Be ambitious about the right things

By Charl Human

Ps.90:17

Mathew 7:24'-27

James 1:5

Jesus said if we put his words into practice, we’re like a man who builds his house on a rock. When storms hit, his place is fine.

But if we don’t put Jesus’ words into practice, we’re like a man who builds his house on sand. When storms hit, it’s game over.

Was the one who built his house on sand convinced it would last? Of course he was. Otherwise, why make the investment of time and energy? But the house collapsed anyway.

If you are ambitious about the wrong things, you will be hit good and hard by reality.

The key is to ask for wisdom. Wisdom means knowing what matters and what doesn’t, or what matters more and what matters less. You don’t want to go through life without it. It’s the difference between a life of meaning and one of meaninglessness.

Mark this down: You will struggle with feeling meaningless when you choose to invest your time and energy in meaningless things.

I’m not talking about your work. Even if your job seems trivial, it’s not. It matters to others, it matters to God, and it should matter very much to you.

What I’m talking about are things that don’t add value to anyone’s life. We are created to add value to things. When we are at our best, that’s exactly what we’re doing. We’re making things, we’re changing things, and we’re improving conditions and situations for the people around us—those for whom we take responsibility.

If I’m engaged only in activities and projects that ultimately yield nothing for others, I will feel it. It’s not a coincidence that the book expressing meaninglessness so profoundly in the Bible, Ecclesiastes, is written by the richest man in the Bible, Solomon.

In order to avoid falling into the pervasive sense of meaninglessness of our culture, I have to keep my mission in front of me, reminding myself again and again that I’m to be a keeper of the garden. I’m here to protect the vulnerable, heal the sick, and be a voice of peace in this anxious world. I’m here to re-create and add beauty and cultivate and defend and, hopefully, add value to the lives of those around me.

In what way are you a voice of peace in the world right now—whether at work, with family, through prayer, in friendships….?

Paying attention

By Charl Human

Col.3:2-17

2 Cor.10:5

Who we become is within our control. It’s not a mystery. It’s predictable. How?

Who we become is a direct result of what we pay attention to.

We’re all emotional beings, and we can’t always control our emotions. But what we think about has a tremendous effect on our emotions, and we have a great deal of control over what we think about.

Yes, we live in a culture that pushes all sorts of foolishness and evil at us, constantly pinging our eyes, ears, and brains with banner ads and notifications and billboards and commercials and social media posts and messages. But taking responsibility for ourselves starts with us. We have to stand guard over our own minds.

Stop now and read Colossians 3:2, 5-8:

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things ... Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

Not that long ago, I would see Scriptures like this and think, Yeah, sure ... but that’s not realistic. But dealing with my impurity, lust, greed, anger, and rage is not unrealistic at all. Those all stem from what I’m consistently putting my mind on.

We should note just how the word “pay” fits here. Our attention is a limited thing, and we have to manage it like finances. When I’m “paying” attention to something, I’m buying a ticket so my brain can attend.

We all have desires, of course. But what we pay attention to has an enormous impact on how those desires get fueled. Because as powerful as our desires are, they don’t need to define us or control us. They aren’t all-powerful. They are not the last word about who we are. And that’s really good news.

Standing guard over your mind is vital. Read 2 Corinthians 10:5 and Colossians 3:12–17. What does it mean to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ? What practical advice would you give someone who is struggling with their thought life?

Our own choices

By Charl Human 

Gen.3;6-12

Ps.37.23,24

Math. 25:14-30

To properly keep and protect our garden—the people and things around us that need us to grow up—we can’t be blame shifters as Adam was in Genesis 3.

Since masculinity is about the taking of responsibility, it means squarely owning up to our own failures and the things we need to do. You have the responsibility of guarding your heart. You have the say in whether you will allow God to shape who you are becoming. No one else will do this for you.

Remember Judas? He was in Jesus’ inner circle. He had the best teacher of all time right there with him. He had the best counselor ever, the best leader, the best spiritual shepherd. He saw miracles firsthand. But he wasn’t transformed. That’s on him.

