The Road of Reflection

One thing that I love is long reflective car rides. I tend to do my best thinking while I am driving by myself for long periods of time or in the shower. Those long drives by yourself gives you plenty of time to spend just talking with God and listening to Him. This past weekend I was driving to Indiana Wesleyan to spend some time with some college students. The drive takes about 4.5 hours and I was enjoying the ride by praying, listening to some Allistair Begg sermons, and worshiping. At one point I was listening to my advanced copy of the new Polen CD. I got to the song called "At The Cross" and almost broke down in tears. Do you ever have those moments when God's truth becomes so real to you and hits home? Have you ever had those moments when you realize how messed up your life would be without Jesus Christ? That is what happened at this moment. These words began repeating...

"I was spotless, I was blameless, I was the perfect Lamb of God,

You were broken, fallen, worthless, yet I died, I died for you."

As I was driving the weight of the truth in those words overwhelmed me. I was reminded of how wretched I am and how perfect Christ is. How I don't deserve anything and he deserves everything. How God would take a messed up sinner like me and save me is beyond my comprehension. At this point God's love became very real to me. I began to understand how wide, how deep God's love is for us. We are broken, fallen, worthless people yet He died, He died for us. Do you believe that? Really, does that truth effect your life? Does it do anything in your heart? Because I know for me it brings me to my knees.

The rest of the drive all I could do was thank God. Thank Him for His love, His goodness, His kindness, His faithfulness, His patience, His sacrifice... the list goes on and on. It made Romans 12:1 very real to me. When we realize how broken we are and how perfect God is our only response should be to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to Him. I pray today that you would take time to feel the weight of the words from that song. That God would bring you to your knees and you would cry out with thankfulness to your heavenly Father. That you would know its not about you and it is about God. That He is ultimately in control and that you can fully trust in Him.

*Please join us in supporting an awesome band (Polen) that is truly seeking after God and leading people into worship. They will be releasing their new CD at 3 consecutive concerts March 19th, 20th, & 21st. Cost is $10 and you receive their new CD free ($12 value). Don and I will also be speaking at the events. For tickets & more info visit www.polenband.com or let me know, I am selling pre-sale tickets as well.

Icicles

With the recent snow storms I have had to do a lot of snow shoveling. In the midst of shoveling I began to notice many icicles forming on our gutters above our driveway. Some of these icicles were very large and must have weighed 20-30 pounds. Underneath the icicles were cars and also a walkway where most of us walk. As I fixated on the icicles with fascination I began to think about sin. You see, just like an icicle it starts out small and builds. The more snow that melts and re-freezes the bigger and heavier the icicle gets. The same is true in our lives, as we let more and more unrepentant sin build up in our lives it becomes a large heavy icicle that hangs over our heads ready to crush us.

These icicles presented a dangerous situation for the guys at the house and visitors who would come by. Something must be done about the icicles and something must be done about sin. The other day we moved the cars and worked together to safely knock down the icicles and pick up the pieces of broken ice. The danger of the icicles was then removed. In our own lives something must be done about sin. Jesus came not only to save us from the sin but to pick up the broken pieces in our lives. So in your life are their icicles? Is there sin that hasn't been dealt with that is turning into an icicle? I would encourage you to get on your knees and surrender to Jesus Christ. You might need some friends to help you break down your own icicles and to help you pick up the pieces.

The funny thing is two days later I walked outside and the icicles were back. Know that we are in a battle, know it is not us that sins but the sin nature that is in our flesh. May you keep your eyes fixed on Jesus Christ and may he bring freedom, healing, and victory over the sin that so easily entangles us!

So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. - Romans 7:17-19

Union

"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me." - John 15:4

Love by its nature seeks union.

Union: the state of being joined or united or linked

We are seekers of union. We want to love and be loved. There is something inside each one of us that wants to be united with something. When God calls you into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ it isn't just something you "add on" to you current life. You are now in union with Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit that dwells inside of you. You are joined, united, and linked with the God of creation. You are now always together, you cannot be separated, nothing can break your union. Many times we lose sight of our union with Christ. Though it is an essential
part of our Theology it is many times forgotten. Our union with Christ is an amazing thing, it radically changes our perspective once we truly start to understand it. As the author Brennan Manning puts it,

"Until the love of God that knows no boundary, limit, or breaking point is internalized through personal decision; until the furious longing of God seizes the imagination; until the heart is conjoined to the mind through sheer grace, nothing happens. ...The revolutionary thinking that God loves me as I am and not as I should be requires radical rethinking and profound emotional readjustment."

Jesus, human words cannot bear the weight of Your mercy and compassion. My union with You is like being so attached that life seems impossible without You. Detached from You during my days of sour wine and withered roses was a shadow life. I have no sense of myself apart from You. My bones say thank You for this now moment. Amen.