Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord...

2 Chronicles 24 English Standard Version (ESV)Joash Repairs the Temple

24 Joash[a] was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 3 Jehoiada got for him two wives, and he had sons and daughters.

4 After this Joash decided to restore the house of the Lord. 5 And he gathered the priests and the Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that you act quickly.” But the Levites did not act quickly. 6 So the king summoned Jehoiada the chief and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the congregation of Israel for the tent of testimony?” 7 For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God, and had also used all the dedicated things of the house of the Lord for the Baals.

8 So the king commanded, and they made a chest and set it outside the gate of the house of the Lord. 9 And proclamation was made throughout Judah and Jerusalem to bring in for the Lord the tax that Moses the servant of God laid on Israel in the wilderness. 10 And all the princes and all the people rejoiced and brought their tax and dropped it into the chest until they had finished.[b] 11 And whenever the chest was brought to the king's officers by the Levites, when they saw that there was much money in it, the king's secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and take it and return it to its place. Thus they did day after day, and collected money in abundance. 12 And the king and Jehoiada gave it to those who had charge of the work of the house of the Lord, and they hired masons and carpenters to restore the house of the Lord, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of the Lord. 13 So those who were engaged in the work labored, and the repairing went forward in their hands, and they restored the house of God to its proper condition and strengthened it. 14 And when they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada, and with it were made utensils for the house of the Lord, both for the service and for the burnt offerings, and dishes for incense and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord regularly all the days of Jehoiada.

15 But Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and died. He was 130 years old at his death. 16 And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and his house.

17 Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. 18 And they abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. 19 Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

Joash's Treachery

20 Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God, ‘Why do you break the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.’” 21 But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord. 22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah's father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!”[c]

Joash Assassinated

23 At the end of the year the army of the Syrians came up against Joash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus. 24 Though the army of the Syrians had come with few men, the Lord delivered into their hand a very great army, because Judah[d] had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Joash.

25 When they had departed from him, leaving him severely wounded, his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son[e] of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed. So he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings. 26 Those who conspired against him were Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonite, and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith the Moabite. 27 Accounts of his sons and of the many oracles against him and of the rebuilding[f] of the house of God are written in the Story of the Book of the Kings. And Amaziah his son reigned in his place.

Some questions to ask when reading this text:

1. What things have you had to unlearn in your life?
2. What generational chains have you had to break?
3. Has there been bad counsel that you had to get away from?
4. Who have been your godly counselors?
5. Have you had a "Jehoiada" in your life?
6. What legacy do you want to leave behind?
7. What will it take to finish well?

And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada.  (David did what was right all the days he was with Jonathon) and so goes the course of Christian brotherhood.

Galatians 6:1-10 English Standard Version (ESV)

Bear One Another's Burdens

6 Brothers,[a] if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. 5 For each will have to bear his own load.

6 Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. 7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Speak The Truth In Love

Recently, I attended some training on sharing the Gospel from an organization that does full-time evangelism.  Some of the comments the trainer made really rocked me and my wife and caused us to examine not only our lives but how we spend time in ministry.In Matthew 28, we are commanded to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit"  The command is quite clear, if you are a Christian, you should be sharing the good news with others.  God doesn't say this is only a command for full-time paid ministry staff, but for all Christians.

One of the first comments that struck a chord with us was this:

"Most Christians spend a lot of time, money, and energy making their churches wonderful with the belief that if their church is great, the lost will stop by one day and find Christ.  The reality is that most people that need to hear the Gospel will never set foot in your church.  You need to bring the Gospel to them."  

We can make this argument all day long, do people come to a church and get saved, absolutely. But is this the main purpose of a church?  Not really.  The church (building) exists as a place for people to gather, worship God and fellowship with other believers.  It should also teach, train, and equip believers to become disciples who then "Go and make other disciples."

If you are reading this, you are probably the type of person who is open to attending church but the reality is...most people are not.  In our experience planting churches, my wife and I have literally invited hundreds of people to come to church on Sunday and despite people saying they are Christians, only about 10% actually show up on Sunday.  We've found that people are much more open to attending a small group gathering or social event than coming to the dreaded "Sunday Event."

Research polls shows that less than 20% of the US population attends church on Sunday and this number is expected to fall to 15.6% by 2020.  However, this number is deceiving as many people are open to faith and even consider themselves Christian but they just don't attend church on Sunday. What this tells me is that people don't have an issue with God or Christianity but with the Modern Church.  I've written quite extensively over the years on why people feel this way to include: hypocritical believers, not accepting of outsiders, poor vision from leaders, not engaging the lost and hurting, too political, etc.  The bottom line is that many people believe the modern church is not an accurate reflection of Christ and his teachings and therefore don't want to attend.

However, this does not mean that they are not open to the Gospel. This means that ordinary Christians need to bring the Gospel to them.

We each have a missionary field - our neighborhood, our community, our social sphere, people we see everyday at the coffee shop - all these people are in our missionary field.

My wife recently shared a video message on Facebook talking about all the wonderful blessings and prayers answered this past year and two of the most unlikely people contacted her and asked her how they could have faith and joy like that in their lives.

This leads me to the second comment that struck a chord with us, me specifically:

"Speak the truth in love but don't waste your time debating people."

Part of my personal faith journey was spending a lot of time studying Apologetics and being able to defend my faith with science, logic, facts, and reason.  I can defend the New Testament and give you dozens of reason for the authenticity and accuracy of the Gospel.

However, when I talked with the trainer in private, I asked this question:

"I don't run into people who have never heard the Gospel, most people have grown up in church or have heard of Jesus.  I run into people who were once a part of a church but no longer want anything to do with it or atheists and agnostics who want to debate every detail incessantly."

His answer - "I don't waste my time arguing or debating people, there are too many hurting and receptive people out there that it's just a waste of time to debate." 

This may seem callous and you may want to quote him the parable of the Lost Sheep from Luke but his point was that he did not spend hours trying to debate someone either in person or online to accept the Gospel.  Speak the truth in love but don't waste your time or breath on people who are not ready.

"until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, ¹⁴ so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. ¹⁵ Rather,speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, ¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love."   - Ephesians 4:13-16

He followed the "Red Apple Evangelism" philosophy. This philosophy states that there are Red Apples who are ripe for the Gospel right now and Green Apples who need to be loved on but are not ready for the Gospel. The key is to spend 95% of your outreach time on Red Apples.

This statement made me realize how much time I've wasted trying to debate or convince people of my faith, beliefs, opinions, or even accepting Christ. Part of this is my personality, I believed that if I could just say the right thing, give the right evidence or facts to win the debate - somehow that person would see that they are wrong and believe. This rarely happens however.

It's even harder and more personal when that person is a family member or someone close to us.

Ultimately, this training made me change my view on ministry and outreach. I no longer spend any time engaging in debates or even answering social media comments that may end up in a debate. People send me messages all the time and now, I just politely tell them that I no longer have the time to engage in debates.

This also made me rethink how I spend my time on ministry.  I've spent countless hours on planning, vision meetings, and even writing on this website. Ultimately, I could say that this was all "tending the flock" type ministry but am I really doing what God has asked?

No offense to my pastors out there but I'm no longer interested in building a bigger church, making praise and worship better or finding the best small group curriculum. I'm interested in going, reaching people, and making disciples of all nations.

- Lance

Simplicity at its best

Leadership Training Residency is a class that our church offers for Overseers, Worship Leaders and Youth Ministry Leaders.  I am taking this with some other brothers that I walk with and am in ministry with.  There was some concern on my scheduling (my involvement), but after talking with some accountability partners (my wife and brothers that I am being held accountable with), we decided that this would be a good discipline in my life to get my spiritual life back into focus.One of the books that were assigned to us is by Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline, where he talks about outward disciplines and in his words, "After all, the writers of Scripture constantly took that risk. And so I follow their lead and suggest ten controlling disciplines for outward expression of simplicity:

1. Buy things for their usefulness rather than their status (want versus need, practicality versus status, simplicity versus idolatry)
2. Reject anything that is producing an addiction in you (if the object, item or possession causes you to put that before everything else, especially God, then release it and let it go)
3. Develop a habit of giving things away (don't let the left hand see what the right hand is doing and your Father, who is in Heaven, is watching you and seeing you lay treasures up in heaven instead of materialism on earth.   The more stuff the more complicated life becomes)
4. Refuse to be propagandized by the custodians of modern gadgetry (things that promise to save time usually breakdown and don't really have Kingdom value and in some cases become idolatry:  Case in point - your smart phones)
5. Learn to enjoy things without owning them (share the beach - don't try to own a piece of it; visit parks and libraries)
6. Develop a deeper appreciation for the creation (walk and hike wherever you can and listen to God's creation)
7. Look with a healthy skepticism at all "buy now, pay later" schemes (this is usury and in its very nature tells us to accumulate debt instead of being debt free and honor God)
8. Obey Jesus' instructions about plain, honest speech (Let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no.  Follow through on your own integrity, honesty and truthfulness in all that you do)
9. Reject anything that breeds the oppression of others (live in a way that does not oppress others - if what you eat, drink and wear and own causes others to be oppressed than change your habits)
10. Shun anything that distracts you from seeking first the Kingdom of God (if it is an idol and gets in the relationship between you and God then remove that idol.  For some this could be sports (or our kids sports that takes our time and talent and treasure away from building God's Kingdom; for others it could be laziness; for others it could be putting everything else in our life before God's will.  Some of you may be asking what is God's will for our life - my question back to you is are you in prayer daily, God's word daily and serving God's Kingdom instead of your own kingdom?)

One of our Worship Leaders, Vinnie Adams, just finished an album that you can download (and even purchase) and I think it is very fitting to ask yourself where you life is leaning on these 10 disciplines above.  Take a listen to his album (read about Tesoros De Dios and if you feel compelled to donate - please do) and asks yourself these questions:

1. Are you seeking God for direction
2. Whose is it anyway
3. Will God be faithful in my life (if I trust him in everything)
4. Am I laying everything down before God (Jesus paid it all)
5. How Great is our God
6. Be still in life (in trial and tribulation and seasons that are stretching our walks)
7. Do you love Jesus
8. Rock of my Salvation

Blessings,Dante

Rules of the Sabbath

Recently in our men's group we talked about the Sabbath and what does God require from us in terms of Sabbath rest.  Two of the men facilitating the large group discussion shared when they were growing up and when they met their wives (both in high school) that they had to succumb to the rules on the Sabbath with their then-t0-be wives.  Interesting enough, one shared that one day he and his wife (girlfriend) at that time wanted to grow swimming on the Sabbath.  So they did, and the rules were that you could get into the pool and float BUT you could not swim, which some men brought up the question around the table:  What happened if one started to drown?

Christ Came to Fulfill the Law

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

Jesus said that until all is accomplished that mankind was bound by the law.  Putting this in more perspective, for any man woman or child that does not know Jesus through God calling man to be his, humanity will be judged by the Law of Moses.  That being said, if we do not know God's Son (Jesus Christ) as Savior, then if we are find guilty of one of these commandments, then we are guilty of them all.  I don't know about you, but me without Jesus equals no hope, because I am a sinful man.

Colossians 2:20 “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.”

Did you catch that last part?  Psychiatrist, therapists and the like cannot get to the core of the problem - men are battling both a physical and spiritual battle.   You can treat the symptoms, but unless you receive Jesus into your heart - there is truly no freedom of this indulgence of the flesh.   Humanity is sinful.  Without God, there is no hope for man.  Without a personal relationship with Jesus, there is no salvation.  Without the Holy Spirit, there is no guidance and we are like a ship in a stormy sea without a rudder.

Remember this in your daily walks, Colossians 3:15 "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

When you talk to doctors and trainers and those who know how the body and the brain works, we realize more and more that the Bible is the true authority in our life.  God knows what is best for us and that is to know His Son (Jesus Christ) as Savior.  To be in relationship with the Triune God (The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit) and to unplug and find rest so that we can be in community with Him.

Blessings,

Dante

Legacy Dad

1Thessalonians 2:11-12 For you know how, like a father with his children,  we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and gloryThis week was an insanely busy week for me both at work, home, and in the Church.  I wake up notably early and often leave the house while others are drooling on their pillows.  A few of my colleagues were traveling this week.  Secondly, I had an Elders meeting on Tuesday, and LTR class on Wednesday and my wife and I had a business date on Thursday.  I also like to go to bed no later than 10:30pm on work nights and this week I was not off to bed anytime before 11:30pm.

I prayed a lot. I talked with God a lot. I thanked Him a lot.  All this to say to you that for some strange reason, I wasn't fatigued or grumbling, rather, I was excited for what God is doing in men's lives around me.  The picture to the right was sent by another fellow Elder of mine who took this picture of another really good friend of mine.  This friend told him that he could only take this picture if it were in relation to Legacy Dad - The Elder obliged!  Both of these men are legacy dads (the one posing for the picture and the other taking the picture).

This is not to say that they do not get everything right, because like Lance and I - they don't.  It's not to say that they are always on their "A" game at home with their wives, at work with their colleagues or in the community with society, because they don't.  However, the one thing that they do have is the full attention of the kids.  The love and adoration of their kids and wives who like the walk that they are taking in their faith.

The legacy dad in this picture has 3 beautiful young ladies.   Yes, I said three little girls, which means college three times and three weddings (yes I said three weddings).  Look at the picture of his little girl.  She is so excited that dad has the time to meet her in her world.  It doesn't matter if it is a book, playing dolls, going on  a date or the like; what matters is that she has his full attention.  She has his time and he is in her world.

I have watched this legacy dad in his walk (along with some other dads in my mini-church) and it is amazing how much talent and gifting each of these men.  What is more amazing is that they want to make a difference in their kids lives (and they are).

Some things to remember about raising your kids:

• Be consistent - moms and dads need to be in unity and bear fruit of the Spirit with their kids
• Be loving - shepherd your child's heart and do not be a helicopter parent or a let everyone else raise my child parent
• Be Available - Yes kids want your quality time, that is, they want you to be focused on them and not on your phone.  They need more than your quality -  they need your quantity of time
• Be the leader - (Ladies- if you are reading, this is for the men) - love your wife.  Be kind to her and serve her.  Love your children by treating your wife the way that you preach to your kids.  Guide them in spiritual matters (take the lead - don't let your wife bear the brunt) and be honest about who you are ( a sinner saved by grace)
• Be Merciful - forgive them as God has forgiven you
• Be confident - Lance and I were talking about our kids last night (mine younger and his a lot older) and there has to be a time where you let them go and be their own people.  This is where you 1) trust God and 2) have confidence that no matter their choices, that God has them in His sights and He is in control - So PRAY OFTEN!

In all that you do, trust and acknowledge God.

Oh and by the way, the guy in this picture prayed for God's leading in a big request and the coolest thing to watch happen since that prayer with his wife - is watch the Lord move and answer!

Blessings,Dante

Praise the Lord, I saw the Light

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21 ESVJames 5:19-20English Standard Version (ESV) 19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

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The man singing to the right of me went home to be with the Lord.  He was a sinful man who was saved by Grace.  His life touched many of men and he started a group that called themselves the band of brothers.  As we began to visit him in hospice I had a chance to talk heart to heart with this man and to tell him that he was a different man then when he and I first met - he was God's man!  I saw these brothers and their wives and friends not only taking care of this man, who was in hospice, but I saw a man that impacted many lives who provided for him, his home and his son (to find legacy parents after his death).  These band of brothers showed me that what legacy dads is trying to instill in all of our blog readers that this journey we are on - is real.

TERRENCE A. PIERCE GRIFFITH, INTerrence A. Pierce, 55, of Griffith, went home to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Tuesday March 31, 2015. Terrence was born on October 13, 1959 in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He is survived by a son, Elijah, of Griffith, a brother, James Pierce of Illinois, a sister, Valerie (James) Dawson of New York, an uncle, Richard Pierce of Fort Wayne, a cousin, Stephanie Pierce of Indianapolis and numerous brothers and sisters in the Lord. He was preceded in death by his parents: James and Velma Lee Pierce, and a brother, Grant Pierce. Terrence was a graduate of Horace Mann High School and Ivy Tech College, a career veteran of the United States Air Force, and was employed in the Human Resources department at Community Hospital, Munster. Terrence was a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ, and a devoted and loving father to his son Elijah. He was active in mens' ministry, praise and worship music, and prayer ministry. He was a brother and mentor to all who knew him, and everyone was blessed by his joyous, confident, and steadfast faith. A memorial service for Terrence Pierce will be held Friday April 17, 2015 at Faith Church 100 West 81st Ave. Dyer, IN; 10:30 a.m. with Pastor Brett Dood officiating. A gathering of friends at the church will be on Friday from 9:00 till 10:30 a.m. time of service. Interment at a later date will be at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, Elwood, IL.

When it is all said and done, what will people say about you?  Are you a man of Faith?  Are you God's man?  Will you leave a legacy dad?

Blessings,

Dante

For more songs from our church click here

Happy New Year

Happy New Year from Legacy Dad!We hope that you and your families have a great and wonderful 2016.  As we have put 2015 to rest and look back for a moment, for some of us it could have been a great and prosperous year.  For others it could have been a year full of trials and tribulations and for others it could have been a year of loss - job, relationship, death of a loved one.  And for others it could have been a combination of others.  In either of these cases, what is going to be different about 2016 for you and your families?

Every New Years Eve, my family and I get together with some dear friends and celebrate New Years Eve with food and fun and celebration.  We laugh and share and watch our kids grow each year.  One of the things that my wife and I bring to this yearly ritual is a delicious Carrot Cake from a dear friend of ours that owns a bakery business.  Looking at the one piece that is cut from this unbelievable cake started me to think about this post.

When the cake is complete and we see its finished product it is beautiful and ready to share with the world.  That is, when God grows us into his work and we see more and more of his ingredients (the work of the Holy Spirit in us) we see the world notice something that is no longer of the old flesh (the old sin nature) and instead we see His love through each of his disciples.

