Today's Top Ten

We had a great day at church, folks were asking for the Top 10 at the end of today's sermon...So here it is for you to enjoy for the week, until we do another top 10.

1. Worship Freely...Let God's goodness inside of you, be expressed outside of you. Don't hold back...Give it all away
2. Pray Continually: Pray always...Speak with feeling and intensity, ween yourself off of rehearsed prayers, and talk to God about what is on your mind....
3. Share Openly: Do not filter your spirituality around unbelievers...in other words stop hanging out with unbelievers, people who don't share the same faith as you. Share with people you can relate too
4. Live Intentionally....Fill every day with kingdom content....Rom. 12:1 says I beseech you therefore brethren to present your bodies as a living sacrifice.  Live to sacrifice to God...Matt. 6:33, seek ye first the kingdom of God. The more you fill yourself with spiritual things the more spiritual and closer to God you will become. 
5. Serve Radically: Lead your family and friends into a spiritual connection. Don't be afraid to witness to them...Ask God to give you the holy boldness that you need so that you can speak freely about Him to them
6. Love Deeply: Love those that are hard to be loved.  Pray that God will give you the strength to do that...I know it's hard but with the power of God He can bring you there
7. Listen Carefully: Don't talk too much, let them do it. And let your listening be with your eyes and your heart.  Ask God to help you see the issues, not only hear it. 
8. Protect Vigilantly: This one is good, because the enemy like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Watch out! Stay off his playground! Protect yourself, by letting God be your sword and shield.  Immerse yourself in the Word of God and learn from others experiences
9. Speak Honestly: This should be number one for a lot of us...If you don't know something don't make up an answer for it. Just say you don't know. Only speak about things that YOU KNOW. People hate it when you make things up, and most times they can tell when you are lying...because you keep on stuttering...LOL 
10. Rest Thankfully: Take a break...invest wisely in Sabbath Renewal.  Come to church and don't be locked up in your house.  Share with other believers...get renewed, and recharged then you can take on the rest of the week.  

Follow these simple ten things, and you will start seeing a difference in your life, as well as in the lives of others. 

God Bless 

Rep the KING!!!

Be Made NEW

These and many more can be found in the book called "The New Rebellion Handbook: A Holy Uprising Making Real the Extraordinary in Everyday Life"

There will be more Top 10's coming in the weeks of ahead...

Show Me What You Got!!!

Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Isa. 41:10

This life can be so hard some times.  Every now and then life can throw everything at you at once.  Just when it seems like you've got a hold on things, something can take it left field.  This week I had to deal with a difficult situation that almost brought me to my knees, and I wasn't sure if I was gonna make it.  But that's when I realized that my faith in the HIGHEST POWER there is...JESUS CHRIST had to kick in.  It was time for me show myself what I was working with.  I had to encourage myself, am I gonna let what's around me to change me, or am I gonna let what's inside of me change what's around me. 

You know it's kind of like a tea bag, yup that's right I said it a tea bag.  One of the things that I love so much about a tea bag is that when it's in the box it's not at it's fullest potential, but when you put it in some hot water then whatever is inside of it, begins to come out and change what's around it.  As a matter of fact that's when it's true flavor begins to show.  

Whenever you find yourself in hot situations, or in places that you don't like, don't let the worst in you come out, let the best in you come out.  Show them what you got...Show life what you got...Show pain what you got...Show misery what you got...Show them what you working with...

I don't know about you but I'm working with a Romans 8:37...In all these things, I'm more than a conqueror...

I'm working with a 1 Peter 2:9 I belong to a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people. 

I'm working with a 1 John 4:4...Greater is He that is in me, than he that is in the world. 

I love the text that we started out with, Isa 41:10....The Message puts it like this, "Don't panic. I'm with you. There's no need to fear for I'm your God.  I'll give you strength. I'll help you. I'll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.  

Need I say more...I don't think so..

SHOW ME WHAT YOU GOT!!!

Be Made NEW

Under Construction

Isaiah 43:19
"Forget about what's happened, don't keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new (MSG). 


You know the children of Israel were having a difficult time. They are in exile, stripped of their lands, and their homes.  The Babylonian empire has take over. They are in a place where they feel like there is no more hope.  No reason for living, just down and out.  A song writer once said, "I've been down so long, that I know believe that down is the best place for me".  Have mercy! Man, I'm so sorry that it can get that bad, that life can suddenly take a turn, and you feel like those SouthWest airline commercials, "Wanna Get Away".  Truth be told, is really not that easy.  It's really not that easy to jump in a pseudo-type plane and fly away from all your problems.  If that were the case, I probably wouldn't be writing this little devotion right now.  


But if you would just look at this text, and put yourself in it, and picture your existential situation right now...Picture your life, picture your hang ups, picture your mistakes, picture your community, put everything in that text and make it yours....Let me help you....


