Tim Young's Blog, page 2

There’s Only One Way To Face Life, And Here It Is…

I love the scene from J. R. R Tolkien’s “The Return of the King” where Aragon is desperately outnumbered. He looks fear right in the eye and finds the strength to inspire his men against what seems like an almost certain defeat against the massive forces of the enemy. Standing firm and riding in front of his army, he declares,


 


I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me.


A day may come when the courage of men fails,


when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship,


…but it is not this day! This day we fight!


By all that you hold dear on this good earth,


I bid you stand…


 


Sounds so easy in the movies, doesn’t it?

Ambrose Redmoon defines courage as not having the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear. “God, I am afraid, but give me the courage to push through my fears, the burdens of a passive spirit and the regret of my past failures.” It was time for me to take up the sword of the Spirit, the word of God and to go to war on behalf of righteousness; it was time to begin the battle for my children! All this stuff, the garbage that has burdened my life for so long and all the generational issues that had been passed down, had to end with me. I did not want any of this to be passed down to my children, and I asked the Lord to do whatever He needed to do in my life to free my children of these chains and burdens that I have carried for so long. Unfortunately, I had to walk through another failed marriage for me to really get this. To break free of old patterns, to stand up and become the man God called me to be.

As in the scenes of Jericho and David’s battle with Goliath, it is only through the Lord’s power that we will be able to be break free from satan’s control. When we begin to allow God to invade our lives, His word will reveal the control that satan has in our lives through strongholds. We need to identify where these strongholds are and in the power and might of the Lord have them torn down and destroyed. An army first has to remove the strongholds, to conquer the land and we need to do the same in the strength of the Lord.

Waving the banner of the Lord before me, it was time to storm the encampment of the enemy and reclaim territory for Jesus Christ; it was time to storm my Jericho.

(Excerpt from Heartstone Copyright © 2009 by Tim Young. All rights reserved.)

 


Not sure you’ve noticed, but life comes at us like a ferocious lion at times. The challenge most of us face during these times of adversity is we become paralyzed. In our fear, we would rather sit on the sidelines and watch an extraordinary life happen than live it despite our circumstances. Neale Donald Walsch reminds us that life begins at the end of your comfort zone, but the irony is that when we step out of our comfort zone life gets inconvenienced.

Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them, that is, all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan. It was only in order that the generations of the people of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before. These are the nations: the five lords of the Philistines and all the Canaanites and the Sidonians and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon as far as Lebo-hamath. They were for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses. So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods. -Judges 3:1-6

So basically, God intentionally left the Israelites with nations who would oppose them because the current generation had never experienced battle. Wait a minute, what?!?!

An aspects of God that we often overlook is that He will do whatever it takes to teach us to stand up in the midst of battle and to fight. The sad reality is that most of us want God to fight all the battles for us without any effort on our part. We want to live a life where God removes all of life’s difficulties and the obstacles that come our way on our journey. We always want the victory without the battle.

Every soldier should learn survival on land, sea, and in the air.
—Louis Zamperini

What we often forget is that God will never put us in a circumstance where there is not a battle on the horizon. Even if you’ve just won a great battle, I’ve got some news for you…that battle is not the end of your story. What God is trying to instill in us is the reward for winning a battle is preparation for a greater battle down the road. Of course we all want peace and rest after fighting a great battle, but God is allowing these battles in our lives to fight so we can discover just how strong we really are and how powerful God really is. When we step into this mindset we will be able to see that the very thing we were afraid of is now somehow diminished on the other side of the victory.

When life throat punches us and we default to asking God “why is this happening”, we can find the answer right there in Judges 3 – He wants to prepare you for battle. He wants to develop the muscle in us to fight the good fight and finish the race strong. He wants us to live a life of great faith and of great courage!

The journey with Jesus is not a journey where He removes the obstacles, but where He raises the bar of your life…and you rise above the obstacles.
—Erwin McManus

Everything God does in your life is to strengthen your resolve and capacity to overcome every obstacle that life throws at us. Remember, times of great difficulty are times of great opportunity where ordinary people can rise up to meet the challenge. Molière reminds us that the greater the obstacle, the more glory there is in overcoming it!

Theodore Roosevelt It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.
—Helen Keller

Has God taught you how to trust? How to fight? …and how to be victorious?

I don’t what you’re facing right now. Divorce, addiction, sickness, abuse, abandonment, wayward kids, death in the family, fill in the blank _____________, but there is only one way to face life — head on with God. Live with courage, faith, without regret and without fear. Remember…you only lose if you’re afraid to live.

Adapted from: Battle Ready © MOSAIC LA/Erwin McManus.

                  

Do You Know Him?

Wanted to share an inspiring video (that you’ve might have seen before) to kick off the week after celebrating Easter. The video called “That’s My King” shares the highlights from Dr. S.M. Lockridge’s sermon and powerfully describes the King of kings and Lord of lords – Jesus Christ.

Dr. S.M. Lockridge was the pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in San Diego, CA from 1952-1993. As a minister, he participated in the Civil Rights Movement during 1960s and was a prominent speaker and Baptist leader. His legacy includes years of faithful service preaching in a variety of settings around the world.

This is the true gospel – that God is relentlessly pursuing us with his love. This is why God stepped into human history as a man. That’s why Jesus is God Himself who walked among us, because in matters of love you have to go yourself! Jesus came to us, engaged us, and pursued us. He bled for all mankind sacrificing Himself to set us free, to set the record straight and to pave the way for relationship with God Himself – because He loves us that much.

Watch the video, soak in the sermon and be inspired to know Him!

Here is the full text from the “That’s My King!” sermon by S.M. Lockridge:

The Bible says my King is a seven way King,

He’s the King of the Jews, that’s a racial King,
He’s the King of Israel, That’s a national King,
He’s the King of righteousness,
He’s the King of the ages,
He’s the King of Heaven.
He’s the King of glory.
He’s the King of Kings and He’s the Lord of Lords.

That’s my King. Well, I wonder do you know Him?

David said the Heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth His handiwork. My King is a sovereign King. No means of measure can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supplies. No barriers can hinder Him from pouring out His blessings.

He’s enduringly strong.
He’s entirely sincere.
He’s eternally steadfast.
He’s immortally graceful.
He’s imperially powerful.
He’s impartially merciful.

Do you know Him?

He’s the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizon of this world.
He’s God’s Son.
He’s a sinner’s Savior.
He’s the centerpiece of civilization.
He stands in the solitude of Himself.
He’s august and He’s unique.
He’s unparalleled.
He’s unprecedented.
He is the loftiest idea in literature.
He’s the highest personality in philosophy.
He’s is the supreme problem in higher criticism.
He’s the fundamental doctrine of true theology.
He is the cardinal necessity for spiritual religion.
He’s the miracle of the age.
He’s He yes He is He is the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him.
He’s the only one qualified to be an all-sufficient Savior.

I wonder if you know Him today?

He supplies strength for the weak.
He’s available for the tempted and the tried.
He sympathizes and He saves.
He strengthens and sustains.
He’s guards and He guides.
He heals the sick.
He cleansed the lepers.
He forgives sinners.
He discharges debtors.
He delivers the captives.
He defends the feeble.
He blesses the young.
He serves the unfortunate.
He regards the aged.
He rewards the diligent and He beautifies the meager.

I wonder if you know Him?

Well, My King He’s is a key,

He’s the key to knowledge.
He’s the wellspring of wisdom.
He’s the doorway of deliverance.
He’s the pathway of peace.
He’s the roadway of righteousness.
He’s the highway of holiness.
He’s the gateway of glory.

Do you know Him? Well,

His office is manifold.
His promise is sure.
His life is matchless.
His goodness is limitless.
His mercy is everlasting.
His love never changes.
His Word is enough.
His grace is sufficient.
His reign is righteous.
And His yoke is easy.
And His burden is light.

I wish I could describe Him to you but,

He’s indescribable.
He’s incomprehensible,
He’s invincible.
He’s irresistable.

Well,

You can’t get him out of your mind.
You can’t you can’t get Him off of your hand.
You can’t outlive him.
And You can’t live without Him.
Well, the Pharisees couldn’t stand Him, but they found out they couldn’t stop Him.
Pilate couldn’t find any fault in Him.
The witnesses couldn’t get their testimonies to agree.
Herod couldn’t kill Him.
Death couldn’t handle Him and the grave couldn’t hold Him.

Yea!, that’s my King, that’s my King. Father. “Yours is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory Forever” and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever. How long is that? And when you get through with all the forever’s, then AMEN and AMEN!

Image credit: That’s My King Dr. S.M. Lockridge [HD: OFFICIAL] – YouTube.

                  

Moms, You’re Holding On Too Tight!

Unfortunately we live in a time where the “accepted normal” is kids having to grow up in a fractured family due to divorce or without fathers who are active in their lives and often the heavy lifting is unfairly burdened on the mothers. The other unintended consequence of this trend is the dilemma of weak or emasculated men reaching epidemic proportions in society…where many are asking, “where have all the men gone?”

Because of this, I’ve noticed that mothers are becoming more over protective and controlling of their sons, which is causing significant tension when it comes time for them to stretch their wings and leave the nest. The other dynamic that’s rearing its ugly head is these sons are finding it harder to cleave to their wives and step up to lead in their homes. Too often I talk to men who cannot make decisions for themselves or their families, have no real direction or plan for their life, choose a path of passivity and are paralyzed of their future. They are carrying a broken compass and have absolutely no mission in life!

When you dig deeper into these issues, you can often connect the dots to not having a fully present father figure in their lives and/or a mother who never allowed her son the opportunity to stop being her “little boy”. Of course a mother’s efforts are well intended, but they unknowingly stand in the way of their son’s father (or father figure) ability to provide a path for them to become men by keeping their “little boys” under their constant protection and control.

To all the mothers out there who doing much of the heavy lifting these days…

It’s time to start letting go of your sons so they can become men!

A man needs a much bigger orbit than a woman. He needs a mission, a life purpose, and he needs to know his name. Only then is he fit for a woman, for only then does he have something to invite her into.
—John Eldredge

For her son…the role of the mother should be to nurture him, provide for his care, love him unconditionally and then release him into the world so he can begin his rite of passage. God has placed it deep within the DNA of men to want to lead, to protect, to have a life mission, to fix things, to be courageous and to provide for their families. These characteristics of a man seldom realizes their potential under the continued control and oversight of a doting mother. Yeah, I know this is a tough word, but please pause and listen…for the sake of your sons.

There comes a point in the maturation process of your son where it’s critically important for you to find a way to break away and let him know he doesn’t need you anymore. I’m not a mom, but I know this is not an easy thing for mothers to do, because their whole lives are spent wanting to believe their kids need them — but that’s the worst thing you can do for a son. A man who feels that his mother needs him (and he needs her) is a man who will have find it almost impossible to enjoy an intimate and loving marriage relationship with his future wife.

Sir, do you remember me?” Hannah asked. “I am the woman who stood here several years ago praying to the Lord. I asked the Lord to give me this boy, and he has granted my request. Now I am giving him to the Lord, and he will belong to the Lord his whole life.
—1 Samuel 1:26-28

To all the mothers out there, you have one of the most difficult jobs on the planet and I know the love you have for your sons runs deep. It’s life changing for a boy to have the love of his mother and for those moms who love their sons…they are blessed. I had a loving mother and God used her to shape me into who I am today with her love and guidance. But the fact remains that your sons have responsibilities that God has given them and they must one day stand up to them on their own. Your sons must be able to make decisions for themselves, learn from their mistakes, and at times face the tough realities of life so they can become the men that God has called them to be. They must be able to stand independent from their mother (and father). On their journey into manhood, their mother cannot continue to shelter them, control them or fix their problems. The process of becoming a man begins early and by the time a boy steps into his teenage years his mother needs to be in the practice of finding ways of releasing him to God.

