The Anti-God.

As Christians, we worship the God Who created humanity and who loves all of us. We believe that He has a good plan for every person, and a great plan for the ultimate redemption of all creation. Things in life can get pretty messed up at times because we live in a sinful, imperfect world and we know that not everything that happens is God's will.

And so God gave us the Bible as our guide for life. The Bible, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, is how we navigate this life and prepare for eternity. The Bible is filled with life principles, but also has some rules. There are some things that are flat our right and wrong. 

Because of those rules (and usually because of how Christians mis-represent them), society often thinks God is the "anti-God". God is against everything. People think He is anti-alcohol, anti-women, anti-sex, anti-birth control, anti-science, anti-homosexual, and anti-fun. In other words, God is anti-everything good and fun.

The reasoning goes that if God were good, He wouldn't be against everything. He would let people do whatever makes them happy, as long as nobody gets hurt. Live and let live is God's motto because He loves everyone. 

But the truth is this: God is not the anti-God. At the same time, BECAUSE He loves everyone He cannot let us do whatever we want. Jesus made it clear that there are some things He is against. 

He is anti-oppression. Anti-greed. Anti-empty religion. Anti-casual sex. Anti-hate. Anti-favoritism. Anti-wickedness. He is against those things because it's not loving to say "live and let live, as long as you don't hurt anyone". He has standards that He has put in place BECAUSE He loves us.

Jesus is against those things because He is pro-you. And pro-me. And pro-everyone on earth. He is pro-humanity! He even said in John 10:10 that He came to give us abundant, meaningful, fulfilling life. God is for us and wants what's best for us. Like any good, kind, and loving father, our Heavenly Father gives us rules for our good so that we know how we should live. Sin always has a "gotcha". Nobody can disobey God and get off scot-free.

So yes, God has rules. But not because He is the anti-God. He has rules because He is pro-YOU. And when you live life the way God says in the Bible you should, then you'll experience the life that is truly life.

What do you think about the idea that God gives rules BECAUSE He loves you and wants you to live a good life?

My County Commissioner endorsement

* Disclaimer: this post is my personal opinion and does not represent the views of any organization with which I am affiliated or am known to have a connection with. Also, this was totally unsolicited by the candidate whom I endorse. Thanks for understanding that. * 

Politics is such a polarizing thing, but it's also such an important thing. Our great nation was founded on among other things, the right to have your voice be heard through fair elections.

It's no secret that I'm very passionate about politics, yet I try to stay away from voicing my political opinions online because it can be so divisive. Usually to support one candidate is to make a bunch of people mad at you because they support the opponent. And the higher up the political office, the worse it gets. 

Yet in this post, I want to publicly endorse a local candidate for County Commissioner Precinct 1 here in El Paso, Texas. The reason I want to do that is because this is someone I truly believe in. This person deeply cares about our community and has a track record to prove it. This person has previous political experience but is not a crony of the political establishment here. I do not believe this person has been corrupted like many other politicians here in town. I honestly believe this person has no ulterior motives except to do what's best for El Paso.

I first saw this person in action when I was in college and had been given an assignment for one of my classes to write a paper on local politics. I went to a board meeting for my school board and I paid special attention to how this person governed because this person was my district representative. I was pleasantly amazed and grateful that this person didn't just go with the flow, but raised some good questions and started some good discussion, all of which centered around doing what was best for their constituents. 

Years later, after this person was no longer on the school board, I was thankful again when as a part of the local public corruption scandal it was discovered that several other board members at that time had been bribed and were part of the corruption scandal.

The candidate for County Commissioner Precinct 1 whom I publicly endorse is Liza Montelongo. The El Paso Times recently endorsed her candidacy by writing "During her tenure on the Ysleta school board, she showed a propensity for asking difficult questions. She stood her ground, even in the face of withering criticism of fellow board members. Montelongo summarizes her pledge to voters simply: 'that the county's job is to deliver cost-effective, efficient and friendly services to all of El Paso.' We believe Montelongo can deliver on that promise."

Liza's challengers are a Mr. Romo and former El Paso Police Chief Carlos Leon. I don't know anything about Mr. Romo and I do know that Chief Leon is an honorable man and would be a good Commissioner - yet I still believe that Liza Montelongo is the best choice for County Commissioner Precinct 1. I made a donation to her campaign early on and I wish I could have been more actively involved in her campaign, but unfortunately my schedule has prevented me from doing that.

Yet I hope you will learn more about her at at www.LizaMontelongo.com, I hope you will consider making a donation to her candidacy, and most of all, I hope you will trust her with you vote. 

Early voting in El Paso begins tomorrow, and election day is May 29. Find more information here: http://www.epcounty.com/elections/.

Why I'm glad to be a Southern Baptist.

For several years recently, I've seen people wonder whether or not Christian denominations (like Lutherans, Presbyterians, Southern Baptists, etc.) are relevant anymore. With the rise of so many great churches that are really focused on what matters most as Christians - churches like Willow Creek, New Spring, Cross Point in Tennessee, Church of the Highlands, and so on - people wonder if denominations are important anymore.

I would argue that yes, denominations are still very important today. I think it's great what the United Methodist denomination is doing, especially here in El Paso with their "Celebrate Segundo Barrio" program among other things. And of course, I'm very proud of what we Southern Baptists are doing around the world, and in my El Paso. Here are some reasons why I'm proud to be a Southern Baptist:

1. Our beliefs. Without a doubt, our beliefs are the main reason I'm proud to be Southern Baptist. The Bible, and nothing else, is our guide. We believe in soul competency, which means each person can directly relate to and is accountable to God on their own. We practice baptism by immersion (dunking) because that's the way Jesus did it, and that's the only it was done in the Bible. Those are just some of our distinctive beliefs, which I am glad we hold so firmly.

2. Our size. You may not know that we Southern Baptists are the largest Baptist denomination in the world, and the largest Christian denomination in the United States. Even locally, there are about 80 great Baptist churches here in El Paso - English speaking, Spanish speaking, and even Chinese speaking. I'm not glad to be a Southern Baptist just because we're big, but because there is great power in numbers. We are able to make a big difference for the Kingdom of God in many ways because of our size. We are blessed so we can be a blessing.

3. Our cooperation. One of the reasons we make such an impact is not just because of our size, but because of our cooperation. It would be useless for us to be over 16 million strong in this great nation of ours if we didn't work together. But we do work together! Through our Cooperative Program we work together to collect and distribute millions of dollars a year to fund outreach, missions, disaster relief, our six amazing Baptist seminaries, and much more. We also have local associations where local, independent Baptist churches partner together in cities and regions to make a difference.

4. Our outreach. When it comes to putting our faith into action ...wow, we're pretty good at that! There's the International Missions Board, the North American Missions Board, and Go Now Missions, which is the great missions organization of Texas Baptists. Of course our Disaster Relief program is one of the things we're most known for because many times our Disaster Relief teams start working in places of disaster long before the government arrives at a disaster site and sometimes even before the Red Cross or Salvation Army arrives. When a disaster strikes, look for the people with yellow hats because those are our Disaster Relief volunteers showing God's love in practical ways.

5. Our independence. One of the things that really makes me proud to be a Southern Baptist is our sense of freedom and independence. There is a Catholic Church, an Episcopalian Church, and a Methodist Church - meaning they are authoritarian organizations with a headquarters that passes down decrees and regulations which must be followed by its local churches. But there is no "Baptist Church", meaning there is no top down structure where someone else tells us what we must do at our local church. Instead, there are Baptist churches - all of which are free, independent, and autonomous. We are free to do as we see fit, having sought God and heard from Him the direction in which we should move. We cooperate with others, yes, but we are led by no pope, bishop, or any other person except Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself said in Matthew 16:18 that He would build His Church. What's more, Ephesians 5:23 says that Jesus is the Head of His Church - and so we take orders only from Him. That's how it should be in the Church.


For these reasons and many others, I am proud and honored to be a Southern Baptist. And for those of you who are also part of a local Southern Baptist church, I hope you too are proud to be a Southern Baptist. Not in an arrogant pride that boasts, but in a grateful pride that strives to be more worthy of our great and still important calling to be Southern Baptists.

The meaning of the wounds of Jesus Christ.

It's Saturday, and I've always wondered how Jesus Christ's followers must have felt on Saturday. Their hope had died with Jesus. It was now buried and decaying with Jesus. Their minds must have been filled with indescribable fear, anger, worry, frustration, and confusion. Even though Jesus had told them He would rise up from the grave, they couldn't see it and they didn't believe it.  


How terrible it must have been for them on Saturday.


And yet on this Easter Saturday, nearly 2000 years later, we cannot sympathize with them. And thank God for that, because we know Easter Sunday happened. Knowing about Sunday, it's hard to be sad about Friday. 


"Good Friday", it's called. The day Jesus was violently murdered. Why do we call it "good"? 1 John 2:2 (NCV) says: "He died in our place to take away our sins, and not only our sins but the sins of all people." Good Friday is truly good because the blood of Jesus from His seven wounds washes away our sin. It is the payment for the sin of all humanity, even you and me. A few years ago I heard a message from a pastor named Jon Courson, who talked about the five places from which Jesus' blood flowed.


First, blood flowed from His head. The blood from the thorns driven into His skull cleanse us from thoughts we wish we had never thought. The blood that poured down His face tell us He has covered the things in life we don't want to face up to. It washes our eyes from the sinful things we've seen, our ears from the sinful things we've heard, and our mouths from the sinful things we've said and done with our mouths.


Second, blood that flowed from His back. We've all turned our backs on Jesus at some point, and the blood that covered His back on that Good Friday covers our backs when we turn them on Him. When we've fallen flat on our backs, whether out of sin or fatigue, our backs are covered and cleansed by the blood of Jesus.


Third, blood flowed from His hands which were pierced with spikes, pinned to the wood of the cross. That blood cleanses us from the things we've used our hands for which we should not have done. The things we've touched, felt, grasped, held in our hands that were sinful - the blood flowed from His nail-pierced hands in order to cleanse our hands from sin and guilt.


Fourth, blood flowed from inside of Him when the Romans thrust a spear into His side, piercing Jesus' heart, sending a mixture of blood and water out of His side. So the things you feel inside of you - those gut feelings of hatred and bitterness and anger, that unforgiveness you hold in your heart - that sin inside of you and me is washed clean by the blood that flowed from inside of our crucified Lord.


Fifth, blood flowed from the precious feet of Jesus. We've all walked where we shouldn't have walked, physically and spiritually speaking. We've secretly gone places in the darkness of night that we hope no one ever finds out about. We've tried to cover our tracks from those sinful wanderings, yet the blood of Christ that flowed from His feet doesn't just cover over but washes away those tracks. 


As we think about where blood flowed from Jesus' body on that cross, we see that the placement of His wounds was not accidental or haphazard, but strategic and intentional. We see there is deep meaning in His wounds, and the Scripture of Isaiah 53:5 (NCV) comes alive to us when it says: 


"He was hated and rejected by people. He had much pain and suffering. People would not even look at Him. He was hated, and we didn't even notice Him. But He took our suffering on Him and felt our pain for us. We saw His suffering and thought God was punishing Him. But He was wounded for the wrong we did; He was crushed for the evil we did. The punishment, which made us well, was given to Him, and we are healed because of His wounds."


The wounds of Jesus Christ cover over us, head to toe, front to back, inside and out. We are cleansed from our sin, guilt, and shame every which way because of the precious blood of Jesus Christ.


As the old hymn goes: "What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!"

These things happen.

Recently I read the transcript of an interview with Brennan Manning, an author, priest, speaker, and modern day monk. Through his books he has encouraged Christians to be more contemplative about their faith, and I think he's got some really good things for us to consider in Christianity. You can find out more about him here at his website.


According to his website biography, Mr. Manning is a recovering alcoholic. What I find really interesting is that his alcoholism began AFTER he became a Christian and AFTER he began a successful college ministry in Florida.


His explanation in the interview I read was that, simply put: "these things happen".


I've really had to wrestle with that explanation for awhile. A man becoming an alcoholic ...AFTER becoming a follower of Christ? Isn't Jesus supposed to give us new life? Doesn't the Bible say we are more than conquerors through Christ Jesus who loves us? And doesn't the Bible say that sin shall not be your master because of God's grace? Isn't Christianity about leaving your old life of sin and following God in a new way?


Yes ...but.


Being a Christian doesn't mean life will be perfect. Following Christ is not an automatic cure for all that ails you. Sin is still present, addiction is still addicting, and we still have the freedom to resist God's transforming work in our lives. We must have the freedom to choose, so that we can choose to love Him - but unfortunately, that also gives us the freedom to resist and reject living the way He wants us to.


And so in the last year, I have seen some of the darkest, ugliest, most wicked sides of humanity. As a pastor I've been called to bring God's hope and truth and love into situations of indescribable depravity and sinfulness - but as a human, I wish I could forget those things. I've seen Christians confess their sin and humbly submit to God's discipline and experience His sanctifying grace, and I've seen Christians pridefully rebel against God's truth and resist His discipline - which of course always makes things much worse than they should have been.


All of those situations took place in the lives of Christians - people who love Jesus, have asked Him to be the Lord of their lives, and are influential in the local Christian community here in El Paso.


How does that happen? And more personally, why do I struggle with sins that I've been resisting for years? Why was it that I began a battle with depression AFTER I became a Christian?


As Mr. Manning put it ..."these things happen".


Let me be clear: that's not an excuse. That's not a cop-out. You can't just do whatever you want, ignore God's truth, and disobey Him by saying "these things happen". But ...I think it's an important aspect of God's grace that we need to understand when dealing with our own sin or the sin of others.


These things happen. Anyone who does not stay close to Christ can commit the most wicked of sins, while still being a Christian. Anyone who doesn't constantly choose to submit to Jesus can become an alcoholic, drug addict, pornographer, adulterer, cheater, liar, thief, idolater, arrogant jerk, or domestic violence offender - and yet still be a Christian.


So when we fall into those and other kinds of sins, and when we encounter the sins of others, we must live out two words in perfect harmony: grace and truth.


Grace is unearned, undeserved, unmerited kindness and favor. It's remembering the truth of Romans 8:1, that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.


Truth is calling sin what it is, without sugar-coating or excuses. It's remembering the truth of Romans 6:23, that sin is a very personal offense against God which always produces death.


Grace says "These things happen." Truth says "It better not happen again!" But grace and truth combined say "These things happen. I know you're better than that. Let me help you so it doesn't happen again."


So are you struggling with a sin that keeps snaring you? Do you feel stuck in your sin, like you'll never be able to escape, wondering if you'll ever experience the freedom the Bible talks about? Do you think it would be easier to just give into sin because you're just tired of fighting it? Do you feel like scum because of what you've done? Do you think that if anyone found out what you've done, they would judge you? Do you wonder if you're really a Christian because of how you sin?


Be encouraged. Have hope in God. "These things happen". And be courageous enough to confess you sin to someone Godly, mature, loving, and trustworthy so that they can say "These things happen. I know you're better than that. Let me help you so it doesn't happen again."




"No condemnation now hangs over the head of those who are in Jesus Christ. For the new spiritual principle of life in Christ lifts me out of the old vicious circle of sin and death." - Romans 8:1-2 (Phillips)

How to be single and thrive on Valentine's Day.

Today is Valentine's Day. For many, today is the day of love, chocolate, flowers, kisses, hugs, romance, and all things red & pink. For many others, today isn't Valentine's Day; it's Singles Awareness Day. As a single person you have a choice today: you can survive today, or you can thrive today.

The truth is, God doesn't want you to just survive this day - He wants you to thrive! Here are some ideas I have on how to be single and thrive on Valentine's Day:

1. Don't buy the lie. Lots of single people think that nobody will ever love them and that they will be alone the rest of their lives. As a single person, I understand why sometimes it could seem like that's true, but it's not. It's a lie. You will not always be alone. Someday, when God in His goodness knows the time is right, you will have that unexpected and beautiful collision of your heart with someone else's. So don't buy the lire that you will be single all your life.

2. Celebrate the love that others have. Don't be jealous and angry that someone else has a love to celebrate today and you don't. Don't be upset at your friends for having someone special in their life. You're better than that. Maturity is when you can truly celebrate that someone else already has what you've been wanting. Immaturity is when you're so selfish that you think "if I can't have it, nobody can" and you can't celebrate that someone else is happy. Celebrate that people around you are happy. Don't be bitter; be better.

3. Count your blessings. And by "blessings" I mean all the money you're saving today! You don't have to buy anyone overpriced flowers, chocolates, or cards. You don't have to get all dressed up after a long day at work and go to dinner a busy restaurant, or do the work to cook a fancy dinner for two. As wonderful as all that is, you don't have to mess with that right now. You can just order pizza or get a burger and lounge around at home. Until the day comes when you're with someone, enjoy the single life. And really enjoy all the money and hassle you're saving today.

4. Treat yourself special. Today is a day of love. God loves you. He delights in you. So do something special today to enjoy all His goodness.Maybe that means buying yourself some chocolate, or a flower to brighten up your coffee table, or a bacon double cheeseburger with onion rings and a large Dr. Pepper. Who said you can't spoil yourself a little today?

5. Collect date ideas. Someday you won't be single. And today lots of your friends are doing some very sweet, thoughtful, and romantic things for their main squeezes. Take notes of what works and what doesn't. File away ideas to use for when you have a main squeeze of your own.

6. Dream a little. Think about your ideal guy or girl. Ladies, look up wedding stuff online.  Guys, work on your cheezy pick-up lines. Imagine what your life will be like when you are in love. Go ahead - get your hopes up.

7. Do some self-evaluation. Do NOT bash yourself. Do NOT put yourself down. Do NOT get depressed. But DO honestly evaluate yourself. Think about this question: "Am I the kind of person the person I'm looking for is looking for?" You might need to read that a few times to let it sink in, but that's a REALLY good question to ask yourself. It's something I've been asking myself a lot lately. Look at the love chapter in the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13, and wherever it says "Love is ___", replace the word "love" with your name. Then ask if you are the things that God says love is. Figure out where you have some room to grow, then do work. Become the person that the person you're looking for is looking for.

8. Serve someone else.  John 3:16 says that God so loved the world that He gave. Love is a verb, not a noun. It's an action, not a feeling. To love is to serve. So do something to serve someone else today. Speak words of affirmation to someone today. Give someone a genuine compliment. Pay for the order of the person behind you in the drive-thru line when you go get your bacon double cheeseburger for dinner. Give someone a hug. Remember, to love is to serve. What better way to celebrate the day of love than to serve someone else?


So there you go - those are my thoughts on how to thrive as a single person this Valentine's Day. I bet if you do even just a few of these 8 things I've listed, you will have a really great day today.

And hey ...I want you to know ...I love you.

The choice is yours.

Nearly every Monday I see a plethora of Facebook status updates about how people hate Monday. And nearly every day I see people posting how their day started off bad or how bad the day is going. There are even some who seem to always be sad or upset, who seem to not be having a bad day but a bad life. I also know many people who struggle with worry, stress, feelings of inadequacy, and many other emotional issues.


As one who has fought depression for awhile and as one who has had far more than his fair share of bad days, I would say this: "the choice is yours".


In the Bible, Joshua 24:15 says: "If serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."


I've seen this verse many times, usually used in the context of choosing to lead your family to serve God. But today it hit me - that's not the only thing we can learn from this verse. Something we see here is that you have a choice. You can God, or you can choose something else. You can choose to believe God and what He says in the Bible, or you can choose something else like stress, worry, or to have a bad day.


Either way, the choice is yours.


Monday can be a good day or it can be a bad day. You can choose to believe that every day is a day made by God and you can choose to be joyful (as Psalm 118:24 says) - or you can choose to have a lousy day. The choice is yours.


You get dumped. Or worse, your significant other cheats on you. You can be angry and bitter and put yourself in the torture chamber of un-forgiveness, or you can choose to release them and move on, believing the Bible when it says in Romans 8:28 that God works EVERYTHING out for good for those who love Him. You can believe that God has someone much better for you, which means you live free, or you can choose to be that weirdo who Facebook stalks their ex and ruins new relationships because they never move on. The choice is yours.


You can choose to spend money you don't have by charging clothes, electronics, and other stuff you want on your credit card. And you can take out a loan to buy a new car when nothing is wrong with your current car. And by doing those things you can rack up all sorts of debt and bring the pressure that comes with it on yourself. Or, you can spend responsibly, save up and pay cash, and live in financial peace and financial freedom. The choice is yours.


You can choose to live a miserable life, thinking it sucks, thinking everyone's out to "screw me over", thinking that you need to have lots of sex, go drinking, or do drugs just to feel good for awhile. With that decision can come disease, unexpected pregnancy, a DWI, alcoholism, pictures on Facebook that can ruin future job opportunities, and a pretty pointless life. Or, you can choose to enjoy life and be happy to be alive, knowing that the Bible says God loves you and has good plans for your life. You can do life His way, knowing that He wants you to not just survive but thrive in life. The choice is yours.






So how will life turn out for you? The choice is yours.