Are you satisfied with your current knowledge?

Let me ask you a question - just how computer savvy are you? We are living in a generation where we are constantly interacting with our computers, smart phones and PDAs. I know that there are some computer all-stars out there. Some of you are proficient with every program and every software that your computer has installed. But even as computer savvy as our culture is becoming I would still guess that those computer all-stars are the exceptions and not the norm. I would guess that a very high percentage of individuals are just like me. We have some familiarity with one or two types of software and we can navigate around those programs pretty well, but when it comes to the rest of the stuff on our computers we have no power to do anything productive whatsoever. For me, I feel like I have a pretty good grip on Microsoft Word, but that's it. When I try to use anything else I often end up feeling completely helpless. I can make a Power Point presentation but I can guarantee you that it won't be a cool one. In fact most of you would probably laugh at its lameness. I can use Excel to make a pretty mean looking chart but anyone involved in math or finance would shake their heads at me in shame when they realized how little I can do in that program. And I have some software on my computer called Microsoft Publisher, but honestly, I'm afraid to even open it. I know that there are lots of people out there who use that program to create some great stuff, but I've never tried to use it. Here's the fact:

I can't harness the power of these programs because I don't know anything about them.

The knowledge is there to be gained. All of these programs have 'help' tabs that could assist me in learning the software. There are also tutorials and books available that I could use you learn the programs better. If I would take the time to learn about them or if I had someone to teach me about them then I too would be able to do some really fantastic things with them. But until I have that knowledge the power of those programs is useless to me.

So here is my real problem: the reason that I cannot do anything productive with those programs is because I am not learning about them or because I am satisfied with what I have already learned about them.

So what's the point? Why am I talking about computers on a blog that is supposed to be about the church and christian growth? 2 Peter 1:3 has the answer.

" . . . seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him . . . "

I recently finished writing sermons on 2 Peter 1:1-2 and 2 Peter 1:3-4. As Peter begins this letter to a group of believers it is amazing how much important material he packs into the first four verses. But this portion of verse three was particularly challenging to me. The point of verses 3 and 4 is that Christ has made some incredible provisions for believers so that we can live new and godly lives. One of those provisions is His divine power. That's one of those things that we really have to stop and meditate on - Jesus provides for us a power beyond our own to live a new and godly life - His own power. (Spend some time thinking about that. It's a really amazing concept that we all too often take for granted.) But notice that this divine power we need for everything pertaining to life and godliness is provided to us "through the true knowledge of Him."

Allow me to make an observation and then to pose a question. First let me be clear that divine power to live a new and godly life is only available to believers. Peter makes it clear in his introduction (verse 1) that he is writing to those who have put their faith and trust in Christ. In addition to that it is important to point out that "true knowledge" of Christ Jesus is far more than just an intellectual knowledge of Him. The "true knowledge" of Jesus is a knowledge that comes through a growing relationship with Jesus and the presence of the Holy Spirit in one's life. "True knowledge" of Jesus cannot be obtained apart from the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit revealing it to believers and helping them to grow in their relationship with Him. Without faith in Christ and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirt one's knowledge of Jesus will be at best unclear and blurred. If you have put your faith in Christ then the Holy Spirit is dwelling within you and He can help to guide you to the true knowledge of Jesus which grants you access to His divine power to live a new and godly life.

The question we must ask ourselves then becomes a very crucial question: "Are we tapping into all of the divine power that is available to us to live a new and godly life because we are continuing to grow in our knowledge of and walk with Christ?" OR "Are we stagnant in this new life we have been given because we are choosing not to grow in our walk with Jesus because we are satisfied with what we already know of Him?" It is a lot like the computer software problem I struggle with. I can't harness the power of the programs because I don't have a knowledge of the programs. In the same way, we can't use the divine power of Christ to help us live a godly life if we do not know Him well and are not walking with Him closely. Unfortunately many believers are satisfied with their knowledge of Christ and their current walk with Him. They have no desire to continue growing in their knowledge of Him or to grow deeper in their relationship with Him because they are comfortable where they are.

When I think about the greatness of my Savior and how deeply He has loved me and how sacrificially He has given of Himself for me, I don't ever want to become satisfied with how much I know of Him. I want to know Him more fully and walk more closely with Him. But that takes a lot of effort. It takes setting aside consistent times for studying His word and prayer. It takes consistent times of evaluation to determine if we are spending too much time and effort loving and learning about the things of this world. And it takes consistent efforts of putting what we are learning into practice. Do you remember what James says in his letter? "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was." Practicing what we learn is the best way to remember what we have learned and to grow in our knowledge. When we don't practice what we learn we are very likely to forget it.

When we grow in our knowledge of Christ and in our walk with Him, and when we put into practice the things we have learned from Scripture, then we'll have divine power for everything pertaining to life and godliness. Let's pray that we never become stagnant in this new life that we have been given because we choose not to grow in our walk with Jesus because we feel like we are satisfied with what we already know of Him.

Are You Imploring Christ to Leave?

I read a verse the other day that really bothered me. A verse that made me hurt for a small place called “the country of the Gadarenes.” In Matthew chapter 8, beginning in verse 28, the disciple of Jesus tells us that Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee and entered “into the country of the Gadarenes.” Matthew tells us that Jesus was met there by two demon-possessed men who were extremely violent. The demons began a dialogue with Jesus in which they recognize His authority over them. Notice two things about their dialogue. First, that they have an understanding of a future torment in store for them which Jesus will bring about. Second, that they have no power to remain in a place from which Jesus casts them out. They didn’t say to Jesus, “You can try to cast us out, but we’re not going. We plan on remaining in these two men and continuing to carry out our own desires through them.” These two demons recognized Jesus’ authority over them and could only ask Him to direct them into the herd of pigs. Upon Jesus’ consent and command the demons left the two men, entered the pigs, and the whole herd of pigs committed suicide – running down a steep bank and into the water. Verse 33 says that the men who were herding the pigs ran into the city and reported all that had taken place, (and this is important) “including what had happened to the demoniacs.” The men didn’t just report to the city that Jesus had come into their region and at his arrival all of their pigs had committed suicide. The men reported that Jesus had cast out the demons. And then the verse that really bothered me:

“And behold, the whole city came out to Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region.”

Think about that for a moment. An entire city of individuals, all of whom were held captive by sin, came out to the only One who could redeem them and liberate them from their sin and their guilt, and they begged and pleaded with Him to leave. The One who had just demonstrated His power over the ruler of this world was turned away. The people in the city were more comfortable with the presence of two extremely violent, demon-possessed men than they were with the presence of Jesus. Reading that makes my heart hurt for those people.

But then I got the sense that God was asking me a question: “Matt, aren’t there times when you turn Me away?” And my immediate response to Him was “No, God! That would be crazy! Why would I ever want to turn You and Your presence in my life, my family, my ministry or any other part of my life away?” And then I felt like God asked me one more question: “But Matt, you know all of those times that you go about life, family, and ministry on your own; all those times when you attempt to do things in your own strength; all of those times when you are comfortable just keeping the status quo and managing things without ever calling on me to do the supernatural. Could it be that you are really communicating to Me that you are comfortable with things as they are and that you really don’t want the change that my presence might bring to the circumstances in your life?” That was a tough question. The reality of it is, when I got honest with myself, is that I couldn’t say to God that I was imploring Him to invade every area of my life, family, and ministry. I wasn’t actively asking God to leave, but the truth is, is that my lack of dependency on Him in essence seemed to be communicating that I didn’t need Him around. And that was gut wrenching. The idea that my lack of dependency on God and my lack of pleading with Him to come into every area of my life and make a difference on a daily basis might actually be communicating to Him the same thing that this city was imploring Jesus to do was nothing short of frightening.

The next verse, the first verse of chapter nine, is another scary verse. “Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the sea and came to His own city.” Jesus honored the request of this city. They asked Him to leave and He did. He took His presence, His power, and His life giving words and departed. I don't believe that God takes salvation from those who have truly trusted in Him, but it seems that for those who are not interested in a having a sense of His presence, His power, or His influence, He will and does take those things away.

So then how should we be living? It looks like the next several verses in chapter 9 help to give us some ideas. In verse two of chapter nine we find men bringing a paralytic to Jesus. These men seem to have a completely different outlook than did those from the country of the Gadarenes. The people from the country of the Gadarenes did not want the change that Christ could and would bring to their community. They seemed to have been content with the way things were. The men bringing the paralytic had a different idea. One had come into their town who could do the supernatural and they weren’t going to settle for anything less. And rather than waiting for Christ to come to them they set off seeking Him and implored Him to do the supernatural in their lives. Verse two tells us that Jesus saw their faith. He saw their faith on display when they brought this man to Him and made their request to Him, believing that He could heal Him. Then Christ does His greatest act of healing first by proclaiming that his sins had been forgiven. He follows that up by bringing physical healing and restoration to the life of the paralytic. These men recognized their need for Christ, sought Him out, asked Him to do the supernatural, and He did! Does that sound like a couple of guys not interested in change because they were comfortable with the way things were? Matthew follows that account up with his first personal encounter with Christ, beginning in verse nine of chapter nine. Jesus said to Matthew, “Follow me.” Matthew’s response wasn’t “That’s alright. I’m good. I’ll catch up with you another time.” Matthew says he got up and followed Him. And in the next verse we see that all of his buddies had come over and were hanging out with Jesus too. Doesn’t sound like a community disinterested in the presence of Christ among them. We notice that when the Pharisees come on the scene they questioned what Jesus was doing because it did not seem proper for Him to be spending time with a crowd of tax collectors and sinners, but Jesus’ response is incredibly important: “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick . . . for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Jesus says that His primary reason for coming was to bring salvation to sinners.

So allow me to share some points of application that I’m going to try to make in my own life. (1) I want to be resolved to never communicate to Christ, either actively or passively, that I do not want His life changing presence in my life, family, community, etc. (2) I want to recognize Christ’s ultimate purpose in coming every day – that He came to call sinners. (3) Then I want to do the opposite of what those individuals in the country of the Gadarenes did. I want Him to see my faith as I beg and plead with Him that He would come into my community and bring about the supernatural change that only He can bring and then expect Him to do it. I want to implore Him to save lost people and I want to ask myself constantly if there is a lost individual that I am trying to carry to Christ, like the men carrying the paralytic did. I want to be resolved not to get so comfortable with where I am personally, and in my family life, and in my ministry that I begin to do things in my own strength. Rather I want to be daily imploring Christ to continue to do a radical work in those areas so that I am transformed more into His image, so that my family reflects better the image of Christ, and so that my ministry will continue to build up God’s Kingdom. I am convinced that Christ’s presence in our lives and the supernatural work that He can do, although it may bring change, will be far better than the status quo in which neither His presence nor His power is there. My prayer is that you will be convinced of the same thing and that you will daily implore Christ to do the same in your life.

Talk to Yourself More

My goal for the Escalate blog is to primarily publish my own thoughts and ideas. And yet I am humble enough to admit that there is a vast multitude of men and women whose thoughts and ideas are far more valuable and profitable than my own. With that in mind, I may occasionally post someone else's thoughts, especially if I have found them to be profitable to my own edification. That way you can get an idea of some of the insights that are helping to shape and mold me, and hopefully be encouraged and shaped by them yourself. The following passage is from a book I recently finished by C.J. Mahaney called Humility: True Greatness.

"This is simply a strategy for taking control of the thoughts we allow in our mind. In his excellent book Spiritual Depression, Martin Lloyd-Jones asked, 'Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?' That's profound, and it's true.
Take a moment to review and examine your pattern of thinking from yesterday. Did you spend more time speaking truth to yourself, or was most of your time spent listening to yourself? Most of us spend more time listening to lies than we do speaking truth to ourselves. And the listening process usually starts as soon as we get up. The alarm has rudely interrupted the gift of sleep, and the listening begins. As we stumble through our morning routine, we're not directing the thoughts in our mind - we're simply at their mercy. We entertain complaints about what happened yesterday or worries about what's coming today. We look in the bathroom mirror and assess the damage, then brood over how we feel. We're not in charge of our thinking. We're just there."
- Mahaney, C.J. Humility: True Greatness. (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2005) pgs. 69-70.

Does C.J. hit the nail on the head, or what? How often is Satan actively whispering lies to us while we sit passively by and listen? It's time we start recognizing how harmful those thoughts can be and stop listening to ourselves.

When Satan whispers, "No one cares about you," are you listening? If you listen to that your thoughts will continue down the wrong path. You'll start thinking to yourself, "Maybe that's true. My family members are disinterested and aren't supportive of what I do; my friends don't ever call me, I always have to call them. In fact I can't think of anyone who sincerely cares." When you hear those thoughts you have to stop listening and start speaking truth. Tell yourself, "God cares for me. In fact He loves me so much He sent His Son to die on my behalf, to redeem me and to reconcile me to Himself. I am loved! I am cared for! Scripture cannot speak more clearly on this matter."
When Satan whispers, "You aren't valuable and you'll never do anything of worth," stop listening. Speak truth to yourself instead. Remind yourself that your value isn't determined by what you accomplish today, this week, or throughout the course of your life. Your value is determined by who you are in Christ! In Christ, I am a child of the King, and a co-heir with Christ. I am valuable not because of who I am, but because of whose I am!
When Satan whispers, "You would be happier if you would commit that sin," stop listening. Remind yourself that although you may think there is temporary pleasure in participating in that sin, it will never truly satisfy you. Truth says that only Jesus can satisfy us. Scripture says we have been set free from the captivity and power of sin, which really only condemns and separates us from God. Growing in and walking in Christ is what brings the greatest joy and pleasure."

We can no longer accept the practice of sitting idly by and listening to the thoughts that fill our hearts and mind. Instead we need to actively be speaking truth to ourselves to make sure our minds are fixed on truth and not led astray by Satan's deceptions. I hope this will encourage you to start giving more consideration to your thoughts and help you to be more active in talking to yourself throughout each day.

Does God's Patience Move You to Praise?

