What's the big deal?

So, every year around the fall season, televisions come alive for a special event, here in the South it's known as "football". Yes, "RTR" and "War Eagle" are very common greetings in the South. What is really humorous is people simply talk to others they don't even know about this sport. Especially, if the conversation can be carried by, "Alabama is going to beat Auburn again in the Iron Bowl..." or "Auburn is going to surprise some people this year". Almost anyone, anywhere, will take up a convo if football is involved. These people have a lot of boldness when they speak of their respected teams too. If there are 4 people involved in the conversation, you better believe all 4 are right in their prediction, and if anyone differs, hang it up. Your immediately no longer part of the group if your for the opposing team. It's quite the entertainment.

However, all this excitement that continues to make "status updates" go overboard in facebook have me thinking about something...(Oh, and John..thanks for letting me borrow some sermon points you used the other day..) Is there any substance behind all this talk? Well, sure everyone wants their team to win! Also, many of us who cheer for their team are Alumni, so when you are in debt up to your eyeballs with student loans, of course, you desire victory. Maybe even some have family ties to the school...and the list goes on. But here's the deal...Every Saturday we wake up entrusting in our athletes for victory, we have the boldness to discuss it with anyone and everyone, we sit in front of the television hours prior to the game to here an examination of the teams from ESPN analysts, and then we become emotionally involved in the game.

Ok, let's take a look at scripture and all those previously bolded words I mentioned:

Scripture: 1 Thess 2:1-12

Bolded words: Entrusting, boldness, examination, and emotionally

Point 1: Entrust

The scriptures begin with Paul saying, "look guys we came to you for a reason, with a purpose, not in vain". Verse 4 says, "for we speak as messengers approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. (my John would insert "GOSPEL" for the words "Good News") This is true. We have been given the Bible, the Gospel, his thoughts, his words, his teachings. Do all of us take pride in having it available to us? I find myself questioning my own question. The Bible is lying around on many coffee tables, many doctors offices, many night stands, but, do we use it as a resource... Remember, I mentioned college football earlier? We trust those players are the best someone can ask for. They are the "cream of the crop", we expect them to play perfectly. However, we can't see each of them perform in practice everyday, we don't know if they have done well or not. Now, we could go watch each player and critique them as they practice the week before a game and probably have a better understanding of how their performance may turn out on Saturday, but without that knowledge, all we do is trust they are putting forth their best effort. Well, when you have access to the Word of God, but don't invest in what your being entrusted with, how will you ever know truth?

Point 2: Boldness

What is it about boldness? Courage, maybe. Verse 2 also says "God has given you the courage, the boldness to speak the Gospel...or Good News." We have no problem sharing opinions in this nation. All of us have them, some proclaim their own louder than others, but whomever is reading this is thinking of something they are passionate about right at this moment. When we are passionate, we are bold. If we are passionate, we are probably knowledgeable, because whatever it is, consumes our thought life. We must first have a desire to seek God's word. Then we will become passionate about him and his words. The authority of Jesus has been given to us, yet, we seem to forget. Entanglement of life's problems and "let downs" consume us until the only thought we have is disappointment. James tells us in Chapter 1 verse 3, "For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow, so let it!" Let God teach you, he has already given you the authority, now allow the Holy Spirit to move in you.

Point 3: Examine

Everyone likes to examine the other football teams plays, yardage, injury list, etc. However, unless your season is perfect, no one likes to call up the "skeletons in the closet." Meaning: your own stats. Is tough. Sometimes it hurts. Maybe it brings about disappointments. A lot of emotions can develop, maybe even some on the positive side. But when examination takes place, weaknesses are revealed. Verse 4 in 1 Thess. Chapter 2 says He, meaning God, examines the motives of our hearts. It's not about someone else's gossip review, it's about one review and opinion: Christ. We should take the responsibility to make sure our words and thoughts are pure. I am human. Of course I don't wake up with a perfect dialogue for the day. We are filthy sinners and find it easy to analyze others. I do it constantly, and probably many of you can relate, especially women, right? But not only do we examine our lives, but what are our motives daily? Why do we do what we do? God knows our hearts. It doesn't matter what our appearance is, how we sound, or the career path we choose, if we are self-seeking it's all going to be done in vain. Emptiness. The thought of this happening is fearful. Don't we all desire for our lives to count? Then, we must become real, and live it out.

Point 4: Emotion

Sorry girls, but something else that plagues us. haha! Kidding. Well kind of. :) We are super emotional creatures. But when is our emotion most evident, when our passion is being attacked. Maybe it's a relationship, career position, etc. Paul states in verses 12 of Chapter 2, "we pleaded with you, we encouraged you, we urged you to live a life pleasing to God...for you are called to share his glory and kingdom." Where is our passion? Clearly, in scripture is our encouragement and challenge. We must believe with our heart. God is real. His word is real. His desire to en-dwell our hearts and change our lives with the Gospel is real. We cannot allow our lives to continue with just an emotional encouragement, apply his words.

Now that I am about to post this...I never look over and read for grammatical errors. Why? Because, I feel the need to change or examine what I have written. I don't want to. So what if I have misspelled a word...the only thing that matters to me is that something I have said massages your heart enough to make you more hungry for the gospel.

