The Meaning of Life

by Tom Denegre

In 2017, 47,173 suicides occurred in the United States which was twice as many as murders (19,510). Sadly, suicide is also the 2nd leading cause of death for those aged 15-24 years.¹ A tragic and terrible statistic of life.

Where is the meaning of life for these people? I discovered there is a two-sided coin to the meaning of life. We all experienced the duality in life; light versus darkness, goodness versus evil, love versus hatred, and truth versus falsehood.

Today’s reading in the Book of Revelation becomes insightful to the meaning of life, for a part of it reads;

Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation….Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing….And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever. Rev 5:8-13

Like all things with a dual nature, one cannot appreciate the light until we observe the darkness; or the absence of light.  Take for example Adolf Hitler.  After suffering the defeat of WWI and its economic collapse, Hitler offered a new hope for the country sold under a great lie.  The people bought the lie and suffered an horrific outcome.

There was Jim Jones the cult leader who took his Christian congregation from San Francisco to South America.  He too fed a false hope to his people. Sadly, the entire congregation drank the poison and perished.

Today we are taught a worse lie whereby 60 million Americans were murdered or aborted in the name of women’s health. 

St. Thomas Aquinas once wrote, “justice without mercy is cruel, and mercy without justice is dissolution.” We all know in our hearts none of us are righteous nor good compared to the standards of God.  No matter how hard we try to be good we can never measure up. In our hearts we desire mercy, but we deserve justice. We know a false hope brings destruction, darkness brings death, and unrighteousness separates us from God. How do we reconcile the purpose in our lives when life appears so dark? Are we doomed?  

Thank God we are saved! For worthy is the lamb that saved us, for no one else could do it. In this Revelation passage all the angels, saints, heavenly hosts, and living creatures acknowledged Jesus as the worthy lamb who could break the seven seals while being blessed seven times in recognition of his divine nature. There is no greater love than a sacrificial love which purchased our freedom from sin with a price. No longer are we doomed by the darkness, but saved by the light. When we accept Jesus, all of life, goodness, power, wisdom, honor, glory, and blessings become our inheritance.  The creator of all life enters our heart, mind, and spirit where we live in life-union with Jesus.  Through this life-union pours the streaming rivers of life thus making us partners to save others in the world and to co-labor in his mission.  We have joined the family business of God.  The truth has set us free and blessed us with a mighty and purposeful meaning of life.

1. (National Institute of Mental Health) https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/suicide.shtml

Powerful thoughts for powerful living

By Thomas Denegre

I learned a simple rule in life resulting in a powerful outcome.  The rule goes like this;

When I dwell on the thoughts of my heart, it magnifies the idea and gives it life; for better or for worse.

Think about it.  Worry is an unhealthy habit that dwells on troubles. When we worry we magnify the trouble until we become sick. The more we dwell on the worry, the sicker we become. Clearly not a good outcome. Who wants this kind of life? On the other hand, today’s scripture reading suggests an effective way to dwell on our thoughts of the heart, for it states;

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.  Col. 3:15-17

Rule in your heart?  What does that mean?

Like a baseball umpire, I learned to allow the Holy Spirit to call or to identify my thoughts when they are healthy or unhealthy.  I do this by living in life union with Jesus and allowing his words to live powerfully within my mind and my heart. It’s very interesting to observe myself based on where my heart is dwelling on.  I’ll often catch myself becoming agitated when I think on politics.  Conversely, when I dwell my thoughts on Jesus, Father God, gratitude, goodness, scripture, or praise, I find myself at rest and at peace.

In Psalm 91:1 it states, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide in the shadow of the Almighty."

Or even better in Proverbs 4:20

My son, give attention to my words;

Incline your ear to my sayings.

Do not let them depart from your sight;

Keep them in the midst of your heart.

For they are life to those who find them

And health to all their body.

Clearly, God is indicating that where we dwell our thoughts of the heart with Him, then he promises life, good health, protection, peace, joy, refuge, and safety.  Aren't these great promises to rely on?

Paul gave these instructions, “Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall through following the same example of disobedience.” Hebrews 4:11

I make every effort to be conscious of my thoughts and how they affect me.  It has become obvious that my spirit must control my thoughts of the heart. I know my desires of the flesh is not up to the job because it seeks self-indulgence.. By having a Spirit-to-spirit relationship with Jesus, I have been given the ability for God’s word to live powerfully in my heart so that his peace rules in my heart. By entering his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise, God has given me the secret sauce to enter his rest. 

