Pressing on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

A couple weeks ago a friend of mine sent me a 3 minute mp3 of Francis Chan speaking on 1 John 2:6, “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”  I was instantly challenged by this short clip and committed to listening to it every day for 30 days as a way of meditating on this one verse.  The audio clip is below as well as an excerpt from an article by Chan conveying the same thoughts.

Audio File

As Christians in America, we often complain about how antagonistic people are toward Christ. Personally, I’m not sure that Americans are really rejecting Christ. Maybe they just haven’t seen Him.

Try to be COMPLETELY honest with yourself right now. Is the following true of you?

You passionately love Jesus, but you don’t really want to be like Him. You admire His humility, but you don’t want to be THAT humble. You think it’s beautiful that He washed the feet of the disciples, but that’s not exactly the direction your life is headed. You’re thankful He was spit upon and abused, but you would never let that happen to you. You praise Him for loving you enough to suffer during His whole time on earth, but you’re going to do everything within your power to make sure you enjoy your time down here.

In short: You think He’s a great Savior, but not a great role model.

Full Article

Came across this article today from October 1.  It highlights the findings of a recent study.

This week, the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life released the results of a nationwide poll that measured how knowledgeable Americans are when it comes to religion. The poll found that compared to other faith groups, atheists and agnostics knew most about the Bible, church history, world religions and religion in public life. Protestants trailed in religious knowledge behind not only atheists but also Jews and Mormons. – Full Article

The article relates the words of a Texas pastor who sees this study as a wake-up call to the Western church.  It speaks of the need to go beyond the attractional sermons and messages that have Biblical “sound bites” and to work on Biblical growth and spiritual growth that leads to Life Transformation.

How is your Biblical knowledge?  Does it matter?  Share your thoughts?

This past week my wife shot me an email with a link to the Sanctus Real website.  The home page of the website has the following two videos: the first is the story behind the song Lead Me; the second is the video for the song Lead Me.  As I listened to the story behind the song I was broken.  The message is strong and clear.  It’s a cry to the Lord to be led by Jesus in being a husband and a father.

…it’s the cry of a wife to be loved by her husband.  The cry of kids to be loved by their dad.  And the prayer of a daddy and a husband to be loved by God…and the most important and most difficult task of building my home on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ.
~Matt Hammitt, Sanctus Real lead vocalist, guitar

Take the time to watch the story behind the song. Then watch the song and let the Holy Spirit speak to you. It is a powerful message; a powerful cry to the Lord. It is the anthem of my prayer life right now.

The Story Behind “Lead Me” – Sanctus Real from BrightBulb Entertainment on Vimeo.

I want you Jesus, to lead me as a husband and a daddy!
~Jay

In Part I of this series, I believe that we are being asked the Right Question, “How does your belief in Jesus Christ make a difference in your life?”  However, I suggested that more times than not our answers to this question fall short of revealing the Glory of God because they inadvertently veil God’s handiwork by discussing spiritual disciplines and works.  We end up focusing on what we do for God rather than what God is doing in us and for us.

People desire to see how God is at work in their world.

When we focus on the doing for God those who are inquiring miss out on seeing how God is at work in and through us.  When discussed in a manner such as this it seem obvious.  Nevertheless, the vast majority of people I have encountered struggle to share their faith in a meaningful way that engages others.  So how do we respond to this right question in a better way? Read more

How does your belief in Jesus Christ make a difference in your life?

It’s a valid question being asked by seekers and skeptics alike.  When asked it provides an incredible opportunity to share of one’s personal experience with his/her creator.  However, more times than naught the Christian who is asked this question responds with vague or pat answers that do very little to answer the actual question.  The dialog may go something like this…

Inquirer:  So, I know you believe in all that God stuff and go to church regularly…but what difference does your belief in God make in your life?

Responder:  Well…(awkward and sometimes long pause)…for one I have hope because I know where I’m going when I die.

Inquirer:  But how does that hope make a difference in your life today?

Responder:  It gives me peace.

Inquirer:  How so? Read more