Tag: Life

Clean Slate Club

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Growing up in the Midwest we heard often at mealtime it was important that we “cleaned our plate” for there were people who had nothing to eat. When I think back to those days I realize there was no connection between me finishing my vegetables and someone who had no food to eat. What were we going to do send my uneaten broccoli to another country? 🙂 I still smile with a chuckle as I think about this. I was a member of the “clean plate club” not because I liked brocolli but because it was a value in my home that we eat all we put on our plate.

I was praying Psalm 32 this morning and the Lord said, “I have a clean slate club and you are a member!” I love how the Passion Translation says it, “What bliss belongs to those who have confessed their corruption to God! For he wipes their slates clean and removes hypocrisy from their hearts. Before I confessed my sins, I kept it all inside; my dishonesty devastated my inner life, causing my life to be filled with frustration, irrepressible anguish, and misery.” You and I, when we confess our sins are members of the clean slate club. Now this is a club I want to be and remain a member of.

A friend of mine and I have been digging into some new areas of life together. In doing so what I have discovered is when you let someone else into your shame, your history, your ornaments on the back of your tree that you think no one can see, it eradicates the lies that are lingering in the shadows. It sheds light on what was dark; it removes shame from what felt so daunting; it truly brings bliss in a way only authenticity and integrity can. The Lord has been showing me how individualism and isolation have been like termites hindering us from the abundant life found when intimacy and community connect.

Friends we are members of the “clean slate club” our sins are forgiven by God and when we share our stuff with others it takes the residue out of the shadows and it is swept away when someone else knows what we wanted no one else to know. Then intimacy becomes accountability not to avoid sin, but to live the abundant life together. The freedom is palatable, the laughter is audible and the coconut milk ice cream is delightful. Intimacy and community is the proximity that is enjoyed in the “clean slate club!”

The Choice Is Yours

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I spent 19 years pursuing the counterfeit thinking somehow, someway it was going to meet my need, satisfy my desire, heal my pain. I kept going back for another drink of that bottle, another hit on that pipe, another encounter with a man, only to leave empty every time. Yet somehow, the cycle of death would not let me go, it kept convincing me the counterfeit, if given another chance, would produce the results it promised, but over and over again, I received the same results, nothing the counterfeit offered brought about any change in my life. I became more and more numb, until I could literally not feel anymore, so thought what is the point of anything.

The counterfeit will have you continually coming back for more, while the authentic will fill you to overflow and produce in you a gratitude that will keep you full.

The authentic is legit, it does not lie, for the authentic is Jesus Christ, the God man, who came in the flesh to die for the sins of the world. He is the only way, the only truth and the only life, there is literally no other way to the Father of lights, but through Jesus Christ the son. It is a one way, narrow way, but it is the authentic way and when you surrender to His way, you will truly want no other way. Psalm 16 says, “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” It is the cycle of life and Jesus Christ is the gift that keeps on giving.

If you want to get out of the cycle of life you can, but it takes a choice. I made my choice when I was 19 years old, I am now 53 and I am so thankful everyday for that decision I made so many years ago. When you make the choice it does not matter, but making the choice is literally a life and death decision. You can choose life right now, but it is your choice. It is not one time choice, it is a daily choice to live. You were created for life, but you must choose life. Death is an enemy, not an ally. The Bible says, the grave is one of the four things that never says enough, death will continually seek to keep you in the cycle of death, but Jesus is inviting you into life. Today, I pray you choose life, whether you are a Christian or not, today is the day of salvation, choose life and get in the cycle of life!!!!

Speak Life

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One of the greatest challenges we face as a church is a double tongue. One minute we are praising God for the victory and the next minute we are seeing the enemy and repeating what evil is doing. James 3:7-8 says, “No one came tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren these things ought not to be this way.” We have been declaring America shall be saved one moment and then complaining about whatever bad news the television tells us is going on the next. My friends, we cannot be speaking two narratives. Either God is redeeming our land or He is destroying it. Either our nation is one nation under God or it is cursed. Pick a narrative, but stop speaking with a double tongue.

We have been told in Joel 2 and Acts 2 the spirit has been poured out on all flesh, your sons and daughters can prophesy (speak, declare, announce good news, words of encouragement, something that edifies those who hear it), so if you are going to prophesy, prophesy, we need to hear words of encouragement. Words of light and life pierce the darkness and destroy the sprit of death. Remember Moses and Solomon said, the power of life and death is in the tongue. Then Toby Mac even wrote a song to remind us to Speak Life!!! If being in the “know” by watching the news is your narrative, then listen, watch and learn, but don’t echo what they are saying, for there is another narrative and it is good news, but you must read your Bible to hear the good news. The good news is the narrative we are to echo, but you must spend time in the word to know the narrative of the kingdom.

Psalm 7:9 is the narrative of the nations, “O let the evil of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; For the righteous God tries the hearts and minds.” The narrative of the nations is that wickedness is coming to an end and righteousness is being established. You are not going to hear that on the local, national or international news, but you will hear it in the Bible. This is our decree, this is our narrative, this is what we are to echo, wickedness is ending and righteousness is being established. It’s the truth and our opinion on the subject does not matter. Speak life, declare truth and watch how God changes the frequency of the narrative you hear and speak.