By dwelling my heart and thoughts with God, He teaches me to see people through His eyes.  For example, if I see the person in my own eyes, I’ll see the jerk.  Conversely, when I see a person through the eyes of the Holy Spirit, I see a child of God filled with great potential, skills, and love.  By being focused on the Holy Spirit, I find it brings life to myself and life to those around me.  It’s amazing what can happen when I make the effort to dwell on the Words of the Lord.

See More Posts from Tom Denegre

Faith That Moves Mountains

By Tom Denegre

Do you trust God to have faith in His Word?

Today’s scripture reading states that faith comes from hearing the Word of God. “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” Romans 10:17 (NIV)

Perhaps it not as simple as this scripture states.  For example;

·         Lucifer knew the Word of God.  Look how he turned out. 

·         Billy Graham acknowledged that perhaps only 10-15% of the people who attended his crusades accepted Jesus.  They too heard the Word of God. 

·         When Jesus shared the parable of the sower of the seeds, he too acknowledged that only one out of four people will hear the word of God and have faith in him.

·         Today there are so many rebellious Christians who advocate the murder of unborn children while aggressively promoting sexual immorality.  Clearly, their actions and beliefs are contrary to the Word of God.

·       All share a similar pattern, their unbelief is focused on talking to themselves and not God. Being filled with pride and self-centeredness they are unteachable; a self-destructive virtue. Unwilling to hear and accept the Word of God.

I came across The Passion Translation, and this version states, “Faith, then, is birthed in a heart that responds to God’s anointed utterance of the Anointed One.” Romans 10:17 (TPT)

Well isn’t that a much different translation! Faith comes from hearing God’s Word while opening your heart to it. The reason Jesus scorned the Pharisees, is because intellectually they knew the Word of God, but it didn’t live in their hearts.  Or, another way of looking at it, the Pharisees acknowledged God from their soul (mind, emotions, will), but not from their spirit (Communion with God John 4:24, Intuition or spirit to spirit communications with God 1 Cor 2:11, and Conscience with God Hebrews 9;14).

I learned from experience that I must trust someone to believe in them.  Without trust I will have doubt and unbelief.  Equally important, to have a relationship with a person comes from the heart and not from the intellect. 

Therefore, by trusting completely in God’s Word I accept the large faith that God’s promises and provisions can be depended upon.  Jesus once said, “If you obey my commands, you’ll live in my love.” John 15:10.

To obey I must trust.

Knowing that I am radically loved by God, because he died for my sins, I can trust his word into my heart. By living in life union with Jesus I discovered that his love will nourish and empower my faith.  More so, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, will infuse the faith, knowledge, revelations, and love that I will need to believe in the unseen.  So, Jesus encourages all of us to open our hearts and our mind to accept and taste His Words.   Then we will have the faith to move mountains!

How to live joyfully in a world that hates you

There are two kinds of joy I experienced in life.  First, is the cheap joy which occurs when I satisfy something from my flesh or soul; like buying a favorite item.   Or, there’s the deep joy when my spirit is at rest with God amidst a world that hates you.  Just how do we get there?  Here’s what I discovered.

I learned there are three things I need to be psychologically healthy; Security, Trust, and Love.  If any of these life foundations are broken or missing, then I will experience wounds in my heart.  My heart will become hardened and cutoff from love.   Because of the anger and resentment within me I will be blinded to my own self-destructive behavior.  No longer a whole person, I will become dysfunctional; unable to receive nor give love.

In today’s scripture reading, Jesus states the following;

“Just remember, when the unbelieving world hates you, they first hated me. If you were to give your allegiance to the world, they would love and welcome you as one of their own. But because you won’t align yourself with the values of this world, they will hate you. I have chosen you and taken you out of the world to be mine.” John 15: 18

This is tough medicine.  I have a natural need to be liked and accepted by everyone.  Rejection is painful.  So, if I need security, love, and trust, how does one live in this world with a healthy state of mind?  Who wants to live in a place where people hate you?

For myself, the key is knowing that my sense of value and love comes from God; not the world.  Since the world and its people are imperfect how can I expect perfect love to come from imperfect people?  That’s crazy talk! Imperfect people have wounded hearts filled with pride, anger, self-centeredness, and unforgiveness. On the other hand, God is perfect, and I can expect perfect love from Him. Isn’t that healthy talk?  

I must remember that I am spirit, soul and body.  My relationship with God is spirit-to-spirit; not soul to spirit.  It’s the same way as when two people live in union with their hearts who know each other intimately without the need of a conversation. Therefore, my spirit leads my soul and body; not the other way around.  Jesus once said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. John 6:63

I learned the love of God the Father and his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ is a creative, life-giving love that produces immeasurable joy and lasting friendship for all who accept it. God loves the world so much because he created it to reflect his glory. And he created each one of us in his own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27). He wants us to be united with himself in an inseparable bond of unity, peace, and joy that endures for all eternity.

Jesus goes on to say; “I love each of you with the same love that the Father loves me. You must continually let my love nourish your hearts. If you keep my commands, you will live in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands, for I continually live nourished and empowered by his love.” John 15: 9-10 

Therefore, to live a joyful life in a hostile place filled with imperfect people, I must allow my spirit to be in union with God’s spirit.  By having God’s love nourish and empower me, I can receive the love, trust, and security, to live in a toxic environment. I know God protects me and I can trust him eternally with my life and spirit. Like all successful people, I must put first things first, and that is to acknowledge God in all things and to be immersed in his word.  His word and truth will guide me in all things.  By knowing and experiencing my spiritual intimacy with the Lord, I can live joyfully in a world that hates you.

Burn the ships!

Albert Einstein once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different outcome.”  

In regards, to discipleship, I like to rephrase this quote.  “The definition of Christian insanity is a born-again believer who identifies himself as a sinner while expecting to be a holy disciple.”

I’ve been there.  My Christian friends have been there.  But how long will it take others to wake up and realize they are there too? 

For a period-of-time, I had a multiple personality disorder.  It was called thinking as a sinner while trying to be

Christian.  Yes, I believed in Jesus as my savior but if the police arrested me for being a Christian there wouldn’t be any evidence to convict me. Since my dominant thoughts drove my heart, I was still led by all the nasty business of the secular world.  Sure, I knew scripture, but it never lived in my heart. Let’s be honest, Satan knows scripture better than anyone else and look what happen to him.

Then one day the Holy Spirit drove an arrow into my heart.  It came from the Passion translation where Jesus said, “But if you live in life-union with me and if my words live powerfully within you—then you can ask whatever you desire, and it will be done.” John 15:7

There is was.  I was called to live in life union with Jesus.  More still, his words must live powerfully in my heart.  The message came clear, it was time to burn the ships. 

To succeed we must burn the ships of our past.

In 1519, Captain Hernán Cortés landed in Veracruz to begin his great conquest.  Based on previous experience, Cortés knew there could be no going backwards. So, he burned his ships. By cutting off the past, Cortés compelled his men to embrace the future as their only hope.  Instead of letting their past shape their present, he channeled the future to shape their present.  Cortés had his men envision the reality of a hopeful future. It worked!  They saw themselves as conquerors and acted like ones.

 It brought-to-mind Romans 12:2;

Stop imitating the ideals and opinions of the culture around you but be inwardly transformed by the Holy Spirit through a total reformation of how you think. This will empower you to discern God’s will as you live a beautiful life, satisfying and perfect in his eyes. Romans 12:2 (TPT)

 As an ineffective Christian I identified myself as a past sinner and used this dead identity to shape my Christian present life.  I needed to burn the ships of my destructive thinking.  No longer did I identify myself as a sinner.  I was a friend of Jesus set apart from the world; a saint. I saw my future identity as a child of God and with the help of the Holy Spirit my future vision shaped into my present reality. I saw myself as a friend of Jesus who delighted in obeying His Word because it was rooted in love and mercy. So I thought like a saint. I behaved like a saint. At the moment,  I may not be a perfect saint, but the train has left the station. 

So, I burned the ships from my past and embraced the future of my beloved savior. I was driven by his love and love poured through me.  No longer will I accept the the fear mongering lies of this world.  Rather I will dwell in His Word so His living streams of water can fill my mind, shape my thoughts, and transform my heart.

We must all burn the ships of our past thinking, and fully embrace the truth that our future with Jesus is within us today. Be His friend now. Be a saint!