Squash Sin

Song Title: Million Pieces (Kissin' Your Cares Goodbye)

Artist: Newsboys

Album: Thrive

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God hates sin. No doubt. Do you sin? No doubt. So what? We're supposed to try not sin. That's what. Do you sometimes sit around and worry about your sin? Do you worry about whether or not you'll get into heaven because of your sin?

The Newsboys remind us that all of our sins fall like a million pieces. That big burden of sin that we're carrying can be lifted right off of our backs. How can we do that? We can't, but God can. If you are with Christ then your sins are already forgiven. The work is already done for you. You just have to accept it.

When we worry we take our focus off of what God wants us to do and put it on the guilt of what we've done or what we're afraid might happen. That's not how God wants you to be. He wants you to tune in through prayer to what He wants to do with us. If we're too busy worrying or weighed down by our sin we won't be as useful to Him.

Why do we care then whether we sin or not? Don't confuse praying that God help you through sin and trying not to sin with caring whether we sin or not. God cares whether we sin, but not because it makes Him any different. It could, however, affect and change you. Sin can draw you away from God. It can also do you harm, or can put others in harms way. That's not how God wants us to be at all.

Pray that sin does not take over your life. Pray that God will lead you to righteousness. If you get worried that you are too sinful for God remember Micah 7:19 "He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea."

We can't escape sin ourselves. Romans 3:23 says "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God", and Romans 3:9-12 tells us that we are "all under the power of sin. As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”

It's a pretty bleak picture, but God can help us overcome our sin. He wants us to rely on Him and to trust that He can save and separate us from our sin. Let's grab on to the promise from God that he will SQUASH our sins before they squish us.

Be A Rebel With A Cause for Christ

Song Title: The Slam

Artist: TobyMac

Album: Welcome to Diverse City

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John Cooper, the front man for Skillet, said at the Kingdom Bound 2011 concert that he grew up in a culture that tried to teach him that wearing black was somehow un-Christian. Now he's in a Heavy Metal band and spreading the gospel all the while wearing black. You too might feel that there are some things that you don't agree with, or that clash with Christian culture. That doesn't mean that it is sinful. It doesn't mean that it's wrong.

Sure, Christian parents want their kids to be saved, but they are more interested in you being authentic in your faith then being or seeming like a good Christian just to please them. Find out how God wants to use you. Grab on to that and don't let go. It might not line up exactly with how everyone else thinks a Christian should be, but it might just be how God wants you to be.

The Slam shows us a Jesus that isn't just a nice, softly spoken teacher. He sometimes needs to get in your face with a conviction saying, "You heard that. Right? This is the way it is. This is the way it's done."

Remember Jesus is...

 ⁸ “A stone that causes people to stumble
   and a rock that makes them fall.”

   They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for. (1 Peter 2:8, New International Version)

You might not fit in a mold that is expected for you, especially one that the world expects of you. To the world, the most radical and rebellious thing you can do is to become a born again believer, sold out for Jesus. God promises you'll have trouble, but you'll be in the Truth. God won't always lead you in safe or secure directions, but he won't leave your side. God wants to use you in a unique way unlike anyone else. Pray that the Lord draws you to Him, that Christ lead you in His direction, and that God uses you the way He wants to.

Go out and do Christianity like it ain't been done before.

Sometimes It's Hard To Put Up With Yourself

Song Title: Who I Am Hates Who I've Been

Artist: Relient K

Album: Mmhmm

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Have you ever done anything and while it is going on you felt like you were watching yourself star in your own movie, a movie in which you are not being a very nice person or are saying something that you really shouldn't? Maybe you can think back to something that you've done in the past and you just can't believe it was you doing or saying such nasty things. This happens to Relient K as they sing Who I Am Hates Who I've Been.

It's pretty common for a lot of us to cringe at our past behavior or to be ashamed of ourselves. After joining the Friar's Club of Beverly Hills Groucho Marx sent the following telegram, "Please accept my resignation. I don't want to belong to a club that will accept people like me as a member."

Do you sometimes feel like you don't belong? You are not alone. A lot of people feel this way. What can you do to change?

I've got some bad news. It's impossible to change yourself. Look at what the Bible says:
²³ Can an Ethiopian change his skin
   or a leopard its spots?
Neither can you do good
   who are accustomed to doing evil. (Jeremiah 13:23, New International Version)

What are we supposed to do then? Is the Bible wrong? Isn't there any way that we can change? Is there no hope? Are we doomed to a life of regrets of our past behaviors?

