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Why are you fearful, O you of little faith? —Matthew 8:26 How can we measure how our walk is going? One reliable way is to consider how much we fear. Trust in God and fear are inversely proportional. I learned that in algebra or something. It means the more we trust the less we fear. As we walk with God our confidence in His guidance, our trust, should be growing and our fear of what lies around the next bend should be less. I understand that there are no atheists in foxholes. When we are afraid, we turn to God and hope He is there.  When we are afraid, the least we can do is pray to God. But our Lord has a right to expect that those who name His name have an underlying confidence in Him. “. . . O you of little faith!” What a stinging pain must have shot through the disciples as they surely thought to themselves, “We missed the mark again!” And what a sharp pain will go through us when we suddenly realize that we could have produced complete and utter joy in the heart of Jesus by remaining absolutely confident in […]

Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha . . . saw him no more —2 Kings 2:11-12 I once belonged to a fellowship with a very charismatic leader. The group experienced great growth and saw much movement of the Holy Spirit. Then the leader left; and the church was never the same. Later when asked members seemed more enamored of the church and its past leadership than it was of Christ.  In the days of Promise Keepers we were taught that each of us should have a mentor and be a mentor to another. This is great advice; but a mentor should always point to Christ not be a substitute for Him. It is not wrong for you to depend on your “Elijah” or mentor for as long as God gives him to you. But remember that the time will come when he must leave and will no longer be your guide and your leader, because God does not intend for him to stay. Even the thought of that causes you to say, “I cannot continue without my ’Elijah.’ ” Yet God says you must continue. Who is your mentor? Who are you mentoring? Are you […]

Yesterday I saw the movie Despicable Me. It’s the story of an aging villain, past his prime, and three adorable orphans. It soon becomes clear that he needs them more than they need him. The movie impressed me so that last night I dreamed of orphans and having too much time on my hands. We live in a world starving for the love of Jesus. His love is sufficient, but it’s not getting where it’s needed. The failure is in the delivery system: Us. If we are not doing everything we can to convey His love to a suffering world, then we need to apply the movie title to ourselves, Despicable Me or maybe Poor Poor Pitiful Me. Be a conduit of His love today and be blessed and not Despicable. Nick

Let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good . . . —1 Peter 4:19 When my Dad lay dying many came to visit and to pray with and for him. One I will never forget. He came by and introduced himself as a chaplain. He prayed and even sang a touching song. Dad was out of it and I was glad because this gentleman ended the pray with words like “may the suffering of Mr. Rene make up for anything lacking in the suffering of Christ.” I was shocked. There is nothing “lacking” in the suffering of Christ. Jesus did all that was necessary to purchase our salvation and our “suffering” adds nothing to that. Over the years of Christianity there have been those who sought suffering as either a payment for sin or for some other “spiritual” reason. Choosing to suffer means that there must be something wrong with you, but choosing God’s will— even if it means you will suffer— is something very different. No normal, healthy saint ever chooses suffering; he simply chooses God’s will, just as Jesus did, whether it means suffering or not. And […]

Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, ’Father, I thank You that You have heard Me’ —John 11:41 The Life of Christ was the example of a life of prayer. He made no move without consultation with the Father. The unity of Father and Son is such that Jesus responded to Philip when asked to “show us the Father:” Jesus answered, “Philip, I have been with you for a long time. So you should know me. The person that has seen me has seen the Father too. So why do you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you truly believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The things I have told you don’t come from me. The Father lives in me, and he is doing his own work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or believe because of the miracles I have done.” John 14:8-11 This unity of Father and Son was maintained by a life of prayer. When the Son of God prays, He is mindful and consciously aware of only His Father. Part of our inheritance as children of God is […]

I dreamed last night about an Exclusive Club for Christians. Like most dreams it was kind of vague and incomplete but it left me with some clear impressions and some questions. Wouldn’t such a club be unAmerican and discriminatory? Can we discriminate on the basis of religion? A couple of answers come to mind. Christianity isn’t a religion; it’s a relationship. God discriminates. In fact, this is the only distinction that makes a difference. He doesn’t discriminate between Jew or gentile; slave or free; male or female. But He does discriminate between those who are born again followers or his Son and those who are not. It’s a very significant discrimination: eternal life with Him or not. But wouldn’t it be difficult to qualify members for this club? Who is a Christian? Isn’t that a very private matter? It’s true that we know much about our family and friends, even our Facebook friends. We know about their relationship status, favorite foods, music and art; but often we don’t know if they are followers of Our Lord are not. Why not? It’s the only question that matters. We should know this about every person in our lives: Are they Christian […]

. . . that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God —Luke 1:35 When we are born again, the Lord of the Universe is born into our flesh. If the Son of God has been born into my human flesh, then am I allowing His holy innocence, simplicity, and oneness with the Father the opportunity to exhibit itself in me? God’s Son is born into me through the direct act of God; then I as His child must exercise the right of a child— the right of always being face to face with my Father through prayer. Do I find myself continually saying in amazement to the commonsense part of my life, “Why did you want me to turn here or to go over there? ’Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?’ ” ( Luke 2:49  ). Whatever our circumstances may be, that holy, innocent, and eternal Child must be in contact with His Father. Be blessed. Nick

. . . they found Him in the temple . . . . And He said to them, ’. . . Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?’ —Luke 2:46, 49 A child about the business of His Father. It’s an amazing picture of Jesus in the Temple. Even more amazing in our times when it seems even adults are not about their Father’s business. Christ told us that we are to be as children. Am I a holy, innocent child of God as a result of my identification with my Lord and Savior? Do I look at my life as being in my Father’s house? Is the Son of God living in His Father’s house within me? Am I continually in touch with the reality of God, or do I pray only when things have gone wrong? I must be about My Father’s business”— and I must learn to live every moment of my life in my Father’s house. Think about your own circumstances. Are you so closely identified with the Lord’s life that you are simply a child of God, continually talking to Him and realizing that everything comes from His hands? […]