Freedom 5K - Oakboro, NC

Freedom 5k - 1st in age and 9th overall

How To Overcome Regurgitated Christianity

Run Log: 6-18-2014

Today, as I’m sitting in my house icing my back, I’m reminded about the basics of running.  There are times one runs and times one should take a break; today is one of those times my body is telling me to take a break.  It wasn’t even a running incident that has caused me to pay attention to my back … it was a work related injury.  Even so, I must be attune to the changes every day life can bring and hearken to the need at the moment.

Running is so much like our spiritual journey of life.  I remember when I first began running … I would do what I wanted … regardless on the impact it would have on my overall fitness.  I now know that is why I stayed injured most of the time (and it was running related).  I was acting like a child … wanting what I wanted instead of what was best.  As I’ve matured as a runner I’ve learned that there are certain basics by which we must abide, and if those basics are not adhered to, one will find that they are constantly injured.

That is so much like the Christian life; there are many believers who believe they are ready for the challenges of taking on the unseen realm, when in fact, they need to adhere to the basics and grow to the point that they are strong enough to live as soldiers.  Let me explain by listing the stages of spiritual growth as mentioned in the New Testament.  It is important for and individual to realize where they are in the stages of spiritual growth so they can mature without getting “injured.”  It would be unwise for someone who is a “child” in the faith to act as if they are a “father” … this would be very dangerous … and it is totally unnecessary.  One of the primary responsibilities of any spiritual leader is to mature people progressively through the stages of spiritual growth so proper maturity can be achieved.   The physical stages of spiritual growth are used in the New Testament on purpose, because Romans one teaches us that God used the things that He has made to explain the things that are spiritual and unseen.  In that way, He has used the stages of physical growth to show us the process of spiritual growth; they are incredibly similar.  Here are the stages:

 1.  A Babe in Christ:  A new believer is totally unprepared for their new life in Christ, just as a baby is totally dependent on their parents to live.

 2.  A Little Child:  I wouldn’t dream of leaving my little child in a situation where they are not watched constantly. So … we must be guarding our little children in the faith as Satan attempts to keep them from maturing in the faith.

 3.  A Child: It is at this point that the little child is becoming more responsible; however, they still have a long way to go because they believe everything is about them and they are easily distracted.

 4.  A Young Man:  It is at this stage of maturity that the individual is beginning to “overcome the wicked one” on their own.  It is at this juncture that they must be prepared for the time that they will begin a family of their own.  It is important that believers don’t “birth” spiritual babies until they are ready to raise those birthed babies through the maturation process.

 5.  A Father:  It is at this stage that the individual is bringing others into life in Christ, and it is important that they are ready and willing to raise that new baby to spiritual adulthood.  If we produce “sons of God” before we are a spiritual father, we are no better than third world countries who have babies they can’t take care of.  We must not pawn our babies (new sons of God) off on others or the “church,” we must raise them to adulthood as proper parents.

 6.  An Elder:  This is the stage where spiritual leaders are born.  One should never hold a position of spiritual authority of any kind until they have purposefully travelled through the stages of spiritual growth.  That is one reason why many of our churches are not fulfilling the purpose of God.  The fact is that they have not been placed in their positions by God.  An elder is placed in the body to be an example of spiritual maturity.  They have been there and done that; therefore, they can lead others properly.

 7.  The Aged:  This is where a world vision is developed and expanded.  Your influence begins to thrive beyond your present locality. 

 My question to you is simple: Where are you as it concerns the stages of spiritual growth?  It is important to be honest.  How can you lead others to where you’ve never been?  How can you grow to the next step of spiritual growth if you don’t know where you are right now?

May God help us mature beyond the same ole same ole of regurgitated Christianity beginning today!

 

Live OUT LOUD!

Mark Harrell – Habakkuk 2:2

RU An Overweight Pastor

In an effort to show WHY there is such an epidemic of overweight Pastors, I am going to refer you to the following article.  After reading, I urge you to take an internal self-check and be honest with where you are on the weight spectrum and commit to doing something about it.  A good place to begin is to schedule us at http://www.rufitministries.weebly.com.  May God bless your journey to being FIT (Faith Influencing Today) both physically and Spiritually.


Article: http://www.ordinarypastor.com/?p=5158


Live OUT LOUD!


