Living What You Believe

Politics aside, I believe as Christians we should be intrigued not by Gov. Sarah Palin, VP nominee as much as Sarah Palin, child of God. You may agree or disagree with her political and even religious views but you can't deny the lengths that she goes to in living out her faith.

When I speak of Gov. Palin living out her faith, I am referring to her son, Trig. It's one thing to say that you believe in the sanctity of life, but it's another when you actually have that choice to make. You can read about it here.

But this post is not specifically about abortion; it's about more than that. It's about living a life worthy of the calling God has for us. Believe it or not, the call to be a child of God, a fellow heir with Jesus is a lofty one and we need to live in a manner that is consistent with that, especially when things are tough!

For the vast majority of us, our everyday "tough" choices may not seem like such in the grand scheme of things. We struggle with things like, who we hang out with, what we watch on TV or movies, what music we listen to, or for a vast minority, sharing the Gospel with a friend or relative.

But really, the tough choice is this: will you deny yourself, carry your cross, and follow Jesus? Will you be obedient even if it is expensive, uncomfortable, or even downright painful? If Jesus is truly your Lord you will. Someone once said, "Jesus is not Lord at all if he is not Lord of all."

No matter how difficult the decisions that we face may be, as God's children we show what we believe by our actions. When the "rubber meets the road" what do your actions say about what you believe about God and his ways?

Marvelous Light

One of my favorite "new" praise and worship songs is Marvelous Light by Charlie Hall. Here are the lyrics (and you can hear it here):

I once was fatherless

A stranger with no hope

Your kindness wakened me

Wakened me from my sleep now

Your love it beckons deeply

A call to come and die

By grace now I will come

And take this life take Your life

Sin has lost its power

Death has lost its sting

From the grave You've risen

Victoriously

Into marvelous light I'm running

Out of darkness out of shame

Through the cross You are the Truth

You are the Life You are the Way

My dead heart now is beating

My deepest stains now clean

Your breath fills up my lungs

Now I'm free now I'm free

My dead heart now is beating

My deepest stains now clean

Your breath fills up my lungs

Now I'm free now I'm free

There's no more shame

No more shame

And now we show the world

Christ in you

Lift my hands and spin around

See the light that I have found

Oh the marvelous light marvelous light

It's Christ in you

Lift my hands and spin around

See the light that I have found

Oh the marvelous light marvelous light

No matter what your situation, you can always go to the marvelous light of Christ!

The Moral Decline of Society

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." - Matthew 5:14-16

Although many people want to remove God from our nation's public consciousness, God and his ways do have a positive influence on society. The Barna Institute just released some findings from a survey of over 1000 adults taken in May 2008. You can read the findings here.

Don't give up, fight the good fight, and know that we can make the world a better place.

The "Agony" of Defeat, Part III

I don't think she's praying but it would be cool if she were...

Last Wednesday morning I read an email that advertised a church function with a guest speaker who had won an Olympic gold medal. I didn't know who that person was, and frankly didn't care. I was reminded that after a few years, the Olympic glory fades and the vast majority of champions fall off into obscurity.

People in the secular world might deem Jones' loss as catastrophic, but all Christians know that is not the case. We know that there is something greater than earthly fame, fortune, and accomplishment. When the Disciples marveled that even the demons are subject to them as they spoke in Jesus' name, Jesus told them to rejoice rather that their names are written in heaven.

As believers we have a prize which will never tarnish or fade - life in heaven. Win or lose, we know that the things of earth are all temporary and will never bring us true joy. That, my friend, can only come from having Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. So take a moment and rejoice that no matter what life throws at you, you can always have joy because your name is written in the book of life.

The "Agony" of Defeat, Part II

Notice the downed hurdle in lane 4

Jones once said she picked running hurdles because of it's parallels to life - that there will always be obstacles to overcome. Ironically, it is one of those obstacles on the track that may end up becoming an obstacle in her life.

But one of the amazing things I observed about Jones' loss was that even though she stumbled, she did not come in last. That means that even though she made a mistake, she kept running and finished as strongly as she could.

The Christian life is the same. There will always be obstacles. Stumbling over one of them is more a matter of "when" than "if." But the cool thing about God is that no matter how badly we have stumbled in the past, with God we always have a chance to finish strongly.

Maybe you are going through some difficulty now. You have the choice: give up or finish strongly. What will you choose?

The "Agony" of Defeat, Part I

Thinking About "What Could've Been."

Last Tuesday night my heart ached for Lolo Jones, the heavily favored 100 meter hurdler from the U.S. In the final, her foot got caught on the second to the last hurdle, causing her to stumble just enough to break her rhythm and lose momentum. And just like that she went from first to seventh.

She was the picture of class and poise as she was interviewed on camera after her loss. I remember wondering if she was a Christian because she carried herself so graciously. But after she left the interview, a cameraman got a shot of her before she made her way to the locker room. She was leaning against a wall and crying. The shot was especially sad because she was alone, with no one else in sight.

I remember thinking that these are the moments that she needed a hug; someone to just be with her and share her grief.

I could almost feel her sense of despair, training for years just for this moment, only to come up short. But then I remembered: as Christians, we are never alone. What a blessing from God, to know that even in the darkest of times, as Jones experienced, we can receive comfort from the "God of all comfort."

God loves you! Take some time today to thank and praise God who saved you and will always be with you, through good times and bad.

Lessons from a Bag of Onion Rings, Part II

Moments before the feeding frenzy

As you ponder the truth of the last post, there is another lesson that can be gleaned from this "bag 'o grease" as some call it, which is that in order to best share our God with others, we need to all "taste and see that the Lord is good" first.

I have to admit that I loved those rings! Even now my mouth waters just thinking of having a plate of those hot and crispy deep fried rings of joy in front of me. Because of this, it was so easy to tell others about them.

How great is God to you right now? Of course the Sunday School answer is, "Really great. The greatest thing that is in my life."

But really, is God greater than a bag of onion rings to you? Do you look for opportunities to talk about his goodness with others as you would your favorite food? The better God "tastes" to you, the easier it will be to obey his commands to be his witnesses . Take some time to "taste and see that the Lord is good" and sharing with others will come naturally.