You are Victorious!

John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

John 18:36-37 My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews...For this purpose I have come into the world-to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.

Christians should walk in encouragement and victory. Our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, has overcome sin, death, and the world. Everything has been secured for Jesus' disciples.

Many Christians live defeated because of three distinct reasons. First, some Christians experience discouragement when they do not see victory over sin in their own lives. They get stuck repeating a sin over and over then give up. Second, many Christians do not see victory over death in this world and end up forgetting that this life is only a mist in the grand scheme of eternity. Third, many Christians live defeated because they see the chaos and disorder in the world and forget that it is temporary and the kingdom to which they belong is not of this world!

When believers see sin, death, and the world from an eternal perspective they position themselves to experience the peace and joy that Christ brings to their lives! Remember what Jesus said to his disciples when preparing them to experience persecution and troubles in the world:

John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” 

My prayer for you is that you would not fall to discouragement because of the sin you are still in the process of overcoming, that you would see all things through the lenses of eternity, and as a result walk in victory and confidence because Jesus has conquered sin, death, and the world!

Good Friday=Stressful Friday

The last time I looked, Easter was supposed to be a celebration. Yay! Jesus died on Good Friday, taking the punishment for our sins, and rose from the grave on Easter, defeating sin and death! 

It is so great and wonderful! I get excited just thinking about it! What better thing is there for us to celebrate and rejoice?! Nothing!

But if you are anything like me then just about the time you start building excitement for Good Friday and Easter something inevitably goes wrong. It is like clock work! 

Two years ago it was a church event that went terribly wrong due to the weather. We were supposed to have an outside Easter Egg Hunt and the the rain came pouring down. We had already bought the eggs, the candy, the bounce houses, and everything else so we had to do something with them! It took a few hours to figure out what to do with 1,000 unused Easter Eggs. We ended up packaging them in white paper sacks and putting stick-on labels on the front that read 'You've been Egg'd by Vintage Church Allen' on the front with an invitation to Easter Service. We passed out the sacks in the local neighborhood in hopes of salvaging something descent out of the effort. Needless to say the heartache of the event being cancelled and the extra work to package and distribute the Egg Sacks took its toll. My wife is still experiencing PESD (Post Easter Stress Disorder) from the whole ordeal.

This year it hit from almost every angle. Business deals got crazy stressful and the yearly church Easter Egg Hunt looked like it was going to be understaffed with just a couple of days until the event. I just started feeling the pressure and stress of old come back when I was reminded of why we do this. We don't celebrate for perfect events or easy business transactions. We are simply sharing the love and message of Jesus with our neighbors! It is that simple! Events do not go perfectly! Business sometimes falls through! But Jesus never fails us! It was in the worst of historical events that Jesus won his greatest victory!

In much the same way, in my most stressful and difficult experiences that I am forced to turn back to the simple beauty of why we celebrate Good Friday and Easter. In those times I have nothing else to turn to. I am at the end of my own strength and feel like I have to give up trying. That's when I remember: Jesus took the burden on himself! Jesus bears the weight himself! I simply need to lay down my burdens at his feet.

Matthew 11:28- 

'28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.'

So I ask you this: What burdens are you carrying? What heartache is weighing you down? And what will it take for you to lay it down and rest at the feet of your savior?

It is not worth holding on to.

May you hold on loosly to your life and tightly to Jesus. And may you experience peace and rest in his presence this Easter season.

Crooked Path...

Ruth 1:16 ...Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.

Ruth 3:13 Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the Lord lives, I will redeem you.

The Lord's path is not always a straight line. Sometimes following the Lord requires you to endure pain and loss that almost crushes you. Crisis and tragedy can come in droves.

Naomi, Ruth, and Orpah all experienced the worst kind of crisis. Their husbands died! In those days a husband was the woman's sole provider and protector. To lose a husband was sometimes a death sentence. Other times it was a sentence of slavery. 

Thankfully, Ruth clung to Naomi and followed her to the land of Judah. In his grace the Lord provided a kinsman redeemer to take Ruth and Naomi in. He loved Ruth and they had a son named Obed. This son was the grandfather of King David.

In this story God used horrific tragedy to bring about great victory! We celebrate the victory!

So I will ask a few questions: What tragedy have you experienced? How have you responded? 

Do not give up on the Lord! He can turn your worst tragedy into your greatest victory!