Proverbs 28:1

Have you ever had the opportunity to get up close to a real lion? If you have, you would never forget the experience. Lions are incredibly majestic, even when they are in captivity. There is something inside of them that knows who they are and they carry a ferociousness that it quite terrifying to their enemies.

Over the past two years, I have a many opportunities to observe these beautiful creatures. Each time that I have had a lion encounter, it has literally taken my breath away. At one such occasion, I was standing face to face with only a cage and a couple of feet separating us. When this king of the jungle roared at me, his breath swept across my face as he showered me with his spray. At the moment, I was absolutely overwhelmed and thrilled to experience his majestic roar as it continued to reverberate around our concrete surroundings.

In Proverbs 28:1, King Solomon contrasts the lionheart of the righteous with the paralyzing fear that causes people to run away from things that don't even exist. Solomon's father, King David also spoke of this boldness in Psalm 27:1 when he proclaimed... Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? (WEB)

Fear is a powerful adversary. It lies to us. It cheats us. It prevents us from walking in the truth. Fear is the root of worry. Fear paralyzes, it torments, it causes people to hide in the shadows. Fear manifests itself in many ways. Fear of the future. Fear of poverty. Fear of death. Fear of sickness. Fear of man. Fear of rejection... etc., etc.

The only real power that the enemy has over us is deception. Jesus called him the 'father of lies' in John 8:44, so when he lies to us, he is speaking his native language. His hope is that we would believe what he says about us and not believe who God says we are. Jesus told us in John 10:10 that his purpose is to kill, steal and destroy and fear is one of his greatest weapons.

The Bible clearly tells us that God has not given us the spirit of fear. The Apostle Paul wrote about this in 2 Timothy 1:7...  For God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control. (WEB) Another apostle, John wrote in 1 John 4:18... There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has punishment. He who fears is not made perfect in love. (WEB)

The Apostle Peter tells us in 1 Peter 5:8 that the devil 'walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.' I believe that the emphasis should be that he walks around 'like' a roaring lion but he is not a real lion. He just wants us to think that he is. The REAL lion, is our elder brother, who has a name above every other name and is called 'The Lion of Judah'.

In Hebrews 2:14-15 we read how our big brother Jesus took on the form of human flesh in order to destroy the works of the one who has caused us to live in fear all our lives... 14 Since then the children have shared in flesh and blood, he also himself in the same way partook of the same, that through death he might bring to nothing him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and might deliver all of them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (WEB)

The destiny that we have been called into, is that of being joined with Jesus. His life is our life. His power is our power. His inheritance is our inheritance. He has not given us a spirit that makes us a slave to fear, but He has given us the Spirit of Sonship so that we can call out to God and call Him our Abba, Father!

Romans 8:15-17
15 For you didn’t receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God; 17 and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ; if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him. (WEB)

As we enter this New Year, you may be facing many challenges in your life that may cause you to be afraid. Jesus told us in Luke 12:32 that we don't have to be afraid because our heavenly Father is delighted to give us His kingdom. My prayer today is that each one of us would experience a deeper revelation of the love of God in our hearts that would drive all fear away.

May the eyes of our hearts be opened today, so that we could see what our glorious inheritance is in the saints (Ephesians 1:15-23). May we experience a new boldness rooted and grounded in love that would cause us to live a life free from fear. May we know that our Dad is the biggest, strongest Dad in the universe and He has promised to keep us safe in His strong arms.

May we have the security today in knowing that our elder brother, the Lion of Judah, has triumphed once and for all (Revelation 5:5). May we all rest in the unchangeable reality that one roar from Jesus will cause every one of our enemies to flee in absolute terror... just because we are part of God's amazing family!

As I wrap up this blog, I want to echo the words that Paul said in Romans 16:20... And the God of peace will quickly crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. (WEB)

Editor's Note:
Special thanks to my friend Theo Van Der Plas for designing the background for one of my lion photos. To check out Theo's website, visit... lovetheone.net

Matthew 11:28-30

The 'rest' that we are talking about is not a word that describes inactivity, but a word that describes the inward state of our heart. Jesus lived a life of complete rest and yet He was very active proclaiming the good news of the kingdom wherever He went. He told us a little about His work ethic in John 5:17... But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, so I am working, too.” (WEB)

Yet in Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus invites us to come to Him to experience a deep rest that will lift off all our heavy burdens. He goes on to say that if we observe Him (learn from me), we will be able to see how the kingdom of God is intended to operate in the heart of every believer.

As we know from His public ministry, life was not always easy for Jesus. He had needy people pulling on Him wherever He went. The only respite that He usually had was in the middle of the night when He would leave the multitudes to be with His Father. Yet in the midst of all the need around Him, Jesus tells us that His yoke was easy and His burden was light.

So what does it mean to have an easy yoke and a light burden? After all, the work of the kingdom is serious stuff. It involves preaching good news to the poor. Binding up the brokenhearted. Setting the captives free. Often we are called to do the impossible, meet the needs of the unquenchable, and to wage spiritual warfare in the midst of a dark world. We all carry within our being a destiny of 'greater works' that Jesus said we would do.  We know that all creation is groaning for us to come into the glorious freedom of as the children of the Most High.

So how do we balance of enomority of the call with the promise of rest and peace? At first glance, the work of the kingdom and the rest of God seem to be at odds with each other. But I do not believe that this is what our Father has intended for us. I do not believe that these 'greater works' should ever come at the expense of our own personal peace and an inward state of rest in our souls.

I think the key to walking in peace and rest is found in verse 29 when Jesus tells us to take his yoke upon us and lay down our own heavy yokes. After all, His yoke is easy and His burden is light! When we realize that all we have to do is yield to Christ in us (Colossians 1:27) then we can rest in Him doing the work through us! When we stop trying to control our lives and simply yield to the leading of the Spirit (Romans 8:14), I think life becomes more restful and filled with peace.

When we are able to let go of independence, self-sufficiency, striving, etc. and exchange them for a life of simplicity, rest, dependence, waiting, peace, etc... we may be surprised at how productive we can become! God wants us to be anxious for nothing and to cast every care on Him (1 Peter 5:7) simply because He cares for us.

What kind of yoke are you carrying? Is it one that brings restlessness rather than rest and peace? Does your burden cause you to live in another time zone rather than in the moment? Is the work that you are doing cause you to be worn out, exhausted, empty and unable to rest? If so, I would encourage to ask Holy Spirit to show you if you are carrying burdens that God has not asked you to carry.

May each one of us take upon ourselves, the light and easy yoke of our elder brother, Jesus Christ. May the peace that passes understanding guard our hearts and minds in all that we do. May we be able to sleep in the midst of storms and take no thought for our lives. May God give us the grace today to cease from our own works and enter in the rest of God Himself (Hebrews 4:9-11). May a new level of faith in God's ability to do the work through us, rise up so that we can fulfill our destiny and do the works that God has prepared for us to do!

Ephesians 2:8-10
8 for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, that no one would boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them. (WEB)

2 Corinthians 3:17

The kingdom of God is all about living a free life. When Jesus announced His public ministry (Luke 4:18), He read from the Isaiah 61 passage of Scripture which starts off by saying...  The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh is on me; because Yahweh has anointed me to preach good news to the humble. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to those who are bound; (WEB)

Simply put, Jesus came to set us free. In John 8: 36, Jesus clearly states this when He said... If therefore the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. (WEB) God loves freedom. Freedom of choice, freedom of expression, freedom to be who He created us to be.

It was our Father's love of freedom that cost Him everything He had. In order for Adam and Eve to be truly free, they had to have the power to accept or reject the love that God offered them. There is no other way for love to operate. Love does not control, manipulate or oppress. To live in love means freedom to stay or freedom to leave.

Adam and Eve chose to go their own way which absolutely broke their Father's heart and started a chain reaction in heaven that would cost the Godhead everything in order to redeem what was lost in the Garden. That is how important freedom is to God, for wherever He lives, there is complete freedom.

Anything that wars against freedom in our lives is something we that we should take notice of. The spirit of religion moves in opposition to freedom. It sets rules and regulations, customs and traditions, applies pressure and guilt, all in order to keep people bound up... all in the name of God!

I am learning more and more how our Father hates captivity. He created everything to be free. Now just because we are free does not mean we abuse the trusted freedom that has been given to us as a gift. Galatians 5:13 tells us... For you, brothers, were called for freedom. Only don’t use your freedom for gain to the flesh, but through love be servants to one another. (WEB)

If we truly live in love, there is no way that we will abuse our freedom. There will be many times in our life when we will lay down our rights in order to serve another. As a matter of fact, I believe the more that we are convinced that we are loved, the freer we will be to be the Lord's bond servant. But it will be for love's sake that we choose to lay down our life, not control, guilt or manipulation.

My prayer today, is that each one of us would come into a deeper revelation of freedom than we have ever had before. My hope is that we would all be free from all of the 'shoulds' that would keep us in bondage in our life. May we all see that Jesus died on a cross so that we could live a free life. Free from sin, free from shame, free from condemnation... Free to be who He created us to be!

May the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation show us today the true heart of our heavenly Father so that we would know His love in its truest form. He doesn't control us, manipulate us or abuse us. His love for us is so pure and so self-sacrificing, that we are free to come and free to go. Just as the loving father in the Prodigal Son story allowed his son to leave his house and take his inheritance with him, our Father entrusts us with the same choices.

May each one of us choose to live a free life and choose to live in love so that the love that God has for us might find its expression in servanthood beyond our wildest dreams, not because we have to, but simply because we choose to.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8
4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, 5 doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; 6 doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. (WEB)

Hebrews 11:1

We are called to be sons of the kingdom of God. Our destiny is to live as children of light (Ephesians 5:8). Though we live in the world, we are not of this world. Our spiritual DNA comes from above.  In the Lord's prayer, Jesus taught us to ask our heavenly Father to send His kingdom to this earth so that His will would be done here exactly as it is in heaven.

Though each one of us spends our days seeing the effects of the fallen world in which we live in, there is another spiritual reality at work that calls us to set our affections on things above and not on things of this earth (Colossians 3:2). Though the pain and suffering that we see with our natural eyes is very real, there is another dimension of vision that we are called to see with... The eyes of faith.

In this week's Scripture verse, we read how faith is the assurance of the things that we hope for and the proof of things not seen. Faith is not something we see with our natural eyes and it is not something that can be understood from an earthly perspective. Faith requires great trust and belief in order for it to flourish in our lives. In Hebrews 11:6, the author goes on to say... Without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing to him, for he who comes to God must believe that he exists, and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him. (WEB)

If you continue to read Hebrews 11, you will read of many biblical heros who lived by faith in God, even though their present circumstances seemed to be in direct opposition to the plans and purposes that God had for them. We read how a man named Noah built an ark in a dry land for over 100 years. We read how Abraham left his safe and secure surroundings to go to a country where God told him to go, and then he later had a child with his wife Sarah in their old age.

Time and space prevent me from talking about Moses, Isaac, Jacob, David and all of the other heroes of this chapter that lived a life seeing into the unseen and not living by their natural sight. Some of them accomplished the impossible and wrought great victories while others suffered terribly, knowing that their reward was not of this world.

In 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, the Apostle Paul speaks of the tension between the kingdom of this world that we live in and the kingdom of God... 17 For our light affliction, which is for the moment, works for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory; 18 while we don’t look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. (WEB)

I believe that we have a unique opportunity to touch our heavenly Father's heart this side of heaven when we choose to live by faith. After all, when we get to heaven, we will have no more opportunities to exercise our faith in the way we can now.

My prayer today is that each and every one of us would cry out to God... “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24 NIV) I pray that our God and Father would open the eyes of our hearts so that we could really see the reality of who we are and who God is.

May a new boldness to simply believe God and live a naturally supernatural life, knowing that we are seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:4-7) be our spiritual reality today. May we all have the grace today to see into the unseen realm and live a life of faith that is pleasing to our heavenly Dad.

Ephesians 1:15-23
15 For this cause I also, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which is among you, and the love which you have toward all the saints, 16 don’t cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to that working of the strength of his might 20 which he worked in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come. 22 He put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things for the assembly, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (WEB)

Luke 9:24

The kingdom of God is all about risk. Jesus told us that if we want to play it safe and 'save our life', we will end up losing it. But whoever jumps in head-first into the plan and purposes of God will truly find their life. In the Parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), we read a story where one servant risked five talents to get another five.  One risked three talents to get another three and one was too afraid to risk the one talent so he buried it in the ground.

