thoughts by Bradley Andrew Stubs Archives

Published February 8, 2022

Trust Your Coach

When faced with decisions, we can only see how that choice will affect us right now. God Sees the whole big picture.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” – Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV

It’s a tied game in the fourth quarter as time ticks away. The quarterback looks out at the defense as both teams line up for what will be the most important play of the game. At first glance, the quarterback sees the defense backed off and assumes they will play coverage, so he calls a run play up the middle with a smile on his face, thinking about how their team is about to win the game. However, right before he snaps the ball, the coach on the sidelines gets word in his headset from the coach in the press box to change the play, Frantically, he yells out at the quarterback to do a play action play instead and throw the ball down the field.

The quarterback ignores this command as he believes his coach must not have seen what he is seeing. He snaps the ball, and suddenly realizes the linebacker he assumed was going to play coverage is now blitzing full speed right towards him. Seeing there is no one in the backfield to protect him, he tries to scramble but ends up with a face-mask full of turf. Ultimately, the drive that looked so promising ends with defeat and regret.

What the quarterback did not realize was that the coach in the press box, sitting high above the stadium, saw the opposing coach call out a blitz to the linebacker. The quarterback could not see this because he was looking straight ahead and had very limited vision of the field. The coach in the press box, however, could see the whole picture.

This same concept is true in our everyday lives. When faced with decisions, we can only see how that choice will affect us right now. We don’t know how our decisions will affect us in two months and much less two years from now. We see that attractive girl or guy that is funny and easy to talk to and decide in our minds they would be excellent to date. We see that party or event as a great night to have fun and something all our friends are doing. We see that getting high will give us a rush right now and we want that feeling. Meanwhile, our coach is yelling at us to call an audible and to get out of that relationship or avoid that situation all together.

In our limited vision, we think we know best, and God is just trying to hold us back from having fun and enjoying life. We ignore His commands and date who we want and do whatever feels good to us in the moment. What we fail to see is that the “perfect” guy or girl will end up cheating on us in a month and leave us heartbroken and full of regret from the mistakes we made with them. At that party, we we’ll have a great time, until we get drunk and do some things that we can’t take back. After getting high, we’ll decide to grab something to eat and while driving to the diner will hit another student walking across the street. We will then face jail time and that person will be on a long road to recovery.

See, God could see the whole picture. He is sitting in the “press box” over the field of our lives. He knows what the devil will call up next and when the blitzing linebacker will be sent. He warns us to avoid certain people and actions, not to hold us back, but to protects us and give us great success in the game of life. God can see the whole picture and knows how every action we do will affect us long term. So, next time when we think we know best, we need to stop and look up at our coach. Whatever He tells us do, even if it doesn’t make sense to us, we need to follow Him full-heatedly, knowing His call will always be for our good and His glory.

Jesus, I give you control of my life today. I admit that I am a sinner and can never truly win in life without you. I know you died on the cross for my sins and are alive today. I ask you to save me from my sins and be the LORD of my life from this day forward. I will trust your calls for my life going forward. Amen!

By Bradley Stubbs
Used by Permission

Take Out Your Thought Trash

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

I struggle with intrusive thoughts on a daily basis. I could be walking outside of my home enjoying the fresh air when suddenly, BAM! An intrusive thought flies into my brain. Instantly, my mind is shaken from the peaceful state it was in and thrown into a full blown panic. I question if this thought is really true about me or if this thought means something about who I am as a person. For a while I would try to ignore the thoughts that flooded my brain and let the questions I had about them float around in my brain. I thought that the more I ignored and avoided the questions, they would naturally go away.

This, however, was not the case. The more I tried not to think about them, the more I thought about them. The more I tried to push the questions away, the more I kept pondering about them. Then, God laid this thought upon my heart:I need to stop putting these intrusive thoughts into the garbage can of my brain and take the trash completely out. Let me explain.

When you have some garbage in your house that stinks, you can’t expect to throw it in your kitchen trash can and never expect to smell it again. This may temporarily take care of the problem, but over time the smell will return and be even worse than what it was originally. The only way to completely get rid of that trash is to bag it up, take it outside, and toss it in the dumpster outside of your home.

The same rule applies to our thought life. The devil will always seek to pull us away from God by putting thoughts in our mind that are contrary to who we are. When we begin to think that we are unworthy and when our thoughts contradict our beliefs, it is only until we take time to deal with them that we find freedom. So, how do we remove these thoughts?

First, we need to stop and examine the thought. If that thought does not align with what God’s Word says is true, we need to ask him to help us bag it up. If the thought contradicts God’s Word, we have to assure ourselves that it is not an indicator of who we are or what we do We are defined by who God says we are. You are fearfully and wonderfully made and God sees your heart (Psalm 139:13). He knows who you truly are despite what the devil tries to tell you. No matter what flows into your brain, your thoughts do not have power over you; the one who is in your heart does. Second, we need to spray some “air freshener” in our minds to rid it of any lingering smells by spending time in prayer and in God’s Word. We need to invite God to restore our confidence in who he is, what he says about who we are in Christ, to help us move forward and continue to experience his joy. When we spend time in God’s Word each day soaking up the truths about who we are in Christ, we are able to focus on the truth.

Lastly, to rid our minds of any lingering smells from those thoughts is to talk to someone else about them. Share your struggles with a trusted Christian friend, pastor, therapist, or mentor. When you have others who can listen, pour truth into you, and pray for you, that gives you the motivation and encouragement to move on from those thoughts and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, live the life God has for you.

Heavenly Father, you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Everything you do is marvellously breathtaking. My soul knows it very well. How thoroughly you know me, Lord! My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, carefully, skilfully you shaped me from nothing to something. You saw who you created me to be before I became me. Before I’d ever seen the light of day, the number of days you planned for me were already recorded in your book. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. When I awake each morning, you’re still with me. Guard my mind and heart today, Father. In Jesus’ name. Amen. (Based off of Psalm 139:13-18)

By Bradley Stubbs
Used by Permission

How Does Your Life Smell?

So, how do we put off an aroma that is pleasing to God and others in our life?

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Romans 12:1

Nothing attracts or turns people away from someone or something more than smells. Think about how people are drawn to good smelling aromas coming from restaurants and then think about how people are reluctant to go into shops with a bad odour. All throughout the Bible, we are called to give a pleasing aroma to the LORD. This is an interesting concept, but, one we need to understand and seek after. When our lives “smell good”, it implies that we are living in a way that is attractive to God, and through this we begin to feel and embrace His presence near to us. We, likewise, draw others in with this unusual aroma not given off by the world with a chance of pointing them to Jesus. So, how do we put off an aroma that is pleasing to God and others in our life?

It means we become the living sacrifice the Bible calls us to be by submitting our time, talents, and ultimately our lives to Jesus. We become true followers of Jesus, not just church goers or Christian look alikes. We go all in and pursue Jesus with our whole hearts, minds, and bodies. We spend time in prayer, personal devotion, and serve the body of Christ to the fullest. When we do this, we naturally begin to put off love, joy, peace, forgiveness, and compassion to the world around us. This is a pleasing aroma to all people, believer or not, and something that will naturally draw people in. Even more so, this is a pleasing aroma to God. When we put off this aroma to the world around us, people will desire for their lives to “smell’ like this also and hopefully begin to crave the One whom ignites this aroma within us.

By Bradley Andrew Stubbs
Used by Permission

Fighting Our Rescue Swimmer

“Stretch out your hand from on high; rescue me and deliver me from the many waters, from the hand of foreigners,” Psalms 144:7

One of my all-time favorite movies is The Guardian. The whole movie follows a class of recruits on their journey into the United States Coast Guard. They met their instructor early on in the movie and are in for quite a treat. The instructor of the class was a famous rescue swimmer himself. His main role as a rescue swimmer was to dive into rough waters and save those drowning in the ocean or stuck on a sinking ship. This is an incredibly dangerous job, even life threatening. He would have to walk through fires, move barriers, and dive deep into the ocean to save people. One thing he told the recruits early on was that if you want to be in the United States Coast Guard you have to be willing to save people who do not want to be saved. Whether that person wants to be saved or not, their job was to do everything in their power to save them.

In real life, when rescue swimmers attempt to save people stranded in the ocean, many of those needing rescued fight with the rescuers, push them under the water, or refuse to move. We may think to ourselves how could this ever happen? Why would these people not want to be saved? I think there are several reasons for this. People are scared, they feel like no one can save them, they feel like they are better off not being saved, or they are too prideful to allow someone else to help them.

The sad reality is that people do not respond like this in only their physical lives, but they also respond this way in their spiritual lives. By ourselves, we are sinful, broken, and hopeless. People have tried for centuries to fix their own lives only to discover that they more they try to fix their lives, the more broken they become. We need someone to rescue us. We need a Savior.

The great news is that we have the perfect Savior. The God of the universe sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to come into this world and save us from our sins. He lived a perfect life, died on the cross for us, and rose again three days later. He is alive today, reaching out His hand for us to grab onto. All we have to do is let go of ours sins, fears, and pride. We turn to Him and ask Him to save us. When we do this, His mighty hand restores our brokenness, and one day He promises to bring us to eternal safety and peace in Heaven, away from the rough and dangerous waters of this world.

The sad news, however, is many people will never grab hold of His outstretched hand. No matter how deep the waters become around them, they will refuse to be saved. They may refuse this because of fear, pride, or doubt. They believe they are not worthy to be saved or they still believe the lie that that can fix all their problems on their own. When the storm ends for these people, instead of arriving in a perfect, peaceful place, a new storm in their lives will begin.

The truth, however, is that if you are still living, the Savior’s hand is still outstretched for you. No matter how many times you have pushed Him away, ignored Him, and tried to handle things on your own, He is still swimming after you. All you have to do is let go and let the Savior of the world rescue you and save you from all your sins. As soon as you give your life to Him, a new life in you will begin. The Savior has arrived, now it is your turn to allow yourself to be saved.

By Bradley Andrew Stubbs
Used by Permission

Are you willing to let the Savior rescue you? Why don’t you ask Him to come into your life today, thank Him for forgiving your sins and ask Him to direct your life from this day forward. The following is a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

The rescue starts now

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God’s Beauty All Around Us

Published April 7, 2021

God’s Beauty All Around Us

“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth.” Psalm 50:2

As I was driving into work, I noticed these beautiful white trees on my way. I stopped for a minute and marveled at God’s goodness and beauty. What struck me, however, is that I have been working at this place for almost 2 years and have never noticed these trees. Most days I am focused on getting to work, the many tasks I have to complete that day, and all the craziness happening in my life that I ignored all of God’s beauty and goodness around me.

I wonder how often in our lives that we miss God’s goodness, beauty, and blessings around us because our focus is inward. We are so worried about what we “need” to do that we miss what God has done and is doing for us. We are more concerned about what is happening politically, economically, or on social media than what is going on in our own hearts. We begin to blame God for all the evil in the world and for abandoning us when in reality we are the ones that have left God in exchange for our inwardly focused lives.

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

God’s presence is all around us.

God earnestly wants to help us and guide us. His plan is to prosper us and give us hope and a future even in the midst of a pandemic, but we have to look to Him. We have to fully surrender our busy lives to Him, stop trying to handle everything on our own, and rest in His presence. Take a moment today to see God’s goodness and beauty around you and surrender control of the things that were never in your control in the first place. We need to pray, “LORD, here I am, use me,” and ask the Holy Spirit to give us strength to walk in the way that the LORD commands us to even when that way is away from the way we were walking.

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

By Bradley Stubbs
Used by Permission

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You Cannot Snow Blow Away Your Issues

Published March 10, 2021

You Cannot Snow Blow Away Your Issues

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Living in Tennessee, we usually do not expect to have a lot of snow in the winter. Sure, temperatures will get below freezing for a few days, but a big snowfall is, most times, out of the picture. This year, unexpectedly, a large winter storm covered multiple southern states. In just a few days, we now have snow everywhere. Walking outside, you cannot tell what was the street from the sidewalk or yard. Everything in sight seems to be turned to white. While this is a beautiful sight, it is pretty funny to see everyone going out to their cars to try and get the snow off before it piles up too high.

The reason this is so funny is because people have tried all kinds of tactics to get the snow off the windshields of their cars, but to many of their surprises, no matter how hard they tried to blow the show off or push it off, their windshields were still covered. See, what most people likely did not realize was that under all the snow was a thick sheet of ice. They could snow blow the snow off their cars all day long, but that ice underneath was not going to budge. This meant that their windshields would still be covered. It was only when people started attacking the ice first with the scrapper that visions of the windshields would start to come into focus. Because the ice was so thick, it would take quite some effort to scrap that ice off the windshield and it took some dedication.

Thinking back on this, the Lord taught me a valuable lesson. Many times, in our lives today, when we are struggling with something, we want a quick fix solution. We try and snow blow off our issues by taking some medication, reading some books, or just getting some extra sleep. Although these things are effective at helping the side effects of what we are struggling with, the root problem is still there. The ice will not budge.

The only way to break the ice and truly be set free from our sins and issues is to give them to Jesus and to ask Him to break the ice in our life.

This is not always a quick fix and may involve a good deal of scrapping. Jesus will dig down into root of our issue/sin which may be scary and take time to understand and handle. He will convict us of what we truly need to change in our lives and then lead us to the truth. This process of scrapping out the ice in our lives is not always fun or easy, but in the end, we are set free from our sins and our issues. Jesus restores our vision and guides us on the path to victory. We are able to move on from the ice holding us down and walk into the warm light of His grace and truth. Allow Jesus to scrap the ice out of your life today and be set free once and for all from the sins and issues you are struggling with.

By Bradley Andrew Stubbs
Used by Permission

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thoughts by Bradley Andrew Stubs

Trust Your Coach

When faced with decisions, we can only see how that choice will affect us right now. God Sees the whole big picture.

Further Reading

Take Out Your Thought Trash

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

Further Reading

How Does Your Life Smell?

So, how do we put off an aroma that is pleasing to God and others in our life?

Further Reading

Fighting Our Rescue Swimmer

FURTHER READING

Follow Us On:

God’s Beauty All Around Us

God’s presence is all around us.

FURTHER READING

Follow Us On:

You Cannot Snow Blow Away Your Issues

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

The only way to break the ice and truly be set free from our sins and issues is to give them to Jesus and to ask Him to break the ice in our life.

FURTHER READING

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Category: <span>thoughts by Bradley Andrew Stubs</span>

When faced with decisions, we can only see how that choice will affect us right now. God Sees the whole big picture.

Further Reading

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24

Further Reading

So, how do we put off an aroma that is pleasing to God and others in our life?

Further Reading

FURTHER READING

Follow Us On:

God’s presence is all around us.

FURTHER READING

Follow Us On:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

The only way to break the ice and truly be set free from our sins and issues is to give them to Jesus and to ask Him to break the ice in our life.

FURTHER READING

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