“We can’t really tell how crooked our thinking is until we line it up with the straight edge of Scripture.” Elisabeth Elliot
Take up your cross. Love those who are hard to love anyways. Forgive others or your Father won’t forgive you. Be okay when people insult you. Do it right…every time. If you want to be perfect, sell everything and give it away.
Jesus said those words, not me. Pretty tough stuff, right? Yet, the reality is that Jesus knew who He was talking to in each case; and, it was exactly what they needed to hear if they wanted to find life today, tomorrow and on into eternity.
Jesus tells it to us straight, out of love. It is the only way to set us free from what hinders us from becoming more like Him.
I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced this, but there have been times when I’ve shut my Bible or didn’t even open it because I didn’t want to hear what I knew I was about to read.
Yet, to grow closer to Jesus, I needed those tough words spoken to me so He could expose what was in the way of my loving Him.
Jesus says what needs to be said in a loving and appropriate manner, even when the words are tough. It’s the only way to live in freedom. If you are not hearing those types of words from time to time, you’re probably listening to the wrong god.

Lying to yourself hurts you the most.
One symbol in this picture stands for being honest with oneself. The other tries to hide behind an unworkable ideal where one can live anyway they want.
In the upper left hand corner is a cross. Jesus says by looking to Him when He was on the cross, one would find salvation. This act of dying, which would lead to a resurrection, would prove that He is God; and, the only One who can give life real and lasting meaning and fulfillment.
The one in the lower right is the anarchist symbol, which stands for “no gods, no masters”. However nice the sound of living free of outward authority might be, it doesn’t work in the real world.
Scripture repeatedly exposes the reality of this philosophy – personal and societal chaos. Read Romans 1 or the end of Judges. See the types of behaviors that result when there is no higher authority than humanity itself.
Nature abhors a vacuum. Someone or something will always fill that authority vacuum – you or someone else.
Please remember two truths here. One, you, I and the rest of humanity are broken. And two, government is broken people making broken decisions, no matter how noble their ideals may sound.
A better life and a better society start with being honest with ourselves. You and I reek at being our own authority. If you have not yet grasped this truth, be patient. You will. Need help? Read the history of mankind.
Jesus submitted to a higher authority – His Father. He only did and said what His Father said. Yes, this led to His death. But that was not the end of the story. He rose again!
Only Jesus can bring dead things, like your personal life, career, marriage, family, city, country, etc., to life again.
If you claim to be a Jesus follower, be honest with yourself. Are you submitting to Jesus’ authority in your life? Be honest. Before you say or do anything, are you listening to Him first and then doing what He says?
Want change? It starts with being honest with yourself.

The conscience can go off at the most inopportune time!
There are times in the Scriptures when we walk with God; and at other times, we run with Him.
Both imply one thing. We’re making progress toward becoming like Jesus; even if, at times, it’s at a slower pace.
What impedes this progress? What we allow to roll around in our heads. If we fall down, which means no forward movement, it is because we chose not to do what He said to do. And then, a wonderful thing happens, our conscience starts pinging like crazy!
Wonderful? Yup. This pinging is God’s way of getting our attention to come to Him, ask His forgiveness; and then, grab His hand up to begin walking or running with Him again. It’s that simple.
We make it hard by ignoring the pinging. We do this, more than likely, because we feel like we don’t have the right to get up so quickly.
You’re right. You don’t. Yet, Jesus made it possible based on what He already did.
The hardest (because we don’t deserve it) simplicity (He made it easy to get up), then is making progress to quickly turn back to Him once you fall rather stay down in your drug of choice.
Yes, the conscience can go off at any time. In Christ, however, you have the ability to turn it off…quickly…through turning back to Jesus.

It’s a man-made problem that man cannot solve.
It all started in the garden with Adam and Eve. They messed up big time. Where did they turn? Themselves. End result? They created an even bigger mess.
The Scriptures are full of such examples. When we choose to solve life our way, we leave messes behind – some bigger than others. And, when we try to cleanup those messes our way, we only make a messy situation messier.
Why? Because we are still handling the situation our way all over again, just differently!
The sooner we turn to Jesus, who is the Way to handle life because He is Life, for answers, the sooner the messes can be turned into fertilizer for rose bushes. End result? Beautiful aromatic roses.
Search the Scriptures, not social media. Seek Jesus, not the experts. Stink or sweetness, it’s your choice.

“God does not give us everything we want, but He does lead us along the best and straightest paths to Himself.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer
On the one hand, Jesus forgave all our sins on the cross. On the other hand, we are to ask forgiveness for our sins. How can all be forgiven; and yet, we are to constantly ask for it be true at the same time?
Think of muddy feet. If you have bathed and are wearing clean clothes, you don’t need to take a shower or change clothes when you return home.
As you go about your day wearing sandals, though, your feet can become pretty grimy depending on where you walked. Upon returning home, if you want that fresh feeling to return, you only have to wash your feet.
If you’ve ever worn sandals, you know exactly what I’m talking about. You’re clean; and yet, you feel uncomfortable at the same time.
Jesus bathes those who put their faith in Him as Lord. We are forgiven at the cross, period. But, can we feel estranged or like something is just not right? Yes.
When you start to feel this way, simply ask the Spirit to show you if there is sin in your life that needs to be washed away/forgiven. Why? Sin causes us to be separated from Him, the source of freshness.
Don’t start down a guilt trip. Simply acknowledge (confess) what the Spirit shows you, ask forgiveness, and whala, the mud is gone. The refreshed feeling returns.
Be sensitive to that grimy feeling. Let Jesus wash it away! Stay refreshed.