Jesus tells a story about three servants who were given money to invest while the master was away, and when the master came back, two of them had multiplied his money. The other didn’t. Instead, he offered excuses. It’s clear from the story that all of us have a responsibility for how we conduct our lives. (See Matthew 25:14­-30.)

This is not bad news. It’s wonderful. It means that if you intend to be the man God created you to be and the man we need you to be, you have the means to do so. That goal is not out of reach. It’s not up to others.

I love this quote from habit expert James Clear: “A profitable business is never a choice, it is a series of choices. A fit body is never a choice, it is a series of choices. A strong relationship is never a choice, it is a series of choices.”

Your choices matter. Yes, some of your choices will be selfish, immature, and foolish. But own them. Learn from them. Continue to bring your attention back to God and watch how he changes you over time to become the sort of person who more naturally chooses the right things, the wise things.

Those are the things that give life to you and everyone else in your garden.

What is something you are trying to change in your life with a choice, or with trying to change someone else, when change might only come through a series of choices on your part?

Expanding God's kingdom

By Charl Human

Zecharia 1:4-9

Mathew 6;33, 19:14

Phill.2:1-11

Adam was made to take responsibility, but instead he became passive. God had to go looking for him (see Genesis 3:9).

Adam left his post, and the world has been suffering ever since.

The original garden was a place where God was in charge as King and his justice and peace were present. We were supposed to rule with him and to expand his rule, but we misused our freedom. He has promised he will one day restore it all, and the biblical glimpses we get of the kingdom in its fullness are breathtaking. Glimpses like the lame leaping like deer, every tear being wiped from our eyes, and the deaf getting to hear for the first time. We get to be part of expanding that kingdom here and now in the places we find ourselves.

The way Jesus explains the kingdom of God (and he talks about it more than anything else in the Gospels), it works very differently from the rest of the world. The weak are made strong. The last are first. The humble are exalted. The proud are brought low. The widow, the alien, and the orphan are valued highly. The unfairly treated are defended. The lost are found. And the broken are healed.

Imagine men like you and me taking whatever strength we are given to defend and expand that kingdom. Imagine if we approached life like this: “Adam didn’t do the job. But with whatever I have, I’m going to do it. I have a mission, and I accept it.”

In the Bible, God says he raises the poor from the dust. He doesn’t forget them. He defends the afflicted. He saves the children of the needy. He defends the weak. He favors the humble. (See 1 Samuel 2:8; Psalm 9:18; 72:4; 82:3; Proverbs 3:34.)

If I’m going be more like him, guess what I’m going to do? I’m going to raise the poor from the dust. I won’t forget them. I will defend the afflicted. I will save the children of the needy. I will defend the weak. I will favor the humble.

Jesus told us to seek his kingdom first. When we take our cues from him, it’s not just good news for us. It’s good news for everyone around us.

What would it look like to be a part of expanding God’s kingdom right where you are today?

Keepers of the garden

By Charl Human 

Good morning everyone!! I pray that you all will be blessed this week, keep it simple ,love one another as God loves you!!

What makes a real man it doesn't have to do with weightlifting contests or having lost lots of dates -or the one might surprise you - knowing how to braai!instead the world is yearning for men to  show up. In this refreshingly honest look at God's calling to men of old interests and backgrounds ,Brant Hanson explains what Biblical manhood looks like and why becoming a real man matters so much.

*Keepers of the Garden*

Gen.2:15

Ps.82:3

While this devotional explores Scriptures about how to be a man, it won’t give typical How to Be a Man advice. I’m not—how to say?—the most “manly” of all possible men.

Let’s put it this way: I don’t hunt. I play the accordion. I’m an avid indoorsman. I own puppets.

But you know what? As much as, say, climbing rocks is a fine sport, the world isn’t desperate for more people who can do that. It’s also true that the world’s deep need isn’t for more puppet-wielding accordion players. I’ve learned this repeatedly and emphatically.

