Life on the Narrow Road

The Journey of a Christ Follower

Choose Jesus : What a World We Live In

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The World we Live In

Will you choose Jesus? I say what a world we live in these days!

Honestly though, if we were to take a deeper dive into the times of old, we would probably be shocked to realize that evil still existed.

I want to take some time today to be real with you all. To remind every Christ Follower who walks this earth that God is Still Ruler! (Colossians 1:15-18)

As we enter into a time when everyone will cast a ballot and according to most people, choose a side. I want to remind us all of Matthew 12:30, we are either for God or we are against. And the hard truth that we all need to hear and have heard is that we all were against Christ at a point. That is why He sent His Son Jesus to die for all our iniquities. (Isaiah 53:5-6)

I want to do two things in this blog. First, I want to challenge each of us to really consider whether or not we are putting our hope and trust in Jesus or something else. Secondly, I want to encourage each and every one of you to take a step back. I know that is hard.

Is Your Trust in Jesus?

Ok let’s start with that first thing. Answer this, where is your trust? Do not just blindly answer that. Genuinely think about it and then answer. I can honestly say for the longest time I have put my trust in myself. I have pushed others and more importantly Christ to the side. Thinking that no one cares or trying to not put any burden on someone else. But the truth is God does care and He must be the one we trust above all other things. (Proverbs 3:5)

So maybe you are putting your trust in a person or a thing, or maybe like me, in yourself. But why? The simple answer is that we all are fleshly, sinful humans. We desire what we want, above the things Christ lays out for us. (ALL of Galatians 5, seriously read it all!) I look out and I see so much evil on every side of the playing field. I see Christians who forget that we serve ONE TRUE KING! And then there are other Christians who are trying to be accepting of everyone at the expense of truth. (Ephesians 2:1-10)

Look, more than anything I get that we can get irritated and frustrated at each other and our opinions, but when will we learn to listen to each other? And I say that truthfully, but never at the expense of truth. I mean when was the last time you disagreed with someone and sat down with them lovingly and talked it through? (Philippians 2:3)  And before you ask, yes I know some people are so stuck in their way that they won’t listen or be willing to sit down and talk….BE THE BIGGER PERSON STILL AND LOVE UNCONDITIONALLY! (1st Corinthians 13:4-13)

Entitlement

One thing I do need to add to this and it is convicting to the core. Anybody who is between the ages of 18 and 30 I want you to hear this. All of us have become ENTITLED! We think we can conquer this world and be the change. We think this world owes us something. All of this is false.

Words of wisdom from those older than me, take a step back and listen to the wisdom of those older than you.

No this doesn’t always mean they are right, but often times our young minds miss the big picture and get all caught up in everything that we miss the truth. In Job 12:12 he says, “Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days.” God is the beginning of all things and is the one from whom True Wisdom and understanding flow. Just open His Word!

Take a Step Back

Alright, let us hit the second thing. I want us all to take a step back. From our opinions and from ourselves. And I want to challenge each of us to lay it aside and get down on two knees and ask the Lord to realign our lives back to Him. Because the truth is, we have fallen away from that.

I want to make two pleas, one too Christ-Followers and the other to those who do not know Christ.

Plea to the Christian

Christ followers, where is your trust? Have you forgotten the one who saved you from your wickedness? (Philippians 2:5-11) When will we put this anger and entitlement aside and learn to walk in love? We are not a beacon of hope to the lost, when we are yelling and screaming at any who oppose us. Often, we forget that we need to share the Gospel with them, not our opinion. Truth matters above all things. So, when you see a fellow Christian or non-Christian who is walking in sin and flesh and not truth, then proclaim the truth of God’s Word! In Philippians 2:12-18 we see how the Philippians were called to be a light to the world. A world described as crooked and wicked, just like todays world. The call in these verses is to hold fast to the word of life (God’s Word) and do things without grumbling and disputing.

Will YOU do that? Will you trust God and obey His Word?

