Christians don’t always live happily ever after

I am excited for this weekend. Looking forward to a long weekend with the kids. Thankful for veterans that served this country that gave us freedom, seeing MSU play football and relaxing. Even more than that, I am looking forward to teaching at my church and then baptizing my son Ty.

Ty has wanted to make this commitment to Christ for at least two years, but we felt he wasn’t quite grasping what it meant until now. This Sunday he is making that commitment to follow Christ. Hailee and I are excited about that. Along with the excitement means over the past years every time Ty asked about baptism, we had talks about faith. One of the points we made, just because you give your life to Christ doesn’t mean life is going to get easier.

There is nothing stating after you accept Christ, you will live happily ever after and have an easy life. If anything it can get tougher. Satan will challenge you, life will get tough at times and sometimes you will hit rock bottom. What we face as Christians in the USA is nothing compared to the persecution Christians face all over the world. People will make fun of you for your faith and treat you like crap because you claim to be a Christian. Just because people treat you like crap doesn’t mean you are supposed to treat them like crap too. You are called to be loving and caring even when it’s tough. In the end it’s not our jobs as Christians to payback wrong for wrong, everyone will have to answer to God one day.

Paul shares this about facing tough times as Christians 2 Thessalonians 1:6-7: “God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.”

We all will face God for our actions in this life when we pass away. For some people, that is going to be a huge struggle. Knowing what they did to people, what they thought of Jesus and how they lived this life. It’s hard to be a Christian at times and it’s not easy. Paul reminds us that when we have times of trouble as a Christian, God is there to comfort us. Maybe it will happen in this lifetime, maybe it will happen after we pass away when we continue with our eternal life.

I love the fact I get to witness my son making that decision to follow Christ. I always pray that when the tough times happen in his life, he will always know that he can always seek comfort in God, even during the tough times. As an eight year old, Ty will face some struggles in life, I hope I can be there to help him stay strong in faith through those moments.

If you are going through those tough times in faith, know that God loves you. God is always there to comfort you through the good and the bad. Always trust in him, even when you feel like the world is against you.

Have a great day.

Why is it hard to love Christians?

Today I have been reflecting on a couple of verses, Ephesians 1:15-16. “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people. I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.”

I find it very easy for Christians to love God. This is the purpose of Sunday morning church, to praise and honor the one true God. God gave us Jesus to sacrifice for our sins. This is powerful. I am humbled every Sunday that God would do this for a sinner like myself. This is why I have faith, but the second half of this first sentence is extremely tough. We as Christians can truly struggle with love all God’s people.

Let me take you back a little while…I grew up Catholic, I have always loved Jesus and God, but not the church. By middle school I was weary of Church. A large group of people lived one way Sunday morning and another way the rest of the week. I was fed up with the church. Eventually I started attending Youth for Christ (Campus Life) and my friend Jason got me to go to church with him.  I started attending church infrequently.

I would go into church extremely timid. I didn’t know anyone other then Jason and his family. I would attend high school Sunday School, but everyone in the class for the most part looked like they didn’t want to be there. Nobody went out of his or her way to talk to me and people just knew me as Jason’s friend.

One time in particular a lady stopped Jason in the hallway and praised him for his Bible knowledge and answering questions in Sunday School. It was a three minute conversation, but at the end of it she looked up and down at me and walked away. I felt like dirt. This lady didn’t know me but shot daggers at me and treated me like I was scum. It took a while for me to move past this. Eventually I started attending church more frequently. Yet I felt like an outcast and felt out of place every Sunday. Eventually I moved passed that and got baptized one Sunday.  When I came down the stairs a group of people were there to congratulate me. One of the first people was this same lady who didn’t care for me and she said, “Welcome to the family!” It was the first time she said something nice to me in over two years of attending church. Christians then wonder why people don’t like them?

Christians can be some of the most hateful people. Westboro Baptist doesn’t help, but we all can tell story of Christians that act like awful people. I have had my moments where I haven’t acted Christian. Most ministers leave a church because of less then 10 people in their congregation. A minister could be liked by everyone in a 300 person congregation but still feel useless because of less then five people. I once met a person that tried singlehanded to run three ministers out of a church because he disagreed with them. I have been apart of three hour reviews where not one thing positive was said and left the meeting questioning my calling and if I am even meant to be a minister.

Ask any waitress which day they hate work and the majority they will tell you Sunday lunch because church people are lousy tippers and demand the most attention. I once had a conversation with a Christian who told me they wished a vulnerable looking guy would go to a downtown city protecting his second amendment rights. When one of the black thugs tried to mug him, he would use his second amendment rights and shoot him.  This way it would save taxpayers $40,000 a year.

We Christians are flawed people, but there is something we can do about this hate, change. We don’t have to be known as hateful people. We can choose to be loving and it starts within the church buildings. Love God and love his people, it’s so easy and we mess it up. We need to be encouragers of other believers. Whether we like them or not we are called to put or bitterness aside and show love. Paul praised the Ephesians for this. When we get in a praise mood rather then a bitter mood, it changes us. Stress and blood pressure can go down and love can flow again. If we truly want to be a representative of Christ in the world it starts with how we treat each other in a church building. Who will you encourage today? Who have you been bitter with and what will you do to change?

Have a great day.

Forget grace, we're playing cards

Leave Jesus out of this we are playing cards. Hailee and I love to play cards and it’s normal for us to have get together with friends and play cards. Jokingly while playing a tough game of cards and trying to win someone said something along the lines of forget about the grace of Jesus were playing cards. It was funny and joking but in real life situations sometimes we forget about Jesus’s grace and get wrapped into judging.

There was a story about a church that once was wronged. This one church paid for a service to be done by a company and looked forward to having this complete to improve the church, but the person changed the deal. The original deal was pay for the service 50 percent up front and the rest at completion. The business owner went up to the church and said before the finished product was done, they needed more money to complete the project.  The church paid the person the rest of the money.

Soon after that, the job wasn’t completed to a satisfactory mark. The job wasn’t done. When the church tried to contact this man, the man stopped returning phone calls, they would only answer when called from an unknown number. A shady business deal, what was the church to do? Should a loving church file charges against this business man that wrong them?

1 Corinthians 6 spends the first 11 verses talking about judging others and handling matters in a Christian way. The church people were taking lawsuits to courts against other Christians. Paul stated how wrong this was. He stated its better to be wronged and cheated then to do the likewise to brothers and sisters in faith. He ends talking about who will inherit the kingdom of God with verse 11…

“And that is what some of you were. But you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

We were sanctified by Jesus. Sanctify means to be set apart for special use or purpose. When we get stuck in matters that go to court especially if we are in the wrong, we are not living the sanctified life Jesus gave us.

Jesus gave us life, grace, mercy and peace. He never wanted us to put court cases against other Christians. Hopefully matters can be resolved that even though we have to obey the laws of the land Romans 13:1. Grace needs to be shown in every matter and that is what Jesus gives each and every one of us. Have a great day.

You hurt? Rub some dirt on it

“Everyone’s going to die…” in response a person said, “Yeah, but not this week.” One guy terminally sick and was told he was going to die very soon, the first guy had no clue. Things happen in life that are out of our control. We all have times like this. We have a chance to let a bad event overtake us. Will you let that happen?

Honestly it’s not that bad. This was a phrase I said a week before my baseball season when I was younger. Our first game was a week away and we had one of our final practices. I was the starting catcher. The hitter hit a lazy pop fly in foul territory going towards the dugout/first base side. I lived for moments like this. I threw off my helmet and ran to try to catch up to it. I had a great jump and was about to make a nice diving play, except for one unforeseen problem, a rock. In foul territory was a rock I didn’t see, running full speed I stepped on the rock. It caused me to slip just as I was leaning towards making the catch. I reach out but was thrown into the ground with my wrist being the first thing to hit the ground. I was in pain.

The coach came over to me very quickly and asked if I was alright. Something was wrong, but I wasn’t going to admit that. “Nope, I’m fine,” I stated. I sat out the rest of practice. My wrist hurt and I couldn’t close a baseball glove. After three days of being in pain, I went to the doctors to find out I broke my wrist. I was hurt and I wish rubbing dirt on it would have helped, it did not.

Bad things happen in life sometimes, yet can things really be that bad? We all face different challenges in life. Sometimes those challenges hurt us, they can cut deep. Yet in the scheme of life they can be very small in comparison. Listen to what Paul shares in Romans 8:18…

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

Man, there are some verses in scripture I read and feel the power of God. We are suffering people in so many different ways, whether mentally or physically. Yet when we have God and trust in Jesus with our lives, the present sufferings are a blimp on the radar. God is God and will do amazing things. Know this, trust in this, through our imperfections Jesus allowed us to experience eternal life when we give our life over to him. What you are going through Jesus knows about wants to comfort you and wants you to know there is light at the end of the tunnel. There is something to look forward to when you have Christ.

We were never meant to die at the side of the road like roadkill. We have a chance with our life to experience greatness. If you are going through some struggles, hang in there. Sometimes we experience lows in life just to experience greatness or to see how good we have it normally.

Bad things happen but don’t relish in them. Rub some dirt on it, know it’s temporary and God has plans for you! We always have something to look forward to when we are Christians, no matter how bad life can get, we are given eternal life. Don’t stress too hard on small things that have a low value. Hang in there! God is with you!

Have a great day.

Giving up because of you

It’s all on you. Imagine if the good and the bad of people was blamed on you? People weren’t afraid to say you are the reason someone else isn’t held in high regard. What you did and how you act effects other people. This is true with faith. What if instead of a person it was God?

If you say one thing and do another it makes people question you. I was in high school and still trying to figure out what faith was all about.  I attended several different churches and talked about faith with several different friends. One friend invited me to church and infrequently I would go with him.

Seeing this guy at church and outside of church was a different world. This was a guy who drank, smoked, did drugs and would have sex with any girl he could. Once we got into church it was a different world. We were in a class and he was the one people looked up too. He had scripture memorized and would quote scripture as he talked. People would come up to him and tell him how amazing it is that he takes his faith so seriously. These same people would give me the dirtiest looks at church. A major reason I thought all Christians were hypocrites was because of friendships like this, people that lived one way and did another.

Paul calls out the people faithful to God at the time. In this case, if you were a follower of God during this time (Esp. before Jesus came) you were a Jew. Jesus was a Jew too. Romans 2 has some harsh words about these people that claimed faith but lived a different way. He said this in Romans 2:24, “As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

God is not lifted up among those without faith because of you. More and more studies show that most people have attended church for a while when they were younger and give it up after high school. One of the main reasons, Christians are hypocrites. They live one way Sunday morning and completely different during the week. When people know you are a Christian you represent God wherever you go.

Some people don’t mind representing God and are good examples of Jesus others are not. A while ago I talked to a student whose parent always talked down to them. This parent would say why aren’t you like Jimmy, Susie and Johnny (Made up people)? The student wanted to tell them because they drink, smoke and have sex all the time. This parent thought the people they mentioned were great Christians, but they had no idea. Little did they know their son was one that did none of the three.

We all make mistakes and misrepresent ourselves at times. As a Christian, I have done things that have turned people away from faith, I am not proud of that. I screw up and honestly don’t represent Jesus well at times. Yet Jesus forgives me and can forgive you too. Church was never meant for the perfect but the imperfect. The home of Jesus is meant for everyone no matter how righteous or unrighteous you are.

If someone has caused you to turn your back on God because of them, I’m sorry. Give God, Jesus and the Church another chance. What other place can you seek forgiveness like the Church? Don’t give up on Jesus because of the actions of a Christian. We can all make mistakes and God is a graceful and forgiving God. Jesus loves you.

Have a great day.

You think you’re right but you have been wrong plenty of times

Politics and I do not go in the same sentence.

It gives me a migraine looking at Facebook and everyone throwing your two cents into the political conversation.  Neither candidate is a saint nor are they the devil in human skin.  Yet I have seen everything in-between on Facebook and Twitter from both sides of the situation. When we think we have all the answers we can have none of the answers.

I pray Christians care more about keeping people from hell then this election.  We as humans do not have all the answers, nor will we ever.  Sometimes we can get stuck in-between a rock and a hard place.  Yet it’s still not as bad as Paul had it.

He was standing up for what he believed in and that was Jesus.  He believed in a resurrected Christ and lived his life for him.  You don’t read in the Bible about Christians voting in an election but you hear how they are put on trial for that faith.  Paul was on trial for a great chunk of time.

He was sent to Festus with his accusers.  His accusers were lying about him and saying he did stuff that wasn’t true.  Yet he faced politics.  Festus felt he owed the Jews a favor and tried to move the trial to Jerusalem. This could have been a death sentence to Paul.

Paul answered with this in Acts 25:10-11…

“I am now standing before Caesar’s court, where I ought to be tried.  I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well. If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die.  But if the Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!”

As a Roman citizen he had the right to appeal to Caesar with his case.  He knew the bad things that could happen in Jerusalem and went the other way.  Sometimes you have to fight for what you believe in.  Paul believed in Jesus and was willing to stand trial for him.

Would you be willing to do the same for your faith?  Faith goes beyond who you vote for, it’s so much more.  If you are a Christian please think about someone who might be going to hell and try to show them the eternal life that Jesus offers. 

Have a great day.

Facebook, homosexuality, gay marriage, judgmental Christians, who are we trying to represent?

It’s just not fair.

Facebook has been an interesting place lately.

It seems like it can be ok to be friends with someone until you say something they disagree with.

My friend David Vang put a saying up on Facebook, “Yes I am a Christian. No, I don’t think that makes me better than anyone.”

With politics, Chick-Fil-A, gay marriage and any other hot topic subject, sharing your view might not be accepted and you could be considered judgmental.

A couple of times I have shared on these subjects and some of the responses I get back aren’t positive.

It happens.

What the problem is, if people don’t share your exact view, you’re not ok with them.

I have seen where Christians have been bold with this and say, “I am just sharing the truth of God and I don’t care what other people think, God needs to be lifted up.”

While there is truth to this, it’s not always done in love.

I have heard people say Christians just persecute me for my views.

Don’t forget, Christians are the number 1 persecuted group in the world.

Just for wearing a cross or admitting you’re a Christian can be instant cause for death.

I am extremely sorry if you feel that Christians just persecute you.

Not all Christians are like that.

Sometimes you might miss the point of what we/Christians are trying to say.

Sometimes we say things in the wrong way.

This happens throughout history.

I shared yesterday about Paul being beat and people beating him without knowing why.

In Acts 21:38, we find out what they think of Paul…

“Aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the desert some time ago?”

In other words, they had no idea who Paul was and what he represented.

Yet they still felt the needed to beat him up and they thought he was a different person.

Paul represented Jesus, and tried to share the message of Jesus with everyone.

Yet they thought he started a revolt and led 4,000 terrorist?

They didn’t know who Paul was.

Sometimes we don’t understand people and we are misunderstood.

As a Christian, I am sometimes misunderstood for what I represent.

This is who I am….

A sinner, full of mistakes, a father, husband to a (smoking hot wife), Christian, hypocrite, depressed, sad, happy, mellow, laid-back, goofy and  not perfect.

As a Christian, I live by the Bible.

I would love to say that everyone gets to go to heaven and no matter how good or bad you have been. I will see you in heaven.

That is me, but I have to submit to what the Bible says.

The Bible says the only way to heaven is through faith in Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

As a Christian we follow the Bible and try to let that lead our lives.

We are not always the best at communicating that.

According to the Bible, homosexuality is a sin, just like masturbation with lust, looking at porn, adultery, lust and every other sexual sin.

This does not mean I don’t want to be friends or we can’t still show love to each other.

Our first commandment is to show love to everyone, no matter what their views are or how they vote.

If I did not hang out with people because they sinned, I couldn’t even hang out with myself.

I am full of errors and sin.

I believe living for Jesus, is not living for my view on the world but his.

What do you think?

Who or what do you live for?

Have a great day.