It seems that most people have a natural bent towards wanting to see those who are wrong experience justice. Wouldn’t you agree? Consider some examples: You’re driving down the road and someone driving recklessly cuts in front of you and nearly causes you to get into an accident. For most of us our normal reaction is to hope that maybe just down the road a state trooper will be observing traffic and will pull him over and give him what he deserves. Or maybe you’ve heard on the news or read an article about a famous athlete or celebrity having committed a crime. Most of us have seen enough examples of this to believe that the athlete or celebrity involved will probably go unpunished or at worst get a light slap on the wrist. But at the same time most of us are also wishing deep down that for once the individual’s money or status would not be taken into consideration and that he would be punished just like any normal individual would be if he had committed the same crime.
A healthy desire for justice isn’t a bad thing. Our God is a just God, which means that His character requires justice to be done. When we have a healthy desire for justice it demonstrates that we have an understanding of right and wrong and it can demonstrate that we are growing in godliness. A healthy desire for justice can also stir us to action so that we defend those who are weak or less capable. A healthy desire for justice can truly lead to great good. But the problem is that our sinful nature often gets in the way and can subtly move our healthy desire for justice into an unhealthy attitude towards others (or worse – God, Himself).
The unfortunate situation, if the truth be told, is most of us who are believers (in reality probably all of us who are believers) have probably experienced at one time or another frustration with God because of a situation in which we felt like God was not dealing justly with someone who we perceived to be in the wrong. We observed a pattern of words, thoughts, or actions of an individual which was inconsistent with godly character and recognized a need for justice. But after a few days there was no evidence of God exercising His justice. A few days turned to weeks, and a few weeks turned to months, and still there was no evidence of God exercising His justice. We understood that biblical principles had been violated because we have evidence of that in His Word, and yet God did not seem at all concerned about exercising His justice. Not understanding what was going on we became confused. God’s heart, revealed in His Word, says that what was taking place was displeasing to Him and yet the only One who was capable of carrying out justice wasn’t doing anything. Our confusion turned to frustration, and our frustration to anger. Have you ever been in that place? I sure have. So what can be done to turn that unhealthy frustration and anger into something more healthy and edifying?
When we don’t feel that justice is being served, rather than becoming consumed with the particulars of the situation, we need to be focused on the character of our God. Why? Because if we look beyond the situation to the character of our God then what we will most likely see on display is God’s great patience. Examine Scripture and you will find that one of the character traits of God is patience. Here are just a few examples from the New Testament:
· “Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” - Romans 2:4
· “What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?” - Romans 9:22
· “Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.” - 1 Timothy 1:16
· “. . . who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.” - 1 Peter 3:20
· “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” - 2 Peter 3:9
Although God requires justice, because of His great love for us and for His creation He often waits patiently before exercising it. He wants people to recognize the errors they have made and the sins they have committed and to repent from them and to turn back to Him. He longs for us to be in right relationship with Him and so there are times in which He extends great patience and mercy to us. I could give you numerous examples of times in which I believe God showed me great patience, times when there was a continual bitterness of heart, or times when I persisted in a wrong attitude. But the greatest example I could give would be the years of my life I spent as an unbeliever, living in sin and pursuing only that which brought me pleasure. I was very fortunate to come to Christ at the age of 8, but understand that those 8 years of my life were 8 years in which I was guilty of sin, having no concern or love for Christ, and in which I was unable to do anything for His praise or His glory. The sins that I committed in those 8 years were deserving of God’s condemnation and wrath. God could have taken me out and condemned me to an eternity in hell and He would have been completely justified in doing so. But He was patient with me, giving me opportunities to hear and to read the truth communicated in His word, to repent of my sin, and to turn to Him. And now, because of His great patience I have received salvation and have new life in Him. I have a gift that I am completely undeserving of and which I never would have had an opportunity to receive without the patience shown to me.
When you realize that God’s patience has been shown to you and you realize the tremendous impact that it has made in your life, you should be moved to praise Him for it. His patience in your life should fill your heart with gratitude and thanksgiving and you should praise Him for that. But this isn’t just true for your own personal life. When you see God’s patience extended to others it should also move your heart to praise. The natural reaction is to want to see His justice exercised in the lives of others. But challenge yourself to see God’s patience on display in the lives of others and then let that remind you of God’s great patience in your own life and allow that to stir in your heart praise for Him. When we can rid ourselves of unhealthy attitudes toward God and choose instead to see His greatness and glory on display, we can grow in our relationship with Him, rather than putting harmful stumbling blocks in our way.

Do You Wear a Helmet When You Eat a Sandwich?

Our three year old daughter has a great memory. Often times she will remember things that have happened in the past and will want to bring them up for discussion to see if we remember the same things. This happened the other day at lunch. A few days after Christmas members of my extended family got together to celebrate Christmas with one another. At the get together my youngest cousin who is just a little older than our daughter was there with some roller skates and her helmet. Well of course our daughter wanted to try and after putting on the skates and the helmet gave it a very valiant effort. For whatever reason, the other day at lunch she wanted to have a discussion about the helmet she wore while roller skating in my grandparents driveway. She began the conversation by asking me if I remembered the helmet which she had worn while rollerskating. I told her that I did. Then she asked me why she had to wear the helmet. I explained that it was because she was rollerskating and the helmet would have protected her head if she had fallen on the driveway. Then she began to ask me about several other activities which might possibly require wearing a helmet. She asked if she had to wear a helmet while riding in the wagon. She asked if she had to wear a helmet while riding her bike. But the last question was the best. With peanut butter and jelly sandwich in hand and a look of genuine seriousness she asked, "Daddy, do I wear a helmet when I'm eating a sandwich?" (What she was really asking was, "Do I have to wear a helmet when I'm eating a sandwich?" but she's three and so the actual wording she used was the original quote.) The visual made me laugh out loud - the mental image of my daughter sitting at the table with a bright pink helmet on eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich cracked me up. Apparently my laughing caused her to laugh too and so for the next few moments we shared a great laugh together. Then when I had composed myself I explained to my daughter that "No, you don't have to wear a helmet when you are eating a sandwich."

