It's Fine, I'm Fine, Everything is Fine

   When I first got back to work as a preschool teacher after quarantining my coworkers and I began talking about what quarantine was like. We talked about what our lives were like at that point. My director said that over quarantine she got a new shirt. The shirt said, "It's fine, I'm fine, everything is fine." We had a good laugh about that because we knew how stressful things were over quarantine, and how stressed we were now.
   I got to thinking about that shirt. It was true in a way. Many times, we walk through life saying, "I'm fine." People ask how we are and, no matter how we are really feeling, we say "I'm fine," "I'm okay," or "I'm good." (Which is improper grammar by the way ;). It's okay to say that you are doing well when you are actually doing well. The problem is when we are not really doing well, and we say we are.
Now, don't misunderstand me, I'm not saying we should go up to random strangers and tell them how we are feeling. What I am saying is that we are to be real and honest with others.
Matthew West has a song called Truth Be Told. The chorus of the song says:
   "I say I'm fine, yeah I'm fine oh I'm fine, hey I'm fine but I'm not, I'm broken, And when it's out of control I say it's under control but it's not, And you know it, I don't know why it's so hard to admit it, When being honest is the only way to fix it, There's no failure, no fall, There's no sin you don't already know, So let the truth be told"
   What I am saying and what Matthew West is saying, is that we should tell others how we are feeling. We should tell fellow believers what we are going through. Not to complain, but to receive accountability, healing, and prayer. 
   We are in a time where anxiety and stress are higher than they have ever been. We have many worries, burdens, and problems. And the problem is we try to carry those burdens on our own when Jesus is there ready to take them from us. Matthew 11:28-30 says "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Jesus does not call us to walk through this life alone. He wants to take burdens from us. He wants us to trust in him.
   Oh, but the help we can receive does not just stop with the Lord. The Lord will help us with our problems if we ask him to. But God also created us to be in communion with others. We are beings who need to be in relationship with others. That's why we are also called to bear each other’s burdens. Galatians 6:2 says, "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." We are to share our burdens with others. We are not to share those burdens to complain or make others feel sorry for us. We are to share our burdens with others, so they see that we are real. People will see that we are not perfect, but we have a perfect Lord. People will be able to pray through problems with you. 
   So, are you trying to carry your burdens on your own? If you are not sharing your burdens, why have you made that choice? I encourage you to trust God with your burdens today and every day.
   Image from here.

Link to Matthew West song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4wYkS8Z3Io

Searching for Context

One day my family and I were at the grocery store. We were about halfway through when my mom looked at the list. She said a few items we still needed. One of the items was Apple cider. My dad said, "well we missed that. It's with the fruit." Mom said, "No, it's with the tea." There was a bit of discussion. Then I said, "mom is talking about the Apple cider mix that's with the tea bags and hot chocolate." That's when everyone finally understood.

In this situation if you didn't know the context of what you were looking for then you may have grabbed the wrong cider; or, gone to the wrong area to get the cider. This situation is also like in books. If a person takes a sentence out of a book they are losing the context. There is a particular book that this happens with a lot: the bible.

People like to take certain verses out of the bible and use them individually. When you do that you are missing part of the message. I'm not saying it's not okay to take a verse out of the bible to memorize it. But, you shouldn't use the verse in the wrong way if you explain it.

Christians should know how important it is to not take the bible out of context. Yet, people still do it today. What can we do when bible verses are taken out of context? How can we know when a verse is taken out of context? First we need to know the bible. In Joshua 1:8 it says:

"This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."

If we don't know the bible then we won't know when a verse is taken out of context. That's why over and over the bible tells us to know the word. That's the way we can know the will of God. That's why it is important to spend time in the word each day, so we know God.

When we hear that someone has taken a verse out of context what should we do? We should keep them accountable. Galatians 6:1 says:

"My friends, if someone is caught in any kind of wrongdoing, those of you who are spiritual should set him right; but you must do it in a gentle way. And keep an eye on yourselves, so that you will not be tempted, too."

Did you catch that? We are to set people right when they are caught in wrong doing. But, we are not to do it in a mean way. We are to be gentle. We are to correct them in love.

So, do you take the bible out of context? Do you know the word enough to know when a verse is taken out of context? Will you choose to keep others accountable if you hear someone take a verse out of context?

Image from here.

Confidence Under the Mask

   One show I enjoy watching is called the masked singer. On the show celebrities dress up like different characters and sing. Then the panel of experts try to guess who the celebrity is based off of his/her voice and the clues they were given. At the end of each night at least one singer is unmasked. Many of the singers, after they are unmasked, say how much they enjoyed being on the show. They say that they enjoyed just being able to sing without anyone knowing who they are.
   One particular character who said something along those lines was seahorse. She acted like a diva when she was under the mask to try to throw the panel and the audience off. Then, after she was unmasked, she said she would now have to go back to being herself and stop being a diva. Now, I'm not saying that being a diva is or isn't a good thing. But I wonder why she felt that she had to stop doing that if it was something she enjoyed. Perhaps it was because no one could reject her. Perhaps it was because she had confidence when no one knew who she was. Maybe with the mask on she felt she was able to be more real, or more herself.
   Many of us don't wear masks like they do on the masked singer. But we do sometimes put up fake masks. We act different with different people. When we are upset, we may act like everything is okay. Why do we do that? Sometimes we do it because of our jobs or it's not the right time to talk about it. But, many times, I feel we put on fake masks because we are afraid of rejection. We are afraid others will not accept us for who we are. We are afraid if we show who we are people will see the cracks in us and that we are not perfect. Well, I hate to break it to you, but everyone already knows you are not perfect.
   I have found that if we are real with others, if we take off our fake masks, we are able to reach more people. When we are truthful about our downfalls more people feel like they can talk to us. Paul discusses this in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 which says:

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

   Did you catch that? God's power is made perfect in weakness. We all have many downfalls. We mess up from time to time. Unfortunately, many times we try to hide it. I have found that if we would tell others about our weaknesses people see that we are not "holier than thou." We don't think that anyone who sins is a horrible person because we too sin. I cannot tell you how many people have opened up to me because I opened up to them. I was able to reach those people and spread the Gospel to them because I was real with them. Then they realized that they too did not need to have a fake mask on. They realize that God does not care what they have done, he loves them just the same. No matter what you have done, God loves you. He knows you. He wants to spend eternity with you.
That's why we should take off our fake masks. God knows us anyhow. He wants us to be genuine with others so that his power can show through us.
   So, do you have a fake mask on currently? How can you open up and be more authentic with others? Will you choose to be real with others so God's power can show thorough you?
   Image from here.

Got Passion? An Easter Blog

   "He has risen." If you go to church and you heard that more than likely you would reply with: "he has risen indeed." That's a great saying but I wonder if it has become common place.
   I'm not saying it isn't great to remember that Jesus has risen. What I am saying is I think that we do not have the passion we used to have when we say it. Think about when you were a child, or when you first became a Christian. When you heard "he has risen," how did you reply? Did you say "he has risen indeed" very quietly or like you were bored? No! I'm pretty sure you would have jumped up in your seat, if it was appropriate, and yelled "HE HAS RISEN INDEED!"
   Why do I say that you would have yelled it? I say that because when we first become Christian we have a fire for God. We have been saved from our sin. And, we have been saved in a most unexpected way. God came down to take our sin. He showed us love in the most unconditional way. Shouldn't we shout that to the world?!
   But, as time goes on, we take it for granted. "Oh, yes I know Jesus rose from the dead. I know pretty much all I need to know about him. No, I don't feel I am called to go places to share about him. Someone else can do that, I don't want to risk my neck." Rather than sharing the greatest story of love ever told we sit back. We become lukewarm, selfish, and hypocritical. Then we wonder why people don't want to hear about Jesus.
   We have a chance to share the good news. We should want to share this news with everyone! This isn't just a story from history. It is a story that is continuing on and that we get to be a part of. That's why we should have a passion for sharing this news. We should be yelling in church and everywhere "HE HAS RISEN INDEED!" We should be willing to tell others about him no matter the cost because he paid the ultimate price for us.
   So, do you still have a passion for Christ? Are you sharing the good news of the gospel? If not, what can you do to share the gospel? 

   Mark 16:5-7, Matthew 6:21, 1 Corinthians 10:31

   Image found here.

Eyes Fixed in the Storm

   Have you ever read the Bible and couldn't believe that one of the people would do something so silly or dumb? I think, at times, we are all tempted to do that.
   In Matthew 14:22-33 we read the story about Jesus walking on water. The disciples saw him and thought he was a ghost. When Peter found out it was Jesus, Peter asked Jesus to tell him to come to him. Peter got out of the boat and started walking toward Jesus. Then Peter looked around and saw the storm. When he took his eyes off of Jesus he started to sink. Jesus saved Peter from the storm.  Then they went into the boat and the storm stopped.
   Now, if you were in Peter's position what would you have done? Would you have had the courage to ask Jesus to tell you to come to him? Let's say that you did do that, would you have been able to keep your eyes on Jesus?
   If you are saying yes, I am going to play Devil's advocate here. Have you ever had a time where you felt everything was crashing down in your life and you had no hope? Have you ever had an idol in some way, shape, or form? Have you ever sinned? If you said yes to any of these questions, then you are just like Peter. You may have been able to keep your eyes on Jesus for a little but then some storm came and you took your eyes off of him.
   You may be saying, "how is it possible to keep your eyes on Jesus all the time?" The answer is its not possible; at least, not by our own strength. If you noticed in the story of Peter and Jesus Peter fell into the water but at the same time he did something else. He called out to Jesus to help him. Peter could've kept his mouth closed and tried to stay afloat on his own, but he didn't. He knew he couldn't do it on his own. If he wouldn't have called out for help he may have drowned.
   See, God is a good father. He wants us to learn lessons and grow but he also wants to help us do that. We have freewill. We can choose to ask God for help or we can try to do it on our own. If we do it on our own, we will probably drown in the storms of life. God wants to walk with us and help us but we have to be willing to walk with him.
   So, will you be like Peter and ask for help from God when you need it? Will you choose to walk with God through the storms of life? 

   Image from here.