Love.

This story is too good not to share.  This is what happens when Jesus' love works through others for others...


The Gay Protest That Encountered The Love of God
From Charismanews.com
by Michael Brown

Last week, Scott Volk, one of the pastoral leaders at FIRE Church, my home congregation, received a call from the local police informing him that there would be a gay protest outside our building on Sunday morning.
The leader of the protest announced on Facebook, “We will meet just before service begins, and protest as they gather, we will have a silent protest as service is going and let them have it as they leave for the day. Remember we will be peaceful and respectful, something they don’t understand. We are going to STAND TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY to show that our love is stronger than their hate.”

In response, I wrote on my blog: “On behalf of FIRE Church, I want to extend to you the warmest welcome and let you know that we are thrilled that you are here with us on Sunday. We have been praying for you for a long time!
“As always, you will only meet with love, kindness, and respect from the FIRE leadership and congregants, and we proclaim to you once again the amazing grace of God. Jesus died to save us from our sins, heterosexual and homosexual alike, and only in Him can we find forgiveness, redemption, and transformation. Jesus alone is the Healer, Savior, Deliverer, and Transformer.”
On my radio show, I also encouraged them to come in good numbers so we could greet them, and Scott posted a note on Q-Notes, a local gay website that had announced the protest, saying, “As the pastor of FIRE Church, I just want you to know that you’ll be greeted with the same love and compassion as we always endeavor to show anyone--you are more-than-welcome! You make mention of the ‘hate’ that we show. Yet, in all our years here we’ve only desired to reach out with love to everyone in the local community here whether they are labeled as gay or straight. Hopefully, you’ll see that love demonstrated on Sunday as you protest.”

Not surprisingly, given the suspicion, and misunderstanding that exists, Scott’s gracious invitation drew some hostile responses:
David: “Love is the most disfigured mask that hate wears.”
Sue: “If what you think is reaching out in love is perceived as hateful attack, perhaps you should reconsider your actions.”
David: “You can fool yourself, Mr. Volk. You can fool your parishioners. But you can’t fool God. He knows what’s in your heart, and it isn’t love. It’s hate.”
Tom: “What these fire church people probably don’t understand is that spending an eternity ANYWHERE with them is what I would consider a true HELL. They should concern themselves with their own pathetic lives and leave other alone to theirs ...”

Scott responded by inviting them to his home for dinner to spend a night with him and his family. And he explained that, “to call someone hateful without ever meeting them, seeing them, or hearing them speak, is an indication of a heart that needs love. I make myself available.”
On Sunday morning, Aug. 26th, about 10 protesters showed up (we were disappointed there were so few) and some of our FIRE leaders met with them, offering them water and snacks, sharing God’s love and truth with them, and then inviting them to join us in the service. After a few minutes they left, explaining that we were too nice and loving to deserve a protest!
Bear in mind that these protesters know the stands we have taken for biblical values and some of them have listened to my radio broadcasts or read my writings, so they recognize how strongly we differ with them on many key issues. Yet they also recognized our genuine love for them and saw that we were not full of hate. The love of Jesus, flowing out of Spirit-filled, godly hearts, makes an impact that cannot be denied.

Scott shared this good news on the Q-Notes website, along with the invitation to those calling us hateful to join him for dinner at his house. In response Spydre wrote, “I want to hear more about this Jesus,” and Jaybea commented, “Even I would be welcome there? It would be an honor to meet Scott Volk and Dr. Brown. I’m beginning to see light as very attractive.” How amazing!
The next day, Monday, Aug. 27th, the leader of the protest called into my radio show to apologize publicly for the protest, explaining that their “anger ... was aimed [in] the wrong direction.” And then he said these words: “Once we got there Sunday morning we were greeted with absolutely perfect love. I mean, it was fantastic.” Praise God!

After the broadcast, we exchanged contact information and are looking forward to sharing a meal together and, more importantly, candidly sharing our hearts. This is genuinely good news.
When the Lord called me to get involved with homosexual issues eight years ago, He said to me, “Reach out and resist,” meaning, “reach out” to the people with compassion and “resist” the activist agenda with courage.
Is it possible to do both? By God’s grace, the answer is yes, and in the end, love never fails.

Michael Brown is the author of The Real Kosher Jesus and the host of the nationally syndicated talk radio show The Line of Fire on the Salem Radio Network. He is also president of FIRE School of Ministry and director of the Coalition of Conscience.

Get real!

Sticks and stones
It makes me sad to see how Christians are being portrayed in the world these days.  Why do Christians get these distorted and hurtful labels placed on them?  I've seen the words bigot, discriminatory, anti-gay, close-minded, hateful, judgemental, out-of-touch and irrelevant all tied with Christianity in recent news articles, reports, blogs, social media and videos.  I wonder what Jesus himself would say if someone called him those names?  He'd probably give that person a big hug because, well, he's Jesus and he loves everyone including sinners!  Wait!  We're all sinners, so he must love us all! 

Who's to blame?  I blame us!
I blame part of this bad perception on some Christians themselves.  See, there is an expectation of Christian behavior as it's clearly outlined in the Bible.  When non-Believers (or sometimes-Believers) see people calling themselves Christian acting in a way that doesn't align with the Biblical teachings of Christianity, then labels are put on people as a whole.  Yes, a messed up stereo-type.

Who's to blame?  I blame them!
I blame part on the media for picking and exploiting stories about Christians that show those who are not behaving in a Christ-like manner perpetuating a misguided idea about what Chritianity is really all about.  Lets face it, there are some crazies out there who don't do the rest of us any favors.  But instead of over-looking these stories, the media will often put them front and center.  When was the last time you saw a major media story that showed a Christian living out his faith in a positive way?

Who's to blame?  I blame us some more!
I blame social-media for it's fast paced, sarcastic humor and incorrect message spreading as well.  How many times have you seen cynical cartoon, images, web-videos and the like, that reduce Christians down to a point where a reader just laughs and mocks them.  This denigrates Christianity and removes all the loving wonderful aspects of all of Christ's teachings.  It is making a mockery of what Jesus' purpose and what real Christ-followers believe.

Check yourself, before you wreck yourself
So what's a Jesus loving Christ-follower to do?  I think those poking fun of and mislabeling Christians don't truly comprehend what it means to be Christian.  No one is perfect (only Jesus was), but all of us are forgiven when we give our lives over to Christ.  In doing so, we're held to a different standard.  We can't hate, like the world does.  We can't be bigoted.  We can't discriminate.   We have to be as my Pastor says,  "Jesus with skin on."  If we are to change the misperception of what a Christian is all about, we need to match our actions and words with scripture.  Does what you do or say align with God's word?

Separation anxiety
Often times it feels like we are under attack.  And rightly so, because well...we are.  Whether you believe that evil does exist (Satan) or not, you must agree that the best way to keep people from having a personal relationship with God through Christ is to separate His people from Him.  Worldly activities and government policies will often subtly work to separate people from God.  We need to remain faithful.  We need to remain in God's grace by following His word (scripture) and acting and behaving in ways that please God and build up His Kingdom.  This is tough to do.  But Jesus made it easy for us.  Pray and live in faith and God will strengthen you.  When asked what is the most important Commandment, Jesus answered:

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.  There is no commandment greater than these.”(Mark 12:30-31). 

24/7
If you love the Lord your God then in turn you will love His people, His creation.  But also, if you love your neighbor as yourself, you will also love the Lord God!  Kind of neat how those two most important commandments go hand-in-hand.  But what the world needs to understand is that in living out "Love the Lord your God...", a Christian is filled with God's love through Jesus 24/7.  It's not a Sunday-thing.  It's not just on Christmas and Easter.  It's day and night.  In doing so, a person is humble and submissive before God and does whatever he can to please God through worship, prayer and every aspect of life.  God is the center of all, He is not somewhere on your priority list.  Your thoughts, opionions, actions, activities and words should serve to glorify God to best you know how.  It is done through a continual personal relationship with Jesus.

A Christian cannot do this and turn his back to God when there is a hot-topic or issue facing our culture today.  A Christian needs to keep his focus on God while walking in the world.  A Christian must not waver from obedience to God just because it's easier to go with the flow of popular opinion.  Loving your neighbor as yourself does not mean that its ok to turn away from God or his word in order to do so.  It also doesn't mean your neighbor is always right.  God is always right and just.  As a Christian we can't pick the parts of scripture that we like and ignore the rest.  Yes, love your neighbor, but first and foremost love the Lord your God.  You can't love the Lord your God and be intentionally disobedient at the same time.
Pride and truth
Personally, I think what our culture today struggles the most with is pride and truth. 
Pride.  We are a culture of prideful people who can take care of ourselves and don't need God in our lives.  People reject Him, or turn away from Him because they are living a happy, comfortable life and are good people.  I don't have a way to convince anyone they need God's grace, that's something a person has to accept for themselves.  I pray for those people to accept God's free gift of salvation without having some life altering tragedy in order for them to realize they need Him. 

