We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Rules!

August 19, 2025July 18, 2025 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

When I was a little boy, I didn’t understand why the school cafeteria always served fish sticks on Fridays. As I got older, I learned it was because people who followed the Catholic faith couldn’t eat meat on Fridays. I don’t mean any disrespect, but what in the world does that “rule” have to do with accepting Jesus Christ and having your sins forgiven?

I have read the Bible several times and from different versions, and I have never seen that “rule” in the Word of God. And for that matter, I have never seen that we had to go to a man to confess our sins, but rather we could go to God himself. And nowhere did I read that when we pray, we have to face East. (Some people, directionally challenged, might find that one difficult.)

Again, I don’t mean any disrespect, but isn’t it obvious that these and other “rules” are man-made? I kind of get it, some feel they need to “do” something to “earn” their way into heaven. As if they can be “good” enough to deserve heaven. The truth is, they can never be “good” enough or “do” enough to get into heaven. There is only one way into heaven, and I stated earlier that is by asking Jesus Christ to forgive you of your sins, wrongdoings, and to ask Him into your life, thus foregoing the “rules” and starting a “relationship” with God.

I have heard that “religion” (rules) is man’s way to God, but God’s way to man is through his Son, Jesus (relationship).

Some may say, “Wait a minute, Christianity is full of rules.” No, it’s not. Christianity is a lifestyle. A way to live that is based in love. Loving God first and then loving others as you love yourself. Christianity is freedom. Walking with God and talking to him anytime you want to. Just like He intended, and the way things started out with Adam and Eve.

If you haven’t tried living life God’s way, then what are you waiting for? What are you afraid will happen? You are only delaying real life, true living, so forget the “rules” and start walking with God. You’ll love it, you’ll love Him, and you will love others.

“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)

Jesus said, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ These two commands are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hangs from them.” Mat. 22:37-40 (MSG)

My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. 1 John 4:7-10 (MSG)

But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.
Acts 5:29 (NLT)

First Place Trophy?

August 1, 2025June 30, 2025 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

One man bragged that he had a trophy wife. His buddy said, “Yeah, but she came in sixth place!”

I know a man, and the second time I had a conversation with him, the Holy Spirit whispered, “Watch out for this man. Don’t get too close to him and guard what you say to him.” He started sharing with me his religious trophies. In other words, what he thought he had done “for God,” but in reality, he did them for himself. There was one such trophy that shocked me when he shared it. He seemed proud of it, too, which bothered me. It was something that didn’t seem right, for one who claims to be a Christ follower, to be a part of.

I’m sorry I can’t reveal more about what he told me because it is possible that some who read these blogs know him and I have always strived not to expose people for what they are, but to make a point. Who this man is isn’t important, but his being “religious” is!

Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world. Jam. 1:26-27 (MSG)

Focusing on the part of the above verse that is labeled as “Real religion” is really about “love.” God’s love. Simply loving on people. Bob Goff wrote a book about it titled “Love Does.” I’ve had the opportunity to hear Bob speak in person. One story he shared I can’t forget.

He said he was picked up at the airport in a limo. On his way to his hotel, he asked the young driver, “Have you ever ridden back here?” “No,” said the chauffeur. Bob says he thought for a moment and then said, “Why don’t you pull over and get back here and I’ll drive for you.” “What?” exclaimed the driver. “Of course, if we do this, you have to let me wear the hat!” They exchanged places. The young man had never been shown or felt such love.

Doing something out of the ordinary for someone else gets their attention. They sit up and start paying attention to why this person is different than anyone they have ever met. Many times, they will even ask, “Why are you doing this?” Or, “Why are you different?” Jesus dined with tax collectors, and they were considered bad people. He became friends with a woman caught in adultery. He understood and didn’t condemn when a woman went against her culture to touch the hem of his garment.

Those people didn’t see “religion,” they saw “love in motion.” Jesus never dragged out his trophies of all the miracles he had performed and showed them off. He never had the disciples stop and polish them either. Jesus simply loved, and talked about his heavenly Father and a better way to live.

What They Need

September 27, 2024August 21, 2024 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

I once visited a third-world country. Most of the people who lived there were extremely poor. Every day was a struggle for them to find food to feed their families. Jobs were difficult to come by, and “good” paying jobs were out of reach for most. In talking to one lady who had made it to America, she shared with me that she made more in two weeks than she did in six months there.

While I was there, I attended one of the local churches. The minister spoke both the languages of the country and English. I’m not sure what his motivation was, but he began to go around the room asking the parishioners how much they would commit to paying each week. I felt terrible for them as they squirmed and were not making eye contact with their pastor. As the people threw out an amount, one of the pastor’s family members recorded their responses.

Later that day, the pastor asked me what I thought of the service. Now I squirmed and finally asked. “You want me to be honest?” “Yes,” he replied. I said, “Well, I felt awful for the congregation. You put them on the spot. Of course, they were going to say they would commit to giving a certain amount every week. What they give is between them and God. They live difficult lives. They don’t need “rules” to live by, that’s guilt and “religion.” What they need is to hear about how much God loves them, knows what they are going through, and cares about them so much. What they need is a stronger “relationship” with God. One they can rely on and survive the week to come.”

The pastor stared at the floor and then struggled to admit he had made a mistake. I suggested he apologize to his flock and strive each week to hear God’s encouraging word for them.

I would go out on a limb and guess that what you need is to hear the same message. God knows you, and He loves you so much! He cares about what you are facing, and He wants you to trust him to work on your behalf. That is accomplished by having a great “relationship” with God. That is what you need. That is all that you need.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Mat. 11:28-30 (MSG)

The Rules of the Game

May 25, 2021May 25, 2021 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

Starting with the Banker, each player in turn throws the dice. The player with the highest total starts the play. Place your token on the corner marked “GO”, then throw the dice and move your token (in the direction of the arrow) the number of spaces indicated by the dice…..

You buy a new game and you can’t wait to play it, but in reality, you don’t know how, because you don’t know the rules. Reading the rules takes time and can be kind-of, should we say, boring? We just want to start playing. And have you noticed? There always seems to be that one person who volunteers to read the rules and then proceeds to tell the others their interpretation of what they know?

Rules are very specific, or should be. They are important. They can help protect you, if you and everyone else will follow them. Like when driving. When it comes to God, mankind, has come up with his own set of rules. I mentioned a few weeks ago there are over 4000 religions. That’s a lot! Which one is right? Could they “all” be wrong? Probably.

God wrote his own, not “rules” to live by, but the kind of relationship you should desire to have with him. In his Word, He makes it very clear, that the only way to him is by accepting that Jesus is his son and died on the cross to forgive you of your sins, wrong doings, and we have all done something wrong.

You see, God is Holy and cannot be in the presence of sin. That is why he gave his own son to die for us, which makes us clean again. Then He can be with us and we can be with him. No “rules” just relationship. It’s so simple, but mankind has a hard time with that. He thinks it sounds too good to be true, but when it comes to God, it is true, and it sets us free. Mankind complicates it. It is so simple I understood it at the age of 7.

Satan knows how God designed things, and he knows he’s not going to win, but he still tries so hard to get mankind to loose with him. He either gets them to write their own rules by telling them God didn’t mean what He said, or he accuses others of cheating and tries to make them feel bad about themselves.

Read God’s Word. Learn about the relationship that God has wanted from the very beginning with mankind. Doing so will give you the authority to tell the devil to, “shut up!” Playing, or living I should say, this way will cause you to win in the end, because life is no game.

“God is Good”

May 18, 2021May 18, 2021 / Mark Brady / 2 Comments

Every time a friend of mine hears that statement he responds, “All the time!” And you know what? He’s right. “Good” is part of God’s nature. He can’t help himself but be good. When I was in Africa I learned, they also respond in the same way.

