Lion Chaser: This is You

I'm back on the lions kick guys. I just can't seem to get away from it! And lets be honest, lions are pretty awesome. This morning I went through a box of books we've yet to fully unpack and pulled out my copy of Mark Batterson's "In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day". I think I may have talked about this incredible read before, but whatever, it's totally worth a re-visit. The book starts off by introducing you to an incredibly powerful and courageous man, whose decision to chase fear instead of run from it elevated him to a position of great authority and influence. That man is Beniah, who went on to become one of David's mighty men I believe. (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong lol.)

The whole encounter described in Mark's book is absolutely epic and paints a picture for us of how we should trust God with our fear knowing that what's on the other side of that fear is breakthrough and blessing. If you know the story of Beniah, you know that he came face to face with a lion, on a day when the ground was covered in snow, and decided to chase the lion down in to a pit where he would kill it with his bare hands. This accomplishment, on top of a few other very noteworthy happenings, built quite the resume' for Beniah and scored him a position serving directly under King David. Had he chosen to run in fear from the challenges he faced, which would have been totally understandable and actually quite logical, he would not have seen the incredible blessing and legacy that God had for him.

So I guess I just want to ask what you're facing right now? What's your lion? And I want to encourage you because that lion staring you in the face does not own you. That cancer does not own you, that depression does not own you, that addiction does not own you, that broken marriage does not own you. You were created to be a lion chaser and are branded with the name of Jesus! His name is above EVERY name! His name is above the name of cancer, depression, addiction, and broken! His desire for you is not just "good" but "great".

Get ready lion chaser. Destiny is staring you in the face. Will you chase it?

Identity: Your New name

This morning was one of the first mornings in a long time that I woke feeling truly rested and refreshed.  It's been a bit since I've felt that way, mostly because life just gets busy, and crazy, and busy again, and then moves back in to being crazy.  It's crazy busy, so lets just say that I have a "bazy" life lol.

You probably know as well as I do that "bazy" living can get you distracted from your core (your core being Jesus).  You start taking a little less time each day to pray and ingest His word, and pretty soon you end up where I found myself.  Dry, dazed, frustrated, and tired.  I started falling back in to some old habits and was becoming more and more sick of myself until I finally just stopped liking myself all together.  I was completing losing sight of the fact that Jesus love for me is FAR greater than my habits.  I was forgetting that He calls me His and there is nothing I can do to remove that label from my heart.  I'm signed and sealed "HIS".

When life gets crazy it becomes easier to lose our identity in all of it.  So lets take a second to remember who we are.  To do this I want to share with you something I did about a year or so ago that completely rocked my world in the best possible way.

I was reading an AMAZING book, the first of 3 or 4 I believe, called "Soul's Gate".  In a nut shell, the main characters in this book are brought together by a prophetically gifted, wise, mentor for the purpose of training them how to intercede and war for the people around them.  The book paints an incredibly interesting portrait of spiritual warfare and what it means to pray.  There was a particular section in the book that really hit a home run for me.  Royce, the teacher, was training these 3 individuals to trust in God in such a way that they were doing some crazy supernatural things as they warred over the people God pointed out to them.  Part of their training was to gain an understanding and perspective on who they are in God's eyes.  Royce gives each of them a pad of paper and pen and then sends them in to the woods surrounding the training grounds telling them to ask God for a new name.  He sites the scripture in Revelation where it talks about the white stones etched with a new name for those who receive them.

Each of them are branded with a new name, a couple of them with more than one.  Why is this important?  Because the truth behind their identities came straight from the Father and when they heard Him speak, understanding that this identity could only have been given by Him, they experienced a drastic shift in they way their faith operated.  They started walking as the warriors God branded them to be.

I read this part of the book and thought Huh.  Why not me?  I immediately set the book aside, turned on some worship music, and started pressing in, asking God to show me how He sees me, and to give me a new name.  I guess I didn't expect him to answer right away, but he did, and with 3 names.

Joshua: This one struck me hard.  All my life, even as a little guy, the people around me have accidentally called me by this name.  i had a teacher in grade school that used to mix me and another kid (whose name was actually Josh) up all the time.  I never understood why until now.  This was a small whisper from God.  He has been calling me by this name my entire life and I never realized it!  Here's a little bit behind the name. Joshua was a warrior with extreme faith in the Lord.  A leader.  He was also the one God chose to lead the Israelites in to the promised land after Moses died.  God chose him to complete the promise He gave to His people.  He is a completer of promises.

Goku: Now this one struck me, but not in a good way initially lol.  I am a HUGE nerd and LOVE all things super hero.  I grew up watching a show called "Dragon Ball Z" which was about highly trained warriors defending the earth from all sorts of evil attacks and threats.  The main character, Goku, is an alien whose DNA causes him to become exponentially stronger when ever he his pushed to the brink of death.  This means that every time he's beaten, he returns 100 times stronger than he was before!  The name Goku also happens to be Japanese, meaning "Sky".  God caused me to think about this fact and recognize that the sky is a limitless expanse, and whispered to me "you are limitless son."  I still giggle at this name when I hear it.  The nerd in me just goes nuts! lol

The third name is one I'm going to keep to myself for right now.

Who are YOU?  I know this may seem "out there" to some of you, but what if God is just waiting for you to ask?  What if He is ready to unlock something in you and all you have to do is ask "Lord, what's my name?"  You already have identity in Jesus, so let Him love on you and unlock the things he built inside you!

Do I believe this is the only way to learn about yourself?  Absolutely not.  But this is a great way to be reminded of how much God loves you and to learn more about how He sees you!  Look through His eyes at the mirror and get ready!

It's an Acapella Morning

If I don't start my mornings in a specific way my entire day can be thrown off.  I am one of those strange freaks of nature that actually really likes getting up in the morning.  The morning is quiet.  It gives me the chance to breathe and jump start my brain.  But more than that, it's a chance to start my heart.

I start every morning either reading God's word, or simply sitting back and soaking to some worship music.  There are times when I just need a few moments to sit and enjoy his presence.  This morning was one of those, and I decided to tune in to one of my favorite YouTube-er's, Sam Robson.  The guy is an acapella BEAST.

Here is the song that I've literally had on repeat for like the past 45 minutes.  It's been a total drink of water for me today and I hope it will be for you as well!





Whats your routine?  How do you get the juices flowing?  Coffee or tea?

Can I Grieve the Holy Spirit When Leading Worship?

(Via The Verge Network)
I’ve been married for two months, and I have already discovered that I don’t have answers for every question my wife asks about the bible. 

Ephesians 4:30 says “do not grieve the Holy Spirit.”
So my wife asked “what does it mean to grieve the Holy Spirit?”
I made up an answer: “Honey, it’s sin that grieves the Holy Spirit.”
But then she asked “Doesn’t sin grieve the Father and the Son too?
What does it mean, specifically, to grieve the Holy Spirit?”

Read more...

Lions & Kings

God’s intent for our lives, is to live as Kings in the kingdom. We were never meant to step back but to charge forward as warriors and I believe that God is calling out the warrior in you. He is calling out his mighty pride of lions!

There’s a book that I picked up back in 2007 when I was still interning at an amazing church called, The Rock Church, in Monroe Washington. There were about 14 of us at the time and during this particular week, we had been preparing for what would be one of the most memorable moments in our lives (well at least mine). All 14 of us piled in to one of the churches huge white passenger vans and took off on a cross country drive to Washington DC. There were all sorts of shenanigans that took place along the way, which made the 2 day straight shot survivable.

When we arrived, we were all exhausted but excited because we were there to take part in the national day of prayer. I had no idea what God was stirring in me at that moment.
we were blessed with the chance to tour some of DC’s historic sites, and then given an opportunity to meet and speak with an amazing author and pastor.

Mark Batterson pastors National Community Church in DC and has been on a writing rampage over the past few years. One of those books was gifted to us during our meeting with him, and would ultimately transform my life and continue to effect change in me as i moved forward.
The book is called “In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day” and it digs in to what it means to be a lion chaser, putting great emphasis on Benaiah the lion chaser/warrior.

2 Samuel 23:20-23 says this about Beniah:
20 Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion. 21 And he struck down a huge Egyptian. Although the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, Benaiah went against him with a club. He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear. 22 Such were the exploits of Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he too was as famous as the three mighty warriors. 23 He was held in greater honor than any of the Thirty, but he was not included among the Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
So lets pause here a second and think about this….
HE DID WHAT!?

Yeah thats right, Benaiah was one of the most hardcore guys in the bible. He single handedly killed 2 of Moab’s greatest warrios, took out a 7 1/2 ft tall Egyptian with his own spear, and then to ice the cake, chased down a lion, followed it in to a snowy pit, and killed it.
You see, if Benaiah had not believed in who God created him to be and pressed forward to face these challenges, he would not have ended up as one of King David’s personal bodyguards.
Benaiah knew without any doubt that he had been created as a king in the kingdom so when he was faced with challenges, he looked them straight in the eyes and said,
“I’m a king! I have dominion over you!” Then chased it down and took it out!
Well mighty men and woman,
who are you in the kingdom? Ask yourself that question because if you have forgotten that you are royalty, you NEED to be reminded!
You are sons and daughters of the one true King over all, and that means that you are royalty!
You can go anywhere in the world and ask the question,
“Who is king of the jungle?”
And no matter where you are, someone will probably answer,
“The Lion.”
Psalms 103:19-22 Amp
“The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, and His kingdom rules over all…”
His kingdom rules over all!!!
Our daddy, King of Kings, the Lion over all of creation, RULES OVER ALL. And he has roared in to your future already!!!
So stand up men and woman of the King and let the lion in you be stirred!!! Raise up your roar against the enemy because He has given you dominion!!!

Archaeologists Have Discovered an Entry Way to King Herod’s Palace

Researchers in the West Bank have unearthed a massive, multi-level corridor that served as an entry to the Herodian Hilltop Palace 2,000 years ago. From The National Post:

Three Hebrew University archaeologists concluded that Herod — best remembered for ordering the murder of the baby boys of Bethlehem in the Bible’s Nativity account — had the corridor filled in as part of his plan to turn Herodium into a volcano-shaped hill that was to commemorate him after his death.

Read more at: http://www.relevantmagazine.com/slices/archaeologists-have-discovered-entry-way-king-herods-palace#8bY16p669fuTY0h9.99

On this great morn!  As the son surely rises! I make a declaration!!!  
THIS COFFEE HAS NEVER TASTED SO GLORIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok seriously now, I just love coffee and felt the need to vent that 155 degree passion on to you.  But I wouldn’t do that if it was like a Mcdonalds cup of coffee.  That stuff is like radioactive acid brewed in satans french press.  Anyone who has ever spilled even a drop on your tan slacks knows that any region it touches is forever void of hair and nerves.  I theorize that my future kids may have been burnt by that stuff.
“Zach, why the heck would you start out your next post in such an obscure and odd manner?”
Well old chap, I have a bit of encouragement and plea for those in leadership (I’ll explain more about what I mean by “leadership” a little later in the post).
Now before I get deep in to this, I’m seriously preaching to myself here as well, so I’m not picking on you, I’m picking on myself…And you.  But just a little (unless you just spilled your Mcdonalds coffee on your crotch this morning.  Then irony commands that I giggle a bit).
We were created to be in relationship first, with God, and second, with each other!  We are meant to, as brothers and sisters in Christ, lift each other up, and then as individuals move “out” of our Christian bubbles to build relationships with people who need Jesus.  Heres where some of you may raise an eyebrow.  I don’t think we should start hanging out with someone or meeting with someone with the purpose of “converting them”.  The conversion is a heart change that only God can accomplish, so our role is to simply love on people!  SIMPLY LOOOOOOOOVE!!!!
Gay, lesbian, bi, drug addict, porn addict, angry, enraged, broken married people, whole married people, same sex married people, people who hate you because you are a Christian Etc.
WE ARE NOT CALLED TO JUDGE!!!  
As I’m typing this I really feel like a broken record because that statement has been said so many times by so many people.  But I’ll say it again, hoping that this VERY simple concept breaks through to some hearts.  When we leave out the judginess, everything simplifies!!!  WHAT A STINKIN CONCEPT!!!  SIMPLICITY!!!
SO!  As a leader in the kingdom (and that means if you have Jesus, you are destined to lead in some way)… JUST LOVE.
Talk with people, get to know them, support them, build relationships and just LOVE!  Let God work on their hearts through your willingness to simply love them!  

God, you spoke the word "acceleration" to me not too long ago.  for a while I took my time, expecting acceleration to be something that I could simply float in to... I believe I was wrong so right now I step in to the acceleration you have spoken over me.  I receive what you have spoken over my life!!!

Well kids,
I'm kinda just ready to sprint!  All out, pedal to the metal, foot to the floor, 0 to 60, and get stuff done!!!  I dont want to miss what god has for me!!!  I've stayed so active in my daily life that I think I've let some things fall by the wayside, even those things that I've dreamt about for so long. 

One of those being my health.  I dont have any health issues right now, but I could down the road if changes arent made.  So the wife and I joined a gym and are working hard to get in shape and change our life habits. 
I've also committed my Saturdays for the most part, to my craft, songwriting. 
Most of the time Sarah works in the morning, so I can take that time to dig in and get my creativity flowing as well as finish other musical projects that have yet to get done.
There are some amazing things I have started and have yet to finish, but when we finally get through them they are sure to effect the lives of people around the world!  At least thats the goal.

So keep an eye and an ear open as some new tunes, and eventually an entirely new album is thrown your way!!!  I am planing to release what I am lovingly dubbing "Worship In Low-Fi", sometime in the next few weeks.  this is a simple, home grown project that i have been tinkering with here and there.  it will contain some new and original worship songs for you to simply kick back and enjoy.  I've tried to gear some of them toward the "church friendly" side of things in case anyone felt lead to use the material.

Anyway,
I'm going to go do something productive now.  Yall come back now... Cuz if you dont, I will haz a sad.