When we start to make this carrot cake, we cannot just go out and lump all the ingredients together and stick it in the oven and expect the frosting to be perfect.  We have to train ourselves and point the cake into the direction that God wants it to grow.  Proverbs 22:6 says it this way:  (ESV) 6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.  According to Tony Evans, the Goal of a Christian parent is to raise the next generation in such a way that they reflect the rule of God in their lives.

Dr. Tony Evans defines Kingdom Parenting as "intentional overseeing the generational transfer of the faith of our relationship with God in such a way that children learn to operate under God's rule.  That is, that if we are doing it God's way (as parents) then we see a transfer from one Christian generation to another.  He goes on to say whoever owns the family owns the future.  There is spiritual warfare in parenting, that is why God tells us to be fruitful and multiply.  The culture wants our children very badly, that is why we have to fight for our family.  Nehemiah 4:14 (ESV) 14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

At the end of this year we had the long-awaited Disney's Star Wars release and the line that is in there that is applicable to this blog entry is, "Did you feel the awakening in the Force."  This got me thinking some more to ask this question of you:  Do you feel the Holy Spirit calling on your legacy dads (and moms) not to miss God's will for you life?  Do you feel the pangs of parenting (Godly parenting) that calls us to make our faith real to our children?  Do you feel the Holy Spirit laying on your hearts to take His Son (Jesus Christ) and His Word seriously?

Yesterday in our Men's Group, Men of Faith, one of my leaders challenged the men on taking God's word in our lives seriously.  He challenged us to start out this year in community with God and to seek His will in our lives daily.  He then played this video by John Piper:

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Here are some things to ask yourselves for 2016:

• Is my life reflecting God's will?
• Am I in relationship with God?
• Am I in His Word daily?
• Would others watching my life and its action call me a friend of God, an acquaintance of God or a foe of God?
• Would my time, my talent and my treasure point others to God?
• If not, why not?
• Fill in your question here ______________?

As for me and my house, we will choose to serve the Lord.

Blessings and Happy New Year,

Dante

Dare to be God's....disciple

If you are like me and believe in the Holy Trinity (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit) and believe that God sent His only Son to die for me then you have to ask yourself some serious questions:

• Why am I here?
• What is my purpose in life?
• Is the statement, To God Be the Glory, really applicable to my life
• What does God require of me being a disciple?
• Is Salvation a one time gift that doesn't require any further repentance?
• Why am I asking these questions?
• Is Salvation a works based faith?

Each one of us has been born on this earth with a purpose and if we know the Lord Jesus Christ then we have been given spiritual gifts to honor God. In all that we do, whether of this world, in this world or apart from this world should be to the honor and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.  You ask, does this mean that God is in all, above all, from all and in control of all? Simply answered, Most Definitely!

Ecclesiastes is a very good book that puts life in perspective (Read it and see).  At the end of it all, life is but a mist, and if we do not do everything in life to worship and honor God, then we miss the whole purpose of why we are put on this earth.

Take for instance, Christmas (by the way good blog on when was Jesus born - click here), we celebrate the virgin birth of Jesus Christ being born a virgin (Mary) and lived out his life and then died for our sins.  The love story doesn't stop there - it goes on to say that he also obeyed God the Father's will to die for our sins and to be raised again and He now sits at the right hand of God.  Because of this sacrifice all of our sins (repeating that) ALL OF OUR SINS of the past, the present and the future have been bought for with a price and paid for by Jesus's one time sacrifice for us.   What does he require of us in return:

• To Admit that we are sinners
• To Believe that Jesus did all that for us and more
• To Confess that we are sinners that need Jesus's sacrifice to cover our sins once and for all
• To live a pure and holy life (Colossians 3)
• To be a living sacrifice (Romans 12)
• To love our brothers (and sisters)
• To give without expecting to get
• To serve without expecting to serve
• To forgive without expecting to be forgiven (by others on this earth)
• To be a witness about God the Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit in every aspect of our lives
• To live a real life of a disciple, not that of a hypocrite (or pharisee)
• To be ready to hear God
• To be in relationship with God
• To be a friend of God

Why are we here?  What is our purpose?

James 1:27English Standard Version (ESV)

²⁷ Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.  

Who is our orphans - I would say not only actually orphans in this world, but I would say any man, woman or child that does not know Jesus Christ would be considered an orphan in my book.

Who is our widows - take care of those who lost loved ones and are grieving and have no family to take care of them

To avoid this world - (refer back to Romans 12, Colossians 3 and The Book of James).

Merry Christmas,

Dante