Everywhere And Everywhen

May 17, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Wise words from G. Morgan Campbell:

“The Christian is to seek the upper things, setting his mind upon them, and everywhere and everywhen he is to be hoping for, and endeavoring after, the ultimate. That is the simple meaning of prayer: reaching forward, wishing forward, desiring forward, seeking the upper, the higher, the nobler.”

The Bible is clear, too, about us praying everywhere and everywhen for the very best:

  • We ought always to pray and not to turn coward, faint, lose heart, and give up (Luke 18:1)
  • God has seen how I never stop praying for you (Romans 1:9)
  • For I always pray to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, that He may grant you a spirit of wisdom and revelation (Ephesians 1:17)
  • In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy (Philippians 1:4)
  • Our prayers for you are always spilling over into thanksgivings. We can’t quit thanking God our Father and Jesus our Messiah for you! (Colossians 1:3)
  • Epaphras always prays earnestly for you, asking God to make you strong and perfect, fully confident that you are following the whole will of God (Colossians 4:12)
  • We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly (1 Thessalonians 1:2)
  • We ought always to thank God for you, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more (2 Thessalonians 1:3)
  • I give thanks to my God for you always when I mention you in my prayers (Philemon 1:4)
  • Pray for us. We have no doubts about what we’re doing or why, but it’s hard going and we need your prayers (Hebrews 13:18)

Someone needs your prayers today.

Will you keep on praying for a friend that he or she will be able to

…reach forward

…wish forward

…desire forward

…seek the upper, the higher, the nobler!

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What God Do You Tru$t?

April 27, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

Things seem to be going very, very well for Israel! Check out what Isaiah wrote:

Their land is full of silver and gold; there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots.

Sounds like a success story to me!

But wait: the next verse sounds a bit ominous:

Their land is full of idols; the people worship things they have made with their own hands.

Money? Yes.

Influence? Lots.

Prosperity? For everyone.

Idolatry? Widespread.

They were no longer looking to God, but they were looking to what they had made with their own hands. In other words, they made Money their god.

Money can save us!

Money can fix all our problems!

Without Money we are lost!

Only those with Money can be saved!

Sadly, I believe what was said of Israel 2500 years ago could be said of the United States of America today. In God We Trust is printed on all our currency, but it really has become In Money We Trust. We have made Money our god.

Don’t believe me? How do you think most people would answer these fill-in-the-blanks:

  • I need _____________ to get clothes.
  • Without _____________ I cannot feed my family.
  • If I lost _____________ today I would be devastated.
  • I frequently think about how more _____________ in my life would make my life better.

But check out what Jesus says about clothes, food, and our means of survival.

What should go in the blank: Money or God? Again, let’s let Jesus have the final word: “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money” (Luke 16:13).

►► Would you please prayerfully consider supporting this ministry? ◀︎◀︎

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Thursdays With Oswald—Hate Properly

April 21, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Hate Properly

     A Quaker friend of mine referring to a certain man said he did not like him because he did not hate properly. … The Christian standpoint should be one of positive anger when anyone is made to stumble. To remain indifferent when there is injustice abroad is to come under the curse of Meroz, who “came not to the help of the Lord…against the mighty” (Judges 5:23).

From Baffled To Fight Better

There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to Him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers. (Proverbs 6:16-19)

But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. (Matthew 18:6; Mark 9:42; Luke 17:2)

And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not think evil of each other.’ But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and stopped up their ears. They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the LORD Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry.” (Zechariah 7:8-12)

It’s time for us to get positively angry and hate the things that God hates.

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Happy To See You

March 13, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Do you like being around people? Or maybe a better question is: Do people like being around you?

In the case of Jesus, the answers are “yes” and “yes.” Check this out:

When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that He was back home. Soon the house where He was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. (Mark 2:1-2)

People like being with Jesus.

They invited Him to their weddings…

They invited Him to their parties…

They invited Him to their dinners…

And when Jesus showed up somewhere, people flocked to that house.

If you and I are Christians—followers of Jesus Christ—the same thing should be said of us: People should like having us around, and they should like being around us.

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Now What Will You Do With Christmas?

December 27, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Now that Christmas is over, are you thinking to yourself, “Finally! I can get back to my normal routine”?

For some people, the past weeks have been a hectic whirlwind of activity, and the days leading up to Christmas seem like a blur. So now what?

I guess it depends on your attitude about the season. Was it just a regular, it-comes-every-year Christmas for you? Or was it an exciting CHRISTmas: the time to reflect on the birth of Christ? For those in the second category, we cannot—we dare not!—go back to a “normal” routine.

For those that encountered Jesus on (or near) the day of His birth in Bethlehem, look how they responded:

The Shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen.

Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms and praised God.

Anna broke into an anthem of praise to God, and talked about the child to all who were waiting expectantly for the freeing of Jerusalem.

The Magi were overjoyed, and they bowed down and worshiped Him.

My prayer for myself—and for you, too—is that our encounter with Jesus this Christmas was so real, that we will continue to glorify God, and worship Him with overflowing joy, for the rest of the year. Let’s not just get through Christmas, but let’s make sure the reality of CHRISTmas continues to resonate throughout the year.

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Sin

December 21, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

I know in politically correct circles it’s not very chic to talk about sin. After all, we’re not supposed to impose our personal values on someone else, right?

Well, I do believe in right and wrong, and the wrong is called sin. So if you are offended by me calling something sin, it would be best for you to stop reading now.

Are you still with me? Then read this: satan…incited David to sin… (1 Chronicles 21:1).

Incited means this wasn’t a straight-up fight. Sin seldom makes a bold, in-your-face attack. Sin isn’t really an ambush. It’s sort of a whispering campaign.

  • Sin is an appeal to ego
  • Sin is a half-truth
  • Sin is an attempt to be subtle
  • Sin is so innocent looking

The Bible says satan lurks like a lion in the underbrush (1 Peter 5:8).

He waits for the perfect opportunity to strike (Luke 4:13).

satan is sneaky (Genesis 3:1).

He lies (John 8:44).

He distorts the truth (Luke 4:9-11).

That’s why I cannot give sin an inch. I have to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5), and pull everything into the light of The Truth (John 3:20-21).

[Check out all of these verses by clicking here]

It’s not usually the blatant sin that brings down great men and women, but the subtle. So stay on your guard. Always!

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Thursdays With Oswald—General Maxims

December 9, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

General Maxims

     (a) If you lack education, first realize it; then cure it.

     (b) Beware of knowing what you don’t practice.

From Approved Unto God

I know the maxim for some is, “Fake it until you make it.” I can’t do that. I won’t do that. The Bible has a word for doing that: Hypocrisy.

How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye (Luke 6:42).

But just as bad is when I know what I’m supposed to do, and then make excuses not to do that. The Bible has a word for not doing that: Sin.

Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it (James 4:17).

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Cursing Or Shining?

October 18, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

There are two ways of dealing with any undesirable things around you: You can curse the darkness or light a candle. Nowhere in the Bible does Jesus say, “Tell bad people how bad they are.” Instead, He tells His followers to love … bless … serve … SHINE …

I suppose you could choose to curse…

  • There’s too much pollution
  • Respect is no longer seen
  • Politicians are crooked
  • Newspapers only report bad news
  • Too many marriages end in divorce
  • My kid’s teacher is never available
  • People hide behind Facebook and email
  • My church is boring
  • Halloween is dark and scary

Or you can SHINE…

  • Pick up one piece of trash … recycle your metal and plastic …
  • Write a thank-you note to your local police chief …
  • Run for office yourself … volunteer for a politician you believe in … be an informed voter …
  • Do something newsworthy … use social media to only highlight good news …
  • Date your mate … have dinner with another married couple …
  • Volunteer in a classroom … send an encouraging email to a teacher …
  • Take some cookies to your neighbor … send a handwritten note to a friend …
  • Start praising before you go to church … get involved in a ministry …
  • Light The Night …

Light your candle and shine brightly. Then watch and see as others light their candles from yours!

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Engaging Culture

September 29, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

I read something very interesting: Next to Christmas, more money is spent on Halloween than on any other holiday event. Halloween?!? Wow! We’re in the midst of planning our church’s role on Halloween night, so I’ve been thinking quite a bit about engaging our culture.

It’s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

So here’s how I think followers of Jesus Christ should light a candle to engage culture:

(1) Have the right motivation. In Jesus’ inaugural sermon, He said He was coming to preach the Good News about God’s love. He purposely left out the part of Isaiah’s prophesy that talked about God’s coming judgment. There will be a time for that, but for now, our motivation should be to make known the favor of the Lord.

(2) Get out of your box. If you only hang around with Christians, your ability to effectively engage culture will be diminished. If you never get around others, it’s sort of like salt that sits in the saltshaker too long. Paul told the Athenians that he had been walking around their city looking at their culture.

(3) Listen. As Paul talked to the Athenians, he quoted their poets to them. He knew what they were listening to because he was listening too. What are people watching on TV? What movies are they talking about? What music are they listening to? You can find the key to their heart by knowing something about what interests them.

(4) Collaborate. There are lots of other faith-based organizations, non-government organizations, and churches that are already active in your community. Join forces with them.

(5) Just be there. Go to local restaurants, cheer on the local sports teams, join a rec league team, attend the city council meetings, volunteer at a shelter or food pantry. Just be there! After a while, people will begin to ask you why you are so involved, and you’ll have a great platform to speak to them.

It started when God said, “Light up the darkness!” and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.

Are you engaging your culture? It’s time to go shine!

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Uncomfortably Quiet

July 26, 2010 — Craig T. Owens

Yesterday we dove into part two of our series The Stranglehold Of Worry by looking at anxiety. The medical dictionary defines anxiety as “worry compound by our own self-doubts about our ability to cope with worry.” Wow, talk about a double whammy!

You’re already worrying about something, and then you worry about what you’re worrying about!

Or for many people, anxiety boils down to worrying about what others are thinking about what you’re worrying about.

There’s a story in Luke 10 where Dr. Luke notices Martha’s anxiety. She is trying to be the best hostess she can for Jesus and His disciples, but it has gone beyond that. She is worrying about what Jesus thinks about her hospitality. She’s tied up in knots. What makes it even worse for Martha is that her sister (who was helping Martha get everything ready for the meal) is sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to Him speak.

Jesus tells Martha, “You are all worked up over trying to make a good impression. You are worried and upset. Look at Mary: she’s sitting quietly and listening to Me.”

Sitting quietly…

We don’t do that very well, do we? Our lives are bombarded with noise. In fact, when Jesus tells Martha she is worried, the Greek word means overly-busy. That’s how too many of us try to cope with worry, but the noise and busyness just lead to more anxiety.

We closed our service on Sunday in a very unusual, very uncomfortable way. We were silent. No music, no singing, no closing prayer. Just sitting silently at Jesus’ feet and listening to Him. It was uncomfortable but so beneficial.

Listen to King David:

I’ve cultivated a quiet heart. Like a baby content in its mother’s arms, my soul is a baby content.

It might be uncomfortable, but it is just what the Lover of your soul ordered. Find some time to switch off the radio, leave the mp3 player and cell phone behind, and get someplace where you can just sit quietly at Jesus’ feet and hear the loving words He has to say to you.

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