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Be MERRY in a MAD Season

Glory glory to the newborn King, right!?! …or should I be worried about maxing out my credit cards on the season’s best sales to look stylish and immerse myself in the best entertainment to drown out my life’s problems?  No! This season is not about us.  When we make it so we risk becoming our own Grinches.   But the funny thing is when we look to Him He gives back to us.  Your Heavenly Father will provide ALL your needs if you seek His business first! (Matthew 6:33) But this doesn’t just include God’s gifts to you.  Whether it’s drama in your life or world problems like police brutality, natural disasters, information hacking, or war, the Lord will cover you!  If you’re a child of God YOU DEFEAT THE ENEMY because Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world! (1 John 4:4)  . Christmas is a time is when we unite to celebrate the birth of our Savior who came into the world with a Sword to give YOU victory!  God’s love for you was so great He sent His only Son so you can believe again as well as see true joy in this season and every other! There’s nothing wrong with getting gifts, good food, and family.  But know that the only true way to be Merry is through Jesus Christ, the reason for the season.  And know this: even if you don’t have the presents, snacks, and fellowship, if you’ve accepted Jesus Christ you’ll have everything you can ever need because He’s the source of our well being.  …and if you ask Him for anything... read more

FEAR – False Evidence Appearing Real

I heard the word “FEAR” defined by a pastor friend I know as “False Evidence Appearing Real.”  If you think about it, there’s much truth to that. Isn’t that what horror is all about?  Who’s in the closet?  What’s under my bed?  Will I survive?  Will I ever find true love?  All topics people fear have to do with things that either have not yet happened and/or will never happen. Fear is a tool of the enemy.  God didn’t give it to you.  He gave you power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). How can you deal with fear?  The Love Sword is the answer.  “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear…” (1 John 4:18).  If you don’t want to deal with fear anymore you need to know God.  God is love (1 John 4:8). If there is something you fear, give it to God through prayer and intercession.  God will give you actionable steps to resolve the problem, and sometimes He will want you to trust Him to deal with it for you.  …and trust me, He’s BIG enough to handle it!  😉 Have questions on how to deal the death blow to fear in your own life?  Got prayer needs?  Follow us on Twitter @SwordSharpGames, Like us on Facebook, and email us at connect@swordsharp.com! Go forth and slay fear... read more

Christian Games – Will they ever be good?

Ever here a Christian say, “I’VE GOT A GREAT IDEA!!!  I bet a game about DAVID slaying GOLIATH will have all the churches TURN’T UP!!!” …or if it wasn’t that it was some other Bible game designed to educate kids on moral principles.  While there may be a place and audience for it, don’t be surprised if your idea doesn’t take off any further than your church pews. Many Christian game companies of the past have struggled because they missed the mark in target audience, authenticity, quality, or (the biggest one) fun.  We have no need to call out any specific games here because the web has already done a good enough job ridiculing the work of Christian game developers. We here at SwordSharp.com believe that a great game has to first be just that, a great game.  The design must be good, the polish must be present, and the power must be evident.  If you try to design a game with a few church guys with no proven *game* development experience then, unless the Holy Spirit is designing the game for you your product will likely be as authentic as a suburban actor in a thug movie. The team has to have the talent and experience to deliver a quality product.  The game needs to be demo’d and tested by your target audience.  Collect feedback and *don’t twist it to support your initial theories*.  If you’re going down the wrong direction, stop and change before you get too far down the wrong path.  Also, don’t feel like your idea *has* to be confined to the stories in the Bible.  It’s ok to do something... read more

Is the enemy bothering you?

