Take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. I don’t see many of “the brightest and the best” among you, not many influential, not many from high-society families. Isn’t it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women that the culture overlooks and exploits and abuses, chose these “nobodies” to expose the hollow pretensions of the “somebodies”? That makes it quite clear that none of you can get by with blowing your own horn before God. Everything that we have—right thinking and right living, a clean slate and a fresh start—comes from God by way of Jesus Christ. That’s why we have the saying, “If you’re going to blow a horn, blow a trumpet for God” (1 Corinthians 1:26-31, The Message).

This  blog was inspired by both Bill Wellons and Mike Glenn. Thanks to both of them for being faithful stewards of God’s Word.

Back in Jesus’ day, most other disciples were men who were the cream of the crop, so to speak. They were the very finest, brightest. Those who were the elite, those who survived when many did not and went back home to learn their fathers’ trades. They became the rabbis that everyone looked up to, the who’s who of their day.

But not so with Jesus. He chose people like Peter. Peter, the uneducated fisherman who had been eliminated for the possiblitiy of discipleship long ago. Peter, who when He saw Jesus’ authority over nature and, in this case, fish, fell down and declared himself an unworthy sinner. Jesus chose a tax-collector, two zealots, and other fisherman, among others. No one that had any of the credentials to be a disciple.

What Jesus essentially told Peter (and what He tells us his children today) is that He wants us just like we are. Who you are right now is good enough for Jesus to use and you admitting your sinfulness qualifies you best for a relationship with Him. He wants your mess to become your message (taken from another pastor who faithfully preaches God’s Word).

Jesus saw you struggling with your chains and bondage and saw your broken heart. He called you and loved you as you were right then. He took your place, took your chains and your bondage and sin, and bore them to an instrument of torture called a Cross where He paid your debt once and for all, making  you forever free.

So, I’m thankful Jesus chose me. I’m equally glad He chose you. Neither one of us deserved to be called or had earned it, yet here we are due to the grace of God. Let our response, our worship, be to give our lives back to Him for Him to use however and whenever and wherever He wants. Let the only song we sing be one of a heart that’s been set free! Believe that Jesus loves you and His love is changing you. Believe that God looks at you and sees Jesus. Let your life from here on out be a living hymn of gratitude and thanksgiving.

Amen and amen!

I personally think knowledge is way 0ver-rated. All that book learnin’ so you can learn to speak English good and to spell korrectly. Who needs it? Have you ever met one of those people who are so stinkin’ smart that they have gone past common sense and being able to tie their own shoelaces? Seriously.

I do think that there’s a whole lot I don’t know. You could fill entire libraries with all the stuff I don’t know. I’m okay with that. After all, it’s not what you know but Who you know that will get you where you need to be in life. And God knows everything (including all my junk, yet He loves me still).

I don’t know why God loves me like He does or why He still loves me when He has had many reasons to quit. I don’t know why He blesses me like He does. I certainly don’t know why He chose me out of all the people in the world, but I know He did. I don’t know where I am being led in this life, but I know and trust the One leading me (thanks, Oswald Chambers for that one!)

I don’t always know what to say or how to act in social settings. I have created many awkward moments with my lack of social grace. But I know that when I most need it, the Holy Spirit puts the words in my mouth just as He did for the early leaders when they spoke before kings. And He gives me very gracious and forgiving friends who look past my sometimes social nerdiness.

I do know that Jesus is madly in love with me and won’t let me go.  I know God looks at me and sees Jesus and thinks that’s pretty awesome. He sees all the perfection of Jesus when He sees me. I do know that no matter how rocky or winding the road I’m on can be, it will get me Home. I know that Jesus won’t just just me the way; He is the Way.

I don’t know whether 2 or 500 people will read this, but I know that I have to share what God puts on my heart, even if it’s only for me. I know that when my blog is long gone, when I am long gone, when my name is forgotten, God will still be faithful and true. And that will end the day after never.

Amen and amen!

Remember the dream where you show up to class and find out there’s a test that day that you haven’t studied for? Remember how glad you were to wake up from that dream? That actually happened to me in my college Spanish class. The sad part was that I probably did better on that test that I didn’t study for than all the ones I actually prepared for.

Are you like me in that most of the time you walk around your world thinking that everybody else is so organized and has all their stuff together and has all figured out. That everyone else has secret knowledge that you’re missing? Like there was a class that every single other person went to, but you overslept because you were too busy dreaming about unexpected tests?

The truth as I am learning it is this. You aren’t nearly the only one who doesn’t have life figured out. Not even close. Some may be better at hiding their dysfunctions and confusions, but every single person struggles with their lives and what they’re doing and why they’re doing it.

The sad part is that we’re taught to project our best self. We have it instilled in us to never admit weaknesses, but pretend like we’re always strong, always brave, always calm. The result is that we never see anyone else struggling and think we’re all alone in our mess. We never get the joy of sharing in each other’s burdens and lifting each other to God in prayer. Most of all, we never get to find out how strong Jesus can be in us if we never boast in our weakness as Paul did in 1 Corinthians.

No, you are not alone. You are not a mistake. You may feel like you’re hopelessly messed up and broken, but God sees a place where He can shine brightest. God sees what you’re becoming (and what you already are since He’s declared you to be holy and perfect and blameless). He looks at you and sees something precious, worth dying for.

So be strong enough to admit your weaknesses. Be brave enough to show your fear. Be honest enough to confess the sham you’ve lived and all the masks you’ve been wearing. Love people as they are, not as how you hope they will be. Let the love of Christ fill you and spill out into your world. Because His love alone can heal and make whole and set you free. His love alone can transform the object into something like Himself. And that’s what we’re all hoping for. To be like Christ.

