2008 Resolutions

We live in a world where a salesman gives us tickets to the Mavericks and after the game invites us to finish off the evening at a strip bar. With a few drinks he swears that he is our long lost brother and proceeds with a tirade against the Maverick management because the valet took too long getting his SUV. This present world is full of feigned love, jokes about sex, and biting disrespect for all in authority. It’s 2008 and the world hasn’t changed, but have we?
The question I'm asking myself as I begin 2008 is --What does it look like for a believer in Christ to live as a living sacrifice? What concrete actions result when believers are renewed in their core values by the Holy Spirit?
I'm making the Apostle Paul's exhortations in Romans 12:9-21 my New Year’s resolution list. Here they are:

Be authentic, genuine in agape love.
Be repulsed by evil, Stick like glue to the good.
Be openly affectionate and devoted to my brothers and sisters in Christ
Outdo my brothers and sisters in giving them honor and respect
Get going quickly. Don’t be lazy.
Be on fire with the Holy Spirit serving the Lord.
Rejoice because Christ will certainly fulfill his promises. My Hope in Jesus will not be disappointed.
Endure hard times.
Persist constantly in prayer.
Give generously to my fellow believers just like they were members of my own family.
Seek out even those who are strangers to me and show them hospitality.
Bless, don’t curse those who persecute you.
Rejoice with those who rejoice.
Weep with those who weep.
Be unified with my fellow believers because I'm committed to the message of Romans—Jesus Christ has given me the gift of forgiveness and right standing before God through His death and resurrection.
Don’t be prideful and hang out with the high and mighty. Hang out with those who are downhearted, going through hard times—those who don’t have status.
Don’t think of myself as smarter than I am.
Don’t pay back evil for evil.
Give careful consideration to what is good for all.
As much as possible, live at peace with others.
Remember I am loved by God (Beloved);therefore don’t take revenge.
22. Don’t just refrain from punching out my enemy. Give them food and drink and anything else they need. Do positive good things for them.
(Vengeance is my divine Father’s responsibility. Give space and time for Him to deal with the wrongs done to me. I will pray for my enemies. What a miracle if they become my friends or even my brothers in His time.



It will take the power of Jesus' Spirit flowing through my spiritual veins every second of 2008 to actually live out these qualities, but what a difference it would make in my unbelieving friends' understanding of an "Evangelical" if these were the actions they thought of instead of the bigotry, pride, power, and narrow mindedness that they so often conjure up now.



Let me challenge you to carefully listen to how the Apostle applies his message of faith in Jesus in Romans 12-16. If we truly believe this letter is inerrant, we will get serious about how we relate to one another and to those who have not yet come to faith in the Savior.



Mary and I had an incredible gift over the Holidays as all seven of our grand children came and lived with us for a good amount of time. What a special time of life to have our adult kids bringing their kids to Ami and Papa's house for Christmas.



Mary and I look forward to this new challenging you as we seek to be used of the Spirit to help you encounter Jesus.

How do you over come evil in a dark world? Obviously, doing evil in return for evil will only add to the darkness. You turn on the light by doing the good things the Holy Spirit prompts you to do because Christ gave His life for us when we were His enemies. When He lives inside of us, we do the same.