I just read a Christian meme that read, “Do not follow your heart.” The meme was using Jeremiah 17:9 to justify this statement. I struggled with what was written because the Holy Spirit has been telling me to live by my heart and to encourage others to do the same. I know He is in me and my heart is my flesh, but what was going on? Well like any awesome teacher will do, the Holy Spirit let me to read not only that Jeremiah verse, but also the section to get a better understanding.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.” Jeremiah 17:7-10 ESV

God made it clear here that He was never telling someone to ignore his or her heart and not to live by it. God is the only one who really understands a person’s heart and quite often, he exposes the sickness in our hearts by having us live through our hearts.

I got into an argument this week with someone I care about. The person felt I was attacking him. This made me turn back to God because I didn’t believe I had any intention of attacking the person, I was defending myself. God revealed my heart and I was not attacking the other person. I would like to learn with the Holy Spirit how to defend myself without it looking like I am attacking the other person. I can only do that by submitting to the Spirit and letting my heart come out so He can deal with the things that are off. If I try to defend myself in a quiet non-attacking way, I am doing it in my own strength and God has accomplished nothing in my heart. If I don’t let my true self come out from my heart, I am deceiving and not being truthful. There is something in my heart that God needs to deal with and if I don’t allow it to come out, I am never allowing Him to do the work.

If I attempted to live by denying my heart, I might be able to look good on the outside, but be completely corrupted on the inside. As God explained in 1Samuel 16:7, “For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” God is not looking for a bunch of Christians who look good, He is looking for people who are good from the inside out, and He is the only one who can make them good! Don’t by into the group mentality of looking good, but having a corrupt heart. Live and let God do the mighty work in you!

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Phil 4:13 NKJV

“I could never do that,” was something my spouse and I heard frequently from people in the church. We returned to our old church body this past weekend and heard that phrase from two individuals that remembered us and spoke to us on that visit. This weekend they were specifically referring to ballroom dancing they had seen us doing on social media. In the past we heard, “I could never do that,” from people in the church that heard different parts of our testimony. It really opened my eyes to the fact that the church is full of unbelievers.

Paul clearly states in this Philippians verse that all things are possible in Christ. That statement ALL includes every conceivable option on this earth. It excludes nothing. Yet, in the one place I would expect to hear, “That is possible,” I have heard, “That is not possible for me.” If you are one of those people that has used the phrase, “I could never do that,” I wish to encourage you to take a look at your relationship with God. How big is God in your life? Is He really that small to you that you think saying, “I could never,” is a true reality with Him?

Years ago God had us speak to a room of Christians about some of the difficulties we had endured in our marriage, like infidelities and addiction. It felt like we took our clothes off and stood in front of this group. Was it easy? Absolutely NOT! Was it worth it? Absolutely!!!! God took our obedience and has started a ministry with us. That is what people can see on the outside, but what God has done inside us is much more amazing. He continues to reveal issues in our marriage and helps us to deal with those issues. My spouse and I have grown so much with the Lord since that time speaking. We are in a new phase of life and are dealing with new things that I’m sure many people would tell us, “I could never do that.” Because we are trusting God in this walk, we are continuing to grow closer to Him. We’re human so at times we have wanted to turn around and say, “I can’t do this,” but God is right there encouraging us to continue.

The belief that you cannot do something will hinder your growth. God is truly bigger than anything He will ever ask you to do. Are you going to start believing Him? Or are you going to sit back and believe in your own limitations? God invites you to stand up and confess like the father in Mark 9, “Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, ‘Lord, I believe; help my unbelief! (24)’”

“A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24 ESV

I have some extremely close friends here at Christ Centered Family. We have said over and over again that we are here for each other, or so I thought.

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“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.” Galatians 2:20

Over the years I have tried to pound this verse into my head and into my life. The Lord has been showing me that I was going about this verse all wrong. My focus was about trying to die instead of living. This was exhausting and led to more bondage. One can’t get to living by trying to die. For example, when trying to learn how to hit a baseball my coach always said, “look at the ball (life) and strike it.”   My coach never said, “Stop looking at the players in the field.” That would be foolish; it would lead to a very low chance of hitting the ball. We arrive where we look.  Look to Christ. It is in His living, that we find life. (more…)

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.” Ecclesiastes 3:1,4 ESV

February 10 was a weird day for me this year. I woke up to Facebook telling me I had three friends celebrating birthdays, and another celebrating a child’s birthday. I received a text from my dad telling me their beloved dog of almost 15 years passed away. Later, my spouse received a call from a sibling telling of a death in their family. Next our son informed us of a beloved businessman from our hometown had passed away. And last a friend said goodbye to her mother as she slipped away into eternity. (more…)

“Fire shall be kept burning on the altar continually; it shall not go out.” Leviticus 6:13 ESV

I am a football fan. My team has never gone to the Super Bowl, but I still watch the playoffs and pick a team to root for in the Super Bowl. Super Bowl LI was no different. I watched the Atlanta Falcons come out in all their excitement and devour the New England Patriots in the first half. In the second half, it seemed like all that energy Atlanta showed in the first half burned out so they had nothing left for the second half and then a quick devastating (for them) overtime. (more…)

Moses spoke these words to the Israelites. He didn’t read them and then recite it back to them. Where did he get these words? The Lord Himself gave Moses those words.

“Hear, you peoples, all of you; pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it, and let the Lord GOD be a witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.” Micah 1:2

Micah of Moresheth spoke these words. Like Moses, God spoke these words directly to him. Micah didn’t have any reference other than God Almighty Himself. (more…)

“Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deed among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually!” Psalm 105:1-4 ESV

Often times I can get into the thought pattern that God is distant or uninvolved in my life, but then I become aware of His involvement in my life.   Last night my wife and I were giving God praise for His involvement and direction during service earlier that day. As we were praising Him more things became evident to me that His involvement isn’t limited to a single event or situation, but all the time, and everything we do. God is a part of our every day life, and He wants us to include Him in our every day living. How about you? Do you overlook God and don’t realize that He is there? Take a moment and begin to realize His presence in your life. (more…)

I woke up this morning to see news stories of protests by mainly younger voters. The Holy Spirit whispered to me, “This is a generation of participation trophies.” It had never occurred to me that all those years of raising children with the belief that we are all winners and there are no losers, would lead to adults not able to handle losing. Even college students that voted for Mr. Trump have acted like it was a foregone conclusion that their candidate won. Our society of “everyone needs to feel good” has created a monster. (more…)

These past few weeks have been intense emotionally and physically for me. I work at a local grocery store and as the holiday season is coming up, the crowds of customers are coming in. Due to these busy times I find myself stressing at work and running without direction.

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?..” Psalm 42:11 (ESV)

When the desire to stress and run started to creep up into my soul, I chose to stop and take a few seconds to focus back on God. I realized the way I was living my spiritual life with God was just that. I was keeping myself apart for God time and then had me time. I would spend time in the morning focused on God, and then go through work and my day, as I wanted. The only time I would choose God is when the situation I was in went awry. (more…)