Scuttlebutt

You may question what is scuttlebutt? if you haven’t been around people who have spent time in the Service then you might think “Now he’s just making up words now” but in reality, it stands for water cooler gossip. Our churches tend to be a hotbed of gossip, we are told to be an example and to allow Christ to shine thru us, but if we are being honest there are times we only shoe others the worst side of us. it’s our natural instinct to want to share our own thoughts and create conversation by using anything that comes to mind. I myself have struggled with this one as well, I shoot my mouth off without even realizing it. This scuttlebutt needs to be dealt with, otherwise, when we finally reach that new person and get them into the front doors, you will see them eyeing the Exit before Service has even started. by that point no matter how good the Worship is, or how good a sermon the pastor had that week. it will all have been for not. I know of very few people who are willing to remain in a place where they know there’s a risk of scuttlebutt being spread about them. Ok, enough noting the issues what about a solution? Well, you are that solution, yes you. we’ve all heard the Famous forest fires quote “only you can prevent forest fires” and it’s true. but it’s the same for scuttlebutt. when we share the scuttlebutt we add fuel to the fire. so if you catch yourself spreading scuttlebutt, explain to who you just shared with that not only should you have stopped yourself from sharing but explain why to direct them to this post if you have to. but try to start putting out those fires rather than adding fuel, and slowly your attitude will spread like a healthy disease and you will see the happiness in your church begin to rise.

-Chris-

 

Image Copyright of CBS

Return to Duty

Returning to duty is never easy, no one will tell you when given the option to go or say that it was an easy decision. at least no one with a sane mind. but there will be times that we will need to take a moment and step back and say I need a breather and while we do need those times getting back into the fight and returning to the front lines can hinder many.

there is a saying among many ministers that once someone steps down from leadership there is a fifty-fifty chance of losing them or never returning to ministry again. after relaxing and not having the stress and daily battles it can be easy to fall into the laziness of not having responsibility. while it may seem like a burden was lifted from our shoulders, someone else either has to pick up that burden or in some church’s no one is willing to take up the gauntlet and the ministry fades away. losing those that the ministry would have impacted.

Don’t lose heart, its never too late to pick up a gauntlet, it may seem that the flame of hope has gone out but once you pick it up you realize that in gods plan there will always be a flame it may be small flicking, ready to go out but God will provide the fuel to your flame, your passion, your hearts and you will never lose hope, because the surge of Gods power will flow thru you to use you in ways never imagined before. don’t stand off in the distance instruction others how you would have done it. get back to the front lines and do it be the one willing to lead the way, start the charge and purse got in a whole new way.

 

-Chris-

Image: Public Domain.

Battlefronts

It’s one thing to go to war and fight in some dusty village that you’re defending from an enemy who seems to disregard human life as if it were some object. This object has the worth that of a vase that once broken is to be tossed aside as trash is. While I would like to dive deeper into this idea I will hold off until later.

I would like to look into the battlefront that is discovered when we return to our homes. You discover an unexpected war being ranged in your own home. This war has consumed not only you but your whole family it seems. What do we do? What can we do? Just as any professional soldier will tell you, start by holding your ground and laying down fire, by that I mean find someplace you can go and get on your knees and come to God in prayer. A prayer like none other, pour yourself out to God, don’t be afraid to share your frustrations or even from time to time yell asking God “why?”

Next set security or secure your position to prevent yourself from being overrun by a surprise attack of the enemy. By this I am talking about having honest open talks with your family, ensure the lines of communication are clear, you may not like what you hear but it is important that it is known. Bottles frustrations and anger will find its way out either thru dialogue or action, both of which if not done properly may lead to disastrous outcomes in the future. Your work may be one battlefront but you home runs the same risk of being the next war zone. Attacks will come to your home but it’s up to you to decide how much of a foothold you will allow satan in your own backyard.

-Chris-

Image: U.S. Marines and soldiers set up a security area for a C-130J Super Hercules aircraft during an Emerald Warrior 2015 airdrop mission at Marianna Municipal Airport, Fla., April 22, 2015. The Marines are air traffic controllers assigned to Marine Air Control Squadron 1, and the soldiers are air traffic controllers assigned to the 58th Aviation Regiment. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jamal D. Sutter

Reinforcements Needed!!!

The battles we face are as unending as staring into the distance, we finish one battle only to start the next one. but as Christians we don’t seem to back each other up, we don’t reinforce each other. When our brothers in arms feel as if they are being overrun, do we grab our gear and run to reinforce them to back them up or do we just grab the comms and inform them what they should have done to hold back the enemy?

