The Bible Blogger

God is the master at putting us in uncomfortable situations that give us little choice but to rely completely upon him. Many, many times if we're seeking His face it's because He is preparing to move us into a situation that is better for us and will leave us in a place to be more effective for Him. Still, it is uncomfortable and it's one of those places where people can sometimes misunderstand your Christian walk.

They'll look at you and wonder why you're negative or down or depressed. You will tell them that you're happy because God is bringing you new things that you know are better for you but they don't see a reaction of a human who is truly happy. Many times they'll talk to you in a well-meaning manner to try and get you to have "perspective" on things much in the same manner that Job's friends sat around him and gave plenty of advice.

If it's a friend who's not a Christian, they'll likely pepper you with the questions about how you can say God is so good yet you're not happy about things going your way. They won't understand why a Christian can be down or depressed. They usually know the misconception that the world creates about Christians that they're always shiny, happy people professing God's goodness all day long (although to be fair many times Christians promote that false image.) They don't know how to react when they see humanity in a strong Christian.

This is a time where you can really grab the true nature of the Christian walk and model it to everyone around you. Christians need to be real in all we do and that includes the times when we're struggling in life or facing something that while good is also unsettling and challenging. When your friends...Christian or non-Christian...come to you asking about your somber or less than joyful mood in the face of good things explain all the feelings. Talk about your confusion or how while you know God has great things lined up for you that it's still hard to have no idea what's coming down the line.

Also, be real with when God moves you through different phases in life. God is always looking to improve us and change us and mold us to be more like His son. Sometimes those changes include things like breaking apart friendships that have lasted for years or perhaps career changes into a field different than where you've been for the majority of your life. Those times are difficult regardless of how good it will be for you and your family and you shouldn't pretend to be nothing but joyful if that is not your true feelings. Be real!

Of course, you need to make sure those uncomfortable feelings don't overwhelm you. Just remember regardless of what you see on the horizon...

"But, as it is written, “ What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”" - 1 Corinthians 2:9 (ESV)

The things He has planned is beyond your dreams. Go with the discomfort and enjoy the emerging blessings.

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A few weeks ago I was getting ready to give my tithe money to a particular ministry when I felt God telling me to send it to a woman in another ministry. If there's one thing that I have learned over the last two years is that when God tells me something clearly in regards to where I send the ten percent of my paycheck that always goes to ministry I should just do it without question.

Tonight I received an e-mail from the wonderful woman in this ministry and she said that when she received my PayPal notice of a donation that she asked God if there was something she needed to know. At the time, she was in Georgia to fill in for a fellow minister and as part of her performance would have picked up $500 toward her upcoming wedding.

What happened? Her fiancee came down with horrible stomach pain. Into the hospital he went. Out came the appendix. She had to leave Georgia, spend two days in the hospital with her beloved and lose out on the money she had been counting on for her wedding.

However, God then provided for her. My giving was apparently just the start of God coming through to meet the need in her life. Again, as she had done in the past, she gave it all to Him and He came through to bless her. I feel honored that God chose to use me to be just a little part of the blessing He was giving to her.

"Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.” - Jeremiah 42:6 (ESV)

I know sometimes it can be hard to take that tithe you've dedicated to the Lord and take it somewhere that seems out of the ordinary. I know there are pastors who always tell you that ten percent is to go into his or her church's coffers instead of that ten percent going to serve God's purposes here on earth. I want to encourage you to follow the Lord's leading when you feel it on your heart to give that ten percent to the struggling Christian singer or the man running the homeless shelter downtown. God's will is not always where you first think it will be....and He knows when someone is going to need that money before you or they realize that they do

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Are you willing to stand for Christ and His word or are you more interested in "getting along" with people?

I know for most people your first answer was to stay that you stand for Christ and His word but I would ask you to take a hard look at what you do and what you say then ask yourself if you're really standing for Christ. There are times when you have to make a hard, public stand for the truth of God's word even when it's unpopular and when it seems to go against what your brothers and sisters in Christ seem to be doing.

You cannot deny the truth of God's word just because you don't want to potentially cause "divisions" or "hurt feelings." Jesus wasn't concerned with hurting the feelings of someone who was clearly in the wrong when it came to His Father's word. He wasn't placing "stumbling blocks" in the paths of others when what some want to call a "stumbling block" is a solid truth of the Bible. You cannot sit idly by when someone is clearly distorting God's word because you don't want to potentially hurt "their faith." Sometimes a person's "faith" can be wrong.

