JUNE 25, 2023

 “The real glory is being knocked to your knees and then coming back. That's real glory. That's the essence of it.” 

― Vince Lombardi Jr.

JOB 4-6

6One day the angels^a came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan^b also came with them. 7The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?”

Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”

8Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.”

9“Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10“Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

12The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”

Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.(1:6-12)

ACTS 7:20-43

1Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?”

2To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran. 3‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’^a

JOURNAL 

Here in these passages are two men who have done nothing wrong...to the contrary they are doing everything right...yet they are about to get pummeled. Job is given to the hands of Satan and will lose everything but his life. Stephen is about to be stoned. 

What does this tell me about trusting in God and obeying him.  It says that true success is never solely experienced or measured by worldly standards. It may mean being a martyr and without much in material possessions or to the contrary it may include riches and wealth and worldly success. The point is worldly measures don't ultimately matter...what will matter is the joy that I will receive from obeying and living my life as an Outpost of the Kingdom of God. This means as an offering...a living sacrifice...it means to take my eyes off the approval of man and focus my eyes on the love of God. It is to see that right here, right now I am blessed with life, with the opportunity to act and live. It is the acceptance and realization that I am part of God's team, that I am loved and that I have a purpose, no matter what the world says or how it responds.  I think it is different for everyone but I know that living out of my identity, as part of God's team is a passionate, joyful, active existence that pushes the envelope of what I consider possible. 

I think it must be an existence that stretches the boundaries of what I feel I can accomplish. I think it must be a life that utilizes my gifts and talents. I think it must be a life that requires courage, discipline and persistence. This is not to be a life of passive contemplation, but rather a life of active engagement. So when there are tough moments and disappointments and lack of worldly applause, I am not to fret or believe that something must be wrong but rather that I might just be exactly where God wants me. My identity is never determined by my circumstances, but rather my circumstances can serve to express my identity.  

1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

ROMANS 12:1-2

JUNE 24, 2023

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” 

― Albert Einstein

JOB 1-3

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart.^c

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;

may the name of the Lord be praised.”

22In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

ACTS 7:1-19

1Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?”

2To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran. 3‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’^a

JOURNAL 

Job's life is undeservingly dismantled. Stephen gives one of the greatest sermons ever spoken, right on the verge of his death.

These two epic moments turn the "prosperity gospel" on it's head. It is also the reason that I love this Einstein quote! I've used it a couple of times and it's always a good reminder. Every single moment of every single day is important and epic in one way or another. Yet it is so easy to get lost and let moments and days slip by without realizing the significance that each day brings. Why is that? Why are we so unmoved by the "ordinary". 

I think it's because sometimes it just doesn't feel important or that it really matters. Life can have a way of slipping by until a crises moment strikes. I think that's why we tend to get so sucked into politics or sports or a public crises...we want to be a part of something that really matters. So why does it matter? While I can answer that question with the typical church response, those reasons are not very motivating in the moment. Especially when no great crises exist. There though is one of the fundamental reasons. Because the crises will come, the tough moments are waiting. Training my mind and heart to seek God at all times is the training ground for seeking him in the difficult moments of life. Just as Stephen here is ready for his moment and because of it...Saul is influenced and ready for God to meet him on the road to Damascus.

But what I believe is more important is that if I want to make the most of each moment of life I must treat each moment as vitally important. The ho hum, everyday parts of life are anything but ordinary. Reality is that amazing miracles, as well as awful tragedies, are happening all around me, all the time. No moment is ordinary, no moment is a waste, every moment is ripe with life-changing possibilities. 

It is vital that as I live each day, that I become more aware of all that is around and before me and that I seek God so that I don't miss the miracles. I must seek God so that he will open my eyes to the wonder of today. I must seek God so that I am ready to act and take action. Today is waiting, full of adventure, drama and the fulfillment of God's epic story, of which I get to play a part. That...is anything but ordinary!!

20When asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God will not come with observable signs. 21Nor will people say, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For you see, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” 

LUKE 17:20-21

JUNE 23, 2023

“Before success comes in any man’s life, he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat, and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to quit. That is exactly what the majority of men do. More than five hundred of the most successful men this country has ever known told the author their greatest success came just one step beyond the point at which defeat had overtaken them.” 

― Napoleon Hill

ESTHER 7-10

 24For Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them and had cast the pur (that is, the lot) for their ruin and destruction. 25But when the plot came to the king’s attention,^a he issued written orders that the evil scheme Haman had devised against the Jews should come back onto his own head, and that he and his sons should be impaled on poles.(9:24-25)

1King Xerxes imposed tribute throughout the empire, to its distant shores. 2And all his acts of power and might, together with a full account of the greatness of Mordecai, whom the king had promoted, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Media and Persia? 3Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews, and held in high esteem by his many fellow Jews, because he worked for the good of his people and spoke up for the welfare of all the Jews.(10:1-3)

ACTS 6

8Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. 9Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. 10But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.

11Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.”

