Devotions for Teens

[Soldier4Christ]

  True Worship


Before I became a music minister, I never really paid much attention to the praise and worship part of the service. I silently thought it was a way for people to:
1. wake up for the message that was coming afterwards
2. see how talented the music ministers are
3. to give people some time to silently look around or think about something...
('Hey is that my crush?', 'I wonder what I'll have for lunch, how much longer will this singing last?') and things like that. In fact, I would actually be doing the whole 'looking for my crush' thing while everyone else was singing. I never realized what the purpose of singing during services was. That was until I joined the music ministry. My joining was for the wrong motive but God, in His awesome way turned it around and used that to teach me the meaning of singing to Him, the meaning of True Worship. I would define True Worship as our 'response to who God is, what He has done and what He is going to do'. Sometimes, you might be thinking, how will I know if my worship is really the 'true worship'? Here's how I can explain it best, it might be a bit lengthy but if you are really serious, you'll read it till the end.

We first have to understand why we as Christians sing. Why do we sing? Have you ever asked that question?

Well, here are the 2 main reasons why we sing:
1. We sing to PRAISE God
Let's read Psalm 47:6-7 "Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to Him a psalm of praise"
And... Psalm 33:1 "Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise Him"
a. As you can see, it says SING not Can you sing? Meaning, it's a COMMAND, not a request.
b. We sing because it's a proper response to who God is, what He has done and what He is going to do.
c. We sing because it is fitting for us.

2. We sing to BLESS one another.
Let's read Colossians 3:16 "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and ADMONISH one another with all wisdom, and AS YOU SING PSALMS, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

Now that you know why you sing, ask yourself this "Am I singing because I want to praise my God?" "Am I singing because I want to bless my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ?"

Once you have answered YES (an HONEST YES) to both these questions, then my friend, you can now truly say that YOU ARE A TRUE WORSHIPER.

"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks"

[Soldier4Christ]

  Reap What You Sow


"Do not be deceived: God can not be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will receive eternal life." (Galatians 6:7-8 NIV)

For every action we commit, we plant a seed in the ground around us, a seed that is spiritual in nature. Reaping what we sow means eating the plant that grows out of that seed. If the seed we planted was a good seed, then we will be blessed with the good things that sprout out of that seed. But if the seed we planted was an action in the spirit of our sinful nature, then we will have to eat the destructive thing that grows out of that seed, and that is something we can not avoid.

When Paul says "God can not be mocked", what he is saying is that there is no act without consequence, and God sees every one of our actions. I know for a fact that sowing to please the sinful nature will cause a person to reap the destructive result of his action. There is no way around it. If you are saved, God will forgive you for your sins if you confess them and repent, but there are always consequences to them.
If you are a Christian who is involved in sexual immorality with a non-believer, being unequally yoked on top of sinning against your body, you are sowing out of your sinful nature. The result will be a destruction of your blessings, and a damage to your credibility as a witness to Christ. You can not sin in a vacuum. After you sow these sinful seeds, the person you were involved with will not see you as a credible witness, thus damaging that person's potential to be drawn to Christ through your witness. God can not be mocked. There are consequences to any sexual immorality, including the very real threat of STD's such as HIV - the highest example of reaping what you sow.

If you are a Christian who decides to go to a party and be involved in alcohol or drugs, you are sowing to please your sinful nature. As a result, EVERYBODY who saw you there will no longer be able to view you as a credible witness to Christ. If you ever again saw any of them and tried to preach the gospel to them, they would remember the night you were living the same exact lifestyle as them, and they would see no reason why they should take you seriously. While this is not physical destruction, if your ability to please God in that area is destroyed, what worse punishment can there be? God can not be mocked. Other types of consequences for such sins are drug overdose, fatal alcohol syndrome, arrest, sexual immorality as a result of drug/alcohol influence (which has its own long list of consequences) or just the simple pain of causing worry and disappointment to your parents and family when they find out what you're doing.

If it seems like I know these consequences from experience, it is because I DO! I am ashamed to say that I have sown the seed of my sinful nature enough times to be able to identify the places where I reaped the harvest of destruction from it. God has not been mocked in any of the cases of my disobedience, and I am still feeling the after-shock of my sins to this day. I am forgiven because I have repented and confessed my sins, but the consequences of them have not disappeared, and some I will be feeling for the rest of my life. I am 24 years old, and while I am ashamed of my sins, I feel obliged to point them out and the consequences of them to you younger Christians so that you won't be tempted and fall into the same traps.

The other side of this coin is that we can sow to please the Spirit, and reap the harvest of the good things that grow out of that seed. The harvest you reap when you sow to please the Spirit includes: Love; Joy; Peace; Patience; Kindness; Goodness; Faithfulness; Gentleness and self-control. I encourage you to practice all these things, and to always keep God in your mind when you make your daily decisions. Behave in a way that would please the Lord, so you can reap eternal life and blessings, and make the light God has put in you shine on everyone around you.
Be blessed!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Cutting To The Chase


If I am in such emotional pain and cutting myself helps me to feel better, then why is it considered "wrong"?

Matthew 5: 1-15 tells of a man who lived among tombs (graves) and would cut himself with stones. The Bible says that this was a person who had an "unclean" spirit, also referred to as demon-possessed. The Word doesn't exactly tell us if he was experiencing any type of "relief" by cutting himself with stones, but it does give us an insight into the type of turmoil he was facing. He only experienced true relief when Jesus cast out the demons. The Scripture goes on to say that after this, he was able to sit, relax, clothe himself, and be in his "right" mind.

When Satan struck Job with painful boils from the tip of Job's head to the soles of his feet, the Bible says that Job sat in an ash pile with a potsherd (sharp object) and scraped the boils to relieve his pain. This is another example of demonic intervention and bodily mutilation. Job ultimately found relief when he came to his understanding with and of God. It's important to note, however, that Job DID continue to honor God with his lips even in the midst of all that was happening to him. (Job 2: 7-10)

Consider these scriptures... "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are." (1 Corinthians 3: 16 & 17)

"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." (Romans 12: 1)

"You are the children of the Lord your God; you shall not cut yourselves." (Deuteronomy 14: 1a)

Cutting yourself or mutilating your body in some way is demonic in origin and will never bring you the long-term peace that you are searching for. Only Jesus can give that kind of peace. Peace that surpasses ALL understanding. So, put down your sharp objects and pick up the sharpest two-edged sword around that can lead you to Jesus and peace - the Bible!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Why I Do This

I am writing to you, my dear children, because your sins have been forgiven because of Jesus. (1 John 2:12) NLT

If there was anyone in the Bible that I hold as a role model (besides Jesus) it is John. He was Jesus' best friend. He stayed with Jesus through everything, even when he died on the cross. That is always what I have strived for my relationship with Christ to be like. But, my admiration of John goes beyond that. John loved, and when he loved, he did so with all of his being. John talks of how love is all we need, and I agree wholeheartedly. For, when we have love, the rest will follow suit. So, in many cases, I can relate to John.

This verse is no exception.

I have been asked several times by several people why I take time to write these devotionals (and I've only been doing it for a couple months lol). My answer is always the same: Read 1 John 2:12. I write to my dear brothers and sisters to tell them that Jesus died just for them. I write to tell them of the love letter that God wrote just for them, the Bible. I write most of all to tell them that no matter what they have done, or what they have been through, God loved them enough to send His son to die an agonizing, painful, shameful death just for them.

I know that when I first realized this, my outlook on everything changed dramatically. As I've grown in my faith, my heart has changed dramatically. I have been amazed at the difference Jesus' death has made in my life. I pray that you have experienced this change. If you have, (to quote a song by Ginny Owens) "Fall on your knees in fresh disbelief." If you haven't, I encourage you to talk to God...pray to your Father and ask Him into your heart. No matter what you have done, I'm writing to you to tell you that your sins have been forgiven. Jesus died just for you...are you willing to live your life just for Him?

[Soldier4Christ]

  Answer An Unanswered Prayer


Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6

You pray earnestly to God for a specific problem or issue in your life. You really need an answer NOW, but no answer seems to be coming! You can feel yourself getting discouraged. You really don't know what to do next. In these verses we can see what the next step should be -- trust God with all your heart; don't trust or depend on your own knowledge; believe and live with God as your Lord, the leader of your life, and He will make your way clear. You'll know what to do about that problem you've been praying over.

These verses in Proverbs can be both a much needed support and promise, or they can seem like verses that just don't seem to work. We get tired of waiting on God -- we need (perhaps 'want' is a better term) an answer to our prayers NOW! That sense of urgency makes it pretty hard to trust and be patient. It is so much easier to trust in ourselves and our own admittedly limited abilities than to trust God when He doesn't seem to be coming through for us. In the past, we might have had a pretty good idea of what our next move should be, even when we don't see answers… but as we grow in our faith and learn to trust God we know that our heart and mind isn't 100% into going forward on our own. We are being nudged by the Holy Spirit to look beyond ourselves, to trust God completely for the answer. Our faith is being tested, or grown. In I Timothy 6:20-21, we are reminded to …guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called knowledge-which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be unto you.

When we're searching for answers, we can often find no shortage of advisors. Friends and Family all think they have the solution to our problems. We need to be careful that we look to the truths of Scripture for our answers, not to those easy fixes that come from the wrong source, no matter how right it may sound. Growing in our faith is challenging. It doesn't just happen over night; but God will show Himself faithful in our journey!

What can you do with unanswered prayer in your life? Choose faith in God; let Him show you the answer He has for you. Recognize that your timing might be a bit different than God's…and that His answer might not be the one you were expecting. Most important, choose to trust God with the specific issue you're praying about! Let Satan know that he won't be getting the victory in this situation To God be the glory!!

Peter 1:6-7 says, "In this greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Time sometimes seems like too great a cost for an answer from God. But the growing of our faith and the glory of God working in our lives is far greater than our time! Be patient -- grow in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ! Trust Him for your unanswered prayers. He will be faithful!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Blood of Jesus


One night in a church service a young woman felt the tug of God at her heart. She responded to God's call and accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. The young woman had had a very rough past, involving alcohol, drugs, and prostitution. But, the change in her was evident. As time went on she became a faithful member of the church.

She eventually became involved in the ministry, teaching young children. After a while, this faithful young woman caught the eye, and heart, of the pastor's son. The relationship grew and they began to make wedding plans and this is when the problems began. You see, about half of the church membership did not think that a woman with a past such as hers was a suitable mate for a pastor's son. The church began to argue and fight about the matter. Then, they decided to have a meeting. As the people made their arguments and tensions increased, the meeting was getting completely out of hand.

The young woman became very upset about all the things being brought up about her past. Then as she began to cry, the pastor's son stood to speak. "I challenge every one of you to think carefully about what is happening here tonight. It really is NOT my fiancé's past that is on trial here. What all of you actually are questioning is the ability of the blood of Jesus to wash away sin. Today you have put the blood of Jesus on trial. So, what is your verdict? Does the blood of Christ wash away sin?......or not?"

Tears welled up in the eyes of every Christian in the auditorium. The whole church began to weep as they realized that they really had been slandering the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Too often, even as Christians, we bring up the past and use it as a
weapon against our brothers and sisters, or even against ourselves. Forgiveness is a very foundational part of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If the blood of Jesus could not cleanse the soul of every single person, then all of us would be in a lot of trouble. As the old hymn says, "What can wash away my sins? NOTHING, but the blood of Jesus." End of case!!!

[Soldier4Christ]

  A Brighter Day


"O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious He will be when you cry for help! As soon as He hears, He will answer you." (Isaiah 30:19 NIV)
"The moon will shine like the sun, and the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days, when the Lord binds up the bruises of His people and heals the wounds He inflicted." (Isaiah 30:26 NIV)

Because of the sins of humanity, this world is under a curse. While God has pulled many of us out of our sins and given us blessings and forgiveness, there are still millions of unbelievers who have the God-granted freewill to do anything they want, thus filling this world with deceit, greed, abuse, sexual immorality, murder, racism, and hundreds of other undesirable human traits. Even though we are saved and know the love of God - our lives forever changed by our relationship with Him - each day we still have to wake up and face the challenge of living in such a world.

Living in this cursed world is no cakewalk, saved or not. Even though you know God is on your side, you still have to endure seeing the living conditions of family members and friends who don't share your passion for God. When you've had a taste of God's love, and the real way life was meant to be lived on this earth, it's hard to see people close to you living the same kind of life that you know is contrary to God's will. On top of seeing your loved ones living ungodly lives, every time you turn on the television or radio, you're constantly reminded that Satan is all over this generation, dominating every aspect of modern day life. He and his messages are prevalent in music, television sitcoms, movies, humor, and even in sports. Things like professional wrestling are heavily laden with sex, bad language, and violence beyond what is necessary for a display of athletic talent. Every day secular television producers are pushing the limit on what is morally acceptable to our society, and every day society allows them to take another step forward.
Our society is moving further away from God every day, and we Christians have to watch as things get worse. People take for granted every God-given thing they have. Parents neglect their children, thus leaving their impressionable minds open to every type of unstable teaching and belief system. Kids do not respect their parents, thus making it harder for them to ever understand a God who demands obedience from His people. Sex is no longer a special thing designated only for the marriage vow, but is thrown around without consideration by the majority of adults, who are passing the trait on to our youth. STD's are rampant because of this, kids are having babies they are not mentally ready to take care of, and babies are killed in the womb every day.

