Brian Dolleman's Blog

Any number of labels can be part of your identity…

American
Conservative
Liberal
Country Boy
City Girl
Spender
Saver
Athlete
Artist
Student
Worker
Retiree
Teenager
Senior Citizen
Christ Follower

The question is, who are you first?

There are some thoughts, attitudes, and actions that technically make you a “good__________” (fill in the blank with a label) but just don’t fit in the life of a Christ Follower.

Are you a__________first, or are you a Christ Follower first?

I’d rather be a good Follower of Christ—even if that means sometimes I’m not that great of a__________.

Paul wrote to the Philippian Christians, “Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ (Philippians 1.27 NLT).

Philippi was a Roman colony and the people there possessed Roman citizenship.

Although Philippi was far from Rome, these Philippian Roman citizens never forgot that they were Romans. They spoke the language, wore the clothing, and lived under Roman law—with all its rights and privileges.

Paul was saying, “You and I know full well the privileges and responsibilities of being a Roman citizen. Even here in Philippi, so many miles from Rome, we must live and act as a Roman does. Well then… remember that you have an even higher duty—wherever you are, you must first live as citizens of Heaven.”

http://made-new.com/

Our brains don’t like gaps in information.

We’re not comfortable with things unknown…

And so we speculate. We fill in the gaps ourselves. We make stuff up.

I’ve done this often with songs.

Some lyrics are difficult to understand, and my brain just makes a guess.

What a surprise when I eventually read the actual lyrics years later!

My first reaction is to disagree—someone else must be wrong (certainly not me).

The truth is, my thinking is totally capable of being wrong, and often. Ridiculously wrong.

So is yours.

Which is why we need to be open to new thoughts—learning and being corrected.

“Don’t try to read between the lines or look for hidden meanings…” (2 Corinthians 1.13 MSG)

What a great reminder: our minds think wrong thoughts—we speculate incorrectly, we put stuff between the lines that doesn’t actually belong there.

Our thoughts need to be renewed.

Our brains can’t always be trusted.

Here’s the good news: God doesn’t lie and his Word tells us the truth.

So this is what we do: “We take every thought captive so that it is obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10.5)

http://made-new.com/

Remember those old cliché arguments?

The ones where you begged your parents for something and defended your cause by describing how everyone you know already has that thing or gets to do that thing…

Your parents shot back with: “Oh, everybody’s doing that, huh? I suppose if everybody jumped off a bridge, you’d do it too?”

This line of reasoning never inspired me as a kid.

It didn’t lift my spirits, cause me to dream bigger, or envision new possibilities.

These days, however, I’m feeling pretty inspired by it (not because my daughter wants to watch Hannah Montana and tells me how all her friends get to watch it).

I’m becoming more and more aware that the herd doesn’t always move in the right direction.

I’ve come to realize: “group think” often stinks.

The Bible says “Do not be shaped by this world; instead be changed within by a new way of thinking.” (Romans 12.2 NCV)

We don’t need more stinkin group thinkin.

We need to be changed within; we need a new way of thinking.

I love this reminder God gave to Isaiah during a particularly difficult time…

The Lord has given me a strong warning not to think like everyone else does. He said, “Don’t call everything a conspiracy, like they do, and don’t live in dread of what frightens them.” (Isaiah 8.11, 12)

Through Jesus, we’ve been made new.

We’re a new creation—the old is gone and the new has come…

This includes our minds, our thinking.

We have a new mind—the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2.16, Philippians 2.5).

http://made-new.com/

Our hearts are like a file cabinet—and our belief system is stored there.

Most of our subconscious, controlling beliefs are established (filed away in our hearts) by the time we are 8 years old.

These controlling beliefs were “caught” not “taught”.

They determine our reactions and behavior—our response to the circumstances of life.

With our rational mind, we can say “I’m never going to behave like that…” but it’s the belief system in our heart that actually determines how we behave.

