Earlier this week I was reminded of a habit I had during a season in my life. A good habit! My current Sunday school class is about Habits of the Household with content coming from the book by Justin Early. It takes a look at the habits of our rhythms and routines of the day and if/how we may have our faith and beliefs truly interwoven.
Habits of the morning. What is the first thing you do when your mind and eyes are stirring as the sun is rising? or often in my case when it has already risen! :D. I am not a big fan of mornings. I am slow to rise. Is it your phone? What app is it you open first? Is it your agenda and responsibilities for the day? Is it a question of what you are going to wear? To be honest, for me it is my phone and checking my email. Good grief ! No wonder I am not a particular fan of the morning – perhaps there is a correlation there. I hardly am awake and I run to what I have to do that day! Is there a better way to start? Uh, most definitely yes. Perhaps the Bible App? A morning prayer?
As the discussion progressed in my class, I recalled a season; a good season in my life in which I sang a song to myself as I was preparing to engage in the day and head off to work. A habit. While it is often thought of as a song for little kids, it really is important for all of us, young, middle aged, older… :D. Pulling the lyrics together here for you and me:
Oh be Careful, little eyes what you see little ears what you hear little tongue what you say little hands what you do little feet where you go little mind what you think little heart whom you trust For the Father up above is looking down in Love.
May this be a reminder today and days ahead to you and me, guiding us into habits of honoring our Lord. Not out of fear of Him but out of our of love and trust in His good and perfect will for us. ~Stan
Happy New Year my friends! This evening I am sharing yet another song! :D. This song caught my ears and attention just before Christmas. I was captivated by the words of prayer and worship. It spoke to the part of my mind/heart that was a bit weary in response to the sin and temptation that can easily plague my heart – the darkest places.
The words offered the Hope of Glory — Jesus Christ into the darkest places. Just as the words of the song offer, Immanuel come hear our cry, our cries from our own darkest places of sin and shame. Glory Glory, glory, let your mercy reign in those darkest places. The Savior, Jesus Christ has come into the world and into our darkest spaces!
May this truth encourage us as we enter a new year 2025. Praise Him. Behold Him! ~Stan
Christmas Day is upon us! :D. I like words. Okay, yes that seems to jump thoughts. I like some words. Better? To today’s point, some words seem to grab a hold of my heart, mind, and soul just a bit more than others. Often I don’t think those words are used as much in our common everyday language so it can more easily pack a bit of a better punch. A punch of significance and emphasis. Gratitude and grateful is one example; often we use the word ‘thanks’ and ‘thankful’. They are good and have value. I think however that the word ‘gratitude’ has a stronger nuance and strength to it with authenticity.
Behold is another such word for me. I just like it. It suggests awe, reverence, wonder, and utter silence – thoughts that cause your soul to swell! I’m not sure exactly how to fully describe the sense of beholding something. In a way its like one of those things that comes with the power of the Holy Spirit within a believer.
This past Sunday my soul was caused to swell as I listened to the message by my home church pastor, Eric Weaver. Rooted in the gospel message we were challenged to consider our call to holiness. Holiness that can only be achieved through Jesus Christ. (It’s a great message — check it out here)
Behold. Jesus a baby. A baby born to die as a song lyric describes. My mind carried away to Behold!
Consider the virgin birth!? It is often talked about it as amazing; have you fully considered it? What? How? Consider the science of sperm and the egg. The sperm was just there suddenly to fertilize the egg. Hello! or rather BEHOLD!
A prophesied savior to the world to arrive as a baby; holiness in pure human form. Can you imagine the excitement but also the trepidation the shepherds and kings felt as they approached this child?! BEHOLD!
Consider just how hhose kings and shepherds were able to find this Baby Jesus amongst an area full of people where literally all the inn’s were booked! BEHOLD! (Holy Spirit GPS!)
May this be a prompting to your heart and soul to behold the fullness of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit this season and the year ahead. ~Stan
Have you heard one of the newest CCM hits by Megan Woods called “The Truth”? Oh my gracious, the lyrics are rich with music that grabs your ears and a voice that captures your attention. She reminds me a bit of Adele! :).
The lyrics of the whole song are worth meditating upon. For the sake of the blog I will bring your attention to one section that resonated with me; and now perhaps you…
The truth is I am my Father’s child I make Him proud and I make Him smile I was made in the image of a perfect King He looks at me and wouldn’t change a thing The truth is I am truly loved By a God who’s good when I’m not good enough I don’t belong to the lies, I belong to You And that’s the truth
Whether you are 13, 35 or 52 like me, I suspect you have had seasons where you have struggled with your identity or something about yourself. Perhaps it’s weight, height, lack of a skill, physique, hair, your sexuality, a birth “defect”, sound of your voice, or anything similar. While all those things may certainly be used as a way to describe ourselves; we often need to be reminded that those things do not define us nor determine our value.
The lyrics of this song grabbed my attention when I first heard it. I have played it several times now on Spotify. Even today it played on KLove while on my drive to work and then again my drive home. They lyrics speak to my heart and remind me of the truth of whom designed and defined me; “a perfect King”!
I don’t believe I need to say anything more. Let the words of the song speak Truth to your heart. ~Stan
In my last entry I shared the YouTube video of the song ” There is One Gospel”. by CityAlight. Following up on that I am sharing the lyrics here. Take some time reading and considering the messages being shared. Too often I suspect when we sing songs we get in the habit of singing words while not really considering what we are singing. If we are truly singing in worship it rather should be a practice of joining our heart & mind with God our Father; an interpersonal way of communicating. Communicating our emotions, thoughts and being directed to truth, the truth of the Gospel.
Verse 1 There is one Gospel on which I stand For all eternity It is my story, my Father’s plan The Son has rescued me Oh what a Gospel, Oh what a peace My highest joy and my deepest need Now and forever He is my light I stand in the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Verse 2 There is one Gospel to which I cling All else I count as loss For there, where justice and mercy meet He saved me on the cross No more I boast in what I can bring No more I carry the weight of sin For He has brought me from death to life I stand in the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Verse 3 There is one Gospel where hope is found The empty tomb still speaks For death could not keep my Saviour down He lives and I am free Now on my Saviour, I fix my eyes My life is His and His hope is mine! For He has promised I, too, will rise I stand in the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Verse 4 And in this Gospel the church is one We do not walk alone We have His Spirit as we press on To lead us safely home And when in glory still I will sing Of this old story that rescued me Praise to my Saviour, the King of life I stand in the Gospel of Jesus Christ
I recently picked up a the book “A Gospel Primer for Christians” by Milton Vincent once again. I believe, I may have shared from it in previous posts. What I share today comes from entry #27 Mortifying the Flesh with Fullness. It is so good! I nearly want to share the entire entry with you. I will share a good portion however and also recommend that you get yourself a copy!
“Though saved, I am daily beset by a sinful flesh that always craves those things that are contrary to the Spirit. These fleshly lusts are vicious enemies, constantly waging war against the good of my soul. Yet they promise me fullness, and their promises are so deliciously sweet that I often find myself giving into them as if they were friends that have my best interests at heart.
On the most basic of levels, I desire fullness, and fleshly lusts seduce me by attaching themselves to this basic desire. … When my soul sits empty and is aching for something to fill it, such deceptive promises are extremely difficult to resist.
Consequently, the key to mortifying fleshly lusts is to eliminate the emptiness within me and replace it with fullness; and I accomplish this by feasting on the gospel. Indeed, it is in the gospel that I experience a God who glorifies Himself by filling me with His fullness. He is the One, Paul says, ‘ He is the One who fill(s) all in all.’ ‘He is the One who fill(s) things’, with the gifts He gives.”
Milton’s words here adequately describe my heart longing many a time and likely for you as well. Seeking fullness we can easily be deceived into indulging our flesh with eating, gossiping, sexual activity, drinking, drug usage, shopping, gambling…you name it! What I appreciate greater yet is the critical reminder that the true fulfillment can be had by “feasting on the Gospel” of which is the whole purpose of the book. It brings to mind my go to favorite verse.