Why is it important to remember this part of God’s nature? Because we live in a world that tries to tell us who and what God is, yet they don’t even know him. Some have never even made his acquaintance.

“Pinpointing precisely how many religions there are in the world today is next to impossible, although some estimate the number exceeds four thousand. The vast majority of those faiths are contained within a handful of major religious groups.” (By Mary Fairchild, updated 03/22/21)

It’s this kind of “I know how to get to God” that has caused mankind to create over four thousand “religions”. What is a religion? In a nut shell, its man’s way to God, but technically;

“Religion can briefly be defined as a specific belief system about God or gods expressed through a code of conduct, ethics, forms of worship, and rituals. Religion includes social, ethical, and ceremonial elements combined with the belief in an unseen world and often a deity.”
Mary Fairchild

This is why it is important to know and accept “God’s way to man”, which is through “relationship”. It is through his son, Jesus. By accepting that He is God’s son and asking him to forgive you of your sins, wrong doing, and then inviting him to live and dwell in your heart. All that means is live like Jesus did.

To love on people like Jesus did. To value, and spend time with people like Jesus did. To walk with them in life and show them there is a better way to live. That, it is possible to have life, now on earth and to have it abundantly!

God is good, and in recent days He has shown himself extra good to my wife and me. He has lead us to a ministry that we are excited about, and we are getting in on the ground floor. But even in the valleys, and the days seem so dark, and so long, God is still good. It’s in those days we have to lean in a little closer to him, and ask him for help. To get to your destination you have to travel. Some journeys take you through some pretty rough neighborhoods, over rough terrain, or stormy seas, but none of that diminishes God’s goodness.

God is Not Religious

May 18, 2019 / Mark Brady / 1 Comment

Charlie 230 Satan is religious. He loves churches that try to get you to follow a list of dos and don’ts knowing when you fail, you will probably hate yourself and possibly hate God. Satan religiously tries to get you to believe the lie that you have to follow a list of rules. The problem is simple: you are trusting man to tell you what God desires from you instead of finding out for yourself.

If God wanted us to be religious, he would have not sent his Son, Jesus to be a perfect sacrifice for our sins, but instead would have stayed in the temple, behind a curtain. When Jesus died that curtain ripped from top to bottom. God doesn’t want religion from us, but a relationship with us.

When you get to know God for yourself, you’ll fall in love with him, and because you don’t want to hurt the One you love, you change your behavior. Even if you slip up, out of love He forgives, comforts, encourages, and helps you. This paradigm is a much better way to live.

A friend once said he didn’t have a relationship with God. I said, “Sure you do! It’s just not a good one.” Everyone has a relationship with God. He loves you, and if you haven’t talked to him in a while, then I’m sure he misses you! God knows where you are, what you are going through, and he still knows your name. Can you hear him whispering it?

Devoted to Devotions?

April 19, 2019April 16, 2019 / Mark Brady / Leave a comment

Charlie 70 How many times have you beat yourself up for not doing your devotions? Me? I used to constantly be black and blue! I didn’t like it. Am I not serious about serving God? I used to ask myself. I wanted to make God happy with me, so why did I constantly feel as though I was disappointing him?

It took a while, okay years, but one day I realized being devoted to devotions was not the same as being devoted to God. I begin to walk in freedom, because now I was devoted to God, and I knew I could talk to him anytime I wanted to. I could worship, read his word, and praise him throughout the entire day, and not just at a particular time of day. There may be those that like having a set time each day, but that didn’t work for me. Some people, I’m afraid, do their devotions, but then forget what they read or said to God as soon as they are done. They experienced time gone by, but fail to experience God.

Just like I can’t make you mad, I can’t make God have an emotional response to me as well. We choose our reactions to others and God chooses his reactions to us. I’m sure it’s an easy choice for him though when we talk to him and are mindful of him all day long. God, no doubt, wants to hang out with his children and listen to them, and have them listen to him. God has a lot to say.

^“Therefore, your hearts are to be wholly devoted to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as [you are doing] today.” (1 Kings 8:61 AMP)