Your Heart is Good!

I am about to turn 51 and I made a promise to myself and a friend that I would get a physical. So a couple weeks ago I got one. I was not too worried as I am in good shape, I exercise consistently, eat pretty well, don't smoke...you know healthy habits. But as a person gets older what lies beneath is what you must know about in order to remain healthy. Preventative medicine. In the midst of my physical my Dr. was alarmed to see a blockage in my heart and odered an echocardiogram. He also ran some other tests. Today I met with him to go over the results. I was curious of course to find out if my heart was good or not. While I was sitting there I hear God say very clearly to me these words. "Kevin, your heart is very good!" I knew what He was speaking of was not my phsical heart that pumps my blood and keeps me alive. He was speaking tenderly to me about my soul/heart. It was so good to hear Him communicate this truth to me! Though I believe I have a good heart, it's good to hear it said from my Abba/Papa! And I want to say to you... Your heart is good!

Here are a few verses regarding the heart.

I Chronicles 28:9 - God searches every heart..
Psalm 86:11 - give me an un-divided heart.
Psalm 139:23 - search me O God and know my heart...
Proverbs 13:12 - hope deferred makes the heart grow sick
Proverbs 15:20 - a cheerful heart is good medicine
Jeremiah 17:9 - the heart is deceitful above all things
Luke 6:45 - out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks
Proverbs 4:23 - above everything guard your heart!

I know this, since I have given my life and heart over to God, He has replaced the evil in my heart and filled it with His good. I have seen my deceitful, selfish and very capable of evil heart transformed with a pure and passionate desire to KNOW God and make Him KNOWN. He has set my heart free, God is the true lover of my heart!

A simple heart check up requires each of us to search our hearts. Are we desiring Godly things, good things that bring Him glory or glory only for ourselves? Do we want to love others, especially those not so easy to love? Do we want the best for others? Do you hate what is evil and cling to what is good? Do we have compassion for the poor, the wounded, widowed and orphan? I know I have a ways to go to have an even healthier heart, but it was both good to hear my Dr. and my God say to me - "Your heart is good Kevin"!

Abba, Papa, Daddy!

When I became a Father back in 1987 I was so excited! And ignorant! I had a nice but not so close relationship with my Dad back then and I knew I wanted more with my kids. I loved being a Dad, having responsibility, enjoying and watching my daughter develop and change daily, weekly, monthly.... When my second daughter came in 1989 I was afraid there was not going to be enough love in my heart to go out to her since I loved my first daughter so much. Of course love became exponential so not to worry! I loved every part of being a Dad of 2 girls, teaching them so many things and enjoying them. All of our tag team wrestling matches on the basement carpet, giving them "dreamers" at night to go to sleep to, and the many inventful and creative things we did then that showed them how much I delighted in them. As they got older I did my best to teach them responsibility and interdependence! Today they are 21 and almost 20, doing great in college and being so responsible! When they were young they had to ask for things because they were not always capable nor did they have the resources. They didn't build their relationship with me simply asking for things all of the time, they also enjoyed having a Dad and Mom who played with them, read them stories, took them on trips and all the things parents and children do to delight in each other.

In Psalm 37:4 we are told to "delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Too often I find I am asking "Daddy" for things much more than I am delighting in Him and that is a terrible way to form and maintain a healthy relationship. If all my kids ever did was ask, ask, ask and ask some more I don't think our relationship would be very good. I need to get back to truly delighting in being a Dad and they being my daughters, and I need to really get back to truly delighting in God. I do not want to base my realtionship and conversations with Him around always asking, pleading, praying.

When I was in college and new to the faith I remember a girl at school (Annie) who used to open her prayers something like this... " Dearest Abba, Papa Daddy". It was so informal, and sounded very much like she was intimate with and delighting in her relationship with God. It was new to me but I wanted that for myself. May I, and may we learn to delight in God and not spend so much of our relationship always asking, pleading and praying to Him about the desires of our hearts, instead may our relationship with Him become the deepest desire of our hearts!

