Living a 220 life

Kids Corner: Standing up for your faith

220 Life Ministries will be starting something new…a KIDS blog! That’s right, devotionals written for kids BY kids. These blog posts will be identified in the title and will be linked to a kids page on the 220life web page. I hope you enjoy and feel compelled to offer your comments.

This post is by Audrey, age 10.

Genesis 6:9-22

No one likes it when they get laughed at or bullied at school just because of their faith. But we as kids have to stand up for our faith no matter what. For example, when God told Noah to build an ark and to bring two of each animal on it how do you think Noah felt? He got called mean names, laughed at, and bullied but did he stop? NO! He kept on building the ark. After the 40 days and 40 nights God gave Noah a beautiful blessing of a rainbow. That shows us that if we do as God asks he will return us with a great gift. So next time someone starts to make fun of you for your faith just remember Noah. Never stop believing in Jesus because you get picked on, bullied, or anything at all.

Faith in Action for KIDS

TAKE A PENCEL AND PUT IT NEXT TO THE WALL. TRY TO MAKE IT STAND UP ON ITS OWN. IT CAN’T DO THAT, RIGHT? IT HAS TO LEAN AGAINST THE WALL. WELL THAT’S JUST LIKE US AND GOD. WE HAVE TO LEAN UP AGAINST HIM TO MAKE IT THROUGH TIMES. ALWAYS LEAN ON GOD, HE’LL NEVER LET YOU DOWN.

Joy that transcends circumstances

As a Christian we’re called to be joyful all the time. I mean, at any given time a non-believer should recognize a joy in us that sets us apart from everyone else. This sounds good in theory but how in the world are you supposed to remain joyful when life takes the inevitable turns it always does? You know, when the bank makes an error in their favor, when the car breaks down while you’re on the way to the airport, so you miss your flight, so you miss your child’s wedding, so you get a ticket while speeding, etc., etc., and the list goes on. Honestly, sometimes life becomes really “un-joyful”. So how do we remain joyful when every circumstance in life is un-joyful?

Paul had every reason to be un-joyful in Acts 16. Let’s begin with verse 22 where we read, “A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods.” Ok, so this is one of those “un-joyful” moments. The judge orders Paul and Silas beaten for their faith. I don’t know about you but I probably wouldn’t be very joyful at this point. Then in verse 23 we read, “They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison.” OK, again…un-joyful moment. But now for sure I would NOT be joyful. My circumstances would definitely overtake me and I would be un-joyful. However, in Paul’s case we find him and Silas signing and praying in verse 25. How in the world is Paul able to do this? How do these guys remain joyful in this time of beating and imprisonment?

The answer rests in Galatians 2:20 when Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” You see, Paul is stating that he no longer views the world through his own circumstances but everything is now viewed through his life in Christ. Paul recognizes that his life is no longer his own. In fact, he states in Romans 14:8 that, “If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” Circumstances will change every day just as the wind blows however; Jesus remains a constant, unchanging, rock. If we are to find unending joy we must find it in Christ.

Our un-joyful attitudes come about only through the shifting of our focus from Christ to our self. When we submit our lives to something larger than ourselves, namely Jesus, we no longer view circumstances as a personal catastrophe. Paul was able to sing and pray in prison because he had already died and gone to heaven. Not literally but figuratively. Paul gave up caring about how circumstances affected him personally and cared only about living for Jesus. Paul knew the rest of his life was simply service to Jesus until he moved on to heaven.

If we find ourselves burdened and un-joyful due to our circumstances we’ll likely find a Lordship issue in our heart and an over indulgence in self concern. An example is found in the entertainment world of football. Some people will watch football for fun and enjoy the game. Other people will know every detail of every player and get intimately involved in “their” team. I’ve heard many people refer to a professional football team using inclusive terms such as “we”, “us”, and “them” while the person has never actually been a part of the team. These two types of people represent those detached from the world in Jesus and those completely attached through self concern. While the first person enjoys the game and understands what is going on, they aren’t significantly attached to a team and aren’t emotionally impacted when their favorite team loses. Certainly they aren’t happy about a loss but the game is merely an external item to their meaningful life. The person who is emotionally invested in “their” football team has brought the external item into their life and places a great deal of importance in the football game out of a selfish desire for more entertainment.

My friends, when we become overly concerned with our own well being we become slaves to the circumstances of life. When we surrender our lives to Jesus we become slaves to Him. Hard times will still come in life but we are no longer changed by them. Understand, bad things still happen, that doesn’t change; however, we are rooted in the unchanging joy of the Lord. Brothers and Sisters, we must be Christians who are in the world but not of the world. Only when we learn to truly detach ourselves from this world while still living in the world will we be able to remain joyful all the time. Friends, won’t you die to self today and realize the unchanging joy Jesus offers us in this life? AMEN!

Balancing a surrendered life

As I dig into the teachings of Jesus the concept that continues to jump out at me is His call for an extreme change of life. Somehow, many Christians today have developed this idea that a Christian is meant to be a very mild, middle of the road, conservative who never rocks the boat in any way. We’re meant to be financially secure, completely family oriented, and perfect in every way. I’m being a bit facetious here but many people have views that aren’t too far off from this. Somehow Christianity has become synonymous with boring and conservative. My friends, as you dig into the life of Jesus you’ll find that He was anything but boring and conservative; no He was radical and very progressive. So how do we balance our stable family life with the call to follow our radical God?

In Luke 14:26-27 we find Jesus teaching, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison–your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters–yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.” Ok, at first glance this is pretty extreme. I mean, this seems to have crazy cult written all over it. However, when this teaching is taken in context with everything else Jesus taught, you’ll find a deep calling to surrender your life as a servant to those around you. Rather than a call to sever all ties with friends and family, you’ll find a call to strengthen all ties with friends and family…with a twist. Let me explain.

Scripture teaches us in 1 Timothy 5:8, “But those who won’t care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. Such people are worse than unbelievers.” Scripture never contradicts itself and therefore this Timothy passage must be in unison with the Luke verse, though they seem at odds. Timothy makes it very clear that we are not to abandon our family in order to follow Jesus. Luke makes it very clear that we are to love Jesus above everything else in life, including our own life. Though these verses seem at odds they actually fit perfectly. You see, our human understanding is warped by sin. We think we know how to love our family best but we don’t. Let me offer an example.

Imagine you have no idea what an automobile is or what it’s capable of. You have the desire to travel a great, great distance in order to show your love for someone. However, the distance is so great that you’ll never be able to walk there in your lifetime but you don’t know this. Jesus shows up with the nicest of sports cars and tells you to stop walking; in fact, stop doing anything you could do to move toward your goal. Just hop in this nice sports car and allow the car to take you to your goal. Now, to us this seems like a no brainer because we know the capabilities of a car. However, to someone who has no idea what a car is it would be pretty crazy to stop showing your love by halting your march toward the goal. The problem is this: you’ll never actually achieve your goal unless you get in the car! The same is true with loving your family and friends. You’ll never actually love them until you surrender everything to Jesus and love Him first.

The beloved disciple John explains this concept to us best when he writes, “We love each other because He loved us first.” (1John 4:19) Do you see this? We can’t love each other without the love of Jesus in our lives! Friends, when you step into a relationship with Jesus it’s like you’re putting on a supernatural love amplifier. Without the amplifier you can attempt to love but it won’t happen; once it’s on you’ll love like you never could before. The problem is that people don’t want to completely put the amplifier on. Remember the call from Jesus in Luke; it’s not a simple acknowledgement of Jesus as Lord…no, it’s a complete surrender of your life to Him. He must be your first and primary love. Only by seeking Him above all else is He able to guide your daily actions in order to love those around you.

You see, when you’re surrendered to Jesus and your daily actions are guided by His Word it’s actually Jesus loving those around you through you. If you desire to love your spouse, your children, your parents, your friends, if you desire to love anyone, the only way to do it is through complete surrender to Jesus. Sometimes He’ll call you to do something you don’t understand. It might even look like it’s unloving to a family member, but you must trust Him. I’ve made some very difficult decisions based on His Word that eventually revealed His infinite love which I couldn’t originally see. My friends, trust me, when you live day by day surrendered to Him it will ALWAYS work out. It might be tough at first but He will never let you down. AMEN!

The Prodigal Son (Part 4 of 4)

My friends, the final character we’ll look at isn’t actually in the story but rather is the story teller; Jesus. In part 1 we looked at the younger son who represents lost people through open disobedience to God. In part 2 we looked at the older son who represents lost people through self absorption over being “good” or “religious”. Remember, all people are born lost. We all fall into one of two categories: We either go to the left and live a life of open sin like the younger son or we go to the right and live a life trying to “earn” God’s love like the older son. Both are sin and both are lost. In part 3 we looked at the Father who represents our loving and Graceful God. Our God who reaches out to both sons in a symbolic effort to bring all mankind back into communion with Him. In part 4 we’re looking at the story teller and what He’s trying to accomplish through this story.

The first aspect about Jesus in this story we must understand is who He’s trying to reach and why. At the beginning of Luke 15 we see the Pharisees and scribes complaining about Jesus receiving tax collectors and sinners around Him. In response to this complaint 15:3 says, “So He spoke this parable to them”. Therefore, Jesus’s primary audience for this story isn’t the younger son but rather the older son. All too often the younger son gets the attention through this story because his sin is open to see and is rather blatent. The older son looks like the good son and so fly’s under the radar. The Pharisees and scribes were the very people the older son represents…Folks, many people in our churches today are the very people the older son represents. Jesus was telling this story for them. Jesus was trying to tell them they were lost and didn’t know it; they thought they were the good son who “earned” something from the Father. My friends, I beg you to look at your life and ask the Lord to reveal if you’re living an older son life. If you are, Jesus is telling this parable for YOU! Not to condemn you but to find you.

Jesus delivered this story to the religious elite about the religious elite. Think about what He’s saying and doing here. Jesus is addressing someone like a Billy Grahm or a Dr. Dobson here and telling him that he’s lost. (I’m not saying Billy Grahm or Dr. Dobson are lost, I don’t know them that well) That is huge. Jesus is telling him that noone is without need of the Father. My friends, unfortunately we can fall into the same trap as the Pharisees. As we grow in the church we can all too easily begin thinking we’ve got it all figured out. Usually this arrogance begins to creep in when we see younger sons but it creeps in none the less. We’ve become proficient at hiding this arrogance in false humility because we’ve learned through the church that we should be humble if we’re to be good “christians”. The lesson Jesus is teaching us in the parable is this: The most important aspect of life is close fellowship with the Father simply to be in His presence, not to get His inheritence. Close fellowship with the Father results in a deep love for people. (John 13:34-35) Do you love other people? Not just your friends and family but all people. Here’s a better question, Do other people think you love them? In other words, are you viewed in your community as a loving person? I’ve met a lot of good people in the church who really don’t enjoy other people, let alone love them. Folks, if you’re living a life void of joy, if you’re living a life void of love for others, you may be a lost older son.

Here’s the beauty of Jesus the story teller. Jesus told this particular crowd two stories prior to this one. He told them about the lost sheep and then the lost coin. In both stories someone went out in search for the lost item. This concept is carried over into the story of the lost sons. Folks, the Father is coming out to find us. Both sons had the Father come out to find them. If you’re living a life without close, deep, and intimate fellowship with the Father I’m telling you that He’s searching for you right now! If you aren’t experiencing a passionate relationship with God you’re lost. It’s ok to be lost as long as you realize you’re lost. The Father welcomes you back with open arms. Friends, I beg you, please, consider your current position and run to the Father. AMEN!

The Prodigal Son (Part 3 of 4)

In the first two posts of “The Prodigal Son” we looked at the two lost sons. Again, all of us fall into one of two catagories; either the younger son or the older son. There are certainly differing degrees for each, but we are all lost in one way or another. Since we are all lost in one way or another I believe it’s important to look at the Father in the story.

The father in the story represents our Heavenly Father, God. Much can be discerned about His nature from this story and I believe understanding Him better will change how we interact with Him. First, we must understand the historical context in which this image of the Father is being presented. The original hearers of the story understood a patriarichal society in which the father was to be reveared and respected. A child did not disrespect the father of the family and remain a member of the family. In essence, a child knew his/her place and it was subservient to the father who was the master of the family.

In this context the story begins with the younger son asking for his inheritance in Luke 15:12. In essence, the younger son lays all his cards on the table and tells the father that he only wants the material possessions and not a relationship with his father. Now this would be rude even in todays culture but it was unheard of then. The hearers would have expected the father to disown the son and potentially have him killed. This request by the younger son was incredibly disrespectful. BUT, the father in the story grants the request.

The granting of the request reveals our Heavenly Fathers willingness to give us all things out of His love for us. Though we act like rude and foolish children, our Father doesn’t disown us. He loves us enough to allow us the opportunity to make mistakes. He allows us the opportunity to get lost. Folks, this is important to understand. He doesn’t make us get lost, He allows us to get lost. One is hurtful, the other is loveing. If you’re lost now you must understand that you got there by your own doing. The Father IS NOT to blame! In fact, He was greatly disrespected by your choice to wander away yet still desires to find you. He is not the one to blame for your poor choices.

In verse 20 we find the Father running out to his wayward son come home. Understand, a dignified, respected father of the family would not run during this time. He would walk gracefully. And certainly, if a child who dishonored the family so greatly were to come back home the father would not be expected to accept the boy, let alone run to him. However, the picture of our Heavenly Father is one of Him running to us. He loves us despite our stupid mistakes. If you’re living away from the Father, please don’t fear returning to Him. You should expect your loving Father to come running and take you into His arms…no matter how dumb your mistakes were.

We see the Father in verse 28 coming out to the older son as well. The older son is upset about the party and remains outside. The Father comes out to get him as well. Again, the Father trades in His dignified position in order to meet His wayward son in an attempt to bring him back into community. If you’re currently living like an older son, please realize the Father has come out to you now. He’s come out of the party to meet you where you’re at. Stop trying to earn the Fathers love, accept His grace, and enter the party with Him. He loves you and has paid the price. All you need to do is focus on your relationship with Him, NOT on earning Him or His possessions.

Friends, the Father is magnificent and loves us despite our sin. No matter how lost you are; no matter which son you are, the Father is seeking you for a loving relationship with Him. Yes, the Father is a just God and should be respected above all things, but the Father is also a loving God who is to be loved above all things. Brothers and Sisters in the Lord, are you lost right now? Not sure? Are you currently basking in the presence of God daily? If not then you’re a lost son and don’t know it. The Father only wanted the two sons to be in communion with Him, therefore, if you’re not in constant communion with Him you’re lost. If you’re not in daily communion with God YOU’RE LOST! Turn back right now and beg the Father to enter His party. Friends, living with Him is the only life that will ever bring happiness and joy! AMEN!