Return To Sender

October 16, 2008

Elvis Presley has permanently marked his generation as well as many that have followed. Inscribed within the lyrics of that mental tattoo are the words of a spurned lover in the song . . . 'Return To Sender'.

Think about that . . .Return to Sender - the restoration process begins when we return to the One that sent us to this planet. Your life is no accident. Your purpose is not arbitrary. You were made on purpose with a purpose.

To restore something is to return the object back to its former condition. In the book of Luke Chapter 15 Jesus tells the story of three lost items: a lost son, a lost coin, and a lost sheep. In all three stories, each item was recovered. Here’s the point - Jesus never told the story of something lost that could not be found. I don’t care how bad off you think you are . . . there is a God on this earth desperately working to reconcile you back to Himself.

Here’s a verse you ought to have framed and hung in the walls of your mind:
NIV 2 Sam 14:14 Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him.

Wow! That verse erupts with vivid imagery of a God extending Himself to restore broken relationships. It’s time to renew your hope and refurbish your faith . . . it’s time to Return to Sender!

You Really Are Sumbody!

The Guinness Book of World Records has always been extremely interesting to me. I find it very difficult to resist picking up and reading one, regardless of the year the book was printed, if I am near one.
It is truly amazing to see what some people have done to themselves in an attempt to avoid that dreaded condition of the majority of the human race known as anonymity. The lengths to which people will go to avoid anonymity is extraordinary, to say the least.
His name, Radhakant Bajpai (just try to pronounce that), is found in this year’s Record Book for having the longest ear hair . . . that’s right, you read it correctly . . . longest ear hair. I’m choking back the laughter as I write. This individual is from the second most populated country in the world, India. With an estimated 1.13 billion other souls in one’s country, it’s no wonder one would wish to distinguish one’s self from the others . . . but ‘ear hair’? Really?!
Here’s my point: Everybody is sumbody! No, that is not a misspelling - it is deliberate. A sum is the result of an addition problem. Every person on Earth is the sum total of the choices he/she makes.
If you wish to be ‘somebody’ then realize that you are ‘sumbody’ . . . You can change who you are and what you are by simply adding things to your life that truly make you unique. Things like integrity, character, honor, loyalty, faithfulness, honesty . . . and the list could continue.
It seems these traits are old fashioned and no longer chic. Our God has given us His formula for make ‘sumbodies’ . . . maybe we ought to follow it:
2 Pet 1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
2 Pet 1:6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
2 Pet 1:7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
2 Pet 1:8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Contained with these four verses are the things we are to add to our lives to truly make us SUMBODY!

PeACE of God

Okay, what you are about to hear is a sermon preached by the one who needs it most. Bear with me as I expose and attack my greatest weakness in my walk with God. It can be defined by one single word, a word I struggle with since I know when it was prophetically given to me that it was a direct word for me - that word is ‘PACE’.

"‘Clifton, the thing the Spirit is whispering to me to say to you is ‘God’s pace’". When the young man of God spoke this to me a few weeks ago I knew God was affirming what I’d been feeling for weeks. Hmmm . . . . God’s pace. Could it be that my inability to discern the ‘face of God’ is due to my unwillingness to live at the ‘pace of God’?

Let’s play with this word, pace. ‘Pace’ is the majority of the word ‘peace’. Bro. Tenney has often remarked, ‘the peace of God is rooted in the pace of God.’ Pace may be defined as the rate of speed at which an activity or a movement proceeds. It’s simply the stride. It’s my pride that affecting my stride. It’s my unwillingness to ‘be still and know’ that causes me to ‘be busy and hope.’ I do know this . . . that He loves me enough to convict me, to send little hints to correct me. I know that I love Him and that I desire His correction as well as His affection.

Another word comes to mind as I’m writing this . . . ‘plod’. To plod is to move or walk heavily or laboriously, to work or act perseveringly or monotonously. So, let’s see if we can put this all together.

Since man is made from the dust of the earth we might say that God is longing for sod that will not think it odd to plod with God! C’mon, Clifton . . . slow down to the pace of God and find the face of God.

Who Matters To You?

Who Matters To You?

"You don’t matter to me." I know that sounds cruel and uncaring but for the most part it’s true. I’m not trying to be crass or crude but I do believe I’ve discovered something that has brought me continued freedom and liberty.