Those things, cool as they are, aren’t at the heart of what people are yearning for from us. There’s something much deeper and much better.

For years, we’ve lacked a vision of manhood in our culture, and all of us—men, women, and children—are hurting because of it. The vision is this: We men are at our best when we are “keepers of the garden.”

This is the job Adam was given in Genesis 2:15. The Hebrew word translated “keep” here is shamar. It means “to guard,” “to protect,” and “to watch over.”

The garden of Eden was a place at peace. A place that was wildly beautiful and where things were made to grow. But it wasn’t a finished product. There was wonderful, life-giving work to do. So God gave Adam the job of looking after the garden. He was to guard it, tend it, and help it flourish.

I believe looking after our own “gardens” remains our masculine purpose, and we all implicitly know it. We men are at our best when we are protectors and defenders and cultivators. When we champion the weak and vulnerable. When we use whatever strength we have to safeguard the innocent and provide a place for people to thrive.

Masculinity is about taking responsibility. We naturally respect men who take responsibility for themselves. We have even more respect for those who go beyond themselves to their families. And we have immense respect for men who take responsibility for those outside their own homes.

We are “masculine” not to the extent that we body-build or achieve sexual conquests or fix stuff, but to the extent that we are faithful to the job of being humble, consistent, dedicated keepers of the garden.

What does the title “keeper of the garden” mean to you?

Identifying key influencers

By Charl Human

Titus 1:7-9

You can measure the destiny of a team—whether that be a family, work group, business, church, community, or even a nation—by its leadership. Unfortunately, today we face a crisis of leadership. People don’t know who to follow anymore because this crisis has produced a plethora of poor models and mentors and an utter lack of great leaders.

Yet, God’s kingdom program is designed around the process of transferring spiritual wisdom, known as discipleship, in order to produce future leaders. One of the primary roles of kingdom men is to lead others in the way they should go. The issue at hand is never whether or not a man is a leader. As a kingdom man, you are a leader by nature of your creation and calling. The issue is whether or not you will be a great leader or a poor one.

Steadfastness, kindness, love, faith, self-control, dignity, teachability, hospitality, and a love for God’s Word are some qualities that contribute to making a man a great leader. These are the same qualities men can use to identify future key influencers as well as to help them cultivate these traits at a greater level.

One of the biggest mistakes we make in raising up future leaders is the assumption that great leadership is taught, not caught. Raising up a generation of key influencers is never to be done in a top-down way. It happens organically and authentically when men share their lives, experiences, and conversations.

Developing key influencers who can solidly speak on biblical truths and navigate the storms of society requires guidance, practice, learning, listening, and so forth. Just like any marriage is dependent on two people contributing for it be great, identifying and raising up a kingdom influencer requires both men to put forth the effort to learn, grow, listen, teach, discern, practice, model, and more.

Great leadership knows how to spot great leadership, and then turn it loose within the boundaries of their own guidance. Coaching trees in the NFL are a great example of this principle at work. The best coaches have multiple assistant coaches who go on to coach teams themselves. You can judge a coach, at least in part, by their coaching tree. In the spiritual realm, kingdom men carry the same capacity to influence others and raise up men who will make a difference in the culture for Christ.

Let’s be clear. You are not here just for you. You are here for others. You have been crafted and created by God as an instrument of influence for the furthering of His kingdom agenda on earth. Satan has done a great job of getting men to focus on the areas of life which do not lead to generational transfer of kingdom values. But it is time that we rise up as men to take our stand against the enemy’s schemes (see 2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

We all made choices we wish we never made,we all wish we could turn back the hand of time and choose again!!BUT WE CANT!!

But what we can do is make different choice NOW!! 

Do you wanna be a KINGDOM  MAN raising up kingdom men OR do you just wanna be ONOTHER MALE!!!

Right now you van make the decision DO u wanna be INFLUENCED by the world and the culture of today?? OR do you want to be an INFLUENCER used by God???? I

Furthering the future

By Charl Human

Gen.1:28

Running and winning a relay race doesn't matter how fast you run its all about passing the batton on correctly!!(the transferring of the batton)!!

If we gonna influence the future/ the world we have to pass on the "batton" to young men so they can pass it onto their children. So we can become 3 generational kingdom men as the Word says.

You’ve likely seen the word “legacy” attached to sports, athletes, business owners, employees, volunteers, mentors, coaches, friends, and more, because it’s all about passing down the DNA of greatness. These principles apply to all of us in the body of Christ too.

 Legacy involves your impact on others. It’s the spiritual DNA you pass down.

The question each of us must ask is: What kind of legacy am I leaving?

Every human being is an image-bearer. Being made in God’s image means that every person is like God in ways that other created beings are not. We have souls and the capacity for reason and relationships. We are creative and industrious, like God.

Adam left the garden, but every kingdom has the same commission as Adam—to fill the world with people who know and love God—to be about the work of passing on the spiritual inheritance of a comprehensive, theistic world view.

Two predominant grids operate on this earth: humanism and theism. Humanism focuses what mankind wants, thinks, and determines. Functioning according to humanism is like putting on sunglasses filtered to reveal the ego’s world view. Conversely, theism filters everything through the lens of God’s divine perspective.

As kingdom men, we are created and called to transfer a theistic viewpoint to those within our spheres of influence. In this way, we pass on the DNA of the covenant infused in the creation mandate found in Genesis 1:28.

Adam wasn’t commissioned to fill the earth with an accumulation of accolades, achievements, and material wealth. God called Adam to fill the earth with His image. A divine inheritance isn’t about houses, clothes, cars, fame, or money. Divine inheritances start with the transfer of the faith. It doesn’t matter how much money a man has if he does not have the foundation of a solid faith. Without biblical values, it will all come crashing down when the storms of life roll in.

Many of us know we ought to live passionately for God’s kingdom but aren’t clear on what that means. Thankfully, when Christ came to fulfill the commandments, He gave us one summary commandment in place of all of them in Matthew 22:35-40. This is what it means to follow God.

Furthering the future means obeying this commandment and training others to do likewise.

Setting the stage

Good morning everyone!!! May you all have a blessed week and experience more of Gods love and presence in your life!!! And be a blessing to others!!

Eph.1:11

Developing strong muscles involves a process of tearing the fibers in your body in order to give your body the opportunity to produce muscle growth. The process of building muscles is painful because you cannot strengthen your muscles any other way.

Similarly, developing your spiritual walk as a kingdom man often comes during the difficulties and painful scenarios of life. That is when most men will see the most growth, if we respond to our challenges rightly. Yet if you choose to simply nurse your wound and complain about the experience, you will not grow. It’s only when you push through the pain that you discover glory on the other side.

Kingdom men have obtained a spiritual inheritance from the Lord, but this inheritance is not only for them, it is for all who come into contact with them. To honor what they’ve been given, kingdom men must focus on their spiritual growth and development. It is the responsibility of every kingdom man to take the kingdom inheritance and share it with others. This is the process of discipleship. It is the process where one kingdom man takes the values of the kingdom and transfers them to another who will then transfer them to another man.

This is our responsibility. This is what Abraham did with his son Isaac. What Elijah did with Elisha. What Jesus did with the Twelve. What Paul did with Timothy. We are to do nothing less. Even if that means stepping out of your comfort zone. Standing for God will not always be popular, but it will always reap rewards.

Discipleship takes boldness. Confidence. Love. Awareness. Commitment. Perhaps you used some of these traits to describe the person in the previous question. Difficult conversations on subjects of truth, sin, and redemption aren’t easy. They require courage. People don’t always want to hear the truth. Discipleship isn’t necessarily fun. But neither are drills, conditioning, or weight lifting. Yet all of that is necessary to strengthen our muscles. Similarly, discipleship is necessary for a kingdom man to pass on a spiritual inheritance.

Transferring kingdom values must take place on a regular basis through personal examples and authentic conversations about those examples. It’s not done only through seminars, books, or radio broadcasts. Those things are good, but they are supplemental. The transferring of kingdom values, as clearly outlined in Scripture, takes place person to person and heart to heart.

At the root of all the issues we face in our nation, communities, churches, families, and in our own individual lives is this lack of transference of kingdom values. Discipleship is a simple process, but it isn’t easy. That’s why we need to be strong in the grace Jesus gives. However, we can always be certain, the grace we need will always be supplied as we become more like Jesus.

Get along

By Charl Human

2 Chron. 15:3-6

Oftentimes it feels easier to blame something outside of ourselves when we go through troubles in life. But there is someone we rarely think to blame, who may actually be behind the issues we are facing—God Himself. To be clear, God is never responsible for evil or suffering. He cannot sin or cause sin; it is against His holy nature. However, God will often allow us to sit in the disorder of our lives in order that we might return to Him and experience refreshing and revival.

God doesn’t stir up issues for us to deal with just for the fun of it. But He does allow negative consequences in our lives to crop up when He is trying to get our attention. Rather than pointing fingers at everyone else when difficulties arise, we might want to take a moment to focus on the One who is really in charge. When we do, we will find that the way to solve life’s challenging situations is sometimes easier than we had once thought.

In recent years, we as a nation and the world have been in the middle of multiple simultaneous pandemics. We are facing dual pandemics: a medical pandemic and a cultural pandemic. Yet, deeper still and at the root of both of these sat a spiritual pandemic.

What I noticed as I observed all that took place during the onset of this unusual time, is that we had wandered far from the value system established by God for how human beings are to live, act, and relate to one another. What’s more—our wandering had gone on for far too long. Across racial and class lines, we had come up with our own standards for how we should treat each other, and it had not done us any good.

As we saw in the passage we just read, God will occasionally allow unrest in order to urge His people to a heartfelt call on Him for help. He has to let His people hit rock bottom in order that we might discover He truly is the rock at the bottom. Sometimes it takes a mess to make a miracle.

Problems abound in our culture today. We certainly have plenty for God to say, “Enough is enough!” But if we miss the reality that God has allowed disorder in order to bring about a correction and a cleaning, then we will just move from one symptom to another symptom. We will miss the opportunity to address the root that has produced the fruit that has led to the confusion of hopelessness on display.

The root of the problems we face in our churches, culture, and country today are clearly spiritual. To repair and restore our culture we must understand the spiritual components behind our problems before proposing pragmatic solutions to these crises.

Get going

By Charl Human 

Judges 6:11-16

We should not expect God to do something through us outside of our home or inner circle if we are not first willing to get things right within it.

The deliverance of the entire nation of Israel from the hands of the Midianites started with one man seeking a better world. It started with Gideon right in his own home. Before Gideon could ever take on a national enemy, he had to first tear down his family’s idols. God had raised up Gideon for a mighty conquest, but he had to demonstrate faithfulness first. Before God would bless Gideon’s work, He asked him to be obedient with what he had around him.

Faithfulness with what you have right now and right where you are is always the first step toward further use in God’s kingdom. We see this not only with Gideon, but also throughout the Bible, and in our own lives. We expect God to move in our lives, but we refuse to get going. Instead we stand still in place, waiting for the right time when all along God has given us everything we need.

God wants you to follow Him right where you are. He wants you to be faithful now—whether it’s with your family and friends or even in your neighborhood and church. Don’t waste your time on visions of grandeur if you are not willing to get moving where God has placed you. Waiting on “the right time” can be an idol just like anything else.

We experience our greatest spiritual success when we are willing to lay down our plans, purposes, devices, and strategies, and completely devote ourselves to God and to His way. God is not interested in divided hearts. He wants your undivided attention, devotion, and obedience. He wants you to get up and get going toward the destiny He has created you to live out.

Life is not found in sitting around and waiting on the right time. Neither is it found in looking for other people to stand up and make a difference. You are to use your voice, your actions, and your life to advance God’s kingdom agenda on earth. If, and when, enough kingdom men choose to rise up for what is right and just in this world, the enemy will be forced to back down. But we can only rise up when we are first willing to relinquish the plans and the idols who have locked us in place for far too long. Idolitry is the number 1 sin in the Bible. God will not share or tolerate another diety or "god" with us when you place anything or urself before you as your source. Let God raise men without idols and to rise up to the occasion, to stand up against, and transform, the cultural decay of our society!! God has given us all we need to get going. We need to take the steps He has laid before us.

Get up

By Charl Human 

Acts 3;1-8

Have you ever gotten a card for your birthday, and you opened the envelope, but you didn’t even read the card; you just shook the card? You did this because you wanted to know if the person who sent you the card had given you any greenbacks in your card. Or, maybe, did they write a check? If you were to be honest, you would admit that you don’t even care that much about the card. You care about what’s in the card!

You and I both know how disappointing it is on your birthday to only get a card with nothing in it. Well, you can imagine how disappointed the lame man was in Acts 3 when Peter told him that he didn’t have any silver or gold to give him, especially since they had stopped in response to his begging. When you stop, that usually means you’re going to do something.

Sometimes delays are good for us. God has a habit of delaying His provision and intervention in our lives for a greater purpose. One of the purposes is to be sure He has our full attention first.

The lame man from Acts 3 was taken to the gate of the temple every day (v. 2). Even though this was an area with heavy foot traffic, he was likely ignored. As Peter and John walked by the lame man, Peter said, “Look at us!” (v. 4) Now, if Peter had to tell him to “look at us,” that means he wasn’t looking at them to begin with. That gives us great insight into this lame man. Peter needed this man’s undivided attention. He needed him to focus. He needed him to hear him. If this man truly wanted a solution, he’d need to pay close attention to Peter right then. He needed to be part of the solution.

Healing and empowerment are not a one-way gift through the touch of a magic wand. True healing requires your desire, responsibility, and focus. That’s why Jesus would often ask the question “Do you want to be made well?” He didn’t just walk around tapping people on the head, bestowing health and healing on whomever was near. Keep in mind, crowds of people flocked around Jesus wherever He went. Lines formed. Inevitably people walked away unhealed. Rather, Jesus would ask if the person was willing to be made whole. Healing and wholeness come in a process of belief and through a desire to be made well.

When God restores the parts of us that have been damaged by sin or wounded through personal neglect or harm, He wants our cooperation in the process. Without it, long-term progress cannot take place.

Just like it is rare for a man to lift a large amount of weights alone in a gym without a spotter or someone to encourage and help, growth in the spiritual life does not happen in a silo. We are all part of a collective process, cooperating with God and others in our healing and spiritual development. Our willingness to experience life more intimately with others and more humbly before God will have a large impact on how much lameness we are able to overcome, both individually and as a group.

It is hard for a man to own up when he can't even stand up! It is time for men to stop being beggars and rise up(stand up) to responsibility and leadership that God has created us for! If you are a man that's needs help to "stand up" then you  to connect with other men. If you are already " up and walking" consistently, you need to be reaching out to other men who need help to getup. Either way you should be a Kingdom man on the rise to impact the world and someone in your community!

Dry bones dancing

By Charl Human 

Ezekiel 36:16-18

A few years ago I received a phone call from a friend who felt hopeless. His life had taken a turn for the worse, and he saw no way out. I tried to remind him about God’s ability to make a way out of no way and encouraged him to keep his eyes on Christ. But the more we talked, the stronger the resolution to remain hopeless came through in his voice. The next day I learned my friend had taken his life.

This wasn’t the first person I knew who had taken their life, but this one hit me particularly hard. I wondered if I could have said something different to make him change his mind. The weight of his words and the faintness of his voice hung heavy over me for a very long time. Hopelessness is a terrible thing because it means you have given up on the future. You’ve thrown in the towel. Far too many men today are living in hopelessness.

You see this hopelessness when men walk away from their responsibilities to their families, to their communities, or to their church. You see this hopelessness when they no longer believe that God can make a difference in history. This hopelessness manifests itself in a culture rife with conflict and division. You may wonder “Why?” Why did God allow this to get this bad? I have discovered that God has a way of letting life get so low until the only way you can look is up. In Ezekiel, we see God’s judgment poured out on a culture filled with impurity and idol worship.

In Ezekiel’s day and in our own, the world is filled with idols. Simply explained, idolatry is intimacy with an image. It’s not necessarily bowing down to a carved statue stuck on a pole. An idol is anything that usurps God’s rightful rule in your life. Idols come in all shapes and sizes. What’s more, they can even be found in the church. Idolatry centers on alignment—you align your thoughts, words, and actions under what you value most.

Clinging to idols is forsaking the faithfulness of God. When the pendulum of our hearts swings towards idolatry, it slides away from God’s love and power. However, the opposite is also true. When we forsake idols, our heart swings into alignment with God’s grace, faithfulness, power, and love in our lives. To embrace God’s will and activate the flow of His love and power into our lives, we must turn away from idols. God has made it clear, through His Word, how to activate the flow of His love and power into your life as well as how to deactivate it.

God has given us the means and the method for removing the idols that grip our hearts. Through the Holy Spirit, He has given us new life in the Spirit which provides the means to diagnose and dismiss our idols. Prayer and self-evaluation provide the methods for us to begin uprooting idols and casting them aside.

Prayer lets us communicate directly with God. As we bring our requests, God begins to direct the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. We hear from Him and invite Him to put to death what is earthly in us. Let’s take advantage of God’s means and method for dealing with idolatry.

Chosen for challenge

By Charl Human

Eph.610:11

When you purchase a game of checkers, you’ll notice that on the top of each piece is the insignia of a crown. That is because each checker was created to become a king.

A checker is crowned because it has successfully made it to the other side of the board. After that point it will have the right and authority to maneuver and function at a much higher level than it could prior to being crowned. However, the reality is most individual checkers will not successfully make it to the other end of the board to be crowned because the opposition will jump them and knock them out of the game. Whether a checker achieves its created goal of being crowned as a king is fully determined by the moves made by the hand controlling it.

When God created men, He created them with a crown because each man was made to rule under the authority of God. However, ever since the first man, Adam, Satan has sought to “jump” men to keep them from fulfilling their kingdom purposes. He goes to great lengths to keep us from functioning in alignment with God so that our families, churches, communities, and nation experience the consequences and confusion of men living independently of God. In the game of life, when it comes to spiritual warfare, you need to go on the offense. You will either need to jump, or you will be jumped by Satan’s attacks.

Satan is free to roam, within reason. God has Satan on a leash. Yet God will often allow Satan to tempt us as men, or wage warfare against us because it is in these times of testing that our true character is either formed or revealed.

The strength we need to successfully do battle with the devil is supplied by God (Eph. 6:10-11). That may seem obvious. But, judging from the way we treat this truth, it bears repeating.

Many of us tend to swing toward one of two extremes when it comes to the devil. Some men overestimate him. They become fearful and timid, lest Satan leap upon them. Others underestimate the devil. Yes, Satan is a defeated foe. But even though he is nothing more than a condemned death row inmate awaiting execution, it’s not wise to sleep in his cell.

The inability to wage ongoing spiritual warfare over the enemy has kept too many men in a cycle of defeat, discouragement, confusion, rebellion, and addiction, to name a few. As a result, we face the spiritual, social, racial, and political chaos we are experiencing today.

If, and when, God’s kingdom men decide to rise up to fulfill our calling, we will see God heal our hearts, families, churches, and land. We will see victory over Satan and his strategies. Once we learn how to wage our own battles in order to wear our own crowns, we can then be used by God to crown the next generation with kingdom values as well. We were chosen for this challenge by God.