Here’s your stick. No trail mix. No clean underwear. Just a stick.

Living by faith has got to be one of the hardest lessons to learn in today’s world.

Think with me for just a second.  What does faith look like anyway?

Webster defines faith as confidence or trust in a person or thing or belief that is not based on proof.

Trust.  Believing when you can’t see the proof.  There are easy things we have faith in.  Starting the car in the morning.  That our heart will continue to pump.  We don’t ask for proof that our car will start.  Just stick the key in and go.

But we get hurt.  Jaded.  Guarded.  Cynical.  We all know folks who just trust so easily.  They trust people.  Their spouse.  Their church or pastor.  And we scoff at it.  We tell them to slow down.

Trust and Faith don’t happen so easily.

Our fear surfaces when we see other people taking leaps of faith.  And we share our fear with them.

That child-like  faith is a thing of the past.

Mountain moving faith scares us.  Bold prayers ruffle our feathers.

I have 2 friends who live in Vietnam with their 3 kids.  They are missionaries.  Heidi and Jason are walking in blind faith right now.  Where will their financial support come from?  Will they have what they need?  They sold everything and moved to Vietnam.  Think their decision was a popular one?

You’d think that a bold leap of faith like this one would be celebrated in the church.

The responses were mixed.  Some were joyful & full of faith for this family.  Others were skeptical.  Listing all of the atrocities that could happen while living in a foreign land.  This family pushed through the doubts and they were obedient to the call.  Mountain moving faith.

Logic is my faith killer.  If it doesn’t make sense then I’m not gonna do it.  I surrender my logic to God every day.  I’m tired of living through logic.

Somebody please show me the chapter & verse in the Bible where God tells us to be logical?

You can call me personally if you find it.

I read Mark 6.6-9 today.

Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. And he called his twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits. He told them to take nothing for their journey except a walking stick—no food, no traveler’s bag, no money.He allowed them to wear sandals but not to take a change of clothes.

This is a passage we often breeze through.  Read it without really looking at it.  Put yourself in the sandals of one of Jesus’ disciples.

The disciples are sent out.  No missions committee was formed.  No long term planning.  Jesus said go and that is what He meant.  The disciples could have said well, we will pray about it and get back to you.  That is the churchy way of getting out of something and still sounding spiritual about it.  Nope.  Here’s your partner, now go.

The disciples were given authority.  This is faith in action right here.  Authority over demons.  Some of you just shuddered.  You have no idea what to do with that.   Guess what?  We have the Spirit of God living in us.  The same Spirit who raised Jesus from the pit of death lives in us! (Romans 8.11)  The Spirit of God = authority.

Here’s  your stick.  No trail mix.  No clean underwear.  No gas money.  Take your walking stick and your sandals.  Go.  Faith in action!!  We make everything so complicated today.  And we cushion it with safety.  Might as well wrap ourselves in bubble wrap.  Heaven forbid we get lost!

Get your voice activated GPS on your phone (along with your app that tells you where the nearest Starbucks is – I’ve got that app, I’ll own it), enough clothes to last the winter, $200 for gas, medical supplies, and an emergency kit for the car.  Ok.  Jesus?  Ready to go.

We look around but Jesus isn’t there.

He left 3 hours ago.

All He wanted from us was a little faith.

We all have faith opportunities every day.  Most of them will be small at first.  Chances are God won’t blast you with a giant leap of faith right out of the gate.  He knows we won’t do it.  We aren’t ready.  But we can be obedient with the little things.

The little things make us ready for the bigger things.

What is your faith killer?  What are the little things you are facing in your life right now that will build your faith?  Grab your walking stick and let’s go.

 

Praying for hotdogs & God answers with Filet Mignon

God is answering prayers!  Last night there was a round of high 5s in heaven.  You didn’t know that you could high 5 an angel?  Heck yeah you can.  My guy’s group high 5′ed angels last night.

Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!  Worship the Lord with gladness.  Come before him, singing with joy.

