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Changes are hard when they are not my idea.  When Connie and I married, we came into the relationship with a suitcase full of selfish expectations.  Like every other newlywed, we struggled to adjust to the diverse ways we spent money, our preferred taste of food, relationships with others, sexual expressions and the list goes on.  Right and wrong in such cases tends to be more about a person’s perspective than morality.

Paul wrote of Jesus … though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9, ESV)  None of us can imagine what incredibly drastic changes Jesus voluntarily made in order to leave the splendor, authority, righteousness of heaven and come to earth to be born in an animal stable as a helpless baby to parents with no experience in raising a child.  So, what kind of changes have you been called upon to make for your spouse, children, parents or in-laws. Most, if not all, marriage or church conflicts have proven to be reduced to a petty personal preference that came out of a suitcase full of misdirected expectations and unwillingness to change. 

A cursory examination of Scripture reveals God required His chosen people to make drastic changes that would set them apart from other tribes of humanity.  Abraham was called to leave his family, friends and the culture he understood.  Early Christ followers had to leave everything dear to them, extended family, homes, jobs and even where they grew up.  Imagine what this would be like for you to experience.  This meant they were willing to leave their lifelong goals and dreams.  Everything had to be yielded to God and their entire life adjusted to focus on loving Him and following His ways.  Paradoxically, each one discovered that radically adjusting their lifestyle and ways of doing things was well worth the cost.  How closely have you been clinging to things, habits, people, lifestyles? 

Again, God’s own Son gave up more than anyone.  Jesus emptied Himself of position and glory in Heaven to join with His Father’s plan to provide for your salvation and mine.  Having done that, He ascended back to all He had set aside.  As a Christ-follower, you have no choice but to hold loosely whatever earthly things or people you enjoy.  In my personal case, my dream was to be a counselor or business executive—not a minister!  I knew I was not naturally shaped for preaching.  Yes, I tried to negotiate with God, practiced passive resistance, insisted on my independence but slowly surrendered all.  In retrospect my only regret has been my utter unwillingness to exchange my dreams sooner.   Your greatest difficulty in following God may come down to giving up all that is valuable to you to do what seems impossible to you.  This kind of crisis is what reveals the authenticity of the love and trust in God you want to have.

The only way to follow Him is to align our thinking and actions with Him and His ways—the sooner the better.  Those who did this in the early Bible days, or the birthing of the church lived out the faith you and I have dreamed of experiencing.  Given the chaotic climate of our nation today, it may very well be that you will be positioned to make necessary changes in your life to obey His command to make disciples of our Lord.  If so, fear not!  You will discover first-hand the dynamic faith provision and power you have only dreamed of experiencing.  Prepare yourself now to make necessary changes so you can literally live out the freedom, joy, peace and hope for which Christ died so you could enjoy.   These changes may come sooner than you think.      

It is a common assumption that Moses co-authored the book of Genesis along with the Holy Spirit.  I was recently challenged with the questions; 1) to whom was he writing it and 2) what was his purpose or message when writing it?  Surprisingly, I had never considered those interesting questions.  How would you answer those questions? 

Moses obviously was not present when the earth was formed, when life on earth as well as Adam and Eve were created.  Neither was Moses yet alive when the flood occurred, in the time of Abraham, Isacc and Jacob or in the first 3 hundred years of the 400 years of Hebrew Egyptian slavery.  Yet he wrote about them.  How can this be?  What might be your answer to that question?

When pondering such questions, something my wonderful wife said triggered the release of insight I had never considered.  The summary of the new thought was this.  John, Jesus’ youngest disciple, at the time was in his late 80’s and exiled on the isle of Patmos.  It was here, over 2000 years ago, the Holy Spirit inspired him to write of things that would happen in the future.  We easily accept the fact that much of that Spirit inspired prophesy still remains unfulfilled. 

Why is it easy to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit can inspire someone to write what is yet to come but struggle when trying to apply how the same Holy Spirit could have inspired Moses to write what had happened perhaps thousands of years before he was born?  The fact is the Bible begins with a revelation of what had happened in the past and ends with a revelation of what is yet to come with both being perfect and having a tree of life and a river! 

David wrote in Psalm 119, “Teach me your statutes!”; “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law”; “Oh how I love your law!”; “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”; “Give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies!” (verses 12,18,97,103,125, ESV).  Remember, the only books available for David to read were the first five books of the Old Testament, at least two of which we tend to avoid reading!  Perhaps the most fascinating of David’s words were Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me (Psalm 119:98, ESV) because after reading these books at times I have struggled at times to understand what gave him joy.  He obviously had a unique perspective I lack.

I have found God’s deeper and more invigorating truths require an open mind and heart, serious initiative, and faithful, diligent efforts to discipline the body, will, mind and emotions. With so many distractions around us it is hard to CARVE OUT TIME in our busy schedule time to encounter God through His Word.  From what I have learned about God’s ways, He purposely designed that His revelations will come to us especially when we persevere in seeking Him above ALL other attractions. 

In the midst of that, like David and every sincere believer, there is a gentle but deep desire within to know more about our heavenly Father—His core values, His ways, His character, and truth.  But like the old gold miners who had to dig to find the gold, by us digging more deeply into the Bible, Old and New Testaments, we find SO MANY MORE big gold nuggets.  It is in the process of digging out these nuggets that we personally are energized, fulfilled and hopeful about whatever we may encounter.  I have experientially found this verse to be true to life, “Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart…. Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!” (Psalm 119:1,2,5, ESV)  If ever there is a time now and in our near future that we must be filled with His power, life, hope and truth, it is today!  If we are not, it will be our own neglect that results in not being able to endure to the end.  (Matthew 24:13)   

The query of every young person is when will I know I am grown up?  Legally the threshold is 21 years of age.  However, any adult knows that there is a lot more growing up after that.  My mom used to say, they are still wet behind their ears—not sure where she came up with that! 

Since spiritual life-change is one my core values, a top question is, when is a person a spiritual grown up?  A group of Fortune 500 statisticians discovered in a survey they created for Willow Creek Church that there are four primary stages of spiritual growth the last of which is ‘Christ-Centered’.  Their definition of that was “My relationship with Jesus is the most important relationship in my life.  It guides me in everything I do.” That still begs the question, how does one know when a relationship with God is truly the most important in their life?  How might that have validation? What I have found to be a more discerning statement is, ‘the strength of one’s devotion to Jesus Christ is not measured by her or his speech, but by his or her sufferings’.  I.E. the measure of a person’s devotion to any cause, right or wrong, is the depth of suffering one is willing to endure for it. 

One of the most revealing evidences of the authenticity of the apostle’s spiritual conviction was their motivation to endure incredible opposition for decades for absolutely no earthly gain.  They left families and friends and with no financial support went out and preached the gospel of the kingdom of God.  All but the apostle John became martyrs for what they deeply believed, not for the applause of humans or any earthly benefit.  They did not have ANY security, financial or otherwise.  Extremely few today would seriously consider doing this.  Far too few ministers of the gospel today, who claim to be called of God, will go wherever, even to remote parts of their state, without any financial or emotional support.  That is striking when compared to early believers who endured the most severe persecution, losing their jobs, possessions and even their lives ONLY because they followed Christ’s teachings.  

When Jesus first appeared to the original eleven apostles, He showed them His pieced hands as proof of what He had endured.  When the apostle Paul offered to the believers in Colossae proof of his zeal for God, he pointed to “…remember my chains” (Col. 4:18, NLT2).  He was able to say to the believers in Galicia “I bear in my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus” (Gal. 6.17, NLT2). 

Paul described spiritual maturity as “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” who gave His all for others.  Why?  so, you and I can live comfortably secure yet complain or have anxiety attacks?  What we fail to understand is that our greatest inner joy comes in giving our all for the cause far bigger than anything earthly thing we can gain—the cause of God’s kingdom.  Our spiritual immaturity or short sightedness is inhibiting us from walking in the abundant life Christ died to give us.  From real life experience Paul wrote, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses (lit. sickness, distress), so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:9b-10, ESV)  What do you intuitively sense your next step is in experiencing the joy of being a spiritual grown up?  When do you plan to take that step?

Decisions affecting the future are hard to make.  Deciding which career to focus on, which job to take, what house or vehicle to purchase, should I marry or wait, those relating to furthering one’s education, electing a political or church leader; these and many, many more challenge our relationship with our God.  All too many who call themselves a Christ-follower, make such decisions based on how they feel or what they think might be best at that moment in time.  It is all about them or their immediate take on a situation instead of acknowledging their life is no longer their own.  An authentic Christ-follower is bought by the blood of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20) and are therefore love-slaves of the most-high God.  Jesus’ brother wrote You don’t even know what your life tomorrow will be! You are like a puff of smoke, which appears for a moment and then disappears. What you should say is this: “If the Lord is willing, we will live and do this or that.” But now you are proud, and you boast; all such boasting is wrong. So then, those who do not do the good they know they should do are guilty of sin.  (James 4:14–17, GNB)  In other words, to make such decisions without finding out what our God says about the matter is arrogant pride. 

What a conundrum in our life does is to help us take a hard look at who is really governing our life.  Sometimes we make our judgment about a job, person or institution based on what we consider to be stupid, egotistical, or lacking discretion on their part.  While our perspective may be a correct assessment on their part, what we do not know is if the Spirit of God plans to use that person or employment to bring about His greater plan.  We must remember God used an Egyptian Pharaoh and schooling to educate Moses and called King Nebuchadnezzar who God used to discipline His people.  In our 2020 election, we have two candidates, neither of whom are ideal in our eyes.  Therefore, a person much look past our assessment of the person to find who has shown evidence that they have allowed the Holy Spirit to work through them in order to promote greater righteousness in our nation.   

When a person I have worked with behaves very poorly or teaches something I understand to be very contrary to truth, to be candid, my initial response is to get angry and/or distance myself from them—even fire them if I’m their employer.  But before I can make a good decision, I must first find a way to prayerfully desensitize my emotions and thoughts.  Only then am I capable of looking at the bigger picture and hear the gentle whisper of the Spirit’s guidance in what step I should take next.  When I take time to do that before acting, I often have found my first reactions, though appearing correct was quite mistaken. 

When facing a challenging decision about your future, I urge you to be cautious about following your elevated emotions or initial thoughts.  Instead, take time to dial your mind and emotions way down  You can do this by spending quality time seeking to know God’s perspective on your next move. 

Regretfully, I have learned the hard way from making emotionally driven or over thought decisions gets me out of alignment to God’s plan and purpose.  Unfortunately, the consequences negatively affected not only me but others as well.  I know both the deep regret of rash decisions as well as the deep-seated joy of slowing down so I can connect with God and allow Him to guide me in making a fruitful choice.  My prayer is that you can learn from my regrets and enjoy a more blessed and fruitful life as well as remain in sync with the purpose of our Father.   

Albert Einstein was a brilliant scientist who listened to a different drumbeat.  He was known for not being bothered with such trivialities as changing his clothes or conforming to the fads of his culture.  While he probably was not so admired by people who saw him then, his accomplishments have made him a hero today.  Other heroes of the past also listened to a different drumbeat.  Jesus certainly did. 

It’s interesting that so many want to dress differently from others.  Yet strangely enough these apparent non-conformists also look and sound just alike.  This is true for those anti-socials, leaders, business owners and yes, ministers as well.  Unlike conformists, past spiritual heroes did not listen to others around them.  They were more like Jesus who marched to God’s drumbeat.  All too often we look to the natural talents, physical appearance, mental capacities, personalities, etc. and attribute their apparent success to such qualities themselves. 