Romans 7:24+
“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord ! “
As you consider this excerpt from “A Gospel Primer” , I hope it is an encouraging reminder to you. I also want to share a song that has the same message ! “There is One Gospel” by CityAlight. Enjoy! ~Stan
Recently I have found myself with an actual desire to read. For the folks that know me well, they understand that reading is not something I am particularly drawn to do. 😛
Regardless, it has been good as it has been feeding and challenging my heart and mind. I have picked up the bookYou Can Change by Tim Chester once again. Yep, you guessed it, I started at one point previously and didn’t stick with it. I also have a tendency to take a look at the chapter headings and pick & choose what my look good :). From this book I was drawn to the chapter “What stops you from Changing”. I am going to share a portion here that offered a new way of thinking!
Have you ever been frustrated or angry at your lack of change? Many people have said to me at some point, ” I can’t believe I’ve done it again,” or “I’m so cross with myself for doing this.” I’ve thought this many times myself. But listen to Ed Welch: “Perhaps the person is mad at himself for repeating the same sin over and over again. This is actually a veiled form of pride that assumes he is capable of doing good in his own power. He is minimizing his spiritual inability apart from God’s grace.” Jerry Bridge claims, “God wants us to walk in obedience not victory.” Our problem he explains, “is that our attitude toward sin is more self-centered than God-centered. We are more concerned about our own ‘victory’ over sin that we are about the fact that our sins grieve the heart of God.”
Isn’t this a bit sobering to consider? There is much selfishness even in conviction of sin. “I” want better for myself, “I” want to be seen as a good person of integrity. “I” want to feel good about the decisions “I” make. “I” wish I hadn’t got caught. In such thinking; We (I) fail to realize that sin is first and foremost against the Heavenly Father God. The Father God that is our creator and our rescuer. Our Father God that has given us everything.
With that my mind turns to Psalm 51 where we read of David’s prayer to God in recognition of his sin against the Father God after he had gone in with Bathsheba. May it be an example and guide to us & our hearts when responding to sin. ~Stan
PSALM51
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. 5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit
I’m back! I’m excited to be back. Excited to share with you the written words of a brother in Christ being vulnerable with the Lord as he journaled. Just like you and me, he is on a journey with God wrestling with thoughts and emotions and then God speaks providing wisdom through a word picture. Transformation is happening; molding and shaping the heart. I was so encouraged and challenged by it, I could say more. But rather, let his words, ultimately the Father’s words perhaps grab a hold of your heart and mind as well.
I meant to write yesterday but it turned out to be a very rough day, I was too busy bemoaning my old way of life and missing my old addictive behavior to care anything for the ways of God or enjoying His presence.
This morning I went outside and talked with the Lord and He showed me the folly of my anger, bitterness and rebellion, I wish to write the lesson down here so I don’t forget it.
Imagine I and some friends were out on the street, and we saw a beggar clothed in the filthiest most tattered rags imaginable. Now, a king comes walking by and seeing the man in rags, walks over to him and gives him the finest suit of clothes, in just his size, free of charge and undeserved. Some weeks later we see the man again, weeping loudly and bemoaning the loss of his rags. After a time the king passes by and the man jumps up and accosts him, demanding the return of his filthy tattered rags. If I saw this I would think the man was a lunatic and would probably turn to my friend and express the feeling to them as well.
When I was saved by the Grace of God I was given a seal of approval that would allow me to enter the kingdom, I was also given a royal decree, decree declaring my change of status from a slave to sin marked for death, to a royal heir, along with a robe of spotless white through the blood of Christ.
When I was baptized into Christ it signified the death of the old man and the end of his power over me, it was a funeral. About a week after the funeral I began to miss the old man, cruel and deceptive as he was. I dug up the casket, brought it to my home and opened the lid. For nigh unto a year now I have been hosting an open casket funeral that has only one mourner…. Myself.
.
