Author: Mark Brady
Church Windows
“I was reared in church. The whole family went every Sunday morning. I heard the stories, I heard the sermons, but I don’t feel I got anything out of it,” said my friend. “Many times I would wonder, if there really was a God would He hear me? As I got older and became aware of family problems I would watch how my father would question his faith, but my mother, hers seemed to strengthen. I found it all so confusing. Then there were the times I would look out the church windows and see my friends having fun. I wanted to have fun, so I quit going.”
“Life has now come and gone. A lot of time has passed, but I never once looked inside the church windows. I felt I was doing life just fine on my own. Just as good as the next guy.”
I spoke to my friend about the difference in going to church, having a “religion” with God to having a “relationship” with God. I explained to him how “religion” is man’s way to God, but a “relationship” is God’s way to man, which is why it works.
I invited him to accept Jesus, and begin a “relationship” and to ask Jesus to forgive him of his sins. He said he wasn’t sure. Then I said these words, “My friend, heaven won’t be the same without you…but hell will.”
How Close Are You Following?
Yes, I know they are ducks, and the one I labeled Jesus is in reality a female, but “Work with me people!”
Growing up hearing the story of Judas Iscariot betraying Jesus had always bewildered me. I would often think, how could he do such a thing? A few years ago, while reading in my quiet time, God shined light upon my curious mind and helped me understand.
Basically it came down to this: Judas Iscariot did not get close to Jesus. He was a disciple, he heard the teachings, and saw the miracles just like the other disciples, but there was a difference; he never totally accepted who Jesus was as the Son of God. He never fell in love with Jesus Christ, because he was too far away from him to really get to know him.
Are we the same as Judas Iscariot today? How close do you follow Jesus? His teachings, or are you, and I guilty of only following the ones we like, or are easy? How little would it take for us to betray Jesus, to turn and walk the other way? A winning lottery ticket? A promotion? A really hot person to date, or a trophy wife? (She probably only came in third.)
The one sure way “not” to betray Jesus is to get close to him, and stay there. To know him personally, and deeply. To fall in love with him, want to serve him, and follow him no matter what is thrown in front of us, to tempt us, to betray him. Some of the other disciples went on to die for Jesus, and for the life he showed us how to live. Judas Iscariot died for himself.
Finding Your Way
You run to work. You run home. You run to gatherings. You run to family events. You are always running, somewhere, but do you ever feel …”lost”? Do you ever ask yourself, is there more?
I have recently “unplugged” from life feeling perhaps I wasn’t on the right road. I’m one who usually is very confident about where I am going. So much so I tell my GPS where to go, but yet I was feeling like I needed to for a few days, (94 Days) a season, pull over, and yes ask for directions. I was in need of finding my way. Perhaps re-calculating.
The best source I have found for asking directions when it comes to life is God. God hasn’t showed up yet to give me my destination, but He has made it very clear I was right by pulling over. I was reading from the book of Psalms last week from “The Message”, and I could identify with the writer. I looked and it was chapter 94. I was at my writer’s conference two weeks ago and I liked what one of the speakers read from her book, so I bought it. It turns out to be, “Finding Your Way” by Jane Rubietta. The short daily devotionals have been amazing. Then this very morning, again reading from “The Message” Psalms 101 I read this:
Psa 101:2 I’m finding my way down the road of right living, but how long before you show up?
God is truly amazing. If you are feeling uneasy, perhaps lost, pull over. Ask for directions, but be sure to seek those directions from God, and not some other place where anyone can tell you where to go who doesn’t really know you. God knows you. He knows where He desires you to be. He created all of us for more. More to life. More of Him. You will find God, in finding your way.
Your Father’s Shoes
When I was in fourth grade we were given a writing assignment. We were asked to write about a typical day the shoes of our father has. So off I went writing. (Actual writing pictured to the left.) I think I got a C+. There was one day I came home from school and found my father’s work boot in the garage covered with blood. Due to one of the hazards of working with glass I later found out a piece had broken and it cut the main artery in his leg. He stayed home while it healed, but I never thought about growing up and doing what my father did for a living.
In biblical days a young man would fill his father’s shoes and eventually carry on the family business. Even Jesus when he was young learned to be a carpenter, but when he got older he begin to do the work of God, his real father.
Luke 2:49 And he said unto them, Why were you looking for me? Don’t you know that I must be about my Father’s business?
Now I am older. I too want to be doing my heavenly Father’s business. I want to be like his son Jesus, doing what God wants me to do to advance his kingdom. Oh, and there was one day when Jesus’ work shoes were bloody too. One of the hazards of being a savior, the Messiah, and dying to cover the sins of others.
Just Imagine
When I got married I thought I had found the perfect woman. She hated to mop and I hated to dust, so I would do all of the mopping and she did the dusting. Most of us think of dust as a nuisance. Something that none of us want to collect, yet we all do.
God looks at dust a little differently. He actually loves dust. How do I know that? Because He formed, or made, man from dust, and God loves us.
Gen 3:19 “…for dust you are and to dust you shall return.”
Yep, that’s right, you came from dust, and you are loved by God.
While I was attending this year’s writer’s conference, held at Wheaton College, in Wheaton, Illinois I was getting away for a moment and went to the 5th floor. I started noticing some really cool art. Then my eyes became fixated upon the image posted at the top of this blog. It was so beautiful. Then I read the little white sign to the right of the art. The title of this piece of art is, “Corpus” by David JP Hooker. The art piece is the contents of vacuum bags collected from all over the campus of Wheaton College.
