Category: Growth

Winning the Battle with Discouragement-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment


The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged- Deuteronomy 31:28 NIV

Discouragement. 

It’s just kind of an ugly word. 

It’s an even uglier reality.

The Cambridge dictionary defines discouragement as:

The state of having lost your confidence or enthusiasm. 

With all due respect to the word wizards at Cambridge, a protracted case of discouragement is much more serious than merely losing one’s confidence or enthusiasm for a situation. If discouragement goes on for long enough it’s a fast-track to depression, despondency and hopelessness. 

Because discouragement can be so demoralizing, it one of the most powerful tools in Satan’s toolbox. The enemy understands that if he can bring enough trouble, pain and pressure into our lives in a short enough of period of time it is possible we will become so discouraged that our faith in the goodness of God will collapse like a house of cards in a hurricane (1st Peter 5:8). A lingering case of discouragement can leave us angry and bitter towards God (Hebrews 12:15, Ephesians 4:26). It’s just too easy to conclude God doesn’t care about our pain or that He has completely forgotten about whatever situation feels so unending and bleak. 

God is big enough to handle our feelings, even the really ugly ones. However, this does not mean we should allow anger with God to go unchecked indefinitely. Anger towards God becomes problematic when in our anger we quit seeking and serving God (Galatians 6:9, Matthew 6:13-16). Anytime our desire to do good and glorify God is lessened in any way we are well on our way either a life of spiritual rebellion and sin or lukewarm Christianity. Both lead to spiritual ineffectiveness and eventually even deeper despair. 

It’s simply a fact that we are most likely to hit our limits, encounter a season of discouragement and experience spiritual warfare when we are busy seeking God and doing exactly what He wants us to do.  Self-focused, unruly or wayward Christians create no problems or issues for the enemy (Proverbs 1:32). As a result, he tends to just leave them alone. 

Sigh. 

Discouragement occurs anytime a limited being hits a limit. Human beings are by nature limited beings. The limits that stretch our ability to cope can be physical, emotional, mental or spiritual in nature. Anytime we go through a season where we hit all our limits all at the same time there’s a pretty good chance the discouragement we are experiencing is a spiritual weapon Satan is attempting to form against us (Isaiah 54:17). Prayer is without question the most powerful weapon we have in our spiritual tool box. We will never come out of a season of discouragement stronger and healthier without it. (Matthew 26:41, Ephesians 6:18-20, Romans 8:26). No season of life (good or bad) goes on indefinitely. This (whatever “this” is) will pass. In the meantime, there are four things God wants us to ask Him for in a season of discouragement.

The first is:

 Spiritual effectiveness- 

Few Christians have faced the kind of trouble, discouragement and hardship the Apostle Paul experienced (2ndCorinthians 11:24-28, 2nd Corinthians 4:7-16). Anytime the going got tough Paul would ask his friends to pray for increased spiritual effectiveness (Romans 15:30, Colossians 4:3, Ephesians 6:19, Philippians1:19). Paul wisely understood that struggle and difficulty brings with it great opportunity for spiritual effectiveness, personal growth and fruit. We should follow his lead and pray for spiritual effectiveness in our personal struggle or hardship.  

Spiritual insight- 

 God does not bring hardship in to our lives to punish us. That said, God does use the difficulties of living in a fallen world to refine us, grow us, and make us more like Jesus. If a season of discouragement is handled with wisdom and integrity it will result in greater spiritual insight and a deeper commitment to Jesus. The key to growth in a season of discouragement is to seek God with a greater intensity in spite of any discouragement we feel. When we seek God in the face of pain and/or spiritual confusion God blesses our faith with greater wisdom, understanding and insight. 

Grace-

Grace is so much more than simply the kindness and forgiveness God shows to unworthy sinners (Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 3:23-24). Grace is the empowering presence of God that allows us to do more and endure more than we ever could in our own strength (2nd Corinthians 12:8-10). In seasons of hardship God’s grace is critical not just to our spiritual growth but also to our emotional survival. Everyday should begin with a prayer for an extra measure of grace. 

To get the work done-

Christians are called to be continually on mission for Jesus (Matthew 28:19, Matthew 5:13-16, Philippians 2:12-16). This means doing whatever work we have been called to do in spite of our circumstances (1st Chronicles 28:20). The details of our “work” in the Lord is different for everyone. For all of us it means living righteously and doing our best to bring the hope of Jesus into whatever situation God has called us into.

Seasons of discouragement are almost always a test of our faith and spiritual resiliency.  If we persevere through a discouraging season it always leads to a refining of our faith and a deeper understanding of who we are in Christ (1st Peter 1:3-9). Being refined is always difficult and painful, but the results are beautiful. 

Fake Jesus?

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!As we have said before, even now I say again: if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! Galatians 1:8-9 NASB 

I wasn’t raised in church but I was raised in America, so, growing-up I saw a lot of paintings of Jesus. In all of them Jesus was pretty white-bread and Anglo. He always had long blonde hair, high cheekbones, clear blue eyes and ivory skin. Because I wasn’t a Christian, I didn’t think much about whether or not those renderings were an accurate representation of Jesus. 

As a young adult Christian, I saw my first painting of a black Jesus. To be honest, I found the whole notion of a black Jesus a little disconcerting because it just wasn’t how I “saw” Jesus in my white-girl head. Later, in a class I took on missions, I learned that in every culture where the gospel has taken root, Christians have painted Jesus to look exactly like them. This is why there are black Jesus’, white Jesus’, brown Jesus’ and Asian Jesus’ even though Jesus was a Middle Eastern Jewish man. 

This is not a bad thing. 

It means humans grasp intuitively the spiritual reality Jesus was sacrificed, not just for one group of really special people but for all people (Romans 6:10, Hebrews 5:5-9, Hebrews 10:10). Our tendency to make Jesus “look like us” means all Christians (regardless of nationality or skin color) identify with Jesus in a personal way.  We understand on a gut-level Jesus was the great high priest who made the ultimate sacrifice for every tribe, language, people and nation on earth (Revelation 5:9). 

