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Real Dudes,
Have you ever driven down the road and drifted into the rumble strips? What did you do when that happened? Did you continue crossing them, or did you gradually make your way back to the center of your lane? I recently had coffee with a good friend of mine and we discussed this very idea. He shared with me that Satan’s goal a lot of times isn’t to yank us off course, but rather, he gradually nudges us off course. Thankfully, as believers in Christ, we have the Holy Spirit to nudge us back onto the path that God is leading us on. Are we allowing Him to do that work in our lives? What rumble strips do you have in place to get you back on track? Accountability Partners? Conviction from God and His Word? Personal Devotions? Good Preaching and Podcasts to listen to? Someone once said that Rumble Strips are the sweet sound of safety. I pray that we see the Holy Spirit that way…that He is that convicting voice in our minds that is the sweet sound of safety in our walk with the Lord. Stay in tune to Him every moment of every day and He’ll guide you along that straight path that He’s prepared for you. I hope that the passages and song below are an encouragement to each of you this morning. Nate Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. John 16:5-15 (NLT) The Work of the Holy Spirit5 “But now I am going away to the one who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. 6 Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. 7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate[a] won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. 10 Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. 11 Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged. 12 “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’
Hebrews 2:1 (NLT) So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it. Song: Slow Fade by Casting Crowns https://www.google.com/search?q=song+slow+fade+by+casting+crowns&oq=song+slow+fade+by+&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCggAEAAY4wIYgAQyCggAEAAY4wIYgAQyBwgBEC4YgAQyBggCEEUYOTINCAMQABiGAxiABBiKBTINCAQQABiGAxiABBiKBTIKCAUQABiABBiiBDIKCAYQABiABBiiBDIKCAcQABiABBiiBNIBCDM5MDVqMGo3qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:7fc6697b,vid:JxwcGyaOr6Y,st:0
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Real Dudes,
Our Lead Pastor recently preached through the passage below. It’s a passage that I thought I was familiar with, but he pointed a phrase out to us that I’d overlooked for years. Feel free to read all of the verses and then come back and dwell on the ending of verse 5. Who does Abraham say will return to the servants? Now look at verse 19. Who did in fact return to the servants? What truth about God did Abraham point out to Isaac at the beginning of verse 8? Abraham was faithful and obedient to God’s instruction. Abraham was confident that God would provide in his time of need. Did Abraham pass the test? What test is God giving you lately? Are you passing it? Do you believe He’ll provide whatever it is you need in your time of testing? He is Jehovah-Jireh…our Provider (verse 14). Men…are you practicing confident faith in Him? Praying for and Cheering y’all on!!! Nate Genesis 22 (NLT) Abraham’s Faith Tested 22 Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. “Abraham!” God called. “Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.” 2 “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” 3 The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told the servants. “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.” 6 So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together, 7 Isaac turned to Abraham and said, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “We have the fire and the wood,” the boy said, “but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?” 8 “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together. 9 When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice. 11 At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Yes,” Abraham replied. “Here I am!” 12 “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.” 13 Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14 Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means “the Lord will provide”). To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” 15 Then the angel of the Lord called again to Abraham from heaven. 16 “This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that 17 I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. 18 And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.” 19 Then they returned to the servants and traveled back to Beersheba, where Abraham continued to live. Abraham’s Faith spoken of in the New Testament Hebrews 11:17-19 (NLT)17 It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, 18 even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” 19 Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead. Real Dudes,
Recently I went on a ride along. We had received a call to a residence and ended up taking a gentleman to the hospital who had consumed too much alcohol. I was told that this is something that has been plaguing this man for nearly 30 years. He’d been in and out of recovery programs and came to find out that he was even the valedictorian where he went to high school. As we were discussing the situation someone stated that “whether it’s drugs, alcohol, gambling, you name it, many people want the right to destroy their own bodies.” Let me repeat that again…Many people want the right to destroy their own bodies…self-destruction. What’s interesting is that his neighbors across the street struggle with the same issue. They were successful in their careers and found that money couldn’t buy them everything, namely happiness. They turned to alcohol, and now they are constantly drunk and fighting with each other. I ran across a quote on wikipedia, that says that “Successful individuals may self-destructively sabotage their own achievements.” In another article from MedicalNewsToday states that “Self-destructive behavior is when a person takes actions that are sure to harm themselves. It can range from isolating themselves from others to harming their own body and behaviors such as gambling.” Each of these scenarios above and self-destruction itself reminds me of my favorite passage in scripture.
