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Episodes
Weekly podcasts exploring the life of a Christ-follower in the context of community...
Episodes
Thursday Sep 26, 2013
Thursday Sep 26, 2013
The Apostle Paul wraps up his letter to the Galatians with “the law of
the harvest.” He doesn’t call it that, but it’s exactly what it is.
Ultimately, whatever you plant in the ground, you will see grow. If you
plant corn, you will grow corn. If you plant a peach tree, eventually,
you will get peaches.
Using the same principle, he challenges the Galatians to keep in mind
whatever they plant in their lives, they will see that grow in their
lives. If they invest themselves in their flesh (the part of us that
actively/passively resists the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives –
see Galatians 5:19-21), they will reap/receive/grow corruption, destruction, & death.
However, if what they invest themselves in is the Spirit’s work in their lives, they will reap/receive/grow LIFE!
That, to me, is great news! God promises that our ‘keeping in step with
the Holy Spirit” will bring about His abundant, overflowing, life – we
will be being transformed in our thoughts, our hearts, & actions.
Ultimately, we will look like Jesus, & be fully equipped to live
doing what Jesus would be doing if He were in our shoes.
So don’t give up! Keep going! You will see the results of saying “Yes” to the Spirit, & “No” to the flesh. Galatians 6:9,10
I’m praying for you – be filled with faith, & live it out by grace!
Blessings, grace, & peace to you!
Louie
Sunday Sep 15, 2013
Sunday Sep 15, 2013
In John 8, Jesus declared that His disciples will remain in, live out, & apply His words... and as a result, they will know the TRUTH & the TRUTH will set them free... Further, whomever Christ sets free, is really, truly FREE. Paul emphasizes this fact in Galatians 5 when he reminds his readers that Jesus' purpose in bringing humanity FREEDOM from sin, condemnation, separation from God, & death was that we would actually LIVE FREE, not
bound by slavery to our flesh (the part of us that actively/passively
resists the work of the Holy Spirit in & around our lives.)
So how do we do this? What could this look like lived out? What are some of the characteristics of LIVING FREE?
Paul calls it, "keeping in step with the Spirit" - in other words,
rather than depending upon our own willpower, abilities, &/or
efforts to do good, instead we embrace the fact that this happens by
grace, through faith. We trust & depend upon the Holy Spirit, the
One who lives within us, moment by moment - believing that He will lead
& guide us in whatever we give ourselves to, day by day, to the
glory of God. The characteristics of LIVING FREE & keeping in step with the Spirit are evident in us, showing up as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, & self-control... The
Spirit builds these God-family-traits into us & they get manifested
as we live everyday looking to do what Jesus would be doing if He were
walking in our shoes...
I'm praying for you today - to LIVE FREE & keep in step with the Holy Spirit!
Blessings, grace, & peace to you!
Louie
Thursday Sep 12, 2013
Thursday Sep 12, 2013
As we’ve been going through our “Amazing Grace” series in the book of
Galatians, I’ve been thinking a lot about the manner in which God has
chosen to reveal Himself to us. He sent Jesus, the Word made flesh (John 1:1,) motivated by His infinite, unconditional love for us (John 3:16).
Further, the purpose Christ came into the world was not to condemn us
or merely point out our sins, but rather to deliver us from them &
establish a means for us to have relationship with God, by grace,
through faith in Him. (John 3:17,18; Ephesians 2:5-8; Romans 6:23.) And it is this action of kindness (Romans 2:4, aka love in action,) that draws us to repentance (a change of mind & action, turning from wrong & turning to God).
Maybe the most amazing thing is that God extends these acts of love
& kindness, grace & mercy so that we can be adopted into His
family as sons & daughters (John 1:12-14; Galatians 4:4-7; 1John
3:1). Not servants. Not even extended family.
His sons. His daughters. Whom He loves. Forgives. Transforms. Lives with by the Holy Spirit who makes His home in us.
Thinking of God as our Father can be a little funky, especially if our
relationship with our human dad didn’t/hasn’t gone so well. However, God
revealing His heart as Father is meant to demonstrate to us His care,
His protection, His working on our behalf, & His acceptance of us as
belonging to Him.
