Water day and God is good

So our amazing college and career group got the opportunity to go to Parkcrest community and have a water day for the kids. It was a blast and the opportunity to serve those kids was such a humbling experience. For me it just reconfirmed things the Lord has been telling me for a little while now regarding the ministry's he wants me to focus on growing in. He’s put the burden on my heart to start preparing to be an amazing dad and an amazing husband and I can actually see situations He places in my life to mold me in these areas. From scripture that lights my heart on fire to a silly water day with a bunch of kids running around and wanting piggyback rides. It’s just amazing how blessed I am to have people in my life that build me up and help put me in the right direction. We were talking on Wednesday night at college and career it really hit me that my walk with the Lord may be the strongest it’s ever been and I’m more in love with the Lord than I’ve ever been and a big part of that is because of our group. The people that God has put into our college and career group are honestly some of the most talented and kind hearted people I’ve met. The fellowship we have in that group is really second to none and it’s amazing how compatible we all seem to be personality wise. I honestly can’t wait to see what God has in store for this group because never have I felt more part of a group then with these people. God is good.

With great power....

"Wives, be subject to your husbands, as to the Lord.

For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. He Himself being the Savior of the body.

But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

Husbands love your wives just as Christ also loved the church

and gave Himself up for her,

so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.

So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies.

He who loves his own wife loves himself;

for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church

because we are members of His body.

For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife and the two shall be one flesh.

This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband."

Ephesians 5:22-25

It's amazing to me the imagery that God uses in this verse. God has put it on my heart to start looking more intently on what a Godly Marriage looks like. It goes to the idea that we as Christian's need to be preparing for things that are in the future for us and at this time I clearly can tell He has put this on my heart for a reason. Not that I'm going to get married anytime soon or anything like that but, it gives us as Christians a better view of who God is and this verse I think does that better than most. I know one day, God willing, is calling me to be the best husband I can be and ,God willing, the best father I can be.

I love this passage of scripture. I hear so many people that use some of these scriptures to make sexist comments in a joking manner and it honestly makes me sick. I know, it's just a joke, but I don't see these kind of things as something to be joked about. The first part is a command and He says "Love your wife just as Christ loved the church."

Christ came to this world and was beaten, spit on, nailed to a cross, and laid down His life for others because of His love for us. This is the love that we as men are called to have for the wives in our life or will be. Not when we feel like it, not when she is being easy to love, not when everything else in my life is going good but all the time. This is something that NEEDS to be a constant thing and a daily thing as men, dying to ourselves and our own needs for that other person.

In this specific passage of scripture it's so clear to me that as a man I'm going to have an incredible responsibility in my life if I get married. God has put an incredible burden on the man basically saying "Hey you're in charge of this". It's an incredible amount of pressure and power in our lives as men to be a reflection of Christ's relationship with the church. We are called to show the world His relationship with the church through the idea of marriage! It's a picture of something greater and I'm called to represent that? That's a scary thing! See in the 21st century marriage is just another thing but what marriage is supposed to do in these verses of ch.5 is to represent to the world Him and the church becoming one!

My love for the other person is supposed to point to something bigger than just two people living the rest of their lives together, it's to paint a vivid picture of Christ's love for the church!

Marriage can't be an answer to the question "How can I be happy" because happiness isn't the design of marriage.

It's called be the most beautiful picture of surrender that people have ever seen!

Excited about Fear

We are starting a new series at youth group and I can't wait to see what God is going to do through it. Francis Chan came out with a new series called Basic: Who is God? and it's powerful stuff. This week and next week our group is going to be getting into a topic that I can honestly say I've not given much thought to.

What is it to Fear God?

This isn't a thought that I tend to drift to. I've been thinking about God's love a lot recently and I've even thought about just how big He is compared to my vision of Him but fearing Him? Fear is a different picture of the same God but it's just as important as our view of His love. We have to really get both to start to begin to understand His character. I love the passage in Revelation 1:9-17 because it really shows you an accurate example of the Lord's power and strength. Think about who is bowing down in amazed fear and awe at the feet of Jesus. We're talking about John, one of the disciples that Jesus had a relationship with and discipled. Jesus knew him and more importantly for this passage, he knew Jesus. This same John sees Jesus in His power and boom falls to his face. When you read this passage it's almost like John is trying to search for words to describe just how great what he's seeing is. Obviously he is using things he's seen while trying to relate it to the reader but it still seems like John just scratches the surface of how magnificent He is.

