My Archenemy

March 9, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

In pretty much every superhero comic that has ever been written, the hero always has an archenemy. Batman had the Joker, Professor X had Magneto, Spider-man had the Green Goblin, and the list goes on and on. All of us deal with things that create conflict in our life, but we typically don’t have an archenemy that we face on a daily basis, or do we? This idea popped into my head as I was reading through Romans chapter 6, I’ve been reading through this book a lot recently because it is filled with tons of wisdom. Paul was writing to the people of Rome about this very topic, well sort of, he was speaking to the people on the fact that they were no longer slaves to sin, but become slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:19-23 says, “Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” As I read this, I began to see that we do in fact have an archenemy, someone who wants to stop us from stepping into what God has for your life.

The archenemy who was working to stop me from achieving freedom is myself.

Let me explain, the passage above said that we are slaves to our sinful desires. When you are saved however, we become slaves to righteousness. There’s just one problem with that, we have an active enemy who tries to use our weakness against us. Every day we must go to battle with the side of us that wants to give in to the sin that is all around us, keeping us from our purpose. We become trapped in fear and shame, making us slaves to sin. This happens to everyone, Satan just whispers small lies to us, and we turn them into a deadly weapon only created to harm us. We are trapped in this cycle of being a slave, but there is hope.

Although our sin causes death, in Christ we find life.

Paul says that when we offer ourselves as slaves to righteousness, which will lead us to live a life of holiness in Christ. We have hope, we have strength in Christ to fight against these lies that Satan tries to convince us of. You see our enemy is the part of us that feels like it needs to go back to its’ old master, but Paul says that we have a new master, and this master has our best interest in mind. He has a plan in mind for our lives, and he wants us to live in to our full potential. Without him though, it is impossible to fight our dark side, the part of us that wants to be a slave to the world rather than a slave to the God who loves us. God equips us to be able to stand against the fear that tries to hold us back, and the shame that causes us to hide and run away from our problems. I know that life is hard, because I have had to go through the pain that fear and shame bring. It seems like we can’t do it alone, which is true, but in Christ we can do all things.

Alone we are weak, but with God, we are strong.

We can’t fight this alone, we need the strength of God to get through the hardest situations. This means that we will have to face our fears and step out of shame. It’s never easy, but it’s always worth it. I recently listened to an NPR podcast called, Invisibilia, where they were talking about fear and overcoming certain fears. In the episode, a man named Jason was interviewed about how he overcame his crippling fear of being rejected. He did this by facing his problem head on, and every day would try to be rejected at least once. He calls it “rejection therapy,” and each day he forced himself to get free from his fear of rejected by being rejected. It stuck with me because so often we feel like we are powerless from fear and we just want to run away. This man was tired of being crippled and decided to face it head on. I have no idea if he was a believer, but his story was an example for me of how to get free from the enemy that is myself. To fight it head on with the strength of Christ, because when we stand in the freedom that Christ gives us, nothing will be able to stop us.

Every super hero has an archenemy, but the hero always wins.

No matter how hard the fight is, the hero always saves the day in the end. You are set free from the sinful desires of yourself, and will live in Freedom through Christ. I hope this was an encouragement to you, because it was encouraging to me. I’m still learning every day, and I don’t have all the answers, but I do know one thing, that we find strength in the arms of our savior. I’m going to keep fighting, and I hope you will too.

-Joshua Thomas

People are the Purpose

March 2, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

This past Sunday my church called Daystar Church began a new series titled, “Made for This,” which is focusing on our purpose that God has called us for. Dr. Allen Holmes kicked off the series by telling the story of Zacchaeus, who was a hated man that stole and cheated the people, and how Jesus went out of his way to serve and bless him. This story was always very intriguing to me, because it shows Jesus, the son of God and who was without sin, make time for a man who was nowhere close to being like Jesus. The story is a perfect example of how we, as believers, should treat people around us. One specific quote that stood out to me and really caused me to stop and think about my life. Dr. Allen said,

“Jesus always made time for people, because people are the mission.”

