Glory to God... Thoughts from the fight

My whole training period and into the fight I really have been praying and trying to be focused on God being glorified through it all, not solely having my focus be the activity at hand.

"but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31

As I performed the Sealing of the Ring, I was praying Isaiah, that I was "waiting on the Lord" and that I would "fight and not grow faint". God was totally with me before, during and after the fight. I was talking to a fighter, (before my fight) who was there watching the fights and when he found out it was my first fight he said, "I have one piece of advice. As soon as you hit the ring you will get nervous as hell. Just breath deep, relax, move and get through the first two rounds and your nerves will calm." I told him, "I know it sounds crazy, but I am not nervous at all." and he replied, "you will as soon as you hit the ring". The crazy thing is, I never felt nervous; now that doesn't mean I wasn't having the effects of nerves (as my kicks looked horrible) but I never got the feeling of nervousness that makes you freeze up or forget your training. I totally know that I should have, and that was the Holy Spirit being with me.

"So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing." 1 Cor 9:26

While I do the running portion of my training, I always want to give up early, and this is what I say to myself to keep going, "this is round 3, and there are still two more to go"... or "while I'm doing this the other guy isn't" and that's what drives me on to finish. So, in the third round when I was doing everything I could to keep knee striking the Lord brought back to my mind this thought from my training, "this is the 7th kilometer and I still have 2 more kilometers to go, and I ain't freagin' givin' up right now!" and I kept on knee striking. So when the ref gave him the 8-count I was seriously praying the whole time "Lord, please let the ref call the fight, because I cannot do one more knee strike" and when the ref waved his hands, I knew God had answered my prayer. It was SO hard, I'm not going to say it was the hardest thing I have ever done, but... it was SO hard. So I totally know that God gave me the favor of the win. It was not on my strength.

"We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ." 1 Col 1:28

After the fight that is what I told EVERYONE, that God/Jesus had given me the strength and gave me the blessing of the win. I was honest with people that talked to me and told them that I felt I couldn't do another knee strike and that God had answered my prayer and gave me the favor of the win. After the fight everybody at the stadium wanted to talk to me because no one thought I would win, and according to Lisa the whole stadium got into our fight. One lady after the fight came up to me and said "You were meditating in there weren't you" (she was refering to the sealing of the ring and Wai Kru) I said, "Nope, I was praying to God that I would fight and not grow faint" and she said, "but you were also meditating right?" I said "MEDITATING on JESUS baby!" and she got a sort of perplexed look and that was the end of it. But I totally felt God's presence during it all.

Its like that quote from Chariots of Fire "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure."...

thats the way I felt during my training and during the fight. While I fought I felt His pleasure.

"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks." John 4:23

After I won, I didn't have it left in me to cry, but I felt like I had to cry, because I was so overwhelmed. Its not that I didn't think I could win, but I didn't come into the fight with the expectation that I would surely win. So when I did win, knowing I felt like I was completely exhausted, all I could do was praise God for His goodness and thank Him for the gift of the win, and the gift of feeling His loving pleasure for what I was doing. Its why I want to train and fight again. I want to continually feel His pleasure as I fulfill this one small part of my purpose. Its the same way I feel when I snowboard... It literally is (one of) my form(s) of worship.

"Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!" 1 Cor 9:24

Finally, on the way home I was really clearly hearing the Holy Spirit, and I questioned, "Why did it take so long for You to answer my prayer (of giving me the win)?" and I heard the answer "because I answered your prayer only after you had fought with ALL your strength. I know your heart and if you had given up early you would not have won." Wow... Thank you Lord.

Please... Go

There are many who God is calling right now to GO. Please... Go.

These people are so trapped, and searching. Do not let ANYTHING get in the way. Not the timing... there will never be the "right" time; not the money... there will never be "enough" money; not your fear... God is greater than anything you fear; not your comfort... if you live your life for comfort now, woe to you when you meet the Master; Not for relationships that you love... If you hold tight to them your hand cannot be open to new relationships, because God wants to give you more; not because you feel inadequate... truly there is nothing great or mighty about us, the only thing we can boast in is Christ in us. We are weak, but He is strong. He works through those who are not great and wise, but those who are weak and humble.

I am overwhelmed with grief for those that our trapped in darkness, pain, oppression, sin. The weight of which cannot be bore alone. People everywhere are dying each day, dying to the weight of the loneliness. Looking for the answer... Searching for freedom and love. We have the Message... We have the Answer... There is Truth!

Please... obey... Please... GO! God is greater than anything holding you back.

All Satan wants you to do is... WAIT. He doesn't need to convince you of anything else except to... WAIT. Until its more convenient, until the timing is better, until... until... Don't be deceived! You have the Message of Love, the Message of Reconciliation, the Message that sets people FREE!

Not with anger, bitterness or pride, but with grief in my heart I tell you that we know many people who have received the call, who feel that they have been told to GO, and they have not said "no" but merely have kept putting it off, never putting rubber to road by setting the date and making the sacrifice to hold to that commitment. Don't let this be you too. I plead with you on behalf of the people here who are internally screaming for help...

We did not receive what we needed until we set a date AND bought the plane tickets... only then, AFTER we took the BIG step of faith, did EVERYTHING fall into place. Take the step of faith. You know who you are, you know those who I am talking to. Don't keep asking for more confirmation. When God gives you the call to Go, if you aren't sure, then everything else should be on hold until you seek him in fasting prayer to know for sure, and when you know... GO!

We are praying for YOU! Honestly, I am praying with anguish for you to be set free from everything holding you back.

Set the date, buy the ticket... Go.

Communicate with me if you aren't sure what to do, if you are scared. I am here for you. I love you.

Knowledge vs. Belief

Knowledge IS NOT the same as Belief

Although that may sound silly, there are many things that I know to be true, but I don't really believe. For example,

I know that not brushing my teeth causes tooth decay, but if I really believed that I would carry around a tooth brush and brush after every meal.

I know that people who acheive very high levels of success write out their goal(s) and carry them in their wallet and read them daily, yet I don't really believe it because I have yet to do it. (Thinking of these things is convicting me though :))

People that smoke cigarrettes know that they lead to all kinds of diseases, yet most don't really believe it otherwise they would quit.

Here is the point knowledge only points to your agreement about something. Your level of belief is shown by the amount of action/will displayed in relation to that something.

This is very disturbing when many in America claim a belief in Jesus Christ when really they just have a knowledge of Jesus Christ. I am not talking about earning your salvation or works based salvation. I am talking about the action or fruit that is always associated with a real belief in Jesus Christ. As in my previous post, LeCrea speaks in his song "If He's truly raised to life, than this news should change your life!

For a very real example of this in God's Word look at Mark 1:34

"and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was."

Now it is very clear that the demons had a knowledge of who Jesus was, but considering it is a demon, he obviously does not believe in Jesus.

For those that are reading this that may have come to a realization that you do have a knowledge of Jesus, but you do not see any action/will that displays to you a real belief in Him; you have just discovered the most important thing in your life. I love you and truly want to talk to you.

For those that are reading this who are displaying the fruits of belief in Christ we are obligated to help wisely guide others who have been decieved.

Creative God

Two weeks ago I was in Yellowstone National Park. I had the unbelievable opportunity to worship and pray in the wondrous beauty of God's creation. As I sat on a fallen tree and looked down at the forest floor, I could identify literally hundreds of colors in this small 5'x5' area.

The Holy Spirit reminded me. All Creativity comes from God. HE is the source. Often I think of the cool things I have made or done and I was just struck with the fact that he put those ideas in my head; and, everything we create is a mere imitation of what The Creator has already done. These thoughts brought up a few new points that I had not considered previously:

If we claim to worship this completely creative God, why do we get stuck in just a few methods of worshiping Him, and defend them as if they were sacred? Wouldn't this God who is the Creator and source of all creativity recognize these offerings of creative worship that we bring?

God declares that all creation waits for the day when it will be renewed to its full glory. This means that God has even more creativity stored up for the beauty of this earth. So much glory and creativity we can scarcely imagine how glorious it will be.

Since God is the source of all creativity. If we pray for God to pour out a tiny amount of His creativity on us, we could create completely unique ways of telling His story and worshiping Him. All for the glory of God.

In what ways are you tapping into God's creative potential for His glory?

Oh Hebrews... [Guest Post by Corbett Cutts]

Guest post by my good friend and brother in Christ, Corbett Cutts.

""'We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again.'" (Hebrews 5:11-12).

WOW! Nobody ever said the author of Hebrews was gentle with his words - but what truth those words hold.

I've read that passage 4 times in the past 24 hours and it wasn't because I didn't understand it or because I was falling asleep (usually why i reread passages) - but because each time i read it, it humbles me more than words can express. For the past twenty nine years I have associated myself in some way, shape or form with Christ. At times, I was seeking Him with all of my being; and other times, God wasn't even on the back burner...He wasn't on the stove or even the kitchen. Yet, I still knew who He is and what He offers. But the question remains - in those (nearly) three decades, where was my spiritual maturity? I am still a BABE in both my understanding of and my trust (faith) in Christ? Here I am professing my lifelong love for Christ and I'm not sure I can name all the books of the Bible..............

The point is that the author of Hebrews has me pegged. By now, i should be leading people spiritually. But I'm not, I'm scared and unprepared and it's a very sad truth. I know I lack the cranial capacity to know God fully and I am at His will for Him to reveal Himself to me in Scripture and His creation to know Him more. My epistemology is not to know all of God's being - that would be impossible. But my focus should be on using the tools He has provided me to shape my ethos.

God - my prayer is that this new season in my life will bring greater maturity and understanding of You. Not for my own edification, but so that I can be a more effective resource for you in transforming lives and helping those that are seeking You open their hearts to meet and receive You."

This is so applicable to us all. Thank you for sharing brother.

The Heart of Worship

I believe that if you asked God, what one thing do you want most of me, He would say "Give me your heart, just give me your heart." Out of the heart flows everything else. All of our thoughts, actions, passions, desires, attitudes flow out of our heart. God wants it all. He wants our whole LIFE, not just certain parts of it.

I had the awesome opportunity to preach with Dusty last week on this topic at Connections, you can download that 30min message HERE

The Battle Rages On

We are engaged in a VERY REAL BATTLE.

Now I know that this is probably not an epiphany to most, but hang with me here, because I think the Holy Spirit was speaking to me...

It struck me that if we are engaged in an active, literal, battle, what should every action look like? Imagine if this was a physical battle (i.e. we are living in a war zone with enemy troops all around us) If you look at it from this military stand point, wouldn't our lives be different? I think if we look at our lives in this light we would demonstrate some of these characteristics in every aspect of our lives:

- we would be highly aware (rarely get complacent)
- Interactions with our officers/enlistees (read church leaders/volunteers or followers of Christ) and with our opponent (Satan and those following his influence) would be very strategic
- Every action would be completed with urgency
- Every opportunity would be considered an opportunity to either advance or be advanced upon

We who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ (our General) need to first gain the awareness to look at EVERY interaction with a person as an opportunity to either advance the kingdom, or continue in the status quo. And let me break this out here because I think this is REALLY IMPORTANT...

Maintaining the status quo with someone who is either:
- not a follower of Christ (a lost soul),
- a back-slidden Christian (one who is completely complacent) or
- a Christ follower who's walk has plateaued

IS BEING ADVANCED UPON!!!

Imagine if a physical enemy had their opponent convinced they were not in a war. They would be able to walk right in to town un-detected and take over! The enemy would love nothing less than to have their enemy have a bunch of people who did not know that they were in the middle of a battle.

There are people all around us who are being slain and we are not even paying attention!?!

Yet, We have the advantage of knowing the outcome! We KNOW that our Father wins!

So lets make every action count! Lets take every opportunity to inflict damage on our enemy by showing and proclaiming the love of Jesus Christ with boldness! Lets stop hiding behind the barracks of our four church walls and take the fight to the enemy! Lets band together as a body, a literal 'Band of Brothers' and stake our Fathers flag in our streets, our neighborhoods, our region, our nation, our WORLD! Why are we hunkered down and on the defensive? Lets get out there and start inflicting some mortal wounds on our enemy by passionately proclaiming the name of the one true God, by reviving past brothers, and by saving the lost!


Will YOU join me?

If you are with me let me know! What else can we do to damage the enemy?

Welcome to my blog

Hello and welcome to my blog. My name is Jeremy Wight. In this post I will try and explain my intentions for this blog, and what to expect.

I believe that technology, if applied correctly, has the potential to unify us in ways that up until recently could not have even been fathomable. For example, with one quick message I can communicate with ALL of my friends and family all over the world. I have the opportunity to be mentored by the likes of John Maxwell, Michael Hyatt, etc. people that in no other circumstances would have the time to be personally mentoring me. In turn, I have the incredible opportunity to mentor others all over the world. Crazy to think about!!!

I believe I have something to give that is of value to others. I want to be as effective as possible at delivering that value, and I believe that this is one tool that will help me to accomplish that goal.

So what is it that you have to give? I'm glad you asked :)

- Insights that God has revealed to me through His Holy Spirit
- Devotionals
- Leadership Guidance

The above items will be the 'meat' of my posts. I will also spend time updating you on what God is doing in my life. God desires us to encourage one another. I hope and pray that God will use me to encourage you to: seek to KNOW the God of the Universe more and more, experience His CRAZY Love, and last but definitely not least, share the same with others.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this post and please connect with me via Twitter, FaceBook and your Blog. I truly want to build a relationship with those I come into contact with.

Blessings!

Jeremy Wight