I have to say hearing John preach on this scripture helps me to evaluate my life, and challenged me to seek out Christ for my own. It's not about what someone else says, it digging in for your own knowledge and desire to spend time with our God. So thank you John for supplying me with some "points" and I look forward to continually growing in scripture with my God and with you together seeking him...

Exhaustion or Heat? You decide...

Wake up. Shower. Dry my hair...MELT DOWN! I feel as though I am suddenly a missionary in Mexico! Sweating profusely after a nice shower! Where is the DISLIKE button. Currently unavailable I suppose. I am either beginning to have hormonal problems or just realizing that in the South, we have experienced some extremely hot days recently. I finish getting ready, hop in the car, only to find myself looking in the mirror with "caked" eyeshadow and sweating....Not only that, but I am exhausted from trying not to sweat. :) However, last couple days I have caught myself waking up earlier, spreading out the morning routine to prevent having a heat stroke while getting ready. Ok, maybe I am exaggerating! But, it seems to work. A little lag time in between all the morning task is helping me to slow down and not rush so much. Although, I begin thinking, spiritually, I feel as though I may "stroke out". Sometimes I think we become exhausted in trying to "do" so much, when really, I think it may be the heat wearing us down instead of the load. Ok, so this parallel may be difficult. But really, when you are striving and running after your Savior, there comes a time where the chase is tough, but the hotter it is, the more difficult is becomes to keep running. Matthew 11:28-30: "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry a heavy burden and I will give you rest...(29)Let me teach you, because I am gentle and humble at heart, and you will find rest...(30) the burden I give you is light." He simply says, I want lay anything on you that's to heavy, that's to much, if you live for him, he will supply your rest. So, it's not the rush or the load spiritually, its about the condition we are running in. When life seems really complicated and things build one on top of the other, our fight becomes weaker. Our faith is tested. Our emotions are worn. Our words become none existent to the very Father who created our bodies. Why? The heat. The heat of knowing we are running from our Savior. People who get nervous tend to perspire. Just as we do when the conviction of the Lord is on our hearts and lives. We want to fix it quickly. Or hopefully the forecast will change and it will soon be okay to step back onto the track and continue the run. God ask that we are willing, willing to see the beauty of his grace, his provisions for our lives, to be in company with him.It may become fearful, but your Savior is waiting for you to know and believe he controls the thermostat of life. Find yourself running with a load that's bearable, with the faith to survive the unbearable!

Snow, Snow, Snow!

These last few days I have been reminded of how happy I am that I didn't choose the profession of a "weather woman", ok ok ok, a meteorologist. The science that deals with a phenomena of the atmosphere. Yes, this is what the poor weather people are faced with everyday, predicting an actual phenomena of the atmosphere. We stick our nose to the glass window anticipating a drop of God's sprinkle dust, yet, when it doesn't appear like the firey bush, we flip out and blame it on the poor, worn down individual across a television screen. When I looked up the definition of phenomena this is what I came up with compliments of dictionary.net: "That which strikes one as strange, unusual or and extraordinary or very remarkable person or thing, or occurrence". It is a strange occurrence when we expect snow down south, it is unusual to see someone's drool seeping down the window like a 3 year old had just christened it with slobber? However, when the blanket of snow arrives, it is extraordinary. Immediately, everyone who has a cell phone or camera begins to take pictures until an argument breaks out because the photographer won't delete the picture of you that's terrible!

But when it comes down to it, what's the root of why people desire snow? Is it because it truly is a phenomena to some people? Do some of you just enjoy playing and building snowmen? Do some just desire a new facebook picture? What's the motive behind loving and desiring snow?

I was reading Hebrews 10:23 tonight. Yes, just that one verse. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful"-New American Standard or my favorite translation New Living Translation said, "Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise."

I begin to parallel the desire for snow with desire for God. Going back to the definition of phenomena, the words like extraordinary, unusual, or very remarkable person or thing, and I begin to think of our creator. The previous words describe characteristics of our Savior. I am not speaking of a religion, to me, thats preference, not a relationship. I am speaking of the romance of God (had to say it that way, it's Valentines Day!) No really, the unusual characteristics of God, a perfect man who sacrificed his life for us. The unusual, extraordinary, remarkable that someone would do that for us. He blanketed us with his blood, so we would be covered for life, (remember in Exodus 12, during the passover, he asked them to present a offering, a lamb, smearing the blood on the doorpost so he would pass over them). But do we follow, look and anticipate God enough to make people notice our rich desire to be madly in love with him? It doesn't have to be something vocal, it somewhat offends people today to "bible beat" them. (Am I saying you should never share about Christ vocally, NO, but it should be ordained by him and not pushing it down someone's throat). Just as the passover night, the people were to obey his commands. We will RUN like hyena's if they predict snow to get bread and milk...but do we run to our Father when there is trouble in the future, or even when it becomes present day? I feel God desires our hearts to be pressed against his. The type of longing when minutes turn to hours, small prayer turns into a broken vessel begging for a friends salvation, or maybe instead of a "so-I-can-tell-everyone-I-had-a" quiet time it turns into a secret conversation between you and your creator.

Epaggello: the greek word for "promise" or "profess"

or

Elpis: the hope for or expectation

Will these two greek words be ten dollar words for promise/profess or hope/expectation?

Both were used in the original scripture writing translated from the greek.

I challenge myself and you to consider being as adamant for your Savior as you are for God's sprinkle dust...

Captivated,

Devin