Flight Zone & Escape Behavior

So let's talk about a Flight Zone.  What is a Flight Zone?  Well, it doesn't have anything to do with aircraft.  I had been studying for a presentation I am giving in my class for bible school on the topic "what is a pastor?"  I decided to begin studying out the behaviors of sheep.  Why would I do that? you may ask.  Because a pastor is often referred to as a shepherd and we christians and church members are often referred to as sheep.  I know, very flattering.  Anyways, I figured I would study the behaviors of actual sheep and maybe that would give me some clarity on the life of a shepherd which would give me some more clarity on the roles of a pastor.

While I was studying behaviors of sheep I learned that sheep, like most animals, have what is known as a "Flight Zone."  A Flight Zone is an area surrounding the animal that if encroached upon by a potential predator or threat will cause alarm and escape behavior.  Escape behavior is essentially what the animal will do immediately following the encroachment of a possible enemy.  An animals escape behavior will vary from animal to animal.  Some animals may run for their lives, others may take a defensive position, and others will run for any form of protection they may find.

While reading about sheep and their behaviors and flight zones I can't help but wonder what my flight zone is and what my escape behavior is like once my flight zone has been breached.  

I know the Bible says "we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and rulers of darkness." and I also know that the Bible says "the enemy is roaming about seeking whom he may devour."  Based on those scriptures I understand that I have only one enemy in this life, only one substance that could possibly violate my flight zone, only one threat that could make me switch to my escape behavior and that is the devil.

This leads me to asking myself, what is my flight zone and what is my escape behavior?  Have I given the enemy so much ground in my life that my flight zone has become very small?  How much of an attack will I tolerate from the devil and his forces before I go into escape behavior?  Will I allow negative thoughts?  Will I allow sickness?  Will I allow lack?  Will I allow poverty?  Will I allow my family to live their lives not knowing Jesus?  How much will I take?  How much will I allow the enemy to encroach on me and my territory before I finally move into escape behavior?

And what exactly is my escape behavior?  Do I turn and just begin running away from the threat of my enemy?  Do I run and run hoping that I will be strong enough to out last and out run the one seeking to kill and destroy my life?  Do I turn and try to fight back?  Do I try to fight my enemy leaning on my own understanding and my own ability?  Or maybe I do what sheep do, maybe I turn towards my Shepherd, maybe I go and stand next to Him and I lean on His strength and His power.

See, as Christians we have to know that the devil and his forces have already been defeated.  We have to know that they hold no power over our lives besides what we allow them to have.  If we allow the enemy to encroach on our territory, if we allow the enemy to get close to us and take what is ours before we transition into escape mode, then we are saying we don't fully trust in what Jesus already did for our lives.  The word of God says that He came to give us life and life more abundantly!  That abundant life is within our flight zone and we shouldn't allow the enemy to come in and take what's rightfully ours through Christ.

Animals have four varying degrees of flight zones and the zones get closer and closer depending upon the threat the animal perceives in the object encroaching on their territory.  The closest zone is the social zone, where the animal feels no threat and therefore allows the closest distance without going into escape mode.  As I read this I wonder if I have allowed the enemy to come into my social zone.  Have I allowed him to get so close to me that I am unaware I should be in escape mode and standing next to my Shepherd leaning on His power and His promises to protect and defend me.

I think it's time I reevaluate my flight zone and I begin to take back my territory that was promised to me and made available to me through my Shepherd, Jesus Christ.  When times get tough, when seasons get hard, when threats come, I should go into escape behavior and run to my Savior before I get too comfortable with having the enemy in my territory. 

Mary's way to Worship Jesus.

John 12:3 says, "Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus' feet with it and wiped His feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with fragrance."

I love this verse because it shows us an example of what it would be like to truly worship Jesus.

Prior to this encounter with Jesus and the perfume and His feet, Mary had a special encounter with the Son of God.  Her brother, Lazarus died and had been buried for four days when Jesus, a friend of the family, came into town to visit His friends.  When Jesus arrived He found the family and their friends all mourning the death of Lazarus beside his tomb.  Jesus walked up to the tomb where Lazarus was buried and yelled for Lazarus to get up and walk out.  Sure enough, the guy who had been DEAD for FOUR DAYS got up and walked out of the tomb ALIVE.

