Showing posts with label church. Show all posts
Showing posts with label church. Show all posts

Thursday, September 9, 2010

He's right there!!

There are times in our lives where as Christ Followers we feel like Jesus is right there with us. There are also times where we wonder "Where God is?". Life is full of high points and low points. Have you ever felt like your on cloud nine? Then just a short time later feel like life is passing you by? Jesus said so many things in the scriptures about our lives as believers. He said we will have trouble in this life and on this earth, but he also said fear not I have overcome the world. Our lives are full of emotion, that's why we cannot lean on our emotions but rather lean on the unchanging word of God. When life is good everything seems to be perfect we throw our hands up and worship him, we serve him more, we feel like nothing can stand in the way of us having joy( By the way it can't, only if you let it.... will it!!). Why is it when things are bad everything in us wants to run away from him? I believe sometimes we could be basing our lives off of emotion instead of reality. Our flesh is crucial that's why it is so important to die to ourselves everyday. It's so important to pick up our cross and follow Jesus everyday, not just when its convenient. Sin is crucial!!!!! TRUTH= Jesus defeated sin on the cross, He said "It is finished" so why at times do we not hold on to that truth when we are in the valley. There is joy in the Lord, unexplainable joy even though sometimes we may not feel like we have it. What is it that steals our joy, leaves us feeling beat down and broken? Where do we turn for answers? How can we change our way of thinking? Those are just some questions I've asked myself when I'm going through the valley. Sometimes we may no get an answer from God. Sometimes it takes us being broken to see whats really important. I have been in ministry for 7 years and I have all kinds of questions. Some I may never have the answers too( That's where I choose to live by faith), others I may have had answered and really didn't want to hear the answer. Whether you have the answers or don't we must choose to follow the truth and Jesus is The Way, The Truth, and The Life! If your going through a valley HE KNOWS! If your doing well HE KNOWS! I pray all of us as Followers of Jesus lean not on our own understanding, lean not on our emotions. I pray we walk in Spirit and in Truth. Realize that we are sons and daughters of the most high God. It's not easy but neither was the cross. Neither is our cross, at times it's heavy. I pray we pick it up and press on, persevere! As I close out this post I want you to know that whether your doing great or if your in a valley Jesus really does love you. Sometimes the best answer is one that we don't want to hear. One Love, Jason.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

What is or isn't?

I write this post as a believer in Jesus that has struggled with forgiving people who have harmed and hurt me in ways you may or may not believe. I'm currently working out some of my own forgiving issues and just thought I would share with you what God is teaching me about forgiveness. I pray this post will shine light on one of the biggest problems we face in and outside the church in this nation and in the world. The church in America and across the world is full of people who have been hurt in some way, shape or form. Whether we were hurt by someone in the church or someone outside of the church it's painful and it can hinder our walk with Jesus. It can also shape and change who we are as Christ Followers in a great way. The issue I will be talking about if you haven't already figured it out is forgiveness. I am convinced that some people have unresolved conflicts toward a group of people or just one person and it has hindered their walk with Christ and it causes pain in their lives everyday. Forgiveness is a tough issue to write about. For some it may not be hard for you to forgive, but for others it may be very hard to let go and just simply forgive the person or persons that have hurt you. For some it may be a deep issue that you have tucked away and tried to forget about without forgiving but that NEVER works. It will ALWAYS resurface until you deal with the issue of forgiveness. Why is it so hard to forgive others? We serve a God who has forgiven us. He sent his son to die on a cross so we would be forgiven and made right in the eyes of God. Therefore you would think that it would not be an issue, but for some it is the very thing holding you back from being who Jesus Christ is calling you to be. So today I want to shine light on what TOTAL forgiveness is and what TOTAL forgiveness is not. I am currently reading one of the best books I have ever read in my life and the title of the book is TOTAL FORGIVENESS and the author is R.T. KENDALL. I encourage you to get this book and let it penetrate your heart and mind. Let it begin to help you work out the very thing or things that could be holding you back from being who you are in Christ Jesus. Jesus said in scripture if you have a problem with a brother that is unresolved to leave the altar and go work it out. So we as believers in Jesus need to work out things as we come across them in life. First lets look at what TOTAL forgiveness isn't. 1) Approval of what they did. 2) Excusing what they did. 3) Justifying what they did. 4) Pardoning what they did. 5) Reconciliation. 6)Denying what they did. 7) Blindness to what happened. 8)Forgetting. 9) Refusing to take the wrong seriously. and finally number 10) Pretending we are not hurt. NOW let's look at what TOTAL forgiveness is. 1) Being aware of what someone has done and still forgiving them. 2) Choosing to keep no record of wrongs. 3) Refusing to punish. 4) NOT TELLING WHAT THEY DID!!! 5) Being merciful. 6) Graciousness. 7) It is an inner condition. 8) It is they absence of bitterness. 9) FORGIVING GOD!!! 10) FORGIVING OURSELVES!!!! As I close I pray that you will take this and dig deeper into your heart and soul and deal with any forgiveness issues you may have in your life. IT'S WORTH IT.... BUT IT TAKES WORK SPIRITUALLY, PHYSICALLY AND EMOTIONALLY!! One Love, Jason Ashley

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Our needs!!

Today is the first day of many days I will be writing about what God has been teaching me about the Holy Spirit. I pray as you read and learn with me our lives are transformed and made even more complete through the work of the Holy Spirit that works within us to shape us and lead us into total and complete truth. So here we go...........Man has two great spiritual needs One is forgiveness. The other is for goodness. Consciously or unconsciously, his inner being longs for both. The Spirit of the living God has already given us both we just have to walk in it and live it out day by day. We have to realize that God does not want us to come to Christ by faith, and then lead a life of defeat, discouragement, and dissension. Rather , He wants to "fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power; in order that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in us" (2 Thess. 1:11, 12). We have to realize as children of God that we have been given the authority and the power through the Holy Spirit to bring Jesus ultimate Glory. I read a quote once that stuck out to me it read like this "I need Jesus Christ for my eternal life, and the Holy Spirit of God for my internal life." As Christians we tend to wait on God or wait on the spirit to tell us something, when we need to realize that the Holy Spirit is waiting for us. We are no longer living in a time of promise, but in the days of fulfillment. Let's live lives that shake a generation. Let's start walking in the POWER and LOVE God has given us as children as Him. I pray this post changes your life. I am currently working on my next post titled "Spirit it or HE?" One Love, Jason Ashley

Monday, August 2, 2010

Wash Da MuDDDDDDDD!

Good afternoon to all! I just finished a killer workout and some lunch! Today I plan on relaxing and taking some time for myself! I believe quiet time is essential in our walk with God! When I say quiet time I mean complete quietness; no cell phone, no TV, no radio just total silence! This is so necessary it’s amazing how clear you can hear the voice of God when you just get alone with him and LISTEN! Try it! I have been wondering what to blog about today and I was told Character! I usually write all my blogs in advance on paper after alone time with God, but this one is coming straight from my fingers! The title “Why do Christians waver?” I believe it’s because our commitment to stand is not grounded in God’s character, but rather upon the characters with which we are standing or our circumstances. We as believers must be anchored in the God who does not change. Malachi Chapter 3 verse 6 says “I the lord do not change”. You see we can’t base our lives off of emotions and circumstances, we would never be happy! The kind of character you have reflects who you are as a person! You see Jesus is reliable and trustworthy. That is the kind of character he is looking for in his children! If any of you have kids you can honestly say you want them to be reliable and honest with you all the time! It’s the same way with Jesus Christ he expects us to be true to him and to others! Life is hard; no one can say it’s easy. I firmly believe character is important; your word is all you have so when you give it to some one follow through with what you said you would do! Remember your children learn from you! Have a great day! With Love Jason

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Ever turn your back?

A Professed Christian who Turns away from the truth and turns His back on Jesus Christ and refuses to suffer for His sake was NOT a True Believer in the first place. A person who Genuinely belongs to Christ may sometimes be Disobedient, but he will Never Reject His Lord. The person who Belongs to Christ continues to Confess Him, to Serve Him, and to Suffer for Him when that is necessary. He does not endure because of his Own Strength but because he is consumed by Christ’s own Spirit, who Never Fails to give sustaining Grace to God’s Children. False Converts— They will put their hand to the Plow of Discipleship, but they will NOT Forsake the Old Life (Matt 7:21-23), Demonstrating that they have Never Received the New. They are therefore Not "Fit for the Kingdom of God," Jesus said, because their Hearts have NEVER been with Him (Luke 9:57-62).

Friday, January 8, 2010

Washing Mudd!

Good morning everyone. I am going to be talking about being spiritually blind. In John chapter 9 verses 10-11, and also 35-38,39. Jesus has healed a blind man in these verses. I find it funny how the religious leaders demanded the man tell them who done this for him! Anyway that's another story for another time! Jesus said something in this scripture that blows me away. ' I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind!" The last part rocks my world. He is saying we should become blind to our plan and follow his! That's awesome that the creator of the universe would choose us. In this text the miracle is great. Jesus encounters one who has never seen or known light-a blind man from birth- and he gives this man sight and light. After Jesus spit on the ground and made mud, he covered the mans eyes with the mud. What happens next is a sign of how strong the mans faith was. Jesus told him go to the pool of Siloam and wash this off and you will see. So the man had to step up and go! After he washed his eyes he could see i can only imagine the excitement that came over him! He never had to go back to his begging post again! You see in verses 35-38 was the conversion. Jesus gave him a spiritual light also he could now see with his heart. The way to see in this world is a willingness to admit we are blind. The blind man did not argue with Jesus. He acknowledged his condition and his need. He submitted himself to Christ and was OBEDIENT! My question for you is we all have certain things we try to keep in the Dark! What are you trying to keep hid in your life? You see Jesus sees it all you can't hide it from him. Instead of hiding it ask Jesus to take it away and watch him do another awesome and great work! Love you Guys! Jason

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Personal and Ministry thoughts!

