Life In The Snow Globe

One of the most vivid childhood memories I have is that of receiving a snow globe while I was sick with the measles. I was sick, really sick. They say I almost went blind. I remember the pain, the itching, the scratching, the fever. I was only about eight years old. My dad came home from work one day and brought me a snow globe. I was intrigued by it. It was a scene with a little house, a fence, and a small child sledding in the yard. Every time I would shake it, it would snow. I wanted to crawl inside and live there.

Life in the snow globe.

Peace. Serenity. Comfort. Protection.

Nothing goes wrong in the snow globe.

No matter how good we have it, the snow globe is better.

No sickness. No poverty. No crime.

There's only one thing wrong. It's not real. Duh!, right?

Well the non-realistic element is exactly what attracts us, especially when things get hectic.

It's also the place we can be where we are in charge.

It's what we really want you know. To be in charge. To control.

C'mon, be honest. Some are saying right now, "That's simply not true! I am not a control freak, I do not want to run the show!"

Being in control doesn't mean you have the characteristics of a control freak. You could be a closet controller. That's the category most probably fall into. 

I think it's perfectly normal. If you want to live a sensory oriented life.

We are not intended by God to live according to the flesh. We are called to live according to the Spirit.

We are not called to live normally. We are called to live supernaturally.

Supernatural should be the norm for the Body of Christ.

Romans 8:1 (Amplified Bible) - "THEREFORE, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit."

There it is. It's not exactly a snow globe, but it offers one really great quality that removes a lot of the anxiety of life.

We are not condemned in our sins when we are in Jesus Christ. We move from one spiritual realm to another.

We move from spiritual death to spiritual life. 

Even for the Christian sometimes, it's not good enough. They still feel the need to have control over that as well.

To those I say, take your snow globe and smash it to the ground. Break it open. Destroy it.

It is death to you.

In the spiritual realm the snow globe is the flesh.

Crucify it as all ways of the flesh needs to be.

Here's the passage I live by more than any other. It's actually tattooed to my forearm.

Galatians 2:20 (Amplified Bible) - "I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me."

Most people who know me longer than an hour generally find that out about me, lol!

I gave up control to Christ long ago. For me I could care less who meets and remembers me. I want them to meet me and remember Jesus. I no longer exist, but Christ exists in me.

My snow globe had a crack in it. It wasn't doing the trick anymore. When I couldn't control my addictions any longer I knew I had to do something.

Jesus was and remains the answer.

Run it all past Him first.

Be blessed today!

My prayer is that I hear the sound of snow globes breaking everywhere today. Start with yours. It's not real. It's a facade. If you think you are really in control of your life you are living a lie. You deserve to live the Truth. You deserve all the supernatural benefits that come along with the Truth. Jesus loves you today, and so do I!

Keepin' it real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

Moving Forward

There's a term that is getting worn out fast.

"Moving Forward".

There is some truth attached to it though. Particularly as it applies to the New Testament believer.

It compliments "never go backward".

I hate when people go backward.

2 Peter 2:20-22 (AMP) 20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through [the full, personal] knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they again become entangled in them and are overcome, their last condition is worse [for them] than the first. 21 For never to have obtained a [full, personal] knowledge of the way of righteousness would have been better for them than, having obtained [such knowledge], to turn back from the holy commandment which was [verbally] delivered to them. 22 There has befallen them the thing spoken of in the true proverb, The dog turns back to his own vomit, and, The sow is washed only to wallow again in the mire.

I can understand the errors, the mistakes, even the sins. 

What I cannot understand is going back to what didn't work in the first place.

It's like the devil laughing and saying, "Thought you got away did you?"

Peter says it would have been better you had never known the right way then to have known it and turned away from it.

How can a person return to that big ol' pile of steaming vomit, which was their old wrong way, and be able to say, "Well, here I am again."

Moving backward.

Oops. Wait, it's moving forward isn't it?

Believers are ALWAYS moving forward.

IF your following the One who never goes backwards.

Jesus says, "Follow Me", after all. 

Oh, how the canyons of hell must echo with cackling delight of countless minions of Satan.

Nothing delights Old Scratch more than failure.

Amidst the sulphuric aroma there is the lingering fragrance of failure. "Smell that?", Satan bellows. " I love the smell of failure in the morning!"

I trust you're "Moving Forward" today. 

If you should pass a brother or sister going in the opposite direction, would you turn them around and point them to the right Way?

Keepin' it Real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

Leakers

You can't keep a leaky bucket filled.

Neither can you inflate a basketball with a hole in it.

Some people are the same way. I call them "Leakers".

I don't think any of us make it through this life without getting a few holes punched in us.

The difference is if we are willing, or even capable, of being patched up.

Therein lies the rub. Also the difference.

Chronic leakers cannot (or will not) be consoled. Consoled is another word for "patched up".

Leakers won't let you or Jesus. Perhaps the leak rate is too fast. They are like a sieve. The minute one leak is sprung, before you can get to it to patch it, another one erupts. Then another. And another. And... well you can picture it.

I don't think it's so much that any more happens to them than anyone else on the average, but rather how they handle what does happen to them. Even the most insignificant or inconsequential difficulty becomes a mountain when the consolation of Christ is not getting through. The most minor of problems can run their train right off the rails.

"Oh, but pastor...you don't know what I'm...". Uh...yeah, I do.

Leakers.

This is why Paul appears to be so adamant in Philippians 2:1-2 (Amplified Bible). Stay with me on this, it's awesome!

Philippians 2:1 -  "SO BY whatever [appeal to you there is in our mutual dwelling in Christ, by whatever] strengthening and consoling and encouraging [our relationship] in Him [affords], by whatever persuasive incentive there is in love, by whatever participation in the [Holy] Spirit [we share], and by whatever depth of affection and compassionate sympathy, (2) Fill up and complete my joy by living in harmony and being of the same mind and one in purpose, having the same love, being in full accord and of one harmonious mind and intention."

Paul is admonishing us to "fill up" in joy. Allowing ourselves to be filled (same mind and purpose). To be filled we have to stop the leak. Stopping the leak means to be consoled.

Strengthened. Consoled. Encouraged. By the brethren who mutually dwell in Christ along with you!

Participation. Harmony. Incentive. Affection. Compassion. Sympathy. Joy. Intention. Love.

What a bunch of great "buzz" words!

It's all the stuff the leakers avoid or don't subscribe to. They choose instead to bleed out all over the place, and replenishment never comes because they won't be CONSOLED (patched).

I know that "WON'T" sounds so obstinate and harsh. Well, it is at times just that, but sometimes it's ignorance, habit, or tradition. Melancholia, moroseness, gloominess, and depression (which is anger turned inward), are also culprits. Hey, at the end of the day, it's all selfishness preventing Christ from doing His work.

Junkies don't get well until they want to. Drunks don't get sober until they want to. Nothing in this world is strong enough to battle your free will! Jesus won't even attempt it. In the gospels, those who didn't receive were those who didn't believe.

You cannot be filled if you continue to leak.

Step outside your problems today. Put them where they belong, on the back burner.

Allow this word from me to you today to be your consolation, your "patch job". It's not me really. It's Christ. It's always Christ.

Be comforted and know that it will be ok. It will get better. 

If you do not need to be comforted today, then be a comforter to someone who does.

It's all got to get past Jesus first!

Keepin' it real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

*Blink*

Being a Christan is not cutting yourself off from real life; It is entering into it more fully.

This is one of those quotes that make you blink once or twice when you read it.

Well, maybe depending on how you were introduced, or "inducted" into the Christian faith.

If you were raised in a home where "keep holy the sabbath day" for example, meant not even reading a newspaper, let alone watching tv or playing with your friends, then the above quote might pose a problem.

I'm not particularly knocking that attempt at personal holiness, as I know some folks practice that sort of thing out of deep conviction toward what they think the bible and Jesus and the saints expect them to do.

However, my personal realization is that for me it is nothing more than a shallow attempt at religiously keeping the Law, which I have been freed from. I rank it up there with thinking that the Sabbath day has to be on Sunday. *blink*

Someone just blinked on that one.

I find less restraint, less bondage, in Christ than I ever had from the world. (should be lots of applause here)

I found it through the teachings of Jesus.

For example:

Matt. 15:7-11 - (7) "You pretenders (hypocrites)! Admirably and truly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said: (8) These people draw near Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far away from Me."

Bland religious observation. *blink*

(9) "Uselessly do they worship Me, for they teach as doctrines the commands of men."

We often find ourselves adhering to the doctrines of men rather than the teachings of Jesus. Jesus says that is "useless". *blink*

(10) "And Jesus called the people to Him and said to them, Listen and grasp and comprehend this." 

*lot's of mass crowd blinking*

(11) "It is not what goes into the mouth of a man that makes him unclean and defiled, but what comes out of the mouth; this makes a man unclean and defiles [him]."

*blink* *blink* *blink*...

Jesus goes on to expand on that truth by basically explaining that it is the condition of the heart that determines the holiness or unrighteousness of a person.

Not religious actions or activity.  *blink*

Good and pure things come from a good and purified heart. 

Not washing your hands before eating is not a crime. Neither is failing to utter a religious mantra before eating. *blink*

Picking a grain of wheat off of a stalk on the Sabbath is not a crime according to Jesus.

Neither is reading a newspaper, having the family over for a big dinner and some whiffle ball in the backyard, or taking a nap. *blink*

Mark 2:24, 27 - "And the Pharisees said to Him, Look! Why are they doing what is not permitted or lawful on the Sabbath?" *gasp*

(27) "And Jesus said to them, The Sabbath was made on account and for the sake of man, not man for the Sabbath." *blink*, and maybe even some associated *gasps*, and perhaps a few hearty "harumphs".

Sometimes I wonder if we don't suffer from some sort of Religious Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (ROCD). *blink*

That means we do things repetitively, over and over and over again, because we THINK we are pleasing God. Yet all the time they have become so routine that they simply have lost all meaning and do nothing to honor and glorify God.

