Heart Tracks - Toxins

There was a time when some of you were just like that, but now your sins have been washed away and you have been set apart for God. You have been made right with God because of what the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God have done for you. I Corinthians 6:11

Our culture has become very health conscious these days, especially as concerns what are known as "toxins." I'm no biological expert, but my understanding is that these are man-made additives in foods that invade our bodies, and our bodies have no idea as to how to deal with them. Most often, they remain in us, acting as poisons to our system. Many Doctors recommend that we abstain from many, even all foods for a time in order to cleanse ourselves of these toxins. Large numbers of people respond to this guidance and seek to do just that as concerns their physical welfare. The question that comes to my mind is, what do we do concerning all the spiritual "toxins" that have invaded our hearts, minds, and being to this point, and only seek to increase in the future? We live in a toxic, fallen world, and it's poisons have invaded our lives. In our flesh, we have no idea of how to deal with them. How may we be "cleansed" of them? There is an answer; at the cross, at the feet of Christ. It's there we find the cleansing, the healing. It's there too, that we find the heart of the Father.

I recently heard singer Russ Taff speak of his journey to wholeness and healing in Christ. Raised by an abusive preacher/father, and equally abusive mother, Taff suffered terrible wounding to his mind and spirit. His father, because of his addiction, was forced to leave church after church. This brought rejection and deep shame to Taff. Coupled with great feelings of inadequacy, and the sense of not being "good enough," he sought fulfillment through his music. Eventually he found success and wide recognition because of it. Yet through it all, the shame and the feelings of inadequacy remained. He sought relief in alcohol, eventually becoming, as was his father, an alcoholic. All the while, he continued his singing to large crowds of believers, winning award after award. He said that he "hid" his pain and woundedness in that fame. He ran from a God he loved, but felt did not, could not love him. He hid in a lie, and lies are where we go to hide from His Truth.

Taff said he sought healing through counseling and therapy, and though it helped, it didn't really heal. The deep wounding remained. That all changed when he was asked to sing for an elderly preacher dying of cancer. As he entered the room with his guitar, he was paralyzed by what he saw. He said the man looked exactly like his abusive father. He recovered enough to sing several of the man's favorites, and this godly man then asked him to pray for him. Taff said he mumbled some kind of prayer, and then asked this dying preacher to pray for him. The man stood up, embraced him, and began to pray. As he did so, Taff broke down in tears, falling to his knees. As the man prayed, he stroked Taff's hair, and in response, Taff wept all the more. He did so because in the man's embrace, he felt, at long last, the unconditional healing love of the Father. He sensed the voice of the Father telling him to just let Him love him, and for him to receive the fullness of His love, and the healing and wholeness that came with it. As he was on his knees before that dying preacher, he knew he was also on his knees before His God, and His God received him, and healed him. On his knees, at the cross of Christ, in his brokenness, he found his healing. His wholeness. His unconditional love and acceptance.

Toxins. They've invaded all of us. Many, far too many, are living toxic lives. Lives that are poisoning us by inches. No matter how far back the invasion of those toxins have gone, there is healing to be found, received, and lived in. It's found at the cross, in the embrace of the King. In the washing of His blood. There, the poisons are cleansed. There, His great love is discovered. There it is that all of us must come. There is no toxin, no poison, that He cannot heal and cleanse. Come to His cross, kneel at His feet, enter into His embrace. Receive His healing. Be healed. Be washed. Be cleansed....right now.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - The Terrorist

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and [a]have it abundantly. John 10:10

Writer Chris Tiegreen tells of an encounter he once had with a woman in his fellowship. As he looked at her, he heard these words in the Spirit, "We don't negotiate with terrorists." He was unsure what it meant, but he believed they were words meant for her, and he then shared them with her. She was taken aback, and told him that she felt she was being led down a new, deeper road in her life and ministry, but was being pressed by feelings of fear, worry, and inadequacy. She received Tiegreen's words as being for and from her Lord. Satan, who is a terrorist of the highest degree, was seeking to destroy all that He had for her. The Father was saying that she should make no concessions at all to that terrorist concerning what it was He called her to. That she would make no concessions at all to the enemy of her soul on any aspect of her life in Him. The called out people of God make no compromises to the thief who has come to destroy lives, marriages, families, ministries and churches and nations. We don't negotiate with the terrorist. Ever.

I think on many levels, the church has lost sight of the very real demonic power that is present and at work in our world. I realize that segments of the church has so emphasized his activity and given him far more power than he could ever possess, but he is real, he is powerful, and he is very much at work. He seeks to terrorize, paralyze, and marginalize the people of God. He does this through fear, seduction, distraction, and deception, along with many other means. His goal, if he cannot get us to reject His call and leading in our lives, is to get us to compromise it. Stealing from us the purpose for which He created us for and called us to is his agenda. Destroying our dreams in Him. Killing our hope, our faith. It's what he does, and no earthly terrorist is as accomplished as he is. He's a terrorist, and he may well be terrorizing you right now.