This statement really forced me to stop and think introspectively, asking myself, do I make time for people? I try to be effective in the time I have with people that I influence and pour into, people in my small group, the students that I mentor, the people I serve each week. But I have to ask myself, what about other areas of my life, the people I sit in class with, the cashier at the store I’m in, the friends of mine who need help but are afraid to ask. Often I find myself just trying to get in and out of errand runs, or talk to friends about things that may not matter as much. Do I really make time for people? God has a way of taking an expectation and raising the bar when I ask questions like this, and he answered me in Matthew 28. Verse 19-20 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

God wants us to be purposeful with everyone we come into contact with. Everyone.

The verse above is known as the great commission, meaning, that thing Jesus tells us to do without exception. I find myself being purposeful to people in some areas, but in others, I stink. I go to class every day and find myself just trying to get through it, and move on. Why? It’s filled with people who could use some life giving words, and I was called to do it. Now before you think I’m going to start getting in someone’s face asking them if they have heard the good news, that’s not the point. Honestly that is an ineffective way to reach people. What I mean is, when talk to anyone, be different in how I act, show them that I actually care. That may lead to a conversation where I invite them to church, or it may not.

My purpose is to plant the seed of truth and life in their life, and let God work the rest.

Looking at the story of Zacchaeus, Jesus didn’t act weird around him, he just said hey you want to grab some food, I’ll buy. While it may have been a little intimidating because Jesus was pretty well known, in my own life, I can be intentional towards others in the simplest ways. Jesus was a man who wasn’t living for what he wanted, he was living for others. The way he spoke to others, the way he put others first, it made him so appealing to everyone around him. It makes me want to be like Him, to treat others with that honor and plant seeds of truth in their lives. We are able to do this because we have been in the shoes of Zacchaeus before.

God used someone in your life who brought you to freedom, now it’s your turn to take part in your purpose.

The story of Zacchaeus shows a man who was a terrible sinner, one who many thought could never amount to anything, yet Jesus made time for one who probably didn’t deserve it. Sound familiar? That’s my story just like yours, yet in our lives someone came along and gave us the time, extended an invitation, or dragged us to a life changing point. So why is it that we don’t always try to do the same? It seems crazy, and trust me, I haven’t mastered it myself, but that’s alright. Nothing is stopping me or you from starting right now, make people a priority at every moment. God’s purpose for our lives was to reach the world and save the lost, don’t walk away from your purpose. Step into what you were made for and make people a priority in your life.

-Joshua Thomas

Want to check out the message that inspired this post? Check out http://daystargso.com/.

Don’t live in Greensboro but want to experience Daystar Church on a weekly basis? We’re live each week at three service times at http://live.daystargso.com/!

Staying Calm through the Frustration

February 23, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

Frustration is simply the worst. Recently I have noticed a trend in my life and those close around me that as soon as one begins to gain ground and start making their way, opposition immediately decides to push back. It’s disheartening, it prevents the momentum that was started, and it leads to frustration. Sometimes I just want to scream because it feels as if everything is trying to stop me from moving forward. As we grow in leadership and stand up for what we know God wants of us, people, work, and self-doubt creeps in. It makes us frustrated.

Frustration disconnects us from what God knows we can do.

This often causes us as people to run away or feel hopeless. I know this, because I deal with this on a regular basis. I get started moving towards what I think God wants me to do, then someone makes a disrespectful comment, or I find myself in a situation where I thought I was prepared but end up falling. Life is never easy, if anyone tells you otherwise, they’re probably crazy. Moments like this make me want to quit, to give in during the battle. Sometimes God feels distant, like he left me on my own or that maybe he doesn’t even care at all.

The biggest lie the enemy tells us is that we are alone, and God has left us.

