Missions In Action

I know not all of us have the time or resources to go on mission trips but if you can please take some time to check out Compassion International to learn how you could help today.

Recently, I was reminded of this verse when I heard about a friend of mine, that home schools her children. This year she started teaching her son about American History. She began a lesson on slavery and was bothered by the look of horror on her sons face as she taught him what we had done to people during that time.

I can only imagine how heart breaking it must be to a child to discover for the first time what we humans are actually capable of. His little heart does not yet have the capacity for the sin that our adults hearts have. I think as we grow older we fall into a kind of complacency with the evil around us. If it even bothers us at all it tends to anger or disgust us more than break our hearts. We become cynical and judgmental rather than empathize or sympathize with people and their struggles. The very behavior that makes us hate other may even be exhibited by us at times.

I know I find myself there very often. I have led quite a sinful life and I came to Christ in my mid-thirties. But, more often than not, instead of using my past experience to have this empathy or sympathy and to help others in need I find myself being disgusted by their behavior. Even though not too long ago I may have very well been walking in their shoes, on the very same path. If only we could keep those innocent eyes to see people with. That innocent, untainted heart to love them with. The same kind of eyes Jesus sees us with. The same kind of heart He loves us with. But, we have to mess it all up with our selfishness and our sinful nature.

We view pornography or fool around with our girlfriends or boyfriends thinking “what’s the big deal?” but all the while we are ruining our thoughts for our future spouses.

“But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” -Matthew 5:28 NIV

We smoke, drink or over-eat thinking “I can control it!” but it often leads to excessive or gluttonous tendencies, which are sinful.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, …” -Galatians 5:16-26 ESV

We dislike those that are not like us which can lead to out-right hatred.

“But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.” -Matthew 5:22 NIV

I have spoken to various teenagers over the past few years and I’ve tried to explain to them, the opportunity they have to not pollute their minds and souls with the garbage that is out there, all around them. To keep their hearts and eyes as pure and innocent as possible so that when they do encounter this sinful world it might just break their heart rather than anger and disgust them.

This is something God is working on in my life and I ask for your prayers as I will pray for you to either keep yourself from this trap or for you to be pulled from it. I have found the current, “40 Days of Love” message series as well as the Life Groups study lifting me up and challenging me every day so far.

Thank you Father for renewing my heart and eyes so that I can see others as you see them.

-Rick Phillips

I love the openness Andy displays here. The four emotions that control us, guilt, anger, greed and jealousy, are dead on. This is also the reason I hate the book. Andy does such a great job explaining these enemies of the heart and helping us to see them in ourselves that I found the book kicking my butt all over the place. Of course, I’m sure that’s the point and in time I’ll find a way to thank Andy for helping me to see the enemies and how they have manifested themselves in my heart.

Seriously though, “Enemies of the Heart” has a great message and revelation. We all struggle with some form of each one of these heart conditions and they need to be addressed before we need spiritual CPR. This book will help you discover them in your heart and hopefully, help you perform some heart surgery on yourself.

Plaque can build up and cause blockage in our arteries. This blockage slows blood flow that damages the heart. Just like that plaque, each of the enemies discussed, guilt, anger, greed and jealousy, can build up and cause damage, ultimately blocking the flow of love Jesus intends to feed our hearts with.

Physical heart disease, left unchecked, can lead to physical death. Likewise, left unchecked, spiritual heart disease can lead to the death and destruction of marriages, families, friendships, careers…

Do yourself a favor, get a check up! The best way I know to start is with this book. Make your appointment now and purchase “Enemies of the Heart.” I can’t promise it won’t hurt but it will all be worth it in the end.

Andy Stanley is a pastor, communicator, author, and the founder of North Point Ministries, Inc. (NPM). Since its inception in 1995,North Point Ministries has grown from one campus to five in the Atlanta area and has helped plant over thirty strategic partner churches globally. Each Sunday, more than twenty-five thousand people attend worship services at one of North Point Ministries’ five campuses. Andy’s books include Communicating for a Change, The Next Generation Leader, How Good is Good Enough?and many more. He lives in Alpharetta, Georgia, with his wife, Sandra, and their three children.

FTC DISCLAIMER: “I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review”.

Trisha and I have spent more time apart this summer than we have at any time since our separation five and a half years ago. I’d be lying if I said that it hasn’t brought up questions and concerns and conversations. I’ve been free from pornography for almost six years. It no longer has a grip on my heart. But neither of us are stupid either. I’m one choice away from compromising my integrity; my relationship with God; my marriage; my boys. I know that. A lot of people travel. So I thought it would be helpful to share with you some of the things we think through when we’re apart. (If you’re not married yet, most of these principles will apply as well.)

-Recognize I’m in a Battle

There is a battle for my heart. There is a battle for my mind. The Apostle Paul in the New Testament says that, “Satan prowls like a lion, seeking someone to devour.” For so many years, I took this for granted. Purity will not be easy…I will have to fight for it. When Trisha is gone, or when I’m traveling, I am conscious of the battle I’m in. I pray about it. I read Scriptures about it. Knowing you’re in a battle is half the fight.

-Guard my eyes and my heart

I’m pretty selective about the TV shows I watch and the movies I watch anyway. I am very conscious of this when Trisha and I are apart. I’m not trying to be all legalistic or old fogey…but the purity of my heart and the intimacy of my marriage is much more important to me than a TV show or movie. I know that the Enemy can use things I see to trip me up…so I dial up my awareness and my standard when Trisha and I are apart.

-Pray a powerful prayer

One of my favorite Scriptures is a prayer that David prayed, that I pray at least once per day when Trisha and I are in different places. The prayer I pray is, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” When I’m willing to pray this prayer, and truly mean it, I’m allowing God into all of my heart.

Trying not to lust doesn’t work. Trying not to look at pornography doesn’t work. Trying not to do something you know you shouldn’t do never gives you the results you want.

Engage in the battle.

Choose to guard your mind.

Allow God into the darker parts of your heart.

Purity is possible!  

How do you pursue purity when you’re away from your spouse?

With all of these options at our fingertips it’s easy to have messages strewn across 10-20 different apps or programs. This makes it easier to overlook something important and miss out or mess up. I have method to my communications madness. I make no claims that it’s better than any other but it works well for me.

Phone calls/voicemail: If I receive a phone call and the caller does not leave a message I DO NOT return the call. I have had too many negative experiences returning calls from caller ID. I know some people do but I just choose not to. If I call someone else and I don’t leave a message I don’t expect a call back. If it’s important I’ll leave a message or I’ll even text them and ask them to call me when they are free. A lot of the time if I see someone left a voicemail I will call them back without even listening to the message. Weird? Maybe but it’s what I do.

Texting: I typically use this for brief messages. Texting is a wonderful invention for those short little statements or questions. “On my way home”, “what do you want from Wendy’s?”, “call me when u can”, “love you”. If you want to converse with me, call me. I don’t like texting enough to type out long messages. I’d rather just talk on the phone if I have the time.

Twitter: I love Twitter! I use it to gather information mostly. Twitter posts usually need to add value to my life.  If someone I am following posts too much about personal stuff or rants about politics etc. I stop following them.

Facebook: This is a great tool for catching up with old friends and family. It drives me crazy when people use it in place of email. I don’t look at it that much. My Twitter feed updates to my Facebook so it may look like I’m on a lot but I’m not. Also, Facebook seems to like changing my settings so I get flooded with emails from them so I have created an email address that I don’t check or use at all for that account.

Email: Hey, call me old but I still love my email. I forward Tweets to my email so I can look at them later. I email myself notes all the time. I use my email INBOX as my life inbox. If it needs done by me the best way to get me to do it is by sending me an email. For me, email is still the best place to store, sort and search information. I also don’t “play”  with email. My spam filters are set high and if it has FWD in the subject I tend to delete it fast. I love jokes and have a great sense of humor but I just have no time for distractions in my INBOX.

How about you?

Addendum: I realized that I left out the most important form of communication TALKING! Often imitated never duplicated. None of the above forms, methods, or tools can replace genuine face-to-face conversation. Tone, inflection, feeling, passion are all important pieces to our communication and none of them can be expressed better than in person.

In my previous post we reflected on our own scars but what about the scars of others? Often we judge or define others by their scars?

The “monster” in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was misunderstood, feared and hated for how he appeared. Because of his scars (his differences) he was branded a monster. Later in the story he succumbed and actually became the monster others had labeled him.

I fear that we do this to people all the time. I know I’ve been guilty of it. I also know others have done it to me.

“She comes from a broken home so she must be broken.” “He grew up on the wrong side of the tracks so he must be trouble.” How can people be expected to over-come and heal their scars if they are constantly labeled, judged and beat down because of them. We are commanded many times over to love one another. John 13:34 NIV – A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 1 John 3:11 NIV - For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. 1 John 4:11 NIV –  Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. There’s nothing written anywhere in scripture that adds: “…if you want to” or “…only if they’re like minded or the same race or share the same political views.” But we continue to see others as “monsters” if they don’t conform to our standard of normal or if they don’t live up to what WE believe they should be like. We are all created by God for a reason. We should strive to become what God has designed us for not wh

at society or man “expects” of us. Therefore, we should not have our own preconceived design for others other than to become what God is calling them to become.

Now the Bible clearly sets a standard as to how God would have us live our lives and unfortunately many choose to live far from that standard. But it is Gods standard, to be judged by God. We are only to love God and love others. We are formed by the same creator whether we choose to believe it or not. He loves us whether we accept Him or not. He expects the same from us of His creations.

We must love our brothers and sisters, scars and all. What does it say about our love of The Creator if we don’t love His creations?

(Be sure to check out Scars part1 here) 

For some reason I started thinking about that the other day. Do my scars identify me or do I allow God to shape me from them? Maybe you were abused or neglected as a child. Maybe you’re a victim of sexual assault or abuse. Whatever the case may be we are all left with scars big or small from our past in some way, shape or form. But how do we handle them? Do we let ourselves be defined or identified by our scars or do we use the scars to shape us into something more? Do we remain victims? Do we hide from the scars or hide them from others in shame? I think all too often this is the case.

I have emotional scars from my past as well as physical ones. One in particular, physical one, is on my forehead. I have carried this scar since the age of 1 year. It is from an act of disobedience and defiance towards my mother. As the story was told to me, I had recently learned to walk and was out on a bright sunny day with my mom. I evidently decided I could walk just fine on my own without any assistance. My mother felt otherwise and requested that I wait for her and hold her hand. I then decided to use the first word I had learned “NO” at this point I fell and discovered a rock lying on the sidewalk, with my forehead. Now, I did not let this scar define me as a defiant or ignorant little boy but I allowed it to shape me a little. I learned, somewhat, at least at that moment, from the experience that I could not always do things on my own. I see this scar every day when I look in the mirror. I use it as a reminder that I often need help (something I’m, sometimes bad at admitting.)

The emotional scars we all carry can and should be used in the same way. We need to take those scars and the things we have learned from them and use that not only to better ourselves but to benefit others.

Who better to help victims of abuse but other victims of abuse? In many ways a drug addict or alcoholic, post treatment, can relate better to another that is struggling with the same and offer real and practical advice.

Our history is our story. If we let it, it can shape and mold us for the future rather than define, identify or even chain us with the past. God can use our past… good, bad or ugly… smart or stupid, to His glory and the benefit of others if we just open ourselves up to it and pray that he will. I challenge you today to allow Him to use you this way. Let me know how it turns out.

(Be sure to check out Scars part2 here) 

While the movie is from a Christian organization, I felt, that they worked hard to and achieved a blend of the elements of a fallen, corrupt world without compromising the integrity of their core beliefs. This film proves that you can have high quality action and drama without all of the sex, extreme violence and foul language that is so typical these days in movies. All too often in Hollywood these elements seem forced into a script just to attain a different rating and increase potential ticket sales when the film would do fine, maybe even better without it.

All too often “Christian based” films have come across as cheesy or preachy. Courageous does not. There is a strong and firm stance of the underlying message but again it is blended well with the whole script. No one can deny message supported by the film that men need to step up as fathers and husbands. We all fall short of what we should be. Through the five main characters men will find themselves relating on multiple levels with each of them in their fears, failures and victories.

Big things will happen when Courageous releases September 30^th. I for one intend to be prepared. This film needs to be shared with our friends and families. The message in it is all too important to miss out on.  You can learn more about Courageous at www.courageousmovie.com or ask me by commenting here or by email.

Nick Vujicic was born with no arms and no legs. He does have a left foot of sorts that he quite capable with. I expected more of an inside peek into Nick’s life and how he grew up but what this book offers is a look into his and others souls. The amazing things that God has been able to accomplish through this young man are an inspiration. He also introduces us to some other inspiring individuals that he has been blessed to meet and know through his travels and shows us how God is using them too.

I love to see examples of God at work around us in everyday life and that work is apparent in Nick and those he has been blessed to reach. I saw him speak once on TV and was quite impressed by his mobility but more so by his attitude which he spreads around the world through his speaking tours as well as from the pages of this book. Some may feel sorry for him but I have to say I’m a bit jealous and embarrassed. I’m 40 years old and have all of my limbs and I haven’t done a fraction of the things he’s done. Not just the exciting, dare-devil things like surfing and scuba diving but more importantly, the God-driven outreach and mission work that Nick has done.

Nick shows us what it is to really be the hands and feet of Jesus and he doesn’t have any of his own.

FTC DISCLAIMER: “I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review”.