The flipside of this phenomenon is it exposes the human propensity we all have to make Jesus into whoever or whatever we want Him to be. Humans have always been inclined to make God in their own image. This is most clearly seen with the Greco/Roman pantheon of gods. The Greco/Roman “gods” reflected human passions, strengths and weaknesses. They were gods made in the image of man. 

Now we do it with Jesus. 

It is not at all unusual for people (even Christian people) to say “my Jesus” or “the God I worship”. Nine times out of ten “my Jesus” or “the God I worship” is followed by a statement of what “their” God would or would not do. It is exceptionally rare for these proclamations to line up one-hundred-percent with what the Bible actually says about the subject. 

It does happen, just not very often. 

This is not a new thing. In 2nd Corinthians Paul confronted his readers with their tendency to turn to a “new Jesus” anytime a preacher with a new teaching came along. These “other Jesus’” did not line up with the Jesus Paul had preached to them (2nd Corinthians 11:3-4). The Corinthian Christians loved God and apparently had a sincere longing to serve God. However, they were in danger of being deceived by these “other Jesus’” just as Eve was deceived by Satan’s clever arguments in the garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1-4). 

The tendency to make Jesus into what we want Him to be is getting demonstrably worse. It’s not at all unusual for professing Christians to say “Jesus was right beside me” as they were busy doing something the authentic biblical Jesus would never be a part of. Something like getting an abortion, taking drugs or marrying someone of the same gender. Nor is it unusual for a professing Christian to insist Jesus or God “showed them” something was okay that directly contradicts biblical teaching. Oftentimes these are serious sins like leaving a marriage without biblical grounds, having an affair or lying about something (Matthew 19:1-9, Exodus 20:16).

Professing Christians who make these kinds of statements are not doctrinally confused. Nor are they going through a quirky spiritual stage. It’s much more serious than that. These folks are worshiping a fake Jesus.  A really nice Jesus, but a Jesus who is nothing more than a figment of their fevered imaginations. When someone describes “their God” or “their Jesus” in a way that does not reflect the Jesus of the Bible, they have the wrong Jesus and they are headed down the wrong spiritual path (Matthew 7:13-14). 

 It’s also one of the clues that we are nearing the end. 

In 2nd Timothy 3:1-5 gives a detailed description of what many professing Christians will “look like” just prior to the return of Jesus. In verse five Paul says these folks will “have a form of godliness but deny its power”. The Greek indicates, these people will look like Christians and even act like Christians—at least to some degree. Nonetheless, when it comes down to the place where the rubber meets the road (metaphorically speaking) they will have no real understanding of what kind of God they are dealing with. 

Because they have the wrong Jesus. 

The “right” Jesus is actually really easy to identify. God ensured it’s not a big mystery. The real Jesus is for the same things He was for and against the same things He was against when the New Testament was written. The real Jesus doesn’t change with the culture. 

The real Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).  

This whole issue of who Jesus is (and isn’t) is a serious problem that demands discernment on the part of Christians (Psalm 119:125, Proverbs 18:15, Philippians 1:9-11). It is not our job to judge others. Nonetheless, it is our job to make wise judgments about doctrinal issues and what we believe about Jesus. We will be held accountable for believing in and promoting any kind of a fake Jesus (1st Timothy 4:16, Titus 2:1, Hebrews 13:9) 

Yikes. 

Yeses that Change Everything-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ- 2nd Corinthians 1:20

There is a teeny-tiny little word that does not get nearly enough credit for all the good it can do. 

Yes. 

I still remember the expectancy and joy I felt as a little kid anytime an adult would say “yes” to an appeal I made or give the A-Okay to one of my little kid plans. Most people, even those of us who are way past the little kid stage of life still feel a sense of anticipation and excitement anytime we get a “yes” to a request. 

It’s just how God wired us. 

Yes, is a word that can awaken hope and give a much-needed dose of encouragement. Hearing a yes after a season of no’s is like a breath of fresh air to our souls. Getting a yes is good. However, it’s saying yes to the right things that brings transformation to our souls and opens the door for every good thing in our lives.  

Following are five of the best, most life-giving, soul-impacting yeses a human being can embrace. The first is: 

Jesus-

Without a doubt the most powerful and life changing yes of all, is the “yes” we say to Jesus’ offer of forgiveness and salvation. Saying yes to Jesus is the first step in a new life of hope and transformation (2nd Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 6:14-16). Jesus’ offer of salvation is really the best of deals. When we say yes to faith in Jesus we exchange shame, hopelessness and fear of death for joy, peace, a sense of purpose and an eternity spent with God (Psalm 16:11, John 3:36, John 6:40, John 10:28, Romans 2:7, Galatians 6:8, Hebrews 2:14-16). All we have to do is ask for forgiveness for our sin and agree to live our life for Jesus (Acts 16:31). Seriously. It’s that easy. 

Forgiving others- 

Forgiveness is a not a suggestion God makes. It’s a command with promises and curses attached (Matthew 6:14-15, Luke 11:4, Colossians 3:13). It is also a nonnegotiable piece of the discipleship process (Romans 12:14-21).  God demands His people forgive others because He knows unforgiveness, holding grudges and the bitterness that always results from holding grudges causes people to become entirely self-focused and to dwell endlessly on the negative. Unforgiveness inevitably leads to self-centered, warped and faulty thinking. Self-centered, faulty thinking makes it difficult to have healthy, God-honoring relationships (Genesis 2:18, 1st Corinthians 12:27). Human beings were created for relationship. As a result, the inability to have healthy relationships short-circuits our purpose in Christ.  It works like this: when we choose to hold on to unforgiveness that choice gives the devil a foothold in our thinking (1st Peter 5:8, Ephesians 4:26-27). Unfortunately, a little, tiny foothold is all Satan needs to twist our thinking in such a way that seeds of bitterness are planted deep in our hearts. Our bitterness in turn colors everything we experience in life, defiling us and those we love most (Hebrews 12:15). Sadly, unforgiveness quickly becomes a prison with the lock on the inside (Hebrews 12:14, Ephesians 4:30-31). Saying “yes” to forgiveness is the only key that opens the prison door.  

A fresh start- 

Everybody messes up. Even Christians. Even the most committed followers of Jesus do stupid stuff, make mistakes, get caught up in foolish passions, go sideways in life and find ingenious ways to ruin their perfectly good lives. Thankfully, God, in His infinite mercy is always willing to give anyone who wants it fresh start and a new beginning. All we have to do is ask (Psalm 5:1-19). In order for the fresh start to take root in our lives we have to humbly submit ourselves to God by choosing to do life God’s way rather than try to figure right and wrong out on our own (Lamentations 3:21-23, 2nd Samuel 24:14, Acts 3:19). 

A new level of obedience- 

We become a Christian the moment we accept God’s offer of forgiveness. One aspect of becoming a Christian is making the choice to become a student of Jesus (Matthew 11:28-30). Because Jesus loves us and ultimately wants us to be the best people we can be, He is always calling us to a new level of obedience (2nd Corinthians 5:17, 1stCorinthians 11:9-11, Colossians 3). Saying “yes” to obedience always brings us to a new and higher level of functioning in our lives. 

Gratitude

Saying “yes” to gratitude is a spiritual gamechanger. A heart of gratitude actually has the opposite effect on our thinking that unforgiveness does. While unforgiveness twists our thinking and causes us to focus on ourselves and the negative, gratitude towards God gives us clarity and empowers us to see the good in the world.  Saying “yes” to gratitude is a powerful form of spiritual protection that keeps the enemy from gaining a foothold in our thinking (Colossians 3:16, 1st Thessalonians 5:18, Colossians 2:6-7). 

Truth-be-told, there is very little in this world we have complete control over. However, what we say “yes” to is one thing we do have control over. When we choose to say yes to things that please and honor God, God, in turn, blesses our choices. Then we are formed into the image of Jesus and become a blessing (Romans 12:2, 2ndCorinthians 3:18)

It’s a win-win. 

The Lesser Understood Keys to Spiritual Growth-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

If you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ- 2nd Peter 1:10b-11 NIV

One of the fundamental spiritual misunderstandings of our time is centered around salvation. Many believe salvation is a one and done, an event where a person crosses a threshold and goes from hell-bound-heathen to saintly-and-saved to in the blink of an eye.

 Truth-be-told there is an “event” aspect to salvation (Romans 10:9-10). When a person places their faith and trust in Jesus to save them from the consequences of their sin they are very much saved from ALL the consequences of their sin, including eternal damnation (Luke 23:32:43). 

However. 

For those who do not die immediately following their confession of faith there is a process aspect to salvation. The fancy-pants-theological word for this process is “sanctification”. The Apostle Paul called it “working out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Whatever you choose to call it, it’s essentially just the act of being transformed into the image of Jesus (Romans 1:1-2, 2nd Corinthians 3:18). There is no shortage of biblical teaching on the “how” of sanctification. All of Romans 12, 1st Thessalonians 4:1-12, 2nd Peter 1:3-9, Colossians 3 and Ephesians chapters 4, 5 and 6 all give detailed instructions concerning what a Christian should and shouldn’t do in order to work out their salvation. 

Nonetheless. 

Sanctification can be difficult to pull off. I suspect this is because there are beliefs and behaviors a person must embrace before the sanctification process can work. These are perquisites to holiness 101, if you will. In order for the sanctification process to work we must be willing to:

Train yourself to think deeply about things that matter-

In a recent sermon our pastor pointed out that our generation is literally besieged with an endless array of information on all sorts of different topics. We listen to podcasts, watch the news, scroll through endless social media feeds and read a lot of articles on a vast array of diverse subjects. There is nothing wrong or sinful about pursuing knowledge. However, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. The net effect of this information overkill is that we tend to think superficially about whole bunch of different issues, but deeply about almost nothing. If we want to become holy we must train ourselves to think deeply about important issues. Profound things like the meaning of life, what it really means to be holy, our role in the universe, how we become righteous and how all that works itself out in our day-to-day lives. The only way we will ever have the bandwidth to think deeply about anything is to cull some of the information we are receiving. Once that’s done, we must set aside chunks of time to think through the information we are receiving and then seek the Lord for wisdom on how to implement what we’ve learned. Holiness requires godly wisdom. No one has ever attained wisdom apart from thinking deeply about life, God and eternity (2nd Timothy 3:15, Proverbs 9:10, Psalm 1:1-3)

Adopt a right view of God-

God is not simply a bigger, wiser, smarter version of humanity. God is as different from human beings as teapots are from tacos. How we understand God matters. A lot. Our most critical task in this life is to acquire a right view of Him. We do this by developing a healthy fear of God (Deuteronomy 6:13, Exodus 1:17-21, Proverbs 1:7, Psalm 33:8-18). Fearing God isn’t being afraid of God. When we fear God, we believe deep in our heart-of-hearts God is who He says He is and can do what He says He can do. In turn this gut-level conviction trickles down into every aspect of life. People who fear God understand God knows their most innermost thoughts and feelings (Hebrews 4:13). When a person fears God, they do what He says. Fearing God is THE key to closeness with God (James 2:23, Psalm 25:14, Psalm 147:11)

Embrace a proper view of the human heart-  

The world encourages people to “follow their heart”.  The Bible tells us the human heart is wicked and easily deceived (Jeremiah 17:9, Consequently, a heart not submitted to Jesus and firmly rooted in the truth of Scripture will lead a person to hell (literally and figuratively). Every. Single Time. Furthermore, unless a person is redeemed by Jesus their most authentic self is their sin nature. Even people who know and love Jesus are still capable of great foolishness and evil. Therefore, holiness requires we obey God not our hearts (Proverbs 3:5, Proverbs 10:8, Ephesians 5:1). 

Align our internal motivations and intentions with God’s word- 

In his excellent book The Awe of God John Bevere says every person has three images. There is our “projected image” (the carefully crafted persona we want the world to see), our “perceived image” (how others see us) and our “actual image” (the us God sees). At the core of what God sees in us is the “why” of what we do. Do we serve out of a desire to please God or people? Do we love others so we will be loved by them or because we want to honor and please God? It is the intentions and motivations of our hearts that will be judged by God (1st Corinthians 5:10, 1st Corinthians 3:10-15, Revelation 20:11-13). This makes getting our internal motivations aligned with God’s will of critical importance. 

Sanctification (holiness) is the end-all be-all goal of the Christian faith (Romans 6:18-23, 1st Corinthians 1:3, Ephesians 1:3-5, 1st Peter 1”15-16, Hebrews 12:14). The end result of holiness is joy, peace of mind, spiritual usefulness and the knowledge that the Maker of All Things is pleased with our actions and attitudes. Those things are worth doing whatever it takes to get there.

The Spiritual Habits that Bring Transformation-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness. And rivers in the desert- Isaiah 43:18-19 NKJV

 The book of Ecclesiastes teaches God has written eternity on every human heart (Ecclesiastes 3:11). This is just a fancy-pants way of saying that all humans have a gut-level understanding that our days numbered. As a result, most individuals have an almost instinctual longing to make the most of the time they have been given.  

In order to assist us in making the most of our time God has also designed rhythms to life.  Morning and evening, springtime and harvest, birth and death are repetitious patterns that remind us of the brevity of life and teach us to order our days in such a way they make a difference in the grand scheme of life and eternity (Genesis 8:22, Psalm 90:12, James 4:14). The first month of every year is another God-ordained rhythm of life. January is a yearly opportunity to reflect on the past and consider how we can make an impact on our world in the coming year. There is no end to the advice given on how to make each day count. Most advice is focused entirely on improving one’s eating habits, losing weight, making more money and improving one’s overall level of happiness. There is nothing inherently wrong or sinful with any of those things 

However.

Christians are commanded to live for more than their personal health, financial wellbeing and even their own personal happiness and pleasure. Christians are called to be transformed into the image of Jesus, to love God and people and to bring others into relationship with Jesus (Matthew 22: 34-40, Matthew 28:16-20, Romans 12:1-2, 2nd Corinthians 3:18). The following seven attitudes and habits are a spiritual game changer that will empower you to fulfill that calling:

Commit each day to the Lord-

If you make a practice of committing each day to the Lord before you do anything else (drink coffee, get out of bed, think about or plan your day) it will be spiritual game-changer (Psalm 37:5-6). Committing each day to the Lord serves as a reminder that you gave that day to the Lord. That knowledge will help to keep you spiritually on track throughout the day.

Know who you belong to and what that means- 

If you are a follower of Jesus in a very real sense your life is not your own. You are literally the legal property of Almighty God (1st Corinthians 6:20, 1st Corinthians 7:23, 2nd Peter 2:1).  Christians are most content and make the biggest impact on others (and eternity) when understand and embrace this reality. Walking daily in the knowledge of who we belong to frees us up to fulfill our ultimate purpose of pleasing Jesus and bringing others into the kingdom (Matthew 10:6-8, Matthew 25:33-35, Luke 9:60, Ephesians 5:6). 

Surrender-

Every Christian—no matter how long they have been a Christian has a “thing” in their life. It might be a habit, a relationship, an attitude, a sexual proclivity, or maybe a love of money or some other worldly thing. Whatever, IT is, it will hold us back from our next big leap of growth and maturity.  One critical aspect of spiritual health and impacting our sphere of influence for Jesus is figuring out what our thing is and then letting go of it so God can work through us (Hebrews 12:1, Galatians 5:13-25)

Regular self-evaluation-

The key to spiritual growth is ultimately super boring. Our growth is determined by our spiritual habits and practices. The habits and practices we adopt around Bible reading, prayer, church attendance and self-examination determine our spiritual maturity and usefulness. Start with an inventory: What does your prayer life look like? Do you read the Bible routinely? Do you get anything out of your Bible reading?  How often do you attend church? If you pray less than a half hour a day, don’t read your Bible at least four days a week, attend church less than three times a month or aren’t getting anything out of your Bible reading, I guarantee you your spiritual habits and practices are holding you back (Hebrews 10:25, 1st Thessalonians 5:17, Matthew 26:14, Hebrews 4:12-13, 2nd Corinthians 13:5). If you want to make a spiritual impact you will have to change them. 

Be open to the Holy Spirit- 

Being open to the Holy Spirit is not about being weird. It’s about spiritual awareness and being open to God’s leading at all times (Galatians 5:16). In Acts three Peter and John passed a crippled beggar as they entered the Temple mount. The beggar asked for money, instead of giving him money they healed him in the name of Jesus (Acts 3:1-10). Peter and John doubtless passed dozens of beggars before they engaged with that one. Why? Because they were open to, in tune with and willing to be led by God in everything. So, when God said “that one” they knew exactly who He meant and what to do. We become open to the leading of the Holy Spirit through a combination of prayer, obedience and knowledge of the Bible. 

Pray on the armor of God- 

Life is becoming increasingly complex and scary because we are living in a world at war (Ephesians 6:10-13, Daniel 10:7-14) and the war is heating up (2nd Timothy 3:1-5, 2nd Peter 3:3-4) Ephesians 6:14-18 gives us the tools we need to protect ourselves, pray effectively and impact our world for Jesus. For an example of how to pray through Ephesians 6:10-18 click this link:  https://lisamargretprice.com/2020/02/03/ephesians-6-prayer/

And finally, 

We must make spiritual community a reality. Church is not optional for Jesus followers. Without Christian relationships and the spiritual stability godly people bring to our lives everything else on the list becomes a challenge. When we have a healthy spiritual community, we have the support and help we need to make every one of our days count for eternity.

Doing this one Little Thing is Guaranteed to make you a Whole lot more Like Jesus-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

If you, Lord, keep account of sins Lord, who can stand? But with you is forgiveness and so you are revered- Psalm 130:3-4 NABRE  

Christianity is more than just a get out of hell free card. 

Ultimately, Christianity is the path to looking like and acting like Jesus (Romans 12:2, 2nd Corinthians 3:18). 

 When we put our faith and trust in Jesus, God forgives our sins and removes our guilt and shame (Psalm 103:12). In return Jesus’ goodness and righteousness is credited to us (Romans 4:5, James 2:23). When God sees us, He no longer sees the horrible, awful things we’ve done. Instead, He sees the righteousness of Jesus. Imputation of righteousness is the fancy-pants theological term for this incredibly beautiful exchange (2nd Corinthians 5:17) 

However. 

 We don’t wake up the day after our salvation experience looking and acting like a little Jesus. In fact, most of us wakeup the day after our salvation experience feeling somewhat different but with all the same problems, attitudes and behaviors we had pre-Jesus. The only difference is now we feel bad about those things instead of simply accepting them as a standard part of our operating system. 

That’s where sanctification comes in.  Sanctification is the lifelong process of becoming like Jesus (1st Corinthians 6:11, 1st Thessalonians 4:3). Paul called this process “working out your salvation” (Philippians 2:12-13).  We become sanctified (holy) by letting go of old behaviors that are normal part of our human nature and taking on new behaviors and attitudes that imitate Jesus (Colossians 3:5-14, Ephesians 4:1-3, Galatians 5:16-26).

  One critical step in the sanctification process is learning to forgive like Jesus forgave.  

 Forgiveness is hard. It is, perhaps, the hardest part of becoming like Jesus. It just kind of goes against the grain of our human nature to forgive wrongs committed against us. However, forgiveness is absolutely essential because we are never more like Jesus than when we are actively choosing to forgive (Psalm 103:2-4, Isaiah 1:18). In order to forgive we have to get past the notion forgiveness is something we do for other people. Most of the time, the people we forgive will never even know we forgave them. Forgiving others is something we do for our own spiritual, psychological and emotional well-being. Corrie Ten Boom spent nearly a year of hell in Ravensbruck concentration camp. She later said this about forgiveness: 

Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.

God longs for His people to be free of resentment, bitterness and selfishness because freedom is what transforms us into the image of Jesus and prepares us to do the ministry He has for us (Ephesians 2:10, Colossians 4:17).  

 Forgiveness is a process, not an event. In order to forgive we must:

 Understand the call to forgive-  

Forgiveness is not an optional activity or something we get to do when we feel like it.  Our willingness to forgive others is closely connected to God forgiving us and directly affects the level of freedom and joy we feel as Christians (Matthew 6:15, Luke 6:38, Luke 7:36-47).   

Acknowledge the genuineness of the offense-  

Unfortunately, forgiveness is rarely as easy as simply saying the words “I forgive you”. This might work in situations only involving minor hurts or social slights, however, in the case of a big hurt or a massive injustice this simply will not work. Instead, it is absolutely critical we acknowledge the wrong we suffered rather than attempting to stuff or pretend it was nothing. This means taking some time to process through the hurt we experienced in prayer and with a trusted Christian friend, a wise pastor or Christian counselor (Proverbs 11:14). Because some hurts are significant and not everyone we need to forgive is remorseful, God does not command us to be besties with the people we forgive. We are only called to forgive.  

Own our part (if there is one)- 

Oftentimes (but not always) we bear a certain level of responsibility for what went wrong in a relationship or a situation. “Our part” might be as basic as refusing to address issues and problems when they first came up (which always leads to more issues and problems) or as complicated as being complicit in a sinful relationship or situation.  Jesus is clear: truth sets us free (John 8:32). Telling ourselves and God (and in some cases the other people involved) the truth about our part in a situation will keep us firmly in God’s grace and go a long way in freeing us from the prison of bitterness (James 5:16, 1st John 1:8-10, Hebrews 12:15) 

Remember how much we have been forgiven- 

Forgiveness is easier when we are real with ourselves about our own level of sinfulness. We may not have done the awful thing that was done to us, but we all do and have done awful things (Romans 3:23). Recognizing this uncomfortable reality keeps us from becoming bloated with pride and it makes it much easier to forgive others (Psalm 51:10-17) 

And finally: 

The essence of genuine forgiveness is completely letting go of the right we have to punish and hate those who hurt us (Romans 12:19). This is the hardest of all the hard things and it simply cannot not be done without dedicated, intensive and repetitive prayer. Letting go of hate is hard because in a very real sense we all have a “right” to hold people’s sins against them, just like God has the right to hold our sins against us. Nonetheless, God in His infinite kindness chose to be merciful and forgive our sins when we were least deserving of forgiveness (Romans 5:7-8). 

 Can we do any less?     

Our World is a Busted up Mess-What can we do to fix it?

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I- Isaiah 58:8 NIV 

Our world is awash in what can only be described as systemic brokenness.   

Individuals are broken. Families are broken. Culture is broken. Political systems are broken.  

It’s really kind of gross.  

The collective brokenness has led to an epidemic of sexual deviancy and gender confusion, personal woundedness, political bedlam, cultural decay, addiction, offense, psychological damage, loneliness and wrecked relationships.  

Sigh. 

On a practical level this means most folks don’t even know which bathroom to use anymore and biologists are the only ones “qualified” to define what a woman is or isn’t anymore and some of them struggle.  Politics are so fractured the two sides cannot even have a rational discussion anymore. Few bother getting married any more and half of marriages end in divorce. Public schools are propagandizing kids with sex education so weird and revolting it would have been considered hardcore pornography just a few years ago. Sadly, people have become so isolated the government is thinking about ways they can help solve the burgeoning loneliness problem. 

 Everywhere we look people are separated from God and each other. 

 It sucks. A lot.  

Followers of Jesus sincerely believe God has a better plan for this world than what we are seeing and experiencing at this moment in history. One fundamental facet of Christian theology is the belief Jesus came not just to seek and save the lost— but also to bind-up the broken hearted and bring beauty from ashes (Luke 19:10, Psalm 147:3, Isaiah 61:1-3). Christians believe redemption is about more than just individual people getting into heaven. Salvation is about redeemed people experiencing abundant life as we journey our way to heaven and bringing heaven to earth with our actions and attitudes (Matthew 6:10, John 10:10, Matthew 5:13-15).   This faith we have in Jesus’ ability to repair, rebuild, heal and transform should drive us to be a part of the change we want to see in our culture, our educational structures, our political system and in the lives of the people we love.  

Sometimes we struggle with the how.  

 I don’t know everything there is to know about everything (clearly). Nevertheless, there is one thing I know for absolute certain: we cannot lead anywhere we refuse to go.  Therefore, there will be no healing in our world without some heartfelt and brutally honest self-examination on the part of all Christians. Even those who sincerely FEEL they are doing just fine from a spiritual perspective (2ndCorinthians 13:5). I know this is a wildly unpopular perspective in the church, however, I have come to believe with all my heart, mind, soul and strength that the one thing holding the world back from a real and much-needed revival are Christians who are reluctant to admit there might possibly be sin in their own lives.  

Seriously. 

God will not transform our sin-sick culture until Christians get their own houses in order (1st Peter 4:17) and not a moment sooner. This means we must recognize that no matter how good we are or how far we’ve come God wants to take us further and make us better. Growth and personal transformation prepare us to lead others out of their brokenness.  

Prayer is a critical step in any process of transformation.  There are some things that cannot happen without serious prayer (Mark 9:29. Daniel 9:3, Acts 14:23) Sadly, numerous studies reveal the typical western Christian prays a grand total of three minutes a day. Seriously. It’s true. Three minutes. We spend five hours a day on our phones and three minutes a day in prayer.  I assume those who read this blog are above average in this area. Which simply means we need to be praying all the more for our average and below average Christian counterparts. God moves when His people want Him to move. Prayer is the way we show God we’re serious about wanting Him to move.  

If we are going to fix our mess we must look for areas of brokenness in our little corner of the world and then chip away at the ugliness we see with equal measures of grace and truth (Ephesians 4:32, 2nd Timothy 4:2, 1st Peter 4:10).  When we make space in our lives to get to know a single mom or engage with a homeless person, or simply take time to talk with our neighbors it gives us the right to speak truth into people’s lives (Ephesians 4:15). No matter how we choose to do it, it is critical we seek the Lord for creative ways to engage the messy, broken, difficult people in our world. Christians were saved to be salt in our world. Salt is a preservative, it keeps things (and whole cultures) from going bad. However, salt cannot preserve anything it doesn’t come into contact with (Matthew 5:13). Relationships are a messy but necessary piece of healing brokenness.  

As we prayerfully engage others, it’s equally critical we understand our role. Our role is to do our part and trust God to transform people. We must constantly remind ourselves God is God and we are not and fight the inclination to try and control outcomes. We cannot make anyone do anything. Outcomes must be left to the Lord but He moves when we move.  

The Keys to Moving from Spiritual Immaturity to Maturity-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,now that you have tasted that the Lord is good- 1st Peter 2:1-3 NIV

Recently, I read a news article about a rare genetic disorder affecting children that results in speech delays, seizures and ultimately childhood onset dementia.  The disorder is usually detected around age five. Sadly, the prognosis is terrible. None of the kids afflicted with this disorder live to adulthood. In a very real sense these kids grow old before they grow up.   

The article was fresh on my mind when I began reading Hebrews five that day: 

By this time, you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.But solid food is for the mature- Hebrews 5:11-14  

The ultimate aim of the Christian life is spiritual maturity (2nd Peter 1:3-11, Ephesians 4:15-16, Colossians 1:9-11).

Every Christian starts out in exactly the same place: spiritual infancy. No one is born a Jesus follower. Every single person begins their faith journey in a place where they understand little or nothing about the Bible or what it really means to be a follower of Jesus. A Christian is fully mature when they have committed to obeying the commands of the New Testament, can extend grace to others, forgive others, can control their own impulses and can teach and lead others (John 14:23-24, Philippians 2:12-13, Titus 2:11-13, Hebrews 5:11-13).   

A Christian can stop bearing fruit or begin to develop weird spiritual confusion because they never grew up in their salvation and became a spiritual adult (1st Corinthians 13:11).   In one sense Christian growth is simple, anyone can grasp the principles of Christian growth and achieve maturity.  It wasn’t meant to be rocket science. Yet, in practice growing can be tough. In order to grow we have to fight our natural predispositions towards sinfulness, pride, laziness and the notion we can do it in our own power. We can’t. Christian growth is impossible without the continuous help of the Holy Spirit. We must ask the Holy Spirit daily to empower us to do six things:     

Purposefully let go of wrong behaviors and attitudes- 

 A critical key to growth in our spiritual journey is the continued process of intentionally letting go of wrong behaviors and attitudes. Every behavior the Bible tells us to let go of is an ordinary, natural part of our fallen nature but antithetical to our new life as Jesus followers (2nd Corinthians 5:17, Colossians 3:5-10, Ephesians 4:20-32, 1st Thessalonians 4:3-8). Sometimes this process of letting go of the old is called “crucifying the flesh” or “taking up your cross” (Luke 9:23). Whatever you call it, it’s a critical first step after salvation in spiritual growth, without it, spiritual transformation is impossible.  

Make a practice of distinguishing good from evil in everyday life- 

Christians become mature through a purposeful practice of discerning good from evil in day-to-day life (Hebrews 5:14). We do this by taking every opportunity, situation, attitude, behavior, television show, podcast and relationship we come across and looking at it through the lens of the Bible. If the Bible indicates that thing is harmful we walk away from that thing for the sake of our spiritual health and growth (Colossians 3:5-13, Ephesians 4:17-32, 1st Corinthians 6:9-20). Doing this on a regular basis will not only make us mature but also wise and discerning (Hosea 14:9, Proverbs 18:15). Bonus.  

Meet consistently with other Christians for worship and teaching–    

Contrary to popular opinion, the “church thing” is not an elective activity for serious followers of Jesus. Christians need to bounce ideas off of each other. It keeps us from getting weird in our theology and thinking (Hebrews 10:24-25, Proverbs 27:17). Furthermore, Christians are a body (1st Corinthians 12:12-27). An arm (or any other body part) cannot continue to grow apart from the body it is supposed to be attached to. It will die. Spiritual growth works much the same way.  

Let the word of God get into you-  

The Bible was never intended to be a book we read strictly for information or knowledge. Knowing facts about the Bible is critical. Without a foundation of solid theology Christians get weird. That said, the ability to recite the Bible forward and backwards is futile if our knowledge does not have a transformative effect on our thinking and behavior.  In order for the Bible to transform us we have to read, think about and meditate on the word of God constantly. It is the only way to change our behavior from the inside out.  

Pray about everything- 

I am convinced God wants us to ask Him for stuff (Matthew 6:11, Matthew 7:7-12, Matthew 21:22). However, I am also convinced that if all we ever do is ask God for stuff we will miss out on the most important aspect of prayer: connection with God (Mark 11:16-18, Acts 1:14, Acts 2:42).  In order to connect with God, we must pray about everything all the time (1st Thessalonians 5:17). 

And finally. 

We must encourage one another (Hebrews 3:13, 1st Thessalonians 5:11, 1st Thessalonians 4:18). When we choose to encourage others, we see the good in people and the world around us. When we see the good we inevitably see God’s hand in the everyday things going on all around us. Seeing God work increases our faith. Increased faith leads to increased maturity.  Boom.    

Four Things Satan Hopes Christians will do-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord- Ephesians 3:10-11 NIV 

Satan has hopes and dreams just like everyone else.  

Seriously. 

For reals.

If a person is not a follower of Jesus his greatest hope and fondest dream is to keep them from putting their faith in Jesus. He makes this dream a reality by keeping unbelievers squarely focused on the here-and-now so they don’t think about things that really matter like life, death, morality and their eternal destiny (Hebrews 9:27, Matthew 7:13-14). He will enlist Christians to help him by getting them to do sinful, egotistical and thoughtless things that keep unbelievers from taking the claims of Jesus seriously (John 3:16, John 14:6, Acts 10:34-43, Romans 3:9-26). His number one goal is to keep a non-Christian from becoming a Christian and he will do whatever he has to do to make his dream a reality.  

Satan has hopes and dreams for Christians too. If he cannot keep someone from becoming a Christian, he will do everything possible to keep them from becoming an effective, healthy, life-giving member of God’s family. He will distract Christians with materialistic yearnings. He will tempt them to lie.  He will seek to sideline them with addiction, church hurt, lust, jealousy and unrestrained self-indulgence. He knows that if a person is bound up in those things glorifying God will be impossible. 

We are living at a decisive point in human history.  We sit on the precipice of either a complete moral implosion that will lead to God knows what or a great revival that will change the eternal destiny of millions, maybe even billions. Because this is such a critical time and so much hangs in the balance, Satan could use a little help (1st Peter 5:8). He’s hoping beyond hope Christians will be ignorant of his plans and do the following four things:   

Conform to the values of the age-  

Satan loves the values of this age and why not? Today’s values sound awesome, even kind of biblical. What kind of a nutbag would be opposed to wonderful things like tolerance, inclusion and diversity? Seriously? They all sound like the sorts of things Jesus would have been a huge fan of. These values sound amazing until one begins defining terms. Then you discover tolerance demands a wild celebration of every single thing God calls sin.  Inclusion means never saying anything negative about anyone or anything no matter how messed-up it or they are. Diversity is code for embracing insane philosophies designed to pit people groups against each other. It means submitting to the demands of the alphabet soup mafia (Galatians 3:28, 1st Corinthians 6:9-10, Romans 1:24-27).  It is not our job to judge non-Christians. However, we are called to stand firm against the enemy’s schemes (1st Corinthians 5:12-13, Ephesians 6:10-18). This requires we carefully examine the values of this age before simply accepting them as good and life-giving (1st Thessalonians 5:20-22, Isaiah 5:20, 2nd Thessalonians 2:15) 

Believe the culture is innocent fun- 

Satan wants Christians and Christian churches to believe today’s popular culture is no more or less problematic than at any other time in history. It is true that every culture has had issues (1st John 2:15). Sin is not a twenty-first century innovation.  However, today’s culture is aggressively intent on pulling people into sin and the bondage that accompanies sin (2nd Peter 2:19). Porn is more icky, violent and available than ever before. Television, movies and most of the internet is wasteland of stupidity, depravity and woke propaganda.  Promoters of sexual propaganda are not content with acceptance of their sexual “norms”. Activists viciously attack those who refuse to conform to their dogma. The unceasing call for individuals to focus on and serve oneself is flat-out demonic (Romans 2:8, 2ndCorinthians 12:20). It is more critical now than ever before Christians choose to intentionally separate themselves (and their children) from popular culture. We will lose the ability to think biblically if we embrace anything our toxic culture is peddling.   

Minimize the importance of community- 

 Satan wants Christians to feel isolated and alone almost as much as he wants them to feel more comfortable in the company of non-Christians. If Satan can keep Christians isolated from one another he knows they will be more likely to walk away from their commitment to Jesus and into temptation and trouble (Hebrews 10:24-25). We fight this scheme when we are intentional about reaching out to and being available for others. Routinely inviting Christians over for a meal and/or board games, taking a Christian friend a meal or visiting them when they’re sick goes long towards building the kind of community that keeps people connected to each other and the church in good times and bad.  

Avoid the right kind of offense-  

Christians should never be jerks. However, Satan loves it when we are so concerned about “being offensive” and “loving people” we keep silent about Jesus and the hope found in Jesus. In other words, Satan loves it when Christians love their friends and family into hell. 

 And finally,  

Satan hopes more than anything Christians will be content with going to church rather than doing the hard work of being the church (John 13:34-35, Romans 15:7, 1st Corinthians 1:10, Galatians 5:13, Ephesians 4:32). His dreams come true anytime our Christian walk is limited to private devotions and church attendance only. We come against his schemes and overcome when we choose to speak truth, love deeply, live righteously and form close and lasting bonds with other believers (Revelation 12:11, John 16:33, Romans 12:21).      

The Good and Bad News About God’s Love-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it- Hebrews 12:10b-11 NIV

Daniel chapter four is kind of the definition of the term “plot twist” on a whole bunch of different levels.

In the first three chapters of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar is presented as a classic toxic villain/narcissistic mastermind. He spends most of his time making wild demands and threatening to murder people in innovative ways (Daniel 2:5-6, Daniel 3:4-6). However, chapter four begins with a cheery personal greeting from none other than King Nebuchadnezzar himself. 

It just gets weirder from there. 

 Beginning in verse two King Nebuchadnezzar humbles his prideful self by loudly and proudly extoling the power, wisdom and sovereignty of the Hebrew God.

When Nebuchadnezzar is done praising the Lord he launches into a super personal and kind of humiliating story. He starts out telling the reader about a weird dream he had. The dream was about a tree. A tree that started small but grew to be tall and incredibly beautiful. The tree was covered with large leaves and lush fruit. The tree eventually covered the whole earth. Birds, animals and people all took shelter in and under this dazzling tree. 

Then. 

Out of nowhere, “a holy one” a “messenger” commands in a loud voice the tree is to be stripped of its leaves and fruit and cut down. Yet, the roots are to remain in the ground and the stump is to be bound with bronze and silver. Then the disembodied voice says: 

Let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him live with the animals among the plants of the earth. Let his mind be changed from that of a man and let him be given the mind of an animal, till seven times pass by for him- Daniel 4:15b-16

Yikes. 

Daniel is brought in to decipher the dream. The prophet is confronted with the rather unpleasant task of informing the King his dream is about him. In a beautiful exchange revealing the affection Daniel and the King have for one another Daniel gently informs Nebuchadnezzar he is the tree and he will be cut down in the prime of his life by a peculiar form of insanity. His only hope is to change course immediately, atone for his many sins and give God the glory he deserves (Daniel 4:19-27). 

In true Nebuchadnezzar fashion, he ignores the warning and just cheerfully goes on with his life. No reflection. No self-examination. No transformation. 

A year later, as Nebuchadnezzar is praising his own awesomeness and patting himself on the back He is struck with insanity and begins eating grass like an ox and living like an animal far removed from human society. This strange behavior continues for seven “times” (most scholars believe this is years while some say months). Then Nebuchadnezzar gives God glory and is back in his right mind and returned to his former position, evidently, with no long-term repercussions.  

This story is fraught with good news and bad news. 

The good news is that, for reasons I will never completely grasp, God loved crazy old Nebuchadnezzar. A LOT.  Its obvious God loved Nebuchadnezzar because God pursued Nebuchadnezzar. 

God was not content to simply allow Nebuchadnezzar to wallow around in his own sinful grossness until he died and went straight to hell. Instead, God warned Nebuchadnezzar in a dream he was dangerously off course. He informed Nebuchadnezzar what would happen if he refused to change direction. Then God followed through on what he promised. Nebuchadnezzar lost his mind and lived like an animal until he gave God the glory He deserves as the maker and sustainer of all things. 

This is good news for all us.

If the God of the universe can love a mean, impulsive, self-aggrandizing windbag like Nebuchadnezzar He loves all of us.  God gets a lot of bad press these days for being a hateful meanie. Truth-be-told God is good and God is for us. His desire is for all people to be in relationship with Him. God wants a relationship with us so badly He was willing to do the work to make it happen. He sent His only son to pay the penalty for the sins of all of us. All we have to do is believe in Jesus’s life, death and resurrection, repent of our sins and we’re in (Romans 5:6-8, John 3:16). It’s that simple. 

The bad news is the flip side of the good news. Because God loves us He goes after us. He woos us (Deuteronomy 7:9, 1st John 3:1, 1st Corinthians 15:1-4). He attempts to draws us to Himself but if wooing doesn’t get the job done He flat refuses to let us go without a fight. This means He will discipline us in order to bring us into right relationship with Him, or if we already have a relationship with Him He will discipline us to get us back to a healthy place.  Hebrews 12:4-10 tells us God will not allow someone He loves to continue on a sinful path without suffering the consequences of those choices and God loves everyone. 

Hardships, difficulties and trials are not automatically God’s discipline or punishment. Trials serve a million different purposes. They grow us up, increase our endurance, deepen our compassion for other people and intensify our longing for the return of Jesus (James 1:2-4, Jude 1:21, Luke 12:36, 1st Peter 1:3-9, 1st Corinthians 1:3-7). 

All good and necessary things that have nothing to do with punishment.

That being said, every trial we endure, every hardship we walk through should cause us to ask God straight-up if there’s an issue we need to deal with. This ensures a healthy, unbroken relationship with God and that no pain is ever wasted in our lives.