How much are you willing to pay for a new fancy cell-phone, high-speed internet, cable, or a new car?

How much are you willing to pay for a new fancy cell-phone, high-speed internet, cable, a new car, etc? Are you willing to spend a little more even if it hurts just a little bit because you are getting something you really want? Well, let me ask you another question: Are you willing to pay whatever the price and obey God’s voice at all costs even if it hurts a little or even a lot? Are you willing to take that chance? If you’re not serious about seeking God then you aren’t going to find Him.

If you are not serious about seeking God, if you are uncomfortable with strange and unusual manifestations, if you are uncomfortable with being thrown off your bandwagon of your comfortable lifestyle consumed by materialism and traditions, then you need to go someplace else. Doing things your way are no good for you. We have lived our lives our way long enough. In order for you to really experience God’s presence you must pay the price of letting go and letting God do it His way.

You should want Him at any cost and not let that sacredness be taken for granted. God is calling us to carry His presence into battle. He wants us to dwell with Him intimately in communion, but we first must go to him with dead flesh. His revival is based on His glory and presence. Nothing we can do can reach the world. God’s glory must flow within the four walls that we are standing.

Looks don’t matter. We can pretend all we want and nothing real will happen because we do not have the power to accomplish anything without the glory of God present. The church has been “playing church” for way too long. There are church buildings all over the world, but no matter how fancy the lawn, the auditorium or the programs are, God is really not welcomed there because the dignity and respectability among men are more important than the moving and the presence of God. Did you know that there are times when God’s glory has moved out of its rightful place because of the sin and indifference of man? That makes me want to vomit. Seriously, we are responsible for the unmoving of God so many times and then we complain that God is not moving and is absent from our lives when we are the ones to blame! Sickening! In order for us to see God’s best we must remember that we must be willing to sacrifice what we think is good and acceptable. When we are willing to do that, God’s visitation can then become real. God wants ALL the glory, not a little, some or most, but ALL the glory in the church. He wants His glory to be on display for the whole world to see!

We need to be ready for Him to come suddenly and without warning, regardless of how that changes our plans. Oh wait, that could make a church service run late, perhaps all through the night? But, you have to go home and watch football and have a feast waiting at home! Or maybe you need to go grocery shopping or you were planning on seeing a movie or visiting a friend or family member. Really!? Are these things really more important than what the presence of God has planned? Why are we so hesitant at handling God’s manifested presence? God only comes by invitation, that means displayed hunger! This is what it comes down to: Do you really want Him to come? Are you willing to pay whatever the cost in chasing God’s presence?

Are you afraid of the dark?

PART 1

Are you afraid of the dark?

Darkness can be scary. Things can creep in unnoticed and
completely terrify you. When in darkness it is hard to see; it is hard to get around and it is just not a place anyone I know wants to be. Don’t let yourself go into darkness: the kind of darkness that is on the other side of Christ-following. It can be easy to slip into
darkness because our modern day, busy, on-the-go lifestyle distracts and discourages us, we fall further and further away from God, and then we wonder where He went, when really we are the ones that drifted. God has been there all along. He never left you; you were just too busy to see that. Don’t blame Him, it is the side of darkness you should be angry with.

There are 2 sides: Good and evil. The side of good is God driven and glorifying to God and the evil side it out to ruin and destroy. It is a constant battle to be fought on a regular basis. What is the most effective way to stay away from the dark side? The answer: Fear the Lord. When we fear the Lord we strive to please Him, we inherit wisdom, and we are strengthened to fight against evil.

Fearing the Lord is the same kind of fear that we should have had towards our parents when we were kids, a fear that if we did not obey we would be punished. When we had this kind of fear it steered us away from doing wrong and we were rewarded in some way. This is the kind of fear that we should have of our Lord, Jesus. 

The book of Proverbs talks a lot about fearing the Lord and what some of the punishments and rewards are of doing so. I have taken the time to examine what this book says directly regarding the fear of the Lord. These verses are all key ingredients that will help prevent us from being pulled into the dark side. Let’s take a look:

Proverbs 2:1-5

My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures. Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God.