I have wept and raged over the old man’s death, pacing the room and pulling my hair and tearing at my clothes, occasionally pausing long enough to hurl imprecations and accusations at my big brother Jesus, who watches me with a look of sadness in his eyes as I insist to first pace the room then look in the casket at the grotesque face of the old man over and over and over again, ignoring his gentle appeal; “Come, sit beside me, rest and be comforted”
As if this weren’t bad enough, sometimes I take the corpse of the old man and chain it to my back, loudly proclaiming how much I miss him and how badly I wish he was still alive and how much happier I would be if he was. The old man is dead, he reels of decay, everyone can smell him but me and they must think I’m crazy for carrying him around with me, just like the man bemoaning the loss of his filthy rags.
I have taken off my pure white robe, laid it aside and put on mourners clothes. I have set aside the wondrous new song I was given by my Lord on the day of my conversion, and have instead taken up a haunting and tragic elegy lamenting the death of the old man. I have laid down my certificate of royalty given to me by the King of Kings Himself, and have picked up a certificate of death which I look at often, tearfully with many sighs and moans. And, most tragically, I have traded the joy of my salvation, for needless pain, sorrow, anger and bitterness. I am royalty, an heir to my father The King and all that He has, and yet my sorrow and bitterness prevents me from seeing it.
I could not bury the old man myself at the time of my conversion and I cannot do so now. Christ buried him for me before and He will do so again but I chose to dig him up and it is I who must consent to his being buried again. The Lord will gladly take the corpse off my back, put it back in the coffin where it belongs, close the coffin lid and lock it, and bury him again. My Lord is more than willing and able to do these things, the only question that remains is, will I allow him to do them? Will I consent to let the old man be buried again this time with the intent of never digging him up?
Anytime I choose I can lay aside the garments of mourning and put my pure white robe back on. I can cease my song of mourning and instead take up my new song, singing it with joy and thankfulness. I can file away the death certificate of my old nature and instead hold fast to my birthright. And, most importantly, I can lay down my sorrow and anger and realize that I’m a son of God and an heir to His riches, which make all the wealth of this world seem as nothing by comparison, and enter into the joy of my Lord.
Will I consent to my Lord’s will? Or will I continue to mourn the death of the old man? The choice, it seems, is mine. Mine, and everyone else’s who would walk the Christian path. Jesus please grant me the grace to do this.
I recently attended the Restored Hope Network’s annual conference in Rocklin, CA! What a joy to be with Jesus and others on the same journey; listening, sharing, praying, worshipping and learning.
One of the speaker’s shared a quote that impacted their journey significantly. “If you want to experience unconditional love, you have to share the condition.” Oh my! Yes, Jesus loves you and me and sometimes, well many times, I suspect we find that difficult to believe. Perhaps it is because we fail to come before him in vulnerability and share the condition of our heart. While He already knows, he wants to hear it from us! It requires that we stop, reflect and examine our own hearts. All too often we simply don’t do it nor want to. We miss out; we miss out from fully understanding His unconditional love.
Rather than a risk…it offers a reward. The Love of Jesus!
“If you want to experience unconditional love, you have to share the condition.”
A piece of my local church’s belief and mission statement is that we find our “greatest joy in Jesus”. Sometime little sayings like this nudge a little eye roll or an off put attitude – even though I know it is good truth. In the times when I personally reflect upon my struggles with temptation and often resulting sin, I need to remember this truth to guide me heart to the right answer, to be led by the Spirt rather then than the flesh.
Our greatest JOYis in JESUS! — not lust, sexual gratification, food, Dr. Pepper, cigarettes, the hit, the drink of alcohol, your spouse, your bestie, the new car in your driveway, the big sale, the promotion, recognition. Oh the many things we tend to seek out to find joy ! Oh may our hearts seek Him.
Galations 5:16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Galataions 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.
JESUS YOU ARE …
~ You are compassionate ~ ~ You are kind ~ ~You are gentle ~ ~ You are forgiving ~ ~ You are loyal ~ ~ You are embracing ~ ~ You are truth ~ ~ You are graceful and merciful ~ ~ You are loving ~ ~ You are with me ~
Rescued Identity 