Author and psychologist Jonathan Haidt uses the analogy of an elephant and the rider…

The emotional side (heart) is the Elephant and the rational side is the Rider. Perched on the Elephant, the Rider holds the reins and seems to be the leader. But the Rider’s control is precarious because he is so small compared to the Elephant. Anytime the six-ton Elephant and the Rider disagree about which direction to go, the Rider is going to lose—he is completely overmatched by the size, strength, and will of the Elephant.

The heart “determines the course” of our lives (Proverbs 4.23 NLT).

If our heart determines the course of our lives—the question must be asked…

Can our hearts be changed?

Can the old files be replaced?

Can a new controlling belief system be established?

We believe that God makes us new. We believe He gives us a new heart.

“I will give you a new heart and I will put a new spirit in you.” (Ezekiel 36.26 NLT)

So, the answer is: yes, our hearts can be changed and the old files can be replaced!

We’ve been given a new heart, a new file cabinet—the opportunity to believe and respond differently.

Unfortunately, most of us start putting the same old crap in the brand new file cabinet…

We reach for the familiar.

We go to our default—those old beliefs that filled our old hearts and controlled our lives.

Jesus said, “A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart…” (Luke 6.45).

Our hearts are a treasury—a storage place.

From what we store in our hearts, our lives will produce.

Don’t store the same old small, weak, insecure, fearful, anxious, greedy, selfish, untrusting beliefs.

You have a new heart, a treasury—a brand new file cabinet.

Fill it with a new belief system, one that matches what God says about you.

http://made-new.com/

Ever have a dream where you’re running but you just can’t seem to run fast enough?

You’re giving it everything you got, but you’re sluggish and feel like you’re moving in slow-motion.

Ever had a dream where you’re fighting but you just can’t seem to punch hard enough?

You try harder, but there’s just no power to your punch…

These dreams are frustrating because you know you have more potential and power than that.

It’s actually a good thing that you’re weak and slow in your dreams—otherwise, you’d be knocking-out your spouse UFC-style while you sleep. Instead, you just twitch and groan a little (and that’s much cuter).

In real life, we don’t want to be weak and slow. We don’t want to live with untapped potential and power.

The Apostle Paul said, “I do not run without a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something—not just the air.” (1 Corinthians 9.26 NCV)

Another translation says, “I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.” (NLT)

I like that…

Purpose in every step.

I fight like a boxer who is hitting something.

I don’t want to go through life frustrated—weak and slow, living with untapped potential and power.

I don’t want dream runs and punches.

I want to get somewhere.

I want to do something.

I want a sense of renewed purpose, God’s purpose for my life—mission, focus, vision, and clarity.

I want to run with purpose in every step.

http://made-new.com/

In life, our sense of purpose needs to be renewed.

I’m the father of a grade-school daughter. Some day, in the not too distant future, my daughter will grow up.

My role in her life will need to change.

My sense of purpose must constantly be refreshed and renewed.

The Bible tells a story about a beggar who was paralyzed…

He asked the disciples, Peter and John, for some money.

Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ… get up and walk!” (Acts 3.6 NLT)

Peter helped the man stand up—and he was instantly healed!

The man jumped up, walked around, started bouncing all over the place—praising God.

Then the three men walked into the Temple together.

“All of the people saw him walking and praising God. When they realized he was the lame beggar they had seen so often… they were astounded!” (Acts 3.9, 10 NLT)

The Bible calls this man “the lame beggar” (which sounds kinda mean today).

His purpose was tied to his condition—he was lame (paralyzed), so he was a beggar.

When his condition changed, it was also time for his purpose to be made new.

His role was no longer survival—hoping to get enough from others so he could just barely make it.

Now he had mobility, strength, the ability to work and earn a living.

Now he could help others—those who were in the same condition he used to be in.

He was no longer the man with a “lame purpose.”

His life and his sense of purpose had been made new.

Sometimes, we make the mistake of holding on to an expired purpose—an old sense of purpose tied to our previous condition, but it just doesn’t make sense anymore… It’s a lame purpose.

And there’s no reason for that. We’ve been made new.

We’re not who we used to be anymore.

Not only are we new people, we are new people with a new sense of purpose!

http://made-new.com/

You know those times when you’ve eaten so much, you feel like you’re gonna pop?

Well, sooner than you’d think, you will need another meal.

You will always need another meal.

Food keeps you going—it’s fuel, it’s life-giving, it’s necessary.

One time, Jesus’ disciples were concerned that he missed a meal. They urged him to eat something.

Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.” (John 4.32 NLT)

The disciples were really confused now. They thought maybe someone invented a new recipe and delivered the food to Jesus (by the way, whoever invented pizza… thank you).

Jesus explained: “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.” (John 4.34 NKJV)

In other words, living out my God-given purpose and doing what my Heavenly Father wants me to do is like eating a meal: it’s fuel, it’s life-giving, it’s necessary.

And just like I will always need another meal, I also need a renewed sense of my God-given purpose.

Same goes for you—you need another meal, a renewed sense of purpose for today.

http://made-new.com/

I can predict what my daughter will say when she gets home from school…

“What are we doing today, Daddy?”

In fact, she repeats variations of this question multiple times throughout the day.

“What are we doing tonight?”

“Are we doing anything?”

“Are we going anywhere?”

“What’s for dinner?”

She’s looking for the plan. She wants to know what’s on the agenda…

Because her life is tied to ours—where we go, she goes; our plans are her plans.

This reminds me of a verse in the Bible:

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” (Romans 8.15 MSG)

Our life is tied to His—where He goes, we go; His plans are our plans.

Are you asking Him, “What are we doing today, Daddy?”

“What’s next, Papa?”

Go ahead, ask.

Repeatedly.

Be adventurously expectant.

http://made-new.com/

1. Everybody’s Welcome

Jesus welcomed, loved, accepted, embraced, and included anyone who came to him. It didn’t matter—fishermen, prostitutes, outcasts, tax collectors, lepers, or sinners. We follow Jesus’ example; we welcome everybody.

2. Nobody’s Perfect

Jesus helped us understand that we’re all equally in need of his forgiveness. Because of this, there is no use for any sense of spiritual superiority. There’s no need for posturing, posing, reputation-building, or trying to impress anyone. There’s also no need to hide. We are all sinners, saved and living by grace. We know it’s true: nobody’s perfect.

3. Anything’s Possible

Jesus chose people like Peter, who was inconsistent, unpredictable, and shaky in his faith. Peter the unstable one became Peter the rock. God transforms people—he makes us new. We believe that with God, anything’s possible. We see others, not for who they are, but for who they are becoming through Christ. In Him, anything’s possible!

http://made-new.com/

While on vacation during Spring Break, my daughter and I watched the classic 80’s movie, The Princess Bride.

It’s one of those oft-quoted films, and it has quite the characters…

Vizzini, the ever-scheming bandit ring-leader, is one of those quotable characters.

For example:

“Am I going mad, or did the word THINK escape your lips? You were not hired for your brains, you hippopotamic land mass.”

Here’s another:

“It would be absolutely, totally, and in all other ways inconceivable.”

Vizzini didn’t believe it was possible for them to be followed or conquered—and he was dead wrong.

Vizzini’s “inconceivable” line reminds me of another character… Nicodemus.

Nicodemus isn’t from The Princess Bride—he’s from the Bible.

One day, while conversing with Jesus, he hears something that blows his mind: “You must be born again.”

Nicodemus incredulously responds, “What do you mean? How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again? How is this possible?”

He was basically quoting Vizzini, “It would be absolutely, totally, and in all other ways inconceivable.”

But Jesus was’t talking about a physical re-birth, he was talking about a spiritual re-birth.

Being born again is another way of saying “being made new”.

Just like Nicodemus, we must be born again—we must be made new.

Sound impossible? Absolutely, totally, and in all other ways inconceivable?

“Who in the world can be saved?” Jesus replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with God.”
(Luke 18.26, 27 NLT)

Anything’s possible.

http://made-new.com/