In the book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible, we read some depressing passages of scripture. Solomon, a man who had it all, a man who only knew of the best things in life, was concluding that life itself was nothing more than vanities. Here was a man, who could give great proverbial advice. Here was a man who could dive deep philosophically with the best of them. Here was a man who, according to 2nd Chronicles, had things that the kings before him never had.
“Wisdom and knowledge are granted you. And I will give you riches, possessions, honor, and glory, such as none of the kings had before you, and none after you shall have their equal.”
Yet somehow, in all of this,in all of the wisdom, in all of the riches, in all the best things life had to offer, Solomon had failed. Solomon was found lacking.
While he was trying to define his journey, In the end, his journey had defied him.
Solomon found that no pleasure, no possession, nothing he had was bringing a complete happiness. Nothing he pursued was fulfilling. His journey was for happiness,but he ended up with frustrations.
As he stopped in to ponder in his journey, Solomon found that he was hating life.
Solomon said that most of the things we strived for on this journey, proved to only be vanities. He realized that even the wisest of men, found themselves to only be fools. He found that for all the sweat, tears, and energy he put forth in the journey, that life was nothing but labor, sorrow and grief.
On an on, Solomon paints a grim picture. He describes the whoas of life.
He shows the despair, the hurts and the disappointments. In the end, he leaves the readers of the scriptures feeling depressed and hopeless about life. "All is vanity," he says, "all is vanity."
As we travel this journey called life, we will find moments of happiness, moments of frustrations, and moments of sadness. Many things will fall within our path.
Things like: Heartache, pain, change,stress,being let down,failure,success, confusion, misunderstandings and hopefully on many occasions, happiness.
If we really wanted to get down to it, and to be real with ourselves
We can admit that like Solomon, that we too can find the negatives, the vanities and the grim outlooks of this life. If we are not careful, if we allow the Solomon attitude to grip us, we risk the very thing that Solomon experienced:
We risk our journey defying us, instead of us defining our journey.
A journey by definition is "To travel or the act of traveling from one place to another." Biologically and psychologically speaking, a journey is "any course or passage from one stage or experience to another."
Whether a journey be physical or spiritual, one can conclude that there must be a drive and there must be some type of desire. It is a combination of these items which allows the person that is on the journey, to walk down the intended path. It is at the time in which the drive is gone or that the desire is lost, a person stops walking and could be found sitting.
When a person finds themselves sitting down and pondering the many things in life, the danger of a Solomon mindset begins to creep in. They begin to get down on their efforts. They allow the pains of life to catch up. Depression and oppression sets in. The very danger of the proverbial throwing in the towel, becomes a realization. It is at this moment, the person unconsciously allows their journey, to defy them.
A quick flip through the pages of the Bible finds many journeys. There was Abraham who followed God and went to Canaan as instructed. His due reward for following that journey was being blessed by God and becoming a great nation. There was Moses who was instructed to go to Mt. Sinai. He comes face to face with a burning bush and was given further instructions from the Lord. So Moses does as he is instructed and goes on the journey.
Many successful journeys are found within the pages of the Bible. But then, we see the likes of Sampson. Sampson was a man who has a relationship with God. He was given abilities that many of men only dreamed of. Yet somehow, Sampson chose to allow his journey to defy him, instead of he defining his journey.
Sampson strayed from the path when he went into the city of Timnah. He strayed once again when he went into Gaza. It was his straying, his temptations, that took him to places he should of never have gone. Sampson was blazing trails were not to have been blazed.
He was a man set apart for God's service. He was a man of power. He once took apart a lion with only his bare hands. With a jawbone from a donkey, he slew thousands. Yet, Sampson had a fundamental flaw in his life and that flaw allowed his journey to defy him.
In the end, Sampson's eyes were gouged out by the Philistines. The hair he had grown as part of his Nazarite vow, was cut off. The feet that led him down the wrong paths, were now weighed down by shackles. Sampson was hooked to a grinding stone like a donkey. Around and around he went. No longer on a journey with intent and purpose, but now aimlessly going in circles.
After parting ways with Abram, Lot wandered from his intended path, to take his cattle to the well watered green valleys of Jordan. He wandered off the path to camp out right outside the gates of the city Sodom. Instead of staying on the right path which was far from sin city, he chose to camp right next to sin.
The journey he once defined, was now defying him. As fire fell upon Sodom, and Lot and his family fleed, the very sin he cozied up next to, had destroyed his wife. Lot could of seen the warning signs there and ran back to the proper path, but he didn't. He chose to continue on down the wrong path and ran to the hills to hide. It was within those hills that his daughters became the next victims of his choosing the wrong path, the wrong journey.
Choosing to stray from the journey has its consequences. Sin has a price. It will cost you and your family much. However, if you choose to stay the course, to walk within the set of footprints provided for you, then no wind, no wave, no false teachings, no fads or relevant gimmick will cause you to leave the path.
The question presented then is a simple one. Are you defining your journey, or is your journey defying you? Are you deciding in your heart that you will only follow Jesus or are you allowing sin, temptations and things of this world to defy you?
Look at your path today. Which one are you residing on? Are you able to carry on a conversation with Jesus or are you finding that He is off in the distance walking a different direction?
Monday, January 18, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Where to from here?
What a month December was.
Many visited churches for the first time this year for Christmas specials, others partipated in children programs and Christmas choirs.
Many then soon afterwards found themselves amongst friends and families, hopping from house to house attending parties and gatherings, and being wrapped up in the love and joy of the festive season.
Then finally on Christmas morning, many families gathered around their respective Christmas trees and opened gifts while spending time celebrating one of the many sides of the holiday season.
Many people quickly begun taking down their ornaments from their walls and from the tree and some dived into the disassembling of that artificial Christmas tree. Maybe some even began pulling out the boxes to store the outdoor Christmas lights and door wreath for yet another year, even as the last piece of wrapping paper was still falling to the floor.
As quickly as Christmas 2009 came, it is over and the Christmas season is behind us now. All the building up, all the Christmas songs played since Halloween day, all the lines in the stores and the must have presents and toys, the time has come and went.
We all can look at this season and confirm, it is now behind us and we now sit in a new year, a new decade and the question I want to present is a simple yet hopefully impacting question.
Where to from here?
Where to from here is the question that rattled thru my mind as I read the Christmas story particularly the part about the visitation of the magi to Bethlehem.
Where did they go after that memorable night?
What impact did a visit to a baby in a manger have on these advisors to a king?
In hindsight, you and I can see just WHO this baby is, we understand the importance of such a birth that had concluded that night.
Thru scripture, we can understand that the birth was not just another birth.
This birth was a special birth.
This birth was a miraculous birth.
This birth was a birth of a baby who would grow up to one day be hung on a tree, dying for the sins of you and I.
Had it not been for this birth of the Godhead wrapped in human flesh, This world would have no hope.
Humanity would have no chance.
You and I would not comprehend the taste of salvation.
And as it was that night, The Magi followed the Easterly star that lit their path to this newborn King. They came upon the child and they presented their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They honored the worlds chance of hope by showing up to that birth. They paid due respect to the moment.
The aspect of the story that caught my attention was not the obvious of the way they came or why they came or even what they presented to this newborn King. To me, the intriguing part was,
What did the men do afterwards?
What happened to these men after an encounter with the Christ Child?
Did they leave the same way they came or did they leave differently?
Did their encounter cause them to be changed?
What became of the moment?
Where did they go to from there?
Scripture indeed gives us some insight to the moment of that night.
Luke 2:20 tells us that these men returned to the fields glorifying and praising God for what they had seen and for what they had heard.
Matthew 2:12 tells us that they departed into their own country ANOTHER way.
Even back on that starry night many years ago, in a stable in Bethlehem, we find that when these men encountered Jesus, they did not leave the same way they came. When they encountered the savior, they left praising and glorifying Him for who HE was and more importantly what He would become for you and I.
Something tells me that somewhere throughout time and space,
Somewhere along the way,
Somewhere mixed into the passage of time,
The saints of the most high need to get back to that precious day.
They need to have an encounter with Jesus again.
They need to have a trek in which there is an eager pursuit.
