The Need for a Wake Up Call

"This Fourth of July is yours, not mine, You may rejoice, I must mourn."
-Frederick Douglass, What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?

#AwakenAmerica T-Shirt
by Lifepath08

I state this plainly and with limit idea how it might strike home for others: America needs to wake up.

I say this to those who look like me and stand with me: American minorities need to wake up.

I say this to those who work and remain poor as well as those who struggle and strive to survive from paycheck to paycheck, even those who have no employment and no foreseeable means of employment in the near future: America's working class needs to wake up.

If we do not wake up, we are doomed.

We will be doomed to repeat the last 4 years. We will be doomed to see racial tensions grow to the full extent of the law and boil over into bloodbaths and mayhem. We will be doomed to see the shrinking value of a dollar right before our own eyes. We will be doomed.

We will be doomed if we do not take an active role in the political process. We will be doomed if we sit back and expect the others to carry the weight of this election. We will be doomed if we simply accept what has passed for representation in the past as valid assurance that things will get better by and by.

Wake up and wise up.

We have to get active and mobilized, educating and empowering the average voter on how to use the power of his or her vote and voice.

#AwakenAmerica #vote2020

Revisit how 2008 was won based on concepts like HOPE, CHANGE, and YES WE CAN. Can we do something like that again?

A Penetrating Gospel

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. - Matthew 24:14 (NIV)

The "gospel of the kingdom" is to preached.  It is to penetrate throughout "the whole world as a testimony to all nations." There is no end of times until this is done. 

The gospel is to be proclaimed by those of us who believe it and know it as truth.  We cannot expect the world to carry its message forth.  The news media will not do it.  Certainly, we cannot expect the educational system or institutions of higher learning to spread the word about it.  No, we must proclaim it and penetrate the entire world with it, spreading around the seed that must be sown upon this earth.

We must go far and wide with the "gospel of the kingdom." It cannot remain contained behind the stained glass of our sanctuaries.  It cannot simply rest in our hearts.  It must come forth through our active engagement of sharing it with others. 

Let us approach this task as our primary activity while alive on this earth.  We must approach it with faith and fervor, fueled by the Holy Spirit who sets us afire to speak boldly of His endless grace and eternal love.  Let this gospel go forth out of you for all that God has bestowed upon you as one of His own children.

"We may well be ashamed of our own personal imperfections, but we have no need to be ashamed of our doctrine." - J.C. Ryle

Problems in the Pews

And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. - Mark 11:25 (ESV)


Problems come up when we have to deal with each other.  Jesus addressed it.  He stated it plainly.  He didn't sugar-coat the truth.  He offered a solution that many of us just won't get into at all.

He said for us to forgive.  If you have something against somebody, forgive that person.  If you still hold a grudge, paraphrasing Jesus, don't just pray to God.  Forgive that person.  Free yourself of the emotional baggage and bondage, then pray to the Father who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Harbor ill feelings about somebody and you won't get far.  That's not good.  You will end up at odds with others and out of order with God.  God has forgiven you for your trespasses.  That should help you forgive others, too.

There's a solution in the Scriptures for the problems in the pews.

Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. - Matthew 6:12 (NIV)

Let Your Faith Be Seen

"Faith and prayer are the vitamins of the soul; man cannot live in health without them."
- Mahalia Jackson

Faith is expected to be on display.  In one way or another, believers are expected to somehow show that they truly believe what they profess and proclaim.  We are supposed to walk and live by faith.

One way to show your faith is to show it with your appearance.  T-shirts or buttons can show your faith in Jesus.  Your accessories can have inspirational images or messages.  Even your car or truck can display your faith with window decals, bumper stickers or personalized license plate frames. 

This Easter season, Life Path Ministries spreads the Gospel message through our Spread the Love Campaign.  Join the movement and get on board with your church or ministry, even your small group, and spread the love with other believers during the week leading into Easter Sunday.  How could we expect people to show up on Easter Sunday if we never show, share or spread the love of Christ? Check out the Love Your Neighbor t-shirts and buttons that we sell on Zazzle through Life Path Ministries.  These are examples of how you can get others to show it more than they say it.

