Great prayer

“Tell God all that is in your heart, as one unloads one's heart, it's pleasures, and it's pains, to a dear friend. 

Tell him your troubles, that he may comfort you; tell him your joys, that he may sober them; tell him your longings, that he may purify them; tell him your dislikes, that he may help you conquer them; talk to him of your temptations, that he may shield you from them; show him the wounds of your heart, that he may heal them; lay bare your indifference to good, your depraved tastes for evil, your instability. Tell him how self-love makes you unjust to others, how vanity tempts you to be insincere, how pride disguises you to yourself and others.

If you thus pour out your weaknesses, needs, troubles, there will be no lack of what to say. You will never exhaust the subject. It is continually being renewed. People who have no secrets from each other never want for subject of conversation. They do not weigh their words, for there is nothing to be held back, neither do they seek for something to say. They talk out of the abundance of their heart, without consideration they say just what they think. Blessed are they who attain to such familiar, unreserved intercourse with God.”
Francois De La Mothe Fenelon, Archbishop of Cambrai

The designated gift wrapper and Gift who made all the difference

In every family, there is one special agent who has the title "designated gift wrapper." In my family, I've achieved this rank through no merit of my own but by God's grace. Seriously, if my wife could she'd buy gift cards only as presents and make me wrap my own, pysch?! An earnest look above through the mirror of The Book displays heaven's designed wrapper Christ, coming wrapped a Babe. He came to experience humanity in its gain and pain. Yes, He came to bear the mockery and reproach of false friends, to shoulder the load of human failure-past, present, and future; but in His heart He had to experience life first as a helpless, blissful baby. Christ was the only designated wrapper and Gift (don't try this at home) worthy to die in our stead and give life eternal. He came on His own-a Baby-knowing apart from His Gift man would stand bare and broken before God. His Gift was accepted by the Father so that our trust in Him, the only worthy Gift, would guarantee our acceptance into a living, transforming relationship with God, let it begin, let it begin... Take time today and tomorrow to thank Him for trading the red carpet treatment of heaven for life as a fugitive for most of His earthly pilgrimage. His miracles may have made for fleeting rock-star status with the masses; but with the "well-churched"  Pharisees He was still enemy One. His time as a baby turned quickly to  the blood, sweat, and tears of forming followers as He  poured Himself into His chosen twelve. His status marginalized Him from the masses, prodding Him to prayerfully minister to His heartbeat, Israel, you, and me in solitary retreat. He contemplated Calvary more than ever as His status made for more alone time with His Father. He truly experienced life in  its highs and lows. He came a willing Gift but experienced life its full fury to rescue a sinner like me. Now, knowing our pain He remains the Gift that keeps giving, empathy-infused and focused on filling our needs. I trust you'll either begin a relationship with Him or continue to know the encouragement which follows our knowing He knows our pain,  lived it, and is capable to carry us merrily to Glory on eagle's wings. Merry Christmas, my glass is raised to your having a dream-drenched, prayer-bolstered new year. 

Are you a "God-chaser" or just plain elusive

As Christians we've been given freedom at great cost. The cross was nothing short of guaranteed liberty to please God. However in intentionally seeking to please God, many set unreasonable standards by which they and others will please God, leading an unbelieving world to see Christianity as cold religion and not life-changing relationship. Brought into freedom in Christ, it is tempting to not see freedom in Christ for how full-orbed it is. It's not just freedom to fulfill Christ's demands but freedom to relish life in its beauty and fulness, freedom to know blessing and bless others as we live "under rank," in allegiance to our Master. Many Christians cross the line of faith having endured hard lives in unbelief, where they craved the drunk state, gambled till they lost much, and lived for fallen fantasies. On getting saved, these people are candidates for lives defined by their personal preferences. Instead of being advocates for godly balance, they tend to impose strict codes on themselves and others. Though their life rules may be reasonable for them because of their personal weaknesses, those life rules may  not be best for everyone. Too often people in the world look at the fabricated codes of believers, which may frown on social drinking, fun dancing, light gambling and wonder who wrote the rules, us or God. Our featuring our brand of Christianity and our powerlessness to Scripturally excoriate these practices make us law-givers in the minds of unbelievers or attune young Christians. The time has come for discipleship to be more organic. It's high time people are led to God rather than "accepted Christian norms." Our focus needs to be compelling people in our sphere of their appointment with Christ beyond the grave. The reality of seeing Christ after death and His grand design to make hearts His home are real time catalysts, stirring people to ponder their relationship with God. Our lives need to effervesce "truth,  beauty, justice, community." If we're to win others to faith in Christ; it'll not be by our rigid code of conduct; rather it'll be by living lives enlivened by active relationship with Christ. People don't care for your code, they care for your fulfillment Source. Our faith is the envy of our neighbors, when it makes us more neighborly, not elusive. My neighbor, who lives for drugs won't be drawn to Christ by what I do or don't do but by how the Christ I possess changes my way with him. Too often we placate others by our commitment to our own "right regimen," which many times is of our own making, not God's. People out there have a misconstrued concept of what Christianity is many times because Christianity is often misrepresented as a list of "do's" and "dont's." We have a responsibility as Christians to represent the true heart change Christ brings when He enters the heart at salvation. He enlivens the heart filling it with heavenly desires and a built-in Control, His Spirit, Who moves us down paths best for us. In love with Christ, we'll have no heart for fallen addictions; we'll be the story of hearts with crowded space, hearts full of who Christ is and beating with Kingdom desire, hearts which enjoy responsibly things in this world, for while they relish this world's good they wait longingly for another World. Don't force your rules for living onto others; instead lead them into the good life, the life which embraces in trust the work Christ did on Calvary with a spirit of love and personal duty. The love of Christ and what it does in one's heart has a way of leading people into lives which live to honor it. Transformation by Christ's selfless work on Calvary alone is the way to lead a life holy, alive and transported, in His eyes.

But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you - 1 Pet. 2:9 MSG
His inside-out difference runs deeper than what we do or don't do. Its all about the privilege of daily dates with Him, a lifestyle of true union with Him which is lifestyle transforming.

Connection with Christ brings with it the connections we need to succeed

We live in a world where who you know not what you do is key to promotion and favor many times. In the Christian sphere, the same proves true, ask Joseph. Transplanted in Egypt against his will, I'm sure he felt estranged from those close to him. Joseph's walk though allowed him to thrive as he served in Potiphar's place. As we walk with God, others will take notice of our transformed work ethic. Joseph's promotion would be accompanied by demotion as well. For no fault of his own; Joseph was landed in an offender's prison, though his relationship with Potiphar's wife was nothing but righteous. Through the highs and lows of Joseph's walk, he was learning how invaluable it is to not live for life's highs, but rather to live to walk with God. Knowing Him is the most enervating part of our life experience. I find it interesting that as Joseph was forced to better know God for being thrown into prison, God gave him the human connections he needed to do a greater work once more. In prison he met Pharoah's baker and Pharoah's wine-taster, who led him into Pharoah's presence, where Joseph  found favor was made second ruler in Egypt. The high call today is to weather life changing tides by growing the more close to Christ. This alone will prove a true anchor, steadying us in life's highs and lows. Our strong, growing walk with Christ will also bring with it the connections we need to realize the dreams God places in our hearts. God is all about our being interconnected with Him and He rewards those who'll seek Him with the connections they need to
succeed. Let your first step in loss not be hurry to get back up on your own, but rather rush
into His presence. He alone is the true Giver of all good things. Joseph's moving from
Potiphar's place to Pharoah's palace hinged on his willingness to know and praise God in
prison. How's your connection to Christ today?