A young man came up to me recently who I honored and admired.

He told me he was attracted to this lady and wanted to lay down his intentions of pursuing her.  Now just to provide context, both are now working and done with schoool.

He said that it can go either way – that she will say ‘yes’ or he’ll end up ‘on the floor, bloody.’  Pretty funny how he put it but yet I encouraged him to go for it, prayed for him and let me know what happens.

In a day and age when men would rather be sure (the seguristas) to have their girl on the palm of their hands before they lay down their intention to pursue, this guy was going against the flow.

I’ve seen men who have done this and have done it in a way that honored God and the women they were pursuing.  Some successfully pursued and now married like Dan, Dennis and Joe while others ended up on the floor bloody as my friend put it.

But either way, the result was that God was honored in the process and that the lady didn’t end up getting reeled in and hurt.

As Randy Pope says,

“Ladies, if you want a king, you’ve got to be a queen.
Guys, if you want a queen, you’ve got to be a king.”

Kings treat their future queen as a princess.

Paul, in Philippians says it this way,

‘Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush.’ (Philippians 1:9-10 The Message Bible)

Let your love be sincere and intelligent and not mere sentimental gush.

You’ve heard it before – from Oscars to Grammy’s; FAMAS to Star Awards.

Many refer to God as the ‘man upstairs’. I often wondered about that.

But watching Tim Tebow’s post game interviews, he flat out states who this ‘man upstairs’ is.  You’d hear him say, “I want to thank my LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST.”

I guess that’s why he is one of the most polarizing athlete these days.  Many love him and lots more hate him. Even Saturday Night Live makes fun of him.

But the Bible clearly says that “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” (2 Timothy 3:12).

It’s to be expected.  Why?  If the One you claim to follow was crucified, I guess His followers can expect some type of crucifixion.

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.(Romans 1:16)

I spoke to Jessie (not his real name) who has a difficulty forgiving someone from his past.  In fact, the guy’s been dead for years yet he still is upset with him.  Forgiveness is a necessity.  It’s really not for the offender than it is for the offended.  Unforgiveness is like drinking poison hoping that the other person dies.  Hard to do, but a necessity.

Then I had a meeting with Troy (also not his real name).  We’ve been meeting because he and his wife have been going through marriage problems.  He admitted that he lived a life of arrogance, hypocrisy and immorality. Right before New Year’s Eve, he sent me this text…

“Looking back at 2011, God exposing me for the fraud I was, was the best thing that ever happened in my life. I will honor God in all that I do in 2012, and the years to come. Thanks. Happy New Year.” 

After that, Paul texted me (yeah, his real name this time) and told me that God had healed him from cancer. Whoa! Amazing testimony!

Hearing these three stories, one passage of Scripture comes to mind.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up… (Isaiah 43:18)

1. Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.

Many are stuck in the past. It’s like driving your car and having your eyes fixed on the rear view mirror all the time. Unfortunately, you cannot and will not enjoy the view up ahead because what is behind always takes your perspective.

It’s hard to walk forward if you’re always looking backward.  Soon enough, you’ll bump your head.  Plus, you’ll miss the adventure of the future.

2. I am doing a new thing!

God is a God of new things!

Every morning, His mercies are new.
Every season, new flowers blossom.
Every year, new hope springs up.

If you keep dwelling on the past, you’ll miss all the new things God has for the future.

And it is in the routine, mundane and ordinary that we notice the little miracles God wants to recreate in and around us.

3. Now it springs up…

Now…! Did you hear it?

I’ll say it again, “NOW!”

Not next week. Not 2 months from now. Not next year. NOW!

God’s doing something new. He really is. Wait for it. Listen to Him. And praise Him in the process.

Our God is an awesome God!