"the things I speak"

Well, it was another great day at Trinity! And a special thanks to Jacob & Erin for doing a great job with worship! I loved "You Won't Relent", that song is awesome.
You know, Jesus was a master wordsmith. The things He spoke of always pointed to His Father. In John 12:50 we read, "the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me." The amazing thing here is that Jesus was saying that He came to show us the way to salvation and eternal life because this was the Fathers will. His message could only consist of what the Father gave Him to speak. Now here's a thought, what if we would only speak the things the Father gives us through His Holy Spirit? Which leads me to this question. Are we really leading others to the Father or are we just going through the motions? We are quick to respond to the commandment "love God with all your heart..." but what about "love your neighbor as yourself"? In verse 45 Jesus says "He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me." Now if we hold this as truth then we must also realize that as christians, when others see us they should see Jesus. For if His Spirit lives in us, then our lives should reflect that for others to see. There is a catch phrase going around the christian faith that says "it's not about us" which is true but is that really what others see? Is God really more important than ourselves? The point is, we become what we behold. Are we listening to the things He speaks?
Blessings!

A Bugs Life

Well, it appears as if the week 1 message (still a seed) was only a spring board for week 2 (just one ant) in the Bug's Life series. I know that God is working in great ways but that was incredible. The best thing about it was all I had to do was be a willing vessel and stay out of His way. The text (judges 6:12-16) was a great way to share the reality about who we can be. Gideon, just one man! Yet God called him a valiant warrior! How awesome is it that we have a God who sees us different than we see ourselves. And best of all, even though we still have battles Jesus has won the war. We are not fighting a losing battle. It may even look at times like God is asking a lot from us when we are facing the enemy but that's the point. He still wants us & the enemy to know that victory is by His hand alone. The story of William Swinderby and John Wycliffe had a big impact on me personally. John claimed the Bible taught what the church did not, and the church taught what the Bible did not. Sound familiar? Swinderby was found wrong on matters of baptism, church policy, governance, salvation, and the sacraments. What lesson's we can learn from others that are willing to be vessels for God. So remember the theme of the series, how do YOU see GOD; BIG or small?