Nobody knows what is coming around the corner. We live life hoping that good is on the way. When good comes we are happy, or maybe we don’t even notice. If bad comes, we are disappointed, angry, sad, or mad. I think this whole way of thinking of things is wrong. Who are we to think that the only thing that we should have is good? Who are we to think that what we think of as bad is actually bad? So many times, in life, we have expectations of how things should work out, and when it doesn’t work out, we are disappointed. The more I go through life, and the more I read the Bible, the more I see that this view of expectations isn’t right. Why in the world should a person, who can only see forward, who was created, who will die, who doesn’t know what lies ahead; why would a person like that expect anything. So many people have this view of expectations, and so many people are depressed, mad, sad, and just plain old grumps. When I read the Bible, I see a different kind of expectation. It is blind expectation. It is called faith.
In Hebrews 11, we get a look at the people of the Old Testament and how they lived by faith. Each of these people lived hard lives. They didn’t know what was coming around the corner, and lots of the time, what was around the corner was probably the least desirable option. They still, continually, stepped out in faith, or blind expectation, and lived for God. They lived out what they said they had faith in, even when it was hard. You can’t please God and always play it safe. It is time this generation stood up for what they say they have faith in and be willing to look like a fool for the sake of Christ. Faith requires action. Faith requires sacrifice. Are you willing to take action? Are you willing to sacrifice? Are you willing to step out in the faith you say you have?
Faith on a Wire - Part 3 (9.08.10)
9.09.2010
9.08.2010
The Awakening Podcast
Ministry is very hard work. It keeps me super busy, but it is super rewarding. I do miss my time with family and friends that I don't get to see as often as I would like. People move, things change, time goes on, but there is one constant - God. That constant will always hold us together no matter how many miles separate us. With that being said, I have started a podcast of my sermons from The Awakening, our Wednesday night youth service. For any who want to hear what God is speaking to these students, or who want to hear me (I have no clue why you would), you can either download them for free in the iTunes store (type in The Awakening Jacob Haywood, and you should find it easy), or you can listen to the link I will post each week on this blog, along with a summary of the sermon.
I know that I am not the greatest communicator alive, but hopefully you will be convicted and blessed by what God has laid on my heart each week. Thank you for your support. I love you.
This past week's link: Faith on a Wire: Part 2 (8.26.10)
I know that I am not the greatest communicator alive, but hopefully you will be convicted and blessed by what God has laid on my heart each week. Thank you for your support. I love you.
This past week's link: Faith on a Wire: Part 2 (8.26.10)
8.24.2010
Sunday Christianity
Do you have Sunday Christianity, or do you have real Christianity? Do you go to church on Sunday primarily to fill your spiritual tank? Do you have a “spiritual life” and a “real life”? Do you have “church friends” and “real friends”? Do you think you can or cannot say certain things in church just because you are in church, but some reason it is ok to say them once you are out the door? Do you think you have to dress differently, smile more, be more courteous, and act a certain way just because you are in church? Have you ever heard or said, “Don’t do that. We’re in church.”
Maybe you have to fill your spiritual tank on Sunday because you are not keeping it full during the rest of the week. Maybe you separate your church life from the rest of your life because you are afraid of what it might do to you if you actually let Christ be the Lord of your life and not just a scapegoat from Hell. There should be no difference in our life away from church. There is no such thing as a “spiritual” life. In the Hebrew Scriptures there is no word for "spiritual," and Jesus never used the phrase "spiritual life." For Jesus and his tradition, all of life is spiritual, to be lived wholly for God.
“Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” - Colossians 3:17
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”
- Colossians 3:23
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:31
What happens on Sunday should be the outflow and overflow of what we’ve been doing all week. Are you willing to let Jesus be Lord?
Maybe you have to fill your spiritual tank on Sunday because you are not keeping it full during the rest of the week. Maybe you separate your church life from the rest of your life because you are afraid of what it might do to you if you actually let Christ be the Lord of your life and not just a scapegoat from Hell. There should be no difference in our life away from church. There is no such thing as a “spiritual” life. In the Hebrew Scriptures there is no word for "spiritual," and Jesus never used the phrase "spiritual life." For Jesus and his tradition, all of life is spiritual, to be lived wholly for God.
“Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” - Colossians 3:17
“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”
- Colossians 3:23
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:31
What happens on Sunday should be the outflow and overflow of what we’ve been doing all week. Are you willing to let Jesus be Lord?
8.16.2010
God's Will
What is God’s will for your life? Being around students, I hear this question a lot. “Should I date this person? Should I marry this person? Should I go to this school?” Within these economic times, this question has been raised more often than it used to with everyone. “Should I stay or should I move? Should I change jobs and risk it all, or should I stay at this job that I don’t like? Should I spend money on this or not? Should I give more than 10% to the church or should I play it safe?” WHAT IS GOD’S WILL FOR ME? There are so many more questions we could ask that pertain to God’s will for our lives.
Have you ever thought that maybe God doesn’t care which job you pick? Have you ever thought that maybe God doesn’t care which shirt you buy? Have you ever thought that God doesn’t actually NEED your money? Have you ever thought that there might be a greater purpose to God’s will than your minute decisions? Then, what is God’s will?
“For this is the will of God, your sanctification.” 1 Thessalonians 4:3a (ESV).
Maybe God’s will isn’t about what you do but about who you do it for. Maybe God’s will isn’t about what you do but how you do it. If our eyes our focused on Christ, His will is inevitable. We live for Him in all things, we live by Him in all things, we give glory to Him in all things; this is God’s will, our sanctification.
Are you in God’s will?
Have you ever thought that maybe God doesn’t care which job you pick? Have you ever thought that maybe God doesn’t care which shirt you buy? Have you ever thought that God doesn’t actually NEED your money? Have you ever thought that there might be a greater purpose to God’s will than your minute decisions? Then, what is God’s will?
“For this is the will of God, your sanctification.” 1 Thessalonians 4:3a (ESV).
Maybe God’s will isn’t about what you do but about who you do it for. Maybe God’s will isn’t about what you do but how you do it. If our eyes our focused on Christ, His will is inevitable. We live for Him in all things, we live by Him in all things, we give glory to Him in all things; this is God’s will, our sanctification.
Are you in God’s will?
7.19.2010
Fog
I still can vividly remember backing out of the driveway on cold fall mornings and heading to school, when I was growing up. I'm not talking about every morning, but what I can vividly remember is looking in both directions down the street and not even being able to see the houses. Fog would be everywhere. To this day, I still can picture the thickness of that fog and how it completely drowned out the rest of the neighborhood. All we could see was right in front of us.
This is often how we behave in life. Something happens, good or bad, and it completely blocks out the rest of reality. All we are able to see is what is right in front of us. Sometimes we can be disillusioned into thinking that what is right in front of us is all there is. Sometimes we get the impression that this fog that surrounds us is our new reality, and there is no way out. We often see the fog in our life and fail to see the big picture. We fail to see the goal ahead. We fail to see why we are really here and where we are really going.
Fog is basically a cloud on the ground. If you had a tall enough ladder, while you are in the fog, you could stand on the ladder and see everything perfectly clear. All the fog is doing is sitting around you. If you just rise up a little bit, you can see everything clearly again. You can see the big picture. The fog isn't all there is. There is so much more. All you have to do is rise above it. All you have to do is gravitate heavenward, and the fog isn't a hindrance. Yes, the fog is still there, but it is no longer blocking your sight. It is no longer in your way.
I want to encourage you, in the midst of life's problems and in the midst of life's accomplishments, to not let that fog engulf you. Rise above and see the big picture. See the goal in which Christ is calling you. Don't settle in your new reality. Gravitate toward God and out of the fog.
This is often how we behave in life. Something happens, good or bad, and it completely blocks out the rest of reality. All we are able to see is what is right in front of us. Sometimes we can be disillusioned into thinking that what is right in front of us is all there is. Sometimes we get the impression that this fog that surrounds us is our new reality, and there is no way out. We often see the fog in our life and fail to see the big picture. We fail to see the goal ahead. We fail to see why we are really here and where we are really going.
Fog is basically a cloud on the ground. If you had a tall enough ladder, while you are in the fog, you could stand on the ladder and see everything perfectly clear. All the fog is doing is sitting around you. If you just rise up a little bit, you can see everything clearly again. You can see the big picture. The fog isn't all there is. There is so much more. All you have to do is rise above it. All you have to do is gravitate heavenward, and the fog isn't a hindrance. Yes, the fog is still there, but it is no longer blocking your sight. It is no longer in your way.
I want to encourage you, in the midst of life's problems and in the midst of life's accomplishments, to not let that fog engulf you. Rise above and see the big picture. See the goal in which Christ is calling you. Don't settle in your new reality. Gravitate toward God and out of the fog.
In 1952, young Florence Chadwick stepped into the waters of the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island, determined to swim to the shore of mainland California. She'd already been the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways. The weather was foggy and chilly; she could hardly see the boats accompanying her. Still, she swam for fifteen hours. When she begged to be taken out of the water along the way, her mother, in a boat alongside, told her she was close and that she could make it. Finally, physically and emotionally exhausted, she stopped swimming and was pulled out. It wasn't until she was on the boat that she discovered the shore was less than half a mile away. At a news conference the next day she said, "All I could see was the fog...I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it."An excerpt from Heaven by Randy Alcorn
6.24.2010
Inward/Outward Zeal
Titus 2:11-14 (ESV)
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”
The beginning of this passage shows how, as Christians, we should strive to live morally upright lives. Note that it says training us to live this way, which shows that it is a process, takes effort, takes practice, and isn’t natural for us. It moves on from showing us how we should live inwardly, to how we should live outwardly. Actually, I shouldn't even say the two, inward and outward living, are different. It's more like Paul is saying there is a divine thread that holds the two together into one unique entity. The Christian walk isn’t ONLY about keeping oneself from sin, but it is ALSO about living for others, being fruitful in good works.
The reason we are to purify ourselves, keeping ourselves from sin, is for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of good works, presenting a pure and unblemished testimony. We first and foremost are for Christ, for He died for us in order to purify us for his own possession. This only so, once we are in Him, we can be zealous for good works, illuminating God’s love in the darkness of a fallen world.
We should live for Him by living for others. We should love Him by loving others. We should serve Him by serving others. We should keep ourselves from sin for the sake of our testimony, that others may be drawn to Him. He is all that matters, and there is a world around us living like He doesn’t matter. Are you inwardly zealous for God? Are you outwardly zealous for good works? Will you be zealous for good works? It's the only way your inward zeal for God can be manifested, and it's the only way a fallen world will reach the Savior they so desperately need.
“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”
The beginning of this passage shows how, as Christians, we should strive to live morally upright lives. Note that it says training us to live this way, which shows that it is a process, takes effort, takes practice, and isn’t natural for us. It moves on from showing us how we should live inwardly, to how we should live outwardly. Actually, I shouldn't even say the two, inward and outward living, are different. It's more like Paul is saying there is a divine thread that holds the two together into one unique entity. The Christian walk isn’t ONLY about keeping oneself from sin, but it is ALSO about living for others, being fruitful in good works.
The reason we are to purify ourselves, keeping ourselves from sin, is for Christ’s sake, and for the sake of good works, presenting a pure and unblemished testimony. We first and foremost are for Christ, for He died for us in order to purify us for his own possession. This only so, once we are in Him, we can be zealous for good works, illuminating God’s love in the darkness of a fallen world.
We should live for Him by living for others. We should love Him by loving others. We should serve Him by serving others. We should keep ourselves from sin for the sake of our testimony, that others may be drawn to Him. He is all that matters, and there is a world around us living like He doesn’t matter. Are you inwardly zealous for God? Are you outwardly zealous for good works? Will you be zealous for good works? It's the only way your inward zeal for God can be manifested, and it's the only way a fallen world will reach the Savior they so desperately need.
3.30.2010
BY and FOR
Why do you live? Why are you here? Really think about that for a moment.... What is the reason you are on earth? Do you ever stop and think about your creation? Let's ponder this for a moment.
God is big. God created the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:1). Anything that was ever made, EVER, was made by God. It not only was made BY God, but it was made FOR God (John 1:3; Col. 1:16). Everything you see and everything you do not see was made by God and for God. Colossians 1:16 - "For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him." Whatever has been and whatever will be was made BY God and FOR God.
Why then do we live for ourselves so often? Why do we go throughout our day to fulfill tasks and duties? Why do we live as though we are in control? Isn't that what the American Dream is?...trying to get so much that I never have to rely on anything else...so I don't have to have faith that God will provide? We live our lives as though we don't owe anything, when in all actuality, we can never repay our debt. Christ, the big God we talked about earlier, gave all of Himself, His very life, so that we, the people who live for ourselves, can keep on living. We are indebted to Christ, yet we live like we don't owe a thing. This is absurd! If everything was created BY God and FOR God, that means us too.
1 Corinthians 10:31- "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Colossians 3:23-24 - "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
I believe it is now time to examine your life. Are your everyday activities for you, for your spouse, your friends, or even your family, instead of for God? You can and should serve others by serving God, but often we serve others to fulfill obligation or satisfy our ego. Are you glorifying yourself instead of God, the one you were created BY and FOR? Maybe it's time to change. Try living with a mindset that everything you do matters. It may not matter to a single person in your life, but if you are doing it to glorify God, it matters to the only One that matters. Think how this world would change if Christians actually lived like Christ instead of just saying they do.
God is big. God created the heavens and the earth (Gen. 1:1). Anything that was ever made, EVER, was made by God. It not only was made BY God, but it was made FOR God (John 1:3; Col. 1:16). Everything you see and everything you do not see was made by God and for God. Colossians 1:16 - "For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him." Whatever has been and whatever will be was made BY God and FOR God.
Why then do we live for ourselves so often? Why do we go throughout our day to fulfill tasks and duties? Why do we live as though we are in control? Isn't that what the American Dream is?...trying to get so much that I never have to rely on anything else...so I don't have to have faith that God will provide? We live our lives as though we don't owe anything, when in all actuality, we can never repay our debt. Christ, the big God we talked about earlier, gave all of Himself, His very life, so that we, the people who live for ourselves, can keep on living. We are indebted to Christ, yet we live like we don't owe a thing. This is absurd! If everything was created BY God and FOR God, that means us too.
1 Corinthians 10:31- "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Colossians 3:23-24 - "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
I believe it is now time to examine your life. Are your everyday activities for you, for your spouse, your friends, or even your family, instead of for God? You can and should serve others by serving God, but often we serve others to fulfill obligation or satisfy our ego. Are you glorifying yourself instead of God, the one you were created BY and FOR? Maybe it's time to change. Try living with a mindset that everything you do matters. It may not matter to a single person in your life, but if you are doing it to glorify God, it matters to the only One that matters. Think how this world would change if Christians actually lived like Christ instead of just saying they do.
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