Month: August 2020

Age old lessons

~ ForCommonGround ~ Leave a comment

There are many things that our parents and grandparents taught us that have never ceased to be important. There is a such thing as transcendent truths. What was good for society a hundred years ago still holds strong today.

One of those lessons that seems to be getting shoved to the back is the quality of follow through. In an ever-changing society we see people dabbling and not committing. When relationships get tough more and more people want to bail. When perfection can’t easily be achieved, giving up seems like the best option. Try this for a little bit then when you’re tired of it, move on. But where is the staying power? Where is fortitude? Is perseverance no longer a quality to strive for?

I am not much for ranting. I’d rather spend my time encouraging and empowering. That’s how real change can occur. I implore you, brothers and sisters, set an example of endurance. Let’s be a people that do what we say we will do. As believers in Christ, our commitments can not be empty promises. Just think, if Jesus would have quit when things weren’t easy, the world would have been lost in sin. If God had no follow through, we would be lost in darkness. God’s faithfulness is our example.

In James chapter 5, God tells us to let our yes be yes and our no be no. Failed follow through is the same as a bold faced lie. If our word means nothing, we cannot be trusted in anything. If we make a commitment, we must make a way to see it done. Haven’t we spent enough of our lives with unfinished chapters? Lord help us be people of our word, to the smallest detail.

“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Love’s Ink

~ ForCommonGround ~ 2 Comments

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In your frustrations and disappointments, let Jesus fill your need. He is our hope in the times where hope seems lost. Our problems can be consumed by the eternal fire that God breathes into our souls. Much of life can feel like groaning and yearning for greater things, or even for difficult things to pass. It is both to the future and the past that we must look. Look first at the fact that you are known and cherished and created with a purpose. Look next to the unthwarted pursuit of God in the lives of His creation. Then gaze upon a hill, where a blood-stained cross displays a love far greater than any of us deserves. But that love did not stop there. There is also a tomb…an empty tomb that shows our destinies are not surrendered to death. Our future is written with love’s ink.  Glory awaits. Freedom awaits. There will be a day when the pain ceases and joy will be the only emotion we know. Because of Jesus, our hearts do not need to remain downcast. The victory is won and an even greater victory is coming. Hold strong brothers and sisters. Pray for me as I pray for you also. God is good and He has always been for you.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Peace in Christ loved ones!

Banners of Faith

~ ForCommonGround ~ 2 Comments

Why is it the radical faith and obedience to Jesus is criticized so much in the church? The last I checked, we are supposed to die to ourselves and live to Christ. I’m pretty sure the Bible says that we have been crucified in the life we now live we live by faith in the one who died for us. I believe that the Bible also says to be a living daily sacrifice. Doesn’t the scripture also read that we are supposed to keep our minds and hearts set on the things of heaven and not the things of earth? Didn’t Jesus commission his followers to go to the ends of the earth spreading the good news? Aren’t we to walk as he walked?

It’s an inescapable fact that Jesus didn’t sugarcoat what it means to follow him. We are supposed to be all in. We all have a cross to pick up and carry daily. Perhaps the reason why that is met with so much criticism is that complacency and comfort have exceeded conviction and our commission in the hearts and minds of so many. I feel it weighing me down so often as well. I have to fight the urge to just go about living my life, as crazy and hectic as it is, and not put the mission of Jesus at the forefront.

The Bible says that Christ is our life, nothing else. When we see people who actually live like that, we should be motivated to do the same. Paul told people in the first century to follow him as he followed Christ. Was he perfect? Not at all. But he lived sold out for the faith. Jesus was the end all for his purpose in life. That’s what being a Christian should look like. All the times I fall drastically short of this, I draw off of the examples of so many extraordinary men and women of the faith, past and present.

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Colossians‬ ‭3:1-4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Peace in Christ brothers and sisters!

The Heart of Adventure

~ ForCommonGround ~ Leave a comment

Does the unknown deter you or invite you? The heart for adventure and exploration is divine. It requires faith. Abraham went to a place God would show him before he knew any details. Noah built a giant ark in a world that had never seen rain. Joseph endured many hardships on his way to save nations. David faced down a giant when few believed in him. Elijah, Elisha, Samuel, Isaiah, and all the prophets walked a path against the grain of culture to try and steer a nation back to the Lord. Mary accepted a calling unlike any human has ever been given. Followers of Jesus sold all they had to support one another and the mission of spreading the Gospel. And that’s just dipping our toes in the water when looking at all the amazing stories of adventure and faith in the Bible.

So much of life is unknown. Does that energize you or depress you? Jesus went so far as to tell His followers to go out to the nations with little to no provisions. God took an entire nation through the wilderness. And in both examples, the Lord proved faithful in providing all their needs. Christians are a people built for the unknown, for there faith abounds.

We need to stop living such a controlled and precise lifestyle and get our hands and feet dirty. We need walk into whatever God calls us to without all the answers. We need to stop hiding behind the mantra of “I don’t think I’m called to that.” Our desire to be faithful to God needs to outweigh our fear of failure. We need to be ok with things not being perfect and calculated. A life we attempt to control will be frustrating and so much emptier than the one God intended for us. That life is full of His wonders and there’s no telling what may lie ahead.

His adventure awaits brothers and sisters!

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy‬ ‭1:7‬ ‭NLT‬‬