They need to come to the king bearing our souls,
Opening their hearts,
Giving all they have without asking for anything back.
They need to have an encounter that causes a desire to praise and glorify God.
They need to have an encounter that causes them to be forever changed.
They need to have an encounter that causes them to leave differently than the way we came in.
Oh if one could just have an encounter that causes one to proclaim:
I have just been with Jesus…..!
I have just seen the King!
Where do you go from here?
Where does the world turn?
What will 2010 bring?
What will this next decade develop?
Where to from here?
The world will follow its shallow and empty hopes.
They will continue to follow the latest fads.
They will glue their eyes to the latest gossiping sagas.
And somewhere along the way, Jesus will be pushed back, and even left behind.
It was Mary and Joseph who had made their way to the temple in Jerusalem during the feast of the Passover.
They brought with them the 12 year old Jesus.
But somewhere during the hustle and bustle of the festivities,
Somewhere in the distractions of the events,
Mary and Joseph had taken their minds off of Jesus.
They packed up their belongings and began the trek back home.
The most important aspect of the journey was left behind.
He had been forgotten.
After a miraculous birthing of the Christ child,
After the encounter the magi had with the child,
After the 12 years of raising the savior of this world,
Mary and Joseph had left Jesus behind.
Where to from here Mary?
Where to from here Joseph?
You left the most important thing, the most important person behind.
It’s time to go back and get your Jesus!
It’s time to cling to Him like never before!
Just like that Christmas song,
Mary did you know? That your son is going to walk on water?
Did you know that He would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that He was going to give sight to the blind?
Did you know that by the raising of a hand the storm would cease?
Mary, you had to know that your encounter with God forever changed you.
You had to realize that you were walking amongst the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
You had to know that the miraculous birth would forever change the course of History.
I believe with all my heart that no man, no woman, no angel, nor demon
Can come into contact with Jesus and not be changed.
Whether you left him at the altar many years ago, or you have been holding him at bay,this is the moment for you to get back in touch!
Where to from here my friend?
You should already know the answer to that question.
This is not the time to be lax.
This is not the time to be indifferent
This is not the time to become confrontational.
It is time you let your front down that hides the very depth of your soul
And to let the Lord God Almighty go to work.
He wants to heal you.
He wants to lift you up.
He wants to save your soul from a burning hell.
He wants to teach you things you have never known.
Show you things, you have never seen.
Where to from here?
It is all up to you.
We do not serve a forceful God.
He stands at the door, but it is you that needs to open it.
He is ready to answer, but it is you that needs to make the call.
Where you going to go from here?
When you have an encounter with Jesus…you will be changed.
When you have an encounter with Jesus, you will be blessed.
Deuteronomy chapter 28 says:
That if you will listen obediently to the voice of God,
That God,
Your God,
Will place you on high,high above all the nations of the world.
All the blessings that will come upon you will be so much that they will spill over.
Your land will be blessed.
You will be blessed coming in.
And you will be blessed coming out.
Your enemies will be defeated.
When you have an encounter with Jesus, you will be changed.
When Jesus encountered the dead girl in Matthew, she arose from the dead
The sick that had encounters with Jesus, were healed.
The blind received their sight
The lepers were cleansed.
The crippled walked
All because of encounters with Jesus….
Many who had encounters with Him left with power.
In His name, they casted out demons.
In His name, they spoke in new tongues.
In His name, they laid their hands on the sick, and they were made whole.
Where to from here I ask of you?
As we start a new year, a new decade,
Do you just continue on the same content path?
Do you continue on in a backslidden state?
Do you continue on fighting against the calling on your life?
Do you continue on refusing to let it go and let God have His way?
Or do you quit asking yourself, where to from here? And start saying,
Why not here…why not now!
We live in a day and age in which time is short.
We live in a day and age in which Jesus is being pushed out of
Every workplace,
He’s being pushed out of every school house,
and He’s being pushed out of every home.
I say the time is nigh in which you make a decision.
You are either for Him, or you are against Him.
You are either living it, or you're not.
You are either going to be hot or you are going to be cold.
The magi left praising and Glorifying the Lord
They left differently than the way they came.
The challenge for you
Is to find that place, to find that secret place and not leave it until something changes.
Not leave it until you have gotten ahold of the horns of the altar and cried out unto the Lord.
I know where I want to go to from here dear Lord…
But I cannot do it without you!
Where to from here?
Something stirred in Abraham as he fell to the earth and begged for the Lord not to pass by his servant.
It was the Caananite woman who cried out “Have mercy on me dear Lord”
Bartimaeous and the other blind man found themselves crying out unto the Lord
It was the woman at the tomb who fell to the feet of Jesus, grabbed ahold of them and began to worship Him.
It was Paul who realized he had been in the wrong too long and fell down crying Who are you Lord!?
Where to from here?
When you encounter Jesus,
When you come into His throne,
Something has to give in your carnal nature.
Something inside of you should cause the very strength of a strong man to falter and bring him to his knees.
Something inside of you should stir saying, I do not want to leave until the blessing of the Lord is upon me.
It was Jacob in the Testament of Old who found himself face to face with an Angel of God.
It was Jacob who grabbed hold of that Angel and proclaimed, “I am not letting go.”
With tears of supplication, a deeply repented heart of his wrong doings, he pleaded for the promises of God.
All night long Jacob wrestled with this Angel.
Even with a touch from the Angel on his side, and the dislocation of his hip, Jacob continued on.
The pain of his body, did not deter him.
His faith grew more earnest as he persevered unto the break of day.
Even as the Angel argued with Jacob, Jacob responded “I will not let go unless you bless me!”
If you could just find a grasp onto your faith.
That you would get ahold of your promises
Get ahold of your blessings
And proclaim, I will not let go!
I will not give in,
I will not give up,
Until I am changed!
Until I am healed!
Until I am saved!
It was the Angel that spoke to Jacob during the wrestling match.
He reminded Jacob of his wrong doings.
He was tested.
He was tried.
And his faith was put on the line.
Whether you are a sinner or a saint.
Whether you are saved, or unsaved.
One thing is for sure…
There is an altar you can approach.
There is still a hope for you. You do not want to miss it.
Where to from here?
I have had an encounter with Jesus, now what?
That "what" is you grabbing ahold of him.
That "what" is you getting closer to Him than ever before.
That "what" is you wrestling with the angel until you are blessed.
That "what" is you not letting go even when your past is used as a test of your faith.
That "what" is you saying, I am tired of my old self.
Where to from here?
I think you know the answer. Straight ahead, straight up!
As you enter into this new year,this new decade, it is time to move forward and grasp that which awaits you. It is time to claim what is rightfully yours. It is time to go deeper in your relationship with God.
Many visited churches for the first time this year for Christmas specials, others partipated in children programs and Christmas choirs.
Many then soon afterwards found themselves amongst friends and families, hopping from house to house attending parties and gatherings, and being wrapped up in the love and joy of the festive season.
Then finally on Christmas morning, many families gathered around their respective Christmas trees and opened gifts while spending time celebrating one of the many sides of the holiday season.
Many people quickly begun taking down their ornaments from their walls and from the tree and some dived into the disassembling of that artificial Christmas tree. Maybe some even began pulling out the boxes to store the outdoor Christmas lights and door wreath for yet another year, even as the last piece of wrapping paper was still falling to the floor.
As quickly as Christmas 2009 came, it is over and the Christmas season is behind us now. All the building up, all the Christmas songs played since Halloween day, all the lines in the stores and the must have presents and toys, the time has come and went.
We all can look at this season and confirm, it is now behind us and we now sit in a new year, a new decade and the question I want to present is a simple yet hopefully impacting question.
Where to from here?
Where to from here is the question that rattled thru my mind as I read the Christmas story particularly the part about the visitation of the magi to Bethlehem.
Where did they go after that memorable night?
What impact did a visit to a baby in a manger have on these advisors to a king?
In hindsight, you and I can see just WHO this baby is, we understand the importance of such a birth that had concluded that night.
Thru scripture, we can understand that the birth was not just another birth.
This birth was a special birth.
This birth was a miraculous birth.
This birth was a birth of a baby who would grow up to one day be hung on a tree, dying for the sins of you and I.
Had it not been for this birth of the Godhead wrapped in human flesh, This world would have no hope.
Humanity would have no chance.
You and I would not comprehend the taste of salvation.
And as it was that night, The Magi followed the Easterly star that lit their path to this newborn King. They came upon the child and they presented their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They honored the worlds chance of hope by showing up to that birth. They paid due respect to the moment.
The aspect of the story that caught my attention was not the obvious of the way they came or why they came or even what they presented to this newborn King. To me, the intriguing part was,
What did the men do afterwards?
What happened to these men after an encounter with the Christ Child?
Did they leave the same way they came or did they leave differently?
Did their encounter cause them to be changed?
What became of the moment?
Where did they go to from there?
Scripture indeed gives us some insight to the moment of that night.
Luke 2:20 tells us that these men returned to the fields glorifying and praising God for what they had seen and for what they had heard.
Matthew 2:12 tells us that they departed into their own country ANOTHER way.
Even back on that starry night many years ago, in a stable in Bethlehem, we find that when these men encountered Jesus, they did not leave the same way they came. When they encountered the savior, they left praising and glorifying Him for who HE was and more importantly what He would become for you and I.
Something tells me that somewhere throughout time and space,
Somewhere along the way,
Somewhere mixed into the passage of time,
The saints of the most high need to get back to that precious day.
They need to have an encounter with Jesus again.
They need to have a trek in which there is an eager pursuit.
They need to come to the king bearing our souls,
Opening their hearts,
Giving all they have without asking for anything back.
They need to have an encounter that causes a desire to praise and glorify God.
They need to have an encounter that causes them to be forever changed.
They need to have an encounter that causes them to leave differently than the way we came in.
Oh if one could just have an encounter that causes one to proclaim:
I have just been with Jesus…..!
I have just seen the King!
Where do you go from here?
Where does the world turn?
What will 2010 bring?
What will this next decade develop?
Where to from here?
The world will follow its shallow and empty hopes.
They will continue to follow the latest fads.
They will glue their eyes to the latest gossiping sagas.
And somewhere along the way, Jesus will be pushed back, and even left behind.
It was Mary and Joseph who had made their way to the temple in Jerusalem during the feast of the Passover.
They brought with them the 12 year old Jesus.
But somewhere during the hustle and bustle of the festivities,
Somewhere in the distractions of the events,
Mary and Joseph had taken their minds off of Jesus.
They packed up their belongings and began the trek back home.
The most important aspect of the journey was left behind.
He had been forgotten.
After a miraculous birthing of the Christ child,
After the encounter the magi had with the child,
After the 12 years of raising the savior of this world,
Mary and Joseph had left Jesus behind.
Where to from here Mary?
Where to from here Joseph?
You left the most important thing, the most important person behind.
It’s time to go back and get your Jesus!
It’s time to cling to Him like never before!
Just like that Christmas song,
Mary did you know? That your son is going to walk on water?
Did you know that He would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that He was going to give sight to the blind?
Did you know that by the raising of a hand the storm would cease?
Mary, you had to know that your encounter with God forever changed you.
You had to realize that you were walking amongst the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
You had to know that the miraculous birth would forever change the course of History.
I believe with all my heart that no man, no woman, no angel, nor demon
Can come into contact with Jesus and not be changed.
Whether you left him at the altar many years ago, or you have been holding him at bay,this is the moment for you to get back in touch!
Where to from here my friend?
You should already know the answer to that question.
This is not the time to be lax.
This is not the time to be indifferent
This is not the time to become confrontational.
It is time you let your front down that hides the very depth of your soul
And to let the Lord God Almighty go to work.
He wants to heal you.
He wants to lift you up.
He wants to save your soul from a burning hell.
He wants to teach you things you have never known.
Show you things, you have never seen.
Where to from here?
It is all up to you.
We do not serve a forceful God.
He stands at the door, but it is you that needs to open it.
He is ready to answer, but it is you that needs to make the call.
Where you going to go from here?
When you have an encounter with Jesus…you will be changed.
When you have an encounter with Jesus, you will be blessed.
Deuteronomy chapter 28 says:
That if you will listen obediently to the voice of God,
That God,
Your God,
Will place you on high,high above all the nations of the world.
All the blessings that will come upon you will be so much that they will spill over.
Your land will be blessed.
You will be blessed coming in.
And you will be blessed coming out.
Your enemies will be defeated.
When you have an encounter with Jesus, you will be changed.
When Jesus encountered the dead girl in Matthew, she arose from the dead
The sick that had encounters with Jesus, were healed.
The blind received their sight
The lepers were cleansed.
The crippled walked
All because of encounters with Jesus….
Many who had encounters with Him left with power.
In His name, they casted out demons.
In His name, they spoke in new tongues.
In His name, they laid their hands on the sick, and they were made whole.
Where to from here I ask of you?
As we start a new year, a new decade,
Do you just continue on the same content path?
Do you continue on in a backslidden state?
Do you continue on fighting against the calling on your life?
Do you continue on refusing to let it go and let God have His way?
Or do you quit asking yourself, where to from here? And start saying,
Why not here…why not now!
We live in a day and age in which time is short.
We live in a day and age in which Jesus is being pushed out of
Every workplace,
He’s being pushed out of every school house,
and He’s being pushed out of every home.
I say the time is nigh in which you make a decision.
You are either for Him, or you are against Him.
You are either living it, or you're not.
You are either going to be hot or you are going to be cold.
The magi left praising and Glorifying the Lord
They left differently than the way they came.
The challenge for you
Is to find that place, to find that secret place and not leave it until something changes.
Not leave it until you have gotten ahold of the horns of the altar and cried out unto the Lord.
I know where I want to go to from here dear Lord…
But I cannot do it without you!
Where to from here?
Something stirred in Abraham as he fell to the earth and begged for the Lord not to pass by his servant.
It was the Caananite woman who cried out “Have mercy on me dear Lord”
Bartimaeous and the other blind man found themselves crying out unto the Lord
It was the woman at the tomb who fell to the feet of Jesus, grabbed ahold of them and began to worship Him.
It was Paul who realized he had been in the wrong too long and fell down crying Who are you Lord!?
Where to from here?
When you encounter Jesus,
When you come into His throne,
Something has to give in your carnal nature.
Something inside of you should cause the very strength of a strong man to falter and bring him to his knees.
Something inside of you should stir saying, I do not want to leave until the blessing of the Lord is upon me.
It was Jacob in the Testament of Old who found himself face to face with an Angel of God.
It was Jacob who grabbed hold of that Angel and proclaimed, “I am not letting go.”
With tears of supplication, a deeply repented heart of his wrong doings, he pleaded for the promises of God.
All night long Jacob wrestled with this Angel.
Even with a touch from the Angel on his side, and the dislocation of his hip, Jacob continued on.
The pain of his body, did not deter him.
His faith grew more earnest as he persevered unto the break of day.
Even as the Angel argued with Jacob, Jacob responded “I will not let go unless you bless me!”
If you could just find a grasp onto your faith.
That you would get ahold of your promises
Get ahold of your blessings
And proclaim, I will not let go!
I will not give in,
I will not give up,
Until I am changed!
Until I am healed!
Until I am saved!
It was the Angel that spoke to Jacob during the wrestling match.
He reminded Jacob of his wrong doings.
He was tested.
He was tried.
And his faith was put on the line.
Whether you are a sinner or a saint.
Whether you are saved, or unsaved.
One thing is for sure…
There is an altar you can approach.
There is still a hope for you. You do not want to miss it.
Where to from here?
I have had an encounter with Jesus, now what?
That "what" is you grabbing ahold of him.
That "what" is you getting closer to Him than ever before.
That "what" is you wrestling with the angel until you are blessed.
That "what" is you not letting go even when your past is used as a test of your faith.
That "what" is you saying, I am tired of my old self.
Where to from here?
I think you know the answer. Straight ahead, straight up!
As you enter into this new year,this new decade, it is time to move forward and grasp that which awaits you. It is time to claim what is rightfully yours. It is time to go deeper in your relationship with God.
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