Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. – Colossians 3:16

We all need two basic things in life. The first is stability to be grounded and secure individuals. Only then can you be relationally healthy. The second is the vision and encouragement to discern and develop your unique gifts and aptitudes. Then you can recognize, pursue, and fulfill your calling. In simple terms, you need roots, and you need wings.

Today I want to focus on the latter—the wings. We all want to be discerning so that we can develop God’s design for our lives. But be prepared . . . it takes time and energy. It takes time to connect with God; to read and study His word, to pray, to talk to God and to listen to God, and connect with other people.

As you connect with God and connect with others, you will see God’s will for your life. It’s when you actively pursue life and pursue God . . . that you’ll see God’s will revealed. Don’t wait for it, move ahead and see it happen.

No tree becomes rooted and sturdy unless many a wind assails it. For by its very tossing it tightens its grip and plants its roots more securely; the fragile trees are those that have grown in a sunny valley. – Seneca the Younger

Blessings,

Chaplin Rob

Much is required from those to whom much is given. – Luke 12:48b

Sometimes taking responsibility for our lives means completing unfinished business. Some of us may have left a trail of broken laws and relationships–things that need addressing before moving on. Others may be burdened by debts that inhibit spiritual pursuits. Before moving forward spiritually, we’ll need to take responsibility for wrongs done in the past.

A new life in Christ doesn’t excuse past obligations or erase the ongoing consequences of past sins. When the apostle Paul was in prison he led a runaway slave named Onesimus to Christ. But then Paul sent him back to his master–even though Onesimus faced a possible death penalty for his offense! Paul sent a letter back with the fugitive saying that if Onesimus had caused any harm or stolen anything that Paul would pay for it. Paul recognized that even though Onesimus was now a Christian, and forgiven of his sins, he needed to address the wrongs he’s committed in the past.

Likewise, before you can move ahead, you must face the unfinished business of your past. This may include facing up to some cowardly behavior, crooked schemes, or quick-fix solutions to difficult problems that just didn’t work. While you can be certain that God will meet you where you are, He calls you to take responsibility for whatever sins may have brought you to whatever circumstances you’re presently in. Once you accept ownership of your past, God will help you move ahead. But He’ll do it His way, not yours.

Nobody ever did, or ever will escape the consequences of his choices. – Alfred A. Montapert

Blessings,

Chaplain Rob

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. – Isaiah 41:10

When Lord Mountbatten, a British naval commander, was five years old, he disliked sleeping in the dark. He confided in his father that his concern wasn’t the dark itself, but rather the wolves inhabiting the darkness. His father tried to assure him that there weren’t wolves in their house, but his boy responded, ‘I daresay there aren’t. But I think there are.’

Aren’t we good at conjuring up beasts? Even though our brains know there aren’t wolves in the attic or monsters under the bed, we still lie awake with our fingers and toes tucked beneath the blankets.

Friend, God doesn’t intend for you to live a life of fear. Like a protective father, He is there to comfort and assure us that we are not alone. Chase the wolves from your darkness. God will help you. It might be as simple as a prayer, or it might entail the help of a pastor or a professional counselor. Take a step toward chasing your wolves away today.

Every morning I spend fifteen minutes filling my mind full of God; and so there’s no room left for worry thoughts. – Howard Chandler Christy

Blessings,

Chaplain Rob

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. —Hebrews 11:1–2

If nothing else were said about you, let it be said, “That is a man of God” or “That is a woman of God.” I can’t think of a higher compliment.

Moses is described in the Bible as “the man of God” (Deuteronomy 33:1 NKJV). He was a flawed man, yes. But he also was a man of God.

Initially, Moses didn’t want to do what God called him to do. He was reluctant. But God had put His hand on Moses from the time he was a baby. His story is almost like a fairy tale, except it’s true. We know how God providentially protected baby Moses in his waterproof basket as he floated down the Nile. And almost as though on cue, the daughter of Pharaoh heard Moses cry, walked over, and saw the beautiful baby. Her maternal instincts kicked in, and she adopted Moses as her own.

Moses had everything he could want, but he knew it wasn’t what God wanted for him. Hebrews 11:24–25 tells us, “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (NKJV). Moses made the right choices in life.

Moses was a world changer, and the key characteristic of a world changer can be summed up in one word: faith. Hebrews 11 defines faith as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (verse 1 NKJV). Faith is like a muscle. It needs to be used. If we neglect it, it will atrophy. It has to be in constant use. It comes down to this: Use it or lose it. Moses put faith into action, and we need to do the same.

Blessings,

Chaplin Rob

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”—Luke 2:10–11

The angel began that wonderful announcement to the shepherds with, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy. . . .” Maybe you are suffering today. You might find yourself wondering, Where is the joy? But what is the joy about? Is it about an opportunity to go shopping? Is the message of Christmas “Let it snow?” No, it is, “Let us worship.”

The angels’ visit to the shepherds became the first Christmas celebration. It’s as though Heaven and earth were celebrating it together, as though a portal to glory had been opened up. These shepherds saw the supernatural world, the heavenly world. On that first Christmas, there was a big celebration in Heaven and on earth over the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We have a Savior: “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). That is the most important thing. We have a Savior who came to save us from the power and penalty of sin. Whatever you are going through in life, remember this: you have a Savior. He has put your sins as far away from you as the east is from the west.

Christ means “anointed one.” Another word for that is Messiah. Jesus was the fulfillment of God’s promise to send His Son as the Messiah. This is a simple reminder that God keeps His promises. God said that He would send a Messiah, and the Messiah came.

Lord means that we have a sovereign God who is in control of our lives.

So set aside the things you have become preoccupied with and remember that you have a Savior. You have a Lord. You have a Christ. And you have His promises.

Blessings,

Chaplin Rob

Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done marvelous things! —Joel 2:21

On the first Christmas Eve, there were no brightly colored lights on anyone’s homes. There were no stockings that had been hung with care or any visions of sugarplums dancing in children’s heads. It was just another night in Bethlehem. The census had gone out—that command by Caesar that everyone was to be taxed. But history was about to change in Bethlehem.

All of Israel was living in a very frightening time historically. They lived under the tyrant King Herod who would execute people at will. In addition, the Jews were living in occupied territory. The Romans had taken control of their country. They were no longer free to do what they wanted and live as they wanted. They wondered if Rome would ever leave. Would the violent rule ever cease? Would their world ever change?

Then suddenly angels appeared to the shepherds and told them not to be afraid; the Messiah had been born.

There is a lot to be afraid of in our unstable, volatile world today. It seems that at every turn, we hear about another horrific tragedy happening in our world. It can cause us to be terrified.

Then there are the personal fears: What if I lose my health? What if I lose a member of my family? What if this happens? What if that happens? A lot of things run through our minds.

Here is the message of the first Christmas—and the message for us this Christmas: Don’t be afraid. . . . I bring you good tidings of great joy.

Ray Stedman wrote, “The chief mark of the Christian ought to be the absence of fear and the presence of joy.”

Does that describe you? Fear is what Christmas came to remove—and now we can have joy in its place.

Blessings,

Chaplin Rob

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. . . . Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” —Luke 2:8, 10

If you are a parent, then you can remember the first people you called after you became one. You gave them the weight and length of the baby and the actual time when he or she was born. You shared the news with those who were closest to you.

When God announced the birth of His Son, whom did He tell first? It seems likely that He would have started with Caesar Augustus. He could have sent the angel Gabriel to appear in Caesar’s court and announce, “Check this out, buddy. You are not God! The Savior of the world has arrived!”

Or He might have had Gabriel appear to the religious leaders and say, “Wake up! The Messiah has been born! The One you talk about, the One you pray for—He is here!”

But that didn’t happen. Instead, God first announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds. We tend to romanticize the shepherds along with everyone else in the Christmas story, but we don’t understand who they were. In this culture, shepherds lived at the bottom of the social ladder.

Shepherds were so despised that their testimonies were not even allowed in a court of law. Shepherds did the work that no one else wanted to do. They worked hard, but they were perceived as unclean because they could not observe the ceremonial hand washings. They were the outcasts, the nobodies.

The only people less-regarded than shepherds were those who were suffering from leprosy. Yet God decided to announce His news to some shepherds in the fields as they kept watch over their flocks at night. This was the modus operandi of Jesus, from birth to death. He always appealed to the outcast, to the common, to the ordinary. And that should give hope to ordinary people like us.

Blessings,

Chaplin Rob