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Happy Easter!

Jesus paid it all. All to Him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain.

He washed it white as snow.

O praise the One who paid my debt,

And raised His life up from the dead.

Jesus!

Download on iTunes: Jesus Paid it All, Kristian Stanfill from the album "Passion: Everything Glorious."

His Punishment Brings Us Peace

Isaiah 53:4-6 (NIV) emphasis added

⁴ Surely he took up our pain
   and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
   stricken by him, and afflicted.
⁵ But he was pierced for our transgressions,
   he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
   and by his wounds we are healed.
⁶ We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
   each of us has turned to our own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
   the iniquity of us all.

A Desire That Supersedes All Desires

"May God grant us a desire for God that supersedes all other desires." A.W. Tozer's final sentence in his book The Purpose of Man: Made to Worship.

Prayer: Create this to be a reality in me, Lord. Lay hold of me. Make this the truth of my inmost being that overflows to the external world around me. I am created for You. I am created to worship You. This is my chief purpose. I must decrease so that You might increase. Display Your splendor in me, through me, around me, before me, behind me, to my right and to my left. May all else become bitter as I taste of You.

Word: "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9 (NIV)

Silence: Be still before the Lord and invite him to bring to mind any source that is robbing you of His life-giving Presence. Forsake it, yield it over to Him, enjoy Him and respond to His unfailing love.

Sing: Chosen Generation by Chris Tomlin on the CD Passion: Awakening.

Face to Face: One Year After My Dad's Death

Mom and Dad, Summer 2008, Texas Hill Country

Today marks the one year anniversary of the death of my Dad. He was the most important man in my life on this earth. "Significant" is too weak of a word to describe the influence and impact he had on me. He was the best living example of Jesus that I have ever met, and He demonstrated that life in Jesus was his greatest passion. One year ago, the plane ride from Atlanta, GA to Lubbock, TX via Memphis, TN, was long and quiet. On that plane ride, I penned this prayer, my first journal entry for 2010. It is all my heart knew to do. Pour out to God. I'm sharing it with you in honor of the life of my Dad, and to the glory of our Heavenly Father who never leaves us, who comforts us in our sorrow and whose Presence is with us.

January 16, 2010 | Plane ride, Memphis, TN to Lubbock, TX

Father, in your mercy, bring Dad to see You face to face. And strengthen us in our sorrow and suffering until your mercy shows us the same.

You are Sovereign Creator. I know you, Jesus, because my Dad knows you well. I know You, Jesus, and am known by You... the greatest treasure a man could have.

Bring Dad to You, to enter into Your joy and enjoy fully the reward you have for Him. You bless Him with a new name written on a white stone, known only by You, specifically for him! (Revelation 2:17) We don't want to hold on to him here, and keep him from his reward you have for him.

Comfort mom--draw our family closer to one another and to You. May our lives honor Dad by honoring You, Sovereign Lord.

Thank you for the gift of my Daddy. Even in a stern look, his eyes communicated love. I've never known a harsh word or a hand of anger; I've only known a gentle spirit and a steady strength and have been lavished with words and kisses and hugs of affection and delight. He loved me well, Father; and, in doing so, he has shown me how well You love me.

Until I am home with you, Father, enjoy my Dad... I'll miss him until I see You face to face.

That night at 7:15 p.m. (CT), gathered around his bed with my mom and two brothers, Jesus welcomed my Dad home. Face to face. (1 Corinthians 13:12)

The Lame Beggar Within

In Acts 3:6-7, Peter extends his right hand to a 40-something year old beggar at the temple gate who had been lame since birth. Peter speaks with strength in confidence, “I don’t have gold or silver, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” And the Scriptures tell us that immediately the man was strengthened. Later, in verse 16, we see “… it is the name of Jesus which strengthened this man.”

Power, Healing, Strength, Rescue, Salvation, Confidence, Boldness. These words describe the effect the name of Jesus has on those who embrace His Presence (Acts 3-4).

We all have lame, broken and crippled places deep within our soul that have left us beggars, longing for more from life and the hope of a restored strength. Jesus, the True Source of Strength, invites us to welcome His name into those broken places so that we can be healed. So that His strength may be imparted to us. So that we will rise, healed.

What about you? Speak the name of Jesus and welcome His Presence to the Lame Beggar within. And... in the name of Jesus... walk.

Winning the Prize

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:12-14 (NIV)

Winning the prize leaves you speechless. When I saw this Stanley Cup commerical, I wondered, "Is my reaction the same when asked about the prize of knowing Jesus? Not simply knowing about Jesus, but knowing Him through experiencing His power and grace and greatness in my life?"

When we truly encounter Jesus personally, there are no words. The result is unspeakable JOY.

Movement Defines a Man's Existence

"When good movement stops, bad movement begins."
Dr. Larry Crab, The Silence of Adam

Pursuing life in Jesus = Good movement

Pursuing life in Anything Else other than Jesus = Bad Movement

In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
John 1:4, speaking of Jesus

Jesus, Help Me to See

I'm re-reading John Eldredge's signature book, Wild at Heart. John's ministry and this book has made a significant impact on my life. I first read it in 2002, and have read it multiple times since then. Picking it up again lead me to ask God to show me something new, something fresh. While the book is exactly the same book I have read many times, I have changed. My life circumstances have changed. My heart has different questions it is asking, and I have advanced further along in my journey with the Lord.

So my question to the Lord was, "Father...help me see something new. Lord, show me something fresh. Use this material to reveal more of who You are, today. Yesterday was great... I see where I underlined that phrase and scribbled that note. That was then. Help me see, today."

Jesus' words confirm this is one of the reasons He came--to help us see. Take time to invite Jesus to do what He says He came to do--to help you see.

Jesus then said, "I came into the world to bring everything into the clear light of day, making all the distinctions clear, so that those who have never seen will see, and those who have made a great pretense of seeing will be exposed as blind." John 9:39 (The Message)

Brandon Christensen, Walking with God

Restored.

Pictured Here: Steven Gibbs, Stacy Swenton, Bill Swenton, Ken Murphy

Their faces express it best. Restored. Bill and Stacy were 2 of 126 individuals that were baptized on October 4 at Stonecreek Church. They had the joy of experiencing baptism with their children, Sydney and Trey. What an incredible day!

But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "The LORD be exalted!" Psalm 40:16 (NIV)

Leading people to pursue life in Jesus as their greatest passion.