Plea to Non-Christians

Non-Christians, my plea to you is to hear the truth of the Gospel. Yes, you are loved beyond all understanding. Loved so much that King Jesus died on a cross for our sins. (Our sins, meaning all of us, because as Romans 3:23 says, “we all sin and fall short of the Glory of God”.) But I would not be very loving if I did not warn you of the truth that if you live in sin then you will be sentenced to eternal damnation. And I ABSOLUTELY don’t want that for anybody! I cannot bear the thought that so many people don’t have a relationship with Christ. That is all I want for you. The Hope that is found in God far exceeds anything that you or I have. We are called to let go of ourselves and turn to Jesus. Go read Romans 10:5-13 and chew on it. I beg you to accept the One who loves you more than anything. Turn away from your wickedness. Ask questions, be curious, because you are loved, and I refuse to lay down and give up. This truth is worth fighting for.

WILL YOU CHOOSE JESUS?

Alright so for now that is all I have, but I would encourage all of us to think about this stuff and read the scriptures. The reason I wrote this blog wasn’t to get my opinion across, but to express the convictions I have had in my life.

This world is going crazy, but will You Choose Jesus ABOVE all other names???

It Has Been A Year

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It has been a year, a year since I last wrote on this site! A year of immense and overwhelming change. Time has seemed to move even faster than ever before and all I can think about is…well honestly, I don’t even know anymore. I am not even sure if anyone reads these things anymore. But I promised myself I would continue to write and even though I don’t write catchy stuff or have the best English skills, I want to write.

1 Year Ago

I started this website a few years ago with the sole intention of proclaiming the Gospel, but I can’t do that the way I thought I could. As we read in Hebrews 5:11-14, I am like the infant who still needs milk. I teach kids at Sunday school who know more about the Bible than I do, and yes that hurts me! I have lived the better half of my life proclaiming a truth that I didn’t invest my all in all in! God commands us to take up our cross daily, read that in Matthew 16:24, but I have lived my life doing that whenever I feel like it. I also haven’t once thought about denying myself, which is the first part of that verse. One of the scariest things is writing this knowing that anyone in the world can read this. There is so much I could flood out to you all right now, I mean it has been a year after all, but I want to key in on two things to tie this all together.

God is Faithful

The first thing is God’s Faithfulness, and if you know me then you know that this is a big deal in my life. For one I have seen how God has relentlessly pursued me even when I have run far from Him. Also, I have seen Him continuously at work in my life and even though it has taken me time to see it, He has always been there. I get choked up about all the time, because I don’t deserve to be loved and cared for the way He does, and that is ALL GLORY TO HIM! Even today, the day that I am writing this, has not been the best. I did not read His word once today, until I started writing this. I did my own thing today. Even though I chose my way He reminded me as I was out and about that my way is not sufficient and He will not leave me. We read all throughout scripture of men and women who God’s Faithfulness was displayed a hundred-fold in their lives, but can you name me one that He gave up on and didn’t pursue? The answer to that is NO! God pursued the men who lived for themselves and gave into sin, like David or Abraham. He pursued women who were prostitutes. He pursued and saved Paul who murdered those who were the body of Christ. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you have done, God’s Faithfulness and Power reach far beyond that. Which leads me into my second thing…

The Glorious Gospel

 I am not worthy; I am not good…but GOD IS! Many people would and will read this and try to say, Oh Zach, you are an amazing guy, don’t say those things about yourself. Didn’t you know God says you are worthy and you are good? That isn’t true though and we live in a society that says that and all it does is demean the Creator of this World and the Words He has Said. I have failed miserably at praising the Lord daily for who He is and all that He does. Because it wasn’t me that took on the sins of all and died on that cross, it was Jesus. I couldn’t do that, because I am the wretched, messed up sinner that He died for on that cross. Every single person who is reading this, hear that and if you don’t believe me go get a Bible and read all of Matthew 27 and 28. Jesus died for you and not because you are good or worthy, but because you are a sinner. There is hope in all of this though, because we don’t have to earn this, it is the free gift of grace that we receive this GOOD NEWS.  What Gods Word tells us to do, ( and hint, it isn’t some special prayer) is to repent and believe. Here are some scripture references for you.