Well, you can't change the past, but like always there is Good News in the Bible. You can change, but for real change you need God. He is the only one Who can change you for the better. Nothing that WE do is good. We are all sinful by nature.

¹⁰ As it is written:

   “There is no one righteous, not even one;
 ¹¹ there is no one who understands;
   there is no one who seeks God.
¹² All have turned away,
   they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
   not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12, New International Version)

So, it's okay to not like what you've done in the past. It's okay to desire to not be like yourself. No one should feel comfortable living in this state of sin. We should all want to be like God wants us to be. We can only do this by focusing on God and asking Him to transform us and make us new every day. This won't make us perfect, but it will help us to do good works for the Lord.

What do we do with the junk of our past? Don't dwell on it. Don't let it consume you.

¹⁸ “Forget the former things;
   do not dwell on the past. (Isaiah 43:18, New International Version)

Instead, use your past, even the bad stuff, to help you move forward in Christ. Remember the evil that Joseph's brothers did to him, and remember what finally happened.

²⁰ You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. (Genesis 50:20, New International Version)

God can turn anything and anyone around. He can change you right now. He can use your past mistakes and turn them around for good. Who you are might hate who you've been, but He who loves you can cherish what you can become.

Store Up Your Treasures in Heaven

Song Title: Gone
Artist: Switchfoot
Album: The Beautiful Letdown
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Have you ever pondered the expression "You can't take it with you"? For the most part it's true. Anything of the world will be left in the world.

All the physical things we accumulate in this life will soon be gone, just like the lyrics in Switchfoot's Gone tell us. A lot of people act like they'll live on this earth forever like they are immortal, although it's never happened yet.

The Bible says:
    ¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. ²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:19-21, New International Version)

So, should we not have anything because it won't last? Not necessarily. More importantly we should put our efforts and our emphasis on the things that we can take with us. The things that are not of this world. Things like our relationship with God, our learning about His will for our life, our fellowship with each other, the good that we do in God's name for those in need. These things will be treasures in heaven. Think of it like a sanctified, 100% guaranteed, savings account that God has waiting for us.

Are you too focused on the things of this world? What can you do to change that?

Are you storing treasures in Heaven?
What have you put in your heavenly savings account lately?

Do you live like you are immortal in this world, or are you living like you'll be for eternity in the next?

Take some time this week storing things in heaven and pray that God will help you to focus on the things not of this world.

Also, take a look at what worldly treasures that distract you away from God. Pray that God will help you focus on Him more and the treasures He has in store for you.

It can be freeing to think that it's all be gone someday. All the things that can decay in this world won't matter anyway.

You can also take comfort that you'll be gone one day, too. The world waiting for us is a much better place to be. No suffering, no sadness, no failures, just joy in the Lord with Him and each other, forever.

The Lord has us here to fulfill His plan for our lives, but once that is completed, I'm gladly GONE!

Going Viral with God's Love

Song Title: Love is the Movement
Artist: Switchfoot
Album: Learning to Breathe
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This week at church there was a video about going viral. The challenge in the video was to think about how we can become a part of making Christ go viral and how do we promote Christ using viral means (social media, internet).

This video brought to mind the song Love is the Movement by Switchfoot. Here we're told that love moves, love changes, love stirs. If we want to love or grow in love we must move, we must change, and adapt to let love in, to let love out, and to let love spread. If love moves in us it will be catching. It will go viral.

Many of us are stuck in our lives, stuck in the way we do things. We have enough friends, so we don't reach out. We're too busy, so we're locked into what we do. We're too tired, so we don't give energy to anything else.  We sometimes run the risk of living static, stagnant lives. As the song challenges us to do "Get up, get up Love is moving you now", and once we're moving "We don't have to slow back down."

Where are you stuck in your life? How can you get unstuck? What will it take?

How does Gods love move and grow in you? How have you shown love lately? What does love mean to you? How are you changing so that you can love more, love others, love even those that don't love you? What can you do, what can you change to love better?

What can we do or change together (family, group, church, community) to love more? How can you love so much that it goes viral and catches others and causes their hearts to stir and open up to God's perfect gift of His love.

The greatest gift that we can give is love, our love for others and sharing the love of God. Pray that God will get you unstuck and will open your heart to love more and in more ways than we can imagine, and use that to gather up others in His love. Let's make God's love GO VIRAL! Get up! Get up! Love is moving you NOW!

Interestingly, the name of the song has been adopted as the slogan for a philanthropic organization. "To Write Love on Her Arms" is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide.  TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery. What a fitting song for those that need hope, for without love there is no hope, and with God's love we find our greatest hope.