Mark Harrell - Habakkuk 2:2

 

Perserverance

Run Log - 6-3-2014






Wow!  Today's run was pretty difficult.  I was only 2 miles in my scheduled 5 mile run when I felt like packing it in.  It was 89 degrees at 7:30 at night and my legs were as tight as a drum.  I do walk sometimes, when at the halfway point of a run 8 miles or longer, to get water and stretch my legs ... but never on a run under 8 miles.  To me that feels like I've quit.  The same is true when I race in half marathon's ... I don't walk at any point ... or ... what's the point in challenging yourself.  I don't just want a finisher's medal ... I want to live up to the goal I set for that particular race.


So ... what was I thinking when I wanted to quit at 2 miles?  I remembered a motto I had lived by since beginning to run:  Remember Your Training.  I just thought back to all the times I had run and felt like quitting, but didn't.  I thought back to all the miles I had put in and told myself that I only have 3 more miles to go before I can gulp a nice, cold PowerAid Zero and feel the refreshment course through my body ... all the way down to my toes.  That usually does the trick.


The following verses came to mind as I was pushing myself through a run that I needed to make to continue my training for my next half marathons:

Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Rom 5:3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

Rom 5:4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

The word patience leads to experience, and experience leads to hope; that hope is an earnest expectation of what we know is going to happen.  That's one of the many reasons I like to run; every time I run in reminds me of Biblical principles that should be guiding my life.  It is one of those things that Romans one tells us God created to show us invisible truths.  So ... let's run the race of life together with patience ... because ... patience brings experience ... and ... experience brings hope!

Live OUT LOUD!

Mark Harrell - Habakkuk 2:2

Hab 2:2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.



Running The Race of Life ... Even After Quitting

This post is a little longish; however, the principle of overcoming failure must be seen in its full context for complete understanding of what God wants us to know .... Thanks for reading!

I Go A Fishing (How to Overcome Failure)

 This sequence of events reminds me of an instance when Jesus was questioning Peter as to his love for his master. Jesus had just shown Peter and the other disciples, by way of a miracle, what His purpose was for their lives. I don’t want you to miss this, so put on your spiritual thinking cap. In John 21:3, Peter had quit on the Lord. When he quit, he influenced Thomas, Nathaniel, and two other disciples to quit with him. He went fishing and caught nothing, nada, zip, and zero – zilch. He fished all night and did not catch a single thing – not even a crab.

 

In John 21:5-6, Jesus appeared on the shore (He had already ascended and come back to appear to over five hundred people), and instructed them to cast their nets on the “right” side of the ship. He said that if they would do this, they’d find what they were seeking. They did as they were told, and to their amazement, they caught so many fish that they were not able to draw in the net; therefore, they had to carry it on the side of the boat until they reached the shore.

 

They caught 153 fish; that number is significant to our discussion. The number (9) represents fruit bearing in the Bible. If you add (1) plus (5) plus (3) – you have (9). Therefore, the number 153 can represent fruit bearing.

 

Another way you can extrapolate truth from this passage is by defining the three numbers in question. The number (1) stands for unity throughout the Bible. The number (5) means death/grace, and the number (3) is the number for the Godhead. So, what does that mean? As we are unified (#1) in our purpose, and choose to die to the desires of the world (#5), then we can glorify God (#3) by producing fruit that remains (#9—the total of 1+5+3)).  

 

We will look at Biblical numerics more closely when we arrive at that particular rule of Bible study.  But we know this is the case because of the context of the verses in question. You’ll see the principle come to life in the following pages. One would have to be spiritually blind to miss what God is teaching us through this story.

 

Skinny Fishing

They did not know that the person who instructed them was Jesus until verse seven. Peter, being told it is the Lord, puts on his garments (for he was fishing with no clothes on – naked), jumps into the water and swims to the shore.

 

Running Tip: Don’t miss the fact that Peter did not want to be found naked and ashamed at the presence of his Lord. He was naked. The Greek word for naked is gummos, and it literally means nude. He put on his garments so that he would be properly clothed.

 

To get our minds around what is happening here we must understand that in the Bible, garments are a type of how people spiritually live their lives. We either wear the garments of praise, or the garments of a life soiled by the sinfulness of the world. Notice the following verses for clarification of the garments teaching.