The truth is very few people should matter to you. Of course, everyone matters to someone but not everybody should matter to you . . . at least not in the context I am framing this simple concept.

You see the people that matter to me are the people whose opinions about me cause me to change my behavior. In that context, very few people matter. The word ‘matter’ is derived from an Old French word ‘mater’ which is where we get the word ‘mother’. To mother something is to nourish it . . . therefore, the people who matter to me are the ones who ‘nourish’ me. This list is quite small.

This simple understanding frees an individual from being the slave of other people’s opinions and liberates them into becoming the unique individual God created them to be . . . not simply some product of another person’s opinion.

So, who matters to you?

‘Really, Who Are The Chosen?’

"Many are called, but few are chosen." (Matt 22:14) This verse has created a sense of forboding . . . a sense of despair, unfairly, I might add, in the hearts of many who’ve misunderstood its simple yet revelatory meaning.

Jesus is not making an attempt at disqualifying the self-deprecating but rather He is raising the bar, challenging all humanity to rise to the occasion and discover their innate purpose on Earth . . . their calling!

Who are the chosen? Are they God’s favorites? You wouldn’t be too far from the truth with that interpretation. It appears that the Greek word for ‘chosen’ is ‘eklektos’ which can be interpreted ‘favorite.’ However, I can assure that those who have chosen to discover and pursue and their calling are more than God’s favorites - they truly are the ‘chosen.’ Let me say that again. The chosen are simply those who have chosen to discover and pursue their calling. Your calling is so important. It is your purpose, your destiny, your reason, your fate.

To live a life that counts one need only do what God is counting on you to do. Whatever it is God is counting on you to do, He has prepared no substitute or replacement for you - if you don’t do it, it won’t get done.

Fulfillment is a direct result of living a life that is true to one’s calling. To be fulfilled is to be ‘filled full’ of Him . . . and you can’t be ‘filled full’ until you’ve been emptied of yourself. To empty yourself is to pour yourself into another’s life.

‘Pour’ is spelled ‘p’ plus the word ‘our’. Placing a ‘p’ in front of ‘our’ you now have a word that sounds like ‘POWER’. Here’s a life principle: There is power in the pouring! Discover and pursue your calling then pour your life into it . . . you’ll be amazed at the power you will find to truly succeed in life.

Die Trying

January 4, 2008
Vacation. Cabo San Lucas. ‘Die Trying’. Tingling spider-senses!
No, I haven’t gone completely mad . . . just partially. We were on vacation recently when I saw a sign advertising a local business. The sign immediately gripped me and I knew a creative thought was birthed.
The reason so many people never live up to their potential or destiny is not due to lack of opportunity but primarily to a lack of trying. It appears that one of the most difficult things for people to do is simply to try something new.
Try - it’s a small word - just three letters. Try - to make an effort to do something; to attempt. Fear of the unknown has been the prison guard of the incarcerated who are guilty of having possession of unrealized potential. Why is this? It’s simple.
It’s in the ‘trying’ that you do the ‘dying’ and it’s the ‘dieing’ that keeps us from trying. To try something new is to die to something old.
One of my favorite authors is John Mason and he makes some excellent observations about trying:
"The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one."
"We all make mistakes-especially those who do things.
"Failure is often the first necessary step toward success. if we don't take the risk of failing, we won't get the chance to succeed.
"To fail is the natural consequence of trying.
"When we are trying, we are winning."
The most difficult thing in the world to drive is the tricycle (try-cycle)
It’s a three-willed vehicle. The will(wheel) in front is the steering will (wheel)! It provides forward motion, speed, traction, and direction.
The two in the back provide stability.
One must know the will (wheel) of God, the will of the devil, the will of man. When the will of God is out front directing your life, you will always grow in the right direction and make proper turns when necessary.
Knowing the wheel of satan is important because your will must be the exact opposite of his - this provides you with a sense of stability.
God doesn’t want you to be righteous - He just wants you to die trying!
God doesn’t want you to be holy - He just wants you to die trying!
God doesn’t want you to be pure - He just wants you to die trying!
This concept is the premise for all victory in your life, for you see, without ‘try’ in the word ‘triumph’ all you have is ‘umph’!
Now get out there and TRY!!