Jesus didn't save you to be a frail, timid, fading candle in the night - He came to give life that is MORE than what this world knows life to be. He made you to be a bold, bright, shining beacon of His Hope, His Love, His Redemption and His Power that's impossible to miss and unable to be mistaken. He made you to shine so bright in contrast to the darkness around you that it begs the question...what is that? And where is it coming from? So light it up because our King is Worthy! His Name is JESUS †

[ Philippians 2:15 - that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world ] 

No matter how far you run, no matter how deep you hide, no matter how alone you feel - Jesus is there. If there's one thing I've learned about Jesus its this - He truly is the answer to all your questions and all your problems. Does it mean that because you find Jesus that everything in life just goes perfect from there forward? I'm sorry to burst that bubble but even Jesus didn't promise that. Life is complicated and often brings heartache and pain our way. What He did promise is this... no matter what happens, no matter how far you go, no matter what you do He is with you always. King David spoke of Jesus in this way in Psalm 139. An ever-present, always knowing, always caring friend and God who loves us endlessly. To understand the full knowledge of God, His presence and His power is far beyond our human comprehension yet if we can just grasp the simple truth that He never ever leaves us and never ever abandons us then we are one step closer to the wisdom of God. 

Can I encourage you that if that's you today and you feel far from God, find your Bible or look up Psalm 139 in google and read what God has to say about you. He knows you - everything about you. Why you do what you do, where you've come from and what you're here for on this planet. He has great plans for you and there is not a single moment in his infinite mind that you are forgotten or abandoned. Even when you sleep, His love for you is still flowing like an endless river. I pray today that His love reaches deep into your heart, heals the wounds that this life and this broken world has inflicted and guides you closer to Him and the purpose He has for you. You are never too far gone and never out of His reach for redemption. No matter how far you run... He is already there. God loves you. 

The voices always said to me as a boy "Never let them see you cry. Become stronger than the tears. Become more fearsome than the monsters that haunt you. Strike fear into all who oppose you and fortify your heart with walls of stone!" Sadly I listened to them for too many years and lived a cold empty existence in sadness and loneliness chained in darkness...

But when Jesus found me He showed me another way... He taught me that true strength comes from sacrifice. A warriors tears show powerful empathy when they are given for those that cannot fight. These tears are not the tears of sadness...they are tears of passion, justice, honor, strength and pure selfless love. They are the fuel of the fire of God. A heart that bleeds will always triumph over a heart of stone. He showed me the meaning of true strength. Love.

[ Romans 12:15 - Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. ] 

Hey guys! I honestly hope you're having an awesome day but the truth is I know for sure out there that there's a stack of you that are really struggling with life right now. That's the thing with life - it's unpredictable, it doesn't always go how we'd like and sometimes it just plain hurts like nothing else. I'm very, very familiar with pain myself and I love God with all my heart and what I want to say is this... Jesus isn't scared of your pain. He doesn't frown at the fact that youre as angry as hell at the things that happened that shouldn't have happened. He doesn't tell you to go away and come back with a better attitude or dismiss you because you're not in your best form. You know what He says when you're pain and anger is so much you could almost bottle it? He says "Bring it!" He certainly isn't afraid of you and what you can bring on your worst day. In fact, that's the day He wants to be exactly what you need - that safe place of absolution and absorbtion for all your pain. He is the open hand for your clenched fist - ready to catch all your pain and take it from you. You see...He's the only one with hands that can do that because of the nail prints He wears as momentos of His immeasurable love for you. So if that's you today and the pain has gotten way past boiling point - give it to the original painkiller. He became pain so you don't have to hold it inside anymore. God loves you and wants you to be free.

[ Matthew 11:28 - Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ]  

(I wrote this just 5 mins ago. I love it when God interrupts your day just to hear His voice :)

Light your fire in my soul
Make it burn and make me whole...
Shine your light right through my life
So that all can see your see your love-


Keep my steps and watch me sleep
Be my refuge when I weep
You're the sword that's in my hand
Follow you to promised land-


Be my beacon in the night
When the others fade from sight
Youre my safety and my home
When my time on Earth is done-

Hey, yeah you. You're worth more. More than how you've been mistreated, more than what you have, more than what you've lost and more than what you do. Your worth is not in what you have or what you do - but what your Father in Heaven says of you. Have an awesome day because you are always loved by God and nothing and no one can take that away!

[ Luke 12:6-7 "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows." ] 

STAND IN FAITH.

Don't bow to fear, worry, lies, greed, lust, death or anything that stands in the way of what God has promised. God is faithful and rewards His children who seek Him and His ways in faith.

Stand defiantly and don't give in because we have a Saviour that didn't bow once to those things and went all the way for us staring death in the face and conquered everything thrown at Him.

He conquered and overcame death, hell, the devil, his dark army and this entire world and He tells us "Don't be afraid, I AM with you." The Creator or the universe and everything in it says "I AM with you!"

He is worthy and the angels in Heaven that sing continuously around the throne are a testament to the sheer majesty, power and magnitude of our King.

Because of Him I forge on into the impossible unafraid. Because of Him I can conquer darkness and all its forces bringing His freedom to slaves of my enemy. Because of Him I am not afraid no matter how big the giants are, how many they have slain, how big their weapons, how much territory they hold or how many are on their side. The battle belongs to my God and if He hands them over then victory and freedom is mine all because of Him and for His glory.

This is the God I serve. This is the one who saved me. This is the one who bought my freedom. This is the one who leads me, provides for me, speaks to me, protects me and keeps me. This is my KING!

His Name is JESUS.  

Sometimes the state of this world really gets me down... I see the rich getting richer through greed and corruption while the poor, hurting and forgotten slowly die in the dark corners of our society unattended, chained and lost. I see more and more gigantic monuments to man's ambition being constructed and erected in the so called 'Name of God' when Jesus never told us to build more grand temples like Solomon did - instead the Master who had not an earthy possession to His Name simply taught us to give to those in need. We would do well to learn from Solomons wisdom. He gained everything this world had to offer in lavish excess... Money, Power, Women - the lot. Yet in the process he lost his heart for God and brought destruction, death, war and misery for all the generations that followed him. When I look around at this dark world and see all its pain, loneliness, fear, greed and corruption does it make me want to give up? Absolutely not.

It only highlights the absolutely undeniable fact that this world desperately needs saving. The broken need a Saviour and He has a Name. He hasn't lost one drop of power in His blood since that day He died for the whole world and rose again three days later to establish the freedom and destination forever for all who believe in Him. There is only one way to the Father, there is only one way to Heaven, there is only one way to true peace, freedom and redemption. There is and always will be only one way to be saved... And His Name is Jesus. He said "I came to cast fire on the earth and I wish it was already burning...". So Jesus... Ignite the embers in our hearts... Make us into the bright burning beacons of your hope, your truth and your love for this dark and dying world. I believe in you Jesus. I believe this world can be saved. But we can't do anything without you... So send your fire. Here I am Lord... Breathe and awaken the inferno of the living God inside me. It's time this world saw your true power again. The power of redemption!  

To the edge of oblivion is where he took me-
My enemies dark hands shoved and shook me-


He wanted to end me, to snuff out the flame-
To make all this fade, and erase my own name-


I got within inches of losing my mind-
No bearings or landscape around me to find-


But then He arrived, the One who holds time-
He heard my faint cries, to my aid He aligned-


Such fury of love I had never beheld-
The kind that would die to save this bleak world-


His eyes full of light, His strong arm to save-
My perfect salvation, His mercy He gave-


He reached me, He found me, He gave me a name-
He vanquished my demons, extinguished my shame-


Then He breathed Words of Life, awakened my soul-
He said "Solider Arise - For my Kingdom be bold"-

Be you because God never makes any mistakes. Make your Father in Heaven smile because He knows everything that you are and He always loves you endlessly and unconditionally. Trust in Him because He holds your future secure in His Word. 

[ Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ]