“It’s not until you know how to die that you begin to know how to live.”
April and I were watching the movie “I Can Only Imagine” when the words above spilled into my heart. I have been thinking about them ever since.
Jesus knew how to die; therefore, He knew how to live. And He came to Earth as a baby, no less to show us. In a few days, we will be celebrating that birth. The birth of Jesus. He quietly entered the world, and only a few noticed. But his death shook the Earth and is still making headlines in the hearts and lives of people all over the world today! Jesus knew how to die.
Between the start of his life and his death, He showed us how to live. He laughed with us, cried with us, accepted us no matter what we had done in the past, and loved us. It was with love he lived, and it was in love He died. It was because of love and the love of His Father in heaven that He came in the first place; He did not want us to die eternally. Jesus knew how to live.
You see, it’s how you live your life that will determine where you spend eternity after you die. If, in your ever so brief life, you decide to accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation and ask him to forgive you of your sins, then you will live forever in heaven with him and probably a lot of your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and family members. But only if they accepted Jesus as well.
I know I’m not perfect. I have made a lot of BIG mistakes in life. I have hurt a lot of people, and I feel bad about that. The only thing that helps that pain is knowing that God has forgiven me through Jesus’ death on the cross. And every morning that I wake up, I have another opportunity to try my best to get that day right. That is what makes life worth living. So, I, too, know how to die, and I know from God’s word how to live, and that is with love.
16-18 “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him. John 3:16-18 (MSG)
I don’t like them in the rain. I don’t like them on a train. I wouldn’t like them if they had a fox. I wouldn’t like them in a box. I don’t like them at all, Cam. I don’t like them, Sam, I am! (Thank you, Dr. Seuss, for the inspiration.)
Life can be challenging without them, so what are we to do with our enemies? The ones whose lives, how they live and act, we can’t stand. The ones we should be able to be around in peace and safety, but their words or actions hurt us anyway, usually when we least expect it. They attack us. And sometimes, these are the ones we share blood with. How should we respond?
“You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the supple moves of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. Mat. 5:43-47 (MSG)
God’s word instructs us to pray for them. That can be hard to do, especially when we want to fight back. When we want to get revenge on them, God says it is his. Honestly, getting even doesn’t do anything but make matters worse.
Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.” Rom. 12:17-19 (MSG)
I have written about revenge before. (Have You Considered? ) In a nutshell, when God gets revenge on someone who has hurt us, He slowly removes his hand from their life. His hand protects from the devil. He does this in hopes that it will move them to Him and not further from Him, like Job in the book of Job. If an enemy accepts God and His love, they might begin to act like Him. They might start acting in love.
Praying for your enemy will help you put things in perspective, and it also helps adjust your attitude toward them as well. Giving the hurt and pain to God is the best place for it. He will deliver you, and before you know it, you will be eating a six-course meal in front of them. (Psalms 23:5 MSG)
I got a phone call last night that bewildered me. In full disclosure, I struggled to accept the situation. I don’t think I can even begin to understand how the events expressed by my caller would put one in a hospital.
After the call, I sat and pondered what was told to me. I eventually had to ask God to help me understand. He didn’t. But He did help me remember that all of us are individuals, and we all have our weaknesses. We all have areas where we are strong and weak. What doesn’t take me out can devastate another. It’s all because of sin in the world. It’s like attracting a disease in a way. One illness that can harm another may not affect me at all.
One thing that immunizes me against being affected is my relationship with God. I spend time with him. I talk to him during the day, and I read his word. I call out to him for help when I struggle with an issue and ask him to take the weight off of me when I stumble.
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Ps. 46:1 (NIV)
So understanding the truth about people and how or why some are affected by events in life more than others leads to one conclusion. And this is what God did reveal to me. It’s not about understanding others but accepting others.
I can not read music, nor can I write it. I can only imagine how satisfying it must be to write a piece of music, especially a concerto. I could at one time read it but not anymore. One thing I recall, though, is that there are high notes and low notes, and when you put them all together, they make music. Hopefully, something that sounds good and is pleasing to the ear.
As we live our lives, there are high notes, and there are low notes. It seems as if we remember the low notes the most. Throughout my life, I have had several “low notes.” Some were flatter than others. (Get it?)
It amazes me how, when we surrender our lives unto God, how He can take “all” of our life, the high and low notes, and make beautiful music. One might even say, “A concerto.” It also amazes me how the almighty God, the greatest composer, can orchestrate every part of our lives while simultaneously the lives of others, and the result is of his good pleasure.
The other day, I was going to go outside and do some cleaning, but as I was about to go through the door, I got a phone call from a friend. I took the call, and we talked for about 38 minutes. Shortly after I ended the call, I went outside and started working. A man walking by started talking to me. As we spoke, he brought up God and then commented on being unsure if one could go to heaven.
I spoke and told him he could be absolutely sure and how. He didn’t seem to accept what I was saying until I told him how much God loved him. I told him God wanted to make sure that we met. I told him I would have been outside earlier if my friend hadn’t called me. I want to add that I could have ignored my friend’s call and called him back later. He would have understood. If that had happened, I wonder if the man I met outside would have missed heaven by 38 minutes. You see, it’s important to spend time with people. They matter. All of heaven is about people.
Live for God. Allow him to ordain your steps. Don’t take for granted those interruptions. They may seem like a low note to you, but God may be playing a high note. Either way, I assure you the resulting melody will be pleasing to the ear.
The steps of a [good and righteous] man are directed and established by the Lord, Psa. 37:23a (AMP)
“Life would be easy if it wasn’t for all of the freaken people!” Anonymous
True confession: The older I get, the less I enjoy getting out. Not sure if that’s common or not. I enjoy getting to stay home. The main reason is because of self-serving, distracted drivers these days. And sometimes those same drivers are standing in line in front of me.
This last week, I encountered two such individuals. The first one was while I was in line at a discount store. I looked, and the lady in front of me had “two” carts full. I had “four” items. She even turned, looked at me, and I was holding my “four” items up high to make sure she could see them. I was expecting her to say, “Oh, go in front of me.” But she didn’t. So I proceeded to count my items out loud. “1, 2, 3, 4, items,” I said. Again she looked at me. Even the cashier seemed bewildered by the woman’s self-serving action. The woman proceeded to check out. “87 items,” the cashier noted. I was mad, but I held my tongue and then even helped the lady by putting her two carts up where they went. The woman seemed to be angry, evil, and perhaps oppressed by a demon.
The second was, of all places, the post office. The mother seemed decent, at first, at least until her exhausted little girl started acting out. There were a lot of others there as well, and getting annoyed quickly! The man behind me left. I tried my best to ignore her behavior and the mother’s obnoxious parenting. You’ve witnessed this scene, I’m sure. “Now, (name of child), stop it. You’re going to get spanked. Stop hurting my face. It’s not nice. Yes, everyone is looking at you and your bad behavior. I’m going to leave you here.” The line was long and moving slowly. I was hoping the woman would leave and take her child home and put her to bed. Everybody was hoping!
Then I decided to pray over the child and the atmosphere. As I was praying, the little girl looked right at me, and with her dark eyes, she seemed to snarl at me. It was scary. I then whispered for the evil spirit to leave the little girl. He didn’t. I prayed for the environment to be flipped. From a place of distress to one of peace. It didn’t work. There were thoughts of going “postal.” Just kidding.
I realize now why my prayers didn’t work. I should have thought of it earlier because I am writing a book on the subject. I didn’t try to cast out the demon from the little girl out loud. Neither did I speak to the environment to change out loud. In my book, I write about how spiritual warfare has to be done out loud. Whenever Jesus encountered “people” who needed to be set free from anything, He spoke out loud. Yes, I know the others in the post office would have heard me, but shouldn’t they witness that we can have dominion over this world and the evil spirits that try to rule it?
10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.
13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. Eph. 6:12-17 (MSG)
The more familiar version says:
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. 13 For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. Eph. 6:12-13 (NET)
I can’t avoid going out, and I can’t avoid people. I shouldn’t want to because it is people that need to hear the truth about God and how much He loves them. It’s people, and their daughters, that need to be set free from sin, bondage, and demonic influences. Love people as Jesus did. Have compassion on them and take your authority in the name of Jesus and do what Jesus would do. Just do it out loud!
Below is part of the story where Jesus cast out demons from a possed man. The whole story can be read in Mark 5:1-20.
5 1-5 They arrived on the other side of the sea in the country of the Gerasenes. As Jesus got out of the boat, a madman from the cemetery came up to him. He lived there among the tombs and graves. No one could restrain him—he couldn’t be chained, couldn’t be tied down. He had been tied up many times with chains and ropes, but he broke the chains, snapped the ropes. No one was strong enough to tame him. Night and day he roamed through the graves and the hills, screaming out and slashing himself with sharp stones.
6-8 When he saw Jesus a long way off, he ran and bowed in worship before him—then howled in protest, “What business do you have, Jesus, Son of the High God, messing with me? I swear to God, don’t give me a hard time!” (Jesus had just commanded the tormenting evil spirit, “Out! Get out of the man!”) (MSG)
Do you have one in your life? You know. The one person who knows everything, can do anything, and supposedly comes with more credentials than an entire doctor’s clinic! Do you work with them, live next door to them, are friends with them, or related to them? Or perhaps you, not on purpose, run into them at church or some other event?
What do you do when they correct you and then proceed to give you instructions on how to accomplish a particular task? Here is how God responded to Job:
“Do you presume to tell me what I’m doing wrong? Are you calling me a sinner so you can be a saint? Do you have an arm like my arm? Can you shout in thunder the way I can? Go ahead, show your stuff. Let’s see what you’re made of, what you can do. Unleash your outrage. Target the arrogant and lay them flat. Target the arrogant and bring them to their knees. Stop the wicked in their tracks—make mincemeat of them! Dig a mass grave and dump them in it— faceless corpses in an unmarked grave. I’ll gladly step aside and hand things over to you— you can surely save yourself with no help from me! Job 40:8-14 (MSG)
It seems as if God was sarcastic. Knowing very well Job couldn’t do anything he asked him to do. As we humans are now on Earth, there is no way we can know everything! I was talking to a friend the other day about this same issue, and I mentioned how I had learned to say, “I’ll take that under advisement”. He laughed and then shared what he says, which is, “That’s a great idea. I’ll look into it.” Both responses sends the “know it all” away with a sense of pride and accomplishment. They probably feel as if they just helped another one!
God was sarcastic with Job, because He knew Job couldn’t do those things, or even knew how. We don’t know what a person knows, so perhaps what to do is simply listen, and execute our escape as soon as possible. That’s better than hurting the other person or debating and or arguing.
Have you ever met someone for the very first time, and you immediately like them? They are usually smiling, relaxed, mild mannered, and you just begin to match their level of gel. You find yourself feeling like they value you, and they aren’t in a hurry to get away from you. As if in that very moment, you are the only thing and one that matters.
I believe Jesus was just that kind of person. I think this is why he appealed to men, women, some high ranking officials, sinners and children. Honestly, the only ones that he didn’t appeal to were the ones who felt as if his way of living threatened their livelihood, or power.
It was this kind of appeal that gave him the ability to talk about “love”, “forgiveness”, and “the Kingdom of God”. Because of how he made them feel they listened! And many times they responded positively. Would we get the same results if we drew people toward us as he did? That should be the goal anyway.
It was Paul who said, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” (1 Cor.11:1) Paul obviously recognized this about Jesus and strived to imitate him. Three practical steps to living this kind of life:
See the people. Be observant to the people around you while being attentive to the Holy Spirit who may prompt you to speak to them.
.See the need in their life. You do this step by listening to them. Not just talking about yourself. It’s not always about you!
.See the path they should take to find God. Whether they need forgiveness, healing, or some other type of ministry, we should then lead them along that path.
Ask God to help you declutter your own life so you will have the time to spend with people. One thing I learned from my father is this; spending time with people is a gift. We should be generous.”
Getting ready for Christmas can be tiring! There are so many things to do, places to go, and people to see. It’s great to have the opportunity to see people. In fact, receiving a Christmas card each year is the only time I get to hear from some people.
I just laughed, because it dawned on me that Christmas is the only time God gets to hear from some people too! Okay, it’s actually not funny at all. Someone asked me what I wanted for Christmas the other day. They suggested we go share a meal at one of my favorite local restaurants, but what I really want for Christmas is to be with them on Christmas day. I can’t go into details as to why I can’t be with them, because I don’t want to change the names in order protect the guilty.
After all, Christmas is really only about people, or should be. You see it was God loving his people, and wanting to be with them so bad that He was willing to give his only son to become a sacrifice for us. For the things that “we”, not him have done wrong. God wants to be with people. He loves us so much, and hates it when we suffer, and struggle in life. When we hurt, feel so alone and don’t know what to do, or where to turn. You see, we are all on God’s Christmas list. Even those of us who accepted his Christmas gift to us a long time ago. We drift away from him from time to time.
So what do you say? Can you join me in giving God what He wants for Christmas? Spend some time with him? Talk to him? Give him an opportunity to reply to your heart. I know this, you will be glad you did. It might even turn out to be the best Christmas Party you go to all season!
Friends and family members of, Thomas Edward hear back from him within minutes of reaching out via a text message, or a phone call. That is, when he is not performing his duties. Thomas values people, and he values relationships as well. Acknowledging someone, within a reasonable amount of time, is a special quality of a person with integrity. Even if that response is something along the line of, “I’ll get back to you later.”
People want to know they have been heard. They like to know their need, their bad news, or good news has been received, and the best way to affirm them is by acknowledging their voice.
The same seems to go when we pray to God, and when we don’t see some action we begin to question if He even heard us. I assure you, He did.
16 But as for me, I will call upon the Lord to save me, and I know he will! 17 Every evening I will explain my need to him. Every morning I will move my soul toward him. Every waking hour I will worship only him, and he will hear and respond to my cry. Psalms 55:16-17 (TPT)
There was one true story where Jesus’ friend Lazarus was very ill. People came to Jesus and asked him to come heal him. Jesus didn’t go immediately, but instead waited four more days. When Jesus arrived his family told him it was too late, Lazarus was dead. They knew and believed Jesus could do something while he was still alive, but now?
As difficult as it may have been on Jesus, he waited till Lazarus had died to show that the son of God had power even over death. He did this so when He himself would come back from the dead it would be easier to believe.
So we may not know why, or understand why God doesn’t do what we need instantly, but rest assured, He does.
Oh! Thomas Edward is no other than Thomas Edward Patrick Brady, Jr. Also known as, Tom Brady. The seven time winning, Super Bowl quarterback, in the NFL. Now if he has time to acknowledge others then what is your excuse?
Have you ever noticed how quick some people get upset, and at times over the littlest things? It can seem silly at times, but don’t tell them that. It could only build more frustration.
The funny thing about these individuals is this; they “choose” to get upset. I learned that truth many years ago while attending marriage counseling with my first wife. The counselor pointed out my wife can’t “make me mad” just like she can’t “make me hungry”. That made sense.
Ignoring things in life that bother you can be a challenge, but not impossible. One technique is to look at the overall situation and to ask yourself, “Does it really matter?” Finding a way to say. “So what?” is important.
The alternative is flying off the handle. Spouting words that can hurt, cut and potentially do permanent damage to the receiver of those “acts of rage” that could take years to overcome.
You can definitely pray and ask God to help you, and partner that with help from key identifiers. Signals inside you that may indicate your tolerance level is rising to a boiling over point. That can be the time to walk away quietly, or simply correct the frustration issue without commenting on it.
It is easier to change yourself, than to try to change another person.
The Bible says this about the importance of responding correctly:
Respond gently when you are confronted and you’ll defuse the rage of another. Responding with sharp, cutting words[a] will only make it worse. Don’t you know that being angry can ruin the testimony of even the wisest of men? 2 When wisdom speaks, understanding becomes attractive. But the words of the fool make their ignorance look laughable. 3 The eyes of the Lord are everywhere and he takes note of everything that happens. He watches over his lovers, and he also sees the wickedness of the wicked. 4 When you speak healing words, you offer others fruit from the tree of life. But unhealthy, negative words do nothing but crush their hopes. Prov. 15:1-4
One thing to remember is; your outburst can ruin your witness of the love of God before others. That’s a sobering thought. People tend to remember a single outburst instead of the countless acts of love that came in the days before. It’s not fair, but unfortunately true. Choose to react with one of the fruits of the Spirit of God. “Love, joy, peace, self-control, kindness, goodness, forbearance, and gentleness. It’s a better way to go. Oh! And in the spirit of transparency, I needed this post probably more than anyone else!
brady, mark a. 