Obedience is better then...

Obedience is better then...

Sacrifice...

BUT...



Is all sacrifice obedience?

We Christian's like to throw out that verse a lot.. Obedience is better then sacrifice.. but what does it mean? Is it a reference to that fact that if I disobey that a sacrifice is required? That my obedience is better then the death of Christ on the cross? That if we only would have obeyed, God would have been happier with that then watching His son die for our disobedience?

Honestly, I'm not sure.

However, in the last few days, I started looking at this verse with a different view point... what if the phrase.. "obedience is better then sacrifice" is more to the point of.. obedience is going to require sacrifice, and to sacrifice something obediently is much better then just sacrificing something. So it boils down to the intent and attitude of the heart...



So, are you sacrificing something just to not do it, or are you doing it out of obedience to what God says?

The basics of sacrifice...

Sacrifice...

Sometimes I really hate that word. Ok, most of the time. Fine.. all the time. But honestly, who really likes to sacrifice?

Better question.. what is sacrifice? One of my students said it best.. the giving of something that means a lot to you, which coincidentally matches up with the definition that I found online

So, if I give it up and it means nothing, that wouldn't be sacrifice.. like.. for me, it's not a sacrifice to give up on spinach. Seriously, that stuff is nasty. Anywho..you get my drift.



It's got to cost us something to give up for it to be sacrifice..it has too.

So, my question today is.. what is it that you are not willing to sacrifice?

21 YEARS!

It feels like it was just yesterday that I was standing at there, in my uniform watching you walk down the aisle toward me with your dad by your side. I was nervous. I was impatient. I was in love.

But that was 21 years ago.

21 years.

Wow, seems so long when you say it, but so short when you live it.

I won't lie, we have had our share of issues. Every bed of roses has a ton of thorns in it. But you have made it worth it.

21 years..



Totally worth it!

Stuff my dad says...

Had lunch with my dad today.

Pizza.

Always a good choice.

But during my conversation with him, we started to discuss faith, belief, and some of the struggles he has had in his past and where he is now. During the conversation, I really wanted to bring up some thoughts and share with him the love that God has for him, so I agonized over telling him. Not because I am afraid of sharing my faith in Christ, not because someone might have over heard us. But because, well, this is my dad.

I started to say something, then stopped, hashing over my words. He looked at me, and I said.."This is really hard to say."

He looked back at me and said some words that pretty much struck me deep down inside and caused me to really do a self evaluation post haste.

His words that shook me to the core?

"If you are afraid to tell me, it makes me doubt your convictions."

OUCH!

Here I am, a guy who tells teens to live their lives out loud, to share the gospel with their friends, to boldly go into their schools and share the gospel of Jesus Christ... and I'm scared to share my faith with my dad.

Double OUCH!!

Thankfully, I serve a God who knows me, who loves me, and who will willingly discipline me when I am being an idiot. (btw, that happens a lot more then you might ever expect)

Good news is I did tell him. We talked. He listened. We finished lunch. We hugged and went back to our workplaces.

No, my dad didn't say a prayer confessing Christ at lunch.

But God used him mightily to impact me.

No, I didn't answer all my dad's problems.

But God showed up in a big way, at least for me.

No, there were no angels triumphantly calling a lost one home.

But a seed was planted.

And sometimes... that is all we are called to do. Plant seed.

Talk about Stuff my Dad said.. ouch!

A joyful heart...

Have you ever been in the place where you are just feeling overwhelmed, stressed, under appreciated, in a funk?

Yeah, me either. However, if you happen to be one of those who can be honest about where you stand at the moment, I hope these words find a way into your heart, like they have mine...

A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. Prov 17:22

I read that today, and instantly recognized why I enjoy certain people when I am down. They bring with them a joyfulness that becomes infectious. You can't help but just want to be near them.

A day later...

Well, I just had an interesting night. Was planning on having some down time, hanging out with my wife. That was until one of our kids from youth reached out to me because she had just had a run in with an ex boyfriend that left her emotionally frazzled. My wife invited her over to the house for dinner and to socialize. Ended up having 6 other young adults show up and we watched two hours of Perry Noble. By the end of it, all the guys had left, and I retired into my room for the night, leaving my wife, this young lady and another female to discuss what had happened.

Through the process, my wife ministered to this young lady, sharing with her verses from the bible, and just pouring into her the hope that is found in Christ.

It would have been easy for me to just take my much needed night off and just be selfish with it. But instead, God was moving in the day to bring my wife and I to a place, where a young lady, who was crushed in spirit and crying out for help, got the opportunity to be surrounded by her friends and just be ministered too.

Did it make everything alright for her? Probably not, but it did let her know that she has significance, it did let her know that she is cared for, and it did allow her to be around others who had joyful hearts. And at the end of the day.. we all need that.

Plus God is totally AWESOME!

Invincible. Indestructible. Unstoppable. Unshakable. Fierce.

Words that I would love to use to describe myself. Yet, I struggle with the basics. I yearn to be that warrior that I know God has called me to be. I desire inside my core to strike out and become who He see's me as. That unstoppable warrior who is unashamed and unabashed at living fiercely for my King and Savior.

Yet, even with such desire, I find that I fail. I see this warrior chained to a wall, slumped in the mud, covered in dirt and grime, sword just out of reach. Powerless.

How did I get here. All by myself, of my own accord.

But how do I get free? A much more important question. It is through Christ that I find my freedom. He who the Spirit sets free is free indeed. However, does this freedom mean I can do whatever I want? At what price did this freedom come? How much did it cost me?

I am free. By the grace of God and through his abundant mercy showed to me while I was yet still stuck in the mud, chained to the wall. I am free. To serve.

See, the reality of it is we will always serve one of two masters. We will serve the world, ourselves, our sinful nature. Ultimately serving the devil's wicked schemes to destroy us.

Or, we will serve the Lord, and realize that those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength, they will mount up with wings as eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint.

Rise up, warrior of God, stand with your armor on, realizing that it is Jesus IN you, living THROUGH you, FOR Him..

and after doing all..



To Stand..

Daily devotional

From YouVersion: It's a new month - so it is time to start a new Reading Plan together! This month, we will read "The Gospels" in 30 days. Click the link here to get started: The Gospels. If you do, you can friend me, my username is psibrone.

Back to it...

Been a while. Life has a way of doing that too you I guess, or at least that what someone once told me and I bought it. However, I am feeling the urge to begin this again, more my own words and experiences other then those of the influencer's who shape and mold some of my thoughts.

See how long I can keep this up this time.. should be interesting.. oh, I hope it will be interesting.. please, let it be interesting...

So, with out further ado, (what does that even mean?) my Thoughts from the Front!..

War is horrible.. not the war you see on TV, but the war that rages inside of me. The one that started over 20 years ago when I surrendered my life to Christ. You know, the one that screams at you.. "hey, you, come here, try this", or "look at that", or "this isn't so bad!" The one where you try to justify all your actions, those actions that you know are not pleasing to God, and that leave you a puddle of mess afterwards.

I have my fair share of war stories, and there are times I wonder, how much more could I have done for God if I would have just stayed true to the calling I believed He has on my life...

you know the drill..

the condemnation that comes after you fall short. That self beating up that you do because you know better, you are one of God's children, He set you free, and you treat Him like this, how could He ever forgive you again, how could he see past this sin, how could I let Him down like that.. all that garbage that you pile on yourself because you feel unworthy...

LIES!

How long will we buy into those lies the devil tries to cripple us with? God so loves you that even while you were yet a sinner, He died for you! His death on the cross paid for all of your sin. His resurrection 3 days later set you free from the condemnation and guilt.

Yes, there is conviction, and yes, there is consequence. There is NOT condemnation. Conviction is correction, for whom God loves He also corrects and reproves. There is consequence to your actions, because we will reap what we sow, but aren't you glad that he also says that all things work together for good to those who love God. But condemnation, that feeling of worthlessness, was nailed to the cross. Death, the penalty of sin, was paid when Christ died once and for all for all sin!

Yes, ALL sin!

And, yes, there is HOPE!

He said He will never leave you, never forsake you, that His joy is your strength. Rise up child of God, stop wallowing in the mud of despair, take your place at the right hand of God in Christ, and walk triumphant with Him who has called you out of darkness into His glorious light. Learn and embrace what amazing grace truly is. Love lavished upon you for HIS purpose and desires. Not because of what you have done, not because who you are, not because of anything more then this..

He Loves YOU!