Even If i Walk Alone

Instructing and encouraging you to live your life as a disciple of Jesus

Fear

Out of Your Comfort Zone

by

Recently my pastor said something that I have found to be true. He said, “Passion for Christ will always take you out of your comfort zone.” If you’ve been a follower of Jesus for any amount of time, you probably recognize this and consider it a no-brainer. But recognizing something to be true and accepting it are two very different things.

your comfort zone,mission,passion,fear,commitment

image © Jusakas

Let’s face it: most of us will do about anything to maintain our comfort. In fact we aggressively pursue it through the purchase of entertainment, clothing, food, and other vices. None of these crutches have anything to do with being a follower of Jesus; but we ignore that point so we can get on with our lives.
[Read more…] about Out of Your Comfort Zone

We Categorize What We Fear

by

Fear categorizes. Perfect love casts out fear. Therefore there is no categorization in love. We categorize people we fear. We categorize them as terrorists, homosexuals, liberals, conservatives, etc. When we categorize them, it means we do not love them. When we don’t love them, we are not living in the way Jesus instructed us.

we categorize what we fear,love,fear,mission,discipleship,love as Jesus loves

image © Ashley van Dyck – Fotolia

In fact we are living in a way that is totally opposed to the way Jesus did. That’s a dangerous place to be.  If we love everyone we will fear no one. Love, as God defines it, is indiscriminate and unconditional. The groups of people we are most likely to categorize are also those whom we have the most difficulty loving.
[Read more…] about We Categorize What We Fear

Stare at God

by

Revelation 4:8-11,Isaiah 6:3-5,Hebrews 12:1-2,holy,holiness,God's beauty,francis chanstaring at God,stare at GodPhoto Credit: Étienne Ljóni Poisson via Compfight cc

What if we stared at God every moment of our day? The Bible tells us we should fix our eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2), but how often do we make a conscious effort to do that?  More importantly, what does that look like in real life? I’ve recently been trying to work this out for myself. The key is to first get a proper mental image of God. Check out Revelation 4:8-11, where it describes angels who do nothing but praise God, all day. They are so consumed with His beauty that they can do nothing else. God is the perfection of all that is good. He is perfect and unconditional love, and is constantly in pursuit of you, reaching out to you.  Look at Isaiah 6:3-5, where the prophet feels ruined just from looking at the beauty of God. Keep that picture of God at the forefront of your mind.

[Read more…] about Stare at God

Fearing God

by

lov,God is love,no fear in love,fear of God,fearing God,fear God,1 John 4:18,Revelation 12:10,John 3:17image © evgenyatamanenko – Fotolia

Satan loves to fill our minds with doubts and fears. He reminds us of our perceived shortcomings and failures. If we listen long enough, these thoughts become debilitating and prevent us from carrying out the mission of Christ. Too often we fail to recognize Satan as the source of our destructive thought patterns. If we did, we wouldn’t lend them the credence that we do. The Bible tells us that Satan is “the accuser” (Revelation 12:10). Any time you have thoughts of not being good enough or you doubt your ability to accomplish something, those thoughts are from the devil himself. In the same way, when you are afraid, those feelings too are from Satan. God is one hundred percent love, and there is no fear in love (1 John 4:18).

[Read more…] about Fearing God

Brave

by

brave,nichole nordeman,20 seconds of courage,courage,faith,Ephesians 2:10,I John 4:18,John 10:10Photo Credit: bold.as.love via Compfight cc

As I was writing this morning, I was listening to Nichole Nordeman’s song, “Brave”. I actually was beginning to write on a different topic I had sketched out when the words of the chorus really hit me:

“So long status quo
I think I just let go
You make me want to be brave
The way it always was
Is no longer good enough
You make me want to be brave.”

The song goes on to say “If you believe in me, that changes everything.” Wow. When was the last time you recognized that not only does Jesus love you, but He absolutely, unequivocally, and without hesitation believes in you? He designed you to do the work He created you to do (Ephesians 2:10), and He harbors no doubt you can get it done. It doesn’t matter who hurt you in the past, let you down, held you down, or laughed in your face. The God of the Universe believes in you. Does anything else even matter? [Read more…] about Brave