The human body is being defiled and vandalized with drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and sexual immorality. Young girls and women flaunt their bodies with sexually suggestive dress and clothes that show off more skin than should be acceptable, making a mockery of the body God gave them and at the same time making it hard for men to avoid being tempted by sexual urges. People of our day have absolutely no respect for God or the fact that He breathed breath into their lungs. They are filled with egotistical pride, and many have no compassion for those around them who are struggling.

All these things are the result of sin in this world, and all these things God judges, which is why we are faced with disease, sadness, and pain. Because of the sins of the first human beings, God put a curse on this world, and from then until now humans have evolved from two sinning people to a working society of sinning people which believes it is "good" despite what the bible says about it. When you become a Christian, you put yourself against the entire world, rather than with it. This can be a huge bruising weight on our shoulders, and we have to lift it every day in order to stay in God's will.
I pray that you let the bruising and beating you suffer for God be an encouragement to your beliefs rather than a deterrent. Let the pains of this world be a reminder of why we chose God over the world. Remember that God's promise is a brighter day! And not just brighter than what we see today, but seven times as bright as any future we've ever thought of! When this world's weight on your shoulders begins to push you down, don't give up! Think ahead to the day when the Lord will bind up the bruises of his people as He promised, and to the day when we will weep no more!

[Soldier4Christ]

  A Father's Day Devotional



We are all familiar with one of the Ten Commandments "Honor your Father and Mother." Since Father's Day is today, this is what this devotional will be about. By the way, Happy Father's Day!

As Father's Day is quickly coming up on us, the rush is on to find ther "perfect" gift for our father. I mean we all want to please our dad and make him feel special, because after all, this is supposed to be his day. If you're like me, you spend countless hours trying to think of something to buy that will fit in your budget, and then go to all the stores and actually buy it. Then, there is the problem of finding the "perfect" card for dad. There are so many to choose from, and at the same time, it is hard to find one that actually is saying something remotely to what you want to express to your dad.

You are probably thinking, "Hey, I don't do that!," but us girls do! We make a big deal over our earthly father, but what about our Heavenly Father? I mean sure, our earthly dad's are here for us (sometimes anyways,) and we need to show our appreciation to them; however, we need to show appreciation to our Heavenly Father as well.

We need to show appreciation to our Heavenly Father everyday, not just one day of the year. After all, it is God who gave us the breath of life. We should be praising Him, and thanking Him for ALL the things that He does for us everyday. Things in your life may not be going just like you want, and you may be wondering "Why should I praise God everyday?" Well, that is easy to answer. When the bad times come our way, we just need to pray and ask for strength to make it through, and then offer a praise to God.

God is truely a God to be praised everyday! Her are some of the things that dad's are known for saying:
- This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.
- Quiet. I'm watching the ball game.
- Don't forget to check the oil.
- Bring back all the change.
- How should I know? Ask your mother.
- I'm not made out of money!
- When I was your age I walked 5 miles to and fromschool each day and it was uphill both ways. (Does anyone really understand this one)
- You are going and you will have fun!
- Who's paying the bills around here, anyway?
- If you break your leg don't come running to me.
- Don't put your feet on the furniture. Your mother will kill you.
- Get down before you kill yourself. On second thought, go ahead.
- Quit playing with your food.
- Be quiet! Can't you see I'm trying to think!
- Why? Because I said so!
- If you don't quit that I'm going to call your mother.
- You better get that junk picked up before your mother comes in here.
- Just wait till you have kids of your own.
- I was not asleep. I was just resting my eyes.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Remaining In Him


I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. I have told you this so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!
(John 15:9, 11) NLT

I have spent my life searching for love. Growing up in a home in which unconditional love was a rarity, it is what I hold most dear. When I met my best friend, Lauren, I first learned what unconditional love is. This opened up huge worlds for me to experience God's love even deeper. To know that someone cared for me THAT much amazed me. As John points out, Jesus loves us as much as God loves Him. Can you imagine how great that love must be? I know it was life changing for me.

As much as His love has become the very basis for who I am, I tend to stray anyway. Knowing how much He loves me, I still turn away from God. Sometimes this is because of lack of time. I put things in front of my relationship with Him. This creates a huge gap between God and I...and that really hurts. Yet...I still do it. God specifically tells us to remain in His love. He knows what He is talking about here. He knows the incredible power in His love.

I've begun to notice this too. When I do remain in His love...my life is so much easier. I am much calmer and I can cope with far more. But, what is even more treasured, is the joy that He gives me. He does tell us that he will give us joy if we remain in Him. Why do we not listen? Yet, when I run back to Him...I find that joy. I have in the past week found that joy again. I encourage you to seek Him. He wants you to be in His love and to share His amazing joy with you!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Avoiding the Temptations


(Matthew 26:41) Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.
(Luke 22:40) On reaching the place, he said to them, Pray that you will not fall into temptation.
(1 Corinthians 10:13) No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
(2 Timothy 2:2) And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

Temptation is quite possibly one of the most commonly experienced, yet least understood struggles we wrestle with all of our lives. Let's be sure about one thing right away, God is not the one who tempts us. Billy Graham has said, "God never tempts any man, that is Satan's business." Even Jesus was tempted by Satan when He went into the desert for 40 days.

The good news is that, while all of us are tempted, Jesus has shown us a way to handle temptation. Go back and read the first two verses above words Jesus spoke to His disciples. What's the main action that He says we can take when we're tempted? Prayer! He urges them to pray so that they will not "fall into temptation." That should be our first course of action. It doesn't mean that you have to spend all your time on your knees without engaging in the daily activities of life. Prayer is simply talking to God, staying in touch with Him and being open to His guidance as we go through our day. It can be as simple as thanking Him when something good happens, or asking Him to help us avoid situations that we know might lead to temptation.

Let's be honest with one another. We know what our weaknesses are when it comes to sin. And we know which situations can potentially lead to temptation. So the smart thing to do is to ask (pray to) God to help us avoid those situations. So what happens when we can't, or won't, avoid those situations - are we then past the point of no return and destined to sin once again? Not according to Paul in his letter to the Corinthians.

The Corinthians were about as close to being professional sinners as anyone in the Roman Empire. They had such a bad reputation that even non-Christians knew that by being in Corinth they were vulnerable to all sorts of debauchery and lewd activities. It was almost impossible for the Christians in Corinth to avoid tempting situations. But Paul wanted them to know that God could, and would, provide a way out for them. Paul gave them such encouraging words that it might help you to read the passage above one more time. Those words are also meant for you and me. God knows we will be tempted and He will provide a way out for us - count on it! But we have to be willing to take it.

Finally, Paul tells Timothy, in 2 Timothy 2:2, to take what he has learned from Paul and pass it on to others and they in turn are to teach it to others. That has been Christianity's secret weapon for centuries. It's sometimes called discipleship, but it is simply taking what we have learned from other Christians and teaching it to other people who can, in turn, keep the learning-teaching cycle in motion.

So, here's something for you to do this week. Ask God to do two things for you: First, to remind you of a recent event where you learned about His faithfulness in helping you overcome temptation. Second, ask God to give you an opportunity to share that experience with another Christian you know well and trust. Consider doing this on a regular basis, and then get ready for both a significantly deeper accountable relationship with that person, and for a closer relationship with God!

[Soldier4Christ]

  What About Suicide


Do people that commit suicide go to Hell or can they go to Heaven? This is an extremely valid and interesting question. I probably won't make any friends with my views on this, but I just want to share what I feel the scriptures say to me.

The Bible says that, "nothing is impossible with God." (Luke 1: 37). Suicide, in my opinion, is evidence of weak faith. If we can't trust God to handle things, then we really don't believe He can do all things. That is the way to truly believe in God.

If we believe that Jesus is Lord, then we must surely believe that our lives are not our own. 1 Corinthians 6: 20 says, "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." Our lives have been bought for a precious price with what Jesus did on the cross at Calvary. Remember when Job was going through his overwhelming trials? His wife kept encouraging him to "curse God and die" (Job 2: 9). What was Job's reply? "Yeah, you're right. Nothing is going right for me. God has it in for me so I might as well kill myself." NO!!! Job answered, "Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?" (Job 2: 10b) and "The Lord gave and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1: 21). Our lives are not our own to take or to decide when they should end.

