Live Dead.

Romans 8:36 "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered sheep to be slaughtered." 

1 Corinthians 15:13 " I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." 

Acts 20:24 "However I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task that the Lord Jesus has given to me--the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace."

Christians around the world right now are giving up their lives, their wants, their desires, their safety in order to live in Christ. Some are living in places to preach to a people that have never heard of the story of Christ. Some are being put in jail for not renouncing Christ as Savior. Some are tortured, some are losing loved ones. Some are sacrificing any semblance of comfort in order to live in a place that must be touched by God. In Fox's Book of Martyrs, John Hullier, a devout Christian was tortured for his beliefs: "He went meekly to the stake, and being bound with a chain, and placed in a pitch barrel, fire was applied to the reeds and wood; but the wind drove the fire directly to his back, which caused him under the severe agony to pray the more fervently" (258).

These things are still happening today. People have not stopped giving up their lives in order to live. This book that I'm reading right now, Live Dead, is a fantastic illustration of a group of missionaries who are giving up their lives on a daily basis to reach the Arab world. They have given up everything in order to follow God's commands for their lives.

Are you living dead today? Have you given up everything to follow after the path that Christ has laid out for you? Are you living dead in your prayer life? 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says "Pray without ceasing." James 5:16 says "The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." What are we doing as a nation when we cry out for change, for better things to happen and there is no action behind it? To live dead is to die to our own desires. We must be in prayer constantly. We must be studying our word often. We must be seeking out God's will in our lives. God doesn't just have an overall plan for your life, he has a day by day blueprint of what he needs you to accomplish. So what do you think He's asked you to do for the day? Bring your flesh under the control of God, and find your life by dying.

Whatsoever Things are True
Philippians 4:8

Fear Factor

2 Timothy 1:7- "For God has not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

Do you remember watching the show Fear Factor? There are tons of gruesome episodes where there are men and women alike doing disgusting things. I remember seeing episodes of people eating insects, being trapped in glass cases with snakes, and doing other various things that I would never even come close to attempting. It's amazing what people are willing to do!

But do you know what also intrigues me? It's that the same people who talk about attempting some of the scariest things (Fear Factor stunts, sky diving, hang gliding), are also the people who are afraid to do things like speak about the gospel of Christ. Or make a right decision.

We might not live in a television show constantly, but we do face a lifelike Fear Factor on a daily basis. I can tell you the bravest man in the world, and tell him to go talk to a group of complete strangers about Christ, and his mind turns to fear.

We all face fear. It's a natural part of our daily routines. Sometimes, we are afraid to make the right decisions in front of other people. We sometimes are afraid of what people think about us. Sometimes we are afraid to offend people by speaking the truth for others to hear. But when we look at the show of Fear Factor, the point of that whole thing is people who are overcoming their fears. We must learn to do the same.

"But there isn't money involved like in the show!" Hah! That's what you think. 1 Corinthians 9:25 says, "All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize." So tell me about this priceless venture again?

Do not be afraid. Do what is right. God is always with you. He will never leave you, nor forsake you. "treat every day as though it were your last--one day you will be right." -Ray Comfort.

Whatsoever things are true
Philippians 4:8

The Bumper Sticker Philosophy

Have you ever seen those videos that show the size of the earth, and then portray that next to mars, next to the sun, next to the largest star, next to the galaxy, so on and so forth? It's a pretty big place out there. Our place of residence looks like nothing compared to the enormous galaxy that stretches beyond our imaginations. And God, He holds it all... in the palm of His hand (Isaiah 40:12).

Though we are well aware of His glorious awesomeness, there are thousands of people who seem to take God's whole existence and shrink it down into...

"A good God wouldn't allow my family member to die." 

"My God doesn't condemn. My God saves." 

"Well, maybe that's a sin for you, but God hasn't directly told me not to do that yet, so I'm fine." 

"Just because God convicts others to stay out of violent movies and video games, doesn't mean that he has for me. God knows I can handle this stuff." 

... A box. 

It's what I like to call, "The Bumper Sticker Philosophy". The bumper stickers purpose is to take a very broad purpose and put it into a very small sentence to advertise to people. And sometimes, us Christians do this in our walk with the Lord. 

We take God's very broad message of love, and we boil it down, and boil it down, until it can fit on a bumper sticker for us to live by. 

Some people will live their lives around the "Jesus Forgives" bumper sticker, and they will decide that they don't need to live righteously because God will forgive them for their sins when they ask for it anyway. 

Some will live by the, "Just Believe" sticker, where people feel like their salvation goes as far as believing and you're done. 

Or the, "Do good to outweigh the bad" sticker. These people live with the hope that their good works will outweigh their bad deeds on judgement day. 

Maybe the, "Go to church" sticker. When people believe that going to church makes them a Christian, when in reality that makes you as much as a Christian as you walking into a garage makes you a car. 

Don't boil your relationship with Christ down to a Bumper Sticker. We don't want to sell God with our philosophy, we want to live Christ out and shine Him to others. We don't want to be like those sales people in the Progressive commercials who go out trying to convince others to buy their product, but they aren't buying it themselves. If we want others to follow Christ, we have to be 100% in on Christ ourselves. And this means that we are dedicated to following Him in love and servant-hood. 

