Tuesday, April 26, 2011

62. He Walked through Walls

John 20:19


So, let’s go back to that issue of addiction. You know, that thing where you feel completely powerless and stuck in something you absolutely hate, but you do it again and again, which leads to a downward spiral of darkness and an increased hatred of life in general? Alright, well, last time I talked about how the resurrection of Jesus gives us power to change and be different... to be a whole new thing. Let’s take a minute and break that down a bit: You see, when Jesus came back to life, He was the same, but different. What I mean is this: He was still Jesus, but He had completely changed. His body had gone through death and defeated it. He had overcome decay, sickness, weakness, fatigue, decline and age! Jesus was clothed with immortality! His body was (and still is) a heavenly, indestructible and incorruptible body! The new, eternal body was made for heaven, so that this earth couldn’t really handle it. The powers and effects of gravity and matter were no match for Jesus’ new body. He was walking through walls, appearing and disappearing at will, floating up into heaven, you name it! You see, Jesus didn’t walk through walls because He was like a ghost... it’s the opposite of that. It’s that the eternal life is more real than the material life. This old world had no hold on Him. If you know Jesus, that eternal life has been born in you too! Everyday you walk with Him, you become more a child of heaven and this old world has less hold on you. It’s just not as real or as compelling as the things of eternity. You’re new and different because of Him.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

61. He Lives To Empower You

Ephesians 1:18-20


Have you ever been stuck in a cycle of something you can’t quit? You know, that thing you hate, but you do it anyway? No one even knows it’s a part of your life and if they ever found out, you feel like you’d die of shame. You know that feeling? Trust me, I have been there. I know that place all too well. If you’re still reading, then you know how it feels... You do that thing, (whatever it is) you hate it, you feel like crap. You cry about it, ask God to forgive you and swear you’ll never do it again. You go along just fine for a while, but then, out of nowhere, you do it again and BAM! You’re plunged back into that cycle of self-hatred, shame, confession and empty promises to change. Whoa. How can you ever get out? Well, here’s the thing: The road out isn’t simple or quick. Recovery is serious business and it’s tough. You may need a program. You will definitely need friends you can be honest with. It may take a while, but here’s some good news: if you have believed in Jesus, you already have the most important thing you’ll need: power to change. You have the power to stop, change and become something totally new. When Jesus died, He paid for all your wrong, including this addiction. All the guilt and shame is gone! When He rose from the dead, He changed everything. Paul said that the outrageous power God used to raise Jesus from the dead is actually inside you! You are powerful for new life! Recovery is a long road, but you have the supernatural strength of Almighty God coursing through your veins!

Friday, April 22, 2011

60. He Died On Purpose

Matthew 26:53


Have you ever felt like no one wants you? You know, you look around at other folks who have a million friends and are surrounded by admirers, but feel like no one is really into what you’ve got going on? Do you have those friends who go from relationship to relationship and are basically never on their own without that significant other, but it feels like you’re still waiting on one to show up for you? Now, the really crappy thing is that it makes you feel like there’s something wrong with you. And that’s where Satan loves to jump in. He just whispers in your ear, “That’s right, there’s something wrong with you. That’s why no one wants you. Who would?” Well, that right there is a big, fat pile of stinking lies that originated in the black pit of the Enemy’s messed up, twisted, psychotic mind. Here’s the truth: Jesus wants you. He always has. It’s why He died. Jesus didn’t have to go to a cross. He didn’t die for you because He was forced to or obligated to. In fact, He told His boy Peter, “Brother, don’t you know that at any moment, I could call 72,000 supernatural, butt-kicking warriors of light to come down here and mop up this whole place?!” No, Jesus didn’t have to die on the cross. He chose to die on the cross. He was in complete control of that whole situation and here’s the kicker: He did it for you, not because He had to, but because He’s totally and completely, head-over-heels, madly in love with you. I know it’s cliche, but that doesn’t make it less true: Jesus would rather die than be without you.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

59. He Wants To Hear Your Story

Mark 5:33


Do you ever feel like you’re all alone in your struggles? You know, like you can’t tell anyone what you’re going through because no one has time to hear it, no one wants to try and understand you and you’re sure they’re gonna think you’re just a whiner? Well dang, maybe you should feel that way because let’s be honest, some folks in your life have said those exact words to you! I’ve had seasons of struggle in my life that I weathered completely on my own because there wasn’t a soul who wanted to hear it. I know that feeling from the inside my friend, and let me tell you, it sucks. You feel like everybody’s got more important people to be with and more important things to do than listen to your sob story. And like I said, the really sucky thing about this whole deal is that if you feel that way, you’re probably right! Folks in your life have flat-out demonstrated that they don’t care about your problem. Here’s the thing: Jesus cares. He made you, loves you and has all the time in the world for whatever is on your heart. My daughters really love the Disney movie ‘Mulan.’ Now look, on my own, I never would’ve watched it; but they love it, and I love them, so I love it. I honestly know every word to those songs, because that’s what love does. One time a frail, hurting lady was suffering from a long-term disease. Jesus was on a dire mission but she touched His clothes for healing. He didn’t care. He stopped the frantic procession just to hear this lady’s whole story. He loves you like that. For real.

Sunday, April 17, 2011

58. He Sees You

Luke 13:12


Do you ever feel invisible, like no one sees you? Anyone feel me on this? I’m talking about a feeling that is deep and lonesome. I’m talking about feeling like you’re a ghost in your house or in the halls of your school; like people catch glimpses of you but don’t look long enough to really see you. If you know what I mean, then you know how uncomfortably oppressive that feeling is, and you probably also know that thing the devil tries to tell you when you’re sitting there in the middle of it, which is: nobody sees you because there’s nothing to see. He tells you you aren’t worth noticing, and before long you’re so down and dark that you can’t even tell when people do see you. Here’s the thing: all that talk from the devil is just a lie to get you hating yourself. You are not, I repeat, not invisible because you suck. Did you know that J.K. Rowling wasn’t accepted by the first publishing house she went to with Harry Potter? In fact, she had the door slammed in her face not once, not twice, but twelve times! Twelve times! And dang, she rocks! So do you. One time there was a woman who was physically bent over double because Satan had tormented her for 18 years. Since she was doubled over and staring at the ground, no one ever saw her... except Jesus. In the middle of a crowd one Saturday, He saw her. He loved her. He found her and helped her stand. Even if you feel like no one else sees you, Jesus does. He loves you. He’s looking for you. He thinks you’re awesome and He wants you with Him.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

57. He Made You And Likes You That Way

John 1:3


Do you ever look in the mirror and hate what you see? Do ever just stand there staring at that reflection, totally consumed with the 4,273 things you wish you could change about you? Do you know how it feels to look around at other people that seem perfect and wish that you were like them? ‘Cause I do. I was always scrawny and slow, which is a terrible combination when you’re trying to play football. I looked around at guys who could pick up cars and other guys who could run so fast they’d turn off the light switch in their bedroom and be under the covers before it got dark. Man, I wanted to be like those guys and not like me. Maybe you’ve felt that way before, but here’s the thing: That voice inside your head telling you to hate everything about you is a liar. That voice belongs to the one that the Bible calls ‘the king of terrors’ and he’s a jerk. Satan can’t stand you and he wants you to think you’re trash. You know, a couple of years ago somebody gave my daughter a grungy, old, knock-off My Little Pony doll. It was pitiful, but Anna loved that thing. It was blue, so she named it Thomas and she didn’t care what anyone else thought because Thomas was her treasure and to her, he was precious. Here’s the truth: Jesus made you. He invented everything about you and guess what? He likes you that way. He thought up your personality, He crafted your form, He fine-tuned everything that makes you the individual you are. He made you on purpose and He flat-out loves you like this.

Sunday, April 10, 2011

56. He Loves The Real You

John 4:17-18


Do you know what it feels like to put up a front? You know what I mean, right? You only show people the best version of yourself. Your Facebook profile is always a great picture of you, and not a raggedy, struggin’ one, right? When you’re with other folks, you’re smiling and you’re upbeat and you look like you’ve got it all together, even though you don’t. Do you know how that feels? Because I do. I’ve been like that. I’ve hidden behind so many fronts and the truth is, I’m hiding from myself. I don’t want anyone to see who I really am because I’m afraid they’ll reject me. Well, check this: my friend Tom and I go into a local jail every week to do a Bible study with some of the inmates, and I wish you could have seen the looks on their faces this past Tuesday when Tom said, “You know guys, Jesus doesn’t love everybody.” Whoa... it was like all the oxygen just left the room. You could hear a pin drop and guys were like, “I’m sorry, but WHAT!?” Tom continued, “I’m serious. Jesus doesn’t love Batman, or the Easter Bunny. You see, Jesus doesn’t love fictional characters. Which means He doesn’t love your front. He loves you... the real you.” One time Jesus was talking to a woman who tried to front Him. He laughed, called her out and then loved her anyway... And I mean, He loved the REAL her. I love Jesus because He loves the real you... the one you’re afraid someone might see. Jesus loves the ‘you’ that you don’t even like very much. He is absolutely, head-over-heels crazy in love with exactly who you really are.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

55. He Still Wants You Even After You Screw Up

Luke 22:32


Okay, so you’re a screw-up. So what? So am I. Everyone is. You know it, I know it and guess what? Jesus knows it too and He’s ready to move on. Now, you might be thinking, “Wait a minute... I’ve kinda always thought that slipping back into my old life after following Jesus would make me disqualified. Isn’t Jesus gonna bench me if I mess up again?” Dang, I know you’ve heard that. I heard it too. I grew up in that same church. And it didn’t stop at the church! When I played JV football, the quarterback threw me one pass and I dropped it. One pass was all I ever got. They never threw me the ball again! Here’s the thing: Your spiritual life isn’t JV football and Jesus isn’t like my bald-headed old coach! You’re not disqualified just because you mess up. If Jesus only wanted people who never messed up, He would be reigning over a kingdom of One. We’re all screw-ups. There is no pastor, missionary or martyr who hasn’t put a foot back into their old life. In fact, most of them have jumped back in head first from time to time. The thing I love about Jesus is that He loves to use people who are flat-out messed up. One time He not only predicted the upcoming sin of one of His friends, but He said, “And when you’re done with that sin, get up, dust yourself off, then turn and strengthen your brothers.” Jesus knows you’re not perfect. He knows you’re going to sin again, and guess what? He still loves you and has a job for you to do.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

54. He Tells Me Who I Am Now

John 16:27


Has anyone in the world ever taken a good driver’s license photo? I think not. It’s as if the DMV and the local jail both hire the same photographer for mugshots and license pics. Mugshots capture a person at their absolute worst moment and then memorialize it. My friend Tom and I do a Bible study in a local jail every week and one of the most interesting things is going back and seeing a guy’s mugshot after God has been working in his life for a while. It’s like looking at two completely different people. We see guys filled with joy and love, who give out hugs and smile with their whole faces, but when you go back and see that mugshot, it’s like a whole other person from an alternate universe. The work of Satan in your life is to always remind you of that mugshot. He loves to tell you who you were. The Bible calls him “the adversary” and “the accuser” and all day long, he goes around reminding you of your old sins, slinging mud at your life to get you down and depressed and feeling worthless. I love Jesus because, while Satan tries to tell me who I was, Jesus tells me who I am. He tells me God loves me and that I am forgiven and clean. He tells me I am brand new and am a child of God. He tells me I’ll never come into judgment, but have already crossed over from death into life. He tells me I’m His and that no one will ever snatch me out of His hand. When I’m listening to Jesus’ voice, the mugshot doesn’t matter because I know who I am.