Friday, November 18, 2011

Masks

One of the biggest mistakes we make that impacts us in negative way, especially in the church world, is we learn to wear masks. We hide our emotions, our feelings, our behaviors...so everyone will think we are doing okay.

We wear masks so long, we often don't even know it anymore. We lie to ourselves so long, we begin to believe it's true. We say things like, "That's just the way life is." "We pay our taxes and then we die." "God's best seems to always be for other people." We then settle to live our lives by the world's standards and run headlong into a life, that in the end, leads to nowhere. On our deathbead with the tragic thought...that we missed it.

Here's what God's word says...

(2 Corinthians 4:2 MSG) “We refuse to wear masks and play games. We don't maneuver and manipulate behind the scenes... Rather, we keep everything we do and say out in the open...”


Last week, I spoke about one of the keys to life is to live it without any secrets. We spend way too much time trying to "mask" our issues and not enough time trying to fix them. At our church we have a safe environment to be who we are and to: live life...for real.

This coming Sunday, I will remove the mask of "our chaotic lives". I believe many of us will be set free from the "rat race" and find God's will to give us rest.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Fresh Air

I have been preaching a series called, "Fresh Air". The goal of this series is to breath some "Fresh Air" into our relationship with God. The theme verse talks about someone in the bible that most people have never heard of... 

(2 Timothy 1:16 TLB) “May the Lord bless Onesiphorus and all his family because he visited me and encouraged me often. His visits revived me like a breath of fresh air.”

Onesiphorus visited Paul in prison and encouraged the Apostle Paul (Who wrote 2/3's of the New Testament). Even Paul had a time, in his walk with God, when he needed fresh wind in his sails.

So if your relationship with God has become a little stagnant...you are not alone. We all need some fresh air from time to time. Let me encourage you to stay on course, continue in The Word, pray with a purpose and a passion, and serve God the way He has made you...and oh yea, maybe you could encourage someone today and breath life into theirs.