Read the red

Sometimes the simplicity of the Gospel can be revealed by worldly people we don’t expect to be profound in the knowledge of the Word, those who have seen the light of salvation through Christ.

I recently watched a past television interview with famed actor Dennis Quaid. He shared how he got sober through rehab and was all good with this life, except there was a big hole in his soul – something of deeper importance was missing.

Quaid shared how he started searching and decided to read the bible again (interesting that he had been so far off track in his life after sometime previously reading the bible). He said he just read the red letters of Jesus. These are found typically in the King James version of the bible in the gospel books that highlight the sayings, sermons, parables, etc., of Jesus speaking to His disciples or to people in general.

Quaid said that’s how he was led to a saving relationship with Jesus Christ as his Savior – simply reading the red letters.

Now, disciple, here are some red letters to start a conversation:

Matthew 4:4 (KJV) – “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

John 6:63 (KJV) – “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

Jesus’ words are life to all who will hear.

3 Questions for now

All those who are lost have something in common – they have a big hole to fill in their soul.

It eats at them every day – and they know it – as they try anything under the sun to fill that void which cannot be satisfied by anything of this world.

They need an answer for their unending dissatisfaction that can only be met by salvation through Jesus Christ.

Here are questions that could help you lead them to the answer they seek:

· What’s one thing you wish you could do more of?

· How do you measure a happy life?

· What’s the most fulfilling thing you've experienced?

We’ve all been there, searching and wanting more in life.

Share some red letters with those you know.

Be kind. Love them. Be bold.

Shawn’s noodling rant:

(“Noodling” is a term I swiped from my mentor. The meaning is to “ponder” or “think deeply about” a topic that God is challenging us with through scripture or the Holy Spirit, or both.)

Find ‘imbalance’ with God to gain peace

Everyone seems to be seeking “balance” in their life yet can never attain that which they seek.

So many self-help books have been written related to this topic that the numbers could fill the shelves of a library.

I would submit that our lives should be more “imbalanced” compared to the world. Our lives should be offset with an imbalance where all that we do and all that we are teeters toward Christ.

Instead of allowing the weight of this world to keep us pressed down, we should shift the balance of how we live so that the Gospel of Jesus is our continual focus. That shift in focus upsets the balance of this world, counteracting its encumbrance and allowing us to be free in Jesus.

I know those words may sound a little “weighty.” More simply, the weight of life – job, school, church, family, etc. – can keep us down so much that our priorities easily get skewed away from Christ. We’re believers, but suddenly we look up and time has passed, and we now have a hole in our heart that should be filled with Jesus.

Too easily we get overcome by “life” and out of balance with our faith – our personal walk with Jesus. The solution is to add more of Him into our lives each day, so the balance tilts toward His favor with us. The things of this life, this world, become less important, minimalized in focus in our daily activities.

Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, shared what can help us create and maintain an imbalance in our lives for Jesus. We are to rejoice in all challenges of this life (Philippians 4:4). And then create that imbalance the world doesn’t understand:

Philippians 4:5-7 (KJV) – “5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

And Paul then offers practical ways to create that imbalance in our daily lives:

Philippians 4:8-9 (KJV) – “8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.”

Paul’s instruction provides practical applications, disciple, that lead to peace with God in this life – an imbalance against the burdening weight of this world.