Thoughts on surgery day

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV)

17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Today is the day that I had surgery following the suspicious nature of my post thyroid cancer follow up. None of us like to hear the word “cancer” when getting a report from the doctor. After hearing the possibility, I dove into God’s word for the comfort that I needed.  Here are some thoughts God gave me.

Cancer is so limited...it cannot cripple love. It cannot shatter hope. It cannot corrode faith. It cannot destroy peace. It cannot kill friendship. It cannot suppress memories. It cannot invade the soul. It cannot steal eternal life. It cannot conquer the spirit.

I love those words. They beautifully reflect the truth found in God's Word. Paul, facing physical challenges, could say with confidence, "We ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure" (2 Corinthians 4:7). The apostle, like you or someone you know, experienced suffering as an ever-present companion. Yet he chose to "fix his gaze on things that cannot be seen".

Paul's faith and confidence flowed from the treasure within him - God's transforming power - and the future that awaited him - eternity with Jesus. He knew that when this life was over he would be forever in God's presence, where there will be "no more death or sorrow or crying or pain" (Revelation 21:4).

When suffering comes, we can pour out our hearts to. He is with us in our pain. We can worship Him when He chooses to heal and when He chooses not to heal. But no limited thing like disease or suffering can ever separate us from His love. An ultimate healing, as Christian composer Wayne Watson puts it, lies just ahead. Today, fix your eyes on what can't be seen - what an awesome, breathtaking view!

Dear Lord, we thank You that You are in control of everything. Give us the strength to look ahead knowing that the view is awesome. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Getting Uncomfortable

Joshua 1:9 (ESV)

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Has anyone ever interrupted you in the middle of something really important? Maybe you’ve been watching the newest episode of your favorite TV show, it’s just getting good and then your mom yells for you to go take out the trash or your son or daughter want help with homework. Or you’re walking into the mall and a homeless man stops you to ask for money. It can be extremely frustrating to be inconvenienced by other people and their needs.

In Acts 10, Peter is in the middle of praying and is interrupted by two men who are coming to ask him to travel from Joppa to Caesarea. The Lord tells Peter to go with these men on a 30-mile journey to another city. If you ask me, Peter was extremely interrupted and inconvenienced. Not only was Peter interrupted, but also was asked to travel 30 miles to another city for no reason other than they asked him to. Peter did not show anger. He did not get frustrated with God or the men that approached him. Instead, Peter stood up, pushed his needs to the side and started his way to Caesarea.

At the end of Acts 10, Peter has finally made it to Caesarea. You can imagine that after walking 30 miles, he is tired and exhausted, but Peter continues to share the Gospel with all of the people that are present. Because Peter did what was uncomfortable, many came to know Jesus and start a relationship with him.

Being a Christian isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes being a Christian means pushing everything on your agenda to the side to talk to that friend that’s having a bad day. Peter didn’t know the great outcome of traveling to Caesarea. Neither do we always know the great that will come out of getting uncomfortable. A moment of being uncomfortable for you could lead to life change for someone else.

Is your comfort more important than helping someone else?

Dear Lord, we ask that You would give us more opportunities to go out of our way.  Help us to take those uncomfortable opportunities when they arise and shine for You. In The Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Inviting Them.

Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV)

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Because Jesus promised to build His Church and has given us the Holy Spirit to empower us, we can have confidence and boldness when inviting people to church!

Most people would not attend a party they aren’t invited to. This applies to church too. While we know that the doors are always open and everyone is invited, most of the time people won’t feel comfortable coming unless someone has invited them. This is where we play our part. People hear the gospel and encounter Jesus at church, and because of this, evangelism starts with me inviting them!

We interact with hundreds of different people every week. The person who serves you at a restaurant, your coworkers, your teachers, your classmates, and your family all need Jesus. Inviting the person wrapping our burrito can be an uncomfortable moment for all involved, but when we invite people to church we are giving them an opportunity to hear and respond to the message of Jesus because church is a place where Jesus is celebrated and the gospel is preached. You don’t need a masters in theology, you simply need to be bold enough to let them know they are invited!

Imagine whose salvation is on the other side of an invitation from you? You might be afraid of them turning you down, but that’s OK. You have nothing to lose and they have everything to gain – it’s worth the ask!

Take a few minutes and ask Jesus to give you the boldness to invite someone to church. Also ask Him to soften their hearts so that when they hear the message of Jesus they would be saved.

Dear Lord, give us the boldness to invite someone to church.  We pray that their heart will be softened and ready to hear about Your great love. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Looking Up

1 Corinthians 7:35 (ESV)

35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.

Our generation has great potential to reach and impact the world around us but this won’t happen as long as our eyes are looking down – fixed to our phones, our shoes, ourselves. If you want to make a difference in your family, at work, your school, your sports team and the world, then it starts with you looking up.

