The Dog's Dilemma

So Josh, before reading on, take a couple of minutes just to watch this video. Check it out...it's pretty entertaining!

All done? Good.

"Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs" (Jonah 2:8)

"Those who cling..." - Those who hold on tight with both hands (as if to a lifeline)
"...to worthless idols..." - Mark Driscoll says that an idol is "a good thing that we turn into a god-thing which is a bad thing". Is there anything that you're clinging to which is substituting God's role in your life (as Saviour, Lord, Master, Friend, Lover, Creator...)? Remember, an idol isn't necessarily a sin - it could be something good and noble and great...but if it's squeezing God out of your life...get rid of it!!
"...forfeit the grace that could be theirs..." - Holding on to something with both hands, clinging to something means that you are not in a position to receive anything else (here, God's grace). Your hands are full! If you're holding mud in your fists, how can you eat a cookie? If you've got a bone in your mouth, how can you eat the ground beef? God's grace is always available, but if your grip is on your idols, how can you grasp God's grace? The answer - let go of the idol, and grasp hold of God's grace once again.

Jonah's response:
"But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD."


You can read the whole scripture chapter here.

So, make a decision. Sacrifice your worthless idol(s) so you can grasp hold of God's immense and free grace with both your hands. Vow to God and stick to it, with His power. Don't forget - these idols can't save you - only God's grace can. Salvation comes from the Lord.

"The circumstances are:

You have meat.

And he’s pretty doggone sure you’ll give it to him…if he’ll just let go of the bone.

But you have to understand:

The meat is just a promise; and it may not be much, but he has the bone.

That’s the dog’s dilemma. You see his problem don’t you?"

Don't you?

56 tattoos on her face...

So Josh,
Perhaps this following article puts some of the things that we do that annoy Mum and Dad into perspective! The words I'm writing are to everyone who reads this blog (just in case you're wondering...)! Oh, and another disclaimer - I actually quite like her tattoos!

Star-faced teen admits lied about tattoo

The Belgian teenager who made headlines across the globe after claiming a tattoo artist had drawn 56 stars on her face, rather than the three she asked for, has admitted she lied.

Kimberley Vlaeminck from the city of Kortrijk, 90 km (56 miles) northwest of Brussels said she fell asleep during the procedure, and woke up in pain when her nose was being tattooed.

But the 18-year-old was caught off camera on Dutch television when she said she quite liked the tattoo, but lied about asking for all 56 stars when she saw her father's furious reaction.

Tattoo artist Rouslain Toumaniantz said Vlaeminck initially liked her new look, and that she got what she asked for.

(Reporting by Antonia van de Velde, editing by Paul Casciato)

I'm sure you know that feeling...or at least I do - when you're caught red-handed, right in the middle of doing something you know you shouldn't be doing. You try to lie or excuse your way out of it, but you know the guilt is written all over your face (quite literally in Kimberley's case! Hahaha!)

I've done that before - I remember the shame, the total shame of being caught. But what about those sins / mistakes / screw-ups that aren't written all over our faces? The failings that are only known to us...and God. The skeletons in our closets? Is there any hope?

Let's see what God says, through His word, the Bible

Step 1

⁸ If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. ⁹ But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. ¹⁰ If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. (1 John 1:8-9)

OK, so we've all screwed up; we've all sinned; we've all hurt God and chosen other things / people over Him; we've all rejected Him. If you're honest, that's what you'll say. I know it's true about me - Dan Wallis, Assistant Pastor - BIG SINNER, expert repenter! So we've all sinner: that's the bad news. But without the bad news, how can there be good news? Let's keep reading...

Step 2

¹ My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate (someone who's on your side) who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. ² He himself is the sacrifice that atones (pays for in full) for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world. (1 John 2:1-2)

So, the good news is that, even in our guilt, we can come to Christ and ask Him to forgive us. He then speaks to God on our behalf and clears our name and makes us clean once again. (Yeah!)

But that's not where it ends. Let's keep reading:

Step 3

³ And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. ⁴ If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. ⁵ But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. ⁶ Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. (1 John 2:3-6)

God desires us to be holy, to follow Him, to obey Him. Saying "sorry" just to make ourselves feel better just doesn't cut it - God wants genuine screw-ups to follow Him, who feel genuinely sorry about the way they're living...enough to change their ways (in His power). That's what repentance means - turning round 180 degrees and walking in the opposite direction.

But what if you make that big decision to follow God and then the next day, the same sin grabs hold of your and pulls you down into the pit of shame, self-pity and guilt? (Yup, I've been there more times than I like to admit). Let's read on, one more time...

Step 4

Go back to step 1 and repeat the process. As we keep bringing our brokenness before God, He keeps on forgiving us, keeps showering us with grace and mercy and keeps cleansing us. I know life is WAY more complicated than this, and I HATE boiling mine and your complicated life down to steps, but I created the steps so that you can see clearly the hope that God has given us all (that includes YOU).

Kimberley can't realistically get rid of the star tattoos on her face. The whole world knows she had her face tattooed. More importantly, her dad knows too. And, perhaps all that she needs right now is for her dad to do to her what we all need our Heavenly Dad to do to us - to forgive her, and to tell her he loves her - tattoos or no tattoos.

"...he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6)

Going deeper

What are the 'tattoos' on your face? What are the tattoos on your heart? How have you broken the heart of your Heavenly Dad? Are you thinking, man, He'll never accept me -I'm too messed up, too insincere, too hypocritical...

• Take some time and just tell God exactly what's on your mind, weighing you down (don't try to sugarcoat it - just be honest)
• Ask for His forgiveness (take some time to wait in silence)
• Thank Him for His grace (giving us what we don't deserve - His love, strength and forgiveness) and His mercy (not giving us what we do deserve - punishment).
• Worship Him as you watch this video called "Thank you for saving me"
  
• Ask Him for strength to live in a way that honours Him.
  

Thank You For Saving Me

Thank you for saving me, what can I say?
You are my everything, I will sing your praise.
You shed your blood for me, what can I say?
You took my sin and shame,
a sinner called by name.

Great is the Lord,
Great is the Lord,
For we know your truth has set us free,
You've set your hope in me.

Mercy and grace are mine, forgiven is my sin,
Jesus my only hope, the Saviour of the world.
"Great is the Lord" we cry,
God let your kingdom come,
Your word has let me see,
thank you for saving me!

Written by Martin Smith ©1994 Curious? Music UK


If you've never given your life to Christ, for Him to forgive, cleanse and own, click here to read "Steps to Peace with God". If you want to chat, send me an email (its.dan.wallis@gmail.com). I'd love to hear from you. Don't forget to take a minute to comment on the blog!!!

IS GOD DEAD?

So Josh,
How's it going mate? What's God speaking into your life?
It's pretty exciting that I'll be coming over to see you at the end of this month! Don't forget our date - Harry Potter. I actually picked something small up for you that I'll be bringing over - it's not much, but I think you'll like it. Anyways, today's blog...

I stole this from a site called "The Rebelution". These aren't my words, but why reinvent the wheel if something profound has already be said in such a great way? I give all credit to Alex and Brett Harris (pick up their book "Do Hard Things"Still, the following message is just part of the original blog, so make sure you go here to read the rest of the blog.

“It seems that God must have died!”

On one occasion when he was greatly discouraged, Martin Luther, the sixteenth century reformer, was forcefully reminded of this by his wife, Katharine. Seeing him unresponsive to any word of encouragement, one morning she appeared dressed in black mourning clothes. No word of explanation was forthcoming, and so Luther, who had heard nothing of a bereavement, asked her: “Katharine, why are you dressed in mourning black?” Someone has died,” she replied. “Died?” said Luther, “I have not heard of anyone dying. Whoever can have died?” “It seems,” his wife replied, “that God must have died!”

Luther took the point. He, a believer, a Christian, with such a great God to call his Father, was living like a practical atheist. But Luther knew that God was not dead. God was living, reigning, active in the events of history and in Luther’s own life. How foolish he had been! Discouragement was immediately banished.

Knowledge and love of God create an environment in which discouragement and a sense of depression or spiritual desertion find difficulty breathing. That, ultimately is what the psalmists discovered over and over again, and tell us in different contexts and a variety of ways. Let us sit at their feet and learn to see what they saw:

“Hear my voice when I call, O Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, ‘Seek his face!’ Your face, Lord, I will seek” (Psa. 27:7-8).

I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord” (Psa. 27:13-14).

GOT FREEDOM?

So Josh,

I just read that you've started reading this blog. Cool - I love it that we can connect in this way. Today's note to you is ripped off from an email I receive every week called "Soul Fuel" (you can check out their archives here). Often I deal with guilt and shame because of sins that still trip me up and hold me in bondage, when I know I should know better (I mean, come on, I'm a Pastor - shouldn't I have it all together by now? Yeah right!). The email is virtually unchanged and you can read it below. I'm passing it on, because it impacted me in such a huge way. God knew I needed to hear it.

Love you, mate,

Dan

Got Freedom?

You're a slave. Did you know that? No, not in a physical sense - although you may feel like that at work or even at home sometimes. Your slavery is of a spiritual/emotional/mental nature. The chains that bind you are not made of iron, but they are stronger than anything ever forged by human hands.

Don't believe me? OK - let me ask you a few questions:

• How many times a week do you say something, think something, or do something that makes you ask, "Why am I such an IDIOT???"
• How many bad habits do you have lurking in the cellar of your soul that leap out and ambush your life at just the wrong times?
• How many of you have a deep and abiding longing to be set free so you can live the liberated life you always dreamed of?

Yep - me too. And not only me, but probably everyone who has, is, or will walk on planet Earth.

You know who else was a slave? The Apostle Paul. That's right - the guy who wrote a huge chunk of the Bible and is one of the primary reasons you have heard the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. How do I know he was a slave? He told us! Check this out:

The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can't. I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. I have discovered this principle of life - that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God's law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? (Romans 7:14; 16; 21-24, NLT).

Last question: how many of you can totally relate to what Paul is saying? I know I can. But I can also tell you that freedom is possible - the choice is completely yours...but you have to know that freedom doesn't come without a fight.

Just like the amazing freedom we have in America, right? To refresh our memories, King George and the Brits didn't just read the Declaration of Independence and say 'cool beans mates, have fun with the whole new nation thing. Keep in touch - cheerio!"

Ah, no. Thousands of volunteer American patriots spilled their blood and sacrificed their lives at places like Bunker Hill, Lexington and Concord, Saratoga and Yorktown so their children, grand children, great grandchildren, and all future generations (i.e. you and me) would experience freedom from the tyrannical rule of the English.

That's why we celebrate the 4th of July - remember?

Listen, I know you want to be free. Truth be told, you despise your slavery to sin, and God despises it as well. That's why 2,000 years ago, at another battlefield called Calvary, Jesus Christ spilled His blood and defeated the power of sin.

That's why He offers freedom to anyone willing to trust in Him for salvation. The moment you trust Christ, you are set free from your slavery to sin. But you must choose to let Jesus defeat your sinful nature every minute of every day.

That's why the Apostle Paul wraps up his slavery lament with this glorious answer:

Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death (Romans 7:25; 8:1-2, NLT).

Thank God indeed! The words are my declaration of independence every single day. I'm a slave, but I am also free when I choose to let the Holy Spirit unlock the chains of my old self and enable me to live a life of freedom I never thought possible.

I've come to realize that I'm always a slave to something, but through Christ I am free to be a slave to Him - which is the only place true freedom is found. Weird, huh?

So how about you?

Ask Jesus to set you free from your slavery and your life will light up this dark world like a major league fireworks display against the dead of night.

And...let these words be your battle cry:

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1).

Happy Independence Day!

FLASHPOINT

Remember, deep down people know that they are trapped. That's why they hide with sarcasm and try to escape that feeling with addictions and destructive lifestyles. Ask God to open a door to a spiritual conversation about freedom with your friends. Use the 4th of July holiday to talk about the freedom you've found by trusting Christ and springboard from that into presenting the gospel.

ACCELERANT

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free..." (Luke 4:18).

For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17).

"And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32).