I talk way too much.

Freedom isn't free.

There's a price… and the price to real freedom… True freedom, is actually in SERVANTHOOD.

While the world tells you it's time to “Get yours,” and “You have a right to be happy,” the paradox of freedom, is that this freedom is not found where no demands are being placed on our lives, or where worldly pleasures with no accountability are filling our time.

The wisdom of God speaks completely differently.It is only through complete SUBMISSION to the will of God, a willingness to become a true servant to His demands, do we actually become, permanently become free.

Matthew 16:24-25 / Luke 22:25-27 / Galatians 5:13-14

We all seem to have an incessant, narcissistic belief, that somehow, we humans are the arbiters of spiritual truth We often feel as though it is up to us to teach the unwashed masses. 

Well… The Bible has some things to say about we teachers. 

What makes Jesus different, is that it’s NOT what we do that determines whether or not you can be saved. It is, instead, WHAT JESUS DID, that allows us to be saved. And this unwarranted, unmerited GRACE, is very difficult for us as humans to get our minds around. Our nature wants so badly to believe that what we did or do, contributed to our salvation. “We deserve it.” We can't help but need to feed the deepest, darkest recesses of our heart, where the vanities and pride hide themselves. We always find a way to take credit. Which basically means we claim that we earned our salvation. 

What does the Bible tell us about being the authors of our own salvation? 

The bible simple states that we must: Repent, surrender control, be baptized and watch Him change us from the inside out, as we stay in relationship with Him.

HE changes us. HE makes us. WE DON’T make us. If we try to earn a trip to heaven, we’ll fail. We can never be good enough. 

Being a believer definitely doesn't mean that life is about to take a major turn toward the easy and comfortable, because we've chosen to follow Christ. In fact, becoming a believer in most cases, is the beginning of some pain… the pain of change; and God definitely loves us enough not to leave us who we were.

We're going to fall. When we do, just stay down there for a minute. Stay down there when you fall… when we fall, and get on your knees, ask for His mercy, ask for His forgiveness, and mean it, and LOVE Him and trust Him. And then, stand up, and BE RENEWED. 

See, and feel, and experience the mercy of a perfect creator, a perfect father, the one who loved us so much, that He sent His Son, so that we could have eternal life.

It's not enough to point at the world around us and blame them for everything that is happening, when we, His people, have corrupted ourselves with the world in hundreds of ways.

It's time for His people to start dealing with OUR OWN corruption. 

We're saved by the grace of Christ, and with that salvation, we are called to face this world with courage.

When it comes to healing this land, we need to repent. We, His people, His believers… we need to repent. We need to seek His face, and ask Him to heal our land.