What's really amazing is that God doesn't leave us “on our face” but rather says "Oh no, don't be afraid." He almost gets us to the point of fear just to be "Ok, now that you have seen that part of Me, let Me reveal another part of Myself." which makes sense when you read the first part of Psalms 111:10. It says "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.". The psalmist is saying if you truly want to know who God is it has to begin with an acknowledgement of how powerful and amazing He is! It's an essential part of His character and who He is! To me it's comforting to know the power of my God. To know who I have on my side after seeing His power excites me and drives me to live a holy life that Peter talks about in 1^st Peter 1:13-16.

Where oh where?

Man I tell ya I can remember being in GCBI and reading a book on marriage. I distinctly remember a couple people, just joking of course, hassling me over and over about it. "You're not married why are you reading a book on it?". Great point, I must admit, I'm not married and I completely understand the quizzical (great word by the way) expressions I got from people. I've seen a lot growing up in the household I did in regards to marriage and how when it's really done in the wrong way it can physically and emotionally destroy people. I've seen, first hand, the hurt it can cause and the pain that remains with people to this day. The scars a broken marriage can leave are ones that I still struggle with. The ripping apart of two people who became one is painful to say the least and to me marriage is a serious thing. I step back and look at my life and I think to myself, "man I should hate marriage." Everything about it should rub me the wrong way, however when I think of marriage I have this joy that over flows.

Marriage is something God has put on my heart since the beginning of GCBI and it's still as heavy as ever laying in the same spot. One day, God willing I will become a husband and that junk pumps me up like crazy. I've even come to terms with the fact that it may never happen for me, as hard as that might be. however, I do think the Lord's plan for me includes marriage. It's something I've had to bring to God over and over again asking Him in humble prayer " Are these desires for marriage my feelings or your will Lord?".

I love working with kids. It's a passion of mine and I'm so incredibly blessed to work with them on a daily basis. He's blessed me so much just by having Bible Fellowship's Youth Group in my life that words can't do justice how good I truly know He is. With that being said I know that's not all He would have me do with my life. Marriage is one of the biggest ministry's a believer can have and I feel that call. Again I say I can't explain it to you and it feels much like I bet Paul felt in Ephesians 3:14-19. God's call in my life right now, is to be getting prepared for the husband I want to be. I've had so many people tell me "You have no idea how tough and difficult it is. Experience is a completely different thing for marriage." I understand that and I'm sure they are very right but I want to do everything possible I can do to be a Godly husband before I am one. I want to do everything I possibly can to be a Godly father before I am one.

Which brings me to the scriptures I've been going over and over.

"An excellent wife who can find? For her worth is far above jewels."

Proverbs 31:10

Proverbs 31 is a piece of scripture that most everyone has read and pointed to during some point in their life. What a power scripture! I love the way this verse starts as the writer begins with a great question. Who the heck can find an excellent wife?? As great the question is I think the writer is making a point with this statement. When you think about it the verse has the idea that this guy has been looking for a wife and his conclusion? It's not easy.

This verse emphasizes how much a wife should be worth in the eyes of a husband. The exact worth? Immeasurable!

Think about a jewel for a minute, now I acknowledge this may not be what the writer was going for but bare with me. When I think of jewels I think of things that you have to seek out. Things that are hard to find and are worth something. My mind can't help but travel to the parable Jesus talks about in Matthew 13:45-46. Jesus is talking about the kingdom of heaven in these verses but it talks about a pearl of great value. Something that's worth so much to you that you'd be willing to give up any material thing in this world to have. Because it's worth it. Nothing can compare to it.

Colossian Ch.1:1-12 Notes

Chapter 1:1-8

Got the Gospel! You’re excited, you’re spreading the word! It’s not just sitting there doing nothing but it’s producing fruit and growing in your lives.

Because of this….

Chapter 1:9-12

We are praying that you understand God’s desires for your life!

-Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord! His desire for my and your life is to be Holy! You’re not the same people anymore your lives are to be distinct in all areas! We need to pray for God’s guidance in all areas of our lives to be distinct! We’re here to please Him in all aspect of our lives! Every area needs to have his mark on it in your life. Nothing is yours anymore it’s His! When you’re walking this way your life is going to be used for His glory and it’s going to show. It’s not just words but it’s going to show in your life.

1 Peter 1:13-16

-You’re going to grow in your relationship with Him. You’re not going to be able to get enough of Him! You’re going to pray more and read His word more it’s the idea in 1^st John 3:1-2 where John says we are His children and if that’s the case we’re going to look more and more like our Father as we grow up in our faith!

- When you’re faced with tough times or trails that James says we are all going to face you’re going to be strengthened by His power. The more you understand who God is you’re going to realize like David did that man when my focus is on God I can take on Giants with no problem because I have God on my side and He knows what He’s doing and I can remain under pressure not because of my power but because of His power. When we’re not walking and growing that’s when we forget the strength and power of the living God! When I’m not in His word or praying to Him or walking as I’m called then I don’t understand how much power is on my side because my eyes aren’t on Him as Hebrews 12:2 but they’re on my problem!

- When we walking with God and growing in our knowledge of Him and relying on His power in our trails that’s when we as Christians can cry out at all times no matter what the situation with joy and give thanks to God for what He’s done in our lives making it possible to have a relationship with Him as did the saint’s!!

Consume my soul with a longing for your laws.

¹⁸ Open my eyes that I may see
wonderful things in your law.
¹⁹ I am a stranger on earth;
do not hide your commands from me.
²⁰ My soul is consumed with longing
for your laws at all times.

Psalm 119:18-20

Isn't it funny to read verse 20? I mean Francis Chan pointed this out and it's so true in the lives of most of us as Christians. I don't treat his laws as something I long for, who longs for rules? In America we long for freedom we don't long for anyone to tell us what to do. It's funny because the way most Christians, I included, look at Christ is that he's an anchor we are carrying around. He keeps us from doing things that we want. He's keeping us down.

What is wrong with us?

This is the Lord who saved us from ourselves and whose love were told in Ephesians 3:19 surpasses my greatest ideas or thoughts or imagination.

He sent his Son to die for us which gives us a small picture into how much love we have in the Father but not even that completely encompasses his love for us!

The idea that John 15:9 says he loves me as much as He loves His Son is mind blowing to me and scripture says even at the amount He loves us more.

What an amazing love we have in the Father in which these rules that we are called to long for, we really reject and treat as if it's some kind of burden. His rules are their because He knows what is best for his children.

When we look at his commandments and live by them we can see, hey that actually works out for the better of me!

Help this be my prayer Lord.

Help me look at situations with your perspective.

Help me not treat you like an anchor but rather the amazing redeemer that you are that I can run to saying I want you more than anything else this world has to offer because I've seen your love and it's better than anything this world has to offer.

Holy!

"As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in your behavior; because it is written, "You shall be Holy for I Am Holy" "

1st Peter 1:14-16

This for me is such a powerful verse in so many ways to me. The Lord has called His people to be Holy and that word Holy simply means distinct. The Lord desires for his followers his disciples to be DISTINCT. The Father isn't hiding anything from us. He's not making it super complex so none of us small human beings can't understand what He wants.

There is however a difference between something being obvious and something being easy isn't there? There's actually a big difference.

So let's look at this how does a person actually be Holy or distinct for God?

How do I stand out for the Lord?

I think it is much more than listing everything the world does and doing the opposite of it which seems to be the idea going around more and more from what I've seen.

Rather I think Peter answers the question of how we should be distinct in the verse above the verses I already highlighted.

"Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

1st Peter 1:13

Without getting overly complex and breaking down every word God's desire for us is simply to be busy doing what He's called us to do! Look at the words! Prepare, keep, fix! These are things were are called to be doing. We need to be actively doing the Lord's work and sharing his love with the people I meet.

When I am actively doing what the Lord has called me to do I am being distinct!

When I'm not choosing to be lazy and I choose to prepare my mind and keep sober in spirit and fix my hope completely on what He has done for me I will not be able to look like everything around me! It will be impossibly not to stick out!

When we are actually living as the church that's when people will take notice. When we actually are the body and are meeting needs for people rather than meeting the needs of ourselves we are distinct.

When we are so overwhelmed by the Love that God has lavished on us that our perspectives change from what can I do for Me Me Me to what can I do for You You You Lord that's when the church and it's body will be distinct.