Knowing and Being Known

June 10, 2025May 26, 2025 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

April and I have started going to a church that is new to us. We agree with their philosophy of keeping faith in God simple. They preach Jesus and him crucified. When you start going to a new church, it can take a few weeks before you start knowing people and being known.

At our previous church, we went there for over a year, and only two or three people knew our names. To add insult to injury, when we tried to join a “Home Group,” the leader of that group never called us. So, we started staying home and watching the services online. I call that “Bedside Baptist” with Pastor Pillow and Sister Sheet. We still got spiritually fed, but it’s not the same.

There is something warm and fuzzy about someone saying, “Good morning, Mark. How was your week?” But it takes some effort on your part, too. You have to be bold and go up to people and ask them what their name is. Then, ask them something that reveals a little about that individual and helps you remember their name. You can’t simply sit around and wait for people to come to you.

You may say, “But I’m shy.” Or “It’s hard for me to approach people.” Hey, I get it. I’m naturally an introvert. Most writers are. No one believes me when I tell them that, but what they don’t know is I have to force myself to “walk across the room,” as one pastor put it, and greet someone.

That is what it takes to know and to be known. Jesus had no qualms about going up to someone and talking to them. Several times, it was he who started the conversation that ultimately changed someone’s life. Aren’t we supposed to imitate him? You never know who will make a connection with you, feel they can trust you, and then open up and reveal their greatest need. You may be the very one who leads them to trust God and to lean on Him.

Trust me when I say I can be very comfortable attending “Bedside Baptist.” If you have read this blog very long, then you know when it comes to encountering people, I find it challenging and would rather not. But inside me, I know that doesn’t please God, because He is all about people. They are his favorite pastime because God is love.

You’ll remember, friends, that when I first came to you to let you in on God’s sheer genius, I didn’t try to impress you with polished speeches and the latest philosophy. I deliberately kept it plain and simple: first Jesus and who he is; then Jesus and what he did—Jesus crucified. 1 Cor. 2:2 (MSG)

God, investigate my life;
    get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
    even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
    I’m never out of your sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
    before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
    then up ahead and you’re there, too—
    your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
    I can’t take it all in! Ps. 139:1-6 (MSG)

If God goes to great lengths to know us and then invites us to know him, then shouldn’t we do the same with our fellow mankind? Yes, we should.

To Know

March 8, 2024February 24, 2024 / Mark Brady / 4 Comments

To know unconditional love;
is to know God.
To know real forgiveness;
is to know Jesus.
To know perfect direction;
is to know the Holy Spirit.

To know pure laughter;
is to know true friends.
To know great joy;
is to know a child.
To know time;
is to know an elderly person.

To know gratitude;
is to feed the hungry.
To know security;
is to clothe the naked.
To know health;
is to visit the sick.

To know peace;
is to know contentment.
To know lasting hope;
is to know faith.
To know wisdom;
is to know the Word of God.

Seeing

January 25, 2022January 24, 2022 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

For children of God, we have another set of eyes. “Spiritual Eyes”. These eyes are connected to our heart. They are a lot more powerful than our physical eyes. They help us have clearer vision. You see the retina of these eyes that I am writing about are connected to God.

Powered by His Spirit, it is possible to see into the future, or to visualize individuals the way God sees them. With these eyes the Holy Spirit can show us things that we would otherwise have no knowledge of. We can gain wisdom and understanding, knowledge and power. We can look at events happening around us as God sees them, and with that kind of vision obtain peace.

With this knowing, we may be led to speak to an individual, and share what we have seen. This is often called being prophetic. Shawn Bolz proclaims,

“The prophetic is to be used to connect the heart of man to the heart of God.”

With this knowledge comes responsibility as well. Before we share what we have seen we should first ask God, “Why have you shown me this?” God sometimes only reveals these things so you will pray. The focus should not be on the supernatural that has transpired, but instead what God wants to say, or do in a person’s life. In other words, someone knowing something about you, that there is no other way they could know except God revealed it, should get your attention to listen to what comes “after” the prophetic word.

But when someone prophesies, he speaks to encourage people, to build them up, and to bring them comfort. 1 Cor. 14:3 (TPT)

Having this kind of vision can be very beneficial. It comes by being connected to God, filled with the Holy Spirit, and staying close to God, walking with him on a daily bases. If God uses you in this way remember; you are only responsible to give the word. If the person receives it or not, is not on you. If you see something, or hear something about someone, and you feel it is okay to share than by all means do it. For you have nothing to lose, but they have everything to gain.

Let Me Introduce You

July 3, 2020June 30, 2020 / Mark Brady / 3 Comments

070320 (4) If God called you on your cell phone, right this minute, would your caller ID know it was God? Would you? Or would it read, “Unknown”?

When the Apostle Paul visited Athens, he came across an alter which had the inscription, “To an unknown god”. It seems as if the locals wanted to cover all of their bases. (Acts 17:23)

Paul went on to introduce them to God by saying:

^24-29“The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn’t live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn’t take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don’t make him. Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn’t play hide-and-seek with us. He’s not remote; he’s near. We live and move in him, can’t get away from him! One of your poets said it well: ‘We’re the God-created.’ Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it?

^30-31“God overlooks it as long as you don’t know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he’s calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:24-31 (MSG)

And now you have been introduced to God. Know this, He loves you so very much. More than any of us deserve, yet He does, all the time. If you have not accepted him then know this, He will never stop pursuing you. That’s how crazy God is about you. Accepting God doesn’t promise you a perfect life, but He does promise to get you through it.