 

Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

Jude 1:23 And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. Ezekiel 18:7 And hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;

 

Come and Dine; He’s Already Prepared the Table

In John 21:9-11, Jesus is preparing a fire so that they can cook the fish that they just caught. I’m going to show you the purpose of God in the form of this illustration, so please put on your spiritual ears. Verse nine says that “they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid theron, and bread;” Jesus told them to bring him the fish they had just caught. Keep in mind that not all the Bible was written ABOUT you, but it was all written FOR and TO you.

 

The lesson that Jesus was teaching these backslidden disciples is incredibly practical to our lives, especially today. Coals are a picture of purity (Isaiah 6:5-7), fish are a picture of those we are to free from the false reality (Matthew 4:19) and bread is a picture of the Word of God (John 6:35).  

 

I believe Jesus is simply teaching His disciples that He had not given up on them; if they would purify their lives by finding their nourishment in the Bread of life He would bless them in their efforts to be fishers of men as they dine (sup .. remember this word?) with Him on a daily basis. You know the rest of the story, and that is exactly what transpired in the lives of the disciples. In only seventeen years, the entire known world had heard about the saving grace of Jesus Christ through the lives of men nourished in His word!

 

Feed My Sheep

Now for the key that unlocks the power of this story. After they had dined (supped/fellowshipped) with the Lord, Jesus asked Peter the following question – “lovest thou me more than these?” With a puzzled look on his face, Peter answered the Lord by saying – “Yea Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.” Then Jesus said to Peter – “Feed my lambs.” Jesus asked Peter the same question again, and to that question, Peter gives the same answer – “Yea Lord; thou knowest I love thee.” This time Jesus tells Peter to feed his sheep.

 

In verse seventeen Peter realized why Jesus is questioning him; it grieved his (Peter’s) heart. Jesus was asking Peter if he loved (agapao) Him, and Peter was responding by saying that he loved (phileo) Him, too. God was looking for an agapao love. This is the greatest kind of love that can be displayed. It is a love that will willingly give one’s life for another. It is a Godly love.

 

Peter responded two times by saying that he had a sincere, friendly love for Jesus (phileo). Peter, now understanding what the question really is said, “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love (phileo) thee.” Peter now understood that God knew that he needed to develop an agapao love for the Lord in order for him to be successful in His purpose. The same is true for you and me, if we are to be relevant and powerful ambassadors for Christ to our worlds of influence.

 

Running Tip: God can’t lead us if we don’t understand the price that is to be paid. He is looking for people that will finish the race that is set before them.

 

Quitters are a dime a dozen; God is seeking people who will commit to be winners, so He can invest His power into them (Acts. 1:8).

 

Love Has a Price

The reason that this line of questioning is so significant is because Jesus knows that Peter is going to have to surrender his life for the cause of Christ. He wanted Peter to know what kind of love would be necessary to stand up for the truth.

 

In John 21:18-19, Jesus tells Peter that, one day, “Another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” Someone is going to take Peter where he does not wish to go, all because he is successfully freeing minds from the control of the false reality of this life. Jesus punctuates this illustration by impressing on Peter to “follow thou me,” without regards to the plan He (Jesus) had for others (specifically, John), from the pitiful philosophy that we see coming out of churches today.

 

Many churches today are spewing out the itchy-ear line that says God wants you to be happy.  But, it is important that we define true happiness.

 

Running Tip: God wants you to be willing to fulfill his will, and that your happiness would come from knowing that you were a vital partner in the Lord’s effort to bring an end to the war, eradicate the scourge of sin, and usher in the universal kingdom of peace (Revelation nineteen).

 

Our lives can’t be driven by Purpose if we don’t know the specifics of that purpose – no matter how popular a book may be.  It takes more than forty days to achieve true purpose; it takes years, if not decades, of faithfulness to God’s plan for man.

 

Our Commander (Jesus Christ) is seeking spiritual leaders who will do what is right and fulfill the purpose for which their position dictates. He is seeking pastors who know why they do what they do, and how that knowledge will affect our lives, this earth, and the universe – for all eternity.  

 

As Dumbledore told Harry in the book titled, The Goblet of Fire, (Remember: learn to throw out the bones and eat the meat of any story or book.  We are to be IN the world while not begin OF it.) “There is coming a time when we will need to choose between what is right … and what is easy.”

 

It is my aspiration to help you prepare for that eventuality; it is at our doorstep.  If you haven’t been there and done that, how can you lead someone down a path you’ve never trodden; it’s impossible!  The following practical Principles will help you do just that.

Live OUT LOUT!

Mark Harrell - Habakkuk 2:2