John 3:16 says "For God SO LOVED the world that He gave His only Son Jesus..."

Notice that it doesn't just say "God loved the world..." it says "God SO loved the world". His immeasurable love for us motivated Him to give His only Son to save us and make the way back to relationship with Him. The ultimate price paid in ultimate Love.

Never forget that the reason God gave His Son to save us all was Love. And that's precisely what we are instructed to give others... His Love.

God is love. As God's children we are called to be walking, talking, living signposts of His Love.

Only Jesus... He is all I need. He is my Alpha and Omega. If I lose all else and keep only Jesus - I have everything. He is the missing peace to the broken puzzle of this world... 

"Be still and know that I AM God..."

 
In the storm - He is God.
In the calm - He is God.
In the most terrible loss - He is God. In the greatest triumph - He is God.
In the sadness of death - He is God. In the grand parade of life - He is God. In the coldest loneliness - He is God. In the countless bustling throng - He is God.
Nothing at all can change or assault who He is.
This is why He is called... The Great I AM.
He is all things and in all things He remains God.
Immovable, Invincible, Indescribable.

Stay awesome guys because we have a truly awe inspiring God :) 

Hey, so it's Monday morning here and it's a dreary, wet, cold winters day. I woke up feeling less than great after doing landscaping and moving 2 tonnes of roadbase on the weekend on top of having one of those really annoying colds that just wont seem to go away. Adding to that I've had a stack of stuff on my mind and haven't been getting great sleep. So I dragged myself out of bed to get to work feeling pretty lifeless and started praying while I was driving asking God to help me restore my focus and give me the strength to get through today. While I was praying this song came on my car stereo "Lights of Day - Shine like the Morning"... Now you might have already picked up that I'm a skater and obviously grew up in the 90's so that makes me a huge sucker for anything with a techno beat, electric guitar and loads of synth - but more importantly anything that's gonna make some noise for my King Jesus. Well this song had it in spades and needless to say that song got cranked so loud all the mirrors in the car were buzzing like it was a level 5 earthquake.


At first I didn't feel like singing along but I learnt a long time ago it's not about how you feel - it's about Jesus - so I was screaming out lines like a rockstar for my King in no time. Why am I saying this? Because in the Bible in Acts 16 two guys called Paul and Silas were locked up in a prison and they too were feeling pretty sorry for themselves and the circumstances around them. But instead of sitting there moping in silence they started to raise their voice and sing about God and who He is. These guys didn't need a subwoofer to shake the room because God sent an actual earthquake that split open the entire prison resulting in a hardened jail keeper and his entire family coming to know God and His love. Can I encourage you that if today looks bleak - don't look at the storm clouds, look at the Master of the Storms. Look to Jesus and make some noise! It doesn't matter if it sounds pitch perfect or is even on time - just start making some noise for the King and things will change. King David also knew this and was given a gift of the Holy Spirit to change atmospheres with the music he played.


Here's the cool part, that same Spirit was poured out on all flesh because of what Jesus did for us. We have that same Holy Spirit full of the power of God! So if that's you today and that's not something you'd normally do -  can I encourage you to look up the song mentioned above on YouTube -  crank that volume to 11 and make some noise for the King. Make those speakers beg for mercy and get that bass to punch like a sledgehammer. Dance if you can, hey... dance even if you think you can't dance. Why? Because Jesus is worth it. Jesus is greater than your problems, your sadness, your pain and your loneliness. So make some noise - not for you, not for those around you... All for Him! Take the limiters off and let it all go because He's worth it - and watch and see your prison get shattered to pieces in the bright light of His Majesty. His Name is JESUS.

There are 60 seconds in a minute. 3600 seconds in an hour, 86,400 seconds in a day, 604,800 seconds in a week, at least 2,592,000 seconds in a month and 31,557,600 seconds in a year. Why all the figures and calculations you say? Jesus Christ is recorded to have lived on this earth in human form for 33 years. That means Jesus lived for at least 1,041,400,800 seconds. Again why all the crazy numbers? Because every second we exist on this earth is another chance for us to sin. Every bad thought, every harmful action, every act of greed, theft, lust, envy, jealousy, rage, fear, doubt is another sin. We as humans are so prone to sin because of our sin nature passed down through the generations from the very first humans that sinned.  God knows this and understands, in fact that's precisely why He came - to save us from our sins. He knows we can't save or even help ourselves to stop sinning so that's why He stepped into time as Jesus. Here's the amazing part. In all those millions of seconds of Jesus existence here on earth He never sinned once. Not even once. Not even a bad thought. Not a bad word. Not an action out of place.


I know you might be thinking "yeah, but Jesus was God... He can't sin anyway" but there's more to it than that... The Bible says in Hebrews 4:15 that Jesus was "in all points tempted just like us, yet without sin". What this means is that while Jesus existed here in human form He very much had the ability to sin. He could have chosen to give in to temptation but He didn't. The Devil isn't stupid and he wouldn't have wasted his time tempting Jesus if Jesus didn't have the capacity to sin. Just like us and the angels, Jesus has the choice for free will too yet He chose us the whole time. You see, if Jesus did give in once to the temptation... even just once.... then it was all over. There was no saviour for Him and then there would be no saviour for us either. The whole world would have been doomed. In fact it gets much worse than that... Jesus made everything and everything is upheld by the authority of who He is and His everlasting words. So if Jesus did sin, it meant that He wasn't the Son of God, it meant that He wasn't the Creator, it meant He wasn't the Beginning and the End. By sinning even just once it would have discredited who He was and everything would have changed.


A very scary and dangerous thought if you can get your mind to comprehend the ramifications of what it means that everything in existence plunges into darkness and total chaos. It would have been the complete opposite of creation. Ultimate destruction. Everything Jesus created would have ended all at once. And who do you think would have loved to see that happen even if it meant he ended with it too? That's right... Lucifer. The archangel that rebelled and became Satan the Devil because he wanted to be Jesus and sit on the throne in Heaven. This is why Jesus called Satan "the destroyer". So now you can understand why Satan the devil was trying so hard to get Jesus to sin. If Jesus sinned even once, then Satan won. In his mind, he would have got his twisted and perverse revenge on the rightful King of everything. But as we all know the story didn't go like that... Jesus existed in human form that whole time completely and totally sinless. Not... even... once. It says Jesus was tempted in ALL points like us too. That means every single sin. I mean EVERY single sin. Suicide, Rage, Lust, Murder, Sexual impurity... every single sin including the really dark ones we don't like to mention.


Jesus felt and faced every single one and defeated all of them. Now that's what I call a King. Only a King could do that. This is why there are angels in Heaven whose sole purpose is to sing continuously forever and ever "Worthy is the Lamb!" because He really is just that... Worthy. He did all that for you. He never gave in once... for you. Everything Jesus did here on earth was for us. To make the way for us back to where we were always meant to be... with Him.  Yet, He felt the temptation of every single sin so that He can understand what you're going through and be the place you can run to in your time of need. Indescribable empathy. So when you are weak, He is strong because He's already walked that road. And in His act of dying for us as the sacrificial Lamb of God He made the payment for us when we do sin so that we can be forgiven if we humbly confess our faults. And every single time He forgives us and restores us back to relationship with the Father through Him. What a truly amazing King to do that. What kind of love is that? It's a love that's not from this world that's for sure. What a King... Truly the King of all Kings that walked among us.


So no matter what you're facing and no matter how hard it is - Jesus is there for you. He understands and will help you if you just take His hand. He endured everything He did... for you. Because you were worth giving life. You were worth saving and you are worth more.

[ Hebrews 4:15- This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin ]

In the past few years Jesus did some really radical stuff in my life turning almost  everything about me upside down. I used to be a very negative, critical, mean, nasty, introverted, anti-social, selfish, uncaring person that used to swear and curse all the time as well as do and be addicted to many horrible and shameful practices. Jesus set me free of all that haunted, tormented and chained me in the space of a few months and as a result I had to examine the friends I used to keep close company with. You see these friends were just like I was back then... reprobate, corrupt, perverted, unlawful, self righteous, deceitful, hateful and selfish. I tried to show and tell them I wasn't that guy that did those things anymore but they only tried more and more to drag me back into my old ways and mocked and undermined my new found freedom and excitement about the Jesus that set me free. The truth is, the choice is theirs to stay that way and the choice was mine to change. I can't judge them because I'm not their judge but I am fully accountable for my own choices and actions. I too was once blind like they are and it was only through Jesus love, mercy and grace that my eyes were opened. Jesus never says for us to judge one another but we are called to be wise and have discernment because the heart of mankind is desperately evil and needs the guidance of God for life.

When depression and suicide almost claimed my life Jesus presented me with a crossroad and I choose Him and His ways over me and my ways. I chose for me to die and for Jesus to live. I gave up my life to Him and in doing that I got my life back just like it says in Matthew 10:39. Because of that choice - I found peace, love, identity, confidence and the relationship I always wanted and so badly needed with my Father in Heaven. I found God.

I was praying the past few days about having friends and wanted Gods perspective on it. God never says we are to be friends with everyone. In fact He says not to be friends with foolish or corrupt people because they will do exactly that... corrupt you and make you into a fool. The Bible is very clear about the association you have with others and it's effects on us and tells us to "guard your heart because out of it flows all the issues of your life".

So what's the answer then? Do we live in a cave alone? Do we shield ourselves from everyone out there and never let anyone close? What the Bible says is that we are called to serve one another in pure selfless love. The difference being serving selflessly means we want and seek nothing for ourselves but instead seek only good for others. Friendship is a two way street but serving as Jesus did is a one way street.

We are most certainly not asked by God to be friends with everyone. Only Jesus has the capacity and ability to do and be that. Instead Jesus asks us to serve one another in love, honour and truth.

Jesus is asking us to trust Him and do it His way and He promises He will bless you with all you need - including good friends with pure hearts that seek after God and show His love to others. Trust Him, He knows what He's doing and He loves you.

[ Matthew 6:33 - But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you ]



The Bible and Gods view on Friendship


Choosing Friends...

Proverbs 12:26
One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

Proverbs 13:20
Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.

Proverbs 14:6-7
A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain, but knowledge is easy for a man of understanding. Leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not meet words of knowledge

Proverbs 22:24-25
Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man, lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.

1 Corinthians 15:33
Do not be deceived: "Bad company ruins good morals."

Proverbs 27:17
Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 18:24
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 12:26
A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

James 4:4
You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.

Proverbs 20:6
Many will say they are loyal friends, but who can find one who is truly reliable?

Proverbs 22:11
Whoever loves a pure heart and gracious speech will have the king as a friend.

How to treat your friends...

Luke 6:3
And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.

Romans 12:10
Love one another with brotherly affection. Out do one another in showing honor.

Ephesians 4:29-32
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Colossians 3:12-14
Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.


Examples of Friendship in the Bible

Ruth and Naomi

Ruth 1:16-17
But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you."


David and Jonathan

1 Samuel 18:1-3
As soon as he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took him that day and would not let him return to his father's house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul.


Job's Friends

Job 2:11
Now when Job's three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him.


Elijah and Elisha

2 Kings 2:2
And Elijah said to Elisha, "Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel." But Elisha said, "As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel.

One day every knee will bow at the Name of Jesus. Why? Because of who He is. The Undisputed King of all Kings. The Lord of all Lords. The Beginning and the End. The Creator, Sustainer and provider of all life. Friends and enemies alike will all drop to their knees in reverence at His Majesty and in the presence of His full identity revealed. On that day all will know who He truly is... The Son of God and the King that reigns forever and ever! † 

Ok, so God's put this on my heart to share and in order to do so I'm going to have to be pretty blunt. Firstly, we are all in a war. Whether you like it or not doesn't change the fact that we are at war. The war doesn't stop because you decide to be a pacifist or dig a hole and hide your head in the sand and think only about pink bunnies and rainbows. Take one look around you and you'll see that death, disease, depression, suicide, greed and corruption is rife in this world. Just turn on the radio or the evening news and it's impossible to miss. Fear reigns in this world. This world is badly broken and desperately in need of saving. As a matter of fact, that's precisely why Jesus came - to save us. Now to clarify what I said earlier about war - the war is an unseen war - a spiritual war. While this war is unseen, it's effects can very much be seen in the world we live in. Paul the Apostle talked about this in Ephesians 6 saying "we don't wrestle against flesh and blood but against powers of darkness that rule this world..." As people who believe in Jesus we need to constantly remind ourselves that our war is NOT with people.


It's not a war of racial intolerance, it's not a war of territory, its not a war of controlling others. This is the part that God wanted me to really focus on. In this war we are called to be salt which brings taste and life to a bland, empty and dead world and in turn prompts them to ask the question "why are you that way...?" We are also called to be light in the darkness which put simply means we are meant to be a contrast to what the world looks and sounds like. Were called to be living truth that points people to Jesus who sets us free. Please don't misunderstand me, this isn't about a dress code or a pretty little Christian uniform that identifies us with a movement or denomination - it's far more to do with your heart and what people see in you when they come in contact with you. So how do we fight then? Well, Jesus gave us all that we need. He said "Don't return evil for evil". Put simply, when someone does something really bad to you, resist the urge to run your mouth and bury them in a barrage of insults and accusations. Jesus said "pray for your enemies and show them love...". One of the simplest ways of showing love is exactly what Jesus said above "Don't fight back".


This doesn't mean you become a doormat, that your value decreases in any way or that you aren't allowed to say "no". Jesus said that our "yes" should be "yes" and our "no" should be "no". Not "yes" is "maybe... but the truth is I don't want to" or "no" is "i don't know...". There's nothing wrong with being clear and deliberate. In fact you're doing yourself and everyone else a favor by being up front. Don't concern yourself whether people like your response or not - that's entirely up to them. Now this is the part that really needs to be said... As believers in Jesus and ones who are called to be salt and light to this empty and dark world we should never, EVER use the weapons of our enemy. I know you're probably thinking "but I would NEVER do that..." Don't be so sure. Before I go on I want to lay down something that forms the basis of what I believe about God. God is love. God always gives a choice. When you read the Bible you'll see many conditional phrases such as "If my people humble themselves..." and "If we confess our sins...". The word "if" is a conditional phrase. It denotes choice. What this means is this - the choice is yours.


God never makes anyone do anything. He's more than happy to help us if we want to take His hand of love but ultimately the choice is up to us. If that wasn't true then the whole world would have been saved simply by Jesus dying and coming back to life. But the whole world isn't saved like that... We are saved by making a choice to believe in Jesus through faith. Our enemy the Devil on the other hand is the complete opposite of God. He always tries to remove choice by coercing us to do what he wants using deception, manipulation, temptation and fear. OK, so back to the enemies weapons. The leader of the enemies forces is Satan the Devil. Now, he's been around for a long, long time. He knows humans like the back of his hand. He knows our behavioral patterns, what we like and what we don't like. He knows that as humans we're very predictable and he knows how to push our buttons to get a reaction. He knows we are inherently prone to pride, lust, greed, fear and all things evil. Why? because of what happened in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Because they sinned, evil flooded through humanity like a virus. Passed on through generation after generation.


The devil knows he can use this bloodline curse of corruption to bend us to his will if we give in to him. This is why Jesus was born from a virgin, it means He broke the line of sin and didn't come from the male bloodline that has corruption and contamination right through it. In the Bible Jesus is referred to as "The Second Adam". He is the new beginning. So we have two sides in this war. Good and Evil. Jesus is the commander of the good, true and the light. Satan is the commander of evil, deception and darkness. The bible says in 2 Corinthians 10 that "the weapons of our warfare are not physical, but mighty in power to destroy the enemies fortifications..." Our weapons are Love, Truth, Peace, Grace, Mercy, Forgiveness, Prayer, The Word of God and many others that God provides to His soldiers who fight for His Kingdom. The Devil's weapons are Fear, Hate, Lust, Rage, Greed, Deception, Manipulation, Witchcraft, Murder plus many more that wreak havoc on God's great world. What God wants me to say is this... As soldiers in the army of light, don't pick up and use the enemies weapons while you're on the battlefield.


The Devil will make sure that those weapons are always nearby and available but as the Bible says "Resist the Devil and he will flee from you..." Resist the urge to return hatred when someone throws mean and hurtful words in your face. Resist the urge to fight back when you're provoked because Jesus promises in Exodus 14:14 that if you don't fight - He will fight for you. Resist the urge to manipulate others for your own gain - remember God never removes choice and we are called to be like Him. Using deception, manipulation, intimidation or domination to get what you want is picking up a dirty, black evil sword on the battlefield and thinking you can still fight on the side of good. It just doesn't work. So how do we fight then? The answer is surprisingly simple yet extremely profound. We fight using love - the most powerful enduring weapon there is. God is love. Love is God. The simple heart test when were about to jump into the ring to fight is this... Is it love that's motivating me? 1 Corinthians 16:14 says "Let everything you do be done in love". If the answer to this heart test is yes, then you have God with you and for you and there isn't anything that can stand against God.


But it's it not love that's your motivating force and it's pride, greed, fear, lust, anger or anything else that's not from God then your enemy is going to use that weapon in your hand against you as soon as he gets the chance. So how does love fight? Love is selfless. Love is kind. Love is bold. Love is strong. Love is fearless. Love is passionate. Love is sacrifice. Love doesn't count the cost it counts the lost. Something extremely powerful that God revealed to me a few years ago was this. He showed me a vision of a gigantic sword wedged into the ground. It's scale was absolutely massive. I'd never seen a weapon like this ever before. God told me to pick it up but as much as I tried I couldn't even budge this enormous blade at all. I used up every ounce of strength and yet couldn't even move it an inch. Exhausted and puzzled I told God "I can't move it at all let alone pick it up!". He told me to read the sword. Above the hilt was inscribed in ancient text four letters in red. I couldn't read it at first until God opened my eyes and taught me the meaning of the letters. The letters were the name of God but also the name of love. What God told me next explained everything.


This is what He said "Mark, you can't hold, grasp or control love... instead let it control you..." This time I walked up the sword and slowly reached out a single hand to the hilt, eyes closed and praying "Use me... Control me... I give myself to you God..." I opened my eyes and saw the cords that were wound around the hilt unraveling and now winding themselves around my hand and up my arm like a whirlwind. Then in an instant the sword that I couldn't even budge at all before sprung out of the ground and clung to my hand. Weightless, perfect, synchronized yet unimaginably vast and powerful. I understood now... You can't possibly think or dream to control God - no - you must let Him control you. "This is how you fight" God told me. So today, you're going to presented with conflict - it's just the reality of life. The choice is yours as to what weapon you use... There are many to choose from. Some good, some evil. But the best one you could ever hope to use is... LOVE. Surrender to love and let it use you. God loves you.

[ 1 Corinthians13:13 - So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love ]

Don't give up... Trust Him. He will make a way. Just keep following His voice... † 

First of all I just wanna say thanks to all you guys who are praying for me while I'm sick. You guys are seriously so awesome ! Thanks for being the family of God. Another thing I wanna say is how much it encourages me when God prompts me to put up a prayer request pic like I did a few days ago and all the requests come in while I'm still at work and don't get a chance to reply until I get home... The part that really makes my day is someone asking for prayer in their time of trouble and then another complete stranger replying to them before I even get the chance to with genuine care, love and the heart of God telling them that they're praying for them! That kind of heart is nothing short of awesome. And I know if it makes my day then our Father in Heaven just has to have the biggest smile on His face to see His little kids caring for each other like that. Last thing, just to encourage you... Don't fear the trials that come in your life. They're made to test you, expose weakness and to prompt you to develop even more reliance on your Father in Heaven. So boldly move forward even if it hurts because Jesus walks with you. And who better to have by your side than the King that faced death, totally conquered it - then came back for us! Have the best day guys :)