Do I care what people think anymore ??

Often times I just scratch my head, and wonder what ever happened to the little world I live in .

Now my little world for those wondering what I am talking about, is what happens around my life... my livelihood... my church, my family, my age and circumstances of life itself, my health.. and my friends and colleagues.

Actually I care greatly about the people around me, my family the most. 

But do I care what people think about me and my opinions and thoughts.  ?  I used to care too much about that, if I was honest, but as I get older and realize how short life truly is, I care less about what others think and more about what God thinks.

The truth is for me, I don’t really like what is going on around me in my little world, decisions that are made that I don't agree with. Choices made by some that affect us all so greatly and with an assumption that it will all be ok, and I guess in the long run it might be, but in the interim, folks like me just have to suck it up and grin.  

Truth Is I cant really do that anymore. 

Now let me very clear....I serve Jesus... He called me, and that is ever so clear, I will never forget those days at Perth Fortress where God called my name, to get out of my comfort zone and put my hand up to lead in ministry.  I have never regretted my calling ever. 

However I have had to reevaluate my calling and refocus it and re define it in my own heart.  Thats all good.  I still serve Jesus.  I still desire to serve Jesus.  I still intend on serving Jesus, for as long as He gives me life on this earth.  And even then after I die I intend on living with Jesus and serving Him.

For me thats what gives me clarity, and causes me to stand up and stand out and at times stand alone, it feels. 

That bits very sad for me. 

For my little world doesn’t seem to make these same kinds of stands anymore. 

You know its the loudest voice that is heard right ? I wonder what you are hearing around you ?

 I guess for me these days the loudest voice isn't yelling all about Jesus.  

That crushes my spirit. I never signed up for that.  I signed up as a Christian leader for Jesus and to shout His name from the rooftops that He is Lord and that He is the way.  

For me...everything, and I mean everything ..... everything else is second to that..

I look around me and see the world change so radically, in so many ways.... what we used to see as offensive, we would not dare even say it out aloud these days.  

What we thought would never happen has actually happened and we are now living in a world that is pretty messed up, and it feels to me that the church is bending to the ways of the world rather than influencing the world with Gods ways.

Not sure I signed up for that either.

So what is this blog entry about ?  I have 6 years to go before I retire, intend to stand out in that time and speak my mind about what God has laid on my heart.  For those who know me I have pretty much always tried to be that person anyway, but as I think about the end... I want my life to be loud and proud... and let me clarify that...

LOUD AND PROUD FOR JESUS.

To crank up the praying

To crank up the making of disciples for Jesus

To encourage it....

To challenge it.

And to try and be a loud voice when other voices seem to be screaming other things .

For me one of the things I see around me in my little world, is a whole pile of “language” that assumes that everybody knows what to do.  We speak cryptically.....  we speak cautiously,  we use words like we must be about the mission, but we don’t really define what the mission is.  We speak freely about injustice and strategy and compliance....and we should,   but we don’t seem to speak as freely about Jesus.  

Mission = Jesus.  Pure and simple.

We must spell it out, for if we don't...who will ?

The churches that will make it through this crazy messed up world and era we find ourselves living in, will be the churches and Christians who rediscover what it means to be a people of prayer and a people of living out discipleship for Jesus Christ.  

A people who know that when its all over, when its all said and done... eternity awaits and Jesus is there ready to welcome us home.

For me, I want to be seen as a Jesus man.

Back in the day when I was young and aspiring for “something” who knows what...there was this group of people in Perth where I grew up, called the Jesus People.  They had a big band which I played in for a while... called the Jesus People Big Band... it was radical in its day, and it was viewed with fear and suspicion....  but maybe they had it right all along.

We need to be a Jesus People, 

Sharing His love and ways with the world..first and foremost before any other voice is heard from us.

Do I care that you might think I am a weirdo ? Nah not really.... for one day this Jesus man will live with Jesus forever...

I hope you will be there too.

Open Our Blinkin’ Eyes !!

I attended a prayer meeting last night... it was good.  

Only 5 of us present, but God was with with us and that makes it all worthwhile.

We have a problem in the modern church... we are blind.  We have eyes but we can’t really see.

We have ears but we cant seem to hear.

We need to open our blinkin eyes and see what is going on around us.

Now let me spell this out for you...there are policies being made by governments all around the world including our own, that are leading us to a point of no return.

The Bible says that this will happen in the last days, as people turn away from God. As children turn away from their parents, and parents from their children. 

Now I guess we can’t expect a non Christian government to adopt Christian policies and character, and in some ways, what we can expect, is for the exact opposite to occur which is in fact what is happening, and especially in Victoria right now.

The moment you get political by the way, you alienate at least a half of your readers... and that’s a risk

 ...but I will say I am a Christ follower and that comes with a whole pile of ramifications that I have chosen to try and live by, even if it makes me unpopular to a few.

here’s the problem.... many Christians seem to be trying to sit on the fence, dangling our legs in the water and trying to not get wet.  If you are a Christ follower ..the Bible is your truth... and Prayer is your Defence.  

So why not pray with others in prayer meetings ?????????????

How could we be so blind to what we need to be and to do as a Christian ? 

How could we have become so complacent and lethargic when it comes to the most important aspect of our life ? Our spiritual destiny in Christ ?

Yeah go and say it, Gary’s on his band wagon again...and YES YES YES I am..... I don’t understand why anyone who professes to love Jesus and has given their life to Jesus, why that person wouldn’t turn up at a prayer meeting and for one hour pray with, and worship with, other like minded people trying to change the world.  I DONT GET IT .

the Bible says that in the last days... a lot of things will characterize the earth... personally I can see a whole lot of that right now, but for me sadly I see it in the church and that bothers me so much.

People (maybe you, maybe not).... walking around eyes closed to the signs of the times... eyes closed to the call of God to be a praying people.... eyes closed to the call to go and make disciples, and by the way that just got a whole pile harder in our country and state of Victoria.

I think it is critical that we care for people, that we provide food for the hungry and support along the journey of life, BUT if we are not also speaking about Jesus, if we are not also shouting HIS name from the rooftops and leading people to HIM, then we have failed .... and I don't know ...maybe I am ignorant, but I don’t see that so much...it isn’t trendy to shout out about Jesus...and it does seem to be trendy to do all the other stuff.... well, here’s another truth for us eyes half closed folks of 2021...

A lot of the churches are diminishing....growing smaller... not just ours...and there are reasons for that.

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Is Jesus Real ?

Is God real ?

Is Jesus coming again ?

Is heaven real ?

Is hell real ?

Well, what do you believe ?  

Do you think it is possible to have your cake and eat it too ? 

To dabble in the worlds ways and still think a compromised life will be ok before God ? 

 Is that what you think ? 

That its ok to sin, that God will accept that without  confession and repentance ?  

That righteousness and holiness are antiquated ways relegated to history and not relevant anymore ?

Is the Bible’s truth, that at one time in your life you believed ...is not relevant anymore because the world changed its view ?  

Oh such dangerous times.....or such exhilarating times..... 

My prayer is...seriously that we will open our blinkin eyes to the signs of the times, and dig in even deeper as Christians and live it out.... that our prayer meetings will start to grow and people will be saved. 

I pray our concerts get smaller and our prayer meetings get huge. 

As we so called Christ followers start to live it out seriously and crank it up for the Kingdom.

Well I am going to keep trying.

What about YOU !!!?

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When we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be, when we all see Jesus, we will sing and shout the victory.

Imagine this... Jesus is coming again the Bible says...He will come to the earth and take His people home, the praying people who have calloused knees from praying .... the worshippers who have sung their hearts out to Jesus ( not to each other )....the people who have worn out and tired bibles from being read so much and underlined.,.. dog eared from wear and tear, and not dusty from lack of use... the battered and bruised from standing strong amidst fierce opposition. The ridiculed and criticized, the lonely because they have been abandoned due to their faith.....

Imagine the empty churches when Jesus takes us home... caught up in that number.

One day our world will see an even more amazing event than a pandemic...

What will they say then ?  What will you say then ? Where will you be ?

It’s time to open our blinkin eyes.

Frustration

Presently I am being frustrated by a number of things.

In many ways it is super hard to articulate it, as it will offend some potential readers of my blog. I don’t actually want to hurt anyone, but the truth is the truth and a lot of people these days cant seem to handle the truth anymore.  Or the truth has been so far distorted that no one really knows what is truth or not anymore.

Reading various opinions, comments on Facebook shows me that many, and specifically Christians, seem to be ready to fight over some pretty minor issues. Also some fairly unbiblical issues.

I know the moment I open my mouth or write something here, I will be labeled this or that, and if I land on the opposite side of the argument ...then ...watch all heaven break loose, or should I say all hell break loose. 

So I am going to say it this way.... the Bible is pretty clear what it is going to look like at the end.... and we can clearly see the world spiraling into some crazy stuff that the Bible has been warning us of, for years and years. In some ways I welcome it as it confirms the truth of the Bible, and paves the way for Jesus to return. Oh what a day that will be for us who love and serve Him.

The Bible says... stuff like this..:

People will turn to evil ways, rejecting the things of God. Families will be torn apart. Turning against each other. What was held as true and holy will be corrupted and disrupted. Confusion will settle in as people forget the absolutes of the Bible and accept the deceptions of the enemy of the Cross.

The church will be divided as it compromises its practices and aligns with the world and its ways.

The world dishes up a whole pile of stuff that fly’s in the face of Christian truth and biblical understanding. We cant change everyone as they choose these things for themselves, but the moment the church decides to just go with the flow, will be the time when we might just have our candle/lamp stand snuffed out as mentioned in Revelation.

Not one of us ever expected to flow through a year like 2020...and none of us would want to again, but lets also be clear that the Bible speaks of exactly what this world will look like towards the end. Are we living in that right now ?  Well only God really knows that...but I am pretty sure we are closer to the end than we are the beginning.  

There have been a few times when I have felt like just packing up, heading for the hills and living out the rest of my life alone and away from the dumbness of what is happening around us.

Problem with that is that I would die with in 24 hours, as I wouldn’t know how to live off the land ...lol I would most likely eat something poisonous and die, or get bitten by a snake...lol

So... the only other option is to do what God asked of me to do in the beginning, as I try and prepare myself for heaven and anyone else who actually wants to go there as well.

Many decided to follow Jesus, but then became impatient, disbelieving, doubtful and turned away from the life of Christianity.  Thats everyone’s choice. just like it is mine. I have to work through this every day, most of us do.

If I should go to jail for being a Christ follower... so be it.

If I should die for that purpose as well....so be it.

If I should live for that purpose and stand alone.... so be it.

It takes a lot of guts to be an active Christian and not everyone is cut out for it I know..and sometimes I do not measure up myself.... but the truth is, there is no other way to get to heaven than to believe in Jesus and allow Him lordship over our lives at every level. Even if we think its too hard.

Regardless of politics and cultural do’s and dont’s..... if standing for Jesus means being in opposition to the  direction the world is heading...well then  you will need to make a choice .

We all do.

Will you be popular ?  Nope.

Will people criticize you ?  Yep.

Will you be rejected by some ?  Yep.

Will you compromise your faith by settling for unbiblical truth ?  Who knows that but you !!!!!

Will Jesus reject you for living your life for HIM ? Not in a million years ...NO !

I get frustrated when I see such obvious truth being glossed over by smart people with an agenda to destroy the beauty that God created and desires for us all.