( Mark 1:15; Matthew 4:17; Romans 10:9; Ephesians 2:8; John 3:16, I could go on and on, but you should start there.)

Where to Now, a New Year…Kind of

So all of this being said, and I didn’t even get into all the virus stuff. I want you all to know that I write not for my voice to be heard or for some pitty party. I write to Proclaim the Beautiful Truth of the Gospel. Maybe I am slow with it all and I know I have some spiritual maturing to undergo. But I will not stop telling of this Glorious Gospel. I won’t stop showing how God is Faithful. There will be ups and downs just like always as I write, but I understand that I can’t make those things the primary thing. The primary thing must always be God and His Word and the GOOD NEWS!

BEhind Enemy Lines

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Behind Enemy Lines Why Am I A Target?

Behind enemy lines, is this a place you find yourself? If you were to ask me what it’s like to have the biggest target on my back, I would say bluntly, it sucks! Not only does Satan enjoy taking aim at my target, but it seems like “everyone” around me uses me as target practice! Honestly, most of the time I don’t blame them. I’m not fully confident how I created this target, but writing is the only way I know how to express what is happening! I have been trying so hard to smile and be joyful, but I constantly keep finding myself “behind enemy lines.”

Satan Lies and Warfare

What are the biggest lies the enemy or people have made you believe? This is hard to share, but I have a couple! First, Satan has continuously made me believe that God looks at me and sees a disgrace! I’m confident there is not one human who feels like a complete failure on the level in which I do. Secondly, (and this one has been eating me alive lately) is the lie that my friends are just my friends because they feel bad for me! I often wonder why any of them want me as their friend. Is it because everyone needs that one friend who is easy to make fun of, but who will seemingly never get angry about it? Or is it because I truly mean something to you? I long to be cared for as a friend, not used as a friend!

BE Just BE

I recently wrote this short blip called BE and would like to share it with you.

BE who God made you to be

BE the Man He calls you to be

BE the smile in the room

BE the Kind and Caring one

BE the thoughtful one

BE the Servant

BE the obedient child

BE the loving brother

BE the friend who is unlike any other friend

Always BE, don’t not be!

Time to Escape

How am I supposed to escape from behind enemy lines now? I’ve found myself in a place that feels like…well, a dark cold room, in an enemy camp! It really isn’t any fun and fighting against it with joy is mentally exhausting. Ultimately, I know I must trust Christ! He is able to destroy these lies, He is able to free me from behind enemy lines and without Him I don’t know where I would be. I don’t know where any of you are in life, but here is a simple yet profound reminder for you! Words affect more powerfully than you can ever possibly imagine, BE MINDFUL and BE CAREFUL!

A Second Chance

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A Second Chance, can you think of a time where you messed up or wronged someone and God gave you a second chance? Life is full of second chances and ultimately this in my life is a demonstration of God’s forgiveness! I can’t even begin to fathom the times God has given me a second chance even though I didn’t deserve it! Honestly, I have many times asked God why? Why God do You even give me a second chance? I don’t deserve it! I can’t claim to know how your story has unfolded. All I know to do is pour myself out so we all can grow.

The big question is, Zach how has God given you a second chance? I can’t get specific right now, but for me it has ranged from relationships to sin issues! What I can say about them is that God saw me in my darkest and most ugly moments and continually He said I FORGIVE you! We all have these personal things we hold close aka OUR SCARS! I don’t believe our scars define us, but I do believe they serve a purpose, for us to grow. Like all scars, they heal and that is where we must trust Jesus to heal! Thing is, I could regret all these things I have done, but truthfully, I wouldn’t change one of them. They have made me who I am today!

Where do we go from here? We have a couple choices! First, we can put our full trust in Jesus and embrace His good gift of forgiveness and a second chance! Or we can run from Jesus and decide to choose our own path! I can’t tell you which path to choose, it’s your choice, but I hope that you will think about it. Our first inclination is to run away in fear! I know this because I have done it over and over. I can guarantee you though that nothing feels quite as amazing as the forgiveness and second chance that King Jesus gives! Take it or leave it, it is your choice, but I serve a God who is Just, and He gives us a hope and ultimately a Second Chance! HE loves you and wants you to know Him!

An Unlikely Friend

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No, this isn’t about a person, but it probably could be in many ways. Since I have so many amazing people in my life that mean the world to me. However, this is all about driving and running. I am laughing a little as I write this, because a few years ago these two were not my thing at all. It baffles me that the Lord uses the unlikely as a way for me to find some peace in my life. I believe that I have learned more in my time of feeling lost than I have in any other situation before. What I have learned through these moments in time have all been in my time of need.

So why am I writing about this now? Well, over the past year or so I have found myself in some serious mental warfare. Especially over the past few months, it has felt like a serious bombardment in my life. This is the part that gets me, I was exceedingly frightened of driving and way to lazy to even think of running. Now suddenly it is those two very things that I find a mysterious peace from God in. I will hop into the car, roll the windows down, turn the music up and then just GO! This morning I woke up with some extreme mental warfare and so when I got home, I put in the earbuds and went running. I don’t think I once got lost, in the head that is, all I did was keep running.

I asked myself before writing this, what is it about these two things that make me want to do them more? The obvious is the fact that the Lord is using them as a way for peace. Secondly, I find so much freedom in them. In the car I will sing with all I have got, without a single care of what people might think. Running might become a big deal to me. Often I want to run, run from people, run from fear and run from whatever seems to be chasing me. Now I can go run where the only thing running after me is Christ and the fact that He is with me through everything and that He won’t stop running after us is AWEMAZING! The thing is God is to work in each of our lives differently, but to us ALL He will be the true Peace Giver.

Let Us Not Forget Friends : The Good News

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Let us not forget friends…The Good News!

I have absolutely no script for this blog, so please take this with a grain of salt. However, I want nothing more than for everyone to hear me out.

Have We Forgotten

We all see how this world is seemingly growing more and more evil. I watch as the Bible and its TRUTH’s are being forgotten! People all around the world are forgetting the foundations of history that once were treasured! We get more excited about our sports team winning than we do the Salvation of a new soul! Life has become selfish, and I am serious take a deeper look at your life and tell me it isn’t true. And for my sake don’t point out that one time you helped someone out. (As a quick reminder, there is nothing you or I could do to be saved, it is a gift of God. Read all of Ephesians 2!)

At what point do we remember?

When will our eyes be open again?

Right now, there are a lot of shut eyes and it is sad, and the truth is, to answer those questions above, for many NEVER! We read in Ephesians 4:18-19, how for many Gentiles they walked with a hard heart. The were ignorant, they ran after themselves, not the Goodness of Jesus! It should break the hearts of every believer to see so much evil everywhere, but what do we do? (this has been convicting for me a lot lately)

Let Us Not Forget this Christians, it is Good News

Christian, I make this plea to you today, don’t forget the firm foundation we are called to live on! (Matthew 7:24-27) We hear and read of the Truth’s of Scripture, yet we run from them in selfish ambition. God calls us to hear them and do them! We have the Assurance that one day, and oh how I long for that day, we will be with the Lord forever! That should bring a smile to your face. Rather than spending hours binge watching Netflix, we should desire to study the Glorious Truth’s of Scripture!

A Quick Story

Let me tell a true story really quick. There is this guy who grew up in the Church. He was a “Christ-Follower” and loved serving in his church. Like many people he was a lover of himself! As he grew older, into his teen years, he started to run after himself and the lustful desires of the flesh. So, he lived two lives, one on Sunday and Wednesday, where he seemed perfect. And then the other days the complete opposite. This guy soon started teaching Sunday school to first and second graders, not realizing that he would soon become oh so convicted! He walked into that classroom prepared, well at least he thought. What he soon realized is that he knew little about the very things of scripture he was asked to teach, and this HURT!

Ok, so spoiler that story was about me!

Why That Story

I don’t tell that story to puff myself up in any way, quite the opposite actually, but I share it to show and hopefully convict those who are reading this. Seriously, how many of you hurt inside when you realize that there are more first graders out there that know more about Bible stories than you or me? (yes, I praise the Lord that we have young children who know the Bible well) Have we forgotten who the Creator of this World is? (Just read all of Genesis 1 and 2) We serve a Mighty King Christ-followers, and we cannot turn our back on Him. I implore you to seek the truths of scripture. To desire to know Him better. It is the only thing that truly matters in life! I could have a great relationship with family and friends in this life, but if my relationship with Christ isn’t number 1 then I have no true life! And I believe we all would be remised if we forgot who gives us breathe in our lungs!

The Good News!

I pray that everyone would read this section of this blog more than any other part. This is the part that we all need to hear, all the time! It is simply, the Good News! The Good News that the Creator of this universe created everything. He created the animals, the plants and He created you and I. However, man chose to sin by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And so, sin entered this world. Now because of that we see sin everywhere! But as the prophets spoke in the old testament the coming of the Messiah would happen. The One who was our Savior! The only hope to free us from our sinful bondage. He did come! He took human form and was born of virgin (Mary). His name was Jesus, and He came into this world and for a time taught the people of the world as He lead His disciples. The hour came though for the spotless lamb to take on the penalty that WE ALL deserved! This He did, by laying down his own life for the lives of sinners. He died that day on a cross, he was buried and then he rose again, and He defeated death once and for all. He took on all our sin and CRUSHED it!

Grace

This is Good News friends, not that we did anything to deserve salvation, but that through Jesus’ death on that cross He offered the free gift of Grace to us. That we could hear it and receive it, not through our works, but by simply turning away from our wickedness and repenting. Then to believe in the Messiah! (Read Romans 10 and Matthew 4:17) Many will water down the Gospel and make you out as some hero, but that is not Good News. The Good News is that we aren’t good enough, that we aren’t worthy, but that King Jesus is! I beg of all of you to hear God’s Truth and to believe!

Don’t Forget

Friends, please don’t forget!

Forget not the glorious truth of the Gospel!

Don’t forget to read your Bible every day!

Don’t forget to love others even if they hate you! (Matthew 5:43-48)

Don’t forget to listen to the wise words of the scriptures and of those who are older than you! (Read Proverbs)

Don’t forget history and the time that has passed!

Again, I will say don’t forget who loves you the most! (Romans 5:8 and 1st John 4:7-11)

A Quick Reminder

If I may let me say these last things as a reminder for all of us as we live each day. (and I mean me most of all, because I write this of my own convictions)

Each day that you wake up, remember to preach the Gospel to yourself. Remember to read the Truth’s of Scripture every day. (2nd Timothy 3:16-17 and Psalm 119:105)

 May our days be filled with more Jesus. (Read all of Scripture and be filled with more Jesus everyday)

 Put your phone down, put your laptop away, turn your tv off and live for Jesus. (Matthew 22:37, Romans 12:2 and 2nd Corinthians 5:17)

 Put two feet down on the ground and walk out into the sunshine of a new day and preach the Gospel! (Romans 10)

Make time for it!

 Love others well. (John 13:34-35)

 Spend time with those around you. Build each other up always, in word and in deed. (1st Thessalonians 5:11 and Ephesians 4:29)

 Live each day for the Lord as if it were your last, because we aren’t guaranteed another day. (Proverbs 27:1)

 Live for God not for yourself, and I implore you to do this every day, again I say this to myself above anything, I want us all to live a Godly life, selfless and humble before the King of Kings!

God bless each one of you!

Guilty: A Call to True Repentance and Belief

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    I am GUILTY

  I am Guilty and that is the hard truth! If I were to stand in front of the Righteous Judge today, I would be sentenced to eternal damnation!

I am guilty of being an idolater!

I am guilty of lust and an addiction to porn!

I am guilty of lying!

I am guilty of cheating!

I am guilty of stealing!

