Ed Christian's World

The Roof, The Cot, and The Miracle…

Jesus tells a crippled man his sins are forgiven and the religious leaders are outraged because only God can pardon sins. So Jesus says, “So that you know the Son of Man has the power to forgive sins… Arise and walk’, and the man walks. Amazing!

Jesus asked which is harder, and the miracle was to prove a point. The point isn’t the healing. It’s the forgiveness of sin. The miracle is just thrown in as an extra added throw-away bonus. The Hebrew word for ‘something too hard’ is ‘pele’ meaning wonderful or miracle.

Jesus is called “Pele,” in Isaiah 9:5. He does things that are just too amazing. If you want to see miracles, the power of God, remember something: You already have the greater miracle – greater than crossing the Red Sea or fire coming down on Mt. Carmel.

You have the miracle of the forgiveness of your sins, the cleansing of your past, the erasing of your old life, the eradication of judgment in hell. So rejoice and be blessed today! Start your day every day, giving thanks that you’re saved. That’s a miracle! It’s the greatest of all.

This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.  Matthew 26:28

Throughout your day, dwell in the miracle of His love and mercy. Give thanks that you’re forgiven and saved starting now.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Passenger Next To You…

Believers travel on planes next to unbelievers for hours and don’t say anything, then ask God for opportunities to serve Him. What a perfect opportunity – you have a captive audience.

We’re praying for the Lord to use us, to fulfill our callings, our ministries, to give us opportunities to serve, and God is giving us opportunities all the time, everywhere. Everywhere there’s a person, there’s a chance to glorify Him.

Instead of complaining about the opportunities you don’t have in the Lord, start using all the opportunities you do have that you’ve been missing.

Share with the cashier, the man in the street, in the supermarket, your relatives, the people you’re with every day – on the plane, on the train, on the bus- sew the seed, cast your bread on the waters. What do you have to lose?

God has ministry openings all around you. There’s not a shortage of the harvest- ever- but the laborers are few. Get into the harvest of the Lord and enter the adventure of the great commission. He will confirm you as His minister.

Then Peter said unto them, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.’  Acts 2:38

Who is beside you today, around you, nearby you, able to be reached by you? Don’t be silent – give them God’s Word and love.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Secret Of Kiddushin…

There are many different ideas as to what holiness is: not going to the movies, going to church, not dancing, not being part of the world, etc. But the Hebrew word for holy is kadosh. From that same word comes the word kiddushin, the Hebrew betrothal ceremony.

The bridegroom and bride share a cup of wine together, sealing their pledge and consecration to each other. Jesus is the Bridegroom of our soul. We’re in the time called the kiddushin, headed to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

He pledged Himself to us and He shares the cup of wine as in communion, just like the bride and groom share the cup of pledging. True holiness is kiddushin- to be pledged to Jesus, devoted to Him, doing everything for Him because of what He did for you.

Jeaus gave you His kiddushin; His devotion and pledge and His all, His everything for you so that you would do the same. It’s all about love – the love of the bride for the Bridegroom and the Bridegroom for the bride. That’s kiddushin, and  that’s what holiness is really all about.

And for their sakes, I sanctify myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.  John 17:19

Today, seek true holiness. Seek the kiddushin. Receive in your heart the pledge of the Bridegroom and give to the Bridegroom the pledge of your heart.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Weight Training of Fear…

Weight training makes you stronger by using resistance. We have to exercise our faith in the same way. Our faith is linked to courage and fearlessness, and we grow strong through resistance.

You might be filled with fear and anxiety – and so were a lot of people who were called by God to do great things. They stepped out and became courageous. Do you want to become courageous? Exercise with resistance.

Deal with situations that would make you afraid by seeing it as weight training. When you’re in fear of sharing with that person or standing for your faith, just do it. Think of the joy that comes when you overcome that fear.

When you have a chance to avoid that fearful situation as you would normally, instead go straight up, head on. Step out, and soon enough, you’ll become courageous.

Moses, Gideon, Jeremiah, and Peter were afraid, but they all stepped out. They became the courageous people of God that He called them to be.

Are you afraid? You’re in good company. Step out now, and who knows what a courageous person of God you will become.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.  Ephesians 6:14

Deal with that thing that you would normally avoid. Ask for God’s strength and go head on. Be strong and of good courage.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

The Demoniac Roadblock…

The demoniac in the tombs of Gadara hindered anyone from passing by. That area was on a cliff where he could look down and come running out, terrorizing anyone trying to pass. The people just accepted that the road was blocked.

Ultimately, it was the enemy blocking the road. He’s always trying to hinder, just as the Philistines did to the Israelites – harassing, bullying, getting a stronghold, preventing the road to God’s will. He tries to block the way God’s called you to walk to.

Most believers just accept it as the limitation of their life, never seeing what God has for them. When Jesus came to Gadara, He didn’t accept the blocked road. He stood His ground, opened up the way, and the harassment was over.

Are you a disciple of Jesus? Don’t accept that the enemy can block the will of God in your life. Stand your ground, move forward, break through that obstacle, and walk down the road of blessing and God’s will for you. The demoniac will be gone, and the way for victory will open for your life.

