Passion?

Well I have started to write about 7 blogs before I started writing this one. I have so much junk I feel like I want to talk about but for some reason when I start to write the words do not come out on the paper. Maybe I should try to work on that, but who knows. I was just sitting here looking at my last blog and it made me start to think about passion. I am not talking about the Passion that 20 thousand college kids go to every year to hope to get re-energized for Christ. I am talking about my own personal passions in life. Every one of us has passions that we have never told anyone, because for some reason some of the things that drive us in life may not be what people expect. For example it has taking me awhile since being in college to convince people that I have a passion for music and worship. It has taken God using me to actually lead worship at churches or campus ministries to get people to see that. But we also have passions in life that are very wrong and sinful in many ways. This is what I would like to write about for a little bit, the passions that pull us from who our primary passion should be and that is Christ.

Since I am about to graduate from WKU I have begun to look at my life in a different way and to look at what some of my passions are. I begun to notice that most of the things that I think would be hard to live without are actually pulling me away from God. It does not matter what it is, it could range from girls to movies, to studying, anything. I have begun to realize that many things are pulling me from the one who came down and rescued me. I think if you looked deep into your heart you would see the same thing I am writing about. If you want to test if your passions are right or wrong ask this simple question and answer it honestly: If God asked you to give up whatever that thing is would you be able to do it? Just look at what we as followers of God have become. We say we could sacrifice everything to God but yet we never actually do it and when God says surrender it because his will is greater we still hold on to what we should let go.

I know this is hard thing to think about, if it was not hard I would not be writing about it. Just imagine what it would be like to have our only passion be Jesus Christ. The sad thing is that I can imagine that some people reading this would say that that actually sounds a little boring and not interesting. I know people believe that because I also believe that sometimes. But God has a great purpose for us, but we have to be willing to surrender ourselves, our desires, everything to Him. Will it be easy? Of course not. Will it get easier with time? Cannot answer that question because I believe Satan will just try harder to get you to slip up, but I do know that Christ never leaves or forsakes us and that he will help us in those times.

So I as I close this tonight I pray you will take sometime to look deep into who you are and ask Christ to examine that also. All the deep parts of your heart that you have never let anyone see. Examine who you are and see if there is anything else you need to surrender. And I promise there is something, if there was not anything than you would be perfect and that is something none of us will ever be till we sit before the throne of God.

I love you all, let me know if there is anyway I could pray for you all.
Brent Phillips

Will the real FOLLOWERS please stand up........

Yes the title is cheesy to this post and I have to admit that for some reason the old Eminem song came into my head when I was thinking about writing this post. I just keep coming back to this thought that very few people around these day would people consider to be a true and honest followers of Christ. Now, I know everyone’s pride inside always at this point in reading something like this tells them that they must be talking about other people. But I want you to take a deep look inside yourself because I feel like this is something we all need to take a look into. If when you look deep inside yourself you see your own desires versus that of what Christ wants then we need to check out hearts. I continually look at myself and start thinking that I need to do something to become the follower that Christ longs for, to finally pray the way David prayed and to serve the way Paul served. But so often I end up fading back instead of letting Christ take control because I feel like I am the only one trying. I believe everyone reading this note has felt the same way when they feel God pulling their own hearts.

I am curious, to be honest, what a true honest follower of Christ looks like. I see what the bible says about it and I know what some people in history have done when they let Christ take control and finally let go. But I am curious what it looks like right before my eyes. Would I notice? Would I call that person crazy or radical? Would I step up and join them in living the way God wants? I can not honestly answer these questions and I think honestly that many of you cannot ether, but I know something, and that is that as followers of Christ we have a longing in our heart for more. A desire to get out of the mediocrity of this life, and to finally step up and let God use us for something that truly does matter.

I agree that it is hard at times and it makes it hard when you fall into a group of people that have let the complacent Christian walk be a part of their lives. Complacency at times is a hard beast to overcome and to over come it takes a lot of prayer and guidance from God. I just sit hear wondering what if we got over our complacency? What if we let God breaks us apart and reform us the way he would like to versus how we want to be pieced together? What if the question who are the real followers of Christ never had to be asked again? I sit here thinking about how many tables God would turn over in front of me before I finally get that his way is always better then mine.

This world needs Christ and there is no way around that and I believe we have stayed silent to long. We are not called to hide behind the walls of our churches or our campus ministries we are called to go. And sometimes that means it will not be safe. Just look at Paul in Acts 14:19-20. He gets stoned and dragged outside the city where he was preaching and what was the first thing he did when he got back up? Walked directly back into the town that just stoned him and dragged him and many people became disciples because of that. I truly believe God is calling us today to do some radical things for his name. And it is time we stand up and honestly mean it when we say “God use me.” Not another meaningless prayer we say every Sunday at church but a honest sincere prayer. Let us rise for God and let us go and change this world for His name. God is calling, will you listen?

“God is not looking for nibblers of the possible but for grabbers of the impossible.” - C.T. Studd

“He MUST become greater, I MUST become less” John 3:30

“Father make in me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to a decision, let me not be a single road. Make me a fork that man must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me"" Jim Elliot

Honesty....

So recently I have realized that my priorities are really messed up. I have become the person who on the day of judgment would look at God and tell him that I have done things in his name and have cried out holy holy but God’s response would be that he never knew me. It is so simple to look at our lives and see how at times we all fall into these categories. For me I have put so many things ahead of God and even though I still speak his name and even though I try to do things in his name, I am dying. I have begun to scream out but it seems at times like no one hears me. That is because it has always been easier to hide the truth about our hearts. Really think about that, no one in this world wants to be honest with people because honesty brings heartache. People do not take it well and if you are being honest about yourself people at times try to diagnose you and tell you how to get better when a lot of times you just want someone to listen. We have forgot the verse from James 1 that says be slow to speak and quick to listen. Sometimes we just need people to listen, and someone who truly cares. I have to admit that I have been doing things away from God a lot. To be honest I have been lying about how much I have been to church since leaving my last church. I know I am called to ministry and I care about the body but it can be hard because the last church messed me up to the core. This happens a lot but sometimes it can be more difficult then we ever admit.

I also have to admit that it is hard to get honest and true with God when no one around has truly surrendered it all to God. I know people that fight God on the calling in their lives and thus follow their own paths versus God. I know people that have begun to doubt it all because it is much easier to be in pain then to seek and find true joy in something. I know people that are like me that proclaim Gods name but do not mean it at all, and I think we may all fall into this boat. I truly believe that God wants something amazing from us but we are to stuck in our ways. I am to hung up on the fact that at times I believe it is all about me, when all honesty it is all about Christ. I do not deserve any praise but he does, he demands it. Even though we do not like that at times I think the thing that holds me back and everyone back is the idea that we are better then God. We try to make ourselves God, and because of this we do not confess when we are wrong and we do not confess our sins and we put ourselves in this idea of being perfect even though we are broken and falling more apart everyday. This life is hard and no one will ever say it was easy but I do believe that if we get our lives right with Christ even though there will be pain and heartache there will be joy. I do not know how to explain that but I know it is true. I will close this blog with a verse to think about. I love you all, even if you do not believe that.

James 1:22 “Do not merely listen to the words and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.