If a man can make a master piece like this from dust imagine what God can do with dust. Just imagine what God can do with you.
Do You Window Shop?
Have you ever noticed how something in a store window looks great, and you get this sense that if you were wearing that outfit it would look equally just as great? You think everybody that sees you in that outfit will just ooh and awe as much as you did when you saw it in the window. Well if you are honest then you know it doesn’t really go that way. You have learned the store has professionals dress their windows to suck you in.
On a recent trip where I picked up my mother and drove her to another state to meet her great granddaughter I witnessed another kind of window shopping. Not only did my mother meet her new great granddaughter for the first time, but she also got to meet my ex-wife’s husband. At the end of the day we were reviewing the events that had unfolded. My ex’s new husband came up. My mother went on and on about how wonderful he was, and how funny, and smart, and had the most beautiful eyes, and nice curly hair. I finally had to shut her down by saying, “Mom, I get it. My ex-wife traded up!”
My point is this: Anybody can look good in a window where the lighting is good etc., but when you really get to know someone you see through the window and into the heart. When you see their heart are they still so attractive? God is not fooled by the view through the window, but he always sees the heart. The truth is we need to be more concerned about how our hearts look, and when the heart looks great the rest will too.
Be the You He Knew
Jer 1:4 This is what GOD said:
Jer 1:5 “Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: A prophet to the nations– that’s what I had in mind for you.”
Most of the time it is ourselves that hinder ourselves. For some reason we tend to believe what others have spent a time speaking into us, whether true or not. Peter J Daniels wrote a book* where he told his 2nd grade teacher she was wrong about him. While I was reading it I kept thinking I sure hope this woman is already dead, because this would embarrass her to death. The point of the book is this; don’t let others tell you who you are, or what you will become.
Empty yourself, of everything you know isn’t true. Be the person who God is constantly reminding you, you are. The person He has made you to be. He whispers it in your soul. It may sound like you for God isn’t going to use words that are not in your vocabulary. He’s not going to speak to you in Russian if you don’t know the language, and if it is something that is positive, loving, uplifting and lines up with God’s word then it can’t be the devil speaking that inside you. Why doesn’t God use his own voice to speak to you? Well, for one, it would probably scare you, and two, you are not Moses standing barefoot next to a burning bush.
The best way to hear God is one, learn His voice. That means invite him to speak to you, and pray that when he does you will know it is him. Secondly get in a habit of getting quiet. For me that is sometimes when I am in the car. I turn off the music, which at times bothers me, because I enjoy singing. I’m good at it. No, really I am. On more than one occasion people at a stop light will roll up their window because they just can’t take the awesomeness any longer. Know the kind of things God would speak to you. You do this by reading His word, you know the “Bible”.
Yes there are times God will speak to you through another person, but you will know when that is happening because it will feel very familiar. Why is that? Because most likely His Spirit has been whispering similar words to you for a while. Mothers, fathers, teachers, friends, please be careful of the words you speak into someone else, especially a child, for they just might be listening.
* ” Miss Phillips, You Were Wrong: A Formula to Handle Rejection” Hardcover – 1989
The Name of God
A young boy was asked what God’s name is
by his church school teacher.
The boy replied, “Howard.”
The teacher surprised asked, “Howard?”
“Yes. Our Father who art in heaven “Howard” be thy name…”
You laugh, but be assured one day the young man will know God’s name is not “Howard”.
I was reading Psalms 83 this past week and I came across a portion of scripture (13-18) that seemed very harsh. The one who penned the words wanted such harm and destruction to come to a certain group of people, in such a way, so the only result of these events is they would finally know the name of God.
That portion of scripture got me to thinking, what would it take in some people’s lives before they would know the name of God. Before they would recognize how much He desires for them to know Him. That He longs for their company, and His heart aches to hear their voice speak to Him. That He wants to help them get through this life which at time can be so difficult, because Satan comes to kill, steal and destroy anything and everything that is of God.
If you don’t know God’s name ask Him. He will tell you His name in such a loving way your heart will be expanded like you have never thought possible. You will walk around with this enormous joy, and others who see you may wonder what you have to smile about. I pray they ask, so you can experience what it is like to tell someone God’s name.
Do you have one?
“When the dream is unleashed”
Do you have one so deep down inside you some people close to you don’t even realize it. How long has it been there? Do you know when it will be unleashed? Does carrying it around every day hurt?
I’m talking about a dream. A desire to do something for God. Perhaps more people have them than we would know. There are those who want to be in one form of ministry, or another, full time. Not just to minister on weekends, or part time, but all the time. Not getting that opportunity can hurt, and at times it makes getting up and going to work somewhere we don’t want to be extremely hard to do.
Yes, I have one. I can relate to Joseph in Genesis 35:7, “Joseph had a dream.” I desire more than anything to become a full time author, and public speaker. I write where and when I can. I try my best to be faithful with the time I have to minister with words. I struggle to, but I know I need to be content where God has me now. There are people where I am now that need to be ministered to full time.
I am learning this: to be faithful where I am today, and that practice will prepare me to be faithful where I want to be. If you have one, I know what you are going through. If you would like to be on this special list of God dreamers, so that I can pray for you as well then let me hear from you at: bradymarka@gmail.com As I have shared with another just this past week, it stays with me, but you can know this; there is at least another who understands what you feel, what you want, and what you cry out to God for, that the dream will one day be more than a dream. It will be your life.
brady, mark a. 