Who is the Lord that I should obey?

There has been the conflict for a while with how our American society has turned further and further away from the things of God.  This is represented in our government, our laws, and our homes.  It seems the natural response for a Christian in these times is to point to the bible to correct those that they feel are outside of God's will or are "sinning against God".  For a long while I have struggled with this method.  If a person does not have faith in God then what does it mean to them if the bible says that they should or should not participate in a certain act, or how to treat their fellow person?  I have often said that we are fighting the wrong fight.  Yes we should stand against principles that seek to rob our freedoms as Christians to live out our faith and share that with others.  Yes we should have a voice in how we want our world to look and we should work to protect those that have no voice.  However, there is a fine line on how we go about it.  Arguments and rants to a society that has no trust in God are ineffective and in many cases push people to a more hardened state than where they began. You see the initial step for change has nothing to do with if a law or an action is right, but rather the state of the heart.  It is difficult to convince a person that does not have a relationship with Jesus to follow the commandments of Jesus and build a society that represents the principles of God. 

Now like I said this conflict has been within me for a long while.  There is the pull that says you have to "fight" for what you believe in but then there is the understanding that I can't make a case for change in someonelse's life based on something they do not believe. 

Let me give you an example of how I see our society's response. There was a time that the people of Israel were enslaved by the Egyptians.  God called a leader named Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell Pharaoh that the Lord had said to let his people free.  Pharaoh's response found in Exodus 5:2  "Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, nor will I let Israel go."
Now I am looking at Pharaoh's response, "who is the Lord that I should obey His voice?" I believe that this is the response of many in society today ... "who is the Lord that I should obey?"  And guess what! That is a great question!! Who is this Lord that one should obey? 

Now speaking to Christians that may need to hear, myself included: There is the step that I believe we have long skipped.  We have been fighting a fight to get people to change to God's ways before we have even introduced them to the One we are asking them to follow.  I am not saying to stop living and speaking of the principles of God.  As a Christian you should do these things.  You should live in such a way that people ask about the hope that you have.  (check out 1 Peter 3:15) If however, you are bitter and unapproachable and care only to point out another's fault then those that are without Jesus will never see that hope and most likely will want no part of what you have.  Don't skip the introduction.  After all, for a Christian, Jesus is the example and He was constantly introduing Himself. Some of the ways He introduced Himself are as followed: The light of the world, the son of God, the way, the truth, the life, the living water, and eternal life.  Let someone see how Jesus has been these things in your life, how he changed you from a lifestyle of destruction to a path of hope, or how He restored you after a great fall. Introduce Jesus.  He will change hearts and lives.

I understand that there can be a whole debate on the fact that Moses approached Pharaoh with "the Lord says." To that I say Moses had a direct word from God and he was obedient as should you be if God appeared to you in a burning bush or gave you other direct instruction. Followers of Christ have been given direct instruction as well . . . "Go and make disciples (followers of Jesus)..."  Matthew 28:19  See we are called to teach others Jesus.  

Introduce them, help them follow, and know that in the following freedom is found. 

Worth more than gold

The idea of self worth has been rolling around in my head for a while.  To be honest it is not yet complete, but in a stage where it can be beneficial to share.

As I evaluate my own life and interact with others, I have learned that the worth we see in ourselves directly relates to how we lead our lives.  It impacts us in the relationships that we choose, the careers we pursue, the chances we take, and even the compliments we accept. So what is your worth?

Well, here is my take - there is only ONE you so that in itself makes you a rare find. What I have gathered about rare finds are that they are valuable.  Now there is a choice in how to handle valuables.  One may choose recklessness or responsibility.  Say you had a rare gem that was valued at ... well whatever number you choose.  The reckless, unbelieving choice is to toss it into a box somewhere unguarded, leaving it vulnerable to damage and devaluation, with no real plan of maximizing its value.  The responsible choice would protect the value by ensuring the gem was placed in safe keeping, have a plan to maximize the value, and an understanding that the plan must be executed. It works much the same with our own worth.  We can choose to toss our worth aside leaving us unprotected against the mindsets, habits, and surroundings that diminish our value and leave us with no plan to reach our potential.  On the other hand we can choose to protect our worth by choosing mindsets, habits, and surroundings that optimize our value and puts us on a path of success.

The truth is you are a rare find that holds much value, but what do your mindsets, habits, and surroundings say about how you see your worth?

In the words of Britt Nicole, in her song "Gold", you are worth more than gold.

Now let me encourage to live your worth.

Find Your I Can Attitude

I believe that at some point in many of our lives most of us have struggled with negative self talk and self doubt which originates in the mind. The mind is a very powerful tool which sends signals to our body indicating the needed responses. For example let's look at a lesson from exercise science. If a person were asked to move a specific weighted load the brain would send a message to the muscles indicating the required muscle contraction needed to move the weight. In the same way, when there are goals before us in life the mind comes into play.  The “I CAN” mentality signals one to plan and dream and motivates the body to act.  In the face of obstacles, the “I CAN” mentality taps into creativity and resourcefulness to overcome the obstacles.  Negative self talk and an “I CAN'T" attitude signals one to focus on all the obstacles, cling to fear, and tells the body no to react.

Let me share with you how this played out in real life. Recently while coaching a girl’s running program the group’s goal was for everyone to complete 3 miles.  One girl in particular believed that she could not meet this goal.  As she ran she said these words over and over “I can’t.”  As you can imagine, each time she said that she couldn’t, she didn’t.  She stopped running and slumped along.  I noticed the cycle so went to run alongside her.  Then the words came again, “I can’t.”  So I set goals for her and told her that we had to break the mindset because  at that point I knew it had nothing to do with her athletic ability, but her mind.  She had been infected with a mind virus which spread to her entire body! I stayed along to encourage her and push her forward a little.  Once we stopped for water, I told her a story about my daughter who had turned her own “I can’t” into “I can”.  In short, my daughter went from crying “I can’t” to running full speed screaming ‘I can.”

The story was quite amusing for the girl in my group. She shrugged it off and ran along; however before she left I set a goal for her to run a portion of the field, take a brief walk, and then run the final stretch.  After she took off I went to take pictures of the rest of the team.  I noticed that she was sticking to the plan and I was glad.  Then something remarkable happened, she turned the corner for her last stretch and screamed out “I CAN DO IT!” Then I let out the loudest “YES!” that I could find within me.  Not only did she discover that she could do it, she finished her goal running! 

What is it in your life that you need to look at head on and scream “I CAN DO IT!”