Skip to main content

A Morning View From the Patio

 John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?”    - Matthew 11:2-3 NLT

Is this the John the Baptist who jumped in his mother's womb when Mary showed up with Jesus in her womb? Is this the John the Baptist who baptized Jesus? Is this the John the Baptist who proclaimed that he was preparing the way of the Lord, the coming of the Messiah? So is this the John the Baptist still wondering if Jesus was the one? 

There are days I wonder if Jesus is really the one. My head knows, but my heart struggles. How about you? Do you struggle in your heart? Are you allowing the circumstances of your life, which seem insurmountable, to create distance between you and God? Perhaps you have fallen and failed and believe you are not worth it. Perhaps that is all you have been told your whole life. Have others hurt you so deeply, so deeply that you have never told another? Maybe you hurt so badly that you believe Jesus couldn't be the Messiah because a loving God would never allow you to experience life with the pain you carry. 

John the Baptist who KNEW Jesus, questioned if Jesus really was the One, the Messiah. Why do you think you are any less than because you struggle and doubt? But please, do not live in the doubt and fear. Struggle through the doubt and fear. Get help for your pain and hurt. Allow the head knowledge to become heart knowledge and truly chase after God deeper and deeper. 

Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.”   - Matthew 11:4-6 NLT 


God Is.

Jesus Is .

Holy Spirit Is.


Keep asking, keep chasing, keep surrendering and believe. 


Peace,

PB


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A Morning View From the Porch at Lakeside

I typically am not a big breakfast eater. Every year at Lakeside for Annual Conference there is a group of men who invite me to breakfast at The Patio. Every year I go one time and enjoy talking and joking with this group and every year I order the same breakfast, a plain toasted bagel with cream cheese and a glass of water. It is tradition, you know! I often get asked why I do not order something different? My answer is, "if something is good and satisfies my hunger, why should I order something different? Besides, I like a plain toasted bagel with cream cheese!"  I wonder why some people have a salvation experience with Jesus Christ but wander away from the most amazing relationship possible with the Creator of all? They seem to have a taste for many different flavors of seeking to fulfill their Spirit hole in their lives. Often people bounce from one religious experience to another without a deep connection and commitment. They order something different from the menu each ...

A Morning View By the Patio

When I was a young boy we lived in the country and I had to become very creative in how I played. Much of the time I was alone and hd to create imaginary situations so that there were "others" around me. I would also "become" someone else and emulate everything they did. I would know them, study them and learn all I possibly could about them and then become them. One of the people I "became" was Wilt the "Stilt" Chamberlain. At the time he was a famous Los Angeles Laker NBA star. I always wanted to become Wilt. I practiced his famous hook shot, watched him play on TV and learned all of his moves. I had some of the most amazing NBA battles all alone in my uneven gravel driveway. In my mind I was Wilt the "Stilt" Chamberlain. There were a few drawbacks in becoming Wilt. First, my skin pigment was as white as could be. Wilt was African American and I was never going to become Wilt. Second, Wilt was over 7 feet tall. At my peak of vertica...

A Morning View From the Patio

I have been gently encouraged by someone who was nudged by the Lord to make a list for the next week of positive characteristics which make me who I am.   Today I begin with compassion. I truly strive to be compassionate with everyone I encounter. I desire to reach out and care when others are struggling. Even if I encounter someone who has hurt me in the past or I may not connect with, I try to put aside differences and find a way to share compassion with them. After all, Jesus was compassionate all the way to death. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.” - 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 Peace, PB