Stop wearing the bumper sticker and get in on the real relationship. 

~Whatsoever Things are True

Philippians 4:8   

The Purity Tactic

Matthew 5:8, "Blessed are the Pure in heart, for they shall see God." 

Purity Rule no. 1

Don't have sex before marriage.

Purity Rule no. 2 

Keep your hands off of the opposite gender. 

Purity Rule no. 3 

Don't watch pornography. 

Ect... 

"Why do you Christians create rules that they refuse to follow themselves?" A frustrated teenager asks in indignation. "I saw online the other day that more 'Christians' are divorcing their spouses than non-Christians! Obviously your little purity tactics aren't working very well." 

We've been given a pretty rough name, ladies and gentleman.... 

Is our "little purity tactic" failing? Are we no better than those who are not God's children? 

I remember sitting in a youth group lesson on sex and dating when I was thirteen and watching all of these Christian teens giving their testimony about how they had just recently stopped their sexual intimacies with their girlfriends or boyfriends. It had been tough, but God helped them through. Then, growing up, I watched as one after another, the teenagers that I looked up to fell into this same thing. What was happening? I didn't know what to think. These people were breaking all of the purity rules that were set in place! All of the youth group, parent, bible rules on not touching each other, or telling dirty jokes were just thrown out of the window. 

It's true, purity has become a under-cooked issue in a lot of hearts, but inevitably, we will all fight this battle. Once, I heard a woman tell me you will fall if your idea about purity was to just: not have sex. She said that your goal must be to please God, and then you will not fall. This is one of the truest statements I've ever heard. 

Purity needs to be defined a little bit first, because it is a very misconstrued idea. When Christians take on the view that purity is kept in order to be able to give yourself to your spouse on the marriage night, then we miss the mark completely. Purity is so much more than relationships and abstinence. There are several forms of purity. 

1. Purity of the mind. 

2. Purity of words.

3. Purity of lifestyle. 

You see, we cannot live a life pleasing to God's standards unless we possess three forms of purity. When we practice purity of the mind, not only are we avoiding thinking about sexual things, but we are building a wall to protect ourselves from ANY unclean thing! Because purity is cleanliness. And we can't have cleanliness if we are involved in dirty things. This applies to Purity of the mind. You cannot think pure things if you are putting in dirt and grime. (Video games, movies, music, bad friendships) I'm not saying that all video games are of Satan, but I am saying that if you are involved in something that does not glorify God's standards in the Bible, then you are not keeping yourself pure from the world.

Purity of words is speaking truths and (obviously) cleanly things. If you want to keep your words pure, then we have to keep our heart pure. Which (like above) means to stay away from ungodly things. If you put dirt in a cup and then pressure wash that cup, what will come out? Dirt right? Right! So if we're putting dirty things into our heart, then dirty things are going to come out of our mouths. 

Purity of lifestyle is to live according to God's word, which is the most pure way of living that we could have. If we were to wear shirts with secular things on it, wear revealing clothing, not guard our mouths, not guard what we go to see, not guard anything on the outside... people are going to notice. People watch Christians, and if they see that you aren't pure in your lifestyle, then you lose your witness because you aren't any different from them. 

All of these pure things, if put into practice, will lead you closer to the Lord. And if you are close to the Lord, then you will not be tempted to do the hated things of the Lord. Keep yourselves clean. Drop evil with the Lord's help. Ask and you will receive. He won't let you struggle alone. You can be pure if you truly want to please the Lord. I'm praying for you all. 

~Whatsoever Things Are True

Philippians 4:8

The Bible IS Specific

If there is one thing I've learned throughout my relationship with Christ, it's that God is not into the whole "wide road" thing. The road to heaven is truly narrow just like he says.

I've just read an article that blew my mind away. A New York Times opinion piece talked about a man named Jeff. Jeff is a born and raised Southern Baptist man, who eventually became gay. (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/05/opinion/bruni-reading-gods-mind.html?ref=opinion) Frank Bruni (writer of this column) writes: "But has [The Bible] been translated correctly? Interpreted the right way? Are they timeless verities or — more logically — reflections of an outmoded culture and obsolete mind-set? And if all of the Bible is to be taken literally, shouldn’t Christians refrain from planting multiple kinds of seed in one field or letting women speak in church or charging interest to the poor?

“You can twist the Bible any way you want,” Jeff told me, adding, “We overemphasize sexual morality, as if God puts a premium on what we do in the bedroom over what we do at the bank.”

After reading this article, I am put in a state of unease as I read countless articles of people who feel the same as Frank and Jeff. People truly do think that the Bible is outdated and interpreted in the wrong way. Let me give you a couple of scriptures that puts this argument at rest.

Hebrews 3:18 says "Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever."

Malachi 3:6a says, "I the Lord, do not change."

If people truly believed in these verses, then the Christian population of the world would be drastically different. This blog post is not just to talk about homosexuality, but of the specifics in the Bible.

