via TJC
“and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22 ESV
Dear Father, we are praying for a miracle (a divine interruption) in the hearts across America. We seek to repent, be in your word, and be of the word no matter what. Amen
As men we all want wisdom on how to live impactful lives. We want guidance on how to live in a world divided at every turn, one that seems opposed to God’s word. Wanting is different than seeking, and seeking different than wrestling and becoming obedient.
Jesus told us people would hate us, as He was hated, because He spoke truth. Lord show us to be undefiled in our thoughts, words, and actions. We ask that our lives bother someone as we stand for the truth and be given the opportunity to speak truth into their lives and the bothersome topics we stand for.
As Jeremiah complained, You answered “If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses. If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan (crossing into the promised land)?
Your brothers, your own family- even they have betrayed you; they have raised a loud cry against you. Do not trust them, though they speak well against you”. Jeremiah 12:5-6
As you have read , the Joshua Commission has spent over four months assessing battlefields across our culture. We have shared the lives of exemplary “mighty men” who have been betrayed, but chose to race against horses of their time, and crossed the thicket into the promised land.
That promised land is not over there, we are Kingdom Men with one foot in two realms - we are God’s sons, yet we are in this world: we are in the race now.
Now we turn to the thickets - the sins, the lies, the evil ideas that oppose God’s word. This is going to get really uncomfortable as we are not taking the easy way out. TJC knows that when the going gets tough, the tough get going. We are not going to have perfect answers on all these topics, sometimes we are going to be wrong, and sometimes we will get stuck with “it all depends” but we promise to be in the word, praying and doing our best to be obedient to God’s word and truths on these challenges that divide America, churches, families and our own thoughts.
We invite you to wrestle with us over the coming weeks. God called Jacob, “Israel” after wrestling with Him. And His nation bears that name.
So “Dear Neighbor”, I have loved talking with you. It’s been fun exploring that brewery around the corner, your cigar store, those cups of coffee, that time we ran together. I still need your brisket recipe. I have shared my faith with you, we have talked about our culture, politics, crazy celebrity stories; yet it seems that we always side-stepped some issues. We were learning to trust and build a relationship. I’d like to answer some of those opinion questions you asked me about. I’ve been doing some research to make sure I’m not repeating a news casters spin, or just my opinion from the hip. I have to admit I’m anxious about several of these topics as you may not like what I believe, but I believe in The Truth of God’s word. So, let’s shake hands and wrestle through these together.
Daily Battle Order
You are a mighty man, prepared for this time to influence your family, your co-workers, your friends with the love and truth of Jesus Christ. You are the only source many of them have to hear that, and discuss the topics dividing our churches, our nation and even your home- creation, your purpose, sexual identify, value of human life at conception, our words and actions, immigration, educational theories, sanctity of marriage between man and woman. Some are clear-cut, others are going to get messy.
Press in and we look forward to the dialog with you.