Never Back Down

There is a verse that I cling to when life becomes difficult. Ephesians 6:13 says "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand."

The part that gets me through life is that when we have done everything that can be done God only asks one thing of us...Stand. In my mind I get the visual of standing against wave after wave of life. Like a rock on the seashore I stand my ground and never back down from the waves.

A few years ago a movie came out that was called "Never Back Down" the premise of the movie did not strike me as much as the theme of never backing down no matter the cost or pain that may come as a result. As a man running after God, I want to live my life either moving forward or standing my ground. I never want to be known as a man that gives up or a man that is always taking ground only to give it back to the enemy.

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? ³³Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. ³⁴Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. ³⁵Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." ³⁷No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:31-38

What an awesome promise straight from the throne of God. We are not only more than conquerors but God promises that nothing, and He means nothing can keep us from Him and in Him nothing is impossible (Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27). So when the waves of life hit you remember that it is possible to stand against those waves and always be the person that never backs down from a challenge.

The Ending is Greater than the Beginning

Take a little journey with me and read the famous story of Jesus feeding the 5000 as recorded in Matthew 14:15-21, it reads:

As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food."

Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat."

"We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered.

"Bring them here to me," he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Now this is a pretty awesome miracle, with only seven items Jesus multiplied it to feed what some say over 15,000 people (including women and children). Lets see Chef Robert Irvine from "Dinner Impossible" win that kind of challenge. The part that I really love and want you to see with me is verse 20 which says after everyone was full the disciples collected twelve basketfuls of left overs. Now lets do this math, with 5 loaves and 2 fishes, even with small baskets, that would only fill up 7 baskets, but God doesn't do that. God even multiplies the leftovers. In John 6, the story says that the loaves and fish had belonged to a boy. Could you imagine this small boy wondering what his parents would say when they found out he had given his food away. But the awesome thing about God is in the end, the boy did not sacrifice anything but actually received a blessing of more food than what they started with, twelve full baskets of food to be exact. I can just see the analytical mind of Matthew trying to wrap his head around this.

The cool thing about this is that we get a glimpse of God's character when it comes to the miraculous. Like a father doting on his children, God asks us for very little so that He can give us even more. This is a lesson that we hear when the preacher asks for our tithe but we rarely think of it in any other context but our finances. I challenge you to think outside of this box and think about what God is asking you for. In my personal life, God has asked me to give all sorts of things. Some were easy like giving someone groceries, helping someone move, or giving someone a vehicle. The easy ones are usually fun to do and make you feel good. The harder ones are like giving someone forgiveness when you feel they don't deserve it, giving God time that you do not have to spare, or admitting your wrong. These are uncomfortable and sometimes painful but the cool thing is that God takes these small things, blesses them, and returns them back to you in greater numbers.

Don't believe me, I dare you to try it.

Praise Him in New Ways

If you watched the video above and are worried by this music being associated to Praising the God of heaven and earth, don't be. Let me point you to Joshua 6 and the fall of Jericho, for six days the Israelites circled the city praising God and blowing trumpets but on seventh day they circled the city six times and on the seventh: "When the trumpets sounded, the people shouted, and at the sound of the trumpet, when the people gave a loud shout, the wall collapsed; so every man charged straight in, and they took the city" Joshua 6:20. That sounds like a party to me. I'm sure there were some that thought this was different. When God worked in Egypt it was never this loud but this was a new generation and God was doing a new thing. It was no longer about survival but about conquest. God had given this generation a promise and it was up to them to seize it.

In the same way God has given the young of America a promise, we have heard it from birth and it is ingrained in all of our subconscious.

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land" 2 Chronicles 7:14.

Like the generation that took Jericho in a new and different way, this generation of young men and women have been given a promise and are taking it in a new and different way. A wise man once told me that God's message never changes but the vehicle in which it is brought to the people must always change, less it becomes obsolete.

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Amped Up Voices

In that day you will say:
"I will praise you, O LORD.
Although you were angry with me,
your anger has turned away
and you have comforted me.

Surely God is my salvation;
I will trust and not be afraid.
The LORD, the LORD, is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation."

With joy you will draw water
from the wells of salvation.

In that day you will say:
"Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done,
and proclaim that his name is exalted.

Sing to the LORD, for he has done glorious things;
let this be known to all the world.

Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion,
for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."

Isaiah 12

Today I had an experience that tugged at my conscience for the remainder of the day. I was standing in line at my local supermarket and when it came to be my turn I swiped my store card as I normally do and began to engage in some pointless small talk about how the cashier's day was going. He divulged that he was a little bummed that he had to work the holiday and how he would miss BBQing like he had done every other year. Now instead of inviting him to come down the road on his lunch break and break some bread at our church's BBQ I let the moment slip through my fingers. It was not until I was driving away that the Holy Spirit revealed my folly.


Why is it that I can get angry about politics and discuss it with such passion and conviction but when it comes to the souls of men I can be callous and let times of divine opportunity slip away?


One answer that comes to mind is that I do not fully believe in the message that I spread. This morning during Sunday School we discussed this very fact. We used the analogy of speeding on the highway. If we do not see a police officer it is so easy to let that needle make its way passed the posted speed. In the same way if we let our faith become cold then we begin to believe that God isn't watching us therefore "what He doesn't know..."


This is what has been nagging on me today and I decided to spend sometime searching for His will. During this search I came across a few things. The first was an old song called Pitiful by Blindside. In the songs it talks about how we pretend that the eyes of God are not on us so that we can do whatever is comfortable. Today the eyes of God were watching to see what I would do with that young cashier and instead of being the man that God sees me as, I pretended that he wasn't watching so that I could be comfortable and not have to put myself out.

The second thing I found was Isaiah 12, it talks about how God was angry with us but his anger is turned away so that He can comfort us. Because of this simple fact we should praise His name, praise everything about Him, sing, and even shout about all His glory and goodness. How awesome is that? How awesome is it that God may be disappointed by us and even angered by what we do but He will turn from His anger so that He can comfort us. Through His comfort we can forgiveness not only from Him but also from ourselves. I don't know about any of you but I am my own worse enemy and critic so forgiving myself can only be done with God's help.

In the spirit of Isaiah 12 I will begin to praise, begin to sing and shout. I pray for the strength to not miss any other opportunities. I pray that my voice will be amped up and never be silenced again. Join me if you will.