Trust is tough.

I sometimes go back and forth between trusting God blindly, knowing he has my best interests in mind, and then saying I trust him, but deep down I want Him to show me a sign that he’ll come through for me…to basically prove it.

Unfortunately, I think this is one of the biggest obstacles of faith. This idea of believing without seeing. The idea of trusting without knowing for sure. The idea of wholeheartedly trusting God that He knows best for us and has our best interests in mind.

There are areas in my life right now where I would love to see a sign, where I would love for God to prove to me that He is God. But truthfully, he shouldn’t have too. He is God. And even if He technically never did another thing “for” me, He is no less loving and He is no less God. Shouldn’t that be enough? Shouldn’t we be able to love and worship God solely for who He is and not how it personally affects us?

Let me expand on that. When Jesus went into the desert for 40 days, he was tempted 3 times by Satan. I believe Satan’s second test on Jesus will help illustrate my point. Let’s pick the story up in Matthew 4, verse 5…

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
“‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

You may be wondering how this plays into our biggest obstacle of faith. Satan, you see, wasn’t just testing Jesus to show how much power he had, he was asking Jesus to jump to prove that God would save him…that God did indeed loved Him. Satan tempted Jesus right where we all have this innate, fundamental human longing… the need to be loved. The desire to be cared for. But Jesus knew better and so can we. Jesus knew that God loved him and so there was no need for proof…He knew. Scripture confirmed what Jesus believed deep down. Without a shadow of a doubt Jesus fully, wholeheartedly just knew.

That’s why in our own lives, our faith in God shouldn’t be just about the signs that we see. I mean, if we are worshipping God just to see what we can get out of it, how genuine is that worship? We should have faith in Christ because he is worthy of it…He is worthy of our trust, our desires and our hearts. And there are a lot of reasons why we don’t see the “signs” when we want too.

For starters, our timing simply isn’t Gods timing…this is a tough one to grow comfortable with, but He will come through for us when the time is right. Also, sometimes we need to reach a place of absolute surrender…a place where we know that there is no other way out of a situation but through Gods movement. This is the hardest place to be but this is where growth happens…this is where trust grows. This is how our faith gets bigger.

And I think a funny thing happens when we reach a place of genuine trust and faith in God. When we reach that place that our worship and our desire to be with God is based purely on the fact that He alone is worthy and deserving of our devotion. And when we reach that place where we don’t need proof because we just know…

We’ll get our sign.

“A miracle will always happen on the other side of obedience.” ~Pete Wilson

Pete Wilson is pastor at Cross Point Church, author of Plan B (which I highly recommend), and blogger at WithoutWax.tv. His second book, Empty Promises, just released. Today I would like to give a quick review of the book and my thoughts on the topics.

Empty Promises is a great, practical book. It is relevant to everyone. We all have bought into the lies of this world about power, our desires, and even things that are inherently good. Pete gives a fresh, modern definition of the word idolatry: “When I look to something that does not have God’s power to give me what only God has the peer and authority to give.”

This book helps the reader give a self-assessment in many of the common areas where we tend to create idols and lets the reader know that they are not the only ones who struggle with creating idols. Pete offers many personal examples and examples from people close to him that help drive his points home. It’s also refreshing to read that a successful pastor of a large church isn’t perfect and isn’t ashamed to admit that he is human.

Some of the big idols that Pete covers in this book are: achievement, approval, power, money, and beauty to name a few. And if we are honest with ourselves, we all struggle with a few of those. At the end of it all, Pete points us back to the cross.

I would highly recommend this book. The truth is, we can’t begin to grow and cleanse ourselves if we aren’t aware of the areas in which we struggle. This book will help you come to grips with the idols that are in your life and then help you remedy them. This book isn’t meant to provide the deepest theological thoughts on my matters of our hearts. It’s meant to be a practical guide that levels the playing field by bringing to light that fact that we all struggle with idols, we all need grace…we all need God. But again, it all points back to Christ. If God becomes our focus, everything else fades away. Finding out what promises God has made to us is the best way to overcome the empty promises of this world.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Refresh. Renew. Repeat.

I started blogging just over 2 years ago.

Personally, I read tons of blogs a day. And I enjoy a lot of their content. But sometimes I wonder, “why did they start blogging?” I’m sure you have perhaps wondered that as well. So today, I would like to explain that. I would like to tell you why I blog.

My goals for blogging have not changed much, although over time I can say that they have become much more defined.

I have always so loved and appreciated the powerfully refreshing, revitalized, and transformational presence of God. The simple truth is, God’s presence, His love and His word changes lives.

And that’s what I want to share with you on this blog.

Life can be hard sometimes…actually it can be a lot of times. But there can be peace in our pain. There can be joy amidst our trials. We are not alone. No matter how hard life gets, God is with us.

As a worship leader, songwriter and blogger,  it is my heart to bring people to a place where they can experience God’s presence. I want this blog to be a part of that. I want to facilitate a place where people can be challenged but encouraged. A place where God’s Word can come alive in a fresh way and a place where, even in the storm, you can find peace and rest.

I hope that this blog can be a community where we can wrestle with tough questions and help each other out  along the way. I hope we can encourage one another to pursue God’s plans for our lives and live out our full potential as people. That’s a big reason why I wrote an e-book on finding out the vision for you life. (you can pick up a copy HERE)

I hope and pray that you find encouragement on this blog. I hope that this can be a place that you can be refreshed when life is not only great, but when it is really tough as well. I hope that we can build a community where you can share your thoughts safely, have meaningful conversations, and build friendships.

Thank for your support and continuing to come back and read my blog. You have blessed me greatly.

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” ~Psalm 139:23-24 NLT

This is such a great prayer to have in your life. Asking God to search your heart and help you change things that need to be fixed so that you can live a more pleasing life for the Lord. But a funny thing happens when you pray this prayer…you end up learning a whole lot about yourself.

The truth is, God already knows your heart. He knows everything about us. So when we pray for God to search our hearts, it’s actually more about helping us learn more about ourselves.

Ruth Haley Barton adds, “[this verse] may point to the fact that the real issue in self-examination is not that I am inviting God to know me (since he already does) but that I am inviting God to help me know me.”

I think that is so true. This relationship with Christ isn’t about letting God know more and more about ourselves…He created us. He already knows all there is to know about us. This relationship is about us getting to know ourselves better and then allowing the grace and spirit of God to help line us up to the character of God.

For the next few days (weeks and years) allow God to search you; but not so that he can know you more, but so that you can learn something about yourself, and through that, become more like Christ.

“If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, rolling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at sea. We are far too easily pleased.” ~C.S. Lewis

I think is an incredibly true quote. As I grow in my faith and start to understand the awesome grace that we have received from Christ, I am realizing just how far too easily we are pleased. Honestly, as Christians, I feel we settle for second best too often. We believe too many lies and pursue too many empty promises from the world about success, fulfillment, happiness, etc.

God makes some incredible promises to us and it’s up to us to truly believe Him. Do we really believe that God has something better for us than what the world can offer us? If your answer is yes, then it’s time to start knowing those promises, confessing them, and believing that they are real for your life.

No more settling for second best. It’s time to truly believe that promised of God are for us today and enjoy them.

Don’t be too easily pleased. Be picky in this area.

Only accept the best!

“When the need for hurry meets the desire for control, it becomes really easy to start worshipping someone and something other than our Creator God.” ~Pete Wilson

The need for hurry. The desire for control.

That kinda sounds like every one of us. We live in such a fast paced, quickaholic, want-it-now society that we have all, to a certain extent, become impatient people. We are always wanting to move on to the next thing on our list. And the desire for control is inside all of us. We all want to feel in control, powerful, and someone who has worth.

When you combine those two desires, however, is can be a tricky combination. This combination, as Pete said in the quote above, is the beginning of idols being formed in our lives. With all the distraction and busy-ness of today, it is so easy to let things take a higher place in our lives than God. We find worth in our work, our relationships, our titles, the car we drive, etc. But instead, we need to find our worth in Christ.

Today, be aware of the relationship that these two desires have in your life. Stop and think to see if you are starting to worship “things” and not Creator himself. Keep your desires in check and make sure they are honoring to the Lord.