I Love My Neighbor!! Button by Lifepath08
View other Christian Buttons

Read more inspiring quotes: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_faith.html#ixzz1oelnL700

One Question

"Freedom is a hard-bought thing and millions are in chains, but they strain toward the new day drawing near.”- Paul Robeson (singer, actor & activist)

Artists must learn to become activists.  Artists must somehow yearn to become activists who speak up and speak out, giving an artistic voice to the voiceless and raising some sense of cultural and social consciousness in the society that surrounds them.  Without doing so, the artist leaves a void instead of a legacy along with a mere dent rather than an impression on life in his or her times.

One Question (originally, published in Words from the Underground by Bruce Jackson)

There is an alert.

Someone sounded the alarm.

They sang out like a herald,

Crying out for change.

Someone said something must be done.

Yet, I raise a question:

Who will do it?

Who will lead the change?

The ones who ask for it merely scatter.

The ones who said it was necessary cringed.

No one stepped up.

No one stepped out.

Who will lead the change?

Who will it be?

 
The question lingers on.  Will you lead the change?  Answer for yourself.

From Eden to Egypt- Day 15

...he did all that God commanded him.- Genesis 6:22 (ESV)

Noah did what God said.  There's no biblical record of Bill Cosby's comical rendition of Noah questioning God. That's comedy, not the Bible.  The Bible shows Noah doing just as God said for him to do.  In fact, verse 5 of the next chapter says: And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him.

We need more Christians to see the connection between Genesis 6:9 with 6:22 and 7:5.  Noah's righteousness was connected to his actions due to his beliefs.  We need to make the same connection in our own lives as believers.  We believe, so we should act on our belief.  We need to see how our actions should be rooted in the very faith that we already claim to have in God.  There was no precedent for Noah other than what he had been taught and told of God.  He had to experience growing in faith without a Bible.  We really have no excuse.

Do what God says to do.  Do it in faith.  Do it with the right attitude.  Do all that He says for you to do.

No Middle of the Road

"We have been created for a purpose."- Rick Warren

In this day and age, it is pretty hard to figure out who hasn't heard anything about Rick Warren.  Whether good or bad, his name has come up in a conversation about a best-selling book, a political agenda and relationship with President Obama, or Saddleback and its pastor hosting a political debate or "forum" (I truly do not see the difference beyond theory and definition).  Some atheists and church-haters despise Rick Warren and everything that he stands for, while some Christians and non-Christians live upon every aspect of The Purpose-Driven Life.  That is until The Shack or some other best-selling book sweeps Christendom and its outer realm like Jabez and Benett's Book of Virtues once did.

What I admire admire about Rick Warren is that he is unashamed about what made him successful as a pastor.  I'll even say how God made him successful in that realm. 

Look deep into The Purpose-Driven Church and see a man following God's lead, both prayerfully and faithfully.  Prior to pastoring, Rick Warren had faith.  Prior to having a mega-church status, Rick Warren sought to please God.

Stop for a moment.  Think about what I just put out there.  Substitute "Rick Warren" with your name and his status with your achievements and accomplishments.

Prior to becoming a parent and a spouse, ______________ sought to please God.

Prior to getting a driver's license and a car, _________________ sought to please God.

Prior to teaching Sunday school and leading VBS, ________________ sought to please God.

Prior to (whatever it is that people see as your big thing), did you seek to please God?

Now that you have done it and achieved it, do you still seek to please God? Do you seek to please Him more and more?

There's no middle of the road with God.  I don't believe that He's nonchalant about how we handle His kingdom business.  We either please or grieve God.  There isn't a safe place where we can straddle this way or that way.  Either we please Him or we simply do not, and then that's when we grieve Him.

I could have used T.D. Jakes, Robert H. Schuller, Billy Graham, or the late Oral Roberts.  Imagine if I had used someone like Kirk Franklin, Brian Welch from Korn, or Steven Baldwin.  Each of these men have a story that speaks about times when their very own lives grieved God as well as the dramatic turnaround that led to them seeking to please God.

God is either pleased or grieved with us and our actions.

Do you please God? Do you grieve God? 

Seek to please Him today and forever.

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.- Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)

Action or Activity

“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.”- Dietrich Bonhoeffer


Many times we confuse activity with action.  We think of being active- simply doing something- doing what needs to be done, although doing something may not lead to accomplishing anything productive.  Activity just means that something is taking place.  Taking action is an entirely different definition.


One definition for "activity" that works here is : any specific behavior,  while "action" is  a deed; something done or accomplished.  Given those two definitions,  it is safe to say that we need to rethink our activities and actions.  They are not synonymous at all.  As we plan our daily activities, we need to ensure that we include particular actions that need to be accomplished throughout the day rather than simply taking up time doing and vegging.  

Will your actions make a difference in the lives of broken people?
Can you see yourself becoming more missional as you become more intentional?
Will you submit to His leading and your personal calling to take action?
See where he leads you and see how it feels.
Check yourself... If God thinks you are ready for the responsibility, then maybe you should stick to praying on your relationship with God, not your decision to do it or not.

Bonhoeffer spoke of responsibility, not simply thoughts.  He was a Lutheran pastor in WWII Germany.  He spoke of readiness.  He shared this openly.  Are you ready to take personal responsibility as you take action? Dietrich Bonhoeffer's involvement in a plot to overthrow Adolf Hitler led to his imprisonment and execution. 1906-1945)

We are accountable, not excusable.- William Wilberforce

Some may not be familiar with William Wilberforce other than the motion picture Amazing Grace. Yet, Wilberforce demonstrated the faith and fortitude that is needed among professing Christians in public office. Whether it be the influence and inspiration of John Newton's stirring words from the pulpit or Amazing Grace or the atrocities witnessed and expressed by those like Olaudah Equiano, Wilberforce was stirred into action by those who shared with him about the African slave trade along with his faith. As a man of faith, Wilberforce raised awareness and sought action against the inhumanity of the slave trade.

We are accountable to God. Wilberforce simply said: "Sin has consequences." When we realize that the grace of God is the saving force that sent forth Jesus Christ as our Savior, then we realize the immense accountability that comes along with the mark of Christianity. To truly follow Christ, let us walk and talk as Christ did. Let us be accountable to the Master as stewards over all that he has bestowed upon us.

The words of William Wilberforce are simple and true. We are accountable to our Lord and Master. We have no excuse for not being vigilant in our faith to execute rather than claim excuses. In our times, we need Christians who will assert themselves in raising awareness and stirring up advocates for the issues of our times. We need Christians who will take action as a force of faith rather than simply taking force by faith. We are accountable without excuse.

Exponential Potential

So mightily grew the word of the Lord and prevailed. Acts 19:20

But the word of God grew and multiplied. Acts 12:24

God's Word has extraordinary power. It can used many ways to accomplish many things. It is said to be good for teaching, correction, inspiration, and other such things (2 Timothy 3:16). It has been twisted and turned, even tweeked, to be used for negative purposes to justify enslavement, colonialism, and even wars that included ethnic cleansing. Yet, the Word of God must be used for God's purposes by believers.

When believers use the Word of God to accomplish the things of God, things happen. Lives are changed by the power of God's Word. hearts are convicted and souls are converted. God's Word is so powerful that it brings about changes that cannot be imagined. Try hard to imagine what would happen if what was "hidden" in our hearts came forth from our mouths in this day and age. Picture the possibilities! Now, once you have a clear mental picture of what could be, start sharing and spreading His Word. When we do so, things happen among us and around us. Do it and watch God work.

Poetic Politics of Profit

What poet can be “politically correct”
Without speaking out
Against tyranny, hypocrisy
Or even the failures of democracy?
It would seem criminal to not share a common voice
With the countless whose urban plight
It seems to have sparked suburban flight,
Flight from ghetto sanctuaries to metro mini malls.
What sort of poet pens poetic verse
That does not curse and condemn
The very system that presses down
On many with no relief
And offers little or no hope?
I would say such a poet
Would be a bond-servant of the tyrants
And tycoons who make
Their greenbacks
From those they call wetbacks
And so-called Blacks
Seeking every break from every tax.

