Category: Preacher

Exertion of enough physical force to change something’s shape. A device for applying pressure can be called a press. In ancient times there were press gangs who forced people into service. Don’t drink from a mug of beer unless you can see the bottom. Otherwise, you may be pressed into the military for accepting a coin dropped in your drink. I do not believe that tradition to press you into service is still practiced but who knows? Maybe, we should all take precautions. Press is also a whole industry of people who work for the media like news reporters. A press release was issued for my new book “Sticks and Stones” which you can find by a few key strokes on Google. The word press has many meanings as you can see but have you ever considered being pressed toward a higher prize?

Paul considered all his attributes in his past a failure, loss or sewer trash compared to his discovery of his higher calling. He discovered righteousness not by his own but by forces that were applied to him that changed his shape. He was pressed into a new shape or creation. The transformative powers that changed him into a new creation can also change us. We never really reach our full potential, but we can stretch to reach new goals, with this power. Some may believe pressure to be shaped into something new is stressful. I believe it is only stressful, if we fail to let go of the things we see with our own eyes. It becomes a relief if we look to the unseen. That is faith! Norman Vincent Peale said in his booklet called “Thought Conditioners”, “Every person, if he is to have mental health and live successfully, must move away from past failures and mistakes and go forward without letting them be a weight upon him.” I say that even past successes can hold us back from future accomplishments in life. We should never give up on the goal which is the prize of God’s upward call in Christ Jesus. One bible version reads, “The one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth into those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians3:13,14) Please read more to see how success according to the world, may prevent us from greater success according to the world to come.

T

Past tense of reconcile. It is to restore missed opportunities between friends and relations. I believe we all need to coexist as much as possible in harmony with one another and to try to get along. What can’t we? “Why can’t we be friends” is a song by War. It is a catchy tune and makes a lot of sense. Here’s a few sentences in the lyrics. “The color of your skin don’t matter to me as long as we can live in harmony. Why can’t we be friends. (repeated three more times) I’d kinda like to be the president so I could show you how your money’s spent. Why can’t we be friends.” In this day of dog eat dog, it seems to me we are determined to avoid reconciliation as much as possible. It is unhealthy to continue to hold grudges and pretend all is okay. Pride gets in the way.

We should not hold people by human standards as we would all fail the test. All of us are weak and subject to actions that we may regret soon after the act. All you have to do is turn on the idiot box called a TV and find an channel that conforms to your opinions. They make it easy to watch and listen according to your perspective on current affairs. It does not matter what the other side is saying because they are wrong, in you not so humble opinion. This non-reconcilable phenomena is a symptom of our illness. What is our illness? Resistance to spiritual guidance at all cost. An alcoholic is only able to recover after acknowledgement of their affliction. An angry human unwilling to be reconciled is like that alcoholic. Until they acknowledge their faults, they will not be able to move forward. Many humans consider it a weakness to submit to spiritual guidance. That is what holds most people back from living a better more peaceful life. We hold ourselves to human standards instead of higher standards. “If anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation…All these new things are from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ who gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” God does not count our sins against us if we become part of the message of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:17-19)

How do we become part of the message? We look beyond ourselves and become a new creation in Christ. I see politicians all of the time standing before an audience apologizing for what they have done in the past. Is the apology a true effort to be reconciled or is it just a ploy to get sympathetic votes? Even worse than an insincere apology, is someone standing in front of an audience trying to justify their selfish actions. I believe in forgiveness, if the person being forgiven has truly repented. A son goes away and ruins his life and his father’s inheritance is spent like water. He realizes he has really messed up his life. Instead of asking for another handout, he humbles himself to admit he is not worthy to be called a son. He returns to his father only to ask for a job. What happens to the son who came truly repenting? The father celebrates the reconciled son as once lost but now found. (Luke 15:11-32)

T

I love figs. Not too fond for the toxic leaves, but that is another story. I want to focus on the fruit. Unlike many other fruits, like apples, peaches, oranges, etc. the fig is an inverted flower. That means technically it is not a fruit as the flowers do not fall away revealing the tiny fruit. Instead, the flowers bloom inside its encasing and matures into the fruit we love to eat. Some of you may not like figs. There are a lot of health benefits associated with the figs. For example, an ounce of dried figs provides 3 grams of fiber. It may also help lower cholesterol and control blood sugar levels. It is a good source of calcium and helps with osteoporosis. (healthline.com) Maybe, you should try to like them.

Flowers can not become a new creation without assistance from other creatures through the miracle of pollination. This is the transfer of pollen to a flower that allows fertilization. As Spring approaches, it is nice to see flowers on our fruit trees. Those flowers will fall away and will be replaced with a maturing fruit. How did that happen? Mother nature has a way of connecting insect to plant to ensure both species survive. The insect ensures ferritization of the plant where the plant provides some insects with a continued life cycle. If the insect became extinct, the plant it pollinates would cease to exist. It is easy for us to see the pollination process with typical flowers. What about the figs? What if we cut down the fig tree? Would that impact the ecosystem? Most likely it would if mass extermination of the fig tree happened. We are tempted to act too quick when we are not conditioned to consider the outcome of our actions. The Creator is faithful and will not allow us to be tempted beyond our abilities. If we can endure for a little while, we will be provided a way out of our predicament. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

The fig tree needs the insect to produces figs. Did you know when you eat a fig, you are most likely eating one or more dead wasps? Don’t worry the wasp is now part of the awesome nutrients found in figs. A female wasps pollinates the inverted flower of a fig and dies. If the fig is male, the wasps has found a home to lay her eggs as well as pollinating the male fig pod. If the pod is female, the wasp dies, not in vain, as it still pollinates the fig. Male wasps are born first and born blind. They mate with the female wasps born then they sacrifice their bodies trying to bore out of the pod. Their sacrifice allows the fertilized female to escape so she can continue the wasp life cycle. A man owned a fig tree that did not produce figs. He was tempted to cut it down but the gardener asked for another year to fertilize the tree in the hopes that figs would indeed be produced. This story found in Luke 13:1-9 is an example of our temptation to act too soon. Unless we change our hearts and lives, we are at risk of dying in vain. The fig lives because at least one wasp died. We live because He died. May His sacrifice not be in vain.

T

The moment when we give way. Give way to what? Life, our soul, or something we think insignificant? I have written a lot about the basic elements needed to survive such as air, water and food. If we hold our breath as long as we can, is that an example of a breaking point? What if we prolong our agony by going without water until we reach that point? How about food? Mahatma Gandhi went 21 days without food and only had an occasional sip of water, during his hunger strike. There have been other cases where people have survived longer before they reached their breaking point. Some give way to temptation well before it becomes a life or death point. The desire to do something characterizes temptation. Temptation can raise its ugly head to do something that is wrong or unwise. I believe many of us have reached our breaking point aided by wrong or unwise council.

Do we submit to peer pressure to do something that our inner selves reject? Many of us, me included, are tempted by too much good food. We only need just enough to satisfy our basic bodily functions. Just enough is not desirable. I am tempted by the good stuff and the result for me is an over weight body. How do we resist temptation? How do we avoid being put to shame? “All who have faith in him won’t be put to shame.” (Romans 10:11) A more secular answer is to remain focused. I used to smoke over two packs of cigarettes per day. It took a lot of mental focus to break the habit. Is the temptation still there after 30 years? Yes, but much less a struggle now than then. I believe we can overcome any temptation to reach our breaking point. What will make you break? Will the deceiver break you or will you emerge triumphant, through your faith? Jesus broke his 40 day fast after much effort by the devil to tempt him. (Luke 4:1-13) Jesus ate only after the devil gave up tempting and departed looking for the next opportunity. There will be more chances to be tempted so be warned. We do not live on bread alone. We do not worship little gods but serve only Him. We do not test the Lord our God.

T

It is a misconception to think freedom means you do not have to pay a price. Freedom is not free. We can believe in the utopian society where everyone gets along with each other and we are all happy. Unfortunately, there are many beliefs and countless differing opinions. It is my opinion, that we cannot continue to hide behind a veil of secrecy. Veil is not gender specific as one definition says. It is not just a fine material worn by women to protect or conceal their face. Thousands of years ago, it was used to put over Moses face. Up to the present day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. “Even today, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts. But whenever someone turns back to the Lord, the veil is removed. The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Lord’s Spirit is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:15-17). We need to open the door to our heart and let the only source of true freedom enter. We need to reject secrecy and open our hearts to the possibilities when we proclaim the truth.

Transfiguration is a complete change of form or appearance as Christ appeared in radiant glory. (Luke 9:28-36) May we remove the veil covering our hearts and change into a new creation.

Some of you requested that I add my audio related to last week’s post. Here is a 3 minute short version, if you have time to listen. T