No doubt all history in the last resort must be held by Christians to be a story with a divine plot. - C.S. Lewis For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves - Col 1:13 It's natural for us to see life as an on-going story where we are the central character and the hero. It is our biography, happening in real-time and we have been cast in the starring role. If we're the hero and the star, where does that leave God in all of this? Well, He's the author, of course, carefully weaving the situations and conditions into a plot which assures a victorious outcome for the hero. Like all good authors, He is making sure the hero overcomes all conflict in the end while the villains get the justice they deserve. This kind of perspective can lead to some serious disillusionment. If we're the hero, shouldn't we have a better job, fewer problems and more adventure? Shouldn't the story have a more interesting plot than this? Sometimes it feels like we're not living the life we would have chosen for the hero, and that can leave us feeling bitter and disappointed. What kind of author is God, anyway? It's absolutely true that God is the author, and He is indeed weaving the plot to ensure the best outcome for the hero. Yet, God is not just the author, He is also that hero about whom He is writing. The story is about God. Does this mean we are some small, bit player in the drama? Not at all! We may not be the hero, but we are the next best thing. We are the hero's beloved who has been separated from Him and locked away in a terrible dungeon. This particular chapter of God's story is about how the hero fights and wins many battles in order to rescue His beloved. In the end, they live happily ever after. For most of us, we've not yet arrived at that happy ending. Instead, we find ourselves nearing the climax of the story. From outside the dungeon walls, God calls to us, "I have come for you. I have endured many trials, won many battles and even lost my only Son in order to rescue you. I have unlocked the doors. Come out now, and let us leave together." The dungeon we're in is a peculiar one. Many of us do not know we are even in a dungeon, and some don't want to be rescued. Inside the dungeon, we are the hero. Despite the terrible conditions, we are in control and no one can take that away from us. We fail to see that we are the hero of nothing -- an empty, lonely life in a cold and desolate world. Yet, we hesitate to leave the security and eminence of our own story to join ourselves to another where we are not the hero. And so, God waits patiently outside the walls hoping that we will at last truly desire the unimaginable love which awaits us in His story when we choose to be with Him. It's almost impossible to understand how anything in life is supposed to make sense when we cling to the notion that we are the hero and that God is crafting a story just for us. In that context, how could we ever hope to explain the loss and suffering we all experience? When trouble comes, as it always does, part of us wonders, "How could you do this to me, God?" The answer makes more sense when, with the proper perspective, we understand the story simply is not about us. The story is not about a happy ending here, on Earth. It's not about fame, wealth or success in our career. Those things may or may not be made available to us depending on what God is accomplishing in our lives, but they are not the hero's reward and we are not the hero. No, this chapter is about our happy ending with God in Heaven, while the entire story is about His eternal glory. When things don't make sense in our lives, we should not ask, "Why me?" Knowing our proper place in the story will help us to ask instead, "What do You want me to learn about You from this situation?" and "How can I help You to accomplish Your will through me?" Maintaining the right perspective will go a long way toward keeping us from the bitterness and despai

If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 1 John 4:20 "If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?" Matthew 5:46-47 Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 1 John 3:18 There are many different types of love, each with many sides and aspects. One of the many flaws of the English language is that we have a single word to describe them all, so it's understandable that we may fail to distinguish between that which we feel for our husband or wife, and that which compels us to feed the poor. This linguistic limitation has the most impact when it tricks us into believing that love is a feeling, and worse, one over which we have no control. We don't usually choose whom we love romantically, and we may fall in and out of love at the whim of our emotions. Since this is the kind of love with which we are the most familiar (and perhaps the most comfortable), we struggle when we hear Jesus speak of "loving our enemies." A contradiction forms in our mind as we think, "How can I love them? I don't feel a shred of sympathetic emotion for them at all!" The love of which Jesus speaks is not a feeling in any sense of the word. It is a decision resulting in action. It is a choice you make that has nothing whatsoever to do with how you feel, and quite often, occurs in spite of a feeling to the contrary. This kind of love judges the needs of a person but never the person themselves, and responds according to the gravity of the need, never the character of the person. Understand that you must absolutely restrain whatever you feel for a person and treat them with as much compassion and kindness as you would show your own mother or child. This is the kind of love that Christ demands - not a feeling, but rather a spirit of service, selflessness and humility. It is the ability to give to others with no regard to what they can do to repay you, what they feel for you or what you feel for them. This kind of love is extremely hard. Unlike romantic love, which naturally drives us to do wonderful things for our spouse, loving our enemies goes against what our sinful nature desires us to do. It is far from effortless. Very often, when we stand at the brink of loving our enemies, our sinful nature cries out, "I don't want to do this!" and stands poised to halt our progress. We have to push through it. We have to resist the notion that something so difficult and so contrary to our natural desire could be called "love". It is, in fact the greatest kind of love. It is the kind of love that God demonstrated when He saved us while we were His enemies. (Romans 5:10) There are opportunities for each of us to put this kind of love into practice every day, but it takes extraordinary courage and faith to even recognize these opportunities, let alone act on them. Imagine a coworker that you simply cannot get along with who is on the verge of making a huge mistake that will get her fired. Our sinful nature revels in this, and tells us that it serves her right. Let her get fired! Yet, if we are to love as God loves, we cannot let this situation unfold. We must intervene and prevent her from making that mistake despite all objections from our emotions. This is not at all what we will "feel" like doing, and that is why it requires such courage and faith. And what reward will we get? Perhaps she will thank us, or perhaps she will tell us to mind our own business. Yet, our love does not expect her appreciation. Our motives are simple and pure - love her as God loves her. Remember that this kind of love is not about emotion, it is about action. Never stop looking for these opportunities to act in your life, and don't give in to the nagging voice which insist

"He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn - and I would heal them." John 12:40 A few weeks ago, I wrote a devotional about spiritual warfare with the intention of convincing our readers that none of us can escape the devastating war which has engulfed this world. In this devotional, we want to continue the theme of spiritual warfare by looking at the effect this war has had on each of us, and how we can finally become healed. There are many certainties about war, and one of the most tragic is that combatants and bystanders alike get wounded, sometimes grievously so. In the case of the war for the Kingdom, you have already been wounded whether you realize it or not. Often, the severity of your wound is proportional to your determination to serve God and accomplish His will on this earth. If you are a fervent follower of Christ, you can be absolutely certain that the Devil and his forces have taken note of your involvement in this war. Perhaps long before you were actively involved in the conflict, the forces of evil understood how powerful and dangerous you would be and dealt you a serious wound in hopes of taking you out of the fight. If you are serving Christ and resisting the Devil, then their wound has not had the desired result, but that does not mean it has not affected you. To at least some extent, that wound has affected the course of your life and has caused suffering and heartache for a very long time. What kind of wounds am I talking about? There is almost no limit to the various ways the wound manifests itself in your life. The symptoms can appear as anger, violence, low self-esteem, depression, addiction, promiscuity or difficulty in maintaining relationships. For many of us, the wound is experienced as a lack of peace and joy that we know should be there, but are inexplicably absent from our lives. However, these are just the symptoms of the wound - they are not the wound itself. The wound takes the form of lies that you have believed and accepted as truth. The lie was told to you by the Father of Lies at a time when you were young and vulnerable. It was whispered in your ear as your first love walked out of your life or your parents divorced and went their separate ways. He might have said, "This is your fault", "You're not good enough", or perhaps, "You're not lovable." Since the time you first believed the lie, things have never been the same in your life. For as long as you carry this wound, you are not able to be the warrior for Christ that He intended you to be. You might be fierce, faithful and powerful in this war, but your wound is keeping you from being complete. It has robbed you of untold peace and joy and you deserve to be healed. The time is now. All healing ultimately comes from God, and He is where you need to begin your journey of healing. As we read the countless stories of Jesus healing those with disease and afflictions, we cannot ignore the truth that our health and well-being, physical and mental, matter to Him. Take some time alone in prayer, and begin by asking God to reveal the depth and scope of your wound. Its true nature may be obvious to some of you, while others may need the Holy Spirit to take you deep inside to reveal where you've been injured. If you are going to ask Jesus to heal the damage that's been done, you need to be prepared to go down into the depths with Him. Your journey of healing will ultimately take you back to the time when the lies were first told and your world was torn apart. Ask Jesus to take you back to that painful time and repeal all the lies that were told. Ask Him to show you that it was not your fault, that you are loved and that you matter to Him. Open your heart to the truth with which God wants to fill you. Visit those painful places with Jesus at your side and let Him comfort you. Let Him show you the truth about what was really going on. Let Him heal you. Fo

"Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring - those who keep God's commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus. " Rev 12:17 "Enemy occupied territory that is what this world is." - C.S. Lewis "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist." - The Usual Suspects. Christianity is, to some extent, a religion with a bit of an identity crisis. There are aspects of Jesus' teaching which have universal appeal and make for an easy sell. Who doesn't want more peace and love in their life? At the same time, there are elements of Christianity which are less pleasant and so we may have a tendency to hide them in the closet and focus on areas where we are more comfortable. While contented with the lovely fundamentals of Christianity, we tend to overlook the fact that the Bible reveals the existence of an enemy who seeks to annihilate us. We don't want to even think about spiritual warfare, much less do anything about it. Maybe if we pretend it isn't real, it won't affect us. That strategy simply won't work. Few combatants in war ever wanted to fight but they could not shake off the conflict once it consumed them. Once the shooting starts, all you can do is choose sides. As Aragorn tells King Théoden in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Two Towers, "Whether you would risk it or not, open war is upon you." There is a war raging all around you at this very moment. Those who oppose God are locked in fierce combat with those who remain ever loyal. We know that God and the forces of good triumph in the end, but that day has not yet come. In the meantime, no one is invulnerable to the effects of this war. We are all casualties and have all been tormented by the forces of the evil one. It would be a mistake to attribute every bad decision or selfish act to the influence of the forces of evil, but worse still would be a steadfast refusal to acknowledge the existence of this wicked army. As you grow in intimacy with God and succeed in doing His work on Earth, the more Satan and his minions will rally against you. If you are oblivious to this opposition or its source, you will be ill-equipped to handle it. The most common tactic the devil will use to torment us is to tell lies and deceive us. Frequently, we will get the message that we are worthless or that our efforts to serve God are in vain. At its worst, it can leave you wondering if God even exists at all. "You're not good enough to pull this off." "You're nothing but a filthy sinner." "You're wasting your time." When you hear that denigrating voice, you must make no agreements with it! You must never allow that voice to lead you down the path of hopelessness and despair. Don't give your tormentor a foothold by thinking, "...Maybe I am wasting my time." Recognize it for what it is and demand it to flee. There is more to spiritual warfare than ignoring Satan's lies. There is an active role for you to play and your efforts are desperately needed. Paul gives us our marching orders in his letter to the Ephesians. He writes, Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 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. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Eph 6:11-17 Paul is not being metaphorical or fig

Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: "Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don't cheat, I don't sin, and I don't commit adultery. I'm certainly not like that tax collector! I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income. "But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner. I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." Luke 18:9-14 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. James 4:10 Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 As I have meditated on the qualities of humility and thankfulness in the past week, I've discovered just how strongly they are linked. We cannot exhibit one without also exhibiting the other. As we grow in one, we grow in the other and where we fail in one, we fail in the other. In order to be truly thankful and humble, we must resist our natural tendency to exaggerate what we deserve, particularly in the area of material possessions. For example, if we are not truly grateful for the beautiful home God has given us, our pride roars when we look at what other people around us have been able to afford. Likewise, if we do not have our pride in check, we will not feel particularly grateful for our job when a co-worker is promoted ahead of us. The Bible is full of reminders that inflated pride and a lack of appreciation inhibit intimacy with God. Psalm 10:4, says, "In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God." Pride, arrogance, greed and selfishness are rampant today. Our culture has conditioned us to look out for ourselves and fight for what we're entitled to. More emphasis is placed on self-fulfillment than morality and our children are taught that it's more important to feel good than to do good. Clearly, we do not live in an environment conducive to humility and gratefulness. What can we do? Notice carefully what James tells us. His command is to, "humble yourself." In a similar way, Paul tells us to, "Give thanks." The apostles are not telling us to, "be humble" or to "be thankful." I can't speak for everyone, but I'm not certain how to make myself become humble or to force myself to feel thankful. If I were to attempt it and fail, then I might be inclined to shrug my shoulders and give up in despair. But no, we are commanded to do, not to be. Fortunately, I do know how to humble myself and how to give thanks, so I can concern myself with doing something tangible, instead of trying to be something intangible. Though we may not succeed in becoming humble and thankful by striving for that directly, by humbling ourselves, we will become humble and by giving thanks, we will become thankful. Every day, there are terrific opportunities to humble ourselves which we may overlook. It's a choice we have to consciously make whenever we feel that we may not be getting our due. When we discover that a co-worker has been promoted to the position we felt we deserved, then we can choose to compliment and congratulate them or we can choose a bitter and resentful reaction. When you volunteer for an event at your church and all that remains is the job of cleaning up, then you have a choice to make. Will you walk away in disgust because that job is beneath your talent, or will you gratefully accept the task and complete it without grumbling? Humbling ourselves is as simple as making the decision to suppress our pride whenever it rears its ugly head. The more we do this, the