A Reponce to Current Times, Part II

As we all look around at the current state of our nation and world, your heart might too be burdened. I have been praying diligently, asking the Lord how we should respond as Christians to the world in the current economic and social conditions that are presenting themselves to us on an almost hourly basis.

The blogs that I will be writing over the next few weeks are specific verses and areas the Lord has shown me as He works in my life to clean me up and purify (sanctification) it for His purposes.
All of these have spoken to the core of my life, causing me to careful examine my attitudes, purposes, motive, actions, and ultimately, my core character as a Christian.

Persistence In the Midst of Trials

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition form sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” -- Hebrews 12:1-3

Unemployment, financial loss, cancers of various kinds, brain tumors, death of a family member, anxiety and life-stresses, chaos and a loss of organization, a bad relationship causing stress, temptations from worldly sources, losing your home, etc!

The list of the things we face on in this world goes on, and on, if the issue your facing is not in above list, know that these are just a few of the requests that friends have presented to me this week!

Lord, what do we do in such a turbulent time?

“Cast all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you!” -- 1 Peter 5:7

I cannot tell you the peace that now permeates my life, even in the midst of uncertainty. Well, Brandon, have you been there, experience what I am experiencing? I may not have walked down the particular mile, and might not have worn you shoes, but, I do know the one who has! In the midst of what at that time seems to be your darkest hour, where can you turn?

The verse from Hebrews reminds us that if we "fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross" so that through him our salvation, peace, health, security, and certainty of the future lies. If He was able to create the world in 6 days, breathing it into existence with His very breath, how then is not able to take care of that which we will face? Christ has already covered the penalty for sin when he willingly took that cross in our place. The power of that cross, the power of a risen Lord, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” -- Matthew 28:18b. If he holds all authority of heaven, telling the very stars how long they can exist, how much more does he hold his child! Rest in Him today! As you lay those burdens down at the feet of Jesus, I promise, it will get better. Remember, it takes one day at a time, but you have to fix your eyes on Jesus and him alone.

We are being watched by an ungodly world... they have their magnifying glass of focus on us. They want to know what causes that ridiculous joy that we have inside us, they want to know what drives us, motivates us to keep going when times really get hard. In my next blog, I will touch upon how we can shine like stars for God's Glory!

For more information on persistence, some of my favorite verses are:James 1:2-12 Philippians 3: 12-21

This blog was inspired by the song "All Ye" By Coffey Anderson. You can view his daily video and music blog on Tangle


If you would like to know how you can begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ or if you need prayer, encouragement, or simply like to leave a comment? Please email me, "brandon @ Project419 Dot Org" All email correspondence is kept strictly confidential unless you ask me to share your requests with others.

A Response to Current Times, Part I

My last blog was one that told of a rather bothersome dream I had. As we all look around at the current state of our nation and world, your heart might too be burdened. I have been praying diligently, asking the Lord how we should respond as Christians to the world in the current economic and social conditions that are presenting themselves to us on an almost hourly basis.

The blogs that I will be writing over the next few weeks are specific verses and areas the Lord has shown me as He works in my life to clean me up and purify (sanctification) it for His purposes.
All of these have spoken to the core of my life, causing me to careful examine my attitudes, purposes, motive, actions, and ultimately, my core character as a Christian.

"The end of all things is near. Therefore, be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should so it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen." -- 1 Peter 3:15

For those who have known me for a number of years, they understand that I have adult attention deficit disorder and often have a hard time being clear minded and self-controlled in my speech and sometimes my actions. This is who I am apart from the power of the Holy Spirit working within me. Always quick witted, prideful and sarcastic with responses, I can be downright ugly in my relations to others. For many months last year I was unhappy, complaining, and venting my life-frustrations on any ear that would listen to my pity-party of events. God humbled me around November 12th when I lost my job and a well orchestrated series of trials, tests, and opportunities was placed before me. I call them opportunities, because that is what they were; opportunities for God to show His glory as he began to refine and work in my life.
The first thing on the chopping block was my attitudes. I was told once, "control what you can control, the rest I promise will work itself out in time." I had failed to control a simply thing like my attitudes, which were then reflected in my speech. When I did serve God, I did so with very selfish motives, often to advance my own agenda, or propel myself forward into the direction that I felt I was supposed to go. Are you hearing a word a lot in the last paragraph? I, I, I. As the Holy Spirit began to do His work, the words of the scriptures cut through my heart like a knife.

It was time for a change, a different way of living. The transition did not happen overnight; I am still in the middle of it. That strength that is promises us in verse 11, I have learned to tap into that daily. I have to ask for that strength by relinquishing control of everything. I can only receive that after I admitted that I was helpless to control my life on my own.

It all started when I placed my faith and trust in Jesus Christ as Lord, then trusted Him daily with my life. I can barely put into words the peace that I now have in the midst of this on-going trial. I will attempt to write about it over the next few blogs.

If you find yourself lost in a sea of uncertainty today and need to know where to turn, my friend it is just a prayer away. I would love to talk more with you! Please email me, brandon at project419 dot org 0r message me on skype anytime you see my status as "online" from this blog.

Bless you today!