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We understand that sanctification is a process that begins when we are saved. But why is it a process? Why doesn’t God just make us instantaneously everything we are meant to be? I am reminded of the court room exchange in the movie “A Few Good Men.” The young officer demands of the aged veteran officer: “I want the truth.” And he is told, “You can’t handle the truth.” As to sanctification, we are not instantly ready for full sanctification: the cost is too great. “It will cost an intense narrowing of all our interests on earth, and an immense broadening of all our interests in God. Sanctification means intense concentration on God’s point of view.” At salvation, we don’t surrender our free will, nor or we transported from the material, non-spiritual world in which we live. Although our eyes are opened when God saves us; our vision is still immature. In the process of sanctification, our interests increasingly match the interests of our God. It is a process which must move forward if we are to increasingly become the image of Christ. How much sanctification are you prepared for? The better question may be: Are you ready for […]

This little graphic is from the Walk to Emmaus web site. The Walk is similar to Cursillo. These are the ministries on which Kairos, the prison ministry is based. After Jesus’ death and Resurrection, disciplines were walking to Emmaus, confused and dejected by the recent events and Jesus appeared along side them, walked with them initially unrecognized.   I was feeling a bit dejected last night. Kaydence’s father couldn’t fly in from offshore yesterday because of the weather; so we have her for at least one more day. That’s certainly not a bad thing; but I had plans for today. I was going to my Kairos meeting in Baton Rouge. We have painters coming on Monday and I have to do things to get ready. I’m suppose to meet someone. . . well you get the point. “Jesus, what are you doing. I have plans.”  That’s how it is with the feeling of dejection. It isn’t that Jesus isn’t there; it’s just that we don’t recognize Him. Today’s My Utmost for His Highest is so good and so deep, I just want to paste the whole thing here and send it on. In fact, that’s what I’ll do in edited […]

It seems my every work in ministry has been up front and prominent. There are many “behind the scenes” jobs in Kairos; but I’ve never had one of those. At any church there are many who pray, clean, bake cookies, and do all the things that are required to make any ministry work. I’ve never had any of those kinds of jobs. I’ve always been a teacher or preacher. So today’s My Utmost for His Highest devotional struck me hard.” I do not want God to choose my work. I want to choose the scenery of my own sacrifice; I want to have the right kind of people watching and saying, ‘Well done.’”I would like to think that I would  be willing to toil for God in some way that is never noticed and never appreciated. But I’m frankly not sure. I appreciate those who work behind the scenes those whose efforts in the kingdom are never known. I know that those whose efforts go “unrewarded” in this life will be greatly honored in the next. I need to seek and perform those tasks that are never noticed and never appreciated. “Are you ready to be not so much […]

I am tired this morning and it will be a long day. Kaydence had a bad night with her asthma. She was up coughing most of the night, coughing to the point of vomiting. Rosemary was the one who stayed up with her. I tried to sleep; but I knew Rosemary would need relief by early morning and there would be no daycare today. I finally gave up and got up about 4:30. Even tired my heart melts when she coughs and cries, wanting to sleep but unable to. I know her Dad will be back on Friday and she will leave us for three weeks and I will miss her even the vomit and the sleepless nights. It’s times like this that I feel I don’t really love the Lord like I do my “loved” ones.  “Paul says he is overruled, overmastered, held as in a vice, by the love of Christ. Very few of us know what it means to be held in a grip by the love of God; we are held by the constraint of our experience only.” No matter how grateful we are for what God has done for us, our relationship with Him […]

Five years ago today my son Jason died unexpectedly. Like most of us, he could be a difficult man; but I could see Jesus in him when he was with his children. In those moments, he functioned as God means us to function: as projectors of the image of His Son. OC reminds us today. ” Paul did not say that God separated him to show what a wonderful man He could make of him, but “to reveal His Son in me.”” John Bevere in Extraordinary talks about our images: Our projected image is the front that we attempt to put up. That image we want people to see when they see us. We often fool ourselves that we are successful in that projection. But we are not. There is a second image: our perceived image; that is what people see us as. It’s not the same as what we think they see; but it’s also not who we really are. What we really are is what Bevere calls the actual image.It is sad to think that for most of us for most of our lives, no one, not us and not others, knows who we really are. I […]

Yesterday I stopped by Academy. I thought maybe I needed another piece of Saints gear. I have a black sweat shirt and a Number 9 Jersey. I thought maybe a nice golf shirt with an understated logo would be good to wear the rest of the time. You know when it’s too warm for a sweat shirt and a jersey is a bit too tacky, like when I’m in court. I resisted the temptation. I couldn’t believe the prices. This morning I resisted the temptation to wear the Jersey; but I thought about it. I am proud of the Who Dat Nation who rose up in arms when their right to proclaim “Who Dat” was challenged. Less than ten percent of all “Christians” ever share their faith with someone else. Only two percent share their faith on a regular basis. Lot’s of reasons are given; click here to see if your reason is listed.  We think we’re pretty bold if we wear a t-shirt that identifies us in any way as a “Christian.” “Everyone who is saved is called to testify to the fact.” Today OC isn’t really talking about witnessing. He is talking about resisting the call of […]

Remember Mission Impossible. Not so much the movie but the television series. At the beginning of each episode the Peter Graves character would receive his assignment on a cassette tape (remember those) which would self destruct after being played. Remember Leonard Nimoy pre Star Trek? The Mission Impossible Team would be given an “impossible” mission which they nevertheless completed. It always seemed to me that the assignment itself wasn’t so impossible; but that the team carried out the mission in such a complicated way that they made it seem impossible.We do that with out mission.  Our assignment is to lift up Jesus, nothing more and nothing less.  That’s a straight forward assignment; but we make it near impossible.  “We are nowhere commissioned to preach salvation or sanctification; we are commissioned to lift up Jesus Christ (John 12:32). It is a travesty to say that Jesus Christ travailed in Redemption to make me a saint. Jesus Christ travailed in Redemption to redeem the whole world, and place it unimpaired and rehabilitated before the throne of God.” When we try to do more than our assignment, we accomplish less than our goal. If we believe our job is salvation, we are […]

One of the prominent complaints about Christians is that they are “Holier than Thou” or self-righteous. The sad truth is that the complaint is often justified. A real Christian is the last person to be self-righteous. A Christian knows that he is worth something only because of Christ. Part of the problem is that we continue to focus on cleaning ourselves up. We need to get out of the bath and into the street. OC reminds us: “Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the Gospel of God.” Some of us need to hear that again. “Our calling is not primarily to be holy men and women, but to be proclaimers of the Gospel of God.” If we didn’t spend so much time in the tub maybe the dust on others wouldn’t offend us so. But you might say, and are probably saying, “But aren’t we to be holy?” Of course but,  “[p]ersonal holiness isan effect, not a cause.” Our holiness is an effect of His redemption of us. Our holiness doesn’t cause anything. Isn’t it just like us to come to God recognizing we can do nothing about our […]