Luke 9:26, “Are you Ashamed of God?” Read at your own risk.

Luke 9:26, “Are you Ashamed of God?” Read at your own risk.

Today during my reading time I came to this verse in Luke, “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” If you are a believer and you read that verse, it is hard to just pass by. Maybe you have passed and ignored it before, but I bet it is still in your head rattling around somewhere. If you say, I am not ashamed of God…” Are you sure? Have you ever been in a conversation with someone and you were about to say “Jesus” and quickly changed it to “God?” It is easier to say “God” to a non-believer isn’t it? It is not as dividing. You can say “God” and it can mean a lot of stuff to a lot of people, but say “Jesus…” But who is speaking this verse in the Bible? Jesus. Are you ashamed? No you say? Do you really mean to say, “I am not ashamed as long as the person who asks me is also a believer that I have known for a long time and I’m in my home or at our church and there is nobody new standing too close by.”? Well I might not be perfect, but ashamed to too strong of a word. Ok.

What about this verse from Revelation 3:15-16, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

Are you ashamed? No? How about lukewarm? How do you know if you are lukewarm? This is not the perfect answer, but ask yourself this: Do people around me know that I am a Christian? Not that I believe in God, but that I believe that Jesus is the way the truth and the life and nobody comes to the father but through him… John 14:6. There is a huge difference. You don’t want to be lukewarm but you are scared? I understand. Start slow. First, pray. Ask God for courage, words, and opportunity. Next, have faith and see what God does through you.

• Don’t know what to say? Have faith, God is bigger than your ability.
• Don’t know who to talk to? Have faith, God will send them to you.
• Don’t want to get in trouble at work? Have faith, God is bigger than your work.

In my title I said, read at your own risk. That was for two reasons: One, because these verses from Luke and Revelation are convicting and they are going to ask that you crawl out of your comfort zone. Two, because I have a challenge for you…

Look around your circles, your buddy, your office cube, the dude standing next to you, etc. Ask them, “What do you think happens to you when you die?” See where the conversation heads. Keep the faith. God is in control of the situation. Then, send me the results. I will compile them into another blog and share them with everyone. This can be a great source of encouragement to everyone.

If you need some help you can send them to this link. You can also print it for them and hand it out:

http://goodfaithblog.blogspot.com/p/do-you-want-to-become-follower-of-jesus.html

Written by Chris Vasecka

To join a group of Christian business professionals who want to guide the next generation of Christian small business owners and professionals go to www.goodfaithpeople.ning.com.

Luke 8:40-48, “A Touch of Desperation" A Bible Study Devotion.

Luke 8:40-48, “A Touch of Desperation" A Bible Study Devotion.

Read Luke 8:40-48

In this story we see two people who ask Jesus for help. For this study, we will concentrate on the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years. It says that this woman was like this for 12 years and nobody could heal her. It says in Mark that she tried for many years, many different ointments, potions, doctors, etc and none of them helped her. In fact, they made her worse. In this culture, this woman would have been considered unceremoniously "unclean." She would have to do some ritual to cleanse herself after she stopped bleeding in order to be acceptable to society. After 10 days, she could be considered "clean." Nobody could speak to her, touch her, be with her, acknowledge her, etc until she was "clean." Of course in her case, the bleeding did not stop for 12 years, so she could not get "clean." She was a social outcast who desperately wanted back into society. We know this because she tried many things to get clean. It says in Mark that it took all her money and she was at the end of the rope. Not only that, in this culture, it was not just her who was "unclean." Anyone who touched her became "unclean." Anything that she touched became "unclean." For instance, if she sat down on a chair, the chair was unclean. If someone else then sat on that chair, they would be unclean and shunned from society for at least 10 days while they did the ritual to get clean. You can imagine how lonely she was and desperate for acceptance. Ok, so what are we talking about here? One woman with her "unclean" problem? Yes. ...but we are also talking about me and you and everyone else that has a "sin" problem...

Notice all the ways that her story is our story:

Being "unclean" affected every part of her life. This followed her around where ever she went, who ever she talked to, whatever she did, the uncleanliness was there. It infected every aspect of her life. Just like sin in your life.

This ailment of hers was degenerative. It progressively got worse and worse. Just like sin will do. At first the sin is so small you might not even notice it. Then, after you give in a few times, it gets easier and easier to justify your actions until finally you become hardened to it.

This uncleanliness was costly for her. It cost her all her money, all her relationships, everything she touched. Just like sin in your life will eventually do. If you do nothing about your sin, in the end, it will destroy you.

This uncleanliness was embarrassing for her. Just like sin in your life. Many times our sin is something that only we and God know about. If other people found out, it would be very embarrassing for us.

There was nothing she or anyone that she sought could do to cure her. There is no good deed you can do. There is absolutely nothing that you can do to make up for your sin and heal yourself.

And most important of all, this uncleanliness separated her from her friends, family, and all of society. Sin separates us from God. God is Holy Holy Holy and cannot be with sin. They are oil and water. So if you carry sin, you are separated from God. You will eventually be separated from everyone and God's society (Heaven.)

So that is the problem, now back the story... This part is amazing... Put yourself in this scene. When you see what happens here, you will see an "Oh Wow!" moment. Understanding this scene is what makes Bible study so incredible. There is a huge crowd. People are everywhere. There are no body guards. There is no stage with a partition. There is just Jesus and tons of people all pressing together to get to him. It is a big mosh pit. Jesus is being touched and shoved and squished from all directions. There would be no way for any of us to discern one shove from another. Jesus is not saying, "back off. Give me some room. I can't breathe here!" He is just letting it all happen. Then somehow this girl crawls through the bustling crowd and manages to touch the very end of his "clothing." It is not even him that she touches, just the end of his robe. Instantly Jesus stops and turns around, and says, "Who just touched me?" Imagine being there. Everyone looks around with a dumbfounded look on their face. They look from one another as if to say, "duh." Finally one of them has the gumption to add, "...ah, Jesus, people are touching you all over..."

However, this touch was different and of course Jesus knew that. This girl, after all else had failed, finally decided to turn to God for healing. She thought, "If I can just touch him, I will be healed." (Mark) She tried to fix her problem for 12 years and had just made it worse. She did all she could and it was not enough. She finally realized that what could heal her was to fall on her knees and find healing with Jesus. Instantly her bleeding stopped. This is the only way to heal the sin in your life. There is nothing else that can be done. It is only through God's grace that you can be made "clean." You can either learn the hard way and try yourself for 12-20-50 years, or you can learn the easy way from the example God gives us in this Bible story.

That alone is a good lesson, but there is one more thing and it is my favorite part of the story. Remember that she is "unclean." Anything she touches is "unclean." Nobody will talk to her, be with her, even acknowledge her, because in this society, they would then be shunned too. But what does Jesus do? This is the order in the Bible: She touched him. She was healed. ...Then Jesus asked, "who touched me." He could have let her go and be healed in quiet. Undoubtedly she would not want to draw attention to herself because she was "unclean." She would have certainly touched many people on her way to Jesus through the crowd. But Jesus did not do that. He publically calls her out. He says, “Who just touched me?” She says, “I did Lord.” Then he calls her "daughter." As if to say, "Hey crowd, this woman whom you think is unclean, just touched me, and I'm proud of her. She has faith, and she is my daughter." He not only acknowledged that she had touched him, but he builds her up in front of the crowd. He says, "I got your back." ...Ain't he great?

Written by Chris Vasecka

To join a group of Christian business professionals who want to guide the next generation of Christian small business owners and professionals go to www.goodfaithpeople.ning.com.

Luke 7:36-50, “Don’t Call Jesus a Chump,” A Bible Study Devotion.

Luke 7:36-50, “Don’t Call Jesus a Chump,” A Bible Study Devotion.

Read Luke 7:36-50

When I first read this passage I assumed I would write a typical devotion about the situation and the lesson it is teaching. However, something else just jumped off the page. I tried to put myself in the place of the Pharisee to gauge his motivations. He has invited Jesus to his home for a meal. Why? Is it because he wants to spend time with him? Is it because he respects him and wants to learn from him? I'm not sure, it does not say. But look at the chain of events:

The pharisee invites Jesus to his home.
There is a woman at Jesus feet.
The pharisee has negative thoughts about Jesus.
The pharisee has negative thoughts about the woman.
Jesus calls his name.
The pharisee responds with the respectful term "teacher."
Jesus tells him a parable.

Let's break this down. We will have to jump back and forth between the chain of events to make some sense out of this scene. Look at how the pharisee responds to Jesus and the woman at Jesus' feet. He says in verse 39, "If this man were a profit, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is - that she is a sinner." In that one sentence he is saying: Jesus is a liar, Jesus is only a man, the pharisee is a judge and judges that Jesus should not allow a sinner to touch him, the woman is beneath the pharisee because she is a sinner, and the pharisee is not a sinner by comparison. Wow, pretty arrogant, huh? Notice that it also says that the pharisee said this under his breath. Not only is the pharisee making all these judgments, but he is also not man enough to say them out loud, which shows contempt. So a few questions are: Why did he invite Jesus at all? This is in his house right? So why is the "sinner" in there at all? Is this some kind of set up?




Jesus then says to the pharisee, "Simon, I have something to tell you." The pharisee then says, "Tell me, teacher." Tell me teacher? So is this guy two faced? He is thinking all these rotten things about Jesus and the woman, then snaps to attention, puts on a fake smile, and calls Jesus "Teacher?"

Jesus then goes on to tell him a parable about sin and forgiveness. Imagine sitting in the room. There is a woman weeping, running her hair all over Jesus' feet, and pouring perfume on them. You would think that the conversation with the pharisee would halt and attention would turn to the woman. The awful sinner. However, Jesus goes on to tell a parable, directed to the pharisee that is speaking to the condition of the pharisee, even though he does not understand.

When you read this now and you can see the whole situation, and it is about someone else, it seems crazy that the pharisee cannot see the irony in Jesus' words. However, has this happened to you too? Have you ever looked at the sin of someone else and not been able to see your own? And don't miss this one... Have you ever had Jesus speaking to you in a story that is surrounding you and missed the whole message because you were too important to "listen?" What if the Holy Spirit is speaking to you at this time in your life in a parable?

To miss what God is trying to teach you is one thing, but to have you ever been two faced to God? What the pharisee did, mumble disdain under his breath, and then paste an "Eddie Haskell" type persona smile on and pay Jesus respectful lip service is obvious. But do we do the same thing; only it's not so obvious? Have you ever shaken your head in disgust and asked God why he made someone the way he did? Have you ever prayed or left church and within minutes willfully walked right out of God's path? If you have done these, you are basically calling God a chump... If you really expect to try and get one past God, you are saying he is a chump. Would you call God a chump to his face? Would you call him one under your breath with prettier words? I bet the answer to the first one is "NO!" I bet the answer to the second one is "maybe???"

Written by Chris Vasecka

To join a group of Christian business professionals who want to guide the next generation of Christian small business owners and professionals go to www.goodfaithpeople.ning.com.

John 3:3, “You Must be Born Again” (Part 3, Student’s Testimony) A Bible Study Devotion.

As promised, a student’s testimony, share with all the teenagers in your life…

My names Dalton, I am a 2009 graduate from Blaine High School. Now what I wanna recall is a time in my life, let’s rephrase that, the worst time in my life. I was your typical 16 year old junior with a lot going for him. Tons of friends, minimal responsibility, and a car. Now high school is a fun place, for the most part. You go and goof around for 4 years, make new friends, date tons of girls, and make the best of it. Well for me, I was doing all of those things, without a single care in the world. Coasting through life, really not caring about much, or for anyone else. My life was mine and I was gonna live it "without regret" (which was my motto at the time...) Well as if this carefree life couldn't get any better, I had a girlfriend, which I thought was good. Yeah... it wasn't.

Here, let me give you a background of my faith, since this is a testimony and it's important to explain every detail of it. Well... there wasn't one. Which in my opinion was why everything in my life came crashing down on me. Now in the bible it says something along the lines of, a wise man builds his house on the rock while Dalton Larson builds his on sand. (Matthew 7:24-27) My name obviously isn't in the bible but the point is, my foundation, my life, was not built on the rock which is God. And through the storms, troubles, and everything in my life, eventually soiled the sand until the house collapsed. So that was my life, and of course I didn't know it was heading in that direction until God finally slapped me across the face and woke me up.

Now the story goes; at the end of my junior year, I was finally devastated by that gloomy realization that I had put all my eggs into one basket; the wrong basket. As most high school relationships end, mine did with about a week left of school. My girlfriend at the time had been lying to me and after about a year of dating had finally confessed to cheating on me...great. Everything I had put my hope in was now crushed. One thing that initially happened when I was reflecting/venting anger on my past year of wasted life was the fact that I needed God. I honestly have no idea why that thought popped up in my head. I knew that God existed I believed that there was a God; I just didn't really know him yet. Since there was now a desire in my heart to seek after God I was also faced with the grim realization that I didn't even deserve God. Through the past year, I had been overwhelmed by sin, and by sin I mean everything, anger, greed, lust, etc etc etc... "Why should God even accept me, I’m a worthless person, I have completely betrayed Him, why...?" The verse that I felt was Romans 3:23 "23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". That was the guilt I was completely consumed with for most of the weeks following the break up. I was completely lost and a completely broken human being... It took one car ride for my heart to completely break; it was as if God was trying to show me how He felt from what I had done with my life. A song came on in the car, a song from one of my favorite bands, the lyrics went something like "And on my knees, I wept at Your feet and finally believed that You still love me." I immediately broke down crying... those words were straight from God. Because this whole time I was so lost and confused and didn't even believe that God could still love a person like me. A couple days after that I went to the Wednesday night youth group at Horizon's Community Church and that night completely changed my life. We worshipped and for me it was the most intense worship I had ever experienced, I was seeking after God so hard and I finally felt His love for me. The rest of Romans 3 was revealed to me that night, not literally but I had finally understood what God was all about, "24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 25 For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin." And that night I learned what it meant to be "Born-Again". My youth group challenged me with the question "Are you Born Again? Do you know what it means?" And of course I had never even heard of the term and I thought that you can get to heaven if you are baptized or whatever... well I was wrong. John 3:3 stated that "unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

So of course I wanted to be Born-Again because I learned that Christ is the only way to salvation and everlasting life. (John 3:16) A huge part of my testimony comes from that small group on Wednesday nights, (SGROUP!) God led me to that place; He helped me get up off the couch that night instead of just skipping it and playing video games instead. God does exist, God loves me for who I am, I don't need to feel guilty for the sins I have committed in my life (Romans 8). Because God with his unconditional and everlasting love has set me free from the selfish life I no longer live. No one could ever write me a big enough check to return to my former life...not even all the money in the world because chances are that check would probably bounce anyways. Thanks for reading and God Bless.



Guest written by Dalton Larson

To join a group of Christian business professionals who want to guide the next generation of Christian small business owners and professionals go to www.goodfaithpeople.ning.com.

Playground Rules: Part 1 – Nicknames

Playground Rules: Part 1 – Nicknames

Usually I write a Bible devotional that is taken from my morning personal time with the good Lord, but today I was inspired by an exchange that happened in church on Sunday. The whole reason I am writing at all is because I was challenged by my spiritual mentor/teacher. One day while eating lunch with him…my treat…he said that I should start writing. I had never written anything before so of course it seemed like a silly idea at the time. However, as with many messages that are indirectly from God, seemed to make perfect sense when I extracted my opinion from the decision making process. This man is about 130 years old, an ex-preacher, and has written about 5000 books. So, I affectionately call him “Old Man.” As his family was walking into church, his beautiful wife leaned over to me and said, “I don’t really like the name ‘Old Man’”. Shocking? No. Typically, nicknames are a tradition between guys, not gals. It is not the first time a “she” did not like her “he” being referred to as anything other than his real name. I’ll return to the Old Man and his wife after I address this issue corporately. This conversation made me think of a few unwritten, de-facto rules about nicknames as dictated by the playground. Most of this is just understood by most guys, but I’ll try and explain for all those women out there who don’t like nicknames.

1. Nicknames can come from several places, but the most popular are derivatives of the person’s actual name, exaggerated physical characteristics, and one time embarrassing events.
a. John Schmidt, might be Schmitty.
b. If John is losing his hair, he might be the Human Forehead.
c. If John forgot to wear pants, he might be Long John.

2. Nicknames are not given to one’s self. If you don’t like your nickname, you are pretty much stuck. In fact if you try to change your own nickname, you will make it much worse. Watch the Seinfeld episode when George wanted to be called “T-Bone.”

3. Nicknames are permanent. Once your buddies call you the Human Forehead, it will be there to stay. There is only one cure to this and that is to move to a new state and get new friends. This will only keep the lid on the situation for a while though. You know what they say; it is a small world…

If you don’t like these rules, I’m afraid there is nothing that can be done. Once it is established on the playground, it is in stone. Oh sure you can ask people to change and send them to sensitivity training, but you cannot beat the playground. The playground is reality and law, the rest is wishful thinking. Better to embrace it and learn to cope. Dads teach your kids all about the playground before it is too late…

Now back to the Old Man… His name is Glen Pease. Not much to work with there for option #1. I would meet with him on Tuesdays to do some Bible lessons, so for a while I tried “Tuesday’s with Peasey,” (Tuesday’s with Morrie) but that sounded a little girly. I don’t know any one time story that would give me good idea to make use of #3. He is pretty normal looking, so the best I could come up with was “Old Man.”

…special note to the Old Man’s beautiful wife…

When I call your husband “Old Man,” it is not a statement to his age. It is more like a respectful salute to his experience and wisdom. It is like homage to a weathered sailor who is a master at his craft. Like “The Old Man and the Sea.” Each time I say it, it says, “You are the teacher, I am the student,” “you have earned the respect of your braves like the ancient tribe’s elder.” With the rules of the playground in place, and the fact that his name is an accolade, maybe you could reconsider; just think about, maybe, accepting the name? Read rule number 2 above. It is bad if the person with the nickname asks his buddies to change it, but what do you think happens to the kid on the playground who has his woman ask???

But tell you what… I suppose I owe the Old Man a favor… If you still don’t like it after reading this, I will break the rules of the playground and change it…
Hmmm, maybe …Gray Hair Glen…



Written by Chris Vasecka

To dig deeper into the scripture as explained by the “Old Man,” go to http://www.scribd.com/glennpease


To join a group of Christian business professionals who want to guide the next generation of Christian small business owners and professionals go to www.goodfaithpeople.ning.com.