I am guilty of hating and being angry!

I am guilty of envy and jealousy!

I am guilty of loving self over God!

I am guilty of hypocrisy!

Everything I wrote there is true and has brought so much shame and guilt into my life! Some of that stuff may genuinely shock you all, but don’t let it. There is a big reason why I share this stuff with you all today.

Why?

God has called you and I, sinners alike, to truly repent of our wicked ways and to believe in Him!

But why do I keep living my life for myself?

This is the question I have been asking for the past few years. And it has taken until now for me to understand the root answer.

It is because, and this is so hard for me to admit, but it is because I have never truly repented and given all control over to God!

This is a hard pill for me to swallow and hopefully it is for others as well. To have been living my life as a liar and hypocrite for the past ten or so years, and to be ok with it. This strikes every chord in my body. It makes my bones shiver to think I was a FAKE!

I claimed to be a Christian, but when faced with the choice to worship the Creator or my own desires and lusts, I chose my desires and lusts. There is a reason why for the past few years I have been in a spiritual and mental whirlwind. It is because I have been lukewarm, a lukewarm Christian who cares about his desires. God has been faithfully investing and pouring into my life. All the while I have betrayed and treated Him like a piece of trash.

But He has not stopped pursuing the wretch that is me!

The Worlds Repentance

One thing I need to make clear is that I write this not as a sob story, but as a reminder and eye opener that True repentance is vital.

 I will say it again, I am GUILTY!

I am writing this to proclaim the truth that is penetrating my soul, for what feels like the first ever!

This truth is that we are ALL guilty. Just as Romans 3:23 says, “all sin and fall short of the glory of God”. It is the next two verses that show us that it is the free gift of grace, by the blood of Jesus that we have redemption, faith and hope!

When we read about repentance throughout all the scriptures, we have taken it from true repentance to just repentance. Our culture has skewed what it truly means to repent, and I have admittingly fallen into the trap.

What is that trap?

Maybe this will convict you as it did me. This world (and I mean “Christian”) has made the act of true repentance weak. Today it is more about telling God you are sorry and moving on.

But this does not work!

Wicked and the Importance of True Repentance

This is hard for me to share, but like I stated at the beginning, I struggled with an addiction to porn. For years upon years I fought with it, and time after time I would go before the Lord and say I am sorry and ask for forgiveness. But the whole issue with this so-called act of repentance was that it failed over and over. If I were to have counted how many times, I did this it would be well over five hundred.

As I was reading an article about true repentance, I came to understand that it is a gift of God. Also, instead of a life that just makes us feel bad, we should be in awe! In awe of the Creator of this world, the Righteous Judge!

I implore each of you to truly examine what you think repentance is against what the Truth of the Word of God says!

I can’t stress enough to all of you today the importance of all of this. We all are so very wicked and desperately in need of a Savior! It doesn’t matter if you are here today and are a “Christian” or a non-Christian. All of us need to hear the Good News!

True Repentance

Before I finish this post up it is vital for me to, as accurately as I can, tell you what true repentance looks like.

It is, in very simple terms, a full 180!

Yes, that means you need to turn away, FULLY! From your wickedness and run to Jesus! You must rid your whole life of evil by giving it all to God and trusting and knowing that only He can cleanse you of that evil!

Here is the tricky part, and I have fallen captive to this, you cannot, I repeat, cannot do this on your own! Remember it is a gift of God. (2nd Timothy 2:25)

All I could ever ask of you all is to really think about your life. Where does God fit in or better yet where does God come in your life? Is it at the FRONT? Because, like me, you are guilty! One day you and I will be in front of the Righteous Judge who will judge each of us justly. If you have never truly repented and turned away from your wickedness then He will say I don’t know you. (Matthew 7:23)

The Gospel

I don’t want that for you. And I don’t want that either. I want you to know that you are a sinner. But God sent His Son Jesus to die in place of us for the forgiveness of our sins. So that we can be freed from the bondage of sin to have New life with Him at the center!

Today can be the day, you don’t have to wait!

I don’t come before you today as anything but a wretched sinner who has been freed of the guilt and shame. And I will boast in the Lord. Because it is in Him that I have Hope, Strength, Comfort and LIFE!

So please don’t let life slip away like I had for so long. But truly repent today and believe in the God who freely gives repentance and forgiveness!

Check out my video on this below.

A Message to the World

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God Given Responsibility

I have a message for the world…the whole world! This message isn’t anything new, but it is a message that is powerful and has transformed lives. ( John 3:16) What gives me the right to say the things I am about to say? Well, it is my God given responsibility. (Matthew 28:18-20) The second would be this countries (the USA) constitution. My deep, longing hope is that all would hear and believe this and be transformed!

the MESSAGE for the World

Here’s the message…we all, including myself, are sinners! (Romans 3:23) Sinners who pursue our own desires and naturally rebel against the God who created us. (Ephesians 2:3; Galatians 5:19-21) Our eyes are closed off from the light of the Truth! But, God being All that God is sent His Son Jesus to bear the dreadful penalty that we all deserved. And He did, and He rose again on the third day, so that all would be fulfilled. (Luke 24:44-47; Romans 5:8; 1st John 4:10; Isaiah 53:3-6) Now, He calls you and I to turn away from our wicked ways and turn to Him, to Believe in Him! (Acts 3:19; Colossians 3; John 14:6; Mark 1:15; Acts 8:22) One of the most beautiful scriptures is 1st John 3:16,”by this we know love, that Christ laid down His life for us and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.”

Why Should You?

So why should you believe this? To put it in simple terms, it’s the TRUTH! (John 17:17) We live in a world that proclaims self-love and pushes people to live for themselves. However, God’s Word says the opposite. We are to turn away from ourselves and turn to Christ. (Isaiah 45:22; 2nd Chronicles 7:14) It scares me and convicts me to see how I first, have chosen my own desires over Christ. But it also causes me great concern to watch as our world grows farther apart from the truth of scripture. We have turned the Bible into something it isn’t. We use the term “Christian” so loosely that we forget the true weight of it. I want to bring awareness to many issues, but not apart from the Good News!

God Can, Trust Me

One thing that is important to note, is that maybe you are here today, and you feel like God couldn’t save someone like you. Let me tell you something though, that isn’t true! I would encourage you to go read Acts chapters 7 through 9 and try to tell me He can’t. As some hopeful encouragement, I know what it feels like! I have lived most of my life feeling like God couldn’t use someone like me or save me. Here is the thing, He can and I have to trust and know that He will! So, I implore you, go back to the second paragraph and read it again and genuinely think about it!

The Gospel Message

If you know me you know I could go on and on with this post, but I only want ONE thing. It is simply this, for you to Believe the Truth of the Gospel! I want absolutely nothing more than that! What I realized recently, is that I could choose to live the rest of my life the way I have. Or I can FULLY surrender it over to God and Faithfully proclaim His name! Well, it’s easy, I choose the second one. So please go back and read that second paragraph again. Ask me questions, think about this a little. Don’t just leave and forget that the Gospel is the message of salvation to ALL! (Romans 10) You are loved, and I am praying for those of you who are reading this and beyond.

                                                                        HEBREWS 3:15

Rejoice or Whine

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Will you rejoice or will you whine? Today is the 15th anniversary of Lifepoint Church and I’m sitting in a hotel in Kentucky wondering! Would I be lying if I said I wasn’t sad, YES. What I have had to realize is that even though I can’t be with my church family today, I can rejoice and celebrate from afar! I can also rejoice because I am with family in Kentucky on vacation. We get to go to the creation museum and the ark, which will be pretty cool. Through this whole thing I have had two responses, rejoicing and whining!

Real quickly I would like to give a couple reasons or truths about why it is so important to rejoice always. First truth, God tells us to rejoice always and to be thankful. The moment we decide to whine, is the moment we are telling God that we deserve better or more. This statement is extremely prideful, and I am convicted of being this way all to often. The second truth is this, if you whine you will miss out. The problem being is that we are too busy whining about who knows what that things zoom on by. I don’t know where each one of you are today, but I will be honest, I have whined way to much lately and I am pretty sure I have missed some things. We have a choice, rejoice or whine, what’s yours?

Journey to Positivity

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Summer Positivity Refresh

This summer God has taught me a lot, but none bigger than positivity. God has made it known to me through others that I have been very negative. First, I have been ultra-negative towards myself. Second, I have used this blog in the wrong way, seeking pity and ultimately becoming a little selfish. The reason I started this blog was to encourage others through my daily walk on the narrow road. So, from this point I first want to ask each of you for your forgiveness. Secondly, I want to invite you to join me in this journey to positivity. The road won’t be easy, but the payoff for seeking the Lord is worth it!

True Positivity

What do I mean when I say I am on a journey to positivity? One thing I have had to understand is that the positivity that others are trying to get me to seek, isn’t prideful. I have had a pretty messed up view of positivity and that contributes to why I have gone about this all the wrong way. The way I have seen it, is a boasting of self, but true positivity is not this. God has used people in my life to show me that true positivity is always putting Christ first! When the enemy speaks lies into your life, true positivity is found in what the Lord says. The lies mean nothing! Don’t let lies make you negative; don’t let the weight this world gives make you negative.

Faith, Family, Friends

The most convicting thing through all of this is faith! Through my negativity and pessimism, I have shown a lack of faith in Christ. No more my friends, God didn’t create me for that! Where do we start? We start by remembering that as Christians we don’t live for the next hour (future), we live for our King now! If you don’t believe I pray that you will and that this hope I have you will come to know. I can honestly say that I am scared and confused about a lot of things in my life. Guess what…I have some truly amazing family and friends who push me to be the man God intended me to be.

Join ME

Again, if you find yourself as someone who has been negative, don’t go at this alone! I want you to jump in this journey with me! Here is something for you to start with, each day find one way to be positive and GO FOR IT! Time to kick negativity out of our lives and say hello to positivity.

Your Voice: Will I Ever Stop Writing

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Your Voice in a Big World

Your voice, and I know you have one, because God has shown me that I have one! If you are like me, you often feel voiceless. It’s as if you literally can’t talk, but I am confident that God has given you a voice to proclaim His name. No matter what people have said to you or what lies the enemy has told you, no one can steal your way of communicating. We live in a world that is all about equality and yet we as Americans are failing to listen. People all over this great country are pleading and hoping that just one person will hear them. The question I ask myself and want to ask you is, when will we listen?

Writing is My Safe Haven

Before I get into the listening part, I want to explain what I mean by your voice. I don’t directly mean your voice, but I mean the way in which you communicate what’s going on! I have seen people communicate through sports, video, silence and even through their voice. My way of communicating is through writing! I have never personally been one for talking in front of people, but a place that I can clearly express what is going on is through writing! Some will say that you can’t hide behind your pen and paper, but the thing is, I’m not hiding! I’m pouring out everything to everyone, hoping that just one person will hear my voice!

Just Listen

Have you ever taken a little time out of your life to just listen to others? All to often I find myself to focused on myself that I forget to be mindful of those around me. Even though we all are wired different, one thing remains the same, we all have ears! So, being mindful and thoughtful of others is something we are all capable of. God has, at least in my life, time and time again shown me times that I need to be mindful and listen! Something simple you can do right now is pray about it. Ask God to show you times throughout your day that you should listen.  

Your Voice is Heard By God

Where are YOU today? Maybe, you have found your voice and you are doing great! Take some time to listen and be mindful of those around you today. Or maybe you are hoping someone will hear your voice! Don’t stop talking, however you do that! Someone is listening at all times and Jesus is His name! Let this be comforting for you today, God is always there for you! You can talk to Him ANYTIME! Use your voice to express what is going on and to tell others about Jesus! One of the scariest things is to tell others what is going on, but the payoff is out of this world, and even if they choose to not listen keep going! Will I ever give up on writing, NOPE, it is my voice!