The faith hall of fame, as many call it, is Hebrews 11.

And my wife said something Friday that made me think of these faithful followers of the Lord.

Live With Eternity In Mind

That is a good word.  Live with eternity in mind.

Hebrews 11 8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Hebrews 11 13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

I want to be a man of great faith……and perhaps this word from the Lord is a good call to all of us.

Do we know that there are promises that will be fulfilled AFTER we are gone?

Do we know that there are promises that we can only see from a distance?

Do we know that there is a city with FOUNDATIONS?

Do we know that there is a better country, a heavenly one?

All of these are reminders that the battle is already won…that the Lord has built the city…that He has prepared the place that we all long to live in……

And it is our job to share that good news with all who would care to listen…or watch.

Live with eternity in mind.

And preach Jesus to the lost:  

And when it’s needed…..USE WORDS

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

One of the most convicting verses in the Bible is Jesus speaking to the church in Turkey.

Revelation 3  17 You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

I often read verses like this and I am caught off guard.

Never has there been a time when we might be MORE LIKE THIS then the time when Jesus spoke this verse to John on the island of Patmos.  And even though He was speaking to a church in Laodicea—-I am taking this as He is talking to me.

He also mentions, in THIS chapter of Revelation, that the church is lukewarm to the point that he could “spit them out of His mouth.”

Christ has called us to a life that makes a difference.

He has called us to be true followers of Him.

He has sealed the fate of those who would call on Him to walk into His Kingdom and live for an eternity.

It is a free gift to all who would choose.

But…..much like the country we live in…..freedom is NOT FREE.  There is a cost. And those who do not understand that there is a cost soon find out that they are in fact, NOT FREE.  If we TRULY want freedom, we must be willing to PAY THAT COST.

It is January 18, 2019.  We are beginning a new year.  There are urgent things that lie in front of us…..but I am calling you out right now to take a step back and to focus on the IMPORTANT things in front of us.

There was a song I listened to growing up that used to hit this point spot on.  I am not advocating this song…..just pointing out that they new the truth:

When The Dave Matthews Band, in a song called Ants Marching, sang:  

Take these chances

Place them in a box until a quieter time

Lights down, you up and die

they might have meant many things, but one thing I know is true:  When we put off the things that are important we tend to wait too long before we move in the direction that we are called to go.

Delaying.

Waiting.

Putting things off.

All are passive responses that ultimately are as bold and decisive as saying NO in the first place.

Jesus has called us to the opposite.

He has called us to great things and compelled us to be world changers.

He has even encouraged us in our shortcomings.  In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, He uses the tiniest seed, a mustard seed, as His encouragement to all of us….

If we have Faith the size of a Mustard seed we can do GREAT, GREAT, things.

Where are you man of God?  Where are you woman of God?

Are you taking these chances….and placing them in a box until a quieter time?

Because God is calling you to step it up…..not on the urgent things…..

But on the IMPORTANT ONES.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

Abram jumped in the wheelbarrow.  He went “all in” and reacted to the Lord with great faith, and he was rewarded for it.

God told him that He would make his descendants as numerous as “the stars in the sky”.

This is the typical God-promise.

A man with no children, with a barren wife, who was very old….would not just have children—but God told him that he would make him into a great nation.

How can this be?

But Abram, in spite of all of these facts, ACTED IN FAITH.

And he ACTED IN FAITH in a big way….packing up and leaving a place where he belonged to go to a place where he did not belong.

Genesis 12  2 “I will make you into a great nation

and I will bless you;  I will make your name great,

and you will be a blessing.

You are free.  You get to choose who you will be and what you will do.

This is the founding principle of our great Christian Faith—that we are free to reject the Lord or invite Him in.

We are free to invite Him to lead our lives….or not.

Abram had to make this choice……and so do I……and so do you.

And when he made this choice, there would be challenges.

No sooner than giving Abram Isaac, this happened:

Genesis 12  2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”

3 Early the next morning Abraham got up……

Sometimes this word, this PERFECT WORD, is hard to process.

He promises Abram a son.

He gives him a son.

He directs him to get rid of him.

And then Abram’s response……EARLY THE NEXT MORNING he gets up and proceeds with the plan!

The rest of this story, and for our talk today, is in Hebrews:

Hebrews 11 17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” 19 Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.

Abram, now Abraham, knew that God was not a killer.  He knew His promises were good. And so he reasoned that God would raise Isaac from the dead……and this lead him to respond “early the next morning” to an incredible command.

That IS FAITH.

God makes a promise….

And then He makes sure that we don’t make that promise our idol.

He makes sure that we worship the Promise Maker, not the promise.

So what do you choose?

Joshua 24 14 “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness.  Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”

God has a plan for all of us.  It is better than anything we could ever concoct on our own accord….but it is not always prepared by our own personal recipe.  Sometimes the roadblocks that we see are not what we might consider them to be.

And the enemy would love us to think that we are not walking in the direction of our destiny…….

But it is God, and ONLY God, who makes descendants from nomads, who raises the dead, who brings life to dead bones…..

So get in the wheelbarrow…..

And enjoy the ride of your life.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

“Work Harder” is not always the answer.

As a “football guy” I certainly get this.

I talk with many people and listen to talk radio and sports reports and hear that “work harder” comment a lot.

Is it that simple?  Most of us know, deep down, that it is not.

When you compete in an arena, as many of us do, where the other side is ALSO trying to win, it is much, much more complicated than that.

On a record setting touchdown completion to Brandon Stokley, Peyton Manning showed FAITH.  Yes, he worked hard….but it was much more than that.

As Stokley began to work outside and “set” his defender outside, Manning began to make his throw back inside.  In other words, Peyton threw it to the right when Stokley was going to the left……

When Stokley broke back to the inside, the ball was on him and the Colts scored.

To watch this develop from the back was utterly amazing.

Before it was, Peyton saw it……

That’s FAITH.

And as we walk into 2019, that is the word that God has put on my heart to give to you.

FAITH.

If you are like me, you have worked very hard at something—-and failed.  So you know in your heart that working hard is not the only recipe to success.

And, certainly, God would say the same thing.

The Word is our one connection to the Lord that we can literally hold in our hand—–but today, I am going to go with a story.

Understand this…..Only God, through His word, can give you something that will truly bring life…..so if today you are inspired by this writing—-I want it to give you inspiration to do just that—PULL OUT YOUR WORD AND BEGIN TO READ IT….EVERY DAY.

You may have heard the story of the man who brought a crowd of people up to the top of a skyscraper in New York City and allowed them to see the tightrope he had extended out to see the true “reality” of the situation.

“Who believes that I can walk this tightrope?” he asked.  Almost half of them raised their hands. After gathering the vote, he walked the line—going all the way across and all the way back.  The crowd was amazed.

He then pulled out a wheelbarrow and turned to the crowd:  “Who believes that I can walk this tightrope with this wheelbarrow?”  A few more raised their hands. After gathering the vote, he took the wheelbarrow and walked the line—going all the way across and all the way back.  The crowd was amazed.

THEN, he asked the crowd:  “Who has FAITH that I can walk this tightrope with this wheelbarrow?”  “What do you mean,” they asked, “we said that we believe”. To which he responded:  “Which of you would like to get in the wheelbarrow?”

As we begin the journey into a new year I want to encourage you to start, and end, with FAITH.  God makes it clear that our work will not be good enough. And, as many of us know, our hard work is never enough.

FAITH, on the other hand, takes a little bit of work and a little bit of letting go.

It is trusting God to act in situations where we might not have control.

It is trusting that God knows what He is doing.

It is ….. TRUSTING GOD….and acting out our life with that as our primary belief.

God has written us a love letter over 1500 years.  It has been written by 40 authors, on 3 continents, by a crowd of people as diverse as you could gather.

And yet…..it ties together perfectly and works from the same theme:

We Are Created

We Are Flawed

We Are Offered A Choice Of Redemption

Make 2019 the year of your greatest acts of FAITH.  Trust that you can “throw the ball” before your receiver is even open…….CHOOSE to get in the wheelbarrow.

Have FAITH that Your God will do a new thing.

Have FAITH that you, and everyone around you, is a miracle of creation that God desires to bring to life.

Have FAITH…….that this life can ACTUALLY WORK.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

A few nights ago, as I was listening to K-Love, I heard one of their hosts say:  “A Willing Heart is more important than an Able Body”

Amen.

And this is, indeed, the beginning of the story of Christmas.

And, with that in mind, I want to encourage all of us to begin our quest of truly honoring God and the birth of His ambassador, Jesus Christ.

The story of Jesus began (in our earthly sense) with a visit from an angel to Mary…..and the angel tells her some awful news.  Her wedding, and her plans to be married with honor, are going to be thrown away. She is going to be God’s servant. She is going to carry the Son of God.  She is going to be scrapping her plans and carrying out the will of God. And she replies:

Luke 1 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.”

Mary’s obedience is the beginning of the story of Jesus.

It is the ultimate model on how we are each called to respond to the Lord.

And as we head into 2019, it is a model for what we are called to do…….

What would the world look like if each of us said to God:

“I am the Lord’s servant”

May it be to me as you have said”

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

Today’s post is inspired by Billy McMahon, a pastor at Rocky Mountain Christian Church.

What do you do when your plan seems to be going in the wrong direction?

I have asked this as a football coach.

I have asked it as a teacher.

And I have asked it as a person.

I am sure that Paul and Silas might have considered this question as well.

When men realized that they could no longer capitalize on the sickness of a woman Paul had prayed over and God had healed, they had them thrown in prison.  I am sure that the enemy planted the seed of doubt in Paul and Silas as they sat in shackles and awaited what their next option was.

But they did not receive the seed of doubt.  And they did not receive it because they knew who would be giving The Final Word.

How are we to deal with outcomes that are not what we expect?

To draw from Paul and Silas, we are to remember who has The Final Word.

Acts 16  25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

When you know The Final Word….it changes everything.

So what is The Final Word?

It is simple:

Jesus Christ came to save the world and offers eternal life to all

who would receive Him.

There is a reason that Paul gave up all of his comfort to become a servant of the Most High God.

It is because Paul realized something that we all must come to face:

The Final Word belongs to the Lord.

The Final Word is about making “children of God out of all who receive Him” (John 1).

The Final Word will trump all that the earth might show us:

Sickness

Death

Persecution

And, in Paul’s case, even Prison

The Final Word belongs to none other than Jesus.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

A few days ago I was convicted by a thought:

Do You Know Why I Believe What I Believe?

And for several days I have pondered this very question.

You see, many would say that they “grew up in the church”….and therefore, they are followers of God.

I am fine with that—I really am.

But for me….it was a different road.  And that is probably because I have never been one to fall in line…..

And so praying over how I would write this blog….I was struck with several questions:

What would our world look like if the Bible was true?

1. There would be evidence of a worldwide flood.
2. There would be great conflict between the descendants of Isaac and the descendants of Ishmael.
3. Man would be corrupt and sinful.  There would constant and ever present displays of man’s hideous ways, and the world would not have peace.
4. The Jewish people would be blessed, yet despised.
5. There would have been a great event in Jerusalem about 2000 years ago and a new religion would have “risen from the ashes”…..much like the story of the Phoenix.
6. This new movement would cross cultures, nations, races, economics, and politics.  In other words—it would not be a movement in one small section of like people, but it would be widespread and diverse.

I believe that I could go on with this list….and perhaps I will in another blog…..

But for now I want to leave you with some thoughts……

We are creatures with incredible design.  Eyes that focus. Knees that deal with incredible movement.  Thumbs that grab. Even our cells operate like cities full of people.  The complexity of our physical being is beyond description. The atheist can call me a fool for thinking there is a God…..But how can our existence be a random accident?

The faith has changed me.  It has changed the way that I think about things and the way that I respond to things.  I have been convicted to change who I am in order to walk more in line with who He is. The atheist can call me a fool for believing that God has changed me…..But how can the change I see in others be explained?

Jesus words of wisdom are incredible….and for that matter, the words of wisdom in the rest of the Bible are incredible as well.  How to manage money. How to lead. How to live in a family and raise children. How to live out daily life. It is the greatest “how to” book that has ever been written.  The atheist can say:  there are other books out there that also make us better…..But how can a book written in so many countries by so many people in so many time eras be SO MUCH ON THE SAME PAGE AND SO ACCURATE AT THE SAME TIME?

How could this plan have made more sense for what it was intended to be.

I watch people.  I watch exchanges between politicians in our country.  I watch scientists and mathematicians and philosophers speak out about what they believe is true and not true, what they believe is right and not right, what they believe is best and not best….and yet, none of them outside of a Godly counsel seems to know what they are talking about…..only those who have followed biblical principles, or prayerful intuition, or both, seem to fully know what needs to be done.  The atheist can say:  Our best plan is a collection of the wisdom of men…..But where has that gotten us?  It has caused us more harm than good.  

And then there is the Bible.  Jesus shows up 2000 years ago in one of the hardest places to live.  There is corruption, there is brutal governmental intimidation, and there is a religion that is all but swallowing up the very people that it was intended to save.

People are “drowning” in the middle of the desert.

And yet with no money, no power, no status, and no favor He sets a new standard of living—-BY DYING.

His plan for salvation is spread by men who are so inadequately prepared for what they set out to do that it can’t help but fail.  

And yet, I sit here today and read the very words and bask in the very freedom that they have saved and passed down.

And….if that is not enough, I have convictions and dreams and visions and thoughts that are not my own to lead me in my moving forward.

Nothing, and I mean nothing, that I have ever encountered or talked to or read has done anything close to changing my life like God or His great word have.  And I have watched and witnessed Him do it to others as well.

Do You Know Why I Believe What I Believe?

Because……

It Is The TRUTH

John 1  12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God–

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

None of us wants to face up to who we truly are.

Because each of us must, ultimately, come face to face with the face that ….. We failed.

And, in many cases, we failed miserably.

