I gave a quote in an earlier entry about the art of war. It basically said that if you want to defeat your drugs of choice, your repeated sinful behaviors, you must not only know yourself, but your enemy as well. I want to add to that quote right now. “Know yourself. Know your enemy … make sure it’s not you!”
We are our own worst enemies at times! Remember how the brain works. It can only receive data from your senses. The “you” part of you must determine whether that data is true or not. You become what you focus on. And what you focus on only gets bigger. Is what you’re telling yourself and focusing on truth or lies? You, not anyone else, make that decision.
You are a child of God (Jn. 1:12). Are you agreeing or disagreeing with that truth? Christ has set you free (Gal. 5:1). Is what you’re saying to yourself lining up with that truth? Please be careful what you say to yourself. Filter even your own thoughts through the truths of God’s word. Know yourself – you’re a secure child of God. Know your enemy – Satan. Put your energy into defeating a defeated foe, rather than yourself.
“S”et Free Nowww

It’s an American expression, “Life sure threw you a curve.” In the game of baseball, anyone can hit a ball that goes straight, but hitting a ball that changes direction separates the everyday person from one who makes millions of dollars per year.
We all have plans about where we want to go in life. What happens when it doesn’t go as “we” planned? Life isn’t a straight path. It has its share of twists and turns. Proverbs 3:5-6 reveals that God can make our paths straight. He is around the corner and knows what’s ahead. He knows what is best for us. The question becomes, “Will we trust Him and not our plans?”
One of the very reasons we take our drugs of choice is that life doesn’t or isn’t turning out like “we” thought it would. Do we have the audacity to believe that as mere humans we have a better picture of what is best for us than our Father does, the One who can see life from every angle and knows all the combinations of all humanity’s actions?
As secure children of God our greatest test of trust comes when life throws us a curve, when we can’t see around the next bend in the road. As we learn to continually listen to and follow Jesus everyday everywhere we’ll not only hit the curve, but we’ll raise our arms in victory as well.
“S”et Free Nowww

Your God loves you! I know you know that, but do you believe it? Today I have the perfect example of what lengths God will go to in order to show and prove His love to us.
As I was sitting down to write this entry, my computer would not connect to the internet. I spent about a half hour trying everything I knew, which wasn’t much mind you, to solve my problem. Technology is wonderful … until it starts acting up. Everything I do is reliant upon having internet because I have an “office on the go;” thus, I called my IT person.
This is where God stepped in. This person needed to talk to someone at that exact moment. They’re going through a rather rough patch in their life right now. They had just finished tearing up, wanting to give up, and trying to call someone for prayer when I “just happened” to call. We chatted about how the cliché Christian answers weren’t working. We processed their situation through their biblical tools and realized that sometimes it’s just a big “wait for the solution to come” time. They had to keep exercising the truth regardless of how they felt or the situation looked.
After this chat, this person gave me a few possible solutions, none of which worked. We made a plan and then hung up. Guess what happened? My computer “all of a sudden” connected to the internet! Coincidence? I don’t think so. God wanted His child to know they were loved. This person needed to be reminded of this at exactly that moment. God shut down my internet to make it happen. If that’s not an act of love, I don’t know what is.
Your God loves you! He has gone to great lengths to show – He sent Jesus – and will continue to go to great lengths to prove it. The fact that you’re reading this entry is one example of it.
“S”et Free Nowww

A forest fire not far from my home is still ablaze. Firefighters believe they’ll have what is now called the Falls Fire within the Cleveland National Forest contained within a few days. So far it has consumed 1,416 acres of forest land and over 6,000 feet of guard rail that runs along the Ortega Highway, a major commuter route for drivers from Riverside to Orange County. Local authorities will not let people on the road until the guard rail is replaced. Without it, there is no protection for motorists who stray.
The guard rails are not needed to drive on this road, but are there to protect motorists who while driving get a little sloppy, doze off at the wheel or act like race car drivers. The guard rails are there for safety reasons, not to use for or stare at while driving.
It is simply not safe to drive through life without the Word of God. It is our guard rail. Jesus is our road. We are to drive through life each day in relationship with Jesus while listening to and following Him. The guard rails, specific commands from the Word of God, keep us safe. We don’t focus on them, but on Jesus who would never tell us to hit or even come close to the guard rails, let alone drive off the cliff! Being in the Word, knowing where those guard rails are, keeps us safe. Listening to and following Jesus everyday everywhere makes the drive home enjoyable.
How is your listening to Jesus while reading through the Bible in a year coming along? Your safety and daily enjoyment depends on it.
S“E”t Free Nowww

I once heard, “My friend is so awesome when they’re in the Word. They’re happy. They’re at peace. But the moment their quiet time is over, it all goes out the window.” This describes the person who chooses to either compartmentalize their life or doesn’t know how to live with a biblical worldview. Hopefully neither one describes you.
Compartmentalization means that each area of life is lived separately from another. I have my God time. I have my work time. I have my family time. I have my recreation time. Etc. They think and act differently in each compartment of their life. This can be seen in the statement, “It’s just business, nothing personal.”
It can also be seen in one’s priorities. God is number one. Family is number two. Work is number three. I’m number four. There can be a subtle lie hidden in this system. If you don’t filter numbers 2-4 four through number 1, you’ve compartmentalized your life.
God doesn’t want to spend time with us. He wants to live with us. If we want the good stuff that can only be found in His presence, we’ll learn to daily retrain our brains to listen to and follow Jesus everyday everywhere. Jesus said He is the Life. If we want to experience real life at home, work, play, etc. we must choose to filter every area of our lives through Him and His Word. We must choose to listen to Him while we’re in the Word and let Him use what He said throughout our day wherever we go. As this happens, true living will be experienced.
“Set Free Nowww”