Proverbs 3:7
Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

Proverbs 8:13

All who fear the Lord will hate evil. Therefore, I hate pride and arrogance, corruption and perverse speech.

Proverbs 9:10

Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.

Proverbs 10:27

Fear of the Lord lengthens one’s life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.

Proverbs 14:26-27

Those who fear the Lord are secure; he will be a refuge for their children. Fear of the Lord is a life giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death.

Proverbs15:16

Better to have little, with fear for the Lord, than to have great treasure and inner turmoil.

Proverbs 16:6

Unfailing love and faithfulness make atonement for sin, By fearing the Lord, people avoid evil.

Proverbs 19:23

Fear of the Lord leads to life, bringing security and protection from harm.

Proverbs 22:4

True humility and fear of the Lord lead to riches, honor, and long life.

Proverbs 23:17           

Don’t envy sinners but always continue to fear the Lord.

Proverbs 24: 21-22

My Child, fear the Lord and the king. Don’t associate with rebels, for disaster will hit them suddenly. Who knows what punishment will come from the Lord and the king?

Ok, so clearly we SHOULD fear the Lord. Let’s recap the benefits of fearing the Lord.

Fearing the Lord will:

• Help you gain knowledge of God.
• Turn away from evil.
• Will hate evil.
• Be a foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.
• Lengthen one’s life.
• Give you security; he will be a refuge for your children.
• Offer escape from the snares of death.
• Be better than having little.
• Help you avoid evil.
• Lead to life and bring security and protection from harm.
• Lead to riches, honor, and a long life.
• Turn you away from envying sinners.
• Turn you to the king and away from rebels that will endure disaster and unknown punishments given by the Lord.
  
  

PART 2
Acts 5:1-11

But there was a certain man named Ananias who, with his wife, Sapphira, sold some property. He brought part of the money to the apostles, claiming it was the full amount. With his wife’s consent, he kept the rest. Then Peter said “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart. You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to God!” As soon as Ananias heard these words, he fell to the floor and died. Everyone who heard about it was terrified, Then some young men got up, wrapped him in a sheet, and took him out and buried him. About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. Peter asked her, “Was this the price you and your husband received for your land?” “Yes,” she replied, “that was the price”. And Peter said, “How could the two of you even think of conspiring to test the Spirit of the Lord like this? The young men who buried your husband are just outside the door, and they will carry you out, too.” Instantly, she fell to the floor and died. When the young men came in and saw that she was dead, they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. GREAT FEAR gripped the entire church and everyone else who heard what had happened.

I don’t know about you, but I know that after hearing or even witnessing this event would definitely stir a fear of God in me. Think about this: Ananias and his wife Sapphira had good intentions of actually doing a good thing, they were giving of their money. They did not have to, it was a decision that they both agreed upon. There is nothing wrong with giving, right? Well, we all know where they went wrong. They both lied. It was just a little white lie, no harm in that, right? WRONG! God certainly didn’t think so. He struck them dead…because they lied! Not because they murdered, committed adultery, or any other seemingly worse crime. They only lied. God has the power to strike us dead just as easily! He may choose another route in striking our death. Perhaps a car wreck, a plane crash or an unexpected health problem will take us to our death. My point is, God is just as powerful today as He was the day Ananias and his wife were stricken dead. Therefore, we should fear Him just the same!

One of our biggest problems today in our spiritual walk with God is that we try to continue on as normal past “speed bumps” that God allows in our life. We tend to get angry and even panic. We then try to find a way around the speed bump on our own, instead of relying on God to get us over it. If we responded to such speed bumps with full faith in God that He would get us over it, we would definitely see a new light in the situation. Perhaps a blessing that was never anticipated, or maybe a new word that the Lord is “texting” you would have occurred. We mustn’t ignore such opportunities. We need to STOP avoiding them!

In order to see God’s glory we must repent and allow our flesh to be dead. If we reach out with our flesh we are stopping the God that we are trying to contain in a box. After all, we don’t want to be knocked off our rickety man-made programs and traditions right? We shouldn’t be surprised when God’s glory breaks us out of our doctrinal and traditional box.

When God’s glory encounters living flesh it is because we allowed something within us to die.

We must remember this, especially when we are wondering why we are facing troubles and when things just don’t seem to be going “our way”. We should be asking ourselves: “What am I doing? Should I really be the one doing this?” We should be letting God be the one intervening and stop trying to be our own superhero.

Is it too much for you to stomach true repentance, the awesome flesh-death experience? Are you serious about God’s coming? Do you really want Him to come? Well, guess what? If you really want His presence you are going to have to do things His way. Why? Well, for starters He could kill you! Just as He killed Ananias and his wife. Does that sound a little extreme? Well, God wants us to do things His way to the extreme. Whether that makes us look foolish and silly, we should do it anyway because we do not know the plan that He has.

Sometimes we don’t learn the first time and maybe not even the second time around. But, when you look at how God has worked in your life, reflect on your history with Him. Study the history of past moves of God and his historical examples in His word. While studying His word in particular, we can learn so much! We also need to remember that God doesn’t always have to manifest Himself in things that are seen by our flesh. We shouldn’t be looking for sensationalism, we should be looking for God . We should be living our lives with the awareness of His CONSTANT presence. We should be careful to not let that awareness become so casual that we don’t see His presence as sacred anymore. We should be willing to see Him at any cost.

Are you looking for the light switch? Is it dark in “your room” with God? Do you want God to turn on the power in your life? We turn on the light switch by bringing back the respect for God’s power. For example: Any experienced electrician will tell you that they always turn off the power before wiring a house. Chances are, he has experienced what happens when he keeps the power on while wiring, OUCH!  From experience, the electrician has developed a respect for the power of electricity and the effect it has on unprotected flesh. Think about it. God wants us to turn our “do-it-yourself” fleshly mentality off so that He can work in our lives without having to ZAP us to get our attention so he can make His “electricity” work in our lives. Nothing should be worth holding onto so hard that you can’t experience His power.

Proverbs 19:23

Fear of the Lord leads to life, bringing security and protection from harm.

Is this power of God worth it to you? What do you have to lose?

Where is God?

This blog goes in sequence very well following the last two that I posted. So, it will make more sense if you read the past two blogs first, however I will try to make this blog easy to follow regardless.

So, God moments...where are they? Well, let's talk church.
[My main points will derive from notes from the book "The God Chasers" by Tommy Tenney.
They will be in red italic]

So, the "house" of God: CHURCH.
What do you think of when you think of church? The music is great, the programs are entertaining and marketable, and you hear biblical values from the preacher? Or maybe not, maybe you feel like your church is lacking in some areas. What is my overall point here? What is church supposed to be about? Entertainment, feel-good comfort, and being blessed? I don't think so! Does this "picture" of church sound familiar? Is God moving in your church services? When was the last time something out of the ordinary occurred during a church service you attended?

"We categorically design our services to be man-pleasing services...we want them to have 'high entertainment index'. God would rather have moments with a few who really love Him than for everybody to come and be entertained. Yet we are hosting a party for God in which we trade presents with each other while totally ignoring Him!" (pg 61)

The Bible states in Revelation 3:15-16:
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
Yikes! Does that sound like you or your church? Well, I am going to admit right now that this sounds by far too familiar and I am on a mission to be hungry for God, thus I am standing up to be in the 'hot' zone. I don't want to be spit out! God is our father and creator, why would I want to be thrown that far from Him? I don't want to put my life in that line of fire. But, how do we do that? Well, how about the fear of God? Where is that fear? The more I dive into the Word of God the more fear that dwells in me because although God is a loving God, He is also a God of anger and He hates, HE HATES it when we are lukewarm. How would you like it if your best friend was lukewarm in your friendship?  Wouldn't you rather them be all in or all out instead of just "there" and just kind of your friend?

"We have turned our local churches into 'bless me clubs'. God wants to break open the heavens over our cities so the people who are without God will know that He is Lord and He loves them. Now that is the true purpose of God's visitation among men. We need to get our eyes off the toys and onto the purpose..." (pg 55)

Psalm 103:1 says:
"Bless the Lord, O my Soul" It does NOT say "O my Lord, bless my soul" Seriously we are so self-centered that we get thrown off course and lose our purpose and we even get so distorted that we are setting our selves up for disaster! And we wonder why we don't feel God's presence, or why our lives are going through trials and why we just aren't feeling spiritually fed...especially in church! This is because our churches have lost it's purpose. The church is so focused on attendance and getting enough people in the door to fill every seat. The church is so focused on appealing to the people with entertainment that the church loses it's purpose and God becomes lost in it all.  We need to stop being takers and become givers. We need to throw out our 'toys of distractions' and realize that church is about God moving in us, not about doing fancy-good things that make us look cool, or pretending that we are pleasing to God if we do just enough things that seem 'God-like' We can serve in ministry and do many great things for God, but we need to be cautious not to forget to listen to Him so that we may be moved by Him. Otherwise, we end up taking control of our lives and even if we believe we are doing what is right and are serving others we can still end up in a wreck down the path because it was not God-led. He is our navigator, when we fight for the wheel, we can run ourselves into a deadly pole if we are not careful.

"We have wanted 'life' in our services when God was after 'death' in our gatherings! It is 'death' through repentance and brokenness that ushers in the presence of God and causes you to draw near to the Lord and yet live." (pg 64)

God can only come through and in us when we are completely NOT of ourselves, thus the death of ourselves/flesh. We are so self-consumed in our churches "Bless me Lord, move in me Lord' when we really have it all wrong. We are supposed to Bless the Lord as I mentioned, that is stated in Psalm 103:1, and He can only move in us IF WE LET HIM. It is our choice! Sure, God has the power to force His way in, but that is not who He is. He wants you to WANT HIM. In order for Him to move in you, you have to want Him badly enough to the point that you are willing to surrender everything within you.

"God is telling His church that it's not enough just to be blessed. It is not enough to receive His gifts and walk in His anointing. I don't want anymore blessings; I want the Blesser. I don't want any more gifts; I want the giver." (pg 55)

I want more of Him and less of me! This is exactly what He desires. We need to stop this "Oh God, gimme, gimme" mentality! We should be telling Him "I give you all of me, I give you all of me!" Take me to the places you have for me, in your name. This life is not about us, whether we choose to accept that or not. This life is about God and His kingdom.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that you shouldn't invite your friends or family to church. However, we should not do so with the mind set that you are putting the responsibility on the preacher to reach out to him/or her. That is what it has come to. And let's face it, how many people are accepting the invitation that you have put out there to join you at church? People aren't flocking to church, they are running from it! And we are so afraid or so uncertain that we can't even take the fear of lost souls of our own friends and family seriously that we make stupid excuses not to minister to them. HOW SAD! It is your responsibility! God says so.

Mark 16:15 says:
"He said to them, 'Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.'
He said to preach to ALL. Not some, not just your friends and family, but to ALL! He didn't say if or when this or that and the other...He said GO and preach to ALL. He didn't say it only the responsibility of preachers to share the gospel.

Matthew 28:19 says:
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."

He says make disciples of ALL nations. He didn't say just countries A, B and C. No, He says ALL. Are you getting the idea yet? God is saying: "There are NO exceptions, do as I say!" The fear of the Lord must be within you because did you know that you are responsible for the lost souls that you come into contact with? Yes. It is true. This is serious because if you are not sharing the gospel with others, whether they like it or accept it or not, it is as if you are condemning them to hell. But, that sounds harsh! Well, it is! What if no one ever told you about Jesus Christ and you ended up in hell, how would that make you feel? But, but...not everyone deserves eternal life with Jesus. Well, guess what? NOBODY deserves it, no matter how good you are! But by the grace of God you can be saved, and ONLY by the grace of God!

So, here are my challenges for you:
1) Share your God experiences with people around you. They will listen and God will only become alive to them as He has become alive to you. Some may be skeptical of your experiences, but with skepticism comes curiosity also. SHARING God's love in demonstration and by the telling of your experiences is NOT shoving God's truth down anyone's throat and if they don't want to hear it, at least you can say you obeyed God in sharing His gospel (as long as it was authentic and I am not saying to stop after your first attempt either).

2) Become HOT for Jesus! Don't let your old faith and your church life hold you back and keep you hostage in staying lukewarm. Dare to be different by breaking the bondage's of whatever is holding you back. Whether it's a comfort thing or whatever...take charge in knowing that if God if for us then who can be against us? God is bigger than anyone or anything that could ever happen. So, you have no reason to fear ANYTHING! So, go against this modern day's society of what is acceptable. If it means it is going against God (being lukewarm) then you should be running in the opposite direction.

3) No more 'gimme, gimme' mentality. Give God all you've got! Let go and Let God!

PLEASE feel free to share your thoughts.

Forgotten God

Have you completely forgotten God in your daily routine? Do you think about Him in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening? Is your life just too chaotic from the crazy work schedule, to family life, your church life, and all the drama from family, friends, politics, etc? Sure, you've heard the saying "You should stop and smell the roses once in awhile". Well, in this case I am going to refer to God as the 'rose'. Have you stopped lately to look at Him, or smell His beauty and stand in awe at His amazing grace?

"The sad reality may be that most Christians in America don't have a real sense of the abiding presence of God because they refuse to clean up the clutter in their lives. And many of us who attempt to clear the clutter tend to get stuck in the log-jam of legalism." - Tommy Tenny

Do you have too much clutter in your life, the kind of clutter that clogs your mind and heart to the point that you don't have the compassion, love or even kindness towards others that Jesus has? Stop what you are doing, forget all the stuff going on in your life right now. When was the last time you were moved to tears because of something you saw that broke your heart? Let's say a homeless person or even just someone who has substantially less than you do. When have you last felt an ache in your heart because you felt the love of Christ so strongly that nothing in your life seemed as important as you thought it was in that moment? When did you see the need and hurt of others as weighing heavier than your problems? And let's face it - your problems are probably (not saying they are not important) something that is no where near as heavy a burden than those who say...don't know where they are going to sleep tonight, or don't know when or where their next meal will come from and haven't experienced this comfort or stability in knowing that they will be comfortable in a very long time. Have you stopped to count your blessing lately? How does that rose smell that you pass by every day?

I am moved and so proud of this man who decided that He was going to do the right thing even though things could have turned out a lot differently. Here is the story:
Julio Diaz has a daily routine. Every night, the 31-year-old social worker ends his hour-long subway commute to the Bronx one stop early, just so he can eat at his favorite diner.
But one night last month, as Diaz stepped off the No. 6 train and onto a nearly empty platform, his evening took an unexpected turn.
He was walking toward the stairs when a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife.
"He wants my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, 'Here you go,'" Diaz says.
As the teen began to walk away, Diaz told him, "Hey, wait a minute. You forgot something. If you're going to be robbing people for the rest of the night, you might as well take my coat to keep you warm."
The would-be robber looked at his would-be victim, "like what's going on here?" Diaz says. "He asked me, 'Why are you doing this?'"
Diaz replied: "If you're willing to risk your freedom for a few dollars, then I guess you must really need the money. I mean, all I wanted to do was get dinner and if you really want to join me ... hey, you're more than welcome.
"You know, I just felt maybe he really needs help," Diaz says.
Diaz says he and the teen went into the diner and sat in a booth.
"The manager comes by, the dishwashers come by, the waiters come by to say hi," Diaz says. "The kid was like, 'You know everybody here. Do you own this place?'"
"No, I just eat here a lot," Diaz says he told the teen. "He says, 'But you're even nice to the dishwasher.'"
Diaz replied, "Well, haven't you been taught you should be nice to everybody?"
"Yea, but I didn't think people actually behaved that way," the teen said.
Diaz asked him what he wanted out of life. "He just had almost a sad face," Diaz says.
The teen couldn't answer Diaz — or he didn't want to.
When the bill arrived, Diaz told the teen, "Look, I guess you're going to have to pay for this bill 'cause you have my money and I can't pay for this. So if you give me my wallet back, I'll gladly treat you."
The teen "didn't even think about it" and returned the wallet, Diaz says. "I gave him $20 ... I figure maybe it'll help him. I don't know."
Diaz says he asked for something in return — the teen's knife — "and he gave it to me."
Afterward, when Diaz told his mother what happened, she said, "You're the type of kid that if someone asked you for the time, you gave them your watch."
"I figure, you know, if you treat people right, you can only hope that they treat you right. It's as simple as it gets in this complicated world."
Produced for Morning Edition by Michael Garofalo.


When I reflect on this story, I think: "Wow! This is what Jesus would have done!" Are you willing to do as Diaz did? Why or why not? Are you afraid? Think about this...we pray constantly "Lord, please keep me safe on my way to ___________and when I am at________" Really? Are we that selfish and scared of death? What do we really have to be afraid of? We need to step out of our comfort zone and put ourselves even in the line of danger if God calls us out to. Regardless of the price, because after all didn't He pay the ultimate price? Is He not as worth it that we can't even risk our own lives for the glory of God? Have we forgotten about our purpose? Doesn't God say "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." - Matthew 22:37
He doesn't say sometimes, He doesn't say when we are comfortable or if it fits in our schedule...He says WITH ALL OUR HEART, SOUL AND MIND.

Have you forgotten God? His heart is full of beauty, love and grace that is immeasurable.
I just finished watching the movie 'The Blind Side'. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it as a top of the list movie for the "must see".  In short, it is about 'The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All American football player and first round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.' A wealthy family took in a young boy, named Michael, who was homeless, uneducated and had the most dreadful early childhood. I can't help but be to moved and want to fall on the floor and ball my eyes out when his new mother presented him with his own room and Michael asked: "Is this for me? I've never had one before." and his mother replied "You've never had your own what? Your own room?" And he said "No...a bed"
That tears me apart! I can't even imagine never having a bed, I have always had a bed to sleep in. Can you imagine never having a bed until you were in high school? Can you imagine your wardrobe being the clothes you are wearing right now and an extra shirt you carry around in an old grocery bag and to do your laundry you just rinse your clothes out under a faucet at a laundry mat because you can't even afford any other way. Can you imagine having no home, no family, and no sense of belonging? All because your parents were irresponsible and they ended up with messed up lives that left you alone and abandoned. Can you imagine being homeless because you lost your job or because you just didn't get the education or opportunity to achieve such things? Do you think being homeless is a choice?
Homelessness is not a choice, it's a very unfortunate situation. And so many people take their luxurious lives for granted! Here is a perfect picture of what I am talking about:









So many times we ask God, where are you, why aren't you answering my prayers...have you forgotten about me? The truth is, He is asking us: have you forgotten me?
So, let me leave you with this one last question and really take it seriously and put a lot of thought into it...this is serious: Have you forgotten God in your life?

Unearthly Weeping

"If God can get enough people in an area to reject the rulership and te dominion of satan, if enough of His people will reject satan's dominion in the right way-with humility, with brokenness, and in repentant intercession, then God will slap an eviction notice on the doorway of the ruling demonic power of that area. And when He does, then there is a light and glory that begins to come." - Tommy Tenney

Do you give just a lip service to God, but your actions don't follow what comes out of your mouth? Ever wonder "Where is God in this time, I need Him so badly right now, where is He?" Actually that is almost the same mentality that God is thinking about you the same time you are thinking it. Only it goes something more like this: "I am right here, all you have to do is come into my presence and have faith. I never left you...I want you so badly right now!" Did you know that when you don't experience God it is because you may be running from Him and/or you don't think He is big enough or doesn't understand you and your situation in depth enough? God is always there. He is constantly asking you "Do you love me?" The great thing is, is that He already knows everything there is to know about you, so you don't have to try to hide things or beat around the bush in telling Him things that are going on in  your life. He understands you and your situation better than even you do!

Do you struggle with guilt or regret? Are you constantly being haunted by your past? The good news is...you don't have to! How is that possible? The key is REPENTANCE. We are commanded by God to repent on a daily basis. When we do this He listens and He gives us a second chance, time and time again. We must be humble, we must fall on our knees and bow down to all of Him. No holding back. When we try to go alone and do things our way, we will always experience some kind of hurt from guilt and/or regret. I must say that guilt and regret are 2 great tools for satan to mess with our heads. I have watched regret and guilt literally ruin lives.

There is no, not one thing that God cannot forgive you of if you ask for forgiveness. In the Bible Peter denied Jesus 3 times, he claimed to not even knowing Jesus. How hurtful do you think that was to Jesus? God did not cast Peter aside for doing this.
Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: "Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times." And he went outside and wept bitterly. - Matthew 26:75

He deeply regretted what he had done, and he prepared himself to receive Jesus’ forgiveness with sincere humility and a contrite heart (Psalms 51:19). Jesus forgave Peter, first by saying “Peace be with you” (Luke 24:36; John 20:19,21,26) and then by giving Peter three op­por­tunities to retract his denials.  Peter received Jesus’ forgiveness by saying, “I love you! I love you! I love you!” (John 21:15,16,17).

When Peter went to God with sincere humility He was going to God with a sense of death in himself. He was laying himself bare in all humility in the presence of God. This is how we receive a true cleansing of guilt and regret.

1 Peter 5:6-8 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

We must go to God with everything that is within us and in order to do this we must let our flesh 'die' and give nothing less than that. If you want to get close to God  then make sure that everything is dead.
If you really want to know Him, then EVERYTHING of our earthly desires and flesh MUST DIE.

Do you want revival in your life? "The depth of your repentance will determine the height of your revival. The more death that God smells, the closer He can come." - Tommy Tenney.
Our mission in life is to Love God and serve Him. When we flee from this purpose it leads us down the road of mistakes, which then leads us down the path of the wretched guilt and regret. How do we stay focused on our purpose, this world is so full of distractions? Entertainment being a big one. Movies, tv shows, video games, etc. How do you overcome such overwhelming distractions when everyone in this world sees these things as normal? The answer is: Spend time with God, spend time praying. REPENT. Repentance is not just about asking for forgiveness it is also about turning away from the things you are repenting for. This is often a big missed part in repentance. Two halves equal a whole. So, without asking for forgiveness and turning from your mistakes you certainly have not repented in whole. Surely God will tell you if you are being distracted from Him. The best way to avoid such distractions is to cut it off! Yes, it sounds drastic, but I can tell you right now from experience...it works! I literally cut things off cold turkey that were not of God. And boy did I get a reaction from my friends when I told them I know longer was watching the same tv shows as there were anymore. Especially by a non-Christian of mine. She just couldn't understand it. She was so confused that she waited until I was out of the room to ask my husband why I had turned away from such tv shows and if it was a change that was permanent. And guess what? It opened up several discussions for me to share the love of Christ and His love with her! Did she like hearing it? No, but she started to ask questions and that is key in planting seeds for the kingdom of God!

By turning away from such ungodly things God has revealed so much to me and I can hear Him so much more clearly now. It's amazing how He just lines up His purpose and direction step by step so easily when we STOP and listen.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:2

This is the testimony of where I am right now. Feel free to ask me questions because if you do not believe in transforming away from this world's distracting culture, I can testify that I have experienced the blessings that God has for all of us when we let our flesh 'die' and do all things for and in Christ.
Where do you start? Again, it has to start with repentance. We must drop everything that we are doing and everything that is within us and let God use us as He has planned. Release your regrets and guilt and move onto the beautiful place God has for you. It is a choice, you must choose to go there. Otherwise, you will continue the path of burdens that make you feel sick and purposeless. We must empty ourselves out. We must decrease, so that He may increase in our lives. You must experience unearthly weeping in repentance. You must let go of it all, no holding back. You must move out so that God may move in. Please bow your head as you fall onto your knees right now and experience the unearthly weeping that the Holy Spirit has brought upon us and repent. And as the Lord told Peter: "Peace be with you".

Are you a hoarder?

Are you a hoarder? Do you have things that you don't need, that you don't use, and things you just can't let go of? I am sure you have plenty of things that are just collecting dust, or you keep things that you "just might use someday". Well, as I lay in bed last night, it was a bit chilly. And I thought about it and thought "wow, I am cold and I have a roof over my head and am wearing warm clothes and I am laying in a soft bed under blankets...and there are people out there that are cold that have none of those other things I just mentioned" I have clothes I cannot wear. I have things that have some kind of sentimental value that could be used by someone else. So, I ask myself...am I a hoarder? Why am I hoarding things I don't use and some things I have excessive amounts of? Because I am selfish. You are selfish. We all are.

How do we overcome this "disease" of being a selfish hoarder? We must strive to be like Jesus. And do as He commands!

2 Cor. 9:7 - Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 1 John 3:17 -  But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won't help him--how can God's love be within him? 1 John 3:18 - Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions. So, I am letting go! Sentimental value or not. If I am not using it and if it is something that can be used by someone else...it is going into the hands of someone other  than mine. Don't worry, after it's gone it won't only be less space being taken up in your home, but you probably won't even notice that it's gone. And better yet, giving it to someone in need has it's reward as well.  So, as the spirit of Christmas is here, remember...it's about Christ. Not how many things or how good of things we have or are going to receive that matters. Lets not make this holiday season about us, as it is usually focused, but about our Lord Jesus as intended.

Where is Christ in Christmas?

Saint Nicholas of Myra is the primary inspiration for the Christian figure of Sinterklaas (Santa Claus).
Did you know that Saint Nicholas was famous for his generous gifts to the poor, in particular presenting the three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian with dowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes? So, where does worldly transformation come into play with who Santa Claus is and what Christmas has become? Christmas has become about giving gifts to families and friends. This has caused financial stress, unneeded debt, unnecessary materialistic build-up (most things, especially things bought for children rarely last even a year), depression and even death (caused by depression/emotions soaring high-suicide and death even caused by aggressive greedy shoppers on black Friday) What is Christmas really even about? Greed and who got the coolest/most expensive present? Who has the most amazing Christmas tree and lights and yard set-up?
Christmas is a holiday that represents the celebration of Christ's birth. What does that have to do with gift giving and Santa Claus? Sure Santa was a historical figure and possibly an example as to what we should be doing (GIVING to the poor), but we shouldn't be lying to our children about Santa. Sure, it's cute, but it's a lie. If we are going to give gifts to our children shouldn't we be raising them to know that they are being blessed by God and not a non-existent man? We are supposed to raise our children in the way they should go. Is teaching them lies really what we want to start off with as they are still young and vulnerable?

So, the debate: Christmas (a secular holiday) vs a Celebration of Jesus' birth. Which is it?
One or the other, or both? It can't be both that is contradicting. So, you either celebrate Christmas, a worldly holiday about gift giving, or you celebrate the birth of Jesus. So, why, as Christians, are we so easily pulled into the worldly view of Christmas and what it's about? What are we afraid of by not going along with what the "world" expects? What a way to share the word of God...by not celebrating in a secular way, people WILL ask.  We are not to serve two masters.

I do not know one Christian who celebrates Christmas any different from a non-Christian. Why? People are afraid to go against the flow in fear of being treated differently. Why are people so afraid? What is there truly to be afraid of? What is gonna happen? You might be asked why you are doing something differently and you then have an open door to sharing the gospel...oooooo, SCARY! Wow, that is probably the worst that is going to happen. And think of all the people who will be blessed by you stepping out and serving others, like the poor and hungry by serving in some way. These people need family too! You probably just saw your family at Thanksgiving, can you imagine being homeless, hungry and cold in this season and you found out that no one would help you because you would rather just be home with your family? How selfish! I am not saying family is not important, I am saying that we should not put them on a pedestal that makes us actually go against the act of serving as God has called us to do. And when we put ourselves out there into the world serving others, it gives us a great opportunity to share the love and gospel of Jesus Christ, just as He did! It really isn't difficult, if anything it is an amazing experience! How do I know? I have cumulatively worked in soup kitchens for almost a year. (I still would be, regularly, if I was not a stay at home mom).
I just want to challenge you to go against the flow, against the traditions that are not critical for life and serve, but most of all LOVE AND OBEY GOD IN ALL YOU DO.

1 John 3:17 But if someone who is supposed to be a Christian has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and won't help him--how can God's love be within him?
1 John 3:18 Little children, let us stop just saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.

God Bless and may this Season be a season of giving Love.