Jesus

Change the Way You Think

July 31, 2017 0Comment

Sounds easy, huh?

In Mark 1:15 (God’s Word Translation), Jesus said, “The time has come, and the kingdom of God is near. Change the way you think and act, and believe the Good News”. I think every Christ follower would like to change his/her behavior. Maybe we would like change our behavior in a general way to be more Christ-like. Or maybe we would like to change our behavior in specific areas, such as anger or forgiveness, etc. Regardless of the behavior we want to change, Jesus tells us that we have to change the way we think before we can change the way we act.

It’s simple and straightforward. However, it can be extremely difficult. For example, I had a bad experience at work. Who hasn’t, right? Nevertheless, this experience was a “Judas” experience. It was particularly nasty, and mistakes were made by everyone. I was mature enough to forgive everyone fairly quickly. However, I still think about the experience occasionally. Then I make myself mad all over again. Now, some people would say, if I really forgave them, would the experience still make me mad? My answer is yes. I don’t think it’s a forgiveness issue. I forgave them once, and every time I get mad about it, I forgive them again. I think the problem lies in the fact that I haven’t changed the way I think about the experience. Basically, I need to re-program my thoughts.

Luckily, there are several ways to spin a bad experience. Firstly, it’s not like I’m the first person to be falsely accused of something. Jesus was falsely accused everywhere he went. Also, I know according to Paul, all things work out for the good of those called to His purpose (Romans 8:28). And if I’m completely honest with myself, I can already see where that bad experience is working out for my good. Furthermore, I know that the Lord will fight for me; all I have to do is be still (Exodus 14:14). So, if I know all of these things, why do I still get mad when I think about the experience? Because I choose to think about the experience instead of choosing to think about all the things I “know”. The key is to be self-aware and to catch myself when I feel those old feelings come up. Then I can remind myself about all the things I know. If I don’t catch myself, then my thoughts will cascade into negativity….again.

Charles Swindoll said that life is 10% of what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. How I react is entirely dependent on how I think.

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Grace

February 16, 2017 0Comment

One of my most vivid memories of college is not so pleasant. It was the first semester of my freshman year, and I must say….. I was enjoying it. I had an Economics 130 at 0915AM on Monday, Wednesday, and every other Friday. Without my mom around to wake me up, my attendance for the 0915AM class was less than stellar. Nevertheless, by mid-semester, I had an “A” in the class. Then I missed a class “to catch up on my sleep”. Apparently, during that class, the Professor scheduled a test, and I eventually missed the test. I could have accepted my fate, took a zero for the test, and probably still made a “C” in the class. However, I decided to lie, and I lied in a very dishonorable, but college-like way. I told the Professor that I missed the test because my Grandmother died. The Professor became suspicious, and confronted me about my story. I’m not a very good liar, and I told her the truth.

She kicked me out of the class and gave me an “F” for the semester. The “F” was bad enough. I had never gotten an “F” in my life, but I was also on a scholarship, and I needed to maintain a 3.0 grade point average to keep the scholarship. That “F” brought my grade point average down to 2.92.

I needed to call my Dad, but it was the absolute last thing I wanted to do. But I worked up some courage, grabbed a handful of quarters, and found a pay phone (yes, it was that long ago). I called Dad, and he could tell that I was upset. Actually, in my 18 year old head, the world was about to end. I’ll never forget what he told me. He said, “I guess she’s (my Professor) never made a mistake”. With that little bit of reassurance, I knew everything would be okay.

I still have an “F” on my official college transcript to this day, but I didn’t lose my scholarship. I also learned that little white lies are not so white to some people. And while I can’t say that I’ve always been a model for honesty, since that day, I’ve done much better.

However, for me, the real lesson is not about honesty. It was about my Dad showing love and compassion, when I obviously didn’t deserve it. I guess the real lesson was about grace. My earthly father read a situation and responded with love and compassion. How much more love and compassion will our heavenly Father respond with, if we take our problems to Him?

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Redemption

February 3, 2017 0Comment

Why do we like redemption stories? Who can really say that he/she doesn’t like a good redemption or comeback story? The first one that comes to my mind is Robert Downey Jr. He had success early in his career. Then he had drug issues, criminal charges, and rehab stints. He pretty much fell off the map for a few years. Then he came back. From 2012 to 2015 he was the highest paid actor in Hollywood.

Why do we get inspired by redemption stories? I think it’s because everyone needs redeemed through Jesus. God has placed the need for redemption in our souls. When we hear a good redemption story, like Robert Downey Jr., it stirs our need for redemption. If fact, the whole Bible could be described as one, big redemption story. For instance, Adam and Eve had the perfect existence. Then sin entered the world, and things were not so perfect anyone. There were hard times: Cain killed Abel, the Flood, slavery in Egypt, years of warfare, captivity in Babylon, and Roman occupation. Then Jesus came and redeemed not only the Jews, but the whole world. In essence, God’s redemption of us through Jesus is the greatest redemption story ever.

I’m ending all my posts with an invitation to accept Jesus. If you would like to accept Jesus, simply pray the following prayer or one like it: “Dear Lord, I’m a sinner. I acknowledge that You sent Your son, Jesus, to die for my sins. I humbly accept Your son, Jesus, and I now further acknowledge that I am forgiven of my past sins, my present sins, and my future sins.” If you prayed that simple prayer, you are saved. Now, you need to follow Jesus. Start reading your Bible. I would suggest starting with Matthew, reading all of the New Testament, then reading the Old Testament. Also, find a good church. Christianity was never meant to be done alone. You need to be in community with other believers.

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Jesus-shaped Hole

January 19, 2017 0Comment

I’m not the first person to use to the term Jesus-shaped Hole. I wish that I were the first person to use it because it’s an awesome analogy. I truly believe that every person is born with a Jesus-shaped hole in his/her heart. Jesus 101 tells us that we have been separated from God via sin. Whether we realize it or not, we seek re-connection with God, and Jesus is the means by which the reconnection happens. Therefore, there is a longing or a desire to reconnect that could be described as a hole is our hearts. Since Jesus is the route of re-connection with God, the hole is Jesus-shaped. And the only thing that fits a Jesus-shaped hole is Jesus.

I think that many of us realize that we have holes in our hearts. The most philosophical questions of human existence are “Who am I?” and “What is my purpose?” So, we generally know that we are missing something from our lives. However, we don’t always know that Jesus is missing. We try to fill the hole with money, sex, companionship, drugs, alcohol, or accomplishments. Nevertheless, none of the preceding things are Jesus-shaped, and they can never permanently fill the holes in our hearts.

I’m ending all my posts with an invitation to accept Jesus. If you would like to accept Jesus, simply pray the following prayer or one like it: “Dear Lord, I’m a sinner. I acknowledge that You sent Your son, Jesus, to die for my sins. I humbly accept Your son, Jesus, and I now further acknowledge that I am forgiven of my past sins, my present sins, and my future sins.” If you prayed that simple prayer, you are saved. Now, you need to follow Jesus. Start reading your Bible. I would suggest starting with Matthew, reading all of the New Testament, then reading the Old Testament. Also, find a good church. Christianity was never meant to be done alone. You need to be in community with other believers.

Change the Way You Think

Grace

Redemption

Jesus-shaped Hole

You Missed

Intersection of this Life and the next Life

Child-Like

Inverse Hypocrisy

Spread it out before the Lord