I was talking to my sister today as I talked about the frustrations that I face in my life, the biggest encouragement, was that she has the same feelings. That may at first seem a bit strange that I was encouraged by the fact that we both struggle, but it showed me that all of us as humans will struggle. We aren’t perfect, that’s pretty much the basis for everything that happens in the bible. We are fallen, and we need a savior to make us whole. The enemy likes to tell us that we are alone in our struggles and that everyone else has it figured out. When in actuality, we need to come alongside one another and encourage our brothers and sisters because we all struggle. After talking to my sister we were able to encourage each other and speak life into each other. I’m so thankful for my sister and my family, and as believers we should encourage those who are in our spiritual family.

God has a purpose in our time of frustration.

As hard as it may sound, God uses our hardship to grow us and help us rely on him for all that we need. How do I know this, well the book of Romans has a clear message about the conflicts and trials we face. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him and who have been called according to his purpose.” Notice how that verse doesn’t say in some things or in the good times of our lives, it says in all things God works for the good of those who love him. We have been called by God, chosen to accomplish different parts of his vision, and even when we feel alone or like we’re going nowhere, God will use us. When we start looking at hardships through this point of view, it relieves us of frustration and prevents us from sinning in our anger.

When we rely on God for support, encourage fellow believers, and live life viewing hardship as an opportunity, nothing will stop us from building the kingdom of God.

Life will be hard and we may feel like everything is against us, but nothing will get in the way of our relationship with God. The last few verses in Romans 8 capture this idea and set it in stone. Romans 8:37-39 says, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” This verse encouraged me today as I was feeling like I couldn’t make it, like I was failing my vision, yet when we rely on Christ he gives me strength. This verse encouraged me and helped me through my feelings of frustration, giving me peace from my anger, it was what I needed to hear.

I hope that this encourages you, helps you during whatever you may be struggling with. You aren’t alone in this battle, God has put you where you are for a reason. He wants to see you grow and gain wisdom from the hardships you face, nothing will separate you from the love of God.

-Joshua Thomas

Fearing our Dreams

February 16, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

As I was driving to a local coffee shop that I like to work at, I was thinking about what today’s post would be about. This idea popped in, because it is something that I have dealt with and continue to struggle with. Fear, more specifically fear of running after my dreams. One of the scariest questions I’ve ever been asked is, “what do you want to do in life.” I was asked this multiple times in high school and even moving into college. “What are you going to major in, what do you want to do for the rest of your life.” These terrified me, and to some extent still do. Why does is scare me, why does this question affect so many people. From what I’ve found is that when we are asked this question, we immediately think about our hopes and dreams for the future. We get nervous because we think about how difficult it may be to actually reach that dream.

We immediately question ourselves which in turn, makes us believe a lie that we can achieve nothing.

Our dream for our lives is what drives us, this vision that we feel we have been called to. As we think about what it will take to pull off, it becomes this giant mountain that we feel unequipped for. In that statement above, notice how I said it is a lie that we believe, meaning that it isn’t true. God doesn’t give us a vision for something that is impossible, no matter what the odds look like. Nehemiah had a vision from God to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, his dream was to rebuild the city and it became his passion. The road for Nehemiah was not easily laid out, or free from danger. The people that Nehemiah were tired and feared for their lives, and Nehemiah was concerned that his dream was going to fail, that he would never complete what he had set out to do.

Nehemiah came to a point where he could either turn away from his dream, or look to God for his strength and complete what he was called to do.

He chose the right thing to do, trust God and never give up. I think this is true in our lives, we all have dreams, these visions of what we are striving for guide us, drive us, move us towards a higher purpose. There’s nothing more heart wrenching than seeing someone have a vision that God has placed in their life, and walk away from it. We were made to face the fear and attack the lies head on, and learn from the work that it took to persevere.

Perseverance leads to wisdom and strength.

Will it be easy? Nope, as much as I would like to tell you that if you stick with it nothing will drag you down, I would be lying to you. Is it worth it? Absolutely. In my life I have been scared of my dreams, a dream to be in ministry, to prepare the next generation to do even greater things. A dream to do this through me speaking and writing to others, to empower those who feel like giving up. I want to do this because I have wanted to give up, many times I have wanted to take the easy road and walk away from my potential. I still do, but I’m ready to face the hard times. Nehemiah didn’t stand back and take it, he took steps to protect himself and the people he led, and we should do the same.