A woman simply is, but a man must become. Masculinity is risky and elusive. It is achieved by a revolt from woman, and it confirmed only by other men. Manhood coerced into sensitivity is no manhood at all.
—Camille Paglia

I really hope that all you moms out there don’t want to throat punch me right now and I hope that somehow you can receive this tough message because it’s a tough thing to ask any mom. I encourage all the moms out there to find a way to balance their love and control of their son’s life and work towards setting them free to become the men God intended them to be. The men your sons will become someday will be so worth your sacrifice.

Image credit: Man Sitting On Rocks – Pexels/Unsplash. Free for commercial use.

                  

How Picking Up Stones Changed My Life

We finished lunch with a couple of other hikers on the back deck of the AMC hut and began our final ascent. It was getting colder, and we began putting on warmer gear as we navigated through more snow and ice. With the thinning of the air, the tighter gripping of the cold, and the thickening silence, an overwhelming desire to run ahead came over me. I motioned to my friend that I was going to run up ahead a bit, which he had no issue with. Closing in on the summit, with my heart pounding and my lungs stinging from the cold air, I somehow knew that a milestone of this journey was at hand. I saw a large rock come into view, converging with my path, and I soon found myself standing upon this large rock. It was as if the Lord had gone ahead and had prepared this place of peaceful solitude and comfort so I could clearly hear His voice without all the other distractions. Standing there upon the rock, I took a deep breath, lifted my head to the Heavens, and began to have a conversation with Him. Time relaxed for a moment. It was awesome.

It was here at this place of desolation, on this rock, on this mountain, where He spoke to my heart. Do you want to know what He said to me? He asked me to collect four stones when I got to the top of the mountain. So, standing in my own strength, leaning on my own understanding and ending the tranquil scene He had prepared for me, my response was, “You want me to do what?”

He knew that this would be my reaction, so it was through the wisdom of my friend, whom the Lord blessed me with on this hike, that I was reminded of other events in the Bible that go beyond our own understanding. God caused a donkey to talk to Balaam; asked Gideon to stand before the Midianites with three hundred men and nothing but trumpets, pitchers, and lamps; and asked Moses to strike a rock to get water. After being reminded of such events, picking up four stones didn’t seem so strange anymore. I thought if my friend didn’t think I was crazy and I knew that he wasn’t crazy—I decided that maybe I wasn’t crazy after all. When we live by sight, we can only act on what we see, but God sees what we can’t. Remembering the words in 2 Corinthians 5:7, that we are to walk by faith and not by sight, I decided to just trust Him and be obedient.

Trust GOD from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for GOD’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. —Proverbs 3:5, 6 (MSG)

After resting in that place for a bit, my friend and I decided it was time to head up to the summit, and it wasn’t long until I had that compelling desire again to run up on ahead of my friend.

Smiling, he said, “Go get those stones.”

(Excerpt from Heartstone Copyright © 2009 by Tim Young. All rights reserved.)

That was a piece of my story I share in my book Heartstone, where God asked me to pick up four stones…and later a heartstone. So where am I going with this.

Some time ago I heard “The Parable of the Pebbles,” which goes kind of like this: A man was walking in the desert when a voice said to him, “Pick up some pebbles, put them in your pocket, and tomorrow you will be both sorry and glad.” The man obeyed. He stooped down, gathered a handful of pebbles, and put them in his pocket. The next morning he reached into his pocket and found, instead of pebbles, diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Immediately he was both sorrowful and glad—glad that he had taken some, sorry he hadn’t taken more.

This fictional parable has lots of parallels to our own life. As we walk out this thing called life, a real voice is calling out us, telling us to pick up something (for me it was stones) that is right in front of us — something that you can never get enough of, but whatever amount you pick up will benefit you greatly.

Many times, we don’t understand the value of what we are doing until it is accomplished. The priceless pebbles of real wisdom are available to us and are usually right in there in front of us, in God’s Word; and the voice of wisdom — God’s voice — is encouraging us to listen. How many of us will be wise enough to hear and heed the voice?

I almost ignored His voice, thinking that picking up stones was just a crazy thought in my mind. I was sorrowful that the four stones would eventually become my “heap of stones” that I would place in the dry riverbed of my past as a signpost to always remember where I have been. And, glad that the heartstone is symbol and reminder of where I have been, where I am, where God has brought me from and what He is doing now in my life.

Listening and learning is like collecting pebbles (or stones); it may seem worthless at the time but who knows when they will turn into precious gems or golden nuggets. Picking up stones changed my life and I’m so glad I chose to listen to God’s still quiet voice!

Pick up a copy of my book, Heartstone: A Journey out of the midnight of my soul.

Heartstone is a journey of destiny, a story of a life turned upside-down for the best possible reason. Step into the story and discover what happens when a broken life has a head on collision with a broken world! [WARNING] This book isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for those who have the courage to face life head on and walk it out with God!

                  

Why Self-Promotion Disqualifies You

God has given me a calling with ‘Heartstone Journey’ and there are days that I struggle with wanting more of my portion. It wasn’t until I came across the story of Gehazi in 2 King 5, where I got a reality check on the dangers of adopting this heart attitude. Sad reality is…many of us have it.

We don’t like being in the process and want more…or we want to become the “head guy” before we’re ready. We convince ourselves that we’ve put our time in and we should get what’s “owed” to us, right? This is the heart attitude that began to take hold of Gehazi. He was a servant of the prophet Elisha and served him with honor for many years until on day, he used Elisha’s name for his own dishonest personal gain — self-promotion.

But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, “Behold, my master has spared this Naaman the Aramean, by not receiving from his hands what he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from him.” So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw one running after him, he came down from the chariot to meet him and said, “Is all well?” He said, “All is well. My master has sent me, saying, ‘Behold, just now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of clothes.'” -2 kings 5:21-22

Let’s see what happens…

He lied to Elisha and the leprosy that Namaan was healed of came upon Gehazi! Elisha said to him, “Did not my heart go with you, when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to receive money and to receive clothes and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and male and female servants?”