Technology is a great thing. It allows us to communicate with people all over the world at any moment. Imagine if we didn’t have the gift of technology and we had to communicate without it. Because we have such easy access to technology, it can quickly become a distraction. Instead of our eyes and hearts being focused on the people around us and on the opportunities, God gives us, we can become infatuated with our phones and spend most of our time scrolling timelines.

While Jesus faced many potential distractions (storms, hunger, critics, lack of sleep, betrayal, etc.), He didn’t allow these distractions to draw His attention away from what God had called Him to do or from the people God had called Him to minister to. With our eyes looking up, we will see more clearly the people God has brought into our lives who we can show the love of Jesus to. Only with our eyes looking up will we be able to bring change to the world as we recognize and respond to the people that God has put on our path.

Take the time to make a plan to prevent yourself being distracted by things that distract us from Jesus.

Jesus wants to use your life to impact and influence the world around you so start looking up!

Dear Lord, help us to look up to You. Help us to recognize the things that distract us from You. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Having 20 Seconds Of Courage

Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Telling a stranger about Jesus, your family about the Gauntlet, or your friends about Fuse can be an awkward experience for anyone. But evangelism starts with us just having 20 seconds of courage.

In the movie We Bought a Zoo, Benjamin Mee – played by Matt Damon – says to his son, “You know, sometimes all you need is 20 seconds of insane courage. Just literally 20 seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it.”

As you have probably have realized by now, your heart beats quicker and your palms get sweaty when an opportunity for evangelism presents itself. This is normal! So instead of looking for an escape route, embrace the awkwardness and go for it. On the other side of this conversation could be someone’s eternal salvation.

It’s not up to us to save people; Jesus saves, we get to tell people about it. The message of Jesus living a perfect life, dying on a cross, and rising again has been ‘entrusted to us’ by God (2 Corinthians 5:19-20).

Have 20 seconds of courage today and either take the opportunity of evangelism when it presents itself, or spend 20 seconds inviting someone to church. Trust the Bible that something great will happen because of your courage!

Evangelism isn’t for the experts. It starts with me, and it starts with you!

Dear Lord, give us that 20 seconds of courage today. Help us to rely on You and go for it when the opportunity is before us. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Loving My Family

2 Corinthians 5:20 (ESV)

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Want your family to love Jesus like you do? Then it starts with you loving your family.

Most people could name at least one person in their family who does not have a relationship with Jesus (if not more). Whether you are the first person in your family to believe in Jesus, or one among many, we each have an opportunity to show the love of Jesus to our family members, including our crazy Aunt Thelma.

As Christians, we are called “ambassadors for Christ”. This means that we are representatives of Jesus to our coworkers, school friends, bowling team or other sports teams, our Facebook followers, and to our families. We cannot excuse ourselves from the great task of showing our family the love and kindness that Jesus has shown us. Our moms, dads, brothers, sisters, and crazy aunts and uncles need Jesus just as much as we do. You have a great opportunity and responsibility to show your family not only how much Jesus loves them, but also how much Jesus has changed your life.

It won’t always be easy, but in every situation and conversation you can choose to be an ambassador for Christ and show your family the same love, grace, forgiveness, and mercy that He has shown you. While they may never cross paths with another Jesus follower, God has put YOU in their world not by accident, but on purpose, with a purpose and for a purpose.

Take up the challenge of representing Christ to your family today!

Dear Lord we pray for opportunities to show our family the love of Jesus today. Give us patience and compassion to continue loving them as Jesus does. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

It Starts With Me Setting Boundaries

Titus 2:11-14 (ESV)

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Let’s commit to set physical boundaries long before we get into a relationship. By knowing where you stand and what God has called you to do, you’ll be stronger and less likely to give into temptation when it comes.

It’s easy to decide you want to commit to purity. It’s way harder to follow through. Ambiguity is one of the leading causes of moral failure - you don’t make the right decision because you haven’t decided what the right decision is! A lot of us don’t take the time to process how we feel or what God has told us is within His will for us physically. It’s no wonder that when we’re in tempting situations, we cave.

Without knowing your own boundaries, it’s easy to blame the other person for ‘pushing your boundaries’ or ‘doing more than you would have wanted.’ Instead of making excuses, it’s time to own your purity. Decide how God wants you to live and be bold! Share your thoughts with your husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend early on and build accountability within your relationship, as well as with other trusted friends. Don’t wait until you’ve gone too far and feel guilty to determine your boundaries. Don’t wait until you hit the other person’s boundaries. Take initiative to protect both your purity and your significant other’s purity. Your relationship with Jesus and your ability to hear His voice will grow stronger when you realize that purity starts with you.

Pray that Jesus would give you a heart for purity and that you would truly desire to live your life His way and enjoy obeying Him.

Dear Lord, we pray that we would keep strong boundaries in our relationships. Help us to protect the ones that we love. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.