Jesus Christ - The Eternal Foundation

People are going crazy. We are losing our minds. We are destroying ourselves and each other. How can we make sense of the madness?

God gives the answer. We have committed two sins:  We have forsaken Him, the spring of living water, and have dug our own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. The Apostle Paul puts it like this: We have exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator.  Why does this have such dire consequences?

In Romans 8, Paul exposes a problem with trusting in what has been created,

For the creation was subjected to futility, not by its own will, but because of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

Here Paul reminds us of all of creation’s “bondage to decay” because of our sin. Creation is decaying. It is fleeting. Dependance on the temporary ends in despair. Have you ever trusted in something that gave way? The immediate feeling of terror leaves one grasping for anything nearby to hold on to. While climbing a tree, I once trusted in a branch that broke under my weight.  In desperation I reached for anything to help stop my fall.  I was terrified as the lower branches that once held my weight could no longer handle my increasing downward momentum. Likewise, when the things we trust in give way, we immediately reach out to that old relationship, next vacation, or nearest drug to stop the fall. We struggle to survive at all costs, bringing others down in the process. Can anything stop our great descent?

Hallelujah, there is One who can bear the weight of the fall. There is a Savior from the corruption.

“The sovereign LORD says, “Behold, I laid a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic.” – Isaiah 28:16

“For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” – 1 Cor 3:11

May the chaos within and without cause us to lift our eyes and see the man upon the cross. He bore our curse and did not see decay. He is now seated at the right hand of the Father. He is the eternal foundation we must build our lives upon. In Christ alone, our hope is steadfast and out of this world.

In Christ,

—Roger Garrison

In Search of Mentors

In the culture in which I work, one hears about mentoring quite a bit. It is assumed that everyone could benefit from having a mentor, and I certainly agree. It is also assumed that every leader could or should be a mentor, and I’m just not sure about that.

In the Christian context, mentoring requires large doses of patience and humility, the ability to see the potential in someone and build them up, a willingness to live transparently and authentically. Helpful mentoring takes massive doses of intercession. If one truly wants to be a mentor to someone, they must like being with the person they wish to mentor and be willing to give their best lessons and understanding away for the joy of helping someone else along their journey. Mentoring takes heart, prayer, and time. Not every person in a leadership position is healthy enough to do it well.

Likewise, not every person is ready to be mentored.

To be mentored takes large doses of patience and humility, the ability to see something worth learning in another person’s life, and a willingness to live transparently and authentically with them. A mentee should enjoy being around their mentor. My best mentor, Denise, says that a person who wants a mentor should look for someone going in the same direction, at a similar pace, and should seek to be a friend, first. I think that is great advice.

Look for a spiritual mentor who won’t try to “fix” you but who is able take your hands and put them in the hands of the Holy Spirit. As author, Brian Simons states, “good mentors teach us how to hear the Holy Spirit for ourselves because the Holy Spirit will take us further than any man can”. When you look for a mentor, remind yourself of this simple verse found in in Philippians 3.17 “Keep track of those you see running the same course, headed for the same goal” (the message translation).

If you want a good mentor, pay attention to those around you and gravitate toward those who are walking in the same direction as you know you need to go, maybe only a step or two ahead. Look for the ones who see your potential and will help you go a little farther by their gift of themselves. Look for those who encourage you by their walk in God. Talk to God about your desire for a mentor, ask Him to help you find people who will invest in you and trust that He will bring them your way. He will. He did and still does for me.

Your Father knows what you need before you even ask Him, so start your search for great mentors with Him.  He loves to give you what you need to grow up in Him.

—George Davis (one who has the privilege of good mentors)

A Cheat Code to Worship and Honorable Living

Shout it aloud, do not hold back.

    Raise your voice like a trumpet.

Declare to my people their rebellion

    and to the descendants of Jacob their sins. 

For day after day they seek me out;

    they seem eager to know my ways,

as if they were a nation that does what is right

    and has not forsaken the commands of its God…

Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please 

and exploit all your workers.

Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,

    and in striking each other with wicked fists.

You cannot fast as you do today

    and expect your voice to be heard on high. (Isaiah 58:1-2, 3b-4)

I enjoy seeking the Lord. Don’t you? We all do. Time in praise, thanksgiving and prayer; time studying the Scriptures, allowing the truth of God’s Word to wash over you, basking in the fullness of joy only found in the presence of Almighty God; when someone calls to you from the other room. This kept happening to me.  Sometimes the momentary disruption is no big deal. Other times, I experienced it like nails sliding across a chalkboard. A wave of irritation comes upon me, and I think, “How dare you disrupt my ‘me time’ with Jesus?”. My response is dishonorable, snippy, and bubbling with sarcasm. I have noticed this is my reaction more times than I care to admit. I’m sure this is just me. 

For so long I thought the desire to seek and to eagerly pursue God’s presence and blessing was all that I needed. Do the right things, check the spiritual boxes then good results follow – right standing with God. It seems that is what Israel thought too. The Almighty tells them that they were mistaken. God commands Isaiah to not be shy; yell the people’s sin out, tell them their piety does not make them right with God! Wow. Can you imagine generations religiously engaging in rituals outlined in the Law – feasts, fasts, sacrifices – doing all of these good things only for God to say, “Hey, you are still in rebellion. Listen to all the sins you have committed against Me. Coming to me with all this religious stuff does not absolve you,”? I was initially stunned and discouraged reading this. 

Is it wrong to enjoy and receive the benefits of praising God, being in God’s presence, reading and gleaning from the Word of God, giving, serving, volunteering, praying? No, of course not. All of these things are good behaviors that we as followers of Christ should want to do. The problem seems to lie in the reason behind the actions. We need to ask Holy Spirit about ourselves. Am I doing this to honor God or to please myself? From a sincere heart in pursuit of His heart or to be impressive and prove my worthiness? According to verse 4, we can tell by the fruit. Israel’s fasting resulted in continued fighting and exploitation of others! My devotional time ended with my bad attitude toward the person who disturbed me. Thankfully, God continues to be gracious and gives Israel the cheat code of what it looks like to honorably approach Him (and each other) and favorable outcomes when they do it His way (v. 6-12). 

The truth is, if we are truly honoring God with our lives of worship and service, there should not be strife between us. If we are seeking The Kingdom of God first as Christ instructs His disciples in Matthew 6:33 then the good, right, wholesome, and fulfilling outcomes follow. Our relationships reflect the oneness of the Godhead; we live peaceably with one another; our thoughts toward each other are lovely and virtuous. May we repent and lay aside our way, our preferences, and presumptions of what is right and good to take up the way of our Lord.

—Anyah E. Reed

Loving & Waiting Go Hand In Hand

I know I am making myself vulnerable here by telling you that when it comes to eating waffles for breakfast, in my book, peanut butter and syrup go hand in hand. Some of you may reject this idea completely, and that is acceptable—even though I believe you are missing out on something so, so good!

Love and waiting go hand in hand, too. I learned about this relationship recently as I compared what the prophet Isaiah and the Apostle Paul both say about the same topic. Consider the following two passages:

From of old no one has heard

    or perceived by the ear,

no eye has seen a God besides you,

    who acts for those who wait for him. (Isaiah 64:4)

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,

    nor the heart of man imagined,

what God has prepared for those who love him” (Paul quoting Isaiah in 1 Corinthians 2:9)

Both Isaiah and Paul are encouraging us to open our hearts to hope, big time hope! They assure us that God is not a reactionary God who is waiting for life to happen to us to then react with a plan for our lives. They encourage us with the hope that God has prepared and acts based on plans He has for our lives. Furthermore, those plans go beyond what our eyes have seen, or what ears have heard, or our minds have imagined! Pretty cool stuff, don’t you think? 

So where is the catch? Is there a catch or condition? Glad you asked! If we can speak of conditions, we would find two: those who love God and those who wait for Him get to experienced the benefits of God’s plans.

Love informs our waiting, and our waiting positions us to love God well!

What is life like for you these days? Whether you are experiencing blessing or hardship, know that your love for God will invite you to wait for Him. As you wait for Him and His ways, your love will be refined.

I hope you hear between the lines that there are solid reasons for you to hope in God. There is no God besides Him. You are in His mind and His plans! Our part is to respond in love and patience.

—Diego Cuartas