Amen and amen.

I haven’t done a book report in a really long time. For the record, this isn’t going to be a book report in the strictest sense of the word, but I was feeling nostalgic when I came up with my blog title.

I’ll be honest. I wasn’t overly impressed when I started the book. There wasn’t much I hadn’t read before, but the further I went in, the more I liked what I read. Pete Wilson is open and honest about his own struggles and admits with equal frankness that he doesn’t have all the answers or even that there are always answers to be had.

I think the main takeaway for me is this: when life detours from your plan and when your dreams die and your own plans fail, God is sufficient. He only takes away when He’s about to give you something better. His silences are a way of saying that you’re not ready for what He’s getting ready to tell you.

My own life has felt like a plan B at times. My life is nothing like I thought it would be at this point when I was younger. I’m not married, or even close. I’m not in my dream career. I’m definitely not in my dream home. But my view of God is much bigger now than it was then and my gratitude for all He has done is so much greater. I am way more awed and amazed at His grace now and at how much I deserve hell, but get mercy instead.

I am finding out daily that God is faithful and true and that His promises are as good as done. God has put people in my life that inspire and encourage and bless me every time I see them. And the best part of all is that He’s changing me daily to look moore like Him. Partly I know because I can see it and because others tell me they can see it, but mostly because God tells me He’s doing it and He can already see the final result.

So go buy Plan B by Pete Wilson. Here’s the link (see how easy I’m making it for you?)  http://www.amazon.com/Plan-What-Doesnt-Thought-Would/dp/0849946506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1301971062&sr=1-1

And then read it. I can almost guarantee you won’t be disappointed. And you’ll fall love with the God who is sovereign even in the plan Bs of your life. Praise Him because He’s has given you His word that He will finish what He started in you and He won’t EVER give up on you.

Amen and amen.

This is the kingdom of God and how you know it is breaking through. . . .

when those who have been blind their whole lives can see, whether that means actual sightless eyes seeing for the first time or those blind to God’s presence suddenly seeing Him everywhere.

when those who have been lame are running and leaping and dancing for joy for their God and King, Jesus.

when those who are orphans find they have families and those who are widows find a love much greater than the one they lost and the ones thrown aside finding that they matter much more than they ever realized.

when daughters turn again to their mothers and sons to their fathers, and when walls come down and when healing and reconciliation begin. Where families come together in the name of Christ and what was hopelessly and irrevocably torn down is rebuilt stronger than ever.

when broken hearts are made whole and shattered lives are put together again. Where scars and wounds tell not of shame and defeat, but of triumph and victory.

when fingers point not at one another in accusation, but toward heaven and toward the King of Kings in acknowledgment that He is Lord and we are but His slaves with no rights but filled with His grace given daily.

when what was impossible becomes reality, the lost become found, the torn becomes mended, and the brokenhearted cry becomes an eternal Hallelujah.

This is the Kingdom of God. You and me finding our voices, finding out that we are as pure and righteous and holy as Christ because of His own shed blood. Where we lift up the name of Jesus and show people not more rules or moral codes or judgment, but grace and forgiveness and love that never lets go or gives up or backs down. Where truth reigns supreme, regardless of whether it’s popular or trendy.

The Kingdom of God is coming and at the same time, the Kingdom of God is already here. May your hearts rest in this– that you are in Christ and His love won’t stop captivating and transforming you until the day you stand before Him whole and healed and complete. Until the day you look exactly like Him. Then your faith will become sight, your hope reality. Then you will know fully how much you were eternally and unconditionally loved by the God who made you.

Amen and amen.

First of all, I am not a fan of politics at all. Both sides tend to grate on my nerves. And I’m certain that the problems our country are facing are spiritual in nature and need spiritual answers, not political ones. We don’t need a new set of politicians in office nearly as much as we need revival.

I personally think that the blame starts and ends with us. We can’t really blame lost people for acting lost or sinners for sinning. It’s their nature. We on the other hand have a lot less excuse for professing our faith with our lips, but denying it with our lifestyle. Between our hypocrisy and our hyper-judgmentalism, it’s no wonder we have so little impact on our culture, for the most part. And there are exceptions all around.

But this is not another church-bashing blog. This is about Jesus being patient with His Bride and how one day He will come back and set everything right again, including us. I love how C.S. Lewis stated that the Rightful King has landed and has invited us on a campaign of sabotage. Right now, we as believers are the minority and the truth we speak is decidedly not the current trend. The tempation will always be to water down the message or leave out the more divisive parts. But when we do that, we’re presenting a different gospel. One that’s not a gospel at all.

The Gospel is that we are all screwed up sinners who deserve hell but can get Jesus instead. We don’t get a new rulebook to follow or a new moral code. We get the blood of Jesus speaking over us and declaring us as holy and righteous (that is, in right standing with God). We get life to the full both now and in the life to come.

A friend of mine made a wise comment. Don’t assume that those around you know Christ or the Gospel just because they’re in a church-related activity. Make sure those around you know that the Gospel isn’t about being a better you, but Jesus making you into a brand new you.

As for dogs, I like ’em. I like both cats AND dogs, Coke AND Pepsi, GM AND Ford, and I defy you to make me choose one or the other. I like coffee, too, but I like it well disguised, with lots of cream and sugar and other added ingredients. They call those lattes, I’m told. And I like them a latte.

In the end, I’m mostly a fan of grace, both for receiving it for myself (which I do very well) and for extending it to others (which I don’t do nearly as well on). Grace means not jumping to conclusions based on a few facts and it means believing the best about people. Grace is why I’m alive, so I kinda have to like it, right?

Amen and amen.