Identity Theft

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

The thief (Satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10)

There is so much attention these days on identity theft.  Cyber thieves works overtime to get our personal information so they can get access to our credit cards, bank accounts, retirement funds and anything else they can use to steal our money.

Well, I got news for you.  Identity theft didn’t just start in the last decade or so.  It has been around for centuries.

Our spiritual adversary, the devil, has been using the tactic since the beginning of time.  He works to steal our spiritual identity and he is often successful.

He tries to steal our identity as God’s children by convincing us that we are not worthy, even though our position as God’s children has nothing to do with our worthiness and everything to do with God’s grace.

He tries to steal our identity as someone who has complete victory over sin, by getting us to focus on our failures rather than walking in the victory that is already ours because of what Jesus did on the cross.

He tries to steal our identity as the light of the world and His ambassador to the nations by getting us to concentrate on our weaknesses and convince us that we have nothing to offer.

The next time you are feeling defeated and unsure of who you are in Christ, recognize that the enemy is trying to steal your identity, and then declare “my life is hidden in Christ” (Colossians 3:3).

Baffled

“Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.”

Acts 9:22

Have you ever been baffled by someone else’s words or behavior?

Saul, now Paul, was an educated man steeped in the knowledge of the Law and the Prophets and taught by some of the best of his day.

But it was his conversion and the subsequent revelation given to him by the Holy Spirit of that same Law and Prophetic books that ‘turned on’ the switch of understanding for Paul.

He did not suddenly have new information – but he did suddenly have new revelation.

God brought life to Pauls’ knowledge and the scriptures Paul knew and though he understood so well took on new meaning and clarity for him.

He now saw in those same scriptures what he had not seen before.

He now saw what the unconverted Jews did not see.

That is what baffled them and still baffles men today.

God is still opening the spiritual eyes of men and woman today.

Perhaps you are praying for someone like that today.

Don’t give up – continue in prayer for them!

Umm, What Was That Again Lord?

“The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”

Acts 9:11

In the ninth chapter of the Book of Acts a disciple by the name of Ananias is told by God to go and pray for a man called

Saul of Tarsus that he might receive his sight.

Saul had a reputation amongst those of the church and it was not a good one!

It might be compared to God speaking to one of us today and telling us to go to an ISIS camp and pray for their leader.

To Ananias’ credit, after the initial reassurance from the Spirit of God, there does not appear to have been a lot of hemming and hawing on his part.

(Honestly, I probably would have put up more of a fight.)

Once he received the reassurance from God, he went in obedience.

(I wonder if he walked real slo-o-o-o-w?)

A long time before that God had been very patient with a man called Gideon when he asked God for a fleece.

As a matter of fact that request was honored.

Ananias, however, made no such request of God.

He is, in my book anyway, an unsung saint who demonstrated great faith and courage in obeying the Lord.

Think of the writings of the New Testament absent the work of Paul and you gain a better understanding of the impact of Ananias’ simple

(but maybe not so simple!) act of obedience.

Let it serve as encouragement to you today when God asks of you...

No Chance Encounters

“How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?”

 So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.”

Acts 8:31

The same Holy Spirit who was working in the heart of the Ethiopian eunuch quoted above could have easily also brought him divine revelation to understand what he was reading.

But God chose to use Philip to share with him the Good News of the Gospel.

It is also noteworthy that Phillip was invited to sit with him.

Often, in our zeal to fulfill the Great Commission, we fail to wait for the invitation.

We have good news to share and that is what we are going to do – whether or not they are ready to hear!

But if we are led by the Holy Spirit, He can and will faithfully lead us to those He is drawing to Christ.

The eunuch was not ignorant of scripture but he was hungry for questions he had to be answered.

Jesus said the fields are “...white unto harvest.”

This encounter was a fulfillment of those words.

Like the woman at the well that Jesus spoke to in John 3, when we are led by the Spirit there is no such thing as a ‘chance encounter’.

Philip was led by the Holy Spirit to someone hungry and ready.

Will you let the Holy Spirit lead you today to that person who is hungry and ready?

Special Delivery

“Is there anything of which one can say,

    “Look! This is something new”?

It was here already, long ago;

    it was here before our time.”

Ecclesiastes 1:10

Why yes, there is as a matter of fact.

Gods’ expressions of His love to His children each day.

The Bible tells me that Gods’ mercies are new every morning.

How much more so the ways in which God tells us or shows each of us of His love for us.

While certainly powerful, the simple words “I love you” are just the beginning  of Gods ‘expression of love to you!

We might all agree that Calvary was the ultimate expression of Gods’ love for man but it was definitely not His only one.

Each new day there are limitless and creative ways that God speaks to each of us declaring that love.

We read a scripture such as: Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever or we are taught of unchangeable God but we must remember that these speak of God’s character and not His methods.

His expressions of His love are as unique and infinite as His creative ability.

Perhaps as we listen carefully and observe life we will find God expressing His love to us today in a new, fresh and creative way in order that we might receive it and know of His deep, intimate and personal love for each of us.

Beautiful Driftwood

Today’s post is contributed by David Trotta:

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.  For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? (Hebrews 2:1-3)

Using old drift wood to decorate your house has become very trendy.  If you go into stores, you will often see knick-knacks or pieces of furniture made out of driftwood.  As a matter of fact, at this very moment, I’m staring at a piece of driftwood with candles mounted to it on my dining room table.

In the above verse, Paul warns us not to take our eyes off the message of our salvation, lest we drift. 

In our walk with the Lord, it is very easy to drift away from Him.  That occurs when we stop actively pursuing Him and put our spiritual life on auto-pilot.

When we do, our lives are no longer anchored to Jesus.  The result is a life just going through the motions on the outside, but whose heart has drifted far away from its first love.

If you feel like you have spiritually drifted away from Jesus and your life is rudderless, leave everything and row back to your first love.

If you allow yourself to drift too long, you will eventually lose sight of the shoreline where you become vulnerable to storms and attacks.

Put your oars back in the water and start to row your heart towards Jesus.  Focus your spiritual eyes on the lighthouse (Jesus) and move in that direction.

When you do, Jesus will come out to meet you.  It’s never too late.  He is a master at redeeming those who have drifted away from Him and making something beautiful out of their lives.

Sticking Your Neck Out

“To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran. ‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’”

Acts 7:2-3

If you read through the seventh chapter of the Book of Acts, you will discover that most of the chapter is Stephens’ recitation of God’s power at work in the history of the Nation of Israel.

He was speaking to the religious leaders who should already have been well versed in that history.

There was very little of what Stephen said that any of those leaders could have, would have or should have had issues with.  

But the last several verses of that chapter move from history to the current day (at that time) and the religious leaders rejection of what God had done through His Son Jesus and how those very same religious leaders had rejected Him.

History is fine as long as it speaks of the ‘good old days’!

In the church we recall the past moves of God with great fondness.

But very often we resist God in the ‘here and now’ because He may not move in the same way He has in the past.

The past seldom challenges our current status.

It allows us to relish the good things and to tell others we have learned valuable lessons from the bad thing that happened.

But current events don’t let us off so easily.

Current events have a way of drawing a line in the sand and bid us to make a choice.

We prefer indifference and would rather not stick our necks out.

Stephen challenged their status quo.

It was fine as long as he was reciting ancient historic facts they all could agree with but then he came to a point where he challenged those who challenged God and His ways.

That is why he was martyred.

Jesus still challenges people today.

Are you willing to stick your neck out?

The Truth and Its’ Seeds

“At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.”

Acts 7:57-58

Stephen, a newly appointed deacon in the 1^st century church, was martyred for his faith.

Much like Jesus, Stephen’s death came only after those who opposed what he spoke (there are indeed power in the words you speak) secretly brought false witnesses against him.

They could not silence him with the truth because, also like Jesus, it was he and not they that were speaking the truth.

It was truth they could not refute.

“...they secretly persuaded some men to say...”

These words were part of verse 11 in Chapter 6.

It is clear form these words how often deception and darkness go hand in hand.

Since opposing Stephen based on the truth wouldn’t work they determined to just lie about him to bring him down.

They found men willing to do that (they are always nearby it seems) and before long the early church had its’ first martyr.

But looking on was a man named Saul.

I wonder what seeds might have been planted in his heart that day.

I wonder what seeds your words might plant in the hearts of others to someday come to fruition for the glory of God.

Think about it.

The Message

“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,

but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

I Corinthians 1:18

A fool, foolishness and folly are held in very low esteem in scripture.

You can read through the Book of Proverbs and see that very clearly.

But Paul says’ the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing.

So what to do?

Some have tried to ‘present’ the Gospel in ways that downplay the cross.

Others have said let’s not preach the cross at all in order that more might be saved.

But saved to what?

The work of the cross is the message so eliminating it eliminates the message.

That work, including the Resurrection story, is the power of the message we share.

Imagine trying to explain Google or Facebook to someone in the 19^th century but you cannot include any explanation of the internet or computers.

You couldn’t do it.

So understand that the Good News void of any mention of the cross or the resurrection is a powerless, meaningless message.  

Don’t speak what they want to hear, speak what they need to hear!

Re-Living Yesterday!

“Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.”

Psalm 145:2

Happy Resurrection Day!

“Wait a minute Stephen, aren’t you a day late with your greeting?”

No, not really!

To a follower of Christ, every day should be like Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving rolled into one.

The gift of heaven has given us the power of His resurrection live.

Who wouldn’t be thankful for that!

Don’t wait for the annual celebration.

Live for the daily celebration!

Jesus is a gift to you today.

No matter how hard the struggles, no matter what you are facing, He does not leave you and He will not forsake you.

So let me say it again –

Happy Resurrection Day

Mery Christmas and Happy Thanksgiving too!

Happy Resurrection Day!

Wishing all of you a Blessed Resurrection Day!

Can you see where you are going?

Today’s blog post is contributed by David Trotta:

"I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." (John 8:12)

The other night I stubbed my toe because I foolishly walked by the lamp in my living room and didn’t turn it on.  Instead, I rationalized that I didn’t need the light because I was familiar with the path I was walking next to the couch and I knew it was free of any obstacles.

Wrong!  My wife was vacuuming earlier in the day and she did not put the cleaner away when she was done.  The result?  One painful little toe!

Sometimes we try to live our lives without letting Jesus lead the way.  Instead, we follow our own way because we think we know where we are going, but in our shortsightedness, we miss the traps that lie in the path ahead of us.

How do we follow Jesus?  By continually acknowledging Him.  Acknowledging His lordship, acknowledging our reliance upon Him, acknowledging our desire for Him to lead us every step of the way.

In Proverbs 3:6, the Amplified bible tells us “In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him,
and He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].”

Only the Light of the world (Jesus) can provide safe passage through life.  Apart from Him, we walk in darkness.

Setting the House in Order

“In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.”

Acts 6:1-6

In the first six verse of Acts chapter six we are told that the growing church had a potential divisive issue surrounding the distribution of food to Grecian and Hebrew widows. The Apostles wisely chose others who could administrate and serve in this area so that they were not drawn away from their proper role in the young church. As Apostles they were not called to do it all. Perhaps there were some who wanted the Apostles to these things just as there were some who wanted Moses to make all the decisions and

judgments for the Israelites during the Exodus.  

It was an unreasonable situation then and would be for the new church as well.

But those tasks were not the order or role God had purposed for them.

Instead, they chose, prayed and laid hands on seven who were commissioned to the work. This resolved the problem without allowing it to bring division or to pull the Apostles away from their essential tasks and purposes.

God has a role for each of us to play.

When we fulfill that role it allows others to walk in their calling without covering work left undone by others.

Are you fulfilling the role God has called you too?

Oh, by the way, look at what followed when their house was set in order...

“So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.”

Acts 6:7

Wise and Persuasive Words

“But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men... in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

Acts 5:34-35, 38-39 selected

The words of Gamaliel were both wise and persuasive.

The Sanhedrin had listened to the Apostles words after they had been miraculously let out of the prison that very same Sanhedrin had them put into.

They were furious at the convicting power of the Apostles words and the verse that leads into our text above says:

“When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death.”

Gamaliel had the Apostles removed and then spoke to his peers.

His words were honored.

Still, they were flogged and told not to speak in Jesus’ Name, which they almost immediately disobeyed by the way!

But they were not put to death as the Sanhedrin desired.

Wise words can be very persuasive.

Do you choose your words or do you let them spill out without any thought?

Something to think about...

Moved From Fear to Fearless

“At daybreak they entered the temple courts,

as they had been told, and began to teach the people.”

Acts 5:21

 

In Acts 5 we are told that the Apostles were arrested and put in jail

because of the jealousy of the High Priest and his associates.

If you take some time to read through the entire Book of Acts, you will find that persecution and landing in jail was not an uncommon happening for the leaders of the new, young church.

Perhaps most remarkable in this account is that the angel

who had led them out of the prison then told them:

“Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said,

“and tell the people all about this new life.”

Acts 5:20

In other words – go back and do exactly what got you into hot water in the first place!

But this once fearful group of men did just what the angel said to do.

They were once in hiding and fearful, but now they were powerful and fearless!

What happened after the comma in my last sentence?

Pentecost!

The Holy Spirit came to them with power to be His witnesses.

The same Holy Spirit living in us.

Except Through

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.”

Psalm 139:13

“I found out I was 27% Native American.”

So goes a line in a familiar TV commercial for a DNA analysis product that is supposed to reveal your ancestral heritage.

While DNA might reveal much about you, your health, ancestry, ethnicity, etc... it cannot reveal your character.

Proverbs 27:22 says this:

“Though you grind a fool in a mortar, grinding him like grain with a pestle, you will not remove his folly from him.”

While a fool and his money may be soon parted, as the old saying goes, not so a fool and his folly!

It is ingrained in him and cannot be removed except through the transforming grace of God available to both fool and wise men through Jesus Christ.

While DNA may be reveal, it cannot transform.