Later that afternoon I began to wonder if I had missed a teaching opportunity and had given my daughter the wrong answer. In the book of Ephesians, Paul is writing to the believers at Ephesus and beginning in verse 10 of chapter 6 he gives a very important command to all believers in Christ. Paul writes "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able stand firm against the schemes of the devil." The analogy that Paul then begins to use compares a Christian to a fully armored Roman soldier. Paul's point is very clear - in the same way that a soldier would never go to battle without all of his armor and equipment, we as believers should never go about any part of day without having on all of our armor and having with us all of our equipment.

So here's an important question: How many pieces of the armor of God can you list without looking? This is an incredibly important question for believers. If you don't know what all of your armor and equipment is, how can you put it on each day and make sure that it remains on throughout the course of the day? Need a hint? Here they are:

• Your loins girded with truth - often refered to as the belt of truth(vs. 14);
• The breastplate of righteousness (vs. 14);
• Your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace (vs. 15);
• The shield of faith (vs. 16);
• The helmet of salvation (vs. 17);
• The Sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (vs. 17)

All of these pieces are incredibly important for us to go into spiritual battle each day and to fight off our spiritual enemies, but the helmet of salvation may in fact be the most important piece of the armor of God that we can possibly put on. It protects the most important part of our body - our head. And there is never really an appropriate time to take it off. Removing it would be removing a vital part of our spiritual protection and leave that part of our body completely open to attacks from our spiritual enemies.

Today, more than anything I want to encourage you to protect yourself from those spiritual enemies that look for any and every opportunity to bring harm to you. If you don't know what the pieces of the armor of God are and what they represent study Ephesians 6:10-17. Commit to memory what they are and then make sure that each and every morning you put them on and keep them on so that you will be protected against the assaults of the devil and his demons. And make sure that you always have your helmet on - even while your eating a sandwich.

Sometimes Christ Calls Us to Walk on the Water - But He Never Asks Us to Stay There

