It's About Love

Dear, sweet, child--never forget that you are loved.  Don't forget you are wanted, sought after and valued.  The God of all the universe designed you intricately and lives to watch you bloom.  He poured his heart into your creation and his eyes never leave your delicate face.  Sweetheart, you are perfect just the way you are.  You don't need affirmation from friends, media or boys.  The great affirmer has called your heart wonderful.  You mustn't fret when the attention withers, but rejoice in the companionship of the Lord.

The Lord who loves you sent himself in human form to prove this to you.  He's showing off so that you will notice the depth of his love for you.  Jesus stretched his arms far and wide and he thought of you when he said, "Sweet child, come home.  Run into these arms of mine and rest in my love.  I need you to need me.  I want you to want me.  It hurts me when you turn away, but all the while I have never stopped loving you and I never will.  You are my precious child and I desire to show you more of my passion for you and all the earth.  Come near to me and I will never forsake you."

It's the love of the father that changes lives.  It's the power in his whisper and the undeniable strength in his voice.  Easter pageants aren't the cure.  10am isn't the magical time.  I cannot help you.  Only Jesus.  Jesus is love and love endures all things.  Love never fails.

Love him.  He first loved you.

Love him.  He will never leave you.

Love him, because you need something constant in this life and the next.

Love him so you can be full of life and vigor and meaning.  Everything else is just a chasing after the wind.  Sadly, even your success and degrees and fortune cannot go with you when you leave this world.  Only your soul and what you left behind in the lives of others.

Live a life of love.  Love the Lord your God with your total heart, soul and mind.  Then turn around and pour that love into other people.  Those are our two commandments, the ones that speak truth and shatter lies.
Love. endures. all. things.

Christ is risen, and he is alive.  Easter Sunday is about the remarkable love he showed for us then, and now and continues to show us.

It's about love.

The Kid Rock-Cash-Cyrus Approach

One question seems to plague me today.

It's something I've thought about vaguely for a while, and until today it has nested in the back of my mind.  But now I'm wondering, and so I'm asking--not for an opinion, but for a truth.  A Jesus-truth.

Around a year ago I really became fascinated with Johnny Cash.  Today I watched "Walk the Line" again and saw it from a whole new angle.

I have also become a huge Kid Rock fan over the past 24 months, and although I consider myself a devout Christian, I find his "in your face", almost-offensive lyrics refreshing somehow.

I think what draws us to these pop culture masterpieces is their originality.  Kid Rock prides himself on being a master of mixing hip-hop, southern rock, and blues all into one.  And listening to his music, I can tell you it is truly a beautiful collaboration and somehow he makes it work--and he has made it work with his obvious multi-platinum record sales.

If you look up Johnny Cash on Wikipedia it explains that his originality and rebelliousness to the country music genre is what set him apart and put him light years ahead of his competition.  He too was creative in his mix: gospel, blues, and western music.

What further intrigues me about Cash is that he considered himself a very devout Christian, yet he was the "biggest sinner of them all."  To be so complex and contradictory really confused a lot of people, especially his Christian fans.

And in the movie there is a scene where Johnny goes to his record company asking to design a concert tour around the nation's top penitentiary systems.  His record company tells him that this is clearly not going to reach his loyal fans.

"Your fans are church folk, Johnny.  Christians.  They don't wanna hear you sing to a bunch of murderers and rapists, tryin' to cheer 'em up."

Mr Cash's striking reply was,

 "Well, they're not Christians then."

 I guess what gets me is that WE are Christians.  We are to model Jesus.  Jesus loved sinners--murderers and rapists.  But in the church today, you don't hear or see anything remotely close to that.  No one loves them or hangs out with them or buys them lunch--much less sings to them or tries to cheer them up.  

In fact, I would assume it would be easier and much more popular for the Christians to look down at Mr. Cash for doing such a thing.

His lyrics are just so rebellious!

                                     He sings about popping pills, killing people, and getting drunk!

How can such a person consider themselves a Christian??

                                          I heard he started out as a gospel singer--I wonder what happened to him?

Poor guy--he's so strung out on drugs he doesn't know what he wants.

Of course, I wasn't around for Johnny Cash's career and the live gossip that followed.  But we are all here for Kid Rock.  Also to many people's surprise--he too sings several songs on faith, Jesus, and God.  He is a political and social activists and participates in several charities.  But I'm sure most of my fellow Christians (I used too as well) can be caught with this kind of opinion:

Kid Rock?  He's definitely not a good guy.  Have you heard his lyrics?  

                         Didn't he go to jail for drugs and stuff?

I think he is pretty strung out on drugs too..

                        I have no respect for him.

                                           He is disgusting.

But really, would Jesus gossip like this?  Well, Jesus wouldn't gossip.  But he would definitely hold the same opinions as us...right?  

What about Lady Gaga or Miley Cyrus' new stunt??

Yeah and did you hear about Amanda Bynes??  Oh my gosh, she is totally loosing it.  Such a shame too because she was so talented...

So it's okay to make "pity" comments and judgmental thoughts about them because they're famous right?

What about you?  How are things on your end?

I heard she's been hanging out with a rough crowd lately..

                He might be gay, we better keep him at a close distance.

I pray for them, but gees there's just no changing them.  They are total hypocrites!

And I'm the one writing this so you know I'll get slammed!

Who is she to talk?  Why does she always think she has the right to preach to us??

                    Well she obviously can't say anything..she dropped out of school for a year!

I don't trust her beliefs anymore..I heard she works at a bar.

I think we've all wasted too many precious hours lying and covering up our mistakes with cheap Covergirl cosmetics.  You see, I am a very black and white person.  Tell me what to do and I'll do it, but this question I have seems to have no clear answer--and so I'm asking you to think on it with me.  Let's think and pray until the Lord searches our hearts with a solution.

Here's the question:

In my family, (Disclaimer: Obviously I love my family, this is just a thought so don't freak out.)  we were raised to keep our sins on the down-low.  Yes, we acknowledge that everyone sins and Jesus totally forgives those kinds of things--but at the same time, we really don't want the whole world knowing about our weaknesses...it just gets, well, kind of messy.  It's too much to explain.

• Like your father's infidelity for instance.  We won't mention that because it was wrong, he knew it was wrong, and so him and your mother worked out amongst themselves and moved on.

• Or your sister went to jail on a crazy party mishap.  That's great that your parents got her out immediately and had it expunged from her record, but please don't bring it up ever again--especially in a family setting.  We don't need to discuss that.

Part of me agrees with this approach, part of me doesn't.  

The Bible teaches me to expose sins and confess them to my prayer warrior friends so I can be healed and set free (James 5:16, Proverbs 28:13, 1 Timothy 5:20.)  But when I do that, I get more gossip in return and worried looks from parents, family members, and old teachers.  I even got awkward talks from many people who barely knew me or my situation!

On the other hand..if you keep quiet about the whole thing and handle yourself between you and God then everyone avoids the awkward conversation and we all politely disregard the fact that you also are human and you have sin.  Because we disregard this fact we can quite confidently turn around and not only judge each other for listening to Lady Gaga's music, but we can join forces together by calling her a "sinful ugly whore who is desperate for attention."

I guess in a perfect world we would follow the Bible and stop judging each other, but we don't live that way--so we sin.  And we sin more to cover up our sin.  And when people ask us about it we lie about our sin.

It's a lose-lose situation.

I had a wonderful friend once who was THAT honest with himself, his friends, his parents and his church family. 

Now we all hate him.

I just don't get it.  What are we to do?  Save face and be (fake) clean little Christians with good (outward) habits and hobbies, or do we take the Kid Rock-Cash-Cyrus approach and be upfront with everyone about being "troubled but devout Christians."

Healing is a Choice: Book Review

When I look around, I always see sick, hurting people who crave love and attention.  That's why we share our deepest thoughts on Facebook for the whole world.  That's why we talk to our friends for hours on end, and that's why our culture is obsessed with dating and connection, yet we are the loneliest generation that's ever hit the planet.