Simplicity

Last week I had the opportunity of helping a new believer learn the simple basic truths about being a follower of God. It was so refreshing because it brought me back to the simplicity of it all. Then this past Sunday I taught twice, first in the morning at Christ Felllowship in a Life Study called "Identity in Christ", the other was at a Faith Holy Temple Church. Let's just say I was the only brother of the other color! Both were just way cool! Because God was obviously there and I am so glad I got to be a part of what was simple. The truth and pure worship.
There is much to take in when it comes to God's word, but when it all comes down to it we know that God created us for relationship. In order for it to be perfect love God would not MAKE us love Him, He gave us choice! John 3:16 is simple - (Kevin's interpretation here)

"But God so loved the world that He GAVE His one and only Son that whoever believes that God loves us that much, and accepts the free gift of forgiveness through Jesus Christ will not end up seperated from God for eternity but instead will have full intimate relationship in perfected bodies, with no tears, pain with new bodies without suffering but instead passionate worship and extragantly wonderful relationship with Him and everyone who chose God while here on earth!

In the Identity in Christ study on Sunday it came down to this, who we are gets completely changed when we choose relationship with God and begin seeing ourselves as God does. We are so valuable! Do you know who you are? I am not my job, that is what I do but I am, and forever will be a child of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! I am not my own, God paid the price and redeemed me, bought me with an expensive price (His Son). I must be valuable if God was willing and wanting to do that. And He wants EVERYONE to experience this truth as well.

Onto the Sunday night service at the Faith Holy Temple Church. I love that people can worship God in so many different ways! No way is the right way except that we worship Him in Spirit and truth. My church is huge (25,000), the church I preached in had 50 people. There was no light director, no sound checks,instead children became the spontaneous choir, singing and shouting to and for the God of the Universe! There was no production (well the kids did sway back and forth in a way I would only look foolish doing, they prayed, took an offering and greeted one another with sincere hearts and then I preached out of II Peter 1.

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and Godliness through our knowledge of Him."

What a God! God's love and plan for us is simple! It's not 25 things you must do...it's "love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as you want to be loved by others." Simple isn't it?

What Fragrance Are You?

We all have a scent, our own smell if you will. When I think of my Grandfather I always think of his pipe smell and the aroma of fresh baked bread, he loved to bake bread. I used to visit my cousins in Indiana who lived on a farm, and those smells were very pungent at first, but they grew on me to the point I barely noticed them later!

In II Corinthians 2:14-16 the Apostle Paul tells us we are the fragrance of Christ. Everywhere we go we are an aroma of God, to God, and to those who have a saving relationship with Him. Even to those who are not yet rightly connected to Him. Paul goes on to say that to others we are like the stench of someone dead and decaying (think dead animal). To others we are like the smell of life (think Spring when grass and flowers and trees are blooming).

Most adults have a favorite fragrance we spray on to smell good. Most of us can tell the difference between something very expensive and something pretty cheap. Then there are the older people who like take a shower in it and you can smell 'em a mile away....ha ha. In any case we all leave behind a scent, but what kind? For me in every situation with every person I want to leave the life giving aroma of God's love and grace, His forgiveness and mercy to all who I am exposed to. I can only do that by consistently being in His presence, "eating" His words, chewing on them and desiring them to become a part of me. I need to be filled with Him so much that He overflows, He comes out of my pores and leaves an aroma. We are commanded to make the most of every opportunity we have with everyone. How about you? What fragrance do you leave behind as your scent?

As I close I want to share a recent tragic story. I worked with a guy named Pat, his formal name was Pastor. As far as I could tell through lots of time spent with him working and hanging out, Pat was not a friend of God, he was full of life, generous as all get out, and a family man for sure. But Pat had a lifestyle that was not altogether one lived to please God. I went out with him less than 2 weeks ago and have always tried to be a God aroma if you will. Last Monday I got a call that Pat died in a 1 car accident, he was driving fast, turned too sharp, flipped his car and was ejected. He died! Besides the shock and sadness of the void he leaves for his wife, daughter, family and friends is the distinct possibility he may not be spending eternity in paradise! You and I never know if this day will be our last, or the last of those we love, but we must, I must live intentionally to be a fragrant aroma, not a stench of judgemental, narrow minded, graceless and self-righteous know it alls, but full of grace and peace and love and truth!

Florida Rains and Nourishment for Dead Souls!

This winter has been brutally dry in South Florida, true the ocean is right here, but almost all the grass and many trees are brown and barely alive. But the last two days or so we have had those South Florida rains, not a sprinkle here or there but lots of rain. Inches at a time. You can nearly watch the grass and trees come to life it's an amazing transformation.
Our souls can be like this. We can walk through the motions and as John Ortberg says;

"Soul dissatisfaction cannot go long without leading us into sin. We have an inner soul court and an outer soul court. The outer court is what the public sees and many can be invited into, but the inner court is the "holy of holies" that God sees, and what He sees cannot be staged, there are no shortcuts. Authenticity of a lack of it will be found out. The soul is either satisified or it is not, but it must be."
If you are dry spiritually, admit it and immediately turn for God's refreshment of love, grace and mercy to shower on you. Romans 8:1 "there is now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." James says "draw near to God and He will draw near to you." God wants you and I to be alive and refreshed, it takes discipline for sure, but mostly it takes the reality of just how much He loves us! He loves us! You need to identify the reasons you got dry in the first place and then seek wisdom and develop an action plan on how to get out and stay out. A book I suggest you devour is written by John Eldredge titled "Waking the Dead", check it out! The Holy Spirit wants to move in and reign in our lives!

It's God's kindness that leads us to repentenance."

How Far is the East from the West?

Look at the picture of our planet, and as you do I want you to look at the point most east. If you could travel east and move your way to the backside you would still be traveling east. If your starting point were N.Y. and you traveled east and made it around the globe and arrived back in N.Y. you would have ALWAYS traveled east. In other words East and West NEVER meet! North and South do. Case in point if you traveled from the South Pole to the North Pole you would be heading North, once you reached the North Pole and wanted to head to the South Pole you would have to travel South, South and North meet, but East and West NEVER do! In Psalm 103:12 the Bible says this;

"AS far as the east is from the west so have I removed your sin, and I see it no more."

We all do stupid things, things we never intended to happen, things we cannot undo, things we regret, maybe even deeply. Some of those things we can hide and many we cannot. Being found out is the worst isn't it? When you are found out people can judge, be critical, gossip, stupid stuff can disqualify us from things down the road we really want to do but won't be able due to rules, agreements or standards. When we hear of famous people who get found out of their stupid stuff we cringe, go cynical, judgemental or any number of places. But when it happens to you/me well all of sudden we hope to be treated/looked at differently. Aren't you glad that God in His amazing grace, mercy and forgiveness not only removes our sin but He can't even see it any longer? Wow! When we hear of others who get "found out" let's remember God's grace, mercy and forgiveness extend to everyone who call on Christ to be saved! Thank God!

Oh How the Days Go By!

Here we are well into 2009, time does seem to fly! Some of us made goals and some are keeping them, others of you well....you know! The older I get the faster time goes. I checked into why it seems that way even though I have the same amount of seconds, minutes and hours as I always have is because I have more experiences to have filled my mind which requires me to store images, ideas, thoughts, things to do, things I have not done and so on... It's a time capacity thing. So the older I get the more I reflect on the significance of my life. I want my life to have mattered and so do you but time just seems to race by and our days blur and if we are not carful we have not managed our time/life it has managed us! In a scene from the movie "Saving Private Ryan, the elder Ryan is standing near the tombstone of the Captain who saved his life but lost his in the process and he told Ryan to "make it count". The elder Ryan then asks his wife if his life made a difference, "yes of course it did" she responds.

So, if times does seem to go by and our days and weeks and even months seem like a blur how do we KNOW our lives matter? We all want to be about significance, something not just about ourselves as good as that might be, but beyond ourselves.

Let's begin with the relationships we have. God, so many times we wish/hope to live our relationship with God more out of aliveness rather than religiousity. But so many times we attempt this by our own strength, knowledge and wisdom and we KNOW that is never enough! "not by might, not by power, but by the Spirit says the Lord". Then then is our family, friends and co-workers. Have we help make their lives better than if we had not been allive at all? How do we know? There are our gifts, things we are good at. Did those make a difference? Can you even list the things you really excel at?

We are responsible for our lives and stewards of our time. We all choose how productive/un-productive we will be and God will hold us responsible. So many of us come home from work and "treat ourselves" to the tv in order to un-wind, and the next thing you know we have fallen asleep on the couch and it's well passed bedtime and we saunter into bed to sleep for a few hours and wished we hadn't wasted the night when we promised ourselves time to write that e-mail, make that phone call, spend quality time with our spouse/children or hang out with that friend who is suffering, read our Bible etc...

In one of my favorite movies "It's a Wonderful Life" George Bailey thought his life such a waste since it did not turn out the way HE wanted it too. But He got to see how much of a difference he actually made and in the end he celebrated! We can all stop right now and decide to truly turn to the Holy Spirit to empower us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and make the most of the days we have. To quote one of my favorite Bible verses, John 10:10; "The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy, but I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly." Steal kill, destroy, think about that in lieu of your time, days, weeks, months and years. As a matter of fact, this could be our last day so we better get at it now! How about turning to God, surrendering and seeking Him for a new day/future.