Katy and I were talking to God about what our next blog was going to be on the subject of the “Judgement Seat of Christ,” and we were moved to share a message about “the secret of success.” For us, the concept of success used to be focusing on our finances, friendships, and family relationships. We viewed whether we were victorious by the end result rather than by the foundation. 

The other day,  we were heading home around 9:00 in the evening when we came upon a vehicle that was stopped part of the way into an intersection. Following our investigation,  we found a young man hunched over the steering wheel of his vehicle and surmised that he was extremely intoxicated and in rough shape. We reached out to the authorities and left the seen with deep sadness in our hearts for the situation we had just witnessed. Katy and I were glad that no one was injured, but sad for the condition we found the driver in. We both have had times in our own live’s where we attempted to escape life’s circumstances by different means and it wasn’t until we began to hear the good news of how much our Father (God) loves us unconditionally that we began to experience the freedom we have in Christ. 

We have heard that some say that Katy and I are “against the Church”.  Nothing could be farther from the truth. The church is a body of believers, not institutions, denominations, or buildings. We are passionate about reaching believers and unbelievers alike with the too good to be true news that changes live’s and sets people free. Whether you struggle with fear, anxiety, worry, alcohol, food, drugs, or anything else and your desire is to live with indescribable peace and joy we completely believe the answer lies in Jesus, our Father, the Holy Spirit, and the New Covenant we live in. Katy and I believe that what often hinders us in life is the message we hear because “It is clear then that faith’s source is found in the content of the message heard; the message is Christ.” (Romans 10:17)

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”(Proverbs 4:23) What are we gaurding our heart with? Life and death are found in the words that we speak. Encouraging words of life and hope tend to give us the ability to make changes in our live’s. The change doesn’t happen because of positive mental attitudes. It happens because, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it for death or life.”(Proverbs 18:21) One of the common themes in our blogs lately has been feeding off the tree of life vs the knowledge of good and evil. In the garden when the serpent deceived Adam and Eve it was through words. He told them if they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they would be more like God. Before they ever ate the fruit the words that entered their hearts made way for doubt and fear which determined the course of their live’s. Every day, we are all faced with several opportunities to guard our hearts. So often we let issues that come forth from years of lies being poured into us from our past decide for us how we are going to guard our hearts now.

The more we hear and take in messages of Christ’s love manifested in all of us from the foundation of the world, the more those seeds take root. We begin to feel free and begin to trust that Christ is the heart of our Father in heaven. We don’t need to strive to be pleasing to God. We were born out of His love for us and we are always pleasing to our Father. We don’t need to work for success, we were born successful the moment Jesus was resurrected. 

The one thing that separates us from victory is the belief that we need to do something to live up to the standards we perceive have been laid out for us. Just as our upcoming book is titled “Who told you that?” The same question lives and breathes in many of the situations we find ourselves in, as we live our life today. Who told you that you need to look like this or act like that? The deception and doubt didn’t happen when Adam and Eve ate from the wrong tree, the seed was planted when their  hearts were invaded by the lie that they needed to do something to be more like God. Just like Adam and Eve, we have all been born out of His love and created in His perfection. 

The Apostle Paul who was well versed in the law, persecuted Christian’s until He met Jesus, was introduced to the Father, and filled with the Holy Spirit. Paul lived in the darkness of a desire to live and serve a God he didn’t know. When He met the love of God his eyes were cleared by a light so powerful in love the veil (scales) covering his eyes fell off and he was able to see. (See Acts 9) 

His story is amazing but no more amazing than anyone else’s personal story of when the Love of God has overtaken them. This doesn’t happen by our works, it happens every time we hear how wonderfully we are made an how unconditional God’s love is for us.  We then begin to understand how God’s favor and kindness is so great that we begin to realize we were born perfect! 

Paul wrote about how those under legalism continued to attack him and the others who were proclaiming the too good to be true news of Jesus throughout the many epistles he authored. “Some disguised Jewish “brothers” secretly sneaked in on us to spy out whether he was circumcised or not! Our liberty in Christ offended them; these spies had one agenda; to enslave us to their legalistic bondage! We want you to know that we are sold out to keep the Gospel undiluted for your sakes; had we compromised the message ever so slightly to accommodate their opinion, the whole Gentile world would have felt cheated! We see such a future for the pure gospel in you.” (Galatians 2:4-5) 

The secret to success is in the message we hear. Our freedom is in Jesus!

The veil was torn when Jesus said “it is finished”.  All the law, the psalms and the prophets were fulfilled through Him. From the foundation of the world we were seen in Christ Jesus. As we turn back to the origin (Jesus) of who we were created to be we behold His image. The best news in the world is found in Christ Jesus. We once were blinded by darkness but now His love is in every cell of our being. We are no longer slaves, we are born free to walk out the life God gave us when he spoke the earth into being. In Jeremiah 1, God tells us that before we were ever formed in our mothers womb He knew us. Every detail of our life He knows. We can simply be, and know that in that being we have all been fearfully and wonderfully made.

Father thank you that we continue to see ourselves in the pure light that you see us in. Thank you that the trinity is alive in every cell of our being and we are already successful. Thank you that we can guard our hearts in that truth and begin to see everything change in our hearts about what we believe about ourselves. Thank you that just like Paul the moment darkness is filled with your light it can no longer be considered darkness. In all things you created us good and we praise you and thank you that we continue to see ourselves in that truth! 

Be blessed by the Light of His Love!

Kurt and Katy