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.

I don’t really hear voices in my head in the audible sense. Mostly, I just hear music all the time. Sometimes, I catch myself singing the most random songs from out of nowhere that have nothing to do with anything in my life and that I haven’t heard on the radio in years. Where do those come from?

I do know voices in my head, though. I have plenty of experience with that. You know, the voices that tell you you’re really not good enough. That you don’t have anything to offer anyone and the world would be better off without you. That one day the people will find out what you’re really like and bail on you. Those are a few of the many voices out there.

I think the devil can speak into your head and make it sound like your own thoughts. Like you’re the one who’s down on yourself, when really it’s not even you speaking. Or worse yet, the devil can sometimes sound in your own mind like the Holy Spirit, but instead of convicting, he condemns.

No matter how many voices are speaking, only One matters. That voice belongs to God. He alone has the right and authority to speak into your life. And what does He say? Is His voice any different than the multitude of others? I answer with a most emphatic YES!

If you are in Christ, God says that when He sees you, He sees Christ. He is telling you right now that you are covered in Christ’s blood, and that makes you pure and righteous and holy. He sees perfect obedience, not your own shameful record of screwing up. He sees you not as messed-up and broken, but as a beautiful masterpiece that He created. He’s not angry with you or waiting for you to fall so He can smite you. He is perfectly pleased with you. All because of Jesus.

Listen to that One voice. In the night, He will sing over you. In the day, He will speak to you through sunrises, soft breezes, texts from friends, unexpected calls, smiles from strangers, and most of all through His Word. All the condemnation that you once deserved fell on Christ on the cross and now you have been made worthy through the blood to be an co-heir with Christ– that is, to share in His blessings and privileges.

When the other voices try to drown out His voice, you speak the blood against them and remind the ones speaking that they no longer have the right or authority to speak into your life anymore. Only One does. The One who is singing and rejoicing over you right now. God.

Amen and amen.

He came to Nazareth where he had been reared. As he always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place. When he stood up to read, he was handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written, God’s Spirit is on me; he’s chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to set the burdened and battered free, to announce, “This is God’s year to act!” He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in, “You’ve just heard Scripture make history. It came true just now in this place” (Luke 4:17-21, The Message).

I love the idea that those who are in Christ are set free and released. That’s what it means to be forgiven. To have that awful weight lifted, to have that sentence of death hanging over your head removed once and for all, to have the jail cell door opened and to walk through it, never looking back.

You never have to be a slave to fear and doubt again. You never have to worry about your standing with God anymore. He looks at you and sees all the purity and righteousness and blamelessness of Jesus in you, because He sees Jesus in you. He sees the blood of Jesus over you.

If you are truly set free and believe that you are set free, you won’t go handing the burden of rules and moral codes down to others. You won’t look down on them or condemn them or nitpick them in their struggles. You proclaim to them that liberty has arrived and freedom is here. You show them by your own lifestyle and testimony what that liberty and freedom look like. You encourage and bless them and rejoice for them when they find that they too have been set free by Jesus.

Can you feel the weight lifting? The fears losing their grip and the doubts fading? If you are in Christ, you are a new creation, and that new creation is just as holy and righteous as Jesus, because the blood declares it! You don’t have to understand it or grasp all the nuances of it. All you have to do is believe it and receive it. That’s all.

Amen and amen.