Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2022

Needing Answers for Unspeakable Evil

There Is One Response That Is Always Right

SYNOPSIS: In the wake of unspeakable evil perpetrated against innocent children, as we’ve witnessed in Uvalde, Texas, our broken hearts demand answers — an explanation for what defies explanation. But to those who would venture an explanation for the utterly senseless, the words H.L. Mencken stand as a sobering reminder, “Explanations exist; they have existed for all time; there is always a well-known solution to every human problem — neat, plausible, and wrong.” Yet while I don’t have an explanation, I do know of an action we can take in the aftermath of this, and any other horror we will witness or even experience in life: we can run to God.

Run To God // Psalm 9:9-10

God is a safe-house for the battered, a sanctuary during bad times. The moment you arrive, you relax; you’re never sorry you knocked.”

There is always a danger for preachers, pundits, and politicians to speak too soon in the aftermath of an unspeakable evil perpetrated upon innocent children, as we are sadly witnessing yet again, this time in Uvalde, Texas.

Yet our broken hearts demand answers—an explanation for what defies explanation. And there are plenty of people offering their opinion and suggesting fixes. But to those who would venture an explanation for the utterly senseless, the words H.L. Mencken stand as a sobering reminder,

Explanations exist; they have existed for all time; there is always a well-known solution to every human problem — neat, plausible, and wrong.

No — I don’t have an answer for the senseless tragedy in Uvalde anymore than you. But I do know of an action you and I can take in the aftermath of this, and any other horror we will witness or even experience in life. We can run to God. The psalmist wrote in Psalm 9:9-10

The Lord is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
Those who know your name trust in you, for you,
O Lord, do not abandon those who search for you.

I am so thankful that my trust is in the Lord. He is indeed a shelter and a refuge. Not that I have been kept from hardship and tragedy—neither have you. We have had our share—and will likely experience more in the future. As Jesus said, the rain falls on the just and unjust alike. The difference is, we know to Whom we can run when it’s raining: “God is a safe-house for the battered, a sanctuary during bad times. The moment you arrive, you relax; you’re never sorry you knocked.” (The Message)

One of the things I love most about the faith that I’ve placed in Jesus Christ as my Savior. Even when I or a loved one goes through the tragedy of terminal illness, relational heartbreak, economic disaster, or premature death—or even when I’m lamenting the slaughter of innocent children—I belong to a God who,

Will hold my hand — “I never will I leave you or forsake you.” (Heb 13:5)
Will fill my deepest emptiness — “God is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” (Psalm 34:18)
Will turn my tragedy to triumph — “In all things God works for the good.” (Rom 8:28)
Will turn my tears to joy and make everything —“He will wipe away every tear.” (Rev 21:4)

Even if life doesn’t turn out as we planned, God has not abandoned us. His record of faithfulness and goodness goes all the way back to the beginning. So determine now to trust him at all times, and when the tough times arrive, don’t abandon the only One who will never abandon you. As Joseph Bayly said,

Don’t forget in the darkness what you learned in the light.

Take A Moment: Join me in running to God today. And let’s lift up this current tragedy in prayer: Pray for the heartbroken families of Uvalde; pray that our political leaders will begin to work together to come up with courageous, workable, common-sense solutions to this issue; pray for the courts to enforce laws that already exist; pray for the spiritual awakening of our society that would aid the healing of the underlying issues of violence; pray, “even so, come Lord Jesus.”

Posted on Wednesday, May 25, 2022

The Conduit for Missions

The Most Compelling Expression of Jesus the World Will Ever See

SYNOPSIS: My ambition is to plant to plant a church within walking distance of every unreached village on the planet. Why? Because the local church is the hope of the world! So why would I say that? I mean, isn’t Jesus the hope of the world? Well, a church planted in a place—a city, a community, a village—is the most compelling expression of Jesus people will ever see.

Moments With God // Colossians 1:27

God has chosen to make known among the lost the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you the hope of glory.

In Colossians 1:27, Paul said that through the church,

“God has chosen to make known among the lost the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you …

In the Greek text of the New Testament, “you” is plural … Christ in the church, “the hope of glory.”

That’s why church planting is the primary passion of Petros Network.

In ten years, we’ve planted over six thousand churches that have preached the gospel to over five million people and have led over 1.1 million people to faith in Jesus.

And the testimonies coming from these churches are like what believers in the book of Acts experienced‚signs, wonders, miracles, even resurrections from the dead. Be sure to watch the video below to hear an incredible resurrection story that happened just a few months ago.

The local church—the collection of God’s people in a specific place—brings the hope of glory to the world because it’s the most compelling expression of God’s love, his grace, and his power.

It’s the conduit of healing, deliverance, restoration of marriages, reconciliation between people, and yes, even literal resurrections from the dead.

Petros Network’s mission is sending missionary church planters because that’s how Jesus becomes known among the unreached.

So I invite you to leverage your praying and your giving to help us plant the church within walking distance of every village on the planet!

You can save a soul and transform a village by sending an indigenous church planter today.

This is how we change the world.

Check out the different ways you can give today at petrosnetwork.org/donate.

Posted on Monday, May 23, 2022

Adult Beverages

It’s Always Better to Follow Christ than Culture

SYNOPSIS: It used to be, not more than a mere generation ago, that “thou shalt not drink alcohol” along with a few other inviolable “shalt not’s” was on a corollary set of Ten Commandments that my family and most other families in our brand of Christianity fiercely observed. These days it has gone so far the other way that you may be handed a brewski when you show up for your small group Bible study. Praise the Lord and pass the Coors Light!

Moments With God // Proverbs 20:1

Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.

So who’s right: our tee-totaling grandparents or the beer-swilling hipster Christians of this present generation?

How about somewhere right down the middle. In my humble opinion, the Bible doesn’t condemn the moderate consumption and enjoyment of alcohol (I read somewhere that Jesus once turned water into the best wine ever tasted by man), but it does give us some pretty clear guidance on the matter:

It comes down pretty hard on those who use alcohol in a way that leads to drunkenness: “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” (Eph 5:18)
It issues a clear admonition against alcohol’s mind-altering effects: “Whose heart is filled with anguish and sorrow? Who is always fighting and quarreling? Who is the man with bloodshot eyes and many wounds? It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new mixtures. Don’t let the sparkle and the smooth taste of strong wine deceive you. For in the end it bites like a poisonous serpent; it stings like an adder. You will see hallucinations and have delirium tremens, and you will say foolish, silly things that would embarrass you no end when sober. You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea, clinging to a swaying mast. And afterward, you will say, ‘I didn’t even know it when they beat me up…Let’s go and have another drink!’” (Prov. 23:29-35)
It strongly warns again the false bravado and the negative personality change often associated with drinking: “Wine makes you mean, beer makes you quarrelsome—a staggering drunk is not much fun.” (Prov. 20:1)
It prohibits the believer’s use of alcohol when it causes another believer to struggle in their faith: “Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak.” (1 Cor. 8:9)

As it relates to whether you should drink “adult beverages” or not, I would simply suggest that you consider the following:

First, consult what the “whole counsel of Scripture” has to say about drink, drinking, and drunkenness. There’s a lot there, by the way. When it comes to alcohol or any other questionable issue, let Scripture interpret Scripture as you form a Biblical opinion on the matter at hand.

Second, as a New Testament believer you have been set free from a long list of religious do’s and don’t’s. So don’t let any legalist draw you back into spiritual bondage. On the other hand, however, remember that just because God permits something doesn’t mean he will bless it.

Third, whenever there is an occasion where you will be offered a drink, ask yourself, “what would Jesus do in this situation?” Seriously, WWJD? I know that might sound hackneyed, but I truly believe it would be a good way to approach this whole matter.

Fourth, there is probably a very good reason why no one ever has said, “beer makes me a better Christian.” Nor has any ever said, “that guy’s drinking habits makes me want to follow Christ.” Maybe for that reason alone—for the health of our discipleship and our Christian witness—we ought to step away from the tap. Just saying!

But whether you and I agree on this matter or not, how about we extend each other a little grace? Or a lot!

Take A Moment: Develop your own theology of strong drink. Go through the Bible and read every passage that teaches about the consumption of alcohol, and write out a position statement summarizing your understanding of what God says about the matter. Then, if you don’t mind, send it to me. I’m curious what you found.

Posted on Friday, May 20, 2022

Identify Your Area of Selective Sluggardliness

The Danger of 9-Out-Of-10 Thinking

SYNOPSIS: When it comes to areas of personal growth in your life, perhaps you feel that you’re doing well in nine-out-of-ten areas. And that is pretty good. But that nine-out-of-ten mentality has been the undoing of so many. It’s what we might call, “selective sluggardliness”. To neglect even the little, hidden, seemingly inconsequential areas of undeveloped and unredeemed moral fiber is to commit malpractice in life’s most important work—the development of our character.

Moments With God // Proverbs 6:6

You lazy fool, look at an ant. Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two. Nobody has to tell it what to do.

“The first and best victory is to conquer self.” That’s according to the Greek philosopher Plato. He was right, of course! Unfortunately, however, far too many people are on a serious losing streak when it comes it comes to self-mastery.

But that’s not you, right? Since you are reading this, chances are you are doing it for personal improvement, self-discipline, and spiritual growth. You have taken the time and made the effort to read and reflect on how you might better align your character with God’s design for your life. That’s not to say you are perfect, but in nine out of ten areas, you’re doing pretty well, if you don’t say so yourself.

But hold on, my friend. It’s your inattention to that tenth area that very well may be the difference between God’s abundance or wasted potential in your life, between living a life of great faith and being an also-ran in the race of life, between hearing “well done, faithful one” and depart from me, I never knew you” on that day you stand before the Almighty.

It’s that nine-out-of-ten mentality that has been the undoing of so many. It is what we might call, “selective sluggardliness”. To neglect even the little, hidden, seemingly inconsequential areas of undeveloped and unredeemed moral fiber is to commit malpractice in life’s most important work—the development of our character.

That’s why Solomon says in Proverbs 6:6 (The Message), “You lazy fool, look at an ant. Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two. Nobody has to tell it what to do.” What does the ant teach us?

The ant needs no outside motivation—it just follows its God-given, built-in, intrinsic motivation to do what needs to be done.
The ant just instinctively knows what to do—and so do you.
The ant, like Nike, just does it.

Okay, you’re doing great in nine out of ten areas. Pat yourself on the back and have a party. And once you’re done, tackle that tenth area. Don’t stop until you master it. Believe me, you won’t regret it.

Take A Moment: Talk to a trusted friend about this nine-out-of-ten idea and ask him or her if they see an area of neglect in your life. Then allow them to hold you accountable for growth in that area.

Posted on Monday, May 16, 2022

Conditional Forgiveness

What Jesus Really Said About It

SYNOPSIS: Many assume that Jesus commands his followers to blindly forgive, freely forget whatever offense might have occurred, and unconditionally reconcile even with those who show no signs of remorse for what they have done to hurt or offend us. That is not what Jesus said…

Moments With God // Luke 17:3

If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive.

There are two extremes when it comes to forgiveness: On the one hand, we fail to practice it far too often. We conveniently and creatively bypass Scripture’s teaching on this matter so easily that it must grieve the Father’s heart. And this unwillingness to extend forgiveness is such a huge problem in the family of God today, since Jesus tied our forgiveness of others to the Father’s forgiveness of us:

If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matt. 5:14-15, NLT)

An unfortunately large number of “believers” will be surprised when they stand before the Great Forgiver and he informs them that the pardon of transgressions they hoped for had been held up because of their own unwillingness to let go of anger, bitterness, resentment, and hurt long enough to extend the hand of reconciliation to someone who had offended them. Jesus is pretty clear about the matter: IF you don’t forgive others, THEN God can’t forgive you! Don’t miss the dependent relationship between being forgiven and offering forgiveness.

On the other hand, we fail to properly understand forgiveness far too often. That is an extreme as well. Many assume that Jesus is commanding his followers to blindly forgive, freely forget whatever offense might have occurred and unconditionally reconcile even with those who show no signs of remorse for what they have done to hurt or offend us. That is not what Jesus said.

Did you notice another very big condition that Jesus attached to this forgiveness directive? “If” a brother sins, “then” when there is repentance, forgive him. We need to be ready to forgive, willing to forgive, generous in forgiving—even if it is seven times for the same thing in the same day, we are called to forgive offenses (Luke 17:4, NLT)—but only if there is repentance.

God himself doesn’t dole out forgiveness unconditionally. He is willing to, but his hands are tied if the offender doesn’t acknowledge their sin, feel authentic contrition in their heart, and offer the fruit of repentance (a change of mind and a change of direction) in their behavior. (Matthew 3:8, NLT, Acts 2:38, NLT)

To forgive, forget and reconcile with an unrepentant person is to go beyond what God himself does. Now in that, there is yet another extreme into which Christians can fall: withholding forgiveness until proper repentance is expressed for every little thing that rubs them the wrong way. My advice to you, if you are guilty of that is to immediately stop being ridiculous. Not everything that gets under your skin falls into the category of a moral offense—so grow some thicker skin and exercise a lot of grace, my friend!

Jesus is calling his followers to a balanced understanding and a generous commitment to the practice of forgiveness. It is the lifeblood of his kingdom, and when it flows rightly and freely from your life, it is your calling card into the throne room of your gracious and forgiving Father.

Take A Moment:I > Is there someone you need to forgive? I think you know what to do!

Posted on Friday, May 13, 2022

Sweet Poison

Find Your Satisfaction God’s Way

SYNOPSIS: When we ignore God’s promise to fully satisfy our sexual desires through a loving, life-long, and faithful relationship with the person to whom we are married, we will end up elevating the world’s false promise of sensual satisfaction to god-like status—at our own peril. Apart from God’s design for human sexuality, sexual gratification is what C.S. Lewis referred to as the “sweet poison of the false infinite.” It is nothing more than a “substitute sacred”—a surrogate we desperately use to fill the emptiness of our dissatisfied lives, but never can. In reality, only the one true Sacred can do that! St. Augustine said it well, “Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire, and try desperately to fulfill it without God…All these good things, and all our security, are rightly found only and completely in him.”

Moments With God // Proverbs 5:5

The seductive woman is dancing down the primrose path to Death; she’s headed straight for Hell and taking you with her. (The Message)

“Sex, sex, sex!” Have you noticed how our culture worships sexual gratification—sexual fulfillment achieved with anyone, any time and in any way you want? My guess is that any alien who landed on Planet Earth to research our species would have to conclude one thing just from the 250 million pornographic links from the 1.3 million porn sites that are available on the Internet.

No doubt about it: sex is god of the human race.

The book of Proverbs warns us repeatedly that when we ignore God’s promise to fully satisfy our sexual desires through a loving, life-long, and faithful relationship with the person to whom we are married, we will end up elevating the world’s promise of sensual satisfaction to god-like status—at our own peril. You see, money, power, fame, relationships, possessions, and sex—especially sex—are what C.S. Lewis referred to as the “sweet poison of the false infinite.”

We might call them “substitute sacreds”—the surrogates we desperately use to fill the emptiness of our dissatisfied lives. In reality, however, no substitute sacred ever fulfills what it so brazenly promises. Only the one true Sacred can do that! St. Augustine said,

“Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire or longing or ambition and try desperately to fulfill it without God…All these good things, and all our security, are rightly found only and completely in him.”

God longs for us to come to him with the needs of our soul so he can graciously and abundantly and unendingly satisfy our deepest longings and most powerful passions—in his way and in his time. As Augustine said, God has created us for himself, and we will only find satisfaction when we find our satisfaction in him. Again, that includes our sexual needs fulfilled according to God’s design.

Annie Dillard tells of an experiment in which entomologists enticed male butterflies with a painted cardboard replica larger and more enticing than the females of their species. These male butterflies would repeatedly and eagerly mount the colorful cardboard cutout to mate with it, while nearby, the real, living female butterfly enticingly opened and closed her wings in vain.

Friend, the real, living God is near, longing to cover you in the shadow of his wings, where he will provide for you soul-satisfaction in every dimension of your being—even the sexual. Why settle for a substitute sacred when the real Divine awaits!

Take A Moment: Make a conscious effort today to identify all the substitute sacreds along your path. My guess is that you’ll probably lose count before the day is out since there will be so many. Each time you are enticed with money, sex, or power, stop and give thanks to God that he has instead given you eternal wealth, true satisfaction, and spiritual authority—far more gratifying than the sweet poison of these false infinites.

Posted on Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Lost People Matter

Let God Dislocate Your Heart With His Love For The Lost

SYNOPSIS: Every time you look into the eyes of another person, you’re seeing a soul God so loves that He sent his Son to die for them. So if lost people matter to a missionary God that much, then crossing borders—the street, the railroad tracks, the ocean—to reach them with his love must become our driving mission as well. Now that will require the realignment of our priorities, it will take our focus, and it will demand our sacrifice, but it will be worth it because it will put us squarely on mission with God.

“The spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions. The nearer we get to Him, the more intensely missionary we become.”

So if getting more intensely missionary means getting closer to Jesus, and if getting closer to Jesus requires getting more intensely missionary, then sign me up!

How about you?

But that’s easier said than done. You see, if you’re like me, your fallen nature is self-centered. We focus on ourselves … we put our wants, our needs, our preferences ahead of everything else.

So being on mission with God requires the realignment of our priorities and sacrifice and focus. It requires fierce conviction that becomes our driving force for being fully on mission.

Bottom Line: Lost people matter to God, so they must matter to us, as well!

Click below to hear an inspiring story of a woman in East Africa who has given her live to take the Good News of Jesus to her own people.

I invite you to partner with me today to tell the whole world about Jesus, one unreached village at a time.

Did you know that when you partner with Petros Network it only costs $3600 to plant a thriving reproducing church in a difficult, hard-to-reach place through an indigenous missionary?

Check out the different ways you can give today and join me in being intensely missionary at petrosnetwork.org/donate.