When the Lord came to check on his investments, the one servant who buried his talent responded by saying in verse 25... I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.’ (WEB) His motivation to not risk losing the one talent he had was not faith-based, but fear-based. He was afraid of losing the little he had so he did nothing with what was entrusted to him.

I truly believe that our God and Father loves it when we take risks. I don't mean taking risks for risk sake, but when we feel in our hearts to do something bigger than is humanly possible and we do it despite our own feelings of inadequacy. I believe that facing our fears and risking failure is the only way that we will accomplish things that are 'exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think' (Ephesians 3:21).

I believe that a son who is secure in who he is, is free to live a life where he is wiling to take risks to go higher and farther into the 'good works which God had prepared in advance for him to do' (Ephesians 2:10). A son who knows that he is loved, can be willing to stumble and fall at times because he knows his value to the Father is not based on what he does... or the mistakes he makes along the way.

In the orphan world that we live in, failure is devastating. Failure is shame-based because it is linked to our own self-image and the image that other people have of us. The fear of making a mistake causes many dear people to live a life of imprisonment of their own making. Instead of boldly proclaiming like David did in Psalm 27:1...  Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? (WEB) ...People who live in fear of failure say... I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth.

The fear of man is also a big motivator for us to not risk. What will other people think if I do this? What if it does not work out? Then what will my reputation be? Can you imagine what Noah had to face on a daily basis when he began to build the ark that called God told him to build? Could you imagine over 100 years of daily ridicule from his community? It took great risk for Noah to do what he did, but as we know from the story, there was a great reward for his willingness to simply obey God.

The desire of my own heart is that I would be faithful with the single talent that I have been entrusted with. Perhaps by perseverance and the ability to risk, that one talent might multiply to two and maybe the two might multiply to four? I don't think that the number of talents that we have been entrusted with is the thing that impresses God, but our willingness to risk what we have.

The thing about risking is that there is no guarantee that we will be successful. We all love a success story, but for each success there are probably many more failures that we don't want to talk about. On a personal note, I have had many more failures in my own attempts at risking than I have had successes. And every time I feel Papa wants me to risk again, the memory of past failures are always there to discourage me.

It is no surprise that the average self-made millionaire has a number of business failures before they actually find success. I think the reason for this is simply because they were not afraid to risk and fail. And when they failed, they got up on their feet and were willing to risk again.

When our children were little, they loved jumping off the stairs into my arms. They loved the adventure of risking because they were confident that their dad would catch them. The thing that amazed me as their father, was their willinginess to risk and trust that I would catch them.

At the end of the day, I don't think it is our success that will touch our Father's heart, but our willingness to face the fear of failing and dare to go out on a limb again and again. In Psalm 37:23-24, David says... 23 A man’s goings are established by Yahweh. He delights in his way. 24 Though he stumble, he shall not fall, for Yahweh holds him up with his hand. (WEB) Even though we may stumble and fall at times, we can take great comfort in knowing that the Lord will catch us in His hand.

My prayer today is that each one of us would know that our value to our Father is not based on our performance, but is based on the eternal truth that He loves us with an everlasting love. May the love that God has for us bring us to a place of complete security and rest knowing that nothing in all creation will ever separate us from His love and acceptance (Romans 8:35-39). I also pray that the security of knowing our value to Him will give us the courage to risk obeying Him when He calls us to risk.

My prayer is that the paralysis that would keep us from simply obeying God and risking would be consumed in the fire of His love for us. May each one of us be encouraged today by the love that our Father has for us so that we can fulfill His plans and purposes for our lives without fear of failure.

Romans 8:28-32
28 We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 Whom he predestined, those he also called. Whom he called, those he also justified. Whom he justified, those he also glorified. 31 What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who didn’t spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how would he not also with him freely give us all things? (WEB)

Psalm 23:1-3

Rest is a much needed part of a son's life. It is not something that we do when we are about to collapse in exhaustion. It is something that God has intended to be part of our every day life. It is so important to God, that He actually told the Israelites to dedicate one day out of seven for the sheer purpose of resting.

Even if you look at our own bodies, they were created for resting. In order for us to live a healthy life, we are supposed to sleep 1/3 of our lives. If we don't, our bodies can wear down and we can get sick. God designed us so that we would need to rest on a daily basis in order to live a good life.

In Psalm 4:8, David says this of the benefits of resting... In peace I will both lay myself down and sleep, for you, Yahweh alone, make me live in safety. (WEB) In Proverbs 3:24, King Solomon wrote... When you lie down, you will not be afraid. Yes, you will lie down, and your sleep will be sweet. (WEB)

Jesus lived His entire life with His heart at rest. He was even able to sleep on boats in the midst of the most terrifying of storms. And the peace that Jesus has, He has promised to give to us. John 14:27 says... Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, give I to you. Don’t let your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful. (WEB)

David starts his beloved Psalm 23 with these words...  ¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.  ² He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, ³ he refreshes my soul. (NIV) 

I find it interesting that David says that the Lord MAKES him lie down in green pastures. Sometimes in the busyness of life, we don't take the time we need to care for ourselves like we should, so the Lord causes circumstances to happen so that we have no other choice but to rest. He MAKES us lie down in green pastures and He leads us beside still waters in order to restore our soul!

If you have ever felt that you were backed into a corner and had no choice but to 'be still and know that He is God' (Psalm 46:10), you will know what I am talking about. Sometimes we get to rest by our own choosing and sometimes it comes by an intervention from the Most High. Either way, I believe that our God and Father wants us to embrace these times in our busy days and these seasons in our busy lives when we can truly value resting in His presence.

Psalm 37:7 tells us to "rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him". When we learn to rest and wait, we are ceasing from our own works and entering into the Sabbath rest of God Himself (Hebrews 4:8-11). We we learn to rest, we begin to value things that are greater than our own productivity. When we still our hearts, we find that not only does God speak in the silence, He IS the silence!

In an orphan world system that is busy busy busy, the ability to be still and rest and lie in green pastures is not always valued. It may be valued for a short time like going on a vacation, but it is not valued as a way of life. The same shepherd boy who learned the secret of lying down in green pastures, is the same shepherd boy who brought down the giant that was tormenting a nation.

My prayer today is that we would all learn the secret of being able to lie down in green pastures so that our heavenly Father could restore our weary souls. I pray that the rest of God would descend upon each one of us like a warm blanket today. May our sleep be sweet. May we find solace beside quiet waters. May we even learn how to sleep in the midst of the most tumultuous of storms!

Matthew 11:28-30
28 “Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, 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.” (WEB)

Matthew 16:13-17

13 Now when Jesus came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 They said, “Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. (WEB)

Jesus was as much a son when He was lying in swaddling clothes in the manger as when He was doing amazing miracles. In His heavenly Father's eyes, it didn't matter whether Jesus was doing great exploits in full time ministry or helping His earthly father (Joseph) run the family's small carpentry business. Jesus was the only begotten Son of the Father who was loved completely and uncondtionally all the time.

Jesus' sonship was not defined by what He did, but who He was. His place in His Father's heart was based on relationship and not on His accomplishments. In the orphan world system that we live in, often the measuring stick we use to find our value is rooted in some form of achievement. Whether it is through getting a good report card as a child, or going the extra mile at work or church. In the culture that we live in, often there is a direct correlation between achieving and feeling loved and accepted.

It is not that the desire to achieve is wrong because it isn't. I believe that God has placed godly desires to do 'exceeding, abundantly, above all we could hope for or imagine' in life. Jesus Himself told His disciples that they would do greater works than Him because He was going to His Father. Since the kingdom is always advancing, I do believe that a healthy drive to move forward is good.

But how do we feel when we are not achieving? Do we feel any less loved and valued? When we are not able to contribute to society in the ways that our society expects, then what? Who are we then? If there was ever a haven of rest from this performance-based life, you would think it should be the church, right? After all, we are called to love each other and prefer one another just as Jesus has loved us, right?

While the church should be the safest place on earth for people to feel loved for who they are and not what they do, it is not always the case. Often the need to sustain all of the programs of the church, creates an atmosphere of guilt and shame for those who are not 'pulling their own weight' to keep the hamster wheel turning and turning.

Instead of teaching new believers to truly learn how to receive the unconditional love and acceptance from God, we prepare them for battle, emphasize their servanthood, and challenge them to do, do, do. Again, I will reiterate that doing in itself is good! Doing great exploits for the sake of the kingdom is good! Seeing the kingdom advance is good!

However, may we never forget that our value to our Father is never based on what we do. May we always know that the priority of His heart is that we would know that we are His kids. That we are loved and accepted because of the finished work of our elder brother and not by our own works.

Like any proud papa, I believe God loves it when we fulfill our destiny, whatever that may be. For some of us, especially those with a 'type A' personality, the greatest work that we can do for the kingdom may be to stop trying to work for His kingdom and simply 'be still and know that He is God' (Psalm 46:10) and rest for a while.

My prayer today is that each and every one of us would accomplish what our Papa created us to do because we are loved...not in order to receive His love. I pray that the peace of Christ would fill our hearts and our minds so that we would know our true value to our Father. I pray that the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation would convince us more today that God loves us simply because He is love and He created us to be loved. No matter what we do or don't do in this life, that won't ever change.

John 8:29

Jesus lived a life that always pleased His Father. He loved to do His Father's will. In John 4:34, Jesus told His disciples that His very food was to do the will of His Father and finish His work. Everything that Jesus did was in harmony with His heavenly Dad.

Every time He picked up a child and blessed them, He was doing what He saw His Father doing. Every time He forgave a sinner, He was moved with the same compassion that welled up in God. Even when He drove out the money changers in the temple, He was moving in complete unity with His Father.

The very focus of Jesus' life was to make His Father smile. He delighted to do His will in all that He did. It wasn't difficult for Jesus to live in unity with His Father, for the love that they had for each other made it the complete joy of His life. Jesus did not have to try and think about what made His Father happy, because He knew His Father's heart intimately and naturally flowed in the same direction.

I truly believe that it is God's plan and purpose for us to delight to do our Father's will too! In Psalm 119, the psalmist declares in many places how he delighted to do the will of God. In Psalm 1:1-3, we read the incredible benefits that follow those whose delight is in the Lord...

1 Blessed is the man who doesn’t walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in Yahweh’s law. On his law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper. (WEB)

When I was a young Christian, I thought that living a Christian life would mean that I lived a life that was in direct opposition with what I wanted. I was convinced that God was going to send me to be a missionary to a country where I didn't want to go to. I even struggled that He might ask me to marry someone that I wasn't in love with.

The reason why I struggled with these things was because I assumed that God's plans and purposes for my life must be the exact opposite to what I desired in my heart. After all, I was a sinner and was very familiar with the Bible verse that says that the heart is deceitful and beyond cure (Jeremiah 17:9). If I couldn't trust my heart, then I could only assume that God would require the very opposite of what I desired in my heart.

Now as you read this, you may be wondering how I embraced this kind of theology as a new believer. It wasn't because someone actually told me this was the truth. I just think that I learned this through living a Christian life that was focused more on me trying to live by a set of rules or principles than learning to trust in the still small voice that now resided IN me.

When I look back at the 36 years that I have been a Christian, I have been amazed to see how God has actually led me. He didn't send me to a country where I didn't want to go. I actually married the love of my life and we just celebrated our 29th wedding anniversary in the past two weeks. And the work that He has called me to do in His kingdom is what I absolutely love to do!

Having said all that, I am not saying that my Christian life has been easy. There have been many times when I have stumbled, been hurt, been discouraged, struggled with fear, etc., etc. Life has not always been easy but looking in hindsight, I am amazed to see how the best times in my life have been when I have followed my heart's desires.

The more that I am convinced that nothing in all creation will ever separate me from the love of God, the more I see that my life is really a dance with the Spirit of God that lives in me. He leads and I follow. How do I know His leading in my life? I am learning to simply trust that He is directing me through the desires of my heart.

In Philippians 2:13-14 Paul says... 12 So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.13 For it is God who works in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure. (WEB)

I love the Amplified version describing verse 13... [Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight. (AMP)

I believe the more that we truly live in a heart relationship with the Godhead, rather than trying to live by a rulebook, the easier it will be for us to discern the will of God for our lives. The more we realize that our Father created us to do good works that are unique to us, the more we will stop trying to compare ourselves with others and run the race that is uniquely marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1-2).

In the Amplified version of Ephesians 2:10, this is what Paul says... For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]. (AMP)

My prayer today is that each and every one of us would know that we have been created in the image of God to uniquely reflect His glory in all that we do. My prayer is that we would embrace who He made us to be so that we could truly begin to live out of our redeemed heart and trust the Lord's leading through our heart's desires.

May each one of us truly find delight in simply doing our Father's will. May a new sense of the joy of the Lord fill us today, knowing that our life already makes Him smile. May we all live a life being led by the Spirit and not by our own pre-conceived ideas of what we think He wants us to do. May freedom reign in our hearts and may we truly echo the psalmist and say I delight to do Thy will oh God!

Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart. (NIV)

Romans 8:14

A while back I was asked to speak at two different churches in two different cities in the same Sunday morning. Both of these churches were located in fairly remote farm land just outside where I live. Since my GPS wouldn't work in these areas, I was given turn by turn written directions by the pastor for the first church that I was to speak at.

I only had 15 minutes to get from the first church to the second church and it was a 15 minute drive to get there! With no idea how to navigate the country roads and no written directions on how to get to my next speaking engagement, I was feeling a little stressed.One of the elders in the first church saw my stress level rise when she was trying to verbally give me directions to the next church, so she kindly offered for me to follow her in my car and she would lead the way. I gladly accepted her kind offer to lead me.

It was a beautiful Sunday morning, the sun was shining, we were driving past beautiful corn fields, everything felt perfect. I wasn't stressed because I knew that the lady driving in the car in front of me knew where she was going. I didn't have to watch out for street signs, I didn't have to worry about speed traps, all I had to do was follow her. Because I was confident that she knew where she was going, I had the opportunity to enjoy the rich scenery that we were driving through. This feeling a bliss contrasted the stress I felt earlier in the morning as I was trying to follow my turn by turn directions to get to the first church.

Since I was being led, my only responsiblity was to simply follow. It was at this moment that God spoke to me and said these words... "Barry, this is how it feels to be led by the Spirit". I immediately understood what the Lord was saying to me. When we are led by the Spirit of God, we do not have to worry about where we are going. We do not have to try and chart out the turn by turn directions in life. All we have to do is to simply follow. When we are following the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we can enjoy the scenery along the way because we do not worry about getting lost.

In this week's blog, the passage of Scripture from Romans 8:14 tells us that one of the signs of sonship is learning to be led by the Spirit. It might sound simple enough, but in an orphan world system that celebrates independence, the idea of allowing ourselves to be led, can be quite a challenge.

If someone else is leading us, then our only responsibility is to follow. When the Spirit moves, we move. When He stops, we stop. In order for us to be led by the Spirit, we must surrender our own agendas and independence and simply trust in God's goodness to take us where He wants us to go. When we are led by the Spirit, we simply settle in to being the branch that Jesus speaks about in John 15 where He tells us that He is the vine and apart from Him, we can do nothing.

In my own life, I am learning how to follow the Spirit's lead. It has not been easy for me, I am slowly learning what it means to be led. Having a 'type A' personality, I have always believed that initiating is always better than waiting. But the truth is, to be led by someone, is to learn to live in a posture of waiting to be led.

The first part of verse 7 in Psalm 37, says... Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him. Verse 34 in the same chapter King David says... Wait for the LORD and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off. (ESV) Isaiah 40:31 tells us that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. They will even mount up with wings like eagles and never tire!

My question has always been... How long do I wait? The answer that I have always heard from the Lord is... "As long as it takes!" For that reason, I have struggled to yield to the process of being led. If I allow myself to be led by the Spirit, then I will need to embrace a posture of waiting to be led. When He moves, I move. When He stops, I stop.

While this has been a difficult and painful process for me to learn, I am slowly but surely, grasping the glorious freedom found in being led. Being led by the Spirit frees up my mind carrying the responsibility of trying to discern the road map for my life. Being led by the Spirit frees me up to be able to live in the moment rather than in the future. Being led by the Spirit allows me to embrace a simple life with the heart of a child who calls out to his Father... "Are we there yet?"

My prayer today is that we would all see the amazing benefits of being led by the Spirit. My prayer is that the Lord will restore our ability to trust in His leading and not to lean on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). May we all find the courage to lay down our own agendas today and surrender to the loving leading of the Holy Spirit that lives within us.

May we all find a new freedom in our hearts today that allows us to live in the moment, rather than to live in the future. May we be able to embrace the heart position of learning to wait on the Lord so that our strength can be renewed. May we all see the glory and the fruitfulness that awaits everyone who simply takes their place as a branch that has unlimited access to the richest, life-giving vine imaginable (John 15).

1 John 2:27
As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him. (NIV)

John 13:1-5

In the orphan world system that we live in, we find our identity in the things we do and what we possess. That is why there is such an emphasis in life to climb the corporate ladder, acquire as many possessions as you can, etc. The more we achieve, the better we feel about ourselves. On the flipside, the more we fail, the worse we feel about ourselves.

This kind of motivation leads to a life that not only has lots of ups and downs, but is a very tiring way to live. The more that your identity is directly related with your performance, the less secure you will be in life. After all, what will happen if you cannot perform any longer? Who are you then? Are you less valuable? Are you less loveable?

What happens if an economic catastrophe wipes out all your possessions? What happens as gravity sets in as you grow old and you no longer have the perfect physique? Who are you then? I believe that even the very thought that some of these things might happen, can cause many people to live a life of fear because they believe that their happiness and their identity is conditional.

We may be loved by the world as long as we can keep up appearances, but what happens when the time comes that we stumble and fall? What happens when we fail to live up to the expectations of other people? From a Christian context, what happens when we fail to live up to the expectations of church life? Are we any less loved by God?

Of course the right answer is that we are loved by God no matter what we do. That His love for us is not based on our self effort, but on what Jesus did on the cross when we were powerless to do anything about it (Romans 5:6). While most believers know this to be true on one level or another, there are still remnants of an orphan belief system in our hearts that look to our works to establish our identity.

In this week's blog, we see how Jesus takes on the lowliest expression of servanthood towards His beloved disciples by washing their feet. Just prior to this, the Apostle John writes the following words about Jesus in verses 3 and 4...  3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he came forth from God, and was going to God, 4 arose from supper, and laid aside his outer garments. (WEB)

Jesus knew that He was the beloved Son of God. He knew that His Father had given all things into His hands. Jesus knew that He came from God and that He was returning to God. It was the revelation of who He was that sustained Him, not what He did. Because He was the Son of God, He could do anything. He could heal the sick, raise the dead, and yes, even wash His disciples' feet. Nothing that He did could ever compare with who He was. He was the beloved Son of His Papa!

We have been given the same Spirit of Sonship (Galatians 4:6-7) that our elder brother walks in. Paul the Apostle told us that it was no longer he that lived, but Christ that lived in him (Galatians 2:20). He also said that Christ in us is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).

The revelation that we are born of God should be enough to satisfy any need to define who we are! Sure, Jesus told us that we would do greater things than He did because He was going to His Father. But even the greatest of all achievements will pale in comparison to simply being called the children of God (1 John 3:1).

My prayer today is that each and every one of us would know that our identity in Christ is not defined by what we do or what we don't do. Our identity is not defined on how much we work, how much we achieve, or how much we sacrifice.

May the revelation of His great love give us courage to simply be who He created us to be! Whether that is doing great exploits or taking time to rest. May we carry within our being the revelation that we are loved sons and daughters to our Father in heaven. May this identity be enough for us even in the midst of a world (and sometimes a church culture) that demands more from us.

May the compass in our hearts always be calibrated to the love that God has for us. Whether we achieve or we fail, whether we work or we rest, may we all know that God's love will never ever change towards us.

1 Corinthians 13:1-8
1 If I speak with the languages of men and of angels, but don’t have love, I have become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but don’t have love, I am nothing. 3 If I dole out all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don’t have love, it profits me nothing.  4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud, 5 doesn’t behave itself inappropriately, doesn’t seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; 6 doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. (WEB)