Sometime we go through life and we just feel like…UGH!!!!  Why am I always getting attacked!!!???!!!  When a devil is attacking you there’s three things you can do… 1, Cry 2, Give in 3, Use your Sword and fight! 1 and 2 are so easy to do because it can be tiresome to keep fighting.  And sometimes we hesitate to fight because it can be scary to do so.  We’re not always positive we’ll win.  It’s better to not fight than to try and possibly lose, right?WRONG.  Why?  Because when your Sword’s sharp you can’t lose! Keep these daggers under your sleeve: Jesus said, “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” – Luke 10:19 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. – James 4:7 Jesus also said, “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” – Mark 11:23 Remember, two can’t walk together unless they’re in agreement (Amos 3:3).  So make sure you’re not agreeing with evil in any way through a sinful lifestyle, unforgiveness, or anything else not of God.  Then, as long as you’re in Christ, evil has no right to take over your life!  So FIGHT.  One slice of the sword will OVERKILL the enemy.  And even if it takes you a few times, know... read more

#Ferguson – Fight or Flight?

What should an officer do when he confronts a young man that looks and acts just like other violent criminals that have committed many unthinkable acts in the past? What should a young man do, who’s been cornered by law enforcement, knowing that these encounters have historically ended in shame and harm for most of the people he knows? Should the officer take it easy on him, tucking away the gun and calmly try to talk to a young man too defensive to listen?  Or should the officer pull out the weapon, ready to pull the trigger in case the youngster goes ballistic before trying to escape? Should the young man try to run away, hoping to avoid another unjust beating or framing?  Or should he just unleash all of his emotions on the officers, not caring about the outcome because it doesn’t matter how he acts, he’s going to get brutalized anyway? When you’re faced with great opposition, do you fight it, or run away? We know a young man with his hands up was gunned down by the police recently in Ferguson, Missouri.  Now tension has risen around the United States among both police and citizens, particularly those of color.  This means more people are more likely to be more aggressive toward officers, or are more likely to stay as far away from them as they can.  Cops, aware of the increased hostility, are more likely to stay away from troubled areas where they may be targeted, or they will use force to avoid harm (as you can see from the tear gas and flash grenades).  WHAT’S THE CAUSE?  …Fear. If people, citizens... read more

Incomplete Obedience

Sometimes we know God tells us we should do something but we don’t do it because we don’t have all of the information or we don’t understand everything. In John 9 Jesus anointed the eyes of the blind man and told him to literally go the place Sent.  He didn’t first tell him why.  All he did was give him instructions. The blind man may have asked himself, “why should I do what this random dude said?”  He may have humbly gone expeditiously.  We don’t know.  But we do know that he took his simple instruction from God, obediently went, and literally *saw* a miracle as a result. We don’t always understand why God does what He does, and that’s ok.  But when we get those moments of knowing what He did say, even if it’s not a lot of information, even if we don’t get it, we should always listen to Him. His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are above our thoughts, but He will always work things for good to them that love Him. One sunny day while walking I asked God, “which way should I go?”  I felt like He led me left.  A few moments later I felt like He led me to go back right.  This happened a few more times turning back and forth.  I asked myself, “Am I hearing from God or am I just tricking myself to walk in circles?”  The final times I was tempted to stop questioning my direction and just walk where I wanted to go but before I stopped I, with perfect timing, ran... read more

Keep Your Swords Sharp

Sick of life’s downs pushing you around?  Tired of being depressed?  Feel like your best is not good enough?  Sounds like you have giants that need to be slain. Pills might mitigate depression and disease while food and entertainment can help you forget about it.  But what you *really* need is a Sword… For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. –Hebrews 4:12 It’s no joke.  The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) and you MUST PACK A BLADE if you want to truly win life’s spiritual battles like depression and anxiety. How do you stay sharp with the Word?  Find scriptures that deal with your issues, read what God has to say about it, declare His truths and victory over your life, and keep doing it until the problem disappears. When people rely on the Sword, sometimes they are cured instantly.  Sometimes it takes a little while.  But we can truly testify that 100% of the time God shows up! Sure, doubts may sometimes creep in, but it’s your job to cut those thoughts down too!  You must trust that the All Powerful God, Who created the universe, who gave His Son to die on the cross and rise again for your sins, loves you WAY TOO MUCH to let you stay in a bad emotional place.  If God is for you, who can be against you? (Romans 8:31)... read more