It's the end of the world as we know it?

There is alot of talk about the world coming to an end tomorrow, and it’s been getting me thinking. If the "rapture" happens tomorrow, there are a few things I would miss:

-Meeting Paxton’s brother and sister
-Growing old together with Ashlee
-Watching a Canucks vs Bruins final

We all might miss out on different things, but one thing that we all need to be painfully aware of is this.

Are you ready for the world to end? 

Do you know where you'll end up?

Please here me when I say this, No I don’t think it’s the end of the world tomorrow, but if it is, I’m ready for it. 

Jesus this is my prayer, may I live everyday like it is my last. Help me keep your priorities, my priorities. I don't want to get distracted by trivial things around me. My gaze is set, my heart is strong, my citizenship is not of this world, and my feet are firmly planted in your truth. This world has nothing to offer me compared to the surpassing greatness of know Christ Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. This is not a secret to be kept. Give me strength, courage, and passion to share it with my world around me. 

Eyes On The Prize

I am a hockey fan. I love the game. The energy, the intensity, the passion.

The playoffs just bring it all to a whole new level of perfection.

I’m not one of these band wagon jumpers or only a fan during the playoffs...

I bleed blue and green!

The Vancouver Canucks are my team. WE ARE ALL CANUCKS.

Can you imagine what a hockey game would look like if there weren’t any nets? All the other rules and regulations would stay the same, but just no nets. The defence would still try tirelessly to clear the zone and the forwards would still continue the cycle game in the corner. Big open ice hits would be thrown and the players would be stick-handling the puck all over the ice. The goalie would still be in his crease, but with nothing to guard.

With no nets, the game would transform from a battle between two teams trying to score on one another, to a glorified figure skating exhibition without judges.

Without nets, the game of hockey becomes pointless.

All the stick-handling in the world will get you nowhere. Puck possession doesn’t win games, scoring goals does.

When you take away the objective of the game it loses all of its purpose.

The same thing goes for our lives. We need purpose. We need to know what we are playing for, what we are living for. Or else we are just skating around wasting time, waiting for the final horn to sound on our lives.

1 Corinthians 9:24-26

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.  All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.

It would be silly to see a race happen that didn’t have a finish line. Where are the runners running to? And for how long? If everyone is running around aimlessly, who wins? What’s the point?

Can you picture what a boxing match would look like if the fighters keep throwing punches but not a single one of them land? They are literally just beating up the air. Who wins? What’s the purpose?

I want to live with purpose. I want to make my punches count.

God calls us to live with purpose, to live with a goal and with the prize in perspective. Our prize is eternity. It’s life forever with Jesus in Heaven.

Today be encouraged to live your life with eternity in perspective. Let’s not get caught up in the stick-handling of life, focusing on the things that don’t fulfill our purpose: pursuing fame, chasing down wealth, and living for our own selfish desires. Let’s live in such a way as to be worthy of the calling we’ve received, let’s live our lives with our eyes on the prize.

Purple Christian

I can’t remember where I got it, but I knew it was mine. It was my favourite of all my Hot Wheels, a white Lamborghini. Now, what made my Lambo so special was that it was a color changer! When you put it in water it changed from white to purple. I still don’t know how it did it, but to an 8 year old, it was very impressive! 

As the car dried, it would fade to pink, and then completely back to white, as if it had never been a different color. I would sit and play with my Hot Wheels just waiting for the newly purpled Lamborghini to transform back to white just so I could get it wet again and watch the mystery unfold.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

We may have started out being a white Lamborghini before we knew Jesus, but once we met him, our lives were changed. We’ve been made a new color... Purple.

The funny thing is, that so many Christians walk around and they don’t look very purple.

Some claim to know Christ, and even have a story about when they met Jesus and were saved, but by their actions it’s obvious they are a faded pink, almost completely reset.

I want to be a Purple Christian.

My life has been transformed by the God of the universe. A Holy God, saw my need for a Savior, and sent His one and only son Jesus to do something about it. My old white has gone, and my new purple has come...why would I ever go back?

Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world...”

God has called us to be different. Not to blend in. To take a stand.

No I don’t think we need to get on a soap box and wear a sandwich board sign that says “Repent! The End Is Near!” as we ring a giant bell.

But it seems that time and time again, Christians end up looking so much like the world around them, that you wouldn’t even be able to tell that they’re in love with a Savoir, and that their life has been transformed.

In a world full of white Lamborghinis maybe it’s time we take a look at ourselves to determine what color we really are.

LOVESTRONG

“One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard: that you, O God, are STRONG, and that you, O God, are LOVING.”  Psalms 62:11-12

Build these two things into the very fabric of who you are, the foundation of your faith, your relationship with God.

He is STRONG. 
He is LOVING.

If you keep these two things in perspective, you will never lose heart, you will never fade away.

Let’s break it down.

He is All Powerful and His purposes are Supreme. Nothing is outside the realm of possibility for Him. The Bible is littered with these truths.

“No plan of His can be thwarted!” Job 42:2

“He lifts His voice, the earth melts.” Psalm 46:6

“If it were His intention and He withdrew His spirit and breath, all mankind would perish together.” Job.34:14-15

He created the universe at a single word.

He flooded the earth to stand for holiness.

The plagues in Egypt were just a flex of His strength.

He can destroy a city, send fire from heaven, and control all weather in just one single act.

Nations are brought to their knees before him.

Entire armies are halted at his might.

No storm could slow him down.

No cross was too heavy to bear.

And No grave could hold him!

This is my God.

He is Strong and Mighty to Save.

Now if he was just STRONG and not LOVING...we would be afraid of Him. Living with our heads down, in fear of what might happen next.

If he was just LOVING and not STRONG... He would be nice to be around, nice to know, but He would simply be incapable of doing anything about our lives.

What is so magnificent about God, He is the perfect combination of them both. My God is both STRONG and LOVING!

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve.” Psalms 103:8-12

“This is love, not that we love God, but that he first loved us, and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for us.” 1 John 4:9-10

“Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.” Romans 8:35-39

The mix of God being LOVING and STRONG, work together so beautiful. If these are the only two things you know about God, you’re set. He loves you enough to want a relationship with you, despite all the mistakes you’ve made and the sin you’ve committed. And He’s strong enough to deal with the sin in your life, setting you free to live for him!

“God demonstrates His own love for us in this...while we were still sinners Christ died.” Romans 5:8

Blind Man's Bluff

A man staggers towards a massive cliff. There’s no one else around, as you watch him stumble closer towards the edge. As you look closer you notice he’s blind. He has no idea the free fall that awaits him if he continues on the same route. Sudden and imminent death awaits him.

What is the most loving thing you could do for this man?

Offer him some food or fresh water? A warm blanket or jacket? Maybe an invitation to an upcoming worship night?

Or is the most loving thing you can do for that man...

TACKLE HIM!

It seems insane to make sure he is well fed as he falls to his death or comfortable in his new clothes as he goes over the edge.

If we truly want to show love to him, our first priority should be life or death.

God give us eyes to see people the way you do!

If only God could somehow tell us how he sees people.

“The god of this age (Satan) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” – 2 Corinthians 4:4

Unbelievers are stone-blind to the truth of Jesus Christ. They do not recognise that living a life without Jesus is a route leading to death.

God has called us who believe to do something about it.

If you know Christ and he’s removed your blinders, then it is time to shed some light in the friends around you that don’t know Jesus and are still lost in darkness. Pray today that we could start to see people the way God does, and respond accordingly.

“You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—SHINE!” – Matthew 5:14

Black and White

I yelled at an old man. Not only did I yell at him, I pushed him over first, and then I yelled at him.

Not one of my proudest moments.

For as long as I can remember I’ve loved to compete. I grew up as the youngest in a family of 3 boys. My dad, brothers, and I, would often play a “rip-snortin” game of backgammon, cribbage, road hockey, basketball, or badminton. We all took it dead serious and the competition level was always 100%. Losing was not an option, win at all cost.

It’s crazy what sports can do to you. Competitiveness can consume you. Everything I’ve ever learnt about integrity goes out the window as soon as the ref blows the starting whistle, or you click your sticks together three times as you say, “N” “H” “L”.

A few years back I was playing soccer with Youth Church in the BC Christian Soccer League. Our team was undefeated in regular season play and we were heading into the playoffs. We were playing a team that had seniors, women, and children on their squad. This was a ‘must win’ game and it should have been a walk in the park.

