The Whole Gospel....

My son's preschool class was asked today what Easter was all about. Landon told the class that we have Easter because "Jesus came back alive." While I was thrilled that He knew why we celebrate Easter, I was sad to hear he was the only one.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is nothing but awe inspiring.  Yet in many pulpits across the world the resurrection is rarely ever preached on. There is great emphasis on Christ's death on the cross as well there should be. BUT, The resurrection is NO LESS important than the cross. Without Christ's resurrection from the dead the cross would have just been vain torture. It is by Christ's death AND resurrection that we have life.

1 Peter 1:3-5


3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Bottom line: Christ's resurrection shouldn't just be a yearly topic that's celebrated. It is the bedrock of our Christian faith and should be preached and shared as such!

I will rise because He did,

Nathan

You've Got Time.....

To say yes to something, is to say no to something else. This statement is true for every area of our life. All of us on earth have the same amount of time to work with. No one....rich or poor....young or old....have more hours in the day than someone else. I share this because it seems there is a myth believed by most people: "I don't have enough time."

Most of the time this statement is made by people who are talking about something they need to do they haven't done or something they "wish" they could but feel like they can't because of the lack of time.

The fact is you DO have time. It's just you use your time on other things. Think about what you do with your discrectionary time (time you get to decide what you want to do). Any time you spend: on facebook, watching your shows on television, surfing the net, reading, going to concerts/sporting events, hanging out with friends or family, reading this blog :), etc, is time that could be spent for that thing.

Saying yes to these things is to say no to something else you're always talking about not having time for.

Bottomline: There are two choices, either start saying yes to things that are really a priorty to you or stop complaining about not having enough time to do them.



Tick Tock,

Nathan

Is My Compass Working?

You are not alone if you've ever felt directionless. I've met so many people recently that are searching for their purpose in life. They desperately desire to know what they're supposed to do with their life. Their compass is spinning and out of the sheer overwhelming sense of lostness they resort to a mundane, trite, surface type of lifestyle.

If that's you, don't waste this part of the journey. If you're a believer in Christ then God desires to grow you as you first seek Him and THEN direction. If you are not a follwer of Christ, anything you seek to do with your future will be in vain. Give your life to Jesus Christ.

Bottomline: Don't fixate so much on the destination that you miss out on the journey.

Your Journey awaits,

Nathan

Redefined....

Last night I had the oppurtunity to sit down with two college students seperately and hear each of their individual struggles in feeling defined either by their past mistakes or the environment they grew up in. It's a trap that many of us have fallen into or are walking in now: allowing the external to define the internal. There is no doubt that the mistakes we make and the consequences we face impact our life story. The same is certainly true for the environment we grew up in. This most certainly influences who we are today. We must realize however that once we come to faith in Christ we are redefined. Our sin is no longer counted against us and God begins to be our Heavenly Father because we are a new creation:

2 Cor 5:17


17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ,he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Bottom line: If you are a "new creation" you are not longer obligated to the baggage of the old.


Enjoy The New Car Smell,

Nathan

When it All Hits the Fan.......

What if the worst thing that has ever happend to you didn't have to be a waste? What if the next time things in your life hit the fan and your life seems to be unraveling at the seams that you could actually have joy in the midst of it? These "what if's" don't have to just be speculation for your life. Scripture says this can be reality:

James 1:2-4


2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
NASU

James is saying that we can view our trials in this life with joy because in and through them Jesus will produce in us "endurance" to take on the next challenge. That endurance will then produce spiritual maturity! That means: Family tragedy = not wasted , Past abuse = not wasted, Maligned for your faith = not wasted, Cancer = not wasted, relationship strain = not wasted, financial harship = not wasted.....you get the idea.

Bottom Line: The path to maturity runs through trial. Obstacles in this life don't have to be a waste. Rather they can be one of the tools that make you into the man or woman of God that He longs for you to be.


Believe it,

Nathan