ACTIONS AND CONSEQUENCE

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

“Actions always result in consequences.”

“Trust the process”

“Don’t mess with the recipe.”

“Proper planning prevents poor performance.”

“At the HEALING PLACE on time is late and early is on time.”

All of these little “truisms” were uttered over the course of a great day this past Wednesday with our new friends and consultative team from THE HEALING PLACE in Louisville Ky. http://www.thehealingplace.org/

Jay Davis, their Chairman, was the one to utter most of them and it was clear that wasn’t the first time he had done so.  Jay has over 20 years in the addiction recovery business, over 30 in his personal sobriety journey, so it was clear, these truisms were important to “his process” and the process exercised with the nearly 500 men and women seeking recovery and shelter across the multiple Louisville campuses and facilities.

Yet it was the first one “actions always result in consequences” that truly is the straw that stirs the drink when it comes to the recovery process at THE HEALING PLACE.  

In that context, the men and women are reminded that no action is “consequence free”.  Poor actions often equate into less than favorable consequence.  For example, choose to bring illegal substances onto the recovery floor results in being “ineligible for on-going services”.  (Translated – back on the street).  At the same time, “GOOD ACTIONS” foster positive consequence.  Embracing the steps leads to sobriety.  Trusting the process leads to perks and passes to see a loved one at home.

Now I know this isn’t some new profound or "revelatory" concept.  I understand there is nothing new here.  

But I do think it is important from time to time to be reminded that life is a series of actions followed by consequence and that GOD embraces that little truism as well.

Galatians 5:19-21(MSG)

It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.

 

But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.

So whether it is Jay providing the reminder or the Apostle Paul, the message is still the same.  Actions do indeed result in consequence.

It is very simple and crystal clear.

GOOD ACTIONS = good consequence.

BAD or SELFISH ACTIONS = bad consequences.

What is your plan of "action" for today?

 

I love you all.

HAVE A BLESSED WEEKEND!

Freedom Church

 

Pastor GDelaney

DISOBEDIENCE'S CONSEQUENCES or OBEDIENCE'S BLESSINGS?

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Today’s DISPATCH is a little “recovery flavored.” But you non-recovery folks, stick with it. There is a little something for you too at the end.

I was with a fella on Tuesday who was “wanting to quit” his “dime a day” obsession with marijuana.  I believed him but it led me to some questions…

“What is your motivation when it comes to recovery?

Have you decided to change because you know you ‘can’t’ continue to live the way you have been living…

Or…

Is the JOB testing you more frequently?

Wife harping change or else?

Is there a consequence looming because of the weed?”

After he “sort of” answered the questions, I then asked him a tougher one for he was a believer; in fact a reference from another Pastor.

I asked, “Or has GOD begun to influence and impact your life so that your recovery is more about being obedient and in alignment with what HE wants for your life and recovery rather than fear of consequence?”

To put it another way, “Have you embraced this walk of recovery out of fear of the consequences or due to outside pressure, or have you begun to experience the blessings of obedience and instead want that for your life?”

The truth is that most recovery usually begins on the fear side of the coin.

“I can’t smoke because my husband/wife told me not too. I can’t use because I am being drug tested. I can’t do this because I will put probation at risk.”

So often we do our best to "get in line", and behave differently because we “don’t want the trouble.”

But as we begin to embrace a recovery founded on Jesus and inspired by truth, we begin to learn that trusting and OBEYING GOD offers so much more! 

In fact, when we recover with OBEDIENCE as our motivator we discover that we are kept safe from the harsh repercussions we deeply fear. And by continuing in a GOD-focused recovery, our fear is replaced by recognition of God’s blessings, His love for us and His passion to see us through the challenge!

It is the reason STEP 3 tells us to SUBMIT to GOD’S WILL for our lives as the key to recovery. 

Why?

Because by following God’s will our focus shifts from “disobedience’s consequences to obedience’s blessings!”

Romans 6:21-23 (MSG)

...now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.

You see friends, once we taste the best GOD has to offer, we will want to keep good flowing into our lives. Obedience and God’s best are natural partners — good derives from following divine commands...

And as we become more aware of how blessing follows obedience, we realize that complying with the Lord’s will is a very wise choice. It is then we move from “I can’t do that because” RECOVERERS to “I choose NOT to do that because” RECOVERERS.

Now for my “non-recovery friends” this message is for you as well.

Is there a sin in your life that know you “can’t do” for fear of consequence?  Come on be honest.  You secretly wish you could “keep doing it” if you knew there were no repercussions.

Step away from that sort of forced compliance.  Instead, follow GOD’s best for your life. Don't "listen to sin tell you what to do".  Instead experience the blessings of obedience and break free from consequential conformity!

Obedience always brings blessing (Life Principle #21) – Charles Stanley.

 

I love you all.

Freedom Church

 

GO ONE MORE ROUND

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

 

“Going one more round when you don’t think you can that’s what makes all the difference in your life. – Rocky Balboa

 

It is not often that we dip into the well of that amazing philosopher Rocky Balboa for inspiration, but today I do in reference to a man who was in my office yesterday.

 

This guy suffers from a disability.

This guy is challenged to speak clearly and effectively due to an "unfixable" malady.

This guy struggles to make ends meet.

 

Yet it is this guy who quoted the Philadelphia fighter while meeting with me yesterday.

 

It is his philosophy of life.

He realizes he will take punches each day.  Lots of them. He already has.

Lost jobs due to economic downturns.

Abandoned by friends who found his challenges too “challenging”.

He has been beaten but HE isn't BEATEN!

Instead there he was excitedly embracing an opportunity we were giving him to actually “work even harder”; to potentially take another punch or two down the road.

Pretty remarkable.

 

We can all learn a lot from “this guy”.

Things like:

Tenacity

Perseverance.

Patience.

Passion.

Drive.

FAITH!

In the time I have known "this guy", in spite of all of his troubles, his FAITH has never wavered.  Adversity after adversity, punch after punch and he keeps getting up for one more round.

 

Can we say the same?

Ask yourself.

How do you respond when life is bludgeoning you like Apollo Creed.  Are you reaching for the white towel or are you ready to answer the next bell?  Are you ready to go one more round when everything says you can't?

 

GOD expects us to keep the faith; to keep relying on HIM in spite of the circumstances or challenges we may face or be dealt!  GOD WILL provide the STRENGTH we must be willing to "go one more round".

 

1 Chronicles 16:11 (NLV)

11 Look to the Lord and ask for His strength. Look to Him all the time.

 

I am so encouraged for my friend for I am confident his perseverance will eventually pay off.  I mean to look at him from the outside you would be quick to mistakenly believe he could offer little.  But rather He is an inspiration to me.  He exercises his FAITH every day and trusts what GOD is doing on the inside of Him regardless of how things might be decaying on the outside!  He reminds me of this little passage.

 

2 Corinthians 4:16 (MSG)

So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.

 

My friend GRABS that GRACE with both hands each and every day and allows it to inspire and energize him to GO ONE MORE ROUND.

 

Can we say the same?

I don't know what you are up against today, but don't give up.  Instead GO ONE MORE ROUND!

Galatians 6:9 (LB)

And let us not get tired of doing what is right, for after a while we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t get discouraged and give up.

 

 

I love you all.

Freedom Church

FOLLOW HIS DIRECTIONS

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Ephesians 2:10 (ESV)

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Are you one of those folks that when you purchase something new, instead of looking at the directions or giving the schematic a once over, you just dive in and start putting it together?  Are you also one of those folks who when you think you are done assembling this new treasure look around and have a couple of screws or a bolt or two left over?

To be honest, I am the least handy person on the planet so I have no room to talk. 

Even after following the directions to the letter I will often find myself with a few parts left over. I am not gifted for that sort of thing.  

But the point today is this...

The possibility of SUCCESS is much more likely when we follow the directions.

Wouldn’t you agree?

Think about it.

Someone has thought out ahead of time the best way to assemble that bicycle, swing-set or shelf, why not trust their expertise or their foresight?

But often many of us instead give the directions a toss to the side and dive right into the project many times with less than favorable results.

You know the same could be said for many of us when it comes to our “work” for the LORD each day.  We often don't consult the directions.  

We should.

Go back up and re-read Paul’s statement about that.  

”created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

What does that say?

It says that GOD has “prepared a plan” for our works for Him ahead of time.  

GOD has exercised his perfect “forethought” as to what we SHOULD be doing today to advance HIS agenda through us.

Yet often instead of “pausing and listening for the directions”, we choose to dive right into the projects, the planning, and worse yet the “execution” of the work without consultation or reference.

So today, I am offering a little encouragement.

GOD has prepared you for something today.  He has.  Why else would He have awakened you, offered you the new mercy you needed, equipped you with the grace, the knowledge, the geography, the resources and the energy to carry it out?

Make sense?

So then wouldn’t it also make sense that since He has created and offered this day to you that you should consult HIS DIRECTION as to what to do with it?  GOD says He will help!

Psalm 32:8 (LB)

I will instruct you (says the Lord) and guide you along the best pathway for your life; I will advise you and watch your progress.

What I am saying today is this...

Let's tune our hearts, ears and minds to the SPIRIT today and every morning so that we can hear specifically from GOD what “work” we are to be doing today.

That way we can be assured it will turn out right.

Proverbs 8:32-35 (GW)

Blessed are those who follow my ways.

Blessed is the person who listens to me, watches at my door day after day and waits by my doorposts. Whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord.

Remember:

“God loves to pour out His Spirit with power on those who will dare to align radically their purposes with His.” ― Steve Childers

In other words, on those who follow HIS directions...!

 

I love you all.

Freedom Church

 

Pastor GDelaney

HIS WILL, YOUR WILL

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”― Stephen R. Covey

What is the main thing today?

Very simple answer.

Jesus.

“When we truly understand what it means to love as Jesus Christ loves us, the confusion clears and our priorities align. Our walk as disciples of Christ becomes more joyful. Our lives take on new meaning. Our relationship with our Heavenly Father becomes more profound. Obedience becomes a joy rather than a burden.”

― Dieter F. Uchtdorf

We had a little “bonus” appearance by Pastor Josh at AHOP this week. His focus was UNITY.  His message was clear.  Jesus at the CENTER of all things breeds unity. 

Simply put, LOVE GOD.  Trust HIS will.  It works. 

Josh shared that churches that keep this "main thing the main thing" will be effective at seeking and saving the lost.  Those that don’t will often find division at every corner, even over the color of carpet.  The same thing holds true for the believer.  We can get distracted by so many things; offenses, agendas, and confusion to name a few. That can swiftly suck the joy out of SERVICE!

So for the believer as with the church always "CENTER UP"!

And how do we do that? Do what JESUS did when faced with "life"; DEFER to the FATHER’S WILL.

Luke 11:2

…Thy will be done…

Today, let’s take Jesus’ lead. Let’s try to have a “THY WILL BE DONE” kind of day.  Starting with loving and deferring to GOD and continuing from there!

Now you may think you can’t do it. BUT you CAN.  Let me show you some ways.

You say you are not sure how to PRAY in the WILL of GOD. No worries. GOD WILL do that for you!

Romans 8:27

If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us…

You say you are not sure you know how to stay aligned with the WILL of GOD for today.  You say you need HIS unbiased insight or assistance to hit the mark. Again, GOD provides the plan.

Psalm 19:7-9 (GW)

7 The teachings of the Lord are perfect.

    They renew the soul.

    The testimony of the Lord is dependable.

    It makes gullible people wise.

8 The instructions of the Lord are correct.

    They make the heart rejoice.

    The command of the Lord is radiant.

    It makes the eyes shine.

9 The fear of the Lord is pure.

    It endures forever.

    The decisions of the Lord are true.

    They are completely fair.

I could go on, but you get the gist.  Put JESUS at the CENTER today.  Let the MAIN thing direct “your thing” today.  Give it a GO. 

Proverbs 16:3 (MSG)

Put God in charge of your work,

And make HIS WILL your WILL and HIS CENTER your CENTER.

Blessing awaits!

I love you all.

Freedom Church

Pastor GDelaney

MORE TIME

Have you thanked Him?

Have you praised Him?

Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?

Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?

1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)

1-3The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

 …reserve a daily time with God for Bible reading, self-examination and prayer in order to know God and his will for my life and to gain the power to follow his will.” – John Baker/Rick Warren – Life’s Healing Choices

Are you doing this?

Are you “recharging” daily; reserving time for GOD? Are you gaining access to the power GOD has for you and for the day or days ahead?

John Maxwell suggests a “Question for God” every morning:

What is the main event today? What do you want me to focus on today?”

Last night I again had the privilege of sharing with a few of the inmates at the MONTGOMERY COUNTY JAIL.  Our lesson focused around relapse; around taking the steps to “maintain the momentum” of their recovery and their rehabilitation once their time of incarceration had ended. 

Why?

For when we went around the room, there were mostly “repeat” offenders sharing their time with our team; men who had made some mistakes, paid for them yet continued to make choices that landed them "back on the block" as it were again and again.

So the teaching was focused on while they had time and access to resources, to RESERVE time for GOD each and every day.  To ask the question of GOD, what was the main thing to be learned today, what should be an area of focus for their journey back to society? 

Makes sense.

Lamentations 3:40(MSG)

Let’s take a good look at the way we’re living and reorder our lives under God.

But let’s all be honest for a second.  We ALL could use MORE time with GOD.  We could all stand for more time in PRAYER, more time in HONEST SELF-EVALUATION, REPENTANCE and CONFESSION.  We ALL have ROOM to grow, things to “chisel” out of our lives, habits to diminish, hurts and issues that NEED GOD’s healing!

I know I do.

For far too many days I suffer from “MARTHA-SYNDROME”.  

You remember the story of Jesus coming to visit Mary and Martha and Martha being so consumed with the work, the stress, the anxiety of the job at hand that she sacrificed time at the feet of Jesus for the busyness. (Luke 10)

That is me.  

And not only do I sacrifice time with GOD to “work” for GOD, I often allow the frustration of the work and my frailties to intersect, making me a GOOD candidate for potentially “sinful” stress relief because of the work.

That is NOT GOOD!  A little wacky when you pause and think about it.

But something tells me I am not alone.  I mean there were 14 inked-up dudes dressed in blue with little armbands that can testify to that.

So daily it is important to heed the words of Paul and…

2 Corinthians 13:5 (MSG)

Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don’t drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it.

I love that last line. 

If you find yourself drifting or in other words entertaining “slipping toward” old copings and behaviors, DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!

Mark 14:38 (MSG)

Stay alert, be in prayer, so you don’t enter the danger zone without even knowing it. Don’t be naive.

Ask yourself:

“Do you think God can be trusted? Or do you think you need to take things into your own hands?”  ― Andy Stanley

That answer is an easy one!

Carve out some time to RECHARGE today! Don’t put yourself at risk like me.  Get out that BIBLE and read.  Get on your knees and pray. Tune your ear for the answer to the question of focus and direction!

Remember!

Zechariah 4:6 (GW)

You won’t succeed…but by my Spirit, says the Lord…

 

I love you all

Have a GREAT weekend!

Freedom Church

 

Pastor GDelaney