Stephen Arterburn has it right when he explains that these deep hurts and unfulfilled desires within us are placed there for a reason.  This suffering and pain shows us that we need something higher than ourselves or our neighbors.  We need a God that knows every part of us, every painful situation we've been through, and every wound we possess.  When we submit our needs to this great God, he will in fact heal us and make us life-riskers and adventure-seekers once again.

In Arterburn's book, Healing is a Choice, he lays out 10 simple decisions that will help heal and transform your broken life.  Along with every decision, is a big lie that Satan tries to throw at us and stop the healing process.  Arterburn combats each lie with the truth of scripture and God's love.  These choices and applications are what lead individuals to deep healing through God's grace.

Stephen Arterburn is the founder and chairman of New Life Ministries.  He also leads an XM radio show, New Life Live.  Some of his closest friends and colleagues are Dr. Henry Cloud, and Dr. John Townsend, authors of a book I recently reviewed, Boundaries.  Arterburn is also the founder of Women of Faith conferences and has written over 60 books.

What sets Arterburn apart from other Christian authors, is his extreme transparency.  Throughout the book he strongly relates to healing and suffering by speaking out about his painful but biblical divorce with his first wife.  This is why I would highly recommend this book for someone who has been divorced.  I would also recommend this book for anyone who has been sexually or physically abused, or who has experienced deep rejection from a parent or family member.

While the book contains all of the answers to hope and future, the real-life results vary depending on the reader.  As the title suggests, healing does not come instantly or because we want it to.  It is a choice we must chose to take on our own.  It's a journey we must venture into on our own will.

I'm not sure if all versions of the book include the workbook too, but my revised and updated edition did.  I really enjoyed having both books in one place, and highly encourage readers to take advantage of both.  This book can be useful for a wide audience.  I would say the age level is more appropriate for late teens and up however.  Check out Newlife.com for more information on Stephen Arterburn and Healing is a Choice.  

Thomas Nelson has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in order to review it.  I am not required to give a positive review.  All my opinions are my own.


(This review first published on BlogCritics.com)

Unconditional Love

My cousin Brian has been going through a tough time lately.  After being married for only one year, he and his wife decided to take some time a part.  It has now been two months and he has only received a few text messages from his wife over the past two weeks.  He has not seen her, touched her, or held her all this time, and she is his wife.  With this kind of treatment most people would tell Brian to give up, throw in the towel, and call it quits.

Thankfully, my cousin serves a God greater than himself, and because of his love for Christ he has chosen to love his wife.  Ephesians 5:21 says, "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ."  This is how we know it is biblical to love regardless of what we receive in return.


In Dr. Emerson Eggerich's book, Love and Respect, he uses the acronym COUPLE to explain to men how to love their wives unconditionally. The best way for a man to love his wife is through Closeness, Openness, Understanding, Peacemaking, Loyalty, and Esteem.  For the full synopsis of each word you will have to read the book and apply it to your own life.


One of the practical application steps for husbands is to write their wives love notes.  Brian chose to do this just the other day.  I have chosen to share his note with you all as an example of loving selflessly.  Keep in mind she hasn't given him the time of day for the past two weeks.

"...I want you to know that I'm sorry for the way I have been for our first year of marriage and even before that. I was just plugging through life with no direction or motivation. Maybe I thought well I'm married now that's all I need, no reason to try and improve anything. I hope that you can forgive me for being so disconnected to you and for being so lazy. Regardless of whether you decide to give our love another chance or not please forgive my actions. Even if you feel there is nothing to forgive, I assure you there is. I cannot make you love me, nor would I want to try to put you through that. But I do offer you my love, it has always been there even though my actions didn't always show it. While I also have some doubt about whether we can make this work or not, I am still hanging on to a tiny glimmer of hope that you will still want to try. Don't you think we owe it to ourselves to at least try? This excerpt was quite encouraging to me. I feel like I have changed quite a bit the last couple of months. I am still not even close to where I want to be, but definitely headed in the right direction. I know you mentioned something similar in your letter to me. I see no reason he cannot head in these directions together, no reason we cannot shine our brightest together. I am humbled today for what I have been through recently. I am thankful for your actions, regardless of the final outcome, because they have awoken me from a great slumber and in turn began to make me a better man. I am excited to see you Thursday. I have no expectations of anything but am remaining hopeful. Just know that I am still here waiting to love you, if you are ready, if you are willing."

