Real Dudes,
Below are some links to a study I thought would be a good follow-up to my previous blog on Should I Stay or Should I Go? The series below is found in YouVersion and is entitled Promises of God: Traveling With Unmet Expectations. My wife and I read this together and enjoyed our discussion about the content the author includes throughout this devotional. Hope each of you enjoy it as well. I’ll be away from my computer until mid-January and won’t be sending any devos out between now and then, so take your time to work through these and grow because of them.
I pray you’ll all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,
Nate
​
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/11803-promised-of-god-traveling-with-unmet-expectations/day/1
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/11803-promised-of-god-traveling-with-unmet-expectations/day/2
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/11803-promised-of-god-traveling-with-unmet-expectations/day/3
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/11803-promised-of-god-traveling-with-unmet-expectations/day/4
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/11803-promised-of-god-traveling-with-unmet-expectations/day/5

​How many times throughout your day or life do you start a question by “should I?”
Just think about it…
Should I wear these clothes?
Should I eat this food?
Should I date this person?
Should I marry this person?
Should I buy this car?
Should I buy this house?
Should I get away for a weekend?
Should I go to church today?
Should I go to College? Which College? Which career path?
Should I hire this person or that person?
Should I explore a career change?
 
I’ve entitled today’s message: Should I Stay or Should I Go?
In 1982, the band named Clash released their song Should I Stay or Should I Go.

• Lyrics: “So you got to let me know…Should I Stay or Should I Go?”
• A question that is often on the mind of all believers as they follow their Savior.
• Should I stay where I think I need to be, or am I sensitive to His leading and go when He tells me to move on?
• This is a question that was even on the minds of many throughout the entire Bible.

Below are a few examples of people and or groups of people in scripture who wrestled with this question at hand…Should I stay or should I go?

Let’s consider the following…
The Israelites.

• Should we stay in, or return to Egypt, or follow Moses and Aaron into the wilderness/promise land?
  • God’s conversation with Moses at the burning bush…
    • Exodus 3:10 (NIV) So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”
  • Exodus 14:11 (NIV) They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!”
  • Numbers 14-3-4 (NIV) Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”
  • Numbers 20:4-5 (NIV) Why did you bring the LORD’s community into this wilderness, that we and our livestock should die here? Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to this terrible place? It has no grain or figs, grapevines or pomegranates. And there is no water to drink!”
  • **The obstacles in front of them made it seem to them as though returning to Egypt would be the better option.
    
    
• Should we stay in Kadesh or go take over the land of Canaan?
  • Exodus 33:1 (NIV) Then the Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’
  • Numbers 13-14 (NIV)
    • Numbers 13:1-2 (NIV) The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders.”
    • **Caleb and Joshua were the only two out of the twelve spies who were ready to do as the Lord was commanding…take over the Canaanites and their land.

Jonah.

• Should I stay in Tarshish or go to Nineveh?
  • Jonah 1:1-3 (NKJV)
    • Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.” 3 But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
  • Jonah 3:1-3 (NKJV)
    • Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord.

The Demon-possessed man.

• Should I return to my people or disobey Christ and try to leave my community?
• Mark 5:1-20 (NIV) vv. 18-20…
  • This is the instance when Jesus restored the demon-possessed man by sending the demon Legion into a herd of swine.
    • 18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

Philip.

• Should I stay in Samaria or go to the desert?
  • Acts 8:9-40
    • Philip’s ministry was a success in Samaria.
    • The consideration: should I stay or should I go.
      • The sorcerer, Simon, placed his faith in the Lord and began following Him.
      • Many others were believing, getting baptized, and receiving the Holy Spirit.
      • In verse 26, an angel approaches him and tells him to go to the desert.
        • Verse 26…Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
        • Should I stay or should I go moment for sure.
      • In verse 27, Philip did as the angel commanded and that’s when he met the Ethiopian Eunuch. This verse tells us that he was, “a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury.” He was a man of great influence in Ethiopia.
      • The Ethiopian Eunuch just happened to be reading a portion of scripture from the book of Isaiah…he asked Philip to explain it to him. The Ethiopian Eunuch gets saved, and then Philip has the opportunity to baptize him. The Ethiopian Eunuch then went away rejoicing (verse 39).
        

Joseph. In the Christmas Story…

• Should I stay betrothed to Mary or put her away quietly?
  • Matthew 1 (NKJV) verses summarized…
    • Verse 19, Joseph, a just man, betrothed to Mary, contemplating calling off the marriage when he found out she was with child.
    • An angel came to him and told him to take her as his wife.
    • 24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife…
• Should I stay in Nazareth or go to Bethlehem?
  • Luke 2:4 (NIV) So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.
  • Matthew 1:22-23 (NIV) All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”[g] (which means “God with us”).
• Should I stay in Bethlehem or go to Egypt?
  • Matthew 2:1, 13-15 (NKJV) Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king…13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.” 14 When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

Should I stay or should I go? We may not have a cloud by day, or a pillar of fire by night to guide and direct us to an answer. I’m sure we’re not waiting to go until we have an angel appear and give us the green light…make this a personal question…so how do I know if I should stay or if I should go?