Here is what you and I must know. This world does not belong to the terrorist. This is the Father's world. Scripture says that in Christ, all things hold together. He is Sovereign. He reigns. The devil may be powerful, but the Father is Almighty. The terrorist will always seek to make us lose sight of Him. When that happens, we can only expect to be at his mercy and all the tactics he employs against us. We have to understand that spiritual warfare is real. In the wonderful movie trilogy The Lord of the Rings, the King of Rohan, his land under attack, says that he will not risk open warfare against the evil wizard Saruman and his orc hordes. Aragorn, the Christ figure in the story tells him, "Open warfare is upon you whether you would risk it or not." Spiritual warfare is upon us, whether we would believe it, see it, risk it or not. In warfare, we're told to "know your enemy." We must know the ways of the thief, but even more, we must know the way and ways of the King. Evil has been unleashed in this world through Satan, but that evil has been completely conquered by the King on His cross and through His resurrection. The enemy will seek to steal, kill and destroy all He has given and called us to. We must know, fully know, that all those plans against us cannot prosper because He has overcome every plan with abundant life. Life that is freely given to us.

Where does the terrorist reign against you right now? Where is his plan succeeding? Look to the King. His plan for you, for us, is Life. His Life. Abundant. Whole. Victorious. Receive it. Enter into it. Now.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - It's What He Does

"Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy." Psalm 126:5....."No matter how hopeless your situation, how difficult your struggles, how distant your exile - or, to be more specific, no matter how painful your divorce, your bankruptcy, your unemployment, or your disease - in one way or another, God will bring you back. How do we know? Because that's what God does." Chris Tiegreen

Pain, suffering, loss, death, in all forms, is a part of everyone's life. It's a reality that can't be escaped, so it's imperative that we know a greater Reality in the midst of it all. Plans collapse, desires go unfulfilled, dreams die. The consequences can be, are, crushing. Our world is shaken, and sometimes those shakings can seem to be unending. Like Job, bad news can be followed by even worse news. All visible support has crumbled. All visible hope has disappeared. Yet Scripture calls us to be "prisoners of hope." That's not possible unless we're living in the greater Reality. The reality that He is Lord, that He is sovereign, that He is intimately aware and involved. That where we are is not where we'll stay. That He does not leave His own to die in the wilderness. One way or another, He will bring us back. The prisoner of hope knows this. Because of this knowledge, the prisoner of hope can press on.

In that awful first year of the loss of my marriage and ministry, "bad to worse" was the theme of my life. I was beset by trial after trial. I didn't know where I would go, or what I would do. One sub-zero night on a church campground, I sat, desolate, in a small cottage and read from His Word. Paul wrote of how, on his first defense before Caesar, none stood with him, but that in the midst of that reality, a greater Reality took place; Christ stood with him. As I read that, though alone, I knew that He too stood with me. Words cannot describe the feeling of being lifted above all of it, and hope gone was now hope restored. More trials would follow, more of the reality of a life in a fallen world would come, but every time, the great Reality that is Christ would arrive. New wine. New life. New hope would be given. One way or another, He always brought me back. He still brings me back.

There is a deeper, greater truth to be found in this great Reality that is the Three in One God; His workings and ways are not all about here and now. He works to bring upon and through us, a "greater weight of glory." This world is passing, though so many try to grasp what can't be kept. We were created for eternity, and what we walk through here is part of the equipping. I can't say that every hope, every desire, every dream in this life will come to pass. I can't promise that every loss of this life will be restored. What I do know is that none of those lost dreams, hopes, and desires can keep us from being brought back to what He means to accomplish in our lives in this present "reality," and the greater reality, eternity, that we've been created for. Nothing, for the believer, the prisoner of hope, is final. Not even death. As a pastor once told me in the midst of my sorrow, "His best wine is always yet to come." The prisoner of hope is always looking ahead to the reality of His best wine. The enemy of our soul may seek to convince us that wine has been lost forever. The Father brings us back to it. How do we know? It's what He does.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Looking Unto Jesus

"Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith." Hebrews 12:2...."Darkness veils Jesus' lovely face, but if we rest on His unchanging grace, looking His way in the fog, that is it." Vance Havner....."He does not say 'see,' He says only 'Look.' " Alexander Whyte

I love Acts 27, which details the terrible storm that Paul and his fellow workers, along with over 250 others were caught in. The crew of the ship expected to die, as did the officer and soldiers detailed to guard Paul and the other prisoners. They, and likely everyone else on board only saw the life threatening storm. Paul saw his life saving and sustaining God. In the midst of that storm, the Father sent His angel to tell Paul that he, and all his fellow passengers were going to live, though the ship itself would sink. He related this to the terrified rest of those on board, saying, "So take courage, for I believe God. It will be just as He said." When everyone else was looking only at the threat, Paul looked off of it and unto Him. This is the key in all threats, indeed, in all of life. We need to look off of those things that threaten us, lure us, distract us, capture us, and look unto Him.

In the days in which we're living, those words of Paul's need to become ours. In the midst of all that can be against us, we must, as he exhorted;Take courage in Him. Believe what He says. Trust that what He says is what will be. Storms get all the attention. The thick clouds that accompany them obscure our natural sight. As one person put it, we may not be able to see just where He is, but we can look towards where we know Him to be. Beside us. Around us. Within us. And the beauty of this is that when we look towards Him, He most often will reveal Himself to our spiritual sight.

Facing you and me each day are questions about the unknown. Fears about what is known. Dangers. Problems. Needs. All of them can fill our line of vision. Their power over us can seem to be absolute. We can let that be so, or, by His grace, the One who is the Author and Finisher of our faith, we can choose to "look off" of these things and look unto Him. It has been said that in the midst of our "realities," we need to look at the greatest reality; Jesus Christ. No matter how real the danger, He is more real, more able, in the midst of it. Jesus said that we would have tribulation. That's a reality. He also said to take courage, that He has overcome the world and all the tribulation it might contain. He has. He does. He is doing so now. That's the greatest reality. Is it ours? Is it yours?

I'm entering into a time of life when all my natural abilities are failing. The needs, the unknown, the challenges that are before me in that are real. But they are not as real to me as He is. I choose to look off of them and unto Him. He will be my "line of vision." In whatever lies before you, will He be yours?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Finished!

28 After this, Jesus, [a]knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” 29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. John 19:28-30

I think we have missed most of what Jesus is saying in this passage of Scripture. He speaks what may be the three most powerful words of His earthly ministry; "It is finished!" I think we read those words from the perspective of two thousand years in the future and limit His atoning work to the offer of forgiveness for our sin, and by way of receiving that offer, entry into a future in heaven with Him. To do so cheapens the depths of the work, the depth of the riches that Paul says that we have in Jesus Christ. The atoning work of Christ on the cross for our sin has delivered us not only from the penalty of sin, but it's power over us as well. As Martin Smith wrote in this lyric, "This is the message of the cross; that we can be free." It's for freedom He set us free! How can we miss that? Why do we miss that? Why do we, who call Him Lord and Savior, live as though His work is not finished at all, and ours goes on? Why do we keep striving to reach a level of life that He has already freely given us. Why do we keep trying to "get" what is already ours through faith in Christ? Why do we keep trying to reach a place that we're already at in Him?

Sheila Walsh recounts how she spent a great part of her life in Him trying to achieve a place of acceptance by Him. To be the best singer, the best 700 club co-host, the best wife, the best woman. The end result of all the striving and the intense pressure she placed upon herself in it, was a complete breakdown, and her checking herself into a mental health facility. It was there, on the floor of her room, broken and spiritually bleeding, that she heard a voice saying to her, "Sheila, the Savior knows where you are." On the floor of that room, she at last came to know Him as He really is, and what He really desired from her. Herself. Not her performance, not her checking off of all the spiritual behavior boxes, and certainly not all of her activity. He came for her, died for her, rose for her, and now lived in her. And He invited her into the resurrection life He offered her through His cross. When He cried out those three words, "It is finished," He called a finish to all our striving to live up to a standard, to reach a spiritual goal, to try and win His favor and approval. He called a finish to trying gain entry into His heart and life. He announced a beginning of entering into the life He created her for. A life of victory, wholeness, joy, peace, and wonder. The outward pressures were still there, but the inner, self-made ones were surrendered to Him. He had finished the need for our struggles on the cross. Our part is to be finished with them as well, and enter into, receive, what He now invites us to. To receive healing, wholeness, forgiveness, all the depths of His riches.

We spend so much time asking Him for that which He's already given us. We ask for joy, peace, strength, hope. The list is endless. He has told us plainly, "Freely I have given, freely now receive." So why don't we? Why do come to Him as beggars rather than sons and daughters? As orphans rather than heirs? Before the cross, all of the human race was held in the grip of sin, captive to the whims of the enemy. On the cross, and in His resurrection, Christ finished all of that. Freely He gives us the offer of a forgiven, victorious, overcoming life. Will we receive that life? It is finished. That has been settled at Calvary. Has it been settled in you?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - It Changes Everything

Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken.And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. Acts 4:29-31....."If the resurrection is true, that changes everything." Nik Ripken

In his book, The Insanity Of Obedience, Nik Ripken recounts how, in his interviews of believers who had experienced intense and brutal persecution in places like Russia and China, they were almost casual in their telling of the many miraculous interventions of God on their behalf in the midst of their suffering. He was astounded by this, writing, "In their understanding, God's intervention was not really miraculous. God was simply acting the way God acts! His activity was expected, natural, and completely in character." As a means of further illustration, an elderly Russian pastor took him to an east facing window and asked him how many times he had awakened his sons to join him to watch the sun coming up. He replied that he'd never done that, that his sons would think him crazy if he did. The pastor replied that of course he wouldn't do that, that such a happening was normal and to be expected. He then said that this is what persecution, and the Father's activity in its midst was to them. Normal and expected. They did not take His supernatural interventions for granted. They just knew that it was the way in which He would act. It was perfectly in line with the character of the God in whom they believed. They believed in and upon a risen Christ. For them, the resurrection had changed everything, and their lives reflected that. We say that we believe the same. Has it changed everything for us?

Beth Moore said something along the lines of, "We believe little so we see little, and we see little because we believe little." A simple statement but cuttingly true of much of the western church. Books containing all the promises of God are abundant. They might be found on your shelf right now, and that is very likely where they remain. On the shelf, but not in the heart. Vance Havner said that "Faith begins by letting go and stretching out on the promises." How many of us have the faith life, the trust in Him, to do that? It should be "normal and expected" in the faith lives of His people that God would be Himself with us. That He would show forth His wonder, power, and authority in the affairs, both great and small, of His people. We have sung the chorus, "God will make a way," times beyond number, but in our living, it is we who seek to make our own way. We can't trust the Father to be the Father, but it certainly seems He can trust us to be....us.

