Berean Journeymen

Once some time ago, a prayer was said and an invitation was extended. There was a promise that the sins were forgiven and freedom was the prize. Amazing grace, oh how wonderful such a gift! Oh how blessed to remove the weight of guilt and shame! Why was this path of redemption not chosen sooner…true repentance, where were you?!?

The passing of time did not yield nor stop and initial joy slowly began to level. Time spent in the Word, time spent talking to and listening to God eventually lost its appeal. The early intrigue of following Jesus Christ began to slowly fade. That which was deemed a worthy investment eroded into feeling but a burden. True repentance, where were you?!?

Subtly, primary focus shifted towards ways and days of old…money was to be made, careers were to be grown, castles were to be built, toys were to be enjoyed, and entertainment was to be prioritized. The hunger inside which once looked to Christ alone to satisfy was soon filled with the mirage of activity and worldly things. True repentance, where were you?!?

Subtly, sins of the flesh crawled and crept into the delusion of acceptance. Though deep down known to be wrong, though known to be condemned by Christ, the internal approval grew as the distance from Jesus expanded. His call for holiness was considered too cumbersome, maybe even unnecessary; His commands for humility, honesty, and obedience no longer duly respected. True repentance, where were you?!?

“The Way” seen in the first century was forgotten and in its place, an adulteress. Things of an earthly nature were not put to death and no longer were the ‘chosen’ clothed. Many had the form of godliness but denied its power. The deceit of compromise became the new reality. A new form of “Christianity” emerged that tolerated maintaining the old self corrupted by its deceitful desires. True repentance, where were you?!?

Tolerating…but not really loving others. Twisting…but not really speaking the whole truth in all matters big and small. Curbing…but not really taking captive and making obedient to Christ every thought of greed, lust, and vanity. Justifying…but not controlling anger, gossip, and filthy language. Not only were these characteristics accepted, their prominence defined this new form of “Christianity”; a definition embraced both outside and inside the temple. True repentance, where were you?!?

Faces remained painted at home, at church, at small groups, at bible studies…depth of character, Spirit, and soul were no longer deemed essential. Reverent fear of the Creator was replaced by superficial acceptance by the creation. The Word was heard but not followed; the heavenly rewards simply not valued. Many called themselves “Christian”, but the origin was no longer understood…the meaning virtually meaningless. True repentance, where were you?!?

Though not spoken, the actions insinuated “but what of grace…does it not cover as a blanket?” What claim was this?!? Should sin be permitted because of grace…was grace but a license for apathy towards righteousness? By no means! Slaves are formed according to what they obey — whether slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness…why did so many choose the former? True repentance, where were you?!?

“So, what of grace…if it does not cover?” Perhaps it was forgotten that wrath was spared by the spilling of royal blood and eternal peace was offered by grace. Perhaps it was forgotten that the omnipotent judge was also the author of grace who chose to be compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. Perhaps it was forgotten that the pure spotless lamb was sacrificed to enable the throne to be approached with confidence, so that mercy could be received and grace be found in times of need. Would God’s grace be received in vain? True repentance, where were you?!?

If grace could be received, would it be sought after and embraced? Would the proud become humble so grace could be given, and all the more? Would God’s grace in its various forms be faithfully administered to serve others using whatever gift each has received? Would humility, obedience and trust reign so that grace could abound and provide all that is needed, in all things at all times, in every good work? Would those who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father humble themselves and repent, be sanctified by the Spirit, and become obedient to Jesus Christ such that grace and peace is received in abundance? Would Christianity as it was meant to be from the beginning emerge again? True repentance, come…

Gentlemen,

I would like to invite you to listen to a message by Josh McDowell. I have listed the link below; please take the time to listen to him with a clear heart. He will strike a nerve with you I guarantee it. However I do know that if you go into it with an open heart, that strike will create repentance and you will want to change your way of thinking.

The message that Josh presents is about our children and how we as parents have dropped the ball. Honestly it's true. Parents today, myself included, have really created the society that we live in. We have not taken the stance the God has called us to do and now it seems that we are back peddling to fix what we screwed up.

I was recently talking with a friend of mine who is a senior pastor at a local Baptist church here in town. He was telling me of the sermon series that he is doing this month and it is called the 3 M's. That stands for MODEL, MANAGE, and MEMORIES in regard to raising our children. When he described it to me and with this message (Josh McDowell’s) in mind it really changed the way that I look and act on many things.

We are first to MODEL... We need to live the lives that we want our children to follow. The Bible says that we are to “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. (Prv. 22:6 NKJV)" If all we are doing is giving our children "lip service" what good is that? They are going to seek truth elsewhere and more than likely that "truth" is going to be the word of Satan.

Secondly we are to MANAGE... We need to have a plan in place. The best plan of all is the one that was written by the Holy Spirit; the Bible. If we follow God's word, we cannot go wrong. The problem is that we have taken God's word and instead of applying what the Bible says, we ask ourselves "What does that mean to me?" It's not up for a debate, this is God's word.

Lastly we are to give MEMORIES... We are to discipline in love and fill our children with memories that they will recount in their adulthood. Like memories of daddy praying for no reason other then to just give God praise. Memories of daddy holding the door open for mommy and giving her a kiss and telling her how much she means to him.

When you listen to the message it will make sense… I hope. I pray that this message will change your life as it did mine and the way that I deal with my daughter. Through the illumination of the Holy Spirit in Scripture and this message, God has changed my heart and my thoughts and my relationship has grown noticeably more in the past two weeks with my daughter and my wife.

My Amazing Wife..

As we go through this study by James MacDonald on attitude, I have been convicted on how much I take for granted with my wife. I am convicted of how often I complain, when I should be ever thankful.

Last night the gravity of losing a loved one seemed to hit me, and I realized how thankful I truly am and should be.

My wife is an amazing woman, and I am so blessed to have her in my life. As I reflect on all she does for me and how integral she is in every aspect of my life, I realize how much I've taken her for granted, and not shown my appreciation of her.

This last week I've begun to realized just how much my wife really does. Many of these things are behind the scenes and often go unnoticed, and I'm wrong for not noticing all the little things she does. I realized just how many things just "Happen" around the house, without me doing them. Do you realize how much laundry your household accumulates in a week? How many dishes just magically get wash? How do all the floors just happen to get vacuumed and counters wiped off, and bathrooms cleaned? What about things like watering the plants, and packing lunches for the kids? Who reads all the papers that your kids bring home from school, or makes sure all the homes work is completed and put back in their book bags? Who does all the shopping in your home, for groceries and clothes and medicines, and all the many things we just consume on a daily basis? Who plays more games and reads more books to your children? I cherish my wife, because in our home, she does so many of these things and most times without even a "Thank You" let alone, help from me in relieving her burdens. When I do something like the laundry, or help in the kitchen, or cook, or vacuum floors, I like to feel appreciated, so why would I think that she just does it for the fun of it? Why would I go through so many days in my house without showing my wife how much I appreciate all she does, or striving to help her in someway.

My wife also works with me. She is my partner. She is my greatest ally in my business. My wife has my back and best interest at heart. She wants our company to be a success. She works harder than anyone including myself at her job. Yet, once again, I take her for granted. By working so closely to me, she often has to deal with my wrath, my frustrations, and my poor attitude. She also receives very little rewards for all that she does. She doesn't ask for much, except a kind word, or a thank you, or occasionally acknowledgement of something she does. She like all of us just wants to feel appreciated and encouraged, yet I so often forget to be Thankful for how wonderful and how huge an asset she is to me.

My wife is so much more to me than a great house keeper, and my children's mother, and my partner at work. My wife is my best friend and lover. My wife is someone whom I'd admire for her values, her personality, her talents and creativity, her work ethic and intelligence, her looks and physical appearance, her dedication to God and study of his word, her love and respect of me, our children, and others. Even though I think these things of her daily, my wife needs to hear these things, so I need to make sure I verbalize my love and appreciation for her. I need to pause and make sure my actions back up my words and thoughts of my wife. Do I listen to her? Do I show that I value her and her opinions? Do I acknowledge that she is often right and I am wrong? Do I touch her in a way that lets her know that she is tender and important to me. Do I show her encouragement and lift her up?

Biblically we are one with our wives, and through our short sighted self centered male egos we often forget that when we do not lift our wives up, or make them feel encouraged or loved, or appreciated, we are doing more than just harming them, we are harming ourselves, our relationship with them, and our relationship and God.

I encourage each and every one of you to examine your relationship with your wife. Make sure you are honoring God and your wife in the way you love her and treat her. Take time to reflect on all that your wife may do for you, that you take for granted. Think through the things you have said or done to her in the last day or week or month that may have hurt her or discouraged her or made her feel unimportant. Repent from those things. Seek your wife's forgiveness and start the process of healing and restoring your relationship with your wife. If you have trouble doing these things on your own, reach out to your accountability partner, or a man in your small group, and have them keep you accountable to this task at hand.

Our wives are a precious gift from God, and we need to love them in the way that glorifies our Father, and blesses our marriages.