This is an example of reflecting Christ's love for us.  We did nothing in the first place to receive it, yet no person in their right mind can run from this much love and commitment.  Have you ever realized just how much Christ loves you, despite your decision to run from him?  Look at this excerpt from Nehemiah chapter 9.  In just three short verses God's unconditional love for us is made abundantly clear.

Nehemiah 9:29-31

"You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. 

 they sinned against your ordinances, by which man will live if he obeys them. 

 Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. 

 For many years you were patient with them. 

 By your spirit you admonished them through your prophets. 

 Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples. 

 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, 

for you are a gracious and merciful God."

Jesus Paid it All.

Matthew 6:33

Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."  The principle of this verse should be the theme of your life.  As you can tell by the tag line, this blog is based on this principle, and I guarantee you that every post will in some way point you back to God.  I write this way because I know that everything else is useless.  Knowledge without truth is useless.  Love without God is lust.  Life lived for self is a waste.

So much of our life we spend worrying about the next chapter or wondering how this or that will play out.  We consume ourselves with the worldly things, rather than instantly giving them to God  (John 17:15-16.)  Many people ask me for dating advice but then turn there backs on it, claiming it was too hard.

This is because it is unnatural.  God didn't ask us to date in and of the world like non-Christians do.  Everything you see on TV, at the club, with your friends...this is the world's way of dating, and as a life-committed follower of Christ, you were called to be more than that, why?  Because you are called to seek God FIRST.  

When we seek God more than popularity, status, comfort from a close friend, love from the opposite sex, sex from the opposite sex, family, friends, and EVERYTHING else, then and only then will our lives, purpose, and heart fall into place.  I'm not saying you will self-destruct if you put something before God, but I am saying your life will be more chaotic because of it.

Most Christians today are half in and half out.  I think it is because the calling to take up your cross daily is a hard one.  It's not something natural or easy, so most people try it for a few days, months, or weeks, and then give up because the cross is too much to bare, but the calling only becomes too much when we begin to take our eyes off of the one who gave us the cross.  

When worries hit your mind, temptation stings your flesh, and defeat is in your spirit, take a look at your focus. It's probably a few marks off of the bulls eye, which is Christ.  When we are careful to move our focus back to Him one hundred and ten percent, everything else falls back into the background.

So how do we get our focus back on Christ?

Spend an extended amount of time in prayer.  Ask God to reveal the focus of your heart.  Start by praying about whatever comes to mind.  Pretty soon you will find yourself praying about a particular person or circumstance extensively.  More than likely this is the root of your problem, the incident that shifted your focus.

Commit that "thing" to God, not only in your prayer but in the depths of your heart.  Promise yourself that if you begin worrying, fantasizing, or wondering about this "thing" again, that you will quote a verse referring you back to God, or pray for God to once again take the "thing" out of your focus.

Next, get in the Word and hear what God has to say to you.  God is always ready to help us and talk to us about our life-altering drama we encounter from day to day.  Many times we will even pray to him to help us with this drama, but how many times do you actually give him a turn to talk?  One way God speaks to us is through the Bible.  Reading the Word of God should be a daily activity in your life.  If you are always talking and doing and thinking, when does God have a chance to respond?

Start with a devotional book from the nearest bookstore, or try this website for free online devos http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/ or this one for a short and sweet starter http://odb.org/.  However you choose to begin getting in the word, make it a commitment and a part of your everyday routine.  It should be as natural as asking your loved one about their day.

Today I Choose to Listen

How often as humans do we forget to truly listen to individuals.  We say "Hi, how are you doing," ignore the other person's answer happily, and keep walking past them.  Do you ever stop and really think about how that person is feeling, or what they have been through this very morning?  The more I sit down and talk with people the more my heart breaks and head spins for what others so commonly go through in their very own homes.

To many young adults abuse, addiction, and loneliness has been the theme of their lives.  It is "normal" for them.   Their whole life has been filled with rejection from their parents, abuse from step parents, and horrifying scenes on some of us dare to imagine.  These people amaze me with their strength to get out of bed each morning, much less attempt to live a normal life.  I honestly can't say I would respond so positiviely if I was placed in the same situation.

The craziest part about this is that these people look like you and me, they go to school with us, they worship with us in church, and they eat dinner at our kitchen tables.  We interact with them on a regular basis and claim to know them quite well, but when it comes down to it we have never actually asked to hear their story.  The background of lies and hurt is still being hidden by the father of darkness.  When will we decide to break this facade and truly ask each other how things are going?

One woman in particular comes to mind as I write this.  Before we became frineds she had long since known all of the acquaintances we share through extra-curricular activities.  She has more acquaintances than I do now that I think of it, but when I first met her I could see that she was a girl who easily got skipped over by most people.  Kind of plain, kind of boring, kind of quiet...it was easy to see that most people said their routine hello and walked on by.

However as I really sat down with her and did nothing more than listen.  I began to hear story after story that needed to be told.  She told me of her abusive background, how she coped with it, and how she was very much still dealing with it.  As open as she was you would have thought the whole world knew, but the opposite was the truth.  Hardly anyone had heard this girl's heart-wrenching story of survival.  Why?  Because they wouldn't take the time to listen.  That's it.  She was obviously dieing to talk to someone about all of this, but if no one really asks she has no reason to really tell.

Because she chose to break the silence I have been able to truly pray for her with specific heart-felt prayers that God listens and responds too.  Speaking of, God listens to us thousands of times more than we listen to him or anyone else.  Perhaps it is time to change that.

Who do you know (or not know I should say) that has been placed in your life with a story to tell?  Who have you not really asked about lately?  Do you think this is a reflection of not caring?  Jesus tells us to put others above ourselves, what does this look like in your conversations with other people?

Perhaps there is someone who needs your prayers and support, someone you talk to but never listen to.

One Couple's Story: A Video

Think.Act.Be. - 1. Jesus-Likeness - Randy Frazee from Oak Hills Church on Vimeo.

Oh wow this video explains it all.  The theme of Matthew 22:37-40 that Divine Dating was founded on is prevalent in this sermon.
Randy Frazee explains that marriage isn't about us, it's about Christ, about becoming more like him, and about serving our spouse as he would do.  Philippians 2:3-4 makes this quite clear in the Bible.

"You see what the benefit of being like Jesus becomes? Not only for you, but for a marriage?  ...Becoming like Jesus spreads beyond this-- to their children." --Randy Frazee

Keeping watching till the end for a surprise from the couple on stage. :)

Love is our Faith in Action

Love is our faith in action.  You say you believe, you say you hope for the return of the Lord, but what are you physically doing about it?  Are you preparing or are you still sitting in your own selfishness?

• Lust is directed inward, but love is directed outward.
• Love is completely unselfish.
• Love is an action and a choice, NOT a feeling.

“We can only practice love if God helps us by giving us the strength we need to lay down our own desires and instincts in order to love others without expecting anything in return.”

*The more we become like Christ, the more love we will show to others.  It’s a natural overflowing of our hearts when we understand what Christ has done for us.

We put our faith into action through love.  We put our love into action by praying for others, sharing with others, and encouraging others through Christ’s example.  (Note that it is not our job to change, convict, or draw people in—that is the work of the holy spirit’s.)

Galatians 5:22 says love is a fruit of the spirit; meaning once again that it comes from personally knowing and growing with God daily.

Love is doing.

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”  1 John 3:16

Jesus is our example of love in action.

Real love is action, not a feeling.  It produces selfless, sacrificial giving.  The greatest act of love is giving oneself ofr others.  How can we lay down our lives? By serving others with no thought of receiving anything in return.  Soemtimes it is easier ot say we’ll die for others than to truly live for them—this involves putting others’ desires first.  Jesus taught this ame principle of love in John 15:13.
--NIV Study Bible

“When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”
–example of God’s love.

1 Corinthians 13:13 “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.  But the greatest of these is love.”

• Faith is the foundation and content of God’s message
• Hope is the attitude and focus
• Love is the action.

Does your faith fully express itself in loving others?

Recommendations:

        “The face of love” by Sanctus Real: http://youtu.be/7FqoY8yxI7s
            “True Love” by Phil Wickham: http://youtu.be/AL8QrUywVSs
            The entire story of the Bible: Genesis to Revelation
            1 Corinthians 13
            1 John 3 and 4

"Can this man pastor me?"

First of all let me apologize for not posting in a week, I have had an insane week between finals, moving around, and starting a new class. Blogger was also down for a day or two in there somewhere. Anyhow, my life is returning back to normal a little bit and so I am back! God's been teaching me so much this past week too! I have lots to share with you all :)

One of the first things that sticks out in my mind, comes from a video my friend and I watched the other day. I will post the whole video on here because I highly recommend watching it, however if you cannot spare 11 minutes you can watch from 6:30-7:45 and know what I am talking about.

Anyhow, the part that God keeps bringing up in my mind though is the part where the speaker recommends women to ask themselves before anything else, "Can this man PASTOR me?" Pastor Bryant makes this point because he realizes this is the most important thing to look for in a husband. He clearly explains that Adam not stepping up is the downfall of man. That is how Adam fell from perfection. I know I have talked about this a little bit on here before, but you can also expect more to come on this topic.

Most girls say that want a "Christian man" to marry, but they do not realize that it is so, so much more than that. Wives who are spiritually stronger than their husbands are often miserable. It's not the way we were meant to be. Men were created to lead us towards God (1 Corinthians 11:3.) They are our protectors, prayer warriors, and spiritual leaders. Ladies, please hold out for a man who can lead.

Start praying now for a husband with initiative, wisdom, and discernment. Pray for a man who is wise enough to follow the will of God and who has enough initiative to seek not only you, but GOD with all of his heart and soul. A man of God is a pursuer. He seeks God on a daily basis, looking, listening, and striving towards the ultimate goal of heaven (Philippians 3:14.) Therefore, a godly man is going to have the natural characteristic of pursuing you.

Do NOT throw yourself at any guy. Do not manipulate, text, interrogate, or anything else in order to make him want you. God already has your husband picked out, and when this man reaches the state of leading you spiritually, he will undoubtedly pursue after you like he has God. Wait for it sister, it will be worth it.

Betraying Jesus

Matthew 26:14-16

Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus ¹⁴ Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests ¹⁵ and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. ¹⁶ From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Jesus spent his whole life loving and caring and helping and serving. He loved his disciples especially, they were his closest friends, the one’s he spent extra time with, the one’s he told his secrets too. These were his friends he poured into more than anyone else while he was on earth.

Jesus’ message was love and repentance. He wanted all people to come know his father. He wanted everyone to discover their purpose in this live and use it for his father’s glory. Jesus cared about the prostitutes and forgave them. He cradled the sinners in his arms and healed them. He laid down his life for these very people.

Despite all of this, being one of Jesus’ chosen few, being loved and cared for, being set free from a life of bondage and sin—Judas still betrayed him.

All it took was 30 pieces of silver, and Judas was willing to lead people to the Jesus they wanted to crucify. 30 pieces of silver. What would it take for you to sell out Jesus? What would it take for you to sell out on your best friend?