Most of all, you cannot try to silence the brother or sister in Christ who is boldly standing for the Word of God in your quest to keep everyone happy. Paul, Peter and the other Disciples were not silent when the Sanhedrin told them to keep their mouth shut about Christ because it was causing divisions. They were more interested in the truth than for getting along with everyone and they didn't compromise what was said because they were being told by peers not to cause hurt.

"And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” - Acts 5:27-32 (ESV)

Who was right and who was wrong here? Were the Disciples wrong because they were putting a "stumbling block" in front of the "faith" of the Sanhedrin? They were certainly standing up boldly for the truth and they were doing it in a way that was hurting feelings and causing problems. There are times today where we as Christians need to do the same thing even if it's with other people who profess they believe in Christ as Savior.

"Speaking the truth in love" is not always being meek, timid and afraid to make a bold stand. Sometimes love is demonstrated by standing up and telling someone that they are, in fact, dead wrong on what they're trying to pass off as truth of the Gospel. If you allow someone to continue to bring false teaching into the discussions because you want to "respect their faith" then you are in effect saying that you do not believe the Word of God is really God's word.

I think we as Christians have been so conditioned over the last decade to make people happy that our first response is not to boldly stand for God's truth but rather to avoid any potential conflicts. The idea that you can only speak the truth in love by soothing words and phrases like "well, we'll have to agree to disagree on doctrine" is not only not found in Scripture but actually runs counter to Christ's teaching that we are to stand firm for God's word.

Now, let me say to be clear, I'm not saying that you should go around picking scriptural fights with people or seek out people to question their doctrines. However, when that situation finds you then you need to stand boldly for Christ's truth and not back down from the confrontation just like Paul, just like Peter, just like James, just like Stephen. You also need to avoid the temptation to attack the Christian brother or sister standing boldly for God's word just because you're not comfortable when someone else makes a bold stand for Him.

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Psalm 136 is a wonderful passage of scripture because it's an in-your-face reminder of the steadfast love of God. In fact, all 26 verses in that chapter end with "for his steadfast love endures forever." It's a great reminder when we face the kinds of days where we want to throw up our hands or run screaming from the living room. We can feel like we're at the end of our rope and that we have nowhere left to turn and God is right there waiting for you!

Steadfast love is such a foreign concept to us I guess it's understandable that we can sometimes forget God's love is right there in every circumstances. Human love comes with so many conditions that we many times don't even lean on that rock within our lives. The love of a spouse, the love of a parent, the love of a child that seems like it could go away if you make a key mistake. It's the model of love that we see throughout our lives and if God's word was only words it wouldn't be much more reliable than that of a human's love.

Fortunately, when you let God's love truly sink into your life, then you have that rock which will endure forever.

"It is he who remembered us in our low estate, for his steadfast love endures forever; and rescued us from our foes, for his steadfast love endures forever; he who gives food to all flesh, his steadfast love endures forever." - Psalm 136:23-25 (ESV)

It doesn't matter if we're at our lowest point...when we're covered in sin and feeling like we're unworthy of His time and interest...God's love is steadfast and it endures forever. His love was there before we were conceived within our mother's womb and it will be there long after our souls have joined with Him in Heaven. I know there are days when I have to look up from the muck that I've allowed myself to fall into and see the smiling face of my Father as He puts a hand out to lift me up and clean me off. He's always there.

He's there for you too.

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I'm a daily listener to the Daily Audio Bible. It's a podcast produced by Brian Hardin (husband of the great Christian vocalist Jill Parr) and right now he's been reading the book of Job. I've long been a fan of Job and there have been many times in my life (especially the last few years) where I've really felt a strong kinship with Job!

As I was reading through it tonight, a part of the last chapter jumped off the screen to me.

"And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends." - Job 42:10 (ESV)

Most of us who have been Christians for a while know the story of Job. God points out Job to Satan, Satan says that if God takes away all the blessings Job will curse Him and God allows Job to be put to the test. He loses all his possessions, he loses all his children and while he whines quite a bit Job never curses God.

At the end of the book, God confronts Job and never really tells Job why he's gone through all those trials. Essentially, God just reinforced that He is God and He can do whatever He wants to do. Job repents for questioning Him and God forgives him.

