#SOULwinning

"Stand firm, and you will #WIN life!"

Luke 21:19

"Under New Management"

Have you ever been by a restaurant or business and noticed a sign in the window that read, "Under New Management?"  Sometimes this can be a good thing or a bad thing.  I noticed one the other day in one of my favorite restaurants and it made me wonder...

You see, we all enter this world under management.  We all live our lives under management.  And at the end of the day, we all die under management.  Sadly, too many people are living their lives--and too many people are dying--with the same management under which they were born.

The Bible says that we were all born into sin--which we have from birth a nature that is sinful. So many people around us are living and dying in that sin. But the Bible also says that you don’t have to live in sin... and you don’t have to die in sin.

If you are a believer in Jesus Christ you are no longer under the old management.  Because of what Jesus did on the cross you have a new nature, and you have been placed under new management. 

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ² in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. ³ All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh^[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. ⁴ But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. ⁶ And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, ⁷ in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Ephesians 2:1-10

If we are in Jesus Christ, you WERE dead, but NOW you are alive.

You WERE unrighteous, but NOW you have been purified in the blood of the lamb.

You WERE objects of wrath, but NOW you stand before God forgiven.

Because of God’s love, we have been brought out of our past condition...

And he has given us a hope--an assurance for the future that can come about only though a decision to follow Jesus Christ.

I wonder today if this is a sign that you can honestly hang in the window of your heart.  Perhaps it may have been placed there long ago, but it's dusty or covered.

Blessings!

"Heart and Sole" Fellowship versus Factory

A few years ago I was at a conference where we honored a Salvation Army officer who was retiring after over 40+ years in ministry.  He was given an opportunity to speak briefly and what he said continues to influence me to this day.

He spoke of his childhood, of being a "troubled" young man, always in trouble.  He found his way to The Salvation Army as many a troubled young man or woman often do.  He began to notice the way in which the officer interacted with people in need and it had an affect on him.  He told a story about a time when he had seen a man come into the building without shoes.  The officer was down the hall unaware of the young man looking from a distance.  He saw the officer bend down, take off his own shoes, and put them on the feet of the man.  That simple act made such an impact on him that is was one of many things that led to him being an officer in  The Salvation Army.

I have reflected over this story for many years.  I believe we have to be careful in the church and in ministry not to lose that personal and sacrificial aspect of our ministry.  In today's culture of mega churches, government funded programs and state of the art facilities, when we identify a need like; a man without shoes, we are more likely to build a shoe factory or develop a shoe ministry than we are to simply bend down and take off our shoes.

I love the story of when the Holy Spirit came during Pentecost in Acts 2.  Towards the end of that chapter, we have a few verses 42-47 titled, "The Fellowship of The Believers."

"They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common.  They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Oh that we would be a fellowship of believers who are quick to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit.  Who give sacrificially from what we have been blessed with to those who are in need.

So the question is are you the kind of person who builds a shoe factory or who bends down and takes off your shoes?

Date Night: "We Are God's Children"

One of the greatest Joys of my life is spending time with my two daughters, Riley and Lily.  It is almost impossible to put into words the amount of love that I have for them and the JOY that they bring into my life.

One of the things me and my oldest daughter (almost three) do, is have a weekly "Daddy /Daughter Date."  Every Tuesday we either go to the local Japanese Steak House which she enthusiastically refers to as the "Fire Place," or we go to see the latest animated movie.  It has become such a meaningful time for us both to spend one on one time with each other.  During this time she knows that there is nothing or no one more important to me then her and she has my full undivided attention.

I was thinking about that earlier today and I couldn't help but consider how much God loves us as His children and seeks a relationship with us.  I can't begin to even remotely comprehend how deep or how wide Christ's love is for us, because it is so vast.  Knowing how much I love my daughters and our relationships imagining being loved by God even more than that is something that blows my mind.

There are so many people sadly in the world today who don't experience true love.  My hearts breaks and I am moved to tears when I think about kids living in children homes, maybe even the same age of my daughters who have no home, no one to hold and squeeze them and take them to the movies.  My heart breaks when I see grown men and women who have no concept of what it means to be truly loved.  My heart breaks when I see young girls and boys who get involved with drugs and sexuality as a way to compensate for a void in their life from not feeling love.

^"Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God."

(John 1:12-13)

God created us.  God desires a relationship that is indescribable in human terms.  For you a "Date Night" with God might include prayer or Bible Study.  If you have to be so intentional about scheduling it...do it!

Today why not take some time to consider how much God loves you and wants a relationship with you, and make sure to tell others about how much He loves them too!

Blessings!

"EGGceptional Blessings!"

My daughter is a constant source of Joy and entertainment; in fact her middle name is Joy.  She gets so excited whenever she hears about a party.  Last weekend she went to her best friends birthday party, for weeks prior it was all we heard about.

This week, she had her Easter Party at day care.  She has been excited about this party for days.  She was excited to help her mother buy eggs and fill them with candy.

When we picked her up from school that day her teacher told us about the Easter Egg Hunt they had.  She said that they spread over 200 eggs in the small play area outside.  When they gave the signal to start our daughter, who is two, proceeded to sprint around the yard like an Olympian, gathering in 5 times the amount of eggs as the other kids.  Her bag was so full the teachers had to ask her to share with the other (slower) kids.

I wish I could have seen her in action!  But as me and my wife were chuckling about this during our morning coffee, I couldn't help but making a parallel to our Christian Walk, it's what I do...

There were so many eggs spread out in that yard for everyone to have more than enough, for every child's bag to be overflowing.  In the same way, the Lord has laid out blessings for each one of us, His children.  Unfortunately too often, we don't take the time to gather them up, or we think that we can't have too many.

So as we approach this Easter weekend, consider all the Lord has done, all the ways He has blessed you, and perhaps the ways in which He could bless you if you would simply claim them and gather them up.

I leave you with a passage from Ephesians 3:16-21:

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

"Lessons From The Sand Trap!"

One of my favorite things to do is play golf.  I'll admit, I am by no means a pro, or even a good golfer, yet I enjoy it!  For me there is nothing more relaxing then being outside, surrounded by the beauty of God's creation, and trying to knock the snot out of a tiny white ball with a long piece of metal.

I had the unique opportunity this year to attend both a Practice Round and Tournament Day of the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia.  Wow!  Talk about the beauty of God's creation!  I was so caught up in the beauty that I even took a picture of the grass.

One of the weakest parts of my game is bunker shots.  If I end up in the bunker, you might as well give me a +12 on the hole cause I am going to hack at the ball repeated times like a housewife trying to kill a mouse in the kitchen with a broom!

I was amazed at the Masters watching the ease and the skill of the players who could intricately play the ball from the bunker many times getting it within a few inches or feet and sometimes right into the hole!

I started to think about how bunkers not only appear on the golf course, but in our every day lives.

For me there is no greater feeling then hitting that "Perfect" drive.  You know the one I'm talking about, where you just cream the ball down the fairway dead straight like it was what you always do.

But the worse feeling is after you creamed that drive, getting all the way down the fairway only to find that your enormous drive has rolled right into a fairway bunker.

Sometimes in life we end up in "bunkers."  Sometimes you feel like you have done something amazing or on track to achieve something you have been working on for a long time, only to find yourself stuck.

² He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
   out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
   and gave me a firm place to stand.
³ He put a new song in my mouth,
   a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the LORD
   and put their trust in him. 

(Psalm 40:2-3) 

As Christians we don't have to be in despair when we find ourselves in bunkers, water hazords or woods.  Because we are walking the course of our lives with the Holy Spirit as our caddy.  No matter what hazardous situation you find yourself in, remember that we serve a God who created it all and that is in full control of every situation.  Who knows, you just may play that ball out of the bunker and right into the hole...

...Just remember to give God all the glory!'

"Why I Do What I Do"

It's been a while since my last post...no excuses!

I wanted to share a video produced at our Emergency Shelter.  It's stories like this that give me the energy and drive to continue doing what I do.  Enjoy!