PJ's Journal

Well, my daughter and I with a group of 12 other great people have arrived in the Philippines to connect with our sister church for the purpose of mutual encouragement in the faith. I love this trip so much because of the people. These are my brothers and sisters in Christ... the bond we share through the Spirit of God is dear to my heart. I often ask myself the question, "What do I really have to offer that makes a difference for the Kingdom that I may impart to my family here?" I don't know if I have a good answer for that, but I am committed to giving myself! I am asking the Lord to give my listening ears and a sensitivity to His leading. I have been blogging about living from the inside out for quite awhile and this trip is no different. My prayer is that would approach this trip from the core of who I am, and not fall into the trap of just "doing" the trip. My desire is to lead and to learn from that intimate place with my God, where He is speaking

Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed." Revelation 15:4 Last night I was sleeping and woke up with a question that was bothering me. I don't know the details of what my dream was about, but I could not escape the question... Do we not fear God anymore? In the Old Testament, as God was leading Israel into the promise land, the surrounding nations would hear of the great things that the God of Israel had done and it terrified them. Fear kept them paralyzed! When God gave man just a glimpse of His might they responded in fear! Think about the early church. Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit before the whole church and God struck him dead and great fear seized the people. We are told in Philippians 2 to "work out our salvation with fear and trembling." Do we fear God anymore? Maybe it's that we have lost perspective abo

" For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account" Hebrews 4:12-13 Have you ever thought about the implications of a "secrete sin"... what you might carry out when no one is looking that you would not dare do in the eyes of the public? I know that most of you, if not all, struggle with this at times. We say to ourselves, "What will it hurt? No one will ever know about it!" But what are we really saying? What is the bigger issue? So often our thinking reveals our fear of man more than our fear of God. We consider our public image over our relationship with God! Is He not present in that dark place that you believe is hidden from everyone? Paul says,

" For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." 1 Cor. 4:20 There is a holy discontent that I have about my purpose in life. There is an internal drive that I can't explain that moves me to a sense of urgency about the Gospel! I am constantly thinking about how little time I have to faithfully make known the Savior whom I love and first loved me. It's a frustration to me when I find myself managing my way through life, instead of risking all to fulfill my purpose. I want to be honest... it is not only my purpose! When Jesus saves us, we are given The Holy Spirit to guide and empower us to be about Kingdom business! He did not save us to be stagnant! I love the outdoors, and have spent a good deal of time hiking with all the equipment I need to survive a prolonged experience in the woods. I know this doesn't shock you, but you need water to live, and generally you look to filter water at a source that is moving. Why? Stagnant water is a br

" For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord." Eph. 5:8-10 Taking responsibility for our condition is a very difficult thing to do. I love how Paul states our condition in these verses and our responsibility. He doesn't tell us that we were in darkness, but rather we were darkness. It wasn't that we were in a place of darkness, but rather we made the place dark. We were the source of darkness because of our sinful condition. So often I think we try to soften the reality of our depravity, when the truth is... we were the source of darkness. We were utterly the opposite of goodness, righteousness, and truth when we compare ourselves with God's idea of those things. We often look around and see good people and so this statement rubs us the wrong way. Certainly Ghandi was a good guy when y

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6 Have you ever been in a place of utter confusion? You really don't have the answers your seeking, yet you so desperately want them. You just can't put two and two together and it frustrates you to no end! Can you identify? I am reminded of Proverbs 3:5-6 this morning as Trish and I wade through very muddy waters. It is a common verse... one that I have known for many years and most likely you have known as well. Yet the wisdom and simplicity of its words help me to center on what is real. I am to trust in the Lord! He is in control... nothing that has been done is outside His knowledge nor ability to change. I am not to lean on my own understanding! It doesn't matter if I can't figure things out... It doesn't matter if I have answers to all my questions, for I am not to lean on my ow

"But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people." Eph. 5:3 I think it's hard many times for believers, who live in a world that is so pervasive when it comes to sexual temptation and among a culture that really doesn't see a problem with it, to not feel alone in how they think. Paul tells us to not even give a hint of sexual immorality... not even a hint. Often times the subject will come up... How far is too far in my relationship? That can be a difficult question to answer because if your even asking the question, you have probably gone too far. We want to draw lines and say that if we don't actual have sex before marriage then we are ok, but that is not how God operates. Jesus said that if we even look at a woman lustfully that we have committed adultery in our hearts. Now I am not going to say that believers never struggle with lustful thoug