Shifting Gears

First off... this is NOT a use God/the Bible to get what you want out of life thing. But there will be mention of God and the Bible in this thought.

I fully believe that we have so much more potential than we are willing/able to believe... maybe it goes hand in hand with the fact that we only use a small fraction of the potential of our brain power. But very few people ever come close to reaching their full potential. Most people get stuck in the everyday rat race, living from pay day to pay day... getting through each day just so that they can face the next one.

Everyone gets stuck in a rut. We get comfortable doing things the same way over and over. There's always a reason/excuse not to change how we do things. Which is bad, but isn't. Tradition/routine is good, but it can also trap us. ESPECIALLY when it's a bad/negative routine or habit.

Sometimes in life stuff happens... and it knocks us down. They say that which doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, I only partially agree with that statement. I believe there is fine print that has gotten lost. Sometimes you don't get stronger, sometimes it takes you down a notch and it takes long to recover, sometimes people never recover.

Luckily when you know Jesus... like as in have a relationship with Him and not just know ABOUT Him you can handle things differently. This is where the shifting gears needs to take place. I've been retrenched, been in a bike accident, crashed my car, had stuff stolen, been single for longer than what I believed I should have been, been lonely, been desperate, felt unworthy, felt unloved, felt inferior. I've got my issues.

But God has been revealing something to me, and I've been starting to take note. It's TOUGH because my default is negativity. I like to complain and find reasons why things can't work.

The thing God is revealing to me is something along the lines of the following:
When an obstacle presents itself to you you look at it. You notice it and you have a choice. You can fixate on the obstacle which will cause you to start taking in the details of it, expanding on it and then the obstacle grows and becomes seeming insurmountable. This is how I react by default (I am trying to change it). Or you can choose to try and find a way around it.

The Bible says that the power of life and death is in the tongue Proverbs 18:21. And that the overflow of the heart comes out of the mouth (Luke 6).

So what I propose is not blindly fly into situations screaming "I can do this...", but a gradual shift of mind/heart gears. A shift of bringing more "life" than "death" into a situation. We need to start believing (if Jesus is you Lord and Saviour) that God has His hand on your life and is with you in EVERY situation, promising to never leave nor forsake you. With that belief and spending time with God your heart will change. How you view situations will change. How you speak about situations will change... and strangely... the outcomes of the situations will also change.

My heart aches when I see situations where people could be so much more, but they are trapped by themselves. This is not ALWAYS the case, but I honestly believe we can achieve more if we just stand on Jesus, believe, trust and go for it.

Hell...O PETER DOT COM

So there's a bit of controversy in "Christian" circles at the moment. And if the dudes advocating universalism are right I would like to place a complaint with hellopeter.com.

My complaint is "why do I get up every day and try live a 'different' life? Why do I go to church? Why do I give up my time, talent, treasure? Why?! if I can get to heaven on the free pass they are handing out?"

If they ARE right then I have no need of a Saviour because punishment may only last 3 days... or punishment may not happen... They support these ideas with saying stuff about the word "eternal" used when describing "eternal damnation/punishment" was the same word Jonah used to describe how long he was in the giant fish... which was 3 days...

So because Jonah said "I was in the fish for an eternity" they use that for one of their "facts" or "truth points" for saying eternal separation from God (hell), might only last 3 days.

The say that God can't be both loving AND condemn someone to hell... Now... I guess you could say that they are kind of right... But ONLY because it is not God who condemns someone to hell... the way you end up in "hell" is by turning your back on God and denying Him... So God doesn't do the condemning, the person's actions do the condemning.

My uneducated (in theology) mind understands Christianity as follows:

1. God was kicking it in the garden with Adam and Eve.
   He had given them pretty much the run of the place with only ONE thing they should avoid eating.


2. They kinda only half listened to God (seems to be standard human practice) and ate from which they were not allowed to partake.


3. Sin entered the world and the need for redemption, salvation and other shins arose.


4. For sin to be removed or for you to attain absolution (shins everywhere...) or be clean of sin there had to be a price paid. In the old testament this was the slaughter of animals etc.


5. John 3:16 - God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son [Jesus] so that those who believe would not perish [suffer eternal damnation, hell] but have eternal life.

The reason that a price needed to be paid for sin is because God is just and righteous. He detests sin.

Our pastor gave a really good metaphor/example of how this could be described. Say you are working on the plumbing and getting covered in muck and whatever other junk comes out of the pipes. You are stinky and stuff. You go up to your significant other and say "give us a hug then"... said significant other will tell you to clean off before she will have anything to do with you. The same way God feels about us when we get "dirty" with sin.

Now... if we don't really have to worry about going to hell...or that hell might only last 3 days... then we have no reason to clean off... we can just roll around in the mud and stay dirty. And points 3,4,5 in my little list don't really count... Then Jesus came to earth for nothing... and the old testament was written for fun because it basically sets the scene for Jesus to arrive and helps show us WHY we need Jesus.

ERROR...ERROR...CANNOT COMPUTE.

I cannot believe that God would send His Son to earth to suffer and die for world's sin for fun.

This universalism theology basically says anything goes and everyone can go to Heaven... which in a way is true... everyone DOES have the potential to spend eternity with God... but they need to choose it.

Wear your armour!!

Those of you who know me will know that I unintentionally climbed off of my motorcyle while it was still moving...yes yes...

it is NOT the brightest thing one can do whilst riding a motorcycle, but accidents happen...

This blogicle (blog article) is not actually about the accident, but about what God has taught me about life through the accident. Lesson 1: tar is hard ... lol.

But seriously...if I wasn't wearing my "armour" I would have been waaaay worse off than I am... what I learnt is that life is hard and we need to have our armour on or the world, life and satan will scrape away at us.

Ephesians 6:10 - 18 The Armor of God

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10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

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Just as I need to clothe myself in my biker "armour" daily... I need to do that with Gods armour... I need to do that more. Sheesh! I haven't been doing it enough!!!!


The next part is about the body... The human body and the body of Christ.



1 Corinthians 12:12 - 31

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12The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

14Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

21The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" 22On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But eagerly desire the greater gifts.
And now I will show you the most excellent way.

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Each part is designed to play it's part WELL... My right thumb is STILL being my right thumb and kinda playing it's part in my body... but it's not playing it WELL... it is suffering... and so my hand suffers, by being in a cast... and that makes my body suffer... and me suffer.. I can't type properly... I can't drive yet, so my work is getting behind. I've had to figure out how to do everything with one hand... which is tough.. just because ONE little piece of bone in my thumb is not playing it's part!!!

FAAAAAAAR too often the same happens in the body of Christ. Parts of the body don't play their parts well... we show up late and unprepared for stuff (like worship team on Sundays, having not practised) and we expect God to show up and perform miracles and get people "saved". But actually we are standing in the way cos we are unprepared and not playing our part WELL.

This extends beyond practising songs for a Sunday service. Are we walking around "topped up with Jesus", or are we running on empty until a crisis occurs? We have become far too good at "getting it right on our own", that instead of being part of a bigger picture and relying on God, we just do our "religious" duty and do what we do.

I can't wait for my thumb to stop being religious and play it's part WELL again :-P
I guess God looks at us sometimes and says the same.

Suffering from Israelitis

I've been suffering from a bit of Israelitis the last while...

WHAT may you ask is that?!?!
Well think back to them israelites...aka God's chosen people...
He loved them like crazy (as He loves us ALL...even crazy Warren).
And they followed Him....

for a while...

But then, they started relying on themselves or even "other (small g) gods".
They would wander away from God. Then calamity would strike and they'd be back like a flash.

So things in life were idling along pretty smoothly most of last year...
with a little speed bump here and there... I had a reasonably stable job,
not TOO far from home...but it got boring, it became less and challenging and I began to feel "unfulfilled" there. So this job offer came along near the end of the year. They told me all cool stories about the company and such.
Sounded like an awesome opportunity and new challenges.
I prayed like crazy...
Said "God if this is from You, open the doors or close them if it isn't."...
So...It took them three months to give me an offer after the interview...
in that time I had gotten an increase...They phoned me back...I told them about the increase...they offered me the same as what I was earning, with a salary review after 3 months...the doors opened...I went for it, figured new challenges would be good and my savings would last me the three months...they did, but the company closed down and reopened under a new name...so no salary review... Things are not as cool as I thought they would be. (in short)...

So with the extra stress, travelling and cr@p that came with the change...
stuff started falling apart... spent less time with God... and less...
until a once a week quiet time was like WOW. Things were not going well in the land of Warren. My mom would periodically ask me what's wrong, my friends were worried (I have awesome godly friends). But of course... Warren, suffering from a touch of pride or in denial, would say "I got dis"...but he didn't have it did he folks. I go to a point where I was questioning the reason for my existence.

The good news is...I got to a point were I was depressed to the point of not wanting
to be an existing life form anymore...also known as "suicidal"...
But fortunately I know Jesus and I know He doesn't want that for my life. Also I couldn't do that to my family...after two previous suicides in our family
(within the last year and a half) it would not be cool and I love my family too much for that.

Driving home one night...from church or a church event of some sort...
I was like "God I've had enough, I don't want to be here ANYMORE...
either wipe me off the planet RIGHT now or help me..."...

So He did.

No I am not writing from beyond the grave.

He helped me.
Somehow.
I can't explain it...
But the next morning I woke up with an incredible sense of peace...

Life is WAAAAY better...I managed to realise I was suffering from Israelitis and went the THE Doctor Himself...
Spending more time with God lately...

So...moral of the story...try not catch Israelitis...but if you do...go to the DOCTOR!

Now I am on the road to recovery...Luckily...VERY luckily...during my time of having Israelitis, I still read my little youversion daily reading, some verse a day thing I get mailed to me...I kept going to church...so although I wasn't getting as much of God as I normally do, I had enough to just just keep me going...I am back up to spending time with God every day and having a quiet time, read, pray, journal almost every day again...

Warrior Vs. Worrier

Back in the day when I was a lightie there were these "Spy Vs. Spy" comics...
One was the good guy and one was the bad guy...Good Vs. Evil, Black Vs. White (not racially). Old School...hehe

I realise that I have been way too much of a Worrier and not enough of a Warrior...
God says we gotta commit our plans to Him and then chill...but what I do is commit
them to God and then worry...and try and get stuff done MY way...FLIP...I am kind of a control freak I guess, don't know if it's a general guy attribute or what, but it's part of me. I am trying to fight it now, but it's tough, cos when stuff happens I want to step in and take control...I dunno, maybe I have a leader in me dying to lead :P

When the storms come, I try and choose a course and start rowing like crazy...USUALLY directly into the wind...then I tend to end up deeper and deeper into the storm. How stupid. And then I complain about the water splashing on me, being tossed around by the waves and also being shipwrecked when I cruise into the rocks that I would have avoided if I let GOD steer the boat.

Proverbs 16:2-4 (New International Version)

2 All a man's ways seem innocent to him,
but motives are weighed by the LORD.

3 Commit to the LORD whatever you do,
and your plans will succeed.

All the while I was thinking "I got dis"...and just like in the movies, I DIDN'T have it... And I end up being bashed on the rocks...thinking
what the heck?!
Where is God?!
Why did this happen?!
And God stands there, patiently (as always), waiting for me to turn around and see that I was being dumb...This verse keeps coming up..

Jeremiah 29:11 (New International Version)

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

God has plans for ME, yeah even crazy Warren, and those plans were laid out even before I was formed in my mothers womb! I am LOVED by God, the creator of the universe!

Psalm 139: 13 - 16
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

He is watching you...keep it real :D hehe...
Listen more, speak less.
Trust more, worry less.

Time to stand up and be a WARRIOR!!!

It's about the journey, not the destination

It's been a while...

In life I often tend to freak out over small things that happen...I THINK God is trying to tell me to quit being a drama queen...To be still and wait on Him...BUT that goes against EVERY instinct I have. Being a Manly man type, when something breaks...I wanna fix it!!! But...what happens is often MY quick fix solutions are NOT what God had intended...and the situation just gets worse! Wonder why.....?


Isaiah 30

1 "Woe to the obstinate children,"
declares the LORD,
"to those who carry out plans that are not mine,
forming an alliance, but not by my Spirit,
heaping sin upon sin;
2 who go down to Egypt
without consulting me;
who look for help to Pharaoh's protection,
to Egypt's shade for refuge.
.....
18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
he rises to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!

Woe to the obstinate children...that make their own plans...
Mmm... Maybe I have been a little obstinate...wait...what does that even mean...


obstinacy - stubbornness: resolute adherence to your own ideas or desires


So kind of like sticking to MY plans when God has OTHER plans...

So I've been having a tough time...work has been HECTIC...Started a new job, walked into immense pressure...So I could need a little pick me up...


Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Sounds like a good plan! BUT the "consumer" in me rises up again and screams "WHY IS IT TAKING SOOOOO LONG GOD??!?!?!"...

*LIGHTBULB...

IT'S NOT SO MUCH ABOUT WHERE YOU END UP AS WHAT IT IS ABOUT HOW YOU GET THERE...
The same as life is not a destination, it's a journey...I am beginning to learn that God likes journeys...and sometimes on journeys you have to pull off the road, stretch your legs and look at the beauty around you...But we like to get where we are going NOW! I need to slow down and admire God's handiwork more...Stop and sniff the roses now and then and STOP trying to fix everything myself!

8 1/2

So...I have earned myself another nickname...8 and a half...
I was trying to play the riff to a certain song at band practice on monday night...
I was failing horribly...

Shane starts on the drums...
I am tapping my foot
counting out loud
waiting...waiting...too early...
Me: "someone said come in on the 8th beat."
Ray: "What?! no...come in on 9!"
Me: "doh...ok...eish!"

Shane starts on the drums...
I am tapping my foot
counting out loud
wait...for...it....
6....7....8..8-1/2.pling...half a beat too soon! WHAT?!
Ray looks dejected...I want to throw my guitar around...

Shane starts on the drums...
I am tapping my foot
counting out loud
wait...for...it....
6....7....8..8-1/2.pling...half a beat too soon! WHAT?!AGAIN!?!
Ray looks like he wishes the earth would swallow him...I wish it would swallow me instead...we are playing the song on sunday!!!

Ok...eventually I kinda figure out how to come in on beat 9...after about 5 attempts...

But...after chatting to another buddy today...I can see a meta...parraa...correl...connection between me coming in too soon and MANY other things in life...

VERY often we are going through a season of sorts in our lives...and when it's a bad season we want it to be over ASAP! When it's plowing season, it's time to plow! And it's HARD WORK! But without plowing in the plowing season...there will be no fruit later!

Proverbs 20 vs 4:

"A sluggard does not plow in season;
so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing."

"BUT God!!! I want the fruit now" Is a common saying...hahahaha...I find myself saying that often! Instead of chilling indoors while it's raining and giving the fruit time to grow, I run around in the rain, getting wet and misrable, looking for fruit that isn't there yet!!!! When God all the while is saying that I should just relax, wait for the rain to pass...THEN go plant...wait...THEN harvest the fruit...the whole while just seeking Him more! And...NOT the fruit...The fruit grows by itself...

Leviticus 26 vs 3 - 5:

If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, 4 I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit. 5 Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land.

EVEN THE ANIMALS know when to do what! Why do we worry about when and how and and and and sooooo much!?

Jeremiah 8:7

Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know
the requirements of the LORD.

God has said there's a time for everything!

Ecclesiastes 3:

"1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace."

But noooooooo....we want to come in on beat 8 1/2 instead of 9...Then we wonder why we are cold, wet and miserable?! LOL...There's alot of waiting involved in getting to the fruit...alot of hard work...but we ALWAYS want to exercise our consumer rights and go down to the local Spar and go pickup the fruit just like that... That's not how it works...

I am currently in a season where I am waiting for fruit...Where's that fertilizer at? hahaha...nah...bad move...trying to speed up the process just does more harm than good...Time to push into God and see what He says...

That is all for now...
8 1/2 out :P