Good morning to all of you out there who may read this! What a beautiful October morning here in South Carolina. I want to just talk about whats going on in my life at the current moment and share some personal things with you. So here we go! As many of you know me and my best friend Matt Beasley started a non-profit ministry called the LOT project about 8 months ago and wow what a road it has been so far. We have seen God move mountains and tear down walls that seemed huge at the time. The one thing that has really rocked my world is the fact that we have a group of people that surround us right now that love God and love people! They are some of the most Godliest men and women I know. The one question me and Matt had when God placed this vision on our hearts was "I wonder who God is going to place in our lives to help us?" Then it was like wow we had so many people wanting to help. God has put what me and Matt call a dream team together, some crazy people that simply follow Jesus Christ and dream big dreams! Let me just go ahead and say this before I continue. I praise Jesus for who he has placed in our lives and we are very thankful for all of you. I was not going to do this but oh well. I am going to list some people who have really bought into the vision and are the ones actually making this thing happen many who have been behind the scenes. Dan and Leslie White and family, Tekedra Blanding and family, Kat Laun and her mom Cathy Spaulding, Andy Gibson, Matts,s mom and dad Mary and Donny Beasley, my wife Amber Ashley, Kerry "BROTHER" Bailey and family, Josh Evans, Hannah Bolt, Brian Narcisse, Josh Cline, Cherie and Shane Duffey, Crystal and Ernie Johns, Sandra Counts and family, Tara Payne, Kelly Anderson, Morgan and Jeremy Cobb, Matt Shulte, Michael Parker, Tommy Cross and family, Matt's Grandparents, Jed and Isaac Aho, Craig Walker, Tabitha Vasalis, Stephen and Elizabeth Carroll, The Wagners, The Coopers, Justins and Ashley Sheffard, All of THE SHOTGUN GUYS, and so many others who give of their time every week to serve the LEAST OF THESE. There is one more group I want to say thank you to and without these people the LOT project would not be what it is. To all of the Newspring Fuse youth that serve every week you guys and gals are awesome and we love all of you, keep following hard after Jesus! You see the one question we had was answered over and beyond what we had ever dreamed. Which leads into my next point when you plant a ministry God will take care of the details just follow him and listen to what he says and do it! Leading a ministry is a hard job but it has a ETERNAL IMPACT! So if God is leading you to plant a ministry just do it and watch God show off! Don't worry about how it will run me and Matt have both been busy, Me with raising a family and working and him with school and also working and it hasn't missed a beat! If ministry ever begins to be about you always being there you would have to ask yourself one question "Is it for you or are you doing it for Jesus?" I am currently taking 8 to 10 weeks off of ministry while me and my wife prepare to have our 3rd child. I am more excited now than I was when we planted the LOT project. Because I know God has placed people in our lives that love God and love people and that this ministry will continue to see growth because we have people that serve Jesus and desire to see change in our communities. I want to praise and thank Jesus Christ for his incredible favor on our lives and thank him for reaching down when I couldn't reach up. Please pray for me and my family while we are getting ready for our 3rd child. Please pray for Matt as he is finishing school and traveling a lot for this ministry. Also please ray for Andy Gibson and Kat Laun as they continue structuring and organizing this ministry. We are a blessed group of people and it's only by God's grace that we get to do what we do! I know this has been a long post but I pray it encourages you. Have a blessed day! Love Jason Ashley

Up or down?

Have you ever wondered how you can be in such a great mood and then one thing just ruins your day. Or maybe you wake up and nothing seems to be going your way. As Christians we can be so pumped up and motivated. Maybe we just seen a life long friend come to know Jesus, we just led someone to Christ, or even we in our own walk got our world rocked by a life changing message. They are many other things that can set you on fire spiritually! But what do you do when things just seem to steal your joy, take away from your life, or maybe you feel like your running on empty? Lets face it life is a challenge and being who Jesus called you to be and obeying him is very challenging but we have to press on. I'm going to share some scripture with you that helps me when i get down and out! Proverbs Chapter 3 Verses 1-10. 1 my son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,2 for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity. 3 Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck write them on the tablet of your heart.4 Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. You can continue this reading of scripture in your bible! I hope this lifts you up and gets you in the 66 book love letter he wrote to us! Have an awesome day!!!! Jason

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Are you committed?

Good evening everyone! I read this paragraph in a book one time and what can I say “It challenged me!” It went a little something like this. “We live in a day when there is very little if any commitment to anyone or anything! The reason for these actions is there is very little surrender to anything anymore! You see if I surrender my own needs to the needs of others, then I will find myself committed to their lives! Jesus Christ over 2,000 years ago surrendered his entire life for us…. What would happen if I submitted mine back to him?” As I read this paragraph it moved me and made me self examine myself to see if I was truly committed to Jesus Christ 100% not 99%. My pastor said something one time that challenged me as well. He said a 99% commitment to Christ is 1% to short, its all or nothing! You see self examination is very important, it tells you who you are and where most of your time is spent. I personally believe that we as Christians can’t even begin to realize how much God loves us and how big of a plan he has for our life. I also believe in order for us to have the protection of God we have to be under the authority of God! You can’t live like Hell all the time and be committed to Jesus Christ, it’s just not possible! You know I Love people who commit to be on time and actually are! In other words thank you to all who say they are going to do something and they do it! I believe with all my heart God wants even a stronger commitment to his will for our lives not our own! Let’s face it we screw up and mess up all the time! However we serve a perfect and holy God, thank goodness for that! You know as I think about commitment one thing pops in my mind over and over again! If we can’t commit to the little things how can we commit to the big things! When I accepted Jesus Christ as the payment for my sins and believed in him through faith he put a burning passion in me to reach out to all types of people. Though I may get knocked down sometimes, I’m like Rocky I keep getting back up (with the help and guidance of Christ of course). You see he made a 100% commitment to us so when are his followers going to make the same commitment to him! Jesus said you can’t be both hot and cold he would rather you be one or the other. Being Luke warm he said it makes him sick he would spew you out his mouth! Hey he said it not me! So what are you willing to do to change the way you commit to things in life? The way you commit to Jesus, your spouses, your kids and even doing something you said you would do. Commitment is the most important step in life! If you’re not a Christian and maybe you have been mistreated by a church or a Christian let me just apologize for them! Not all churches and Christians act the same. You see Jesus did not come into the world to condemn it he came to save it! Many Churches and Christians would rather condemn people and have a holy huddle inside the church! They try to lead the church instead of letting Jesus Christ lead! Many times the church splits right down the middle because of a lack of commitment to Christ! So I know how you may feel toward these types of so called Christians but don’t let their actions keep you from believing in Jesus Christ! I’m telling you he is very much alive and he has changed my life tremendously! He is the best! If you call on the name of the lord and believe through faith you will be saved! For those who have gotten offended at this post I don’t apologize, maybe you needed to get offended because you lack commitment! For all you non-Christians I want you to know I love you and want the best for you! Jesus is the best oh yes! Have a great Day with love Jason!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

CHANGE PLEASE!

Good morning everyone I will be talking about Change today. Pastor Troy Gramling said something that sticks out to me and I would like to share it with you. Change is in the air and happening at record speeds. Many of the changes we face are not within our control, as we have learned in many situations, but how we respond to change can be controlled. This is so true. I like the way Twyman L. Towery compares the stages of change to the stages of grief: DENIAL: Our first reaction is to deny, rather than adapt to and embrace, the change in our life. ANGER: Once we realize we cannot stop the change we become angry that it is outside of our control. If we do not understand where the anger is coming from, we can mistakenly hurt the people we perceive to be initiating the change. BARGAINING: This is an attempt to avoid change by bargaining it away. EXPLORATION: We begin to except that there is going to be change and explore ways to deal with the change. Depression can become a reality during this stage as we give up being able to control the circumstances. COMMITMENT: We except and embrace the change. We begin to see some possible benefits of the change. When I read this it rocked my world. I started thinking about this same mindset people have on Change inside the church. I hear so many people in church talk about other churches and what they are doing! It goes like this: “Did you here what "such and such"church is doing? I can’t believe they are doing that!” It bothers me to hear people focusing so much on other churches, they end up forgetting their on vision for there church. Let’s face it the same things that worked 10 years ago will not work today! We serve a creative God If you don’t think so then look outside. Better yet look at your spouse and your kids! It’s time the church in America gets with it and makes some huge changes. Do not change your church vision, just the way you present the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Make it fun and fresh! We must reach the YOUTH! I believe with all my heart, that should be the focal point in the church! Not the Cemetery or the pointless picking of apples for the Senior Adults! If you just got offended good you needed it. Although Twyman L. Towery was talking about changes in our life. I believe some churches have this mindset about where they go to church. They don’t like change. They make it all about them and the Hell with the lost people! This is my opinion on change within churches, if the Pastor and Staff constantly seek Jesus Christ and put him first in everything Jesus is in control! Jesus said follow him! Are you following him? Does change bother you? Are you making all about you and not Jesus? I know this is a touchy subject and I am not downgrading churches or people. I am simply calling it like I see it! If you get mad great! If you don’t even better! Love You Guys Jason!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Hand to Hand

I pray this post rocks you and that it challenges you. A Man died and went to heaven. When he met St. Peter he told him how grateful he was to be in Heaven, but he wanted to know how much better Heaven was than Hell. So he asked Peter to let him glance in Hell for just 10 seconds. That a way he could know just how grateful he could be. Peter said OK. When the man looked in Hell he seen a large table as far as the eye could see filled with the best food he had ever put his eyes on. Then the kicker! He asked Peter why everyone around the table were like bones and very malnourished? Peter told him in Hell they have to eat with 5 foot long chopsticks and you could never get the food to your mouth from the table because of the chopsticks being so long. That’s why they are starving to death. So Peter closed Hell up and began to walk with the man through Heaven. Then he took the man into the Banquet room. In there was the same table with even better food on it. Like Fillet steak, poppy seed chicken, shrimp, crab legs, krispy creme donuts (hot n now) if you know what I mean, you get the picture! But the man noticed something everyone around this table was full and looked very healthy! So the man asked Peter “What do these people eat with?” Peter replied, “The same 5 foot long chopsticks!” So then the man asked Peter “how it was possible for the people in Hell to starve but the people in Heaven to be very healthy. When they used the same 5 foot long chopsticks?” Peter then replied, “In heaven we feed each other from across the table. Those 5 foot long chopsticks work if you are willing to serve one another.” This is just a joke but I think we can learn a lot from it! In our own communities people are starving for things like: Love, Security, Feeling wanted and needed, a purpose just to wake up in the morning. I have a real hard time with this because in my home community we have people who are homeless, hungry, and want to change but can’t seem to find anyone to help them! In America we have so much on the table of opportunity with those same chopsticks trying to feed only ourselves. Reach out today feed someone else. You reap what you sow, if you feed others you to will be fed! I have some question and then I’m closing this post out. Are you willing to feed your community? Is your Church reaching out? We as Churches have a lot of resources and a lot on the table. We must serve; it’s what Jesus Christ said we should do!!!! When people with Passion partner together things get done inside the Church and the Community! I am so thankful that I have the resources and energy to do this very thing within my own community! Thank you Jesus, for everything. It’s my prayer that eyes will be opened through this post and people will begin to feed others instead of themselves! With Love Jason

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Issues!

Hello! First i would like to say i hope you are having a great day. Im going to talk about the Church and comfort. The 2 should not be in the same sentence. I f you are trying to reach people for Christ you should never be comfortable while doing it! We have to step out of our comfort zone and reach people! For 2 long the people inside the church have been focused on there wants and needs and not the needs of the lost. The church should be were anybody can come, regardless of there clothes, car, hair, where they live or what they have done in there past. Who has the right to criticize a nonbeleiver and talk bad about them when they dont know any different. If there is anyone who should feel comfort in the church its the lost. The Church was not created for people to have permanent seats or parking , how dare people act like its theirs. The Church was created for Jesus Christ to be exalted not for congregations to have a Holy huddle! Im just sharing some very personal views and pet peeves of mine! Its my opinion and im not backing down. As far as youth goes heres one thing that burns me up is seeing a graveyard at a church well maintained and always shining, but the kids have to wash cars or sell donuts to go on youth camps. See the big picture is the people in the graveyard are dead and there decisions have been set. The Youth still need to be reached so why spend money on the non-important things that cemetary will not change the world. However our youth can make a huge impact. As far as the people that dont know Jesus what are we doing to change that.All throughout scripture the teachers of christ went out into the dangerous parts of town and reached out to them. So why are we not doing that today. You know what bothers me in the time it took to write this blog 100's of people have died without Jesus thus going to hell!!! That should be enough motivation for the Church! Faith does not require your details when God says do it just do it! This has challenged me WOW! man! I hope you get uncomfortable as well! One Love, One God, One Way! Later Jason!

Friday, January 23, 2009

Are you Comfortable?