So Mary had every right to be grateful to Jesus, in fact, before verse 3 arrives we read that Jesus was in the families house because they were throwing a dinner party in His honor (v. 1-2).

What Mary did was an act of worship for the Son of God but I believe it also set the standard of how we should worship The Lord.

Mary takes a 12-ounce bottle of very expensive perfume, so expensive in fact that Judas becomes angry with her for wasting the perfume on Jesus saying that it was worth a small fortune and could have been sold and the money given to the poor (V. 5).  Now, I don't know how wealthy the family was at the time of this party, maybe Mary had 100 of those 12-ounce bottles but I have a feeling it was a big deal for her and the family to have something of such significance and worth in their possession.  So what's the point?  One of the ways Mary worships Jesus is with her possessions and finances.  This isn't about tithing or offerings, don't think I'm going to ask you to start giving 50% of your income starting this Sunday at church.  But it is important to notice that this is one of the ways she chose to worship Him.  And keep in mind, Mary didn't make a financial donation to the ministry of Jesus, she didn't give the bottle of perfume to Him and say "please sell this so you'll have money to travel more."  She took her most prized possession and used it to honor and worship Him.  She didn't give up wearing perfume for lent, she didn't sell the perfume to donate the money to Jesus, she didn't give Him the bottle, she took the perfume and poured it over His feet!

The next way Mary worships Jesus is with her beauty by sacrificing her beauty in worship to the Son of God.  Jesus more than likely wore sandals during this time in history, I can't picture Him being caught wearing the latest Jordan's.  So He's wearing sandals, walking around in the dirt and the sand and the heat and around the city streets all day long and who knows how long it's actually been since He was able to wash His feet and here Mary is taking her hair to wipe the feet of Jesus using the expensive perfume she just poured over His dirty, nasty feet.  I'd imagine Mary was a very pretty lady who probably took good care of herself considering the fact that she owned such an expensive bottle of perfume during the times they lived in.  Yet, despite her beauty, despite her financial situation, despite her pride, she worships Jesus by sacrificing her beauty to worship and honor Him.

The third way Mary worship Jesus was by sacrificing her dignity and her pride and probably her reputation.  In the middle of a dinner party, while the men are gathered around the table engaged in conversation, while her sister is slaving away in the kitchen preparing a meal for everyone to enjoy, Mary gets down on the dirty floor and begins to pour this expensive perfume out onto His feet, then she uses her hair to wipe His feet off causing her hair to smell like a strange mixture of nasty feet and perfume and getting dirt and sand and filth in her hair during the process.  But Mary doesn't care about any of that, she doesn't care what the dinner guests might think of her.  Her only focus, her only goal, her mission is to worship Jesus with everything she has.  Mary worships Jesus with literally everything, her finances and possessions, her beauty, and her pride and reputation.  She lays it all down literally on the feet of Jesus because she loves Him so much she has to worship Him.

And what is the result of her sacrifice and her worship?  The end of verse 3 says "...and the house was filled with fragrance."  I want to believe this was the presence of God, His anointing.  The bible talks about the presence and anointing of God being like a sweet fragrance and in Revelation it talks about our prayers raising to God like a sweet smelling fragrance.  I believe that a result of Mary's sacrificial and complete worship to and for Jesus was that the anointing and the literal presence of God filled that house like a beautiful fragrance.

The bible says in Hebrews that we should offering a sacrifice of praise to Him continually.  Praising God and worshipping Him should not be without sacrifice, it should not be on our terms and within our comfortable spaces.  Our worship of Jesus should be with complete sacrifice and with complete and total abandon to anything and everything.  Is He not worthy of such a sacrifice?

I will be walking this out as I learn how I can specifically follow this example of worship.  I believe it will be different for everyone but I also believe it is the necessary way to truly worship the One who gave His life for ours.

Happiness and hope

Proverbs 11:23 says "The godly can look forward to happiness..."

We can look forward to happiness.  I like that.  And yes, I did assume myself to be the "godly".  I know it might seem simple or freshmen to be pointing out this verse and writing about it, but the point of this blog is to share my thoughts and this morning brings this thought.

Who is considered the "godly"?  Well, a quick Google search on "who are the godly?" Brings up a study on godly living.  As true as it is that we should live our lives in a certain way to show that we are children of God, I don't believe we can expect too much of what we do in our lives to make us that much more worthy to receive a specific title from heaven.

The book of Ephesians says we are children of God.  It says if we are in Christ, if we believe in Him, we are seated in heavenly places.  If I can believe I am seated in heavenly places, it would also be safe to assume I can have the benefits of those heavenly places, right?  I mean, if I am seated court side with Jack Nicholson at the Lakers game then I would assume those benefits would be mine as well.  I would expect to see Kanye and Kim or high-five Kobe or get my picture in some national publication sitting next to Jack or any of the other benefits that come with sitting next to Jack Nicholson court side.  

The same should be true when we consider our lives as believers and followers of Jesus.  We are seated in heavenly places.  Those benefits of heaven are mine and they are available to me right now.  I'm not going to be seated in heavenly places, I wasn't seated in heavenly places in a time before right now, I AM seated in heavenly places.  Right now, right here, I am seated.  Those benefits are mine NOW!  Not later, not sometime in the future, right now.

How can I be sick, poor, broken, hurt, jealous, troubled, depressed, lonely, or anything else expect good if I am seated in heavenly places?

It's true, I can look forward to happiness according to proverbs 11.  I can look forward to happiness right now and for the rest of my life.  Why?  Because I am seated in heavenly places.

Ephesians also says that God ordered that all things would fall under the authority of Christ.  What things? ALL THINGS.  That includes my happiness.  My happiness falls under the authority of Jesus!

So here's the deal.  Say it to yourself.  Say, "Self, You are seated in heavenly places.  You are happy because you are under the authority of Jesus."

A solider who falls under the authority of a General will experience the benefits of that general.  When war breaks out, if that General is the smartest and most experienced in combat and war, that soldier will experience those benefits.  We experience the benefits of Heaven for two reasons.  First, we are submitted to Jesus and His authority.  Second, because we are under His authority we are seated in Heavenly places and experience the benefits of Sonship, of being royalty, and of the palace of Heaven.

- cheers.

How to NOT become Hitler.

    Sometimes I can be judgmental.  Actually, I am judgmental most of the time.  It’s not easy for me to not be judgmental; honestly it’s very easy, it’s second nature.  Within my judgment I create the ability to be more than judgmental, I create the space for bitterness, envy, anger, hate, jealousy, and just about any other similar emotion or thought you could think of.  That’s what judgment does; it creates room for something greater.  Think of a courtroom and the judgment passed out by a jury or a judge.  Their decision, or judgment, creates more room for either freedom or captivity.

    Judgment stems from some form of insecurity.  Conscientiously or not, I have a bit of insecurity inside of me and it plays itself out in my judgment of the people in my environment.  Everyone deals with insecurity and judging others to some degree.  However, insecurity and judgment, when left out of check, can breed all those feelings and issues mentioned above; hate, anger bitterness, etc.

    From what I remember of my world history classes in school, Hitler was a very angry man.  Obviously we all know the horrific atrocities committed by Hitler and the Nazi party.  It’s easy to say that Hitler was very simply an evil man.  Don’t misunderstand what I am saying; I am in no way defending Hitler.  (I can’t believe I just wrote that sentence.)  Anyways, my memory tells me that Hitler wanted to become an artist one day.  He went to school and studied art.  He spent the next years working on his craft and one day believed he had a painting worthy of praise.  He decided to bring his piece to a local gallery where the curator laughed at him and sent him away telling him he was no good.

    He had worked so hard at his craft, his dreams and is desires were to be an accomplished artist and in one meeting his dreams and his years of work and study came crashing down.  What happens next in his life is where things turn horribly ugly. 

    Because of his hatred, his bitterness, his envy, his insecurity, and his anger, Hitler eventually murders millions of innocent people.  His hatred was sparked by this one encounter and given the time and fuel it needed, that spark turned into a massive flame that overtook a man and destroyed millions of lives.  I don’t believe Hitler was born as the evil person he became.  I think the evil took root when he allowed the insecurity and judgment and hatred to enter and breed.

    It is far too easy for anyone of us to become a person we were not meant to become when we allow our hurts and insecurities turn into judgment which can very easily lead to hatred, bitterness, anger, and strife.  I am not saying anyone of us has the ability to become the next Hitler.  I am saying that we have the ability to become something we were never created to become when we don’t check ourselves.

Some of the easiest ways to fuel our issues are to isolate and meditate.  When we become angry and bitter we often meditate on the encounter that caused us to become bitter, and angry, and hateful.  We play out the scenario in our minds and we talk to ourselves and imagine what we would say if the person were standing in the same room.  The other fuel is isolation.  We can become embarrassed or even more insecure and so we isolate ourselves from community and from familiar environments.  In our isolation we very easily add fuel to the fire of our bitterness.

    Don’t let bitterness, anger, hatred, judgment, and insecurity rob you of becoming who you are and who you were meant to be.  Don’t let isolation keep you from growing in community.  Forgive those who’ve hurt you no matter what the offense has been.  Move on with your life.  Extinguish the spark before it turns into a fire you cannot control.  Forgive. 

    Jesus told His disciples that if they walk into church and remember an offense they have against someone or an offense their brother has against them, they should walk out of the church right then and there, go find their brother and make restitution.  He told Peter, the most offensive man in the bible, to forgive those who hurt him 7 X 70.  In other words, always forgive.  There is NEVER a good enough reason to withhold forgiveness from ANYONE.

    Go ahead, pick up your phone and call the people in your life who’ve hurt you or those people you’ve hurt.  Find them and make restitution.  Allow forgiveness to take hold in your life.  Because we want the world to know us by the love we share with one another.

Turning your back on the world

There is a worship song that my church has been singing lately.  A portion of the song says “The cross before me, the world behind me.  No turning back.”

This morning while making my coffee that part of the song was stuck in my head for some reason.  I don’t even like the song so it was odd that it would be stuck in my head.  I sung that part of the song out and then thought “that’s wrong.”

I think there are a lot of songs with a similar message.  Stay with God, turn towards the cross, look to Jesus, but stay away from, out of, don’t go near, turn your back on the world.

While the songwriter is not present to define what they meant by “the world”, I will judge them strictly for the sake of this blog.

Why are Christians so afraid of the world?  You know we live in the world, right?  It’s like there is some evil force that we have no power of, but apparently the world has something enticing to offer most Christians because they keep having to remind themselves to look at the cross and not to turn their eyes to left or the right for fear of embracing the world.

I cannot see Peter, Paul, John, Luke, Timothy, or any of the other disciples, apostles, teacher, preachers, or prophets of the New Testament holding the same opinion.

See, most Christians today are afraid that of they spend more of their time in “the world” than they do in the Church they will somehow morph into sinners.  I would imagine if Paul or Peter spent more time inside the church than they did outside, in the world, ministering to the needy and the hurt and the confused and the politician, they would feel guilty.

Don’t misunderstand what I am saying.  Obviously I understand the importance of keeping our focus on Jesus and having the relationship that we do with Him.  But if we are so ignorant as to assume we should turn our backs to the world we may have some serious issues.

How can we fulfill the great commission if all we do is keep our eyes on the cross and our back continually to the world?  Should we just wait for the lost and hurting to walk in front of our path in order for us to see them and reach them?

No, we should turn towards the world and forge forward towards a goal of bringing love and healing to a lost and dying world.

So please, enough with the songs and sermons about how bad the world is.  Enough with turning your backs on the world that needs you more than the church does. 

- Cheers.

Do I really love you?

"If I give away everything that I have and hand over my own body to feel good about what I’ve done but I don’t have love, I receive no benefit whatsoever.
 Love is patient, love is kind, it isn’t jealous, it doesn’t brag, it isn’t arrogant, it isn’t rude, it doesn’t seek its own advantage, it isn’t irritable, it doesn’t keep a record of complaints, it isn’t happy with injustice, but it is happy with the truth. Love puts up with all things, trusts in all things, hopes for all things, endures all things." (1 Corinthians 13:3-7 CEB)

For the last week or so these verses have been lingering around my head.  It started last Thursday.  I was sitting at work and began thinking "I should read 1 Corinthians 13."
For whatever reason I chose not to read those verses that day.  Actually I didn't pick up my bible to read 1 Corinthians 13 until the following Saturday, and when I read these words I felt like someone had thrown a bucket of cold water on me.

I've read this chapter about 5 times over the last few days and each time I realize that I haven't been someone who lives up to these verses.  Why is this such a big deal?  Because I've always thought of myself as someone who is extraordinarily loving.  However, as with most things concerning Christian life, if my life doesn't measure up to what the bible holds as truth than I am not living my life properly.  That sounds a bit harsh even as I write the words out.  I don't mean that in a "perfection" sort of way, but Christ is my guide for how to live my life.  I will never become like Jesus in every way, I am a man and I make mistakes.  Setting my life on a course that aims to follow Him is however what I feel is necessary.

Read those verses above one more time.  If my actions towards those I love do not align with these verses than I am not really loving those people I claim to love.  The text says "Love is patient, love is kind, love is not jealous..."  What does it say about my love for others if I am not patient, if I am not kind, if I am jealous?  Does it mean I don't really love those people?  I'd like to believe there's some room for error.  In other words, I feel it's somewhat possible to love others without being in perfect love according to 1 corinthians 13.  Will that love last for the long haul?  I don't know.  What I do know is that I have never genuinely loved someone specifically according to the text above and still I know I had love for people in my life.  I sometimes wonder if it will ever be possible to love someone exactly as it's laid out in 1 corinthians 13.

The most staggering words in the entire text, at least for me, are "love doesn't keep a record of wrong doing...". Is that even possible?  In the past, I've always kept a record of the wrongs done to me.  Not literally a record, not a list I keep in a notepad in my back pocket or anything like that.  A record filed away in the back of my mind that I reflect upon when unfortunate things happen?  Yes.  At least I used to do that.  What I used to do was prepare myself for the same mistakes to repeat themselves.  If someone hurt me once before I expected to be hurt in the same way again.  It's sad that I keep the people I love in the same position and never allow them to grow or change.  And that is exactly what happens.  If I keep someone I love locked forever in the place of hurt, in the place of a mistake, in the place of unfortunate circumstance, than I never allow them to change for the better.  Said person will not be able to grow in our love outside of their mistakes because I keep them locked in that emotional and spiritual jail.

Now of course the person can change and grow, but in my perception of that person, they'll never move forward.  When this happens there are two possible outcomes to explore.  A. ) There will be a constant darkness lingering above the relationship and things will always seem like something is wrong creating a sadness inside each persons heart.   B. )  The person that made the mistake will move forward towards forgiveness and change in their life.  When this happens that person will eventually leave the relationship because the other person cannot move past the mistakes and into forgiveness.

To be honest with you, I am incredibly tired of living my life as a hypocrite of love.  Claiming to be in love, claiming to love others, claiming to be an extraordinary lover of people, and not following one single verse from 1 corinthians 13.

So here is the challenge I am giving myself.  If you'd like to join me that would be wonderful.  You can e-mail me and share how it's working for you or simply comment below.  I am going to memorize the verses above.  I am going to make them a very real part of my life.  And I am going to compare my heart, my love, my words, and my actions to these verses.  If what I am doing, thinking, feeling, or saying does not line up with this text than I am not really living my life in love.

Wish me luck and maybe say a prayer for me.

- Cheers.

The Secret to Revival, Part 1

A few weeks ago I was offered an opportunity, by my pastor, to briefly share what The Lord has placed on my heart during this weeks church service. He's having me speak for a few minutes before he brings the message.
I sat down last week and began thinking about what I felt Jesus wanted me to share.
From a series of conversations with Him I decided to write this blog.
This is part one of a two part series. I'll ask that you not make any decisions or judgements on this post until you've read both pieces. The second part I will post tomorrow morning as the conclusion to the series I call "The Secret to Revival."



Throughout my years in various churches there has been one common theme among the majority. That theme has been the passionate pursuit for revival and the manifestation of the Holy Spirit through signs and wonders in their midst. I've been around people that only and always spoke about revival, the lack of revival, and how we all needed to have their same passion for revival.

I'll say this before I move forward: God can use anyone He chooses. Our limitations will never prevent God from working in our lives when He decides to move. The prerequisite for being used in revival and being used in the manifestation of the Holy Spirit has never been and it never will be perfection. If that were the case no one would've ever been nor would they ever be used again in such powerful ways.

Kris Vallotton uses the scripture in Matthew 26 to illustrate how anyone can be used.
"As they were eating he said, "I assure you that one of you will betray me." Deeply saddened, each one said to him, "I’m not the one, am I, Lord?" He replied, "The one who will betray me is the one who dips his hand with me into this bowl." (Matthew 26:21-23 CEB)

The point Kris makes is that the disciples didn't know who the one was that would betray Jesus. Kris says that had Judas never performed any miracles, if every time the opportunity to pray for someone came up, Judas said "I've gotta run to the bathroom", the disciples would've known immediately that Judas was the betrayer. The fact that the disciples had no idea Judas was the betrayer alludes to Judas moving in the same healing power as the other disciples. If Judas moved in the healing power of the Holy Spirit and experienced the same signs and wonders the other disciples experienced, than I would say it doesn't matter who you are or what you've done, God will use and work with whomever He chooses.

There are a lot of reasons why we haven't experienced revival or the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the way most dream about or pursue. One of those reasons is that we disqualify ourselves because we think we're not worthy to be used in such an awesome way. We consider our past and our sins and we say to ourselves, "God can never use me." Well, that's simply not biblical or true. Again, God will use whomever He chooses and our past will never hinder Him from using us for His work. So stop allowing what you think of yourself to keep you from what God has chosen for you.

Moving forward, I believe there is a secret to unlocking the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and creating an atmosphere for signs, wonders, and miracles to become common practice in our daily lives. This secret has two distinctive parts that we'll take a look at below.


The first part to this secret is very simple. Stop praying for, asking for, talking about, thinking about, dreaming about, and reading about revival until you refocus your attention.
We need to stop focusing all of our attention on revival. Stop making revival our main focus in life. Stop praying ONLY for revival.
Why do I say to stop focusing on revival? Because I've seen hundreds of people in various churches spend their lives only focusing on revival. It becomes their only focus and mission in life. These same people have a tendency to become extremely judgmental towards everyone else in their lives. Their judgment works it's way around the church first starting with people with whom they are not friends. They begin to look around noticing all the people that aren't engaging in the service. They judge people for not shouting, dancing, laughing, or raising their hands. They say something like "Well they just aren't as passionate or on fire as I am." Then they begin judging their friends within the church. They talk on the phone and notice how their friends don't speak about revival nearly as much as they do. "Well, I can't be around people that don't want revival as much as I do. They'll just drag me down." Then they begin to judge the church leadership and eventually they begin judging the pastor of the church. When their judgement has run its course they usually leave that church in search of a more "revival friendly" atmosphere. And then the same process starts all over again.
The results are churches lacking revival and lacking the outpouring they are seeking yet they are filled with hurt and broken individuals that show zero relevancy or appeal to the outside world.

Next time you're in the mall walk up to random strangers and ask them if they want to experience revival. Most of them won't have a clue what you're talking about except, I'm sure, they'll assume it's something "christian." Can we present the power and love of Jesus to the world without sounding like a bunch of wacko Christians? Yes, of course. I don't remember Jesus sounding like the Pharisees before He prayed for and healed people. As a matter of fact, Jesus spit in one mans eyes and in another He made mud and smeared it on the guys face to bring healing. I definitely don't see anyone in church doing that kind of stuff. I'm not telling you to walk around spitting on people to see if they get healed, I'm just wondering if sharing and expressing the love of Jesus looks like something other than what we're used to inside church.

That leads me into part two...which will be available tomorrow morning.
Thank you for reading part one.
-Cheers.