First off, the Bible:

Is without error. (Psalm 12:6)

Is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16)

Does not change with time. (Matthew 5:18)

Is eternal. (Psalm 119:89)

If all of this is true... then some believers are in big trouble. God does not change with time, and this means his standards are not going to change either. Sure, we don't have to offer sacrifices every time we sin anymore. But this is only because the perfect sacrifice was offered so that we could have a way to be delivered from sin.

I don't know how many times I have heard from people's mouths, "I don't believe that the whole Bible is relevant anymore. People were stoned because they disobeyed their parents, so why is it accepted now?"

Well, just because people put up with this stuff today doesn't mean God does.

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. (Romans 1:18-20)

The last time I checked in the Bible, it read that God hated sin. He will not let sin go unpunished. It is true that sin has become a normal thing in this day in age, but when is the last time you heard that God thought it was okay to stab someone because someone said something mean about your mom? If one of God's morals have gone down the drain, then by golly, all of them should. And since that is not the case, then we still face a God that has not changed.

If God's morals have not changed, then his commands and laws have not changed either. Not in:

Homosexuality (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

Lying (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

Stealing (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

Adultery (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

Using His name as a cuss word (Exodus 20:7)

Preaching (Mark 16:15)

Setting good examples (Titus 2:7)

Guarding our tongues (Proverbs 18:21)

Treating others with respect (Matthew 7:12)

Forgiveness (Matthew 5:16)

Love (1 Corinthians 13)

All of these things are just a small glimpse at His will on our life. Yet we treat these like things we should try to do. The last time I checked, the Bible verses that I just listed didn't have anything to do do with the words, "I would prefer if you did this..." or "maybe you should try this..." God says grounded words like, "Go." "Do." "Do not." "Be." "If you don't, then..." These are not suggestions. God's words are commands which are usually followed by warnings. Take 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 as an example:

 Or do you not know that the unrighteous[a] will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Don't treat the Bible like many Christians treat it. These are not suggestions! These are warnings, commands, and a guide through this tough life. It's not meant to harm, it's meant to keep you from an eternity of death. Take God's words into account. Don't try to follow, give up all you've got to follow. It's the end times. We can't be messing around in sin when Jesus comes back. Don't be asleep. Be vigilant and awake.

~Whatsoever Things Are True

Philippians 4:8

Wisdom, a persons best friend.

Job 28:17 "Gold and crystal are not as valuable as wisdom, and you cannot buy it with jewels of gold." 

A Diamond is a girl's best friend.

You don't need friends, you just need money.

Making money is the art to happiness.

I've heard these quotes stated many times as jokes, and things that are just repeated for the fun of it, but in reality, people really do believe that these things are true. Some woman truly do "befriend" the diamond, and lots of people truly do live their life in the hope of working hard and becoming rich.

The bible says nothing about it being a sin to work hard for your future. In fact the bible says that we need to work hard. And sometimes we will be blessed with money that we are to take care of and use the way God wants us to use it. Yet, people look at money as the most valuable thing to be lusted after. Making money has become more important than investing in wisdom.

According to the bible, wisdom is one of the most valuable things that we could ever possess. It is worth more than jewels, riches, or any material thing.

Wisdom is the voice that helps you through decisions. Wisdom is the knowledge we have when we search the scripture. Wisdom helps us through tough situations. Wisdom is invaluable. But, we spend more than half of our life working for money instead of seeking wisdom.

We must seek wisdom. We must value wisdom more than money. If you live your life without wisdom, then you will have a hard life.

How can you come by wisdom? The first step is to ask the Lord for it. He doesn't hold back things from His kids. He will grant you wisdom if you truly want it. Pray for wisdom every day. Second, study the scriptures. It's hard to pass a test when you don't know the material. Same with wisdom. It's hard to have wisdom when you don't read up on it. Third, put it into practice. "Fearing the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Proverbs 9:10.

Always seek the Lord above anything else (the first commandment), and you will be on your way to gaining wisdom and an awesome relationship with your father.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

Our Calling

Matthew 5:14 - You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

In the bible, we are called to be many things.

• Salt of the earth (Matt 5:13)
• Light of the world (Matt 5:14)
• Fishers of men (Matt 5:19)

All of these things make a difference or can be shown brightly to the world. Salt was used as a preservitive to make sure things didn't go bad. So we are called to preserve this world. The the light is so that people can see the way in the dark. So we're called to lead people into God's presence. Fishers are to catch and bring in nets. So we are called to go out and witness to the masses.

These are our callings as a Christian. Examine yourselves. Do you think that you represent one of these?

Do you help preserve the lives of others?
Do you shine in the darkness?
Do you real people in for Christ?

Examine yourself, and remember your calling as a Christian. Go into all the world and preach the good news (Commandment, not a suggestion).

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

 

The Reborn

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old is gone, the new is come. 

The word Reborn means to be changed again. You had your first birth in life, where you were born into a sinful self, and if you have pronounced God as your Savior and are leading a life of praise, then you have been Reborn.

If you have accepted Christ and live for him, then you are a very special and unique kind of person in a group of people with the name, (what I like to call) The Reborn.

