This was too long to make a facebook status so I decided to blog it.

At the center of everything we say and do should be the Cross of CHRIST! More often than not I look back on the things I said and did throughout the day and don't see it. Thankfully my Heavenly Father is forgiving of my sins and shortcomings as a human. Too often we don't have the cross at the forefront of our minds because we do not saturate ourselves in the Word nearly enough. I know personally I'm not in the Word nearly as much as I should be, and when I look back on a day or maybe even a week I feel like I let God down. Reading the Word is something that every Christian should do on a regular basis. The Word of God is our daily BREAD!!! And I do NOT want to starve! Also though, some people get a sense of pride in the fact that they are in the Word. To this I will quote Galatians 6:14 "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." We as christians won't get to Heaven and say to God ,"I read your Word all the time. Let me in." No. Our only hope is in the fact that Christ died on the Cross and through that he bore the punishment four our sins. We are bought by his blood, and that is our only hope...THAT...is our only boast.

Responsibility

What Do You Value?

"We're pursuers-we go after things we value. What is it for you? Think about what you value. Maybe you can rattle off your priorities like a shopping list-God, marriage, family, work, and peace-these often top the charts. But do they actually define how you live? Or are there some bottom-dweller items on the list that actually get headliner attention? If you're not sure, look at how you spend your time, your money. Consider what you think about, where your mind drifts, what you notice and ponder. When all is said and done, what we actually go after is what truly matters to us." Dave Harvey.

This quote is from the book, Rescuing Ambition by Dave Harvey. While I was reading this the other day, I felt highly convicted about this specific passage, and how it summed up what we as people truly do. That is, we pursue things we value most. Whether it be the approval of others, money, satisfying your family's needs, etc. What I thought about though is why wasn't God the first thing to come to my mind when I thought of things that I valued most. there were other things I thought of, until I thought to myself, "Oh, yeah why wasn't God the first thing I thought of?" That single, instantaneous thought truly made me step back and say, "Hold up, something's not right here."

Taking a step back I began to think and see what other things I was thinking about, and the more I thought about them the more and more I felt convicted, because all of the things I was thinking of had no eternal significance whatsoever. The biggest thing I thought about was school, getting a degree, doing homework, and so on and so forth. After dwelling on this I almost wanted to scream at myself and say, "Hey stupid, remember you can't take that degree and show it to GOD when you're done and say, 'Here see what I got for you.'"

I'm not saying that an education can't be glorifying to GOD, I'm just saying that anything you put above him is a slap in the face to GOD. Our highest priority at all times should be our pursuit of being more Christ-like than we were before we became followers of Christ. As I read,  the more I felt highly convicted, and regretful at how much time I have, in the past, shoved God aside so I could pursue things that I wanted to and not things that HE wanted ME to pursue to GLORIFY HIM!!! In all the things I do, I want to now value only what is GLORIFYING to GOD and not to me. I want to seek those things that lift up HIS name. I'm not saying that there won't be times I fail at this, because I know I will, but I know that GOD has great plans for me in this life. And they all circle around bringing glory to our Lord and Savior JESUS CHRIST!

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

Defining Masculinity Part 4

Here's the final part of Matt Chandler's Defining Masculinity sermon. I pray it was a blessing to you. Grace and peace. Defining Masculinty Part 4

Defining Masculinity Part 3

Here is Part 3 in Matt Chandler's sermon on Defining Masculinity. I pray that you would meditate on it and challenge yourself to see if you are being a true MAN of God. Grace and peace.  Defining Masculinity Part 3

Defining Masculinity Part 2

Here it is Part 2 of Matt Chandler's Defining Masculinity series. I pray that it is a blessing to all of you. Grace and PeaceDefining Masculinity Part 2

Defining Masculinity

Hey guys this video I'm posting is part 1 of a 4 part video. I'll post the next three in as many days, so just take this first part in and meditate on what is said. I pray that this gets across to all the men and shows them that there are far more important factors that go into masculinity than how much you can bench press or how many achievements you can get on Call of Duty.  I hope it's a  blessing to everyone because I know it was for me. Grace and Peace   Defining Masculinity Part 1