Halfway through the game, we found ourselves down by a goal, and the intensity started to pick up. The ball hit my leg and went out of bounds, and I argued with the ref that I never touched the ball. Clearly I knew the ball hit me, but I pleaded my case admittedly. I justified in my mind that lying was ok, if it meant we had a better chance at winning. Besides it’s just a game, does God really care about a game? What happens on the field stays on the field, right? I can become a totally different person when I am on the field and justify it by making excuse after excuse.

And then it happened.

One of the lowest points in my life.

A tall, older gentlemen, most likely retired, was my check all game. Every time I touched the ball, he would tug on my shirt, and kick me in the shins. It was a battle all game. I got to my breaking point. When he came in for the next hard tackle, I dropped my shoulder and shoved him to the ground. I stood over him like a warrior over his conquered enemy, and yelled, “GET UP OLD MAN!!”

It wasn’t until after the game that I was able to process what had just happened.

What was I thinking?

Who was I out there?

Did all that really just happen?

I am a pastor, a Christian. I should know better.

How can I claim to love Jesus one moment, and then go act like an idiot out there the next?

It’s like I cared more about the score of the match, then I did about my convictions and my beliefs. Unlike the colors of the soccer ball, I was playing in the grey areas when I knew full well black from white. Yet, I was willing to justify it for the end result.

Mark 8:36 says, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”

Will my trophy impress Jesus, when my means of getting it disappointed him?

On my final day of judgement when Jesus asks me to give an account of my life, will I have time to run back to my fridge and take the magnet off of the score sheet to go show Him?

“Jesus, look! My team won the championship! Yes, I compromised my integrity to get it, but still... we won!”

Too bad soccer skills aren’t on the list of things that will get you into heaven.

We can lie, cheat, and steal, and gain everything we ever wanted on earth, but if we have to forfeit our integrity, our morals, our very soul, it’s just not worth it. It gets us nowhere. We are not bringing any of our earthly accomplishments with us to heaven.

I want people to know that I’m in love with Jesus by the way I act, whether I’m playing soccer or not.

I want to follow after Christ and be a man of integrity.

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?  Is anything worth more than your soul?”  – Jesus

Cowboys and Indians

When I was a boy I would play Cowboys and Indians with my brother. I had a bow and arrow set and my brother a cowboy hat and a pistol. We were boys, so yes we kept score. I’m not sure why but it seemed to me that the cowboys always ended up winning. Maybe it had something to do with my brother being older, or maybe he cheated; nevertheless, I don’t remember doing too many victory war cries at the end of battle. I would argue that I wanted to be cowboys the next time so I could have a turn winning.

Were we just "boys being boys"? Why did I always feel cheated? What is it about our human nature where we feel like we always need to win, or at least even things out?

Luke 15 tells the story of the prodigal son. A son asks his father for his share of the inheritance, only to go and squander it. The son has nothing left and humbly goes back to his fathers house. When he returns, the father, overwhelmed with joy, embraces him and throws a party in his honor. The older brother, who remained faithful to the father, is angry with the way the father lavishes grace and forgiveness on his newly returned brother. He feels as though he's been cheated. He stayed loyal to the father. Where's the party in his honor? Isn't this kind of grace given in vain? What if the prodigal didn't learned his lesson, and runs off again? It appears that the father is giving allowance for sin, or at least sending the message to the prodigal that disobedience, abandonment, and selfishness is ok.

God’s heartbeat is revealed in the father.

We’re not playing Cowboys and Indians anymore!

It doesn’t matter who is winning.

It doesn’t matter who has sinned less.

We are all forgiven the same. Forgiven means forgiven.

“This son of mine was dead, now he’s alive again!”

Often times in our own lives we worry about giving grace too freely.

We think it might be confused with permission to sin.

...Jesus had no such concerns.

When Jesus offers grace, He forgives completely, keeping no record or wrong.

Micah 7:18-19

“Where is the god who can compare with you— 
   wiping the slate clean of guilt,
Turning a blind eye, a deaf ear, 
   to the past sins of your purged and precious people?
You don't nurse your anger and don't stay angry long, 
   for mercy is your specialty. That's what you love most.
And compassion is on its way to us. 
   You'll stamp out our wrongdoing.
You'll sink our sins 
   to the bottom of the ocean.”