This is where things get interesting. God shares his displeasure for Job's friends who provided less than Godly advice during Job's trial. God declares that these friends need to bring sacrifices for Job to make on their behalf.

Now, most people realize that Job was given blessings long beyond what he had before the trial took place. Yet if you look at the verse, you'll see that God didn't bless Job until he had obeyed the Lord and prayed for his friends. Job had faced horrendous things...the loss of his children, painful sores, financial destruction...yet God didn't return what He had taken from Job until he had obeyed that final command to make sacrifices for his friends. It's all about obedience to God through all things and faithful pursuit of His will for you.

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As I look at Proverbs, I'm thinking that I could probably do a whole month's worth of blogs and not cover the same part of the same topic twice. As it is, we'll just have to settle for just two days in Proverbs and likely return in the future with a full Proverbs week.

Today I'm going to touch on a proverb that I've heard used in multiple situations completely out of the true context of the proverb. It's been used to try and justify people committing sins and just turning a blind eye to the sin.

"Hatred stirs up strife; but love covers all offenses." - Proverbs 10:13 (ESV)

In itself, it's a great statement about the power of hate and the power of love. There is no question that if someone truly hates someone or something that hate will likely cause problems for not only themselves but others. Actually, hate usually ends up destroying the person harboring it.

However, I've heard this verse used by people to try and justify turning a blind eye to a brother or sister who is choosing to continue in sin. They say that they shouldn't say anything because it would be stirring up strive and causing hatred to happen. While I can sympathize with not wanting to hurt someone's feelings or not wanting to put a situation in place where strive could end up happening this verse isn't telling you to keep your mouth shut.

Showing love is not by definition not causing strife. I know there were times in my past that I really wish I would have had some friends who have tried to cause some strife and help me turn away from the sin that was controlling me. The true mark of love is using that love sometimes in a tough way to cover some offenses. The result of strife could end up being love and I know that's a hard concept to grasp.

So when you're placed in a situation today or perhaps this weekend when you're faced with the choice of covering offenses with love or using that love to cause a little strife that leads to better situations for all don't be afraid to cause the strife in love.

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I really love the book of Proverbs because of the never ending wealth of practical information. It doesn't matter what the situation you may face in life there is some proverb that can help you along the way. Proverbs is also a book full of stark and stern warnings against things that in today's culture seem to be less painful or in some cases hardly sinful.

One of those sins is the sin of adultery. Today it's almost acceptable for someone to go after a married man or woman and try to entice them into a relationship. I had read a survey (which unfortunately I haven't been able to find to link here) that said almost half of college age males would have no problem going after a woman married to a friend if they really wanted them. If you look on the internet and do a search for married women and dating you'll find hundreds of pages with places to find a date and a few discussions about the ethics of dating.

What does Proverbs have to say about it?

"With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, or as a stag is caught fast till an arrow pierces its liver; as a bird rushes into a snare; he does not know that it will cost him his life." - Proverbs 7:21-23 (ESV)

Not exactly subtle.

What that passage lacks in subtlety it more than makes up for in pure truth. The simple fact of the matter is that when someone violates the vows of their marriage it causes damage that cannot be repaired. Even if you slip out of the snare and do not lose your life (or your marriage) you'll still face damages to the relationship that will never be completely repaired. Something will happen a week, a month, a year or ten years down the road that brings all the memories flooding back to both of you. It could be something that would seem innocent otherwise...a movie trailer, a book cover, a television show...will bring back memories that both of you will have to struggle to keep from affecting you all over again.

If you're in an adulterous relationship right now then you need to stop now and realize that you are likely going to face consequences. The truth of it will come out and you will have to deal with the results of your actions. Still, it's better that you deal with it and come clean rather than let this continue to put you in a place where something worse than just adultery could happen.

If you're in a place where the temptation to stray in front of you then do whatever it takes to cut off that temptation. Avoid situations with that other person and don't allow yourself to be alone with them. Stay away from inappropriate conversations and don't allow your mind to go to the places Satan wants you to allow it to go.

The best way to avoid adultery is to not let it take any root.

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OK, I don't usually get political in this blog because while I believe a Christian should be active in the political arena (as we are to render unto Caesar and in a participatory government system like the US system that means we as citizens should give time and effort) I don't like to take stands against a particular party. However, tonight I heard something on talk radio that just boiled my blood and I want to share a little bit about it.