• Be in tune with the Holy Spirit…if He won’t leave you alone about something and keeps nudging you in a certain direction, then entertain the thought of moving forward in trust and obedience.
• Pray over it. Ask Him to show you what He’d have you to do.
• Seek counsel…sometimes God speaks through the wisdom of others.
• But in some way and somehow, and his perfect timing, He will reveal to you when He’s ready to move you, and rest assured that His moving will be for us a purpose…not just to make you go through unnecessary motions. 
• If no clear answer, then in the meantime remain faithful and obedient to Him where He currently has you…Desire to want to be used by Him where you’re at.

Lyrics – turned to a prayer: Lord, “So you got to let me know…Should I Stay or Should I Go?” You know what’ll make me happiest in life and what I can handle. If I struggle with making a decision, then Lord, You speak your answer through others for me. Protect me from myself. Should I…Should I Stay or Should I Go? Amen.

Real Dudes,
​Katy Nichole & Big Daddy Weave sing the song God is in this Story. Here is the link to the official music video and the lyrics https://life979.com/songs/god-is-in-this-story/. Lately I’ve been really thinking on two parts of this song. One, God is in this story. And two, God is in the details. Not sure what it is that you may be experiencing in your life right now, but these two truths have helped me face whatever it is that He’s been placing in front of me. I hope this song, and these truths can be of help to you in your life as well.
Enjoy,
Nate

Real Dudes,
Had another great turnout at Ox Strong this past Saturday…around 30 men were in attendance. I was not able to be present this month but was able to go back and view/listen to Kevin’s message. Here is the link to his message...https://youtu.be/tQ5GrHxDaRM
Kevin spoke on Keeping the Faith—A Recipe for your best foot forward. Kevin and his family have faced some challenges through the years and it’s great to see how he’s recognized how God is right there going through each one with them. Emmanuel…God with us!!!
Next month we’ll have brother Todd Vokoun as our guest speaker. He’ll kick the new year off for us. Hope to see y’all there.
Nate

​I have some good news to share with each of you that’ll make you very happy. Before I do that, let’s consider some leading up information…

The title for today’s message is BEHOLD!!!

In the 2022 World Cup, “Cristiano Ronaldo has come in for criticism over the way he handled Portugal’s opening goal against Uruguay. It looked to everyone that the former Manchester United striker had given Portugal the lead…when he wheeled away celebrating having seemingly flicked on a Bruno Fernandes cross. However, the goal was in fact awarded to Fernandes.” Full Article
If you get an opportunity to view that play, then you too will see that Cristiano never touched the ball, yet in fact celebrated as though he scored the goal. And when the announcement was made in the stadium that the goal was awarded to Fernandes, Cristiano put his hands up in disbelief. What does it matter? It should be about Cristiano’s teammate and country scoring a goal, but he chose in that moment to make it about himself.

The desire for attention isn’t something that originated with Cristiano Ronaldo at the World Cup. This is a concept that man has struggled with even in the NT times. For instance…

• Jesus reminds His disciples on the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:2-6 (NIV) 2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Three Godly Examples for us to Follow when it comes to this idea of BEHOLD…

• John the Baptist
  • Luke 3:15-16 (NIV) 15 The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah. 16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
  • John 1:26-36 (NIV) 26 “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.” 35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”
  • As you will see in John 3:22-36, some of John’s followers were becoming jealous of Jesus’ ministry…once again, John points them to THE MESSIAH. BEHOLD!
    • 22 After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about--look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.” 27 To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less.” 31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33 Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.
• The Apostle Peter
  • Acts 10:25-26 (NIV) 25 As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. 26 But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”
    • Peter’s mission and goal was to point others to Jesus, not himself.
• The Angel
  • Revelation 19:9-10 (NIV) 9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” 10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”
  • BEHOLD…The Greek word for behold is idou (BAGD p. 468). It’s a “demonstrative or presentative particle that draws attention to what follows…prompter of attention, behold, look, see…it sometimes serves to enliven a narrative…as a call to closer consideration and contemplation remember, consider, etc.”
    • At the beginning of today’s message, I told you that I had some good news that’ll make you happy. Has the anticipation been killing you? The good news is that Christmas is only 21 days away. That’s what you’ve been waiting to hear. Doesn’t that make you happy? It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.
    • That’s what’s happening in Luke 2:10 (ESV) And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
      • The narrative should never be about me or you.
      • There’s so much life in the message the angel delivered. That should be our message to those God’s placed in our circles as well.  

Look…Behold, What?

• Isaiah 9:6 (NKJV) For unto us [Notice…the author includes himself] a Child is born,
  Unto us a Son is given;
  And the government will be upon His shoulder.
  And His name will be called
  Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
  Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
• Notice who is speaking in the following passage…the angel doesn’t say “us,” he says “you” and “them.” Digging into that difference in wording is an entirely different message to preach on, but I still wanted to point that out.
  • Luke 2:10-11 (NKJV) 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, [DON’T PUT YOUR ATTENTION ON ME!] for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
  • So, what are we to look for, behold what? Christ, the Savior, the Messiah was sent for us, for you.

Are you more prone to react like Cristiano Ronaldo did in the World Cup? “Look at me.”

Or would you say that your life has proven that you’re more prone to react the way that John the Baptist, the Apostle Peter, and the Angel did? “Look, Behold…ALL attention on Him alone!!!”

Everything I do is about Him.

Don’t make this holiday season about you…look for opportunities to point others to Him.
​
Be Thou My Vision…Thou and Thou ONLY! So, He can be THE vision of others as well.