what you carry

Louie Giglio gave the "send 'em out with their hair on fire" locker room talk as Joe refers to it in our Men at the Cross conferences. Louie challenged us big time on our last morning together. three hours until we would be headed in numerous directions. back to hundreds of campuses. to our jobs in various workplaces. to friends and family and strangers who don't know Christ. our focus?

what do we carry with us as we go forth?

the world is waiting to have their breath taken away. not by me. not by you. by Jesus. but how will they know unless you and i go?

but where?

go wherever your passions lead you, wherever your giftings lead you. it doesn't matter where. it only matters what you take with you. what do you carry to the world?

nike. kanakuk. big star. starbucks. apple. hallmark. tervis. gap. hp. kashi. carolina.

all of those are names. names that i display on a regular basis. all it took was a cursory glance around my room to see evidence of them. i carry the names of those companies and organizations to the world each day. and they're banking on me doing that. it's their livelihood. but none of them are the most important name i can carry forth.

Jesus.

in Acts 9:15, we see that Paul was God's chosen instrument to carry forth the name of Jesus. sadly, the word "Christian" doesn't mean "Jesus" to the world. we've stained it with our selfish desires. more often, it means "you don't like me and you disagree with me". the world needs the name of Jesus. not Christianity. carry forth the name that is above every name. Jesus. be a champion for His name. the world is literally dying to hear His name. they don't need the name of our culture. they need the name of Christ.

"and whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." (col 3:17)

go.

in the name of Jesus.

to the world.

wherever your passions and giftings lead you.

for His glory.

go.

live unashamedly :: laugh uncontrollably :: love unconditionally.

free and fully alive

that's how Louie Giglio greeted the 22,000+ of us in attendance on Saturday night January 1st. i listened to a podcast with this same title a month or so ago and was disturbed. the second time was no exception.

in this phase of life for me, i fall under the "fully alive" camp. i don't feel that i'm in bondage to anything. in Christ, i am more than a conqueror and have found freedom from the chains of habitual sin. i still sin, but i am not in bondage. i am free. just as the song says, "i am free to run, i am free to dance, i am free to live for [Him]." but i feel like every day i wake up and battle to be fully alive. i battle to eliminate desires for things that don't matter eternally. to make sure that what i do here on earth counts for what matters most...His glory.

Paul's very name is a testimony to the power of God and the process of becoming fully alive. it takes an encounter with the glory of God. without that encounter, i will never see the depth of my depravity in light of His holiness. and i will never be moved to pursue Him. Paul had this encounter, which is why he changed his driver's license from "Saul" to "Paul". He saw the glory of God.  He grew to embody the truth that circumstances have no power over the ability to be free and fully alive. circumstances do not limit God. man had no chains on Paul (philippians 1:21).

but it's a choice. and i make it every morning when i wake up. i must choose to live each day for His glory. and that means saying "no" to everything else. i choose to be His bondservant. to pursue Him above all else. that being said, i'm setting out to answer the following questions:

what do i want to go for? what do i want to be known for?

and, whatever that is, it must ultimately result in His glory....

Bekah

live unashamedly :: laugh uncontrollably :: love unconditionally.