I get frustrated by truth being ignored and rejected. 

But in the end ....all I can really do, and all you can really do is make sure that our heart is right before Jesus.  That is the bottom line.  

Jesus loves you. He loves me. 

He is inviting us all into a deeper relationship with Him.  

The rest is entirely up to us.

Head in the Sand ? Sometimes its too hard !!! Isn't it ?

I was reading Revelation chapter 6 earlier today... in some ways it's a bit scary.

 

One of the things that intrigues me about life these days, is our fear of the end. 

As Christ followers should we really be fearful of the end ? 

I have said it many times before, I am no bible scholar or theologian, but I do have some basic simple instincts. 

For instance, I believe my bible and have done for my whole life. 

I haven't always been able to obey it well, but it doens't change my beliefs.

 So when the bible calls something a sin, well I actually believe then it is a sin. 

I am unable to grasp how the bible can mean that one aspect of life is sin and another not, based on our new world idealogies and popular opinion. (sigh)

 Anyway, at one point in my life I decided to follow Jesus and believed that at some point in the future that our world would face some serious issues around Revelation prophecy. 

Revelation chapter 6 sits there. 

It is crazy to me that anyone can dismiss the scary parts of prophecy in the book of Revelation as some fairy tale that will never happen, when in the next breath we longingly await the Revelation end times hope of eternal life in the city where streets are paved with gold. 

I find it remarkable that the world seeks the good bits of the Kingdom, and yet seems to ignore the hard bits. Or to dismiss it, or explain it away in some way. hmmmm. 

I do not for one minute think that I have it all together, I sure don't... so if you think I am some expert on this, think again. 

All I know is that Jesus calls us to live for Him and do our best to make disciples for Him, to pray without ceasing ever... and to do everything we can to help others do the same. 

Today I read in the news that Covid19 has now claimed 1 million lives on the earth, that is a fairly significant number to not ignore. 

It poses the questions, that surely we are all thinking if not asking... does God care ? does He know ? Can He not fix it ? Did He ordain it ? Is it part of end times of prophecy ? 

Well, I dunno..... 

but I sure reckon we are closer to the end than we are the beginning, and as such we should be prepared for that. 

Whatever needs to be done to get yourself prepared. 

It isn't time for us to major on minor issues. 

Whatever they happen to be for us each. 

Life is short....it is fragile..... it is supposed to have purpose.... and for me the bits in the bible that speak about making disciples for Jesus and praying are still real and accurate... and non negotiable. 

Let's not have our heads buried in the sand, ignoring the hard bits of the bible and pretending that somehow they don't count anymore.

My bible tells me that God is a compassionate God ...

The He hates sin...

That He sent us a Saviour...

That we can have eternal life when we accept Jesus as Lord of our lives.

That the world will end and a new world will come.

That Jesus will return.

It also says a whole lot of other stuff which we cannot ignore....

Just my holiday thoughts on this September day in lockdown still.

At the end of my tether

 

We have probably all been there in one way or another... but recently I have been pretty close to being at the end of my tether, as the saying goes. In a few ways.

When I was pouring resin on my table was one of those occasions.... I felt utterly defeated by the first attempt, and if it hadn’t been for some gentle encouragement from a Facebook Friend, I would have given up.  I felt very defeated. It actually spoke into some life commandments that I have lived with for a very long time.  That I am unable to do these kinds of things.   

The other tether I have been close to the end of, is my understanding and acceptance of what I see going on around me in my world and my proximity to the environment I live and work.

If I were to be completely honest, I would say the picture above was accurate for me. Breaking point. 

Until last Sunday, when I received the shot in my arm I needed.   A spiritual injection from TSA in NSW.

One of my huge concerns is our identity, who we are...and who we come across as being.

What it is we major in, what it is we speak more about.  

I believe an absolute key for our identity is the way we speak. 

 If our words don't match our actions which don't actually line up with our values, then we have missed the mark.

So if all we hear is the corporate speak, then we will flounder. 

Yes we need the strategies and the statements and the correct methods in place, but beyond that we need the spiritual speak..... we need the words of our mouth to reflect the deep deep love of Jesus that we as Christians live for. We need the spiritual speak, to be louder than the corporate speak. (* dare I say it )

Jesus First.... and thats what I loved about last Sunday, it gave me a shot me in the arm with the love and truth and passion of Jesus and the absolute foundation of meaning of who we are and what we do why we do it.    If it isn't firstly, most loudly about Jesus, then sadly we will never win. 

When you are at breaking point, the end of your tether, things become very distorted and I think, dangerous.  

You make decisions that maybe you would one day regret. 

You look for other options and that is when one must be careful to settle back into the arms of the one who holds us and has held us from the beginning.

Jesus.   

I want to publicly thank Miriam  and Phil for speaking deeply into my heart, and for Beth for inviting me in,  -  basically they will never really know at what point that tether was about to break and just how close I was deep inside my spirit to that point.

So what now ?

Refresh, renew, rebuild.... currently I am on holidays and can work on some of that for myself.

I will be eternally grateful for last Sunday online in my bedroom, 

just some great people of God speaking truth, on facebook..... and Jesus and me, doing some spiritual surgery for me.

Amen.

The Quandary. 3 key questions !!

 So many opinions on the earth right now.

Thinking about the events of this week, which truthfully haven’t been that many, we are still locked down after all in Victoria, Australia, It occurred to me this morning that everyone one of us are subject to the opinions of others.

Let’s be real for a moment this morning.  

Who on the earth has complete knowledge ?  

Who is it that still lives and breathes and walks the earth like we do, who knows everything there is to know ?

The truth is, that some have a greater knowledge than others, because of experience and study and the like, but when it comes to something brand new, like Covid...that no one has experienced before, who then has complete knowledge and understanding, and especially around what God might be saying to us in the middle of this. ???

I have had a number of conversations this week around this and what various people are feeling and thinking, and of course I have my own thoughts.

Various thoughts range from God is sifting us, testing the church, the world, to God doesn’t care, to God is aware and doing nothing about it, and other thoughts include, it is just a normal fact of life on the planet and God has allowed it, permitted it.  There are most likely hundreds, if not thousands of other opinions and thoughts, but who is correct ?  

Who has total knowledge enough to prescribe to the rest of us that one specific thought is correct. 

And every other thought is not ?

It’s a bit of a mystery really. A Quandary.

Of course I have my own opinion, we all do. I am not going to try and explain my own opinion here, because of course, not everyone would agree, and thats when conflict emerges. 

I will say however, it is important that in the middle of whatever we are going through, that we be clear in our own heart and mind what it is we believe about God, what we believe for our own heart and why we believe it.

The world has seen these kinds of events in the past, its just that we have ourselves have not. 

God is still the same today, as He was yesterday and as He will be tomorrow. My bible tells me that.

He still loves His children, thats you and me. My Bible tells me that as well.

Does He want us to re think how we do church ? Yes.... but then He has been asking us that question for a long time, and some have already modified church to reflect that, its just that now in Covid, we are looking at that more seriously or intentionally.

Does God want us to pray more ?  Yes... He has been asking us to do that for the whole time, but we have been slow to listen and act, so busy doing so many other things. It’s just that now we are in slow mode. Has it changed anything in us ?  For some it has...but I suspect for most, no change at all.

Does God want us to be more intentional about His community and How we do that ? YES... its called discipleship and He asked us to do that right from the very beginning. Can we still do that in lockdown ? YES... its called Zoom.  But will we do that ? 

Or will we continue to search after programs and activities rather than lifestyle change ?   

Whatever your opinion about the sovereignty of God in the middle of this COVID CRISIS, lets be clear of a few things... some things haven’t changed at all.