The cross will do that and more when you avail yourself of the work accomplished there.

Something to think about this Easter season.

Heaven is not for me

Today’s blog, contributed by David Trotta, contains what you might call a ‘scarey truth’. It is truth that asks a question that, if answered honestly, would frighten most of us. Please take the time to consider what Dave challenges each of us with today...

Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. (Psalm 73:25)

In his book Crazy Love, Francis Chan quoted John Piper who asked this question - “If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?”

That question has echoed in my heart since I read it a number of years ago.  The Lord uses it to continually challenge where the affections of my heart lie.

You see, if I was totally honest, most times the answer to the above question would be “yes.” I could be satisfied with heaven if Jesus wasn’t there and that scares the heck out of me.  Because no matter how I try to spin it, my answer reveals the fact that I love many other things more than I love Him.

What about you?  How would you truthfully answer that question?

May our love for Jesus become our only passion in life.  May the thought of being apart from Him for any length of time bring a sense of sadness to our hearts.  It’s time we forsake the love of so many other worthless things and focus all that energy on loving and pursuing God.

May we get to the place where even if heaven contained all the pleasures of this world, but was absent of Jesus, our response would be “heaven is not for me.”

Protest or Praise

“I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever;

    with my mouth I will make your

faithfulness known

    through all generations.”

Psalm 89:1

It’s a picture we have probably all seen at one time or another.

People lined up behind a mic to share their two cents at a village, town, city or school board meeting.

They come out in droves to oppose and protest some particular new ordinance, law or curriculum.

Certainly, in one respect that can be considered a healthy response of citizenry in a democracy.

But here’s a better picture to consider.

People coming out in droves and lined up to share their testimony of the goodness and grace of God they have experienced.

How might our culture be changed if we shifted from protest to praise?

As the church we should not expect or wait for the world to take the lead.

We must lead the way.

And it doesn’t have to wait for Sunday morning or Wednesday night.

How about right now?

Can you testify to God’s goodness to others in your home, at school or on the job?

Saints, let’s move from a confession of protest to a profession of praise!

A Prelude Price

“After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.”

Acts 4:31

What a prayer meeting!

God moved upon them in a spectacular way.

Who wouldn’t want those results after praying?

While it is certainly something we all would desire (myself included) are we willing to endure those things that Peter and John had to that precipitated the prayer meeting?

There was a prelude to the move of God at that prayer meeting that day we often overlook.

Peter and John were persecuted, they were jailed and they were threatened by the rulers of the city.

Why?

Because they had healed a man in Jesus’ Name!

We would all love the results (not to mention the drama) of an earth shaking prayer meeting and all it represents but often we are quick to run from even the scent of persecution.

Our prayer following such an event might more accurately be something like this:

“Woe is me!” or “Go get ‘em God”

We focus on self or on vengeance, rather than on the Lord as they did.

They didn’t whine.

They didn’t have a pity party.

They didn’t even call down fire from heaven.

They prayed for more boldness to proclaim the Gospel.

No wonder God shook the place and filled them again!

Chreasters

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”

Matthew 28:19

On occasion Jesus taught or read in the temple.

More often than not though, He was out among the people.

He taught along the sea side, on the side of a mountain, in people’s homes, wherever a crowd gathered, He often took the time to teach.

His “church” became wherever people were.

He ministered there.

We can become insulated inside our four walls.

We expect people to come to us to hear the Gospel.

For some, that will never happen.

We must follow the model and the command of Jesus to:

 “Go into all the world...”

Read through the Gospels.

What do you see as you read?

We sometimes refer to those who attend church on Christmas and Easter only as Chreasters.

What if we flipped Easter and Christmas celebrations on their ears and instead of expecting the twice annual visits from reluctant and guilty family members or arm-twisted friends to our churches, we instead went out and invited people, not to a building, but instead into a relationship with the Lord.

A radical thought?

Maybe, not so much!

Empty Nest Church

“This is how God showed his love among us:

He sent his one and only Son into the world

that we might live through him.”

I John 4:9

I’ve heard some pretty unusual names for churches.

I bet you have too.

But how about the “Empty Nest Church”, have you heard of that one?

Me neither.

But stop for a minute and think about it, shouldn’t we all be churches that raise  people up to then let them fly?

Emptying the nest, so to speak!

Think about the role of the fivefold ministry or offices in the church.

What are the Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher to do?

Ephesians 4:11-13 offers the answer.

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

So their role is, in part, to empty the nest. That is to equip God’s people for works of service, going out into the world and advancing His Kingdom.

A church that grows and grows and grows inside its’ four walls but fails to impact the culture around it for the Kingdom is nothing more than a stadium full of people.

It’s time to become an empty nest church.

Growing and going...