My prayer is that this week, you will experience & know-that-you-know-that-you-know the love of God in your life, & that you walk in the FAITH, GRACE, & CONFIDENCE in Him that His love brings.
Blessings, grace, & peace to you!
Louie
Sunday Sep 01, 2013
Sunday Aug 25, 2013
Sunday Aug 25, 2013
In the letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul discusses the
revelation of relationship with God, by faith, through grace. He had
lived the majority of his life zealously pursuing the traditions of his
forefathers, and the attempted fulfillment of the Law of Moses. What God
showed him on the road to Damascus (Acts 9)
& beyond was that the only way for a person to be justified (made
right) in their relationship with God was by faith, through grace. No
matter how hard a person tried to be made right by their own works and
strict adherence to the Law, they would always fall short (Romans 6:23). Paul even discovered that this had been God's plan all along, as shown in God's covenant agreement with Abraham in Genesis 15, where it says, "Abraham believed (had faith) in the LORD, & He (the LORD God) counted it as righteousness (right relationship with God.) Further, in the Law of Moses (Deuteronomy 10) God
challenged His people not merely to attempt the outward keeping of the
Law, (which meant going to church, praying, maintaining ritual purity,
being circumcised, etc...) but to live lives of faith & devotion to
Him, loving Him with all of their heart, soul, mind, & strength. God wanted ALL of them, not merely sacrifices & rituals. This has huge ramifications for us, as Paul points out in Galatians 2:20-21:
I have been crucified
with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.
And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God,
who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God...
This means when we exercise faith in Christ, we receive God's grace to
live each moment of our life being lead by the in-dwelling Holy Spirit,
by the power of Christ. Which means I'm not following God by rote, but
rather walking with Him, doing what He would be doing if He were in our
shoes! That is a beautiful thing.
Blessings, grace, & peace to you!
Louie
Tuesday Aug 20, 2013
Tuesday Aug 20, 2013
The Apostle Paul begins his letter to the Galatian church with a
greeting intended to remind his readers of the basis for their
relationship & standing with God. He writes, “Grace to you and peace from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins
to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our
God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. Galatians 1:3-5
God’s grace (God’s unmerited, unworked for, unearned favor) is
at the very essence & heart of the gospel – the Good News – which
declares that because of Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, EVERYONE who
calls upon His Name can be forgiven of sins & restored to
relationship with God, through Christ. God’s peace (His blessing of peace, well-being, & physical/spiritual harmony)
is upon our lives as a result of grace, & is at work in, through,
& around our lives as evidence of God’s working in us. The gospel
truly is good news!
In the next portion of Galatians 1, Paul confronts the
church because they have forgotten the gospel of grace by which they
were saved, & have embraced a different ‘gospel’ – one rooted in
religion, guilt, shame which emphasized & evaluated ourrelationship
with God based on performance & deeds instead of the love/faith
relationship intended by God, begun with the victory of Christ’s work on
the cross.
Grace is a big deal - & our embracing God’s amazing grace enables
us to live lives free of the weight of sin, guilt, & condemnation –
to live full of the power of the Holy Spirit, freely embracing the great
gift of salvation, redemption, & transformation as sons &
daughters of God.
Monday Aug 12, 2013
Monday Aug 12, 2013
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall lack nothing. Psalm 23:1
I was reading over Psalm 23 this morning… it’s
familiar. I memorized it when I was small. I know that its good to know
scripture – at the same time, I have found that I have to make sure not
to just know it in my head but to also let it sink to my heart. There’s a
difference.
If it’s in my head, I can recall it, remember it, think about it. And
then when I’m done & off to the next thought, the Scripture goes
back into the file in my head & is put away in its virtual filing
cabinet until the next time I come across it. If it’s in my heart, I
live it. It affects me at the deepest level of my being. It becomes like
a handy-dandy smart phone app, perhaps invisible but still actively
running below the surface, having a definite influence. Back to Psalm 23 – The LORD is my shepherd; I shall lack nothing.
David wrote it – he GOT it at a gut level – he had
been a shepherd, & he knew intimately of the similarities between
what he had done, & what God did with him on a daily basis. So
David’s declaration of The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want, is a
faith statement – rooted in thankfulness – contentment. There was
nothing that God had not, did not, would not make sure that David would
get if he was in need. And from his self-assessment, he wasn’t lacking
anything.
This hit me hard. The LORD is MY shepherd. He is the One who cares
& provides for, protects, directs, instructs, heals, & feeds –
ME. But when I read the second part after the ; the I shall not want, I
realized there were/are areas in me where the ugly stuff resides –
rather that being able to see where God is shepherding me well, &
that I am not in lack, want, or need – instead, my soul is striving;
discontent; frustrated; needy; ungrateful; blind to God’s faithful &
miraculous care for me.
Ouch. All that, revealed in a moment. I know Psalm 23.
But is it in my heart today? I repent. Reorient. Return. Ask my
shepherd to pick the thorns & stickers from my soul. Right now I
intentionally choose thankfulness. Contentment. Gratefulness. Awareness
of God’s work in & around me & mine. The LORD is my shepherd; I
shall lack nothing. And I mean it.
Thursday Aug 08, 2013
Thursday Aug 08, 2013
This week, our guest speaker is Chris White, Pastor of UTurn Carson City Youth...
Sunday Jul 28, 2013
Sunday Jul 28, 2013
We stand firm.
Paul wraps up his letter to the Ephesian church
with a solemn reminder: on our mission from God, we have enemies
actively looking to sabotage us, oppose us at every turn, & attempt
to take us out. These enemies are not people, political rivals, or
military adversaries; rather, they are identified as the devil & the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
So, what are Paul’s instructions for us to follow so we can endure in the face of such opposition?
Be strong in the Lord & in the power of His might. Put on the whole
armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the
devil… Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.
He reminds us that our source of strength & power, as well as our
ability to stand firm in the face of opposition, is firmly rooted in our
faith in & dependence upon Christ. Paul uses the mental picture of a
fully armed & armored Roman soldier as a means of communicating the
ways we are prepare ourselves for the daily onslaught of evil.
We do this when we stand firmly in truth, holding fast against the
lies, imaginations, deceptions, & alternate realities/futures
confronting us. We stand righteously, doing right, living in a holy
manner, repenting of our sin/wrong-doing, & rejecting indecency
& dishonor. We stand in the peace that comes from the Good News of
the gospel, which is a stark contrast to the chaos & conflict of the
world around us. We stand on faith, reliant & assured that the One
we put our trust in, Christ, parries every attack of fear & doubt
the enemy launches at us. We stand confident in our salvation by Christ,
knowing that He is bringing us to wholeness: body, soul, mind, &
spirit. We stand on God’s Word, the Scriptures, which transform our
hearts and minds, exposing lies, imaginations, & attacks of the evil
one. We stand in prayer, empowered, filled, & led by the Holy
Spirit for every area of life.
We stand in the strength of the
LORD & the power of His might. And when the day of evil comes, we
will STILL be standing firm.
Sunday Jul 14, 2013
Sunday Jul 14, 2013
As we've been trekking through Ephesians over the last several weeks, one of my takeaways has been that we Christ-followers are on a mission from God, & each of us are called to live for the praise of His glory in our local context - looking to do good... Basically, as Jesus' representatives, our role to do & be what Jesus would be "doing & being" if He were in our shoes. As I have been thinking through the WHENs, WHEREs, & HOWs to live out my mission, I found that I was thinking in abstracts, not about specific relationships where I can "do good." Fortunately, the section of Ephesians we're looking at this week gets up close & personal about this, & challenges us to start with our 'common relationships' e.g. the people we interact with the most, including (but not limited to) our spouse, kids, co-workers, bosses, family, & friends. As I re-read this passage, I am convicted & challenged - it doesn't do any good for me to do some seemingly great thing in Christ's Name if I am being a tool to my wife, frustrating/provoking my kids, slacking at work, & disrespecting my boss, etc... To live incongruently like that undermines the mission I've been entrusted with & drags my (& Jesus'!) name & reputation through the mud. Instead, I want to take the time & expend the effort to be the best man, husband, father, friend, & employee I can be - because the people I interact with in those situations are worth it. And, one day, I will stand before God to give an account of how I lived... I have a feeling that He's not going to start asking about the mission trips I went on, or the people I led to Christ. I believe He will start with asking about how I lived my mission with my wife. Kids. Friends.... you get the idea...