I hope you're getting my drift today. 

We do this in our personal spirituality. We do this at church when we routinely "do" anything.

Is it any wonder that the salt (us) loses its effectiveness?

By the way. Blinking is a good thing.

I hope I made you do it.

1 Corinthians 10:31 - "So then, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you may do, do all for the honor and glory of God."

There it is! Right there! The freedom is in doing it all for Him!

Run it all past Jesus today!

Keepin' it Real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

One

One. Not so lonely as the song says.

A unity of factions. A bringing together under Christ.

Galatians 3:28 (AMP) - There is [now no distinction] neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

In Christ we are distinguished in Him, not who we were previously. 

All races, classes, and sexes are one in Christ and equal in rights and privileges regarding gospel benefits. They make one body with Christ as the head (1Cor. 12:13,28-31; Eph. 1:20-23; 2:19-22; Col. 3:11). The gulf between Jews and Gentiles, masters and slaves, male and female has been bridged by Christ and the gospel. 

This is the beauty of what Jesus has accomplished and why it's simply all about Him.

Be blessed!

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

The Mountain

It looms large. It overshadows everything in your life. Even when you're not thinking about it you're thinking about it. It's there when you go to sleep and it's waiting for you when you wake up.

It's the one dominant issue amidst all of your other issues.

It's a mountain. It's Goliath. It's the gorilla in the room.

It has to be removed. 

I could write a laundry list of what that mountain is for many people.  I don't want to go down the path of money woes, relationship difficulties, addictions, chronic illness, etc. Those are all very real, but I have to say, if you're pretty far down the road in serving Jesus and haven't conquered that stuff yet, then there might be greater issues that you need to deal with first.

I'm talking about the struggles of the wilderness. The awakening from the slumber of the religious status quo and seeing for the first time that everything has been for the most part...well...just plain wrong. It's a dry and uncomfortable place to be. 

The problem, the actual "mountain" is not what you've been "operating" in for perhaps years, but what to do about it.

That's the MOUNTAIN, and it's really big.

I've confronted the mountain so let me give you a bit of advice from one who has tried every failed method.

You cannot: climb over it, go through it, go around it. You cannot decorate it and make it look nice, you cannot live with it. It never becomes comfortable. If it is not conquered, it will conquer you. Eventually it will fall on you and bury you.

Jesus addressed it thoroughly.

Mark 11:23 (AMP) - "Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him."

What do you think He was talking about on the heels of cursing a fig tree which represented the spiritual failure of Israel?  He looked for fruit on a tree that was barren. It was useless.

The barren fig tree was as useless as a believer who is stuck in the shadow of the mountain of gospel ineffectiveness.

There is only one way. It must be uprooted. It must go away. It must be removed. 

Only when we can get out from under dry religious exercise and begin to react and respond to the gospel according to the authority that Jesus has given us, will we ever truly BE the Church of Kingdom Authority.

If your mountain is looming over you today, it is time to respond. How long are you willing to live in its shadow while Kingdom living seems to become more distant?

Are you the believer who has the signs following you? Or are you doomed to be one who will always be chasing the signs?

Keepin' it Real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com

Holy

The believer in Christ should be action minded. We should look at the situation around us with a sober mind, all the while knowing that Christ is revealed and is revealing heaven to us.

1 Peter 1:13 (ESV) - "Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

When we trap ourselves in the negative former mindset we will never see a way out of it. We will always be looking "for" revival, but never living "in" revival. We will always see ourselves as the sinner and not the saved.

1 Peter 1:14 (ESV) - "As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance."

This verse says it all. Peter knew a little bit about being trapped by his own ignorance. He never had a clue until the Holy Spirit burned it into him in the Upper Room.

The blank and vacant faces staring back at the preacher on Sunday morning often sum it up. 

The former ignorance sometimes is not so "former". Sometimes it is very presently in the now. It's also not very passionate. It's dull and listless. Quite unbecoming.

If we are going to be obedient children then we will be preparing our minds and not just trying to get through life.

"Just getting through" life is not living. It is just waiting to die.

1 Peter 1:15-16 (ESV) - "(15) ...but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, (16) since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”

 Not should, but SHALL. Not becoming, but BE.

If you are waiting around to become more holy, it's not going to happen. You can't get more holy than the imparted righteousness you have in the indwelling Christ and Holy Spirit. You are either holy or you are not.

If you are a born-again, Spirit-filled believer than you ARE holy! 

Be what you actually are.

It doesn't mean that you are a robot. Paul as well as Peter has made it clear that we need to conform our minds to what has been done in our spirit. This is why these verses all work together.

The conformed mind to the will of God is a prepared mind. A prepared mind makes it possible to be obedient to God. An obedient child to God is a holy child by every understanding of what God has called us to be.

Start looking at yourself in the same way God looks at you. Stop living in your past. 

You are no longer anything like you used to be. Start living as the person God says you are.

Keepin' it Real,

Pastor Kevin <><

www.reallifect.com