Forget about what's happened Pastor Jaime, don't keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new...put your name in it


Forget about what's happened ______________________ don't keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I'm about to do something brand-new.


Praise God that He's doing something Brand New. Have you ever noticed construction sites? Have you ever stopped at looked it for a second? It's really not a beautiful sight to behold. There are a lot of rocks, gravel, trucks, and dirt all over the place, but at least you know that when you look at it, it's not a finished product.  There's a sign that says "Under Construction" and then there is a picture of what it it's going to look like when it's finished.  


God isn't finished with you yet, you may be finished, but God's gotta work to do. Just remember that you are under construction.  I'm not exactly where I want to be, but I'm under construction.  I don't have everything that I want, but I'm under construction.  I don't look the way I want to, but I'm under construction, because God is doing something Brand New....that should be our motto for this year, and the year coming...I being made new, because God is doing something Brand New for me...


Be Made NEW!!!
2 Cor. 5:17

S.M.A.R.T.

I never thought that it would happen, but it did. I'm always saying that these are the best computers on the planet, but believe it or not, even the best messes up every now and then. The hard drive on my iMac failed, it's good thing that I just bought an external hard drive to back everything up, so thanks be to God that everything isn't lost.

You're probably wondering why in the world am I telling you this, but whoever built my computer programmed it in such a way that when the hard drive is about to fail, it will send you an alert so that you can take the proper steps to back it up, before you get rid of it.  The name of the technology is called S.M.A.R.T it stands for "Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology".  Apparently SMART told me that this hard drive can't be repaired, but I need to go see a specialist immediately.  


It dawned on me that there are a lot of us out there walking around, and our hard drives are about to fail, shut down, and collapse.  Did you realize that God gave you your own S.M.A.R.T system...it's called the Holy Spirit.  Constantly the Holy Spirit is telling us that our hard drive is about to fail, and you need another one.  


You know what David found himself with a hard drive failure, and he was in desperate need of a new one.  Psalm 51:10 says, Create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me...Check that, I love how The Message by Eugene Patterson puts it....God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. 


I love it...make a Genesis in me...a fresh start, the origin and formation of something new because my hard drive is failing...my hard drive is making me do things that I know displeases you. Who am I talking to through this blog? Are you having a chaotic moment in your life? When you look back, at all the stuff that you've been through, that's not through with you leaving you in a state of paralysis?  Then you need a new hard drive, not just simply erasing it, but a whole new one all together. 


I guess you can say S.M.A.R.T stands for Start Making A Real Transformation....that best I could come up with, maybe you can think of one that will be better. To be honest it would be really "SMART" if you turn to God....Right NOW!!!


Be Made NEW!!!

You Can Come Home NOW

For the past few weeks I've been reading a really great book entitled, "The Youth Worker's Guide to Helping Teenagers in Crisis.  I found this story in the book, and it really inspired me to write this....


Maybe, you've heard the story before about a soldier returning home from combat, that called his family to see if he could bring a friend home for an extended visit.  At first the family's response was welcoming, until he provided more details. 


The conversation goes like this...."My friend was hit by a grenade that blew off one of his arms." Although hesitant the solider's mom still encouraged him to bring his buddy home.  "You should know also that he lost one of his legs in the attack." there was a long pause on the line but they still encouraged him to bring his friend home.  "I think you should also know he's pretty disfigured because shrapnel tore up the left side of his face."


"Well you know," his mom replied, "maybe it really would be better if you just came alone for a while, and then when things stabilize, we can talk about your friend coming to visit for a bit." His mom heard a click on the other end of the line. 


A few weeks later the soldier's family received notification that their son's body had been found, the victim of an apparent suicide. Confused and wanting to be certain it was really their son, the soldier's father asked how positive identification was determined.  The officer said, since the boy had no ID, they used dental records. "Why," replied the father, "couldn't you have just used a photo from his file?"


The officer's response was devastating. "Unfortunately sir, your son sustained sever injuries in combat--he lost his right arm, took shrapnel in the face, and lost his left leg.  His face was so disfigured that a photo would have been very little help."


As you can see, the soldier wasn't asking if he could bring a friend home. He wanted to know how he would be received when he came home....


To be honest there are a lot of soldiers out there that are very hurt...hurt by some many things that they have experienced in day-to-day combat.  Combat that has left limping, yes you may look good on the outside, but inside you have been devastated and hurt.  But praise be to the Most High God, because He stands with arms wide open, I know you can hear Him say, Come unto me, all ye that  heavy ladened and burdened." The Message Bible puts it like this....“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”


I love it....God wants you...Desperately wants to give you a fresh start, and a new walk again. Rest from all your worries and heartaches.  So here's how it works....