The first century church was a collection of believers who lived in awe of their God. Chris Tiegreen says that is the challenge for every believer. "Maintaining the awe and overflowing with joy and praise....Full fountains always overflow." Living in such a state is to live in the expectation that God will be God. We can expect Him to be Himself. We can expect His intervention in our seeming impossibilities and in infinite ways, all of them "miraculous." We simply expect Him to be who and what He says He is. The Russian believers spoken of above didn't believe He could be anything else of less. So why do we? For them, the resurrection, and their faith in their risen Lord had changed everything. What has our professed faith in that same Lord done in us? In our expectations of Him, and in the way we live our lives for Him in our profession of faith and trust, what has really changed?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - The God Wave

"It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord." I Kings 8:10-11....."The biggest awakening we need is not in the White House, but in the Church House." Tony Evans

The political pundits are spending a great deal of time debating as to what we'll witness in the coming November elections. One side sees a "blue wave," the other a "red one." Many are fascinated, even obsessed. Yet both are irrelevant in comparison with the true need not first of the nation, but of the Church. We are in need, desperate need, of a God Wave. Of what one called, "A Tsunami of the Holy Spirit" upon the Church. Yet how many of us are looking for that, much less expecting it? If such a move of the Spirit were to come upon the Church, your church, would we even welcome it? I Kings 8 describes the dedication of the Temple to the Lord by King Solomon. So mighty was the coming of the Spirit upon that gathering that His priests could not minister. That means that whatever they had been expecting to do, they couldn't. Their plans, their agenda, fell apart. It was God, all God. He filled everything, and there was no room for anyone else. What would happen in our church fellowships if He were to come in such a way with us? What would happen to our well planned and crafted worship sets, sermons, and schedules if He came in such a way that all we could do was fall before Him and worship? If the glory of the Lord filled our sanctuaries, would we still go on sending and receiving our text messages, and fiddle with our I phones? Would we be getting "antsy" as we neared the end of the hour? Would we even recognize His glory to begin with? How can we long for what we don't really know, and have possibly never experienced?

I try to listen to as little talk radio, and watch as little of the news channels as I can. We are looking for answers, for deliverance, from the White House, the Congress, and the Senate. We are putting our hopes upon these houses of government, upon the expected blue or red wave. We're looking out. The Father calls us to be looking up. Jerusalem is surrounded by hills which Scripture calls mountains. These were expected to be part of what kept them secure. Yet the Psalmist said he looked not to these mountains for his help, but to his God. It was on these mountains that they would build their "high places" in order to worship the false gods and idols they'd come to depend on. What "high places" have we built and depend upon now?

The state of our culture is a reflection of the state of His Church. The Father placed a terrible rebuke upon the nation of Israel, the people of God. He said that they had "done nothing to rescue the world." They were weak. They were worldly. They were of the world, but not in it. The comparison to the western church cannot be missed. We, who say we are His, must have as our deepest desire, the seeking of His face, His heart, His Spirit. God is moving. He will either move upon us, or He'll move past us. May we have that Tsunami of His Spirit. May we experience the God Wave that we so greatly need. A wave of His power, authority, wonder and above all, His holiness. May we, as 2 Chronicles 7:14 calls to us, "Humble ourselves, pray and seek His face. May we turn from our sins, that He will hear from heaven, forgive us, and heal our land."......and His Church. Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - The Cup

"You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessing." Psalm 23:5...."Early in the following spring during the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes' reign, I was serving the king his wine." Nehemiah 2:1....."Then Simon Peter drew a sword and slashed off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest's servant. But Jesus said to Peter, 'Put your sword back into its sheath. Shall I not drink from the cup the Father has given Me?" John 18:10-11

Cups. In some way, we are all going to receive a "cup" from which to drink. Most especially will this be true for those who are His. In the above Scripture, we see a cup playing a central role. Most, if not all of us would joyfully, even eagerly accept the cup spoken of by David in Psalm 23. A cup that overflows with His blessings. We love blessings, especially those that openly benefit us. In fact, I often think that we worship the blessing more than we worship the One who blesses. If we're honest, we have to admit that a large part of our prayer life is spent seeking His blessing. His blessing upon our plans, our families, our relationships, our ministries. We equate His blessing with good things, especially as to how we define what is good. What we miss in Psalm 23 is that it was written by David, a man whose life had more than its share of suffering and hardship. Yet in all of it, He considered himself blessed. Maybe we need a new understanding of what the true blessing of God entails.

Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the King of Persia. This was an extremely important position as one of the most common ways to assassinate a king was to poison him, either through his food or drink. The cupbearer was entrusted with the "ministry" of seeing that didn't happen. Nehemiah was a Jew who loved and mourned for his nation of Israel, broken and scattered as a result of their own sin. His heart longed to be with his people in Jerusalem, and to see the city of God rebuilt and renewed. Yet the longing of his heart collided with the reality of his place. He was not where he wished to be. His circumstances were not what he wanted them to be. Yet, in the all of this there was something that set Nehemiah apart, and brought him blessing in that place. Nehemiah was determined that though he was in a place he didn't want to be, living a life, performing a ministry that was not what he'd hoped for, he would be in all of it, the best cupbearer possible. He would honor his God in that place, and in turn, be richly blessed by Him. How many of us, in our own, often similar situations, take that same attitude? How many of us in the places we don't want to be, living out the lives we would not have chosen, are determined to be, in and for Him, the best "cupbearers" we can be? In that place, his cup did overflow, but it was the attitude of his heart that allowed him to see it as such. God did give him his desire to be back with his people, and that was rich blessing for him. But he lived a blessed life in the hard place before he got to the place he longed to be. And it was his heart attitude that he would continue to, even if he didn't get to that place.

Before the resurrection, the disciples never seemed to understand what made for the deepest blessings of God. As in all things, only Jesus could show them the meaning. They always stumbled at the cross. Peter bluntly told Him that going to the cross could never be, and the Lord rebuked him for thinking like the enemy and not with the mind of the Father. Jesus, the Author of Life, had to first receive His Father's "cup," which contained the cross, the taking on of the penalty of the human race's sin, and the unimaginable pain of being separated from His Father in the drinking of it. Yet He did it all for "the joy set before Him." He drank the cup of bitterness that He might in turn be able to give to us the overflowing cup of the blessing of His Life. The cup He gives us does indeed overflow with blessing. But the way of His blessing has a cost. If we worship the blessing, we likely will never experience the fullness of what His blessing can be.

In our place, your place today, what kind of "cupbearer" will you and I be? In the cup He passes to us, there will be bittterness, pain, things our flesh would never desire, but to drink it to the full will result in riches beyond our imagining. Will we drink that cup? Are we drinking it now? We all have a cup to drink from. Is it the cup of our choosing....or His?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - Keeping Company

"Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." Matthew 11:30

In ancient Persia, the highest honor that the King could bestow on a subject was to invite them to walk with him in his garden. He invited them into an intimacy that very few had opportunity of. To be asked into the very heart, mind, and thoughts of the greatest ruler their time had ever known was a gift too wonderful for words. No one would think to refuse him. No one would want to. Compare that to the people of God, who have a Father in heaven greater than any earthly king or emperor could ever be. Yet, in his greatness, He moment by moment invites those who are His into His company. Into His heart, mind, and thoughts. What greater honor could there be? It is an invitation not for a select few, but to all who would come to Him. Yet so few of us are willing to come at all.

It is beyond sad that we refuse Him. It is a tragedy. We give more attention and honor to the invitations of all who are not Him while ignoring all that He is. Most of us would leap at the opportunity to meet our favorite sports, entertainment, or political figure. We would not pass it up. We would honor them, while we fail to honor Him. Yet this is not the worst of it. It is not just people that we honor above Him. We honor our activities, hobbies, involvement in social media, and entertainments so much more than we will ever do so for Him. We spend far more time in their company than we ever do in His. What's more, these other people and things, and our devotion to them, usually become our masters and tyrants. Being with them takes from us, drains us, impoverishes us. They leave us empty. In the end, they leave us alone. Why do we go on choosing them? Could it be that we've never really experienced what it is to "keep company" with Him? Are we so weighed down with the heaviness of serving these thieves of His glory that we cannot hear His invite to come to Him and live....and be free? Since we cannot hear Him, we don't experience Him.

When Moses rebuked the Israelites for making a golden calf, he told them that they'd exchanged His glory for images of grass eating oxen. A horrible, even blasphemous exchange, but how often have we done the same? Where do we do it even now? What are the grass eating oxen in your life that you've exchanged the wonder of His Presence for?

I know this; those oxen, no matter how they might shine, will in the end destroy us. They can never give, never be to us what He is. With them, in their company, the burden of life will only get heavier. Jesus Christ issues these words in Matthew 11 to you and to me. This life that we are in will not cease to have it's "dangers, toils, and trials." That's a given. The greater "given" is Christ. He bids us to not only come to Him, but to stay with Him. To live in His company. Only in His company will we know the lightness of His freedom. You and I are going to keep company with something or someone. Will it be with the grass eating ox.....or the King Himself?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - The Trial

"Now I am on trial because I am looking forward to the fulfillment of God's promise made to our ancestors......I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen - that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead as a Light to the Jews and Gentiles alike." Acts 26; 6, 22-23

Paul was defined by his living hope in the resurrection of Christ. One translation of the above passage says that he was on trial because of that hope. Paul's life was defined by his hope, his trust, and his steadfast belief of Christ's resurrection. As a result, his life bore the fruits of that hope. Does ours? What defines our life? Every day in this fallen world, those who are His are on trial for the hope we say we have in Him. What's the verdict? Does our hope in the resurrection of Christ define us? If it does, there will be visible fruit as a result. If it doesn't, then what does define us?

In his book, "The Insanity Of Obedience," Nik Larson says he had to ask himself this question; "Am I simply a member of the church, or am I a true follower of Jesus Christ?" Do we dare ask that same question of ourselves? Just where do we fit in the Kingdom of God? In China, Larson points out that believers do not gain the trust and confidence of their brethren until they have been imprisoned for their faith. This establishes their credibility. Their faith and trust in Him has been put to the test. Their living hope in His resurrection was put on trial, and they were found "guilty" of fully trusting in that hope. They didn't just have a future hope concerning that resurrection life. They had entered into it in the present. They bore witness of that life in this present one. What does our life bear witness to? What is our credibility both before the church and a watching world? Are we simply members of a fellowship, or are we true followers of Christ? Do we only embrace a Jesus who blesses, who gives out great bread and fish? Or do we embrace Jesus Christ in all of His fullness. His burden, His pain, His cross? Do we embrace His path to our own Calvary? Do we enter into the fullness of His life that He gives us through that cross?

His Word says that He offers us "the power of a life that cannot be destroyed." This is what those Chinese Christians learned in their suffering. All the power of a hostile state could not extinguish the power of His life within them. They were defined not by their suffering, but by their living hope in a living Christ. His life was their life. Is it ours?

On the Damascus Road, Paul, then named Saul, beheld the risen Christ. Nothing was ever the same for him again. He beheld the resurrected Christ, and he received His resurrected life. Is such lacking in our lives? Have we ever truly beheld the risen Christ on the road of our lives?

That question from Larson pierces me. "Am I simply a member of the church, or am I a true follower of Christ." Are we defined by church attendance, tithing, activity, social networking? Are we defined by the Bible studies we attend, the prayer groups we're a part of? Our visibility in the local church? Or are we defined by our living hope in a risen Christ? Does the resurrection power of God abide in and flow through us? Have we seen Jesus? As we stand in the world's docket, on trial for our professed hope in the resurrection, are we a credible witness? Are we guilty of standing in and upon that living hope? Or, are we just church members...."having the form of godliness, but denying its power thereof?"

Blessings,
Pastor O

Wolf Country

"They will walk after the Lord. He will roar like a lion. Indeed He will roar. And His children will come trembling from the west." Hosea 11:10...."Ooh! said Susan. "I"d thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion." "That you will dearie, and make no mistake," said Mrs. Beaver. "if there is anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they're either braver than most or else just silly." "Then he isn't safe?" said Lucy. "Safe?" said Mr. Beaver. "Don't you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about being safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King I tell you." C.S. Lewis from The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe."

Not long ago I watched an old Disney cartoon about a lion cub who was found and raised by a sheep. The lion grew into adulthood, but it didn't know it was a lion. It thought it was a sheep. It had all the tendencies of a sheep. He was part of the flock. One day, a wolf who'd been stalking the sheep attacked and carried off his "mother," with the intention of killing and eating her. The lion cowered in fear with the rest of the sheep, but all the while, his adoptive mother called out to him for help, while the wolf, with evil in his countenance, prepared for her destruction. With one last cry, she called out his name, and then, something happened. The lion remembered that he was just that; a lion. With a roar, he ran to his mother, made short work of the wolf, and brought her back to safety. As I think of that cartoon, I think also of the Church. In this modern culture based on intellect, reason and logic, I think we have forgotten who we are in Jesus Christ. I think we have forgotten just who our Lord Christ is. He is the Lion of Judah. He is a Lion who will enter into the hearts of all of those who are in Him by faith alone. When He enters a heart, the heart of a Lion comes with Him. Our problem is that we continue to think we're sheep. And we live at the mercy of the wolves.

Followers of, and believers in Jesus Christ live in a fallen world. We live in wolf country. Wolves prey on sheep. They do not prey on lions. They fear the lion. Satan is a wolf who thinks he's a lion. Scripture says he goes about roaring like a lion seeking someone to devour. Too often, those who are His think we are sheep, and as a result, we are devoured. I think this happens mainly because we have domesticated Jesus Christ. We follow a tame Lord, a tame Lion. And so we've become tame ourselves. Tame lions are at the mercy of the wolves in wolf country. Is that how we, you and I, the Church, are living right now?

I've been reading a great deal about the persecuted believers living in China, the Middle East, and what was once the Communist block in Eastern Europe. All have suffered intense persecution. Thrown into prison, tortured for their faith. Their visible resources are few, yet they, living in the heart of the land of the wolves, regularly see the Almighty hand of God. They see miracles. They behold wonders. They live in expectation of two things; suffering and His miraculous presence in its midst. They follow no tame Jesus, and though they may live as sheep who, as Scripture says, "are slaughtered all day long," they do not have the heart of the sheep, but that of the lion. And as a result, they flourish. They grow. They behold exploits, and they do them as well. They are not at the mercy of the wolf. They know in Whom they have believed.

Compare that with the lifestyles of we who profess to follow Him in the west. They pray that in the midst of their suffering, they will be obedient, and by their obedience, bring Him glory. We, in the midst of the most blessed culture the world has ever seen, pray for more blessing. They pray for strength to overcome. We pray that there might be a prime parking spot at the mall. They live expecting to always see His glory in the midst of the darkness. We are so used to the dark that any flashes of His Light scare and even put us off. We've tamed Jesus. We've forgotten who He is, and in the process, we've forgotten who we are in Him.

You and I, whether we realize it or not, are living in Wolf Country. The Wolf sees us as sheep to be slaughtered. How do we see ourselves? How do we see the One we say we follow? A culture in need cries out. How do we respond to it? With the heart of the sheep, or that of the Lion? Do we have a safe, tame Jesus, or the One who is dangerous, but who is good. The One who, when He roars, sets the foundations of hell itself to trembling? The Wolf doesn't rule even in Wolf Country. The Lion, and His people do. Do we live like that is so?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - Is Jesus Worth It?