Be still in Christ. Learn to slow down and rest in Him.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23

I have a question that I would like you to ponder…

Where does God stand in your life?

Is God at the center of your life? or at the top of your list?

I think there is a big difference.

When life starts to get busy (or maybe when I just start to get lazy) I start to compartmentalize sections of my life; and instead of allowing them to holistically flow through me, I start to have them be a part of a checklist.

My relationship with God is not immune to this.

Instead of God being the center of my life, the source from which all actions, thoughts, motives, etc. would flow, I now just try to have Him near the top of my “list” of things I need to do.

But there is no real passion in having God near the top of a list.

Wake up: check.

Eat Breakfast: check.

Quickly read my Bible and pray: check.

Leave for work: check.

When our relationship with God becomes just another agenda that we feel we need to fulfill, and then once we’ve fulfilled it we don’t need to pay attention to it any longer, it loses its power.

“In all your ways acknowledge Him…” Proverbs 3:6a

If God is just at the top of a list, He is not being acknowledged in all our ways. But when God is at the center of our lives, things are totally different. He becomes the source and everything flows from that. It is no longer an item that, once done, will be forgotten. It is something that is continually being used, referred to,and having our lives filter through it.

I know I need to continually check myself and make sure I keep God as the center, and not just near the top of my list.

How about you?

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ Matthew 22:37

Thank God for my relationship with Him, because I honestly don’t know how I would get through this life with His love, comfort, grace, peace, and joy. Being a child a God is a great place to be. We have access to unthinkable grace, unending love, unspeakable joy, and all the blessings of God. The only potential problem with being so blessed is our focus can get off of God and on what He gives us.

I have been thinking a lot lately about my love for Christ. I wonder if nothing ever went “right” for the rest of my life…would I still love God just the same? It’s easy to love God when you feel life is great and things are working out the way you think they should. But what happens when problems arise? What happens when God doesn’t come through the way we think He should?

Do we love God just as much?

Do we truly love God because He is God and totally worthy of our praise, or do we treat God as some cosmic vending machine and only love Him because of what we think He can give us?

“You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.” Revelation 4:11

I know that I needed this reminder to love God regardless of what I think He can do for me.

Seek His face and not just His hand.

This question is written on the wall at the Celtics workout facility. Quite a powerful question if you ask me.

This question applies to a lot more then just sports…Our focus is more than just to win championships. Life is going to be full of hard decisions. We have to decide how we are going to deal with what life throws our way. Scripture adds,

“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” ~Romans 5:3-4

It’s not easy to make the tough choices. It’s not easy to push through pain and suffering. It’s not easy to push through and not give up. There is a reason why it’s called the road less traveled, and why the road is narrow…it’s harder. But it’s harder on the front end.

God promises us a reward for our perseverance…

“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”  ~James 1:12

Going through trials and coming out the other side builds character, and going through life with the baggage of regret is no way to live. So I challenge you to think about the decisions that you’re currently facing and the circumstances that you are in. Use the promises of God from Scripture to inspire you not take the easy way out, to not give up, and to trust in God with your decisions even though they may be hard. Cause like the quote says:

“What hurts more, the pain of hard work or the pain of regret?”

“A man is often measured by the things he cannot control. He is measured by the number of beers he can drink or not drink, by the kind of car he drives and whether or not he’s at the bottom, middle, or top of the corporate ladder.He is measured by each of the numbers in his six-figure paycheck, by all the outside things that don’t ever add up to who he is on the inside.

And so if a man is to be measured, let him be measured by the things he can control, by who he is and who he is trying to become.Because as every man knows, measurements are only statistics and statistics lie.” ~Nike

Don’t live your life based on stereotypes and statistics. We are God’s masterpieces!

He created us completely unique and to live like we are all the same and that everyone fits into a certain category, is simply not true.

We are wonderfully individual. We are made in the likeness of a Creator that is unlike anything in existence!

Embrace how you are wired. Embrace your unique talents and abilities. Learn to be comfortable with your strengths. Know who you are in Christ. Don’t let the media, society, or celebrities tell you who you should be and statistically who you are.

You are you.

Thank God.

Don’t listen to the stats…how can you be more you today?