Practicing His Presence, Nate Real Dudes,
The phrase in scripture “yet not I” is something I’ve been thinking about lately. One of the things I try to avoid when being involved in the Lord’s work is to not make any of this about me. For some, myself included, this can become quite the challenge. The tendency at times is to do a task in order to please a boss, a coach, a spouse, etc. and lose sight of who should be receiving all the glory. So much effort can be spent on protecting our identity and reputation…wanting to be known for something. Prior to salvation it is expected that someone would live thinking life was all about him/herself. According to a source, we spend 95% of our day thinking about ourselves. This is something the Apostle Paul knew was a downfall for many believers. He knew thinking about self was a trained behavior and would be a characteristic and habit that wouldn’t be easily broken. Therefore, he set an example for us. In the following passages Paul uses the first person. He says “I laboured,” “I am crucified,” “I live,” and most importantly, “yet not I.” Paul knew that he was actively and continuously involved in the Lord’s work, and at the same time he was completely focused on making it all about Him…Paul’s mind was on Him. How is this possible? He tells us in 1 Corinthians that he is what he is and he does what he does all because of the grace of God in his life. Apart from Him Paul is nothing. Prior to salvation, everything – his motives and ambitions – were about himself…this is no longer the case once he gave his life to the Lord. Everything now is all about his Savior. He no longer lives to hear “well done” from his peers, but to hear that same phrase only from the Lord. What about you? Are you continuing to live in the flesh…making life all about you? Or can you safely and humbly say “yet not I, but Christ” in all your thoughts and efforts? I am praying that this reminder helps you in your homes, workplaces, churches, locker rooms, communities, etc. May it be your resolve today…yet not I…no longer I…living in the flesh is the old me. The new me is all about making Him known and famous…all for His glory!!! Practicing His Presence, Nate KJV 1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Article from gotquestions.org: What is the significance of Paul saying ‘Yet not I’ in 1 Corinthians 15:10? In 1 Corinthians 15:10, the apostle Paul writes, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” The word but signals a contrast between verse 9 and verse 10. In verse 9, Paul regards himself as “the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle” (ESV). The reason that he saw himself in this way is that he formerly persecuted the church of God (cf. Acts 9:3–9; 22:6–11; 26:12–18). Paul is continually aware of his inherent nothingness (Ephesians 3:8; 1 Timothy 1:15). Apart from Christ, he is nothing but a sinner who deserves the wrath of God. But in God’s perfect timing, Paul was transformed and made an apostle to the Gentiles (1 Corinthians 15:8). The only reason that Paul went from persecutor to preacher of the message that he once tried to destroy (Galatians 1:23) is that he received God’s mercy and grace (1 Corinthians 15:10). In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul acknowledges that his new identity, mission, and accomplishments are entirely due to the grace of God. Simply put, grace is God’s unmerited favor toward undeserving sinners. It is not deserved, nor can it be earned. If it could be earned, then it would not be grace (Romans 11:6). This is why Paul refers to grace as a gift: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9, ESV). We are saved by the grace of God to work for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:17). There is a delicate balance between God’s grace and human effort. While it is true that our identities and efforts are ultimately due to God’s grace, we are still expected to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). In other words, God’s grace does not lead to passivity; rather, we should be active participants in God’s work. Paul was aware of this, so he put God’s grace to use by working harder than the other apostles (1 Corinthians 15:10). However, he immediately qualifies this statement with the words yet not I. These three words remove any grounds for boasting about our abilities or achievements (cf. Galatians 2:20). In everything that we do, God must get the glory, not we ourselves. We would do well to follow Paul’s example of humble, grateful service (1 Corinthians 11:1). The statement yet not I emphasizes the importance of grace, humility, and diligent effort. Grace is an active and continual work in the lives of God’s people. We cannot boast about who we are or what we have done because we owe everything to God. Indeed, we are nothing and can do nothing without God’s grace. It is God’s grace that transforms sinners into saints. It is God’s grace that gives us the strength and ability to do worthwhile things for God’s kingdom. And it is God’s grace that makes our lives and ministries fruitful. Like Paul, we should always say, “Yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” https://www.gotquestions.org/yet-not-I.html Song: Back to Life by Zahriya Zachary https://www.google.com/search?q=bethel+music+no+longer+i+but+christ&oq=bethel+music+no+longer+i+but+christ&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQRRg80gEIOTA0OGoxajSoAgCwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:8605369b,vid:uQOa5g9nPaw,st:0 Song: Yet Not I, But Through Christ in Me by CityAlight https://www.google.com/search?q=song+no+longer+i+who+live+but+christ+in+me&oq=song+no+longer+i+who+live&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCggAEAAY4wIYgAQyCggAEAAY4wIYgAQyCggBEC4Y1AIYgAQyCggCEC4Y1AIYgAQyBggDEEUYOTIICAQQABgWGB4yDQgFEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgGEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgHEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyDQgIEAAYhgMYgAQYigUyCggJEAAYgAQYogTSAQg1NDg0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:10531d79,vid:hwc2d1Xt8gM,st:0 |
AuthorNate Smith is a husband, a father of 6 girls, grandpa to 3 granddaughters and one grandson, a police and fire chaplain, a pastor, and has a passion to see men grow in Christ. 
#girldad including granddaughter
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