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tomorrow?

we are only half way through the first round of the 2010 ncaa tournament;

almost 5,000,000 people filled out a bracket on espn.com (4.7+ million to be more accurate);

57 people still have a perfect bracket.

this equates to .00114%

or 1 out of every 87,719 people getting the first half of the first round correct.

there are six rounds.

dick vitale, “the dude of college basketball,” got 8 out of 16 games correct…

50%.

this is his job…and a person could have flipped a coin for equal probability.

in fact, my brother set up a bracket where he flipped a coin for every game:

it is in the top 3.1% of those 5M filled out brackets,

correctly “picking” 12 of the 16 games played yesterday.

ok, i think my point can now be made.

we live like we know what tomorrow will bring

we make decisions based of off our own understanding

we are still convinced this is the best way

we are so temporary & immediate in our feeble ways of thinking that even with the clear & many examples of our blatant inability to actually know what the future holds for us, we rely on our thoughts.

think about a year ago today, would you have been even close to guessing where you actually are today?

i would be way off.

yet i still think about where i’m going to be in a year and use those thoughts to form my decisions today.

i know that God uses that thought process for His good,

but He also gives us pretty clear warning against this:

13Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” 16As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.

james 4:13-17

i got some good & bad news for you-i just presented what you “ought to do”,

and now if you don’t follow it (and do believe in Jesus as your King), you are sinning.

if you don’t believe in Jesus as Savior, believe me you aren’t getting a free pass at the end of the day.

i didn’t say it – don’t take it out on the messenger – check the Word.

we have no idea what tomorrow will bring.

let’s start living this reality out…

i know it is “extreme” and very counter to what our flesh and society encourages

(heck it is everything that we know to do before we know Jesus),

but let’s strive to make it part of who we are,

to make it as normal to go to God before all things

as it is now for a non-believer to rely on themselves.

how can we most effectively begin to grasp this concept that is a seemingly inherent quality?

is this just nuts?

here’s the update of a group that i am in after day 1 of the tourney:

1.  CoinFlipper1* – 120 pts

2.  Stacedogg – 110 pts

2.  Noellekittycat – 110 pts

2.  DPMIII – 110 pts

5.  BigCatJLO – 100 pts

5.  Marla – 100 pts

5.  SamuelMiles – 100 pts

8.  LtLo – 90 pts

8.  CoinFlipper2* – 90 pts

8.  CavieMomma – 90 pts

11.  Ronaldo – 80 pts

12.  AshMoLo – 70 pts

12.  BofeUnit – 70 pts

*CoinFlipper1 was a coin flip for every game.

*CoinFlipper2 was the top seed winning the first round & a coin flip for the remaining games.

something that our society lacks today is accountability.

post-modernity has done away with the virtues that humanity once held,

theologically:

faith

hope

service

(infused by the grace of God).

according to plato:

courage

wisdom

justice

temperance.

according to the post-modern:

tolerance.

that’s all.

it is really disheartening & sad for everybody involved

because there is no absolute standard

–>

a serious lack of accountability

–>

a sleazy, wicked, debauched, godless, and promiscuous society.

so, to do my part in encouraging an honorable society who pursues eternal holiness over temporary happiness by presenting uncomfortable accountability,

i am publishing the results from last year’s tourney challenge:

1. J-Lo – 1490 pts

2. Momma – 1250 pts

3. Miles – 1080 pts

4. Luke – 920 pts

5. Ash-Mo – 830 pts

6. Ronaldo – 740 pts

7. Pops – 730 pts

8. Momma Marla – 700 pts

9. Daddy Don – 520 pts

it’s okay daddy don, we’re gonna get ‘em this year.

while this accountability is just intended to be silly,

the lack of accountability in our society today is anything but silly…

it is maddening.

let’s try not to push off accountability by

making light of a situation

or telling a joke

or asking about the weather.

rather, let’s focus on embracing the tension of accountability

and allow the Spirit of God to use that tension to transform us

knowing that this life is but a wisp.

who is keeping you accountable?

are they a lot like you? think the same? same political preference? read the same books? like the same things?

if so, is there something dangerous about having an accountability team who is the same as you?

what standard are you being held accountable to?

is it anything other than an absolute, objective standard in God? is that okay?

naked

adam & eve didn’t realize they were naked until sin entered the world.

their hearts, souls, & minds were so in tune with their Creator,

that they did not see what they did not have.

rather, they only saw what they did have.

while we will never get to experience purity of the like this side of Jesus’ return,

we can strive for it, and when we do, it is a beautiful thing.

i know i have done this before, but i think it is worth doing every day:

stare at something for 1 minute, any one thing.

what happened to the things around that object?

when we stare at Jesus, we don’t realize what we don’t have.

rather, we only realize what we do have:

grace

forgiveness

eternal life

love

joy

peace

patience

eternal

goodness

Jesus.

the other things: what makes us unhappy, sin, greed, discontentment, the world, temporary

all become quite feeble.

the reality of the situation:

they seem quite incapable

in their attempt to fill the hole that God intentionally put in our heart

for our benefit

when He created us.

what is your soul staring at today?

that answer might come from answering this question:

do you think more about what you don’t have or what you do have?

do you feel naked & in need of a cover or completely content & satisfied (in Christ)?

Psalm 73:16

“…when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task…”

complete sovereignty?
free will?
God’s plan?
where to go to lunch?

kind of nice to know that thousands of years later, we can still relate to this psalmist in this manner.

a bummer if the psalmist stopped here because although it is comforting in a way to relate to some, it can cease to be helpful outside of that comfort if there is no helpful advice.

Psalm 73:17

“…until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.”

wow.

what is making you wearisome?
what is holding you back from discerning the end (going to God right now)?

robbing

“A pastor who fails to make prayer a priority in his ministry robs himself of the Holy Spirit’s anointed power, robs the church of personal contact with God, robs the lost of an opportunity to hear the gospel in a powerful setting, and robs the world of an awakening”

-bryant and brunson, the new guidebook for pastors

while i didn’t agree with everything that i read in this book,

i definitely agreed with this thought on prayer.

as believers if we don’t pray, we are robbing:

our ministry (whatever that may be)

our church (wherever that may be)

an opportunity (whenever that may be)

the world (whoever that may be) …

this only leaves out one “w” = why are you doing what you are doing?

if the answer is anything other than God, please stop reading this & pray right now

that He would realign your heart by reminding you of

His holiness

your depravity

His love shown in Jesus Christ

& the life He now can offer through faith.

let us be diligent and faithful in unleashing the anointed power of the Spirit of God…

it is only for our good.

i believe a man that does not pray often is prideful and foolish.

they either

simply disobey,

don’t understand the reality of prayer (or the power contained in prayer),

or have deficient faith.

if this is you, find out what it is that keeps you from going to God before everything you think or do

and plead with Him to take that from you;

it will benefit your own spiritual growth and His kingdom.

“I would rather teach one man to pray than ten men to preach.”

-the “prince of preachers” who preached to over 10,000,000 people,

charles spurgeon

this needs to be a daily check, what today has hindered you from going to God before every action?

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