Category Archives: Courage

This Life Matters

Some things I want to share tonight. Yes, it is late, but I feel like this is worth sharing with you.

* Life isn’t a game. It can be enjoyed with lots of laughter, joy, and passion…but this thing called life isn’t a game, it isn’t a joke. The Author of Life gives us all a certain number of days to live. At the end, we give an account for what we’ve done in our time here. I have made a lot of really bad decisions in my life, but I want to make less as time goes on. Jesus is the only one who can save me on the day of judgment, but I want to live a life that God would say is full of love, selflessness, pure and blameless. Not so I can be forgiven, but because I appreciate the forgiveness and more importantly, because I love the Lord. If you feel like your life and choices don’t matter, then fast forward a few years to your funeral and ask yourself what kind of legacy do you want to pass on. I hope my legacy is love, faith, courage, authentic, and passionate. Jesus is worth it. So are the people He’a connected me to.

* You have an enemy. You may not feel like you love yourself, but Satan hates you and wants to destroy you, your family, and all those you love. Satan is stronger than you and I, but Jesus who is greater and lives inside the Christian is stronger than Satan. Don’t talk trash to or bout the Devil. Read the book of Jude.Submit to God, and let Him fight the battle for you against Satan. Your enemy, the Devil, wants to kill, steal, and destroy but Jesus has come that you and I have life to the full.

* God loves you relentlessly. For His glory. For your redemption. For the world. Jesus wants all of every single one of us.

* Ever person who asks Jesus to heal or save them gets healed of saved in the gospels. Call out to your Savior.

* God created you beautiful. Powerful. On purpose. With love. Because He likes you. With joy. Complex and simple. For Himself.

* This life matters. The cross is real. The tomb is empty. There is hope all every one of us.

Fear: The Gray Area

On being afraid: Often, the scariest things I face are the things that remain gray. Without meaning to, well intentioned people can become paralyzed by the fear of gray areas. The problem in this is that life does not reward your intentions, only your actions. If fear is what prevents you from doing things that are significant, then you better take fear on.

I’ve got some friends, and this doesn’t really seem to apply to them. They are afraid of what seems to be nothing. Heights. Challenges. Whatever it may be, there is no fear in them.

But I do have fears, and I think most of us are afraid in several areas of our lives. So here is something that I have done that helps me with fear. I write the gray area down. For an example, I’m using one that a few people struggle with: meeting new people.

I want to go meet new people, but I’m afraid…

Afraid of what?

1. Rejection. (If they don’t want to hang out with me, I must not be good enough.)

2. Being hurt. (If they do accept me, they might hurt me. This has happened before, I don’t want it to happen again.)

3. They end up knowing me. (I think if they knew the real me, they might not like me. I don’t like me half the time. Once again, this would hurt.)

4. What do I say? (If I don’t know what to say, I might look dumb, and if I look dumb, then I will feel inadequate. Especially if they give me one of those, “You’re really dumb or awkward looks.” That would hurt.)

5. What if these people are murderers. (If they are murderers, they might kill me. That would be the end of me. I’m afraid of being killed by these new people who might end up being my friends.)

Now, there may be more things on your list, but this would be a pretty good starting list. Yes, it might be a little extreme, but I’m really trying to convey the worst case scenarios. The great thing is that once you see what the worst case scenario is,  then the fear of meeting a new person isn’t nearly as bad as it might be otherwise. Often, we are most terrified by the unknown. If you can predict with any accuracy what the worst possible ending will be, then you will likely be less afraid. (Unless it is doing something you shouldn’t do. Such as cheating on your exams, cheating on your wife, or cheating on your taxes. Most things with cheating are things you should be afraid of doing.)

Even if you are just as afraid as you were before you made the list, you now know exactly what you are up against. After writing down all the fear, you might step back and take a second look at those fears. You can also look at your fears, and choose a different outcome for yourself. Such as this.

I want to go meet new people, but I’m afraid…

Afraid of what?

1. Rejection. (If they don’t want to hang out with me, I must not be good enough.) Actually, I am good enough. I know who I am, and I know I belong to God. Their rejection says more about them than it does me.

2. Being hurt. (If they do accept me, they might hurt me. This has happened before, I don’t want it to happen again.) They could hurt me, but not every person in this world is evil. If I don’t meet someone, then trust someone, I know I won’t be able to love someone. Giving love and receiving love are key to me as a human being. It is more important than the fear of being hurt.

3. They end up knowing me. (I think if they knew the real me, they might not like me. I don’t like me half the time. Once again, this would hurt.) Knowing me is a good thing, because I know who I am. I am a son (or daughter) of the Most High. I care about people, and I have something to share that no one else does. My heart. My mind. My life.

4. What do I say? (If I don’t know what to say, I might look dumb, and if I look dumb, then I will feel inadequate. Especially if they give me one of those, “You’re really dumb or awkward looks.” That would hurt.) I don’t have to worry about what to say. The burden of great conversations does not rest on my shoulders. I’ll just be who I am.

5. What if these people are murderers? (If they are murderers, they might kill me. That would be the end of me. I’m afraid of being killed by these new people who might end up being my friends.) Man, if these people kill me, I get to go be with God in heaven. But most people I meet are not killers. I think I’ll be ok.

Writing down your fears makes it a black and white issue. The gray is gone. When you’re not walking in a cloud of fear, you can step forward and live the life you want to live. The command God gives more than any other in the Bible is, “Do not fear.” Why? Because God knows we do. So when you feel fear, give it a name, make it black and white, and then if it is good, do it. Do not let fear control you. Life will not reward your intentions that were thwarted by fear, only your actions that overcome it.

Tonight’s Recap: Why I LOVE 20 Park

Tonight, we started the new series, ENTOURAGE at The Well. I am so excited right now I can’t sleep. So I’m going to write about how blessed I am. I want to look back and remember this in the days to come. I want to let people know that being real is possible, and that God really is faithful.

So here we go. Tonight, I preached on Friendship. (That’s what your entourage is.) Who you roll with. “Who is in? Who is out? You only go as far as they’ll go with you.”

Jesus tells us in John 15:9, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Now, remain in my love.”

Why is it so important to remain? The biggest reason I could find is that I will not bear the fruit of love in my life while I am living only from my own amount of love. When I live in God’s love, His love overflows into my life, and I am loving people from a deeper well, from a truer place, from a love that is not conditioned based. I need to remain in the love of Christ, because if I don’t, then I will live out of what I have or don’t have, instead of claiming and giving out of what Jesus has given me.

“Where there is no vision the people cast off restraint.” Proverbs 29:18

How important is the vision of your life? What is restraint? Is it the ability to choose wisely with friends? Is it the ability to say no to other’s? I would say, “Where there is no vision, the people settle for mediocre friendships. They expect so little from themselves, and believe they deserve very little from a friend.

That’s not the life I want. I want a great life. That means I need courage. “Be strong and courageous and do not be afraid.” Joshua 1 (the whole chapter has that phrase on repeat). It takes true courage to go to the place of vulnerability, where you reveal who you are to another and invite them into your life. It takes a lot of courage to be vulnerable. However, for the friendship to go further, someone has to risk. Otherwise, there is little hope of change.

Well, I gave some strong challenges to all in the room on going to the next level in friendships. Here is the amazing thing. People started going there with each other after the message: They sat down and shared their hearts. It feels so special to be a part of a group that takes the Word of God seriously enough to do what it says.

So let me praise 20 Park (the college ministry of Park Plaza).

*They are teachable. They come hungry for the Word of God.

*They are real. Quite possibly the most real group be ever known.

*They love to serve others.

They love to be challenged, and they respond to the challenges.

*They are creative. They are fun. They laugh. ALOT.

I’m blessed! Thank you God for an amazing night

Rise Up

The critics don’t count. That’s something I have to tell myself. No matter where you go, if you live a courageous, real, passionate life, there will be people who will be your nay sayer. They will do their best to steal your confidence, to challenge your intentions, to judge your heart, and tell you that you cannot be who you want to be or who you are. I listened to those nagging voices throughout my life. I wanted to do something great, and I even did some great things, but I could not accept that I was doing something great with my life because I listened to the criticism of others. One thing is for sure:

As soon as you succeed, people will start giving you their advice or criticism.

Sometimes, advice is really just criticism with a mask of caring on it. Here’s the deal: you won’t be a winner by following the advice of losers. There are a lot of people who feel that their primary responsibility in life is telling others what they can’t do. Or they’ll tell you why you shouldn’t do something great. Or if you do something great, don’t worry about ego. They’ll do their best to make sure you know that you are nothing special.

Maybe you have been shaped by what others say about you for far too long. Maybe you despise yourself, because you feel like others have despised you. Maybe you gave someone permission to burn your dreams to the ground. When will enough be enough? When will you claim your truth, live in your God-given nature, and step out in faith by doing something different.

Rise up from the ashes, and determine that your legacy will be greater than the critics could imagine. God is on your side. The choices are yours, the result is your life. Rise up. Challenge yourself to live wholeheartedly for the Lord. Give selflessly, choose to be happy, and show the people you love the real love inside of you. Don’t waste your life. Do something different.

Rise up.