Hello! First i would like to say i hope you are having a great day. Im going to talk about the Church and comfort. The 2 should not be in the same sentence. I f you are trying to reach people for Christ you should never be comfortable while doing it! We have to step out of our comfort zone and reach people! For 2 long the people inside the church have been focused on there wants and needs and not the needs of the lost. The church should be were anybody can come, regardless of there clothes, car, hair, where they live or what they have done in there past. Who has the right to criticize a nonbeleiver and talk bad about them when they dont know any different. If there is anyone who should feel comfort in the church its the lost. The Church was not created for people to have permanent seats or parking , how dare people act like its theirs. The Church was created for Jesus Christ to be exalted not for congregations to have a Holy huddle! Im just sharing some very personal views and pet peeves of mine! Its my opinion and im not backing down. As far as youth goes heres one thing that burns me up is seeing a graveyard at a church well maintained and always shining, but the kids have to wash cars or sell donuts to go on youth camps. See the big picture is the people in the graveyard are dead and there decisions have been set. The Youth still need to be reached so why spend money on the non-important things that cemetary will not change the world. However our youth can make a huge impact. As far as the people that dont know Jesus what are we doing to change that.All throughout scripture the teachers of christ went out into the dangerous parts of town and reached out to them. So why are we not doing that today. You know what bothers me in the time it took to write this blog 100's of people have died without Jesus thus going to hell!!! That should be enough motivation for the Church! Faith does not require your details when God says do it just do it! This has challenged me WOW! man! I hope you get uncomfortable as well! One Love, One God, One Way!Later Jason!

Friday, November 28, 2008

The Flow of Water!

Does your life feel dry at times? Are you beat down and tired from the things of this life? Have you taken wrong measures to satisfy your life? Those are just a couple of questions I want to ask before I launch into this post! Man-made religion never satisfies; only God provides the Living water that can quench our thirst in this life. His invitation is open to anyone who gets thirsty. To hunger and thirst for the water that Christ gives is to hunger and thirst for the things of God and for the fullness of the Holy Spirit. With our Lord there is no waiting for the water our souls require and need! Anyone can drink of this water that gives life! How do we drink the water? When you come to the water you are coming to a person. You must come on God's terms, and you have to yield yourself by faith in order to get the water! The release of the Holy Spirit in a Christian's life, however, is conditional- we must believe, receive, and then glorify Christ through our lives! Jesus must be loved, honored, and exalted. Jesus is saying that the part of us that is never satisfied, the part of us that craves so much, becomes, when we receive this water, the part that is satisfied. Our unfulfilled desires can become fully satisfied by the indwelling Spirit of Christ in our lives. Furthermore, the satisfaction that comes to us in Christ overflows to others(John 7:37-38)! Power and overflowing joy are the characteristics of great drinkers of the spirit. But the inspiring irony in this is that we never experience satisfaction, as we are meant to, until our lives give satisfaction to others. I don't know about you but helping others fills me up! I have a dream and through Christ it can happen! A 24 hour Church in Anderson, It bothers me that the homeless and the addicted have no place to go for shelter, rehab, and most of all somewhere they can feel the presence of Power and Love in Christ! There are over 300 churches in this county and none of them are open at night to help those in need! We need a place for all people to come! The church is not a place to gather in a Holy Huddle its a body that needs to be effective! I'm out Love Jason

Thursday, November 13, 2008

The Good!

The Gospel by its very name means “Good News.” It is considered Good News because it announces there is a solution for man’s greatest problem. We know that this “Good News” is received by faith in the grace of God. Forgiveness is not something we earn or even could earn although many people believe that lie! Forgiveness is a gift that we receive. The greatest need you and I will ever have is the removal and forgiveness of our sins(Thank God for that) Knowing that our sin eternally separates us from a Holy God puts into perspective the great gift God offers to those who will receive it by faith(JESUS). Unfortunately, many people think they can replace the gift of God by doing good works and make it to Heaven. Newsflash that can’t happen! Satan spends much time trying to get people to believe just that, because if he can trick people into believing this lie he’s got them! Remember apart from Christ no man can be saved. If we were all honest with ourselves we are not good people. I know I’m not. I’m just a crazy white boy that Loves Jesus! Remember doing good apart from Jesus is impossible! I Love all of you very much have a great day I’m off to work in just a few, Jason!

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

He is all powerful and sufficient!

First let me say ministry went great yesterday and people excepted Jesus as there Savior. Thats what it's all about! Now for my post!I am going to be getting very personal with you this morning. I fail sometimes to do the very thing I’m going to be writing about this morning! If we were all honest many of us fail to do so. You see we limit God sometimes! Jesus is bigger than anything, any problem we face, any unexpected bill we get in the mail, any sickness we may encounter or doctor report we may receive that didn’t go exactly like we wanted it to! So why do we “myself included” limit God in our lives! In all the gospels we see a very familiar story about a little boy with 5 loaves and 2 fish! You see this boy had little to offer but when put in Jesus hands he made it a lot! We could look at this story in a lot of ways but one that sticks out to me is how little faith the disciples had! They had been with Jesus and seen him heal the blind, lame and sick but when they seen all these people following behind sit on the mountainside in Galilee, they questioned themselves how will we feed all of them. They looked at a problem instead of a solution! Jesus Christ was sitting right beside them probably resting because he had been teaching all day! Scripture says in John 6:9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” The disciples questioned themselves! This is such a problem in our everyday journey through life. We serve a humongous God and he is all powerful and supreme! So why do we limit him! You see we as believers do the same thing the disciples done. We look at how big our problems are instead of how big God is! We all have done this at one time or another! If you say you have not you probably have a problem with lying! I’m convinced if the disciples had been concerned with feeding there spiritual hunger this problem would not have seemed so big! You see Jesus wanted his followers to seek him for himself, and not for what he could do for them. You see we serve an in control God in an out of control world! We all need to believe that through the lowest of lows we serve the highest of highs! In John 16:33 Jesus said in this life we will have trouble, notice he said we will, not we might! So when a problem comes your way look up and smile for Jesus is with you do not fear! Joshua 1:9 Have a Jesus Christ filled day! With Love Jason

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Wired!

Good morning I hope everyone’s having a great day. Mine has been awesome I just got through feeding my 5 month old. She is growing so fast! You see she depends on me to feed her so she can grow, she can’t feed herself yet. As I think about this it means more to me than just a feeding for my child. You see I know you have heard this over and over again especially if you attend a "Traditional" Church. You hear someone say I left "so and so church" because I wasn’t getting fed there. You see there is a difference when I feed my child. She is not old enough to eat on her own; however we as believers are old enough to know we have to eat. I’m not talking about the physical eating I'm talking about the spiritual feeding that has to take place everyday. We should have quiet time with Jesus everyday and trust him. We as believers can’t take this lightly. A lot of people will not read their bibles all week long and when Sunday morning arrives they have to wipe the dust off of there bible. Then they go to church and expect to hear from God. God may or may not speak to them and they think it’s the Pastor. They think he is not giving them what they need to here. When all week long they have put God’s word on the shelf! They have starved themselves! This will cause you to be blind to the truth! My Pastor said one time that a 99% commitment to Christ is 1% to short. I believe that with all my heart! He wants all of us not our leftovers! A song that sticks out in my mind is "Surrender All". Can you sing that song and mean it? Or is it just words? You see Jesus said he would rather you be either Hot or Cold not Luke warm. He said he would spew you out of his mouth! That’s not a good thing when the creator of everything says he would spit you out of his mouth! We need him in our life. Life without Jesus is impossible we must give him everything. We were not created for our purpose he made us for his purpose! Read Proverbs 19:21 it’s his plan not ours that will succeed. All we have to do is be a willing vessel. Are you willing to give everything to him? You can do it with his help not on your own! Is today the day you give it all away? Have a great day! Love You Jason)