Where Are The Voices That Teach Us

Ezekiel 44:23
They will teach my people the difference between what is holy and what is common, what is ceremonially clean and what is unclean.

Seems to me today that there aren't any voices (or at least I am not aware of any) that are speaking about what is holy in our society and what isn't. We seem to have adopted a "don't ask, don't tell" attitude about what is and isn't acceptable for those who are believers. You won't hear a lot of messages about purity and holiness. Why? Because it infringes upon our liberty. The one statement that I hold to is one that I heard years ago. Liberty and freedom does not give you the right to do what you want to do.......if affords you the opportunity to do what you ought to do.

Could it be that the reason we don't want to call sin what it actually is, is because we harbor it in our lives? Maybe our sin is the kind that we keep down in the darkness of our soul, and wish for no one to know about it. Maybe the reason we don't want to talk about it is because we aren't real sure about our own salvation. Believe you me, I have lived in this place. The greatest day of my life was when the Holy Spirit assured me of my salvation, but at the same time required me to live in a different manner. Separate myself from that which was unpleasing to my Father. Run from lust of any type. side note: lust doesn't simply fall under a sexual category- it can be attached to material things, or ever relationships. 

I guess you could say that the greatest day of my life was when I discovered the real meaning of grace and what it was given to me for. I grew up under the impression that grace was the unmerited favor of God. God giving me something I did not deserve. But that can't possibly be the definition of grace., because we read in Galatians about "falling away" from grace. How can you possibly fall away from something that was given to you in the first place not based on merit or you having earned it. No----grace is a force-----grace is a power----grace truly is God's gift to us.

So here is the definition of grace that I learned many years ago:
Grace is the empowering presence of God in my life that enables me to be who God created me to be.....and to do what God has called me to do.

We somehow have the idea that because we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us we can take the attitudes and behaviors of the world and turn then into things that are Holy before God. I don't believe that is the way it works.

Think on this today-----Are there things in your life that are displeasing to God? Do you try and justify your actions under the guise of God's grace?
Seek that which is holy and cut off that which isn't.
Matthew 6:33 tells us to seek first (above all things) the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. We have been called to search for (not that it is hidden all that well) the rule and reign of God in our lives. I think this would fall under the category of turning will and life over to the care of God as we understood Him to be. That, my friend, is the beginning of life.

God on you...........
mb

New Thoughts....Old Brain

Isaiah 55:8
(God speaking) --- "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the Lord.
And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

My thoughts....
Don't know how much room is in my brain for new thoughts and new ideas. I know for them to squeeze into my gray matter there is a battle. You see, I've collected almost 65 years of of memories....information.....and knowledge.
Some good..
Some useful....
Some just taking up space and is useless as a screen door on a submarine.
My wife use to tell me that I was trivia machine. I would not disagree.
By the way did you know that R. Buckminster Fuller created the first geodesic dome?
See what I mean? Good to know if you're playing board games, or happen to be on Jeopardy.

Any way, even when it comes to learning and understanding God in ways I never dreamed of, those thoughts have to muddle through all that "thought" baggage.
Such things as being able to make an "F" chord on a guitar in multiple ways.....
Not to mention all the memories that are floating around in my brain....
Sputnik.....
Alan Shepherd.....
Apollo 1 and the three men who died....
First time hearing the Beatles....
Weekly Reader we got every Friday in school....
The moment of my salvation and baptism....
The memories and knowledge all crowd out new things that want to lodge and take their rightful place. To be honest with you, I want them there, especially when it comes to knowing and experiencing God.

I don't ever want to be one of those people who proudly proclaim (in their relationship with God)...."We ain't never done it that way before". Which is tantamount to saying "We ain't going to change." Well, I want to change if God is leading. I don't want to drive my tent pegs down on what I know, thinking that I have the complete 22 volume set of "I KNOW GO" books. 

I want to be amazed daily...
I want to say "WOW!! I didn't know that."
I want to have that child like faith when it comes to following Jesus.
I think maybe this is the heart that God desires of all of us.
How could I, His creation, ever be apathetic and complacent when it comes to walking with Jesus daily? 

To me the picture above of Three Stooges Curly is what's wrong with religion. The idea that we, humanity, can capture God and dissect Him to study. Why you may as well try and catch the ocean to hold it in your hand. Not going to happen.
We create new ways of how we think God rules....and how we can slip in back of the curtain (like in the Wizard Of Oz) to see how the Wizard does his work. Well, there's no curtain, but there is a cross. And the cross is what you must embrace. The cross is the exclamation point on what real relationship is all about. God reveals to us what God wants to reveal. We can't force His hand or coerce Him into shelling out what we believe are His mysteries and secrets. I want to close with a scripture that pretty much sums up how I view my part in my relationship with God.

I Corinthians 13:12
.........All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely. (When I stand face to face with Jesus) just as God now knows me completely.

God on you....
mbb

It's All About The Worship

Psalm 150:
Praise God in His sanctuary. Praise Him in His might heaven!
Praise Him for His mighty works; praise His unequaled greatness!
Praise Him with a blast of His rams' horn;
Praise Him with the lyre and harp!
Praise Him with the tambourine and dancing;
Praise Him with strings and flutes!
Praise Him with a clash of cymbals.
Praise Him with loud clanging cymbals.
Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

I love Psalm 150! Every verse begins the same......"Praise"!
Every verse contains the focus of our praise....."God"!
And every verse is directed to all of humanity that we have the privilege and honor of giving back to One who has given us life.
The funny part in this entire chapter is the very last verse......."Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord!"

Everything that has breath....
Not everything that has been saved or born again....
Not everyone that belongs to a church or a particular denomination....
But everything and everyone that draws breath!
We are to be a praise machine....
It's more than music....
It's more than dance....
Praise to God is a way of life.
Our very lives are praise to Him (or at least they should be).
Everything we do is praise unto God....
Unfortunately, in my case, some of the praise may not be what He wants from me....
Nevertheless.....It's all about learning to praise and be thankful.

Tonight, at Gadsden Vineyard Church, we will be hosting a special evening of praise.
Nori, Barbie and Cynthia Kelley will be leading us, as we gather to have a Psalm 150 evening.
The Kelley's have been a part of the church for more years than I care to count.
Their music and heart's to worship have taken them around the world.
Japan, where they lived for a number of years helping church plants and recording worship music for the church there.
Russia where they recorded the first every worship CD for the Russian VIneyards.
Ireland....
England...
And on and on and on....
Yet each year, they return like the swallows to Capistrano. In this case, they come home to see old friends and to give a call to come and worship.

SO this evening, we will gather downtown at the Vineyard (7 p.m.) and have a time of corporate worship.
Tomorrow night, Vineyard ReCovery will meet (7 p.m.). The Kelly's will be leading worship as we continue on in our teaching from Luke chapter 5.
Come on out and join us!

Almost forgot...
They will be leading worship on Sunday Morning (10:30 a.m.) also at the Vineyard.
Hope to see you soon...

God on you...
mbb

I Love

Don't ask me why, but this morning when I woke up, I had Tom T. Hall's song..."I love" stuck in my head. It's more than stuck in my brain, I think it paid a month's rent and has taken up residence. If you're not familiar with Mr. Hall's song, it is a simple one. He goes down a list of things that he loves. Baby ducks, old pick up trucks....onions....etc.etc.

I think maybe we let life drive us, to the point that we miss the small blessing and gifts the Father gives us each day. So I thought I'd do my own list of "I love" things. Here goes.

I love the way the Holy Spirit can make a Scripture jump off the page at you. You may have read it a million times, but on this particular day, you see something that you've never seen before.

I love a good Southern vegetable supper. Peas, Cream corn, Cole slaw, A slice of onion and some corn bread. Maybe a slice of tomato to balance it all out. Wash it down with a glass of iced tea. If that don't crank your tractor, then your battery's dead.

I love to play board games with my family. It's not so much the game or the competition as it is what is said during the time we are playing. I watched my two sons (ages 42 and 39) turn into two little boy's squabbling over whether they rolled a 7 or was it a 5.  The squabbling was really more comic relief than anything.  

I love the sound an "E" chord makes when it is played on a really good guitar. Don't know why, but "E" has always been my chord of choice. Of course I could spiritualize it and say that since "E" is the 5th chord in the majors, it is the GRACE chord (5 being the number for grace). But I won't go there. I just like the sound of it.

I love coffee from my percolator. We don't have a Keurig, or a Mr. Coffee (do they even make those any more? And why isn't there a Mrs. Coffee?) Old school coffee, or as Todd Bagley and Wayne Wimppee so aptly put it...."Cowboy Coffeee". 

I love it when I am aware of the presence of God during a worship set on Saturday night.
That moment when all your problems seem to fade in a haze and you are suddenly free of all the junk that fills your mind. That moment when the words the song you are singing become life and truth to you. When nothing else matters and it is just you and God. I wish I could live in that place.

I love Christmas eve. To me the 24th of December is the quietest night of the year. You can go outside shortly before midnight and it's like the world has stopped. Almost as if God Himself has stood up and commanded silence in honor of the birth of His Son, Jesus.

I love to meet with those who have overcome their addiction. Who have given themselves to God and a program of recovery. To see the joy and happiness on their face as they share with you the victory that has become a part of their life. That is payday to me.

I love a good western. Not one that is in color but the old black and white kind. The kind where good wins every time. When you could tell the bad guys by the "Boston Blackie" mustache they wore. I feel for you if you don't know who Boston Blackie was. That means you can't join the Old Codger Club. 

I love to see someone have the light bulb come on, and realize that Jesus is their only hope in this life. To see conviction come upon a heart that has been locked in darkness, and be freed from that prison to be transferred into the marvelous light of God's Kingdom. Now that's some good stuff right there.

I love a good Southern accent. I mean the kind you find in South Alabama, below Montgomery. When the word "gorgeous" is stretched out to a million syllables, and it sounds something like this...."Why that is simply Go-a-juss". Nothing sweeter than the sound of speech that has been born and cultured here in the South. So what is it that drives me crazy? A movie where you have someone trying to imitate the Southern Accent.

Lastly in my "I love" list....
Is the love I have for John 3:16

(Amplified Bible)
For God so greatly love and dearly prized the world that He (even) gave up His only begotten (Unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.

I guess you could say that I truly want to love the things that God loves.
I want to learn how to love like God loves.
God on you...
mbb

Long Strange Trip

Luke 9:23
"If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way to be my follower, you must give up your CROSS daily, and follow me.

Today is an anniversary of sorts....
Nineteen years ago today, a good friend of mine gave me some advice that I thought I understood. Turns out that I didn't.
What was this gem of knowledge?
Simple....
"Your life is no longer your own!"

Somehow we know this by reading the passage in Luke.
All the "denying of self" and taking up "crosses".....
With the sole purpose of following Jesus...
We have a head understanding of such.
But the real rub comes as the days roll on and the newness of the relationship begins to dull a bit. The desire to be in control begins to rise back up in your mind. Notice I said "In your mind" and not in your heart.

Our minds and thoughts that come pouring out like spilled milk, tend to want to control the daily movement and decisions.
But truly when you come to Jesus for salvation and you begin this journey, your life is no longer your own. All of us, no matter what we may thing, have been bought and purchased with a price. Here again, I don't think we really stop to think about the price. God gave everything to ransom us. He gave His Son. I don't care who you are, if that doesn't undo you,you better check your fuel gauge. You might be running on empty.

To get in touch with  this truth is monumental.
God gave up the best He had....
God placed Jesus right down in the middle of a sinful, dark world.
His purpose was to move through humanity, teaching and healing,but with a compass that was pointed to a hill outside of Jerusalem.
I know....
Some may be thinking "Well, He's God! He could go through anything."
This is true, but don't tell me that what took place on that cross was nothing more than a cosmic Disneyland Ride. And to top that off, God the Father had to watch Jesus the Son be beaten, tortured, and finally nailed to a Roman Cross.
But worse than all the physical anger and torture poured out on Jesus is the moment at which the Father had to direct His full wrath and fury at His own Son.
Jesus had the sins of the world laid upon Him.
He embraced them and took them to Himself.
He became ground zero for sin/payment that was meant for you and me.
He took our place.
So when I was told that my life was no longer my own....
I thought I understood what that meant.
Today, I have a little clearer picture and understanding.

I have seen the goodness of God when I embraced and followed this truth.
I have felt His displeasure when I sought to take back control of my life.
I couldn't see it, but God knew all too well what would happen if I did take control back. Let me tell you that I would have ended up in some spiritual ditch somewhere, surrounded by destruction.

Yes, it has been a long, strange trip....
But I would not have missed it for the world.
Every day has been an opportunity to see God work.
Every moment has been a learning time to know God a little better than I did.
Do I regret every answering God's call?
Never.

God on you...
mbb

God's Love

Are you having a bad day?
Does it feel like the world is against you?
Do you think that you have a great big ol' "Cosmic-Kick-Me" sign on your back?
Well, here's some good news for you......
And good news for your's truly.

Romans 8:35-39
Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity,or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?  

As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep (Psalm 44:22). No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death, nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow----Not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below ----indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

These words given to us under the influence of the Holy Spirit, by the Apostle Paul are more than flowery platitudes meant to bolster our confidence. They are more than some well thought out phrasing meant to keep us on track in our daily lives.....
These words are truth.
These words are hope when everything around us seems to be crumbling.
Words that convey the heart of God Himself to His creation.

These words are life to someone who has been saved, yet looks around sees that they are beset on  every side by the hardness of life.
These words are meant to lift our hearts and our vision higher than the things of this world. To "Fix" our hope on who Jesus is....and to fall upon the promises He has given to us.

I will stumble and fall.....
I will mess up......
I may even turn away and quit sometimes....
But there is a solidness to the love of God.
He is faithful even when I am not.
He is a constant in a world that is changing more rapidly than every before.
He is the true light in a world that offers false light to those who are blind.
Everything that God does is driven by His love for us.

So, instead of looking and searching for the "good" way.....
Why not seek the "God" way?
Let Him fill you up this morning.
Let His love cover you as you walk out into your day.
Let Him simply be God today.
I know as you read what I've written this morning, you may think to yourself, "I know these things....I know God loves me." But do you really? Have you been laid low by the Power of His love? Have you been undone by the magnitude of forgiveness that He brings to bear when we come to Him?
He is waiting for you to come to Him this morning.
Why not now?
Why not today?

God on you.....
mbb

Act Your Way Into A New Way Of Thinking

I have heard several teachings on what forgiveness really is.
Why we should forgive.....
The benefits of forgiving, and the dark side of unforgivness.
I've have read books that elevate forgiveness and the one who offers it to a level that is almost angelic.
Truth is, it is easy to read, listen and watch others tell you what you should do, but it is a whole other ballgame when it comes to walking out this thing call forgiveness.

I've been parked in Luke chapter six this past weekend, and Jesus really hammered me with the fact that forgiveness is not just a heart attitude, but a life action that we must take.
It's more than simple saying "I forgive you!". The words and attitude of our hearts have to translate into action and behavior.

Jesus said, "But to you who are willing to listen, I say love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you."
I love the way Jesus started those verses off.......
"To you who are willing to listen."  Those who are to the point that they are willing to do whatever it takes to be free of the bondage and prison that is unforgiveness. You turn loose of all the pain and hurt that has been heaped on you. You recognize your part that you played in this life drama.

I remember years ago a man who was going through the program at Rapha. He was full of anger, bitterness and unforgiveness because those who thought were his best friends rolled on him when they were arrested by the police. It meant that he had to spend time in prison while his so called friends got much lighter sentences. When I taught on forgiving, he wanted no part of it. You could see the unforgiveness consuming a little bit of him each day. He was a truly miserable person. Finally he came to me to talk about what he needed to do to find peace. Now the positive thing about this individual was that he truly was ready to change, and he even said that he was willing to do whatever it took to move beyond his addiction so that he could have a life. As we talked, I told him that forgiving someone was not based on how you felt toward the individual. It was all about doing the right thing. That your forgiveness was not based on whether you felt like it or not, but was simply a choice you made. You choose to forgive!

I asked him if he was serious about his recovery, and he told me he was.
I told him that for the next 21 days, every morning when he woke up, to pray and tell God that you forgive these men who turned you in to the police. I told him that he needed to tell God that he didn't really want to do this, but knew it was a part of moving forward so he was going to forgive. Guess what? Before the 21 days were up, the man's attitude and heart toward those who had wronged him changed. The bitterness left and the anger was put down. For the first time in his life he found real peace. He even came and told me that if his friends had not turned him into the police, he might never have been in a position where he chose going to treatment. In fact, he told me he'd probably be dead.

I guess it really is true what we use to teach at Rapha.
"You don't think your way into a new of acting.....You act your way into a new way of thinking."
Our minds tells us that we don't need to forgive.
But our hearts instruct us to do it anyway.
As we make the choice to "Act in accordance to forgiveness"....our minds catch up and are changed by these new behaviors that we have incorporated into our daily lives.
Now that's some good stuff right there.....
Wouldn't you say?

God on you....
mbb