A compass is not valued because of its physical appearance.  Rather, we use it because its needle repeatedly mysteriously points us North.  Jesus, as other spiritual heroes who later followed, also commonly had an inexplicable fixation on God and His leading.  Jesus hinted to this when He said, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about” (John 4:32, NLT2). When Jesus rose from the dead, when Peter and John heard His tomb was empty, they both ran to the same tomb. However only John saw and believed (John 20:8).  What did he see that Peter did not?  Earlier, Elijah saw God’s army surrounding him while his servant only was able to see the Syrian’s horses and chariots surrounding them (2 Kings 6:15-8).  Spiritual saints of the past were able to see into another sphere yet able to also maintain contact with their world and thereby offer life and hope to their contemporaries.

If there ever is a time when our world desperately needs such spiritual heroes, it is today.  When a person encounters God, when they are truly born-again, according to Ezekiel 36:25-27, they receive God’s Spirit within them.  This Spirit is the different drumbeat that not only causes them to be careful to obey God’s laws but also to see and hear what others cannot see or hear.  While this ability to so connect with God is intended for every believer, most of us allow cultural drumbeats to distract us.  We thereby become deaf to His calling to live out the fruit of His Spirit in our world when such models are so desperately needed.

Now is the time for each believer to take the initiative to do whatever is necessary to retune the focus of our spiritual eyes and ears to God’s drumbeat that beats out the rhythm of hope, life and truth as our world moves more deeply into chaos, hostility and unrighteousness.  God is looking for spiritual heroes in our communities and relationships.  Sports, hobbies, possessions, and pleasures are fine in their place but now is not the time for us to allow them to dominate our thoughts, time, or affections.  The Bible reminds us we are strangers in this world and the time is quickly coming upon us when we must show God’s love, peace, and wisdom in the way Jesus did before He left this world. 

With that in mind, what drumbeat have you been listening to that you must now tune out so you can best hear and follow His drumbeat?

I have been listening to the book Harbinger II by Johnathan Cahn.  He leaves a reader with some interesting things to ponder.  One thing is certain God’s judgement on America is coming.  It has left me asking, ‘What constitutes an authentic connection with God?’ 

Paul pastored a church in Ephesus for a couple years.  While there, an unusually intense revival occurred when many brought several million dollars’ worth of magic art books to a public book burning.  It is thought Epaphras was converted there and later started a church in nearby Colossae.  Only about 33 years later, in Revelation 2:1-7 the apostle John records a very thought-provoking vision to this same church family.  To them Jesus commended their right spiritual activities but also said they had somehow lost connection with the vine (cf. John 15:5-6). Their love for God had degenerated into simply going through empty and hollow Christian motions.  Therefore, Jesus told them to either repent and go back to their first love for Him or He would totally remove their connection with Him.  Wow! Jesus is telling us that doing all the Christian duties without passion for Him does not qualify as authentic connection with Him.

Jesus also told those who were prophesying, casting out demons and performing many miracles, I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness (Matthew 7:23, ESV).  This tells us independently doing supernatural works does not necessarily qualify as authentic connection with Him.  This illustrates Jesus’ words You are the ones who make yourselves look right in other people’s sight, but God knows your hearts. For the things that are considered of great value by human beings are worth nothing in God’s sight (Luke 16:15, (GNB)

Paul later wrote in 1 Corinthians 8:2-3 that Bible knowledge itself does not qualify as authentic connection with Him.  John wrote And this is eternal life, that they know [euphemism for sexual relations in the New Testament – knowledge that motivates automatic obedience] you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent (John 17:3, ESV).  Having one encounter with the Holy Spirit is not the same as intimately knowing Christ.

It is sobering when I think of how many who carry the umbrella of “Christian” are disconnected from authentic Christianity.  These are the ones who, at the end of the day the Harbinger book describes is coming, will be shocked, probably angry at God, when they discover the slippery grace they had embraced did not make the ‘cut’ and they are left behind. 

There can be no real spiritual health without intimate knowledge and connection with God or if it is sought after with the wrong purpose and valued by the wrong standard.  2 Corinthians 13:5 reads Examine yourselves to see whether you are still in the Christian faith. Test yourselves! Don’t you recognize that you are people in whom Jesus Christ lives? Could it be that you’re failing the test? (GW)  Paul explains communion is one time to practice this self-examination. 

While the Harbinger II book is far from perfect, it did point out that we are no doubt in the midst of God’s overdue judgement on America’s rebellious sin against Him.  With rampant abortion, hostility towards God and His laws, pandemic (plague), broad based division and anarchy, huge fires, etc., it appears probable His judgment has begun.  If ever there is a time when we need to have certainty that we have an authentic connection with our Lord, NOW is the time.  If you are uncertain, find someone whose attitude and demeanor confirms they are authentically connected to God and ask them to help you become connected or reconnected with God Almighty. 

Seven years ago, two of my grandsons suddenly lost their father in death.  I vividly remember driving away from their house with Izac, the oldest, sitting in his car seat and hearing him break the silence saying, “my daddy died”.  I flinched.  Daddy’s death cut a deep scar in his mind and emotions that will never go away.  Over the last 7 years, especially the boys and their mother have learned to accept and live with those scars.  

I have six more grandchildren who fortunately did not experience the pain of losing a dad. However, they along with millions of others have encountered different distressing things that also cut deeply into their psyche as well.  The pandemic we’ve been going through is leaving its mark on millions around our globe.  Scores have lost their businesses, jobs, familial and friend relationships, and dreams while others have lost their childhood innocence through physical or sexual abuse or a sundry of other tragic experiences.   Common to all, it feels like their losses are forever.

The Hebrews’ relationship with God was similar to that an adultery filled marriage.  God’s people repeatedly committed spiritual adultery by worshipping heathen gods.   To bring them back to His loving protection and provision, He allowed them to feel consequential, painful losses in the form of invasions, droughts and plagues (some like our pandemic) to wake them up to their self-destructive choices.  In the prophet Joel’s day God sent swarms of giant locust that devoured their crops to the point it ruined their fields bringing drought to their land.  He still loved them in that condition and reached out to them promising, “The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter, my great army, which I sent among you.” (Joel 2:24-25, ESV).    

I so admire Moses who, while living at ground zero of the magnetism of power and luxurious treasures of the world empire of that day, voluntarily forsook all those privileges because he ..reckoned that to suffer scorn for the Messiah was worth far more than all the treasures of Egypt… (Hebrews 11:26, GNB).  Ask yourself, how hard would it be for me to make such a drastic decision when surrounded by wealth, popularity, position, and power?  To make that kind of choice in that environment would require very sober thought.  It would amount to doing what Jesus did when He chose to deny Satan’s offer of all the kingdoms of this world and their glory. (Mathew 4:8-9)  Moses and the humanity of Jesus were convinced God the Father is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6)

Yes, it requires a deep genuine trust in God’s love and power for you to put to rest what you have lost.  God’s plan for your life didn’t end when you experienced your debilitating loss.  Instead, His plan is for you is close the door to the past loss and open the door He has placed before you and enter into His restoration.  It will be the completion of what He had been preparing for you to enjoy before you encountered your loss.  We learn that from how He restored the serious losses in the lives of Job, Moses, Joseph, the lame and blind men, the leper, the impotent man—even Jesus Himself.

The fact is, we have far too much junk in our lives and until we experience a good spiritual house cleaning, we are not able to enjoy God’s restoration which will lead to a far better life.  If you are struggling to release to God whatever you have lost, I pray you will choose to diligently seek to intimately know more of God’s ways, values and character.  Those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You. (Psalm 9:10, NKJV). 

I love discovering gold nuggets in the Bible that reveal God’s character, core values and ways.  Mark 10 reveals a very sizable nugget into God’s core values that is relevant today.  A stark contrast found in God’s response there brings to the surface one of God’s often-overlooked core values.  

The setting finds Jesus walking and talking with His disciples on the road to Jerusalem.  On their walk He told His twelve disciples he was going to be betrayed, condemned, put to death and rise from the dead.  They heard the death part but never heard the resurrection part.

As they walked, two of Jesus disciples (James and John), probably fanaticizing on when Jesus would be the king of Israel, asked Him for a favor.   Jesus asked them, “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:36, NIV)  Each wanted to sit on one side of Jesus when He sat on his throne.  Jesus told them, “You don’t know what you are asking” and went on to say He could not grant them that favor.  

Later in Jericho, Bartimaeus, a blind man, heard a rumor Jesus was passing by.  He too wanted a favor from Jesus so he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”.  When he finally connected with Jesus, Jesus asked him the same question He asked James and John, “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51, NIV)  This time Jesus’ response was, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” (Mark 10:52, NIV)  Instantly the man could see and began following Jesus on His way to Jerusalem.

I would love to have seen all this unfold.  I would love to have seen James and John’s face when they heard Jesus ask blind Bartimaeus the same question then answer his request by healing him.  After all, this dude had not left jobs and families to become His faithful disciples.  

You see the gold nugget here when you compare the similar requests keeping in mind Jesus could do NOTHING miraculous with His own ability (John 5:19)—just as you and I today.    Since Jesus only did what He saw God the Father do, both responses had to be traced back to the decision maker–God the Father. The question then is, why did He say “No” to the disciples who had followed Jesus for about 3 years, yet say “Yes” to the blind beggar who had never even seen Jesus before?  Have you felt the bite of resentment when God didn’t answer your request the way you expected but He did for someone else?

The gold nugget lies below the appearance of things.  The rich gold color is found by considering the motives of the hearts of those making the request, not in the surface political correctness.  James and John, as faithful in service as they had been, lusted to gain personal power in what they envisioned as His coming kingdom.  In contrast, not only did Bartimaeus want to see, we also see his heart led him to immediately begin to follow Jesus.  It is all about the motives of the heart.  James 4:3 (ESV) puts it this way, You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.  We can fool ourselves about our real motives, but our Heavenly Father knows what is really driving our requests or good deeds.  The bottom line is, we will not see our prayers answered if we ask selfishly. 

How can we get this matter right so God can answer our requests?  Jesus gave us this answer in Mark 11:24 where He connected God’s answers with praying.  Prayer is not simply giving God your requests like you give a short order cook.  God intends prayer to be a connection with God’s heart, as Jesus pictured the vine connected with the branch.  When you connect with God, His desires become your desires so He guides what you ask for, not your selfish sin nature which James teaches will hinder your requests.  Remember, John wrote This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. (1 John 5:14, NIV)         

Children with an outgoing personality characteristically love to have people watch them, especially their parents but often strangers as well.  A few are born actors or performers.  I grew up singing and acting in church, turned out to be a pastor but not because I was a born actor who found pleasure in being in front of people.  Like Paul I was compelled to serve in those roles. (1 Cor. 9:16)

However, whether I like it or not, I am in the show business—and if you are a believer you are as well!   Ephesians 2:7 states how believers will be showcased as trophies — examples of God’s expression of His incredible wealth of grace and kindness.  According to Ephesians 3:10 the viewers will be unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly realm.  But relax.  You and I will not have to speak or preform.  The focus will be on how God has graciously transformed depraved, undeserving broken vessels into vessels of honor.   The point is, God will showcase me because I have NOTHING to display that comes out of my behavior, worth, knowledge or skill set.  The brilliant and very gifted apostle Paul considered all he personally had to offer as dung/manure (Philippians 3:8-9) compared to mercifully gaining Christ.

Job was an example of this.  Job 1:8 (NLT2)  Then the LORD asked Satan, “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil.”  You and I are also keepsakes of the Spirit’s craftsmanship intended for display.  He showcases what He shapes out of pliable clay in His hands in stark contrast to what Satan does with sinners.    

We often think of Daniel, who was thrown into the lion’s den, as a hero.   However, we need to remind ourselves he was not tossed to the lions so he would become a hero.  What happened to him was not even about him as much as it was about God wanting to display His power to king Darius of the rising heathen empire.  Daniel was just the willing servant God used to make sure that king Darius clearly understood He was the most powerful God.   Darius got the message loud and clear.  Darius did not make Daniel into a hero but asked “Daniel…has your God…been able to deliver you from the lions?” (Da 6:19-20).  Then went on to decree that in every part of my kingdom people should tremble with terror in front of Daniel’s God, the living God who continues forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed. His power lasts to the end [of time] (Daniel 6:26, GW).   Daniel was simply an earthly actor in a real-life drama that became an applause to Almighty God, not to Daniel.     

Back the story up to when Daniel had to choose to go through his common daily practice of opening his window and praying to our God.  He calmly proceeded with his daily pattern even though he knew his ill-willed enemies were spying on his every move and the consequence of his choice would mean the king would be forced to feed him to hungry lions. That looks like conviction to me, not a sideshow. 

Do you have such convictions that despite your busy schedules you make time for such regular times of prayer and worship to our God?  Second, if you knew evil people were eager for you to give them a good excuse to have you killed, would you calmly give them that opportunity on a silver platter by opening the window and praying as usual?  Or would you try to think of a way to make your prayer time more discrete?  My point is Daniel was not trying to be a trophy.  He was simply walking out his decades old conviction of worshipping his God.  Our role is not to try to be trophies by our efforts but rather simply live out His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Ep 2:10).  That is the show business the Spirit is shaping you for.  Are you pliable clay in His hand allowing Him to shape you into that kind of a trophy?   

As a child I was often said to be compliant.  My dad blamed the college I attended for making me so independent.  But I didn’t go to Berkley I went to a Bible College.   All I have been able to connect to becoming so independent was the pain I felt in my senior year of high school.  It awakened my need to build a protective wall around myself.  Whatever the case, I did become quite independent.  I loved Sammy Davis’s song “I Gotta Be Me”.  That way of thinking seems harmless and in some respects is healthy.  However, our society’s interpretation of it is the very antithesis of Christianity.  Self has become a god to which we often bow in worship.       

Often when a person practices something the Bible forbids, their normal rebuttal goes something like this, “You can’t judge me.  This is only between me and God and it does not hurt anyone else.”  The fact is, Adam and Eve’s sin was personal, but it has continued to cause all humanity to suffer because they violated God’s instruction.  When Achan secretly stole what God had forbidden for the Hebrews to take from Jericho (Joshua 7:5) all the Hebrews suffered and thousands died, including Achan and his family.  When a person privately holds a root of bitterness against someone, it defiles not just him/her but many (Hebrews 12:15).  No one is a solitary Christian.  If a person is a believer, that person is a member of the body of Christ.  In the context of one man’s sexual sin in the church at Corinth, the apostle Paul warned, Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough (1 Corinthians 5:6b, NLT2)?  If a person thinks their failure to give God His tithes; their indulgence in sexual activities outside a marriage (Bible term is fornication), their gossip or ugly attitude, etc. is just between them and God; their Bible illiteracy is showing and they are living in delusion.  The relationship between us and others is so sensitive that even the appearance of evil (1 Th 5:22, KJV) must be avoided for the sake of others.  When a believer violates what God has instructed, their selfish sin infects the spiritual body especially those closest to him or her.

Christianity is counter-cultural which means; while the current in the river is flowing downstream, Christianity is forcing its way upstream.  I am not proud of my earlier years of independence.  I have shed tears of sorrow for it and God has forgiven and enabled its chains to be broken—but to be transparent, if I’m not careful it still pops its head up from time to time.  It is a constant battle for me to swim upstream.  In the midst of my sporadic failure in this matter, I’m committed to getting back up and following this spiritual truth, if one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad, (1 Corinthians 12:26, NLT2).  Falling as I do, I lean on this truth in the Bible that reads, the LORD himself watches over [me]! The LORD stands beside [me] as [my] protective shade (Psalm 121:5, NLT2).  Each of us has a strong nature but the Christ within each of us is stronger and will defend us!   Although I get tired and fall, He will pick me up and send me on down the path of His righteousness.   In that light … since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us (Hebrews 12:1, NLT2)  We do live a solitary life in that no one can live our life for us.  However, we are not solitary Christians!