A caller to the show was talking about how the Republican party was the "party of God" and that if you were a believing Christian you had to support the Republicans. (The host of the show happily agreed with this person.) They went on to talk about how Jesus would endorse the Republican plan for America including the cutting of taxes and people building "better lives for themselves." These lives included "stuff" like houses, cars and other perishable items.

Come on people. Do you really think Jesus would be here telling you to buy the bigger house and the faster car? That He would be telling you to go have dinner at the fancy private clubs? That it was all about building the bank account while paying lip service to the poor and needy in your own community?

Jesus would look at the rich fat cats running the Republican party and ask them why they have millions of dollars they can never spend in their lifetimes on "pleasure" items when there are people without food, clean water and shelter in their own country. He would never tell you to neglect the needs of your family but He would not be all about naming it and claiming it. He wouldn't be all about "The Secret." He would be about what He was about when He was here in the flesh...the poor, the hungry, the sick, the homeless, the hurting...those in need of a Savior. Those in need of love. Those in need of someone to come beside them and say they're here to help. He'd be in the worst part of your town helping the people you think are the worst people in your town. He'd also be asking why you're not doing it.

Don't believe me?

"When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, looking at him with sadness, said, "How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?" But he said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." And Peter said, "See, we have left our homes and followed you." And he said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life." - Luke 18:22-30 (ESV)

Look, I don't think God wants you to starve and live in shacks. (Well, for some of us that might be His call on our lives. However, it isn't going to be the calling for everyone.) He wants us to enjoy life and He will provide things to us to give us joy. Sometimes He'll take them away just to give us something better for our life. (Go read the book of Job to see that God can bless you financially and materially.) That doesn't mean we have any right as Christians to say we're owed that lifestyle and that if that lifestyle is modeled by a political party that means Jesus would support them.

Jesus has no political agenda...but His teachings can help you find one for your own life.

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I was doing some research for the blog when I made an interesting discovery. The word "hypocrite" (or a variant) is used in the Bible only five times. Considering the amount of time it seems Christians throw that word around to each other you would think that the word is more prevalent in Scripture. Think about your church and the times where someone is being confronted on a sin in their life and how quickly the issue of the person pointing out the sin is called a "hypocrite" (or worse.)

As I was reading over the five verses, this one from 1 Peter really touched me:

"So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander." - 1 Peter 2:1 (ESV)

What struck me was the complete and total impossibility of those words. There is no way that we in our flesh can accomplish everything that Peter is instructing us. If you were even to take The Big Five from that verse individually...malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, slander...you would likely have an almost impossible time eliminating them from your life.

The thing about those sins is that they can happen so casually we don't even realize we're sinning until it's already over. We'll be talking to someone about a church member and out slips something slanderous. We see our neighbor pull up to the house in their new car and the twinge of envy gets us before we can look away. Don't even get me started on the fact we're hypocrites the second we break any one God's instructions to us if we tell others they need to root out sin in their lives and not give in to sinful things.

Praise God that He's provided us with Jesus to pay the price for our sins and to keep us from living in a world of self-loathing because we cannot live up to the instructions from the disciples. I look at the passage in Peter and immediately my mind fills with things I did today that would fall under those categories. However, instead of allowing those thoughts to eat away at my spirit and drive me to depression or despair over my fallen condition I can turn to Jesus and soak in His love.

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I have a friend who lives in Jamaica. As Hurricane Dean beared down upon the island I and many other friends were keeping our friend in prayer and hoping that the Lord would keep her safe as the storm literally raged around her. It was a perfect example of having to place someone completely within the hands of God because as Jodi said she "lives on an island. Where can [she] go?"

We often talk in our churches and other times when Christians gather to talk about the Lord about trusting in Him and how we need to leave our entire lives in His hands. How often when we talk about this are we really putting our entire lives in His hands? We may put a part of our lives in His hands because we realize we can't solve a situation but we keep back parts for ourselves like our family or our job or even our income. Then we see someone like my friend who literally has their life on the line and we realize how petty we are some of the times we "trust God with our lives".

When I was praying about Jodi and thinking about her situation, I came across this verse:

"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need." - Philippians 4:11-12 (ESV)

It challenged me because I looked at Jodi's situation and asked myself how content I would be if I was sitting on an island knowing a Category 4 hurricane was heading straight for me and I couldn't get out of it's way. Would I be sitting there with a peace and calm knowing that regardless of what happens I would be taken care of by the Lord? I look at the life of Paul and the struggles that he faced every day and I know they do not measure up to the extend of the struggles in my life. Even when I'm looking at financial hardship or problems within my family I'm still not looking at the possibility of a group of people walking up and stoning me at any minute. Paul faced down a hurricane every single day yet he was "content!"

I would like to say that if I was in Paul's shoes...or Jodi's high heels...that I would be able to have the peace to just trust in the Lord. I know full well that my nature would be to try and fix the problem myself instead of praying for direction and listening to Him. If you're like me then let's pray for each other to reach the point that God can have the kind of total control that He had over Paul and that He gives us the peace that He provided to him.

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As Christ followers we want to say that we will forgive someone when they sin against us and sometimes we will go as far as to tell someone we forgive them for repetitive wrongs. Unfortunately, most of us ultimately has that point where our anger overcomes our forgiveness level. Jesus, however, didn't give us any choice in the matter when it comes to forgiveness. We're called to do it. However...and this is something many churches and Christians would like to ignore...Jesus also calls us to call out sin!

"If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him." - Luke 17:3-4 (ESV)

It's trendy today to speak the politically correct Christian line of "you have to forgive everyone." (As if politically correct and Christian actually went together if you followed those definitions in the strictest sense!) I'm not saying at all that when you say a Christian is supposed to forgive a brother or sister in Christ when they sin that you're incorrect in your statement. Where many people lose their way is by ignoring the first part of that passage when Jesus says that if your brother sins you are to rebuke him.

Too many churches and Christian leaders are training a whole generation of Christians to not rebuke a brother or sister. They lean on the "judge not" passage of scripture without taking into account the true context of it.

"“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye." - Matthew 7:1-5 (ESV)

If you only take that first sentence alone you leave the false impression that Christ was telling us to never judge anything when clearly that isn't the case. Even in the Matthew passage Christ says there is still a speck in the eye of the brother. The message is a warning against focusing so much on the sin in others that you ignore the sin within your life. That does not mean that there is not sin in the lives of your brothers and sisters in Christ and that you're not supposed to call them out on it.

I personally have no problem if someone wants to hold me to account for something in the same manner I hold other Christians to account. We answer to God, we're under constant scrutiny from the world and we're all going to sin and make mistakes. If I'm doing something that is clearly against the Word of God and a brother or sister points it out then I'm glad they do it. I'm not talking the debatable issues like music style in worship but the clear teachings of Scripture like helping the needy and forgiving those who do you wrong. I want to be held to Jesus' standard and I hold other believers to that standard as well. What's wrong with holding ourselves to the standard we're called to follow by Christ?

Obviously, we'll never reach it on this planet but that doesn't mean we're not to "press on" toward that prize. If we are to do that, we have to allow ourselves to forgive when sin occurs not only those who wrong us but also to forgive ourselves.

I think many times the person we forgive the least is ourselves. When Jesus says we're to forgive seven times (or as in Matthew 18, "seventy times seven") I think it applies to ourselves when we slip and fall and repent and turn to Him. It's a message to us as well as a teaching. If God himself will forgive us each time we fall down during our day...regardless if it's seven times, seventy seven times or four hundred ninety times...then why can't we extend that same forgiveness to others? Why can't we extend that same forgiveness....to ourselves?

Today as you sin...and you will...instead of beating yourself up over it or trying to cope with whatever defensive mechanism you find comfortable turn around and just repent and soak in God's forgiveness. That doesn't mean you won't have to deal with the consequences of what you've done but it does mean that God is not going to hold that sin against you on the Day of Judgment. I don't know about you but I'm glad He's not going to be holding my sins against me.

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I woke up this morning to a Smalltown Poets song going through my head. The song is called "Everything I Hate" and it's based directly on one of the more well known passages of scripture:

"I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin." - Romans 7:15-25 (ESV)

I've heard this passage quoted and I find that most times people talking about it fall into one of two camps. The first is someone who honestly wants to overcome a sin they find themselves repeating. The other is the group that really doesn't want to stop sinning but they think if they bring up this passage it's like a magical "get off my back" passage designed to keep accountability at a distance.

We all have some sin in our lives and I would say that all of us likely have one particular sin issue that's always jumping up and biting us. It may be "mostly" under control (kind of like being "mostly" pregnant) but now and then we'll be in a situation where it pops up and we have to take all our strength to fight it off with the Lord's help. The enemy is nothing is not tenacious when it comes to trying to get us to stumble in our walk.

Thankfully, like Paul says in the passage, we have Jesus to turn to in these situations! He paid the price for our sins and He always provides us a way of escape through Him for the sins we find ourselves fighting. We cannot do it on our own no matter how hard we try.

The second group is the one that concerns me this morning. It may be a pet peeve of mine but it really bothers me when someone tries to take a passage of scripture and use it to not just justify their sin but also continue in that sin unabated. It doesn't matter what the sin is...sexual addiction, gluttony, greed, etc...it's something that is separating you from God and you don't try to stop it because you love it more than you love the Lord.

Yes, you love that sin more than you love the Lord. Otherwise, you'd have no problem laying it down and saying God means more to you. That's the difference between the two groups I've mentioned today. The first group doesn't want it because they love God more than anything. If you're in the second group you do not love God as much.

I know that's harsh but I can't think of another way to say it. If you're out drinking until you're drunk every night and then the next morning when someone confronts you on it say "well, what I want to do I just don't do" and then go out again that night you're putting alcohol ahead of God. You must look at it that way because at the end of the day that's exactly what you're doing. Paul wasn't talking about sinning willfully but rather sins that happen because we're human and they occur before we realize it's happening.

If you have a habitual sin that you just can't shake and you want to shake it then seek help today. Talk to your pastor or a therapist or even a rehab clinic if you're in that desperate a situation. Make the first step to say "I don't want this sin in my life anymore and I need help to beat it." The first help comes from God. The second should come from your brothers and sisters in Christ rallying around you to help you. (If you don't have a church family then start looking around for one.)

It's time to stop loving the things that God hates.

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I was talking to my fiancee last night and she made the comment in passing that we live in an "instant gratification society." It's a simple yet very profound statement that when we want an answer to a problem or a question that we want the answer right away. All of us have that problem if we want to be completely honest and I'm no exception. Sometimes it's good that we can flip open the word and see something simple and profound like my fiancee's statement.

"For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise." - Hebrews 6:13-15 (ESV)

Abraham, the father of nations, had to wait many years before God provided what had been promised to him. He left his homeland to go to where God wanted him to go without real direction or any idea of what he would find when he arrived. Abraham had to face difficult trials during this waiting to be father of many nations including the potential sacrifice of his own son to the Lord.

I look at the life of Abraham and there were so many chances for him to jump ahead of the Lord's will and to take matters into his own hands yet through all the trials...especially the trial of "time"...he stuck to the directions given to him by the Lord. I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to assume that during this time Abraham would get frustrated or possibly even angry that the Lord is putting him in situations that were beyond uncomfortable and trying upon him.

Just read the story of Abraham in Genesis starting with Chapter 17. The Lord promised Abraham a son in that chapter...but the child didn't arrive until Chapter 21. Read that story and see the time difference between the promise and the delivery on the promise! And to think we get upset if we pray and don't see an answer in the first few days...

So today whatever it is you're praying over and waiting upon just give it to the Lord. His ways are not your ways and His plans are greater than anything you could possibly make up in your head or do on your own.

And I'll pray that you don't have an Abraham sized wait for your answer!

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The world does it's best to keep us in the mindset that anything is acceptable and that there really is no such thing as right & wrong. The world wants to make everything seem like a giant shade of gray. However, there is a black and white truth and there is no way to really avoid it. If we go through life trying to slide the definition of truth to fit what we want to do in our lives we are deceiving not only ourselves but denying the truth of Christ.

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." - 1 John 1:8-10 (ESV)

The reason the truth gets redefined repeatedly is because the only way to keep yourself from seeing sin is to turn around situations to make it appear everything you've done is right. If you never make a mistake, you never sin and therefore have no need for Christ's redemption and forgiveness. It's the place where Satan wants you to live because it's the easiest delusion to maintain. When you have reached the point you feel that deluded into thinking you're always right more than just ignoring God happens.

You'll start finding yourself in a place where you're passing judgment on other people all the time. It's not out of concern for them or even for a level of truth but rather because you feel yourself to be superior to everyone else. You think that the definitions you set for life are the definitions that ev