I will be honest.  When I’ve prayed in the past, I didn’t really expect a lot to happen.  Weak faith + my control issues = not a lot of patience & not giving God any room to actually answer prayers.  And when a prayer was answered I often blew it off as coincidence.

I know that isn’t very Christian-y to say out loud – just being honest.

There  has always been a part of me that thought I had to do it myself.  Prayer was Plan B.

Last week my guy’s group decided that we’d go down to the local projects and cook hotdogs for the folks over there.  We love our talks and Bible studies – don’t get me wrong.  But we were anxious to get out and do something!  We’ve seen the power of prayer & we love being deployed.  My friend Roger loves it when we are out in the community praying and serving – so he has dubbed our missions as being deployed.  I love it.

Well you never know how a thing like this is going to work.

How many guys from the group will show up?  No clue.  This is out of the comfort zone for a lot of people!

How many people will come to a truck with a grill in the back to get a free hot dog?  No clue.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God!  He made us, and we are his.  We are his people, the sheep of his pasture

But we marked the calendar and we decided to go.  That is the only way to truly get things done.  Put it on the calendar and go.

Problem.

It’s been raining for 2 days straight.  It is nasty out.  Yesterday morning we circled the wagons.  We prayed that God would give us a window of good weather.  That prayer went up at 8 am.  We were supposed to meet at 6 pm.  The weather was not cooperating at all.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving;   go into his courts with praise.   Give thanks to him and praise his name.

The men show up at 6.  An extra bonus is that I have my son, Saul, with me.   He isn’t normally with me on Mondays, so this was a treat!  We prayed that God would pave the way.  That people would show up.  That the rain would hold off.  It was cloudy.  Would it rain?  Blow over?  Who knows.  March on!

We found a spot to park.  6 Men.  A grill in the back of a truck.  Ketchup, Mustard & Capri-sun.  A bunch of hotdogs.  And NO RAIN.

We scanned the horizon.  Dark clouds all around us.  Blue skies overhead.  And the SUN came out!!

For the Lord is good.  His unfailing love continues forever,  and his faithfulness continues to each generation

God is so good.  He hears our prayers.  Why in the world would God even care about 6 guys, a truck, and some hotdogs?  Because He loves us more than we know, that’s why.

All it takes is one kid to come get a hotdog.  Then people started coming.  From the left and from the right.  We had a little 3 year old come get a hotdog.  Adults in their 40s and 50s joined us too.  An evening in the presence of God.  We had church last night.  No, there wasn’t any formal preaching or hymn singing…but we had the chance to love on some people.

Want to hear something really cool?

As we were grilling the dogs a meat truck drives by.  That’s right.  A meat truck.  In the projects.

What’s a meat truck doing in the projects?

They stopped and talked for a bit.  I told them I’d grill them dinner if they had some steaks.  Laughter all around.  Ha ha ha.  We were still trying to figure out why a meat truck was driving around the projects at 7 pm.  Then the driver & his buddy get out.  They go to the back of the van and pull out a box.  What comes around goes around were their words as they put a box of 8 Filet Mignon on the bed of the truck.  They shook hands, grabbed a hotdog and drove off.

What. Just. Happened?

God just blessed our socks off is what just happened.

I kid you not.  We had a meat truck drive through the projects at 7pm!

I hope this is an encouragement to you.  This is more than just a story though.  This is about God answering prayers.  Not only did He hit the pause button on the rain, He brought out the sun.  Not only did God bring people out for hotdogs, He gave them Filet Mignon!  God heard our prayers last night & blessed our socks off just because He can.

Next time you pray, EXPECT God to show up.  You may pray for hotdogs and just get Filet Mignon!

Oh, the verse quoted in the blog?  Psalm 100.  We have to give God praise before, during, and after an event like last night.  This is for HIS glory, not ours.

 

reach out and touch someone

I don’t normally write on Saturday but wanted to share a quick word with you.  Give you a little nugget to think about today.  The entire post could be summed up in a question really.

     Who are you pouring your life into?

Who does your ripple effect touch?

     Who looks up to you?

Who are you leading?

Those are different ways of asking the same thing.

You matter.  What you say makes an impact.  What you do is being watched by others.  Your influence is a lot bigger than you think.  That is what those questions mean.

I’d be willing to bet that you probably don’t think too much about your influence on others.

But who you are matters.  You matter to your wife.  Your kids watch your every step.  Your Church needs you.

I had the opportunity to attend a training session with some youth leaders at our church.  We talked about our influence over the kids in our youth group.  It may be tempting to think that we are with the kids for 2 hours on Wednesday – and that 2 hours doesn’t really matter.  Not in the big scheme of things.  Considering they are at school for 30+ hours a week.  Then they are with their families for 70-ish hours per week.  2 hours a week doesn’t really seem to matter, right?

But then you start hearing some  of the stories.  What home is really like for some of the kids in our youth group.  You may think that your church or youth group isn’t affected by the world’s problems.  Think again.  Divorce, depression, peer pressure, cutting, porn, sex, pills – those are things that kids deal with – and it doesn’t matter how big your church is or how little your town.  All kids  deal with this stuff.  Race doesn’t matter.  House size doesn’t matter.  Private school doesn’t matter.  Our kids hear it and talk about it every day.

Kids come to youth group because they get loved on.  It’s that simple.  They know that for 2 hours a week they are in a safe place.  And our ripple effect does matter!  Those 2 hours on Wednesday may be what it takes to get some kid through the week until he comes back on Sunday.

What we do matters.

Our influence is felt.  If we choose to be active in our home and church, then our influence will be felt.  If we choose to take a back seat and not get involved in anything because we “don’t have time” – then our influence will be felt.

These words are meant to encourage.  If they hit a nerve – well, take it to God.  Ask Him what He wants you to do.  I know that my influence matters because I have 2 teenage boys who carry my ripple with them everywhere they go.

So who are you making an impact on today?

Giving God an ultimatum & then He answers

To look at our life from the outside you’d say we are very busy.  Some may say there is a little crazy thrown in there.  Juli and I have not lived a very quiet first month six weeks of marriage.  Married at the end of March – off to Jamaica for an incredible honeymoon – slowly transitioning from one town to another – selling one of two houses – shopping for a third – planning for a missions trip to Mexico in June – Noah’s baseball season – and we haven’t started packing yet.

I hate packing an entire house.  Moving is on the bottom of my list of things I enjoy.

What Juli and I have been called to do is be different.  We dedicated ourselves to different.  Having lived through a divorce and other very difficult seasons of life, we feel God has called us to draw a line in the sand and be different from what we’ve known in the past.

Live different.

Love different.

Communicate different.

Pray different.

Think different.

Trust different.

We are still figuring this out.  We will spend the rest of our lives figuring this out.  We know that God has been with us in the past – but we’ve also been quick to grab the reigns and try to figure life out on our own too.  So God is calling us to be different.

Several years ago I gave God an ultimatum.  I know that isn’t the most popular thing to do with the Creator of the Universe – but I was in a very broken place.  I was in a Prodigal son season of life.  I’d spent several months running from God.  Never did He leave me.  It was kind of annoying to be honest.  When you are trying to run from God and the Spirit just runs with you – it was frustrating.  But I reached a point where I threw my hands up in the air and laid it all on the table.

If this (what I’ve experienced up to this point in life) is what being a Christian is all about, then I’m done with it!  I can’t do this anymore!  I can’t go through the motions anymore! 

I was done.  I couldn’t handle the Christian games.  The churchy religion.  Always trying to do the right thing and never getting anywhere.  Then God spoke to me.  A gentle voice.

If you want something different then you’ll have to do something different.

I’ll never forget that moment.

If I wanted to experience God in a different way then I needed to approach Him in a different way.  Different prayers.  A different level of Faith.  Relating to God in ways I’d never done before because I was too scared to let go of MY GRIP on life.

But my way was getting me absolutely no where.

I knew that my life had to be different.

Bold prayers + Bold faith = being sold out.  Different. As a man. A husband.  A father.  A leader.

I don’t know what is around the corner for Juli and I.  How will all of this play out?  When will we get into a new house?  Will my house sell or will we rent it?  How will Mexico change our life?  What will God have us doing in 6 months?  A year?  5 years?

I don’t know those answers.

All I know is that I have to be different.  And God is going to get us there.

living like a fool

We all want to fit in.

I don’t normally make broad assumptions like that.  There is always an exception to the rule.

But in this case I think we all want to fit in on some level.

Getting an atta-boy from your boss.  Hearing your wife tell you that you look handsome.  Getting a ton of responses on facebook.  Someone tells you that your sermon/lecture/speech was incredible.

It feels good to fit in.  To be liked.  When people want to hang out with you.  We’ve all been there in some form or fashion.

I will admit this to you.  I have struggled with this desire to fit in and be liked for a long time.  This is a daily surrender on my part.  You may relate to some of these:  worrying what others think of you – making a decision to not do something because you’re worried what others will think of you – feeling anxious because you may have offended someone.  This is what Joyce Meyer calls a battlefield moment.  When your mind kicks into hyperdrive and you worry, overthink, and get anxious over things that you have no control of.

Living this way is exhausting!

And it is amazing what we catch ourselves doing in order to fit in or not look awkward.

But as Men of God, we are not supposed to fit in.  We aren’t supposed to live in our comfort zone.  Mark Batterson puts it this way:

Faith is the willingness to look foolish.

We all want to have strong faith.  To  be a man of God.  You wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t.  Yet a lot of us straddle the fence.  One foot in the world and one on the straight and narrow.  Just enough so that we don’t bring a lot of attention to ourselves.

Because we want to fit in.

We may go so far as to say that we want to change and follow Jesus – as long as we don’t have to look foolish.  Or do something that involves risk.

The last time I checked, I don’t get to call the shots.

But Jesus will let  me stay in a place of mediocrity if I so choose.

Or I can choose to live different.

I can overcome the fear, doubt, and control only when I surrender them.  I can live a life of faith when I am willing to look foolish.  Think about these men from the Bible and their decision to be foolish:

Noah – building a boat in the desert

Abraham – actually tying his son on the altar to be a sacrifice

Jesus – feeding over 5000 people with a few fish and some rolls

Gideon – going into battle with only 300 – equipped with clay pots

What about today?  Taking a job that doesn’t pay as much.  Selling everything and moving to  the mission field with your family.  Selling 2 houses in a tanked economy :)   Sharing your faith with your neighbor.  Starting that book you’ve always wanted to write.

Living by faith = the risk of looking foolish.  I am in the process of living this one.  It is tough.  Every fiber of my being wants to run back to the warmth of my comfort zone.

So I ask myself this:  The old Craig would do _____.  What can I do to be different?

Killing the old self and allowing God’s new creation to come out.  Trusting that He will be there no matter what circumstances the world throws at me.

What about you?  Do you have a foolish story?  Has God called you to move in faith in a way that may make you look foolish to the world?

 

God moves our mountains

God is faithful!

I have shared some of our story before.  Juli and I have joined our two families together.  A blended family may be hard enough as it is.  So Juli and I thought it’d be best to sell both of our houses just to add another layer of fun and excitement to our already changing lives :)

Juli’s house has been on the market since Christmas.  There have been 40 showings.  Yes.  40.  As of last week we now have a buyer!  We are going through an inspection this week.  Apparently the  buyers want to close quickly - by the end of the month!  The reality of that hasn’t really set in yet.  We have started house hunting again.

Juli and I find ourselves in a place where we are paying for 2 houses.  One is now selling.  We could possibly be back in that situation if we get another house + continue paying for mine.  The cool thing?  I’ve had a couple of folks approach me about renting my house!  Out of the blue.  It is easy to say these people have come out of the blue – but I’m giving God all the credit for putting all of the pieces in place – in His time.

I know that God is leading us through this.  I know that there is a lesson for us in this process too.  Who am I kidding.  There are multiple lessons for us in this.  Lessons for Saul and Noah too.

Trusting God.  Being patient.  Walking in faith instead of standing still.  Trusting God.  Finding His peace instead of my anxiety.  Prayers of perseverance.

You want to know a temptation that popped up for me?  We sell the house – I praise God for His grace – and then this little thought pops into my head: ok, now I have to start worrying about selling the 2nd house and buying another one. 

The lie from the enemy:  God came through for you on selling one house – you are on your own now.

The enemy is ruthless!

I’m not saying I’ve got prayer all figured out.  But I find it comforting to know that I’m on my third book about prayer.  My most recent is The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson.  God is teaching me about prayer.  Prayer that perseveres.  Prayer that moves mountains.  Prayers that are a lot  bigger than what I’m used to praying.  Now more than ever I have to protect my mind, my thoughts, my heart, and my family.  It would be irresponsible of me to let my guard down and allow the enemy to storm the gates of my family.  I will write more about this journey as it unfolds.

Thank you for your prayers.  I hope that hearing stories like this will help you in your walk of faith as well as your prayer life.  I know for a fact that God is moving – I just have to be quiet enough to listen and the faith enough to follow.

 

Slow down and let it sink in

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.  They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.  Isaiah 40.31

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.  Romans 8.26

If God is for us, who can ever be against us?  Romans 8.31

I don’t want to distract you from the power of these verses.  I don’t want to muddy the waters with my impression of these verses.  These are verses that should be the foundation of every Man of God.  These are  not the only verses.  I try to take small bites of God’s Word and let them digest.

Too many times I eat too fast – literally I eat my food too fast.  I have an amazing meal in front of me but I don’t really give myself enough time to really enjoy all of the flavors on my plate.

The same is true when I read the Word.  I have an amazing helping of truth right in front of me – but I eat too fast and I don’t allow it to sink in.  There is a LOT of Spirit-filled power in the Scripture.  Power that can change our life.  The way we lead our families.  The way we love our wives & kids.  The work ethic we use on the job.

The Power of God’s word can turn your life inside out.  You will begin to see the world through a different lense.  You’ll come to a place where you don’t want to live with anxiety, fear, or anger.  You won’t want to be in control (gasp!).  You’ll start to see God for who He is.

When you read the Word of God today, don’t worry about how many chapters you’ve read.  Focus on the power behind what you’re reading.  Ask God to reveal Himself to you as you read.  He will give you exactly what you need for this day.

walking on dry ground

I love walking on dry ground.  I will explain that in just a second :) That has to be an odd sentence – a little misplaced when you have no idea what the context is.

The last few books I’ve read have a very strong emphasis on prayer.  And intimacy with God.  I’m rolling with that theme because I believe there is a place God is taking me.  He is allowing my prayers to take on a different level of faith.  God is showing me that He does in fact hear our prayers.  That my faith can be a LOT stronger that what I’m used to.  And a lot of my prayers will most likely be way out of my comfort zone.

We I like comfort zone prayers.  I can’t assume you fall into this type of prayer.  I know that I don’t want to look like a crazy person.  Plainly put, I tend to worry about how others see me.  So if I’m praying extremely bold prayers and they don’t get answered?  That makes me feel like I’m an inch tall.

I am learning to pray the prayers that God would have me to pray.  Praying God’s game plan if you will.  How do I know what God wants me to pray?  I have to know Him.  Spend time with Him.  Intimacy.  Closeness.  I have to learn His voice.  What it sounds like.  This is all a learning process for me.  But I’m seeing that God is giving me a trail to follow.  I have a string of answered prayers behind me.  I want to stay on this path.

My Men’s group has been a large part of this.

We prayed for Roger.  Roger was diagnosed with cancer.  Had to have surgery.  The cancer weighed heavy around his neck.  You could see it.  But now, no more cancer!

We prayed for Jayson.  Jayson has an open sore on the small of his back.  Big enough to hold a golf ball.  He couldn’t work or even attend church.  Jayson’s back is healing.  He has been back to work and has rejoined his church family!

We prayed for Titus.  This little man has been in Children’s hospital for weeks.  His life was heavy sedation, feeding tubes, and surgery after surgery.  His bladder broke causing infection.  His lungs collapsed.  A very bleak picture.  We received word that the doctors have removed his feeding tube and Titus is on the mend.  A huge turn around!

Just last night I needed to have a difficult conversation.  In my mind it was a difficult conversation.  Juli and I covered this conversation in prayer.  Asking God for the power of His Spirit to move.  My anxiety melted.  The conversation went very well.

See the path?  Time after time God has showed up in very big ways.  With each step my faith is growing stronger.  With each prayer lives are being transformed by the power of God.

I mentioned dry ground.  Look at Joshua 3.  God called Josh to be His new leader.  Be strong and courageous!  You are about to lead My people into the Promised Land!  But you have to get across the Jordan river.  Oh, by the way, it’s flood season.  I will cause the river to move out of your way.  The ground will be dry.  Think of it as a Red Sea Part 2.  All you have to do is take a few steps into the water first, then I will dry up the river bed.

When the Israelites moved, Then God responded.

When & Then.

When I pray big prayers.  When my faith is stretched.  When there is boldness.  When I pray the prayers that are in tune with God….That is when I will see a THEN moment.  Then I will have a chance to walk on dry ground.

I like walking on dry ground.

Dang good chili

I love chili.  There are several types that I like too.  Can’t say I like one over the other because I’d eat any of them on any given day.  I know that there will be many different opinions on what makes a good bowl of chili.  Everyone has their favorite ingredients.  Some like a mild bowl of chili while others like a spicy hot bowl.  Personally I like my nose to run a little because of the heat.  Get a little forehead sweat going and we have ourselves a good bowl of chili.  Here are some chilis that I like.

1) Venison – Holy cow.  I love venison chili.  Throw some green pepper, kidney beans, mushrooms, a can of Rotel, some jalapenos, and some chili powder and we are in business.  Plus the venison is lean so I don’t feel guilty eating it :)

2) Skyline – (aka Cincinnati chili).  My northern friends will know of what I speak.  This is a sweeter chili.  By itself the chili may not be impressive.  What kicks this meal off is the spaghetti.  You put the chili on top of the spaghetti!  You can get it loaded with beans, onion, and cheese.  A mountain of shredded chesse goodness.  Splash some hot sauce on there and you’ll have a party  in your  mouth.

You may be wondering why in the world I’m talking about chili. I had a chance to hear a great sermon last week – not on chili per se – but about Jacob & Esau.  Check out this passage to follow along.  A quick summary:  Abraham and Sarah had Isaac.  Isaac was the son God promised to Abraham.  Isaac married Rebekah.  God blessed them with twins: Jacob and Esau.  Esau, being the firstborn, was entitled to the birthright.

The birthright was a big deal.  It was more than a seat at the head of the table or getting to eat first at family reunions.  The birthright meant inheritance.  Carrying on the family name (your family name was a big deal in Bible times). And for Esau it meant seeing the promises of God come to fruition through your family.  God made covenant promises with Abraham.  Those promises carried on through Isaac and would now pass on to Esau.  The birthright was huge!

And Esau traded it all for a bowl of chili.

Sure he was famished.  Esau was a big game hunter.  A man’s man.  He lived off the land.  Esau returned from a hunting trip – his stomach had been growling for 2 hours – and he wanted a man’s meal.  That’s when he smelled the chili.

Jacob wasn’t stupid.  He knew his place.  His life would be blessed but there was no birthright.  No promises fulfilled through his family tree.  Chances are he’d been planning this for a long time.  He just needed the right moment.  Younger brothers are like that.  So he made the chili.

Esau traded away the promises of God for a bowl of chili.

Question.  What is your bowl of chili?

God has so much in store for you.  A life of freedom.  Grace.  Working miracles in and through your life.  It’s right there for the taking.  Hold on…Smell that?

It’s chili.

The enemy is an opportunist.  He isn’t stupid.  He is cooking up something just for you.

You’re single and your girlfriend wants to have sex.  What about your purity?  And no, masterbating isn’t the healthy alternative.

Maybe it’s that attractive girl that you work with.  She just seems to get you.  And she laughs at all your stupid jokes.  Your wife hasn’t laughed at your jokes in a long time.

Porn on the computer/Ipad/Iphone?

Power?  Money?  Influence?  Keeping up with the Jones’?

We all have an appetite.  The devil knows all about our appetite.  He knows the kind of chili we like.  And guess what?  There’s a pot on the stove right now.

We’ve been there before.  Thinking the chili will satisfy our hunger.  Let me keep this simple.  God is the only thing that will satisfy our appetite.  I didn’t say it was easy.  But giving up and eating the chili will only lead to heartache. Guilt.  Pain.

God – we need Your armor more than anything.  Keeps our minds pure.  Our hearts and homes protected.  Yes we will be tempted – give us the strength to say no to the chili.  Thank you God!

can’t we just get along?

I was reading Mark 3 during my quiet time today.  There are times when I read the Word and it is good – but there isn’t a slap in the head, God spoke to me moment.  The reasons for that are numerous.  I get distracted.  I was reading with my eyes but my brain was thinking about what I have to do at 2 pm today.  Ever do that?

But then there are times when you read a few verses and little bits of Truth start popping out at you.  I’ve read this passage many times.  Jesus goes to the synagogue – sees a crippled man – the religious leaders are plotting Jesus’ demise – Jesus heals the guy’s hand – and onto verse 7.  Here is Mark 3.1-6 (NLT):

Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand. Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath.

 Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him.

He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus.

The people pleaser part of my personality was stirred.  There is a part of me that cheers Jesus on when He confronts the bad guys.  I fist pump the air and start singing We are the Champions! (never thought you’d see Queen mentioned in the middle of a Jesus story did ya?).  But there is a part of me that feels anxious.  I notice that even though there is a group of men plotting to kill Jesus, He doesn’t get side tracked.  He doesn’t try to make them feel better.  There is no formal meeting planned with the Pharisees & Sadducees to discuss their feelings.

Jesus just continues with His ministry.

Jesus does call them out.  But He isn’t upset with the people.  Jesus is angry at religion.  He is angry because the rules were more important than God was.  Jesus was sad because their hearts were hard.  Jesus saw through the murderous threats and looked at their hearts.  That is what hit me in this passage.

The people pleasing part of me would want to figure out what I could do to smooth things over.  How can I do this ministry without you wanting to kill  me?  How can we co-exist without me having to look over my shoulder?  Then the controlling part of me would kick in and I’d plan my trip around the religious leaders.  Thursday is their day off.  Let’s go to the synagogue then.  My head would be on the verge of exploding because I’d get sucked into all the wrong things.

I’d be more worried about saving my own butt.  I’d focus on my discomfort instead of the bigger picture.

So I’m letting this passage sink in.  The seeds have been scattered.  Now I want the Spirit of God to water them.  I don’t want to live life reacting to my feelings.  Or trying to please people.  Or being in control.  Things don’t work out well for me when I’m the one calling the shots.

Where does this land with you?  What is stirred in you?

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  • Craig

  • Craig

  • Men of God are called to be DIFFERENT. Valiant. Brave. Honorable. Peace Makers. Dependable. Join me as we discover what it takes to be a Man of God in our homes, churches, and relationships.