If we could truly face our failures, we would hear more testimonies about it.

I don’t mean the one that had us sleeping in an alley high on heroin.  

I am talking about the testimony that shows how hard we are to live with….how lazy we are….or what our thoughts truly are when know one is watching.

So why do we do it?

One reason is that we lack faith.  And…..just like the disciples, we can’t see the end of the road and fear where it leads…..so we run the other direction.  And, just like them, we cower.

It is why we fall asleep when He asks us to pray.

It is why we run when the going gets tough.

It is why we cover up our inadequacies.

John 21  15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”  “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” 16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”  17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”  18 Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.

He is going to rise from the dead.

He is going to return to you.

And He is going to restore you, and forgive you, and promote you.

You do not need to run…or cower…or doubt.

It is on His plan that we will plant our eternity.

I say this because we all cower and cringe.  We all duck back and fearfully guard ourselves.  We all show incredible moments of NO FAITH.

THANK GOD THAT OUR FAITH DOES NOT DEPEND ON US!

And that is the reality of Jesus….and Christianity.  We have not done this thing. We have been the recipient of a great offer.  That offer is eternal. It is undeniable. And it is irrevocable.

It is an offer that makes me want to stand up and worship.  You see, if the enemy was going against just me—-then I would already be destroyed.  But I have a teammate. And that teammate shows up on the shore with me just like He did with Peter.  He fills my net with fish, my heart with hope, and my life with purpose. And He restores me.

As I listened to our worship team sing this beautiful song yesterday at church….God began to convict me about God’s success rate.  Even though I know it—He reminded me—it is 100%.

He is going to win….and He is going to win big.  

He is going to make things right…and He is going to make them more right than I can possibly fathom…..and He is going to give all who call on Jesus eternal life.

And, most importantly for us, He is going to give us a new hope and a new day and a new purpose.

When we begin to doubt this …. We just need to remind ourselves.

He Is Not Confined….He Confounds

He Will Not Resign….He Resounds

He Is Not Restrained….Hear The Sounds

Rocks Are Falling

The Broken Calling

To The God Who Moves The Mountains

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3xsn6db2iI

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J

Read the following statements and, as you read them, classify each as a statement that you agree with or disagree with:

Money Is The Root Of All Evil

I Am A Sinner Because I Constantly Sin

People Are God’s Greatest Ally

The World Can Corrupt Us

You Only Live Once

Live A Great Life And God Will Reward You

God Is Mad At Me

I Need To Change Things And Get Right With God

It Is Too Late To Go Back Now

The reality is…..these all contradict what God tells us in the Bible.

Money Is The Root Of All Evil

1 Timothy 6:10 says that “the love of money is the root of all evil”.  And God makes it clear that, with Him, we are rich.

Psalm 50:10 even goes so far as to say that “He owns the cattle on a thousand hills”.

I Am A Sinner Because I Constantly Sin

Romans 3:23 says that “we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

People Are God’s Greatest Ally

Romans 5:10 says that, without Jesus, “We are ENEMIES of God.”

The World Can Corrupt Us

Psalm 51:5 says that we were “born into sin”.  And the reality is–we are like Pork.  We are corrupted from the inside–not the outside.

You Only Live Once

John 3 tells us that we we must be born again.  In fact, a great truth comes from that.

Revelation 20 tells us:

If we are born twice—we only die once.

But if we are born only once—we will die twice.

Live A Great Life And God Will Reward You

John 10 Jesus says:  “I am the door”.

God Is Mad At Me

Romans 8 says that we are without shame, that we are sons, that we are heirs of the Kingdom, and that we are MORE than conquerors in Christ Jesus.

I Need To Change Some Things And Get Right With God

Galatians 3 says that us doing good works is WITCHCRAFT.  That we are saved by His grace and His grace alone.

It Is Too Late To Go Back Now

Repent is the greatest word in the Bible.  It is His offer to each of us that we can turn back….that we can turn from our sin and be bought by the blood of the Lamb.

It is His offer to each and every one of us.

It is the hope of the ages and the only hope of all mankind.

To turn to Jesus is to actually find life.

It is to leave your life of hopelessness and begin to live a life of freedom and grace.

This is the word that the world so desperately needs to hear.

It is the hope that saves our cities, our states, our country.

It is the hope that saves the world.

John 3:16 says all that we would ever need to know and draws us to read the rest of the love letter that God created over hundreds of years, through dozens of men, recorded in 66 books.

He says:

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

God LOVES the world.

He gave His Son to save the world.

And He offers eternal life to any who will receive Him.

And everyone you know needs to know that.

In The Name of the Father and the

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Know anyone who might like these?  Encourage them to jump on to 2minutewarning.blog and hit the FOLLOW button!!!

Coach J