You think you have problems?

I just got done reading an article about Indian Christians in Kadhamal, Orissa, India, and the Christians there are suffering extreme persecution and hardships. You need to read this article:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7996827.stm  

Sometimes as Christians we think we have it tough, we sometimes grow afraid of what may happen if we were to try and share our faith with others. What I've been reminded of by this article is that I am a lazy, apathetic Christian who doesn't know what "tough" is. Rejection is not tough, having your home burned down, not being able to eat and not being able to sleep at night because of fear, that is tough. When the only comfort these people say they have is prayer, that is tough. The only way out of persecution these people have is to convert to Hinduism, and I think my life, my simple, fat American life style is tough. My life is not tough, my life is easy. Friends, we don't know what tough is!  

I have often heard it said by many Christians that we need revival in the Church, that we need to bring people to Christ. Look, people are not waiting for a new definition of Christianity, they are waiting for a new demonstration of Christianity! The Gospel, despite being almost 2 millennia old is still powerful, revival does not start with the church. Revival starts in our heart. Friends, our lives our sooooo easy, but there are people that are hurt and blind, they need a saviour. It's time to start living with reckless abandon for the Cross of Christ, our time here is so short and any problems we have are so insignificant compared to others who actually suffer for the Gospel of Christ.

Matthew 9:37-38 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

Absolute Surrender

Absolute Surrender. This topic has been on my mind recently, and it's something we all need to examine within ourselves. This idea of absolute surrender, an absolute surrendering of self-will and self-determination for God-will and God-determination. It's something we struggle with as Christians, when we become Christians, God wants every aspect of our lives, but we hold back from Him. I've been trying to work out this idea of surrender, whole surrender, to God. I want God to take my life, saying "Lord, it's your life now, please take it", but my words are cheap because it's a constant realization that even though I say I want to surrender fully to God, I just can't bring myself to do it. It's a tough realization that God wants every aspect of my life, even the ones I don't want to give to Him. Our minds are so finite, so small, that this idea that God wants to take all of us is something hard to grasp. 

We say take it all, a lot of the time we mean it, but God isn't going to take aspects of our lives that we're unwilling to give up. We all want the full blessings of God in our lives right? Of course we do! However, we cannot achieve this full blessing without absolute, reckless, unabridged surrender to the God of the Universe. If we are not willing to commit our families, our friends, our school, our future spouses all into God's hands, do we really deserve His blessings in area's that aren't His fully? No, we don't deserve His grace and blessings as it is, let alone in areas that are not surrendered fully to Him. I know there is all aspects that God needs to work out in our lives, to perfect surrender, but we have such little faith in the God of the universe and our God is too small. I am far from where I need to be in terms of this surrender, there is so much work to be done in my broken wreck of what I call life, but God is amazingly good and surrender is something He wants to accomplish through us. When we do commit to this surrender, we often worry about what God is going to do, there is fear, I know because I'm dealing with that fear and that timidity of surrender. But friends, let's take God out of His box, our God is so big, but we make Him out to be small. He can work out every aspect of your life, God has a plan for you, for me, but until we surrender we can't expect to have that plan realized in our lives. 

We are only going to screw things up in our own power, relationships with friends we're going to screw up in our own power, romantic relationships, we're going to screw up in our own power. The work of the ministry, we're going to screw up in our own power. We do so much without God in our lives, even the things we do for God, we do without Him sometimes. Friends, it's due time for you and I to surrender. God expects it, as it says in Romans 12:1 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service" (NKJV). Matthew Henry says that "We receive from the Lord every day the fruits of his mercy. Let us render ourselves; all we are, all we have, all we can do: and after all, what return is it for such very rich receivings? It is acceptable to God; a reasonable service". We have been given so much mercy, so much grace, the LEAST we can do is give God back all that is within in us. I'm not saying that's easy, but God can work it out in us. God can lead us to friendships that are going to help support you in surrender, God is can lead us to a spouse who is going to help your surrender, God can do because of His power infinite, we cannot do because our own power is weak. So let us present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. Meaning that we are ALL His, not most of us, not just little snippets but all of us and trust that He's going to do amazing and exciting things in lives that are surrendered with reckless abandon for God. 

No Kissing Allowed?

I figured I would want to entertain with a first blog right? So this blog is about romance , I've been conflicted as of late to what this elusive being is to us. In a culture that is completely bogged down sexual deviancy and where you turn on the television to find that women are half dressed, how does one stay pure. And a bigger question, what is purity, how do we define it? Well, I would argue that is freedom from this sexual perversion of our minds. Unfortunately, our culture is on a mission to tear down purity, I think the greatest example of this distortion our culture has provided can be found in a simple question: How many of us has had our first kiss? I'd argue that it is about 90% of us, how many of those people do you still know? Or even have romantic feelings for. Someday, most of us are going to get married, how amazing would it be if we saved that first kiss with our significant other for our actual wedding day? I would imagine it would be really special, if you've kissed don't get down on yourself because you can pull it off and it will still be amazing. But as a future spouse to someone else, ask yourself, would my future husband/wife prefer that I kissed 3 guys/girls or 12. We know the obvious answer I think. I'm going to tell you right now, every person you kissed before you met the person you were meant to be with is going to hurt your significant other, I can almost guarantee it. So here my message for the guys and gals:

Guys: I know we like to kiss girls, it's our nature. But think of it this way, would you appreciate it if your future wife was out kissing a bunch of other guys right now. No way! Those lips are supposed to be mine right?! Well that's exactly the attitude you should take before considering kissing what could potentially be another mans wife. We don't consider it adultery since we're in a relationship with the girl, it must be ok right? Wrong! I mean if getting caught looking lustfully at another woman before your married is a sin, then surely wouldn't kissing a girl you don't know to be your wife one? I don't know for sure, but I would think so. Christ wouldn't want His bride stained by some guy making out with her before He was allowed to take her right? In this way, we should also treat our sisters in Christ as magnificently pure women that we should be obligated to protect until God comes and blesses us with a wife that was also protected for our sake. Don't ruin it for their husbands by staining them!

Girls: I know most guys want to kiss you, because you're attractive. However, your lips are more precious than you could ever know and your purity is of the utmost importance. I liken it to this, imagine yourself in a beautiful white dress, looking heavenly and beautiful and standing under a bath tub faucet, every time you give a little piece of yourself sexually, through a kiss or whatever, you twist that faucet on and out comes mud in essence making you dirty, it's similarly applicable to guys, but we don't look nice in dresses so it doesn't work as well. Well imagine that dress as being your wedding dress and that when you present yourself to your husband what do you want to present to him? A beautiful woman in a marvelous white dress, or in a dress that's been tarnished or dirty. Daughters of God, grace be upon you because I know many of you have stumbled and God's grace will rain upon you, no doubt, and you will be beautiful and cherished by your husbands, but consider yourself as the most precious gift you can ever give to him because you are and as that gift that we are to each other, we should desire to keep ourselves pure for each other. 

I don't want anyone to feel condemned or bad because of anything I said, I'm hoping you all know that I say this with love. Guys and girls it's time to take God out of His box and start trusting Him with every aspect of our life, including our romantic life, and trust that He is big to bring us someone so amazingly perfect it will blow your mind. Have faith in Him! When has God EVER let you down? 

Grace To You

Verse: Ephesians 5:3 "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people

Hebrews 13:4 "Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and sexually immoral"

And I welcome all disagreements and questions :-)