12So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. 13They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. 14For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”

15All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

JOURNAL 

Mordecai, Esther, and Stephen have become Outposts of the Kingdom. Their lives have become conduits of the power, love, and joy of God. What can I learn from them?   

We all are part of a team...whether that be a family, a job, an athletic organization, a country or in the very least, the human race. The problem often comes when we don't like our team or wish we were on another team or don't believe we belong to our team.  That usually is a result of experiencing heartache, difficulty, and failure, then interpreting those as evidence that something is wrong rather than just the harsh realities of life.

That dilemma can lead to a toxic mindset of always searching for, my place, my purpose...always hoping for a better circumstance, opportunity or for someone to come along and invite me to join the perfect team. The reality is that the perfect team is the one where I currently exist. It's in my dysfunctional family or bad job or screwed up country. God gives me the talent skills and power to better my team...because God has invited me to join his. 

Bettering my team is best done in service and love, rather than through criticism, fear, hate and violence. The world of the new testament was really a messed up place...far worse than anything we deal with today. Christians aren't fed to lions or hoisted up and burned as torches to light the city of Rome. History shows us how far we have come, how blessed we are and yet we still have work to do. We still have a place in God's story. For me that means that every day that I am alive, with breath in my lungs, I am working to bring God's love and power to all the circumstances of my life. No matter how I feel or what those circumstances are...I am to bring the love and power of God to them. 

Today is a great day and it really is a miracle and a gift. When I truly can embrace that I am part of God's Kingdom, then I actually have the power to create Outposts of his Kingdom, because I have become one and his Kingdom exists within my own heart and mind. 

1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

ROMANS 12:1-2

JUNE 22, 2023

  “It is impossible to escape the impression that people commonly use false standards of measurement — that they seek power, success and wealth for themselves and admire them in others, and that they underestimate what is of true value in life.” 

― Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents

ESTHER 4-6

15Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16“Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”(4:15-16)

ACTS 5:17-42

29Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! 30The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. 31God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. 32We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

33When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. 34But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

40His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

41The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. 42Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

JOURNAL 

Both Esther and Peter risk death to speak truth. Their lives are fully devoted to God, no matter what may happen to them. Peter states that the spirit of God is given to those who obey God. This spirit is what turns humans into glimpses of the eternal, it is what turns them into Outposts of the Kingdom. His argument is backed by the test of time and that truth will hold up but lies will die. 

Seeking to be filled by God every morning, seeking to obey and be filled up with his power and love is the secret to living this life as an outpost of God's Kingdom. It is so hard because it often goes against the world and against the grain of what is easy. For Esther and Peter...to follow God meant stepping into death, yet they followed and obeyed. "...And if I perish, I perish." 

What a witness and what a life. Ultimately Esther does not perish and in fact she saves her people. Father, thank you for this life and the opportunity to share your love and to be an outpost of your kingdom.

1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

ROMANS 12:1-2

JUNE 21, 2023

“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.” 

― Winston S. Churchill

ESTHER 1-3

19When the virgins were assembled a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate. 20But Esther had kept secret her family background and nationality just as Mordecai had told her to do, for she continued to follow Mordecai’s instructions as she had done when he was bringing her up.

21During the time Mordecai was sitting at the king’s gate, Bigthana^b and Teresh, two of the king’s officers who guarded the doorway, became angry and conspired to assassinate King Xerxes. 22But Mordecai found out about the plot and told Queen Esther, who in turn reported it to the king, giving credit to Mordecai. 23And when the report was investigated and found to be true, the two officials were impaled on poles. All this was recorded in the book of the annals in the presence of the king.(2:19-23)

ACTS 5:1-16

12The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.

JOURNAL 

Mordecai does the right thing and honors God. It does not matter that it is in exile. It does not matter that he has suffered because of others and their disobedience. Mordecai takes in Esther, raises her as his own and then helps to uncover a plot to kill Xerxes. Just because it is the right thing to do. Mordecai is not bitter, or angry or vengeful. 

It is amazing to see how things have turned...Jesus is gone but the spirit is present and the influence of the apostles is gaining momentum. They are healing the sick and performing miracles and people are starting to follow them. I'm sure it had to be surreal...here is Peter who had denied being associated with Jesus, boldly preaching about him and becoming "famous" as a result. 

Great moments often happen when least expected, yet it is the preparation of the heart and mind that leads to those great moments. Often that preparation is from adversity and the lessons learned by experiencing it and getting through it. All the more reason that when adversity comes, to welcome it, for very likely it is preparing the heart and mind for something great. It also is a lesson that mindset is so important, taking on the mindset that everyday is an opportunity for greatness is critical to keep moving forward, staying humble and hungry. 

Time and time again in life, those that have success are ruined by that success. They fail to realize that the winds of change blow suddenly and without warning. Success in life happens before the big moment, it happens in the quiet of the mind, the resolve of the spirit and the persistence of the body. Success is the harvest but the planting, the growing, and the actual success happen long before.

 7Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

HEBREWS 12:7-11