42

It’s the rare movie that makes me want to write. 

 

I just saw 42, the story of Jackie Robinson, and a range of emotions were aroused in me.   

Branch Richey, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, played by Harrison Ford, was awe-inspiring.  Where are the men like that these days?  Men who have an innate sense of right vs. wrong, a love for people, and a love for God.  He was a hard-core cigar smoker, wheeler-dealer, take-no-prisoners, will do anything to win baseball team owner…but he did it right. 

Come on, I just want to ask again…where are these guys today?   

Jackie Robinson, played by Chadwick Boseman was real-life.  The background story was the overt racial discrimation that sadly characterized our country in the post-WWII years, but the real story for me was the quality of man he was.   

Yes, he was torn up inside by the hate that came from white men, but he realized that his anger would cause him to lose…not just in a game, but in life.  It was Branch who helped him to realize that boys (yes, even white boys) looked up to him as a hero.  What he did on the field and off was watched by every young boy who loved baseball, and Jackie understood that it was a great responsibility that he had to be a role model not just for the boys, but for men as well. 

What a brave man he was. 

How's Your Marriage?

The numbers about marriage are pretty horrendous.  Like, about 50% of all marriages end in divorce...and of those who stay married, a very large percentage are emotionally divorced.  It doesn't need to be so.  My marriage was ready for the divorce courts once upon a time.  But then we both got healed by God.  Today we've been married 37 years, and there was a time that most people would not have bet on it making it five years.  I love being married to my wife!  She's my favorite person.  But it didn't used to be that way.  Take a look at this video if you need help in your marriage.
http://www.cbn.com/tv/2163968075001

Trusting God In A Loss

This is one of the most powerful things I have ever seen on Christian TV, and I encourage you to watch this 12 minute segment from the 700 Club if you are or have ever gone through loss, regardless of the type of loss.  May God use this to bring comfort to you.  Click on this link, then click on Session 1 http://www.cbn.com/700club/features/voiceofhope/

Oh, the lives we touch

Just read an article I really liked by NY Jets reporter Kristian Dyer about "sources" saying that Tim Tebow will bolt from the Jets if he's not used as a starter this season.  You can read it here:  http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/09/13/dyer-the-tebow-we-know-wouldnt-ask-for-a-trade/ 

It's not often that the focus of sports reporting is about the character of the man.  But that's what Tebow has become known for...not what he is, but who he is.  Here's what I consider to be the best paragraph in the article-

"Sources are sources, and they can be right and they can be wrong, but when speculating on a player like Tebow, there’s more to take into account then just what happens on the field. The impact of this man isn’t measured in snaps, passes completed and touchdowns. No, Tebow will weigh his years on this earth by the lives he’s touched, and no source anywhere can know just how much that means to him."

Oh, that this is what could be said about every one of us...that our lives were measured by the lives we touched.

Healing from Blindness

There is a passage in John 12:37-40 that has troubled me for years, but recently I believe that God has given me understanding from His Word regarding it.  Here’s the passage from the English Standard Version:

Though he had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in him, ³⁸ so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

       “Lord, who has believed what he heard from us,

and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

³⁹ Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

⁴⁰    “He has blinded their eyes

and hardened their heart,

       lest they see with their eyes,

and understand with their heart, and turn,

and I would heal them.”   

I have not understood why God would blind the eyes and harden the hearts of people so that they would not believe, and therefore could not be healed.  This means that some people would not receive the benefits of believing (salvation, and all that it encompasses) because HE had blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts.   

This is the sort of passage that skeptics use and ask the question “what sort of God is this anyway?”  and adding “I don’t want to believe in a God that would blind people to so-called truth.” 

But look at verse 42a: Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him.   

Apparently, many did believe, and if you read through the entire book of John, you see that multitudes believed.  So who is Isaiah and John writing of here?  Exactly who is it that could not or would not believe? 

I believe it to be those who are proud.  It is people who have raised their own intellect and their own viewpoint to the level that it is their own god.  In that day, those who were proud were the Pharisees, who were in power in the Jewish religion.

In John 9, Jesus healed a man who was born blind, but the Pharisees were so proud that they were blinded and unable to see the manifest power of God through this miraculous work.   Here’s what Jesus said regarding them:  “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” (verse 39) 

I believe that this same pride remains at a number of levels, especially in Western society.  It continues to remain in religious circles as it did in the time that Jesus was on Earth.  It also is more prevalent than ever throughout educated people who have bought into thought birthed in the Industrial Revolution and that has grown throughout the age of technology.  Intellect and reason has been placed on the throne of our lives. 

But what I believe God asks of us is intellectual honesty.  If your decision rests that there is no God because you have studied it out for yourself, including the study of the Bible and other Christian apologetic materials, then so be it.  But if your decision comes as a result of prejudice, then my friend, you are mired in pride.  You would know that it is prejudiced if your belief system has been formed  through lectures, conversations, books and magazines that only those who believe as you do have used. Or worse yet, you believe what you do because someone you respect convinced you to do so.  That sort of belief system lacks integrity.  This includes many who consider themselves Christian.

Here is the fundamental reason that a blind person remains blind.  It is found in James 4:6, and repeated in a number of places throughout Scripture:  “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 

Friend, if you have the disease of pride, the first step in being free of it is to come to God with humility and confess it to Him.  May you be able to see the Lord Jesus in all His glory, and be healed.  That is my prayer for you.

A Declaration of Dependence

Today as we celebrate our independence as a nation, I want to celebrate my dependence on God.

Jesus told me that I can do nothing without Him.  (John 15:5)  But He also told me that we will do works greater than those He did, if we believe.  (John 14:12)

He has told me that there’s a secret place where I can find protection from all the things of life that paralyze others with fear—those who don’t believe Him. (Psalm 91)

He has told me that as I am dependent on Him, He will exalt me.  (James 4:10)

He has told me that as I diligently seek Him, He will reward me.  (Hebrews 12:6)

So I make a declaration of my dependence on the Creator, Yahweh, the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords, the First and the Last.  I am finite, You are Forever, and I humbly believe that you are who you say you are.  (John 14:6)

The Integrity of a Man (or Woman)

While at a School of Pastoral Nurture last week, we listened to a presentation from the CFO of Church on the Way.  He talked about the quality of integrity in the servants of the Lord, and told a story or two to illustrate.

Near the end of the presentation, one of the pastors had a confession to make.  He told us that during the previous evening he had “nicked” a certain parked car while trying to parallel park his own car in front of the house we were meeting in.  While listening to the CFO’s presentation, he was convicted that he needed to confess what he had done, and hidden.  He told us all what he had done. 

I thank God that this pastor responded to the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and obediently confessed before his group of brothers.  What this showed me was that his heart is tender towards the Lord.  While he should have revealed the “nick” at the time of the occurrence, his posture of humility and obedience to God would not let him continue to hide the infraction, as minor as it may be.

A hard heart hides the “nicks.”  A tender heart is moved easily by the Spirit of the Lord, and makes amends.

God wants us to live a holy life.  He wants us to have nothing holding on to us that our flesh or the enemy can use to bring shame to ourselves or to the cause of Christ.  He wants us to be free. 

How wonderful it is to live free!

My Nigerian Friend

Hello Friends,  I so want to show you photos of our goings-around Yosemite and the Bay Area, and tell you about his home town that he told me about.   But I’m not going to because I want to protect my friend.  In our church, we have missionaries in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and we write little about them online for the same reasons.  Their names and location need to be withheld for their protection from those who would want to bring harm to them and their families.

So you want to know my main take away from two weeks of living with a pastor from Nigeria?  Pray about everything.  The first time I met him, last year, I asked him how he got the money to buy a plane ticket, knowing that it cost him roughly six months income.  His reply:  “I prayed and asked God for it, I believed for it, and by God’s grace it came in.”  For him, everything is “by God’s grace.”

Lord, my prayer is that by God’s grace, I will enter into that place of prayer that hears, sees, and receives…to your glory.

You do not have because you do not ask.  You ask, and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.  (James 4:2b-3, NKJV)

The Helper

Jesus said in John 16:7 “It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.”

Well, Jesus did go away.  He’s no longer in the Earth.  He’s in Heaven.  But he sent the Helper, aka The Holy Spirit.  It is the Helper who is God in the Earth today.  If you want to know what he is like, pay attention to what Jesus said one of his names was.  The Helper. 

What do you need help with?  I can think of lots that I need help with.  But the main thing that the Helper gives us, I believe, is the ability to live for God, to love God, and to love others.  I know that left to myself, I have no desire to do any of those.  But when I look to The Helper and ask for a fresh fill-up, he never says no.

He delights to fill us up.  It is only in the fullness of the Spirit that we can honor and glorify God.  And from that full-ness comes the full-fill-ment that makes life exciting and productive.

That’s the sort of help worth living for.  Everything else I think I need help with just sort of fades in importance.

Even His Prayers Are Detestable

The dictionary defines the word detestable as an adjective that means abominable, hateful.  The root word, detest, is a verb which means to feel abhorrence of; hate; dislike intensely. 

I’ve had people ask the question before, “Does God hear everyone’s prayers?”  I believe the answer is no.  Take a look at this:  Proverbs 28:9 says that “If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.”  That is saying that if a person turns a deaf ear to the law of God, then God turns a deaf ear to their prayers.

Now, you may be saying, “but we don’t live under the law any more.  We live under grace.  We aren’t obligated to God’s laws any longer.”  Really?  Which one no longer applies to you and me?  The Bible says the law is written on our hearts.  We know God’s laws deep inside, whether we want to obey them or not.

There is so much to this subject of prayer, and I don’t hold myself up as an authority, but certain things in the Bible point us to the correct path.  1 John 5:14-15 says “This is the assurance we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.”

What is God’s will?  It’s in His Word.  If you know His Word, you know His will…even the things that are not specified in His Word you will know and have understanding of…if you know His Word.  And then you can pray according to His will.

I wonder if that Proverbs verse applies to nations.  What do you think?

Trapped

Have you ever felt trapped?  I know I have.

I was thinking about how we can be trapped by our enemy, and you know, the Bible has plenty to say about that.

Think about a bear trap.  The trap is set by the hunter to snare an unsuspecting bear that happens to be passing by, usually on a familiar path.  The trap is covered by brush and leaves, so it is hidden from the bear’s eyesight.   The bear steps on the trap and suddenly, the iron jaws crush into the skin, muscle tissue, and bone, usually causing a fracture resulting in much pain and blood.  The bear is trapped, chained to the ground, and unable to free itself.  Hours later, the hunter comes to shoot the bear dead.

That’s a picture of you and me when we have been ensnared by sin.  Although the bear is unsuspecting of anything hidden that will take away its freedom, we know of the traps that are set for us.  And the trap that is set for me may be different from the one set for you.  The problem is that the traps that are set for us become hidden, just like the bear trap is hidden. 

How does it become hidden?  Have you ever found yourself thinking about sinning?  The idea is in your mind, and you are drawn to do it.  It feels good to think about it.  You begin to calculate and formulate the way you can actually experience the thrill of it, without being caught.  At some point, the deception that you can do it and not get caught clouds your thinking, and you can no longer see the trap.  The hunter has you exactly where he wants you.

This is what has happened to the financial officer who extorts money from his employer, thinking he’s smart enough to not get caught.  This is what has happened to the coach who sexually molests children, enjoying the sinful pleasure to the max, but giving no thought to getting caught.  This is what has happened to the man who meets up with the other woman, believing that he won’t be found out by his wife.

There is a word that is found numerous times in the Bible that gives us God’s plan for living victoriously over sin, and that word is flee. 

