Wednesday- The Zachary Sobiech effect on the reality of Death.

Watch this video and then continue to read below:

Zachary Sobiech died on Monday surrounded by his loving family and his girlfriend. Yet that is not the end the long lasting effect he has had already.

I do not know if Zachary was a Christian, but he sure did seem to get something that many of us do not seem to comprehend, we think that we do but we never truly act like it.

But one thing I see is that Zachary understood the importance and reality of what life really is meant for, to experience it to it's fullest and to not be afraid, for Zachary it seems like every trial had an upside to it, and as his mother stated,"he seemed to find the best in people."

If only we all could live the same way Zachary did; if only we could find the best in situations and to live life to it's fullest, as Christians we hope for that, but rarely do we ever understand it.

The reality is that death is all around us, people die everyday and it's sad and tragic but we do find a few glimpses of hope, and Zachary reminded  many of us that hope, he says in the latter part of his documentary that, "Death is just another thing on the agenda, yeah it's scary but the only reason it's scary is because you don't know what's next or if there even is a next, so it's kinda like siting in the dark, so you can either choose to be freaking out in the dark and think okay what's out there or you can just relax and fall asleep and be happy and content with what happening. "  I really like this explanation of death but I would add something more to it, as Christians we believe know what comes next, we know that there is life everlasting and that this world is not our home, we were meant for something more and greater that this, but what the problem becomes is we never fully take hold of that, we Christians trudge through life trying to get by always knowing that we will make it to Heaven one day, but what we do not realize is that God doesn't just want us to wait for Heaven, but to start living it out here in this world.

This however is not license to go get yourself killed for doing something foolish but how would you live if you knew that you had months to live? Would your life change? How so?

Remember what the Scriptures say about living each day out:

"Make the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil." ~ Ephesians 5:16

And also do not forget the wise words of C.S. Lewis on living with Heaven in mind:

"It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in; aim at earth and you will get neither."

Could this be true? What are we aiming at then?

The effect Zachary Sobiech has had on mainstream media has drastic implications and  many opportunities for us as Christians to spread this truth we believe in our hearts to the world. There are not many people who have seen this video who are not at least moved slightly by the shining light this kid shone to the world. Shall we waste this opportunity to align our thinking with the words and heart of Christ or shall we keep on trying to live our own lives without living out the implications of there being an eternity we will experience fully one day, and that day starts right now and starts with understanding the reality that God has established.

That reality is that death is not final and that the grave did not hold Christ and it will not hold those who trust in Him for salvation. We see this is 1 Corinthians 15:

“ 'Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?' The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

Reaching base-camp and then continuing the journey into life abundant is about living with eternity in mind and that at any moment you might reach the summit, so elevate this my friends, instead of looking at the sadness of this story and letting that eat away at you, how are you living? Is it with eternity with God in mind or is there something stopping you?

Meditate and reflect Romans 8:31:

"What, then shall we say in response to these things?  if God is for us, who can be against us?"



God Bless you, and thank you Zachary Sobiech for your life of joy.

Monday News- The Storms we cannot control- A Biblical Response for Christians

I was going to write over another topic tonight but I decided to delay that, in lieu of something much more pressing.

My heart goes out to the families and victims across the Midwest tonight. Tragedy is always sobering. At best estimates at least 51 people have died and 120 + have been injured. Prayers are need for everyone involved in this event, and as Christians, who profess to follow Christ and model Him to others it is our duty to pray, to intercede for others, and to comfort, console and love those who are affected by this thing they could not control. 

These "storms" we cannot control will deter and dissuade us in this journey, in our mountain climbing analogy it would be an avalanche or a bad rain that loosens the rocks around us and either stop us in our tracks, make us slip and fall or even throw us off the face of the mountain itself. Yet how ought we respond in tragedy like this, whether it is tornadoes, hurricanes, shootings etc. or if it is ruined and wrecked relationships, family problems, stress; there are many "storms" that we cannot control. What we might be able to control perhaps is our response, but that will come later, first we must address the most obvious question that many are asking, some earnestly, others sarcastically and sadistically, "Why did God allow this to happen?"

The only answer to that question is honestly, I do not know why God allows these events to happen. I am not God, frankly you wouldn't want me to be, but what I do know is that there are somethings about this life and about God that might give us some insight to a better question, the one that asks, "Is God still good, and is He still God even though this happened?" The answer to that is yes. But I do not believe that blindly. John 16:33b quotes Jesus as saying, “You will have suffering in this world.” This is a non-negotiable thing, this life is not possible to ever live without some sort of suffering, or something that is out of your control. But what the words before give us the framework for our perception of suffering, "I have said these things so that you might have peace." (John 16:33a). In John 16, Jesus has just explained a parable about how one day our suffering will turn to joy and he again predicted his death and Resurrection in hopes that we might take heart in the fact that the suffering we incur in this life might not last and that we can have peace in that we know that there is more to this life.

But sadly, in this life, what many people currently possess is all they think they can have. Our American dream can be so shattered by tragedy that we create a cynical tighter grip on our things and our possessions, because this might be all that I have. They do not understand the concept of eternity, perhaps as one who knows Christ might understand it; quite frankly I do not even know much about eternity beyond the facts that Christ died and rose, saved me and has prepared a place for me, as Revelations 21 puts it, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” That is eternity with God, and it begins at our arrival at base camp and we as Christians learn to experience it every day, on and on into eternity when we die, a day, a month, 60 years later.

As a Christian I believe that God has a plan for this world and because we are human and sinful and this world isn't as cuddly and cute as we have made it out to be, we experience in a sense that something is not right currently. But we can take heart in that we know God, and no matter what happens on this Earth, we know that we are not home yet.

How are we to reach out to those who encounter tragedy but do not know God? We run to them, we hold them, we love them, we do all that we can to show them and model to them Christ and if they are willing we share the Good News, we hopefully point them to the "base camp"; because we cannot save them and we cannot force them  accept these things. But we know that God has called us as Christians, especially if we have endured sadness, to be a comforter to those that are in it, (2 Cor. 1:3-4).

Even though tragedy happens and things do not seem right God can and will use these for good. And it is our duty to bring comfort and the love and message of Christ to the hurting and broken, because we live in a world tainted with evil, and sin. No one goes unaffected.

What happens when tragedy occurs? Because so many people will repress feelings, or run to false, cheap and hopeless things to find distraction. Or they will wade through their pain and hurt, trying to do damage control and very rarely do the make it through unscathed. They need people in their lives who love them and care about them, and they even need people who love them like Christ does and to walk with them, and to speak genuinely the gospel to them. This is what a response ought to be, but there are many others smarter and more well versed than I am who can guide you deeper into the implications.

But elevate this when you next encounter tragedy, how do you react, and is God still good because of it?

Base Camp

I am not a professional mountain climber, nor am I a wilderness guide.

But I am currently climbing a mountain and travelling through a great wilderness: Life.

And I face the worse conditions and elements: Sin, Idols, Laziness, Hurtful People, Broken Relationships, Procrastination, and worst of all, myself. 

But along this Journey I have the best of guides and leader, He set this adventure up and called me to join up and see the world as it was meant to be seen. Even before I was born He had me in mind and He sacrificed something great for me and for so many others, in hopes that they might follow. He stooped himself and humbled himself to a cross and to a sinner's death so that I might elevate this one single thought:

"For while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8b

Why did he die? The beginning of the verse above says, "But God demonstrated his own love for us.." - Romans 5:8a

He died and then 3 days later rose, defeating death and closing the grave that no more people ought to unwillingly die and be apart from Him. He went on to teach and tell the disciples he had accrued in His time on the Earth how they ought to behave and act, he gave them a mission and also his Spirit within them to accomplish this mission. This was the start of the elevation of the Church of Christ to the forefront of History,  with the few simple words of "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations..." (Matthew 28). 

This is Base Camp. Getting here comes by believing that Christ died, rose again, tasked, and sent His Spirit to those who believe in Him and trust in Him, and then trusting in Him with guiding you through this journey in learning maturity and to make disciples, to proclaim the gospel. Do not be mistaken, the mission, the journey, this adventure I speak of is more than door to door evangelism and proselytizing, it is more than cheap parlor tricks and silver-tongued words, Christ said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly." (John 10:10).

In this world there are so many "versions" of truth, so many "alternate" journey's,  a plethora of "get out of Hell free" gimics, but there is only one Christ, one grace, and one Base Camp that will ever lead to abundant life, this one base camp leads you to the most impossible journey should you seek to do this on your own, but if you deny your fear of failure, and seek to learn to grow in wisdom from this Base Camp, life will be rewarding in the end, the journey you will have begun looks daunting but at the end to "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God." (Revelation 3:12).

My task and my hope is to expose the idols and the false understanding that I find in my life and in others, to pose the tough questions to those willing, so to challenge Christian norms and to point others to the very same base camp I arrived at 11 years ago. 

My tag line will most likely be "Elevate this..." and the goal is to point out the inconsistency of human reasoning and to hopefully driving home a point. So elevate this if you will, if God is real, if there is only one Base Camp, and one worthwhile journey to experience what is stopping you? 

Check later this week for another post furthering our discussions.