Syncing your life with Christ.

You have all your in-home devices synced, don’t you? Your smart watch is synced to your phone in order to log your steps. Your computer is synced to your wireless headphones in order to have that on-screen chat with your mom via Zoom. And your life must be synced with Christ in order to experience all riches that God has in store for you.

In John 15:1-10 (NKJV), Jesus speaks about abiding in Him. It’s a section of Scripture that speaks directly to the Christian and outlines how to live a productive life. This goes beyond salvation (faith) and demonstrates how to live a fruitful life (works).

John’s writings take us the upper room discourse where Jesus is speaking about being the True Vine. John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”

Other versions of the Bible substitute the word “remain” for the word abide. In other words, if you remain connected to Jesus Christ, good works will naturally occur through the power of the Holy Spirit.

This section of Scripture has nothing to do with salvation, but it speaks to your walk with Christ. Once you have accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, you are a new creation. This means you should no longer walk as you did prior to accepting His free gift of salvation.

You do so by abiding or remaining or, if you will, syncing your life to Jesus Christ. It’s time to unplug yourself from this world’s system and walk with Jesus.

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I have all that I need.

The Psalms have always been a bit of an enigma to me. Maybe it’s because I’m not necessarily the artist type, and many of the Psalms are written as poetry or are meant to be sung.

But lately, I’ve had a change of heart. I’ve indulged the Psalms, more than ever before, and I now find myself turning them into a focal point of my daily reading.

In fact, Psalm 23, which is so short in length but powerful in message, has become a favorite of mine. I dare say it’s a favorite of so many who’ve read it. You know the first two lines, right? “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”

Perhaps the New Living Translation renders this Psalm even better – “The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.”

When you think of a shepherd, your mind turns to one who leads and directs a flock of sheep. We, as followers of Christ, are sheep; wayward as we are. And there is the Lord, our Shepherd, always there guiding us back to where we belong.

If the Lord is our shepherd and we have all that we need, isn’t it time to submit to His plan?

No more excuses.

We have an excuse for everything, don’t we? All we need is just a sliver of doubt to creep in and the excuses begin to pile up. Something I learned a long time ago was that there’s a million reasons not to do something.

After a brief introduction, the prophet Jeremiah tells us what the Lord would have him do. “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5 NLT)

But immediately, Jeremiah has an excuse. Jeremiah 1:6 (NLT) reads, “O Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I can’t speak for you! I’m too young!”

We saw similar excuses from Moses back in the Book of Exodus after the Lord commanded him to go to Pharaoh. Moses protested many times before finally obeying God by saying such things as “who am I?” and “what if?”

But do you know what happened to both Jeremiah and Moses? Eventually, God got His way and they did what He said. Perhaps instead of resisting God’s call to action, we should embrace it.

Stop giving God excuses. He is going to win anyway. Our resistance to His will is only going to prolong the process.

You know better.

“You know better.” How many times, as a child, did you hear those words in your house? For me, it was a lot. Oftentimes the words were directed at my sister, but that’s a story for another time.

All kidding aside, we do know better, don’t we? Although the lines between what’s right and wrong have been blurred, especially in today’s post-modern age, I believe that most people still know (in their heart) the difference between right and wrong.

The letter of First Peter is a wakeup call to Christians. In 1 Peter 1:13-16, the apostle speaks to the idea of living a holy life. While grace allows us to live freely, it is not a license to live a sinful life.

1 Peter 1:14-15 (NLT) says, “So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.”

Once you make the decision to follow Jesus Christ, you’re making the choice to set yourself apart from the world. Don’t forget the words of Jesus from John 15:18-19, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.”

Since you are no longer part of this world, you should know better. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:16 NLT)

Be thankful for God’s indescribable gift.

Thanksgiving is unquestionably my favorite holiday of the year. All you have to do is show up, watch football, eat food, and spend time with your loved ones. What could be better, right?

But on this holiday, it’s incredibly important to give thanks to God for everything that He has given to you. Remember, God placed us here in order to give Him glory and to give Him thanks.

More than anything else, at this time of year, it’s important for all of God’s people to give thanks for our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Or, as Paul describes it in 2 Corinthians 9:15, an “indescribable gift”.

So while you’re busy catching up on the score, catching up with family, and catching up with your uncle who seems to be two plates ahead of you, remember to pause and give thanks to your Creator for His indescribable gift.

John 3:16 (NIV) reminds us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God gave us His Son, so the least we can do is give Him thanks.

Go fishing.

Fishing is one of my favorite things to do. As a kid, I used to wake up early on Saturday mornings, and my dad and I would head out to the lake with hopes of catching a boat full of largemouth bass.

Several of Jesus’ disciples were fishermen. Simon (Peter) and Andrew and the sons of Zebedee, James and John, all fished for a living. Then, one day, Jesus was walking by the shores of the Sea of Galilee and called the four fishermen to follow Him. We read about it in Mark 1:16-20 (NKJV).

“…He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James…and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee…and went after Him.”

But what does it mean to become a “fisher of men”? Essentially, it’s a call to evangelism. Jesus took something that these four men were very adept at and made it their calling. Rather than bringing fish into the boat, these four men would be bringing people to Christ.

Now I can tell you from experience that fishing is not easy. It takes patience, understanding, experience, persistence, determination, and a willingness to come up empty. There are some days, no matter how long you stay at it, that you just don’t catch a single thing.

Evangelism is like that. Not everyone you speak to about the Gospel will immediately turn their life over to Christ. But we’re instructed to keep at it. Somedays are more difficult than others.

There’ve been times when I pack the car with my rods and tackle box, get a good night’s sleep, set the alarm for five o’clock, and hit the water before the break of dawn. But despite my best efforts, the fish just might not be biting that day.

You can do everything right, and still not win someone to Christ. But we’re called to fish. Don’t allow one bad day at the lake to ruin your love for fishing. In the same way, you must not let one person who doesn’t receive the message of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ ruin your zeal for evangelism. Go fishing.

Why are we afraid of the truth?

Why are we so afraid of the truth? People don’t want to hear the truth, but rather prefer for the truth to align with their beliefs. The Apostle Paul makes that very clear in 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NASB).

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”

But why do we do that? Why would people rather chase what they want to hear rather than what is true? Because the truth is convicting. When people hear something that is true, they’re forced to change. But change is difficult and requires hard work.

So instead we try to rationalize around what is true or alter the truth all together. And inevitably we can surround ourselves with those folks whose thoughts, feelings, and ideals are congruent with our own.

But rather than pursuing what you want to hear, I would challenge you to listen to the truth of God. How? By reading the Scriptures and obeying His Word. The Lord has given us truth to follow, but because it’s so convicting, very few want to hear it.

He is coming back!

Probably my favorite thing when reading Scripture is coming across one of the many prophecies. Matthew’s Gospel is littered with prophecies foretold and prophecies fulfilled.

Everything from the virgin conception of Jesus (Isaiah 7:14), His birth in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), to the fleeing from Israel to Egypt (Hosea 11:1) were all predicted in the Old Testament.

But the book that I can never close when I begin to read it is Daniel. While most folks think about Daniel in the lion’s den, his book is actually the journal of a Jew who was exiled to Babylon and forced to serve under at least five different rulers while the Israelites were living away from the Holy Land.

It is filled with prophetic language and focused on future events. The entanglement, or lack thereof, with those placid felines is only one chapter of the book. The last six chapters of Daniel are actually devoted to prophecy.

Though future to Daniel, much of the book is history to us now in the 21st century. The conquests of Alexander the Great (Daniel 11:3) and the Roman Empire (Daniel 2:40) are both cited by Daniel. That’s remarkable.

The Bible is filled with prophecy; some of which has yet to be achieved. But therein lies hope for anyone who’s put their faith in Jesus Christ. Just read Hebrews 9:27-28.

‘Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.’

The thing I love most of prophecy is seeing it fulfilled because that gives me hope for the future. If God has done it before, He’ll do it again. He is coming back!

Our burden is light.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

I think a good majority of folks have read or at least heard that passage from Matthew 11. Jesus tells us that instead of carrying our burdens ourselves, we’re to take them to Him.

He can handle it. If you doubt that, I would encourage you to read any of the four Gospels. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all do a fabulous job telling us exactly what Jesus was able to endure on the cross.

Jesus Christ bore the sins of the world. Mine, yours, your mother’s, your brother’s, your neighbor’s, all of them. And He did it voluntarily. Jesus gave up His life for us. Hebrews 12:2 (NLT) tells us, “Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.”

Our burdens are NOTHING compared to what Christ endured at Calvary. But He still calls you to come, as heavy or as light as your burdens may be.

Stop wasting time.

Have you ever noticed how God’s timing usually doesn’t jive with our own? After all, it’s not as if God owns a watch.

When I think about God’s timing, I oftentimes remember Romans 11:33 (NASB). Paul writes, “Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!”

The apostle tells us that His judgments are unsearchable. So often we ask ourselves, or even God, why? You could plumb the depths of this earth in search of the answer to that universal question and never come to a conclusion.

Paul then tells us that His ways are unfathomable. If you search the Internet for synonyms for the word unfathomable, you’ll come up with a list that looks like this; inscrutable, incomprehensible, indecipherable, enigmatic, etc.

Essentially, Paul is saying that trying to figure out why God does what He does and when God chooses to do it is a fruitless endeavor. Instead of asking why and when, we’re called to trust and to be obedient.

The Gospel of John spells it out quite clearly. In John 14:1 (NLT) Jesus says, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.” A few verses later in John 14:15 (NLT) Jesus tells his disciples, “If you love me, obey my commandments.”

Put your trust in the King of kings and the Lord of lords. While I’m not sure of God’s timing, I can tell you that time is running out.