1 Corinthians 6:18 says “Flee sexual immorality.”

1 Timothy 6:11 says “flee these things,” and these things refer to the desire to get rich and the love of money.

You see, there’s a number of things we need to flee.  You know what it is for you, and I know what it is for me.  How do you do that?

You take flight in the direction of God, which is away from the hunter.

James 4:7 tells us how to make the enemy (the hunter) flee.  “Therefore, submit to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”  How do you submit to God?  You obey His Word.  You follow Jesus.  You follow His commandment of love.  Proud people are unwilling to do that.  But those who have come to an end of themselves gladly submit to God.  You lean into God, and that is resisting the devil. 

Watch him flee.

That bear trap is set for you, my friend.  And the hunter waits to come and shoot you dead.  But you can outsmart the one who comes to kill, steal, and destroy by following the One who wrote the Manual on How to Not Become the Prey.

All Pro Football Players Go To Heaven

I had a conversation with a friend the other day about how there are so many Christian football players.  I asked him, "how do you know they're Christians?"  He responded something about how they point up in the air when they make a touchdown or make a great play.  I asked him, "Don't you think that some of those guys are pointing with their index finger straight up because they're saying "We're number 1?"  He insisted that when a football player points up while in the end zone they are Heaven-bound.

OK.  So the NFL all goes to Heaven.  Or at least the receivers do.  And the quarterbacks.

But check it out,  I found a defensive lineman who is Heaven-bound!!  And I'll be darned, he's a 49er.  Patrick Willis.   He is regarded by many as the best inside linebacker in the business.  Watch number 52 this Saturday as he leads the assault on Drew Brees.

You can watch a TV segment on him right now.  Click this link for a quick overview of who he is. http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/mp4/SB81v1_WS

Now when I watched this, the thought occurred to me about why football players pray....and what they pray for and about.  I don't think they are asking God to help them win the game.  I think they are thanking God for the strong body and mind He gave them to be able to play the game, and for the unbelievable opportunity to play professional football....and they're telling God that in all they do, lose or win, they want to glorify Him.

Perhaps that's a good word for you and me in our professional....and non-professional lives.  Ya think?

3:16

You've got to love all the Tebow-trash talk!
But let's check out some stats from last weekend's game between the Broncos and the Steelers.  What a game!

Tebow, whose favorite Bible verse is John 3:16

• passed for a season-high 316 yards in the game
• set an NFL record of 31.6 yards per completion
• AND the CBS audience rating for the game was 31.6!
• Add to that, 3:16 was the #1 search on Google on Monday!

Source:  USA Today, Washington Post, and CBN News
Come on you doubting trash-talkers!  Of course you say all that is just meaningless coincidental football stats.  Sure you do.

When Tebow was in college, he would write "John 3:16" on his eye black.  (Today the NCAA has outlawed that.)  He also used to write "Phil" under one eye, and "4:13" under the other eye.  In case you're wondering what that means...let me tell you.  It stands for Philippians 4:13, from the Bible.  That verse says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Here's the Bible verse that is John 3:16, Tebow's favorite:  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

In case you're one who Googled 3:16, you read that verse, but you still don't get it, let me break it down for you.  The reason that Tebow loves this verse is that it shows you the way to Heaven.  God loves you so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to take away your sins.  God never wanted you to die in your sins and go to Hell, so He made the way for you to live eternally with Him.  He says in this verse that if you will just believe in Him (Jesus), you will not go to Hell, but to Heaven.

So what do you do with that?  If you will believe what is written in John 3:16, you simply pray, and ask God to forgive you for the wrong you have done (sin), that you are turning away from that lifestyle, and that you believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and that God raised Him from the dead.  Then thank God for what He has just done for you.

Tebow has been quoted as saying that God's plan for his life is to be a positive role model for kids through football.  How do you think he's doing?

If you've prayed the John 3:16 prayer, please let me know, and I'll send you a Bible and some info to help you get to know Jesus. (free)

"She's dead."

It was Christmas Day.  Our daughters, their husbands, and our brand-new granddaughter (our first!) had enjoyed a tamale dinner cooked by my awesome wife…and now we were sitting in the living room opening presents. 

The phone rings.  Anita answers.  The look on her face is not the sort of look one has when a loved one calls to wish Merry Christmas.  She closes her eyes, leans forward, and says “oh-nooo.” 

I knew it was my dad.  I had been expecting this call, because I had returned just a few days before from my last visit to Wells, Nevada to see my dad and stepmother.  Esther was in the last stages of liver cancer, and my 80 year-old dad was doing his best to be her caregiver.  His brief announcement on the phone Christmas Day is the title of this post.

I have known her since I was 14, when my dad divorced my mom to marry Esther.  To say this second marriage was rocky is an understatement.  But there is one thing that would cause the strife-meter to go off the charts, and that was merely the mention of God in her presence, whether by my dad or anyone else.  Any discussion about God was strictly off-limits, or there would be Hell to pay, for my dad.

But that’s not the end of the story.

There was a moment, while drowning in the sea of depression, after the diagnosis and the doctor’s pronouncement of only months to live that the idea of ending it all now seemed like the best way out to Esther.  The pain-killing drugs offered the vehicle to make that happen.  But it didn’t work.

She was taken to the place where staff watches over those who might do harm to themselves, and upon my dad’s first visit to her in that place, he says the heretofore unthinkable thing, the thing that he had trained himself to avoid.  He said, “Why don’t you just give it up to God?”  Her response:  “Tell me what I need to do.”

Miraculous.

My dad told me that he led Esther in a prayer to receive the Lord Jesus into her life that very moment.  And there was a night and day difference in her countenance and in her words.

He was precise in the prayer too, which is no surprise to me.  He told me that the prayer included asking forgiveness of her sins, her belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and His resurrection from the dead. 

Later, she thanked my dad for praying with her…and thanked him for who he was.  If you knew Esther, you would be overwhelmed at that, as I was.

When I saw her a couple of weeks ago, it was during a very brief awake moment on her deathbed.  I took her hand and greeted her, and there was a softness and sweetness I had never seen in her before.

I am sorry that she died the horrible death she did.  I’m also sorry that she had to see death’s door before she was frightened enough of what was on the other side that she finally fell to her knees before the Author of Life.  But I’m thankful for the peace that my dad has, knowing that she is in Heaven.

What A Great Game!

Hey, did you see the game today between the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots?  This is the first game I've been able to watch Tebow in action, so I was disappointed they lost, of course.  I was reading a sports columnist online, and they attributed the game win to Tom Brady's power.  As great a quarterback as Brady is, I don't think so.  I think the reason the Broncos lost is they turned the ball over three times.  Hello!  Had it not been for those mistakes, the game may have had a very different outcome.

But it was a great game to watch.  Brady is so cool, and just throws the ball with laser accuracy.  But Tebow, wow, you can see why Bronco fans are so excited!  That dude can pass for sure, but man, he can run!  I loved watching him scramble away from the blitz over and over, and the way he would just run up the field when he saw a lane.  That's exciting football.  Yeah the score is important, but I love to watch exciting and talented players.

I especially love to watch them when I know they have faith in Jesus.  Tebow just happens to be one who does, AND one who can really play the game.  I discovered him on a 700 Club interview, and I believe that he's the real deal.  If you want to watch that interview, I blogged the link a while back.

I found this picture today, and it blessed me.  It's Tim Tebow (15) doing some after-game prayer with teammates and opponents.  Why do they do that?  I think it's to glorify God.  Tell me you don't think that sports figures who glorify God in their lives don't make an impact! 

The Handshake

Where have the sports figures gone who recognize and understand that much of male America, and some female, idolize them and look up to them as role models?  Is that just history? 

Fortunately, it is not.  There are still men and women who play professional sports who know that their behavior and speech on and off the field is followed by millions of people, and it is their deepest desire to affect those millions positively.  Tim Tebow, the Denver Broncos quarterback is one such man.  If you have just a few minutes, take a look at who this guy is, and the values that guide his life.  http://www.cbn.com/media/player/index.aspx?s=/mp4/SB101v2a_web_WS 

A Healthy Mind

There’s a story in the Bible in Proverbs 7:6-23 about a young man who met a married woman who was on the prowl for a man to spend the night with, since her husband was out of town on business, and she wanted to have some fun.  This young man is described as “lacking judgment.”  Why?  In the story, the woman enticed him with seducing words, telling him of how she had looked for him and had now found him, how she had covered her bed with fine imported linens and had perfumed it, making it just right for a night of hot sex, and best of all “my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey.”  In other words, we can do it all night long, and we won’t get caught!  But look at this:  verse 21 says “with persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk.” 

This young man lacked judgment in that he hung around to listen to her.  He made a choice to listen to those titillating words that tickled his ego, and as “a deer stepping into a noose,” he made the mistake that so many men make, and he allowed himself to be taken by the amours of a strange woman.

This is a story that is so familiar to many of us, including me.  So many of us have listened to the wrong voice.  We have done it as a choice.  You and I choose what we are going to listen to, as well as what we are going to look at with our eyes.

Paul the Apostle wrote “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”  This means a decision must be made on your part regarding which voice you are going to listen to.  You can continue to listen to that voice that drives you to sin with your body and your mind, taking you deeper and deeper into depression and anxiety, or you can choose today, right now, to listen to the voice of your conscience, which is God-given, and walk away from that voice, and give place to the Voice that gives life.  Choose today who you will serve.

Simply put, in order to walk away from that voice that brings death, you must give yourself to the Word of Life, otherwise known as the Bible.  That means to read it, study it, memorize it, and think about it.  (Romans 12:1-2)

Abortion

I double-dog dare you to watch this video.  How open minded are you?  REALLY?  Watch this and find out.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y2KsU_dhwI&noredirect=1

Why Go To Church?

This isn't an origional from me....I found it...but it's really good.  Help yourself.

Why go to Church?

If you're spiritually alive, you're going to love this!
If you're spiritually dead, you won't want to read it.
If you're spiritually curious, there is still hope!


Why Go To Church?


A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I've gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."


This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column,

much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:


"I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this.. They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!" When you are DOWN to nothing...God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!

The Behavior of a Christian

Lots of us Christians struggle in our lives, finding it difficult to conform our behavior to what we read a Christian is to be as detailed in the Bible.  I think the struggle is particularly fierce in the teen and young adult years.

But think about this.  The way you live through your personal struggle, whatever it may be, either shows those around you the glory of God, or it shows hypocrisy….therefore reinforcing the non-believer’s arsenal of reasons not to trust Jesus.  Ouch.

I, personally, failed miserably for years in my lifestyle testimony and I shudder to think of how many I may have turned away from the narrow path that leads to eternal life.  I just have to trust that God is much bigger than my personal failures in people’s lives, and that the goodness of God will eventually work and draw them to repentance, for those He is calling, and for those who have tender hearts and minds.

How can we live a life of faith and exhibit behavior that is Christ-like?  I know of only one way.  There are many “Christian” books and teachers out there who give encouraging methods to help you walk the walk, and I think most of them boil down to positive thinking.  But they all fail.  You can stay up nights working to re-program your mind so that you live the way you know you should live.  But if you are attempting to work your way to a holy life, my friend, you are doomed to failure.  I love what Jesus told us, that His burden is easy, it is light.  Man’s methods are cumbersome and heavy, but the Lord’s way is tender and merciful….it is not a struggle.

So follow the way of the Lord, and simply ask the Holy Spirit to give you the strength to live as Jesus lived when He was on the Earth.  This is not a one-time asking.  It is a daily cycle of seeking, repentance, forgiveness, and infilling.  It is the path to a life of purity, power, and passion.  (Romans 8:12-14; 12:9-21)