Re-Tooled

Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance. Isaiah 55:1-2

Who is the provider in your house?

Most of the men reading this will answer, Well, I think I am. I provide for myself and my family. A lot of wives will say the same thing about their husbands, with maybe some of them saying, either bitterly or proudly, I provide for my family.

I want you to think carefully about those answers, because if that is what you believe about your provision and your household then you are failing to provide what is best for your family.

Here's a secret-God wants to supply us with things we never could have bought or accomplished on our own. We begin to access the precious things of God when we acknowledge Him as our provider, releasing our pride in being able to take care of ourselves.

Perhaps you don't believe you need God to be your provider. He can give you salvationa ticket to eternal life-but you don't think you need Him in this life. If that's you, then tell me, who gave you the job you have? Who gave you the mind and talents you have that qualify you for your job? Because the Bible says that every good and perfect gift comes from God. He is the one who gave you your job and the ability to perform it.

God says that the best things in life are the things He has, things that satisfy us, things that cause our souls to delight in abundance.

Think about that for a moment-abundance. Are you living in abundance of soul right now? Are your emotions abounding in goodness? Is your mind overflowing in peace? Are your stress levels at record lows? Are you experiencing the abundant life that Jesus said He came to buy for us?

Rich or poor, God has more for you than you can buy on your own. Will you let Him be your provider today?

Prayer Father God,

I confess today that You have more for me than I could ever achieve on my own, and I accept You as my provider. Please fill my soul with abundance, and give to me the things You have that I could never buy. I choose to delight myself in You!

Amen

Warrior Dad

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12

We are not alone.

When God created the world, He created many different creatures and among them were angels. A third of those angels fell from heaven when they decided to follow Lucifer, a fellow angel, in a revolt against the Most High God.

These fallen angels, these demons, were swept to earth, where they continue to war against God, doing whatever they can to drag as many human souls to hell with them as they can.

There is a spiritual war going on around you at all times, whether you are aware of it or not. I do not advocate looking for demons, but we should not be ignorant of their existence or their schemes. If you believe the Bible, then you believe angels and demons exist whether you can see them or not.

The point, though, is what to do about it. Because the reality is that there are evil forces out there fighting to destroy your family. And if you do not stand firm and fight back, then who will?

You must be the warrior dad and warrior mom, even the warrior kids, for the sake of your family.

Here are three things you must know as you fight:

First, we are not fighting to gain ground. We only have to claim ground, because it all already belongs to God. If you see an area that seems lost, stand firm and say, No way can you have that. It's mine.

Second, we fight from victory, not for it. That's the promise and guarantee over your hearts and homes, because the victory has already been won and we fight from victory.

Third, we have to be different. If we look and act just like the enemy, then we've already lost. What if you've failed in this? Then there is grace to start again. All the great champions of the Bible except Jesus were failures at one point in time or another, but what made them great was that they overcame by clothing themselves in God and pressing on.

As husbands, fathers, wives, mothers, and children-as families-it is time to go to war. There is an enemy who wants to destroy our homes. But as we stand firm together in Jesus' victory, we will do more than keep our families from being changed by the world-we will change the world.

Prayer Father God,

Thank You for being my warrior Daddy! I choose to stand in You in victory over everything that wants to destroy my family and I claim my family for You! Show me how to fight, so that my family will overcome.

Amen

The Key of Forgiveness

Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:31-32

Every guy likes their power-tool collection. I know I do. And there's this funny thing about us guys, in that a lot of us have no idea what to do with half our power tools, but we still feel better about ourselves because we have them.

God has a power tool that He wants all of us as His children to have. And not just to have it, but to use it. That power tool is forgiveness.

Really, there is perhaps nothing we have at our disposal that is more powerful than forgiveness. What does forgiveness do? Well, let me tell you.

Forgiveness unlocks the bondage of chains from our past-whether it's Christ forgiving us for our screw-ups or us forgiving others for theirs, it sets us free. Forgiveness unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It breaks the power of the chains of our shame and bitterness.

All this is true, yet for some reason, as simple as forgiveness could be, a lot of us seem to not get it. So here are five things forgiveness is not to help all of us out:

Number one, forgiveness is never easy. I'm just being honest, but it's true. Sometimes it takes a continual choice to forgive. And remember, forgiveness wasn't even easy for God-it cost Him His only Son.

Number two, forgiveness isn't forgetting. A lot of us remain in prison simply because we think forgiveness and forgetting are the same thing, but they aren't. Forgetting is a change of memory, but forgiveness is a change of heart.

Number three, forgiveness isn't overlooking evil. Simply put, if we overlooked the evil then we wouldn't need to forgive. Forgiveness comes in light of the evil, in spite of it, not in ignorance of it.

Number four, forgiveness isn't destructive. Forgiveness does not empower destructive behaviors or abuse to continue, but hands them over to God for Him to be the judge.

Number five, forgiveness isn't the same as approval. Think about it, if you approved of what happened, then you wouldn't need to forgive.

There is more to forgiveness than these things, but even these will set you free as you apply them in your life. If you will begin today, you will quickly feel the freedom.

Prayer Lord Jesus,

Thank You for forgiving me! I know that forgiveness is never going to be easy, so I choose to forgive the people who have hurt me. Please set me free from the guilt, shame, bitterness, and pain of my past!

Amen

Never Saw It Coming

The words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails, given by one Shepherd. And further, my son, be admonished by these. Ecclesiastes 12:11-12

It can be easy to forget what really matters. Do you remember? Even the wise King Solomon had forgotten what was really important, and it's almost as if he wrote our verses for today to remind himself of what he already knew was true.

Who wrote the book of Proverbs? Oh yeah, that was me, he says. Then he goes on to say, Hey, yeah, those Proverbs I wrote? They aren't just pretty words to admire. They are words to embrace, to study, to meditate on and memorize, and ultimately, to allow to speak into your heart and life. They are words to remind you what really matters.

He says that these words are like goads. Do you know what a goad is? It is a stick used by shepherd to get their sheep to move, a method of discipline to bring the sheep into good pastures. They are like well-driven nails, hammered into just the right place, dividing between soul and spirit, bone and marrow, hitting you right where you need it in the best way possible.

But this kind of language goes cross-grain to what our culture says today. Our culture says that disciplining our kids is abuse, that we shouldn't nail them down, so to speak, to what really matters, that they need the freedom to determine for themselves who they are and what truth is.

Hogwash. Lack of discipline is why your kid is a monster, staying out too late, breaking your rules, getting drunk, sleeping around, driving crazy, and killing themselves. I don't know many Christian parents who tell their kids these things are okay, but if you don't discipline them to enforce what you tell them then why would they listen to you? Have you forgotten that you're the parent, the one who's actually in charge?

Or maybe we've just forgotten what's really important in our own lives-the fact that God's in charge, that we're His children, and that He does discipline us. Why does God discipline us? Because He loves us, and so that we'll listen to His words.

Even as earthly parents, we want our kids to listen to our words because we know that if they do, then we can help them have a better, more successful life. How much more is this true with God?

If we will listen to God's Word, good things await us. Let God's Word admonish you today. Let it remind you what really matters.

Prayer Father God,

Thank You that You are a good Father and that no matter what my earthly father was like, I can trust You. I know that I can trust Your words to lead me into a better life, and someday, into the fullness of eternal life that You have for me. Please lead me with Your Word today!

Amen

Blind Curves, Hidden Driveways, Falling Rocks

But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. 1 Corinthians 8:9

When God's Word speaks, we've got answers. God's Word, which is God's truth, when it speaks, we've got our answer.

I like to say that we're a textual community. In other words, what binds us together is God's Word-the Bible. If God said it, the issue's settled. Settled. It's a done deal.

Adultery? That's not even a question. Settled. God tells us in His Word how He feels about adultery. Divorce? Clears it up. Settles it. Stealing? Clears it up. It's never okay. Lying? Clears it up. It's never okay. Pride? Clears it up, never okay. Rape? Never okay. Fornication? Sex out of marriage? Clears it up. Never okay.

Listen, if the Bible says it, it's settled. If the Bible says, Don't do this, and I choose to do it, that's called sin. And I need a community around me that says, Bob, buddy, you're sinning. You are now putting into jeopardy and threatening your relationship with the community to which you say you belong. You need to repent. You need to come back.

The Bible says don't do this. And yet, people will write. They'll call. They'll come. They'll visit. And they'll say, Well, I know it says that but I want to know, can I do it? It's like some legalistic straightjacket, man. I mean, the Bible says the truth will set you free. Free, man. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

All true. Hallelujah! We're free! But our liberty and freedom as Christians is not some unbridled license to just do and live however we want to do and live. The abundant life God has for us is full of freedom, but not freedom to sin.

Why? Because sin brings destruction in your life. God is saying, I love you and I've got plans and purposes for your life that are filled with fulfillment and joy. But you'll cut yourself off from all of that if you fill your life with sin.

That's why I need the Holy Spirit in my life. I need the Holy Spirit to keep my conscience clear; that I can see him guiding and leading my life, leading me away from sin and toward His good purposes.

Will you let the Holy Spirit lead you today?

Prayer Holy Spirit,

Thank You that You have good plans for me that are way better than I'll find on my own in a life full of sin! Please lead me and guide me today, away from sin and into all of Your good plans!

Amen

Women Drivers

As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. 1 Corinthians 15:48-49

Do your kids look like you? For me, it was amazing to watch my kids growing up and to see how early you could recognize whose traits they had the most.

You know, our kids are born with our physical traits, but hopefully for us as parents, we're not satisfied with that. We need to want that they don't just look like us physically, but that they should also look like Jesus spiritually.

This takes some tenacity that says, I'm not going to be a quitter. I'm going to continue to drive into my kids the very image and nature of Christ and Christ alone.

That comes with some challenges these days because you are surrounded with this culture that's so ungodly. I mean, how are we to raise these kids to love God in such an ungodly time of history?

Well, to be honest, whether they're into it or not, I don't think it should be an option. You're their parents, and as being like Christ is already decided for you (or at least it should be!), you should simply expect the same from your children.

And moms, dads, keep doing what you know is right according to God's Word. Don't faint, don't pull back, don't retreat, don't quit, and you will reap a harvest if you don't lose heart. The Bible promises that and you can declare that promise over your kids.

Declare the Word of God over your kids. Declare an expectation over their life that they will love God, that they will live to serve God. Declare that over them because God's Word never returns void. Let them hear you declare it over their lives.

Well, they're not into it, Bob.

Let them hear you declaring it over them! Let them hear you praying out loud for them. Nothing will mess up their week more than overhearing you praying for them out loud.

Wow. Awkward.

Maybe so, but they need to see the example anyway. He's praying. Wow, she's praying. Come on! Join with me in setting up some guardrails that would keep our kids on the right road. Be a sold out example that out loud leads and declares them into the same relationship with Christ Jesus.

Prayer Heavenly Father,

Thank You that You know how to be a good parent! Thank You also for the promises of Your Word! Please help me today to use the wisdom of Your Word in my parenting.

Amen

What Happens When You Die?

Then He who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.' And He said to me...I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son.' Revelation 21:5-7

We all want to be in that number when the saints go marching in, but why? Obviously, we know that Heaven will be a better place than Hell, so we have our fire-insurance salvation. But I find that it brings much more purpose to our lives when we pursue something positive, rather than try to avoid something negative.

Living our lives just to avoid Hell leaves us confused, at best, and controlled by fear, at worst. However, when we put Heaven before our eyes, it begins to give us a goal, a target to aim for, a hope that keeps us focused through whatever we may be facing.

So what is Heaven like? Well, the Bible tells us quite a bit.

First, it's new. Everything is new there. There is nothing old. If you try to find something old, you will not succeed, because everything is new all the time!

Second, it is a place of pure, unending joy. God Himself will wipe away every tear, comfort every sorrow, and rid us of everything that could ever rob us of joy. Not only that, but we will always be in His presence-He will always be with us-and Psalm 16:11 tells us, In Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Fullness of joy! Unabating, unfading, never ending, overflowing, more-than-we-canimagine joy! And pleasures-not rarely, not few, not sometimes-but forevermore! ForeverMore. Forever, pleasures will increase upon us more and more and more for all eternity.

Third, He will give us the fountain of the water of life whenever we're thirsty. Whatever longing we have in our eternal life, He will satisfy it. There is no longing we can have that will be denied. The answer will always be, Yes!

As if all this wasn't enough, God delights to give us more. In fact, He delights to give us everything-inherit all things. How much is all? Is anything left out of all? Those who overcome will inherit all things! And we will be called His son.

It simply does not get any better than this. God has given us a vision of Heaven. May it inspire you to live your earthly life in pursuit of your Heavenly one.

Prayer My Father,

Thank You for Heaven! You have given me such incredible promises of what Heaven will be like, I long for my life right now to be as much like that as it can be. Fill me with a vision of Heaven so that I will live for what lasts forever.

Amen