Protect yourself by living in the word and striving towards a better relationship with Christ.

I’m not perfect at this, but I will fight for the dream that God has given me with all that I’ve got. I encourage you to do the same, even if you feel like your time has passed, I assure you, God will use you no matter what your past is or how old or young you are. I know I won’t stop. I will impact the next generation, I will write books to empower others, and I will speak and teach leaders to be the best they can be.

What will you do?

-Joshua Thomas

Thankfulness

February 9, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / Leave a comment

Last night I was given the honor of preaching a message about prayer to Daystar Church’s Vert student ministry. I was overwhelmed with this opportunity, all in a good way, filled with joy is a good description. I was continuing a series about one simple idea each week, my idea was speak. Essentially I spoke about how when life starts to get really hard, we need to speak to God so he can give us peace. Habakkuk was the book I read from and it boils down to how as humans we only have a small piece to the larger picture that God has for our lives. I won’t spend too much time on what I said last night because I want to talk about another topic, the feeling about giving the message itself. Who knows maybe I’ll write about Habakkuk and prayer in a book someday.

The process leading up to me speaking was filled with guidance from my mentors and advice from those close around me in my life. These people gave me powerful encouragement and supported me, and after giving the message, I was filled with thankfulness. Thankful for the support and advice from my friends and mentors. Thankful for my family who have and always will believe in me and help me in my passions. Thankful for my Savior and his giving me the strength to even stand on the stage and say the words at all. My spirit is filled with gratitude.

Thankfulness, or gratitude, is letting others know you see how they’ve helped you.

I’ve noticed while being a leader in different areas, and observing greater leaders who have guided me, when you step away from pride and give others the credit where it is due, your influence and validity is increased. There has never been an effective leader who believes they have done everything by themselves. Proverbs 11:2 says, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.” No one will follow someone who believes they can do everything on their own, a good leader recognizes they are weak alone and that true strength comes from their team and from our creator.

Pride causes destruction, but gratitude creates a strong culture.

The best part about gratitude and thankfulness is that it is simple. That definition I used above was what we taught the Elementary in Daystar Kids this past November. The definition was made simple and easy to understand and apply, even for a child. So why then is it hard as an adult in ministry or in our daily lives? It is because we fear losing the glory, the attention that can come from the eyes of onlookers. This is a lie that the enemy has convinced us of to prevent us from stepping into leadership in every aspect of our lives. Every leader has a team, and as believers we have a creator who has given us the skills in the first place. We were created to do God’s vision for our lives, we were made to lead his people into the kingdom. Without him, we can do nothing. When we recognize what he has done and give the glory back to him, we are able to step into our potential.

Thankfulness gives honor to those around us, and is an act of worship to our Father in heaven.

To bring this to a closing, I want to let everyone know how thankful I am for those who have helped me get to the place where I am today. If I went through life isolated, I would never have a passion or a purpose, I would be absolutely unable to lead. So today I am reflecting on that fact, and plan to show my gratitude in every area of my life. I encourage you to think of all the people who have been in your life and strengthened your character. Remember your creator who gives you your passions and gifts, remember how much he has moved in your life. Be thankful.

-Joshua Thomas

p.s. I want to thank you as well, all of you who take time to read my thoughts here on the blog. It’s encouraging to know that people care and what to know what I’ve been learning. You guys are the best!

21 Days of Prayer and the Leadership of Joshua

January 26, 2015January 26, 2015 / Joshua Thomas / 1 Comment

As I sit in a coffee shop here in town, I have been reflecting over the past twenty-one days of prayer that just wrapped up at Daystar Church. It has been an incredible three weeks, filled with prayer and extended time in my mornings to read the word and study it. There’s something refreshing about being able to start one’s day off in the word, and actively pursuing Christ throughout my day. At the end of these three weeks, Daystar held its’ revival over three nights. This was a time filled with worship, teaching, and reflection over where we as the church are headed. It was empowering and encouraging to stand there with Daystars five locations, Cross-point Church, and Iglesia International, all coming together in worship. Needless to say this was an incredible time.

A habit of mine, typically, is to choose a book of the bible that I feel God wants me to spend time in and reflect on it during the twenty-one days. The book that I studied during this time was the book of Joshua (pretty good name of a book if I do say so myself). I love the book of Joshua because it encompasses the meaning of what a true leader is, and how his character should reflect the heart of Christ. Joshua was one of Moses’ close friend and follower, one who stood on the word of God. Basically he got it, he understood the power of Christ and did all that he could to best serve God and his people. He wasn’t born with supernatural bravery when he was called to lead the people into the Promised Land after the death of Moses, he trusted in God. As I was reading over his book, a few ideas popped out to me and I think it is important to share for people striving to be a leader that God has called us to be.

God Is Always There In Our Time Of Need.

Joshua was handed the responsibility of leading all of the Israelites into the Promised Land, this was a big duty and he felt overwhelmed, at first. Joshua was fearful of failing in his leadership, but every time he questioned his abilities, God immediately tells him to not be afraid or discouraged, because God said he would never leave him. It’s easy when in a leadership position to fear failure and question our ability, but God tells us that as we pursue him, he will pursue us. We need to trust him because he is the place where we will find the strength to lead.

God Will Use You If You Are Willing to Give Everything To Him.

In the city of Jericho, Rahab, who was a prostitute, took two spies sent by Joshua and protected them from the city guards. Because of her faithfulness and changing of her heart, not only was she saved when the city fell, but her entire family. Rahab changed her ways, and became a part of the lineage of Christ. Had Rahab never given up her past, she would have perished like the others in Jericho, and never live into God’s calling on her life. In our own lives, it’s easy to hold on to the sin of our past and refuse to let go, but if we don’t, we will never live into our full potential.

Be Wise About Who You Build Your Team With.

After Joshua and the people conquer to city of Jericho, and God tells the people to not rebuild the city or their people in the fallen city or they would fail in their next battle. The people listen to this warning accept for one man named Achan. In their next battle, many Israelites perished and they failed to take the city. Joshua was angered by the dissention that had occurred with those he was leading. The actions of one man caused failure. Achan confessed to his actions, but by then it was too late, the blood was already spilled. He was stoned for his actions due to the law. Now that doesn’t mean if someone makes a mistake they should be stoned, the message here is that in our team, we should choose people who are sold out for the same vision that you cast. If not, your ministry can be drastically affected and end up leading to nothing. Build a team that is sold out for the mission and let go of the people who are not passionate about the mission.

When We Fail, Don’t Lose Hope.

Joshua, like many leaders, became discouraged after this failure among his people. God speaks to him again and tells him to not be discouraged, but to learn from the mistakes and press on. We will all fail at some point in our lives, as leaders it can be easy to want to quit after things get tough, but don’t quit! God will use our failure and turn it into something beautiful. Wise leaders learn from mistakes, make the changes to be more effective, and finish the race.

And finally…

Your Life Is A Monument To God’s Power.

Over and over, Joshua is given victory over his enemies, and after every triumph, creates a monument to show God’s power. As a leader, your life is being looked at by everyone, and it can either reflect the power of God or turn others away. We need to be careful on how we use our influence and ask ourselves the reason behind our actions. Is it to bring glory to God, or to make me look good? Joshua took every opportunity to show others that God was in control and that He was the one giving him strength. Your life reflects if you are finding your power in God, or from yourself.

I hope you can take these ideas and apply them to your ministry. You are a leader, whether you see it or not, you have influence in someone’s life. Follow the example of Joshua and find your strength in Christ.

Thanks for reading, and as always, stay awesome.

-Joshua Thomas