This sort of group is a person who is all out for Christ. The person who has been made new in Christ. He is a new creation. Some have accepted Christ and believe that he is real, but they have not joined The Reborn because they continue to live like they are still the person they were after their first birth. There is no change in them, and if there is, it's only for a little while. There are many false Reborns. You will find them everywhere. "Many will say, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you, away from me you evildoers.'" (Matthew 7:22-23)

We see that these people who truly believed that they would make it into heaven by their works are turned away into eternity of hell. They prophesied! They cast out demons! Yet they were still thrown into the lake of fire for eternity. Why? Why did these people who followed God in their lives become a part of the death in hell?

Well, probably for many reasons. But one of the reasons is because they were not Reborn, or because they were Reborn and then slid away. In Revelation 2:4-5 it says, "Yet I have this against you, you have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things which you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place." 

This verse shows that there are many who are Reborn, yet they fall away from the first love that they had with their savior. There are so many people who accept that Jesus is the Savior of their lives, but they will never come to make Jesus as Lord. They begin to break the second commandment  of the bible which says, "Do not create for yourself any graven image." Do you know what that means? It means that when people say things like, "My God is a forgiving God, and I can do what I want and ask for forgiveness later," or, "I don't think Jesus would be too upset with what I did...." They are creating for themselves a made up God.

It says in Isaiah 55:9, "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." God cannot be confined to humans ideas of Him. He is far more just and perfect than we can ever imagine. Yet people walk around with a fixed idea of what Jesus is like, and how many excuses He will make for their lives. Don't be caught into that mentality. When we lose our fear of the Lord, then that is a scary place to be.

Proverbs 9:10 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." You want to be counted in the number of Reborn? Then change your heart and way of thinking to match the Father's. Fear the Lord. What does it mean to fear the Lord? "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil." (Proverbs 8:13a)

One thing that you must always remember: To be Reborn isn't a once in your lifetime thing... To be Reborn must be a daily occurrence. "If anyone wants to follow me, he must deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me continuously." (Matthew 16:24b)

Become Reborn. Follow Christ with your whole being, and accept your appointment to meet with God and learn more about him daily. I believe that if you aren't already doing this, you will become so.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

Expecting the Most

Nehemiah 5b-6: "As he opened [the scripture], all the people stood up. Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and all the people held up their hands and said, "Amen! Amen!" Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 

How many are present? A thousand? Five thousand? More? All of the Israelites stood here silent, waiting. What are these people waiting for? The scriptures are about to be read.

It was rare for the teachings of Moses to be read in public. There weren't many copies of the teachings around, so when they did make a public appearance, the public made an appearance.

The people are silently sitting, hearts are pounding, people are wanting. Hunger for the Lord is here. People want to know what God has to say. They want the scriptures to be revealed to them, they want a meeting with the Lord. No, they don't want it... they need it. Ezra, the scripture reader stands on a platform so that all can see and hear. A man from behind Ezra brings the old scroll out to Ezra and removes it from a wrapping. The people see the word of the Lord. There it is! The beautiful parchment that will feed them spiritually. First one man stands in respect, and then another, and another. Soon, the whole crowd of Isrealites are standing in respect to the Lord. Ezra gives the scroll to the man at his right, and he begins to praise the Lord. The people of Isreal raise their hands and begin to yell "Amen! Amen!" They begin to jump around a praise God. They fall to the ground and begin to shout to the Lord, bowing face down and weeping. They are expecting a visit from the God almighty, and their hearts are now ready to hear the words of the Lord.

You might think: What is the big deal about scripture reading? They are freaking out, and the bible hadn't even been opened yet.

Well, these people came into God's presence with the right attitude. An attitude of expectation. Of hunger, of thirst for God's words. Maybe you've heard your pastor or youth pastor say that we should come to church expecting to meet with God. Well, I'd take that even a step further and say that we need to come into our scripture reading time with a expectation to meet with God. Just like these Isrealites.

What happens if we never expect anything from God? Let me put it this way. If your friends never expected anything from you. Always spent time with you with a spirit of "Well, let's get this over with", how would you feel? How would you act? Do you think those people will ever be satisfied with having a conversation with you? Do you think that they really care to come and talk to you? They probably have better things to be doing. You would feel horrible. Maybe you wouldn't want to talk to them back! But yet, this is what we do with God frequently. The alarm goes off a little early before work or school to spend time with the Lord, and we hit the snooze button 5 times until we realize that we really don't have much time or time at all with Christ.

Christians have lost their excitement for the word of God. You want a revelation? You want to learn more about God? You want a better relationship with Christ? Then come expecting. Come with hunger. Come with an attitude of praise, of wanting, of humility. The Lord will not turn you away. He will meet you if you agree to meet with him.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

No Condemnation

Romans 8:1- There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 

The word Condemn means to: "pronounce to be guilty, sentence to punishment."

Now most of us know that Jesus came to this earth so that we would no longer be endangered of being condemned to eternity in Hell, condemned to a life of servant hood to Satan, and condemned to the grave. If we walk in the Spirit of God daily, always living our lives like we are Christs workmanship (Ephesians 2:10), And living for God's Glory (Hebrews 2:10), then we know that we can live without fear of being bound by the flesh and living apart from God.

