God

Time to Cross Over

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

John 5:24

Many of you reading this may have seen this passage as the verse of the day in the YouVersion bible app recently. 

I’ll admit that even though I usually read the verse of the day every day, I often skim over it without giving it much thought.

However, there was something about this verse that caught my eye and caused me to reread it several times, even comparing it in different translations. 

It was the phrase “passed from death to life.”

It made me stop and think about its real meaning. If we take the bible literally, this passage tells us that we have actually transformed from dead creatures to live creatures. 

We’ve “passed” as several translations word it. The NIV uses the phrase “crossed over.” Either term implies that there’s no going back. 

We’ve either passed from one phase of existence to another, or we’ve crossed over (as in crossing a river or ravine) and the past is forever behind us. 

The words create a picture of a definite action, or a movement, from one place to another place—like walking through a doorway to which there’s no turning back.

It implies security, like once we believe in Jesus, we have this new life and can never ever lose it. It’s final and permanent. 

And yes, I’m aware there is a great debate over “once saved always saved,” but I’m avoiding that whole discussion for now.

As significant and powerful as the words “passed” or “crossed over” are in this verse, there was something more that struck me.

It’s the phrase “eternal life.”

As Christians, we no longer must face the end of life when our bodies cease to function.

We are fully alive now—and will be forever.

All we have to do is hear God’s word and believe Him, the One who sent Jesus, and we’ll have this eternal life. Again…that’s forever and ever. 

Have you ever really stopped to think about what forever means? And it’s not just “a mighty long time” as Prince sings. 

Forever means there’s no end to our lives.

We can spend 10 years or even 1,000,000 years in God’s presence and that doesn’t even begin to approach what eternity encompasses (although I don’t believe that we’ll have the same concept of time there as we do in our earthly bodies).

I personally cannot truly comprehend all that eternity represents. As humans, I’m not sure any of us can. We’ve never experienced anything that was eternal. 

No matter how long we’ve been alive, we can only measure our existence in terms of decades—and that comes nowhere close to eternity.

And to gain this eternal life, all we have to do is accept God at His word, that He sent His son Jesus (who is fully God) to earth in human form so He could die to pay the price for our sins. 

That’s it. There are no works involved, as some people who call themselves Christians would have you believe. It’s all through faith in God’s saving grace.

What’s more is that God wants each and every one of us to have this life. “He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9).

How could anyone turn down this offer? 

If you haven’t made the decision to believe God on His word, do it today…and make today the first day of your new eternal life.

Trust God No Matter What

/ Clay D. / 1 Comment

We all have times in our lives when our faith falters and we begin to doubt God.

We wonder if He’ll be true to His word and follow through with His promises to bless, help, and protect us. It’s natural to find ourselves doubting from time to time because, after all, we’re only human and far from perfect. 

What is the best way to get back on track to the point where we’re relying on God again? No doubt you’ve been in tough situations in your life before—whether it was with money, relationships, your career, your health, or something else. 

Did you pray to God and ask Him for help during these times? Most likely you did. What was the outcome?

Maybe He didn’t answer your prayers in just the way you thought He should; however, He brought you through those trying times in the way that was best for you in the long run (Rom. 8:28).

So, if you’re currently faced with a seemingly insurmountable challenge in your life, the key is to think back on those other tough times and remember how God brought you through them. 

No matter how those other challenges turned out in the physical realm, God was with you every step of the way. He never left your side because He wants what’s best for you and is always working things out on your behalf. 

You are who you are today because of the challenges and circumstances you’ve had to endure in your life up to this point. 

The situation you’re in right now will be just one more example of how God uses our daily lives with all its challenges and trials to mold us into the people He wants us to be. 

But we have to trust Him. When things seem their darkest, recall all the good things He has given you in your life. Spend a few minutes just meditating on ways He has blessed you. 

It could be that He has given you a wonderful and loving family, an enjoyable job you look forward to each day, financial blessings such as an unexpected windfall, or just the ability to take joy in the midst of chronic physical pain each day.

God loves you and wants you to lean on Him. Do it. Trust Him with everything in your life—your time, money, energy, and resources. He WILL come through for you. 

However, don’t expect His help and blessings to look like you think they should, because they often won’t. He’ll work out your situation in His own time frame and in His own way. But you’ll come out on the other side better for it.

Abraham’s Faith Vs. Our Faith

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

“Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.’”

Gen. 12:1-2

The above verses are explicit instructions from God to Abram, whose name was later changed to Abraham. It would be difficult for Abram to misunderstand what God was saying to him. 

Abram is to “go,” then God will “show,” “make,” “bless,” and “make” again, then finally Abram will simply “be.”

Upon analyzing these two verses, all I can say is “Wow.” 

It would be nice to have that kind of crystal clear instruction from God. There would be no confusion or ambiguity. You’d know exactly what was expected of you and precisely what God would then do.

However, God rarely speaks to us in this way. Perhaps the reason why lies in the fact that today, as followers of Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit who speaks to us in a still, small voice. We have to be especially tuned into Him to hear and understand His subtle direction.

If we compare our situation today with that of Abram’s from thousands of years ago, what can we take away from it?

As I was lying in bed trying to fall asleep last night, I began thinking about the subject of faith. Specifically, I thought about the faith of Abram, given the specific instructions he was entrusted with by God, as compared to our faith today when we are so often unsure of what God’s next steps are for us. 

Are these the same types of faith? Is it fair to compare Abram’s faith with ours? He had clear, audible communication from God. All he had to do was follow His directions and he was guaranteed to be blessed.

We know that Abram is credited with having great faith.

 “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land”

Heb. 11:8-9a

Selfishly I suppose, I can’t help but think to myself that it doesn’t take nearly as much faith to follow the explicit directions Abram was given, compared to the kind of faith it requires to move in a direction that you’re just praying and hoping is what God wants from you.

Why is Abraham specifically mentioned as a biblical character who displayed such great faith? On the surface, it seems all he really did was just follow orders. I could do that (at least I think I could).

Maybe it was harder than it first appears for Abram to leave his home and go to a foreign land. I know it’s not something I’d necessarily want to do. Yet, he followed God’s leading and through him the nation of Israel was formed. 

Maybe God had to be explicit with Abram because so much was on the line. If Abram had been uncertain about his calling, his faith might have faltered and the course of history would have taken a drastically different turn.

I believe that God knew what He was doing when He gave Abram those instructions. And I believe He knows what He’s doing when He whispers to us softly in the midst of our busy lives.

It’s just up to us to keep our ears close to Him.

Guard Your Plateau

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

There is a principle I like to call “Guard Your Plateau.” It means simply that once you’ve worked hard to gain some ground over depression, anxiety, fear, worry, and doubt, do all you can to maintain it. 

Living a happy, carefree, worry-free life can be extremely difficult and takes a lot of hard work; it can be exhausting mentally and emotionally. 

The day may come when you’re thinking to yourself, You know, I feel pretty good right now. Things are going OK.

When you have thoughts like that, take extra precaution. Never let your guard down and never quit doing the things that got you where you are. When you’re worn out emotionally, it can be easy to relax and “just let go.” 

Don’t do it, however. Be watchful that you don’t slip back into old habits and old thought patterns. Reverting to behaviors of the past will drag you down quicker than anything.

Keep thinking positively. Keep saying uplifting things to yourself. Never let your foot off the gas. As I heard Joyce Meyer say in a podcast, “Gain and maintain.”

The “Guard Your Plateau” principle is just as important if you find yourself in a pit of despair. If your life seems a mess lately and nothing is going right, stand your ground. Don’t give in to more feelings of doubt, gloom, anxiety, and depression.

Build yourself up to keep yourself from falling deeper. Don’t let your situation spiral out of control and get even worse. The more ground you give up, the more momentum you give to the negative in your life. 

When you think you’re at the lowest point possible, you’re not. Things can always be worse, just as they can always be better. 

During the low times, work even harder to get back to a point where you can see the light again.

More importantly, remember that God is always with us, especially during the hard times. 1 Peter 5:7 tells us to “Cast all your anxiety on him [God], because he cares for you.”

Here’s hoping that today is a better day for you than yesterday, and that tomorrow is even better than today.

Trust God and Let It Go

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

For far too long I have over-analyzed all the negative circumstances in my life, meaning I’ve tried to categorize them and make them fit into neat little boxes. 

For example, if the car breaks down, I might dwell on where this mishap originated from. 

Was it my fault, because I hadn’t kept up with the maintenance on the car? It’s just common sense that a neglected car will eventually give out, right?

Or was the breakdown the work of Satan, our adversary? Did he cause the mechanical failure out of spite, because he hates Christians and will do anything he can to cause them problems and try to get them to doubt God.

Or did God himself create the malfunction as a means of testing me, trying to stretch and grow my patience during times of trial?

Trying to figure out such things can be quite frustrating and even maddening.

Back and forth my mind will go, first blaming God and His way of sending trials into our lives to help us grow. Then I’ll shift the blame to myself because I wasn’t proactive enough in taking care of the car. Next, my frustration will gravitate toward our enemy, because surely everything bad in life comes from him, right?

Then, one day a novel thought popped into my mind when I was in  the middle of one of “analysis sessions.”

IT REALLY DOESN’T MATTER.

The source of the trial doesn’t matter because God is in control over everything. No matter where this situation came from, it is only in my life because God has allowed it to be there. 

He has some divine purpose that will ultimately work out for my good, as Romans 8:28 tells us.

It’s simply a matter of trusting Him and His will for my life.

Besides, the universe is complex and God’s thoughts are not our thoughts (Isa. 55:8). Most likely, it’s not as simple as categorizing any particular event as “from God” or “from Satan.” 

Everything that happens in our lives has a purpose, and we can never begin to understand God’s ways.

So there…When something unexpected, or negative, or just plain undesirable happens in life, don’t try to figure it out. Just trust that God is at the helm and has everything under control.

Tithing – God Wants Our Heart, Not Our Money

/ Clay D. / 1 Comment

Admittedly, I’ve had a long, hard struggle with tithing. I’ve always wanted to do it, but most of the time have never felt like I really had the money to actually do so.

Deep down, I believe it’s the right thing to do. But not because it’s one of the 10 commandments (because it’s not), but because in example after example in the Bible, we see where God’s faithful servants always give Him the first part of their income or harvest.

In Genesis 14:20, Abraham did it long before the law was given: “‘And blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”

Jesus later reaffirmed the practice in the New Testament: “‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.’”

God even tells us to test Him and see if He won’t come through by honoring our tithe.

Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test [emphasis mine], says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts (Mal. 3:10-11).

The underlying issue is not that God wants our money. As everybody who has ever written about the issue of tithing has said, God doesn’t need our money. He owns it all anyway. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein” (Ps. 24:1).

Everything comes from Him because it was all His to begin with anyway. When we tithe or give our offerings, we’re just giving Him back what was already his.

He even tells us that He is the one who makes it possible for us to have any money to give away. “Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all” (1 Chron. 29:12a).

Then why do we need to tithe? The answer is that God wants our heart. Money is hard to part with. If we show God that we trust Him enough to give Him our money, then He knows that He has our hearts.

Jesus tells us to love God with everything we have. “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment’” (Matt. 22:37-38).

Jesus also tells us to store our treasures in Heaven because “‘where your treasure is, there your heart will be also’” (Matt 6:21).

The backstory to Malachi 3 where God tells us to test Him is that the Israelites weren’t giving God their tithes, so they weren’t giving Him their whole hearts. They didn’t trust God or revere God enough to give him the first of all their harvest and their livestock.

When God told the Israelites to tithe, he knew that if they did they would be giving their whole selves to Him. That’s what He was trying to accomplish. He didn’t want their money and he doesn’t want our money today. He wants our hearts.

When we give all of ourselves to God, we open ourselves us to receive His blessings. And that includes His peace and freedom from worry. If there’s always that one small part of us that we’re holding out and not giving over to God, He can’t fully bless us; we’ll never fully know His peace.

Tithing may not be the answer to all your problems with stress and worry, but the simple act of giving God back the money that was His to begin with may play a crucial role in your mental health. Doing so shows Him that you trust Him and are putting your life and well-being in His hands.

Try it. Tithe and see what happens. Test God just as He tells us to do in Malachi. You may be surprised with the results.

What Do You Worship?

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

Everybody—each and every one of us—is committed to something in our lives.

We all fall down at the altar of whatever it is that we’ve chosen to worship as our “god.”

For some of us, it might be money. The pursuit of the almighty dollar. We knock ourselves out trying to make as much money as we can, because, certainly, happiness will only come to us when we’re earning X amount of money a year.

For others, it might just be their career itself and all the recognition they hope to garner from it. When at last they are vice-president then—and only then—will they have achieved it all.

Perhaps fame is what motivates you each day. You want to become well-known in your field, to become that writer whose name is on everyone’s lips, or the doctor who finally finds a cure for a rare but fatal disease.  

We might even worship our spouse or significant other (also known as codependency).

Perhaps we worship having our own freedom and individuality—we just want to do life on our own terms. I know I’ve often been guilty of that kind of worship.

Whatever it is, that’s what we ultimately sacrifice everything for. That is our idol.

It doesn’t have to be a little figurine carved out of wood or stone that we prostrate ourselves in front of. It could be as simple as that job you invest 60 hours a week in. Or those golf clubs you cart around every weekend.

Your idol could even be God Himself. Now that’s a novel idea…

God’s Guidance Down Life’s Roadway

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

car-1576894_1280.jpg

Have you ever wondered why God doesn’t just speak plainly to us?

If you’re like me you often find yourself wishing that God would use an audible voice and just tell us what to do. “Bob, you need to go ahead and take that job in Atlanta. You’ll be much happier there.” Or, “Susan, didn’t I tell you just the other day you needed to get rid of that no-good, freeloader boyfriend of yours? Now go ahead and break it off. Go ahead.”

Well, God generally doesn’t do that. So, on those ultra-rare occasions when I believe God is saying something to me directly, I sit up and take notice.

One of those occasions occurred today.

I believe God revealed something important to me early this morning when I was in a semi-conscious dream state somewhere between waking and sleep. Is it a coincidence that yesterday I saw the headline to an article about how God speaks to us in our dreams?

In this dream-like state I was driving. I had just turned onto a main thoroughfare in town and was heading downtown. The realization hit me that although both my destination and my route were set, individual details regarding my driving were left up to me.

God had chosen this particular road for me to follow to my destination, but any number of different scenarios could occur involving different lanes, different rates of speed, etc.

This short drive compares to how God leads and guides us. He may give us a destination or a mission , but the individual moves to get there are ours to make. We determine which lane to drive in and when we’re need to change lanes; how fast to drive; and even which sights along the road to pay attention to.

And God is OK with us making these kinds of decisions along the way. He doesn’t care what lane we’re in, or if we drive with one hand or two. We can follow the car in front of us closely, or fall back a little. He gives us this kind of leeway.

Furthermore, if we’re living (driving) in accordance with God’s purpose for our life, then He will aid us along the way, often smoothing out traffic, opening up lanes, giving us good weather and scenic views. Of course, the way won’t always be smooth and without potholes, but He often does supernaturally work things out behind the scenes to help advance our course.

What I think this means for us is that we have a substantial amount of say in how our lives live out, even living within God’s will.

For example, I want to become a successful writer with a full-time writing career and income to match it. I believe that God is OK with me making choices along the way as to what I write and when. I can focus on a novel right now, or maybe short stories, or perhaps freelancing. All this is fine so long as I remain in prayer and humility before God, putting Him first in my life.

This realization is very freeing, but also a little scary.

I like the idea of freedom in what I write, but this freedom also intimidates me with the myriad of options available to pursue. Trusting in God is critical at this point. By remaining tight with Him, we don’t need to fear, but instead can relax and enjoy our journey along the way.

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“Whether your platform is huge, or you’re working in obscurity, you need to ask yourself, ‘Am I fulfilling my assignment?’”

-unknown

God in a Hazy Shade of Winter

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

Recently, as I was sitting at a traffic light and staring up at billboard, the thought hit me that since God is eternal, and that since man has only been on the earth for a few thousand years (I know this point is debatable), the whole span of human existence is but a mere blip for God.

I wondered then, “What did God do for all the ages leading up to our existence?” Does He have a much bigger role that He is filling, rather than just “Creator of Humans”? There is a whole universe out there, after all. And the vast majority of it has to do with us tiny, weak humans.

I have always thought of humans and the earth as being God’s big success story, that His big accomplishment was us. However, we are really only a minute part of what God has done. It’s kind of like how a small child imagines that he is his parents’ whole life. He isn’t able to fathom them ever having a life before him — as though they were born parents.

One thing I have wondered about for years is what Satan was doing after He and his cohorts were kicked out of Heaven, but before God created man. Satan is called the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4), but what was happening before there really was a world (earth) and people to tempt? Why did God even allow Satan to enter the Garden of Eden in the first place? I think I’m getting ahead of myself.

The more I’ve thought about all these questions, the more I realize that I’m asking the wrong questions, or maybe it’s just that I’m making inaccurate assumptions about God.

God isn’t constrained to time like we are. For example, we often think in terms of humans having been around for a specific length of time, say 6000 years (again, debatable). Furthermore, we understand that God existed before humans, and will, of course, exist for all eternity with His believers in the New Jerusalem, after earth as we know it is gone, and He has created a new heaven and a new earth (Rev. 21:1-2). Thinking about time in a linear fashion is the only way we know to do so.

I believe that God is also able to do the same thing — view time as a long line stretching to eternity in both directions, both past and future. However, I believe that for Him there really is no such thing as time. Everything past, present, future exists all at once for Him. He sees it all, all the time. He’s God. He’s big. He can do that.

Therefore, to ponder what God was doing before He created us, is really basing the question on faulty assumptions. In Exodus 3:14, God calls himself, “I AM”. God is, was, and will be. There has never been a time, nor will there ever be a time, when God does not exist.

In fact, even framing the last sentence the way I did is inaccurate. God came before time, not the other way around. It would be impossible for there ever to be a time when God did not exist, because He created time. God exists without time.

This brings me back to my original question then, “What did God do for all the ages leading up to our existence?”. I believe the only way to answer it is by concluding that for God humans have never not existed. We’re no less real and alive to Him today than say, a billion human years ago.

Expletive (NOT) Deleted

/ Clay D. / Leave a comment

This topic is difficult to write about, as it paints me in a negative light. I believe, however, that this is something that needs to be said.

Ever since I accepted Christ as my Savior when I was 15, I have wavered back and forth in my faith. I have gone through many different periods when I was close to God, seeking His will daily in my life. On the other hand, there have also been many times when I have rebelled from God, committing sins and living a lifestyle that I knew deep down I shouldn’t be.

If I’m at a point in my life when I’m closer to God and trying to live the way I believe He wants me to, Imagethen the harshest words I might use are “heck” or “dang”. During these times, it’s natural for me to react more softly to daily trials and tribulations. It’s something I don’t really even have to think about, but instead comes as a result of regular bible reading and prayer. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matt. 12:34b).

On the flipside of this, however, during times of rebellion I do not hesitate to take God’s name in vain. When I get angry or bitter about something that isn’t going my way, I tend to put His name in front of “d****t”, making this expletive even harsher and more cutting.

At the moment that this pair of words comes out of my mouth, it is as if I am saying to God, “I really mean what I’m saying here. I’m not kidding around.” For instance, suppose I’ve had a particularly bad day and then on top of it all my favorite shirt rips when I’m putting it on. After spewing out those two words I might grit my teeth and yell something like, “I have absolutely had it with this day!” At that moment I may as well be yelling to Heaven, glaring with my fist raised to God, telling Him that it all needs to stop now because I’m not going to take it anymore! Or else!

Or else what? one would ask. Or else nothing actually. What am I really supposed to do if I’m mad at God. Of course, there’s nothing I can do except sit and pout.

In the moment, my childish nature is completely ruling me, yet all my anger and rebellion seems effective to me.

I realized several years ago that I could use my response to stressful situations as a kind of barometer of my spiritual condition.

If something unnerving happens in my day, and I simply smile and shake my head, then I realize that I’m on track spiritually speaking. Look back over recent days and weeks, I’ll be able to see that I’ve made strong efforts to live for God. On the other hand, I know my spiritual life is in the gutter if “GD” comes out of my mouth.

I have found this barometer most helpful to my spiritual life in the area of comparison. I can either stop and think to myself, Boy, I’ve come a long way in the last six months. I remember when I use to get all bent out of shape being stuck in traffic. Or I can think, It’s sad to realize how much my spiritual life has deteriorated in the last few weeks. I really need to get back on track with God. In this way, the barometer either serves as kudos for myself, or as a convicting reminder.

ImageMusic has played a huge role in my life, ever since I was about five years old. Over the years I’ve often written about its effect on me.

Along with the profanities (or lack thereof) that come out of my mouth, I discovered several years ago that the type of music I’m listening to at any given time is also a kind of barometer for my spiritual state.

For example, if I’m content listening to lighter music such as KLOVE, and I feel “nourished” by it, then there’s a good chance that in recent days I’ve actively been trying to please God and not rebel against him.

On the other hand, if I try to listen to KLOVE, but all it really does it irritate me (because who is that happy and content anyway to be able to sing in such a “smily” voice?), then it’s probably something harder, edgier that I really crave — maybe pop or even hard rock or metal. If I pause long enough to reflect on my situation, I’ll realize that I’m most likely not at a point at that moment where I care enough to live my life for God.

There are many nuances to this music barometer. I could go into great detail describing scenarios for the different types of music I listen to. It doesn’t really matter, though. The point is that the music I’m most comfortable with at any given moment reflects my spiritual state.

Yes, of course, I realize that the reverse is also true. What I allow into my ears (and consequently my mind) has a huge effect on my attitude and my desire to live for God. “Garbage in, garbage out,” as the experts tell us. Here I must assert that often I will choose to listen to something “better” (read less rebellious and more spiritual) if I realize that my walk with God is suffering.

Referencing these indicators is not meant to belittle my faith in God. As human beings, most of us value our appearance. We look in a mirror to give us an idea of what we look like to other people. Over the years I’ve realized that because I’m thankful to God for His salvation and I want to worship Him, I can use these behavioral barometers to get a quick check of my spiritual condition — kind of like taking a quick glance in the mirror to see if I have anything on my face.