This was one of the verses that I had in mind when I started this Rant series: Ephesians 4:29, "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." Our words can heal... but, unfortunately, they can also hurt. Look at Proverbs 18:21, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." Or Ecclesiastes 8:4, "Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?" In other words, "Sticks and stones may break my bones by words will never hurt me," is pretty much not true. What we say with our mouths has power. Where the word of a king is--we are kings and priests equipped and empowered to rule and reign on this earth. Our words have so much power. Death and life. So we need to be careful how we use that power. We need to make sure we are being GOOD kings and priests, if I can say it that way. Using the power and authority we've been given to edify. To build people up. To bring life. One of my mom's favorite phrases is, "Speak life." And I'm with that. Because what you magnify in your life is what manifests in your life. What you feed is what will grow. What you confess is what defines your reality--as long as it's either the Word of the Lord or the lie of the world. You can't go around "confessing" that you're a millionaire and expect your bank account to fill up. But you CAN go around confessing that you are the righteousness of God in Christ and watch everything else align itself with that wonderful, glorious truth. See, communication has a lot to do with talking. Stopping the corrupt communication from coming out is a big part of that. Filling ourselves with the good. The God. Filling ourselves to overflowing with what HE is saying to us so that it comes out automatically. And that comes... by listening. By being still and knowing that HE is God. Knowing and believing that we have what we need inside of us by listening to the heartbeat of GOD'S heart in our chests. Listening to that still, small voice that says, "I love you, I love you, I love you." That's how we can give love--by knowing we have it. By receiving it and releasing it. And, I think I've been trying to say this for a while, listening to someone else doesn't just mean listening to their words. Behavior is communication. Sometimes people can't SAY what they need to communicate. So they do whatever they can to get their point across. We need to be sympathetic to that. We need to listen. And we need to communicate with more than just our words too. We need our actions to speak louder than words. We need to preach the gospel--of love--at all times. And if we absolutely have to... we should use words. Love is giving. Charity is love in ACTION. Giving everything we have and everything we are. Not letting corrupt communication out because we've only let GOD communication in! Being so full of God's love that we don't have room for anything else. That's how we truly communicate with each other. Because love will let people say what they need to say, how they need to say it. And love will respond in the best, most appropriate manner!

I want to drop a memory verse here that I think has been kind of misunderstood and misused over the years. And maybe I'm going to misunderstand and misuse it right here, but I'm going to tell you what I think about it. And if I'm wrong... at least I'm erring on the side of love. "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14). Now, maybe it's just me who has heard it this way, but it seems like the way this verse is generally preached is for "us" religious folk to shun "them" dirty sinners. Like we're not supposed to hang out with people that don't agree with us, because that would be unequally yoking ourselves together with unbelievers. But, guys, most of what Jesus did in His earth-walk ministry was hang out with dirty sinners! I know religious folk who are 100% against drinking. Even though Jesus literally changed water into wine so the party wouldn't stop. My point is... drawing lines in the sand isn't what Jesus came to do. He didn't come to keep people out. He came to bring people in! And, yes, we can all agree that Righteousness has no fellowship with unrighteousness. We can agree that light has no communion with darkness. But here's the thing--we are the light of the world! All of us. Whether we know it or not. So in order to be equally yoked, we need to have that communion--that communication, that bond, connection, relationship--between the light in me and the light in you! The deep calls out to the deep, right? I think, more than anything, this verse is about not letting anything or anybody drag you down. Letting your light shine, rather than letting it be swallowed up in darkness. Letting your righteousness shew forth, even in the face of unrighteousness. Bringing people up instead of letting people drag you down. Hanging out with people who may have what we call "bad habits" and not partaking in them. Like if you're hanging out with someone who drinks--and I just said what I just said about Jesus and wine--that doesn't mean YOU have to drink. If you're hanging out with someone who smokes, that doesn't mean YOU have to smoke. You don't have to forego your own values and morals in order to commune with people. And you don't have to make people embrace your own morals and values, either. It's not your job to be a Spiritual policeman, if I can say it that way. You don't have to knock the cigarette out of someone's hand. If you don't like smoking... don't smoke. Because if the Holy Spirit can't convict them... you surely don't have a chance. And, by the way, it's not your job to make people behave a certain way. Behavior modification is not what we're looking for here. It's your job to love people. Period. To show them a more excellent way--in your own behavior--rather than demanding that they show you something with their behavior. That's how you'll really be able to build a bond with people. Not by demanding FROM them, but by giving TO them. Giving them everything you have and everything you are. Letting them be who THEY are, while still being who YOU are. Who you REALLY are. Which is who you are in Christ. Which is who Christ is in you. God in the flesh. Love in body. God in YOUR flesh. Love in YOUR body. That's who you are. That's what you have. Just give what you've got without expecting anything from the people you're giving it to!

Talking is a part of communication. But it isn't all there is. There is also listening. And there is also behavior. Sometimes the only way people can express themselves--especially when it comes to frustration, or sadness... big emotions--is to lash out. To explode, in a sense. And instead of getting mad at people for expressing themselves in the only way they know how to... we need to listen to what they're saying. Now listen to what I'm saying. I'm not saying it's ok to hurt people. But I am saying hurting people hurt people. Because you can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. I read a quote the other day that said something along the lines of, "If you don't heal from what hurt you, you'll bleed on those who didn't cut you." Something like that. Point being, sometimes when we're just trying to survive we might catch other people with our collateral damage. And while, again, it's not ok to hurt others... we need to be sensitive sometimes to what other people are dealing with. Because it's not always about me. If you hurt me because you're in pain... and that's the only way you can communicate it... at some point I need to be the bigger person and stop the cycle. It's not an eye for an eye. It's turning the other cheek. It's looking deeper. Not necessarily looking AT what someone is doing, but trying to understand WHY they're doing what they're doing. Trying to understand what is REALLY going on rather than just looking at the (to us) end result of them throwing a fit. Or whatever it is. People WILL tell you what's going on with them. Even if it's not in words. We just have to listen. I can't stress how important it is to listen to what people are telling you. Listen to what people are saying and doing. And listen to WHY they are saying and doing it. You can't slap a band-aid on cancer, as they say. You need to get to the root of the issue. And I believe a lot of time that's the issue. People want to be heard. So they cry and kick and scream in order to make enough noise to get someone's attention. That doesn't mean I like getting yelled at or kicked. But it means I need to be able to see past myself and understand WHY. Put myself in someone else's shoes. Communication is a two-way street. I heard it described as saving someone when they're drowning: You're going to get wet. Love is the most we can do. It is the maximum effort that we can give. Laying our lives down for our friends. Giving everything we have and everything we are. Not trying to make someone else behave in the way we think they should, but standing with them no matter how they are behaving, and showing them that they are heard. That they are loved!

They say communication is the key to any relationship, right? Well, let's spend some time talking about that. Communicating about that. And before we even get into any memory verses I want to throw this out there: Communication isn't just talking. It's always listening. A lot of the time, listening is the most important part. When you pray, it shouldn't just be you smashing your chicklets together and telling God this, that, and the other thing. Now, I'm not saying you shouldn't cast your cares on the Lord. You absolutely should. Because He cares for you. He's there for you. I'm saying... if you're trying to get God involved... you need to listen to what He's saying. Fill yourself up with that Word (which is Jesus, which is love) that the still, small voice of God is speaking to you. Look at Philemon 1:6, "That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus." Man, that's powerful! Acknowledging every good thing WHICH IS IN YOU in Christ Jesus. We need to look inside, guys. That's where we find whatever it is we need. Because that's where we find Jesus. And HE is everything we need. And that best part about it is that finding--and acknowledging--those good things... is what makes the communication of our faith effectual! It's about being a witness. Plain and simple. Experiencing the goodness of God... and then sharing what we've experienced. What we've seen, and heard. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the Word of God. The Word (which is Jesus, which is love) that God speaks to us. The Word (which is Jesus, which is love) that He speaks to us with every beat of HIS heart in our chests. I really want to get in to not letting corrupt communication come out of our mouths. Things of that nature. But for the first part of this Rant series I really feel strongly that we need to set that foundation. So that we can build upon it. Because, just as I was trying to point out that standing FOR things is better than standing AGAINST things... the key to not letting corrupt communication come out... is filling our mouths with incorruptible communication. Filling our mouths with the Word of God. His Word to us is, "I love you." So our Word to each other--at all times and in all situations--should be, "I love you." That's the bond that we build our relationships on. And when we build on that bond of love--when we communicate with each other in love--that's when we can enjoy these relationships. And, by the way, communication is not just words. I know I'm kind of harping on that today (and probably for the next few days). But behavior is communication. Actions speak louder than words. Saying you love someone is amazing. But SHOWING someone that you love them... that's so powerful. So remember, you can't give what you don't have. And you can only give what you do have. So you have to know what you have. And the way that we know what we have is by looking inside and finding Jesus. Receiving and releasing what He has given us. Filling ourselves to overflowing with what we've already been filled with. Listening to what God says to us, and then saying it to each other!

I think I have a very simple message to end this Rant series about standing. 1 Thessalonians 3:7-8, "Therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith: For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord." There's distress in this life. Affliction. Trials. Tribulations. Life happens, in other words. Every day. To each and every one of us. But just because we have to go through things doesn't mean things have to go through us. We can stand. And in standing... we can live. I'm sorry (I'm not sorry) but I get so frustrated when I see people always looking for a fight. Standing AGAINST things. Attacking things. And people. I don't like that. Maybe because I prefer to avoid confrontation. I've never denied that. But more because I think standing FOR the right things is better, and more effective. You've got to stand FOR something or you'll fall for anything. Any wind of doctrine will blow you away... unless you're planted on the Rock that is Jesus. The Rock that is love. That is our foundation. That is what we stand on... and that is what we stand for. That is how Jesus keeps us from falling. When we stand fast IN the Lord... we live. We enjoy and experience His abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of Love by being still and knowing that HE is God. Being still and letting HIM live HIS own life in us, and through us, and as us. We are comforted when we stand in Him. When we receive and release the gift we've been given. When we let God love the hell out of us and then love Him back by loving each other. That's what this life is for. That's what this life is all about. And, listen, I'm not saying you should be ok with anything and everything. You shouldn't. But you don't fight fire with fire. You don't be overcome by evil. You overcome evil with good. The quote by Martin Luther King Jr., "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." Instead of standing AGAINST things, and putting up our dukes, and fighting everything in sight... we need to stand FOR things. Stand IN the Lord and let HIM fight FOR us. That's what God told Moses: "Stand still and watch what I'm going to do." The only fight left to fight is the good fight of faith. Laying hold of the gift we've been given. Which is eternal life. Which is knowing and believing that God loves us, and loving Him back by loving each other. When you stand in love you can withstand whatever comes against you. When you stand in love you don't have to attack. You can defend, but it's in a way where nobody has to get hurt. I think it was Batman who said (and yes, I realize I'm quoting Dr. King and a fictional comic book character in the same Rant) that if you kill a murderer you are left with the same number of murderers. You don't need to escalate. You don't need to attack. You don't need to fight. You can just stand. Stand for what's right. Stand in the Lord. Stand in love. Train up a child in the way he SHOULD go. Stand FOR the things that are good, and let the good overcome the evil. Let the love drive out the hate! Let love rule and reign!

This is one of my favorite Bible verses, which I never hear preached ever. "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 1:24). It seems like all we ever hear about in religious circles is what to do after you've fallen. How to pull yourself up by your bootstraps. How to turn over a new leaf. "God loves you just the way you are, but he loves you too much to leave you that way." I don't think that CAN be true. Because IF He loves you just the way you are (and He does), He wouldn't need to change you. The "trick" is not changing into who we're "supposed" to be. The "trick" is knowing that we already are who we're supposed to be. We were created in the image and likeness of God. And, on the cross, we were conformed to the image of His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. My point is that when we're talking about standing--standing FOR something, rather than standing AGAINST something--it's all about letting Jesus hold us up. Which He can do. Will do. And wants to do. He is able to keep us from falling... when we trust in Him. When we stop trying to stand on our own. When we trust in Jesus. Trust in love. Love is what keeps us from falling. Love is what holds us up when everything else is trying to drag us down. Jesus holds us up. And that, friends, is how we stand. That's what we stand for. We stand for Jesus--but not in a religious way where we say "convert or burn." We stand for Jesus... by showing people who Jesus is. God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. Jesus told His disciples that people will know they are His disciples by the love they have. The love they share. The love WE share. Love is giving. Giving everything you have and everything you are. Without needing something in return. Love is never about getting. Because (again) love IS giving. We stand, not by making sure we're getting anything... but by giving everything. Laying our lives down for our friends. Esteeming others higher than ourselves. That's what love is all about. That's what this life is for. And, really, that's the only way to experience and enjoy this abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of love. That's how we experience and enjoy the gift we've been given. By receiving it and releasing it. By letting what's inside come out--by knowing and believing that we have it. We don't have to keep falling down just so we can pick ourselves back up. We can trust in Him who is able to keep us from falling. When we stand on the Rock of love (that is Jesus), it doesn't matter what comes against us. We will not be shaken. You've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything. When you know the truth, and are planted on that Rock, you won't be blown about by any wind of doctrine. When you know the truth, you can just ignore the lie. You don't have to fight it. You can just let it flow off of you like water off a duck's back. When Jesus is holding you up you can stand strong, stand firm, no matter what!

There's a story in Exodus chapter 14 where Moses is leading the people out of bondage. And the people--who have been slaves for, like, hundreds of years--start grumbling and complaining. Exodus 14:12, "Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness." Better to live as a slave then die as a freeman, was their opinion. Which, I have to say, as a little bit of a "Don't tread on me" kind of guy, I don't really agree with. Look what Moses said, "And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more forever" (Exodus 14:13). Fear not. Stand still. Such a simple message. And, notice, he didn't say anything about attacking the Egyptians. He didn't say anything about fleeing from them. He said, basically, be still and know that HE is God. Know that GOD will take care of you. If you fear not, if you stand still, that's when you will see the salvation of the Lord. When you work, God will rest. But when you rest, God will work. That's something we really need to come to an understanding with. His strength is made perfect in our weakness. He will--for the most part--let us do what we're going to do. But when we stop running around like a chicken with its head cut off... that's when God has the opportunity to do what HE wants to do. When we stand on the foundation of love... the Rock that is Jesus... that's when we can withstand whatever is coming at us. That's when we can hold fast and not be shaken. And, guys, that's when things like patience and longsuffering come into play. Rome wasn't built in a day. Sometimes standing means standing... and standing... and standing. Weathering the storm. Not giving up. Letting God--letting LOVE--hold you up. For as long as it takes. Because love never fails. Because love endures. That's the true test of love--standing by someone through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Standing still and letting God take care of things. Let go and let God, right? Cast your cares on Him, because He cares for you. God wants what's best for you. He knows the end from the beginning. He knows how things WILL go, and He knows how things SHOULD go. And if you let Him be involved... things will go the way they SHOULD a lot more often than not. Letting God be involved in the situation always makes things better. Always. Letting love be involved in the situation always makes things better. Love will make things better. Standing on love. Giving what you've got. Letting what's inside come out. Not by forcing it... but by standing. By standing strong. Standing still. Being still and letting God do what HE'S of a mind to do. We don't have to do everything (anything!) ourselves. Things work out better when we work together, and things work out best when we are letting our heavenly Father take care of them!

The important part, to me, is what you stand FOR. Like in the verse Proverbs 22:6, "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old he will not depart from it." Train up a child in the way he SHOULD go. We seem like we end up focusing too much and too often on the negatives. Like we need an enemy to fight. And I'm not sitting here saying we should be ok with everything. We shouldn't. That's why we have a conscience. That's why we have gut feelings about things. If something bothers you... chances are it should. But instead of focusing on the problem, we need to focus on the solution. Instead of focusing on what's wrong we need to work towards what's right. Instead of always being against things... we need to be for things. You got to stand FOR something, or you'll fall for anything. I don't like... whatever it is. But instead of focusing on that, focus on what will help with that. I'm against racism. Good. Now, instead of attacking... be FOR love. And unity. And peace. And it's really just a mindset. Are you always fighting against everything? Or are you letting what's inside come out? Look at Romans 12:21, "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." Martin Luther King Jr. said it best, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." It's the idea of an eye for an eye leaving everybody blind. It's the idea of helping or hurting. And, listen, I understand getting mad. I understand feeling helpless, or powerless. I understand frustration. There are situations in my life where I feel like there's nothing I can do. And in those situations--in all situations, as much as I possibly can--I default back to what I CAN do. I stand on the Rock that is Jesus. I stand FOR love. I give what I've got. I do what I CAN do. And then, even if it doesn't resolve the situation in the manner or the speed that I think it should be resolved in... at least I know I did what I could do. If you don't know what to do, do what you know. Love. Focus on what you have. Focus on what you CAN do. Focus on the good. The light. The things that WILL make a difference... for the better. Escalating things, or fighting fire with fire, will just burn more things down. Sometimes you do more damage--to yourself and everybody else--by holding on too tight. Things don't always have to go your way. And, realistically, they aren't going to. Life is life. It doesn't fit into anybody's box. Now, having said that, you can get through whatever you have to go through. And you can do it because of the One--God, Jesus, love--that is carrying you through it. You're never alone. God lives in you. LOVE lives in you. So no matter what, you always have that love to fall back on. When you don't know what to do... do what you know. Let what's inside come out--by knowing and believing that the love is God is what's really in there. It can be hard. It can be frustrating. It can feel like you're banging your head against the wall and coming away from things with nothing but a headache. But you can stand. You can love. You can make things better by letting the love inside come out!

A long long time ago I heard a line in a song that said, "You've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything." And that stuck with me. Because I don't care about much. I'm really hard to bother. I don't sweat the small stuff... or the big stuff. I once had someone tell me, "The only things you take seriously are Jesus and your son!" And, I mean, I would say my FAMILY and Jesus... but, yeah, pretty much. I'm kind of obsessed with love. That's why it's pretty much all I ever Rant about. It's pretty much the only thing I think is worth putting out there. So. Let me drop my memory verse for today and then we'll get into it. Jesus said, "But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee" (Acts 26:16). A minister and a witness. That's kind of the job description of the New Man, isn't it? Receiving and releasing what God has done for us, is doing for us, and will do for us (and in us, and through us, and as us). Look at Psalm 34:8, "O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." And link that up with Hebrews 2:9, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." We taste and see Him... because He tasted death for us. We live in Him because He died for us (and as us). We can stand... because He is holding us up. But that means we need to stand for what He stood for. For what He stands for. And that, of course, is love. Before the cross there were ten commandments, right? And from there some like 600 odd laws for the people of Israel. But when Jesus came He gave a New Commandment. For the New Man. One rule to live by. Love one another as Jesus loves you. Again, receive it and release it. Witness it and minister it. Taste it... see it... and share it. He is the vine and we are the branches, right? The branches are where the fruit lives, if I can say it that way. We bear the fruit. Make what we have available to the people around us. The vine produces the fruit, and the branches make it available. We stand where Jesus stands, I think is what I'm trying to say. We stand on the Rock, the foundation, that is Jesus, that is love. And when we stand on that Rock we cannot be shaken. Listen, I consider myself to be very non-confrontational. I'm not interested in arguing. Ask my son. I tell him all the time, "I'm not going to argue with you." I'm ok with people doing what they want to do. For the most part. I pick my battles, and I make sure they're worth fighting. That's what I'm trying to say. Because there ARE some things worth standing for. (And I think that's a huge, vitally important distinction to make. Standing FOR something rather than standing AGAINST something.) You've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything. So stand for love. Stand for forgiviness. Peace. Mercy. Grace. All of those things that the nature and the stature and the measure of God!

The measure of the man is the size of him. What he's all about. Who he is. And that's why it's so important to know the measure of the stature of Jesus. Because in knowing who HE is, we know who WE are. Because as He is, so are we in this world. His measure is our measure. When we measure ourselves AGAINST things, and people, we inevitably fall short. But when we measure ourselves BY Jesus... that's when we can stop trying to be someone we're not and just be who we really are. Which is who we are in Christ. Which is who Christ is in us. Who we are in love. Which is who love is in us. And that measure--the fulness of the Godhead bodily--has already been given to us. Revealed to us. We have already been filled with all the fulness of God. Jesus is the truth, right? The truth about God and the truth about us. The truth about love. So when we receive that truth... listen. The truth HAS set us free and made us free. But it isn't until we know and believe that truth--that always has been and always will be true--that we can experience BEING free. Our freedom is a done deal. Experiencing and enjoying it is something else entirely. Because you can't believe something you don't know. Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the Word (which is Jesus, which is love) of God. Look at Mark 4:24, "And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given." What you receive is what you can release. And what you release is what you can experience. Because love is giving. Giving everything you have and everything you are. That's how you enjoy and experience everything you have and everything you are. And that's how the people in your life experience everything you have and everything you are. You were created on purpose. For purpose. By purpose. You were created... to be you. To let the love of God that has already filled you... come out. To let what's inside out. To give it away. To share it. And in that way... experience it. We are God's love letter tot the world, right? We are how He expresses Himself. We are what He wants to say. That's our shape. That's our size. That's our measure. It's love. God is love. Jesus is God in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. So, again, we don't measure ourselves AGAINST anything. We measure ourselves BY the truth of God's love. We measure ourselves as creatures--New Creatures in Christ--of love. If love is our focus, then we have our priorities straight. Anything else and we just get twisted and messed up and confused. Love lights the way. Because love is the light of the world. Jesus is the light of the world. YOU are the light of the world. It's all the same light. It's all the same love. We don't measure ourselves AGAINST Jesus--love--but BY Jesus (love). We see Him in ourselves and we see ourselves in Him. That's the true measure of the stature. That's what we really look like. That's what we can (and ought to) be all about. Simply receiving and releasing the love of God. They Way, the Truth, and the Life... of God. The Way, the Truth, and the Life... of love!