Now here is the thing. Once many people get away from the danger of living an eternity without Christ, then they decide to forget this verse and worry about things, and live like they are taking care of themselves, and no one cares about them. I know I do this every once in a while, and it shouldn't be. We should be living as children of the light, not sinners of the dark. Once again, read Romans 8:1. "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Are you in Christ Jesus? Then why do we live like we are in the flesh?

Whatever you might be going through, stress, a bad situation, a decision that is important to make, an abusive situation, something that you feel like you can't get out of... Whatever it is, you can rest assured that God hasn't forgotten you. I promise that. He always takes care of his kids. No matter what they are going through. Don't give up! Don't began to walk in the flesh. You cannot do this on your own. This situation that you feel YOU need to handle, probably can be put at God's feet.

Go before your maker and tell him about your problem. He will hear you. Not always will His answer be, "Right away!" Things may take time to develop in your life, but it will be for the best. Always remember that you are walking hand in hand with God. Repeat Romans 8:1 to yourself daily and remember that you are not condemned but walking with and in the Spirit of God.

God bless you, and continue to walk as a child of the light. You are not condemned any longer by this world. You have been made free by Christ Jesus. Go ahead, say it, "I am no longer condemned, and sin has no hold on me."

~Whatsoever things are true
Philippians 4:8

Post-Thanksgiving Stress Disorder

1 Thessalonians 5:18, "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." 

Thanksgiving is over. The Turkey is gone, the family has left. Now you're left with a mess of a house to clean. And work is just on the horizon. Or you have to go back to school tomorrow, and you're not ready for the break to end. People are being grumpy cause they didn't get enough sleep because they were watching the football game last night. Church is over and done with, so you know that tomorrow you have to wake up early and start back up with your regular routine. You are stressed just thinking about it. You complain about it to your family in friends. It really isn't fair though. Why can't you just have a break longer than 4 days? 

The Thanksgiving feeling that you possessed on Thursday has picked itself up in the middle of the night and is gone. What happened to the long prayer of thankfulness at Thanksgiving dinner? What happened to the feelings of being blessed? Maybe you are still being thankful, even after the holiday has ended, but what happens when the next bad thing hits? Will you still have that Thanksgiving hangover? Maybe.

People forget that this day of Thanks is suppose to last all year long. It says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 "In EVERYTHING give thanks". We have so much to be thankful for, yet we forget this as soon as the first co-worker starts slacking off, or your teacher overloads you with work. Or your family is bugging you about dumb things that could be handled properly if you just weren't so tired. Whatever the circumstances, people will come up with many excuses to excuse the fact that they are no longer thankful.

Being thankful is no easy task. It is when things are going well and we see that the glass truly is half full, but then the spark leaves so quickly when we realize that it's harder to be thankful in the tougher times than we first thought. It is hard to see the light when you're in the middle of a cave.

So what must we do to be thankful?

There was a story of a woman that I heard about just this year, and she had a very hard time being thankful for anything. So what she did was she took a journal, and every day would write five things in her life that she was thankful for. She did this for about a month and she became increasingly thankful for all that God had given her. I tried to do this very thing, and it works so well. You begin to HAVE to find things to be thankful for, even when you're not thankful for anything. You could try this with your own twist and make it your own, but just give it a try for a couple of days. Maybe you'll like it. Ask God to bless it and help you to always find things to be thankful for. He will listen and help. He loves it when his kids ask for help.

I pray that your post-thanksgiving stress is not too overwhealming and that you all learn how to be strengthened in Christ for your future walk with him. God Bless.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

How to Date Jesus

Ephesians 5:10- Find out what pleases the Lord.

Ladies: You put lipstick on, but not too much. Your perfume smells like vanilla, and your hair is down and neatly done. The dress that adorns your body is one that you rarely wear, but this is a special occasion. You're going to go out on a special date with just you and you true love. He'll be here any minute, so you quickly add a necklace to your adornments, grab your purse, and walk to the door to wait for the guy that makes your heart pump every time you see his face.

Gentlemen: You're nervous. She's beautiful. You want to just wrap her up in your arms and take her anywhere she wants to go. Her personality has a hold on you. You shave, put on her favorite cologne and slip on your deep red dress shirt. You put on your shoes and grab your car keys. She'll be waiting and that makes you even more anxious to see her.

Love is strong and something that is strongly desired. It is the cornerstone for almost all movies, music, and books in this day and age. The message that the media sells is, true love concurs all.

Sometimes, love shapes the way we live our lives. We do things like stay up late, and give up time with friends to devote it to the one we love. Love shapes our lifestyle.

What if you don't have someone to love? Well just imagine that you did, what would you act like? Grumpy? Upset? Easily angered? Probably not. You'll put your best forward for this person, because you want them to be happy. You want them to smile to laugh, to love you. So you selflessly do things for this person to make them happy.

How much more should we be doing this for Christ. Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and loves us more completely than anyone can possibly ever love us, and we don't even act like He's in the room with us. We're suppose to be putting our best forward for the one we love to see, but we don't. We confess to others that our love for Jesus is the strongest thing in the world, but we don't even act like He's there. When you love someone, you will put your best forward when in their presence. Well, we're in his presence all the time.

You can't escape Him, and you don't want to. We should be learning how to court our Lord every day. What would you do for your date?

You would study them. We should be doing the same for Christ. Study his word. Find out more of his Character. What are his likes? What are his dislikes? Write them down so that you can put the likes into practice and stay away from the dislikes.

You would talk to them A LOT. We should be doing this with Jesus. How can we get to know someone if we don't ever talk to them? We can't! Communication is the key to a relationship. Some people think that by just reading the bible is enough to have a active relationship with Christ. Think of it this way, if I were to just sit there and stare at the one I loved all day every day and never say anything to that person, would they ever know that I love them? Would they ever know anything about me? Would they ever know what I'm feeling? What I like? What I dislike? What my name is even? Well yes, Jesus does know all of those things, but don't you think he likes to be told. Just because I read your facebook and know every single fact about you, doesn't mean that I actually KNOW you.

You would love on them. Jesus loves praise too. In fact, that is what we were put on this earth to do! Glorify the Lord in all we do. If you were in a relationship and never told your partner what you liked about them, then your partner would probably have some major insecurities. Well, tell Jesus how awesome he is! Thank him for his gifts to you every day. Every breath that you breath is a gift from God. Let him know how much he means to you.

And Finally, You would live like you are in a Relationship. If you had a person that you loved, would you go off and flirt with other people? Absolutely not! Yet we do this to Jesus all the time. We flirt with the world. We go and set our eyes on other things that we have set higher than him. If you had a girlfriend/boyfriend, this would not fly. You can't live like nothing has changed in your life. Because that would hurt your partners feelings. We must live like we're in a relationship with Jesus. We talk about him, we can't get enough of him! People WILL KNOW that we are in love with him.

Live like you are madly in love with him. Because he is madly in love with you.


~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

Your Mark

2 Corinthians 1:22 – He put His mark on us to show that we are His, and he put His Spirit in our hearts to be a guarantee for all He has promised.

When someone leaves a mark on something, that means others will be able to look at it and see that that object belongs to you. Like a brand, or logo. People will be able to see the object but they cannot take, harm or do anything to that object without your permission. That object’s ownership is yours. And you can use it the way you want to use it.

The Lord puts his mark or brand on his children. So what that means is, people will be able to look at you and know who you belong to. If people can’t see that you belong to Christ, then you are not wearing or showing off God’s mark on you.

How do we show people that God’s mark is on us? What if you’re shy? Nobody seems to care about you? You’re not outspoken, how do you learn to show off your mark? Well in that same Bible verse at the beginning it says that God will give you His Spirit as a guarantee of His mark on you. The Spirit will give you the power to showcase your mark from God. You can’t do it without him. It would be completely ludicrous to say that we need Jesus, and we need Christ, but we don’t need the Spirit. We NEED all three.

Show your mark. 

~Whatsoever Things Are True~

Philippians 4:8

Love Doesn't Hurt.

Romans 13:10- Love never hurts a neighbor, so loving is obeying all the law. 

Who is my neighbor? The person who lives on my street right? Wrong. Your neighbor is everyone who lives and breath. The homeless man that sits at that store, that random woman walking her dog, the president of the United States of America, the person that annoys you like crazy, ect. Everyone is your neighbor.

But I don't HAVE to love Everyone right? Wrong again. Leviticus 19:18 says, "Love your neighbor as you love yourself." So... Yes.... Love everyone.

Back to Romans 13:10. If you love everyone (Like you've been commanded to do), then you should be incapable of hurting others. We know that love does not hurt people, because Christ's love has never hurt anyone. It has only ever benefited and drawn us closer. So we should be very careful to have the love like Christ has. We should be wary of hurting anyone.

How is it possible to not hurt someone? Well, I'm not sure that it is possible to NOT hurt someone. You will hurt someone somehow, sometime, and you honestly cannot help that. It could be that you're wearing a shirt that someone saved up for and never got to get because you bought the last one. It could be something small like that, but you have hurt that person. Not intentionally (hopefully), but you have just hurt them. It is inevitable. But, when you love someone, and show that person love with your actions and words, it should not hurt them. We should be able to help not hurting others with our words and actions in most situations.

Romans 12:18 - "Do your best to live in peace with everyone." Also in Matthew 7:12 it says, "In everything therefore, treat everyone the same way you want to be treated." Everyone wants to be treated with love and compassion. You want to be treated like that, so treat others with the same measure you expect to receive. Love like 1 Corinthians 13:3 says to: "Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love does not count up wrongs that have been done."

Pray for the strength to love those you cannot on your own. The Lord will help you. He will empower the willing. And the willing are those who choose to pick up their cross daily and RUN after Christ. This is not a Christian walk, it is a Christian sprint for God's love and to be like him more. So do what you can to help others, not hurt them. Love is hard, but it is necessary to stay in God's love.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

One Way

Acts 4:12, Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. 

There is only one way to heaven. Through Salvation through Christ Jesus with obedience to His word.
You are probably thinking, "Yeah, I know, I've been told this many times in church before." Well, maybe you have, and maybe you know that this is true, but why is it that we live like we want to all week, and throw in Bible reading and prayer every once in a while? When you do that, you are living like there is more than one way to heaven.

Think about that statement for a minute.

Do you live like there is more than one way to heaven? Do you do your own thing, and say your a christian and still think that you are following the one way to heaven rule? We have just established that the only way to heaven is through Christ Jesus, so why do we think that it's worth it to watch rated R movies, or violent movies? Can you get to heaven through those movies? No. Why do we think it's worth it to listen to secular music with sex and swearing in it? Is the kingdom of heaven worth your Katy Perry, or Eminem playlist?

"Now now! Are you bashing my favorite artist?"

I am telling you that in the word, it says to keep a pure mind, and heart. How is it possible to keep a pure mind, if you are filling your mind and heart with junk that will circulate through you and pollute you to the extreme? 2 Corinthians 10:5 says, "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." How are you going to captivate every thought to Christ when you are filling yourself with swearing, violence and sexual lyrics?

Again, you are living like there is more than one way to heaven if you are in complete disobedience to God's word. So throw away all ungodliness!! Throw it far away, and never take it back up again. Your salvation is worth far more than Pornography. Your salvation is worth FAR more than a bad movie. Your salvation is worth far more than a girl/boy that you want to sleep with. Your salvation is worth far more than a rap song with swearing in it. Let God convict you in these areas of your life, and re-examine who is number one in your life. Video games? Music? Movies? Or God?

I'm praying for you.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

Getting Comfortable

Matthew 21:43, So I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to people who do the things God wants in His kingdom. 


"To do.... Read a bible verse.... Check. Go to church on Sunday....... Check, Prayed once today...... Check! Okay! I'm fine with God then. My check list is complete."

Sorry to break it to you guys, but Christianity is not that easy. Matthew 21:43 says that if you are not doing the things of His will, His commandments as issued in the bible, then he will not hesitate to take the Kingdom of God away from you.

This verse truly is frightening. Sometimes Christians think we have heaven made by just reading our bible, praying, not rolling our eyes at our bosses, saying yes Ma'am to our moms when they lecture us. But in all reality, this is not the case. You may think that once you have committed your name to Jesus that you are good for the rest of your lives, well you'd be wrong. Look at Revelation chapter three verse five where it says, "All who are victorious will be clothed in white, I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and His Angels that they are mine."

Don't ever get "comfortable" with Christ. We are always to respectfully fear the God who created the Universe, and follow His commands with reverence and obedience. My mom always says, "I have to be your mother first, then I can be your friend." The same goes for God. "He always must take Father status first in disciplining and correcting and leading us as a body of Christ, then we can only be friends with him through obedience, and ONLY through obedience.

Simply do the things of His kingdom always. Look for things to do for His kingdom. Something can ALWAYS be done. From as small as cleaning your room, (Yes, even God likes a clean room), to as big as feeding a army of homeless people. Always remember to never get lazy in your walk. God is our Lord and Savior. And a lot of people forget that he is our Lord, and they only want to claim him as Savior. Well, you cannot do that. He is our Savior, but he must be Lord of our lives first.

Continue to follow God in your walks with Christ. I'm always praying for my readers.

~Whatsoever Things are True
Philippians 4:13

Relentless Giving

Luke 6:38b, The way you give to others is the way God will give to you. 

Who doesn't like to receive things? Honestly name one person who doesn't. And if they say they don't, they are most likely not taking into account all the things they receive on a daily basis. Such as the oxygen that they are breathing right now, the day that you are living, the family you have right now, the clothes that you are wearing, the body that you have... Shall I go on? We've received every one of these things and way more. God has blessed every single person alive. If you are living, then you have received a gift that many no longer possess. Think about everything that you have received from God that I have not already mentioned here. Can we possibly pay Him back? I don't think so. Ever. And add the fact that He gave his son to die for your sins on top of that, and you will NEVER be able to pay him back.

But even with all of these gifts that he has given to you, he makes a promise in Luke that the way we give to others is the way He will give to us. Just knowing that God does not owe you anything because he is your maker, and we are here to serve Him, and him still blessing us with so much, that alone should put a fire in us to give more to people than we want for ourselves.

We should not look at this verse with a greedy eye. When we give with the wrong kind of heart, the Lord cannot bless us and give back. It becomes fake and useless to the kingdom of god, and he will not accept that kind of giving. The bible says in 2 Corinthians 9:7, You must each decide in your heart how much to give. So don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure, for God loves a person who gives cheerfully. 


"But I have a hard time giving to others. How do I overcome that?"

If that is you, then you have to overcome your selfishness. It's just that blunt. You have just been reminded of how the creator of the heavens and the earth, who created you and gives you life laid down his life to save yours, and you still have to find a way to give to others? Some people do have a hard time, but it's when you start to realize that it is selfish pride to keep from others what the Lord has blessed you with, that is when you start being able to overcome. Ask the Lord for help in this area. The Lord loves it when his kids come to him for help. We can't do this on our own. We have to have a heart from God to be able to actually be a Relentless giver. We need God's love in our lives. So ask for it daily. With authority claim the love that you need for people. Go out of your way to try to give once, then do it again. And again. Go the extra mile. I promise you that you will not regret giving up yourself selflessly. You may not see the benefits here right now, but look to the promise that God has given, and look forward to your reward in heaven.

I'm praying for each one of my readers. May God work in your hearts even more than he already has.

~Whatsoever Things Are True
Philippians 4:8

Understanding Freedom

Psalms 118:5, In my anguish I cried to the Lord, and He answered by setting me free. 

Definition of Freedom: The power or right to act, speak or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

Freedom is talked about a lot these days. People think that they can do whatever they want because they have the freedom to do so. America is a free country because our forefathers have fought to make it so. So why am I discussing this? We know what freedom is. The definition tells us! Maybe we missed the whole idea of Freedom when we decided that freedom means we can do whatever we want.

When we begin to act as if Freedom is what we want to do whenever we want to do, (freedom from parents, freedom from authority, freedom from rules, regulations, ect.) then Satan is taking away whatever freedom we might have possessed before. When we fall away from the path of doing the right thing and following God, we are really being put into bondage.

I've heard people say before, "How can you follow a God who wont allow you to do what you want to do? Your like a slave to him."

Well my bible says in Romans chapter 6 verse 16: Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.

To me that is pretty clear that whatever you may call freedom, probably isn't. When we submit to God, we are free from sin and regret and bondage. You cannot ask for a better kind of freedom.

So the question you should ask yourself is: Are you really "free?" And if not, then what do  you need to become free from? Swearing? Sexual sins? Hanging out with the wrong crowd? Drunkenness? Watching the wrong things? Facebook?

The Lord will help free you from these things. You only need to ask him! He can help you. But you have to make a conscious decision to follow after God, and be willing to leave behind the things that are holding you in chains. Hand your life over to true freedom. It's the best thing you will ever decide to do.

~Whatsoever Things are True
Philippians 4:8

Strive

1 Corinthians 9:24, Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Racing is a very popular thing all over the world. There are marathons, and 4k's, and many different events in which people run. If I were to tell you that you were going to be running in a huge race that lasts a lifetime that you are required to run, what would you do? Watch TV until the time of the race? Would you eat unhealthily and not worry about the race at all until the day of? I sure hope not. You should want to prepare for this race, mentally, and physically. You would be working out, you would be eating right, you would be pushing fluids into your body and buying the right equipment for the run. 

Right now, you and I are getting ready for the big race in life. The race to Glorify God and win the prize of his kingdom in heaven. If you aren't prepared for that race, then you are going to be in sorry shape for it, and you will probably give out in the first stretch of the race. But we have time now to become ready for our race. 

When we get ready we:

Work out.

Proverbs 13:4, The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is supplied richly. 

Drink Water

John 1:14, But whoever drinks the water that I give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. 

Be Prepared

1 Peter 3:15a, But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope you have. 

So get prepared if you aren't already. The race is long and the road is tough. Don't be unprepared or you will fall out of the race. 

~Whatsoever things are true

Philippians 4:8

How to Stay Awake

Mark 13:36, Always be ready. Otherwise he might come back and find you sleeping. 

This verse strikes fear into my heart for many people when I read this. I know people who have fallen asleep in their faith, and I don't want Jesus to come back while they are spiritually sleeping. Also, I don't want to be one that's sleeping when the time comes for Jesus to come back. The consequences of sleeping when he returns is Eternity in Hell. Not somewhere ANYONE want's to be.

So how do we keep from falling asleep?

Keep Company
We can surround ourselves with friends who also wish to stay awake. They will do their best to make sure that you don't fall asleep, and you can also do your part to make sure they don't nod off. They will help keep you accountable, and help council you when you feel weary. Hebrews 10: 24-25 says, "Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near."  Get Bible studies going. Call your friends and talk about Christ. Do things to stir each other up. The day is drawing near.

Drink Energy Drinks.
Drinking Energy Drinks? Yeah, that's right. Reading the Bible, spending time in the prayer with the Spirit, listening to your pastor and other pastors, reading books with testimonies, these things will help give you that extra boost when you are down. Isaiah 30:41 says, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not grow faint." To wait upon the Lord means to have total dependence on Him, and complete obedience in our walk. When a waiter waits upon you, what does he do? He serves you. We should do the same to our father. This will give us the best energy of all.

Keep Busy
It is very difficult to lay back and sleep when you are constantly doing things. Witnessing, praising the Lord, being active in what the Lord wants done is a great way to stay awake. Stay hyped up for Christ. Stay awake in the Lord. If you find yourself drifting into slumber, be quick to slap yourself awake. 2 Timothy 2:15 says, "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." Be a worker that has no need of shame. That does not limit you to just outside your house. By all means, prepare yourself for your future on earth and in heaven by disciplining yourself now. Work in the Lord, stay awake.

Ask the Lord
You can always go to your Father who created you to ask for help. He can see when you are drifting, and he may even let you know about it. Go ask him to jolt you awake. Ask him for help, don't be afraid to. The Bible says in Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." The Lord want's you to ask for his help. He will give you rest, not in the sense of making you fall asleep and therefore be in danger of Hell, but in the sense of the purest rest: Peace. He will give you peace in the midst of a storm, which is the greatest of rests.

So stay awake in him. Use scripture to help you, and just come before the Lord and let him know what's going on in your life. But mostly, never stop trying to serve the Lord.

~Whatsoever Things are True
Philippians 4:8