Ouch!!

Because of Gehazi’s self-promotion, he immediately gets disqualified from his apprenticeship and we later find him telling stories about Elisha’s exploits to a foreign king. Gehazi was in training to someday become Elisha’s successor with a fantastic inheritance, but the world never got to experience that anointing because Gehazi wanted more than his portion. Instead of making history, he was minimized to only tell the stories of others and not his own. 

For not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up, but it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another.
—Psalm 75:6-7

Because Gehazi was disqualified, Elisha had no one to pass his mantle to and that anointing died with him. 2 Kings 13:21 tells us that when some Israelites were burying a man, they spied a band of these raiders. So they hastily threw the corpse into the tomb of Elisha and fled. But as soon as the body touched Elisha’s bones, the dead man revived and jumped to his feet!

Gehazi started off as a good servant, with a once-in-a-life-time opportunity to learn by Elisha’s side. He lived and walked in the presence of the great prophet Elisha, sharing in his work and witnessing the power of God working through him…but unfortunately served with the wrong motives. Gehazi could have been powerfully used by God to change history…instead he only told it!

Just as Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had restored the dead to life, the woman whose son Elisha had brought back to life came to appeal to the king for her house and land. Gehazi said, “This is the woman, my lord the king, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life.” -2 Kings 8:5

Don’t become a Gehazi, serving someone for self-promotion. If God promotes you He will provide the needed protection to sustain you, but we can easily promote ourselves beyond that covering with the wrong heart attitude of wanting more than our portion. The ability to manage our appetite can be the difference between being a story teller and becoming the one people tell stories about. 

And He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.
—Luke 12:15

If you truly have a servant’s heart and seek God’s presence and not His perks…you will be powerfully used by Him. Gehazi remained Elisha’s servant, but was only able to tell of the awesome adventures of Elisha. If you’re unable to manage your appetite and begin to use your servant’s position for personal gain, it will only be a matter of time before you walk right by the danger sign and walk right off the edge of the cliff.

In his book, ‘The Practice of Godliness’, Jerry Bridges shares this: “There is a sense in which we are growing in our character every day. The question is in which direction are we growing? Are we growing toward Godly character or ungodly character? Are we growing in love or selfishness; in harshness or patience; in greed or generosity; in honesty or dishonesty; in purity or impurity? Every day we train ourselves in one direction or another by the thoughts we think, the words we say, the actions we take, the deeds we do.”

Most of us labor in vain to get more stuff, and in our pursuit for the “good life” we ignore our responsibilities to be good stewards of God’s grace and usually step all over people in our pursuit of these things. In our consumer-focused society, our greed overshadows our need and we foolishly seek to raise our standard of living rather than our capacity to give and serve.

This heart attitude is birthed out of discontent by pursuing our happiness, peace, and well-being in the details of life (prosperity, power, position and possessions). Look, stuff isn’t the issue…it’s our heart attitude in our pursuit of it and our stuff typically ends up owning us over time. Adopting this mindset is an illusion because only God can give us true happiness and purpose in our life. For a reality check give 1 Timothy 6:8 and Proverbs 30:7-9 a good reading through.

This story of Gehazi is a sad story, it’s our story, and one that happens way too often in our lives. It’s a story that stands out with strong contrast because the things we pursue usually prove to be wasted endeavors in the end. The pleasures that we think will satisfy…ironically just increase our appetite for more.

This is why self-promotion disqualifies you. Oh, the irony!

Image credit: Danger Cliff Edge – Pixaby. Free for commercial use.

                  

Why Adversity Can Distress Or Bless

Take a minute and think about your life and about some of the greatest lessons you have learned while walking it out. Not sure about you, but the greatest lessons have come through adversity, haven’t they?

The bravest sight in the world is to see a great man struggling against adversity.
—Seneca

It’s in the grittiness of life where we have the opportunity to face and overcome adversity which will build character, strength and resilience in us — if we let it. Every challenge and every difficult circumstance we successfully confront in the arena of life strengthens our will, our confidence and our ability to conquer future obstacles. The Greek philosopher Herodotus captures this in his quote, “Adversity has the effect of drawing out strength and qualities of a man that would have lain dormant in its absence.

God doesn’t give us overcoming life…He gives us life, as we overcome it’s obstacles.

What we learn by walking through (and surviving) life’s adversities are the very things we can pass on and share with others needing guidance through difficult times. It’s in our own personal stories of survival that have significant impact on others struggling in the valleys of adversity…giving them the life sustaining hope that they’re not alone. Remember those times when the Lord came through for you directly or indirectly through someone that walked your struggle before? It’s so important for us to understand that God is in control of all these things.

There are some defeats more triumphant than victories.
—Michel de Montaigne

When I confront pain in my life, it reminds me of a deeper need I have for God. If we would only stop transferring the pain and let God transform the pain, He will teach us the life changing lessons in the valleys that we would never learn on mountaintops: the things we need to know to help overcome the obstacles in our own adversities and things we one day share with others. Somehow we come to a place on our journey where we find ourselves completely lost, without direction, in valleys of life where we finally come to the end of ourselves and we want to come home. The “somehow” became a reality in my life when the crisis of divorce beat me down to the place where I desperately wanted to come home, and my heart was willing. What I learned through my own place of adversity is that God had been pursuing me with the soft winds of His Spirit through all the hurts, pain, sorrows, and disappointments. It was through these tough journeys where He he began the healing process in my heart until it was restored. Oswald Chambers shares that, “the Holy Spirit is determined that we will have the realization of Jesus Christ in every area of our lives, and He will bring us back to the same point over and over again until we do.”

I remember holding the four fragmented pieces of stone in my hands on my mountaintop experience years ago, not fully understanding the significance that these symbols would come to represent in my life. Standing on the very same mountaintop holding a heartstone in my hand…a heartstone that is not broken, a heartstone that has been beautifully restored, a heartstone to remind me that it is in His nearness that there is healing and that everything broken is made whole and restored in its fullness.

Here are a few “life lessons” I’ve learned through my own struggles:

1) Focus on what is God trying to teach me through this challenge?


2) Understanding that we have choices, so use the challenge to change your future.


3) Be curious when facing the challenge in front of…not furious.

There is no University for a Christian like that of sorrow and trial.
—Spurgeon

Let me bring it all in…

Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection paved the way for us to focus on the gift of eternal life rather than on the temporary struggles we will encounter in life. The apostle Paul wrote, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” It is that kind of eternity-focused faith that equips us with the grit to adapt and overcome. For “[Jesus’] divine power has given us everything we need.”

John Maxwell tell us that adversity writes our story and if our response is right, the story will be good. I invite you into the pages of my story of overcoming adversity. Walk with me through these pages as I share my story, my journey. Take no more with you than the question, “Can God take the clutter of my life, with everything seemingly stacked against it and redeem it?”

I offer you only my story; walk with me…

Pick up a copy of my book, Heartstone: A Journey out of the midnight of my soul.

Heartstone is a journey of destiny, a story of a life turned upside-down for the best possible reason. Step into the story and discover what happens when a broken life has a head on collision with a broken world! [WARNING] This book isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for those who have the courage to face life head on and walk it out with God!

Base image credit: Jura, France, Yves walks on Snowshoes. By


Francisco Gonzalez via Flickr. Attribution 4.0 International.

                  

It’s True, God Does Care About The Details Of Our Lives

Wanted to share a page of my journal from the Winter of 2005. A little bit of the backdrop here…I was in the middle of going through divorce and these words are my reflections of a journey I took into the unknown.

Darkness rules the heart of man until the light of Jesus Christ shines upon him.

That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. -Romans 8:28

The long cold winter of this lonely and difficult journey is slowly coming an end, where the springtime of the Lord will restore creation back to life. As God allows me to see glimpses of this restoration throughout His creation, I’m blessed with a vision that He’s about to make all things new in my life.

I was led into the wintry depths of the forest on this brisk Sunday. For some time, I could not escape the vision of the lake I stumbled upon in my adventures last summer. I also knew that a milestone of this vision was finding a stone along the shores of the lake. Not remembering how far away the lake was, I instinctively set out to once again to stand at its shores, wondering what “stone” I would need to hunt for.

The day was grey and bitter cold as I set off on my journey into the depths of the forest. Loosing site of where I began my journey, the icy cold fingers of loneliness began closing in around me. So much so, that I began thinking this vision was something I just fabricated in my mind. I somehow found, or was given, the endurance to press on.

My heart began to beat faster as the lake came into focus, revealing the only stone you could see in this snow-covered landscape. I knew I arrived, but was clueless on what I was supposed to do next.

Lost in this postcard scene I stepped into, I began to read my bible waiting for something to happen. Nothing. So, I began to pray and still nothing. I hung around in the cold for a bit and soon started wondering what I was doing out here in the middle of nowhere…on this bitter cold winter day.

Feeling defeated and thinking this was a dumb idea, I started to head back. As doubt began to invade the scene that He was quietly revealing to me, a strong wind came out of nowhere on this eerie windless day, catching my attention. Turning around, I walked back to the stone and the vision exploded before me as I caught a glimpse of the other side of the lake. What I thought was so unreachable and distant, was so clearly right in front of me! The hurt, pain, emptiness and darkness of this divorce began to fade away as I knew He was going to make all things new.

I could hear Him whisper to my heart, “I have watched you looking up from the raging waters of this journey, so sure that your only hope lies somewhere on the other side. You continue to see and hear the enemy that’s closing in around you. I know that you feel alone and I know that you don’t have the strength to fight, so I ask you this one question. Do you have the faith to stand and to trust Me?”

Holding tight to the words of my devotional that day, I knew that this experience was real.

Move forward with the great assurance that I am with you. There is nothing that concerns your life that I am not aware of, and as you yield yourself to Me in complete trust, I will take you from faith to faith, glory to glory and victory to victory. Do not be afraid, for I will never leave you nor forsake you. I go before you to make crooked places straight, and I am also your rear guard. I will enable you to face every obstacle with confidence and boldness, and I will cause you to overcome, says the Lord.

Haven’t I commanded you? Strength! Courage! Don’t be timid; don’t get discouraged. GOD, your God, is with you every step you take.” -Joshua 1:9

Leading me into a new season, I began seeing through the eyes of this ‘little boy’ who now runs into the reassuring arms of Abba Father. Safe and secure in His arms, He whispers… “I am with you!”

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” -Romans 8:15

I now see the circumstances around me in a whole new light. With His leading, He begins to move me out of my comfort zone as I begin to walk more by faith and not by sight. The day is coming soon when Jesus Christ will return in all His glory, but until that day here is my prayer…

Heavenly Father, let the world see Your Kingdom come in me! Let Your will be done in me! I lay down my life to You and I offer myself up as a living sacrifice; completely and unreservedly in every area of my life. With the power of Your Holy Spirit, show Your glory to the world through me and tell Your story to the world through me. Let everyone around me see Your Son, Jesus Christ in me! Let my life shine for you! Keep me humble and bless me with a servant’s heart! In the awesome name of Jesus, Amen.

Plain and simple…Jesus is life!

                  

10 Life Lessons From Hacksaw Ridge

Finally had the bandwidth to sit down, without distractions, and watch Hacksaw Ridge on Amazon Prime Video for the first time. Wow, what an incredible movie! The movie is Mel Gibson’s re-telling of the true story of Private Desmond T. Doss, an Army medic in WWII (Andrew Garfield) who served during the Battle of Okinawa without carrying a rifle into battle.

Spoiler Alert

Before the epic battle scenes, we get a glimpse into Doss’s life where he experiences the destructive nature of violence as a child which become the building blocks to his steadfast belief. Still, because his brother and other boys in town enlist in the war effort, Doss does the same — much to the dismay of his new girlfriend Dorothy (Teresa Palmer) and his veteran father (Hugo Weaving).