I was recently thinking through the account in Matthew 14:22-33 in which Peter, following Christ’s call, gets out of the boat and momentarily walks on the stormy sea. I’d like to make a few simple observations that I think may encourage some of you as you are daily walking with Christ.
We can all agree with great confidence that God allows His followers to go through times of trial to help develop their faith and character (James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 1:6-7). But going through times of trials is not for our own benefit alone, but more importantly they are opportunities for us to see God at work in our lives so that we can testify to His goodness and faithfulness and make much of Him. Notice first in this passage that God allows the faith of all of His followers to be challenged. Verse 24 “But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered [literally tormented] by the waves; for the wind was contrary.” Verse 26 “When the disciples saw Him [Jesus] walking on the sea, they were terrified . . . and they cried out in fear.” Peter wasn’t the only one out on the sea that night. All of the disciples were in the boat which was being tormented by the wind and the waves and all of the disciples were frightened by what they perceived to be a ghost approaching their boat on the water. So don’t be surprised when times come and your faith is challenged by the situations or the circumstances in your life. God hasn’t forgotten you or singled you out – God allows everyone’s faith to be challenged at one time or another. But notice secondly that God reminds us of His presence with us in our times of trial. In verse 27 Jesus recognizes their fear and calls out to them “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” We can count on God’s presence with us when we go through trials and challenges to our faith. Notice thirdly that sometimes God calls individuals to endure greater challenges to their faith than other individuals around them. This is the part we probably don’t like to think about. In verse 28 Peter makes what seems to be a crazy statement. He says to Jesus, if it is really You, “command me to come to you on the water.” (Remember that the sea is incredibly rough – the waves are tormenting the boat. There is very little comfort and security for the disciples while they are on the boat. Who would ever say to God, “I’ve got very little comfort and security in my life as it is right now, now command me to get rid of that little sense of comfort and security and enter an even greater challenge to my faith”?) Then Jesus calls to Peter specifically (not to all the disciples) to get out of the boat and do the impossible – walk on a raging sea. Notice that this is a specific call to a specific individual. Though it appears that Peter suggested it, the text reveals that Peter did not get out of the boat until Christ made the call to come. Without doubt, it took extraordinary faith to get out of that boat. But the challenge wasn’t only to get out of the boat, it was also to walk on a raging sea. It appears that Peter may have started well, but soon His focus left the Savior and became fixed on the elements of trouble around him – the wind and the waves. When this happened we all know what the results were – Peter began to sink. This brings us to a fourth important point in this passage: when we find ourselves in the midst of extreme challenges to our faith God wants us to stay focused on Him, not on the troubles around us. But if (and probably more likely, ‘when’) we begin to sink in the midst of our troubles and extreme challenges, God doesn’t simply remind us of His presence, but fifthly God acts as our Savior and He lifts us up. I love verse 31, “Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him.” We can lose sight of Christ and doubt, just like Peter did, and because God is gracious and full of loving kindness for His children, He doesn’t watch us sink but rather He grabs hold of us and lifts us up!
Verse 32 gets me to the original point that I was hoping to encourage you with and why I titled this blog post the way I did. The Bible teaches us that we are always to live in dependence on God, but the reality is that sometimes we a forced to realize this in the midst of extreme challenges to our faith. Verse 32 says that when they got back into the boat, the wind stopped. The challenges to faith that Peter and the rest of the disciples experienced that night were momentary challenges. Jesus eventually brought all that was testing their faith in this encounter to an end and gave them great rest and comfort. As humans we were not created to live and/or walk on the water. We live and walk on the land. That doesn’t mean that there will not be times when God calls us to walk on the water – but when He does remember to keep your eyes on Christ and know that eventually the trials and challenges will end. God is gracious and if He has called you right now into a time of great trial He will not make you stay there forever. Know that He will also bring to you times of peace, comfort, and rest.
Read those points in bold once again and remember that God will bring times of rest and refreshment for your soul. I hope that encourages you today! And I hope you respond as the disciples did in verse 33; “And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are certainly God’s Son!’”

The Least Resistance or The Most Glory?

Over the course of the last week or so my wife and I have been wrestling with what presently seem like very difficult, potentially life-changing decisions. One decision in particular seemed to offer three potential outcomes, none of which I was very excited about. And so we spent a lot of time in prayer pleading for godly wisdom and discernment and asking God to align the desires of our hearts with the desires of His heart so that we would make the right decision. I am confident that God did just that, but more importantly in the process I believe that He reminded me of an important principle which, as believers, we need to settle in our hearts and live out on a daily basis.

Although all three of what I perceived to be the potential outcomes of the particular decision facing myself and my family presented huge challenges, there was one that I was convinced posed the set of smallest problems. Making the choice to move in this particular direction would allow me to continue to hold on to something which I really cherished and seemed to only present a few small challenges that, if I worked hard enough at and managed things well enough, I could still overcome on my own. It was clearly the path of least resistance. It was the decision that logic and reason would have made. The problem was it seemed as though God was leading away from this decision and leading myself and my family to make a decision that was going to put us in a more difficult situation. So the question is, "Would we really consider doing that - putting ourselves in a more difficult situation simply because we felt like that was the direction God was leading?" And the follow-up question would be "Why?"

