Forged By Faith

Psalm 119:139 NIV Now I know that many of the things I’ve said and shared in these posts may have seemed somewhat grating or offensive or even ill-mannered. But I think sometimes hard questions go unasked simply because we’re afraid of the answers. And while is it always more comfortable to avoid the things that speak to our insufficiencies, if we never address them then we can never improve them. And well, I just believe that we’re called to do more than simply live as if we’ve already reached the goal. So can we be honest for a minute? Where is our zeal? Where is our fire? Where is the outrage and disgust and inability to simply stay silent? Where did we lose our fight? Why did we lose our fight? How can we fight the good fight without our fight? And how can we fight this good fight without realizing that there will be enemies? And how can we understand who or what it is that we’re fighting if we never draw a line in the sand that we simply refuse to cross? Can we honestly say the sa...

Romans 12:11 NIV I for one firmly believe that God is still speaking to us, and doing so far more than we could possibly realize. Often times it could be a random thought, a verse of Scripture that comes out of nowhere, a single word that pops in your mind out of the clear blue. But God is still speaking, still teaching, still leading and guiding and providing. He is still making a way for us to grow closer, to grow deeper into Him and the knowledge of His will. Think we've just forgotten to listen. As I woke up this morning and headed out on our morning breakfast jaunt, I found myself suddenly thinking about the zealots. You've heard of Simon the Zealot. Zeal. An intense passion. A relentless pursuit of a singular priority. A person defined as having a fanatical and uncompromising enthusiasm for their personal beliefs. A faith so unwavering that it drives a person so deeply into their beliefs that they may even smile at the chance to die just so they can prove just how much it...

Luke 9:62 NIV To be fit for service. Have we ever really thought about what we’re doing here? Not in a personal sense but from a widespread, communal, societal perspective. Have we ever really given any thought to the gravity of this calling that we’ve been granted? Have we ever truly lowered our shoulder and pressed into this undertaking of not only knowing Christ but of making Him known? I think, for the most part, faith is sadly allowed to exist on this extemporaneous plane that has us missing the meaning of this middle ground we’re called to inhabit. I think that we fail to see ourselves as the intermediaries that we’ve been called to be. I think we may very well be missing out on the whole ‘service’ aspect of our faith as we’ve come to know life as being mainly based on serving ourselves and even approaching that in a very simplistic and bare bones sort of manner. Perhaps it’s a symptom of this worldly mindset built on constant consumption that has us focused almost entirely on th...

Colossians 1:29 NIV Have we ever truly seen our faith or our calling to share it with this kind of passionate intensity? To strenuously contend to make Christ known, forsaking the costs, ignoring the dangers, refusing to waver? To literally go and do without fear, without worry, without hesitation? To give ourselves fully to being used by Him to accomplish only what He wishes to do with us, through us? Or has faith always been merely a part-time job, a weekend hobby, a song on the radio or a free concert and some coffee? Anymore, it's hard to feel as if you're not falling behind. So many people seemingly accomplishing so many things and finding so much success in doing so. So many advancements and monumental accomplishments being achieved. So many with a platform, a power, an outreach that seems impossible to match or attain. So many big names, big headlines, big expectations, big movements. It's all just overwhelming when you're simply a faceless human being with a nam...

Mark 16:15 NIV How? You know, I spend a lot of time thinking about this calling we've been asked to undertake. I think about the gravity of this message we've been entrusted with and asked to share. I think about the urgency of it all in light of the undeniable realization that both time is running out and things around us are unraveling. I think about how at times it feels impossible to make a difference when most days it seems as if we can’t even make a dent. I think about the already monumental odds and how they're seemingly stacking only higher against us with each passing day. I think about how our efforts often seem entirely insufficient and meaningless. I think about the ones who adamantly refuse to listen. I think about the opportunities that have passed us by without our seeing them. I think about the countless failures we've turned in. I think about the many times that these posts have fallen short of being good enough. I think about the moments where we don...

Matthew 10:14 NIV It's a passage we all likely know well enough to understand the context and situation being addressed. A concept that we've all heard. A lesson that we've all been taught. It's a mindset, an outlook, a perspective that we're not simply called to have or asked to try, but it's absolutely something that we must always keep in mind as we walk through this weird and wacky world in which wickedness is only worsening. But just because it's a crucial aspect in this calling, a necessity in our minds, an ongoing undertaking that must be remembered and practiced nearly every day, how often do we shake the dust? How often do we allow ourselves to shrug away the ways in which we're treated and addressed by those around us? How often do we practice not allowing the world to steal away our peace? How often do we refuse society the satisfaction of making us feel unwelcome? How often do we actually allow ourselves to walk away from what is an unnecessa...

Amos 5:10 NIV We talk a lot about the current condition of our culture in these posts. And I'm fully aware that many of said discussions have likely been seen as offensive or obtrusive. And I know that there's an inherent risk in speaking or sharing such messages that fail utterly in appeasing mankind or the society in which we exist for the moment. And while it's not necessarily something that any of us should seek to do, offending the world is simply bound to happen. At this point, I don't really know that it's in any way possible anymore to actually not be seen as offensive to someone or some group somewhere. In fact, seems with each passing day there is some new socially standardized practice or preference that we're supposed to simply agree with or risk being labeled and ostracized as a bigot or racist or some sort of assorted 'phobe. It's gotten to the point where it almost takes a certain level of insanity to actually share a message that in any w...