-Bruce Jackson (2009)

Purposeful Pursuits

Our purpose in all things is to please God.- John Wesley

What we need to do is please God by what we do day by day. Our daily pursuits should lead to God being glorified every step of the way. Our work should serve as part of our worship. Daily, as we work according to our purpose, we should see our pursuits as a means for God to get the glory from ourselves and others. Matthew 5:16 shares that our lights are to shine in such a way that men will see them and become encouraged to call on the name of the Lord. Pursue the promises of the Lord with purose.

What I Really Do... Day by Day

Daily, I get up and get connected with God through all sorts of ways; prayer, journal, Bible study, reflection, devotional reading, etc.. I keep my ears open to what God has to say through His Word and my eyes open to what He shows me along my way. I love reading DC Talk's Jesus Freaks and Crazy Love by Francis Chan. I write at least two blogs daily on Wordpress and Blogger as well as status updates via Facebook, MySpace and Faith Freaks. I even tweet on Twitter throughout the day. I love to check on the latest information for business and ministry via the internet on my Treo Pro (no, not the PRE...P-r-o) an via my laptop. I add to my list of public articles, poems and other resources via Christian Archives and other sites.

Starting Small

If you starting a new venture in business or ministry, here are a few things to keep in mind. The size of your new baby can grow over time. Starting small should not be connected with anything shameful. Start and stay in it for the long haul.

Focus on a "small"start by:

• Starting small
• Starting smart
• Starting smooth

Try it this way and expect to take your next venture all the way to the next level.

Life Beyond the Norm

We are to live as "ambassadors" of Christ. People come to know Christ through those who profess to already know Him. Imagine that our witness can make or break a connection between someone and the Lord. Think about the old adage about not having an opportunity to make a second impression. Christians are to go beyond whatever the media and others have perpetrated as Christianity. We can be the actual flesh and blood of Christianity, living like Christ in our daily lives. Think about the gravity of such a responsibility and remain committed to living like Christ as you continue to live in Christ.

Some books that can help:
My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers
The Soul Winner, Charles H. Spurgeon
He Chose Nails, Max Lucado

Putting Ministry in Action

When I think of holy heroes, I come up with some pretty familiar names in the bible and throughout Christian history. King David comes to mind. He was an all-around man for all seasons, " a man after God's own heart" (1 Sam. 13:14). David was considered a man of war. In today's terms, he would be a man of action. We need such men in ministry. Let them seek God with their hearts and seek to do His will through their hands. Such is the way that our men should be today. I am also reminded of James Hudson Taylor and his dedication and commitment as a missionary in China. Such dedication and commitment are the main ingredients for living a life of service. Look at C. H. Spurgeon and how he influenced numerous preachers in accordance with their true purpose. Research people like J.C. Penney and others who committed to the concept of reverse tithing. Look at those who came before us and see if you recognize the calling on their lives by the actions taken by them while they lived.

Become an inspiration to another Christian, follow what god has given for you to do. What will it take for you to take some action? Do you need to know every little detail before you make a single move? Whatever it is, put your heart into and do it just as God told you to do it. Take action for the ministry's sake. Take action when you're up to it and even when you're not. Just take action.
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Take Action (Or Lose Ground)

Isaiah was clear and concise with Hezekiah with a word from the Lord:
Get your house in order. The swiftness of Hezekiah's actions speaks volumes to many astute Bible readers and others. This episode serves as a reminder of how futile life may be and how we must live in the moment, not for the moment.
Has God given you a similar warning? Was it that heart attack that felt like "gas" at first? How about when God got your attention by causing you grief on your job? Or, what about all of those funerals that you had to attend week after week? did you get the message? Was it clear to you?
Listen to God and do exactly what He says for you to do. As the famed theologian John Wesley stated: "Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, ... you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can."
Read James 1:22. We are to be doers of His Word, not hearers only.
To God be the glory. . . Now and forever.
Rev. Bruce Jackson
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