The answer to the first question is 'yes.' The answer to the second question is two fold. First, my desire and the desire of my family is to always act in obedience to God's leading. And secondly, we always want to do that which is going to bring the most glory to God. Let me explain a little more. The decision we are making is putting us in a place where we are completely incapable of doing anything in our own power to accomplish one of our desires and it is forcing me to let go of something that I was holding on to too tightly. And after much prayer and meditation I think that this is exactly what God wants. You see not only is God the only one worthy of glory and honor, but after reading different books and articles by men much smarter than myself I believe that God also desires that His people would make much of Him and exalt Him in both their words and deeds. This doesn't make God egotistical, but rather this is what the creator deserves from His creation. In choosing the path of least resistance I was on the verge of making two big mistakes. The first would have been idolatry. By holding onto a cherished possession and telling God that I was unwilling to let go of it, I would have been communicating to God that this possession was more important and more valuable in my life than He is. It would have been elevating a created thing over the creator. I don't think I could call that anything other than idolatry. The other mistake I would have been making is that I would have been communicating to my family and those in my sphere of influence that I really don't believe in a big God who is capable of accomplishing whatever He wants. Instead, by taking the situation into my own hands and relying on my own abilities I would have been communicating that I really see God as small, weak, and incapable, which is why I would have to take things into my own hands. That's not glorifying at all! Instead of making much of God it is actually doing the opposite - it's making less of Him.

So here is a decision that we as believers have to make in our hearts and minds - to always choose that which will bring the most glory to God, rather than that which will result in the least resistance for ourselves. (Please understand that this doesn't mean that we always put ourselves in the most difficult situations we can imagine expecting God to do the miraculous to get us through the situations. God gave us all an intelligent mind to think through and reason through the circumstances that we encounter in life. Therefore we ought to use the minds that we have been given to make wise choices.) When we, as a result of diligent and fervent prayer, sense God leading in a direction that seems to present enormous challenges and obstacles, we shouldn't focus on the details that weigh so heavily on our mind and our emotions. Instead we ought to focus on the greatness of our God and what He can do in the midst of great challenges. When we step out on faith and make those choices that allow God to put his greatness on display, we help to bring the most glory to God. It communicates to God that we believe He is who He says He is and that we are willing to trust Him - an act that brings great glory to Him. In stepping out on faith we allow a lost world to see our faith in our God who does work in our lives and accomplishes great things that we could not do on our own. In stepping out on faith we also edify fellow believers by encouraging them to trust God in the difficult circumstances in their lives.

So let's determine in our hearts and minds right now, before the challenges come and before the hard times bring great stress and uncertainty to always ask our Father, "What will bring You the most glory in this situation?" Then let's resolve to do it, trusting that His glory is far more important than a brief, easier, less resistant path.

We love You Father God. May the desire of our heart always be to increase Your glory and fame!

why the name 'escalate?'

Escalate? Most of you are probably thinking that's an unusual name for a blog and wondering what the significance is behind the name. If you take a moment and read the welcome message to the right that will help lay the foundation. In much the same way that I believe it is the church's responsibility to be lifting up, growing up, and building up, I am also convinced that believers in Christ each have a personal responsibility to be carrying out these tasks. The word 'escalate' is a verb. I really like that! Its not a thing, its an action! The definition of escalate according to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary is: to increase in extent, volume, number, amount, intensity, or scope. Think about that in terms of your life as a believer in Christ. Hopefully we all agree that Christianity isn't a religion - it is a relationship. Because of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection we are able to have a personal and intimate relationship with our Savior and Lord. Our desire for our relationship with Christ should be the same desire we have for our relationships with others that we love - that it would be a growing relationship that increases in extent . . . [and] intensity. Relationships are healthy when they are actively growing and increasing, not when they are stagnant (or worse, falling apart). As believers in Christ we should all desire that our relationships with Him would escalate. But more than that we want our personal worship to be escalating! We want our maturity in our faith to be escalating! And hopefully we want the kingdom of God to be escalating (that it would be increasing in . . . number, amount, intensity)! But all of this requires action. It doesn't just happen - it takes work.
I chose 'escalate' because it communicates well what I want to remember - that in my own personal relationship with Christ, and as a member of Christ's body, I want to always be growing, increasing, and moving forward. I hope and pray that that is your desire too and that the thoughts I share on this blog will help you towards that end.