Friday, April 24, 2015
Fear of people.
"Cold, Evil, fear of these are the Dark Side."--Yoda "Arisia Rrabb you have the ability to overcome great fear. Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps." Both of these are quotes about fear and conquering it. I used to fear what people thought about what I did or didn't do. I would actually lay awake in bed trying to think and predict exactly what would happen in certain conversations. We live in a society where we fear how we think people will perceive us based on how we look, talk or behave. Take the fashion and advertising world for example. If two women show up in the same place with the same dress they freak out about what people will say. I often post comic book related things on my face book page and become afraid people will be offended. I used to be very shy about meeting and talking to new people. Again we're back to the fear of people. I read this verse this week that floored me because I saw so much of my own fear in it. Proverbs 29:15 "Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety." Look again at the first phrase of that "A dangerous trap." I'm a Star Wars fan and when I read the word trap i see mentally that famous scene in Return of the Jedi where squadrons of spaceships are flying into a fully functional Death Star and Admiral Ackbar screams "It's a trap." Fearing people is indeed a trap and it's easy to fall into. I found myself in it 2 days ago when I was attacked online for voicing my opinion on how to write a good story. If you read Exodus 3-4 you see Moses over and over telling God why he's afraid of people even to the point of begging God to let Aaron be his mouthpiece in front of Pharaoh. Also check out Judges 6-7 Gideon is afraid to trust people and to trust God to deliver the Israelis from the land of Midian with only 300 men. Here's something I always found weird. As kids we make friends with anybody and for the most part all of us are pretty fearless. Then those teenage and college years pretty much ruin it for us. If you suffer from a fear of people like I have I've got some hope for you. If you're a follower of God I want to show you my favorite verse. Psalms 18:19 "He led me to a place of safety; He rescued me because he delights in me." Also look at Matthew 10:26-31 "But don't be afraid of those who threaten you. For the time is coming when everything that is covered will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. What I tell you now in the darkness shout abroad when daybreak comes. What I whisper in your ear shout from the house tops for all to hear! Don't be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God who can destroy both body and soul in hell. What is the price of two sparrows-- one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid: you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows." I'd like you to also look at Romans 8:31 the next time you are near the dangerous trap of fearing people. "What shall we say about such wonderful things as these" If God is for us, who can ever be against us." Next time you start fearing people I want you to follow 1 Peter 5:7 "Give all your worries and cares to God for he cares about you." As I bring this study to a close I want to draw your attention to 2 passages that though you have read them many times I hope they become real to you. 2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline." As we cast our cares on God because he cares for us remember this: Hebrews 4:16 "So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive mercy and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
Friday, April 17, 2015
Word trouble
Lies and flattery are a great evil. I'm going to make more sense of this for you shortly in scripture. Before I ever got married and to this day I have had a policy about compliments. I'm going to give you a real life personal account about compliments and flattery going wrong. My policy about compliments is this: If you are going to say something nice about someone you dang well better mean it. God knows your thoughts and your heart and if you don't mean it then you just lied to that person. Several years back I worked under this lady and I as a rep reported to her. She once approached me and started this conversation by saying, "Zac that's a really nice shirt you are wearing....." Then she made a request for me to do something. All she had to do was ask me to do this work related thing. The compliment was flattery and a lie just to get me to do something and it hurt. It was at a time in my life people rarely said anything nice to me.
Let's go back all the way to Genesis 3:1 "The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman `Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?'" Lies just entered the world. Fast forward to Exodus 20:16 "You must not testify falsely against your neighbor." Then we get to Proverbs and Solomon gives us insight to the effects lies have on us and others. Proverbs 25:18 "Telling lies about others is as harmful as hitting them with an ax, wounding them with a sword, or shooting them with a sharp arrow." That's very much getting to the point of the matter. Whoever coined the phrase "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me." was an idiot and needed to be shot in the head with a 2x4 so they would learn the power of words. Here are some more verses for you about the power of words. Proverbs 28:18-26 " Just as damaging as a madman shooting a deadly weapon is someone who lies to a friend and then says `I was only joking.' Fire goes out without wood and quarrels disappear when gossip stops. A quarrelsome person starts fights as easily as hot embers light charcoal or fire lights woods. Rumors are dainty morsels that sink deep into one's heart. Smooth words may hide a wicked heart just as a petty glaze covers a clay pot. People may cover their hatred with pleasant words but they're deceiving you. They pretend to be kind but don't believe them. Their hearts are full of many evils. While their hatred may be concealed by trickery their wrongdoing will be exposed in public." Watch your words and motives because God is.
As always with this blog just when I think it's ready to post God brings to mind thing that help with communication. Our lives and words are supposed to reflect Christ. I fail at this so much and often pray asking God to make me disappear when people look at me so they only see Him. I'm adding the words to a song we all need to focus our thoughts on and learn from. This is called Live to Tell by Geoff Moore and the Distance
also included is the actual song. Live To Tell
We've all heard it said
That actions speak louder than words
And love that is seen
Means much more than love that's just heard
That's the way that is was with our Savior
Whose life told the story of love
Someone was watching
Someone was listening
Dying to know what He knew so well
It helped them believe it
If they could just see it
That's why Jesus lived to tell
Now this is my prayer
Lord, help me to live what I say
For so many times,
I know that my actions betray
Let it be like it was with my Savior
Let my life tell His story of love
Cause someone is watching
Someone is listening
Dying to know what we know so well
It will help them believe it
If in us they see it
That's why we must live...
CHORUS:
I will live to tell
Of the One who has rescued my heart
I will live to tell
Of the One who can bring a new start
Take my life and let it be,
A reflection of You for the whole world to see
The God who is alive and well
I will live to tell
Someone is watching
Someone is listening
Could be your neighbor, your brother, your friend
It will help them believe it
If in you they see Him
So what will you do....
That actions speak louder than words
And love that is seen
Means much more than love that's just heard
That's the way that is was with our Savior
Whose life told the story of love
Someone was watching
Someone was listening
Dying to know what He knew so well
It helped them believe it
If they could just see it
That's why Jesus lived to tell
Now this is my prayer
Lord, help me to live what I say
For so many times,
I know that my actions betray
Let it be like it was with my Savior
Let my life tell His story of love
Cause someone is watching
Someone is listening
Dying to know what we know so well
It will help them believe it
If in us they see it
That's why we must live...
CHORUS:
I will live to tell
Of the One who has rescued my heart
I will live to tell
Of the One who can bring a new start
Take my life and let it be,
A reflection of You for the whole world to see
The God who is alive and well
I will live to tell
Someone is watching
Someone is listening
Could be your neighbor, your brother, your friend
It will help them believe it
If in you they see Him
So what will you do....
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Conversations with John Schlitt
on Feb 24 Former lead singer of the Christian band Petra asked on facebook how his words or their music had affected people's lives and set up an e-mail account for us his followers to submit messages to. what follows below is my e-mail to him and his response to me on April 16th. I think this is so awesome I'm sharing it with all to read.
Mr. Schlitt, You said on your face book page you wanted to hear stories of how you and Petra have influenced our lives. I'm Zac Gentry and I'm 38 years old my Sister sort of introduced me to your music the first Petra cd i ever got to hear and get my hands on was Beyond Belief. I have since gotten as many Petra cd's as I can find. sadly Farewell and Classic Petra have been my two favorite albums. I say sadly because i wish the band was still writing touring and performing. I once came so close to getting to be at an actual concert but i had to work that night. My wife and I both wanted to go to see the Classic Petra lineup. How have you and the band truly impacted me um this will sound about weird but it's real on my signature of this message you will see 3 web page links the first one is to the Batcave Bible study blog. 3 and 1/2 yrs ago my pastor and the drummer at Real Life Corpus encouraged me to do a small group bible study. originally it was for people at the church who worked nights like me and it started with me and a couple meeting at Denny's at midnight. They ended up on different schedules in life. Then my friend Marion was the only one who signed up. She has since become my gorgeous wife. I have introduced her to the music of Petra. The bible study has since become a blog that at last count is e-mailed to 44 people and is shared on my face book page as well as can be accessed from Google and Blogspot. With each study i post I share music videos from you tube. Petra, Geoff Moore and the Distance, and White Heart probably have been shared more times than any bands. Meredith Andrews, Kerrie Roberts Sandi Patti and Casting Crowns are in competition for those spots. the study i just posted tonight was started with the verses from Proverbs 8:1-11 and they tied in with Counsel of the Holy. I'm probably going to be held responsible someday for generating a whole new Petra fan base for you and the guys. if i had to pick one Petra song that has impacted me most over the course of my life it would have to be I am on the Rock. the question was have you and Petra influenced my life well to quote Phineas and Ferb "Why Yes, yes you have." i have an mp3 player that is full of music and a lot it is Petra. I'm also a fictional writer and i wrote a fictional depiction of spiritual warfare and Back to the Rock and Too Big to Fail were part of the story. The last cd I bought was Unseen Power.
Zac Gentry
Here's a link to the story i was telling you about. Bat Cave : The Swordsman (a fictional depiction of spiritual warfare.)
below is his reply
Thank you for sharing your story with me. I know it has been awhile since you shared that, but I have enjoyed reading about the impact God has had over the years through my music and testimony. The credit for all the wonderful things you and others shared is all His!
I must admit to a bit of an ulterior motive in asking for your help. I have been praying for God to show me His plan for the next few years of ministry. The stories I received have helped confirm what I felt He was saying and will play a big role in focusing my time and energies in the coming months. The plan is pretty simple. I want to encourage you and everyone I come in contact with to first seek God with all your heart and make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life. But, second, to encourage you to find the unique gifts God gave you when He created you and use them to serve others as He designed you to do.
We are all unique creations, made to fit into a specific spot in His Kingdom. It is my prayer that you find your spot and complete fulfillment in the joy of knowing you are being exactly the person our loving Father created you to be. I'll be sharing more with you in the coming weeks as God continues leading me along the journey he has planned for me.
In Christ,
Thursday, April 9, 2015
Hope will not be disappointed
A few days ago I uncovered some verses I had never quite seen before. They're two chapters apart but I feel there's something Christians need to hear. We live in a world where advertising tries to tell us if we only had this, that or the other or lived like this person we'd be happy. Emphatically God says no to this mentality. Slow down for a second cowboy and listen up. Check out Proverbs 24:1-2 "Don't envy evil people or desire their company. For their hearts plot violence, and their words stir up trouble." Here's the other verses that to me linked so well with this. Proverbs 23:17-18 "Don't envy sinners, but always continue to fear the Lord. You will be rewarded for this: your hope will not be disappointed." I just love that last line. We all want something to put our hope in and God just said if it's in him our hope will not be disappointed. I don't know about you but to me that's powerful and I need that assurance.
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