1. Come right now...don't wait until you feel better to come, come to Jesus and then you will feel better.  Some people wait until they are good enough to come to Jesus, if that was the case none would be able to make it. 


2. Recognize, that you are sinner, and repent....


3. Focus on the cross...just dwell on it, think on it, look at it, read about it....


4. Invite Christ into your life. 


Follow these steps EVERYDAY...and believe me, you'll start seeing a difference....


Be Made NEW!!!

On Purpose for a Purpose

On Purpose and For A Purpose

You know what, you really are all right.  Psalm 139:14 says, “You are fearfully and wonderfully made.”  You have come such a mighty long way, you ought to give yourself a standing ovation.   God has been doing a great thing for you, and through you.  As Dr. Cleveland would say, God took nothing, and made it into something.  Think about it, at one point you really were nothing, but then in a moment a cell from your daddy, and a cell from your mommy came together and bam you began to grow in your mothers womb.  Check this out, you started out smaller than a grain a salt, and for nine months you were growing inside of there.  At one point during your growth, you began to develop eyes, and inside of that womb, a perfect incision was made, and your eyes were opened.  On average you produce 200,000,000,000 red cells per day, 10,000,000,000 white cells per day, and 400,000,000,000 platelets per day.  You know what check that….You ought to stand up and give God a standing ovation, because He’s worthy of the praise.

I want you to know, that you are not a mistake, you are not an accident, but you were created on purpose and for a purpose.  Sometimes we tend to lose track, and forget about where we were, and we keep focusing on where we are.  So whenever that happens we tend to lose focus of where we are going. Nine times out of ten we tend to hate where we are in our lives, which in turn makes us raise the white flag and throw in the towel, but I want to tell you that the same God that formed you in your mothers womb, is still forming you today.  I love the song that says, “Don’t give Up on God, because He won’t Give Up on You.”

Okay that sounds nice and all, but how do I know God is with me? How do I know God is still forming me and shaping me? How do I know that God still hears me? When will my tears stop, or this pain go away? How do I know God hasn’t forgotten me, because truth be told that’s how I feel right now.

It’s easy, every time you wake up, every time you take a breath, every time you walk in and out of your house, God is covering you, God is loving you, and He’s doing a new thing for you…..

Man This Hurts

Man This Really Hurts

All these things are the beginning of sorrows

Matt. 24:8

We do everything in the so little power that we have to avoid pain.  Nobody likes it.  I’ve never seen a child fall on the floor and laugh when they look at their knees bleeding and begin laughing hysterically (ok maybe you have).  I’ve never heard of anyone saying, “You know what doc, forget about the anesthesia just operate on my right now.”

If we could, we would live our lives pain free, but we all know that’s impossible. No matter who you are, how old you are, or where you are, you are going to experience some type of pain, some type of hurt, whether it is physical, or mental.  Sometimes it can be self-induced pain, or pain that we inherited, pain that was passed down, pain that came because of a certain situation that you probably had nothing to do with.  As a matter of fact, the only thing you did was be born, and now you are caught up in this whirlwind of agony, torture, and torment.  Right now you are going through, and you don’t know what to do. You’re probably asking yourself when is all of this going to end?

You know what the disciples had the same question too?  They asked Jesus,  “What will be the sign of your coming?”  Let me put the Pastor J remix on that, when is all of this stuff going to end, when are we going to have some peace, because we are sick and tired of being sick and tired.  Jesus looked at them with loving eyes and said, “There will be people coming in my name acting like me, wars, and rumors of wars, nation will rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom, people starving, sickness all over….the list goes on (you should read the chapter).

Jesus says, these things must come to pass, but then in verse 8 He says, “These are the beginning of sorrows.” I decided to do a little bit more research, and realized that the word for sorrows in the Greek is oudin, it also means birth pangs. Okay so what are you saying? Reading the text I realized that Jesus says that you must go through these things, before the end can come.  I thought about mothers, when they have babies.  You can’t give birth unless you go through some pain. You’ve gotta have some contractions, before that baby is born. But guess what when the baby is born, it makes all the pain worth it, because you gave birth to something beautiful.  Okay lets jump back into our text, did you realize that Jesus said, that you have got to go through this pain, before the end shall come.  But if you hold on, we will see Jesus Christ, and it will make all the pain worth it. 

Look I know life hurts right now…I know that things are really going the way you would’ve liked them too, but if you would hold on, just know that you are about to give birth to something greater.  You are about to give birth to something better.  You’ve come to far to let go.  Know that that pain won’t always remain. Every time you feel like giving up, just think about the sacrifice Jesus made for you personally.  The Cross shows us that God can take the worst things, and use it to bring the best things.  Greater is He that is in you, than He that is in t