Look back at Matthew 6:1-13 where the woman broke her alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, she did this to honor Jesus. She gave away her most valued possessions, and laid it at the feet of Jesus to honor him. This woman had her heart in the right spot. She realized that there was nothing more valuable than Jesus Christ himself. What’s the most important thing to you? Having a boyfriend? Knowing your life plans? Obeying your parents? Friends? Your cell phone?—Would you be willing to give up your most prized possession for Jesus? Or would you crucify him for a small sum?

Matthew 26:36-50

³⁶ Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” ³⁷ He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be

sorrowful and troubled. ³⁸ Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

³⁹ Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” ^{… 45} Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. ⁴⁶ Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

⁴⁷ While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people. ⁴⁸ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him.” ⁴⁹ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Greetings,

Rabbi!” and kissed him.

⁵⁰ Jesus replied, “Friend, do what you came for.”

Jesus was overwhelmed, troubled, and sorrowed. He knew his best friend was going to betray him. He knew everyone he loved was going to turn on him and send him to the cross. Yet even knowing this, he took the time to seek his father and pray. He prayed that God’s will would be done and not his.

Jesus had committed to do this a long time ago. He wasn’t backing out, he knew he was going to suffer a gruesome death and he knew that his closest friends would betray him long before this point. YET he still chose to come down to earth, live among us, suffer, be spit on, mocked, betrayed, and hurt, because he knew that by doing this all men would have a chance to know God. He knew that this was the father’s plan of love for all creation, and it had to be done. I think this is the epitome of John 15:13.

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. ⁵¹ With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

⁵² “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. ⁵³ Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? ⁵⁴ But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?”

Jesus could have easily saved himself from letting this happen. He could have easily let the disciples who were with him cut Judas to pieces right then. Yet he said no, don’t fight. He still loved Judas, and he knew it was part of his father’s plan. Wow, what a friend. This is proof that Jesus was fully God and fully man. I don’t know anyone else on earth who could respond the way he did.

Does it hurt your heart to think that it was people like us that betrayed Jesus so badly? Jesus spent his life loving and healing and saving people back then, but he did that to benefit us here and now too. He died so we could live and have eternal life, yet we still betray him and spit in his face. We claim we don’t need his salvation, or if we’re Christians, we claim we don’t need his forgiveness or his loving relationship because we’ve already bought the “fire insurance.”

You know, we like to look down on Judas, we say he was a horrible person for what he did. We have a very negative connotation with his name that we only use for the worst of betrayers. Yet when you stop and think…how many times have you betrayed Jesus with your own sin? After all, aren’t you the very person who drove him to the cross in the first place?

(Matthew 27:1-10) The guilt and remorse Judas felt is not so distant of a feeling for us. We are not that much higher than Judas…in fact, we are on his level.

We’re all sinners. We all put him to death. Most of us mock him daily without even realizing it.

Romans 6:23

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.”

For the full story you can read Matthew, chapters 26-28. Or you can watch The Passion of The Christ movie by Mel Gibson. http://www.thepassionofchrist.com/splash.htm

Come Awake

Galatians 5:13 "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love."

1 Corinthians 15:33 "Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God--I say this to your shame."

I know some of you reading this have dealt with addiction, struggles, brokenness, pain--some of this you brought on yourself out of rebellion, for others of you it was due to circumstances beyond your control. Despite what causes your grief and shame, God has a plan for you. He loves you even if this cold world hasn't showed you that. Even if you have been running from him--he still cares. He still loves you. He never left you, you left him. So turn around and reach up for him, so he can assure you he never left.

Pour your heart out to him and he will pour his heart out to you. So often we as girls turn to guys to fill the void in our hearts. We think a man can be our savior and so we give ourselves to our boyfriends and our husbands, and in the end they let us down, we let ourselves down, and we let God down. Put your hope, your trust, your love, your life--into something eternal, something that will never let you down. Something that will give you everlasting joy.

It doesn't matter what you've done or what you've been through. Christ died to give you a greater purpose for your life.

Romans 8:28 "For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

...and when the oceans rage I don't have to be afraid, because your love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:8