Doss excels in boot camp, outperforming most of the other men, but standing his ground in refusing to handle a rifle causes tension with his peers, Army leadership and his drill sergeant (Vince Vaughn). Taking this position puts his future in the Army at the mercy of a court martial. His entire unit questions if he can serve his country and have their backs without carrying rifle into battle until he more than proves himself when his company confronts the Japanese in the Pacific theater.

Hacksaw Ridge is one of the most powerful movies I’ve seen on what it costs to live out faith with conviction. It challenged me in how I live. To see the story of somebody who followed his convictions, regardless of the cost, is a message for the church. That kind of conviction and the fruits of that conviction are what the nation desperately needs today.
-Pastor Dave Welch, President, Texas Pastor Council

The Japanese counter-attack is so furious that the Americans must retreat down the rope netting. Doss stays behind, despite risking his own safety, refusing to abandon those who need him. Throughout the night, he manages to drag and carry the wounded back to the edge of the cliff lowering them one-by-one down to the medics below. By the end of the Battle of Okinawa, Doss had amazingly pulled 75 men from Hacksaw Ridge and because of his heroic efforts, became the first Conscientious Objector in American history to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

I fought back tears much of the time watching Gibson’s portrayal of courage and conviction. While voices clamor today for the surrender our fathers’ blood bought freedoms to practice our religion and follow our conscience, the message of Hacksaw Ridge is crucial for this time in America. This film inspires us to honor our fathers’ sacrifice and defend what they bought so dearly.
-Fr. Jeffrey “Skip” Thompson, MSA, Son of WWII Okinawa Veteran

It’s important to understand that this movie is R-rated for intense war violence that makes the opening scene Saving Private Ryan look like a Disney movie. There were no f-bombs and the foul language was almost completely absent.

There’s much to take in from this movie, but here are 10 life lessons I took away from Hacksaw Ridge:

1) A Father’s Influence Is Strong. Fathers have an incredible voice in the lives of their kids…an influence that should be wielded with extreme care. Their actions, good or bad, create a trajectory for their kids that can’t be fully understood in the here-and-now. The behavior portrayed by Doss’s father Tom (Hugo Weaving) set Doss’s trajectory and worldview as an adult. And dads, it’s never too late to redeem yourself for past mistakes…like Tom Doss did for his son during his time of need.

2) Courage Is Contagious. I’m reminded of Billy Graham’s quote, “When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.” Doss’s courage and faith inspired others. Towards the end of the movie, another scene stood out to me. The company has to return to the top of Hacksaw Ridge to make the final assault, and Glover tells Doss that the men won’t go up without him. We then see the moving scene where the whole company paused for Doss to pray before heading up. They don’t necessarily believe what he believes but because he believes and they believe in him, his prayer matters. How powerful is that?

3) Be Grounded In God’s Word. The movie opens with Garfield quoting Isaiah 40:28-31: Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

4) Recognize Life’s Defining Moments. Doss took a brick and hit his brother in the head with it, ending a fist fight with his brother. In this moment, Doss recognized that his anger almost killed his brother. When Doss was older, he stopped his dad from attacking his mother with a gun, setting in motion his decision never to pick up a weapon ever again. We all have these defining moments in life and are changed by them for better or worse. I share mine in my book ‘Heartstone: A Journey out of the midnight of my soul.’ What are some of your defining moments?

5) Cherish God’s Word, With Intentionality After getting injured on the battlefield, the soldiers took great risk to recover Doss’s Bible that he accidentally left behind. When Doss was being lowered to safety from Hacksaw Ridge in the ending scene, he was holding his Bible.

6) Find A Way To Forgive!. Intent on wanting to see Doss kicked out of the Army, Captain Glover later finds it in his heart to swallow his pride and ask for forgiveness after witnessing Doss’s incredible act of courage. “All I saw was a skinny kid. I didn’t know who you were. You’ve done more than any other man could’ve done in the service of his country. Now, I’ve never been more wrong about someone in my life, and I hope one day you can forgive me.”

7) Have The Courage To Stand! Let your faith inspire others. We must somehow find the courage to stand our ground, stay true to what we believe and never forget that it’s God’s opinion we should value over the world’s. Doss couldn’t live with himself if he compromised on his beliefs, and likewise our faith should be so important to us that we too would rather suffer the anger of the world than give up on what we believe. Think about it, if Doss compromised his convictions and let his faith crumble, 75 men would not have made it off that cliff. While people may jeer at you, the respect they will have when you don’t give in…will be immeasurable. We need more men (and women) to armor up and stand firm in their faith and wave the banner of Jesus Christ no matter what comes at them!

8) The World Needs Authentic Leadership! I’m talking about courageous leadership that leads out in front. Even though Doss didn’t believe in killing another person, he had a burning desire to enlist in the Army. He didn’t want to stay behind while others were sacrificing for him. Authentic leaders don’t run or stay behind when there’s evil or danger to confront…they run right at it to protect others. Doss said, “I’m prepared to give my life for my men.”

9) Trust God, Even When It Doesn’t Make Sense. When life throat punches us or when we find ourselves in difficult situations, let Doss’s unwavering faith be a vivid reminder to us. Not sure you’ve figured this out yet, but God often allows us to experience the full force of life because He wants us to learn how to trust in Him completely. He wants us to give Him our worries, our desires, our sadness, our happiness, our hearts, our entire lives…so He can transform it into something for good. Your response to any of the trials that life throws at you will reveal what’s really inside of you and it will reveal the depth of your relationship with God! When we step into one of these narratives we have choices; we can trust our circumstance to the Lord or deal with them in our own strength and probably crash and burn.

10) Titles Are Not Important. I’m reminded of William Wallace’s quote in Braveheart, “Men don’t follow titles, they follow courage.” As Doss was preparing to face the battlefield, another medic encouraged him to lose the markings that designated him as a medic because the Japanese on Okinawa were specifically targeting medics. With that wisdom, Doss took off the white fabric identifying him as a medic and he also picked up a different helmet so the enemy wouldn’t know what he was. How many times do we struggle and fight for a title because we want recognition? Doss’s example shows us that we will better serve those we’re leading by stripping away our title and serving with them – side by side!

Please Lord, help me get one more. Help me get one more!
-Desmond T. Doss

I could keep going, but let me bring it all back in.

While there is so much turmoil in our world today, I am reminded that there is a God who pierces through the darkness of all the dust and fire. There is threshing floor where God meets us, deals with us and where our prayers can make a difference. Doss is a man, who believed that he was called to lay down his life for his friends (and even his enemies) because he was pursuing a higher cause. He was a man showed us that there is a way through the messiness of life and personalities of people to rise above our differences for the greater good. He was a man that also served as an example of the power of one man’s faith in the midst of a world that is turning its back on God.

Hacksaw Ridge is a film that’s so needed for today.

Image credit:Hacksaw Ridge (2016). © Cross Creek Pictures. Labeled For Reuse.

Quotes To Kick Your Masculinity Into Gear

In today’s postmodern culture the meaning and image of true masculinity is seriously getting diluted, tainted, watered-down and completely lost. Unfortunately the narrative that’s being played out today is ‘boys in men’s bodies’ with only a few wanting to be men…but not exactly knowing how, while others remain nonchalant. 


 


Wanted to share a collection of quotes that are some of my personal favorites to help you to kick your masculinity into gear! 

“You have to be a man before you can be a gentleman.” –John Wayne (McLintock!) 


 


“A man is not merely a man but a man among men, in a world of men. Being good at being a man has more to do with a man’s ability to succeed with men and within groups of men than it does with a man’s relationship to any woman or any group of women. When someone tells a man to be a man, they are telling him to be more like other men, more like the majority of men, and ideally more like the men who other men hold in high regard.” -Jack Donovan 


 


“I learned that he that will be a hero will barely be a man; that he that will be nothing but a doer of his work is sure of his manhood.” –George MacDonald 


 


“Because there is very little honor left in American life, there is a certain built-in tendency to destroy masculinity in American men.” –Norman Mailer 


 


“We do not admire the man of timid peace. We admire the man who embodies victorious effort; the man who never wrongs his neighbor, who is prompt to help a friend, but who has those virile qualities necessary to win in the stern strife of actual life.” –Theodore Roosevelt 


 


“A man does what he must – in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures – and that is the basis of all human morality.” –WInston Churchill 


 


“No man is more unhappy than he who never faces adversity. For he is not permitted to prove himself.” –Seneca 


 


“First find the man in yourself if you will inspire manliness in others.” –Amos Bronson Alcott 


 


“A man’s ledger does not tell what he is, or what he is worth. Count what is in man, not what is on him, if you would know what he is worth—whether rich or poor.” –Henry Ward Beecher 


 


“A man must stand erect, not be kept erect by others.” –Marcus Aurelius 


 


“Masculinity is not something given to you, but something you gain. And you gain it by winning small battles with honor.” –Norman Mailer 


 


“Private and public life are subject to the same rules—truth and manliness are two qualities that will carry you through this world much better than policy or tact of expediency or other words that were devised to conceal a deviation from a straight line.” –Robert E. Lee 


 


“Without an adversary, virtus shrivels. We see how great and how viable virtus is when, by endurance, it shows what it is capable of.” –Seneca 


 


“The courage we desire and prize is not the courage to die decently, but to live manfully.: –Thomas Carlyle 


 


“A woman simply is, but a man must become. Masculinity is risky and elusive. It is achieved by a revolt from woman, and it confirmed only by other men. Manhood coerced into sensitivity is no manhood at all.” –Camille Paglia 


 


“We don’t need to reinvent manliness. We only need to will ourselves to wake up from the bad dream of the last few generations and reclaim it, in order to extend and enrich that tradition under the formidable demands of the present.” –Waller R. Newell 


 


“An acorn is not an oak tree when it is sprouted. It must go through long summers and fierce winters, and endure all that frost, and snow, and thunder, and storms, and side-striking winds can bring, before it is a full grown oak. So a man is not a man when he is created; he is only begun. His manhood must come with years. He who goes through life prosperous, and comes to his grave without a wrinkle, is not half a man. Difficulties are God’s errands and trainers, and only through them can one come to fullness of manhood.” –Henry Ward Beecher 


 


“Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one.” –Marcus Aurelius 


 





 


“Civilization comes at a cost of manliness. It comes at a cost of wildness, of risk, of strife. It comes at a cost of strength, of courage, of mastery. It comes at a cost of honor. Increased civilization exacts a toll of virility, forcing manliness into further redoubts of vicariousness and abstraction.” –Jack Donovan 


 


“If unwilling to rise in the morning, say to thyself, ‘I awake to do the work of a man.’” –Marcus Aurelius 


 


“No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child.” –Abraham Lincoln 


 


“Manhood is the defeat of childhood narcissism.” –David Gilmore 


 


“The lesson taught at this point by human experience is simply this, that the man who will get up will be helped up; and the man who will not get up will be allowed to stay down. This rule may appear somewhat harsh, but in its general application and operation it is wise, just and beneficent. I know of no other rule which can be substituted for it without bringing social chaos. Personal independence is a virtue and it is the soul out of which comes the sturdiest manhood. But there can be no independence without a large share of self-dependence, and this virtue cannot be bestowed. It must be developed from within.” -Frederick Douglass 


 


“I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” –George Washington 


 


“Strength, Courage, Mastery, and Honor are the alpha virtues of men all over the world. They are the fundamental virtues of men because without them, no ‘higher’ virtues can be entertained. You need to be alive to philosophize. You can add to these virtues and you can create rules and moral codes to govern them, but if you remove them from the equation altogether you aren’t just leaving behind the virtues that are specific to men, you are abandoning the virtues that make civilization possible.” –Jack Donovan 


 


“Manliness means perfect manhood, as womanliness implies perfect womanhood. Manliness is the character of a man as he ought to be, as he was meant to be.” –James Freeman Clarke 


 


“A man’s got to have a code, a creed to live by, no matter his job.” –John Wayne 


 


“Show me the man you honour, and I will know what kind of man you are, for it shows me what your ideal of manhood is, and what kind of man you long to be” –Thomas Carlyle 


 


“A man is one whose body has been trained to be the ready servant of his mind; whose passions are trained to be the servants of his will; who enjoys the beautiful, loves truth, hates wrong, loves to do good, and respects others as himself.” –John Ruskin 


 


“Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout as you did in Rome. Do your worst, for I will do mine!” —The Count of Monte Cristo 


 


“Men cannot be men—much less good or heroic men—unless their actions have meaningful consequences to people they truly care about. Strength requires an opposing force, courage requires risk, mastery requires hard work, honor requires accountability to other men. Without these things, we are little more than boys playing at being men, and there is no weekend retreat or mantra or half-assed rite of passage that can change that. A rite of passage must reflect a real change in status and responsibility for it to be anything more than theater. No reimagined manhood of convenience can hold its head high so long as the earth remains the tomb of our ancestors.” –Jack Donovan 


 


“Duty is the essence of manhood.” –General George S. Patton 


 


“There is one rule, above all others, for being a man. Whatever comes, face it on your feet.” –Robert Jordan 


 


“To be a man is, precisely, to be responsible.” –Antoine de Saint-Exupery 


 


“Stand true to your calling to be a man. Real women will always be relieved and grateful when men are willing to be men.” –Elisabeth Elliott 


 


“Adversity toughens manhood, and the characteristic of the good or the great man is not that he has been exempt from the evils of life, but that he has surmounted them.” –Patrick Henry 


 


“The True Gentleman is the man whose conduct proceeds from good will and an acute sense of propriety, and whose self-control is equal to all emergencies; who does not make the poor man conscious of his poverty, the obscure man of his obscurity, or any man of his inferiority or deformity; who is himself humbled if necessity compels him to humble another; who does not flatter wealth, cringe before power, or boast of his own possessions or achievements; who speaks with frankness but always with sincerity and sympathy; whose deed follows his word; who thinks of the rights and feelings of others, rather than his own; and who appears well in any company, a man with whom honor is sacred and virtue safe.” –John Walter Wayland

Winston Churchill cuts right to the chase — every man has a task for which he is uniquely suited. The battle cry is this: Get off your lazy butts, surround yourself with a brotherhood, press into God, run with courage to the front lines and get in the fight men! Men, we were not created to just survive, we were created to live courageously from our hearts!

Look we are never out of the fight, so man up! God wants you to lead your families and finish strong. God wants you to be prepared and to shine when presented with your finest hour.

Image: Welding in Panama. Copyright Tim Young, Heartstjone Journey. Is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

                  

Why The Resurrection Offers Hope For A Brighter Tomorrow

Having a right set of doctrines is not enough. This truth was put to the test in the trials and storms of my journey, and it drove me beyond my superficial acceptance of the truth into a deeper understanding of God’s very nature.

Did you know that the core of Christianity is not a set of philosophies, a religion, a world view, or even the teachings of Jesus? It’s the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus is alive and He cleared the way for us to have an intimate relationship with the living God. We spend a lifetime in hopeless pursuit of everything else expect God, ignoring that the very heart-cry of our soul is for a relationship with Him.

We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God.
—A. W. Tozer

Do you have a clear and accurate picture of who God really is?

Do you really know God? Do you?

Everything hinges on who you envision God to be.

He is not some distant, shallow, narcissistic, judgmental, killjoy in the sky. God loves us more than we could ever imagine and He is passionately committed to us. Life, technology, busyness and so many other things get in the way of this pursuit and we become so distracted that one day we find ourselves leading a life of ‘quiet desperation’. We must not be distracted on our journey into the very nature of God. His heart cries out, “You turned your back on Me, but I’m not turning My back on you. You have no idea what I will do to get you back my child.” God’s passion to redeem us by stepping into our world and dying for us isn’t because of anything we have done or could ever do—it’s only because of His amazing grace. It doesn’t matter what we’ve done or haven’t done, He still offers us grace. God pursues us, God accepts us completely, and despite how messed up we are, He provides a way back to Him. “I love you” could not have been said a better way!

Do you believe that God has already written your story and all you have to do is let go, take hold of your destiny moment and step into the pages of His story? Philippians 1:6 tells us tells us that God finishes what He begins, but we need to take the first step and jump into what He has written for our lives.

Are you worn out?

Are you broken?

Are you fractured?

Are you desperate?

Are you ready to give up?

Are you hopeless?

There is hope for the brokenness and it’s a portrait of grace that can heal all of life’s heartaches and pain — it’s Jesus Christ! Our Heavenly Father gave us His Son to go to the cross for us! Swallow your foolish pride, stop believing the lies, and bring all the fractured and broken pieces of your life to Him. The God of relationship will surround you with His redemptive love and grace, and He will restore your broken lives and heart to His. Beloved, He loves you so much!

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. —Romans 15:13 (NIV)

I don’t know how turbulent your life is at this very moment or how deep your pain is, but I do know that God is bigger than all of it. He is big enough to take all of the pain, fear, anger and the stuff of your life that you can throw at Him and love you through it all. He never promised us that we’ll be exempt from the trials and tribulations of life, but He does promise that when everything comes crashing down around you — you will be held by His grace.

We all need to know we are held. We all need to know that someone realizes life is too short and that we feel as if we are falling through the cracks. His word is a love story with a consistent theme of hope! No matter how miserable your current circumstances are or how big your giants are or how many your sins are…God offers hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that. Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily. —Galatians 2:20, 21 (MSG)

(Excerpt from Heartstone Copyright © 2009 by Tim Young. All rights reserved.)