In The Battle

Work... Eat... Sleep... Kiss the wife... Hug the kid... Wake up and do it all over again... Is this what God would have us do?

I'm thinking this is not the life that God would have for any of us. We as men especially end up running like dogs until we break down or until we are sick or we just lose heart. No one should live like that. One thing God has instilled in me is a breaking point and I normally know it right away. When my emotions aren't in check and I'm being the wrong kind of fruit, I know that I'm doing the wrong thing. The Bible does say, "You shall know them by their fruit."

I've been thinking about this the last day or so and God doesn't want you to be without joy. Nor do I think he would have life be mundane.

Posted by DJ at 6:12 AM | 2 comments  

John 10:11-16

I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.
He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd.

I know that in my story I used to be a major poser. I came to church, I sang the songs... I even prayed... but the problem was... I wasn't really listening to God, nor did I care what He was doing. I "played" church... so to you out there pretending, I say... Watch yourselves very closely. You are like a hired hand... You aren't a shepherd and you leave the sheep and the wolf... snatches them...

I'm asking those who are closest to me to hold me to this. I don't want you to be snatched up by the enemy. I don't want be the one who runs and hides like a coward. I will listen for the shepherd's voice... and I encourage you to do the same... We will become one flock!

Posted by DJ at 7:32 PM | 0 comments  

I'm going to share two things... One will be part of an audio book I'm reading right now by John Eldredge called... "Walking with God"... Check my Talkshoe widget on the right to hear an excerpt from this book. It has been stuck in my head all week... and I simply love this story.

The other has to do with the book... but something I had been dealing with that goes with the book.

Eldredge has one really good story about agreements we make ... with spirits... or even ourselves without even knowing it? For instance... Joshua 1:5 says, "No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you."... yet people feel abandoned by God sometimes. So who is saying that to them... I'll give you a for instance from my life. When my dad passed away 9 years ago, I know that death is a part of this world, but I didn't understand. This couldn't happen now. My dad won't see my children grow... and so I felt abandoned by God and confused and terribly upset. Now... that wasn't coming from God ... was it?.. of course not. And we know that contradicts His word. Could it be that some foul spirit was intervening to make me agree that God was distant and didn't care about me? I would say ... almost certainly. And I just don't know why I never thought about these things. And the Bible most certainly talks about the battles that we will engage. Just thought I'd share that.

In the battle,

DJ

"Every man dies, but not every man really lives"

Posted by DJ at 8:41 PM | 0 comments  

I sat down tonight... and was thinking of something else... when a voice came to me tonight... You see... earlier in the night I started asking... God, what do you want me to read? The answer came loud and clear... John 5.

So... I sat down to read... I think... ok... you want me to read about the man at the pool who Jesus comes and heals him? What does this have to do with anything? ... And then it hits me like a ton of bricks. John 5:6, "When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, "Do you wish to get well?"

Notice that Jesus already knew his condition. After all... he was God and man. He already knows this man. He already knows every detail of this man's life. Do you wish to get well ... are you kidding me?... of course he wishes to get well... He's only been lying there for 38 years! (v. 5)

And then the real answer comes to me. Jesus already knows every detail of my heart... and yours as well... and He asks you... Do you wish to get well?... Well of course we do! ... and then I realize... Wow... Jesus... is inviting me into something here... He's offering me the chance to be healed of things that I have dealt with for some time now. Jesus is willing to take away all those hurts... all those things that you need healed from. Sin is the sickness of mankind... and well... Jesus is the cure. He is willing to come into your heart and mind and clean out those things which haunt you. Lust, pride, envy, jealousy... He's taking those from you... all that and more.

Posted by DJ at 8:25 PM | 1 comments  

Delicious - Foodie (blog) from Fellowship Church on Vimeo.

Check out this video from Ed Young... Some pretty good stuff. I was blown away by the message that God poured through him.

Posted by DJ at 6:57 PM | 0 comments  

Check out the sermon by Pastor Mike on the talkshoe widget on the right... It's definitely worth a listen!

Posted by DJ at 8:07 AM | 0 comments  

One thing that I have always struggled with is my sexuality. Pornography as we know is everywhere. Here are a few statistics.

When it comes to online pornography:

There are roughly 4.2 million pornographic websites. (12% of all websites)
Daily pornographic search engine requests: 68 million (that's 1 in 4 of all search engine requests)

Internet users who use porn: 42.7% (are we scared yet?)
Average daily pornographic emails/user: 4.5 per Internet user
Monthly Pornographic downloads (Peer-to-peer): 1.5 billion (that's 35% of all downloads)

So why do I bring up these stats? It's a little shocking... isn't it? And here is what I have to say. It doesn't have to be this way. So many guys want to be free of this. I know I did.

One thing that really stands out to me about these guys are... that they live like their is no villain in there lives. Now.. what do I mean about that?
Simple. Satan only comes to steal, kill, & destroy. And make no doubts about it... he is out there and always plotting his next move against you.

Jesus warns us about Satan.... "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep." (John 10:10-11)

Now the good news... Notice Jesus says... that the good shepherd gives his life for his sheep! Jesus stands in the gap for us. Think about all the super hero movies you have ever watched before in your life. Superman... Batman.. Spiderman.. Don't they always risk themselves and their lives for the lives of others? How much greater then is Jesus who GAVE his life for us?

There are a few resources out there for guys to be accountable with others. www.xxxchurch.com has free software (yes I am currently using it) that keeps a record of what you have looked at online and then reports it to two people. Another software program is comes from www.covenanteyes.com It's not free but it is a very good tool as well.

The real thing that works for me is to find people who would hold me accountable and to uplift me to stay in the battle when I had fallen. I've decided that beating people who are already beaten just doesn't quite cut it.

Posted by DJ at 8:41 AM | 3 comments