Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Lord, reveal to me the end of my life and the number of my days. Let me know how transitory I am.” Psalm 39:4 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Don’t be a practical atheist.”

 

C.S. Lewis once wrote, “If you read history you will find that Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most about the next. It is because Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this one.”

 

Many of us live like practical atheists. An atheist is a person who does not believe in God or an afterlife. However the term “practical atheist” refers to a person who does believe in God, and who does believe in eternal life, but who, in the actual practice of daily life, acts as if this life is all there is. This is what C.S. Lewis was referring to.

 

To be fair, rather than being true practical atheists, more often we do give a passing nod to God and to the practice of our faith – but that’s all. For many Christians, even on their best days, their faith plays only a small part in daily life. Instead we are focused on jobs, family matters, paying bills, playing at our hobbies, engaging in recreational activities, and all the other things that fill our lives every day, pretty much from the moment we wake up until the moment we fall exhausted into bed at night.

 

But God is real and this life is not all there is. The Psalmist wrote in Psalm 39:4-7 that compared to eternity, the span of our life is essentially a puff of smoke, a blip on the radar screen of eternity. It is here for a moment and then gone. And all the things we filled our days with, the stress and anxiety of work, the worries about finances, the wasted hours in front of the television, in the end it will all have counted for little or nothing.

 

That doesn’t mean that we don’t have to pay attention to the things of life. We do. The Bible is clear (especially in the Proverbs of Solomon and in the letters of Paul) that we are to be conscientious and diligent as we pay attention to the things that are our responsibilities. We are to be a good spouse, a good parent, a good employee, and a good friend. We do have to give time and attention to the important realities of daily life. But we must never lose sight of the truth that this short life is leading us to an eternal destiny.

 

As has been discussed in previous days, our faith must be the core of our being, the unifying factor which draws all the rest of life towards the center where Christ sits on the throne of our heart and rules and reigns over our life.

 

You know that this life is not all there is. You also know that when your days are done and your last breath has been drawn that you will pass into eternity. So don’t be a practical atheist. Live today like someone who is on their way to a great eternal destiny.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Seek spiritual formation.”

 

Yesterday I introduced you to Joel Warne’s great little book “The Intimate Journey: God in the daily adventure”. I met Joel in 2004 at a conference in Los Angeles sponsored by the Renovere Institute for Spiritual Formation. As I mentioned in a previous devotional this month, a primary theme at that conference was the concept of “Christian Wholeness”, or becoming a person who is healthy and balanced in all the important ways.

 

But the primary mission of the Renovere Institute is the promotion of the practice of spiritual formation. The Holy Spirit is always in the process of “forming” us spiritually. That’s what Paul wrote about in 2 Corinthians 4:16 – inwardly we are being renewed and transformed day by day. That’s spiritual formation taking place and it’s the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives which brings about that spiritual formation in us.

 

As spiritual formation takes place our faith becomes stronger and it becomes the dominate influence in our lives. As I noted yesterday, ideally, as we grow in our relationship with Christ rather than our relationship with Him just being a piece of our lives that is in competition with the other pieces, it becomes the thread that is woven all throughout our lives and which draws all the other pieces together. Our faith in Christ becomes the integrating factor that permeates every aspect of our life, it draws all the pieces of life together into a unified whole, and creates a life which is ruled over by Christ.

 

That’s what spiritual formation achieves and that is the subject of Joel’s book. He writes, “What if faith meant a transforming relationship with Someone who consistently breathed life and meaning into everything He touched? What if faith was a heart to Heart relationship with Someone who knew me deeply, accepted me totally, and had the power to increasingly restore my fragmented soul?… Such a permeating intimacy with God is the goal of spiritual formation.”

 

I want to stress again this morning that a healthy balance in life does not mean that our faith, and the practice of it, is one of the pieces that we need to find room for among all the other pieces of life. Instead our lives will be properly balanced when our faith in Christ becomes the unifying factor that permeates all of life, and which draws all the other elements of life into proper alignment around the throne of our heart where Christ sits and reigns.

 

I encourage you to be committed to the process of spiritual formation. Do the things everyday which place you in a position before God whereby He can bring about that inward transformation in you. Nothing you do will have a more positive impact on your life.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:36 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Keep Jesus on the throne in your heart.”

 

It dawned on me this morning that I need to offer a word of clarification regarding the issue of balance in life. In a previous devotional I noted that the four components which make-up our being as a person are the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. I then stated that we need to pay proper attention to all four of those components in order to have a healthy and balanced life.

 

That’s true with respect to structuring our lives and allotting our time. We need to be sure we’re making the time to take care of ourselves in each of those four key areas. However, I did not mean to suggest that all four components are equally important. They are not. The physical, mental, and emotional don’t even begin to compare in significance and importance to the spiritual. They are all interconnected, and each does impact the other, but the other three not equal in importance to the spiritual. Jesus has to be on the throne of our heart; our relationship with Him must be the foundation upon which everything else is built; He must be the center around which everything else revolves.

 

In his book “The Intimate Journey” author Joel Warne explained this truth beautifully when he wrote, “I don’t need another separate piece called ‘religion’ to try to balance among them. Instead, I need an integrating faith, one that infuses all the individual pieces of my life with a unifying spirit, tone, and direction; a faith that is the focus and springboard of my life. I need an experience of God that speaks to my fractured soul, like Jesus spoke to the ill woman, ‘your faith has headed you. Go in peace.’ A permeating relationship like that is certainly what God has in mind.”

 

Yes. Our relationship with Jesus must be at the center of our being and everything else in life must be influenced by it. And beyond that, as Joel noted above, our strong faith in Christ must permeate and infuse all the rest of life. More than just being a piece of life that is balanced against the other pieces, our relationship with Christ infuses, impacts, and influences all other parts of life.

 

When it comes to structuring our lives and carving out sufficient time for all the most important things, it’s true that the practice of our faith must necessarily take a place along with sleep and school and work and family activities etc. That’s just the reality of life in the physical world. Unless you’re a monk in a monastery who does nothing all day except pray, read the Bible, and chant in the cathedral, there has to be room for many other things too. But that doesn’t mean those other things are equal to the spiritual, or as important as your relationship with Christ. They are not.

 

As Paul so succinctly stated in Romans 11:36, Christ is the center. Everything else in life comes from Him and must be in subjection to Him.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Anyone finding his life will lose it, and anyone losing his life because of Me, will find it.” Matthew 10:39 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Find your true self in Jesus.”

 

On the face of it Jesus’ statement in Matthew 10:39 seems paradoxical and confusing. If you find your life you will lose it, but if you lose your life for Him then you will find it. What could He mean? And what could that have to do with our theme of “balance”?

 

Through my ministry to people struggling with substance abuse issues I came across a study Bible that I like a lot and which I use often, both in my ministry to addicts and in my own personal study. It’s called “The Life Recovery Bible”. In addition to providing an accurate translation of the entire Bible in contemporary and therefore easy to understand language, this study Bible also includes plenty of editorial comments and sidebars that provide additional insight which is helpful to those who are trying to break free from addiction. Here’s the editorial comment that helps explain Jesus’ meaning in Matthew 10:39:

 

“The only way to find life (and get control of it) is to submit to God through Jesus Christ. Living for self, we become a slave to material success, work, alcohol, illicit sex, or any number of other destructive behaviors. We have lost control of our life and are in trouble. By turning to Jesus, we allow him to cleanse us of our addiction and show us the way to real life – a life free of any destructive dependency. As we obey God, we will find meaning in our present life and eternal peace with God.”

 

So there we go – basing our life in the things of this world results in losing it. Finding ourselves in Jesus, and making Him the foundation and the center of our life, enables us to discover our true self and to become the man or women that He intends for us to be.

 

Many years ago I came across a great little book by David Brenner entitled “The Gift of Being Yourself”. I love the title because it so accurately describes what Jesus does for us – He gives us the gift of simply being ourselves. You don’t need to stress and strive trying to be something you’re not in order to please others. That’s not success and it certainly is not what the Lord is calling you too. Instead He calls you to find your identity and your sense of worth in your relationship with Him. It’s when we settle down, focus on Jesus, and lose ourselves in our relationship with Him, that we discover our true selves. Jesus brings that out in us.

 

By losing yourself in God you discover your true identity. That’s what Jesus meant and that’s what He is calling you to. Focus on your relationship with Him and all the other pieces of life will fall into place.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.” 1 Corinthians 9:27 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Balance requires discipline.”

 

Discipline is a word we don’t like much. It suggests punishment, as in punishing a child for inappropriate behavior. At least, that’s usually the first meaning of discipline that comes to the minds of most people when they hear the word.

 

But actually, “punishment intended to correct inappropriate behavior” is only the fourth meaning of the word listed in the dictionary. “Training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behavior” is the first one. “Controlled behavior resulting from such training” is the second. Third comes, “A state of order based on submission to rules and authority.”

 

Discipline, as a voluntary form of behavior modification intended to produce new character traits or improved patterns of living, is actually a good thing and should not be thought of in negative terms. This is the way Paul was using the term in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27:

 

“Do you not know that the runners in a stadium all race, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything. However, they do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Therefore I do not run like one who runs aimlessly, or box like one who beats the air. Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”

 

Those who succeed at anything in life do so because they have disciplined themselves to do the things necessary to succeed in that area. That’s true whether we’re talking about an athlete, a student, a musician, or a car mechanic.

 

So what does this have to do with our theme of “balance”? Just that achieving a good balance in all the important areas of our lives is going to take discipline. Almost always it requires behavior modification. It will take a change in behavioral patterns, and that takes time and effort. But that’s okay. Anything worthwhile always takes time and effort – and discipline – to achieve.

 

As you continue working to achieve and maintain a healthy balance in the important areas of your life, I encourage you to stick with it. It will take time, and it will take effort, but stay focused and disciplined. In time you will develop new patterns of behavior and that will become the new normal for you.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.” Psalm 23:2 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Take time for a retreat.”

 

On the table next to my recliner I have a book of the speeches of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Every once in a while I open it and read one of the speeches. Justice Scalia is fondly remembered as having been a staunch defender of the Constitution and a reliable conservative voice on the Supreme Court. But there was much more to his life than just his legal career. He was frequently invited to give speeches to many different groups on a wide variety of topics including law and justice, virtue and the public good, living and learning, life in America, heroes and friends, and on matters of faith.

 

Scalia was a good natured, jovial Italian who loved music, hunting, sports, and people. He had a terrific sense of humor and he loved to tell jokes and witty stories. He was also a man of strong Christian faith who committed much time and effort to the practice of his faith. And, he encouraged others to be strong in their faith as well. After graduating from High School, Scalia gave serious thought to enrolling in a Catholic seminary and spending his life as a Jesuit Priest. Eventually he decided against that because, “I realized I had other talents that needed to be utilized, not the least of which was my ability to procreate.” (Priests must take a lifelong vow of celibacy but Scalia concluded that was not for him. Instead he got married and had nine children).

 

When it came to the practice of his faith, Justice Scalia was convinced of the value of taking a periodic spiritual retreat. In 1998 he was invited to speak to a group of Christian students at his alma mater, Georgetown University, and he used the opportunity to describe his habit of taking an annual spiritual retreat. He encouraged the students to do so as well. At one point in his speech he told the students:

 

“Any person who believes in the transcendental has to go on a retreat periodically, because the world believes in the pragmatic rather than the transcendental, and you will lose your soul (that is to say, forget what and who you are) if you do not get away from the noise now and then to think about First Things. In the Gospels, of course, Jesus is constantly going off by himself; and he doubtless needed it less than we do.”

 

I agree with Scalia about the importance of a spiritual retreat to contemplate “First Things”, so we don’t lose our souls (forget who and what we are and what should really be most important in our lives.) A spiritual retreat can be as elaborate as a week or more in a remote Christian camp, or as simple as a day or two alone somewhere. A Sunday morning worship service can also serve as a form of retreat, in that it helps us to step away from the rest of life for at least an hour or two and to focus instead on what Scalia referred to as “First Things” and what you and I would probably term the things of God and heaven.

 

I encourage you to schedule a spiritual retreat for yourself in 2018. In the meantime, I hope to see you at church this Sunday.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable – if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise, dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Control your thoughts and emotions.”

 

Dr. Gary Habermas is a Christian and he is the Chairman of the Department of Philosophy at Liberty University. In a research paper on the importance of exercising positive control over our thoughts and emotions Dr. Habermas wrote:

 

“The most painful things in life are not generally what occurs to us but what we think and articulate to ourselves about those occurrences. Thus, it is not so much the events in our lives but rather how we download and respond to them that determine whether we are able to adjust and live peacefully, with minimal pain and stress.”

 

He was writing about the old truism “You may not have control over everything that happens to you, but you do have control over how you respond to what happens to you.” In other words, how we allow ourselves to think about things, and what our emotional response to them is, determines what we will say and do with respect to that occurrence, as well as how we will remember it and how we will continue to think about it.

 

We are responsible for our thoughts and emotions and we can control them. This is critical because if your thoughts are wrong and if your emotions are unstable, your response to people and situations will be flawed. It also will not be helpful and it will not be in your own best interest. You will say things you shouldn’t say, you will make decisions you will regret, and you will take actions that produce consequences you really didn’t want. If you allow yourself to respond based upon emotion rather than reason, you are headed for trouble. And if that is your normal way of thinking and responding, yours will be a life of continual conflict, heartache, and disappointments.

 

Paul’s point in Philippians 4:8 (confirmed by the research of Dr. Habermas and many others) is that we can learn to control our thoughts and our emotions – and we must.

A balanced person is mentally rational and emotionally stable.

 

I encourage you to ask God to help you to honestly assess yourself in this area of thoughts, perceptions, and emotions, and then invite Him to bring about any needed changes in your mental and emotional life.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “(For my determined purpose is) that I may know Him – that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding (the wonders of His person) more strongly and more clearly.” Philippians 3:10 (Amplified Bible)

 

Our thought for today: “Go deep with God”

 

Yesterday I made the case that in order to have a life that is truly healthy and balanced in all the right ways, we have to start with God. A deep and healthy relationship with God is the foundation upon which a balanced and healthy life must be built. I want to continue thinking about that today.

 

Probably my favorite book of all time regarding the pursuit of a deeper relationship with the Lord is a tiny volume called “Intimacy with the Almighty” by Chuck Swindoll. He writes:

 

“Deep things are intriguing. Deep jungles. Deep water. Deep caves and canyons. Deep thoughts and conversations. There is nothing like depth to make us dissatisfied with superficial, shallow things. Once we have delved below the surface and had a taste of the marvels and mysteries of the deep, we realize the value of taking the time and going to the trouble of plumbing those depths. This is especially true in the spiritual realm. God invites us to go deeper rather than to be content with surface matters.”

 

That’s what Paul was writing about in Philippians 3:10. He wanted more of God. He wanted to know God and experience Him at a very deep level. But getting to experience God like that takes time and effort on our parts. We have to want it and we have to work for it. Swindoll goes on:

 

“Clearly, our Lord operates in realms far beyond our ability to comprehend, but He longs for us to explore and experience that which is beyond the obvious. Some of His best truths, like priceless treasures, are hidden in depths most folks never take the time to search out. Our loss! Patiently and graciously He waits to reveal insights and dimensions of truth to those who care enough to probe, to examine, to ponder.”

 

This morning I want to challenge each of us to consider how deep our relationship with the Lord really is. Have we become content with superficial experience and mere cultural Christianity? Or, like Paul, do we yearn and thirst for more of God, and are we willing to invest the time and put forth the effort to meet Him in deeper places? I want to encourage you to go deep with God. It takes time. It takes effort. But you will discover it was well worth it.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear the Lord your God by walking in all His ways, to love Him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul? Keep the Lord’s commands and statutes I am giving you today, for your own good.” Deuteronomy 10:12-13 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Start with God and go from there.”

 

Living a life that’s balanced and healthy in all the important ways starts with God and then we go from there. And the good news is that’s it’s not that hard. That’s what Moses was telling the Israelites in Deuteronomy 10:12-13. Essentially he said, “Get your hearts right. Love God, worship Him, and obey His commands. It’s no more complicated than that and it’s for your own good.”

 

There’s a lot of wisdom contained in those two verses from Moses. This is the starting place for getting it right in life. Love God, walk closely with Him every day, obey Him, and build the rest of your life on that firm foundation. It seems so simple and yet so many of us mess this up. We get so busy with other things that we neglect our relationship with the Lord. Or we engage in behaviors that are contrary to His commands and then we rationalize our conduct and attempt to explain it away.

 

When I visit and counsel with young men in the jails and prisons, young men who have become entangled in a life of drugs and crime, this is the lesson I try to get through to them first and foremost. If they will establish the firm foundation of a good relationship with God, then build the rest of life on that, the other pieces of life will fall into place. But if they continue living far from God and in disobedience to His commands, they will just keep getting more of what they already have – a life of addiction, crime, and incarceration.

 

You may not be in such a desperate life situation. Perhaps drug addiction, crime, and incarceration does not describe what you’re experiencing in life right now. But are you overly busy, tired and stressed, struggling in relationships, in deep debt, depressed, or feeling overwhelmed with other life situations? If so, the first thing you want to check is where you’re at with the Lord. How good is your relationship with Him? How obedient are you to His commands?

 

Being in a good and healthy relationship with God doesn’t necessarily eliminate the challenges of life – it just strengthens us and enables us to handle them better. When it comes to building and maintaining a life that is balanced and healthy, we must start with God and then go from there.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” Isaiah 46:4 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “God will take care of you.”

 

In yesterday’s devotional I made the point that although we should take reasonable steps to prepare for the future, we should not obsess about it to the point of allowing our concern for the future to get our life out of balance. Worse still, sometimes an obsessive concern for the future can deter us from following where God is leading. This is something Linda and I had to come to terms with almost twenty-five years ago.

 

In 1993, as my career in the Navy was drawing to a close and I was preparing for the next season of life, I knew the Lord was calling me into full-time professional ministry. At that time I didn’t have a clear vision of what that ministry would entail, but I knew He was calling me into ministry and I knew I needed to go to seminary. So I took a low-paying job with the Department of Defense working as a Family Counselor on Naval Station San Diego, and I went to seminary at night.

 

I have to admit, especially as my seminary education was nearing an end, I had visions of grandeur. I envisioned a future of being the pastor of some fine large church with hundreds, perhaps thousands of members. But the Lord had a different plan. My years of ministry have actually been in small churches, with a few years in the middle on the staff of a small mission agency.

 

Financially speaking those were mostly lean years. It was small ministry with small incomes. But through almost twenty-five years of such ministry God has always taken good care of us. While we haven’t owned expensive cars and motor homes, we have always been comfortable and well cared for. He truly has been “the God of all provision” for us. And His past faithfulness gives us great comfort and peace about the future. Now that the old age and grey hairs referred to in Isaiah 46:4 are here for us, we have peace and assurance about the future.

 

Also, the older we’ve gotten the more we have come to appreciate the value of a simple life. Having a smaller home to maintain, fewer possessions to take care of, and minimal financial obligations that must be met, allows a person to focus instead on people, on ministry, and on enjoyable activities. This isn’t a lesson just for old age either. It’s one I wish we had learned and practiced much sooner. There’s a lot to be said for a life of simplicity and moderation.

 

Often we become so fixated on our own visions of what we believe the future should look like (and what we want it to be), that it gets us off track and out of balance. Jesus’ concluding promise in Matthew 6:25-34 (The “do not worry” passage of the Sermon on the Mount), is great advice for all of life: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” You focus on God and on His people, and God will take care of you.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim