That quote is Jesus’ reply to the Pharisees when they ask Jesus to make His disciples stop shouting His praise.  I wonder if we need to think a little more about it.  We have heard our culture tell us to be quiet about Jesus.  We must not preach or spread our beliefs.  We can do what we want as long as we don’t bother anyone else.

We must not wait for the rocks to cry out.  As Christians, we know the LORD who is alive.  We know heaven and hell are real.  We know salvation is found only in Jesus Christ.  Jesus’ story must be told, and we are the ones to do it.

Share the story of Jesus with those around you.  Show and tell them about our LORD.  That is our praise for our Savior.

Jesus changed everything.  Death and sin were conquered.  We were given an open access to God that had not been seen since the Garden of Eden.  We can now have the audacity to come before God at any time and call Him Father.  We don’t need anyone else to allow us access to the Father.

Jesus changed our eternal destiny, if we will only trust and follow Him.  Jesus set us free to love God and each other.  He set us free to live a right life; He set us free to not just look right, but to really be right.  He broke down all the social barriers that people try to build.

There is none other like Him.  All the rest are at best wanna-be’s.  Jesus alone changed history and set the world right-side-up.

I believe God really exists, and He really intercedes into history.  God really made everything and He really reveals Himself to us.  Jesus was as real as anything has ever been.  God really became a man and lived like one of us.  That is incredible!

We are preparing for Easter, the celebration and remembrance of the greatest event ever in the history of the world.  We are celebrating what God really did for us, in human time and space.  God, as Jesus, died to pay our debt to Him.  And now, by trusting (following) Jesus, we are saved from the separation from God that we deserve.

Jesus is real, and we should really tell people about Him.  Jesus is my friend, Lord, and Master.  He saved me from hell, and He brought meaning, purpose, and fulfillment into my life.  I was empty, confused, and without purpose, but Jesus answered all my needs.  Let us share Him with others.

Why have we bought into the lie that our religious beliefs are private?  Why have we bought into the lie that people don’t need or want Christ?  Why have we bought into the lie that we are better being ‘nice’ and making sure we don’t offend anyone then telling people the honest, loving truth?

Here is truth:  Jesus is the only way to the Father.  He is the only way to heaven.  He is the only way to salvation.  He is the only way to a rebuilt relationship with God.  Without Jesus, no matter how good they may seem, our friends are going to a real, actual hell after they die.  It will be horrible.

Here is some truth: our belief and faith are personal, but not private.  We worship in public.  God is the God of all creation.  God is the God of all nations and peoples whether they believe in Him or not.  Christianity at its heart is public and group oriented.  We are called to witness to the world and we are called to one  body of believers.

Here is some truth:  truth hurts sometimes.  Some people were offended by what Jesus said and did – that’s why they killed Him.  We should not purposefully offend people, but our job is to loving share the truth.  If some people get offended, they have a problem.  We should count ourselves lucky to be like Christ.

A celebration of Jesus’ resurrection (Easter) should be one of the biggest events of our lives; His resurrection was the biggest event of history.  It should be natural to invite our friends who don’t follow Christ to come and meet Him.  It is the loving thing to do.

It is easy to remember that in heaven, we will truly see better than we have now.  The best will be in heaven with Jesus.  I look forward to that…

But I think the best is yet to come for us Christians here, too.  I believe God is working  wonderful miracles and He is redeaming into great things the evil that surrounds us.  Here as some ways I think  the best is yet to come for us:

• In our economic upheaval, we are starting to become less materialistic.  We are starting to recognize the great value and blessing of God, Jesus, salvation, and righteousness.
• We will see more people come to Christ.  I see some in the churches starting  to wake up to the need to share our faith.
• We will see more healings.  God still heals.
• We will see more peace in the midst of strife.  Too long we have placed our faith and security in temporal and worldly things.  Jesus is the Rock.
• We will see more Fruit of the Spirit.  I think we are recognizing that Christians can be different than the world around us, and we are becoming more willing to let the Holy Spirit work through us.
• We will see more prayer.  We are waking  up to the true reality of the spiritual life.

The best is yet to come, and the practices of silence, solitude, and submission will help us be prepared.  We can silently get alone with God and His Word.  We can hear His voice, and as we submit to Him, greater things will happen then even those recorded in the Bible.

My Mission and Vision is to live out the Kingdom of God.  To live here on earth as a citizen of heaven.  To be a brother and follower of my Lord Jesus.  There is much wrapped up in this citizenship.  As a follower of Christ, praise and worship of our Father are imperative.  Prayer, scripture, and meditation are my lifeblood.  Outreach, service, and evangelism are necessary results.  Fellowship, corporate worship, and accountability are a way of life.  The Holy Spirit works to grow much fruit in and through us citizens…

And again, how easy in the midst of the hustle and bustle of ministry is it to lose touch with Jesus.  How sad to forget the Alpha and Omega of all that we do.  I am a citizen because Jesus bought me in; living out the Kingdom only comes as I keep my eye steadfast on Him.

A problem with most resolutions, besides that we often give up way too early, is that they are very self-focused.  We often put things down like losing weight, eating better, reading more, and breaking a bad habit.  These are good, but maybe our resolutions should be more outward focused. 

What about focusing on God more?  If we would open ourselves to His presence and direction, through Bible reading, prayer, and meditation, only God knows how much that would change us.  We need to go through life every hour of every day expecting to experience God with us.  We need to rely on His power to flow through us, and His wisdom to guide us.  We can enjoy God, rely on Him, and draw close to Him and let Him work in us.

Speaking of enjoying God, what about celebrating Jesus more?  We should take time to celebrate what Jesus has done for us.  As Christians, we have a hope and a future that is brighter than bright.  We should sit with Him just to enjoy His love, and we should sing and dance in His presence.  Ask Jesus to put a song in your heart to sing back to Him.

As we focus on God and enjoy Jesus, what about sharing that love and enjoyment with others?  The love of God is meant to be shared; it is healthy only when it is shared.  Tell people the story of what God has done in your life.  Tell people what you have seen and heard.  Invite people to enjoy Jesus along with you.  You know someone who needs an invitation.

I am asking God to do this work in you.  By His grace, put forth the effort to connect to Jesus.  Draw near to Him and let Him do a great thing in you.

I don’t like to wait.  I want what I want when I want it – now.  I’ve taken a few days away, with my wife, to pray and listen for the Holy Spirit to give me some fresh direction.  I believe God has started some strong things at Hillside, and I want to make sure they keep going.  So I am waiting for firm direction.

Deep inside, I already know what God wants.  The  Bible has already told me.  And I don’t have to make sure anything keeps going.  I didn’t start any of it – God did.  I just followed the best I could what He told me to do.  I can’t keep it going, only God can.

Jesus did come some 2000 years ago.  He really was born to a virgin named Mary.  He really did live, teach, heal, die, and rise again.  This Advent I remember that Jesus is real, and He is really God.

Jesus will come again.  He promised us that He is going away to make a place for us, and He will return.  When He comes again, everyone will know.

And through the Holy Spirit, Jesus comes to us now.  God is with us as much now as ever.  I love to celebrate Jesus’ birth, and I look forward to His coming again in glory, but I can enjoy Emmanuel now.  God is good.

If we will encounter God with an open  heart, He is faithful and just to help us.  When we let God shine His light on our dark places, He gives us the strength to face the dark side of our soul, and He brings healing by His word.

Paul Markell, a good friend of mine, has shown me that we are held captive by lies that we believe about ourselves.  Rick Kavanaugh taught me that these lies form strongholds in us that bind and destroy us.  When we believe the lies that we are not lovable, are not respectable, or are not worth anything, we are bound up and trapped.

Jesus wants to make us free.  He wants to give us life to the full.  He wants us to believe the truth, and He is the truth.  In Him we are lovable, respectable, and worthy.  In Him we are free.  In prayer and in scripture, we need to let God’s word into the center of our souls.  We need to let His word break down the lie and replace it  with truth.  Only God’s word has the power to heal us.

Let us focus on His word, in prayer and in scripture.  Let Him touch you today.