Yes we can’t do some of the normal things we used to do.

But right now we can do so many new things and re claim a few of the old ways of the Lord.

It all comes down to what you will allow in your life and what you will reject from your life.

Last night, we had dinner on line with some good friends. We then played scattergories online in zoom, it was fun...we laughed, chatted, ate, and 2 hours ZOOMED past very quickly.  It was good for us as our little family... and hopefully good for our friends.  But it lifted our spirit. It was “un natural” at first.... but it was nevertheless good.

So, can you still pray together ?  YES

Can you disciple others ?  YES

Can you still worship ? YES

Can you still have church ? YES

the real question is... will you ? 

The head or the tail ?

I was reading in the news somewhere yesterday that we could be living our lives like this, for the next couple of years.

Masks on wherever you go.

The new normal some are saying.  For us in Victoria Australia we are in the second week of a 6 week lockdown.  No traveling further than 5kms from home, curfew after 8pm at night, 1 hour out for exercise etc each day.... not easy.  

But what if this is our new normal ?  

What if for the next few years this is just how it needs to be to stay alive ?  

With our death rate rising each day it seems, and the cases reported higher than everywhere else in our country, its not the time to be complacent and ignore the warnings and guidance by government.

Some think its just a conspiracy, others are so fearful they can barely do anything anymore, and yet the threat is real, just ask those families planning funerals for their loved ones these days.

So what would you do if this is our new normal. ?

Will you survive ? Will you adapt ? Will you shrink back ? 

I need to answer those questions for myself, and I am not going to try and answer them for you. But our world has changed in 2020 and the way forward isn't as easy as it used to be.

I was thinking this morning, the ones who will win and flourish in this new environment will be the ones who adapt and find their niche in the middle of new methods and expectations. 

The ones who do business differently, work differently, live differently, create new habits and lose old thinking.

There is no point going into a new world with old world thinking. 

We have seen people try to do that for years and they just flounder. And eventually are stifled and worked around, sideswiped.

We need to take the best from the past, adapt it, modify it and embed it into the new normal so that we can also flourish. 

Whether that be church, work, sport, social life, home life or whatever it is.  

We may never be able to go back to the old normal. I am not even sure we will want to.

Staying on top is all about critical thinking and attitude. 

It’s about a decision to not fall to the bottom. 

It’s about a choice to be adaptable within yourself. 

To be always ready to change and modify your own mindset and actions to stay ahead of the game.

I see it around me, people who hang on to the past. a past that has gone and may never be able to return. People who say things like ...” Back in my day, or back in the old days, we used to...”  we may never be able to do that.

Were the old days that good really ? 

I think back to my younger days and some of my choices and decisions I wish I could change, but I don’t want to go back there.... I want to live out the rest of my life somehow making a difference and helping others ....especially to find Jesus.  I never actually wanted to do that in my early days.

So staying on top ?  Is a choice ?  

I think so. It’s a choice to say I am not going to live on the bottom, I am not going to wallow around in self pity and defeat.

I am going to do something each day to work my way to the top.... not at the expense of others, but rather alongside others who are also wanting to live at the top.

The top of behavior.

The top of faith.

The top of prayer

The top of love.

The top of grace.

The top of care for others.

The top of self care and self confidence.

The top of relationship with each other and with Jesus.

Who in their right mind would choose the bottom of any of those ?

There is the verse in the Bible which speaks about being the head and not the tail.  

Deuteronomy 28:13 

New International Version

The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom.

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For me...thats what I want for me life...  think about that for a moment.  the head makes decisions to wag the tail. (of a dog) I don't want to be the tail, it’s the smelly end ... lol.

The world could easily be on track to never return to what we used to be.  It’s not alarmist, its potentially a new reality. How you live in that will be a head  and heart decision.  

You can rise above it, seriously you can. 

You can be on top.

It’s all a matter of a choice each and every day.