Truth.  The second thing that our culture doesn't like is truth.  The Bible is full of truth.   If you are calling yourself a Christian, then the Bible is well...your truth.  It's your Bible!  It is truth.  Sometimes it is hard to accept because some biblical truth is contrary to what is acceptable and "right" in our culture today.  Before accepting Christ in my life, I often went back and forth on issues because both sides made sense from time to time.  But what was missing was the knowledge of truth defined by authority.  When I let God rule my life, I found that authority....God himself, the Creator.  I'm pretty sure He knows what's right and wrong.  I now know truth.  I pray for those who do not yet know truth,  and that they come to know it through His grace, and word. 

The major difficulty with pride and truth is that we often have to set aside our pride in order to accept truth.

What to do
I will continue to read God's word and pray so that I can be like Jesus to the best of my ability.  I will continue to to try show people God's love and grace through how He works through me.  I pray my actions and words glorify God and do not serve to separate His people from Him but instead encourage others to seek Him out through Jesus.  This in no way means I am perfect.  I make mistakes.

I am a Christian, not a bigot.  I love my neighbor no matter his race.
I pray for the salvation through Christ for people of all races.

I am a Christian, my aim is not to discriminate but to love my neighbor no matter his religious belief.
I pray for the salvation through Christ for people of all religions and those without any belief system.  I pray their hearts are opened to God through Jesus.

I am a Christian and will demonstrate love for my neighbor no matter his sexual orientation.
I pray for the salvation through Christ for people struggling with sexual addiction, confusion and differing orientations.   I pray for their strength to overcome sin.

I am a Christian. I am not closed-minded or hateful.   I love my neighbor no matter his judgement on me because I identify myself with Christ.  I pray for the salvation through Christ for all people overwhelmed with pride, cynicism and judgement.

I am a Christian.  I am not perfect.  I thank God each day for His loving grace.

If you're wondering where I got this blog idea from, well, it came from God Himself.

"And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.  For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority."
Colossians 2: 6-10

It's Alive! It's Alive!

I've often heard that the Bible is just a book from 2,000 years ago and doesn't apply to the world today.  I think I probably have said that once or twice before, but now as a Believer I know that this is simply NOT the case.  The Bible is completely relevant to the world today.  The Bible is "God breathed" meaning, it contains His words for His people.  It's been described as a handbook for mankind, a love letter from God.  Since God has no beginning and no end, His words (the Bible) also can not have a beginning or end.  It's as timeless as God Himself.  It is in fact ALIVE!

I'm going to write some blog posts where I will try to show how Scripture has spoken directly to me in my life with regards all sorts of topics I'm dealing with in today's world.  Hopefully,  my experiences will cause you to also seek out God's guidance through Scripture.

Today's topic - Money

There are hundreds of quotes in scripture that can be connected to money and how to manage it.  Obviously dealing with money is important to God.  Below are some of my thoughts regarding money and scripture to support them;

Money and wealth and all those "things" we have all come from God
"Every good and perfect gift is from above" James 1:17

Money is not important, but rather your love of God is the most important
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" Matthew 6:19-21

"Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.  Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”  The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” Mark 10:21-25

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Luke 16:13

It's right to be generous with your money
"Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.  Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for god loves a cheerful giver" 2 Corinthians 9:6-7

"All the believers were together and had everything in common.  They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved" Acts 2:44-47

Be honest in your dealings with money and finances
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?" Luke 16:10-12

"Dishonest money brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live" Proverbs 15:27

Don't be greedy!
"Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income" Ecclesiastes 5:10

"For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater —has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.  Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.  Therefore do not be partners with them" Ephesians 5:5-7

God blesses those who give
"Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need." Malachi 3:10

"Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine." Proverbs 3:10

^"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.  In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." 1 Timothy 6:17-19

Don't be generous with your money just to try to earn favor
"Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you" Matthew 6:1-4

Be sure to tithe at your church
"Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always." Deuteronomy 14:22-23

I'm sure many of these comments/thoughts/ideas about money are things you may have learned growing up.  Honesty, generosity, etc are likely not hard concepts to comprehend.  But seeing these ideas as coming from God puts things into a much more important perspective.  If God is the absolute highest authority in your life, the creator of all things living and you accept these words come from Him, it makes it even more important for a person to try to live the best they can by His commands.   

If I had a million dollars

Remember that song by BNL from the 1990's?

"If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a 1,000,000)
I'd but you a house ( I would buy you a house)
If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a 1,000,000)
I'd buy you furniture for your house ( maybe a nice chesterfield or an ottoman)
If I had a 1,000,000 (If I had a 1,000,000)
I'd but you a K-car ( a nice reliant automobile)"  

It's fun to imagine what you'd do with a million dollars.  Maybe pay off your mortgage, go on vacation, quit your job or even buy some slick new wheels like a K-car.  A million dollars is a lot of money to an adult, probably at the same magnitude as $20 to a 6 year old.

Last year my 6 year old son was at the local Farmer's market where he found a $20 bill.  He looked around to see if anyone had dropped one, but couldn't find the owner.  When he got home he was very excited about what he was going to buy with the $20.  Maybe some toy spiders (he loves spiders) or a book about spiders (again, the boy likes spiders) or possibly a t-shirt with a spider on it (spiders are a big deal, you get the picture). 

Although we didn't want to burst his spider-bubble, we felt this was a great teaching moment for him.  We explained to him that the money, even though he had found it, wasn't really his.  Someone had lost it and was likely missing it.  We told him that the right thing to do would be to turn it in to the Police Department so in case the owner was looking for it, they could find it again.  He was reluctant to give up the $20 because he was seeing eight legs and spider webs by this point.  Once we asked him how he might feel if HE lost $20 and couldn't find it because someone else took it for their own, he changed his mind.  We were trying to debunk the "finders keepers, losers weepers" theory. 

He hoped that if someone found something of his, they would turn it in so perhaps it could be returned to him.  I loaded up my two boys in the car and we drove to the village Police Department.  We walked into the building and went up to the window where there was a Officer standing there.  He asked how we were doing and if he could help with anything.  My son held up the $20 and said, "I found this."  The Officer smiled, I think because of the insignificant amount of money that $20 is to an adult, and knowing it was a lot of money to a kid.  We filled out a form, handed him the money.  He said that if no one claims it, then the money would be ours.  He then gave both boys "Junior Police Officer" badges that they proceeded to wear nearly everyplace they went over the next 2 days.

My son asked several times over the following days if the Police would call and tell him the money was his now.  Eventually, he forgot all about it as did I.  1 year later, I got a voice message on my phone from a Detective at the Village Police Department asking me to return his call.  When you get a voice message from a Police Detective, you return that call quickly which is what I did.  He was calling to say that no one claimed the $20 and the money was now ours.

How excited my son was when I told him about the $20!  Dreams of spider merchandise began to dance through his head once again.  I packed up both boys again and drove to the Village Police Department.  We met the Detective, signed some papers and he handed my son the $20.  The detective told us about the "Found Property Law" and that we had waited the required length of time after turning in the money, so it was now ours.  We chatted with the Police Officers for a few minutes more and the boys inquired about a jail.  They wanted to know if there was one at this Police Department.  Sure enough, there was and the Officer asked if the boys would like to see it.  Sure enough, they did!  So after a tour of jail, we went home, $20 in hand. 

Once home we divided up the $20 into his 3 money jars, "Give", "Save" and "Spend".  Then my son gave his little brother some of his money because he wanted to show his little brother about doing the right thing.  

Although my 6 year old was "rewarded" for doing the right thing by getting the $20 back.  He learned that very lesson a year earlier just after turning it in.  "I hope the person who lost the money calls the Police and gets it back".  He also said it felt good knowing that the person might be able to get their money back.

Of course we had to go to the store and buy a toy spider with his "Spend" money.   

