Today’s song comes from one of five children of Christian missionaries. Stacie Orrico’s family moved to Denver, Colorado from Seattle, Washington where she was born. This new location gave Stacie her first chance to display a gifted voice at the Estes Park Christian Artist Seminar. After receiving first place in the vocalist category, Stacie realized she had the talent to pursue her own ministry.
The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it [b]overflows), John 10:10.
The title of Stacie’s song There’s Gotta Be More to Life reminds me of Steven Curtis Chapman’s classic tune More to This Life. While the genres are completely different, the message is the same. Perhaps, Stacie was struggling with the old age question, “this sounds too good to be true,” Romans 6:23. May the lyrics and vibe of More to Life struck a chord with your soul.
The book definition of mental health refers to a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being. As I combed through various statistics, I discovered there was an estimated 1.400,000 suicide attempts in 2015. This stat is shocking, making me wonder, what would cause so many people to think that death is better than life? There has to be more to mental health to explain this epidemic.
So I find it to be the law [of my inner self], that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully delight in the law of God in my inner self [with my new nature], 23 but I see a different law and rule of action in the members of my body [in its appetites and desires], waging war against the law of my mind and subduing me and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is within my members, Romans 7:21-23.
Last week there was a vigil at the STEM School in Highland Ranch, Colorado. Forced to cope with another school shooting, a gun control group known as Team Enough attempted to highjack this event for political purposes. As adults began to pontificate about banning guns, students walked outside of their school. While ambulance chasers inside started to make plans for overturning the second ammendment, students CHANTED the heart of this matter, MENTAL HEALTH, MENTAL HEALTH.
Wretched and miserable man that I am! Who will [rescue me and] set me free from this body of death [this corrupt, mortal existence]? 25 Thanks be to God [for my deliverance] through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind serve the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh [my human nature, my worldliness, my sinful capacity—I serve] the law of sin, Romans 7:24-25.
Unfortunately, you won’t find the answers to America’s mental health crisis in public education. Nor will you find the cure to mental health in higher education. Why? Well, God was kicked out, banning the Bible and prayer as a daily part of education back in the 1960’s. As a former high school teacher, students are searching for the same thing the apostle Paul sought in Romans 7. Mental health is a battle for the hearts, minds and souls of human beings. Attempting this on your own will only result in failure. However, God sent Jesus to save mankind from a sinful nature that is out of control. The only way to unlock the key to mental health is through Jesus.
In this age of Progressivism, bizarre news stories once thought to be a joke are now becoming reality. Such is the case of a new church in Denver, Colorado known as the International Church of Cannabis. According to a recent interview with the pastor by Jesse Watters, this church uses marijuana as a Holy Sacrament to reach a new level of faith. Is this new practice a form of elevation or merely heresy?
Your eyes will see strange things, and your heart utter perverse things, Proverbs 23:33.
The context of the passage above refers to drinking too much vine. The consequence of doing such a thing can result in hallucinations. If you pass by liquor stores in your community, you might see the words Wine and Spirits. The spirit part eludes to the passage above. Since alcohol is a drug, cannabis produces a similar state. The question is does God want his worshippers to experience this high in church?
It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble, Romans 14:21.
During a private conversation with his disciples within Matthew 18:1-6, Jesus warns his leaders about causing children to stumble by following in the footsteps of your own sin. According to the son of God, it would be better to have this person tied to chains and thrown into the sea to die alone. Thus, the apostle Paul makes sure no one in the first century forgets about this teaching. Sure, the idea of cannabis as a Holy Sacrament sounds enticing, but using a drug in any form of worship service is simply heresy.
Hollywood’s depiction of a mid-life crisis doesn’t get much better than the 1991 film City Slickers. Billy Crystal plays a man in his late 30’s who has lost his joy for life. Depressed, disappointed and struggling to maintain hope for the future, Crystal is sent away by his wife to find himself during a week in Colorado with his buddies. Disturbing their trail guide, a chain of events culminates in a mid-faith crisis, a watershed moment for Crystal and his 2 friends.
Beyond the big screen, dysfunctional faith forces individuals to confront life’s problems or ignore them, wishing they will disappear. Enduring a restless night, hours of reflection revealed a troubled heart. Some where during the last 5 years, I began to neglect most of the relationships in my life. Subsequently, I find myself in a mid-faith crisis, not sure where to begin. As my faith has turned lukewarm, Revelation 3:16, not pleasing to the Lord, its time to start over or like the life lesson in City Slickers, do everything better with Christ’s help.
In times of intense difficulty, its easy to throw up your hands, wave the white flag and withdraw into a shell. Yet, each crisis provides a crossroad where you will wilt under pressure or trust God in the dark. This critical moment will dictate your proximity to God. As one who is approaching 30 years of walking with Jesus, I wish I could say faith gets easier the older you become. Unfortunately, complications in life prove to serve as obstacles, mountains that prevent you from experiencing genuine faith. Whenever you approach, face or stand in a valley of despair, remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 21:21-22 to conquer any mid-faith crisis you encounter.
From a meteorology perspective, weather systems can stall on occasion, creating isolated showers in the same location for hours or in a worst cause scenario for days at a time. This phenomena is known as a stationary front, where a boundary is formed between two air masses neither of which replaces the other. Whenever a weather system travels less than 6 miles per hour, its deemed to be stationary. Unique wind conditions makes this possible as the north side of a stationary front move in a East to West direction. Meanwhile, on the southern edge, winds reverse, moving from West to East.
According to a September 15th article in the U.S.A. Today, experts are blaming an unusually strong ridge of high pressure parked over Western Canada for the deadly flooding in the Boulder region of Colorado. Over one month later, hundreds of people are still unaccounted for, likely washed away in the torrent rapids flowing down the Rocky Mountains. This natural disaster has conjured up memories of the Big Thompson flash flood of 1976 where 144 were killed just north of Boulder. Those who believe in God often struggle to make sense of these storms, wrestling for answers to grasp why.
Although every geographic area does not encounter the same natural disasters, all regions experience isolated showers. Literal storms can bring lightning, thunder and heavy rains. Spiritual storms offer a different challenge, testing your faith, patience and soul. While people can seek shelter for isolated showers, life’s trials are often unexpected, resulting in an invisible tsunami attempting to wipe you out spiritually. It’s not if these isolated showers will occur, but when. Therefore, when a spiritual stationary front knocks on your door, arm yourself with the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:24-27.
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