We are human. We experience a myriad of emotions and feelings and Satan knows this. He is the one who has come to rob, kill, and destroy, and there is nothing more that he would love than to see a soul be lost forever by suicide.

God said that we would have problems in this life. There is no way around that. He also said that we would have to experience them. He did promise us, however, that He would be with us and walk through them with us and not allow us to be destroyed. It's up to us to meet Him halfway and to trust and believe that what He said is true. Suicide is like a tornado or hurricane. It leaves devastation in its path and not only one, but also many lives are destroyed. I don't believe suicide and the chaos it causes is the will of God. Consequently, I don't see how suicide can help a person get into Heaven.

Editor's Note: There are many views on this topic, feel free to write in and share your thoughts on it as well. I truly believe this is one of those questions we will not know the answer to until we one day get to heaven. I hope this devotional has helped or those who are struggling with suicide today and we look forward to hearing your comments.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Remaining In Him


I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. I have told you this so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!
(John 15:9, 11) NLT

I have spent my life searching for love. Growing up in a home in which unconditional love was a rarity, it is what I hold most dear. When I met my best friend, Lauren, I first learned what unconditional love is. This opened up huge worlds for me to experience God's love even deeper. To know that someone cared for me THAT much amazed me. As John points out, Jesus loves us as much as God loves Him. Can you imagine how great that love must be? I know it was life changing for me.

As much as His love has become the very basis for who I am, I tend to stray anyway. Knowing how much He loves me, I still turn away from God. Sometimes this is because of lack of time. I put things in front of my relationship with Him. This creates a huge gap between God and I...and that really hurts. Yet...I still do it. God specifically tells us to remain in His love. He knows what He is talking about here. He knows the incredible power in His love.

I've begun to notice this too. When I do remain in His love...my life is so much easier. I am much calmer and I can cope with far more. But, what is ever more treasured, is the joy that He gives me. He does tell us that he will give us joy if we remain in Him. Why do we not listen? Yet, when I run back to Him...I find that joy. I have in the past week found that joy again. I encourage you to seek Him. He wants you to be in His love and to share His amazing joy with you!

[Soldier4Christ]

  How to Love an Unloved Person


But I tell you who hear me. Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:27-31 (NIV)

Not long after September 11th I was talking to a good Christian friend about some of the raw emotions I was feeling: shock, horror, grief and anger unlike anything I had ever experienced. Then my friend said something that absolutely stunned me. She told me that she was praying for Osama Bin Laden! She was praying for someone who, as far as I was concerned, was evil incarnate! She was actually praying for his salvation!

In hindsight, that was quite a revealing moment in my life. It showed me how much I needed to grow up. Honestly, it hadn't even occurred to me to pray for someone who had shown such hatred toward my country and such blatant disregard for innocent lives. Please don't think I'm saying there shouldn't be consequences for evil actions, because there definitely should. However, the Bible is full of stories of encounters Jesus had with many sinful people. He hated the sin (and He let them know it) but He loved the sinner. His love changed many lives, and continues to do so. If my Christian friend came face to face with Osama Bin Laden I know exactly what she would do. Without hesitation and without fear of his reaction, she would look into his eyes and tell him how much what he had done had hurt, but also that she was praying for him. She would hope that when he looked into her eyes, he'd see the love of Jesus.

Luke 6:27-31 gives a detailed description of the Christ-like character God wants each of us to develop. What gets in the way of this growth is the dark side of our nature: pride, anger, arrogance, materialism and greed. In order to grow up into the nature of Christ there needs to be a radical change in our hearts and minds.

This passage is about loving people -all people - into God's kingdom. God loved us when we were unloving and unlovely. We owe the same to everyone. Think about that the next time you have an encounter with a cranky cashier, an irritated driver, a homeless person, a rebellious sibling, or a distant cold friend. Ask yourself, "What would Jesus do? What would He say?" He would show them undeserved grace and mercy: the same grace and mercy He showed when He went to the cross to die for our sins.

This passage might make you uncomfortable because it goes directly against our gut reaction to conflict and confrontation, which is to seek immediate revenge; but that's ok. Christ came to shake things up! He came to teach us a better way: His way. He wants us to put sympathy into action, to readily share whatever we have with whoever needs it, to be generously forgiving and to be slow in seeking revenge without needing anyone to do the same for us in return.

Look at 1 John 4:20: "If anyone says 'I love God' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen." Who is your brother? Someone who's always nice to you, or the person who irritates you to no end? A select few Christian friends, or everyone?

Society glorifies pride and arrogance, but God honors a humble heart. Putting the actions in this passage to work might be difficult, but keep trying. Even if you sometimes fail, don't give up. Pray for the Lord to give you a genuine heart of compassion. When an unloving person looks into your eyes, don't let them see an unloving person staring back. Let them see Jesus, alive and living in you. Start loving someone into God's kingdom today.

[Soldier4Christ]

  A Life less Ordinary


Act 4:13When they saw the courage of Peter and John
and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men,
they were astonished and they took note that these men
had been with Jesus.

Watching a boy like me play competitive high school
sports should be filed in the comedy section. I have
never wowed crowds with my left hook shot from down
town, or stunned the scouts with my sizzling fastball.
I have certainly not exhilarated the fans with bone
braking pins, or a record setting 300-hurdle time
either. Maybe I was made to play left out, but that is
not where my talents lie.

God never said it took a man to rip a phone book in
half or a superstar football player to tell the word
of God. It never had to be the multi-millionaire or
the life at the party either. Ironically enough it was
a couple or ordinary guys in a boat. I am by no means
bashing the leading scorer in the NFL that drops to
his knees after a touch down or the rich man the gives
most of his income to shelters, I could only wish we
had more of them! But, the humble bookworm, or the
jazzing saxophone player has the same talents from God
as these better-known people.

A talent is defined as a natural or acquired ability.
It is the everyday ORDINARY things that you do to
serve God that strengths your relationship with him.
Look at Peter and John, they may have only been
fishermen but God chose them personally to be his
disciples. Find what God has given you and then use
them to their full potential. This will enable you and
all those around you to serve God in more than
ordinary ways. God be with you and good luck.

[Soldier4Christ]

  How to Grow Spiritually


How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:9-11 (NIV)

When it comes to spiritual growth there are so many resources, tools and methods available it can boggle your mind. If you want to grow spiritually, should you journal more, serve more, pray more, practice more spiritual disciplines, attend more seminars, practice more self-denial? While practicing any of these disciplines helps us mature, David shows us that the key to real spiritual growth can be found in God’s Word, the Bible. In each of these three verses David stresses the importance of learning and obeying God’s Word. In verse 9, he states that living according to God’s Word helps make us pure. In verse 10, he equates seeking God with all his heart with obeying God’s commands. In verse 11, he affirms the importance of memorizing God’s Word (hiding them in his heart) so that he wouldn’t sin against God.

It would be easy to put David on a pedestal and give up trying to grow spiritually since we’re not in his league. After all, David was the “man after God’s own heart” and the anointed king of Israel. However, the Bible encourages us to grow through its frank portrayal of David as he really was – a human being with faults, sins and weaknesses just like us. The Bible doesn’t leave out David’s shortcomings as an adulterer, murderer, polygamist and failure as a father. Despite his character flaws and failures, God restored him and used him mightily. One of our pastors recently spoke about another Biblical character with similar failings – Peter. Peter, despite his bravado, went out and denied Christ after vowing he never would. Jesus graciously restored Peter to fellowship with Him and how Peter went on to minister faithfully for Christ, including writing two New Testament books and becoming a key leader in the establishment and growth of the early church. So if Christ can restore, use and fellowship with men like David and Peter, He can certainly do the same with us.

What are the key steps to growth through God’s Word? The first is learning God’s Word. David learned God’s Word so he could live by it and equated seeking God with learning God’s commandments. Like David, we can learn God’s Word through hearing, reading, studying, memorizing and obeying it. An easy way to remember this is seeing five ways of grasping the Bible like a hand - with the little finger being hearing the truths of the Bible and the thumb being obedience to what it says (the “Word hand” illustration). As we use these five “fingers”, especially the thumb of obedience, we get a good grasp of the Bible and become more pure by living our lives as the Bible says. The second step is being committed to obeying God’s Word, as we clearly see illustrated in David’s life. Despite his failings, confession and repentance were key reasons he was a man after God’s heart.

Do you want to be pure, to seek after God and grow spiritually? Let David show you the way – by learning and obeying the Word of God. To be pure, live your life obeying God’s Word. To seek God, don’t stray away from God’s commandments in His Word. To not sin against God, remember God’s Word so you’ll obey it. The key is having an active, growing knowledge of God’s Word. Get into it so it will get into you.