"Try to live in peace with everyone, and seek to live a clean and holy life, for who are not holy will not see the Lord.  Look after each other so that none of you will miss out on the special favor of God"

Hebrews 13:14-15

"My Savior my God"

There's nothing quite like a really powerful worship song. 
Below are the lyrics to one of my favorites "My Savior, my God" by Aaron Shust

I am not skilled to understand
What God has willed, what God has planned
I only know at His right hand
Stands One who is my Savior
I take Him at his word and deed
Christ died to save me this I read
And in my heart I find a need
Of Him to be my Savior
That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior


My Savior loves, my Savior lives
My Savior's always there for me
My God He was, my God He is
My God He's always gonna be


Yes, living, dying; let me bring
My strength, my solace from this spring
That He who lives to be my King
Once died to be my Savior
That He would leave His place on high
And come for sinful man to die
You count it strange, so once did I
Before I knew my Savior

Relationships

by: Brian Carlson

I’ve tentatively titled this essay Relationships.  I may change the title, it’s 2 am and I'm getting tired.  The genesis of this essay was a mini discussion that I was having with God earlier tonight, after getting off the phone with a friend.  The enemy was trying to attack me and I wasn’t in the best mood.  OK, I was starting to whine.  The “discussion” went more like this:

Me “God, why? why? why?”

God “Who is in charge, me or you.”

Me “you”

God “Do you trust me?”

Me “yes” 

God “OK, then shut up and listen to what I am going to show you for the umpteenth time.”

As you can see, it was a one sided discussion. Many of my discussions with the Lord seem to go that way. 

As I have said to a friend, I have the social skills of an aardvark.  I am not the type of person to walk into a room and immediately make 10 new friends. It takes me a long while to open up to people. Even with those whom I love I sometimes have trouble communicating effectively.  I chalk it up to a combination of my upbringing and my natural abilities; I’m more analytical and less touchy, feely.

On the other hand I think I am a hopeless romantic.  Ok, I’ll let you in on a little secret, I am pretty sure I am, I watch “The Wedding Singer,” “A Walk to Remember,” and “Ever After” whenever they are on cable.  I love the end of “The Wedding singer.”  I think they are great movies, but don’t tell any guys or my membership in the guy club may be revoked. For the record, I also get worked up when I watch more manly movies like “Saving Private Ryan,” “Band of Brothers,” and  “Rudy,” especially at the end when the team and stands chat Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, etc. You can stop laughing now!  As fun as those romantic comedies are, they really are not accurate pictures of relationships. 

Real relationships, and I am taking friendships too, not just dating relationships, take time and energy. In order to get to know someone you must spend quality time with him or her. You have to give of yourself putting others ahead of you.  That’s sounds obvious, but with today’s fast-paced world it is not easy.  I am guilty of spending too much time at my career and losing some friendships along the way.  I struggle with this daily.  Real relationships are like washing your car. You can spend time washing, drying, waxing, buffing, using Armor-all on the tires, etc and feel a sense of accomplishment, or you can spend $15 on Delta Sonic and be in and out in 10 minutes. 

After God told me to shut up and listen, He brought me to a few verses

“A friend loves at all times,” – Proverbs 17:17

What is love?

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” - 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

There is nothing in this passage that speaks to being in a rush. In fact patience and perseverance are mentioned, and mean quite the opposite.

Patience is defined:  a virtue, is the capacity of enduring hardship or inconvenience, emphasizes calmness, self-control, and the willingness or ability to tolerate delay. Its opposite is weakness.

Perseverance is defined: a virtue, implies persistence, endurance, hardiness, fortitude, stamina, robustness and tolerance. It is constant persistence in a course of action, purpose, or state, steadfast pursuit of an aim, tenacious assiduity or endeavor.

Both definitions were taken from, http://miriams-well.org/Glossary/

In one sense, we are stuck with our family members. The neat thing about friendships is that we are generally able to choose our friends. We get to get to know people that have similar and different interests, outlooks and goals. Our friends help us along this journey of life.  Friends are cool. We need to continuously work at our friendships to keep them vibrant.

Now I am going to say a little regarding dating relationships. I am no expert on the subject so I will be brief.  The best advice I can provide is to ignore our American culture. It is totally screwed up.  Life isn’t a Hollywood movie.  Most of us aren’t going to find a love of a lifetime in 90 minutes like the actors in the romantic comedies mentioned before.  It may be true for some, but I believe real relationships take time.  I really wish I would have know all this when I was between the age of 16-22, it would have saved much pain. I’ve learned you are better off developing a friendship before jumping into a dating relationship.  The opportunity to marry your best friend and spend a lifetime growing old together is priceless.  Finally, pray, pray, pray. Ask God for guidance.  I do this at least twice a day.

“For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” – Matthew 7:7-8

That’s all I really have to say on relationships for now.

Got Hope?

the following blog post was written by my friend Brian, hope you enjoy....

GOT HOPE?

By Brian J. Carlson, P.E.

I was driving to work recently and I noticed a car with a "Got Hope?" bumper sticker.   Adjacent to the bumper sticker  was a "Darwin" Fish car emblem, a clear parody of the Christian Ichthys symbol.  I smiled when I noticed the two messages that the car owner was sharing with the world, or at least Western New York commuters. The  Darwin Fish was a statement.  It said I believe in evolution.  I believe we came from goo, and they is no difference between mankind and any other creature.  "Got Hope?" was a question, obviously asking Got Hope?  If your worldview is framed by believe in evolution, hope is an interesting concept. Where do you get your hope from if you believe that we all came from the primordial ooze, a bunch of proteins that magically got together eons ago?  Do you find your hope in man and man's institutions?  Do you believe we are star stuff as Carl Sagan said during the PBS series Cosmos?  Where does the person who believes in evolution get their hope?  To be honest, I do not know.  But seeing the bumper sticker and car emblem on that car caused me to think, our worldview is different.  Where do we get our hope?  What is our hope?

First, what is hope?  Webster's dictionary defines hope as follows:

intransitive verb 1 : to cherish a desire with anticipation <hopes for a promotion>
2 archaic : trust

transitive verb 1 : to desire with expectation of obtainment
2 : to expect with confidence : trust

All these definitions apply to our hope.

Paul in Romans 8:18-27 says: "For in this hope we were saved.  But hope that is seen is no hope at all.  Who hopes for what he already has?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." - Romans 8:24-25 (NIV)

The first part of Romans 8:24 says, "For in this hope we were saved."  what hope is Paul talking about in this verse?  To understand the hope mentioned we need to back the turnip truck up and start at the beginning of the passage.

Future Glory

¹⁸I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. ²⁰For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹that^[a] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

 ²²We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? ²⁵But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. - Romans 8:18-25 (NIV)

Paul is speaking about our future glory of which we are assured by grace through our faith in Jesus Christ our savior. The fact that we will be liberated from our bondage through faith in Jesus in not in doubt. He conquered sin and death on the cross. It is finished!  If we confess with our mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in our heart God raised him from the dead we will be saved. 

Backing up to Romans Chapter 5:1-11  we read.

Peace and Joy

 ¹Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ²through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. ³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

 ⁶You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

 ⁹Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! ¹⁰For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation

We see that grace leads to faith, and without faith there can be no hope.  Our hope comes through faith in Jesus Christ, and hope does not disappoint. When we have trouble and suffering we don't have to go moping around like Eeyore saying woe is me! Life is over! No one cares about me!  It's right there in verses 3-5.

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. - Romans 5:3-5

And Isaiah 40:30-31

"Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

Hope does not disappoint!  We will have struggles.  There will be suffering.  We will grow tired and weary. Paths may not always be clear. But our future glory is assured if we persevere in faith, and in faith we have hope in the Lord. So now if I see another bumper sticker with "Got Hope?" I will say yes I do, and praise God for grace, strengthened faith, and hope.

As Steve Curtis Chapman sings in Heaven in The Real World (1994)

I saw it again today in the face of a little child
Looking through the eyes of fear and uncertainty
It echoed in a cry for freedom across the street and across the miles
Cries from the heart to find the missing part

CHORUS
Where is the hope, where is the peace?
That will make this life complete
For every man, woman, boy, and girl
Looking for heaven in the real world

To stand in the pouring rain and believe the sun will shine again
To know that the grave is not the end
To feel the embrace of grace and cross the line where real life begins
And know in your heart you've found the missing part

CHORUS
There is a hope, there is a peace
That will make this life complete
For every man, woman, boy, and girl
Looking for heaven in the real world
Heaven in the real world

BRIDGE
It happened one night with a tiny baby's birth
God heard creation crying and He sent heaven to earth

CHORUS
He is the hope, He is the peace
That will make this life complete
For every man, woman, boy and girl
Looking for heaven in the real world

(Chorus)

We know the hope. We have the Hope. We need to share the Hope.

"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

Brian J. Carlson, P.E.