We know our life is shifting.

There is a reason for every season. Corny, but true. Often times, as we move from one phase of life to the next, we transition, bringing along family and friends to experience and share in it. You are never truly alone. There are always familiarities that accompany us along the way. But, there are those rare moments in life when it is a solo journey and there is a "lack" of transition. Rather, there is a clear and distinct line that separates "then" and "now." God does not give us time to comfortably prepare, He just says, GO! 

On August 2nd, I celebrated my birthday. As I blew out my candle, I looked around the room filled with faces that I did not know two months prior. Not one. Not one of these people existed in the paradigm of my life, yet they stood encouraging me, loving me, believing in me, and celebrating with me. This was the family in Christ that I was desperately crying out for. This was God's thunderous response to my prayer. There could not have been greater clarity of His faithfulness.

Be it sharp or smooth, the transitions of our lives keep coming, if we like it or not. With each phase of change comes loss: loss of circumstances, relationships, safety, and predictability. With each phase of change comes gain: gain of circumstances, relationships, safety, but this time hope. By choice or by circumstance, life changes us, digging deep within us with self reflection and self honesty that challenge our values and holds us accountable for the choices of our lives. Is this what it means to be in the truth of our pain, when the veil between the world lost and the world hoped for is lifted for a moment...? Take a deep breath. This is a sacred moment between you and the Almighty. I have learned not to squeeze grief or force tears, for I wait for the opportunity to experience something that is natural within me, when my Spirit has something to say. I cherish those moments because the grief and the tears do not comfort my self pity, ego or flesh, but rather it is an honest moment when I  know that my Spirit is grieving with me.

"Let the dead bury their own..." He said, “Anyone who puts his hand to the plow and looks back, isn’t fit for the Kingdom of God.” I often think that as Christians, we are not to move straight forward, but upward forward (does that make sense?): But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead. I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call....." Philippians 3:13-4

I am given the free gift of new possibilities. I have not earned this. It is given to me through the grace and mercy of God because He continues to have more hope in me than I have in myself. His voice whispers that there is beauty around the corner, but He needs to shatter my worldview before I can come face to face with the promised beauty. He needs to strengthen my perspective, positioning me in different angles in order to open my heart and mind to truth. I remind myself that 'possibilities' means ANY possibility, not only a life of bliss. I remind myself that Christ followed the path of obedience, knowingly to His 'possibility', which was death on the cross.

This past Wednesday evening, I was at my church attending the Spanish service. I shared with some friends about the new wonderful potential opportunities that God had placed before me, guiding me towards His will. I shared my opportunities with great excitement, joy and hope. But as the service began, I went into my own world, paying little attention to Pastor Jeff Adams preaching. I fell into a deep trance reflecting on the bold mission God is preparing for me. With anxiety prowling, I said to myself "Oh my God, this is going to be a long journey. This is not going to be an easy. This is going to be hard. Very hard.. I am only at the starting line!!!" God never once said our mission would be easy, rather He clearly warned us of the many difficulties we are to face, even being hated by the world. I thought about all the obstacles, struggles and sacrifices. I doubted my ability, but most heart piercing was that I doubted the power of God at work within me. As I sat pondering these thoughts giving every opportunity to the enemy, I suddenly noticed a note at one of the last empty pages of my Bible that I had written to myself only 4 days before I took the leap of faith and came to KC on Wednesday, June 13th, 2012.  I did not see or remember the note until that very moment. The service came to an end, and I sat there overcome with tears. God is so good. Here is a picture of the note. It reads:

Just when I doubted my ability and the journey in which I know God has called me to, my Lord reminded me of the promise I made to Him on June 9th, 2012, weeping on the floor behind the closed door of my sister's room. Thank you Lord. I pray you continue to hold me accountable to the promise I made you.

Yesterday, my friend, mentor and pastor Jeff Adams went to Tulsa to attend the funeral service for Dr.Clifford Clark. Jeff spoke to me briefly about the service and the man. Dr.Clifford Clark passed away at the age of 88 years old and was on the short list of the five most influential people in Jeff's life. In my opinion, you must be one extraordinary person to be on Jeff's list.  I woke up this morning in deep thought. When Jeff made that profound statement to me "He was one of the top five most influential people in my life," I took it in with my mind, but not with my heart. I woke up convicted about it. This man who I look up to so admirably just lost one of his great mentors, and I didn't inquire. I didn't ask questions. Instead of reflecting on the effect of Dr.Clifford Clark on Jeff's life, my mind had focused on the race he endured. I choose not to even fathom this thought, but I am forced to think about that dreadful day when it will be me telling about the passing of one of my mentors. 

This morning, God took me back to my thoughts and tears at the Wednesday Spanish service about the tough road ahead and the promise I made to Him. He connected it to Jeff's blog this morning about the life of Dr. Clifford Clark, using his life as a reminder and example of a hard and enduring life of a Christian soldier.  He said to me, "Look at the story of this man, my child Clifford. He was a loyal servant. He served me. He delighted in me. He trusted me. He obeyed me. His journey was long. His journey was hard. His journey was so so hard. But he endured. For my sake."

This is what Dr.Clifford Clark did as a Christ soldier: "From his base in Tulsa, Clifford helped begin 14 other churches in Eastern Oklahoma and he would go on to minister in over 40 countries. From his own church, no less than 177 people entered some form of Christian vocational ministry through the years. He became a friend and mentor to pastors and missionaries spanning the globe. He resigned the pastorate in 1985 and became a senior missionary spokesman and minister until the very end. The fire in his belly to seek God’s glory in his global mission was never extinguished until the day of his death." ((http://drjeffadams.com/2012/08/31/people-of-great-influence/)

Lord, I pray that in my last breath, in my last thought, in my last reflection, through my last words, that I may confidently and peacefully say with full conviction: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

A Bold Sacrifice.

BOLDNESS

 "And the Lord said to Paul  one night in a vision: Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people" Acts 18:9

This is the confidence the Lord puts before us to go out into the world boldly proclaiming the Word of God without fear.

Once again, a question emerged that has the potential to shatter the very foundation of my faith. With a trembling heart I say, answering this question with pure honesty can rip the veil off any Christian's spiritual existence. WOULD YOU TRULY LAY DOWN YOUR LIFE FOR THE SAKE OF CHRIST? 

 

We say "yes" to this question with words, 
but the early martyrs said “yes” with their lives.

In the book of John, Peter says to Jesus, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” He wants to follow Jesus even to the point of giving up his life. Peter's words mimic the statement many Christians proclaim in their faith, with mere words, rather than a true declaration and seal upon the tablet of the heart.  But Jesus replies,  "Very truly, I tell you, before the cock crows, you will have denied me three times.” We can see the reflection of ourselves in this powerful and intimate scene.  Are we like Peter, promising our lives to Christ to the point of death, only to deny Him when the moment of truth is faced?

"If you do not stand firm in faith, you will not be firm at all." Isaiah 7:9

What does the question of laying down our lives for the sake of Christ have to do with boldness? So, the Lord took me to the book of Acts where boldness is fully and passionately exemplified, to the point of death. Acts 3-4 details the church’s earliest efforts in evangelism as the disciples began proclaiming the good news post Pentecost. Peter and John were arrested for their presentation of Christ and the next day the two apostles were called to answer to the religious leaders for their actions. Peter did not dilute his boldness in any way, choosing instead to proclaim the good news again. "...Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with BOLDNESS." Acts 4:29  "...Now when they saw the BOLDNESS of Peter and John...."  Acts 4:13"And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with BOLDNESS" Acts 4:31

Boldness is the Spirit-given conviction that we must speak the power and truth of Christ as our Lord and savior.  Boldness comes from the confidence we have in Christ, for who He is, what He did for us, what He can do, and for what He will do. The Greek term translating bold or boldly or boldness, means “candor in the face of opposition.” Boldness is the biblical manner in which God wants the Gospel given. "...that words may be given to me in opening my mouth BOLDLY to proclaim the mystery of the gospel" Ephesians 6:19 The consequence of boldness in the book of Acts was BOTH life and death. Life IN Christ as “Many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to be about five thousand” Acts 4:4 The consequence was thousands attaining new life in Christ as saved souls inheriting the kingdom of God! Acts 13:48-9 Also, life to the church, "...So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily" Acts 16:5 The consequence of boldness in the book of Acts was also death, "He killed James the brother of John with the sword...." Acts 12:2 "And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. And when he had said this, he fell asleep." Acts 7:59-60

Boldness is not a matter of arrogance, aggressiveness or forced ideals. We are not to develop our own methods based upon personality or passion.  Biblical boldness is a confidence and directness that is not discourteous, and a forthrightness that is not insensitive. "Let not corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear it." Ephesians 4:29 Yes, we are to open our mouths and unapologetically testify to the saving power of Jesus Christ, BUT as Jesus proclaimed, "...Be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves" Matthew 10:16 Biblical boldness is standing firm in faith in Christ upon the foundation of love, for it is "for" the love of Christ that we proclaim the good news. Within His teachings, frustrations, anger, betrayal and even in the moment of death, EVERYTHING Christ did was IN love and in patience. Christ exemplified ultimate boldness, as all who heard Him were astonished at His teachings..."I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well, for I was sent for this purpose," Luke 4:43 We as His ambassadors were also sent for this purpose. Now consider this: If we are to share the Word of God boldly with the world as Jesus commanded us to do, and since WE ARE the living Word of God, in essence, we are commissioned to be bold. Consider Paul and Barnabas at Iconium, preaching the Word of God... "Now at Inconium they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed...... so they remained for a long time, speaking boldly FOR the Lord" Acts 14:1 !!

  A great example of Christ's boldness is found in the beginning of His ministry when He was rejected from the synagogue in Nazareth. In Luke 4:18-19, Jesus quotes Isaiah declaring His mission, 

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor."

Christ quoted this verse from the scroll of Isaiah to show grace by choosing to exclude the last verse from the original passage that included, "...and the day of vengeance of our Lord" Isaiah 61:2. He took the passage from one that was perceived by the Jews to declare God's vengeance against their enemies, to one that was transformed to embody grace. And to top it off, He sat down after reading the passage and said, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:21 Wow, what boldness! When members of the synagogue , "....heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath.... and they rose up and drove Him out of town...." Luke 4:28-9

The dilemma with Christian evangelism today is that we want the fruit without the fallout. The matter of "offending" someone due to social hindrances is of higher concern and regards than truth. We stand accused of shying away from the gospel. "For who ever is ashamed of Me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the Holy Angels.” Mark 8:38 We want to be the aroma of life to those who are being saved without being the aroma of death to those who are perishing 2 Corinthians 2:15 We have lost the Biblical principal of boldness, where fear has no place! 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power. The pages of Acts speak about Peter (Acts 12:3) and John being imprisoned for their boldness, having power over fear! The pages of Acts speak about Paul and Silas being stoned and beaten for their boldness, firmly resisting fear! (Acts 14:19) (Acts 16:22-3) The pages of Acts speak about James (Acts 12;2) and Stephen dying for their boldness (Acts 7:60), thus trampling over fear!  Christ Himself was crucified for His boldness, conquering over both fear and death! How authentically bold is your Christianity against fear?

Spiritual boldness for Christ bursts forth from a satisfied and courage's soul that rejoices in His sacrifice and promise. Boldness is rooted from a deep inner conviction that gratefully and humbly clings to the promise of eternity. "I send you forth as lambs among wolves", therefore our boldness for the sake of Christ is the willingness to take rejection and to not shy away from the fear of offending an "offensive" generation. "When an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them (Peter and Baranbas)........ they continued to preach the gospel." Acts 14:4;7 Each time the apostles were rejected, persecuted, mistreated or ridiculed, they returned and continued to preach the Word of God, with even greater boldness, "offending," but also saving many. Even after being rejected, beaten, stoned and imprisoned, both Paul and Silas "were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners listened to them...." Acts 16:25 I replace my fear of "rejection" and "offending" another with the glorious image of angles watching in amazement and a heavenly father smiling down at His loyal servant. You and I have been placed in this world to boldly proclaim the grace of God.

The martyrism of Stephen especially sat heavy upon my heart. His death for the sake of Christ uniquely pierced me because of his dynamic strength as he was "full of faith" and "of the Holy Spirit." He was willing to face fear with unwavering boldness...to the point of death.  I connected with him as I desperately pray and seek to have the same strength to exemplify my faithful service. Apostle John saw in his vision of the millennium those martyred for their faith reigning with Christ for a thousand years Revelations 20:4. The Apostle Peter, who wrote the most about martyrdom and suffering for one’s faith, said, “If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you... However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name” Peter 4:14, 16 God does not call everyone to make the ultimate sacrifice, but the Bible calls all Christians to be "prepared" to give a defense of the hope within us.... IF needed, would we be "WILLING" to suffer and sacrifice our earthly lives? "The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are BOLD as a lion" Proverbs 28:1

"Fear not them which kill the body,
but are not able to kill the soul."

 

".....But they could not get to Stephen’s spirit. He continued to be a man of

grace to the very end because he kept Christ at the center. As they were venting

their fury at Stephen’s message, Stephen’s eyes were fixed on the risen Christ.

As the rocks crashed down on him and his life ebbed away, he called on Jesus to

extend the grace that he himself had received to those who were now executing

him."

The Bible does not teach us to seek to be martyrs for the cause of Christ, for man can deceive oneself even in the very act of martyrism by actually being motivated by self glory. Jesus said, “When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next” Matthew 10:23 We saw that the early church continually fled from intense persecution for the sake of survival Acts 8:1, 9:25, 30; 14:6 When Jesus says, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” Matthew 10:39, He is not calling for people to make an attempt to lose their lives. Rather, He is calling us to be willing to lose our lives for His sake.

We often easily attach the word suffer to the Christian life, proclaiming that we will suffer for Christ. Well, lets take it to the next level.... lets take it to the cross! Would you not merely suffer, but also endure cruel tortures that take your mind and body to the very brink of death and beyond? Would you be so bold, with full courage and conviction to the point of death? Conviction without courage, like faith without works, is quite dead.We may preach with boldness, but would we die for His sake with boldness? The world is against Christ and will be against our boldness IN Him. But we are not of this world. We belong to the Kingdom of God.  "If you were of the world, the world would love you as it’s own; but because you are not of the world, but I choose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 15:19

I say again, one must answer this question from their deepest spiritual core, for the answer has the potential to rip "your" version of Christianity apart. All I know is this: "...By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us."  

 Would I do the same for Him? 

Reflecting on my own personal walk with the Lord, I began to see my boldness come to life with great passion and conviction when I changed my mindset from merely "being a Christian" to "living for Christ" You may disagree, but there is a difference. My greatest example of my boldness came when I told my 6"3 Muslim father whom I was always afraid of growing up that I loved God more than I loved him. I stood firm in faith with unbridled confidence that, " In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God..." Ephesians 6:16-17 This verse is an illustration of an equipped soldier ready for battle indeed!   The issue I faced from both believers and non believers, which eventually had me questioning my own boldness was this: Is my boldness for the glory of God or for my own glory? Was it my deceptive attempt to prove and showcase my faith to others? The enemy has the potential to do wonders with this moment of self questioning. After taking this to the Lord and talking to Him about it, I can stand with full peace and conviction of heart that my boldness is for the glory of God.  By nature I have an "activist" heart and God will use that for me to proclaim His Truth without fear. I have confidence that my boldness is for the glory of God and not Man because I am willing without a moment of thought to turn my back on my family, friends and anything else that has the potential to hold me back from truly living for Christ. I am joyfully willing to suffer for His sake, welcoming rejection, abandonment and ridicule, for the glory that awaits me in the kingdom.  Saying, knowing and truly living this truth with full conviction allows me to tearfully answer my question. Yes, I would lay down my life for the sake of Christ. 

 I have a picture in my mind. A heart throbbing, yet hopeful picture of faithful sacrifice by early followers of Christ. So often the brutal realities of genocides, persecutions and martyrisms merely signify statistics to us. There are no faces attached to those numbers, so we can go on living our daily lives uninterrupted. We hold no true emotional burden or anchor to those sacrifices. We are a numb generation to past and present tragedies.  Momentary grief and momentary reflection.  Over. Next.

As a follower of Christ, I must never lose sight of such ultimate sacrifices. I must never lose sight of the cross! "...Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" Acts 14:22 No matter the pain, no matter the heartbreaks, no matter the disappointments, and no matter the hardships.... I have not suffered enough. I am reminded that no matter how much I 'think' I am sacrificing and suffering for His sake, I have not had to give up my life for Him.  

But He did for me.