More and more in our world today we feel that the most we need to do are spout a word of encouragement and some advice then return to our lives. while there are a time and place for us to only give that word of encouragement. what is truly needed is for us to be willing to get into the trenches with them to share the pain, to share the burden. That is what it means to be a Christian and to have a relationship with Christ.

Take this time to Pray for those you know and pray that God gives you the Strength to face today’s Battle. Don’t be afraid to Request Reinforcements, it is not a sign if being weak, it’s a sign if Wisdom, of knowing when you could fall into the trap of giving in and giving up and your willingness to open up to your battle buddy. but also be ready to Step UP and charge forward when you recognize the Call for Reinforcements coming from someone, you will make a difference in someone’s life, a difference that could change the World Someday all because you were willing to get into the Fight!

-Chris-

Image – Band of Brothers the HBO Miniseries

Wearing Armor in the Digital Age (Notes From Potomac District Pow wow 2015)

-This would be my notes from speaking at the Potomac District Pow wow in 2015-

Ephesians 6:12      New International Version (NIV)

12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Our fight is not against human beings. It is against Satan. It is against the spiritual forces of evil in the world.

We live in an Instinatanius society, we can pass information instantly over the web, we can live stream Video directly to whom we want, or we can send it to a select few people.

We work to see how much faster we can download, how much faster we can complete the required chores so that we may return to having fun, that we tend to forget to take the time out of our day to hear from God.

Let us look at the tools we have

Facebook, we can add anyone we ever met and stay up to date on their lives, but when we see something wrong do we take a stand and pray for them and talk with them, or do we ignore them

Instagram, daily snapshots into the lives of our close friends, are w channeling God or ourselves?

These are just a few of the choices we are offered in today’s World are we using these tools to reach others for Christ or not?

Armor was never created to hide behind but was created to allow us to fight all the harder, and allow us to withstand the enemy’s attack’s

You cannot win a battle using only a shield, you must use a sword!

Just as Christ’s light and hope were never to be hidden in our lives but to be shown so that ALL may see that light.

Spiritual warfare was declared thousands of years ago but we tend to pretend that this warfare doesn’t exist today

But in reality the war is more relevant now than ever, the enemy knows that his time is running short of how long he will be able to grab more souls and is throwing everything he has at us right now.

Will we cower before the enemy? Or will we stand during the most difficult times and fight until our last breath knowing that Gods armor will not only protect us but the holy spirit will help us survive and win even was seems to be the hardest battle that has come.

Don’t be discouraged, more battles are sure to come but we know a God who is greater, who is more powerful, who is loving who will stand right beside us every step of the way.

So remember to use the tools we have,

Use the armor for its intended use not just the shield,

And fight the battles that come with confidence.

-Chris-

Image- Potomac District Pow wow Patch

http://www.potomacag.org/Royal-Rangers

Pain

Regretting what you have said, wishing they could have been taken back.

Your childhood memories cause only pain.

You would do anything to fix what was lost no matter what the cost would be.

All you want to do some days is a scream from the pain in your heart.

But after the screams, the pain still remains.

You begin to lose sight of what is around you distancing yourself from everyone around you.

Believing that somewhere it was your fault that caused this to happen to you and you begin to feel the sole responsibility for what has happened.

But someone is reaching out their hand to you, wanting to save you from the darkness that is consuming you.

Regret follows you, there seems to be no escape.

Even tho it Cost him his life.

He wants to be your friend, he wants you to get to know him more.

His name is Jesus Christ.

-Chris-

Image : Copyright  2015  47th New Mexico Regiment – Honor Guard, Inc

http://www.militaryfuneralhonors.org/

Faith When the Shells Hit

Artillery is a powerful Piece of Equipment When used properly it can Hinder if not route an uncommitted enemy. when focused with multiple you can create a firestorm of lead and pure power raining down. but what happens when we are under fire, by what seems to be an unrelenting enemy. how committed are we to follow Christ? are we willing to follow the orders and Hold the ground? when satan’s firestorm is raining down on us and it seems that there is no way we will survive if things continue the way they are. we ask ourselves why would God allow us to be here? in what way could any of this help us or our faith? the truth is, its Because he loves us we are in the midst of these battles. you may be questioning, “What?”. but think it thru, Only a true Danger, one that could change us forever, requires true honest Faith. when we abandon our fears and go to war in prayer, expecting not hoping for an answer. this then allows God to stretch us and prepare us to be used for the greater things to come. will we remain at our Battle Stations with our Battle Buddy, or will we be the uncommitted men falling back the second it looks unwinnable?

-Chris B.-

Photo Courtesy of :

Soldiers of the Sandston-based Battery A, 1st Battalion, 111th Field Artillery Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team conduct a live-fire exercise at Fort Pickett, Va., March 2, 2013. The live-fire exercise was part of the unit’s section certifications and training for an external evaluation in 2014. (Photo by Sgt. JoAnna Greene, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs) – See more at: http://vaguard.dodlive.mil/2013/03/07/3132/#sthash.lT9Z26aj.dpuf

Floor Meeting Devotion

Today’s going to be a little different than normal, no military reference just straight truth from a devotion I gave last night for our Dorms Floor Meeting and thought I would share.

In John 15:4-8 we must ask ourselves What/who the Vineyard is. For that is Jesus because he is the one whom we must go thru. Then we must ask What/Who the Branches are? Well, that would be us, it is our job to provide fruit thru our works.

Then you must ask who/what is the Fruit? For the fruit resembles our obedience to Jesus in completing what he has asked or commanded us to do.

How does this apply to us? Let’s take an apple tree for instance since I have more experience with them than vines.

When you plant an apple tree and you get to the first harvest of the very first apples it produces. It becomes very important that you pick those apples and not leave them. Why? Because if you were to leave them when the fruit would fall to the ground and begin to biodegrade, the seeds would enter the soil all around the apple tree. Therefore forcing the original tree to compete and risk the trees from choking each other of nutrient and none would then produce fruit worthy of being picked.

For us, while we love to receive from God we must allow him to harvest the fruits of our labors so that we may grow and produce bigger and more abundance of fruit. Likewise, we must allow him to prune the branches in our lives those branches can be our Pride, our passions, our insecurity’s, or our Addictions.

Take a survey of your life what is not producing fruit?

We must ask and allow God to enter our lives but not stop there as we grow in god ask him to take the branches that hold you back and to burn them for if you allow the branches to remain they will eventually choke your walk with god preventing him from fulfilling his plan in your life.

Do so with URGENCY! Get up Don’t Wait

-Chris-

Verses In Mind Today –  John 15:4-8 NIV

Image By Aramissabekyan (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Strategically Bold

Strategy, a key factor in every war from the American Revolution to the Iraqi war. To win you have to be cunning, Bold, Willing to take risks. If you play it safe you will never win. You will lose ground. Because the enemy is cunning, he will try and use your very faults against you and try to throw them in your face. In this unending war, we bust we willing to face the enemy with every drop of sweat and blood.

We must be willing to risk it all to reach someone, now whether that means putting yourself in an uncomfortable situation or taking a step back and reviewing your current situation. Notice we need to remember strategic, not overzealous if we go overboard and just charge straight in we will find ourselves in a bit of a predicament and may have possibly played into the enemy’s hands. We must be smart in how we act how we move and not conform to the world and become Strategically Bold for Christ

-Chris-

Image rights See page for author [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledge Orders

The great commission or the calling God has given each of us. To reach the lost. We must understand that this is not an option we were given but in order to be carried out. Just as a soldier is given orders by his lieutenant to follow, he not only gives the order but takes the time to explain the orders and show them where/ what to do. likewise, we must understand our orders in order to follow them in everything we do. We must take into account what we are doing each day every day and how it affects God’s marching orders given to us. Everything we are doing needs to be glorifying God. Whether it be heading out to the mailboxes or mowing the grass.

Our actions should be used as opportunity’s to reach our neighbor’s, passersby. Am I saying we need to chase down each car that passes by our driveway? No. your actions should be showing Christ’s love. But we become complacent with ourselves, we see no change around us and begin to loosen the smile on our faces showing no emotion. We need to become active and take charge of the calling don’t wait to assume that someone else is called to reach that person.

You must begin sowing the seeds into their hearts before someone else can lead them to Christ down the road. Let us not be Christian’s who acknowledge God only on Sundays. We must take the commission seriously and purse them in everything that we do. In fact, when we are taken up into heaven we will be held accountable for the times we had an opportunity to reach others and didn’t. We must make every effort to follow the orders we have received from God. Don’t be saddened by this though, if you wonder about the past and what decisions you have made I tell you now. Look ahead, see the fields let us begin anew today and begin working the fields with a new pep in out step wishing to work the land more and more.

-Chris-

Verses In Mind Today –  Mt 28:16–20, Mk 16:15–18 NIV

By No 5 Army Film & Photographic Unit, Wilkes (Sgt) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons