sit back and say "I believe in such and such" But its not as easy to explain your belief to someone.. Or is it?

Its one thing to have blind faith, it's another thing to truly believe in what you believe in. You know you believe in it, truly believe in something, when you can explain it. Not just the theological mumbo jumbo, but in a way in which someone can understand. You know you truly believe when you can bring it to someone on their level.

This does bring up the question: Why is it that we only question our belief when we someone is questioning it themselves?

So here's the question I pose to you: What do you believe? What teachings of your faith don't you understand? What teachings have you not taken to heart enough to be able to teach someone else?

Learning to wait - Patience

Sometimes you get started on things and it doesn't always pan out to finish them the way you started. This post has been trying to write itself for almost 2 weeks with no avail. Guess the timing wasn't right....

God puts us in situations to test where we are at that particular moment. It reminds me of my favorite story. The story is about a lump of clay that turns into a gorgeous teacup. Throughout the story, the clay complains about the heat from the stove, it complains about the fumes from the paint etc... But after going through all of that it finally looks in the mirror and sees what it has become. It's not by accident that that lump of clay became that teacup, but if the process had stopped at any point, the teacup would not have happened. This is where the patience comes in. We are positioned for where we need to be, when we need to be. Yes, our choices do play a part, but a very small part. All things are for the good of those who love the Lord. He can take a wrong choice and use it to helps us learn a lesson to get where we need to be to serve him and fulfill our purpose.

Be careful and mindful that you don't rush things. Just because you've been anointed King, doesn't mean you may not have to wait 40 years to assume the throne. The time between being assigned and fulfilling your assignment is the preparation time for your assignment. It is however, our responsibility to walk with and talk with God in the midst of it so we don't miss what it is we need to know.....

Take the time to learn all you can. Live like there's no tomorrow, and don't be afraid to hurry up and wait.

"As for me and my house we will serve the Lord" Joshua 24:15

Do you find that despite your best efforts this doesn't always happen... Life gets in the way, family gets in the way. There are many things that get in the way of us serving the Lord. We even sabotage ourselves in our serving of the Lord. Being apart of things gets in the way. While it is great to get involved in things of the Church, we forget, and lose the real reason for us being there - Worshiping, Fellowshipping, and Praising God. I have found myself as of late getting away from serving the Lord and in not serving him I find that I don't hear his voice as clear as I used to. I've wondered on a few occasions why it is that I've gotten away from him. I was listening to a Preacher's Sermon and the thing I realized was that when we think we can do it on our own we stop talking to God and rely on our own understanding of things... I have also noticed that when you are his, he makes it so that what used to work for you no longer works and you have to go back to him. Not necessarily crawling with your tail between your legs, but humbled and with the clear acknowledgment that he is Lord, ruler of all, and deserves undying loyalty from his people....

I am at the point of return.. Where are You?