  
The book of Acts closes with: "He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance." Acts 28:30-1 Until the very last verse in Acts and Paul's life, the ministry of Christ was exemplified bravely. My concluding question is: When and why has the boldness in the great commission within our generations fizzled away? 

May God's love and truth be at the heart of our boldness. 

Bruised, beaten and battered to the gates......

"Give me the love that leads the way, The faith that nothing can dismay, The hope no disappointments tire, The passion that will burn like fire. Make me thy fuel, O flame of God."

God’s presence is to forsake all for Him and to Him. Let go of everything. Relinquish all to Him. Maintain no control over anything! Just to have God in charge of all things FOR you is enough. Each prayer time must be submitted to God’s sovereign direction that His will be done, without objection! With this acceptance and obedience, we attain immeasurable joy and sweet peace. 

“Agree with God, and be at peace; thereby good will come to you. Receive instruction from His mouth, and lay up His words in your heart. If you return to the Almighty you will be built up……. For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty and lift up your face to God. You will make your prayer to Him, and He will hear you, and you will pay your vows. You will decide on a matter and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your way.” Job 22:21-28

In the same breathe, I emphasize that we do not "obey" in order to get blessings. We obey as a reflection of our faithfulness, thus glorifying Him. He does not merely bless us because we obey, but rather He blesses us because He loves us for our faithfulness. I quote my friend Jay, "Obedience is faith put into practice." I REMIND MYSELF THAT MY LORD OWES ME NOTHING! I AM NOT DESERVING OF ANY BLESSING! Yet, He loves me, protects me, blesses me... because of His splendid grace.  (see my post http://mariyadost.blogspot.com/2012/06/faith-is.html )

I am at the end of my self-righteousness, self-effort, self-reliance… we must be at the end of SELF. Lean in on your thorns!!! Our Lord said: I am not going to deliver you out of your pain. I am going to deliver you THROUGH your pain. "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

I cry out to God to help change my prayers from one that seeks to have Him fulfill my selfish desires which I have convinced myself to be pure, to prayers that only seek Him! Yes, I trust I can go to my Lord in prayer about anything, for nothing is too small. Yes, I pray for love, a wonderful husband, children, security, success etc. but I must FIRST seek Him. Yet, my prayers are often a check list of things I want and need. I "say" I seek Him first, but I don't. Do I truly pray with great honesty, passion and conviction to become more like Him?  Do I pray to praise Him with thanksgiving? I am blessed to know Him, to live for Him, and to hope in Him!! I have been given true freedom! Freedom in Christ, breaking away all chains from this paralyzing world. Focusing on God, knowing God, obeying God, trusting God, and LIVING for God's purpose in me and His glory, is the only thing I must desire for with my whole heart. His love is sufficient. THEN, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you" John 15:7 Be a passionate and sincere seeker! “Lord, continue to ignite my heart for you, continue to feed my hunger!” Let your prayers be shouts of joy for your desperate need for Him! We pray with words, but God listens to our hearts, and it is not what we say to Him, but what He says to us.

Let us be wise in our perspective! When I graduated university, I asked my mentor/professor (who I remember to be a man of faith) to give me advice I could take into the world to guide me. He simply said, “Power is perspective. Power is position!” I did not really understand that until now. All power belongs to God. God IS all power. As we seek to imitate Christ in our Christian walk, we must also strive to see the world through the perspective and position of the Spirit and not the flesh. Therefore, power is perspective now means to me that as I think, act and react from the perspective of the Spirit of God that dwells in me, I stand strong in the presence of God’s power. That perspective is power! That position is power! God’s power!

I am learning to constantly examine my daily walk with you Lord, so that I may be assured that I am not deceiving myself. "Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves"( 2 Corinthians 13:5) I may be able to deceive myself and the world of unrighteous behavior, but not my all knowing and all powerful God. Examine one self! Every step of the way! For when I “believed” I was holy, I was not. For when I “thought” I was blameless, I was not. For the eyes of the Lord is always upon my heart, so I must examine my Christian walk everyday. Point out my transgressions and my foolish ways oh Lord!…. I shall repent and my heart will be transformed with your sweet grace and mercy. Let me see my sin!! Let it consume me and bring me to my knees. My daily sins must joyfully remind me that I am desperately needy of Him!! Discipline me Lord!! May I feel your wrath, for you say, “Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge!” Proverbs 12:1

“….But he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:10-11

May our road to the gates of heaven be hard, painful, full of suffering…. May we be mocked at, spit on, beaten and proclaimed insane! What an honor. Although we be tempted, we pray to never take the easy or cheating road. May the wound of every hurt, betrayal, abandonment, sorrow and grief be a reminder of the wounds inflicted on our savior. Through His wounds, we are healed. May we not forget! May we endure it! We shall walk through the narrow gate, you and I. Nothing shall break you and I. Nothing shall separate you and I from God’s infinite love. Nothing shall deter you and I from the race ahead. May we arrive to heavens gates bruised, beaten, battered and worn out. “Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him” 2 Timothy 2:3-4 Victory is already ours.

I am happily and willingly enslaved to Him who loves me without measure. Although we may finish the race bruised and full of dirt, His blood has cleansed us... His glory shines through us and His power radiates within us. In Him, we are complete.

Jeapordizing the truth of Scripture?

This blog post is in response to my last one about "Walking with God is a matter of the heart" I spent a good time talking about the matters of the heart and how important it is to focus on the heart when dealing with the issue of building "bridges" to bring the gospel to non believers.

I shared some of the points I highlighted on the post with a fellow brother in Christ. He agreed with all that I said, but I noticed his hesitation and so I inquired. His fear with focusing so much with the heart is that it could lead to losing focus on Scripture. I will have to be honest, I needed some time to reflect on this important and justifiable concern. How much of the issues of the heart is too much, steering us away from focusing on the Word of God? Some may argue that the Word of God is powerful and sufficient enough to open the heart to Christ, without having to focus so much on building relationships and working on the matters of the heart. PLEASE NOTE: the power of the Word of God is indescribable, unmeasurable, and without limits!!! The Word of God is always present, but before Scripture comes alive to an unwilling heart, the Word of God must first be demonstrated to a non believer.

After prayer and honest reflection, this is my response.

Think of this analogy. Christ standing at the door of a heart and He is knocking. The non believers heart has a door, but ALSO heavy duty chains on it, a master lock on the knob, and the key is no where to be found. Even if the heart hears the knock, the chains are too many and too twisted to remove. The love, trust and relationship equity invested by a Christian in the non believing heart slowly removes theses chains... one by one.... and what is the actual key to the door? The Holy Spirit! Once the chains are removed (that is our job as Christians!), the Lord uses the Holy Spirit key to finally unlock the door. How can the Word of God and truth of Scripture dwell IN the heart if the door is closed? ONCE the door is finally opened, it is THEN when Scripture resonates there. Maybe I am wrong and maybe as I continue to grow and mature in faith, maybe my perspective will change... But until then, I believe that we need to work with the heart through love, relationships, trust and demonstrating Christ... to remove all the chains and to set the heart FREE! The heart changes, but the Word of God in Scripture never does!!!! So, we do not have to worry about jeopardizing Scripture, because a free heart IN Christ will be able to truly let the Word of God come in and take refuge there for eternity.

Some may argue, the Word of God in Scripture is sufficient and powerful enough to break through the chains and the door.... Hmmmmm Is it not the power of the Holy Spirit that actually "makes" the Word of God in Scripture come alive? Without the Holy Spirit first opening the door of the heart, to a non believer, Scripture in the Bible is merely "Christian doctrine."Yes! The Word of God is powerful indeed!!! but it is the Holy Spirit that makes the Word of God come alive.... so it is love, relationships and Christianity being demonstrated that first slowly removes the callous that is formed on the heart... then the Holy Spirit opens the door and then the Word of God is ignited and dwells in the heart! This is not a step by step process of course! but I am merely trying to paint a simplified picture from my experience.

Believe in this picture. A Christian helps take down these chains as a loyal servant of God... then Jesus unlocks the door with the key of the Holy Spirit and opens the door as He turns back and says "Well done my loyal servant." and He and the power of the Holy Spirit BURST through the door and a life is forever changed. The Kingdom has just added another child of God....and all of heaven shouts with cheers of joy!!!!! What a privilege we have.

I often use the word "SOLDIER" in my posts. That is EXACTLY what scripture calls us. We are Christ's soldiers and ambassadors, so we must expect to face suffering and for the world to hate us. "SHARE IN SUFFERING AS A GOOD SOLDIER OF CHRIST JESUS. NO SOLDIER GETS ENTANGLED IN CIVILIAN PURSUITS, SINCE HIS AIM IS TO PLEASE THE ONE WHO ENLISTED HIM" - 2 TIMOTHY 2:3-4  Love this!! Christ is our commander and we are His soldiers and when we were enlisted in the body of Christ, He expects us to accomplish the mission with FULL endurance and strength. 

I trust and place my hope in this......

Let me see..... I can actually USE SCRIPTURE to prove this point..........

Our walk with God is always a matter of the heart.

God is always concerned with the heart. At times when I do not have words to express my emotions, I simply pray to my Lord, "You know my heart." He knows the sorrows, the bitterness and the joys that take refuge there. Due to sin, if the heart is not purified with the Word of God, like the mind, it can be deceitful, so constantly fill your heart with the Spirit of God through prayer, by imitating Christ at all times and by clinging desperately to the Word of God!!! "THE WORD OF GOD X-RAYS THE HUMAN HEART.... AND IT CONFRONTS THE INNER SELF!" "for out of it are the issues of life"

I don't know about you, but I sure do feel a wonderful sense of comfort and peace knowing that my Lord already knows the cries of my heart and He already knows what I need before I even come to Him concerning it. He is the ALL knowing, ALMIGHTY, Abba! Father! Who loves His children beyond measure!

Remember, we can be very religious while we withhold our hearts from true faith and worship of the Lord.

As I reflect on all that I have learned and come to know about my faith and about myself in the last month, I am wonderfully overwhelmed. Although in the process of thought, it "all" seems like an overload of information, it actually is not. I now realize that it all comes down to LOVE, RELATIONSHIPS, THE HEART.... all three stemming from the seed of GOD.

Think about this: What is God's first commandment? To love Him and to Love thy neighbor. To love Him - THAT IS A RELATIONSHIP! To love thy neighbor- THAT IS A RELATIONSHIP! The first commandment is ALL about relationships!!! God Himself is telling us that it is all about relationships! Therefore, when ministering to a Muslim person, we MUST demonstrate the loving Christlike relationship God demands from us!! Then..... how else can a Muslim person ever comprehend a  personal relationship with God (which is such a foreign concept to him/her!!!!)

The BODY OF CHRIST is a spiritual relationship we have as followers of Christ....we are all CONNECTED with the common thread being our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We are all brothers and sisters in Christ.... and this ETERNAL RELATIONSHIP connects our HEARTS for our love of Christ! Remember that the Lord said, BE A LIGHT TO THE WORLD. The light of Christ SHINES THROUGH OUR HEARTS AS WE EXEMPLIFY THE LOVE OF CHRIST THROUGH RELATIONSHIPS IN THE BODY OF CHRIST. WE MUST POUR OUT THAT LOVE IN RELATIONSHIPS WITH NON BELIEVERS TO ILLUMINATE GODS LOVE.

Let me explain......

Pastor Tim from Graceway recently explained to me in a wonderful and enlightening way that although each one of us represent ourselves to the world through our behaviors and our beliefs and values.......it is actually relationships and our hearts that hold our true essence, where God is most visible.  We often hold a view of someone through their behavior and the values they associate themselves with......yet, giving little value to relationships and the heart of the individual. Proverbs 4:23 says: KEEP THY HEART WITH ALL DILIGENCE; FOR OUT OF IT ARE THE ISSUES OF LIFE" We need to look into the HEART of a person because it is WHERE JESUS STARTS..... the beliefs, values and behaviors of an individual are often hijacked by the flesh, succumbing to the world.... therefore burying the true struggles, pure desires and love that is in the heart. 

Scripture clearly teaches us that the real issues of life are spiritual and are really matters of the heart, the inner man. Did you know that the Bible mentions the heart 963 in the KJV and only mentions the head 360 times and the mind 156 times.... The word "heart" is first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 6:5:

"THE LORD SAW THAT THE WICKEDNESS OF MAN WAS GREAT IN THE EARTH, AND THAT EVERY INTENTION OF THE THOUGHT OF HIS HEART WAS ONLY EVIL CONTINUALLY"

Notice how specific and how intentional the Word of God is!! "Thought of his heart..." The Law of First Mention (that wherever you find a doctrine, a word or a theme mentioned in the Bible for the first time, that passage can be understood to set the tone for understanding it throughout all of the Bible) states: "Thought of his heart"... not thought of his mind. The first time the Lord talks about the HEART, He connects it with thinking. In the last 10 years, science has finally proved that the heart has the capability to think, yet the Bible states this clearly in Genesis! I don't know about you, but information like that excites me!!

ALSO NOTICE: In Genesis 8:21, it says, ".........The Lord said IN HIS HEART, I will never again curse the ground because of man......" Notice that the Lord's BIG promise to man was made IN HIS HEART!! God's words are intentional, and He could have just said, "The Lord said, I will......." but He made that promise in His heart as a "seal". The heart is sacred, confirmed in Proverbs 7:3, "...write them on the tablet of your HEART." We can obviously see the importance of the theme of the heart in the Bible..... so why is it that in society, we often forget and give little attention to the heart of others, but rather we focus on the external elements of man? God keeps His eyes on our hearts.... shouldn't we do the same? 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “.........for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” I choose to look into the hearts of those whom have pained me or have caused me to suffer, rather than their external behaviors, actions and worldly/flesh consumed beliefs. Why? Because the heart will show me WHY I must forgive!!  Their hearts will show and confirm to me that my fellow man is seeking and crying out to God just like mine is..........

Once I understood this, I asked myself an honest question: Why do I want to minister to Muslims? Why do I think that the Lord has truly called me to bring His truth to the Muslim heart? So, I wanted to answer this question by thinking from my heart..... and not my mind.

Answer: I WANT TO BRING GOD'S WORD AND TRUTH NOT INTO THE MIND OF A MUSLIM, BUT INTO HIS OR HER HEART. The secret is not to transform their mind, but to transform their heart!!! Remember, you can not argue or debate someone into the kingdom of God..... but you can LOVE them and open their heart into the kingdom of God. I TRULY BELIEVE THAT EVERY MUSLIM HEART (THAT THE FATHER CHOOSES TO DRAW HIS SON TO) IS DESPERATELY "SEEKING" THE LOVE OF GOD. THE MUSLIM HEART IS SEEKING A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP AND INTIMACY WITH GOD THAT IS NOT PROVIDED IN ISLAM. YET, THE SOCIAL/CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS CHAINS OF ISLAM HOLDS THEM CAPTIVE. As missionaries, our primary role as soldiers of Christ is to break these chains with the power of the Holy Spirit and set the Muslim heart FREE IN CHRIST. This is not a matter of conversion!!! IT IS A MATTER OF THE HEART! And to get to the heart, one must build a bridge through RELATIONSHIPS. I would say that the closest "silver bullet" to open the heart of a Muslim person to Christ is: RELATIONSHIP EQUITY COMBINED WITH THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. When I was first presented the gospel, there were relentless attempts to DEFINE Christianity to me.... which is a matter of the MIND!!! What really brought me down to my knees? It was Christianity DEMONSTRATED to me through RELATIONSHIPS! Which is a matter of the HEART!!!! Hope that makes sense...... :)

Consider this!! Paul too looked at the heart when he went to proclaim the gospel to the world! We can see the importance of first looking into the heart with the example of Apostle Paul's speech to the Greek's in Athens. As he walked around and saw all the idols being worshiped, he was disturbed. However, when he said his speech in the courtyard, he DID NOT proclaim with frustration and anger that they were idol worshipers. Rather, he CHOSE to look into the heart of the Greeks instead of WHAT they were worshiping. He focused on their hearts and recognized the THEIR HEART'S were "seeking" and that their hearts were not satisfied, spiritually empty. They were looking for a God that could satisfy their heart's desires. We need to truly think about this and hope to do the same.

PLEASE NOTE: Only God through His Spirit can draw anyone to Himself. "YOU CAN NOT BUILD THE KINGDOM OF GOD. ONLY GOD CAN. YOU CAN ONLY REFLECT IT THROUGH YOUR WITNESS AND LIFE." Although we plant the seed, God alone can give the growth. "The man who plants, waters and reaps KNOWS NOT HOW the seed sprouts and grows!!!"

 I will use my own story as an example: For almost two years when I was first presented the gospel, I refused to embrace Christ. My mind, my education, and my own intelligence would not allow me to see the light of faith. I had in essence rejected the constraints of Islam and looked in distrust at the face of Western Christianity. Therefore, I was living as my own God. God fully knows us from the inside out. Therefore, He too knew that my stubbornness would be a problem. So, He knew to capture my mind because IT WAS MY MIND THAT WAS REJECTING CHRIST and IT WAS MY MIND THAT WAS NOT ALLOWING MY HEART TO HAVE ANY SAY IN THE MATTER. Therefore, the Lord needed to capture my heart and give it greater strength so that it could LEAD my MIND to His light...... As He set my HEART free with John 17, my MIND also began to be transformed. As missionaries, we must focus on the heart.... igniting the heart for the Lord, then the heart can lead the person's mind to Truth. It is then when all those lingering questions and debates that consume the mind, holding back a person to come to the Lord are answered THROUGH faith... in God's time! Jesus in all His love and mercy comforted my heart and mind, but in different ways because they were thinking differently!

It is obvious then to realize as Westerners that it is ALL ABOUT BUILDING A REALTIONSHIP WITH A MUSLIM PERSON IN ORDER TO KNOW THE HEART..... SEPARATE FROM THE MIND BECAUSE THE MUSLIM MIND HAS BEEN TAUGHT TO REJECT THE GOOD NEWS, AND HE OR SHE WILL REJECT CHRIST FIRST WITH THE MIND!!! KNOW THE STRUGGLE WITHIN THAT SPECIFIC INDIVIDUAL'S HEART.... AND THEN EXPLAIN HOW JESUS CAN AND WILL RESOLVE AND GIVE COMFORT TO THAT STRUGGLE!!!! Know the Muslim heart!!  "Since the heart is so important to what we think, say, and do, we each need to regularly do open heart surgery with the scalpel of the Word under the guiding hand of the great physician, the Lord Jesus. We accomplish this through the teaching, guiding, convicting ministry of the Holy Spirit. Like a sharp two-edged sword, the Word divides the inner man asunder to reveal the true condition and needs of our hearts" (http://bible.org/article/guarding-heart )

"Christianity and the promises of the Bible are matters of trust, and trust is a matter of the heart" (And remember, trust comes from building a solid "relationship")

We may worship our Lord with words, thoughts from the mind, or hymns, but OUR HEARTS MAY WORSHIP THE LORD WITHOUT WORDS.

FOR MORE ON THE "MATTER OF THE HEART", GO TO  http://bible.org/article/guarding-heart

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil” (Psalm 23:4).

We each live our lives with our own measure of uncertainties and tragedies. To compare mine with yours and vice versa would not be fair and the emotional burden can not be compared. The source of each of our pains differ, but the desperate cries for God to heal the afflicted wounds echos the same, pleading for God's mercy.

I can not imagine nor do I allow my mind to ponder the anguish of a woman's heart who watches her husband....the love of her life, her protector, and her best friend, face the uncertainty of cancer. I watch this burden upon my two sisters in Christ. I watch unwavering love and strength.

I can not imagine nor do I allow my mind to ponder what the state of a daughter's heart would be if she were to helplessly watch her mother slowly wither away into death's arms. I witnessed this today. I witnessed unwavering love and strength.

I can not imagine nor do I allow my mind to ponder what the state of a husband's heart would be if he were to powerlessly face his wife slowly wither away into death's mercy. I witnessed this today. I witnessed unwavering love and strength.

Where is the hope? Well, the Bible says, "Our hope lies beyond the grave" (Proverbs 11:17)

In a matter of a few days, through the unfortunate and heart sinking realities that face my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, I wonder..... Is God trying to speak to me through this? Does it take me seeing a fellow Christian suffering more than I, to realize that my situation is not that bad? Yet, I must be careful to not deny or minimize my own pain and suffering in relation to another. I must acknowledge and look at my pain in the eye. I must accept it. I must find God's hope and purpose in it. I must seek peace and strength in Christ. I must REMEMBER the absolute suffering, betrayal and rejection that Christ endured!!!! So, for HIS sake, I will rejoice when I face trials knowing that it will draw me closer to Him; throwing me into the loving arms of my merciful Lord. We are little children, and our Father in heaven keeps near to the brokenhearted and He reaches down and grabs His children when they begin to sink in sorrows deep waters.

Pastor Jeff Adams made a comment today during his sermon that resonated with me deeply: If there is something that is holding you back from truly giving yourself to God, let it go. I believe that it can also include "someone."  At ALL times, the focus of a spiritual life should be on the kingdom!!! Once I can keep my attention firmly fixated on my eternal place in the kingdom of heaven, then "other" matters that have the potential to steer my focus away will no longer cast a shadow over my spiritual walk with the Lord.

For the last month, I prayed for God to prepare and guard my heart. I not just prayed, I begged. He is so faithful.  He showed me not only what real suffering is through the struggles that my friends are facing, but more importantly, He allowed me to witness what REAL Love is through them. Now I know that my tears are being wasted on earthly love, not a spiritual love that only comes from the presence of God.

I am beyond grateful. I am beyond blessed. My Lord continues to shine His love and protection upon me in the most powerful and obvious of ways, especially when the heart throbs. He is always near....... Although my soul is embittered and I was pricked in the heart, my lips will not speak deceit and "I will walk with integrity of heart..." (Psalm 101:2)

God spoke to me yesterday through this Bible verse: "He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries." (Psalm 112:7-8) Thank you for preparing me Lord.

Thank you Lord for being my eternal shield, my rock, my protector, my redeemer..... my love. Under your wings Lord is where I will take refuge because "His faithfulness is a shield and buckler" (Psalm 91:4)

"I know in part then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known"

My thoughts and prayers are with my brothers and sisters in Christ who are battling a fight against cancer. We are prayer warriors and we will be lifting you up in prayer. God and His timing are INTENTIONAL, and every joy and suffering serves to draw us closer to Him..... to show us that we are DESPERATELY NEEDY OF HIM.  We desperately need you Lord, for I can not do anything apart from you!


Praise to our splendid, magnificent and merciful Lord.

FAITH IS.......

"Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" (Matthew 8:26)

It is amazing to me how many times Christ says such a statement, esp. to His own disciples. I often say, " I am placing all my faith in God..... I have faith.... I have faith that all will be well, I am afraid, but I have faith that God will get me through this etc. etc. etc." There are so many words that we use or associate with in our walk with the Lord: faith, trust, hope, peace, joy, spirit, strength etc. We must remember that the world's definition of these words is not the same as what God intends them to mean. GOD'S joy, peace, strength and hope is not easily defined because it is so wrapped in POWER, His power. They are unmeasurable, unsearchable and definitely unexplainable to a non believer. The only way someone can truly comprehend it is when you are filled with the Holy Spirit. No matter how well we preach the gospel to a non believer, nothing we can say or do can define or explain the joy that comes from giving yourself truly to Christ.... it is WHEN God sends His helper, the Holy Spirit to grab and transform that person, finally allowing them to feel it and understand it. The Holy Spirit (the fuel) ignites our hearts and sends waves of splendid emotions through our veins that make us want to scream with full conviction and absolute JOY of our love for God.

 QUESTION: Faith is the most important thing in my life, but how do I define it? What is it?

So, when I say "I have faith", do I really let what that word symbolizes penetrate my entire mind, heart and soul? Do I really have faith without ANY doubt.... I mean such absolute faith IN Christ that I can go to sleep in absolute peace even when my world pulses with fear or anxiety because I know God will come through? Faith or faithfulness:They both come from the Greek word 'pistos' which we find in the word 'epistemology.' Faith is used about 230 times in the Bible. 

I refer to Luke 7 about the centurion who was willing to believe that Jesus could heal a loyal and trusted servant who was near death. The centurion told Jesus, “Just say the word, and my servant will be healed.” Then the centurion used a personal example to illustrate that he understood what it meant to be taken at His word and obeyed. In response to the centurion, Jesus turned to the crowd that was following Him and said, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.” Jesus seemed to be saying that “great faith” was simply taking Him at His word.

Can I find my answer in all of Hebrews 11? (the golden discussion of faith) which starts with ..."Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the CONVICTION of things not seen..." No matter whom the writer of Hebrews was talking about, each person had simply taken God at His word and obeyed His command. They were remembered for their faith!! Regardless of circumstances, despite arguments of logic and reason, and regardless of how he or she felt, each person mentioned in Hebrews 11 believed God and His word and chose to be OBEDIENT.

OBEDIENCE IS FAITH PUT INTO PRACTICE. YOU CAN NOT SEPARATE FAITH AND OBEDIENCE! REMEMBER: BEFORE SIN, IT WAS DISOBEDIENCE! IT WAS THE DISOBEDIENCE OF ONE MAN (ADAM) THAT BROUGHT ABOUT SIN, AND IT WAS THE OBEDIENCE OF ONE MAN (CHRIST) THAT SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF SIN!!!!

What I have also been pondering about is the notion that even by having faith, abiding in His word and being completely obedient does not mean that we will reap the fruits of our obedience and faith in OUR span of life. God's promise is forever, so just because we have faith and obey, we must not EXPECT a reward for it.... our reward will be in heaven! Many of God's loyal servants DID NOT receive what they were promised, because our GREAT promise awaits not in our lifetime, but in eternity. "AND ALL THESE, THOUGH COMMANDED THROUGH THEIR FAITH, DID NOT RECEIVE WHAT WAS PROMISED, SINCE GOD HAD PROVIDED SOMETHING BETTER FOR US, THAT APART FROM US THEY SHOULD NOT BE MADE PERFECT." (Hebrews 11:39-40) So, I, a follower of our Lord Jesus Christ should constantly remind myself that I have faith, I obey and I abide in His word and promise for ONE REASON: TO GLORIFY GOD!!! Its is ALL about Him, and not for an "expectation" to receive what I want by being obedient. What I want does not dwell here in this broken world, but rather it stands waiting for me as my inheritance in the Kingdom of heaven... By truly believing this and letting it resonate in my life, God always bestows blessings upon His loyal servants.... not because I expect it for my obedience, but rather because He loves me beyond words for my faithfulness.

Oh, how word's have lost their meaning, yet the Bible speaks so often about guarding our mouths. Where is the value of words? In the world we live in today, we carelessly use and throw around the word Love and Faith so easily that the essence of what they truly convey begins to lose its shine and POWER.

So often, I find myself reading the Bible without careful examination of the words used. Example: "...And when Jesus SAW their faith.." (Matthew 9:2) I have read that passage many times, but now I am drawn to the word SAW. Jesus SAW their faith..... it is not about merely having faith, but also exemplifying it because often we can go about deceiving ourselves just through our words.

ANSWER: Faith is taking God at His word. Let me be consumed in my faith, letting His Word and His promise come ALIVE, penetrating my heart. The spirit of God's word flows in me cleansing my blood. Let His Word and His promise pierce my very existence because the Word of the Lord abides FOREVER. 

For me, FAITH IS OBEDIENCE. FAITH IS FREEDOM!