"If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life." Mark 8:35......"It will be worth it all when we see Jesus." Lyric from classic hymn

Is there a point in your life that you feel you cannot go past in your walk with Jesus? Is there a point, a place, where you tell Him that you just cannot make that sacrifice, you cannot bear that cost? I once saw the question asked concerning just how much suffering, what degree of cost, can Christ trust us with? How heavy of a cross are we willing to bear? Are we really willing to bear His cross at all?

In the book, "The Insanity Of God," the author tells of his meeting a former Islamic terrorist, a man who by his own admission had personally killed over 100 people, and that was without counting those he killed in pitched battles. The author called him, "the toughest man I ever met," but it was not for his combat experiences. It was for his faith in Christ the King.

The author met and interviewed the man in secrecy, because he was being sought by his former comrades for his faith. He was on a death list. In the midst of the interview, the author found that this man had also led his wife and two children into the faith. He then asked what he thought was a simple question; just where did the man's family fit into his ministry and witness? What happened next shocked him. He'd been conducting the interview in a mostly dark room, to protect the man's identity and features. Yet with that question, he came out of the shadows and gripped the interviewers shoulders with unbelievable force. He cried out, "How can God ask it? Tell me, how can God ask it? I have given God everything. My body has been broken. I have been jailed. I have been starved. I have been beaten. I have been left for dead. I have even been willing to die for Jesus. But do you know what I fear? When I go to bed at night, what keeps me awake and what actually terrifies me is that God might ask of my wife and children what I have already willingly given Him. How can He ask it? Tell me, how could God ask that of my wife and children?"

Such a question would leave all of us speechless if we were to try and answer in our wisdom. The author breathed a prayer to the Father, and then was led to speak these words, "I personally cannot answer your question, but I would ask another question that I have had to ask myself: 'Is Jesus worth it? Is He worth your life? Is He worth the lives of your wife and children?' With that question, the man broke down into deep sobbing from within. He buried his face in the interviewer's shoulder and wept. Then he pushed away, wiped his tears, and simply said, "Jesus is worth it. He is worth my life, my wife's life, and the lives of my children." The author than writes, "With that, the toughest man I ever met said goodbye. He turned and walked out of the room." The author states that all this took place more than a dozen years ago, but to this day, that man and his family continue to bear the cross of Christ in the midst of intense darkness and persecution. They had settled the question as to the worth of Jesus Christ.

I am humbled and convicted by this account. Are you? Our breaking point with Jesus is so shallow. So often, the slightest discomfort, the smallest cost, causes us to shrink back from Him. Even if we are willing to bear a painful cost in following Him, we oftentimes balk at having any of our loved ones involved in the sacrifice. The landscape of the Church is filled with those who turned back because the cost to their family was deemed too great. I understand this. It's human. We all would ask Him, as did this man, "How could He ask that of me?" I don't know that He'll ask it of you, as I mentioned, He does know just how far and how much He can ask of us. But He does bring some to such a place. He may well bring you there. I believe He brought me.

I write this with no boasting. I am no hero of the faith, I reserve that designation for men like the one above. But I do know that there was a point in my walk with Him when I faced such a reality. In my marriage, I came to a place where my former mate made it very clear that she would only consider staying if I were to leave my ministry once and for all. I didn't want to lose my marriage. I had been seeking every means possible to save it. Yet when confronted with this ultimatum, the only response I had was, "How can I do that? How can I leave what I believe is His lifelong calling for me? How can I turn away from that?" Even more, I thought that to do so would be the same as leaving Him. I couldn't, and so, I lost my mate, my family, and for a time, my ministry. The pain was unbelievable. Even today, 30 years later, I still bear great sadness over it. But if you ask me, even with that cost, was He worth it, I have no hesitation in saying, "Yes, He was, and He is, worth it. He's worth it all." ....I make no judgement on anyone else in this. I don't say that this is what you must do, but I know it's what I had to do. It's what I would do again.

In Hosea, God asks Himself, concerning disobedient Israel, "How can I give you up?" At some point, we all have to ask ourselves this question; "How can we give Him up?" At what point can we? At what point have we? We all have places where we've failed Him. May there never be that place where we turn from Him. He bids us to "count the cost" of following Him. The costs will vary, but there will be a cost. Is He worth that cost to you? I know this; when we say "yes," we will see Him. And when we see Him, it really is worth it all.

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - Destined?

"And this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you should be holy." I Thessalonians 4:3

There is so much preaching and writing these days about stepping into our destiny. It seems that all of us are "destined" for some kind of renown. This teaching has a wide range of listeners because it appeals directly to our flesh. We crave renown, recognition, applause. That's our idea of fulfilling our destiny. It's a very western, American mindset. It's a mindset found nowhere in His Word.

The word "sanctification" isn't getting a lot of play in the church these days. Small wonder as it is a work of the Spirit that will always result in the death of our flesh. One of the symbols of Pentecost, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church, is fire. Fire burns. It burns away, and it burns up. The Bible says that God is a Holy God, a consuming fire. He does have a destiny for us and that's it. He seeks to burn up all within us that is not Him so that all that remains is that which is Him. That is His destiny for everyone who comes to Him. To enter into that destiny there is only one road, and that is the road to and through Jesus Christ and His cross. That's where we truly begin to enter into our "destiny." In His destiny for us, there's no room or place for self. No room for our agendas. All of that is burned up and out. What remains is Christ. His heart, His mind, His life, His way. That kind of destiny excites our flesh not at all, but in it, we behold the glory of God. We enter into His glory.

Holiness is a very unpopular word in the church today. It's "critics," and they are many, say it is just another word for legalism. There can be no doubt that many well-meaning and not so well-meaning people have made it about that. Keeping rules, having lists of do's and don'ts, and obsessively keeping to them. That is not holiness. If it were, the Pharisee's would have been the holiest of all people, yet they were the ones who led in the rejection of Christ. True holiness is a lifestyle of embracing the beauty of Jesus Christ on ever deeper levels. It is a life lived out in the Holy Spirit power of God. It is a life of purity, of Christlikeness that is not worked at by us, but worked into us by Him. It is not a life of cumbersome duty, but one of joyful living, growing, and experiencing Him. That's His destiny for us. It is a life of greatness, but a greatness that may go unrecognized by the world as well as by the degree of worldliness in His Church. It is never unrecognized by Him.

The destiny we hear about today always seem to have as its end, the victory circles of this world. Applause, achievement, trophies and plaudits. God's destiny has a victory circle as well, but it looks nothing like that. His leads to a cross, a jail cell, a headsman's axe, a cave on a prison island. Yet in all those places, the glory of God was seen and was upon all those who found themselves in those places. And what they saw and experienced is still being seen and experienced today by any and all who will embrace the destiny He calls us to. The cross, the fire. The dying out to and burning away of all our dross and impurity. The bringing forth in us, of His character and life. That's His victory circle. Do we dare to step into it. Paul stepped into his victory circle saying that he bore upon his body, "the brand marks of Christ." If you want to know your destiny in Him, that's it. His "brand marks" are always accompanied by His fire. The self centered life is not attracted to that kind of destiny. The Christ life presses into it, for, as the Word says, "the joy set before Him." Which "destiny" do you press on to? That which feeds the flesh, or that which sustains His Spirit? Here's a truth; we all have a destiny. To which is yours leading you to?

Blessings,
Pastor O

Heart Tracks - Offering Of Grace

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8-9

Throughout the Word of God, we see the outpouring of God's wonderful grace, His undeserved mercy and love offered to a human race in open rebellion against Him. We see that grace extended most perfectly through the giving of His Son, Jesus Christ, unto all who believe upon and live in Him. Yet though we see His grace throughout His Word, we still understand so little of it. We live in so little of it, and we exercise it even less.
I have been walking with Him for nearly 40 years now, and though my life in Him is due only to His grace, I even now know so little of its wonder and power. So little of His amazing grace. Something I am learning though is that the two ways we can most learn of and experience His grace is first by our receiving it in every area and level of our lives. Most of us are willing to at least begin to do this, though too often we live beneath its fullness. The second means is far less known and practiced. We learn of His great grace when we are willing to extend it to others. Especially those who have wounded, offended, and deeply hurt us.
In the book, "The Insanity Of God," the writer tells of a Russian pastor imprisoned for his faith and brutally tortured because of it. One of the things a particular prison guard did each day was to spread his own excrement on the bread the man received for his breakfast. This went on for months. Though his jailers intended to kill him, after a number of years the man was miraculously released. He immediately returned to the fellowship of his church. While resuming his role as its pastor, an elderly woman, also a believer, asked him to help secure medicine for her diabetic son. As a follower of Christ, she was forbidden any kind of medical help and medicine. Her son was now blind, and near death. Even so, the man was able to procure some medication for the woman and took it to her small apartment. When he arrived, she asked him to come and pray for her son. As he went to the helpless man in the bed, he saw it was the same prison guard who had spread human waste on his bread every morning for nine months. One can only imagine what the human response to that would be. Yet this believer, confronted with one who had tormented him for so long, breathed this prayer, "Oh Lord, do not let me fail You now." The author then writes, "The pastor granted his former tormentor forgiveness in his own heart, helped the mother to administer the medicine to relieve the man's pain, prayed for her son, then returned home with a new and deeper understanding of God's grace. He was overwhelmed by God's grace."
Somehow, we find it much easier to receive His grace for ourselves, even when we know we're unworthy of it. We find it not easy at all to extend it to those who are equally undeserving. Especially when they have wounded and hurt us deeply. It is easier to hold onto the hurt, and the anger, resentment, even hatred that goes with it. And in our doing that, we rob ourselves of the wonder of knowing His grace, living in it's fullness, and knowing the freedom that it brings. I think it is only when we extend His grace to one, or ones who in no way deserve it, that we begin to experience and live in its beauty. When that Russian pastor extended the grace of His forgiveness and mercy to his torturer, the writer says that it radically changed him and the lives of all his family members. We learn most about His grace when we freely give it...even to those who have caused the most grievous wounds to our lives. To what degree have you and I learned of this kind of grace? To what degree are we withholding it from someone, perhaps many "someone's" in our lives?
Grace. We may know the word. We may know its meaning. Do we know its reality? Have we received it in full? Are we extending it in full? We may sing "Amazing Grace," but do we live it? Do we give it? If we know the joy of His forgiving grace, do we know the joy of forgiving another by His grace? We all have "tormentors" of some type in our lives. When we "see" them, whether in the flesh, or in our memories, what will we do? Give way to a seething, vengeful anger, or do we simply breathe the prayer of the pastor, "Oh Lord, do not let me fail You now?" His grace transforms. To what degree has it transformed you and me?