Testing the Spirits

1Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
~1 John: 1 - 3

How many people do I know that claim a belief in God, but waffle on the topic of Jesus Christ? In many ways, Christ is the truest delineation for much of the madness surrounding us. So much of what we are constantly striving for is a reflection for our desire to have structure and surety in life.

Christ is surety... Christ is confidence.

As much as I hate to admit it, I work better when I am directed and tasked. Although I value myself as a creative individual, the wisdom of structure has been revealed to me slowly but surely through repeated late night cram sessions-completed projects that are good, but not great simply because I did not have the freedom to be as creative as possible. Through my discipline to plan and structure, I receive creative freedom. I should put that in front of my face more often.

It seems Christianity/Spirituality is much the same. Once I posess and understand the truth of Christ in front of me, I have freedom to live a spiritual life instead of simply seeking spirituality. Life has many different types of journeys, but if our entire existence is spent searching for spirituality, we have missed an important opportunity-perhaps the most important opportunity-the chance to serve in complete confidence and surety. How good to know that what I am doing with my life is a reflection of the Holy Spirit's influence. I don't have to wonder if I'm in the right place.

So good to write out answers to prayer in a journal to the Lord.

Madly in Love with My Lord

8I am a stranger to my brothers,
an alien to my own mother's sons;

9for zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.
~Psalm 69: 8 - 9

What must happen for my life to reflect a zealous attitude... not for my house, my things, my toys, but for His house? In a passage wrought with passion, David, a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:13-14) speaks thoughts freely and openly. His hatred for those who defile the Lord's possessions is clear. I suppose these thoughts are recorded simply for us to know that David was human-the same feelings of love for our God, could very easily be flipped to hatred of man owing to humanity's fickleness.

In a life colored with extreme swings of fortune, the one steady feeling David exuded was a passionate love of his Lord; could someone say the same of me? Were I to die right now, would I be remembered as a "nice guy," or a man who passionately loved his Lord? The answer in my heart troubles me. I have been extreme in many things through my life, but the one thing I haven't done well is to love my Lord in an extreme way.

My wonderful wife and I pondered this question last night. Most of us have a sense that we were created for relationship (Genesis 2:18). What makes us fall in love? The list we spoke of seems a good starting point: initial physical attraction, common interests, a tantalizing question of acceptance, perceived character... and the list goes on and on. It seems our societal comforts have hidden many of the needs that so clearly illuminate the need for God's love that was so apparent to David.

Should we have less comfort that we may know our Lord? This ideas colors many bizarre traditions through the church's history. I'm not sure what to do with the thoughts. Offering thanksgiving (Psalm 69:30-31)seems the most logical starting point, but there is more to this...

Love of The World

15Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

1 John 2: 15-17

A love of the world is perhaps the biggest thing standing between my God and I. If life has shown us some measure of successes and comforts, too easily we simply attribute these blessings as a product of our unique interaction with the world-our influence...

Most of our life's educational practices and institutions revolve around the myth that we control our own destiny. Self-image, goal-setting, counseling... Empowerment is the name of the game. There are merits to many of the ideas encapsulated by a humanist point of view, but contrary to the ultimate conclusion, experience teaches us the most empowered person will still conclude life crying out for the missing piece.

Lord, even though the world surrounds us with wonderful things and ideas, all originating from you, help me to see through the smoke and choose to love the Creator in lieu of the created.

Not My Own

19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

~1 Corinthians 6:19 - 20

"God divides the private life of His saints and makes it a highway for the world on one hand and for Himself on the other."

~Oswald Chambers


The submission of ourselves as an open vessel for the Lord is so incredibly scary. To imagine that I may be turned upside down at any moment and all my contents spilled to the world is the true reality of my life. Especially in today's world, there really is no such thing as a secret.

In thinking about my life as a highway, perhaps secrecy is one of Satan's most successful lies. Since the time of Adam, humanity has fostered the misbelief that occasionally our accountability stops at the end of own tortured capacity for secrecy. The grim reality, spoken through volumes of tabloids and much of the daily news, is that secrecy truly is an illusion.

What would I do if all of my thoughts, history, and motivations were aired to the world right now at this instant?

Would I feel freedom....fright.....shame....

Lord, I praise you that you are all knowing... and yet you still love me. Father, please help me know in my heart that your love is all that matters. Grant me freedom in you that my life might be a highway for your work.