Dying in order to live

This is a repost from March of 2009...I needed to read it again...

Jesus also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." John 4:26-29

Imagine with me for moment this following scene:

The farmer from the above scripture is ready to plant the seed. The seeds cries out,"please don't put me in that hole? It is cold, dark, and wet in there. I will die in that hole!"

The farmer responds with, "Yes, you will die in there, but you will also sprout and grow into a mighty tree. You will come alive again and produce much fruit. You will grow very tall and be able to experience the height and depth of my love. You will also know what it feels like to have the wind blow and the sun shine on your leaves."

"But I don't want to die." states the little seed. "I don't want to loose what I have."

"Oh, what you will gain will far outweigh what you will loose in your new life." explains the farmer.

"I am afraid," pleads the little seed.

"Do not be afraid. I will take care of you. You must die to the fear in order to truly live." says the farmer. The farmer then plants the seed and the little seed becomes a mighty tree. The seeds learns in the dark, cold, wet parts of life is where we truly surrender and then we will truly begin to live.

What does it mean to be alive....to surrender oneself to God by declaring God's worth in our lives while recognizing His presence in our lives, by giving to God's purposes, and by lifting His praises in all we do. For when we die to ourselves is when we truly begin to live.
What do you think it means to be alive? You know I love ya - Don

In Christ Jesus, I am Alive

“who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,”- 2 Timothy 1:9

We sang a new song in worship yesterday titled, "I am Alive" by Jeremy Johnson and Paul Marino. The words are fairly simple, yet, are profoundly powerful for a Christ-follower. We are truly alive in Christ not because of anything we have done, but because of his purpose and grace. These are the words:

When I worship You.
When I give you Praise.

When I lift Your name.
I am alive.


I am alive, I am alive.

Because of you my Savior,
I am alive.

To realize that Christ was born to allow for us, You and Me, to be alive is amazing. It is also humbling to know that this TRUTH was established before time began. What does it mean to be alive? To be alive is to be in Christ Jesus.

Thank You for going down this journey over the last few weeks and asking the question, "What does it mean to be alive?" You know I love ya - Don

To Die is to truly begin to Live.

Jesus also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." John 4:26-29

Imagine with me for moment this following scene:

The farmer from the above scripture is ready to plant the seed. The seeds cries out,"please don't put me in that hole? It is cold, dark, and wet in there. I will die in that hole!"

The farmer responds with, "Yes, you will die in there, but you will also sprout and grow into a mighty tree. You will come alive again and produce much fruit. You will grow very tall and be able to experience the height and depth of my love. You will also know what it feels like to have the wind blow and the sun shine on your leaves."

"But I don't want to die." states the little seed. "I don't want to loose what I have."

"Oh, what you will gain will far outweigh what you will loose in your new life." explains the farmer.

"I am afraid," pleads the little seed.

"Do not be afraid. I will take care of you. You must die to the fear in order to truly live." says the farmer. The farmer then plants the seed and the little seed becomes a mighty tree. The seeds learns in the dark, cold, wet parts of life is where we truly surrender and then we will truly begin to live.

What does it mean to be alive....to surrender oneself to God by declaring God's worth in our lives while recognizing His presence in our lives, by giving to God's purposes, and by lifting His praises in all we do. For when we die to ourselves is when we truly begin to live.
What do you think it means to be alive? You know I love ya - Don

Alive...they lived!

“But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside.”- Job 23:10-11

I have been asking the question, "What does it mean to be alive?" This scripture from Job came to mind. To be alive is more than feeling. I have asthma and until you cannot breath, you never truly understand the simple blessing of taking a deep breath and releasing stress. Forgetting how many blessings God has given to us is a natural part of living...yet until it is tested, taken away, or even challenged is when we truly begin to appreciate and live the blessing.

One of Karen and my favorite movies...our dating movie...is "Everafter" with Drew Barrymore. I still think of her in E.T.,...at the end of the movie the older women that tells the story of her great, great grandmother, Cinderella, states, "And they lived happily ever after, but the point is that they lived." This line has stuck with me and over the last week in asking this question has had a resounding call, "What does it mean to be alive?"

If a person does not feel, are they truly living?
If a person does not strive, are they truly feeling?
If a person does not love, are they truly striving?

Keep the comments coming..."What does it mean to be ALIVE?"

What does it mean to be alive?

“Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.” - Matthew 22:37-39

I have been pondering today what it is to truly be "alive." I heard a comment in this context, "Being alive is to be passionate and emotional. To feel is to be alive." Is simply pouring out your heart and acting on that response all there is to being alive? If there is more to being alive what is it? Jesus said He came to give us abundant life, does that mean a Christ-follower is to have more passion and emotion....more heart? Where does that leave soul and mind?

Many times we forget that pleasing the flesh can create an emotion as well. I feel good after I eat a bag of potato chips...especially the bar-b-cue flavor...you know what I mean...the old fashioned kind that are saturated in trans-fat and get all over your fingers. It is not healthy at all...but I feel satisfied. Is this true of all our sins? Most of the time, I feel pretty good after the fact. Then, I feel guilty. Another heart wrenching disappointment where I tell myself that I know better than to do that.

Lets ponder this question for awhile longer...what does it mean to truly be alive? All comments are welcome. A nice things about this question is that there is no wrong answer. You know I love ya - Don

Jesus is Alive

“But because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore, He is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” – Hebrews 7:24-25 NIV

In the church I was raised our Minister, Lloyd Menning, would always start his Easter sermon with this phrase, "Easter! The greatest day that ever dawned, from the greatest story ever told, in the greatest life ever lived! Jesus is Alive! He is risen indeed!" I woke up this morning hearing his voice and that phrase. I like mornings like this.

People of all ages gathered in a small Baptist church in rural Bangladesh to view a screening of the “Jesus” film. The small building was so crowded that little children had to sit on the floor while rows of adults stood in the back. During the crucifixion scene, weeping and gasps of disbelief could be heard as the dark-skinned audience looked on in horror. As the Bengalis watch, they vicariously sensed the drama of the moment. It was as if they actually could feel the agony of Jesus’ pain and the disappointment of the disciples. In that emotional moment, one young boy near the makeshift screen jumped to his feet and cried our, “Don’t be afraid! He gets up again! I’ve seen the movie before.” [from Give Thanks With a Grateful Heart, Integrity Publishing, 2002]

Whether we say, “He gets up again,” “Christ is risen,” or “He’s alive!” the reality of the resurrection should not be reserved for one Sunday a year. Our shouts should be heard everyday in the lives we live. The message of Easter is the foundation of our faith every single day of our lives. Jesus defeated death and it is the greatest truth ever told. Therefore, Jesus is not bound by space, time, or distance. He’s alive and working amongst his people even now. Let us fix our eyes on Him and press forward without distraction toward the prize of seeing him face to face and celebrating our personal Easter.

You know I love ya - Don