BE PREPARED TO SHARE

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)

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

I was working from my home office yesterday when I got a call from a good friend, the media lead at CEDARVILLE University.  He said the college was hosting a TOWN HALL with former Fox News lead Eric Boling regarding the Opioid/Addiction challenge.

I had met Eric briefly in Washington DC last March.  At that time, he was only 6 months removed from losing his boy, a Division 1 athlete to overdose.  Sadly, his son was one of those who “one pill” was the wrong pill.  What he thought he purchased from a friend was a XANAX targeted to help him with mid-term anxiety instead was laced with deadly fentanyl and took his life.  So, Eric, now affiliated with Sinclair Broadcasting, is traveling the country advancing the conversation regarding the fight, the fight that we have been fighting here in Ohio for nearly 8 years now.

So last night about more than 500 folks weathered the chill and and hear from Eric and others, including myself, former Lieutenant Governor, Mary Taylor, Dr. Sweeney Dean of Cedarville’s Pharmacy Department regarding the issue.

It was quite the honor to say the least. It was a national broadcast.  As I like to say it was an EPHESIANS 3:20 kind of moment.  I was going to attend the Town Hall as a guest of Dr. Sweeney.  I never thought I would be on the stage.

Never.

But what ENCOURAGED me so much was that no one from the broadcast team, not Eric, not the producers, no one, constrained me from sharing my faith and how the LORD has and continues to orchestrate my recovery.  In a culture where faith has been muzzled, ridiculed, and misrepresented, the crisis of addiction is a place where folks KNOW that faith is the “secret ingredient” to recovery!

So why share this?

Maybe you watched it. 

It is not about the show, it is about the opportunity.

When given an opening to share your faith, don’t hesitate. Oddly enough I told my friend Marisa who along with my wife Beth were there to “cheer me on” that I didn’t want anyone to remember me in this, but rather be affirmed that FAITH is a difference maker.

Billy Graham said it this way, “Our faith becomes stronger as we express it; a growing faith is a sharing faith.”

I will be honest; my faith is frail most of the time.  I continue to have goofy thoughts and make questionable choices that clearly disappoint GOD.  

I know it.  

But GOD continues to put me in places to share Him despite all of that.  I think because He wants my faith to get stronger. 

He knows I need it.

But I still don’t get it.  I don’t.  I wouldn’t trust me with the message.

Never.

But I am learning that when the doors open, it isn’t about me, or my track record.  It never had or has anything to do with me and everything to do with Him. We are like common clay jars that carry this glorious treasure within, so that the extraordinary overflow of power will be seen as God’s, not ours. – 2 Corinthians 4:7 (TPT)

Friends each day we are ALL given opportunities to share with folks about how the Lord is impacting us.  Even when we don’t feel like we could make a difference given our failures, GOD does trust you. 

He has always used the broken and flawed. 

I am proof of that; sinner number one like Paul surmised.

We just need to be ready to share when the opportunity presents itself. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are… 1 Peter 3:15 (MSG)

The question is will we? 

Akita said:

Each of our stories, have a golden treasure for a specific need.” 

Have a BLESSED WEEKEND!!!

Love all of you

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE

DON'T GIVE THE DEVIL

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)

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

Last night I received a nice blessing.  

I don’t get to attend many recovery meetings these days, but a few weeks ago, my friend Don had asked me to be his guest at a gathering last night at Shelter Church (http://shelterchurch.tv/shelter-recovery/). And I was able to join him and about 80 others for a night of encouragement and recovery.

And while Don and his team meet each Tuesday, about once a quarter they host a dinner and get the word out.  This was one of those nights!

I sometimes forget that almost without fail, the LORD will show me or teach me something in these gatherings. And last night was no exception as "Bill" spent a few minutes chatting about this passage, Ephesians 4:27. And while he used the KJV of this verse, I kind of like the ERV a little better.  The verse is simple.  It says, “Don’t give the devil a way to defeat you.”

Chew on that a second.

Don’t give the devil a way…

That says to me that I can decide if and when I give the enemy access to me.  And sadly, more often than I would like to admit, I put out the welcome mat for him on the regular. 

Wandering thoughts.

Selfish proclivities.

Idle pursuits.  Spurgeon even said, “Idle men tempt the devil to tempt them.

Sadly, I choose to rent him space often without thinking and most certainly without remembering that if I just ‘resist’ that door shuts and he must leave. (James 4:7).

Why then if we have the “option” to entertain the enemy do we do so despite all the inevitable consequences?

GOOD question.

Yet it was interesting as last night’s lead Claudia shared her journey with crack cocaine addiction the number of times she remarked, “Even when I knew better…I kept using...”.

Friends, the truth of the matter is the enemy while relentless is also INTENSELY patient. - your enemy, the devil, roams around incessantly, like a roaring lion looking for its prey to devour. – 1 Peter 5:8 (TPT).

He studies us.

He knows our weak spots.  He knows the things our flesh likes because we have given him that intel.  But the good news is we can capture every…loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ.

And by doing that, we remove the enemy’s access and remind him that…the Master never lets us down. He’ll stick by you and protect you from evil. – 2 Thessalonians 3:3 (MSG).

So, let's both do our best to make today a "no access" day!

Have a BLESSED ONE!!!

Love all of you

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE

DISCOURAGEMENT DEFEATERS

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)

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

I was working in my hotel in Cincinnati last night when a discouraged text came across from one of my dearest friends and ministry partners.  It’s never good when a text has the words, “Please tell us not to give up” in it.

And as I searched for what to say, of how to reply, I was reminded of a little devotion from Debbie Przybylski of IHOPKC.  It gives some valuable direction for times of discouragement. Knowing that my friend is NOT ALONE in her challenge, I thought it would be good to share it.  We ALL need effective tools to defeat discouragement, Amen?

“I heard the story that one day the devil was auctioning off his tools. They were highly priced - laziness, pride, hate, envy, and jealousy. One tool was not for sale. One person asked, "Why is that tool not for sale?" Satan whispered, "I can't afford to get rid of that one. It's my chief tool - discouragement! I can pry open any heart with that tool, and once I'm inside, I can do anything I want!"

How to Overcome Discouragement in Your Life

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).

There are several principles we can apply in our lives in order to overcome the tool of discouragement. The following are ways to resist and overcome discouragement:

1.  Give up the right to understand - Things happen that we do not fully understand. In those moments we must lay down our right to understand and choose to trust God wholeheartedly. Our faith must come before our understanding. His ways are higher, He is in control, and He will take care of us.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:9).

2.  Measure success by obedience, not outward success -We often look to numbers and outward achievements, but God sees things differently. Stay focused on obedience to what God has told you to do, and don’t compare yourself with others. God sees your worth and rejoices in it.

"'Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams'" (1 Samuel 15:22).

 

3.  Daily pray God's Word over your life - Haven’t you noticed when you’re discouraged, how different you feel after God speaks to your heart through His Word? It’s as if a light goes on that dispels the darkness. When we read and pray His Word, we can have a living, active dialogue with Him in our heart.

"For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

4.  Choose faithfulness - God is faithful and He values faithfulness. Look for His "well done" in your life. Seek to be faithful over a few things and with what is in your hands now. Breakthrough is best stewarded by the faithful.

"His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord’" (Matthew 25:23).

5.  Learn the habit of giving thanks -It is hard to be discouraged with a thankful heart. Remember what God has done for you in the past and encourage yourself in your history with the Lord. Discouragement is a loss of perspective. He will complete the good work in you.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

6.  Resist discouragement in the name of Jesus - We are in a spiritual battle, and there is a spirit of discouragement that we can resist in Jesus' name. Darkness is covering the earth, but there is power in the name of Jesus to resist the devil.

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world (1 Peter 5;8-9).

Remember that God is with you and He is good. You are deeply valued by Him, and He has a purpose for your life. We must resist the devil's tool of discouragement. He will not win, and we are not alone.

He won't!

Have a BLESSED DAY!!!

Love all of you

OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE