“Then Jesus turned to the Jews who had claimed to believe in him. “If you stick with this, living out what I tell you, you are my disciples for sure. Then you will experience for yourselves the truth, and the truth will free you.” John 8:31 The Message

When you are living out the “terms” of following Jesus .. belonging to Him .. making Him the foundation of your whole life .. you’ll be His disciple. It means you’ve accepted His invitation to “walk with Me, work with Me, and watch how I do it”. There will be internal conflicts. The “old” parts of you will want to set your own terms or add balance. The world around you wants you on its terms as well. Jesus has made it very clear what being His disciple means: you are going to be hated by the “world” you live in. Why? Because they hated him first and now you are proclaiming that Christ is the meaning of your life. We too often try to make peace with this world instead of living and working with the indwelling peace of Christ. Being His disciple is about living on God’s terms: seeking His heart .. being available for His purposes .. and learning to love His life living in you. God said he would “sell off the whole world to get you back .. trade the creation just for you”. That means He’s placed a great price on your life. It means you begin to love people with the same image … and sometimes they can be the most irritable and exhausting people to be around .. just like you were when Jesus picked you. Being His disciple means you are declaring that He sets the terms of living. Don’t worry … He’s patient with you. He knows it’s going to take some time for you to be comfortable letting Him set the terms. They are never what you expect. They are far better and overwhelmingly filled with grace. You’ll see … it only takes a moment …

“If you lived on the world’s terms, the world would love you as one of its own. But since I picked you to live on God’s terms and no longer on the world’s terms, the world is going to hate you.” John 15:19 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent to Disciples following the Holy Discipler and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“He’ll show us the way he works so we can live the way we’re made.” Isaiah 2:3 The Message

When you belong to Jesus your life becomes the living witness of God’s redeeming work. He works on all those places in you that feel like nothing. He pours out His grace extravagantly .. lavishly .. and without limit on all those places in you that feel rejected .. forgotten .. or all alone. It takes God a long time to harvest the fruit of His acceptance into your everyday identity. You can’t claim it for yourself. It’s what Jesus brings into your life when He moves in. He lived every minute and moment of his life on earth completely confident in the Father’s acceptance. The margins of his life were not exhausted or crowded. There was time for the Father even when the needs were endless. The same life he lived is the same life he is making to live in you. We often shrink from telling others of the “night-and-day difference that Christ has made in our lives because we are so conscious of our own imperfections that we feel disqualified. That’s hardly the case with the Lord. He wants you to fully know how he works and with what great price and power he has made your life to represent Him. When you belong to Jesus your life is no longer your own to live as you please. The world is relentless in trying to confuse you about how much you can live for Christ. It will try to convince you that you only need to do your best because God doesn’t expect anything more. What a lie! God has poured out the life of His Son for you to live completely in you and that is always greater than your best. Whatever your day holds … the Lord longs for you to live in His care and available for His concerns. And those concerns will involve nothing-scarred hearts and rejected-scarred lives. And you are His choice to send in with the message of your life alive in Christ. It is a high calling and uncomfortably priestly work. You may not be used to it … but were made for it. Today in Christ … it only takes a moment ..,

“But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you — from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.” 1 Peter 2:9-10 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Night and Day Different Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!” Romans 8:11 The Message

When you made the trade you traded your old life for a new life in Christ. There wasn’t anything fair about the trade .. except that God helped you to see that He really wanted to make the trade with you. He met you on your side of the equation .. explained what He was offering .. and never complained once about what you were bringing to the trade. What you could never have imagined or realized was what life becomes when the Lord lives and breathes in you. You realize after the fact that the life you traded away was a dead life. Sure .. you had some good times .. a few good memories .. but it was still a dead life. The best you could ever do was wear a disguise that looked like you were living. And God patiently pursued you through all of your disguises to offer you His authentic original design for your life in Christ. He did it because He wanted you to breathe the air of grace. And His rules are simple: Start living the life that Christ wants to live through you. That life will begin to bear “a strong family likeness to Jesus and freedom from everything unlike him”. You may find some old disguises hiding in the back room of your heart but Jesus will help you throw them out. You might even find yourself trying one on but you’ll discover it doesn’t fit any longer. You won’t be able to breathe in it. In Christ .. you make a permanent trade .. the best one you’ll ever receive .. the one trade that only takes a moment. God thinks you’re worth it …

“My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You’re deeply rooted in him. You’re well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Living and Breathing Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. He lets me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters. He renews my life; He leads me along the right paths for His name’s sake. Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff — they comfort me.” Psalm 23:1-4 Holman Christian Standard

The same Shepherd who watched over a future king wants to be the same Shepherd in your life. We aren’t used to living an everyday life of trusting the Lord for every concern. We want to .. but .. the half-truths of this broken world lead us to trust the Lord and ourselves in case He fails to provide. Green pastures .. quiet waters .. and right paths seem ancient but they are the images we long for during the dark times of uncertainty. And just like David it doesn’t happen instantly. We learn in the fearful moments that Jesus is our Chief Shepherd who will not abandon us. He’ll give us the strength we need and the peace to persevere. In the face of lacking everything He’ll be your comfort. And He knows it is hard to let go and trust in His path for your life. But the Lord is going to compete against the glitter and false promises of this world. He has promised to guide you along right paths. You can trust Him .. just like David. He is the same Shepherd no matter what form the lions and bears take in your life. Whatever you are facing today let David teach you: ” The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.” He would say this in the fields .. in a cave .. on the run .. and on the throne. And He was pointing us to Jesus who has promised to never let go of your life .. not even for a moment. And for that to be true in your life .. it only takes a moment …

“David said, “I’ve been a shepherd, tending sheep for my father. Whenever a lion or bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I’d go after it, knock it down, and rescue the lamb. If it turned on me, I’d grab it by the throat, wring its neck, and kill it. Lion or bear, it made no difference — I killed it. And I’ll do the same to this Philistine pig who is taunting the troops of God-Alive. God, who delivered me from the teeth of the lion and the claws of the bear, will deliver me from this Philistine.” 1 Samuel 17:34-37 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F Pavement Walking Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 The Message

He was overlooked and without a resume. He wasn’t qualified to lead an army of anything at first glance. There wasn’t anything about him that stood out. There wasn’t anything about him .. but God was looking at his heart. And just like David .. God is looking at your heart. Uncertainty? Insecurity? Longing? Bruises? Fear? Room for Him to work? The Gospel of Jesus Christ is about possession not performance. It’s not about what you’ve done or will do. It’s about the Lord moving in and taking possession not by force but by grace. And He doesn’t just move in indiscriminately. He knows your heart’s history. He knows what has gone into shaping you from the outside in and inside out. Jesus said that real heart disease is not what you put in your life but what comes out of your heart. The wonder of it all is that God sees all the junk .. all the broken parts .. all the self-protection .. and all the self-preserving and sees what no one else sees. He sees your heart and sends His Son to reclaim .. redeem .. and restore what has been damaged and proclaimed beyond salvage by this world. Jesus hasn’t missed or unheard one heartbeat of your life. He’s the One who opens your heart to see. How strange that the Lord opens your heart to see and not your eyes. Maybe it’s because He created you to see .. to know .. to believe .. and to be loved by Him through your heart first. And just like David .. He sees you when no else does .. and calls you by name when no one is looking in your direction. It only takes a moment …

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the glorious riches of His inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power to us who believe, according to the working of His vast strength.” Ephesians 1:18-19 Holman Christian Standard

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to David’s Family Members following Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“Christ made a single sacrifice for sins, and that was it! Then he sat down right beside God and waited for his enemies to cave in. It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people.” Hebrews 10:13-14 The Message

One single moment .. on a common humiliating cross .. barely recognized in the day .. and your life has been changed because of that gift. He was mocked as “King of the Jews” and became the Redeeming Reigning King of Eterity. And your life was one of the battles He fought and won. Jesus fought the real battle for your life on that cross. He defeated the power of sin in your life .. the power that paralyzed you .. the power that defeated you time and time again. You’ve sworn .. promised .. and pleaded for God to deliver you .. and He did in a single moment. And then .. He took his grace and truth secured seat with God. And now Christ reigns over your life and over a defeated-fallen-redeemed world. He reigns over government and even they bend to His will. And when it comes to your life: A Perfect sacrifice made your imperfect life perfect in the Father’s eyes. He doesn’t see the blemishes you see. He doesn’t recall your broken promises. He doesn’t remember one sin about you. Christ’s sacrifice covered you one time for all time. The ground has been cleared. You are free in His care to love and serve everyone today because Christ reigns. His life has unsnared you from all those traps around your life. You are free to be All that Christ desires to be in you. When Christ is the foundation to all of your priorities .. nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort. Christ reigns and has the Final Word over your life. What about today? Today only takes a moment …

“With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort.” 1 Corinthians 15:56 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Imperfect Saints following Jesus and friends of Priority One. Ken@priorityone.org

“So let me say it again, this truth: It’s better for you that I leave. If I don’t leave, the Friend won’t come. But if I go, I’ll send him to you.” John 16:7 The Message

If Jesus remained on earth after his resurrection, your faith would never develop. Your trust would not deepen. Your life in Christ would not be whole in the hope of seeing Him again. When He left, the Holy Spirit arrived in your life. For some it is rather dramatic .. life altering. For others it is quieter .. a deeper reality of Christ’s indwelling life. In both lives the Holy Spirit reminds you over and over that you are not alone. His mission and ministry is to make real in you all that Christ has done for you. He reminds you that you are whole in Christ when all you see or feel are heart-shattered and heart-broken parts. He reminds you that you’re loved with an everlasting love .. an indefatigable love .. and an indwelling love. He reminds you that nothing can separate you from the love of Christ. He reminds you because He knows that you are susceptible to forgetting and shaping God through you circumstances. Leaving was Christ’s gift to becoming more real in your life than you could ever imagine. Sometimes He seems distant .. but He isn’t. Sometimes the mere fact of living in this fallen and broken world leaves you feeling abandoned .. but you aren’t. Sometimes the path ahead is unclear or clouded .. but His grip holds you securely. His leaving is the soil for your trust and obedience. In His place is grace. In His place is His word. In His place is the Friend .. the Counselor .. and the One who comes alongside to guide into all truth. The Holy Spirit takes words like: justified .. sanctified .. and righteousness and shapes them into the everyday patterns of your life so that people see Jesus in you. He left so that your faith might be made real. He left so you would follow and seek Him daily. It only takes a moment …

“I will not leave you orphaned. .. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you.” John 14:28, 25-26 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Perfectly Shaped Saints following Jesus and friends of Priority One. (ken@priorityone.org)

I pray for them. I not praying for the God-rejecting world, but for those you gave me. For they are yours by right. Everything mine is yours, and yours mine. And my life is on display in them. For I am no longer going to be visible in the world; They’ll continue in the world while I return to you. Holy Father, guard them as they pursue this life that you conferred as a gift through me, so they can be one heart and mind.” John 17:9-11 The Message

Jesus prayed that your life would be “completely available” for God’s truth-consecrated-mission through you. He prayed that His life would be “on display” in you. He prayed that you would live in the knowledge that you were protected from the Evil One. And finally .. He prayed that you would live with “one heart and mind” with other completely-available-truth-conscecrated-mission-sent followers of His Name. And His prayer for you was a gift. He prayed it for you even though there are times and moments when you are not even interested in being completely available. He prayed for you because it was His gift to give you something you could never repay. Everything about His life is this gift in you. If you will let it .. If you will listen .. If you will quiet your heart and spirit .. you can hear His words being prayed with your name attached. How could He pray a prayer that would continue for over 2000 years? He prayed that His life would be on display in you. Why did He choose you? So that His life could be displayed in you. You don’t have to worry about the mission. He’s prayed that you would be truth-consecrated by His word .. set apart for His mission .. and sent into the world displaying Christ’s life. Don’t let the world define you. Jesus is the Only One authorized to define your life .. and it took His life to do it. Why did He choose you? Because He did … and He loved praying for you. It’s His gift .. and it only takes a moment …

“I’m not asking that you take them out of the world but that you guard them from the Evil One. They are no more defined by the world than I am defined by the world. Make them holy — consecrated — with truth; Your word is consecrating truth. In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world. I’m consecrating myself for their sakes so they’ll be truth-consecrated in their mission.” John 17:15-19 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Completely Available Followers of Jesus Christ and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org) Thanks to the Major for his “completely available” life in Christ. Thank you Lord for putting your life on display through him. What a gift You really are in this messed up world!

“Out of sheer generosity he put us in right standing with himself. A pure gift. He got us out of the mess we’re in and restored us to where he always wanted us to be. And he did it by means of Jesus Christ.” Romans 3:24 The Message

You can’t repay it. What God offers you is a gift .. free for the taking. Except taking isn’t what it feels like. It feels more like you are receiving something incomprehensibly greater than what you are giving up. Except you aren’t giving up anything . You’ll change in ways you cannot fathom. You’ll wrestle with things you thought were long ago forgotten or packed away in your mind’s closet. You’ll find yourself wondering if “it” can really be that free of gift. There must be strings. There must be some hidden agenda. There must be conditions that let you keep up your end of the “bargain”. And slowly this gift of sovereign life begins to move throughout your whole life. You discover a strength you’ve never had. You discover yourself actually wanting the best for others at the expense of yourself. You discover that forgiveness is real and in itself a treasure to share with others. God never intends for you to spend one second of your life trying to repay Him for the gift of His Son. It is the pure gift of God’s “sheer generosity” of his love for you. Why did He choose you? You can only shake your head and say thanks over and over. But He has left behind a secret currency for you to spend extravagantly. It’s called .. Thankfulness. You spend it every time you share The Gift with the wide-eyed expectation that that person or persons might let go of their mess and accept The Gift in its place. And you smile and maybe even laugh at the thought that God used you to share such a Gift. Why did He choose you? Because He wanted out of pure love to make you terminally infectious with the gift of grace. Why did He choose you? Because it only takes a moment …

“If death got the upper hand through one man’s wrongdoing, can you imagine the breathtaking recovery life makes, sovereign life, in those who grasp with both hands this wildly extravagant life-gift, this grand setting-everything-right, that the one man Jesus Christ provides? Romans 5:17 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to God’s Wide-Eyed Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)

“I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:13 Holman Christian Standard

Why do we need to know and be reminded that we have eternal life through Jesus Christ? Because it reminds us that our true lives .. our true selves are found in Christ. We are prone to forget .. to drift .. and relegate Him to the last things instead of the first things. It’s not what you want to do for Him .. It’s what Christ wants to do through you. When you say you believe in the name of the Son of God you are saying that His life is the “everything” you want in your life. That often collides with “everything” you’re trying to hold on to or grab hold of. Christ’s life is so much more than we can ever comprehend. God made it very easy once when He said to know Him was: “to do justice .. love mercy .. and walk humbly with your God.” That seems so easy and yet we fail to love justice everyday. We see it all around us when someone is ignored .. rejected .. or passed over. It can be so inconvenient and interrupt your plans. We fail to be merciful in so many ways. Every day there are men and women stumbling around us trying to make life work with so many broken pieces. How did Jesus treat you when you encountered Him with all your broken parts? That’s all He’s asking you to do. It can be so inconvenient and interrupt your plans. We often make humility something to learn when we fail rather than an abiding characteristic of everyday living. Jesus said if you would “keep company with Me, you would learn to live freely and lightly”. Real humility is about keeping company with Jesus. That can be difficult with so many companies vying for your loyalties. It can be so inconvenient and interrupt your plans. Jesus didn’t make life with Him complicated. The lack of His presence is often preceded by the lack of practicing His presence. It doesn’t matter if you’re washing pots and pans like Brother Lawrence .. managing people .. chasing children .. meeting deadlines .. or just being faithful where God has you at this moment. It only takes a moment …

“As we keep his commands, we live deeply in him, and he lives in us. And this is how we experience his deep and abiding presence in us: by the Spirit he gave us.” 1 John 3:24 The Message

Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Pots-and-Pans Scrubbers .. Toddler-chasers .. and Name-Believing Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)