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.  1 Corinthians 16:13

What is it that is hindering you in God? What is the roadblock, the obstacle the enemy has set up? Don’t accept it anymore. By the power of God, break through.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Moses On The Couch…

As end-time believers, we have to be careful because there are more distractions now than ever in human history – television, the internet, and social media. It isn’t all bad, but much of it is, and that’s a good argument for staying away from it.

We weren’t put on earth to become passive couch potatoes. Imagine if Moses sat and watched TV, or if the saints gathered in the upper room to watch movies- we wouldn’t have the Bible. You weren’t called to sit on the sidelines and watch the world turn or watch Hollywood’s version of the world turning.

You’re called to be the salt of the earth, the light of the world, to change the world, to dwell in God’s presence, to see from heaven, and to transform this world. I’m not giving you a rule, but a word of counsel and a principle.

Don’t let your calling, your hours, days, weeks, months, and years be wasted away. Don’t miss God’s presence, His glory, the revelation, the power, and the victory that God has because you were too busy sitting on a couch trying to be entertained.

Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days. Proverbs 19:20

Get off the couch – unplug yourself, unchain yourself. Get into God’s presence and then out and fulfill your calling.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Your Pilgramage Life…

I visited my friend who lives in Israel, and he took me on a tour of the Holy Land. Then he came to Texas to see me. I figured I owed him a tour in return, so I took him on a tour of Texas. He saw factories, traffic jams, crowding… I asked him if he wanted to continue, and He said, “No, not really.”

Giving him a Holy Land tour of Texas was ridiculous – and yet not so ridiculous. Israel is the Holy Land, but if you’re a holy person, your life and the ground you walk on is to be holy. You may not live in Israel, but Scripture says you’re a citizen if you’re born again.

Live your life holy in the presence of God, as if you’re in Israel. It doesn’t matter if you’re in America, Asia, or Africa – live your life as if you’re in the Holy Land, walking on holy soil.

Treat every moment as holy, and it will become so, because in the grace and the Spirit of God, your life will become a pilgrimage in the Holy Land – even in East Texas

But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.   Hebrews 10:39

Live this day as if you were walking the ground of the Holy Land. Let every step be. Let your life become a sacred pilgrimage.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Living Kosher (Cleansed)…

In the vision Peter had on the rooftop, God said, “What I have cleansed do not call unclean” or “what I have made kosher do not call unkosher anymore”. He’s speaking of the gentiles from beyond Israel, from all the nations.

God didn’t just cleanse them, He cleansed you. Your past is filled with things you would rather not have had in it. Sin is always unclean, but God has cleansed you of that sin.

He said your sins were as scarlet, but now they’re going to be as white as snow. He works your past out for good, in grace. What God calls clean do not call unclean.

No matter what happened before, God has cleansed it and He’s used it to bless you and lead you to the good. He doesn’t want you to be defined by that sin anymore; not in your thoughts, actions, identity, or your life.

He wants you to live kosher, think kosher, believe kosher, walk kosher, and be blessed kosher. What God has cleansed, do not call unclean. What God has made kosher, don’t call unkosher, and that includes you.

First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds.  Acts 26:20

Today, live kosher, think kosher thoughts, do kosher deeds. God has made you kosher- live accordingly.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Getting Into The Love Story…

Have you ever noticed how many stories or movies are based on the same theme: boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back, boy kisses girl? There are some variations, but it’s basically the same theme.

God’s story is a love story, and all of creation is part of it. He’s the Bridegroom and we’re the bride, but we fell. Then God comes down to earth and gives His life for us that we would say yes, and like the end of a love story, the two come together.

We shall behold Him at the marriage supper of the Lamb. The Greek word for worship means kiss. We’ll be worshiping Him forever, the two shall be one, and we’ll be joined together in holy matrimony, total marital bliss forever. Creation is a love story and your life is to be a love story between you and God.

Your life can never be complete until you draw near to Him. So come into His chambers, into the secret place, in prayer and worship until your life becomes a true love story sealed with a kiss of worship.

But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. John 4:23

Draw near to your Bridegroom today and dwell in the intimacy and beauty of His presence.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed

Your Calling In The Closet…

What do we keep in closets – old things we aren’t using, clothes packed in mothballs that are never used? The Lord tells us not to hide our faith.

We can’t keep our walk, the word, or salvation hidden. How can other people get saved if we hide the light? It doesn’t only hurt them, it hurts us.

When you keep your faith in a closet, it paralyzes your faith so it can’t be used as it should be; it turns it from a victorious walk to a defensive hidden faith- a faith on mothballs. Faith on mothballs won’t do anyone any good.

When you hide who you are, you’re putting your calling in the closet. It doesn’t do any good to have your calling, courage, or victory on mothballs.

Get your faith, your witness, and your calling out of the closet. Dust them off, bring them into the light, and apply them to every area of your life.

Your faith, your witness, and your calling are just too important to let them rot away in darkness, in the closet on mothballs.

There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call. Ephesians 4:4

Get out of the closet today – dust off your calling and let your light shine.

Walk daily with God at your side!

Love always,

Ed