How to Be Excited About Knowing God

Over the past two years, I have made a lot of friends over the internet. Tim and Victory, in the above photos, are two of my earlier internet friends. Something I've noticed in common with every friendship is this: we get excited about meeting each other in person. When we realize there will be an opportunity to meet face to face, we often become a lot more involved and enthusiastic about getting to know each other. We'll talk more often, we'll call each other, and as a whole get much closer than we previously had been. 

I've come to realize that it can be similar in our relationship with God. Sometimes we feel far away from Him and we begin to lose sight of the fact that as Christians, we WILL indeed someday be with Him. When we forget about the reality of a future with Him, it is easy to put our relationship with Him on the back burner. 

Recently, I was struck by a deep realization, remembering the reality of the perfect worship and time with God that will happen in my future. Suddenly, something clicked in my mind and this truth feels so much more real than it once had. Since then, I've experienced a heightened interest in studying passages that reveal things about God's personality and work. 

If you're going to be with God forever someday, get to know Him! Put yourself in a place where you will live with excitement about this coming reality!

"I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me." - Proverbs 8:17


"... giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." - Colossians 1:12-14

Why I Hate Selfless Love.

I’m going to risk sounding like a bad Christian and start off this week’s devotional by saying this:

Selfless love sucks.

It takes your resources, your time, your energy. It can range from being mildly inconvenient to downright painful. It means we have to be aware of how our words and actions affect others instead of blurting out everything we feel in a moment. It means we should care for others when we’d rather focus on taking care of our own burdens.

It also means we need to be more like Christ - which sounds pretty ideal until we realize how much hardship and rejection He went through. Do we really want to go there? Nowadays, society won’t judge us for focusing our time and energy on ourselves or for simply chasing what makes us feel good. So why bother?

It is now December, and the answer is basically staring us in the face. The lights I keep driving past may just seem like fun and festive decor to most, but to those who believe in Christ, they should also be a reminder. A reminder that the Light of the World didn’t just sit up in Heaven enjoying Himself.

God’s creation had (and still has) turned against Him. If I were Him, I’d be inclined to say “Well, that was stupid. Screw humanity. I’ll just chill up here while they suffer for rebelling against my design.” But, God isn’t made in my image (thanks be to Him for that!). So, instead, Christ exercised selfless love. He confined Himself to a human body. He chose to help society’s hopeless and looked down upon sinners rather than taking on a glorious political position or snubbing everyone like the “good” people did. He was despised, rejected, and even betrayed by those who said they loved Him.

What does He do in return? He takes on the punishment of damnation so that our debt is paid and we can be adopted into His family and have the ability to love Him.

Selfless love sucks.

But, it was given to us by Christ. So let’s pay it forward. And backward. And everywhere in between. Let’s selflessly love Christ by following Him and His Word no matter what. Let’s selflessly love others because that is what Christ did and wants us to do, too. It won’t always be a warm fuzzy feeling, it may mean we’ll get dirty or uncomfortable or worse.

It won’t be like a Hallmark Christmas flick, but it is the best way we can celebrate Christmas both in December and throughout the year.

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other.” - John 15:9-17

Are you prepared for the deadline?

I woke up and stared at the number on my dry-erase board. 1. That was the number of days I had until I needed to turn in my class projects. I'm usually not the last-minute sort of person, but this month I've been traveling a lot and didn't have enough time alone to work on everything. Even when I did, I'd been distracted by other things, such as packing, work, and other little duties. Where had the time gone? It felt like this deadline hit me out of nowhere, and I had to rush to catch back up. In the end, I made it. Just barely.

While our earthly deadlines can be a big deal and occasionally a matter of great stress, there is another deadline that matters more: Christ's coming. Emphasis on the "dead" of that deadline- because if we are not prepared for that one, dead is exactly what we will be. The thing about this deadline, however, is that we have no set date for it. As a result, it is "out of sight, out of mind" for many people, even some Christians. 

Paul wrote to the believers in Thessalonica and said, "For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night." (1 Thessalonians 5:2). Nobody expects a thief, and likewise, when the Lord comes, it will take even those who are eagerly awaiting Him by surprise. 

You can stress over and run after your earthly deadlines constantly, knowing when they will hit. But are you prepared for the one deadline that has no final submission date? Do you know where you will stand in God's eyes on the last day? And does the reasoning behind your answer match up with what the Bible says?

Will you take what's yours?

“So Joshua said to the people of Israel, “How long will you put off going in to take possession of the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?“ - Joshua 18:3

I was surprised upon reading this passage. After all of the years the Israelites had spent getting to and then waiting for the promised land, knowing full well that it was their inheritance given to them by God, when they finally got to the edge of it, some of the tribes just sat. Over the prior few chapters of Joshua, these tribes had seen God give their relatives victory in battle as they took their shares of land, so they had no reason to fear opposition. They knew God had promised the land would be good, so there could be no doubt about how well the land would suit them. In fact, Joshua 18 gives no reason why these remaining tribes put off taking their land at all. It simply states that they didn’t move toward what was theirs until they were pretty much ordered to.

Why would you sit and stare at a good thing that has been promised to you, but not take it when the opportunity is right there?

As I contemplated this fact, I realized we do the exact same thing today. Not with land, of course, but with God Himself. In the new covenant, God is our portion. To all those who come, He has promised eternal life and reconciliation and communion with Himself. Yet, we sit. Even those of us who have come to the Lord often put off spending time learning about and communing with Him. Some things about humanity just don’t change, eh?

Are you going to come and enjoy that which God has promised to you? Or are you going to sit around until circumstances force you to pursue what you’ve been promised?

What rewards are you getting?

Today I celebrated a recent win - I picked up the gift card that was my prize and used a little of it to get myself a cherry empanada. Victory can be sweet. Literally. But you know what else it is? Fleeting. Very fleeting. It was a delicious celebratory snack, but it was gone in 5 minutes.

As I ate, it hit me what a contrast that is with the reward that we as Christians will have at the end of time. 1 Corinthians 2:9 says “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him” and in John 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

Are your rewards temporary? Or are they everlasting?

Branded for Christ

"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called..."  "Be imitators of God, as beloved children." - Ephesians 4:1 and 5:1

Like the soda bottles above are branded with the name of their maker, so we who are in Christ are "branded" as children of God. Each type of soda also has it's own particular traits, causing it to stand out from the others. Even amongst a shelf full of knock-off flavors, everybody still notices the brand-name sodas, bold as ever. Could the same be said of us?

In a place filled with pleasant, decent, yet unbelieving people, do we still stand out as those who are adopted by God? Do we think about our heavenly Father enough to converse about him with our fellow believers and those who may happen to ask about our faith? Are we actively looking for the great things that He is doing in our lives and the lives of those around us? Do we know God well enough to be imitators of Him, or are we merely satisfied to follow our society's rules for being the same type of "good person" that everyone else is?

 We're bound to embrace our "brand". Consider which one you hold the hardest to.

New Beginnings

The new year tends to emerge with much noise and glory. People banging pots, blowing party noisemakers, lighting off fireworks, and making toasts to new beginnings and resolving to change their lives for the better. There is so much excitement and enthusiasm. We know we've made mistakes over the past year, and we're all ready to write them off and start up anew as best we are able.

Why are we so thrilled by the prospect of new beginnings? Why do we like that feel of a fresh start so well? Because it's what we are meant to have. We are meant to be transformed by a relationship with Christ and become new. 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. - 2 Corinthians 5:17

If you're already in Christ, do you see the newness? Is there a noticeable difference between you and the rest of the world? It won't be an overnight switch, but the closer we grow in our relationships with Christ, the more like Him we will become and the less like the rest of the world we will seem. I pray for you and myself alike that the difference will be ever increasing. 

Happy New Year!

Where Does The Time Go?

We've had a rather extended autumn where I live this year! Just the other day, I walked outside and still saw trees with orange leaves all over them- yeah, in December! It's crazy. Usually the trees are bare early in November. We've been blessed with many t-shirt and light jacket sort of days, and I've thoroughly enjoyed every single one of them. 

Along the way, I began to really grow accustomed to our 50-60 degree days, almost forgetting that winter weather was a possibility. This morning, I was reminded that though it had been so warm, winter was drawing near all along- and suddenly, here it was. Our first snow day of the season! According to the forecast, we are to be in the 20's-30's for an entire week. What on earth happened? Where did my October go?

It felt like I had no warning for winter; it felt like it would never arrive, and I could keep living in this temperate bliss forever. This, of course, is entirely wrong: I'd seen the forecast (and admittedly, kind of laughed it off). People often do the same thing in regards to the coming of Christ- even His followers. We hear about it, we are aware that it will come, but it just always feels like something for later. Plus, really, why even think about it? We're so comfortable where we are at, so there's no sense thinking about future changes just yet. 

We ought not to treat our Lord's coming in such a fashion. Unlike our sudden snow day, there will not be an option to haphazardly prepare ourselves the moment we discover He has come. What would you be doing differently if you knew you would be facing God in 24 hours?

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. - 2 Peter 3:10

Back on the Rock

"He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!" - Psalm 40:2-4

Being a hiker, this passage really stands out to me. When you're out in the wilderness, it is very possible that you could fall to your death if you slipped into a large pit; you have to avoid stepping in miry bogs, and you feel the stability of rocks under your feet. Even those who are not outdoorsy can still feel this imagery; sometimes we feel as if we've slipped into a mental bog that we cannot escape on our own, and at some point in time, we have all been dead in a pit of spiritual destruction.

Let us be thankful and continually praising God each day that He has saved us from that destruction and set us upon His firm foundation. Know that He is equally capable of pulling us from the miry bogs of sin and despair. Believe it. Hang onto it. Don't be afraid to share it so that others can know. Trust God, and never allow yourself to pridefully believe that you are the only one who can rescue yourself.

Lost?

Tip: When traveling, always look for the little details that help sum up your experiences.

One problem with big cities is parking - there are so many people and so little space that you cannot simply park in front of the business you wish to go into. The result? Pay-to-park lots and garages are scattered about the metropolitan area. 

On a recent trip, a friend and I had to use one such space. Little did we know, the lot we chose was part of a chain of parking areas, all baring the same title and scattered about the nearest several miles. Due to this and the fact that we somehow managed to pick the one lot that would not show up on the GPS or any web search, we ended up lost, roaming the streets of Seattle for two hours before we finally found the car. It was a relentless search, indeed!

If one can seek a car with such intensity, how much more determined should we be in our pursuit of knowing God? He is of far more value than our earthly transportation, yet, when we lose sight of Him, His words, and His will for our daily lives, would we spend a solid two hours searching non-stop to get reconnected? Tough as it may be, I promise you, it is worth it.

"You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)

3 Overlooked Lessons From The Great Flood

Tip: When photographing in potentially dangerous situations, come prepared with emergency items and the knowledge of how to save yourself if you get in a pinch (or even better: a friend who can help). If you aren't prepared, leave.

Nearly every year, there comes a period of time when the river rises and the snow melt carries in lots of extra water and debris to the valley in which I live. Flooding is a good reminder of the one great flood that God once sent, back in the times of the book of Genesis.

Typically, when the flood of Genesis is mentioned, people automatically think of Noah and the animals all crammed onto a boat floating around, ending with the rainbow of God's promise to never again wipe all living things from the earth. While these are key aspects of the account, there are other lessons that can be gained. Here are a few:

1.) God is not required to show us mercy as we live in sin. 
The whole reason this all happened was because "The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time." (Genesis 5:5). While He has promised never to exterminate all living things from the earth, do note that He can and has struck down smaller groups and individuals as He has seen fit (remember Ananias and Sapphira? Acts 5:1-11; Also, the cities of Sodom & Gomorrah- Genesis 19:1-29)

2.) God does choose to show mercy to some people.
"So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord." (Genesis 6:8). God could have chosen to lump Noah in with everyone else and call humanity a waste as a whole, but Noah honored God in his living and the Lord chose to let him and his family continue on.

3.) Numbers are Irrelevant.
To many groups, having a large number of attendees means the difference between a church that is "alive" and a church that is "dying". That simply is not the case. Nowhere in scripture does it say that you must have a big Bible study or belong to a mega-church to be spiritually fruitful. When God sent the great flood to wipe out the races, notice that out of all the people in the world at that time, he only saved eight - "On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark." (Genesis 7:13). Also, again referring to the account of Sodom & Gomorrah in Genesis 19, notice that the Lord only saved one family. As Matthew 18:20 states, "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

Thank God that He has shown you mercy though you don't deserve it. Thank Him that He chooses to at least save a few people. Thank Him that He shares His presence with us and will bless even the smallest groups of people.